Suboptimal Players

[Random UK Fan]

I see posts on here discussing how one player or another on the team just isn't showing up/not living up to billing. Cal only recruits the best, seems to make it clear what role they need to play. So what happens between their LOI and tipoff? How do they regress?

 

[63in62]

Your premise is incorrect. Yes fans have said that, but fans say everything. Fact is the only player that has been accused of not playing up to billing is Skal, and there is an explanation. Skal was never a great player. He became highly ranked because of the competition he played against and his size and mobility. Cal understood his shortcomings but could not get the "bigs" he went after and had to go with Skal assuming he would never be as weak as he had been. Poy on the other hand has always been the same player. Great size and talent but always an on and off slacker. Same with Lee, nothing surprising about the play from those two. On the flip side we have seen slow steady improvement from Willis but despite his size he is still a wing player. If this team had just one "big" to rebound and score a little we would have a good team. I haven't given up as yet, but time is slipping away. There is always the possibility of simply sitting Poy, Skal and Lee and forcing Humphries and Wynard to play. I doubt Cal will, but why not, they can't play any worse than the 3 disappointments.

 

[fatguy87]

Players don't regress from LOI to tip. It's just difficult to predict the future performance of players, especially when they make a dramatic step up in competition.

 

[Random UK Fan]

Players don't regress from LOI to tip. It's just difficult to predict the future performance of players, especially when they make a dramatic step up in competition.

If they are recruited by UK, it seems that they come in already better than, say, Miss. St.'s starters, due to the quality of athletes they are (i.e. Wall, Gilchrist, Knight, Davis, etc). I mean were our earlier teams THAT much better than this group of guys? Some of the players on this team came in with the same kind of hype, but experienced a disconnect somewhere.

 

[.S&C.]

Players don't regress from LOI to tip. It's just difficult to predict the future performance of players, especially when they make a dramatic step up in competition.

Which is why we need a few hang around a every year, especially in positions we need to score. You can't bank on freshman to carry you in these situations. Cal has yet to win the big one with mainly freshman players.

We need a balanced approach to recruiting. No more of this mess that will fall short over and over.

 

[brianpoe]

If they are recruited by UK, it seems that they come in already better than, say, Miss. St.'s starters, due to the quality of athletes they are (i.e. Wall, Gilchrist, Knight, Davis, etc). I mean were our earlier teams THAT much better than this group of guys? Some of the players on this team came in with the same kind of hype, but experienced a disconnect somewhere.

Those freshmen that come in overrated will not fair as well against those older players of other teams than the ones who were evaluated correctly and in better high school classes.

 

[fatguy87]

We have no margin for error when our roster is gutted. When we return so few players, we absolutely must hit on every recruit or else we will have gaping holes on the roster.

This season and 2013 team really put that 2011 team into perspective. We recruited highly ranked players, but they all turned out to be good college players. Lamb's shooting ability far exceeded everybody's expectations, and Jorts grew into that missing stalwart in the the post that the team sorely needed. A lot of things had to go right for that team to be a contender.