If You're JC, What Changes Would You Implement?

[dogpause]

Here's mine:

1. Start Boatright at PG - the reasons have all been stated

2. Keep Drummond in the paint on defense -

3. Play Alex until he either fouls out or passes out - we're not a good team unless we have a good Alex. He's a better offeensive player when Boat is in the game. He get open, and he stays around the basket.

4. Play Neils more than Daniels - Deandre is just not ready.

5. We don't have enough depth at Guard to press all game, but it does help energize us to do it occasionally.

6. Emphasize the fast break. Now that Ryan is back, and with Alex on the floor, we should be able to run, but we haven't shown much interest in doing it.

7. Encourage our smalls to rebound better. We seem to lose evey long rebound and it's been happening all season.

What do you think?

 

[SubbaBub]

Play the starting four from the NCG.

Split SN and RB at point and to spell Lamb.

AD, TO, and NG rotate up front and against certain match ups.

DD rides the pine mostly until he learns to play at this level.

Minutes breakdown should look something like this for a 9 man rotation.

JL 35 min
AO/AD 30 min each
RS 25 min
TO 20 min
SN/RB 25 min each
NG 5-10 min

The only drawback is AO/AD struggle when on the court together. Neither gets after rebounds like a 4 really should. Sadly, NG has been the best rebounder as far as effort goes.

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[Adios]

Give AO a box of tissues.

 

[SubbaBub]

For me, the biggest problem offensively is that everyone on the floor is looking for their shot, especially those who don't see the ball much. And, few seem to recognize the difference between a good shot and a bad one.

I could get on the poor perimeter defense and rebounding, but when you hold a team to 50-60 points, can you really complain? I still think this should be a one loss team (Seton Hall). But, they will go nowhere playing like this. 10-8 is a stretch at this point.

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[Chelo]

Run..Run..Run..the fastbreak! Just keep pushing the ball.

 

[cohenzone]

He has to make up his mind to go with a line-up and use it for a decent amount of time. He keeps touting this kid or that in practice, and then they hardly see the floor. The 2 shots DD took were perfectly fine shots and they were not way off. WE will never know if he could have made 5 in a row after that. I have no problem with Giffey starting, but anyway, don't rotate them guys at the 3-4 positions so much. And the biggest change of all, teach a darn zone offense.

 

[John Fryer]

Start from the beginning with a new starting 5.

Ryan at the point.

Napier at the 2 spot.

Lamb at the 3 spot.

Tyler at the 4 spot.

Alex at the 5 spot.

Drop the current "No Offense Sets!"

Install an offensive set of ball movement and double screens.

Bury the quick hook. (Give the kids time to learn from mistakes.)

Whenever possible play a man defense.

No exceptions will be tolerated. (For example, Napier must learn to stay with his man.)

No more guards trying to help under the boards.

Cut one practice session short and inform the team that they must decide who is their floor leader before they can shower.

Oh, one final thing. They also must decide, collectively, if they are going to play like a UConn team or continue to look like 5 guys playing in a pick-up game.

Peace,

John Fryer

 

[huskymagic]

Here's mine:

1. Start Boatright at PG - the reasons have all been stated

2. Keep Drummond in the paint on defense -

3. Play Alex until he either fouls out or passes out - we're not a good team unless we have a good Alex. He's a better offeensive player when Boat is in the game. He get open, and he stays around the basket.

4. Play Neils more than Daniels - Deandre is just not ready.

5. We don't have enough depth at Guard to press all game, but it does help energize us to do it occasionally.

6. Emphasize the fast break. Now that Ryan is back, and with Alex on the floor, we should be able to run, but we haven't shown much interest in doing it.

7. Encourage our smalls to rebound better. We seem to lose evey long rebound and it's been happening all season.

What do you think?

I agree with everything you just said with the exception of number 4. The playing time at the 3 spot should be divided between Roscoe and Giffey. Daniels is not capable and not ready to contribute this year. He needs to be on the bench next to Wolf. Oriakhi and Drummond should play 30 minutes each unless their in seirous foul trouble. Olander and Napier off the bench. We cant play with a 2 little guard lineup all the times as that will expose us on defense as we would be giving up too much height and weight on the opposing team.

 

[HeGotGame]

Run..Run..Run..the fastbreak! Just keep pushing the ball.

Completely agree, go small and give DD and Roscoe a lot more run to use their athletically ability more. This team is just not very good in the half court game right now.

 

[rington]

Remove all tatoos

 

[UConnSwag11]

starting 5... bazz lamb giffey ao drummond... first off the bench to and boat then scoe... it really depends on match ups bc if they have athletic big men its hard for ao or maybe even drummond to match up with them... but our best lineup i believe is bazz boat lamb ao/scoe/to and drummed/ao... i do love giffeys defense and hustle and more aggressive offensively. they need to run the offensive sets and not jog through them and dribble the air out of the ball

 

[UConnSwag11]

also the beginning of the game reminded me of the old uconn with the press/trap

 

[TheChamps990411]

my starting five would be:

C-AD/AO
PF-RS/TO
SF-NG/JL/DD
SG-JL/RB
PG-RB/SN

Id live and die by that starting five. theyd get 30 mpg no matter how theyre playing. theyre going to play together till they get it right and id run run run!!! every blocked shot,rebound and off the press. id take it back to arkansas during the 90`s with 40 min of he77.

 

[huskyharry]

AO and AD on the floor together spells very poor offensive execution, particularly against the zone. Neither can play the high post position. Let them both play the 5 (AD 27 and AO 13 min) and <5 min per game with both in the game.

Re-establish a rotation of TO, RS and NG at the 4....NG, JL and DD (5 min or so unless he starts contributing) at the 3. TO and NG can pass well from the high post and both can shoot from there as well. TO has lost some confidence with his decreased PT with the heel injury and needs to be re-established. RS needs to continue to scramble and play like Dennis Rodman out there...get every loose ball and rebound!

Tell JL to forget about the Columbia highlight dunk and never again try to crash into the defender, it results in a charge every time and you are bound to get hurt. You are one of the best players in America at floaters and short jumpers including turnarounds and fadeaways if within 17 feet of the basket. Start cutting to the foul line against the zone and shoot from two 15 or more times per game. Cut and curl like your life depends on it when you use a screen. TAKE OVER on offense!

Tell SN to forget about the well-defended, fadeaway or falling sideways three and quit dribbling the ball in place for 30 seconds out of the possession! Have everyone else clearout to the far corner and start playing the two man game/pick and roll with JL, RB or AD. If SN is having a totally funk game again like yesterday, it is okay to put him on the pine for a while and for God's sake please put some effort into covering your man on defense...you used to be a defensive stopper!

 

[Palatine]

Start the offense sooner, shoot earlier in the shot clock, get the ball to Lamb. Make Drummond earn his point on put backs.

 

[EricLA]

it's super easy to be the armchair QB and there certainly are a number of knowledgeable posters on the BY who have watched the games closely. having said that, none of us are in practice daily so we don't know how the kids are practicing or what seems to work during those sessions.

having said THAT, it's pretty clear that what they are doing is not working. "impose your will"... and all those other exhortations aren't working. they are losing close games they should be winning. i agree with try something new. i'm just not sure what that "something new" is...

 

[SubbaBub]

They are losing games that should be won by double digits. That's the frightening part. Anyone else notice the recurring occasions of falling just short st the buzzer after being down 10 with under four to go?

Five more minutes of decent basketball earlier in the game and these losses are comfortable wins. Sunday was a case in point.

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[Danzz]

Here's mine:

1. Start Boatright at PG - the reasons have all been stated

2. Keep Drummond in the paint on defense -

3. Play Alex until he either fouls out or passes out - we're not a good team unless we have a good Alex. He's a better offeensive player when Boat is in the game. He get open, and he stays around the basket.

4. Play Neils more than Daniels - Deandre is just not ready.

5. We don't have enough depth at Guard to press all game, but it does help energize us to do it occasionally.

6. Emphasize the fast break. Now that Ryan is back, and with Alex on the floor, we should be able to run, but we haven't shown much interest in doing it.

7. Encourage our smalls to rebound better. We seem to lose evey long rebound and it's been happening all season.

What do you think?

Bring Drummond and Boatright off the bench and move Alex to Center where he belongs. Start and play Roscoe for more than a few minutes at a time. This would be last years NCC team without Kemba of course.Would it work? I don't know but at least it would have some continuity and it couldn't be worse.
If we are going to start Drummond, have him stay home instead of helping all the time. We end up losing too many rebounds and giving up chippies.

 

[freescooter]

Start from the beginning with a new starting 5.

Ryan at the point.

Napier at the 2 spot.

Lamb at the 3 spot.

Tyler at the 4 spot.

Alex at the 5 spot.

Drop the current "No Offense Sets!"

Install an offensive set of ball movement and double screens.

Bury the quick hook. (Give the kids time to learn from mistakes.)

Whenever possible play a man defense.

No exceptions will be tolerated. (For example, Napier must learn to stay with his man.)

No more guards trying to help under the boards.

Cut one practice session short and inform the team that they must decide who is their floor leader before they can shower.

Oh, one final thing. They also must decide, collectively, if they are going to play like a UConn team or continue to look like 5 guys playing in a pick-up game.

Peace,

John Fryer

I like this approach myself. I would also rotate Smith in at the 4 and Drummond in at the 5, but his minutes would be limited. he is one of those weird guys who has incredible talents but he doesn't know how to put thme together yet, and I think he hurts more than helps. I know there are people who think he is the man, but I don't see it right now. Maybe in a year...Napier will get his steals, IF he stays with his man. I don't know how many times he ahs gone for the seal only to see his guy go in unmolested, so I totally agree with that view. giffey can come in to spell Lamb at small forward for short stretches so Lamb can get 32-35 minutes.

 

[freescooter]

To me, Drummond presents a conumdrum. I describe him as too good to kepp on the bench but not good enough to be there regularly. He shows so much talent at some points, then looks like he is totally out of his element at others. I'd be inclined to go with Oriahki at th e5, and bring Drummond off the bench. I fhe starts making plays consistently, you can always leave him in there, but jeez, a 6-10, 275 pound cneter ought not be getting moved out of the blocks by smaller guys and he ought not to be shooting 10 footers, just power it to the hole, Andre.

 

[imno1]

I haven't given up on SB. Many games this year he was our best player. This starting line up is my preference.
SN
JL
NG (please shoot it a bit more)
RS
AO.

 

[ctchamps]

Option 1: Get a plastic surgeon to make Kemba look like Brendan Allen and sneak him back into the program.

Option 2: Get a scientist to merge AO, TO and RS into one person because combing the three of them would create the consummate four.

Option 3: I would convince JL and AD they should come back next season.

I would trade AO and TO for NN.

I would then sit back and enjoy this season knowing that next season UConn would be a final four contender.

 

[dogpause]

To me, Drummond presents a conumdrum. I describe him as too good to kepp on the bench but not good enough to be there regularly. He shows so much talent at some points, then looks like he is totally out of his element at others. I'd be inclined to go with Oriahki at th e5, and bring Drummond off the bench. I fhe starts making plays consistently, you can always leave him in there, but jeez, a 6-10, 275 pound cneter ought not be getting moved out of the blocks by smaller guys and he ought not to be shooting 10 footers, just power it to the hole, Andre.

I agree, and see Drummond as a very unique case. In some ways he's an "Untouchable." But on performance merits alone, I'm still not sure I would ever NOT start him, simply because of his upside. We invested heavily in Hasheem the same way. Andre is certainly worth the investment, I just think he needs to have his assignment simplified - namely, that he stay near the basket.

However, not considering performance, benching Andre presents a unique PR problem for the program. Here's a guy who's a projected lottery pick, was heavily recruited, is our highest rated recruit eve, and he's paying his own ticket. If we can't coach him up to being a productive starter, it could hurt us with other recruits in the future. Calhoun doesn't even yell at him (at least publicly), so sitting him is not even a consideration.

Calhoun keeps harping on the fact that we have no floor leadership, and lack energy. To me, that foreshadows a change at PG. It's also the only significant lineup change available, and it addresses both of those issues. I am 99% certain we're going to see Ryan at PG next game.

 

[UCweCONN]

A gluten-free diet??

 

[freescooter]

I agree, and see Drummond as a very unique case. In some ways he's an "Untouchable." But on performance merits alone, I'm still not sure I would ever NOT start him, simply because of his upside. We invested heavily in Hasheem the same way. Andre is certainly worth the investment, I just think he needs to have his assignment simplified - namely, that he stay near the basket.

However, not considering performance, benching Andre presents a unique PR problem for the program. Here's a guy who's a projected lottery pick, was heavily recruited, is our highest rated recruit eve, and he's paying his own ticket. If we can't coach him up to being a productive starter, it could hurt us with other recruits in the future. Calhoun doesn't even yell at him (at least publicly), so sitting him is not even a consideration.

quote]
Hetre's the problem with that line of thinking. We need to win games. The PR aspects are secondary, and hugely so. Worst case scenario for Drummond is that he comes back next year, which he probably should anyway. And he hasn't been a consistent productive starter. And I'm not talking about publicly embarrassing the kid. If you need to start him, start him, but substitute for him quickly to get to the lineup you need. I'm not saying leave him on the bench. rRotate him in as needed. But you can't just go with a guy who isn't getting it. As far as future recruits, I'll worry about that in the future, too. With the questions over next year's eligibility, Calhoun's age, I really don't think worrying about any of those factors is worth it. This team needs to make the Dance this year. And that takes wins and that means we need to do something other than what we've been doing.