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  1. #1
    Join Date
    Jan 2008
    Location
    Texas/NC

    Nolan Smith: National Player of the Year

    I think it is time to start having this conversation.

    Wouldn't give it to Nolan right now of course, but things are going to get interesting as the season progresses... especially as UConn starts to fade.


    Walker, Sullinger, The Jimmer, and Nolan

    http://statsheet.com/mcb/players/com...ared-sullinger

  2. #2
    Join Date
    Sep 2007
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    Undisclosed
    Quote Originally Posted by BlueintheFace View Post
    I think it is time to start having this conversation.

    Wouldn't give it to Nolan right now of course, but things are going to get interesting as the season progresses... especially as UConn starts to fade.


    Walker, Sullinger, The Jimmer, and Nolan

    http://statsheet.com/mcb/players/com...ared-sullinger
    Too early for serious conversation, but Nolan has certainly put himself forth as a worthy candidate at this point.

  3. #3
    putting up 19/5/5, shooting 54% from the floor? sign me up

  4. #4
    Join Date
    Jan 2008
    Location
    Texas/NC
    I think it is reasonable to look forward to mostly 20-25 ppg avg from here on out.

    He is also averaging 5.6 assists/game, has a significantly higher fg% and is a more efficient scorer than the other two guards.

  5. #5
    Join Date
    Feb 2007
    Location
    Charlotte, NC

    Be careful what you wish for...

    Once or twice during the game tonight I honestly thought I was watching a younger Kobe Bryant. How much should/could Nolan take over the game? I think there is a fine line between a great game and having to play like Kemba Walker. I know it doesn't really matter for this game because we were never really at risk of needing a sudden, balanced offense. Maybe I'm just paranoid, but I really got that "Kobe" feeling. Feel free to offer more logical insights.

  6. #6
    Join Date
    Sep 2007
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    Undisclosed
    Quote Originally Posted by du2007meb View Post
    Once or twice during the game tonight I honestly thought I was watching a younger Kobe Bryant. How much should/could Nolan take over the game? I think there is a fine line between a great game and having to play like Kemba Walker. I know it doesn't really matter for this game because we were never really at risk of needing a sudden, balanced offense. Maybe I'm just paranoid, but I really got that "Kobe" feeling. Feel free to offer more logical insights.
    If they're gonna keep giving him the lane, he should keep taking it.

    Plenty of other players got shots -- they just didn't fall on a regular basis. I am sure that if Kyle started hitting, or Andre ripped off two or three in a row, they'd get a steady diet of passes from Nolan and the rest of the team.

  7. #7
    Join Date
    Feb 2008
    Location
    Charlotte, North Carolina
    Quote Originally Posted by du2007meb View Post
    Once or twice during the game tonight I honestly thought I was watching a younger Kobe Bryant. How much should/could Nolan take over the game? I think there is a fine line between a great game and having to play like Kemba Walker. I know it doesn't really matter for this game because we were never really at risk of needing a sudden, balanced offense. Maybe I'm just paranoid, but I really got that "Kobe" feeling. Feel free to offer more logical insights.
    I'd be OK to see Nolan go Kobe some.

    More to the point of your post, I trust Nolan to play within the team concept, look to score when that's what best serves the team, and look to distribute when someone else has the hot hand.

  8. #8
    Join Date
    Jan 2008
    Location
    Texas/NC
    Quote Originally Posted by du2007meb View Post
    Once or twice during the game tonight I honestly thought I was watching a younger Kobe Bryant. How much should/could Nolan take over the game? I think there is a fine line between a great game and having to play like Kemba Walker. I know it doesn't really matter for this game because we were never really at risk of needing a sudden, balanced offense. Maybe I'm just paranoid, but I really got that "Kobe" feeling. Feel free to offer more logical insights.
    I understand the concern, but Nolan has a good thing going over the last few games with the high screen going right. He has really learned how to attack it and probably 80% of the time he gets a shot he is comfortable and efficient with or gets a foul. So long as that option keeps presenting itself, he should keep taking it. His threes have been in the structure of the offense (OOB plays, defenders going under screens, kickouts, etc...). I'm pretty darn happy with his shot selection right now.

    It'll get interesting once a smart coach (perhaps Gary this weekend) decides to trap Nolan on that hedge and force him to give it up. Will his production go down? Perhaps temporarily, but I think he knows his game and spots on the floor and I like most of the shots he takes even when he isn't barreling down the lane off that high screen.

  9. #9
    Join Date
    Feb 2007
    Location
    Norfolk, VA
    Quote Originally Posted by OldPhiKap View Post
    Plenty of other players got shots -- they just didn't fall on a regular basis. I am sure that if Kyle started hitting, or Andre ripped off two or three in a row, they'd get a steady diet of passes from Nolan and the rest of the team.
    Andre Dawkins was 3-4 from the field including 2-3 on 3-pointers. It wouldn't hurt my feelings to see him receive a few more passes each game.
    Bob Green

  10. #10
    Join Date
    Feb 2007
    Location
    New York City
    Quote Originally Posted by Bob Green View Post
    Andre Dawkins was 3-4 from the field including 2-3 on 3-pointers. It wouldn't hurt my feelings to see him receive a few more passes each game.
    Completely agree.

    On the other hand, Kyle did get 18 shots.

    Back to the main topic, during the Tennessee - Memphis game, Jimmy Dykes just said he thinks Nolan, Kyle and Sullinger are the three leading candidates for NPOY so far.
    Singler is IRON

    I STILL GOT IT! -- Ryan Kelly, March 2, 2013

  11. #11
    Join Date
    Mar 2007
    Location
    Mount Kisco, NY
    UAB Head Coach Mike Davis post game re Nolan

    "He's excellent. And the thing I like about him is his endurance. You watch him, his stamina is just second to none. Because I mean I watched films on him and you guys can watch a game and you see a guy make eight points in a row and he's got to come out of the game. He'll make a couple of hard plays and he's tired. This guy is unbelievable from this standpoint. He plays the same way the whole night against Miami for 40 minutes. Forty minutes and you never could tell he was tired at all. He kept playing, and he just takes advantage of it. He's really, his basketball IQ is just off the charts. He's making shots, he's almost impossible to guard. What makes him so good is that he's just able to play at his level and it never drops. It like never drops. You'll never see him grab his shorts, well I haven't seen it, and I've watched a lot of games on him, and he's on the same level all the time. And most guys, now there's probably a lot of guys, even [Kyle] Singler is the same way. You'll never see those two guys fatigued.

  12. #12
    Pomeroy is having a Player of the year statistical race this year. Smith is currently in 7th and tops in the ACC:

    http://kenpom.com/blog/index.php/web..._up_for_grabs/
    <devildeac> anyone playing drinking games by now?
    7:49:36<Wander> drink every qb run?
    7:49:38<loran16> umm, drink every time asack rushes?
    7:49:38<wolfybeard> @devildeac: drink when Asack runs a keeper
    7:49:39 PM<CB&B> any time zack runs, drink

    Carolina Delenda Est

  13. #13
    Join Date
    Jan 2008
    Location
    Texas/NC
    Quote Originally Posted by loran16 View Post
    Pomeroy is having a Player of the year statistical race this year. Smith is currently in 7th and tops in the ACC:

    http://kenpom.com/blog/index.php/web..._up_for_grabs/
    That is a pretty cool resource, but the fact that Kemba Walker is at #8 shows that it is probably not a good predictive model for the award.

  14. #14
    Quote Originally Posted by BlueintheFace View Post
    That is a pretty cool resource, but the fact that Kemba Walker is at #8 shows that it is probably not a good predictive model for the award.
    It's not meant to be predictive. It's meant to show the best player of the year. Of course, Sullinger up top is probably the consensus right now, anyhow.

    http://kenpom.com/blog/index.php/web...poy_a_history/ shows a history of how the award would've played out in previous years, and it's pretty good. (Interestingly, Shelden Williams would've beaten out JJ for the award in 05)
    <devildeac> anyone playing drinking games by now?
    7:49:36<Wander> drink every qb run?
    7:49:38<loran16> umm, drink every time asack rushes?
    7:49:38<wolfybeard> @devildeac: drink when Asack runs a keeper
    7:49:39 PM<CB&B> any time zack runs, drink

    Carolina Delenda Est

  15. #15
    Quote Originally Posted by du2007meb View Post
    Once or twice during the game tonight I honestly thought I was watching a younger Kobe Bryant. How much should/could Nolan take over the game? I think there is a fine line between a great game and having to play like Kemba Walker.

    ...
    Quote Originally Posted by OldPhiKap View Post
    If they're gonna keep giving him the lane, he should keep taking it.

    ...
    In fact, in the 2nd half when Nolan took it right to the hoop with a dunk right through UAB, Len Elmore even made a comment something like "MJ-like", which he did qualify that you can't really compare anyone to MJ. But as posted above, if they give Nolan the lane, he should take it... and he does with authority

  16. #16
    Join Date
    Jan 2009
    Location
    Boston, MA
    What amazes me about Nolan is his IQ and his desire to get his teammates the ball. He is a proven scorer - he knows that, the coaches know that, and the opposing teams (especially UAB) definitely know that. However, that IQ and desire to get assists makes him nearly unstoppable. He is no longer just driving with his head down; he knows where teammates are.

    Furthermore, how Nolan represents the school still amazes me. From recruiting (Cook and others) to PR (Duke Blue Planet, his post-game interviews) to showing freshman the ropes (Dawkins, Kyrie), I feel that he is the MVP of the team, performance withstanding. With his performance and current form, is Nolan real?
    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

  17. #17
    Quote Originally Posted by BlueintheFace View Post
    That is a pretty cool resource, but the fact that Kemba Walker is at #8 shows that it is probably not a good predictive model for the award.

    I was just thinking about mentioning Walker. If he can be loudly trumpeted by the media, granted, we can certainly have a discussion about Nolan. But, as always, be like K and be cool!
    Go Nolan, GO!

  18. #18
    Quote Originally Posted by gep View Post
    Len Elmore even made a comment something like "MJ-like", which he did qualify that you can't really compare anyone to MJ.

    Luckily, many of Len's mumbled ramblings were drowned out last night. What was he muttering about Cameron and it's reputation, blah blah blah?

    Len and Karl Hess, candidates for smackdowns with the gold-painted wiffle ball bat...

  19. #19
    Join Date
    Feb 2007
    Location
    Fairfax County, Virginia
    It is too early to seriously pre-select the NPOY, but Nolan's repeated performances certainly merit his consideration; further, his candidacy is based on important factors that go well beyond superb "numbers," including versatility, floor leadership, team synergy and basketball savvy.

  20. #20
    Way too early for this Smith fan.

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