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Post by aleutianhoya on Jan 10, 2021 11:40:15 GMT -5
The rotations are maddening. I don't understand the "play one guy a few mins in first half and none in second and play another guy in crunch time when he didn't play at all in the first half" strategy. It doesn't make sense. If you're going to go to Berger in the 2H, get him a few mins in the 1H. Same with Sibley. Those are just two examples. This was my takeaway from watching the almost comeback too...I'd already planned to look back at how the rotations had been working for the freshman + Wilson. On one hand, the Sibley-Bile pairing worked: that lineup held Cuse to 3 FGs in the 6 minutes they were on the court and cut the deficit from 11 to 3 before TURNOVERFEST! began in earnest. You got the found money version of Bile on offense (he actually hit shots) and their length and mobility were disruptive defensively. On the other hand, Ewing didn't try that lineup until 8:13 left in the game. In the first half he went with Wilson and Bile in two spurts, the first of which was fine (we were +3 over about five minutes), and the second of which we went -7 in three straight possessions. Cuse added four more points in the final minutes of the half against a lineup that swapped Wilson for Holloway. I don't think Wilson-Bile was a bad combo at all--it was fine--but pretty clearly the better option ended up being Sibley-Bile, and Ewing sat on it for 32 minutes. I don't think it was just luck one lineup worked better: Sibley gives you more versatility defensively and he's at least a possible offensive option vice Wilson (who still played fine to good!). It gets to the larger issue that Ewing seems to be only playing the freshmen + Wilson in one discreet shift each, either in the first or second half of a game. Wilson's minutes tonight were broken up by a short rest, but Holloway and Sibley both played one shift only, and Berger only came back for garbage/desperation time in the final minute. You get things like Clark starting and only playing the first two minutes, then not playing for multiple games. Berger and Wilson have only been once-in-a-few games options. Sibley's only now starting to see every game minutes. I'm not sure how to view it. Being generous, Ewing's trying to slowly bring them along with minutes given their inexperience. Maybe there's some merit to this: even in decent minutes last night you clearly saw Sibley's and Berger's weaknesses. But being less generous: there's no pattern here, and you couldn't convince me right now Ewing isn't just making it up as he goes along. Guys play one game then sit a few. Berger gets put in a terrible spot late against Butler (and Holloway does tonight), then gets a more reasonable shift against Syracuse. Ewing slots Sibley into a productive lineup, but 32 minutes into a game after he tried two other less effective lineups with players from this cohort. I think a better gameplan from the staff has Sibley in during the first half by design. What I think tonight continued to show is there's merit in finding time for the freshmen, whatever the weakness, but the staff doesn't yet have a coherent plan for how to do it. Some things are hard: Tactical in game decisions, game prep, personality management. But this isn't and that's the problem. You decide going in which guys are likely to play (setting aside injuries and fouls) and then you script the first half to get them all at least two-three minutes. Doesn't have to be more than that. Then you base your second half patterns on what you saw. Maybe you thought Bile was going to suck against the zone....but he was good in his 8 mins so he gets more time in the second. And so on. That's hard to figure out sometimrs, I get it, but you can't even try to figure it out without giving some time to guys earlier. As far as specifics go....you can't tell me we couldn't get Berger in for two mins in the first half for Blair or Dante. Same with Sibley. At a bare minimum....and I do mean bare....I hope he's talking to someone like Sibley and saying "you're coming in for the 2H tonight....we are gonna get others time in the 1H.". I don't agree with the strategy obviously but at a minimum you have to clue the players in.
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guru
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Post by guru on Jan 10, 2021 12:09:11 GMT -5
This is the type of in-depth analysis that should drive more traffic to the board. Ha. But at this point, I’m really not sure what more neeeds to be said about this group.
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hoyainla
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Post by hoyainla on Jan 10, 2021 12:12:19 GMT -5
I don’t think anyone is questioning how much Ewing knows about basketball or his understanding of the game. But I do think there is a big difference between coaching professionals and college kids, and that is where I’m not sure he’s tailored his approach yet after years in the NBA. These kids are not as talented as the NBA guys he coached, and I fear he expects them to execute as if they were. And when they don’t, often he points the blame at them. That is fine in the NBA, but these are 18-20 year old kids, most of whom this will be the ceiling in their basketball lives. They need a softer touch sometimes, and maybe shouldn’t be put in positions where the degree of difficulty to execute is so high. I think this rears it’s ugly head at the end of these games where we play so tight out of fear of failing. I can’t say how Ewing treats the guys in the locker room or practices, but if his postgame quotes are any indication I think he is more often critical of the mistakes, then building them up. Perhaps a little more confidence building and a more positive approach is what this role calls for compared to what he was used to in the NBA. I’ll put it out there I absolutely question his knowledge and understanding of modern basketball. He doesn’t embrace it which makes me question how much he understands and realizes the benefits of it. He knows more about how a big man should operate in the old school game than most anyone but that is essentially worthless now. Based on the results it’s actually a detractor.
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mdtd
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Post by mdtd on Jan 10, 2021 12:28:04 GMT -5
I think this was the first game where we were better in the second half than the first. Which can be positive.
The start of the game looked good. We ran action out of the high post and got open looks down low. Pickett started slow, but he made faster and better reads against the defense. That was a good start. Then we ran Bile out of the high post in a very questionable decision. And that was an absolute disaster. Bile, Pickett, and Wahab did not space the floor well, Bile rarely filled the lane properly and when he did his reads were slow and wrong and led to so many contested poor threes. We extremely rarely got the ball inside the three-point line and our offense struggled as a result. Bile also got lost defensively multiple times and our offense, in general, was so much worse with him in.
This right here is where Berger should've been played. A kid who is an excellent shooter with a high basketball IQ who could fill better spots s exactly what our offense needed. Harris has not been good in this stretch of games. He's been bad and we need him to be much better. I love that he's getting minutes, but he needs to not be playing 38 minutes and needs to be playing smarter and improving. This experience helps, it will help him in the future to fight through this poor stretch of play and to see how he responds. But he has been bad in this stretch. He looks like a different dude than he was pre losing skid.
Then the second half happened. We started pretty slow, but once Berger came in, we looked a lot better. He spaced the floor and filled the right spots. With Sibley, the press looked good and it got our opponent out of their rhythm. We ended up going small and our team was so much better in this lineup. Please use it more. And Bile played his best half as a Hoya. He is so much better in the small ball lineup. This isn't just this one game thing. I have no idea why, but when Bile gets his minutes it should always be in a small ball lineup. He's bad with a center in, but in a small ball lineup, he looks like an effective, really solid player.
That being said, our rotation first half was bad. I believe Wilson is our second-best big, but using them in a matchup based role is the best way to go. I liked this substitution since Dolezaj's speed beat Wahab, but he did not beat Wilson. He didn't do anything from the dunker spot, but it was our best big defensively. Then we went to Holloway as our first freshmen off the bench which was an absolutely puzzling move. I have no idea why he did this, but Holloway did not impress. Again, he's a freshman playing his first minutes in a tough spot, but I have no idea why this wasn't Clark or Sibley. We needed an offensive spark and Holloway is more of a gritty, defensive-minded guy. I didn't understand this. I also have no idea how Bile had ten minutes. He was atrocious in that first half. I have no idea why we didn't play Berger, how Blair had 40 minutes this game when he was clearly forcing on offense and not flowing with the game and turning the ball over and getting beat defensively. And Jamorko wasn't good on the wing. He was effective in the high post and slashing with dunks (please Jamorko don't stop slashing), but he was not in the catch and shoot role. He missed multiple opportunities to catch skip passes by not looking at the ball, and he missed open skip pass lanes against the zone.
The small ball lineup works. Sibley was effective on defense and was ok on offense (aside from that terrible corner three ball, though it was the right decision, just terrible execution) since he made the right decisions and let the game come to him. Berger was very effective. He was a calming presence and was so much better than Dante who just seemed a little wild. Pickett should've been in the high post or off the floor. Blair should've played like 10 fewer minutes. He facilitated a lot, but I think it was more of him being so ball dominant and us forcing shots than him slashing well and being patient looking for the open guy. Carey was really solid. He played his role and hit his shots. With how he was today, I'm ok with him getting 30.
I'd love to see that press more and I think the small ball is our best alternative to playing Tim and Malcolm. I want to see more of the young guys. Berger and Sibley are two guys who are going to be here in the future. Let's see what they can do.
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EtomicB
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Post by EtomicB on Jan 10, 2021 12:35:11 GMT -5
Yeah, it isn't a good idea for a coach to address depth issues with recruiting. You’re changing the discussion... Of course a staff has to fix depth issues with recruiting however taking 3 raw, post-up type centers in one class wasn’t/isn’t a good idea...
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thedragon
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Post by thedragon on Jan 10, 2021 16:01:52 GMT -5
Hes tried that with Blair and Pickett MANY times. Blair has played 94% of the total possible minutes and Pickett 84%. So, I don’t think he’s really sent them much of a message by restricting playing time. Blair is 16th and Pickett 157th (out of ~5,000) in minutes percentage. These guys might need to be given a different message. People act like they aren't Pat's 2 best options on this team. Now, if you want to criticize that aspect of it - then I'd be on board. But the point is that if you look through MULTIPLE games both last season and this season - Ewing has pulled both after mistakes, not started each on occasion, etc. Sometimes at critical junctures. But in close games continuing to sit them is detrimental to the team. Now maybe you'd be in the camp of letting the freshman play and losing handily rather than closer losses - and there's an argument for that. Buy very few coaches whos entire future rides on wins and losses have that type of foresight.
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s4hoyas
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Post by s4hoyas on Jan 10, 2021 18:40:21 GMT -5
The problem with Pickett and Blair is that neither is a good passer, and that's probably being kind...passing is alot instinct and feel, and for those that don't have that as a primary skill, it needs to be practiced just like shooting, etc...Pickett has still not had a game where he goes, say, 6 for 10 with at least 2 or 3 of those 3s, but I've got to think its coming...he has, however, begun to expand his game by driving more to the hoop...I'd still like to see him operate in the post and use his quickness on occasion as well as the pullup jumper in the paint...Blair has expanded his game by penetrating/driving and shooting the floater...moving forward, hopefully each can improve their passing and avoid the careless turnovers...
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bostonfan
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Post by bostonfan on Jan 11, 2021 8:47:11 GMT -5
It has been a frustrating season so far, with a handful of games that were very winnable against good teams. The Hoyas are not getting blown out of games, they just can't/don't seem to have what it takes to get over the hump at the end of close games. The more I watch the more it strikes me that what this season's team is missing is an alpha/go to guy. The Hoyas have a team full of good role players who all have some specific skills and are fine during the normal run of play in most games, but when the game is on the line or the team needs a hoop badly to stop a run by another team, these guys don't seem to have what it takes. This "alpha dog" does not need to be a 5 star recruit or an NBA caliber player (although that would help), it really just needs to be someone who has the offensive aggressiveness and self confidence that they know they can create a positive play when they need to and then the staff just has to make sure the ball goes through their hands on those important possessions.
Not to bring up sore subjects, but they had two guys in Akinjo and Mac that both at least had the confidence and self believe to think they should always have the ball in their hands during key moments. I realize all of the reasons they are not here any more and a lot of that blame falls on those players and how they interacted with each other and the rest of the team. The thing was those two guys always had the confidence that they could create something positive in the tough moments, whether it was a shot for themselves or beat their defender and put the other team in rotation and create something for a teammate. They did not always succeed, but you could see that in their mind they knew they could make plays. Not many players have that mindset and this years Hoyas just don't have that player. The guys playing all have some impressive skills and can/are important players on a good team. Pickett is a really good defender and rebounder and can make open spot up threes. Blair and Carey are both good shooters who can do well off penetration and kicks or if the defense gets into rotation and the ball moves to find them for an open 3. The issue is that no one seems capable, or really willing, of being the "guy" who will create something positive for his team whenever his team needs it.
Because of this the margin for error for this team is razor thin and when the game is on the line, there are a bunch of guys looking around for someone else to make a play. to some degree I am impressed they stay competitive in these games, but unless someone emerges as that alpha dog this year, the results are likely to stay the same.
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Post by professorhoya on Jan 11, 2021 10:48:22 GMT -5
It has been a frustrating season so far, with a handful of games that were very winnable against good teams. The Hoyas are not getting blown out of games, they just can't/don't seem to have what it takes to get over the hump at the end of close games. The more I watch the more it strikes me that what this season's team is missing is an alpha/go to guy. The Hoyas have a team full of good role players who all have some specific skills and are fine during the normal run of play in most games, but when the game is on the line or the team needs a hoop badly to stop a run by another team, these guys don't seem to have what it takes. This "alpha dog" does not need to be a 5 star recruit or an NBA caliber player (although that would help), it really just needs to be someone who has the offensive aggressiveness and self confidence that they know they can create a positive play when they need to and then the staff just has to make sure the ball goes through their hands on those important possessions. Not to bring up sore subjects, but they had two guys in Akinjo and Mac that both at least had the confidence and self believe to think they should always have the ball in their hands during key moments. I realize all of the reasons they are not here any more and a lot of that blame falls on those players and how they interacted with each other and the rest of the team. The thing was those two guys always had the confidence that they could create something positive in the tough moments, whether it was a shot for themselves or beat their defender and put the other team in rotation and create something for a teammate. They did not always succeed, but you could see that in their mind they knew they could make plays. Not many players have that mindset and this years Hoyas just don't have that player. The guys playing all have some impressive skills and can/are important players on a good team. Pickett is a really good defender and rebounder and can make open spot up threes. Blair and Carey are both good shooters who can do well off penetration and kicks or if the defense gets into rotation and the ball moves to find them for an open 3. The issue is that no one seems capable, or really willing, of being the "guy" who will create something positive for his team whenever his team needs it. Because of this the margin for error for this team is razor thin and when the game is on the line, there are a bunch of guys looking around for someone else to make a play. to some degree I am impressed they stay competitive in these games, but unless someone emerges as that alpha dog this year, the results are likely to stay the same. I don't think it's just about confidence and self belief. A big part of that is the ability to execute and make smart decisions in crunchtime. Blair has confidence and self belif and will keep jacking up shots or trying his floater but will come up short in crunchtime or make the wrong move.
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bostonfan
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Post by bostonfan on Jan 11, 2021 11:42:32 GMT -5
It has been a frustrating season so far, with a handful of games that were very winnable against good teams. The Hoyas are not getting blown out of games, they just can't/don't seem to have what it takes to get over the hump at the end of close games. The more I watch the more it strikes me that what this season's team is missing is an alpha/go to guy. The Hoyas have a team full of good role players who all have some specific skills and are fine during the normal run of play in most games, but when the game is on the line or the team needs a hoop badly to stop a run by another team, these guys don't seem to have what it takes. This "alpha dog" does not need to be a 5 star recruit or an NBA caliber player (although that would help), it really just needs to be someone who has the offensive aggressiveness and self confidence that they know they can create a positive play when they need to and then the staff just has to make sure the ball goes through their hands on those important possessions. Not to bring up sore subjects, but they had two guys in Akinjo and Mac that both at least had the confidence and self believe to think they should always have the ball in their hands during key moments. I realize all of the reasons they are not here any more and a lot of that blame falls on those players and how they interacted with each other and the rest of the team. The thing was those two guys always had the confidence that they could create something positive in the tough moments, whether it was a shot for themselves or beat their defender and put the other team in rotation and create something for a teammate. They did not always succeed, but you could see that in their mind they knew they could make plays. Not many players have that mindset and this years Hoyas just don't have that player. The guys playing all have some impressive skills and can/are important players on a good team. Pickett is a really good defender and rebounder and can make open spot up threes. Blair and Carey are both good shooters who can do well off penetration and kicks or if the defense gets into rotation and the ball moves to find them for an open 3. The issue is that no one seems capable, or really willing, of being the "guy" who will create something positive for his team whenever his team needs it. Because of this the margin for error for this team is razor thin and when the game is on the line, there are a bunch of guys looking around for someone else to make a play. to some degree I am impressed they stay competitive in these games, but unless someone emerges as that alpha dog this year, the results are likely to stay the same. I don't think it's just about confidence and self belief. A big part of that is the ability to execute and make smart decisions in crunchtime. Blair has confidence and self belif and will keep jacking up shots or trying his floater but will come up short in crunchtime or make the wrong move. I don't disagree that you need the ability also, but I think one leads to the other. Some of these talented players start trying to take games over and putting their teams on their backs in high school, and if they are talented enough, they have some success doing it and that confidence grows from that success. There are other players, also with talent/ability who are just not comfortable being the "guy". Blair does show confidence in his shot and is always willing to take it, but I get the sense that is not a role he is completely comfortable with. Especially when he needs to try to create space for his shot. If he is left alone, or a play is run for him to get a good/open look he is fine taking his jumpshot, but I am not sure he has been asked to create those shots/opportunities in the past. I am hopeful that next year the Hoyas will have two players coming next year as freshman, Aminu and Riley, who both seem to be that alpha dog/go to mindset for their teams and hopefully that translates to this level, but asking freshman to take that role can be tough and usually has some growing pains.
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s4hoyas
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Post by s4hoyas on Jan 11, 2021 12:11:54 GMT -5
I don't think a team needs an "alpha dog" necessarily to be successful (though it would of course help), but rather this team needs to "not give up too soon on possessions" coming down the stretch of close games...what I mean is that as the game winds down, they need to be stronger with the ball, continue to move without the ball, and be a little more patient/make the extra pass and insure that they get a good look with every possession...they have tended to become tighter and more impatient, resulting in someone getting antsy and chucking up an off balance shot too soon in the possession...other teams are going to tighten their defense in a close game coming down the stretch, so if requires us to make the extra pass, be more patient to insure that we get a quality look with every possession...that can make the difference in the outcome...
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