I hate creating a post and have done so twice in the last week. I just think that this is for all intents and purposes a brand new team. Each of these guys has a new responsibility or is new to the team. We just lost and should have beaten what I think is one of the top 5 teams in the country by 1 lucky as point. We are lambasting kids on this board who have literally played 3 regular season games as husky. Taking full measure of their value to the program by what they have done in their first 3 games. Where would that leave us with Kemba or Shabazz or any of the other future greats. We had 5 inexperienced players on the floor at many times during the game. Boatright is alone with his responsibility on this team. Brimah isnt where he will be by the end of the year and same with Purvis, Cassell and others. We are going to play spoiler this year but we arent likely going to repeat. In a year this is going to be a new fantastic team. Hopefully Boatright gets the chance to build his resume. Anyhow.
I was thinking the same thing on Sunday. Look at the team they had on the floor most of the game. Most of these players weren't highly rated coming out of high school and are going to need time to develop. Without Purvis and Calhoun playing on Sunday there was a void. Unfortunately the team is caught in a situation where they're asking a lot from most of these players.
Major Minutes against Texas:
Boatright - Senior. Very experienced. Scored 24 of the 54 points.
Hamilton - Freshman. Very highly rated freshman expected to contribute right away. Has been delivering as advertised with some normal freshman issues (turnovers).
Facey - Sophomore. Very inexperienced sophomore thrust into starting role maybe a little too early but is showing promise.
Brimah - Sophomore. Relatively inexperienced sophomore. We need to remember that he hasn't been playing basketball for very long. Has promising physical tools but still learning the game.
Samuel - Sophomore. Very inexperienced sophomore thrust into starting role before he's ready. Shows promise to be a major contributor down the line.
Nolan - Junior. Not expected to be a stud but he's had enough experience and is at the point where he needs to contribute more.
Cassell - Freshman. While he's an experienced freshman he's still playing at a new level and he's having a tough time adjusting. Despite his good showing in the 2 preseason games.
So the majority of the minutes on Sunday were taken by 1 senior, 1 junior, 3 relatively inexperienced sophomores and 2 freshmen. After looking at this I think the team actually has some real promise to be much better later this season. Hopefully Purvis and Calhoun can get back soon because both have health and downtime issues that could hamper their effectiveness later this season. The team needs both of these guys to be the players they could be.
