MBB: Duke 89, Minnesota 71 Post-Game Thread

[superdave]

I completely agree with this Dave. He doesn't have near the same vision that either Quinn, Seth or Rasheed bring to the floor as an assist man, and he certainly isn't the offensive threat that any of them are. He is a good defensive player, and there are situations in which I think he is important to the team, but in most games those situations aren't going to last for 20+ minutes.

I would really like to see Amile or Murphy start to get some of those minutes. When one, or both, of them start to see more significant playing time I feel like we will become a much more versatile team, and able to match up with almost anyone.

But, all that being said, I feel inclined to trust Coach K to know what he is doing.

I trust Coach K fully as well. I also see why Coach K loves Tyler. The kid does exactly what Coach K wants from both a defensive perspective and from a leadership perspective.

But I am also troubled by our weak rebounding numbers, our small backcourt and by playing 4 on 5 on offense at times. We'll see what unfolds but I hope both Alex and Amile step up and earn some minutes, because we'll be much better with their size and athleticism.

[Kedsy]

22 minutes. 0-0 from field. 0-0 for the line. 0 boards. 1 assist. 3 steals. 3 TOs. 4 fouls.

I'd be interested in seeing his +/- for the game. Not sure that one game matters in that regard, but it feels like we're playing stagnant offense when he is in. His three TOs indicate that. His four fouls show that he is often aggressive in the wrong situations. If he continues to play 22 minutes a game (currently averaging 24.0) our ceiling as a team will be much lower than it will be with Murphy or Jefferson playing some of those minutes.

We've been having this argument for a couple months now. I wouldn't say the position you're espousing is any more (or any less) valid today than it was the day before the Minnesota game.

FWIW, I've said several times I think Tyler's optimal use would be to provide 10 to 15 minutes of defense and high energy, so I actually agree with your basic position. I just don't think one game's stat line proves the point one way or the other (or even four games, for that matter).

[superdave]

I'm sorry but you really can't base anything on that game in regards to fouls.
The officiating was horrendous to say it mildly.
And I'm still 100% behind TT and we will need him to go deep.
Not to mention that everyone is allowed to have a not so stellar game once in awhile and TT should not be the exception to this rule.

Trust me on this there is a reason why Coach K plays him as much as he does and it has very little to do of how much or little he likes him.

I'm not basing my opinion of Tyler on one game. I'm including a lot of history here (38% FGs this year, 35% last year and 2.8 TOs per game this year) to say that I dont think he's beneficial to our offense. I'm also making the argument that we need more rebounding help because as Mark Titus so eloquently said Ryan Kelly is the "tallest shooting guard in the country." So far this year we were outrebounded by GS by 1, even with UK, outrebounded by FGCU by 1, and -3 vs. Minny. That's -5 on the season. I'm comfortable enough with our maturity as a team, with the strength of our perimeter with Quinn and Seth, and worried enough about rebounding to cut Tyler's minutes in half and suffer through some mistakes by Amile and Alex in order to see them improve by spring so we can be a better team.

It's a tradeoff, and I think it makes a lot of sense. Give up some of the toughness and help side D from Tyler to get bigger and hit the boards, and to be less stagnant on D.

[superdave]

We've been having this argument for a couple months now. I wouldn't say the position you're espousing is any more (or any less) valid today than it was the day before the Minnesota game.

FWIW, I've said several times I think Tyler's optimal use would be to provide 10 to 15 minutes of defense and high energy, so I actually agree with your basic position. I just don't think one game's stat line proves the point one way or the other (or even four games, for that matter).

What do you think of our lack of rebounding? Ryan is averaging 5.3 in 30 minutes. We're basically a one-man rebounding team.

Also, what do you think about how our offense runs with Tyler in? I do not think his passing is very crisp and I also think he's too inclined to pull the ball out and reset rather than attack the defense.

I like Tyler and I know our opponents despise his peskiness and trash talking, but I think going bigger is worth the tradeoff.

[Kedsy]

What do you think of our lack of rebounding? Ryan is averaging 5.3 in 30 minutes. We're basically a one-man rebounding team.

I think a team that plays "classic" Duke defense is often at a rebounding disadvantage. Look at the totals in 2001 (we outrebounded our opponents by only 1 per game), 1991 (a bit more than 2 per game), 1994 (less than 1 per game), 2004 (about 2.3 per game), 1990 (2 per game), and several other successful seasons.

Also, what do you think about how our offense runs with Tyler in?

I think our offense looks rather stagnant when Tyler is in it. I have said so many times. So I'm not saying I disagree with your conclusion. I'm saying if the argument wasn't settled a week ago it's no more settled now.