Yesterday’s Game was Instructional for MBB

[Chief00]

Nothing like beating a dead horse

Danny is listening and making changes, so that’s the wrong characterization. It’s working,

 

[Chief00]

Yep. Not only that, you have to recruit the No. 1 player in the country, have him play a Wooden Award caliber Freshman season, and then convince him to come back to school to join the next No. 1 player in the country. No sweat, happens all the time.

The point that we need a clear go-to scorer on the men's team is a good one. But you can't compare anyone in men's college basketball to Paige Bueckers. Those players don't exist in the NCAA because they go to the NBA. A player like Johnny Juzang is somewhat comparable (good size, experienced, great offensive skillset, coming off a super successful season) but players like that are few and far between. That's also a dude that went to Kentucky and then transferred to UCLA. Those schools are getting a different caliber of recruits than we are right now.

Paige is a sophomore, who hasn’t won the NC yet. Gillespie has better credentials at this point but she is closing the gap.

 

[Eweconn]

The men's team would have absolutely crushed that NC State women's team. They wouldn't have needed two overtimes. Even our back up guards would have had a field day.

No kidding. What's your point? Is it that a men's team would crush a woman's team? If so, again, no kidding.

 

[Excalibur]

Chief just told us you need players who can score points to win basketball games. How profound.

 

[Inyatkin]

I thought we agreed to stop doing "Here's what the men can learn from Geno" back in, like, 1998.

 

[Kemba Time]

Yep. Not only that, you have to recruit the No. 1 player in the country, have him play a Wooden Award caliber Freshman season, and then convince him to come back to school to join the next No. 1 player in the country. No sweat, happens all the time.

The point that we need a clear go-to scorer on the men's team is a good one. But you can't compare anyone in men's college basketball to Paige Bueckers. Those players don't exist in the NCAA because they go to the NBA. A player like Johnny Juzang is somewhat comparable (good size, experienced, great offensive skillset, coming off a super successful season) but players like that are few and far between. That's also a dude that went to Kentucky and then transferred to UCLA. Those schools are getting a different caliber of recruits than we are right now.

Yeah, elite teams definitely need a go-to scorer ... and two who can do it would be even better. That is just so obvious to anyone who follows basketball at all that the idea that watching Paige/Azzi in an Elite Eight game is some kind of revelation is, well, what led to my original post.

Hurley knows it as well as anyone, that has been his formula for success as a coach since he started -- Rivers/Murray at Wagner, Matthews/Terrell at URI and then Adams/Vital, Vital/Bouk and Bouk/Cole at UConn. He has said that this season's roster construction was not ideal for various reasons that have been explained ad nauseam on this board and it's not like he was turning down the idea of having two amazing go-to scorers because he doesn't believe in the concept.

I've actually been trying to think of a good Paige men's college comp the past few days and keep coming back to a kind of player who doesn't really exist in the men's game anymore: The 6-foot-3 ball-dominant late-90s All-America level combo guard. Guys like Shawn Respert, Randolph Childress, a little bit Chauncey Billups (an NBA success, obviously) -- and Jay Williams as perhaps the last real star version of this player. Ball-dominant combo guards who could mid-range you to death or find the open man -- but the NBA decided they weren't pure point guards and were two small to play the 2, so that player eventually mostly disappeared from the college game.

 

[awfuldan]

I've actually been trying to think of a good Paige men's college comp the past few days and keep coming back to a kind of player who doesn't really exist in the men's game anymore: The 6-foot-3 ball-dominant late-90s All-America level combo guard. Guys like Shawn Respert, Randolph Childress, a little bit Chauncey Billups (an NBA success, obviously) -- and Jay Williams as perhaps the last real star version of this player. Ball-dominant combo guards who could mid-range you to death or find the open man -- but the NBA decided they weren't pure point guards and were two small to play the 2, so that player eventually mostly disappeared from the college game.

Maybe I am stuck on the fact he and Paige grew up together, but Jalen Suggs doesn't seem so far off, as far as contemporary comparisons go. Even if their games don't perfectly match-up, he has the same kind of magnetic personality/star quality. Seemed like a great leader for Gonzaga last year and obviously made the big shots for them as well. Because he was only in college for one year, he isn't going to make the same impact on CBB as Paige and the other players you mentioned though.

 

[OkaForPrez]

So the instructions are: Get the No. 1 player in the country two recruiting years in a row. Got it. Hope Hurley was watching/taking notes.

Anytime I wake up to Chief getting ratio’d I know it’s going to be a good day

 

[ucp990411]

Danny is listening and making changes, so that’s the wrong characterization. It’s working,

Listening to you?

 

[JustbrewitMan]

Listening to you?

That’s what the voices in his head tell him…

 

[QDOG5]

I like teams that look for early offense, quick scores. Kansas is the best at doing it this year. JC's teams were very good at it too. Donny Marshall was early offense. Roy Williams' teams were very good at it. This year UConn would be quick into the front court but not necessarily to shoot. UConn really needed to do that this year. Our winning percentage when scoring 70+ was far superior to under 70. Hopefully next year we have more offensive weapons and we look to score earlier in the possession.

 

[Chief00]

Chief just told us you need players who can score points to win basketball games. How profound.

We could have used what you consider to be “profound” thinking this past season. 10 points the first 10 minutes of a game doesn’t cut it.

 

[cohenzone]

Short version: Need a Batman and a Robin, preferably with Batman being an All American.

Robin in the women‘s case is a cut or two above Batman’s Robin. Two AAs pretty much.

 

[cohenzone]

He’d start because he’s still better than anybody on Geno’s team.

Perhaps. But I wouldn‘t bet against her in a game of horse.

 

[J187Money]

I don't remember an OT performance like that since Randolph Childress in the 1995 ACC Tournament against UNC.