Villanova post game thread

[Umami Zen]

If I’m using him at all at this point I do flush the whole PG concept out, rip the bandaid and go say to force some shots if you have to. It’s painful watching him played scared.

I'm with you. For the PT he gets-he's passing up open shots and deferring to others. We could use 5-8 pts a game from him and/or FTs. Unless DH is telling him to give up those shots -and if its in the flow of the game-Why not?
Looking over his shoulder too much.

 

[RuffRuff]

I'm with you. For the PT he gets-he's passing up open shots and deferring to others. We could use 5-8 pts a game from him and/or FTs. Unless DH is telling him to give up those shots -and if its in the flow of the game-Why not?
Looking over his shoulder too much.

Just take some confident shots - don’t feel bad if you miss. Don’t pause, don’t shy away, take them like you’re a hired gun, unapologetically. Go hunt shots.

That said, he’s only played 6 minutes over the last two games. I doubt he’s going to get much run against StJ.

 

[ctbro1999]

Just take some confident shots - don’t feel bad if you miss. Don’t pause, don’t shy away, take them like you’re a hired gun, unapologetically. Go hunt shots.

That said, he’s only played 6 minutes over the last two games. I doubt he’s going to get much run against StJ.

Only way he gets more than 4-5 minutes is if Diarra gets in foul trouble/injures himself. Then again, if that happens, we probably get a larger dose of Nowell instead of Mahaney.

 

[JustbrewitMan]

Only way he gets more than 4-5 minutes is if Diarra gets in foul trouble/injures himself. Then again, if that happens, we probably get a larger dose of Nowell instead of Mahaney.

And we also have the Liam-Solo-Alex-JStew/Ross-Samson/Tarris lineup which can work for short stretches

 

[superjohn]

The "square peg into round hole" "trying to make him a PG" arguments thrown around here are absolute rubbish.

At StMU, he sure appeared to be capable of the following basic things you want ANY guard to do with reasonable prowess against reasonable sample size of reasonable comp:

• Bring the ball up the court and start the offense, when needed (NOT even "be a PG")
• Serve as an effective perimeter part of a reasonably-designed offensive set
• Drive and create a pass/shot when the opportunities are there
• Make shots at a reasonable rate
• Make a clutch shot or two late in the shot clock to bail out the offense

Here with us, every trip up the floor to try and start the offense is a hold-your-breath adventure. Backcourt violations, getting bullied, ball stripped. More often than not, the offense grinds to a halt whenever he gets the ball. Either as an initiator or as a cog in the set. Yes he's occasionally driven into the lane with some success, but it's been wildly inefficient and inconsistent. In BE play, he's shot 38% from the field overall, 28% from 3. Ast:TO of 16:11. Serviceable defense has never materialized.

If this guy can somehow find a way to become a Joey C for 5 minutes a game, that would go a long way toward us being more of a menace as we head towards the tourney. It seems like a reasonable ask, but we're in the home stretch.

I absolutely hate that I was right about my worries about him from the open summer practice.

I'm all here for an epic redemption arc...

Even Hurley admitted he was trying to fit a square peg into a round hole with Mahaney.

 

[Umami Zen]

Just take some confident shots - don’t feel bad if you miss. Don’t pause, don’t shy away, take them like you’re a hired gun, unapologetically. Go hunt shots.

That said, he’s only played 6 minutes over the last two games. I doubt he’s going to get much run against StJ.

We agree. Make your minutes impactful. What does he bring to the table in a non-featured role? IMO. Potential to make a few open shots (not contested) and FTs on O. Disruptive on D-deflections/loose balls/occasional rebound. That's all . Be a plus performer . Buy Hass some rest on the bench. Whether its 3 minutes or 10 minutes.

 

[HuskyWarrior611]

I don't dispute this. My point, he was never going to be able to play our defense system. Without a weight room infusion, I sadly feel the same way about a future recruit as well.

The guy I believe you’re referring to has a lot more length to help on that end of the floor.

 

[freescooter]

The roster wasn’t built poorly, we had an exceptional freshman and sophomore last year and both left to be NBA lottery picks. Those holes were filled as well as could have been expected with McNeeley and Reed.

In retrospect, the only roster building issue was not bringing in a top point guard. He thought Mahaney and Nowell would be able to compete for starting point guard. He was wrong as it turned out, but not because he didn’t look at point guard when considering roster construction.

Stop. Just stop. In college basketball you need to “rebuild”every year. In the portal era it is even more important. If we brought in a highly rated player and didn’t consider that he likely would leave for the NBA after a year, now THAT would constitute coaching malpractice. With the portal you pretty much need to assume that you need to replace everyone and anyone. If they don’t graduate or leave to play in the NBA they are probably at least considering the portal. This year they overrated Mahaney. Reed was a project at Michigan. He is still a project at UConn.

 

[RuffRuff]

Stop. Just stop. In college basketball you need to “rebuild”every year. In the portal era it is even more important. If we brought in a highly rated player and didn’t consider that he likely would leave for the NBA after a year, now THAT would constitute coaching malpractice. With the portal you pretty much need to assume that you need to replace everyone and anyone. If they don’t graduate or leave to play in the NBA they are probably at least considering the portal. This year they overrated Mahaney. Reed was a project at Michigan. He is still a project at UConn.

The difference in those two is that Mahaney had a low floor based on size/system, Reed has a MUCH higher upside given his traits & coming out of a dumpster fire. Case in point Mahaney being a 3 star coming out of HS and Reed was fringe Burger Boy.

 

[Gurleyman]

The "square peg into round hole" "trying to make him a PG" arguments thrown around here are absolute rubbish.

At StMU, he sure appeared to be capable of the following basic things you want ANY guard to do with reasonable prowess against reasonable sample size of reasonable comp:

• Bring the ball up the court and start the offense, when needed (NOT even "be a PG")
• Serve as an effective perimeter part of a reasonably-designed offensive set
• Drive and create a pass/shot when the opportunities are there
• Make shots at a reasonable rate
• Make a clutch shot or two late in the shot clock to bail out the offense

Here with us, every trip up the floor to try and start the offense is a hold-your-breath adventure. Backcourt violations, getting bullied, ball stripped. More often than not, the offense grinds to a halt whenever he gets the ball. Either as an initiator or as a cog in the set. Yes he's occasionally driven into the lane with some success, but it's been wildly inefficient and inconsistent. In BE play, he's shot 38% from the field overall, 28% from 3. Ast:TO of 16:11. Serviceable defense has never materialized.

If this guy can somehow find a way to become a Joey C for 5 minutes a game, that would go a long way toward us being more of a menace as we head towards the tourney. It seems like a reasonable ask, but we're in the home stretch.

I absolutely hate that I was right about my worries about him from the open summer practice.

I'm all here for an epic redemption arc...

I didn’t watch St. Mary’s last year - but he averaged 2.6 assists a game which is ok, but sorta meh for a guy with the ball in his hands a lot. You get that just swinging the ball around the perimeter to shooters and not really making plays. Marciulonis averaged 5.3, and another guy (Logan Johnson) was more of the primary ball handler when we played them. Mahaney didn’t seem like he had all that many point guard responsibilities.

Doesn’t mean he wasn’t capable (Castle didnt play much point last year but clearly can). But what I have seen from Mahaney in a UConn uniform are two glaring fundamental offensive weaknesses - at least as it comes to our offense - the inability to come off screens looking/wanting to shoot and the inability to pass/make reads on the drive. So he doesn’t work well with us either on the ball or off the ball. He can shoot and yet he doesn’t even try to run off screens looking to get shots up, and it infuriates me because he doesn’t make himself a threat or make the defense work, react, or overcommit. He runs around screens and gets the ball and starts dribbling and surveys the landscape, and the defense just gets back set and matched up every time. So our entire set is just wasted time and wasted energy. Spencer (and Hawkins before him) created shots for other people without even touching the ball because defenses were worried about him coming off screens and over helped. Mahaney’s threes are of the spot up variety or self-created and that doesn’t open up the floor for anyone else. And when he drives, he‘s thinking like a scorer, and he can be crafty finishing. But his passes are often turnovers, since he just doesn’t have many point guard instincts on when and where and how to deliver the ball. Joey C was basically just a gunslinger and he was a lot better at the drive and dish (granted he was paired with Clingan a lot, who is a nice target).

When you look at our last two title teams and the different guards we have had in our system, Mahaney just doesn’t remind me of anyone. He can’t fill Tristen’s role, he can’t be Cam, he can’t be JoeyC, he can’t be Diarra, he can’t be Hawkins, he can’t be Castle, he can’t be Alleyne. How does he fit?

Maybe with another year if he comes back, we can figure something out - in a perfect world, he does look like he can be an unpredictable 3-level scorer. But if everything has to be self-created off a high screen and roll, then we are really talking a square peg situation because that’s not what we do.

 

[ctbro1999]

I didn’t watch St. Mary’s last year - but he averaged 2.6 assists a game which is ok, but sorta meh for a guy with the ball in his hands a lot. You get that just swinging the ball around the perimeter to shooters and not really making plays. Marciulonis averaged 5.3, and another guy (Logan Johnson) was more of the primary ball handler when we played them. Mahaney didn’t seem like he had all that many point guard responsibilities.

Doesn’t mean he wasn’t capable (Castle didnt play much point last year but clearly can). But what I have seen from Mahaney in a UConn uniform are two glaring fundamental offensive weaknesses - at least as it comes to our offense - the inability to come off screens looking/wanting to shoot and the inability to pass/make reads on the drive. So he doesn’t work well with us either on the ball or off the ball. He can shoot and yet he doesn’t even try to run off screens looking to get shots up, and it infuriates me because he doesn’t make himself a threat or make the defense work, react, or overcommit. He runs around screens and gets the ball and starts dribbling and surveys the landscape, and the defense just gets back set and matched up every time. So our entire set is just wasted time and wasted energy. Spencer (and Hawkins before him) created shots for other people without even touching the ball because defenses were worried about him coming off screens and over helped. Mahaney’s threes are of the spot up variety or self-created and that doesn’t open up the floor for anyone else. And when he drives, he‘s thinking like a scorer, and he can be crafty finishing. But his passes are often turnovers, since he just doesn’t have many point guard instincts on when and where and how to deliver the ball. Joey C was basically just a gunslinger and he was a lot better at the drive and dish (granted he was paired with Clingan a lot, who is a nice target).

When you look at our last two title teams and the different guards we have had in our system, Mahaney just doesn’t remind me of anyone. He can’t fill Tristen’s role, he can’t be Cam, he can’t be JoeyC, he can’t be Diarra, he can’t be Hawkins, he can’t be Castle, he can’t be Alleyne. How does he fit?

Maybe with another year if he comes back, we can figure something out - in a perfect world, he does look like he can be an unpredictable 3-level scorer. But if everything has to be self-created off a high screen and roll, then we are really talking a square peg situation because that’s not what we do.

At first I thought Mahaney could be a Cam Spencer replacement, but that dream quickly fizzled. Then I settled for a Joey C role (instant offense off the bench) but it seems even that is not gonna happen. At this point, all I really expect is that he can spell Diarra for 5 minutes a game or so and hopefully create a bucket or 2 (assist or score).

I'm really curious if Mahaney is on the roster next season.

 

[Excalibur]

sooooo, if he isnt a player playing out of position, how do you explain how he went from an all-league 2G to an unplayable player in this system? He thrived vs Gonzaga but cant run the point vs Seton Hall? These posts are getting more amusing... Maybe he can play the 2g and Reed the 4 lol?

Because he wasn't a 2 at St. Mary's.

He's a ball-dominant lead guard. They had two of them. Their offense was very slow-paced, based on pick and pop/roll and high ball screens. He showed the ability to create off the dribble and break his man down, hit open shots and initiate offense, but was never really a distributor.

His game doesn't work in our offense with the amount of off-ball screening and cutting we do, and the step up in ball pressure here has taken away his ability to create his own offense.

 

[djct1999]

Dying on the hill that Reed is a natural 4 is genuinely one of the craziest things I have read on this board.

And yet it’s one I am gladly willing to die on.

 

[AntG168]

And yet it’s one I am gladly willing to die on.

Reed is not a modern day 4 at any level. He has no offensive ability outside of the paint. He’s not a hub or an elite level passer. He can’t handle the ball at a high level. What modern 4 would you compare him to? I’m genuinely curious.

If we run a 2 big lineup next year Reibe will almost certainly be the 4.

 

[djct1999]

Reed is not a modern day 4 at any level. He has no offensive ability outside of the paint. He’s not a hub or an elite level passer. He can’t handle the ball at a high level. What modern 4 would you compare him to? I’m genuinely curious.

Go back and read what I said. Said he was a traditional power 4.
His game should translate to a very poor man’s Karl Malone.

Name a modern day center he reminds you of? Go ahead, I will wait.

 

[AntG168]

Go back and read what I said. Said he was a traditional power 4.

Gotcha. I’d still disagree. Traditional power 4’s normally have at least a mid range game. A la Jeff Adrien. Reed is much more Alex Oriakhi or DeJuan Blair than he is a traditional power 4.

 

[auror]

 

[djct1999]

Gotcha. I’d still disagree. Traditional power 4’s normally have at least a mid range game. A la Jeff Adrien. Reed is much more Alex Oriakhi or DeJuan Blair than he is a traditional power 4.

He played far more athletic at Michigan. Which is why I contend he is playing out of position here and is more matchup dependent than he should be. Tarris has a lot of untapped potential for us.

 

[AntG168]

He played far more athletic at Michigan. Which is why I contend he is playing out of position here and is more matchup dependent than he should be. Tarris has a lot of untapped potential for us.

I agree he has a lot of untapped potential. I just don’t think it’s at the 4. Not in the modern game and definitely not in a Hurley offense. We tried that before with Whaley and Sanogo, it didn’t really work. And Whaley is far more of a modern 4 on offense and defense than Reed is. I don’t think he’s really match up dependent as much as he is just inconsistent.

 

[djct1999]

But Danny doesn’t make adjustments. He is to stubborn according to some.

 

[djct1999]

I agree he has a lot of untapped potential. I just don’t think it’s at the 4. Not in the modern game and definitely not in a Hurley offense. We tried that before with Whaley and Sanogo, it didn’t really work. And Whaley is far more of a modern 4 on offense and defense than Reed is. I don’t think he’s really match up dependent as much as he is just inconsistent.

Why is he inconsistent? He wasn’t at Michigan. Again, it’s because he is playing out of position. But no point to talk in circles. We can disagree. But like I said, it’s a hill I will confidently die on.

 

[superjohn]

Dying on the hill that Reed is a natural 4 is genuinely one of the craziest things I have read on this board.

I could see someone who is living in the past say Isaiah Whaley isn't a college center or even someone possibly saying Sanogo isn't a college center (which would also be stupid) but Tarris Reed? He's Andre Drummond size and his game is strictly low post.

 

[RuffRuff]

He played far more athletic at Michigan. Which is why I contend he is playing out of position here and is more matchup dependent than he should be. Tarris has a lot of untapped potential for us.

We don’t want him playing how he was playing at UM. He was all over the place and a mistake machine. Hurley himself said they were trying to simplify his game so he can focus on what he does best. Maybe you reduce him to perfect what he does well and build up from there, but we don’t want him anywhere near how he was used at UM.

I can’t think of one 4 in the current college game he resembles. If this is the take the Zubi must also be a 4.

 

[slepers]

Why is he inconsistent? He wasn’t at Michigan. Again, it’s because he is playing out of position. But no point to talk in circles. We can disagree. But like I said, it’s a hill I will confidently die on.

I thought all he talk was that he was inconsistent at Michigan

 

[djct1999]

We don’t want him playing how he was playing at UM. He was all over the place and a mistake machine. Hurley himself said they were trying to simplify his game so he can focus on what he does best. Maybe you reduce him to perfect what he does well and build up from there, but we don’t want him anywhere near how he was used at UM.

I can’t think of one 4 in the current college game he resembles. If this is the take the Zubi must also be a 4.

That wasn’t on him that was on Howard and what a mess that program was. I can’t think of one center he has handled well. We can argue all night. A big reason why Tarris has been inconsistent this season is because like Mahaney, he is being misused. And don’t pound your chest after one good half in late February with a favorable matchup because Dixon was playing down low. Ironically, he probably would be most effective playing alongside Samson which again would pull him away from the five. And I am a huge Tarris fan and have been since seeing him up close multiple times last year.