Post by TahoeSkin on Jun 17, 2007 7:42:21 GMT -5
Hey Everyone,
With all the talk about whether or not Jeff has truly signed with an agent, I thought I'd change the subject and share a few reports I received yesterday. This is a composite:
1. There were about 12 games played by current and future Hoyas at Yates Saturday at around 11am. Hibbert, Green, Wallace, Ewing, Macklin, Sims, Freeman, Wright, and Nikita were playing there. Summers did not play, though he was present. Altogether, there were about 20 people playing.
2. Jeff Green reportedly dominated, playing like "a man amongst boys." Lots of dunks (including one over 7’4”Jakub Kusmieruk), so it appears he really is in another league. In case you’re wondering, there was no indication whether Jeff Green had signed with an agent or otherwise. At one point, though, one of the guards fouled Green pretty hard, prompting someone to shout down from the balcony to him: "Jeff - don't get hurt now!" It was a funny moment for all in the gym, and even Jeff found himself laughing.
3. Chris Wright was a human highlight reel, repeatedly scoring over, around, and through other players. Sounds like we've got quite the Penetrator! Wright was able to balance his ability to score with his passing ability quite well. It was apparent he has the ability to get to the rim against just about anyone.
4. Sims also played well. He has great touch to 16 feet and runs the floor well. He needs to get stronger, though, because he seems to gets pushed around when mixing it up underneath. It seems like he's more of a 4 than a 5. He’s closer to 6’8” than he is to 6’10”.
5. Wallace was pretty solid and ran his teams effectively. Nothing new there! Good, old Mr. Dependable.
6. Freeman also played solidly. He was aggressive, getting to the cup repeatedly, especially in transition. He displayed some remarkable athleticism attacking the rim. He didn't shoot a ton from the outside, preferring to effectively set up his teammates. He did not force the action (a la Chris Wright), preferring to let the action come to him. That also sounds a bit familiar.
7. Ewing was strong, but pretty non-descript. He didn't play great, but he also was not bad at all. He had one RIM ROCKER dunk on an alley-oop (I think the pass was from Wright) which was out of this world. He played well defensively against his match-ups, often against Green, but Green was so dominant it wasn't even funny. Green apparently was “unbelievable.” Yes, seems like he’s ready by all accounts!
8. Macklin looked good, showing some quickness to the basket and playing very physical. He scored a couple of quick, driving, right-handed baskets against Jakub. He was very aggressive, and was wielding a nice, medium range shot. (Jeff Green actually calls Macklin "Timmy" after Tim Duncan, because he has a good face up game from 15 feet with a little bank shot).
9. Now for some good news: Nikita can really shoot it! Before the games, Nikita was shooting around and just couldn't seem to miss! During the games, he had a fair amount of drives to the hoop as well. As previous accounts have noted, he is a pretty good passer too. Can anyone say “Hidden Gem”? Also, I found it interesting that Nikita and Jakub were speaking Russian to one another.
10. Oh, and yes, I did mention Jakub a few times. Jakub played against Roy or Macklin in most games. (Hmmm?? I wonder how he got invited to play pick-up with our current and future Hoyas, given that he’s so horrible by some accounts on this board?) In any case, Jakub has greatly improved his conditioning, playing 7 of the 12 games. He caught and passed the ball very well, and at times played solid defense when matched-up against Roy and Macklin. But Roy definitely got the better of Jakub in the first game. In subsequent match-ups, however, Jakub played well defensively, preventing Roy from pushing him around, and making it harder on Big/Littler Roy. Altogether, Jakub took 6 total shots, including 3 off of offensive rebounds. He made 4 of his 6 shots. One of his misses was blocked by Hibbert, presumably somewhere in the stratosphere, and the other was altered by Macklin. Jakub probably had in total about a dozen rebounds and 3 or 4 blocks in the course of the morning. I think I’ll keep Jakub on the Recruiting List for another week or so. ;D
11. Anyway, during the games Hibbert featured a dazzling array of moves and counters and got a number of shots off over the top of Jakub. Roy’s shots almost always bounced around the rim and through, which is pretty impressive, particularly considering Jakub’s 9'8 reach. Roy repeatedly demonstrated a pretty awesome soft touch on all his post moves. Do I hear No. 1 Draft Choice? Hibbert only took one outside shot, which rimmed out.
That’s all for now. Hopefully, I can get another report the next time our Hoyas get together.
With all the talk about whether or not Jeff has truly signed with an agent, I thought I'd change the subject and share a few reports I received yesterday. This is a composite:
1. There were about 12 games played by current and future Hoyas at Yates Saturday at around 11am. Hibbert, Green, Wallace, Ewing, Macklin, Sims, Freeman, Wright, and Nikita were playing there. Summers did not play, though he was present. Altogether, there were about 20 people playing.
2. Jeff Green reportedly dominated, playing like "a man amongst boys." Lots of dunks (including one over 7’4”Jakub Kusmieruk), so it appears he really is in another league. In case you’re wondering, there was no indication whether Jeff Green had signed with an agent or otherwise. At one point, though, one of the guards fouled Green pretty hard, prompting someone to shout down from the balcony to him: "Jeff - don't get hurt now!" It was a funny moment for all in the gym, and even Jeff found himself laughing.
3. Chris Wright was a human highlight reel, repeatedly scoring over, around, and through other players. Sounds like we've got quite the Penetrator! Wright was able to balance his ability to score with his passing ability quite well. It was apparent he has the ability to get to the rim against just about anyone.
4. Sims also played well. He has great touch to 16 feet and runs the floor well. He needs to get stronger, though, because he seems to gets pushed around when mixing it up underneath. It seems like he's more of a 4 than a 5. He’s closer to 6’8” than he is to 6’10”.
5. Wallace was pretty solid and ran his teams effectively. Nothing new there! Good, old Mr. Dependable.
6. Freeman also played solidly. He was aggressive, getting to the cup repeatedly, especially in transition. He displayed some remarkable athleticism attacking the rim. He didn't shoot a ton from the outside, preferring to effectively set up his teammates. He did not force the action (a la Chris Wright), preferring to let the action come to him. That also sounds a bit familiar.
7. Ewing was strong, but pretty non-descript. He didn't play great, but he also was not bad at all. He had one RIM ROCKER dunk on an alley-oop (I think the pass was from Wright) which was out of this world. He played well defensively against his match-ups, often against Green, but Green was so dominant it wasn't even funny. Green apparently was “unbelievable.” Yes, seems like he’s ready by all accounts!
8. Macklin looked good, showing some quickness to the basket and playing very physical. He scored a couple of quick, driving, right-handed baskets against Jakub. He was very aggressive, and was wielding a nice, medium range shot. (Jeff Green actually calls Macklin "Timmy" after Tim Duncan, because he has a good face up game from 15 feet with a little bank shot).
9. Now for some good news: Nikita can really shoot it! Before the games, Nikita was shooting around and just couldn't seem to miss! During the games, he had a fair amount of drives to the hoop as well. As previous accounts have noted, he is a pretty good passer too. Can anyone say “Hidden Gem”? Also, I found it interesting that Nikita and Jakub were speaking Russian to one another.
10. Oh, and yes, I did mention Jakub a few times. Jakub played against Roy or Macklin in most games. (Hmmm?? I wonder how he got invited to play pick-up with our current and future Hoyas, given that he’s so horrible by some accounts on this board?) In any case, Jakub has greatly improved his conditioning, playing 7 of the 12 games. He caught and passed the ball very well, and at times played solid defense when matched-up against Roy and Macklin. But Roy definitely got the better of Jakub in the first game. In subsequent match-ups, however, Jakub played well defensively, preventing Roy from pushing him around, and making it harder on Big/Littler Roy. Altogether, Jakub took 6 total shots, including 3 off of offensive rebounds. He made 4 of his 6 shots. One of his misses was blocked by Hibbert, presumably somewhere in the stratosphere, and the other was altered by Macklin. Jakub probably had in total about a dozen rebounds and 3 or 4 blocks in the course of the morning. I think I’ll keep Jakub on the Recruiting List for another week or so. ;D
11. Anyway, during the games Hibbert featured a dazzling array of moves and counters and got a number of shots off over the top of Jakub. Roy’s shots almost always bounced around the rim and through, which is pretty impressive, particularly considering Jakub’s 9'8 reach. Roy repeatedly demonstrated a pretty awesome soft touch on all his post moves. Do I hear No. 1 Draft Choice? Hibbert only took one outside shot, which rimmed out.
That’s all for now. Hopefully, I can get another report the next time our Hoyas get together.
