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  1. #81
    Quote Originally Posted by CDu View Post
    Well, color me surprised. Guess I was wrong about Duke's interest. I must concur with those who think Coach K must be stockpiling tall wings with the plan to be more athletic at the PF spot, because if we get even one of the three targets we have over the next three years, we'll have 3 6'7"-6'8" athletic wing players to go along with 2 6'4"-ish SG. That means either they'll play a lot at PF or two will be very unhappy.





    I think we need to dispel the myth that a PF needs to be a big, physical, low-post banger. That's just not the reality of college basketball. In fact, most teams use a very athletic PF. I'd argue that this was actually one of our weaknesses, as Kelly and Miles/Mason were generally much less quick than their counterparts at PF (in some cases glaringly so). Let's take a look at the probable starting PF around the ACC next year:

    BC: Ryan Anderson (6'8", 215, good athlete)
    Clemson: Milton Jennings (6'9", 225, but hardly a banger)
    FSU: Okaro White (6'8", 205, very athletic but not a banger)
    Georgia Tech: Cameron Holsey (6'8", 225, somewhat physical but certainly not imposing)
    Maryland: Ashton Pankey (6'9", 220)
    Miami: Kenny Kadji (6'11", 250 - the only true big-body PF)
    UNC: James McAdoo (6'9", 220, very athletic but not a banger)
    NC State: Calvin Leslie (6'8, 210, athletic freak, but most certainly not a banger)
    Virginia: Darion Atkins (6'8", 220) or Akil Mitchell (6'8", 235) depending on whether or not they find another big man
    Virginia Tech: Dorian Finney-Smith (6'8", 185, clearly more athlete than banger)
    Wake: I'm not even sure they'll field a team next year.

    Aside from Kadji, there's nobody that Murphy can't match up with physically if he's up to 210+ by next year. And he'd have a huge quickness edge on Kadji, so that's somewhat offset. So I don't see where the concern is with his ability to defend at PF.

    And also importantly, having an athletic PF makes us less susceptible to mismatches generated by successive screens. If we have a guy who can defend the 2, 3, and 4, it's much harder for the opponent to set up the mismatch you want.

    I guess I'm feeling more comfortable with the idea of a smaller, quicker PF the more I talk/type about it. Of course, my comfort with such an approach would hinge on also being bigger at SG and SF (I don't want to see us on the smaller side at 3-4 positions). But given that we're adding Sulaimon, Jones, and we have Gbinije, such an approach might not be an issue.
    Our main competition would have Leslie and McAdoo and I don't see Murphy matching up with either one of those guys particularly well down low. He's not the rebounder that most of these guys are. PFs in the Final Four this year:

    Terrence Jones (6'9" - 252)
    Thomas Robinson (6'10" - 237)
    DeShaun Thomas (6'7" - 225), Eric Ravenel (6'8" - 260)
    Chane Behanan (6'6" - 250, freshman)

    Those are really tough matchups (which is why they were in the Final Four). I think we'd have a much higher ceiling with Murphy at SF and someone else at PF in 2013-2014, but who knows what will happen.

  2. #82
    Join Date
    Aug 2007
    This is a true deficiency along with a top point guard. Once those areas are filled we will be back in the Final Four again, IMO.

  3. #83
    Join Date
    Nov 2010
    Location
    Durham

    A Duke Fan?

    Back in 2009 Watzone interviewed Hood, and asked him what his dream school was growing up. His answer?

    "Did you have a dream school growing up?

    It was Duke"

    LINK

    The rest is premium, but at least this morsel jives with the notion that he might be reciprocating interest right now.

  4. #84
    Join Date
    Feb 2007
    Location
    NC
    Quote Originally Posted by FireOgilvie View Post
    Our main competition would have Leslie and McAdoo and I don't see Murphy matching up with either one of those guys particularly well down low. He's not the rebounder that most of these guys are.
    I disagree. Neither is a big physical rebounder. And neither has a big, physical post game down low. Both are athletes who get to the boards and get their points with quickness and leaping ability. Murphy definitely has the quickness to stay with them and he has the size to body them up. He's not as good a rebounder as them, but I think he has a better shot at defending them than, say, Ryan Kelly or Mason Plumlee (both of whom got schooled by Leslie's athleticism last year).

    Quote Originally Posted by FireOgilvie View Post
    PFs in the Final Four this year:

    Terrence Jones (6'9" - 252)
    Thomas Robinson (6'10" - 237)
    DeShaun Thomas (6'7" - 225), Eric Ravenel (6'8" - 260)
    Chane Behanan (6'6" - 250, freshman)

    Those are really tough matchups (which is why they were in the Final Four). I think we'd have a much higher ceiling with Murphy at SF and someone else at PF in 2013-2014, but who knows what will happen.
    OSU rarely used Ravenel at the PF spot, and when they did they became far less effective. They were much more effective when they had Thomas on the floor, and Thomas is very similar in size and offensive style to what Murphy reportedly brings (perimeter skills, slashing).

    Terrence Jones and Thomas Robinson would be tough to handle. But they'd also be a nightmare for Kelly, Parker, etc. Those guys are too athletic for a true big and too big for a SF. But remember that Robinson got exploited by Thomas against OSU. It wasn't until Thomas got in foul trouble (and they had to go with Ravenel) that the Jayhawks made their run. Unless we're adding a Jones or Robinson, we are going to have a mismatch their either way. At least we might be able to punish them on the other end with a quickness advantage.

  5. #85
    Join Date
    Feb 2007
    Hood could play the 2, imo. And Sheed might be a PG before his career is done (again, the Nolan comparison).

    That's how all these wings could play together.

  6. #86
    Join Date
    Feb 2007
    Location
    NC
    Quote Originally Posted by Troublemaker View Post
    Hood could play the 2, imo. And Sheed might be a PG before his career is done (again, the Nolan comparison).

    That's how all these wings could play together.
    I certainly wouldn't mind having a tall, athletic PG and a tall, athletic SG to go along with a tall, athletic SF and an athletic PF. Of course, that's assuming 3 guys are comfortable playing an unnatural position. But if Murphy shows he can handle the PF spot and Sulaimon shows he can handle the PG spot we could have a very interesting potential lineup in the 2014 season (with or without Hood).

  7. #87
    Join Date
    Nov 2010
    Location
    Rochester, NY

    Alex Murphy's height, weight, arm span?

    Anybody actually know what Mr. Murphy's current weight, height and arm span are? (Google failed me, 'old' numbers).

  8. #88
    Join Date
    Feb 2007
    Location
    NC
    Quote Originally Posted by Listen to Quants View Post
    Anybody actually know what Mr. Murphy's current weight, height and arm span are? (Google failed me, 'old' numbers).
    I'm guessing the best you'll get is a rough guesstimation unless he goes to a summer camp that takes "official" measurements.

  9. #89
    Join Date
    Jan 2012
    Location
    Atlanta
    So I see some great logic for recruiting him now, but does anyone know if we actually are? I haven't read anything about current suitors nor his interests (beyond Duke being his dream school years ago).

  10. #90
    Join Date
    Jan 2009
    Location
    Chicago, IL
    Quote Originally Posted by Lunchab1es View Post
    So I see some great logic for recruiting him now, but does anyone know if we actually are? I haven't read anything about current suitors nor his interests (beyond Duke being his dream school years ago).

    Yes we are. We were reportedly the first school to reach out to him after his announcement. Apparently, its us and Ohio St that reached out so we are very much interested. Rodney himself has not made an announcement on who he is interested in, but I would imagine he would at least accept an invitation to visit.
    Last edited by ChicagoCrazy84; 04-14-2012 at 03:36 PM.

  11. #91
    Join Date
    Feb 2009
    Location
    Nashville
    Quote Originally Posted by Kedsy View Post
    To be a Duke "4," all he has to do is be able to guard the opposing 4. If Alex is really up to 220, as he is listed on GoDuke, he should have the size and strength to defend the college PF position. That doesn't mean he can't do his slashing and driving thing on offense.
    That's kind of an oversimplification though. Spending time defending/rebounding the 4 means developing your body with that in mind, training your skills with that in mind, having a different mindset during games, and getting beat up and worn out banging in the post.

    IMO, that worked perfectly with Singler, who lived for contact and kind of dribbled the ball like a tight end running after the catch anyway. Murphy, OTOH, is much more likely Dunleavy - smooth, run and jump athlete, guard-oriented mindset, not the strongest lower body, much better of one foot than two, etc. I haven't seen him recently, but he came into the program as a pure wing, and I'd hate to see him get put in a position where he can't develop and exploit his skills in an ideal manner for who he is as a player.

    However... TBH, I typed all that out having completely forgotten that Dunleavy was our PF in 2002, and kind of did okay with it. I always think of him as floating on the wing as a FR/SO, but I suppose he held up pretty well down there in his third year. Perhaps you're right, and the plan is for Alex to do the same in his third year.

    Haven't heard K or anyone allude to that specifically, but it sure would explain a lot.

  12. #92
    Join Date
    Feb 2007
    Location
    Washington DC
    Any news on Mister Hood?

  13. #93
    Join Date
    Jul 2010
    Location
    NC Raised, DC Resident

    Take it for what it's worth

    Quote Originally Posted by superdave View Post
    Any news on Mister Hood?
    Per the Columbus Dispatch, which is a decidedly Buckeye-friendly publication obviously, Rodney is looking to reveal his list--which includes OSU and Duke--quite soon. According to the article, this information comes from Rodney's father:

    "Hood, who finishes the semester at Mississippi State on Thursday, is expected to reveal this week the schools he will visit. His father told The Dispatch last week that Ohio State will be one, and Duke is believed to be another."

    It's unclear if Rodney's father directly told the Dispatch author that Duke was among the schools on his son's list or if he was citing popular belief ("Duke is believed to be another" isn't the most definitive quote), but it sounds encouraging that Duke is entrenched in the hunt.

    Of course, the articles goes further to draw the connection between rising OSU soph LaQuinton Ross and Rodney, as they played on the same AAU team and remain friends.

    http://www.buckeyextra.com/content/b...alles-loi.html

  14. #94
    Duke expects to get a visit from Rodney. Sometime soon.

  15. #95
    Join Date
    Feb 2008
    Location
    20 Minutes From The Heaven That Is Cameron Indoor
    Quote Originally Posted by airowe View Post
    Duke expects to get a visit from Rodney. Sometime soon.
    Good deal. Thanks Airowe. Congrats to Mrs Airowe on the new job at Duke as well.

    I would love to see Hood become a Blue Devil. Would be a nice replacement for Mike G.

  16. #96
    Join Date
    Nov 2010
    Location
    Durham

    Re: Rodney

    What's the latest on Mr. Hood? I know he's supposed to visit soon. Does Amile's commitment affect Rodney at all? My understanding is Rodney is a 3 and Amile, at present, is more of a 4. Just curious though whether Amile's commitment might change things with respect to our pursuit of Hood or whether we're still hoping to add him to the fold for 2013-14 in addition to whatever commitments we garner from the 2013 class.

  17. #97
    Quote Originally Posted by dukedoc View Post
    What's the latest on Mr. Hood? I know he's supposed to visit soon. Does Amile's commitment affect Rodney at all? My understanding is Rodney is a 3 and Amile, at present, is more of a 4. Just curious though whether Amile's commitment might change things with respect to our pursuit of Hood or whether we're still hoping to add him to the fold for 2013-14 in addition to whatever commitments we garner from the 2013 class.
    Pure speculation on my part, but I would think Duke is still interested in Rodney. Per Watzone's comments in the Amile thread, Duke has felt confident in Jefferson commiting for some time. So to invited Hood on campus for a visit two weeks ago and to "go all in" pursuing him when he announced a transfer last month, I would say Jefferson and Hood are not mutually exclusive.

  18. #98
    Join Date
    Feb 2007
    Location
    NC
    Quote Originally Posted by BlueDevilBrowns View Post
    Pure speculation on my part, but I would think Duke is still interested in Rodney. Per Watzone's comments in the Amile thread, Duke has felt confident in Jefferson commiting for some time. So to invited Hood on campus for a visit two weeks ago and to "go all in" pursuing him when he announced a transfer last month, I would say Jefferson and Hood are not mutually exclusive.
    As noted, Hood and Jefferson play different positions. So I don't think getting Jefferson means Duke isn't interested in Hood anymore. I do wonder if it affects Hood's interest in Duke. Before, there was the possibility that Murphy could move to PF and he and Hood could share the forward spots. With Jefferson in place (and with the team so actively pursuing Parker and Randle next year) it would seem like Duke would be a bad fit for Hood.

    It'd be great to get Hood as I certainly won't count on us getting either Parker or Randle. But I wouldn't be shocked if Hood decides that the numbers game isn't in his favor.

  19. #99
    Join Date
    Feb 2007
    Quote Originally Posted by CDu View Post
    As noted, Hood and Jefferson play different positions. So I don't think getting Jefferson means Duke isn't interested in Hood anymore. I do wonder if it affects Hood's interest in Duke. Before, there was the possibility that Murphy could move to PF and he and Hood could share the forward spots. With Jefferson in place (and with the team so actively pursuing Parker and Randle next year) it would seem like Duke would be a bad fit for Hood.

    It'd be great to get Hood as I certainly won't count on us getting either Parker or Randle. But I wouldn't be shocked if Hood decides that the numbers game isn't in his favor.
    Not shocking, certainly. But it seems like the relevant number would be the eight returning and incoming players Duke is set to have in 2013-2014 at this time. There's still plenty of room for Hood even with Jefferson. (And Parker, for that matter.)

  20. #100
    Join Date
    Feb 2009
    Location
    Nashville
    I would still LOVE to get Hood; he's a SF/SG - not a SF/PF - who really does play the game like a guard, and we're looking to land at least two wings guys like that in 2013. If one of them ends up effectively being him, it would basically be like getting a top-10 recruit, in terms of how ready-to-play he'd be.

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