Furman post-mortem

[Matrim55]

The Good:

This team shares the hell out of the ball (20 assists on 32 FG), and have multiple guys who can make plays off the dribble. Today it was Adams's turn, but we've obviously seen Hamilton and Gibbs do the same. Rodney can also make plays when the sea parts, and he did exactly that today.

Miller's ability to rise and finish once he establishes deep post position is exceptional. I'm not sure how well it will translate against better competition, because he doesn't have any actual moves - he just rises waaaaaay up and finishes.

SamIIAm and Enoch, our 10th and 11th guys, both gave good minutes and showed some necessary, specific skills. For Sam it was 3-point shooting and ball-movement; for Enoch it was rebounding and simply having good hands - you can zip him a pass underneath and he's gonna catch it. Kid is gonna be LEGIT next year.

The Bad:

The defense was not there today, save for the first 6-7 minutes. It was especially bad in the 2nd half when Furman shot nearly 50%.

Miller was caught napping a bunch, and plays way too flat-footed when coming out to hedge on the pick and roll. He got benched for it in the first half, and then in the second half. While our defense is clearly better this year than last (and Miller's a big part of that), we clearly have a long way to go.

The smallball lineup (tip of the cap to KO for trotting it out there to see how it works) got murdered on the glass, and gave up a ton of penetration. I think smallball with a true, rim-protecting 5 makes more sense than smallball with Hamilton at the 4 and one of the 4s (Miller or Facey) at the 5.

The Ugly:

Shooting. On the page the numbers really aren't that bad, but a lot of our jumpers were early & forced, and just a little bit out of rhythm. Gibbs in particular struggled.

Finishing at the rim. Amida, Kentan, DHam all had some WTF moments.

------------------

This really wasn't bad for our worst game of the season, but I think it truly was our worst game of the season. Good job by KO making adjustments in the second half, and good on Adams for taking the opportunities that presented themselves and punishing a weak team.

I remain convinced that the difference between us being a good team and a great team will be two things: Hamilton's progress as a shooter, and the team's progress as a defensive unit.

All the other pieces are in place.

 

[jibsey]

Hamilton sees the court like Magic. I do hope his shooting improves a bit, but selfishly I want him to stay next year. Maybe he still needs to work on something next summer.

 

[J-dog]

Hmmmm… While I agree with many of your points I think you were a little rough on them.

While they may have settled for a lot of 3's, they were pretty wide open looks all game long. They may have gotten a little complacent/bored at times in the second half but that's understandable.

Also thought they were pretty energetic on D with some lapses but not awful. Thought Furman's big guys had some ability to step out & shoot & this can be difficult to defend. Think they are still figuring things out with each other but you can see the potential.

 

[Matrim55]

While they may have settled for a lot of 3's, they were pretty wide open looks all game long.

For what it's worth I generally don't mind when we shoot a lot of 3s. I just thought that a lot of them today looked a half-beat out of rhythm because of either one too many, or one too few passes.

 

[mauconnfan]

The Good:

This team shares the hell out of the ball (20 assists on 32 FG), and have multiple guys who can make plays off the dribble. Today it was Adams's turn, but we've obviously seen Hamilton and Gibbs do the same. Rodney can also make plays when the sea parts, and he did exactly that today.
Miller's ability to rise and finish once he establishes deep post position is exceptional. I'm not sure how well it will translate against better competition, because he doesn't have any actual moves - he just rises waaaaaay up and finishes.
SamIIAm and Enoch, our 10th and 11th guys, both gave good minutes and showed some necessary, specific skills. For Sam it was 3-point shooting and ball-movement; for Enoch it was rebounding and simply having good hands - you can zip him a pass underneath and he's gonna catch it. Kid is gonna be LEGIT next year.
The Bad:
The defense was not there today, save for the first 6-7 minutes. It was especially bad in the 2nd half when Furman shot nearly 50%.
Miller was caught napping a bunch, and plays way too flat-footed when coming out to hedge on the pick and roll. He got benched for it in the first half, and then in the second half. While our defense is clearly better this year than last (and Miller's a big part of that), we clearly have a long way to go.
The smallball lineup (tip of the cap to KO for trotting it out there to see how it works) got murdered on the glass, and gave up a ton of penetration. I think smallball with a true, rim-protecting 5 makes more sense than smallball with Hamilton at the 4 and one of the 4s (Miller or Facey) at the 5.
The Ugly:
Shooting. On the page the numbers really aren't that bad, but a lot of our jumpers were early & forced, and just a little bit out of rhythm. Gibbs in particular struggled.
Finishing at the rim. Amida, Kentan, DHam all had some WTF moments.
This really wasn't bad for our worst game of the season, but I think it truly was our worst game of the season. Good job by KO making adjustments in the second half, and good on Adams for taking the opportunities that presented themselves and punishing a weak team.
I remain convinced that the difference between us being a good team and a great team will be two things: Hamilton's progress as a shooter, and the team's progress as a defensive unit.
All the other pieces are in place.

Good
Agree with much of this. 20/5 assist to TO's is sensational. They look to pass and have some very creative passers with DHam leading the way - impressed with Jalen and Rodney can now throw a dime or 2 here and there. Very nice. Too many 3's but even 11 of 30 opens things up although 30 is too many for this team I believe. Miller will be fine but will need to be more aggressive getting to the 3 point line on D and boxing out. No one was boxing out much although Steve E did when he came in. Jalen was under control yet aggressive when needed. Played the "point" very well doesn;t waste time getting to the next pass I like that he's always thinking way ahead. Steve E looked good out there, need his bulk eventually.
Bad
They need to box out and quit jumping to the ball, everyone got caught and didn't really change until late. Defense was okay but lacked passion getting to the 3. Need to get there with a hand in the face more. I like the small lineup a lot but they do need to rebound the ball better. If Facey could defend a bit better he could make it easier to play him with Shonn, which would be our best lineup. Phil looked lost out there today, stupid foul on the 3 when he was getting back, no reason.
Ugly
May get killed but AB thus far is the same guy. Besides the early block and the ahead of the field dunk where was he? He hedged on the interior on D which is a no-no and let his guy score. He missed a lay in which was awful, should have been a rim rattler and he never rebounds in traffic, never beats anyone to a spot on either end to get position to win the rebound. Say what you will, I was hoping he would have learned the game by now and there's time I guess, but for now he is what he is. The thinking of the game is not there on either end. Need him to be better. Good news from this, no way he gets even a sniff in the draft playing like this!

 

[Matrim55]

...and he never rebounds in traffic...

He grabbed 3 rebounds in traffic today, and he's been much better at getting the ball at its apex. Five rebounds in 21 minutes is not bad at all from him.

The rest of your post I almost completely agree with.

 

[David 76]

I thought our D lapsed to poor but we played a lot of good D. Can't have those lapses in Paradise

As far as AB, he had a weak day. I wouldn't make too much of it. His worst game so far.
Any real weaknesses will show themselves very soon.

But I'm just happy we have 6 guys that can score 15 to 20 points

 

[Stainmaster]

Although three of our better players (notice I didn't use "best" because I don't want to know how people would react to Brimah being seen as "one of our best") had subpar games by their standards, it's encouraging that the rest of the team was able to pick up the slack. We're coming off of a season where Terrence Samuel was in many games our top player coming off the bench - I'm glad that we now have backups who can come in, make shots and crash the boards when the first team isn't feeling it.

 

[OkaForPrez]

@mauconnfan sadly, have to agree at this point.

 

[J-dog]

Good
Ugly
May get killed but AB thus far is the same guy. Besides the early block and the ahead of the field dunk where was he? He hedged on the interior on D which is a no-no and let his guy score. He missed a lay in which was awful, should have been a rim rattler and he never rebounds in traffic, never beats anyone to a spot on either end to get position to win the rebound. Say what you will, I was hoping he would have learned the game by now and there's time I guess, but for now he is what he is. The thinking of the game is not there on either end. Need him to be better. Good news from this, no way he gets even a sniff in the draft playing like this!

Have to agree… Not looking to bash the kid & I know its only a few games but AB's game looks the same & this is against inferior competition. That will never play in the NBA...

 

[Edward Sargent]

I think they demonstrated defense in the first half and then took the foot of the gas pedal. Ehh it happens. 830 flight to Miami then on to Nassau. Got evry piece of UCONN gear I own in the bag. Happy Thanksgiving all.

 

[RichZ]

...he never rebounds in traffic...

He rebounded in traffic pretty well today, as far as I'm concerned. He did get bodied out of position a couple times, but leaning on him from the back side seemed to be part of the game plan. But at least two of his boards came with contact from a couple Furman Vermin, and another one, he freed himself from traffic to use his length to get a board that should have been out of his range.

 

[Gringo]

The Ugly:

Shooting. On the page the numbers really aren't that bad, but a lot of our jumpers were early & forced, and just a little bit out of rhythm. Gibbs in particular struggled.

If that was an ugly shooting day then we will go undefeated this season. True shooting percentage was 57.2%. That is pretty good. I'll take early forced jumpers and a quicker pace. Beats the Sh#t show the offense was last year.

 

[James]

i just want to point out brimahs rim protection had to be game planned for by the furman coach, as it will have to be against anybody. he changes the others teams strategy because of his absurd rim protection. some stuff you just don't see in the box score, especially against an over matched opponent. Brimah is extremely important in our next game vs michigan, he needs good minutes on the defensive end vs their shorter (6'8-6'9) front line. he is what he is at this point, i dont really see the purpose of posters going out of their way to claim he wont sniff the nba. Why not talk about how much nolan isn't close to being an nba player, or calhoun?

 

[Pudge]

Brimah is better as a rebounder. He just is. Body positioning. Footwork. Block out. He rebounded well in traffic today.

Offense? Without lobs or simple fluke luck, he's not much. Miller & Facey were good interior players.

I'm gritting my teeth when Calhoun & Cassell have the ball. Neither are complete players. Cassell seemed to have far more understanding today. And they are loved by their teammates. I think they're fighting to make a mark ... and that's good.

 

[JSM1970]

Brimah is awful, I fail to understand what people are seeing exactly. I think by conference play he'll see limited minutes and it will be Enooch/Phil or a smaller lineup.

Good
Agree with much of this. 20/5 assist to TO's is sensational. They look to pass and have some very creative passers with DHam leading the way - impressed with Jalen and Rodney can now throw a dime or 2 here and there. Very nice. Too many 3's but even 11 of 30 opens things up although 30 is too many for this team I believe. Miller will be fine but will need to be more aggressive getting to the 3 point line on D and boxing out. No one was boxing out much although Steve E did when he came in. Jalen was under control yet aggressive when needed. Played the "point" very well doesn;t waste time getting to the next pass I like that he's always thinking way ahead. Steve E looked good out there, need his bulk eventually.
Bad
They need to box out and quit jumping to the ball, everyone got caught and didn't really change until late. Defense was okay but lacked passion getting to the 3. Need to get there with a hand in the face more. I like the small lineup a lot but they do need to rebound the ball better. If Facey could defend a bit better he could make it easier to play him with Shonn, which would be our best lineup. Phil looked lost out there today, stupid foul on the 3 when he was getting back, no reason.
Ugly
May get killed but AB thus far is the same guy. Besides the early block and the ahead of the field dunk where was he? He hedged on the interior on D which is a no-no and let his guy score. He missed a lay in which was awful, should have been a rim rattler and he never rebounds in traffic, never beats anyone to a spot on either end to get position to win the rebound. Say what you will, I was hoping he would have learned the game by now and there's time I guess, but for now he is what he is. The thinking of the game is not there on either end. Need him to be better. Good news from this, no way he gets even a sniff in the draft playing like this!

 

[MexicoHusky]

Brimah runs the floor well. I'm not a big advocate for him, but he does that well. I think Brimah leaving early is sorta crazy.

 

[3rdbass]

Brimah runs the floor well. I'm not a big advocate for him, but he does that well. I think Brimah leaving early is sorta crazy.

Yeah he so limited offensively. Seems like he has regressed in that category. That turnaround jumper was just ugly. At least he has improved in his rebounding and holding his position. I just can't see him at the next level ever!

 

[Kitaman]

I think we still are trying to determine what we have. They could be playing to the competition, as if it were practice.

Well practice is over now, and we will all know what we have by next weekend. Better competition is coming. To have Gibbs and Miller on board lessens the concern. The experience they bring is invaluable. Its noticeable also that Jalen can play free coming off the bench. That is a luxury previously shared by Kemba and Bazz, so that in itself is exciting!

For those concerned about Brimah he just needs to be a rim protector on this team, and keep defenses honest by the lobs. Only 3 games but it does appear to be another year of collection of numbers at then 5. Meaning the sum of Nolan, Enoch and Brimah seems be our Center production (i.e. mini hydra), and not reliant on just Brimah. With that said our Center position should be more productive than last year's.

In defense of Brimah I can see him tiring a lot of big men by the speed in which he plays. He is always motoring, never lumbering. He's a joy to watch when in transition.

I see a true team so far, no ego issues or pouting going on . . . . . . . . . . . . yet. Very good sign (and coaching)!

 

[jibsey]

Brimah is a piece of the puzzle for us, not a superstar. Yeah we were all hoping he would become one what with his exceptional shotblocking but it didn't happen, no matter. He gives us something, and we have Phil and Facey to give something too, and with Miller the combo is plenty. Watching Enoch in garbage time gives me hope that we may have a talented big in the making. A nice dribble and touch shot looked as smooth as silk. So my question is does he get the time to develop his game this year? I'm guessing no. I almost hope for some foul trouble in a cupcake game so he can get some real PT. I guess it's defense that will get him his chance, but he sure is big enough.

 

[champs99and04]

Agree and disagree on a few items.

Agree:

- Miller has been less infallible defensively the last couple games. He's given up a couple buckets in iso's and blown a closeout here and there. Nothing too noteworthy but less than the teaching tape stuff he was submitting during the exhibitions and Maine games.

- The elevation on Miller's jumper is impressive. Agree w/ you that he might not be able to keep it up against better competition, but it bodes well for him developing as a guy who can make plays against the zone.

- Ball movement is worlds better than it was last year, and Purvis is a big reason why. That guy is so much more composed with the ball in his hands than he was last year. The competition obviously hasn't been great, but he has 12 assists through three games. Last year, he didn't record his 12th assist until January 13th.

- The defense was pretty bad at times. I'm not going to make much of it, though, for a couple reasons. One, we were up 25-7 before you could blink. As much as you would like to see them methodically mutate Furman possession by possession, human nature is a real thing and the intensity is inevitably going to wane when you're up 15+. The biggest difference between this year and last year - as far as the early season games go - is that this year, our defensive lapses are occurring after we've built a significant lead. That is much, much better than coming out flat (like you've seen from a couple other top teams) and speaks well to the matter of guys being ready to play.

Disagree:

- Another reason I'm not too concerned about the defense is because I thought Brimah's performance was way more passable/tolerable than you and Mau let on. Yeah, he hedged soft a lot and was sometimes late recovering back out, but I have to believe that's a product of scheme, and really, the only way those schemes are going to be exposed is if the opposition possesses multiple pick-and-pop big men. And believe me, I've been as critical of his footwork and positioning as anybody, but I'm going to wait before we play somebody to press the panic button. The three is undoubtedly imperative in todays game but most teams are not going to chuck them at the rate Furman did.

- Agree that the shooting was less than great, and agree there were a couple bad shots that disrupted the rhythm. Characterizing it as ugly is probably an overstatement, though, and given UNH and Furman pretty much allowed them to shoot at will...that's probably as subliminally complimentary you can be as a defense. Remember, this is a team that was built to beat man-to-man defense (there are about 3,000 words buried not too deep in the archives on this particular subject if you want to check it out). The fact that we have seen a couple defenses virtually concede open looks to us is pretty revealing of how hopeless our primary offense makes opposing coaches.

Overall, good, well-thought out post. You clearly know a lot about the game and express it well.

 

[jleves]

Brimah is a piece of the puzzle for us, not a superstar. Yeah we were all hoping he would become one what with his exceptional shotblocking but it didn't happen, no matter. He gives us something, and we have Phil and Facey to give something too, and with Miller the combo is plenty. Watching Enoch in garbage time gives me hope that we may have a talented big in the making. A nice dribble and touch shot looked as smooth as silk. So my question is does he get the time to develop his game this year? I'm guessing no. I almost hope for some foul trouble in a cupcake game so he can get some real PT. I guess it's defense that will get him his chance, but he sure is big enough.

How dare you have a reasonable take on Brimah instead of extreme angst because he isn't performing at an NBA level. You need to put down the keyboard and pick up the pitchfork.

 

[djct1999]

I am sorry, but finding negatives over these first three games is simply nitpicking. From the first minute vs Maine until the last second today, this team has simply dominated. In fact, I am overwhelmed with the positives I have seen. Like many have said over the past week or so, I haven't felt like this about a UConn team in quite some time. This is vintage UConn. Our backcourt is stacked and to think after today, that Adams just scratched the surface. He played amazing. Our depth is staggering. We can literally throw 9 guys at any team without really missing a beat. Our frontcourt, with the addition of Miller, the development of Facey, the experience of Nolan, and the shot blocking ability of Brimah is beyond serviceable and above average. This team has no weakness, this team can beat you in many different ways, and once some of the new guys learn the defensive rotations, it can defend with the best of them. Then there is our X factor, DHam. Good luck to any team that has an answer for him. After our first three games, I see nothing but positives!!!!!

 

[auror]

This really wasn't bad for our worst game of the season, but I think it truly was our worst game of the season.

Covered the spread by 6.5 and the KenPom by 9. I'll take it.

 

[Goat]

Some of the Brimah talk reminds me of Phil Michelson before his first major. If he gets a degree, sees the world playing hoops and returns to work in Connecticut where he will always be remembered, is that better than his life in Ghana before he was 'discovered?'