I know he came in needing to add some weight, but I'm not sure why the surprise that a top 15 player in his recruiting class is able to contribute regardless of some physical limitations.
I know he came in needing to add some weight, but I'm not sure why the surprise that a top 15 player in his recruiting class is able to contribute regardless of some physical limitations.
Speaking for myself, I doubted he would be physically ready on Defense. I never doubted his offensive skills, which were the main reason for his high ranking. I think his high basketball IQ makes up for his physical limitations on defense, and it is hard to tell just how good players will be on D until they play against D1 college players. This really remains to be seen, but a lot of it could be cleared up tonight...
He honestly looks very different now than he did before the season. Maybe it's just because most of us really only saw him in summer league games and/or all-star games, but he seems to be the type of player that thrives when given a lot of coaching and direction (rather than just freestyling in a loose, pickup-style game). He just to be playing with more purpose these days.
The main difference, IMO, is how aggressive he is off the ball. While his on-ball defense looks better, the biggest change I've noticed is how he's started to crash the boards, challenge interior shots from the weak side, and generally just insert himself into plays that he would previously have timidly stood by and watched. He's smart and skilled enough with the basketball that if he can prove to be that kind of stat-stuffing all around presence against solid competetion, it makes him infinitely more valuable.
It may have had something to do with his illness over the Summer too. In seeing Ryan at the Pro-Am, he definitely looked squeamish and apprehensive. Now, that could have been the quality of player he was going against. I think we'll find out more about Ryan's game over the weekend...
I got two lower level tickets to the game tonight at the MSG box office for $45 each. So if you are in the area or will be on Friday, go support the Blue Devils!
kyrieirving Me and my boy @blank908 bought some tickets for the duke game at the garden...let's go duke..H&H about 1 hour ago
Royal blues are substantially outnumbered by the ex Conns. Hope more Dukies show up for game 2.
Last edited by 77devil; 11-25-2009 at 08:15 PM.
Coach Knight has some very nice words for the Blue Devils during his broadcast of the UConn game. He really likes Scheyer and Singler, calls them two of the smartest players in the country.
you can follow the live tempo-based stats here for those interested...
http://www.scacchoops.com/ViewHDGame.asp?hSchedule=3641
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Did Jon just commit a turnover?
SWEET TURNOVER JON.
stepping out of bounds? really? lame.
Well that's that, I guess.