Phase 0 -- 2017-18, CTC and Exhibitions

[LasVegas]

I read the second sentence as a joke about players getting injured. Last year, Tatum, Giles, Allen, and Bolden all missed exhibition games for health reasons. This does not appear to be a health issue.

I added a wink face to clarify the joke for future viewers of my post.

But regarding the suspension, it is strange and not good for anyone. PGs have to be leaders and all...

[uh_no]

Just the last part is a joke by Shawn Krest on Twitter.

The first park about the suspension and violation of team standards is real I would assume because it’s been tweeted by just about every COllege basketball person I trust.

It's over.

better luck next year, fellas.

Seriously, though...hope it doesn't become a long term issue.

[DukieInBrasil]

imho (where the h and o are ignored by Coach K) Goldwire would be a wise choice, if for no other reason than to get a prolonged look at how well J-Gold does. He could be a crucial piece to this team, even if he doesn't play big minutes, b/c it will have a big impact on one of our better (if not best) players, Grayson. If J-Gold can show himself to be a reasonable PG, that will allow Duke to play Grayson at SG as much as possible where he is much more effective than as a PG.
As i said before, the 1.5 games played so far have changed my view on J-Gold a lot. I went from thinking that he would be best served red-shirting to thinking that he could play a legitimate role this year. He can shoot the 3 reasonably well, and he looked fairly comfortable running the offense, all caveats apply.
We'll probably see Grayson play PG some, maybe even half of, this game, and we'll learn a bit more about how much his ballhandling and PG has advanced since last, but it seems that it would be a big waste if J-Gold wasn't given a lengthy chance to run the team as PG.

[MarkD83]

imho (where the h and o are ignored by Coach K) Goldwire would be a wise choice, if for no other reason than to get a prolonged look at how well J-Gold does. He could be a crucial piece to this team, even if he doesn't play big minutes, b/c it will have a big impact on one of our better (if not best) players, Grayson. If J-Gold can show himself to be a reasonable PG, that will allow Duke to play Grayson at SG as much as possible where he is much more effective than as a PG.
As i said before, the 1.5 games played so far have changed my view on J-Gold a lot. I went from thinking that he would be best served red-shirting to thinking that he could play a legitimate role this year. He can shoot the 3 reasonably well, and he looked fairly comfortable running the offense, all caveats apply.
We'll probably see Grayson play PG some, maybe even half of, this game, and we'll learn a bit more about how much his ballhandling and PG has advanced since last, but it seems that it would be a big waste if J-Gold wasn't given a lengthy chance to run the team as PG.

I agree. This is perfect chance to give him a long look at PG. This would also be a way to build for the future.

[Kedsy]

I agree. This is perfect chance to give him a long look at PG. This would also be a way to build for the future.

Alas, Jordan G was also suspended for this game. But Grayson had 11 assists and Gary actually looked decent as backup point.

[jipops]

Seeing the kind of length in Duke's zone has to make the opposing offense feel a little uncomfortable. Bagley seemed and could continue to be very effective on the perimeter in that 3-2 zone we saw today.

[Kedsy]

In the first exhibition, ten different players attempted threes, six different guys attempted multiple threes, but only three made at least one (only one player, Grayson, made more than one three).

Percentage of three point shots out of total shots taken: 36.4% (33.3% success rate)

Offensive rebounding percentage: 42.9%; defensive rebounding percentage: 81.3% (both outstanding, as expected)

Free throw rate: 13.6% (pretty anemic)

Points per possession: 1.27

Opponents points per possession: 0.84

In the second exhibition, eight different players attempted threes (though three of those were walk-ons in the last few minutes), but only two made any (Gary and Grayson).

Percentage of three point shots out of total shots taken: 32.1% (28.0% success rate)

Offensive rebounding percentage: 47.2%; defensive rebounding percentage: 83.7% (both monstrous)

Free throw rate: 28.2% (much better than last time but still pretty lackluster)

Assists to turnovers (without our only two true PGs): 27 to 10

Points per possession: 1.42

Opponents points per possession: 0.68

[jipops]

Through 2 exhibition games I am pleasantly surprised at how Trent and Carter appear to be. Trent's strength is not in handling the ball but he is a natural scorer and appears to be an alert and capable perimeter defender. I really like what I've seen from Carter. Bagley gets they hype but I think this kid is the real deal.

I would like to see more perimeter shots from Bagley. He doesn't seem real confident in his shot right now. Though today he obviously didn't need it.

[superdave]

In the second exhibition, eight different players attempted threes (though three of those were walk-ons in the last few minutes), but only two made any (Gary and Grayson).

Percentage of three point shots out of total shots taken: 32.1% (28.0% success rate)

Offensive rebounding percentage: 47.2%; defensive rebounding percentage: 83.7% (both monstrous)

Free throw rate: 28.2% (much better than last time but still pretty lackluster)

Assists to turnovers (without our only two true PGs): 27 to 10

Points per possession: 1.42

Opponents points per possession: 0.68

Trent was 5-9 from 3 and Allen was 2-6. I will be shocked if Trent shoots that many 3's with Duval around. Seems like he will be running and slashing more. But he looked good.

More importantly, if Trent is a viable 3-point shooter all season, that will do a lot to open up the middle. I like it!

Our bigs were monsters on the boards, rebounding their own misses and getting dunks. I like seeing the bigs pass to each other in high-low action. That's going to be a nightmare to guard.

[BandAlum83]

Trent was 5-9 from 3 and Allen was 2-6. I will be shocked if Trent shoots that many 3's with Duval around. Seems like he will be running and slashing more. But he looked good.

More importantly, if Trent is a viable 3-point shooter all season, that will do a lot to open up the middle. I like it!

Our bigs were monsters on the boards, rebounding their own misses and getting dunks. I like seeing the bigs pass to each other in high-low action. That's going to be a nightmare to guard.

We have A LOT of fouls to give amongst the bigs. I like that since inexperienced players tend to foul more.

[uh_no]

I would like to see more perimeter shots from Bagley. He doesn't seem real confident in his shot right now.

I'd prefer to NOT see more of them until we are sure he can make them. Games are not where you learn to shoot. Practice is.


It seems we're far too good offensively to be spending possessions with bagley shooting 3's at a 20% clip.

[MChambers]

I'd prefer to NOT see more of them until we are sure he can make them. Games are not where you learn to shoot. Practice is.


It seems we're far too good offensively to be spending possessions with bagley shooting 3's at a 20% clip.

How do you know he’s not hitting them in practice?

I’ll trust our coaches to figure out if he should be shooting threes.

[uh_no]

How do you know he’s not hitting them in practice?

I’ll trust our coaches to figure out if he should be shooting threes.

The argument was that bagley is not making threes because he's not confident in the shot...and that he should shoot more so that he can become confident, with the implication being he's not shooting them because he is not confident.

If we accept that argument as valid, we can make all sorts of assertions.

Perhaps besser is the best dunker on the team, but isn't confident in his dunks, so he doesn't do it very often, so we should want to see more of that so he can become confident. See how ridiculous it sounds? but it's the same argument!

Without seeing what goes on in practice, all we have is speculation. Maybe he is hitting them in practice...maybe he's not...but we can't just assume it is true and then use it as justification for wanting to see him shoot it more.

[MChambers]

The argument was that bagley is not making threes because he's not confident in the shot...and that he should shoot more so that he can become confident, with the implication being he's not shooting them because he is not confident.

If we accept that argument as valid, we can make all sorts of assertions.

Perhaps besser is the best dunker on the team, but isn't confident in his dunks, so he doesn't do it very often, so we should want to see more of that so he can become confident. See how ridiculous it sounds? but it's the same argument!

Without seeing what goes on in practice, all we have is speculation. Maybe he is hitting them in practice...maybe he's not...but we can't just assume it is true and then use it as justification for wanting to see him shoot it more.

I certainly agree with that.

Coach K generally encourages his players to take shots, including good three pointers. I think it is reflected in Duke’s consistently high offensive efficiency ratings. So I don’t worry when a player takes a three, even if his timing is off or his feet aren’t set. I figure K and the other coaches know how to teach shooting. That’s all I was trying to say.

[uh_no]

I certainly agree with that.

Coach K generally encourages his players to take shots, including good three pointers. I think it is reflected in Duke’s consistently high offensive efficiency ratings. So I don’t worry when a player takes a three, even if his timing is off or his feet aren’t set. I figure K and the other coaches know how to teach shooting. That’s all I was trying to say.

sure. I think it's just words at this point. I think ultimately my point is that we're good in so many areas offensively (knock on wood...), we can probably do fine if bagley doesn't take threes. It's certainly not something I would game plan for, at least. If he finds shots in the flow of the offense, I likely won't complain...especially if he makes some of them and, ideally, we're already up by 50 but I wouldn't go out of my way to create that shot for him.

[Rich]

The argument was that bagley is not making threes because he's not confident in the shot...and that he should shoot more so that he can become confident, with the implication being he's not shooting them because he is not confident.

If we accept that argument as valid, we can make all sorts of assertions.

Perhaps besser is the best dunker on the team, but isn't confident in his dunks, so he doesn't do it very often, so we should want to see more of that so he can become confident. See how ridiculous it sounds? but it's the same argument!

Without seeing what goes on in practice, all we have is speculation. Maybe he is hitting them in practice...maybe he's not...but we can't just assume it is true and then use it as justification for wanting to see him shoot it more.

All I'm getting from this is that Besser is the best dunker on the team. Kind of surprised me, but if it's on the internet it must be true!

[uh_no]

All I'm getting from this is that Besser is the best dunker on the team. Kind of surprised me, but if it's on the internet it must be true!

don't want to be accused of rumor mongering, now...but doug gottlieb called besser "alarmingly undunkable"...so he must be great at it.