Purvis

[huskymagic]

As hard as I have been on Rodney, the reality is that he wasn't responsible for the loss yesterday. Should he have hit that wide open 3 pointer to win the game:YES. However, Rodney is who we all know he is and that is a streaky player and a tease. Rodney is a 4th option on a good team, but for us he is the 2nd option and main shooting option from the perimeter and therein lies the problem. He is serviceable if used correctly. If we depend on Rodney to win games we will never be satisfied with the results as he doesn't have it in him. It's not who he is. For me, I would rather see Adams take all game winning shots and have the rest of the team crash the boards for a rebound. The fact of the matter is we should never be tied at the end of games so many times against every below average team in America to put ourselves in the situation whee we need Rodney to bail us out with a 3. Jalen should have taken care of business with the last second layup, that was a great look and he was barely touched and he let that play affect him in overtime.

P.S. HAMI COMMIT BRING HAMMER TIME BACK TO STORRS

 

[Jaker]

The loss yesterday was a collective effort of mental mistakes and missed opportunities by the entire team.

 

[Doctor Hoop]

However, Rodney is who we all know he is and that is a streaky player and a tease. Rodney is a 4th option on a good team, but for us he is the 2nd option and main shooting option from the perimeter and therein lies the problem. He is serviceable if used correctly ... I would rather see Adams take all game winning shots and have the rest of the team crash the boards for a rebound.

I hate to pile n all the negativity. I keep watching these games anticipating that suddenly it'll all come together, 40 minutes of UConn ball. 3-4-5-6 stops in a row. Defense without fouling. A recognizable offense that steadily generates good shots, without forces. Blocked shots and fast breaks, fast breaks that are finished strong.

However...

Recall that last years second half improvement came when Purvis came off the bench. I like him. He plays hard, is solid defensively on the opponent's best perimeter player, and from the guard spot hits the boards. But he doesn't handle the ball well, has only limited success finishing drives, isn't a knock-down shooter, and doesn't see spacing on the floor. Often when Adams is mesmerizing the defense he could slide to a more open spot ready to shoot, but doesn't.

The team needs basketball smarts, and more than just Adams to step up when it's on the line. Facey and Vital show it in spots, but not consistently. Purvis rarely does. At this point I've seen the most from Facey. He needs to become Robin to Adams' Batman

 

[David 76]

Amazed that the basketball experts on this forum don't understand that options are drawn up in a play like that. Maybe they think Ollie should have made Jackson or Vital the the perimeter option.
You know, because they are so much more knowledgeable than Ollie. Probably because of their high school experience.

 

[KembaStepback]

Guys. I hate this short sighted look at recruiting. In a yr or 2 with larrier adams Gilbert Jackson and vital and MAL, possibility diallo too, progressing the team will be playing well and everyone will love ollie. They suffered injuries. You want them not to recruit Gilbert a mcd all American because of a shoulder injury? Give me a break. Let's not get larrier because he might tear his ACL. Seriously? Think before you post.

As for Purvis. I like his heart and his hustle. He's a good defender. Decent rebounder for the position...but his basketball iq just isn't good. His court awareness is probably the lowest I've seen. He is always stepping out of bounds. His passes are always a second late and he just can't finish. He is a very streaky shooter. He's good at spot up but isn't good off the dribble.

 

[tzznandrew]

As for Purvis. I like his heart and his hustle. He's a good defender. Decent rebounder for the position...but his basketball iq just isn't good. His court awareness is probably the lowest I've seen. He is always stepping out of bounds. His passes are always a second late and he just can't finish. He is a very streaky shooter. He's good at spot up but isn't good off the dribble.

Purvis is exactly the sort of player who would have benefitted playing on deeper teams because the types of mistakes he makes would lead to him getting pulled more. As it is, from 2015-2017, the team hasn't had the depth at the guard position. He was sitting on the bench in 2014, but if he had to fight for minutes against the 2-3s on that team (Kromah, Boat, Giffey sometimes, Calhoun, Samuel), these might have been corrected.

It's no surprise some of our most frustrating players often were forced to learn on the court (Dyson and Sticks) rather than having those mistakes corrected more directly.

 

[ctchamps]

Purvis is exactly the sort of player who would have benefitted playing on deeper teams because the types of mistakes he makes would lead to him getting pulled more. As it is, from 2015-2017, the team hasn't had the depth at the guard position. He was sitting on the bench in 2014, but if he had to fight for minutes against the 2-3s on that team (Kromah, Boat, Giffey sometimes, Calhoun, Samuel), these might have been corrected.

It's no surprise some of our most frustrating players often were forced to learn on the court (Dyson and Sticks) rather than having those mistakes corrected more directly.

Sometimes problems occur for players who are put in positions or roles they aren't ready or capable of handling. Classic case was moving Kevin from the four to the three.

Jerome was having an all American season until JC decided sophomore Kemba was not ready to run the point and moved Dyson from the off guard to the point.

Rodney had a great end to last season. No way of knowing how much his God brothers death impacted him but he didn't seem to show the intensity early in the season he now is demonstrating. However I think he's gone from a lack of passion to over pressing.

 

[King Husky]

Rodney shouldn't be slashing; he doesn't have the handle, doesn't have the presence of mind to bail himself out with passes, and is too out-of-control; he is a set shooter. He should plant himself on the perimeter and take open kick-out shots.

Missed 3s at least have a chance at resulting in an offensive rebound. Purvis drives result in turnovers.

He needs to practice slowing the game down to the point where the speed of his physical movement is in sync with the speed of his decision making. I wish I could work with him for a little while. First thing would be having him drive into traffic at 80% speed, while keeping his dribble alive the whole time and dribbling back out of it. No quick passing, no shooting. The goal would be slowly increasing it to 100% speed, and then adding in the shooting and passing.

He's a heck of a player when you look at what he is physically capable of, but the mental side holds him back. (Including his streaky 3-point shooting, IMO).

 

[tzznandrew]

Sometimes problems occur for players who are put in positions or roles they aren't ready or capable of handling. Classic case was moving Kevin from the four to the three.

Jerome was having an all American season until JC decided sophomore Kemba was not ready to run the point and moved Dyson from the off guard to the point.

Rodney had a great end to last season. No way of knowing how much his God brothers death impacted him but he didn't seem to show the intensity early in the season he now is demonstrating. However I think he's gone from a lack of passion to over pressing.

All that is fair.

On a side note of sorts, add to my initial list Taliek Brown. He had to play through his mistakes rather than getting run behind a senior El-Amin.

I thought of him because, like Purvis, he had a major off-season death (a friend beaten to death in NYC, I believe) that really hurt him as 2002-2003 started. He went from averaging 9.2 ppg on 45.6% shooting (10 of 33 from 3) as a sophomore to 7.7 on 44% (1 for 17 from 3). And though Okafor and Gordon stepped up, that team lost Caron Butler, so there were points that needed to be had. He regressed that summer and, frankly, never really recovered as a scorer, though his defense and distributing improved dramatically. Was some of that due to the death of his friend? I remember there being talk of that then.

 

[husky429]

He needs to practice slowing the game down to the point where the speed of his physical movement is in sync with the speed of his decision making. I wish I could work with him for a little while. First thing would be having him drive into traffic at 80% speed, while keeping his dribble alive the whole time and dribbling back out of it. No quick passing, no shooting. The goal would be slowly increasing it to 100% speed, and then adding in the shooting and passing.

He's a heck of a player when you look at what he is physically capable of, but the mental side holds him back. (Including his streaky 3-point shooting, IMO).

Seriously, the guy is maybe as athletic as they come, but his skills just can't keep up. He would be a nasty OLB for the football team, come to think of it... Does he still have football eligibility, or does it not work that way??? Haha

 

[ctchamps]

All that is fair.

On a side note of sorts, add to my initial list Taliek Brown. He had to play through his mistakes rather than getting run behind a senior El-Amin.

I thought of him because, like Purvis, he had a major off-season death (a friend beaten to death in NYC, I believe) that really hurt him as 2002-2003 started. He went from averaging 9.2 ppg on 45.6% shooting (10 of 33 from 3) as a sophomore to 7.7 on 44% (1 for 17 from 3). And though Okafor and Gordon stepped up, that team lost Caron Butler, so there were points that needed to be had. He regressed that summer and, frankly, never really recovered as a scorer, though his defense and distributing improved dramatically. Was some of that due to the death of his friend? I remember there being talk of that then.

Yes he lost a friend (I think his best friend) to a gang shooting. I believe he was an innocent bystander. Taliek missed a game going to his funeral. In addition he suffered with turf toe most of the season. He probably should have taken time to let it heal but he played through it because there was no one else. I've had turf toe and even when walking there was a pain that made me need to catch my breath. I didn't dare play tennis while I was recovering.

 

[NielsisGood]

Can't believe I'm about to have this question.

On a thread we're we talk about the lack of improvement for players, here's a guy who improved his free throw shooting. Yet we're still going to quote his horrible stats from his first year at UConn.

Rodney shot awfully to open last year, and then turned the corner in January. Most of the Boneyard here remarked on it. He went from 55% to 80% over the last 24 games. Big turnaround.

This year, he shot poorly in the first 2 games at the FT line. Otherwise, he is shooting 91%.

Anyone who doesn't see a big improvement in Rodney's FT shooting just doesn't want to give the guy credit.

You're cherry picking stats and only want to include any successful stretches. 71% for the year is still 71% for the year. Given that we're only 13 games in, I don't think it's right to start discounting games from this season.

 

[upstater]

You're cherry picking stats and only want to include any successful stretches. 71% for the year is still 71% for the year. Given that we're only 13 games in, I don't think it's right to start discounting games from this season.

He is shooting 77% for the whole year, not 71%.

And no, I'm not only including successful stretches, because this conversation was happening all last year about Rodney's free throws. He started out slow last year too, and we all pointed out that he turned things around the last 25 games. This year he has turned things around quicker. He is shooting 77% overall.

I don't know what it is about Rodney that people want to constantly detract for him even in the few areas where he does pretty well.

 

[tzznandrew]

He is shooting 77% for the whole year, not 71%.

And no, I'm not only including successful stretches, because this conversation was happening all last year about Rodney's free throws. He started out slow last year too, and we all pointed out that he turned things around the last 25 games. This year he has turned things around quicker. He is shooting 77% overall.

I don't know what it is about Rodney that people want to constantly detract for him even in the few areas where he does pretty well.

You know what it is. KO called him a Ferrarri and he turned out to be an Altima, yet UConn fans see him as a Pinto.

When you underperform high expectations, you lose fan support. Criticisms and concerns about his game are perfectly reasonable, but this doesn't mean people don't go out of their way to find irrational criticisms.

 

[whaler11]

It's pretty simple.

You can't run a successful college basketball team with 8 scholarship players when only 1 can handle the ball.

Throw in three very similar big men who are all limited plus 3 other freshman who each have their own challenges.

Basketball is all about context. There may not be a better example than Albert Mouring:

As a junior Mouring shot 48% from 3 point range - as a senior he shot 37% from 3 point range... on fewer attempts.

Do you think Mouring forgot how to shoot or do you think the roster around him changed?

They are going to have to run Adams, Purvis & Vital into the ground just to stay in games for the next two months. Their numbers are going to be brutal.

Purvis drives me nuts at times but if he had the luxury of being the 6th or 7th best player on the roster he'd look a million times better in context.

Tzzn is right - hopefully Ollie learned a lesson about setting expectations.

 

[upstater]

Tzzn is right - hopefully Ollie learned a lesson about setting expectations.

I tend to doubt it. This was something Calhoun would do all the time as well. Majok got more pub than anyone sitting on the bench.

 

[tzznandrew]

Purvis drives me nuts at times but if he had the luxury of being the 6th or 7th best player on the roster he'd look a million times better in context.

Purvis could be a better Tony Robertson. Third highest scoring average, but someone who comes off the bench and doesn't get run if he doesn't have it that day. A Vinnie Johnson type player. He'd be beloved here.

 

[whaler11]

I tend to doubt it. This was something Calhoun would do all the time as well. Majok got more pub than anyone sitting on the bench.

Calhoun also hit some homeruns.

I still remember listening to him in the car with Joe on the eve of the season talking about how everyone would love Jeff Adrien.

 

[whaler11]

Purvis could be a better Tony Robertson. Third highest scoring average, but someone who comes off the bench and doesn't get run if he doesn't have it that day. A Vinnie Johnson type player. He'd be beloved here.

I was thinking John Gwynn but Robertson would work too.

BTW Gywnn is working some pretty high profile games as a referee.

 

[Waquoit]

I was thinking John Gwynn but Robertson would work too.

Let's not get carried away. Gwynn could shoot.

 

[whaler11]

Let's not get carried away. Gwynn could shoot.

If Purvis was the fourth player the defense had to worry about I bet he'd make a lot more shots.....

 

[tzznandrew]

Let's not get carried away. Gwynn could shoot.

Purvis is having a horrid shooting season, but last year shot 43.4% from the field and 38% from 3. Neither are great. But not significantly worse than Gwynn:

Gwynn 1988-89: 48% overall, 33% from 3
Gwynn 1989-90: 43% overall, 35% from 3
Gwynn 1990-91: 46% overall, 25% from 3

 

[whaler11]

Purvis is having a horrid shooting season, but last year shot 43.4% from the field and 38% from 3. Neither are great. But not significantly worse than Gwynn:

Gwynn 1988-89: 48% overall, 33% from 3
Gwynn 1989-90: 43% overall, 35% from 3
Gwynn 1990-91: 46% overall, 25% from 3

Game was different then - more possessions so each miss wasn't so painful. UConn/Houston was a 65 possession game....

 

[tzznandrew]

Game was different then - more possessions so each miss wasn't so painful. UConn/Houston was a 65 possession game....

It's a fair point, but Gwynn wasn't a significantly better shooter than Purvis.

Although this year Purvis is shooting poorly, exhaustion and being the second option--rather than last year where he was between 3-4 most games--have led to this more than Gwynn being an objectively better at it.

 

[whaler11]

It's a fair point, but Gwynn wasn't a significantly better shooter than Purvis.

Although this year Purvis is shooting poorly, exhaustion and being the second option--rather than last year where he was between 3-4 most games--have led to this more than Gwynn being an objectively better at it.

I'm agreeing with you - I'm saying that people remember Gwynn fondly because the shooting percentages were lower in his era because the game was played a higher pace.

Adams, Purvis and Vital are going to have their percentages plummet in conference because they are going to play 35 minutes a night and have zero support in the backcourt.

 

[Waquoit]

It's a fair point, but Gwynn wasn't a significantly better shooter than Purvis.

Yeah, he was. Using your own stats, Purvis' best season FG% (a complete outlier, BTW) matches Gwynn's worst. 48% FG for a sub-6 footer is pretty damn good. And if you want bring secondary factors like "exhaustion" into the discussion, what about the competition? Big East v. AAC?

 

[NielsisGood]

He is shooting 77% for the whole year, not 71%.

And no, I'm not only including successful stretches, because this conversation was happening all last year about Rodney's free throws. He started out slow last year too, and we all pointed out that he turned things around the last 25 games. This year he has turned things around quicker. He is shooting 77% overall.

I don't know what it is about Rodney that people want to constantly detract for him even in the few areas where he does pretty well.

To the bolded: Not sure how you devolve from talking about whether Purvis should be driving consistently to this statement. This is why this board is so dead, people go from talking about something that might actually change how the team plays to trying to over-argue one particular thing, to ridiculous statements like the bolded.

 

[upstater]

To the bolded: Not sure how you devolve from talking about whether Purvis should be driving consistently to this statement. This is why this board is so dead, people go from talking about something that might actually change how the team plays to trying to over-argue one particular thing, to ridiculous statements like the bolded.

What are you talking about?

The whole Rodney free throw subject came up when someone wrote Rodney is a poor free throw shooter.

For heaven's sakes.

 

[whaler11]

Yeah, he was. Using your own stats, Purvis' best season FG% (a complete outlier, BTW) matches Gwynn's worst. 48% FG for a sub-6 footer is pretty damn good. And if you want bring secondary factors like "exhaustion" into the discussion, what about the competition? Big East v. AAC?

Come on. Gwynn didn't even start. Purvis is the second best player on a doomed team.

Sure the Big East Gwynn played in is better than this AAC, but can you imagine if they switched roles? Gwynn would drown in the role that Purvis has on this team.

 

[tzznandrew]

I'm agreeing with you - I'm saying that people remember Gwynn fondly because the shooting percentages were lower in his era because the game was played a higher pace.

Gotcha. Missed that.