Does everyone agree it’s pretty much a given, Paul, Caleb and Cam will be starters?
Of course 6-6 and 6-7 makes it interesting
Of course 6-6 and 6-7 makes it interesting
Guard oriented team.
- Thread starter zappaa
- Start date
Going into the pre-season it looks that way, but you never know who or what combinations can emerge. It does help that if you're going to be a guard-oriented team that two of those guard are 6-6 and 6-7 as you said.
Think about this also.
It would be really cool if Derek Simpson has the handle and quickness I think he has.
No disrespect to Jalen Miller, but if Derek is for real, Jalen will really see his minutes cut.
It would be really cool if Derek Simpson has the handle and quickness I think he has.
No disrespect to Jalen Miller, but if Derek is for real, Jalen will really see his minutes cut.
Guard oriented but the O is going to (hopefully) flow through Cliff more so then any big man in the pike era. The last time I remember a big getting a significant amount of touches was deshawn freeman.
That will be something to keep an eye on. The offense may run through Cliff, but has he been working on his recognition of double teams and passing out of the post? That will be important with a guy like Cam on the perimeter.
Yes,
Hopefully Cliff has worked on kicking the ball out to what will be wide open shooters
Agree- and it works both ways. It will open up things for him too.
Caleb, Paul and Cliff are givens. That is it in my book.
Mulcahy is a PG, but has also played "point forward" at the 3. Offensively, he's primarily a distributor - but he has the size to work in the post if matched with a smaller guard. Will his offense continue to develop as it did toward the end of last season? Over the last 13 games, he averaged 12.3, 4.2 rb, 5.5 ast. Defensively, he's generally been better defending the 2/3 spots - doesn't have the lateral quickness to guard 1s and doesn't really have the mass to guard 4s.
McConnell is really a SF more than a guard, though he has guard skills, but will generally defend the primary scorer (at any spot from 1-4).
Spencer seems to be very much the SG.
Miller is a distributing PG (jury is out if he will start looking to shoot at all), and Simpson is also more of a PG from what I've heard (possibly a combo guard?).
Mag and Hyatt are both 3/4 guys.
Woolfolk is a question mark - not sure if he'll redshirt, or what he'll bring if he plays.
....
And yes, I know Pike tends more toward "positionless" basketball... but it looks very much like he's going to be running four guys who would traditionally been seen in the 1-3 spots alongside Omoruyi/Reiber at the 5.
McConnell is really a SF more than a guard, though he has guard skills, but will generally defend the primary scorer (at any spot from 1-4).
Spencer seems to be very much the SG.
Miller is a distributing PG (jury is out if he will start looking to shoot at all), and Simpson is also more of a PG from what I've heard (possibly a combo guard?).
Mag and Hyatt are both 3/4 guys.
Woolfolk is a question mark - not sure if he'll redshirt, or what he'll bring if he plays.
....
And yes, I know Pike tends more toward "positionless" basketball... but it looks very much like he's going to be running four guys who would traditionally been seen in the 1-3 spots alongside Omoruyi/Reiber at the 5.
It’s always fun to speculate but I can see this going a couple of ways. I think we have the ability to play big lineups and also play smaller quicker lineups since we have an elite rim protector. Jalen will get more
Minutes than last year and so will Hyatt, Mag and Reiber. How the new guys fit in will determine how many minutes these guys get as will the opponent and flow of each game.
Minutes than last year and so will Hyatt, Mag and Reiber. How the new guys fit in will determine how many minutes these guys get as will the opponent and flow of each game.
I hope this is finally the year that the offense is actually more considered. I don’t think we have the guys ready to break down defenses with 7 on the clock by themselves.
Hopefully it all starts and ends with PM/CO pick and roll and kicking to shooters and cutters. I think if Caleb becomes a more consistent catch and shoot guy this year this opens a lot up.
Defensively, I hope the coaching staff made a decision whether PM is guarding power forwards or wing/guards and is tuning his body accordingly. I thought as a soph his body handled the inside banging pretty well but last year he skimmed down without getting laterally quicker.
Paul is the whole key to the team this year IMO. He will likely look like the best player on the floor and we will win or will look frustrated and we will lose. I’m hoping for a Greivis Vasquez like senior year elevation where he went from flashy exciting frustrating at times to consistent every night performer. If that leap occurs as I think it can, this team can go far
Hopefully it all starts and ends with PM/CO pick and roll and kicking to shooters and cutters. I think if Caleb becomes a more consistent catch and shoot guy this year this opens a lot up.
Defensively, I hope the coaching staff made a decision whether PM is guarding power forwards or wing/guards and is tuning his body accordingly. I thought as a soph his body handled the inside banging pretty well but last year he skimmed down without getting laterally quicker.
Paul is the whole key to the team this year IMO. He will likely look like the best player on the floor and we will win or will look frustrated and we will lose. I’m hoping for a Greivis Vasquez like senior year elevation where he went from flashy exciting frustrating at times to consistent every night performer. If that leap occurs as I think it can, this team can go far
It's possible, but a lot of our ability to "go big" will depend on what we can get out of Woolfolk (6-9/250). If he's game ready coming in, then we have more options... if he's not a viable option in his first year, the only "bigs" we'll have are Omoruyi/Reiber. The next closest guys we have to "bigs" are Palmquist (6-8/220) or Hyatt (6-6/227).
I gotta admit, I'm really intrigued by Reiber. I can't wait to see what I hope is his continued growth. An improved and confident Reiber would be a real fan favorite.
too much concern about slotting guys into "positions" which are meaningless for the most part
You need someone who can handle the ball and you need someone to take up space in the paint and defend the rim. Aside from those positions are irrelevant.
You need someone who can handle the ball and you need someone to take up space in the paint and defend the rim. Aside from those positions are irrelevant.
I don't know if it'll be a guard-oriented team or not. But I'm very hopeful that Pike will state, unequivocally, that it's the best team he's ever coached, prior to the season starting. 
I'd like to see Paul and Caleb at the two guard spots since I want Caleb handling the ball as much as Paul. I think Cam might be better coming off the bench to provide offense. Here's my starting line-up as of today:
1- Paul
2- Caleb
3- Mag
4- Hyatt
5- Cliff
I think this is a strong defense and rebounding team. Hopefully, Caleb can feel free to be a go-to guy on offense and continue how he finished up last year.
Dean, Cam, Miller are the first three off the bench, with maybe Oskar earning some minutes also. The freshmen are unknowns at this point so I'm not assuming anything from them.
1- Paul
2- Caleb
3- Mag
4- Hyatt
5- Cliff
I think this is a strong defense and rebounding team. Hopefully, Caleb can feel free to be a go-to guy on offense and continue how he finished up last year.
Dean, Cam, Miller are the first three off the bench, with maybe Oskar earning some minutes also. The freshmen are unknowns at this point so I'm not assuming anything from them.
It's more size/skillset than positions, and mismatches. There are only 2 guys on the roster that weigh more than 227 (Omoruyi @ 240 and Woolfolk @ 250), and there are 4 guys taller than 6-7 (Omoruyi @ 6-11, Reiber @ 6-10, Woolfolk @ 6-9, and Palmquist @ 6-8).
Running into a team with two big bodies down low is going to create a mismatch, or risk foul trouble - which we'll either have to exploit or control for.
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Ha! That's the one thing I don't want him to say ever again.I don't know if it'll be a guard-oriented team or not. But I'm very hopeful that Pike will state, unequivocally, that it's the best team he's ever coached, prior to the season starting.
I actually think he was correct, though. The team struggled in the beginning, and had it's limitations. But when they were firing on all cylinders, it was a very good basketball team worthy of his having called them his best team ever.
People said he lied. I 100% disagree. I think he saw the greatness early on in practice but it took time to all come together in games. And that happens all the time - look at all the sports teams across the decades that started slow and wound up winning championships.
I think he truly believed it and it at points during the season it appeared true. But I think it put a tremendous amount of pressure on the team which seemed to affect them early in the season. And it just seemed out of character for him based on this comments to the media during his time here. It will be interesting to hear what he says during this pre-season.
He's not a unrepentant button-pushing troll like me, so I suspect he will avoid repeating any potentially incendiary language this time around.
I think he believed it within the context of a cohesive unit, chemistry standpoint. Pretty sure he knew the year before had more talent and last year's team had question marks. The other question is did he just flat out get Hyatt wrong.
Which teams on our schedule can do that?
CAM has to start because he is the best outside shooter.With the loss of Baker and Harper I expect opponents to play more zone defense daring Rutgers to shoot outside.
Agree. That seems to be the plan unless Cam comes in and pulls a Peter Kiss.
I really don't know much about the makeup of the teams we'll be facing in 2022-23 yet.
Last year, Purdue, OSU, and NW all used lineups with two bigger bodies. And Cockburn at Illinois was enough of a load that teams needed multiple big bodies to defend him.
Overall, though, the trend in college basketball has been away from having two big bodies on the floor at the same time, unless one of them was also a deep threat to stretch the defense.
I haven't looked at projected lineups across the league for next season, though.
I actually think that the 2022 team, at its best, was better than the 2021 team, at its best. Both teams were inconsistent, results-wise, and perhaps for different reasons.
Ultimately, I think the realistic ceiling for the 2022 team was a little higher than it was for the 2021 team. A couple games last season showed a very dominant RU against very strong competition. Whereas I think back in 2021, we never quite reached that level of domination in a game against very strong competition at its full strength (i.e. not weakened by injury or illness or whatever). We just couldn't match that domination consistently enough (either year).
But it's all very subjective. I definitely respect that others may view it differently.
The subtraction of Myles and Jacob (and to a much lesser extent Mathis) were significant.
If this were fantasy football there is no way you could say last years team was better. This isn’t fantasy football and it is now obvious the sum of the parts were much greater than the whole.
If this were fantasy football there is no way you could say last years team was better. This isn’t fantasy football and it is now obvious the sum of the parts were much greater than the whole.
The COVID team was definitely the best. There was a very long stretch where that team played at a very high level.
That 1st 5 minutes of the SHU game is exhibit A
That 1st 5 minutes of the SHU game is exhibit A
Jalen plays more minutes this year as he already fits into Pike's defensive philosophy. The presence of the experienced upperclassmen last year never allowed us to see his full offensive skill set.
Disagree but that’s ok.
If Simpson can provide equal level defense with a handle and ability to penetrate.
He gets the minutes
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If Cam can defend he will start, imo. I think Hyatt has the edge to start at the 4 but if Mag outworks him I wouldn’t be surprised to see him earn starts there. As the season progresses, if Woolfolk emerges as a capable backup center, you may see Dean get some time at the 4 as well. Lots of interchangeable parts.
I'd feel more comfortable if we had more parts. Last year we didn't have enough. The year before that we did.
We need to have an almost 100% hit rate in order to not be in the same boat we were last year with guys playing too many minutes.
When i say hit rate I mean.....
Hyatt being significantly better than he was last year
Mag making strides and staying healthy
Simpson being ready for B1G play and earning 15-20+ MPG
Spencer being B1G starting shooting guard caliber player
Jalen Miller being serviceable offensively
If we don't score at least 4 of these I am very worried. What concerns me there may be 1 of 2 of these I am not overly confident with. All of this assumes Caleb, Paul and Cliff are healthy......
We worry every offseason - that's part of rooting for a college program. You're the actuary/risk/emergency preparedness guy, right?
agreed Pete he is a terrible passer unfortunately Reiber is actually much better at passing as a big than Cliff; I also hope he really worked on his shot from close in because that line drive shot was just terrible if he can get that baby hook down pat he will be unstoppable
Sort of, kind of.
Yes I worry every offseason. Concerns are always legitimate. Fortunately the last 3 years things have worked out. I can’t say I am less optimistic coming in to this year as the previous 3.
I agree with much of this. The optimistic view is that we have many good to great parts. Our returning 3 starters are great. Our returning role players are good and getting better. Our newcomers seem to have something, especially Cam who is a veteran that can shoot.
A common thread with Pike teams is that the players give maximum effort to earn minutes, especially on defense. His teams also tend to have great chemistry. These qualities make the whole better than the parts.
Side comment: If he gives good effort on D and is less selfish offensively with more minutes, Hyatt can be a real X-factor for us. He certainly has the confidence and athleticism. Would love to see him maximize his potential this coming season.
That's the one I am most concerned with.
3 off seasons ago----How do we replace the toughness Eugene brought
2 off seasons ago---How do we win without the RAC
Last offseason---Our D. We lose 3 of our better defenders
This year----My concerns are less about D or "toughness"...more on the offensive side of things
I did nail 4 off season ago though!!
3 off seasons ago----How do we replace the toughness Eugene brought
2 off seasons ago---How do we win without the RAC
Last offseason---Our D. We lose 3 of our better defenders
This year----My concerns are less about D or "toughness"...more on the offensive side of things
I did nail 4 off season ago though!!