Hurley ponders his options to go double big

[BuffaloHusky]

I think they can play double bigs with two caveats

1) Donovan should be up high and Adama low replicating IW and AS last season

2) AJ can’t be on the floor even if his shot is dramatically improved.

That leaves 5-7 minutes stretches every few games to take advantage of this specific matchup.

 

[Conndog]

When we played Clemson in 1990, during the Tate George end of game miracle shot with Dale Ellis as their coach, they played 2 bigs , Dale Davis and Elden Campbell, aka the "Duo of Doom."

As I recall, they both played near the basket with one a center and the other a power forward, and they complemented each other well, but neither played on the perimeter.

Not saying Sanogo and Clingan can complement each other playing near the basket. Time will tell if this ever occurs.

I can’t remember how the Celtics in the 80s played Parrish and McHale- weren’t they both down low? NBA may not be a good comparison though.

 

[JohnFSilver]

Tom Moore made a good point about not allowing second shots and double Bigs start the fast break with a rebound/outlet. The game changes but fundamentals remain.

Meh. Coaches love double bugs until they actually play the lineup and see two things:

1. Inability to get out on shooters on the perimeter.

2. Clogging lane on offense .

I would like to see it, but skeptical you get a huge advantage out there. Not in modern game anyway.

 

[TheChamps990411]

Many of you aren't going to like this article. I can't see Hurley doing this much anyway.

“Coach talked about me and Donovan playing at the same time. I think it can be good,” Sanogo said. “I am definitely shooting this year. If my defender doesn’t come out, I’m shooting it because my shot is getting better.

“Donovan has stuff he still has to work on. He is a good player. He is going to be fine. He has potential. He has to work on defense. In the Big East, there are teams you have to be able to switch everything. Villanova and St. John’s don’t play with a big man, so you have to switch. I think he will be fine.”

“Donovan is such a skilled passer, even in the high post and key area, whether it is versus a zone or man-to-man that we are tinkering, especially with Andre’s injury, at playing more zone and trying to find a way to get them on the court together a little bit,” Hurley said. “Obviously, we really want to play Donovan.”

Hurley ponders his options to go double big

STORRS - The makeup of the UConn men's basketball team is such this season that coach Dan Hurley has some big decisions to make. By big, we're talking about the 6-foot-9 and 7-foot-2 type of big. Hurley has been saying since the middle of the summer that he's unsure what the starting lineup will

www.rep-am.com

I can't get any of the free article websites to work with the Waterbury Republican-American. But you can register with them for free and get 5 articles a week. I did that and it took 10 seconds.

Clingan is just huge. When he develops into what he can be the BE is in trouble. Will be CPOY before he leaves. Karaban is going to be far better than people think.

 

[Chief00]

Meh. Coaches love double bugs until they actually play the lineup and see two things:

1. Inability to get out on shooters on the perimeter.

2. Clogging lane on offense .

I would like to see it, but skeptical you get a huge advantage out there. Not in modern game anyway.

I never try to get caught up in the current fad, that inevitably changes to something else.
When you play the game you win because of certain advantages size/strength, speed, skill, better scheme or exploiting a match up.
This idea you need 4 guys standing on the 3 line, I don’t buy into.
Put guys in the position where they can do the most damage. A high low scheme with Adama and Donovan would devastate many teams, especially now that we have 3 three point guys to keep them us. Pick your poison. Double one Nig and a three guy will be open.

 

[Waquoit]

 

[B1GEast]

I brought this up shortly after Clingan committed. It makes sense to play him and Sanogo together. I think it's a good thing and has many advantages

 

[nelsonmuntz]

I think people have a gross misunderstanding of where high quality 3's come from. Putting 5 players around the perimeter just a few feet away from each other are easy to defend and the team usually ends up with low quality 3's. The highest percentage 3's come from inside-out passes because the defense is often facing the wrong way and the shooter is catching the ball facing the basket rather than having to turn and shoot. More inside-out passes equals a better shooting percentage from 3.

Furthermore, dominating the boards will result in easy putbacks and a high points per possession. Defenses will have to respond.

 

[Huskyforlife]

I think people have a gross misunderstanding of where high quality 3's come from. Putting 5 players around the perimeter just a few feet away from each other are easy to defend and the team usually ends up with low quality 3's. The highest percentage 3's come from inside-out passes because the defense is often facing the wrong way and the shooter is catching the ball facing the basket rather than having to turn and shoot. More inside-out passes equals a better shooting percentage from 3.

Furthermore, dominating the boards will result in easy putbacks and a high points per possession. Defenses will have to respond.

Not one person has suggested we play this way.

 

[UCFan1513]

I never try to get caught up in the current fad, that inevitably changes to something else.
When you play the game you win because of certain advantages size/strength, speed, skill, better scheme or exploiting a match up.
This idea you need 4 guys standing on the 3 line, I don’t buy into.
Put guys in the position where they can do the most damage. A high low scheme with Adama and Donovan would devastate many teams, especially now that we have 3 three point guys to keep them us. Pick your poison. Double one Nig and a three guy will be open.

 

[navery12]

Not one person has suggested we play this way.

It's his thing. He's spent the last four years arguing against made up scenarios of playing 5 out anytime someone suggests having shooting at the 4 is nice

 

[Huskyforlife]

It's his thing. He's spent the last four years arguing against made up scenarios of playing 5 out anytime someone suggests having shooting at the 4 is nice

The posts after Sanogos first 0-2 from 3 game will be iconic.

 

[nelsonmuntz]

It's his thing. He's spent the last four years arguing against made up scenarios of playing 5 out anytime someone suggests having shooting at the 4 is nice

You will get more 3's from your 4 by having him start inside.

 

[navery12]

You will get more 3's from your 4 by having him start inside.

No you won't, that's a beyond stupid take. You want to tell me he'll get better looks by the ball starting inside with Sanogo absolutely, but posting up 2 guys inside is not getting one of those guys more 3's. That's absurd even for you

 

[nelsonmuntz]

No you won't, that's a beyond stupid take. You want to tell me he'll get better looks by the ball starting inside with Sanogo absolutely, but posting up 2 guys inside is not getting one of those guys more 3's. That's absurd even for you

Did I say they should stand next to each other posting up? It is not surprising that you only think of offense as a bunch of 1-on-1 action rather than team basketball.

High post is a zone killer, and a lot of teams play zones to stop 3 pointers. Stretch 2-3 zones line up very well against the 5-out offenses you like so much, but those same stretch 2-3's have a huge hole at the high post. Get the ball to Sanogo a few times, have him school the center a couple of times, and the top of the zone will have to drop down or they will go man. Even in Man, they will have to help against Sanogo on the high post. Someone should be flashing weakside when Sanogo gets doubled, and it is easier for Sanogo to find a 7 footer rather than a swingman. Everyone on defense starts cheating in, and they have to close hard because they are covering a lot of ground on the kick out, Which means that when the 4 pops out to the corner or at the top of the arc, he will be WIDE OPEN.

Or we can play navery-offense and have them keep swinging the ball around the perimeter until the clock winds down and someone has to jack a prayer. Let's see where that gets us.

 

[auror]

Did I say they should stand next to each other posting up? It is not surprising that you only think of offense as a bunch of 1-on-1 action rather than team basketball.

High post is a zone killer, and a lot of teams play zones to stop 3 pointers. Stretch 2-3 zones line up very well against the 5-out offenses you like so much, but those same stretch 2-3's have a huge hole at the high post. Get the ball to Sanogo a few times, have him school the center a couple of times, and the top of the zone will have to drop down or they will go man. Even in Man, they will have to help against Sanogo on the high post. Someone should be flashing weakside when Sanogo gets doubled, and it is easier for Sanogo to find a 7 footer rather than a swingman. Everyone on defense starts cheating in, and they have to close hard because they are covering a lot of ground on the kick out, Which means that when the 4 pops out to the corner or at the top of the arc, he will be WIDE OPEN.

Or we can play navery-offense and have them keep swinging the ball around the perimeter until the clock winds down and someone has to jack a prayer. Let's see where that gets us.

This is pretty much all wrong or irrelevant (not a lot of teams play zones to stop 3 pointers, weird tangent about stretch 2-3 that nobody plays to stop 5-out offenses when Hurley said he wants to play 4-out and there's no evidence we're going to play 5-out, you want Sanogo to school the center from the high post but his game is almost entirely based on low post, why do they help against Sanogo in high post he can't really dribble and has no face up game, you can still flash weakside if you start in the corner behind the arc, everyone on defense cheating in is a good reason to have your guys on the arc, which is why they have to close hard because your guys are outside the arc, just because you have a team playing "4-out" doesn't mean there are no cuts to the basket or motion or off ball screens, Navery never suggested he wanted the offense to be entirely swung around the perimeter offense he even specifically mentioned getting the ball inside to Sanogo).

That all being said, this is a dumb argument. You're both saying the same thing. The offense should feature Sanogo and have him kick out to shooters, whether they start inside or outside doesn't really matter as long as we have off-ball movement or can get the ball consistently into Sanogo in favorable situations to force doubles and rotations. We should do both.

 

[Chief00]

If we are depending on 3’s to win from Adama or Donovan, we will be in trouble. Fortunately, that’s not the case.

These here who think, leading the nation in rebounding for nearly a decade has nothing to do with all of Calhoun’s winning ways, good luck! I can tell you first hand how important that was to him. He had the rebound drills to prove it too. LOL

Chief will go with an offensive Torture Chamber in the paint with a weak side rebounder to clean up any imperfections, then give me the 3 verified three point shooters, with at least one who can penetrate. That’s the way to go.

 

[Chief00]

Clingan is just huge. When he develops into what he can be the BE is in trouble. Will be CPOY before he leaves. Karaban is going to be far better than people think.

You did your homework.

 

[Chief00]

This is pretty much all wrong or irrelevant (not a lot of teams play zones to stop 3 pointers, weird tangent about stretch 2-3 that nobody plays to stop 5-out offenses when Hurley said he wants to play 4-out and there's no evidence we're going to play 5-out, you want Sanogo to school the center from the high post but his game is almost entirely based on low post, why do they help against Sanogo in high post he can't really dribble and has no face up game, you can still flash weakside if you start in the corner behind the arc, everyone on defense cheating in is a good reason to have your guys on the arc, which is why they have to close hard because your guys are outside the arc, just because you have a team playing "4-out" doesn't mean there are no cuts to the basket or motion or off ball screens, Navery never suggested he wanted the offense to be entirely swung around the perimeter offense he even specifically mentioned getting the ball inside to Sanogo).

That all being said, this is a dumb argument. You're both saying the same thing. The offense should feature Sanogo and have him kick out to shooters, whether they start inside or outside doesn't really matter as long as we have off-ball movement or can get the ball consistently into Sanogo in favorable situations to force doubles and rotations. We should do both.

I think what will surprise people this year, is that within 10-12 feet, Adama has develop some good dribble and spin moves this off season. He’s going to be a load to handle. We would be crazy not to exploit that.

 

[Chief00]

I think they can play double bigs with two caveats

1) Donovan should be up high and Adama low replicating IW and AS last season

2) AJ can’t be on the floor even if his shot is dramatically improved.

That leaves 5-7 minutes stretches every few games to take advantage of this specific matchup.

I think, when healthy, Andre will probably lead the team in minutes per game. His versatility to rebound and defend at just about every position is amazing. His passing vision is truly elite, making everyone else better. At the end of the game, you will look in the box score and he will have gotten his points too. What’s refreshing to Chief is, he doesn’t worry about that part, he’s too busy helping his team win. There’s a reason coaches love this guy.

 

[dennismenace]

Double bigs is a godawful idea. This is a team that couldn’t shoot from three at all last year to the point where defenses packed the lane and practically dared us to shoot. Playing two bigs - one a freshman - is a recipe for disaster offensively and on defense neither has the foot speed to stay with athletic fours who can shoot.

Glad to see Hurley has as much fun speculating about wacky lineups as the BY does in the offseason though.

No matter how it is put together our offense is going to be devastating on the inside with AS and
a 7-2 dude who can pass, rebound and score in the post. Oh and we will feature a couple of outside shooters as well. These guys are going to create matchup nightmares. Let's just hope DH will be open minded and flexible about what he has and how to make that talent work instead of trying to force the talent into a box that is in his imagination. I think he has a great group of assistants as well so he should have the words "I need help" (coaches) so that he can adjust instead of being rigid. It isn't hard once you realize you cannot do it all by yourself.

 

[dennismenace]

I also think Clingan can quickly become enough of a threat with foul line and elbow jumpers to make it work. And yes, I realize a 15' jump shot by a 7'2" players is one of the least valuable shots in today's game.

But eventually you need to figure out what works best for your best talent and there will be some games where this can work for 3-5 minutes a half.

That's it in a nutshell. Let the talent work for you instead of your imagination of what the world says it "should be".

 

[nelsonmuntz]

This is pretty much all wrong or irrelevant (not a lot of teams play zones to stop 3 pointers, weird tangent about stretch 2-3 that nobody plays to stop 5-out offenses when Hurley said he wants to play 4-out and there's no evidence we're going to play 5-out, you want Sanogo to school the center from the high post but his game is almost entirely based on low post, why do they help against Sanogo in high post he can't really dribble and has no face up game, you can still flash weakside if you start in the corner behind the arc, everyone on defense cheating in is a good reason to have your guys on the arc, which is why they have to close hard because your guys are outside the arc, just because you have a team playing "4-out" doesn't mean there are no cuts to the basket or motion or off ball screens, Navery never suggested he wanted the offense to be entirely swung around the perimeter offense he even specifically mentioned getting the ball inside to Sanogo).

That all being said, this is a dumb argument. You're both saying the same thing. The offense should feature Sanogo and have him kick out to shooters, whether they start inside or outside doesn't really matter as long as we have off-ball movement or can get the ball consistently into Sanogo in favorable situations to force doubles and rotations. We should do both.

Everyone plays a stretch 2-3 to stop 5 outs. Zones don't care about cutters, are hard to screen, the outside base defenders of the zone can easily close on corner shooters, and the zone rotates easily to the ball. Why would you play straight up man-to-man defense against a 5 out defense?

Coaches may not want 5 out offenses to just be swing the ball around the perimeter until the shot clock runs out, but that is what often happens if the opposing coach is not an idiot.

 

[Palatine]

Last year we got killed by PC inside. Their big guys bullied us in the paint.

If nothing else, playing DC and Adama together would have made it impossible for PC to dominate inside as they did. The big tandem gives Hurley a option he didn't have last year. It's simply a question of when to use them to our advantage or when does solve a problem.

 

[Jay-Bone]

“Donovan is such a skilled passer, even in the high post and key area, whether it is versus a zone or man-to-man that we are tinkering, especially with Andre’s injury, at playing more zone and trying to find a way to get them on the court together a little bit,” Hurley said. “Obviously, we really want to play Donovan.”

Insiders are telling me with AJ's absence Donovan is going to point-center.


Sorry, I couldn't help myself.