The Carlton watch

[jdb50]

Crucify me but I would like to see a lineup of Carlton, Cobb at 4, Wilson/Polley at 3, Gilbert and Jalen. Then you bring in CV to rest the starting guards. Cobb can pass, hit a 3 and rebound but he is not a 5 which is where we have been playing him. If Cobb and Carlton pick up fouls we would only have Whaley left to sub unless Diarra gets healthier. Against teams with size this would be worth a try IMHO.

 

[joober jones]

One of the guys calling the game was marveling at Polley's defensive skills. My guess is he must usually do the play-by-play at bullfights.

 

[intlzncster]

One of the guys calling the game was marveling at Polley's defensive skills. My guess is he must usually do the play-by-play at bullfights.

I heard that and guffawed at the TV.

 

[Rico444]

Crucify me but I would like to see a lineup of Carlton, Cobb at 4, Wilson/Polley at 3, Gilbert and Jalen. Then you bring in CV to rest the starting guards. Cobb can pass, hit a 3 and rebound but he is not a 5 which is where we have been playing him. If Cobb and Carlton pick up fouls we would only have Whaley left to sub unless Diarra gets healthier. Against teams with size this would be worth a try IMHO.

Cobb can't even defend mobile 5s, he would get absolutely torched if he played the 4.

 

[mauconnfan]

Polley is basically a way worse version of him right now.

Bad news is Polley is twice the defender, Larrier a better shooter and scorer.

His biggest impact is dating Meghan Walker.

 

[imno1]

Cobb can't even defend mobile 5s, he would get absolutely torched if he played the 4.

 

[HuskyHawk]

He's a Top 100 player because of his athleticism and length. Rankings are based on projections of what could be. Not necessarily who's the best, most fundamentally sound basketball player.

He's got huge upside. We all knew he was a bit raw in certain skillsets.

Bear in mind, the kid's got 14 collegiate games under his belt. If we are talking minutes alone, he's got roughly 8-10 games.

It’s amazing that people don’t get this. Only the top handful of guys have elite athleticism plus elite skill. The rest are lacking somethung. If you bring in elite athletes, you have to coach them up. If you bring in guys with advanced BB IQ, awareness and overall skill levels, they have a lower ceiling.

Sid is clearly in the need to be coached up category. I am little disappointed because he did have last year to practice. Didn’t gain much it seems.

 

[intlzncster]

Sid is clearly in the need to be coached up category. I am little disappointed because he did have last year to practice. Didn’t gain much it seems.

Who was coaching him?

 

[tentoes4rings]

The guy had already been in college like 8 years and graduated despite having a year of eligibility left. It is weird though. I don’t think he’s getting paid to play on any level right now and he’s still dating Megan Walker on the women’s team.

What a shame. I remember how good he looked briefly for us before injuring his knee. He had explosiveness, length and interest from a lot of NBA scouts. He wasn’t the same guy afterwards. I completely forgot about him as well.

 

[jibsey]

I swear it's just killing us. Other teams kill is in the paint at the 4.

And 5 spot. We need another 4 and 5 next year plus Akok.

 

[Hankster]

4 points, 11 rebounds, 2 blocks.

Josh is still moving in the right direction. He could have had a two or three more buckets but couldn't finish. Some of his fouls were a mystery to me.

One thing is clear. When he goes out, we become a complete donut.

I was behind our bench with a close clear view.When our boys came down our way the second half, you would of seen those mystery calls worse. Polley was called for a foul. His fingertips were on the guys back. Pitiful.
AND, it wasn't Teddy Valentine calling the majority of the fouls.

 

[Palatine]

Carlton is not a guy to throw it into the post now. He needs to watch tape of senior year jameel Warney for how to use his body to score a lot

Hurley disagrees. He thinks we should throw it inside to Josh every third or fourth possession.

 

[the Q]

Hurley disagrees. He thinks we should throw it inside to Josh every third or fourth possession.

If you can get him the ball in good position sure.

But he also wasn’t doing much creating on his own today.

 

[GHSWolverines]

If you can get him the ball in good position sure.

But he also wasn’t doing much creating on his own today.

He created his own several times. Give me a break.

 

[ToolzieFan]

Carlton is 59th in the country in offensive rebound %, 57th in block %, and 125th in 2-point %. I’m not saying he’s Emeka Okafor, but he’s a solid player who has improved a lot. He looked great today. ECU was very physical with him, but it wasn’t successful.

 

[Palatine]

If you can get him the ball in good position sure.

But he also wasn’t doing much creating on his own today.

He had 20 points and 16 boards today. What's not to like? His sneakers?

 

[Waquoit]

Josh will keep getting better. There was that play in the 2nd half where he fed the cutter (Vital?) for a lay-up. He saw the play before the cutter did.

 

[3rdbass]

If you can get him the ball in good position sure.

But he also wasn’t doing much creating on his own today.

What game where you watching? He was doing drop step, spin moves and turnaround shots. The only thing he didn't do was a hook. Wow I thought I was critical. LOL!

 

[TheChamps990411]

4 points, 11 rebounds, 2 blocks.

Josh is still moving in the right direction. He could have had a two or three more buckets but couldn't finish. Some of his fouls were a mystery to me.

One thing is clear. When he goes out, we become a complete donut.

I like the kid. I thought he regressed a little but has picked it up nicely. Id really like to see what he could do with another low post threat next to him who could rebound, block shots and score in the post. I think it opens things up for Josh even more. He could have a nice career by the time hes done here. I think the next two seasons he`s really going to help get this program moving in the right direction.

 

[Hey Adrien!]

A lot of people have the "well, I wish Carlton could put up these numbers against better teams" argument, but I'd rather see consistency against weaker opponents and difficulty against stronger opponents than just all-around consistency, no matter who we play. Plus, those people forget that Carlton played very well against Cincy too.

If I'm a coach, at the end of the year I'm telling Carlton "remember those games you played great against ECU, Tulane and Wichita State? You keep this up, and you'll play like that against UCF, Houston and Cincy next season."

No, he's not our ideal starting center, but he's a good piece for this year and the next two.

 

[HuskyHawk]

Josh is flashing some old school back to the basket moves. Not many guys even use those anymore, most of them want to face up, hit jumpers and make explosive dunks. While that skill set is also helpful, it's not the way Josh is going to succeed.

He's going to need to keep working to get stronger, especially on defense and blocking out. But if he keeps improving his array of moves down low, he will score even against more talented front lines. He's playing old school basketball, and most players don't even really know how to defend it. We saw signs of offensive skill last year, but his D and rebounding were liabilities.

I'm very encouraged by this. A lineup with Gilbert, Vital, Boughknight and Gaffney who can all shoot from 3 (and Sid and Polley if they get more consistent) will either free up Josh or if they double him, will get a lot of clean looks outside. Add Akok to play that more athletic face-up post game and this team is going to be tough to defend.

 

[the Q]

Josh is flashing some old school back to the basket moves. Not many guys even use those anymore, most of them want to face up, hit jumpers and make explosive dunks. While that skill set is also helpful, it's not the way Josh is going to succeed.

He's going to need to keep working to get stronger, especially on defense and blocking out. But if he keeps improving his array of moves down low, he will score even against more talented front lines. He's playing old school basketball, and most players don't even really know how to defend it. We saw signs of offensive skill last year, but his D and rebounding were liabilities.

I'm very encouraged by this. A lineup with Gilbert, Vital, Boughknight and Gaffney who can all shoot from 3 (and Sid and Polley if they get more consistent) will either free up Josh or if they double him, will get a lot of clean looks outside. Add Akok to play that more athletic face-up post game and this team is going to be tough to defend.

Yes. Flashing is the best word.

He wasn’t traveling trying to do them yesterday either.

It was a good start

 

[husky429]

I like the kid. I thought he regressed a little but has picked it up nicely. Id really like to see what he could do with another low post threat next to him who could rebound, block shots and score in the post. I think it opens things up for Josh even more. He could have a nice career by the time hes done here. I think the next two seasons he`s really going to help get this program moving in the right direction.

There is almost no chance this happens. Teams don't play with two posts anymore. Too many good shooters.

Reality is the 1v1 post up, no matter how good you are at it, is an inefficient shot in today's game.

I'm not as bought in as some coaches with the 3s and layups only trend (I think that ignores long rebounds off of jumpers), but it's still Hurley's goal.

 

[WhereistheDove?]

Josh is flashing some old school back to the basket moves. Not many guys even use those anymore, most of them want to face up, hit jumpers and make explosive dunks. While that skill set is also helpful, it's not the way Josh is going to succeed.

He's going to need to keep working to get stronger, especially on defense and blocking out. But if he keeps improving his array of moves down low, he will score even against more talented front lines. He's playing old school basketball, and most players don't even really know how to defend it. We saw signs of offensive skill last year, but his D and rebounding were liabilities.

I'm very encouraged by this. A lineup with Gilbert, Vital, Boughknight and Gaffney who can all shoot from 3 (and Sid and Polley if they get more consistent) will either free up Josh or if they double him, will get a lot of clean looks outside. Add Akok to play that more athletic face-up post game and this team is going to be tough to defend.

He's got the skills, it’s the confidence and strength that he needs. Hopefully the confidence continues to build through the end of the season. The strength is up to him but I really hope he commits to overhauling his body during the off-season.

 

[the Q]

He's got the skills, it’s the confidence and strength that he needs. Hopefully the confidence continues to build through the end of the season. The strength is up to him but I really hope he commits to overhauling his body during the off-season.

I was wondering how much of his traveling was mental as well.

I’m hoping this is the start of a classic 2nd half breakout.

 

[HuskyHawk]

I was wondering how much of his traveling was mental as well.

I’m hoping this is the start of a classic 2nd half breakout.

I really hate the way traveling is called. Any big with a minor shuffle gets called, but guards going to the rim get away with an extra step all the time. Guards also take steps as soon as they start to send the ball the floor, but before it gets there.

 

[the Q]

I really hate the way traveling is called. Any big with a minor shuffle gets called, but guards going to the rim get away with an extra step all the time. Guards also take steps as soon as they start to send the ball the floor, but before it gets there.

You are preaching to the choir.

It’s laughbale how much wiggle guards get.

They are allowed 2 and even 3 steps at times. Even though the rule book doesn’t allow either

 

[UConnRock]

Importantly, the development of Carlton can be used as proof that Hurley and staff can develop a big man and can use the bigs in the offense. The new staff had to prove this before they could be a real player with some highly rated bigs. This is just some of the baggage from the Ollie era that has to get tossed. Recent play has been a big step for both Carlton and the program

 

[Edward Sargent]

Josh is flashing some old school back to the basket moves. Not many guys even use those anymore, most of them want to face up, hit jumpers and make explosive dunks. While that skill set is also helpful, it's not the way Josh is going to succeed.

He's going to need to keep working to get stronger, especially on defense and blocking out. But if he keeps improving his array of moves down low, he will score even against more talented front lines. He's playing old school basketball, and most players don't even really know how to defend it. We saw signs of offensive skill last year, but his D and rebounding were liabilities.

I'm very encouraged by this. A lineup with Gilbert, Vital, Boughknight and Gaffney who can all shoot from 3 (and Sid and Polley if they get more consistent) will either free up Josh or if they double him, will get a lot of clean looks outside. Add Akok to play that more athletic face-up post game and this team is going to be tough to defend.

Al, CV, Sid, Polley and Josh are our starting 5 next year. I think Danny liked what he saw out of those 5 in the second half yesterday

 

[HuskyHawk]

Al, CV, Sid, Polley and Josh are our starting 5 next year. I think Danny liked what he saw out of those 5 in the second half yesterday

I think Akok will start. Whether Sid or Polley claims the 3 spot, or even Boughknight, remains to be seen. Every position on the court (except the 5 at the moment) is going to be competitive. They are going to be pushed.