Observations on today

[boog204]

The 2 on 1 was obviously a bad play. Looks like Boat got caught with tunnel vision - saw nothing but a little guy between him and the rim and didn't even notice Kromah. Obviously a KO film session time. You have to survey the landscape on the break and play to your advantage. No excuse for that one.

The Boat "dribbling exhibition" that went nowhere was a play where EWU got caught on a switch and had a big guy covering Boat (#55). That's the sort of situation when normally you clear out and let your guard go to work (unless you have a big guy you want to post up against a little guy as the other part of the mismatch, but that's not us). To his credit, EWU's big guy actually did a pretty good job keeping his feet on balance and leaping out to contest, at which point Boat was screwed due to the height disadvantage. So yeah, in hindsight, you can complain that the play went nowhere for him. But when you get a mismatch, you try to attack it. The play didn't work, but it wasn't pointless selfishness - it was just bad execution, since he didn't really sell the drive and get the big guy back on his heels before the stepback.

My gripe is the "tunnel vision" and "bad execution" happens EVERY game. I'd totally buy your analysis on both if it was an anomaly. But we've watched Boat screw up 2 on 1 and 3 on 2 breaks all year. The overdribbling is another thing that he and Bazz do ad nauseum, mismatch or not. We have watched Boat countless times this year try to spin through traffic or show off his handle to take a forced jumper. Bazz can get away with it b/c he's simply better than Boat and any defender who is trying to check him. I'm not trying to kill Boat, but I think his play is often indicative of a "me first" mentality that exists within this team. There are times when it seems like our offense is a "my turn" type of setup. Boat, DD, and Omar are huge culprits in this regard.

 

[BigErnMcCracken]

We have watched Boat countless times this year try to spin through traffic or show off his handle to take a forced jumper.

I don't think Boatright has taken "countless" forced jumpers this year. I think that's completely inaccurate. I guess the whipping boy mantle has been momentarily passed from Omar to Boatright, but this year, as far as I can tell, when Boatright takes someone off the bounce he's almost always looking to pass. Sometimes to his detriment. The kid is really working on expanding his game.

 

[blackbird]

Boatright takes countless forced jumpers and bad shots every game.

I agree that he plays hard. He's tough.

But he also either has poor court vision/low bball IQ or he's selfish, or a combination. And a high assist number doesn't change the fact that he's either one of those two things. You can dribble the ball for 25 seconds and pass to someone who scores, and that play is still being a ball hog. And the player didn't need to have good court vision to make the pass.

And because he's such a team guy in other ways, I find it hard to believe he's a selfish player. So that leaves me with poor bball IQ/poor vision.

Boat continuously misses wide open players. In fact, when he passes, it's typically because he created the shot for someone else, instead of within a flow of the offense/because another player is open. He has to know the play is coming to pass, or he won't pass.

 

[mauconnfan]

I don't think he "forces" any more than Bazz (he's earned a little more leeway though) does so that's a bit much. I think he does penetrate too far too often rather than using what seems to be a very nice and consistent pull up from the foul line in…….and there's no count he's trying to be more of a "pg/teammate" I agrees with that and it's noticeable. He's not a whipping boy nor is Omar, just need both to hit their expectations and really that's nothing more than both being a little more consistent. After all we all see how talented he is at times so what else do fans do but hope to see it more often…... Boat is in a much better place than Omar but as I say with the ball in his hands more there's more chance of him making the occasional error……..he's been better the last 2 games I think. Just keep working….all of them!

 

[nelsonmuntz]

Boatright is a pretty good shooter when he takes good shots, like most players. But he takes a lot of bad shots.

I don't know where people get this idea that Giffey is incapable of creating his own shot. Just because he is so conservative in his shot selection doesn't mean that he can't do it, any more than Boatright taking so many bad shots means that he should have a bright green light.

 

[Woof 101]

When the point guard leads the team in rebounding.....At this stage of the season it answers a lot of questions.

 

[johnhuskies95]

Boatright takes countless forced jumpers and bad shots every game.

I really don't agree with this. At all.

He's not a great finisher, and so his field goal percentage isn't great. But it's not like he's forcing a ton of shots every game. He doesn't even take a lot of shots, period. He takes 9 a game and plays 30 minutes a game. One shot every three minutes he's on the floor doesn't indicate he's shooting a lot, or "forcing" much.

 

[Dmike]

Boatright is a pretty good shooter when he takes good shots, like most players. But he takes a lot of bad shots.

I don't know where people get this idea that Giffey is incapable of creating his own shot. Just because he is so conservative in his shot selection doesn't mean that he can't do it, any more than Boatright taking so many bad shots means that he should have a bright green light.

Giffey doesn't have Boat's handle to create shots for himself. He relies on others to get him the ball in the right position.

 

[nelsonmuntz]

Saying Giffey doesnt have a guard's handle is a silly argument. Okafor didn't have a guard's handle either. Was he capable of taking guys one on one? Obviously, non guards need to get the ball in a position to do something with it,but Giffey is taller or quicker than most of his defenders. Daniels is drawing the top defensive forward most of the time.

 

[DogMania]

I feel some of you guys are being a tad tough on RB. His primarily role is to create and score. That changes when he slides over to the one, which he does less frequently.

With that said, there's much room for improvement with his shot selection and distribution. If he sticks around for one more year, I expect him to improve his lead guard skills. Necessity is the mother of invention, thus the need for him to be more one than two next season will result in a more well rounded combo guard.

I'm not saying he's going to be the next Kemba, but many are simply not showing a lot of patience with Ryan. He's going to improve and get better this season and next.

 

[DogMania]

Giffey doesn't have Boat's handle to create shots for himself. He relies on others to get him the ball in the right position.

Neils' handle is good enough for a combo 2/3. He's a good athlete, but does not have enough confidence to create his own shot on any consistent basis. I've seen him drive it to the paint and finish some nifty plays.

I'm in the camp that his teammates need to do a better job of finding him and Niels himself needs to be more assertive and look for his shot more often. You have to keep in mind that his role as a scorer is new to him this season. He needs time to grow into that role.

 

[mauconnfan]

I feel some of you guys are being a tad tough on RB. His primarily role is to create and score. That changes when he slides over to the one, which he does less frequently.

With that said, there's much room for improvement with his shot selection and distribution. If he sticks around for one more year, I expect him to improve his lead guard skills. Necessity is the mother of invention, thus the need for him to be more one than two next season will result in a more well rounded combo guard.

I'm not saying he's going to be the next Kemba, but many are simply not showing a lot of patience with Ryan. He's going to improve and get better this season and next.

I will say many are being too hard on RB, maybe even myself, for some of his recklessness and inconsistencies because he still is a major player on whether our Huskies succeed or not this year. But no way will I back off on his ability to play the point for us next year……he may improve enough to donate some time there but there is absolutely nothing he has done in 2 1/2 years that lends itself to a successful senior year as THE PG for us. He has shown nothing in regards to being confident he can run an NCAA tourney team for a full year, not a thing. Again, huge trouble if he is the guy next year unless he improves dramatically in his ability to run the show.

 

[DogMania]

I will say many are being too hard on RB, maybe even myself, for some of his recklessness and inconsistencies because he still is a major player on whether our Huskies succeed or not this year. But no way will I back off on his ability to play the point for us next year……he may improve enough to donate some time there but there is absolutely nothing he has done in 2 1/2 years that lends itself to a successful senior year as THE PG for us. He has shown nothing in regards to being confident he can run an NCAA tourney team for a full year, not a thing. Again, huge trouble if he is the guy next year unless he improves dramatically in his ability to run the show.

All valid concerns Mau. I'd like to see him improve his decision making. For example, I'd like to the team reverse the ball over to his side where he drives it from the corner of the key and then kicks it back to Giffey who moves to an open space in the vicinity of where Boat just vacated. There was that exact play in the last game and I believe Boat forced up a tough shot while Neils was wide open behind him. This is just one of many types of plays a PG needs to recognize. Others are finding the back-door cutter, driving it into the paint and kicking it out to the right guy or dumping it down to one of the bigs when their man moves in to stop penetration. He's not recognizing enough of these plays, though Bazz was not that more different when he first came here.

You have to keep in mind, that the PG keys were passed on to Bazz when Kemba moved on, and he plays 35 to 40 minutes a game, predominantly at the 1. Now I don't know how much time Boat will get at the one next season if he returns. Maybe Cassell Jr gets most of his PT at the one with Boat at the combo spot, but my guess is that KO gives Ryan a solid shot at the primary one next season, but will move off of that if Boat doesn't show growth early on.

Bazz is a good example where he clearly was, and probably still is, more gifted as a creative scorer, but has worked hard on developing his lead guard skills. Granted he showed some signs of good court vision, while Boat seems to have struggled more with that part of his game, but Bazz has had a lot more minutes working on that part of his game than Boatright. I'm not predicting he'll get it, but I still thinks it's premature to assume he won't. Some players simply don't have the instincts and never develop them, such as Ben Gordon. Ben was a score first, second and third combo who as far as I know never learned to run a team...not to mention learn to defend adequately. I'm sure many here believe Ryan is cut from the same mold, and they might be correct. I have a feeling RB has better court vision than Ben and just needs more minutes as a primary distributor and needs to learn to slow things down a tad. One indication of this problem is him leaving his feet too often when driving it into the paint. He needs to have a better idea of his options before he does so, which is one area he can work on this season, among other areas of his game.

 

[Dmike]

Saying Giffey doesnt have a guard's handle is a silly argument. Okafor didn't have a guard's handle either. Was he capable of taking guys one on one? Obviously, non guards need to get the ball in a position to do something with it,but Giffey is taller or quicker than most of his defenders. Daniels is drawing the top defensive forward most of the time.

Yes, but Okafor was a post player, who creates shots from the post. Good things do not happen when Giffey tries to take his man off the dribble. Further, he's never displayed much of a post-up game. In the half court offense, his baskets come from a passes to him as a spot up shooter, while he's cutting to the basket, or when the PG drives and dishes to him. This is going to limit his usage. As players can only create shots for themselves through their handle or by receiving the ball in a post-up situation. KO can get Giffey more shots by running plays designed to free him up as a spot up shooter or on a cut, but he is not going to create the shots himself. I'd also like to see KO use Giffey in the high post or at the free throw line to breakdown zone defenses as he has enough height to get a shot off and enough of a handle to put the ball on the basket to create some room and hit a floater or short jump shot from just beyond the elbow.

I also don't agree that Giffey is taller at 6' 7" or quicker than most other 3's and he is oftentimes playing the 4 in our offense where he is shorter than opposing defenders, but arguably quicker.

 

[nelsonmuntz]

Yes, but Okafor was a post player, who creates shots from the post. Good things do not happen when Giffey tries to take his man off the dribble. Further, he's never displayed much of a post-up game. In the half court offense, his baskets come from a passes to him as a spot up shooter, while he's cutting to the basket, or when the PG drives and dishes to him. This is going to limit his usage. As players can only create shots for themselves through their handle or by receiving the ball in a post-up situation. KO can get Giffey more shots by running plays designed to free him up as a spot up shooter or on a cut, but he is not going to create the shots himself. I'd also like to see KO use Giffey in the high post or at the free throw line to breakdown zone defenses as he has enough height to get a shot off and enough of a handle to put the ball on the basket to create some room and hit a floater or short jump shot from just beyond the elbow.

I also don't agree that Giffey is taller at 6' 7" or quicker than most other 3's and he is oftentimes playing the 4 in our offense where he is shorter than opposing defenders, but arguably quicker.

When do bad things happen when Giffey tries to take his guy off the dribble? Give me some examples.

Giffey is not taller than most college 3's at 6'7? Do you realize how many teams play 3 guards? Do you realize how mediocre most bigger forwards are? We aren't playing in the Big East any more.

Giffey is shooting almost 70% from the field on a fair number of shots, and you make a post about how he isn't that good, and then describe a role appropriate for a big stiff like Olander.

 

[Dmike]

When do bad things happen when Giffey tries to take his guy off the dribble? Give me some examples.

Giffey is not taller than most college 3's at 6'7? Do you realize how many teams play 3 guards? Do you realize how mediocre most bigger forwards are? We aren't playing in the Big East any more.

Giffey is shooting almost 70% from the field on a fair number of shots, and you make a post about how he isn't that good, and then describe a role appropriate for a big stiff like Olander.

I love Giffey. Always have. I remember him getting tied up a few times in the exhibition games on drives to the basket against smaller defenders. He's not a stiff and has scored on several occasions in the half court on drives from the left wing into the center of the lane putting up a jump hook/floater, but his baskets aren't coming this year or in prior years from breaking down his opponent with his dribble or by posting up. They have come from transition, excellently timed cuts, good ball rotation to where he's ready for spot up J, or PG dribble drive penetration and dish to where Neils has made himself open. What separates Giffey from most bigs is his ability to cut to the basket in both the half court set and transition and hit a perimeter J (stretch 4's and 5's notwithstanding).

I'm a big fan of Giffey. All I'm saying is that Giffey's game doesn't easily afford a huge uptick in usage and FGA's because of the ways that he has traditionally scored his baskets. He relies on others to create his shots and the only way to create more opportunities for him is to run more plays that either a) get him open for a J, like when he picks and rolls and Bazz gets it to him with a behind the back pass on the left side, or b) provides an opportunity for a pass to him inside the 3 point line while he's cutting to the basket. He's having a great year and I'm all in favor of running more plays for him, just understand that putting him in an isolation situation or asking him to create his own shot will likely result in a lower FG% or more turnovers. Giff knows his game and plays within it. He's never out of control. That being said, he should have the green light to shoot whenever he believes he's got the space to do so recognizing that its not his game to create the space himself for his own shot.

 

[ColoradoUCFan]

When do bad things happen when Giffey tries to take his guy off the dribble? Give me some examples.

Ray Allen doesn't beat people off the dribble.

Ray's an awesome spot up shooter...His teams have always run plays for him. How many times have you seen him set up with a baseline screen for a corner three? I'm not saying Giffey is Ray. I'm just saying Ray is an awesome spot up shooter; and it helps that his team runs plays for him. Giffey for 12 games has been an awesome spot up shooter. I hope it continues. But, just imagine how much more we could have had from him if KO started running some baseline screens to get him open.

 

[CTBasketball]

Ray Allen doesn't beat people off the dribble.

Ray's an awesome spot up shooter...His teams have always run plays for him. How many times have you seen him set up with a baseline screen for a corner three? I'm not saying Giffey is Ray. I'm just saying Ray is an awesome spot up shooter; and it helps that his team runs plays for him. Giffey for 12 games has been an awesome spot up shooter. I hope it continues. But, just imagine how much more we could have had from him if KO started running some baseline screens to get him open.

You're talking about Ray Ray nowadays. Back in his prime, he had many tools in his scoring arsenal. Not just shooting.

 

[mauconnfan]

You're talking about Ray Ray nowadays. Back in his prime, he had many tools in his scoring arsenal. Not just shooting.

Ray was a different player than Niels and he was constant movement off the ball too, not quite Rip-like but a real close 2nd. He had his issues taking people off the dribble at times and it was pointed out in the GTown BE final which he eventually won…….only against great defenders though and one's who could grab and bump. Different players no doubt…..

But CUCFan is right in we could still run plays…….there's many college teams out there with good shooters who can't use the dribble to get their shot but they run plays, multiple sets to get them looks. He is a catch and shoot guy despite what people are saying he's proven it and keeps his composure with defenders closing in on his jumper……..he NEEDS to shoot more than 5 times a game and if he can't do it himself the staff needs to work hard on figuring it out! He will shoot it fine off of curls, maybe not 70% but I think we'd be happy with 40-50% on those.

 

[DogMania]

I will say many are being too hard on RB, maybe even myself, for some of his recklessness and inconsistencies because he still is a major player on whether our Huskies succeed or not this year. But no way will I back off on his ability to play the point for us next year……he may improve enough to donate some time there but there is absolutely nothing he has done in 2 1/2 years that lends itself to a successful senior year as THE PG for us. He has shown nothing in regards to being confident he can run an NCAA tourney team for a full year, not a thing. Again, huge trouble if he is the guy next year unless he improves dramatically in his ability to run the show.

RB against Houston: 19 pts, 9 assts, 2 stls and just 1 TO. Hum...not bad for a combo guard that many thought he's shown nothing as far as running the offense. I wonder if he read the BY the other day and decided to make a statement. Granted, one game does not make a PG, but he sure showed signs that he is capable. I stand by my comments, that he will rise to the challenge next season, if not at some point during this one and develop into a solid lead guard.

 

[mauconnfan]

RB against Houston: 19 pts, 9 assts, 2 stls and just 1 TO. Hum...not bad for a combo guard that many thought he's shown nothing as far as running the offense. I wonder if he read the BY the other day and decided to make a statement. Granted, one game does not make a PG, but he sure showed signs that he is capable. I stand by my comments, that he will rise to the challenge next season, if not at some point during this one and develop into a solid lead guard.

DM I get he played good, I mentioned that I think…….the assists weren't all in half court and he didn't' prove he could play the point, ever, in this game. He sure was good though but wherever you're gong here, wrong way.

 

[nomar]

Thank God nobody was watching tonight.

Yikes.

We lost to a terrible team, shorthanded. Yikes.

Did I say yikes already?

Yikes.

Ugh. Gross.

 

[DogMania]

I feel some of you guys are being a tad tough on RB. His primarily role is to create and score. That changes when he slides over to the one, which he does less frequently.

With that said, there's much room for improvement with his shot selection and distribution. If he sticks around for one more year, I expect him to improve his lead guard skills. Necessity is the mother of invention, thus the need for him to be more one than two next season will result in a more well rounded combo guard.

I'm not saying he's going to be the next Kemba, but many are simply not showing a lot of patience with Ryan. He's going to improve and get better this season and next.

Just had to resurrect this thread. RB proved me right, though his learning curve turned out to be a head of what I even predicted.

This is a thread worth reading through in its entirety. Hopefully some of you won't forget that you can't draw too many conclusions till it all plays out over the balance off a career or even a single season as was the case with RB this season.

 

[boog204]

well I feel like an idiot; especially my "Boat is a bad defensive player" argument... In my/our defense, this team developed and grew up in March. It was a night and day difference. My brother actually stopped watching them around the SMU/Houston debacle b/c he couldn't stand the selfishness. He didn't watch again (I know a douchey fan) until the tourney and texted me that we will win the title if this is how we are playing.

 

[mauconnfan]

He proved you right at the end of the year. This was a different Boat towards the end, one that finally "got it" and it was required to make the amazing run.

He will need more consistency thru a full year still to be the guy next year shall he elect to stay, which I now hope he does while admitting I wouldn't have said that at game 20……

Different guy from not only the defensive aspect which was really obvious but even how he was in control of his game and the game! Love to have him back……….I will say there is no crow to eat here because what was WAS!

 

[DogMania]

well I feel like an idiot; especially my "Boat is a bad defensive player" argument... In my/our defense, this team developed and grew up in March. It was a night and day difference. My brother actually stopped watching them around the SMU/Houston debacle b/c he couldn't stand the selfishness. He didn't watch again (I know a douchey fan) until the tourney and texted me that we will win the title if this is how we are playing.

I don't think it was wrong to say back then that Boat was not a good defender. I said that. My point is that fans need to show patience and think twice before the making definitive statements like player X well never be Y. Granted sometimes that turns out to be the case, though with players like Boat who have a lot off untapped talent and a will to improve and win will often prove the doubters wrong.

I think it was either RB himself and/or KO said he was a bit hard headed but has become more teachable. Some never learn, but I figured if anyone could get through to Ryan, it would be KO. With that said I never thought he'd turn into the lock down defender he turned into during the last few weeks. Didn't see that coming.