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  1. #21
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    Quote Originally Posted by Kedsy View Post
    If we're going to assume that Jahlil is as good as advertised, why not Tyus. Supposedly he's really good at feeding the post.
    I'm making no assumptions, simply pointing out that there are two halves to the big man game: having a big man who can put himself in position to score and then execute, and having guards who can get him the ball in those positions.

    all indications point to us having those things.
    1200. DDMF.

  2. #22
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    Feb 2007
    Quote Originally Posted by uh_no View Post
    the other question is minutes. we got a freshman big man, and most likely he won't go more than 25...and might even be limited to 20 depending on how good a shape he's in...i'm not saying he's out of shape, just that with freshman big men, you just don't know how much they'll be able to go. So for those 15-20 minutes when he isn't on the floor, he won't be making an impact. For all we know, he could get himself in foul trouble. So it will be critical for him to remain on the floor.
    This would be quite a change of pace if true. But somehow, I think Coach K will find a way to get his best player to play 30+ mpg. I find it difficult to believe that the discussions on DBR about Jahlil's minutes next season won't revolve around whether he plays too many minutes. That's just the way things seem to go, year in and year out. (Yes, this means I believe Coach K will successfully coach Jahlil to stay out of foul trouble, and Duke's strength & conditioning team will have Jahlil in good enough shape to play 30 mpg.)

    Quote Originally Posted by uh_no View Post
    also of concern: how much will the offense have to change when he's not on the floor? obviously marshall isn't jahlil...but will he be able to serve as enough of a shadow that the offense can funtion at least similarly? or will we effectively need to install two offenses...one with jahlil, and one without.
    Yeah, we will run different sets depending on whether Okafor's in the game. I'm sure we'll handle multiple sets just fine. On my DVR right now is the Senior Night game against UNC, the only game I haven't deleted yet from this past season. I watched it last week and noticed we ran two completely different offenses depending on whether the seniors were in or not. Both worked magnificently. I don't think it's out of the ordinary for most college basketball teams to be able to run different sets in a single game. Having quality PG play, which we'll have with Tyus and a senior Quinn, will also help with that.

  3. #23
    Quote Originally Posted by Troublemaker View Post
    This would be quite a change of pace if true. But somehow, I think Coach K will find a way to get his best player to play 30+ mpg.
    If he does, I'm pretty sure it would be the first time during Coach K's time at Duke that a freshman center averaged more than 25 mpg for the full season. Which is why I agree with those who expect there to be approximately 15 mpg of playing time for Marshall (or somebody other than Jahlil, anyway).

  4. #24
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    Feb 2007
    Quote Originally Posted by Kedsy View Post
    If he does, I'm pretty sure it would be the first time during Coach K's time at Duke that a freshman center averaged more than 25 mpg for the full season. Which is why I agree with those who expect there to be approximately 15 mpg of playing time for Marshall (or somebody other than Jahlil, anyway).
    Something's got to give for sure. Looking at Elton's freshman year game logs, I think there is better support for your position than mine. However, it would've been interesting to see how his minutes would've progressed had he not gotten injured. Pre-injury, he did play a season-high 29 minutes against Duke's two toughest non-conference opponents, Arizona and Michigan. Then he broke his foot before conference season started. I wonder if his minutes would've progressed to the point where he would've averaged 30mpg in conference play if he didn't break his foot. Hopefully Jahlil plays a full 40 games next season and we find out. It's "best player plays 30+mpg" vs "freshman center plays <=25mpg." Something's gotta give.

  5. #25
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    Nov 2013
    Quote Originally Posted by Kedsy View Post
    How much have you seen Jahlil play? On what do you base your assertion that he'll be the "only clearly superior talent" on Duke's team? You don't think any of the big men on other teams might be almost as good as "Big jah"?

    Matt Jones shot 14% on three-pointers this past season. So I'd suggest he has not yet "shown the ability to knock down kick out 3's" in college.

    If we're going to assume that Jahlil is as good as advertised, why not Tyus. Supposedly he's really good at feeding the post.
    I've only watched jah twice in person and i'm not a scout so Im easily discredited based on resume. Having said that, I do have eyes that work. Jah is a beast. He's 6'10+ with a 7ft+ wingspan. He's weighs a ton but is nimble with polished post moves. He holds a basketball like a normal human holds a softball. Even though Duke loves to say players do not have positions, I think its nice to see a person who looks the part, if you will. He's a true center and he will be more talented than anyone who guards him on any given night. If you can come up with a list of possible match up problems, it will be a very short one. Im tired of 6'3 sf's and centers who are great in the open floor but shoot fadeway runners in the half court when they arent busy traveling. Jah is a kid we can ride and I expect he will get as many minutes and touches as he can handle.

    As for Mjones, he was recruited as a shooter and asked to do different things last year. My last concern is whether or not MJones can hit an open kick out 3. http://espn.go.com/college-sports/ba...946/matt-jones
    http://scouthoops.scout.com/a.z?s=75...=1&nid=4927425
    http://future150.com/hs/basketball-p...-jones-sg-2013

  6. #26
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    Quote Originally Posted by uh_no View Post
    for me, the question is, will we be able to reliably get jahlil the ball. Last year we had trouble at times getting mason the ball in position to score, and more so when ryan was out. will amile or whomever is at the across jahlil be enough of a threat that teams can't just sandwich jahlil the entire game.

    the other question is minutes. we got a freshman big man, and most likely he won't go more than 25...and might even be limited to 20 depending on how good a shape he's in...i'm not saying he's out of shape, just that with freshman big men, you just don't know how much they'll be able to go. So for those 15-20 minutes when he isn't on the floor, he won't be making an impact. For all we know, he could get himself in foul trouble. So it will be critical for him to remain on the floor.

    also of concern: how much will the offense have to change when he's not on the floor? obviously marshall isn't jahlil...but will he be able to serve as enough of a shadow that the offense can funtion at least similarly? or will we effectively need to install two offenses...one with jahlil, and one without.
    I will be very surprised, and frankly quite annoyed, if Jahlil Okafor can't play more than half a college game because he's not in the physical condition to do so. I really don't think that will happen, and it shouldn't, because there is simply no reason -- zero -- for a scholarship athlete to not be in peak physical condition, barring his coming off some sort of injury. These guys hoop every day, and have for years and years, and while they're stepping up in class in college, they've simply got to be in good enough physical condition to play as many minutes as their coach needs them to. That being said, as he's the #1 recruit in the nation, and is being added to a team where there is a clear position of need, I don't see why he shouldn't get 30+ minutes per game. It's a different world than when some of the other freshman bigs being discussed in the thread played. Those teams were usually more veteran squads, such that the frosh center in question could be brought along a bit more slowly when necessary. But now freshmen, especially those ranked as highly as Jahlil, routinely are centerpieces of their respective teams, and play the minutes accordingly. Why shouldn't he?

    And no, I don't think the offense will function similarly with Marshall spelling Jahlil. Marshall is simply not in the same universe as is Jahlil in terms of his hands, his feet, his development of post moves, his ability to hold his position, his coordination, or lots of other things. The offense is likely to run through Jahlil a lot. It will never run through Marshall

  7. #27
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    Quote Originally Posted by tommy View Post
    I will be very surprised, and frankly quite annoyed, if Jahlil Okafor can't play more than half a college game because he's not in the physical condition to do so. I really don't think that will happen, and it shouldn't, because there is simply no reason -- zero -- for a scholarship athlete to not be in peak physical condition, barring his coming off some sort of injury. These guys hoop every day, and have for years and years, and while they're stepping up in class in college, they've simply got to be in good enough physical condition to play as many minutes as their coach needs them to. That being said, as he's the #1 recruit in the nation, and is being added to a team where there is a clear position of need, I don't see why he shouldn't get 30+ minutes per game.
    we just came off a year where the #1 recruit was having fatigue issues late in games....

    as has been pointed out, 30 minutes would be a record for a freshman center at duke.
    1200. DDMF.

  8. #28
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    Quote Originally Posted by uh_no View Post
    we just came off a year where the #1 recruit was having fatigue issues late in games....
    And to the degree that it was actually happening due to his lack of conditioning -- which I frankly am not sure was the issue -- it would have been appalling. Same with Okafor. In my mind, there's just no reason or excuse for it, period.

  9. #29
    Quote Originally Posted by JPtheGame View Post
    I've only watched jah twice in person and i'm not a scout so Im easily discredited based on resume. Having said that, I do have eyes that work. Jah is a beast. He's 6'10+ with a 7ft+ wingspan. He's weighs a ton but is nimble with polished post moves. He holds a basketball like a normal human holds a softball.
    The thing is, in high school, Jahlil rarely came up against people his size, and it's easy to be a beast against much smaller players. But almost every college center is at least 6'9+ with a 7ft+ wingspan. Jahlil's weight (265 or so) is more than a lot of college centers, but it's not outrageously big, either. Almost half the teams in the ACC this past season (7 out of 15) had starting centers weighing 250+. And at least two of the centers who didn't weigh that much were significantly taller than Jahlil.

    He's rated the #1 recruit in the country, and clearly he has good post moves and footwork, but I don't think you can call him a "clearly superior talent" until you see him play regularly against players his own size.

    Quote Originally Posted by JPtheGame View Post
    As for Mjones, he was recruited as a shooter and asked to do different things last year. My last concern is whether or not MJones can hit an open kick out 3.
    I'm aware that Matt had a reputation as a shooter coming out of high school. I'm also aware that as a college freshman he showed unorthodox form and shot pretty poorly from pretty much everywhere, especially three-range. It may be your last concern, but he has not yet shown any ability to hit that shot with a college defender bearing down on him. Maybe the game slows down for him this season and he regains his high school shooting success, or maybe not. No way to tell at this point. Frankly, there's no way to tell whether Matt sees the court very much next season or not.

  10. #30
    I agree with Kedsy on Okafor's minutes. The college game is very different from even high level high school games. It is difficult for centers to adjust to the physical requirements. Not impossible, but difficult. If Okafor averages more than 25 minutes a game, I'll be pleasantly surprised, although I expect MP3 will continue to develop and contribute. Jefferson with a mid-range shot (which I thought he had in high school) will be a welcome sight as well. Interestingly, our weak spot may be on the wing, where we have a lot of potential but not a lot of experience (Rasheed being the exception).

    My question is not with the players but with the coaching. Last year's team didn't have "it" in the last 5 minutes, our defense was mediocre all year, and we got flustered against junk zones. Coach K said that he needed to take a step back and evaluate what he and his staff need to do better.

    It's almost May and a long time before our first game. I expect this thread will be enormous by then.

  11. #31

    Voice of Reason

    Quote Originally Posted by Kedsy View Post
    The thing is, in high school, Jahlil rarely came up against people his size, and it's easy to be a beast against much smaller players. But almost every college center is at least 6'9+ with a 7ft+ wingspan. Jahlil's weight (265 or so) is more than a lot of college centers, but it's not outrageously big, either. Almost half the teams in the ACC this past season (7 out of 15) had starting centers weighing 250+. And at least two of the centers who didn't weigh that much were significantly taller than Jahlil.

    He's rated the #1 recruit in the country, and clearly he has good post moves and footwork, but I don't think you can call him a "clearly superior talent" until you see him play regularly against players his own size.



    I'm aware that Matt had a reputation as a shooter coming out of high school. I'm also aware that as a college freshman he showed unorthodox form and shot pretty poorly from pretty much everywhere, especially three-range. It may be your last concern, but he has not yet shown any ability to hit that shot with a college defender bearing down on him. Maybe the game slows down for him this season and he regains his high school shooting success, or maybe not. No way to tell at this point. Frankly, there's no way to tell whether Matt sees the court very much next season or not.
    Your right expressing doubt on the hype of any freshman player before he goes against the higher level of competition. I think Jahlil is a superior talent but he will be against much stiffer competition next season and he will also face double teams. I am in the camp that believes 25 minutes for a freshman center is about right. Center has got to be a very tiring position with all the banging inside to get position. Twenty five minutes may also be about right when you consider potential foul issues. Jahlil is going to be a big upgrade for us but he will still only be a freshman.

    Matt clearly was a very good defender as a freshman but did not live up to expectations offensively. I agree that the game needs to slow down for him. He has the potential to be a scorer so maybe with a year of experience he will have turned the corner enough to be a two way player.

    Semi also came in with a reputation as a shooter but he got so little PT we never saw enough to judge. He did hit a couple of shots and showed promise in the few minutes he got. I would have played him instead of Josh later in the year since Josh clearly was not having a favorable impact on games, possibly due to the new rules. Semi's lack of play was never really explained last year although the coaches had to see issues in practice that kept him on the bench. Lets hope that they are developing the kid as he has the size and athleticism to sub at the 3 or 4 position.

  12. #32
    Join Date
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    Quote Originally Posted by Saratoga2 View Post
    Your right expressing doubt on the hype of any freshman player before he goes against the higher level of competition. I think Jahlil is a superior talent but he will be against much stiffer competition next season and he will also face double teams. I am in the camp that believes 25 minutes for a freshman center is about right. Center has got to be a very tiring position with all the banging inside to get position. Twenty five minutes may also be about right when you consider potential foul issues. Jahlil is going to be a big upgrade for us but he will still only be a freshman.

    Matt clearly was a very good defender as a freshman but did not live up to expectations offensively. I agree that the game needs to slow down for him. He has the potential to be a scorer so maybe with a year of experience he will have turned the corner enough to be a two way player.

    Semi also came in with a reputation as a shooter but he got so little PT we never saw enough to judge. He did hit a couple of shots and showed promise in the few minutes he got. I would have played him instead of Josh later in the year since Josh clearly was not having a favorable impact on games, possibly due to the new rules. Semi's lack of play was never really explained last year although the coaches had to see issues in practice that kept him on the bench. Lets hope that they are developing the kid as he has the size and athleticism to sub at the 3 or 4 position.
    As has been noted in another thread, it's dangerous to assume any freshman will live up to the expectations placed on them coming out of high school.

    Exhibit 1: Josh McRoberts. #1 recruit in his class, "can't miss" talent. He played solidly as a role player on the #1 team, then was 2nd Team All-ACC (second on the team in points and assists and led the team in rebounds and blocks) as a sophomore. Yet because of the inflated expectations, he gets bashed regularly by many on this board.

    Exhibit 2: Greg Paulus: #1 PG and top-10 recruit in his class, "can't miss" playmaker. He played solidly as a role player on the #1 team, then was 2nd Team All-ACC as a junior. But his PG play was very shaky/poor, and as such the staff had to redesign the offense to mitigate the need for a PG, and by his senior year he was benched altogether. Yet because of the inflated expectations, he gets bashed regularly by many on this board (note: these two are foils for one another; those who bash McRoberts usually defend Paulus, and vice versa).

    There are countless other stories like this. Let's hope that Jones and Okafor don't fall victim to this as well. But let's also not proclaim that they won't; it's always a possibility.

    What we can say with some confidence is that both Jones and Okafor will play as much as they can. Historically speaking, all of Coach K's top-5 recruits played major minutes (usually as starters) as freshmen. That hasn't always meant they've starred, but they've played major minutes. I think we can safely expect that Okafor will see ~20-25 mpg, and I think we can safely assume that Jones will see at least 25 mpg. Whether or or not they are dominant is far from a certainty.

  13. #33
    In light of Jabari and Rodney's departure, I'll bite on offering some musings about next year's team:

    1) In some ways, I think next year may be very similar to this past season. On paper, it looks like a potentially very talented team, but there are serious question marks about: (a) leadership; (b) cohesion when introducing lots of new players into the system; and (c) relying on very young players to adapt quickly to the Duke system, particularly on defense.

    2) Next year also will be similar to this past season from a fan perspective in that the team will be something of an unknown quantity. Lots of new players without really knowing what to expect from all of them. Definitely a different feeling that the prior few seasons, where you had something of a nucleus with the Plumlees, Kelly, Curry, etc. for several seasons in a row.

    3) I am probably a bit less optimistic than many seem to be about next year. Yes, the upside is high, but we just had a pretty average season by Duke standards, and we are losing our two best players by far and several other rotation players. Hopefully the freshmen will be as good as expected or Rasheed or someone else will make "the leap" to the next level, but if those things don't happen, it could be another somewhat disappointing season.

    4) On a related point, I am also a bit pessimistic because there is a limited track record for freshman-dominated teams winning national championships or even having really excellent seasons. Some of the recent Kentucky teams obviously would be the point of comparison, or perhaps the Conley-Oden OSU team, but when was the last time Duke was as dependent on freshmen as we will be next year? 2000 seems like a decent comparison, although that team was carried by C-Well elevating his game to ACC POY caliber and Battier taking it to the next level and becoming something resembling the NPOY guy he was in 2001. Can Cook, Sheed, or someone else unexpected (Amile?) make a similar leap? I frankly don't see it, but I guess that is why they call it a leap.

    5) Which leads me to my next point, which is just how good will Jones and Okafor be? To cite my prior example, can they be as good as say a Conley-Oden duo? If so, maybe Duke will go far, but I don't think we can count on that level of dominance. It's a rare thing for a freshman big man to be a dominant player from the get-go. Maybe Okafor is that rare guy, but the chances are against it, right?

    6) I don't find the rotation and distribution of minutes questions nearly as interesting as others do. Seems to me most of the roles are pretty well-established. One thing that will be key is that regardless of who starts, Cook and T. Jones will play a lot of minutes, which means they will have to play together a lot. Finding ways for the two of them to coexist will be vital. I think the most "interesting" uncertain issue right now is who gets squeezed out of 2/3 rotation? I don't see how K can find a significant amount of minutes for both Justise and M. Jones (unless Justise can play the 4, which I doubt), so I think one of the two will ultimately end up playing a smaller role.

    7) Can Amile Jefferson learn to shoot a jump shot and/or a free throw?

  14. #34
    Quote Originally Posted by ArtVandelay View Post
    I am probably a bit less optimistic than many seem to be about next year. Yes, the upside is high, but we just had a pretty average season by Duke standards, and we are losing our two best players by far and several other rotation players.
    If there's one thing that we can say about college basketball, it's that how a team performed last season is generally a pretty poor predictor for how the team will perform next season. So I don't entirely buy your logic here.

  15. #35
    Quote Originally Posted by Kedsy View Post
    The thing is, in high school, Jahlil rarely came up against people his size, and it's easy to be a beast against much smaller players. But almost every college center is at least 6'9+ with a 7ft+ wingspan. Jahlil's weight (265 or so) is more than a lot of college centers, but it's not outrageously big, either. Almost half the teams in the ACC this past season (7 out of 15) had starting centers weighing 250+. And at least two of the centers who didn't weigh that much were significantly taller than Jahlil.

    He's rated the #1 recruit in the country, and clearly he has good post moves and footwork, but I don't think you can call him a "clearly superior talent" until you see him play regularly against players his own size.
    The pendulum swings both ways on this. If Jahlil Okafor can get the other team's center into foul trouble, he will be even more effective against their backup center. Ditto for MP3, albeit using a different skill set.

    Or it MP3 can sub in a trade 2 fouls on him for 2 against the opposing starting center, they have to play softer when Okafor re-enters the game.

    What will be interesting is to see how much pick and roll Duke runs. At least by practicing it more, Duke may learn how to defend it better.

    So far most have mused about Okafor establishing poisition down low and Tyus getting him the ball in right spot at right timing and Jahlil doing his thing, but pick and roll may help guys like Tyus, Quinn, and Sheed compensate for their relative lack of size at their respective positions, due to speed and ball handling.

    I also think the Oden-Conley comparison has merit.

  16. #36
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    Quote Originally Posted by ACCBBallFan View Post

    So far most have mused about Okafor establishing poisition down low and Tyus getting him the ball in right spot at right timing and Jahlil doing his thing, but pick and roll may help guys like Tyus, Quinn, and Sheed compensate for their relative lack of size at their respective positions, due to speed and ball handling.
    I expect to see a lot of pick n' roll next year as Tyus seems to be really talented in those situations. However, while watching the Hoops Summit and the all star games, I was impressed with the combination of Jahlil's ability to run the floor for a quick post up and Tyus' ability to hit him with an entry pass immediately, even before setting up the rest of the offense. I hope to see this happen a lot in games. I hate to use anything from UNC as an example of anything except awfulness, but Kendall Marshall and Tyler Zeller used this quite a bit to get easy buckets. Tyus has such a knack for receiving an outlet pass, taking a quick dribble or two, and then hitting a teammate with a pass, even from mid court, that I bet we'll see an easy bucket for Jahlil at least once or twice a game when he posts up his man before the defense or offense is fully set. The combination of pick n' rolls and quick post-ups can help open up the opposing defense even if our three point shooting isn't quite as good next year as it has been in the past.

  17. #37
    Quote Originally Posted by Kedsy View Post
    If there's one thing that we can say about college basketball, it's that how a team performed last season is generally a pretty poor predictor for how the team will perform next season. So I don't entirely buy your logic here.
    No doubt about it, particularly when there is so much roster turn-over. I am just looking at what we have returning and what we have coming in and making an early assessment. I don't proclaim it to be scientific. My point is that if you think the team is going to improve, given the current state of the roster, you sort of have to assume that either the incoming freshman will more than replace the productivity lost with Hood and Parker or that the returning players will progress so much that they will improve on what they did last year and/or replace the other lost pieces (Thornton, Dawkins, and to a lesser extent Hairston). Or you have to hope that some sort of tactical change in playing style or improvement in cohesion not related to merely the talent of the players will improve the outcome. As I think I acknowledged, all of these things are possible, but far from a sure thing. So for that reason, I don't have the same rosy feeling that others have, despite recognizing the upside.

    As an aside, I totally agree with your sentiment. One thing that annoys me lately in college basketball is the tendency for pundits and fans to focus too much on the name on the jersey and not the players wearing the jersey. Things like, "Duke likes to pressure the passing lanes and force turnovers," or "Michigan St. is a tough, rebounding team." Sure, those things are generally associated with the team's philosophy and can be true in any given year, but it really depends on roster construction. For instance, this year we kind of sucked at forcing turnovers.

  18. #38
    Quote Originally Posted by ArtVandelay View Post
    My point is that if you think the team is going to improve, given the current state of the roster, you sort of have to assume that either the incoming freshman will more than replace the productivity lost with Hood and Parker or that the returning players will progress so much that they will improve on what they did last year and/or replace the other lost pieces (Thornton, Dawkins, and to a lesser extent Hairston). Or you have to hope that some sort of tactical change in playing style or improvement in cohesion not related to merely the talent of the players will improve the outcome.
    There's almost no doubt we'll see a change in Duke's playing style. Last year we had really good 3-point shooting and little post presence and our offense was geared around a wing and a stretch 4. Next year our 3-point shooting is questionable, we should have a strong post presence, and our offense will be geared around a point guard and a center.

    And if there's a change of playing style, then I don't think you can ever judge a college team based on the previous year's team minus "productivity lost" and plus newcomers. Or even plus newcomers and expected progress of returnees. It's both more complicated and more simple than that. Complicated in that the value of returning players if they're used in different roles can change dramatically, even beyond the usual off-season improvement. Simple in that I think you can simply look at what you have, rather than trying to factor in what you gained and what you lost.

    Looking at next year's team, it seems likely we'll have a top 10 offense. How good our defense will be depends on how quickly the freshmen catch on, but is likely to be an improvement over this past season. Because Justise and Amile aren't strong outside shooters, there should be an interesting trade off between perimeter shooting skill and perimeter size on defense. And I can say all that without factoring in "lost pieces" because we're not really replacing the individual players, we have a whole new team.

  19. #39
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    Quote Originally Posted by Kedsy View Post
    There's almost no doubt we'll see a change in Duke's playing style. Last year we had really good 3-point shooting and little post presence and our offense was geared around a wing and a stretch 4. Next year our 3-point shooting is questionable, we should have a strong post presence, and our offense will be geared around a point guard and a center.
    Why do you think this? We have Cook and Sulaimon back. Cook shot 37% (and Coach K even said he is a fantastic shooter). Sulaimon shot 41%. Sure - he don't have Hood, Dawkins, or Thornton back, but we may get Semi into the rotation and M. Jones may find his shot (I mean, you can't be called the best shooter in your recruiting class and not shoot, right?). I'll concede that this year's incoming class isn't great at shooting, but we're not sure.

    Still, with Cook, Sulaimon, and one of Semi / M. Jones, I'd call 3pt shooting an asset, not a liability.
    Criticism may not be agreeable, but it is necessary. It fulfils the same function as pain in the human body. It calls attention to an unhealthy state of things. - Winston Churchill

    President of the "Nolan Smith Should Have His Jersey in The Rafters" Club

  20. #40
    Quote Originally Posted by flyingdutchdevil View Post
    Why do you think this? We have Cook and Sulaimon back. Cook shot 37% (and Coach K even said he is a fantastic shooter). Sulaimon shot 41%. Sure - he don't have Hood, Dawkins, or Thornton back, but we may get Semi into the rotation and M. Jones may find his shot (I mean, you can't be called the best shooter in your recruiting class and not shoot, right?). I'll concede that this year's incoming class isn't great at shooting, but we're not sure.

    Still, with Cook, Sulaimon, and one of Semi / M. Jones, I'd call 3pt shooting an asset, not a liability.
    Semi or Matt will probably be the 8th guy in the rotation (and the other probably 9th), so I don't think we can count on them for anything more than an occasional outburst, if that. Which means we'll probably have just two reliable 3-point threats. If one or both of them gets in foul trouble or goes into a shooting slump (and both Quinn and Rasheed have seemed pretty streaky so far in their careers), or if the opponent has one or two tall guards who are strong enough to fight through screens, or if Coach K decides we can't go super-small for long periods of time, we could be in trouble, shooting-wise. For a team that for each of the past 7 seasons has gotten between 29% and 35% of its points from three-point baskets, I think that makes three-point shooting a question mark.

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