How about some positivity?

[champs99and04]

Look, if you wanted to see a well-oiled machine tonight, you probably should have held out for the San Antonio/Oklahoma City game. We all knew this team was going to be a work in progress, and that's putting it nicely. Obviously they are, and will continue to be, defensively challenged. Napier, Boatright, and Calhoun will struggle to stay in front of quick, stronger guards, Nolan and Olander will be non-entities in terms of protecting the rim, and in all liklihood, this team will yield the highest opposing field goal percentage in quite some time.

Put simply, this team just does not have the personal to come close to resembling a stingy defensive unit, so it shouldn't come as a surprise that we gave up several easy looks to even an AIC team.

Offensively is the area we can present the opposition with some headaches. Now, I didn't see the game tonight, but from following along online, it appeared that we saw some flashes of potential. As I've stated previously, it's hugely advantageous to have three guards capable of handling the ball, slashing into the lane, and kicking the ball out to open teammates, especially when there are capable shooters surrounding them in Giffey, Tolksdorf, Daniels, and Olander. From the looks of it, we created a lot of offensive looks, and I stay true to my belief that offensively, this group will be better than last year.

The biggest take away from tonights game is Omar Calhoun. You watch these exhibition games with the understanding that the team is going to be a far cry from a cohesive offensive unit. One thing you can learn something about, however, is the freshman. Now, as I said, I didn't watch the game, but the fact that Omar Calhoun plays with such confidence - putting in 24 points - is an excellent sign.

Anybody looking to draw conclusions about Napier is grasping at straws. We know what we're getting from Shabazz - obviously he's going to be a bit limited trying to recover from his injury. Ideally, you'd like to see more from Daniels. Thankfully, we seem to have another viable small forward coming off the bench in Giffey, so in most scenarios, we should at least have one small forward playing well.

We more or less know what we're getting from Olander - he's the one big man who will be able to hold his own against strong competition, and thrive against lesser competition. He'll be a little bit better than he was last season, basically.

Obviously this team has a lot of work to do over the next seven days if they want to compete with Michigan State a week from tomorrow. A lot of it will depend on Napier's health, and whether Nolan can provide anything inside. If not, we'll have a lot of trouble, and might even get blown out. But that's to be expected - you don't lose a Hall of Fame coach, two lottery picks, and two more key contributors and think you're going to come storming out of the gate.

I would have signed up for a 15 point win before the game. Consider this a small step forward for Ollie.

 

[aceboon]

I'm not understanding your comment on why we shouldn't expect good defense out of Boat/Bazz/Calhoun, they have the physical tools to stay in front of guards, we saw it from Bazz for most of his freshman year. I'll give Bazz a pass for the early goings as he just got cleared to go full out but all of them should be better as the season goes along.

 

[Huskies4ever]

I'm not understanding your comment on why we shouldn't expect good defense out of Boat/Bazz/Calhoun, they have the physical tools to stay in front of guards, we saw it from Bazz for most of his freshman year. I'll give Bazz a pass for the early goings as he just got cleared to go full out but all of them should be better as the season goes along.

That was the only part a disagreed with from champs99and04's post. The guards can be pesky, and should be able to force turnovers, generating offense. Otherwise, very well stated.

 

[61cygni]

Our front court is not going to command a ton of defensive attention, so we need Calhoun, Daniels, and Giffey to be able to spread the floor and give space to Bazz/Boat to drive and create. Otherwise, a clogged half court is going to end up in the offense we saw last year.

Fortunately, we know that Giffey moves well without the ball, and if this game is any indicator so can Omar. They both can be G/Fs that can provide good targets heading to the rim or spotting up.

It was also great to see a veteran player like Evans flying around like a wrecking ball, like his style!

 

[Huskies4ever]

Our front court is not going to command a ton of defensive attention, so we need Calhoun, Daniels, and Giffey to be able to spread the floor and give space to Bazz/Boat to drive and create. Otherwise, a clogged half court is going to end up in the offense we saw last year.

Fortunately, we know that Giffey moves well without the ball, and if this game is any indicator so can Omar. They both can be G/Fs that can provide good targets heading to the rim or spotting up.

Loved watching Giffey today. With less talent then last year, we are going to need the extra effort plays more then ever.

 

[huskiesNhoos]

The negatives: bazz/boat really gambled for steals a lot on D, Nolan can't make a layup, daniels still has no handle

The Positives: RJ evans looks like a real solid guard out there that's ready to play BE bball, Omar has a quick release and was aggressive to the basket, Olander looked good as an interior passer and even had a decent jumper from 10-12 feet, Giffey looks dependable like last year with some more confidence, boat and bazz can still score in bunches

Tolksdorf and Nolan definitely look like they're a season away from really contributing, but they both showed flashes of good play. Not that it's any news to anyone but this team is going to get murdered inside against a big team like MSU and NC state (Howell is going to be a nightmare). It's up to our backcourt to control the pace and really harass the perimeter to try and keep the bull from getting fed into the post too much. Collapsing on the other team's bigs might be the way to go too especially against a team like Louisville that doesn't shoot it especially well from outside (lessening the threat of kicking it back out for a 3).

All in all it'll be a loooong season. I'd be excited to see this team win 15 games, but I think it's a reasonable goal and the guys will definitely get a lot of experience. Excited to see what Ollie can do with them!

 

[champs99and04]

I'm not understanding your comment on why we shouldn't expect good defense out of Boat/Bazz/Calhoun, they have the physical tools to stay in front of guards, we saw it from Bazz for most of his freshman year. I'll give Bazz a pass for the early goings as he just got cleared to go full out but all of them should be better as the season goes along.

I'm not excusing any bad defense from the guards, especially against a D-2 opponent. My point was defense will be a season-long problem, and even a school like AIC can pose some problems on that end of the court. Against the majority of opponents our lack of size in the backcourt won't hurt us, but teams like Syracuse will be real tough guards, as they can throw tall guards
like Michael Carter-Williams and Brandon Triche against our two sub-six feet PG's.

 

[aceboon]

Our front court is not going to command a ton of defensive attention, so we need Calhoun, Daniels, and Giffey to be able to spread the floor and give space to Bazz/Boat to drive and create. Otherwise, a clogged half court is going to end up in the offense we saw last year.

Fortunately, we know that Giffey moves well without the ball, and if this game is any indicator so can Omar. They both can be G/Fs that can provide good targets heading to the rim or spotting up.

It was also great to see a veteran player like Evans flying around like a wrecking ball, like his style!

I liked Olander in the high post able to survey things, not sure how it will translate against bigger/better frontlines but he has the passing ability and IQ to excel there. I much prefer him passing to cutting guards/wings instead of dumping it into the post like last year.

 

[Scot-e]

We have the weakest front court in years- why? Because our best front court players transferred.
I thought we had a good second half and there were several things we can build on moving forward. We are going to have to score a lot of points- Bazz, Boat and OC can certainly do that. Not a great game but a great improvement from the first half to the second.

 

[UCHuskies08]

I like the plays Olander made out of the post. Calhoun looks like a natural scorer. RJ Evans will be seeing a lot of time because he's got some good size and is a 'steady vet' type. I liked what I saw out of Giffey down low, got some nice rebounds and was mixing it up.

If Ollie gets good results out of this team, he'll have done a very good coaching job. I think it's a good thing that the team performed much better after half time. That reflects well on the coaching staff.

 

[hungry husky]

Didn't see the game, but I was surprised to hear how average the defense played. Their point guard had 10 assists, which is a good indication that they were able to run their stuff. This team is going to need a little while to feel each other out, which is why we play these exhibition games. Hoping we'll be ready to go for next Friday.

 

[Huskies4ever]

I like the plays Olander made out of the post. Calhoun looks like a natural scorer. RJ Evans will be seeing a lot of time because he's got some good size and is a 'steady vet' type. I liked what I saw out of Giffey down low, got some nice rebounds and was mixing it up.

If Ollie gets good results out of this team, he'll have done a very good coaching job. I think it's a good thing that the team performed much better after half time. That reflects well on the coaching staff.

Seeing RJ Evans was impressive. He is a bull of a guard.

 

[UCweCONN]

The negatives: bazz/boat really gambled for steals a lot on D, Nolan can't make a layup, daniels still has no handle

The Positives: RJ evans looks like a real solid guard out there that's ready to play BE bball, Omar has a quick release and was aggressive to the basket, Olander looked good as an interior passer and even had a decent jumper from 10-12 feet, Giffey looks dependable like last year with some more confidence, boat and bazz can still score in bunches

Tolksdorf and Nolan definitely look like they're a season away from really contributing, but they both showed flashes of good play. Not that it's any news to anyone but this team is going to get murdered inside against a big team like MSU and NC state (Howell is going to be a nightmare). It's up to our backcourt to control the pace and really harass the perimeter to try and keep the bull from getting fed into the post too much. Collapsing on the other team's bigs might be the way to go too especially against a team like Louisville that doesn't shoot it especially well from outside (lessening the threat of kicking it back out for a 3).

All in all it'll be a loooong season. I'd be excited to see this team win 15 games, but I think it's a reasonable goal and the guys will definitely get a lot of experience. Excited to see what Ollie can do with them!

I hope you're wrong about the 15 wins part but I suspect you're right. 15 wins is not getting Ollie a contract extension. He'll need to overachieve and not merely meet low expectations if he's gonna stick around. I wish we had more depth so he could employ the old Tulane Green Wave style from some years back of running, running, pressing, pressing but this team is too thin, especially upfront.

 

[WlfdHusky]

I'm not understanding your comment on why we shouldn't expect good defense out of Boat/Bazz/Calhoun, they have the physical tools to stay in front of guards, we saw it from Bazz for most of his freshman year. I'll give Bazz a pass for the early goings as he just got cleared to go full out but all of them should be better as the season goes along.

I expect Boat to play better D. I think Bazz looked great freshman year, but Kemba was there with him. Freshman year Bazz could overplay because Kemba was playing even better D. This made Bazz look better than he really is on D. I would love to see Bazz play D this year as good as Kemba did his junior year once he is 100% and hope he improves as you do.

Regarding Calhoun as a freshman I expect big gaps in D from him. The difference this year is there isn't much of a stopper in the frontcourt to bail the guards out. Like you I hope the backcourt can stop and turn over other teams by start of conference play.

I am curious how the press will work out. Olander is our best big and he didn't seem to get down the floor too quickly tonight. If anyone breaks the first line of the press it will be EASY 2's.

 

[superjohn]

I could see Boatright and Bazz being pushed around a bit by stronger and taller guards but they should not get beat off the dribble, there aren't too many guards quicker than them.

 

[mauconnfan]

I hope you're wrong about the 15 wins part but I suspect you're right. 15 wins is not getting Ollie a contract extension. He'll need to overachieve and not merely meet low expectations if he's gonna stick around. I wish we had more depth so he could employ the old Tulane Green Wave style from some years back of running, running, pressing, pressing but this team is too thin, especially upfront.

Certainly disagree on the 15 wins and the contract assumption. Think 15 wins could potentially be "overachieving" with this squad and the schedule they will endure..........

 

[mauconnfan]

We have the weakest front court in years- why? Because our best front court players transferred.
I thought we had a good second half and there were several things we can build on moving forward. We are going to have to score a lot of points- Bazz, Boat and OC can certainly do that. Not a great game but a great improvement from the first half to the second.

Agreed we will miss Roscoe and work ethic, AD for sheer size. You put Tyler or AO in this particular lineup and there's no doubt TO is a better fit. He can catch, pass and shoot and they play similar defense. So while some are gone, the good news is these guys all have to get minutes and have the opportunity to grow.........but I agree we are weak in the interior on D.

 

[Marty Jackson]

 

[mauconnfan]

Gene sounded a lot like Bobby Knight in that clip........did the trick though!!

Love BK

 

[Waquoit]

This game was a horror show. But Emeka looked bad in his 1st game and improved quickly.

 

[ctchamps]

Agreed we will miss Roscoe and work ethic, AD for sheer size. You put Tyler or AO in this particular lineup and there's no doubt TO is a better fit. He can catch, pass and shoot and they play similar defense. So while some are gone, the good news is these guys all have to get minutes and have the opportunity to grow.........but I agree we are weak in the interior on D.

I agree. UConn gains with TO on the offensive end passing wise. AO was a liability in that regard. I really wish RS stayed. He was hard to watch on offense, but I would have loved to have him back for an inside presence on defense.

 

[DogMania]

Agreed we will miss Roscoe and work ethic, AD for sheer size. You put Tyler or AO in this particular lineup and there's no doubt TO is a better fit. He can catch, pass and shoot and they play similar defense. So while some are gone, the good news is these guys all have to get minutes and have the opportunity to grow.........but I agree we are weak in the interior on D.

As much as we could use a big body like AO, he was extremely disappointing last season. He and AD rarely boxed out and AO never developed much of an inside game. I keep on forgetting about Scoe. He'd be a welcomed returnee to play some 4, but that's not what he wanted.

Might sound strange, but I wish Bradley had returned. He'd be another big athletic body who I think had some upside. He just couldn't seem to stay healthy. He clearly got a tad bigger last season and I would have liked to see how he looked this fall after another spring and summer in the weight room. But nuttin' we can do about that now.

I just wish we had one or two more big bodies. Our front court is more than scary thin both in stature and in numbers. There are somethings you can over come or at least compensate for, but I just don't know how you can make up for a lack of size and numbers, especially when you play in the physical Big East. I go into most season a tad scared about how well our team as a whole will measure up physically, but this year looks darn right frightening!