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Post by hoyasaxa2003 on May 1, 2024 12:20:02 GMT -5
Minor point, but I do not recall anybody who was "excited to see a guy transfer out [Brumbaugh] who was a top 100 recruit, transferred from Texas, is 6'4" 190 pounds, shot 37% from three point land in his freshman year and averaged 8.3 ppg, 2.6 apg, and 2.2 rpg in only 22.1 minutes/game." I don't think anybody was excited that he was going to leave. Instead, I think some people felt did not play at the level we wanted him to play at during his first year at Georgetown, and did not want a repeat of that next year.
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Post by hoyasaxa2003 on May 1, 2024 9:48:29 GMT -5
Stewart's ceiling is much higher than Styles'. This isn't even close if you want to compare the two. The question wasn’t ceiling. Ceiling there is no question, Stewart wins. Production-wise, I’d take Styles for 24-25 over Stewart (recognizing they play different positions). We can agree to disagree. I would still take Stewart over Styles for 2024-2025. Styles was a good player and I would have liked him to be on our team, but he is also going to be a senior. Stewart's potential for growth, even in 2024-2025 is significant, and it's not like Styles set a high bar himself.
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Post by hoyasaxa2003 on Apr 30, 2024 21:03:17 GMT -5
Stewart's ceiling is much higher than Styles'. This isn't even close if you want to compare the two.
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Post by hoyasaxa2003 on Apr 30, 2024 17:19:30 GMT -5
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Post by hoyasaxa2003 on Apr 30, 2024 17:18:09 GMT -5
Trilly Donovan or twitter? I have seen it on Twitter All I saw was a picture someone posted of Hopkins at a Hertz counter at Logan Airport. Hardly telling, but I know Providence fans are worried. Someone supposedly in the know on Twitter said it wasn't Georgetown but another Big East team. I will caveat that by saying it might not be credible at all. Edit: It's Hilltop Hoops who posted that.
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Post by hoyasaxa2003 on Apr 30, 2024 17:17:03 GMT -5
I would give Stewart a healthy NIL sum to pick Georgetown. I am not saying he would come into Georgetown and instantly be great, but he would probably be the most athletic/physically talented guy to play at Georgetown in a long, long, while.
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Post by hoyasaxa2003 on Apr 30, 2024 11:25:17 GMT -5
Nobody has Mutombo part of the purported core. We all assumed he would be grad-transferring, as with Bristol, ever since he was honored on senior day. To be clear, I was one of the “retain the core” guys and I don’t like the fact that we have multiple outbound transfers among the rotation players. But Mutombo and Bristol transferring is a horse of a different color. It was always expected; we were never expecting them to be rotation guys in 24-25. Exactly. What we saw during the season was that Mutombo was not part of Cooley’s rotation plans and, thus, couldn’t be considered a Cooley core player. Whether that was the right or wrong way to use Ryan is water under the bridge. What 2003 took offense to was the “Core down to 2 and losing upperclass experience” of my post after Ryan’s departure. He assumed that I had Ryan as a core player. What (I think) he didn’t realize was that I used the same line (with the same number) after Cook’s departure days before. So, I wasn’t considering Ryan as part of that core. Also, I did add to my post after Ryan’s departure "his upperclass experience on and off the court..." First, I don't take offense to anything you have written prhoya. As you know, we have gotten along well in the past, even if we disagree about some things now. Second, you are changing your position after the fact. You said, "Another one bites the dust! Core down to 2 and losing upperclass experience on and off the court… A legacy "portaling" hurts!" While you are now trying to include Mutombo in some sort of "core" by using off court contributions, that's not how anybody--including you---was using "core" to describe our players going forward into next year earlier this year. And others describing our "core" weren't including Mutombo either. Nobody that I can recall on HoyaTalk had any thought that Mutombo would play a significant on court role next year. And he was recognized on senior night, leading everybody to think he was likely done at Georgetown. That is why I am saying it's a red herring. This is really not a big deal, at all, in my mind and totally expected. Nor do I think his transfer hurts very much in reality considering nobody (including Ryan) thought he would be a big contributor next year. As I said, does it hurt optically? Yes, a bit. But it doesn't hurt with our performance going forward. Would it have been nice to have a 4th year senior? Yes. Would it have been nice to have an older guy to help some of the younger guys get acclimated? Yes. But other guys on the roster can help to fill that role.
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Post by hoyasaxa2003 on Apr 30, 2024 10:59:49 GMT -5
No, you are missing the point. With Epps, the biggest criticism is that he has the ball too much and doesn’t pass enough. That’s something that with coaching and a new PG can be changed. Cook’s problem on defense is more a problem of skill and instinct. He just doesn’t have it. I find it hard to believe he’s going to drastically improve on help defense this year when he showed no ability last year and he’s going to be a 5th year player next year. I understand your desire to return a “core” of players, but returning the player whose defense in the paint and at the rim was among the worst in a Division 1 on the hope that a 5th year player might get better at defending the rim does not seem like a recipe for turning things around. I disagree that defense can be so hard to teach. If given a chance, a player "can change his ways with coaching," and the "roster around him might contribute to him changing his ways," and "surrounded by a better cast of characters, (a player) can be more efficient, play better, and perform better," like you said. The same can apply to Cook's defense. BTW, my desire is not "to return a "core" of players." My desire is to retain players, unless they are trouble-makers. BTW2, here's how you described your core: Epps, Style, Cook, Fielder, and Brumbaugh are a nice core for next year, with Sorber, McKenna, Mulready, and Williams. There are two left from your "core" that played this season. I didn't say that defense "can be so hard to reach." I just think that Supreme Cook did not learn anything over the course of the season on the defensive end (he did improve on offense). If anything, he was arguably a worse defender at the end of the season than at the beginning of the season. Now, you can blame Cooley for that if you want, but if Cooley couldn't make Cook player better defense over the course of a season, I am skeptical he could do it over the summer. So, I think the answer is simply to get better talent. I would add that Cook also had rebounding problems on the defensive end all year, even though he was a great offensive rebounder. He is a good guy, just a limited player. Supreme Cook would not start at the 5 on most Big East teams, he is not that level of talent overall. If you could combine Supreme Cook's offense with Mikael Hopkins defense, you'd have a great all around player. But that's not who he is. As for the core of players, I am on record multiple times saying I wished that Brumbaugh, Styles, and even Cook stayed for another year. I am not happy that they are gone, but I also understand why they are gone. And since we went 2-18 last season, losing anybody from that roster doesn't bother me that much. We cannot expect to get a lot better without significant changes. Could we have done that with the "core"? Yes, probably, if we got better talent and some of those guys took a seat on the bench more, but in 2024, nobody wants to sit on the bench or be second fiddle.
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Post by hoyasaxa2003 on Apr 30, 2024 10:54:24 GMT -5
Agreed. The lengths to which some are going to say Stewart is a bad fit, to me seems insane. Stewart is a really, really, good player. I would love to have him. Who is "some"? I see one poster. I was trying to be polite in not calling out one specific person. But, yes.
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Post by hoyasaxa2003 on Apr 30, 2024 9:53:39 GMT -5
Of course in isolation, adding a guy with the characteristics you mentioned makes all the sense in the world. However, what you failed to add is that same guy was the 9th man in his team's rotation last season, averaged 8 minutes/game, got recruited over and is physically very similar to the 2 guys you've already commited to in your frontcourt. He does not solve the problem of being a true 5 who can guard other true 5s and he does not solve the problem of needing a rim protector. I'd love Stewart if we didn't already have 1 of Fielder or Sorber and if we already had somebody that can guard 5s and block shots. But that's not the situation we're in. The people advocating for Stewart seem to be more in love with the fact that we can get him rather than recognizing he doesn't solve any of our actual personnel needs. And by bringing in Stewart at this late stage, what does that tell Fielder and Sorber? 9th man on an Elite 8 team. Where does that put him on a 2-18 team? The fact this is even a debate is ridiculous. They should be rolling the red carpet out for Sean and are. Badly needed athleticism and defensive ability. Would pair nicely with a stretch 4/5 like Fielder. And it's a marriage that makes sense - we need the influx of high end talent and Sean wants an opportunity to get big minutes. I still think we would need a pure rim protector 5 willing to play 15 minutes a night. That will be a tough find. Agreed. The lengths to which some are going to say Stewart is a bad fit, to me seems insane. Stewart is a really, really, good player. I would love to have him.
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Post by hoyasaxa2003 on Apr 30, 2024 9:52:28 GMT -5
Do I think Epps can change his ways with coaching? Yes. Do I think that the roster around him might contribute to him changing his ways? Yes, I think so. ... Thus, I do think that surrounded by a better cast of characters, Epps can be more efficient, play better, and perform better. Thanks for all the interesting stats and I think everyone here agrees that Epps is better than Primo. But, comparing Epps to Spears was an example, not the point of my question. That said, you agreed that a player "can change his ways with coaching," and the "roster around him might contribute to him changing his ways," and "surrounded by a better cast of characters, (a player) can be more efficient, play better, and perform better." You indirectly answered my question and made my point. The same can apply to Cook's defense. Give him a break. No, you are missing the point. With Epps, the biggest criticism is that he has the ball too much and doesn’t pass enough. That’s something that with coaching and a new PG can be changed. Cook’s problem on defense is more a problem of skill and instinct. He just doesn’t have it. I find it hard to believe he’s going to drastically improve on help defense this year when he showed no ability last year and he’s going to be a 5th year player next year. I understand your desire to return a “core” of players, but returning the player whose defense in the paint and at the rim was among the worst in a Division 1 on the hope that a 5th year player might get better at defending the rim does not seem like a recipe for turning things around.
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Post by hoyasaxa2003 on Apr 29, 2024 16:34:14 GMT -5
A legacy transferred, wow! Another one bites the dust! Core down to 2 and losing upperclass experience on and off the court… A legacy "portaling" hurts! So it's: Core: junior Epps and soph Fielder Redshirt freshman McKenna Three true freshmen Williams, Sorber and Mulready Sophomore transfers: Mack and Williams, Jr. Grad Peavy Four open scholarships? Getting younger instead of the winning college basketball trend... SMH! Come on, Cooley! Use that alleged big NIL$ bag. A big, experienced shot blocker, Stewart and a proven shooter, and we're in the NCAAT! By the end of the season, who considered Ryan Mutombo part of a "core" of anything? This is a red herring. There is nobody who realistically thought Mutombo would be a big part of the team for 2024-2025. I would have rather had him stay, but the guy has his degree, can get a different experience elsewhere, and maybe even play. Other than the optics of a legacy guy transferring, this does nothing to hurt us at all. And even those optics do not mean much considering that he isn't good.
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Post by hoyasaxa2003 on Apr 29, 2024 13:23:02 GMT -5
I am putting my response to this here, but it generated in the Transfers thread. But since this has nothing to do with that, I am putting my response here. I actually realized that after I hit Create Post, and so edited to add it. You were just too quick to the draw for me to do it and have it go unnoticed. Ja! No, my question is not about defense & Epps, etc… To be clear, I’ll ask it another way: do you think Epps can change his ways with coaching and depending on the roster around him? Epps played like Primo a lot and we cannot expect to have a winning team playing like that. Do you think Epps will play like that again this year? Do I think Epps can change his ways with coaching? Yes. Do I think that the roster around him might contribute to him changing his ways? Yes, I think so. The main way in which to equate Primo and Epps are their usage/number of possessions used. Both of them took a lot of shots and had the ball in their hand. Primo's usage was a bit lower, but that's because Murray was also high usage, whereas Epps was really the only guy who consistently had the ball in his hands. But, I think Epps is easily a better player than Primo, for a few reasons: Epps is clearly more talented at getting to the rim and making his own shot. Primo did have the ball in his hands a lot, but his M.O. was basically to dribble the ball, drive, not actually get to the basket, and throw a long or mid-range two (my most hated shot). The stats bear this out. Epps took 12.2% of his shots from mid-long range. Everything else was a three, at the rim, or in the paint. Primo, in contrast, took 46.4% of shots from long to mid-range! Only 53.6% of his shots were from three, at the rim, or in the paint. This is clearly because Primo felt less confident as a three point shooter, and he couldn't get into the paint or the rim at all. These are two drastically different players. And if you look at conference stats, while neither was great, Epps was clearly better. In conference play, Epps had an astronomical 30.4% usage rate and took 31.0% of our shots. His efficiency was 97.2, which I agree is not great. But Primo Spears, in contrast, had 27.8% usage, 27.3% of our shots, and his efficiency rating was 90.2. If Spears' had higher usage (or for example, wasn't playing alongside Murray), my guess is that his usage would have been higher and efficiency lower. So, I think the stats demonstrate what I saw with my eyeballs--Epps is more talented than Spears. Thus, I do think that surrounded by a better cast of characters, Epps can be more efficient, play better, and perform better. ASIDE: People always focus on Primo Spears, but Brandon Murray was arguably even worse. While his usage may have been slightly lower than Spears, in conference play his efficiency was only 87.5%. Think about this: In Big East play in 2022-2023, literally 52.4% of our total offensive shots came from Spears or Murray, both of whom were inefficient and shot horribly. This is partly why our offense under Cooley actually improved quite a bit compared to Ewing. If we had even a remotely decent defense this past year, we could have won 5-6 games.
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Post by hoyasaxa2003 on Apr 29, 2024 11:57:55 GMT -5
I actually realized that after I hit Create Post, and so edited to add it. You were just too quick to the draw for me to do it and have it go unnoticed. Ja! No, my question is not about defense & Epps, etc… To be clear, I’ll ask it another way: do you think Epps can change his ways with coaching and depending on the roster around him? Epps played like Primo a lot and we cannot expect to have a winning team playing like that. Do you think Epps will play like that again this year? Got it, I understand. This has nothing to do with transfers, so I'll respond in the 2024 Hoya Offseason thread in a little bit when that pesky old work thing doesn't interfere with what is really important.
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Post by hoyasaxa2003 on Apr 29, 2024 11:15:43 GMT -5
I used both my eyeballs and statistics. My eyeballs say that Cook has very poor defensive instincts, and very poor at help defense. Statistics also show that our rim defense was 362 out of 362. Of course, I do not blame Cook solely for that, but by the end of the season, our rim defense and overall defense was much stronger with Fielder than Cook--a pretty good indication that Cook was a very weak defensive player, particularly at the rim and in helping. As others like SFHoya99 have put it more eloquently than I can, it is unrealistic to expect guards to never get beat. It happens all the time on the best college teams, and that's why you need help defense. So, in that respect, Cook's rim defense is significantly more important than Epps'. No matter who our guards are, they are going to get beaten, and we will need help defense to get stops. Cook showed this past year that he cannot do that. For example, there were times when Epps got beat, and there just was no help defense because Cook failed to notice or rotate. Not that Fielder was great either, but his rotations and help defense were much better, particularly by the end of the season (plus he was a freshman and Cook was senior, so there's reason to expect Fielder to get better). As for Epps, I do not think his on ball defense is nearly as bad as people say it is. His off-ball defense is bad, and his turnovers are bad. He's not a great defender, either, but his weaknesses on defense are less central to the number one problem facing our defense last year. You simply cannot give up as many points at the rim and expect to win, and Cook was a major part in allowing that to happen. You didn’t answer my question. Again, do you think Epps will play the same way next year as he did last/this year? I actually realized that after I hit Create Post, and so edited to add it. You were just too quick to the draw for me to do it and have it go unnoticed.
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Post by hoyasaxa2003 on Apr 29, 2024 11:09:34 GMT -5
The defensive end keeps him from having significant value for longer stretches though, unfortunately. You keep saying this. Let me ask you, do you think Epps will play the same way next year as he did last/this year? Note: I’m not addressing any rumors re: Cook. I used both my eyeballs and statistics. My eyeballs say that Cook has very poor defensive instincts, and very poor at help defense. Statistics also show that our rim defense was 362 out of 362. Of course, I do not blame Cook solely for that, but by the end of the season, our rim defense and overall defense was much stronger with Fielder than Cook--a pretty good indication that Cook was a very weak defensive player, particularly at the rim and in helping. As others like SFHoya99 have put it more eloquently than I can, it is unrealistic to expect guards to never get beat. It happens all the time on the best college teams, and that's why you need help defense. So, in that respect, Cook's rim defense is significantly more important than Epps' defending guards. No matter who our guards are, they are going to get beaten, and we will need help defense to get stops. Cook showed this past year that he cannot do that. For example, there were times when Epps got beat, and there just was no help defense because Cook failed to notice or rotate. Not that Fielder was great either, but his rotations and help defense were much better, particularly by the end of the season (plus he was a freshman and Cook was senior, so there's reason to expect Fielder to get better). As for Epps, I do not think his on ball defense is nearly as bad as people say it is. His off-ball defense is bad, and his turnovers are bad. He's not a great defender, either, but his weaknesses on defense are less central to the number one problem facing our defense last year. You simply cannot give up as many points at the rim and expect to win, and Cook was a major part in allowing that to happen. Will Epps play differently this year on defense (I assume this is your question)? I don't know. Generally, I think if Epps plays more off-ball himself because of Mack and he is surrounded by better defenders (Peavy, for example, and Omoruyi if he comes, and Sorber), he very well might play better. The thing about Epps' issues (particularly on offense) is that they aren't inherent to his ability. For example, if he's off ball and is more conscious of passing, he can use less possessions. With Cook, the defense is what it is. It's not a matter of instruction. He just cannot do it. Lastly, when I saw Cook play in person, it really hit me hard that the guy just had bad instincts on defense. It's less easy to see in person, but it was very evident in person. I do not live in DC so I can only get to limited games, but my friend does and attended many games, and noticed the same thing.
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Post by hoyasaxa2003 on Apr 29, 2024 11:04:36 GMT -5
You have to be in the portal by May 1st ,right? So it makes sense to get in the portal and then see how things play out I have thought about this before--theoretically, it would behoove everybody in Division 1 to enter the portal to keep their options open. But obviously, there are practical problems with that (i.e., angering coaches, actually wanting to stay at your home school, losing out on NIL because of your antics, etc.). There has to be some effective end to the period when players can commit, though, because in-season transfers aren't allowed without sitting. But here's a question. Let's say Player A PG goes into the portal before May 1. He fashions himself as a high major player, but nobody else does. He's left without a home and decides not to play. In November the same year, High Major Team X's PG has a massive injury, and will be out the whole season. Can Player A transfer into High Major Team X in November and play immediately? I would assume not if Player A is enrolled at another college that semester. But what if he's not in college at all?
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Transfers
Apr 29, 2024 10:20:25 GMT -5
via mobile
Post by hoyasaxa2003 on Apr 29, 2024 10:20:25 GMT -5
This was already posted in the Hoya Off Season thread, but feel like it should be here too for those following Transfer news: With Awaka off the Board, and the Kentucky transfer likely going to Alabama, is Cliff O. the only big we are on in the portal? Now feeling like Cook should have waited to see how this played out... There are rumors on Twitter than if we only land one big in the portal, rather than two, that Cook could return. A front court of Omoruyi, Fielder, Sorber, and Cook would make me happy though I doubt he’d stay in that scenario since he likely wouldn’t get many minutes. But I think in spot minutes Cook could have value on the offensive end. The defensive end keeps him from having significant value for longer stretches though, unfortunately.
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Post by hoyasaxa2003 on Apr 29, 2024 10:12:08 GMT -5
This was already posted in the Hoya Off Season thread, but feel like it should be here too for those following Transfer news:
With Awaka off the Board, and the Kentucky transfer likely going to Alabama, is Cliff O. the only big we are on in the portal?
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Post by hoyasaxa2003 on Apr 29, 2024 9:52:34 GMT -5
If what people are saying is true, and even graduate transfers cannot transfer after May 1 (like Akok did last year in August), then unless Mutombo enters the transfer portal before May 1, it seems like the two options would be to either stick with Georgetown in a likely small role as he had last year, or simply graduate and not play any more college basketball. If he's going to play college basketball, I'd love to keep him around. But, if he graduates, and wants to spend time with his father, nobody could blame him for that either. Either way, I wish him the best. He seems like a great kid.
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