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  1. #41
    Quote Originally Posted by Troublemaker View Post
    Disclaimers aside, I do think the denizens here would kill for a pickup report or two.
    I agree. It's always nice to pick up additional data, even if subjective.

  2. #42
    Join Date
    Feb 2007
    Location
    NC
    Quote Originally Posted by westwall View Post
    Isn't there a boatload of evidence to the contrary??
    Quote Originally Posted by Kedsy View Post
    Read his post again and note the double-negative. He said transfers at Duke have never not made an impact.
    Quote Originally Posted by westwall View Post
    Thank you, Kedsy. My faith in CDu is restored!
    Sorry for the tortured grammar! Yeah, they have always (a better choice of words than "never not" for sure) made an impact.

    It's possible that Obi doesn't make much of an impact - maybe Coach K has revised his recruiting strategy such that he's willing to bring in less-than-impactful transfers when depth is needed. But Obi would be the first transfer to not make an impact in the Coach K era if he does ride the pine.

  3. #43
    Join Date
    Jan 2009
    Location
    Boston, MA

    The potential 3-headed monster

    I love the discussion of our 5 spot this year. I know many are sick of talking about it, but what aren't you sick of talking about in the off-season? That's why they call it the "off" season.

    Anywho, regardless of who plays the most minutes, I think we're going to be okay. Worst case scenario, we have MP3: a solid defender, rebounder, and screener who provides very little on the offensive end. Best case: a defensive juggernaut/rebounder OR an solid offensive option who keeps the defenses honest. Regardless, I'm not expecting too much from the 5, although a defensive juggernaut would be really nice to have (Hi Sean!).

    I think the more pressing questions are:

    1) How will out 1 fair this year?
    2) Can we score inside at all, including posting up and driving?
    3) What do we do with Ingram, a talented, long player who is perfect for a Duke spread 4 but will probably spend more time at the 3?
    4) Can Amile improve his offensive game?
    5) Can Grayson and Ingram combine for at least 30 per game?
    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

  4. #44
    Join Date
    Feb 2007
    Location
    NC
    Quote Originally Posted by flyingdutchdevil View Post
    I think the more pressing questions are:

    1) How will out 1 fair this year?
    2) Can we score inside at all, including posting up and driving?
    3) What do we do with Ingram, a talented, long player who is perfect for a Duke spread 4 but will probably spend more time at the 3?
    4) Can Amile improve his offensive game?
    5) Can Grayson and Ingram combine for at least 30 per game?
    I agree that there are lots of unknowns. I do think the "who plays the 5?" question is about as pertinent as many of the others, though, as I don't think 40 minutes of play at last-year's-Plumlee level is sufficient.

    With regards to your other 5 questions, my thoughts are as follows:

    1) this is a big question mark. I expect Thornton to be promising but inconsistent, as is the case for almost all freshmen PGs. But the real question is who fills in behind him? We have Kennard (the most likely candidate), Allen (who has never shown PG skills), Jones (even less evidence of PG skills), and Ingram (a strong ballhandler but like Allen a purely score-first player). I'd guess Kennard leads the backup duties, but it will be very much a ballhandling-by-committee offense after Thornton. I think we'll be effective offensively, mainly because we have a number of capable ballhandlers who can score for themselves (i.e., we aren't reliant on the system to generate points; individuals can get them on their own).

    2) I think we have 3 or 4 guys (Ingram, Allen, Kennard, and Thornton who can score off the dribble. I'd expect the quartet of bigs (the three centers and Jefferson) to get their share of garbage buckets. I don't expect a big post game on offense, aside from unless Jeter really surprises or we invert with Ingram posting up a wing.

    3) I think Ingram is ticketed to play primarily at SF, which is his natural spot. Offensively, he could play a dangerous stretch 4. But he's just too skinny for that. Thankfully, his athleticism and skill set fits perfectly on the wing as a SF. So I think he'll play the majority of his minutes on the wing, with occasional minutes at PF as needed (backing up Jefferson there).

    4) I guess anything's possible, but I'm expecting Jefferson to continue his role of the past two years: sneaky player around the paint/baseline, but not a primary offensive threat. Maybe he gets an adequate mid-range jumper, but I'm not counting on it. And, frankly, I don't think his offense will be critical for our success.

    5) I have little doubt those two can combine for 30 ppg. Whether they will or not is strictly a matter of opportunity. And that will depend on how ready Kennard, Jones, and Thornton are to score from the perimeter. I think our five perimeter guys will approach (maybe exceed) 55 ppg as a group; I just don't know how those points will be distributed.

  5. #45

    Late May pickup report #1

    Quote Originally Posted by Kedsy View Post
    I agree. It's always nice to pick up additional data, even if subjective.
    Observations from an amateur:
    Derryck Thornton can play!!!!
    - missed his first two jumpers and he looked out of rhythm, but settled in
    - sweet jumper off a pick and roll
    - strong finish off a Miles screen got fouled hard by Z but still made the reverse layup
    - super quick on D and fundamentally sound on screens
    - Duhon dropped a sweet 18-foot step back but totally pushed off to get space
    Match ups:
    Du v Derryck
    Big Z v Miles/Marshall
    Dockery v Lee M/Trajan
    Matt J v Grayson (battled like mofos to stalemate)
    Obi v Amile
    Old guys won both games but there were some REALLY bad old guy calls and I'd say they played even.
    Items worth noting:
    - Miles missed every 14-foot jumper short
    - Z can still battle
    - game is too fast for Obi on this day (had trouble catching and finishing, but rebounded OK)
    - Grayson didn't pass up an open shot, made half
    - Matt Jones played great D on Grayson and had one sweet block on him and drew an impressive charge
    - Jones hit his open jumpers, two off the dribble, but missed all of the contested ones
    - Dockery still can't hit a jumper
    - Amile is Amile and I love it!
    I'll try to place a vid but it doesn't show much (and I mistaked Du for Nolan)

  6. #46

    Late May pickup Day 2

    Quote Originally Posted by BoiseDevil View Post
    Observations from an amateur:
    Derryck Thornton can play!!!!
    - missed his first two jumpers and he looked out of rhythm, but settled in
    - sweet jumper off a pick and roll
    - strong finish off a Miles screen got fouled hard by Z but still made the reverse layup
    - super quick on D and fundamentally sound on screens
    - Duhon dropped a sweet 18-foot step back but totally pushed off to get space
    Match ups:
    Du v Derryck
    Big Z v Miles/Marshall
    Dockery v Lee M/Trajan
    Matt J v Grayson (battled like mofos to stalemate)
    Obi v Amile
    Old guys won both games but there were some REALLY bad old guy calls and I'd say they played even.
    Items worth noting:
    - Miles missed every 14-foot jumper short
    - Z can still battle
    - game is too fast for Obi on this day (had trouble catching and finishing, but rebounded OK)
    - Grayson didn't pass up an open shot, made half
    - Matt Jones played great D on Grayson and had one sweet block on him and drew an impressive charge
    - Jones hit his open jumpers, two off the dribble, but missed all of the contested ones
    - Dockery still can't hit a jumper
    - Amile is Amile and I love it!
    I'll try to place a vid but it doesn't show much (and I mistaked Du for Nolan)
    Today' Game
    Thornton v Duhon
    Miles v Marshall
    Matt J v Grayson
    Sean K v Amile
    Zoubek v Obi
    Thornton:
    - jumper was really off today, all good shots but I'd say he was 40% at best
    - crazy quick D
    - he dropped two or three AMAZING fast break assists (one was a near-impossible angle bounce pass)
    - he'll do fine when the coaches get their hands on him
    Marshall had one THUNDEROUS putback, maybe top 10 putback flushes I've EVER seen (he also air balled a 16-footer and back-rimmed a wide open dunk)
    Duhon can still stroke it and maybe passed up one open jumpsuit in the two days I've watched these pickup games
    Zoubek is LARGE. Can still rebound more than his area and is strong as an ox. Obi looks pedestrian in his presence
    Obi - he's a work in progress, looked smooth on 16 foot jumper
    Amile - very impressive D and an improved handle. I still don't see a super-confident 15-footer, but it's apparent he's been working on it as it is better. This kid is an absolute treasure of a human being.
    Matt & Grayson - both studs, again cancelled each other out, Grayson has been the better outside shooter of the two, but both are really good. Both play great D, especially on each other.

  7. #47
    Join Date
    Feb 2007
    Thanks, Boise! Get ready for a deluge of well-deserved sporks!

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