Bless your heart - I told you I would sell it to you - that you clearly need it more than me.
I'd rather admit to a struggle than to walk through life clueless to your many limitations and shortcomings... but you do you.
Thin Roster
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I'd rather admit to a struggle than to walk through life clueless to your many limitations and shortcomings... but you do you.
I don't know if I have seen many college teams better than our 2011-12 team and that team was not deep at all.
Also on PG, Wheeler is not going to work if Oscar is standing in the lane 24/7. The issues at pg late in the year last year imo were because Oscar had to play in the paint area a lot cause we needed his scoring when tyty and grady's scoring fell off. If we are able to find a way to let Oscar roam around the court on offense and keep up the same rebounding numbers, this team will be pretty dang good. Wheeler can take anyone in the country off the dribble and if Oscar and the other teams big aren't standing in the paint taking up space then he will get paint touches all day and score or create.
Also on PG, Wheeler is not going to work if Oscar is standing in the lane 24/7. The issues at pg late in the year last year imo were because Oscar had to play in the paint area a lot cause we needed his scoring when tyty and grady's scoring fell off. If we are able to find a way to let Oscar roam around the court on offense and keep up the same rebounding numbers, this team will be pretty dang good. Wheeler can take anyone in the country off the dribble and if Oscar and the other teams big aren't standing in the paint taking up space then he will get paint touches all day and score or create.
Yeah, I would just like to add some more so that we can't use injuries as an excuse. I'm not the type of person to just look at something and be like "Well that sucked but we got through it and just hope it doesn't happen again.". I'm the type of person that thinks "Well that sucked, so what can we do to make sure it doesn't happen again or make sure the odds are significantly decreased that it could happen again". It's called preventative maintenance.
If I lived in a house for years without someone breaking into it but someone finally did one time, I'm not just going to move on because it likely won't happen again. I'm going to have a state of the art alarm system installed to make sure I'm prepared next time.
If I lived in a house for years without someone breaking into it but someone finally did one time, I'm not just going to move on because it likely won't happen again. I'm going to have a state of the art alarm system installed to make sure I'm prepared next time.
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Yes. Was he out injured? Yes.... you so often miss the point. Players run into screens all the time - called out or not - the point he is was injured - twice - same reason... and thus did not play. No matter how you try to spin it - he was injured and missed time.
Jesus, Mary and Joseph - you are thick...
"Those screens were not called out... so it's not your fault and you're not injured." - Ed
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There is no reason to not use all 13 scholarships. The problem is, player 9-13 on a Cal roster is usually complaining about PT and plans to be 1AD or 2AD, and if they aren't, they leave.
Sure there is. If none had been available 2 years ago how could Oscar have transferred mid-year?
Well, they're optional. Like timeouts. And you can never have too many in your pocket.
This is because of poor roster management on the part of the coach. You recruit players 10-11-12 letting them know they won’t play much the first couple of years, but will have the opportunity as upperclassmen to be contributors. No promises, just the opportunity.
Recruit some kids that want to be here all four years. Why does UK have to be the fast track to the NBA? Because Cal has marketed the program that way. Now when every player doesn’t go to the NBA, it looks bad because that’s what Cal hangs his hat on.
Cal needs to change the image of the program, that starts by bringing in kids that know they will have to work and grind just to get a shot at the court, and that know the NBA is only a possibility after 4 years of busting their butts. Or Heaven forbid sign some kids that just want to be good college players and get a degree.
Just my opinion.
Haven’t read any reply, but said the same numerous times / and it just doesn’t make sense when you consider our injury reports over the last handful of seasons. I don’t get it.
Yep. When your top 4 guards are fighting injuries around the same time, the season is getting derailed no matter who is 9-13 on the depth chart .
I'm more concerned that we keep having these injuries. Every year it is someone who is missing significant time and/or not coming back the same player. Maybe the change in S&C coaches will help.
Well I can't say I disagreeCal now lives by the adage you can never be too thin or too rich.
I agree, Struggler. You can't be a great team with a PG who can't shoot.
You don’t think Adou Theiro knows he has to work and grind to get a shot at court time? I would think he knows he’s not nba ready and is a multi year player.
Like to see another one or two like him on the roster.
You can’t feel great about Fredrick’s health going into the season, that’s for sure. And he’s our only *real* outside shooter, as far as I can tell.
This was my point. We need more Theiro type players to build the roster for the future.
You’d think so. But you would have thought the same about Charles Matthews, Johnny Juzang, Bryce Hopkins, etc.. A lot of our “multi year guys” end up being multi year guys … somewhere else.
He might not be the only ones outside shooter, but he is definitely the best, at least on paper.
And we need them to actually stay.
Raise your hand if you’ll be surprised to see Theiro transfer as the end of the year after sparse PT this year.
What other legitimate outside shooting threat do we even have on this roster?
Reeves shot 39% from 3 last season. That’s pretty good, on paper, which is all we can go by in the offseason. Wallace is suppose to be a good not great outside shooter. Livingston is average. Toppin shot a high percentage, but a limited quantity. So like I said, Fredrick is the best, but not the only outside shooter on the roster.
More likely due to being very recruited over than immediate PT.
Which it is what it is if so.
Reeves is an interesting one, anxious to see how he adjusts to level of competition. And sure, we have a few guys who can make some shots occasionally. We’ll see. I’m talking pure shooters here. Toppin I don’t think you can even mention here. He made 4 3 point shots last season, and 2 of them he missed so bad he made them because he banked them in. So even that %, in the small sample size is pretty misleading. Legitimately should have been 2-10, I doubt he called bank on those.
Recruited over with another freshman who is also raw and not quite ready, rinse and repeat?
Cal has tried the 9-13 strategy.
Charles Matthews
Jemerl Baker
Johnny Juzang
Cam Fletcher
Bryce Hopkins
None were recruited to be 1 or 2AD. None made it past 2 years here, some left immediately.
There's an issue with player development for sure, but even bigger, there's a disconnect between expectations and reality.
I guess this is also what happens when you have guys like Devin Booker, SGA and Tyler Herro, none who came here with huge NBA aspirations, all were 1AD and became stars in the NBA when UK probably expected them here for at least 2 seasons.
Every 4-star and non-top 25 player STILL thinks they can be in the NBA after 1-2 years and when it doesn't happen, it's time to leave UK.
Charles Matthews
Jemerl Baker
Johnny Juzang
Cam Fletcher
Bryce Hopkins
None were recruited to be 1 or 2AD. None made it past 2 years here, some left immediately.
There's an issue with player development for sure, but even bigger, there's a disconnect between expectations and reality.
I guess this is also what happens when you have guys like Devin Booker, SGA and Tyler Herro, none who came here with huge NBA aspirations, all were 1AD and became stars in the NBA when UK probably expected them here for at least 2 seasons.
Every 4-star and non-top 25 player STILL thinks they can be in the NBA after 1-2 years and when it doesn't happen, it's time to leave UK.
Cal doesn’t use all of his scholarships, so no he hasn’t used the 9-13 strategy. Take Juzang (who actually left because he wanted to go back home, not lack of PT) for example, he was on a team with just 9 scholarship players. Cal almost never uses more than 10 or 11 scholarships every year.
If he did, he would have more leave, obviously, but he would have more stay as well, especially if he recruited guys who were brought in specifically to be 4 year players. None of those guys you mentioned were brought in as long term recruits. They were told that they could be OAD or 2AD and when it didn’t happen, they left.
You are right about a disconnect between expectations and reality. All those guys should have known they wouldn’t be OAD or 2AD, but they didn’t. The staff should have made that clear to them. I suspect that Cal, based on comments from staff and players, tells every recruit they should be in the NBA sooner rather than later.
It’s a program image problem, IMHO. Players come here thinking it’s the fast track to the NBA and when it is not, they leave. Cal needs to change the image of the program.
He needs to make sure that players 9-13 know they aren’t playing much their first few years and will have a shot, if they develop to play their last two years.
I didn't mean he has used the 9-13 to the max, I mean he hasn't set the right expectations and/or recruited the right players in those spots.
He's probably gotten too GOOD of players for those spots.
It's much easier to fill a team with depth, intangibles and experience now in the transfer portal.
He's probably gotten too GOOD of players for those spots.
It's much easier to fill a team with depth, intangibles and experience now in the transfer portal.
Those guys will get recruited over at UK. They won't ever rise beyond 10 to 12 sadly.
Nm. Accidental double post. Now, it erased both posts. Took forever to load & totally butchered my post(s). F it.
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This is the most important component of Cal's coaching at UK. Sear it into your brain. It explains so much.
I just don't get why Cal wouldn't have brought in another big body solid player. I mean O doesn't have to worry about PT. I love Ware but he can't make a 2 footer. I hope Collins develops but he's still thin as a rail. Why not bring in a big who could give O a break and not have a huge drop off if he's in foul trouble. Also God forbid but if O goes down the season is over. A RT type would have been a great pickup.
Who wants to come here and sit behind Tshiebwe for a season? Ware is pretty much the best player who wants to do that. Tshiebwe plays 32-33 minutes every game. That leaves 7-8 minutes at that spot. No decent player wants to play those spot minutes.
A good enough big could play with him. If Collins or even Brooks could be out there with him what's the difference from a talented big.