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It was pretty clear to me that last night showed one thing in particular - we are one good ball handler away from being a pretty good team. Unfortunately, as stated in the title, that guy is not on our roster.
As bad as it seems now, can you imagine how awful this year would have been if Boat had left? And that was a real possibility. We literally would not have won 10 games this year. We may already be the worst defending champions of all time. Without Boat, we would have been a trivia question in ten years: "this powerhouse NCAA men's basketball team won the national championship as a seven seed and then placed last in their conference behind South Florida and East Carolina the following year, managing to garner only 7 wins in the process?" Who are the Huskies, Alex. Be more specific. Who are the Connecticut Huskies, Alex.
When we play teams that can throw athletic, quick defenders at our 1 and 2 guys, and who have athletic defenders at the other 3 spots to help hedge our ball handlers, we look terrible on offense.
You only need the eye test to confirm this. If either Purvis or Samuel gets the ball at the 3 point line with a defender well positioned in front, each has a terribly hard time doing much more than passing around the perimeter. This exacerbates all of the remaining issues - Brimah has zero post game, Nolan has only one move down low, Facey has no post game, Calhoun is weak with the ball, and so on.
What we sorely lack is a 2nd ball handler who can receive a pass, break down his man, and then do something with it.
We've been very, very spoiled with Kemba and Shabazz, and Shabazz and Boat. I think of the Kentucky game last year with a minute or two left and Boat receives the pass as our 2nd ball handler and blows through Kentucky's D to get to the rim -literally under the rim - and . . . kicks it out to Daniels on the right wing behind the 3 with a perfect - just perfect - pass that hits Daniels in the hands at chest height. Daniels catches, and sets, and sets, and eyes it up, and a Kentucky Defender is not in the zip code. Missed shot, and Kerr says, "that would have iced it," but the point is - - - that was our 2nd ball handler who did that. That guy is not on our team this year. Purvis has the quickness and athleticism to blow by guys and get into the lane, but he lacks an ability to then find the best available shooter. Samuel, on the other hand, has a high, relatively weak handle, and does not have the blow-by capacity if he is trying to take his man off the dribble from scratch - that written, each has his strength - Purvis straight to the rim and shoot, and Samuel driving after receiving a pass while in motion or with the defense not set.
All of our other problems would be substantially alleviated by a second ball handler who could dribble drive and pass. A guy like Hamilton would become deadly IF a 2nd ball handler could create confusion in the D and get DHam the ball with room to work.
DHam is constantly being asked to start his move from the 3 point line. Tough request, really. He's doing well at it, in my view, and he's getting few, if any, gimmes from feeds from the other players. He's been forced to become a facilitator on offense, and he is being asked to be our 2nd ball drive option from outside. He's done better than we could have hoped as a square peg in that round hole. Can you imagine how deadly this kid would be if Napes and Boat were on the court with him? With his very high IQ and nose for where to be? The kid would probably be averaging 15 a game.
Also, a guy like Calhoun would become much more of a threat if he could play the 3 with 2 ball handlers on the court at the same time. He has enough of a handle to catch a ball in space and make a quick 1 or 2 dribble move, and, you'll all recall, the guy has an excellent 12-15 foot game - problem is he can't get there this year because there is so little effective penetration and ball movement. If, however, he catches on the perimeter with his man set, he has limited ability to make a move. In 12 minutes last night he had 1 board, 1 assist, 1 steal and was 2 of 4 from 3. Not bad at all, really.
Brimah has improved substantially in many areas, but he desperately needs to improve on one aspect of his game - stop treating every play like it's the final minute against St. Joes. Seriously. The Passion of the Center is wonderful, it really is, but he needs to learn how to pick his spots - he needs to learn that, even if he doesn't attempt a shot block, and even if the other team makes the shot, it's okay, and him being on the court has a net positive effect, while him being on the bench results in no effect. He needs to completely eliminate off the ball fouls - I don't care if his screens suck. He's too valuable to be on the bench because he was slightly moving by the 3 point line setting a screen. Or sliding over to get in front of another player's man at the top of the key, or hipping a guy dribbling along the baseline under the hoop, or, like last night, getting pump-faked into the air by a smaller player.
The fact is, Brimah can't stay on the court against top end competition, and, looking forward to next year, this is going to be a major problem for us if it is not corrected. He needs to be playing 36+ minutes a game next year.
We are in deep crap next year, as I see it. This year can be written off as a down year after an NC. Almost required by UConn teams coming off a title, really. It's a bit of burning paper thrown into a bin. If we have another year like this next year, however, then you're going to have the makings of a dumpster fire lighting off.
There was a major mistake made, collectively, by this board, preseason this year. Go back, if you have the stomach, and read the threads from pre-season. Some were talking back to back. Many were talking final four. Why?
Because there was a fantastic expectation that SC2 and Purvis would be very good players. In fact, SC2 is struggling to find a role, and Purvis is not a ball handler/distributor. If SC2 was what we hoped he'd be (how about Krauser from Pitt?), or Purvis was a consistent player who could handle the rock, play under control, and get 3-5 assists per game, we'd be a top 15 team.
So looking forward to next year, we're losing our one true ball handler. And, to boot, he's one of the best in the country, if not the best.
Who do we have coming in who can handle the rock?
Jalen Adams.
Gentlemen, the situation is dire. We are hanging our program hopes on a kid who will not be shooting his first DI shot for about 8 months. Expectations are high that this kid will be able to step in and be the next Bazz or Boat - but even Bazz and Boat and Kemba didn't have to walk in and be THE GUY on day one. Things are dire indeed.
We desperately need ball handlers. In addition to Adams, we need 2 more guys who have a tight handle, who can penetrate, and who can dish. If they can also defend moderately well, sign them up, and get them in here.
I don't see Calhoun, Purvis, Cassel, Nolan, or Facey substantially changing the style or overall level of their games next year.
Hamilton will be better, and will be a monster. We have that.
Brimah will be better, and could be a monster. We have that too.
But without ball handlers, the twice a game Hamilton to Brimah Oop will not expand and grow into the much greater potential that it has.
If Jalen Adams in our only ball handler next year, and he's great, we won't reach our potential, but it won't be a disaster. We probably stay top 25 all year.
If he doesn't pan out at DI, then next year has the potential to be the worst year for the program since pre-JC.
As bad as it seems now, can you imagine how awful this year would have been if Boat had left? And that was a real possibility. We literally would not have won 10 games this year. We may already be the worst defending champions of all time. Without Boat, we would have been a trivia question in ten years: "this powerhouse NCAA men's basketball team won the national championship as a seven seed and then placed last in their conference behind South Florida and East Carolina the following year, managing to garner only 7 wins in the process?" Who are the Huskies, Alex. Be more specific. Who are the Connecticut Huskies, Alex.
When we play teams that can throw athletic, quick defenders at our 1 and 2 guys, and who have athletic defenders at the other 3 spots to help hedge our ball handlers, we look terrible on offense.
You only need the eye test to confirm this. If either Purvis or Samuel gets the ball at the 3 point line with a defender well positioned in front, each has a terribly hard time doing much more than passing around the perimeter. This exacerbates all of the remaining issues - Brimah has zero post game, Nolan has only one move down low, Facey has no post game, Calhoun is weak with the ball, and so on.
What we sorely lack is a 2nd ball handler who can receive a pass, break down his man, and then do something with it.
We've been very, very spoiled with Kemba and Shabazz, and Shabazz and Boat. I think of the Kentucky game last year with a minute or two left and Boat receives the pass as our 2nd ball handler and blows through Kentucky's D to get to the rim -literally under the rim - and . . . kicks it out to Daniels on the right wing behind the 3 with a perfect - just perfect - pass that hits Daniels in the hands at chest height. Daniels catches, and sets, and sets, and eyes it up, and a Kentucky Defender is not in the zip code. Missed shot, and Kerr says, "that would have iced it," but the point is - - - that was our 2nd ball handler who did that. That guy is not on our team this year. Purvis has the quickness and athleticism to blow by guys and get into the lane, but he lacks an ability to then find the best available shooter. Samuel, on the other hand, has a high, relatively weak handle, and does not have the blow-by capacity if he is trying to take his man off the dribble from scratch - that written, each has his strength - Purvis straight to the rim and shoot, and Samuel driving after receiving a pass while in motion or with the defense not set.
All of our other problems would be substantially alleviated by a second ball handler who could dribble drive and pass. A guy like Hamilton would become deadly IF a 2nd ball handler could create confusion in the D and get DHam the ball with room to work.
DHam is constantly being asked to start his move from the 3 point line. Tough request, really. He's doing well at it, in my view, and he's getting few, if any, gimmes from feeds from the other players. He's been forced to become a facilitator on offense, and he is being asked to be our 2nd ball drive option from outside. He's done better than we could have hoped as a square peg in that round hole. Can you imagine how deadly this kid would be if Napes and Boat were on the court with him? With his very high IQ and nose for where to be? The kid would probably be averaging 15 a game.
Also, a guy like Calhoun would become much more of a threat if he could play the 3 with 2 ball handlers on the court at the same time. He has enough of a handle to catch a ball in space and make a quick 1 or 2 dribble move, and, you'll all recall, the guy has an excellent 12-15 foot game - problem is he can't get there this year because there is so little effective penetration and ball movement. If, however, he catches on the perimeter with his man set, he has limited ability to make a move. In 12 minutes last night he had 1 board, 1 assist, 1 steal and was 2 of 4 from 3. Not bad at all, really.
Brimah has improved substantially in many areas, but he desperately needs to improve on one aspect of his game - stop treating every play like it's the final minute against St. Joes. Seriously. The Passion of the Center is wonderful, it really is, but he needs to learn how to pick his spots - he needs to learn that, even if he doesn't attempt a shot block, and even if the other team makes the shot, it's okay, and him being on the court has a net positive effect, while him being on the bench results in no effect. He needs to completely eliminate off the ball fouls - I don't care if his screens suck. He's too valuable to be on the bench because he was slightly moving by the 3 point line setting a screen. Or sliding over to get in front of another player's man at the top of the key, or hipping a guy dribbling along the baseline under the hoop, or, like last night, getting pump-faked into the air by a smaller player.
The fact is, Brimah can't stay on the court against top end competition, and, looking forward to next year, this is going to be a major problem for us if it is not corrected. He needs to be playing 36+ minutes a game next year.
We are in deep crap next year, as I see it. This year can be written off as a down year after an NC. Almost required by UConn teams coming off a title, really. It's a bit of burning paper thrown into a bin. If we have another year like this next year, however, then you're going to have the makings of a dumpster fire lighting off.
There was a major mistake made, collectively, by this board, preseason this year. Go back, if you have the stomach, and read the threads from pre-season. Some were talking back to back. Many were talking final four. Why?
Because there was a fantastic expectation that SC2 and Purvis would be very good players. In fact, SC2 is struggling to find a role, and Purvis is not a ball handler/distributor. If SC2 was what we hoped he'd be (how about Krauser from Pitt?), or Purvis was a consistent player who could handle the rock, play under control, and get 3-5 assists per game, we'd be a top 15 team.
So looking forward to next year, we're losing our one true ball handler. And, to boot, he's one of the best in the country, if not the best.
Who do we have coming in who can handle the rock?
Jalen Adams.
Gentlemen, the situation is dire. We are hanging our program hopes on a kid who will not be shooting his first DI shot for about 8 months. Expectations are high that this kid will be able to step in and be the next Bazz or Boat - but even Bazz and Boat and Kemba didn't have to walk in and be THE GUY on day one. Things are dire indeed.
We desperately need ball handlers. In addition to Adams, we need 2 more guys who have a tight handle, who can penetrate, and who can dish. If they can also defend moderately well, sign them up, and get them in here.
I don't see Calhoun, Purvis, Cassel, Nolan, or Facey substantially changing the style or overall level of their games next year.
Hamilton will be better, and will be a monster. We have that.
Brimah will be better, and could be a monster. We have that too.
But without ball handlers, the twice a game Hamilton to Brimah Oop will not expand and grow into the much greater potential that it has.
If Jalen Adams in our only ball handler next year, and he's great, we won't reach our potential, but it won't be a disaster. We probably stay top 25 all year.
If he doesn't pan out at DI, then next year has the potential to be the worst year for the program since pre-JC.
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