Ollie vs. Napier

[Brad Palmer]

Nothing controversial, just wanted to give a thread title that people would notice.

Very curious (and eager) to see if KO can change the following bad habits of Mr. Napier:

*** Amount of times he absolutely slacks off on defense. Amazing how often he gives up wide open 3's after making a half-hearted attempt to get around a screen.

*** Lack of movement when he doesn't have the ball in his hands.

*** Poor shot selection.

*** Complaining to the refs after a non-call instead of getting back on defense.

KO and SN are both supremely competitive people and both have keen understandings of the game. Would love to see KO rub off on Shabazz to turn him into a more complete player. Lord knows SN has the pure ability and love for the game, now just needs to complete the whole package. Seems as if JC let Shabazz get away with things he never would have earlier in his career.

Here's betting Ollie will get the job done.

 

[UConn5]

The title of this thread is ridiculous...get out of here.

 

[Brad Palmer]

Maybe the title should have been different, but they are legit concerns if the goal is for the team to grow and improve. Which concerns are off base? KO even acknowledged telling Napier to get back on D and not complain to the refs. And anyone with a passing knowledge of hoops can see his defensive liabilities. He's obviously our best player, but has some puzzling gaps in his overall game.

 

[FeedTheDove]

*** Complaining to the refs after a non-call instead of getting back on defense.

If you saw when that took place, KO was in the background screaming at Bazz to shut up and get back on D. It was very animated and I loved it. Bazz listened up right away almost as if he was thinking 'OH S***.' Don't think discipline will be a problem with KO after seeing that.

 

[Brad Palmer]

Agree 100% with you about KO nipping it in the bud. This simply wasn't done last year.

 

[UConn5]

The title of this thread should have included an ampersand instead of a "vs." Otherwise its inflammatory instead of inquisitive.

 

[mauconnfan]

He won a national title as a freshman, averages 13 a game as a sophomore on a team of malcontents along with his co-guard being out for many of those games while battling an injury all year.......now he gets 25, some assists, couple steals and plays pretty damn good D and people still want to hammer on this kid...............funny as usual..............

Next title: Bring back Alex!!

 

[Kitaman]

Bazz and Ollie have been together from the start, with Ollie coaching/mentoring Bazz since his freshman year. The thread doesn't make since Ollie and Bazz are united in more ways than one.

 

[Dogbreath2U]

Bazz' defense looked very good to me against MSU. Much quicker and better at staying with his man around screens, recovering. Having a repaired fractured foot must make a difference. He also played this game with relatively little time being able to go full tilt to get into shape. Very impressive performance.

Boat's defense also seemed to be improved to me. Five steals! That first one was just perfectly timed and I loved that one where he just took the ball right out of the hands of the MSU big who was trying to make a spin move from the left side. He was a rocket on the fast break.

If the two of them can play KO inspired Rickey Moore-like defense, some opposing backcourts will be torn to shreds. They just have to stay healthy. Let's take a moment to send healing psychic brainwaves to Boat's ankle.

 

[warbler1055]

From what I saw, SN and RB are really KO best supporters, players and fans. They seemed to understand what guard play is.

 

[Excalibur]

Nothing controversial, just wanted to give a thread title that people would notice.

Very curious (and eager) to see if KO can change the following bad habits of Mr. Napier:

*** Amount of times he absolutely slacks off on defense. Amazing how often he gives up wide open 3's after making a half-hearted attempt to get around a screen.

*** Lack of movement when he doesn't have the ball in his hands.

*** Poor shot selection.

*** Complaining to the refs after a non-call instead of getting back on defense.

KO and SN are both supremely competitive people and both have keen understandings of the game. Would love to see KO rub off on Shabazz to turn him into a more complete player. Lord knows SN has the pure ability and love for the game, now just needs to complete the whole package. Seems as if JC let Shabazz get away with things he never would have earlier in his career.

Here's betting Ollie will get the job done.

Seeing as only the last issue made an appearance vs. MSU, I'd say he's off to a pretty good start.

 

[mcs333]

25 points, zero TO's and we upset a top 25 team. Your timing to complain about SN is impeccable!

 

[Brad Palmer]

OK, the late night urge to post must have got me going. Was just looking ahead for things to work on. It does amaze me how sensitive (and rude) some people on this board get...and I'm a die-hard UConn fan. I will keep my complaints to myself in the future. Apologize if I upset some people.

Shabazz obviously played a very good game. However, I still insist if you watch his defense closely, he is always getting beat off screens. Just because MSU has no real shooters doesn't hide this fact. And if you think our half-court offense was good for most of the second half (SN and others often standing), you're on Cloud 9. Not saying this was at all KO's fault as I really do think he's trying to instill a philosophy of "movement".

 

[Husky68]

I saw what you saw "last year". Not so much this game. Your best player needs to take some "bad" shots when the offense breaks down. Bazz doesn't play hard on defense he will be on the bench, can say that for all the players. In addition, the other players will not put up with lack of effort when they are putting the effort in.

 

[hasheemthedream]

When Bazz was a freshman he was easily our best defender, I can remember countless times when he would steal the ball away from the opposing teams guards. Maybe he is expending all his energy on offense now.

All I know is if we have to sit through another season of Shabazz running the shotclock down < 10 then hucking up an off balance shot we are in for a long year. I was hoping KO would remove this play from the book.

 

[aceboon]

When Bazz was a freshman he was easily our best defender, I can remember countless times when he would steal the ball away from the opposing teams guards. Maybe he is expending all his energy on offense now.

All I know is if we have to sit through another season of Shabazz running the shotclock down < 10 then hucking up an off balance shot we are in for a long year. I was hoping KO would remove this play from the book.

The team looked noticeably out of gas after the running start, it wasn't just Shabazz, the same instances with the shot clock winding down and a player being forced to make a one on one play happened with Boat and Daniels as well. hopefully as the season goes on they manage their energy better, and are able to execute their offense better as the game goes along, but MSU also made adjustments and had something to do with offense becoming lethargic as well. It reminded me of a boxer sensing a knockout and punching themselves out, thankfully they had a enough to hold on. I would wait and let the season go beyond one game before we start up the "dump on Bazz" campaign that raged all of last season.

 

[caw]

I only saw one shot from Napier (that didn't go in) that seemed like a bad shot. I forget what the shot clock was at, so it may not have been that bad, but I remember him dribbling to the right side of the court and just turning and launching from 3. It seemed like a bad shot, not because he was well defended or that he was far from the line, but more that he obviously wasn't set and square to the hoop. Of course, he was 5/5 or 5/6 at that point, but still not a good shot.

Other than that, he played almost the best game I've seen from him in a UConn jersey.