swhoya
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Post by swhoya on Jan 16, 2019 21:56:02 GMT -5
This has nothing to do with performance, but anyone notice that Akinjo sits on his tiny chair on the court during timeouts long after the coaches and his teammates have gotten up and the managers have cleared the other chairs? It’s funny and odd. Yesterday he sat on his his chair right next to the free throw line until right before play began, stood up and took one step to the free throw line as the manager scurried away with his seat. Made both, so not complaining. It’s just a weird scene Somebody pointed it out before way upthread. It seems to work for him so I have no problem with it. Little tiny chairs? We talkin' bout little tiny chairs? Tiny chairs?! Seriously. Plenty of legitimate criticisms, but...little tiny chairs?! What I really want to know is...was he smiling?
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guru
Platinum Hoya (over 5000 posts)
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Post by guru on Jan 16, 2019 23:22:30 GMT -5
Somebody pointed it out before way upthread. It seems to work for him so I have no problem with it. Little tiny chairs? We talkin' bout little tiny chairs? Tiny chairs?! Seriously. Plenty of legitimate criticisms, but...little tiny chairs?! What I really want to know is...was he smiling? Wasn’t criticizing - just pointing out what I thought was an oddly humorous scene
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tashoya
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Post by tashoya on Jan 16, 2019 23:44:42 GMT -5
He'll be held accountable. Patrick has shown that.
Keep in mind, there were nearly 40 minutes that lead to that play. And the kid that made it turned 18 in November. The game shouldn't have come down to that but it did. James shouldn't have blown the play, but he did. Patrick will handle it. Hopefully, the team improves as a result and we look back to this as a teachable moment. If he had hit the shot, I'd have expected Patrick to pat him on the back and also get on him for blowing the play. Unfortunately for James, his shot got blocked and so he has to deal with the fans on top of it. It happens. Freshmen are going to make freshmen mistakes. It says a lot that everyone expects more from James already. I'm still of the mind that I prefer mistakes made out of an abundance of (warranted) confidence as opposed to those out of fear (warranted or otherwise). It's over and they move on and, hopefully, improve. And you cheer just as hard for him next time out.
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Post by Ranch Dressing on Jan 16, 2019 23:51:12 GMT -5
You can’t have your point guard blatantly and repeatedly ignoring the coach in crunch time. The inmates can’t run the asylum. Perhaps a benching is warranted. Certainly, Ewing needs to send a message privately and/or publicly and regain control of his point guard.
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EtomicB
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Post by EtomicB on Jan 17, 2019 0:47:49 GMT -5
He'll be held accountable. Patrick has shown that. Keep in mind, there were nearly 40 minutes that lead to that play. And the kid that made it turned 18 in November. The game shouldn't have come down to that but it did. James shouldn't have blown the play, but he did. Patrick will handle it. Hopefully, the team improves as a result and we look back to this as a teachable moment. If he had hit the shot, I'd have expected Patrick to pat him on the back and also get on him for blowing the play. Unfortunately for James, his shot got blocked and so he has to deal with the fans on top of it. It happens. Freshmen are going to make freshmen mistakes. It says a lot that everyone expects more from James already. I'm still of the mind that I prefer mistakes made out of an abundance of (warranted) confidence as opposed to those out of fear (warranted or otherwise). It's over and they move on and, hopefully, improve. And you cheer just as hard for him next time out. Aren't folks upset because of the fact that this was two games in a row that Akinjo went away from what the coach called in crunch time? Didn't he have the "teachable" moment after the PC game? Seems to me you're bypassing a big part of why folks are getting on Akinjo...
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Post by Lethal_Interjection on Jan 17, 2019 6:27:23 GMT -5
I'm confident that Ewing will teach him the importance of the team aspect of basketball. He's still learning, and this is something he'll use as experience to become better (hopefully). I'm enjoying the guard play from GU, this is better than the guard play from the last several years imho.
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tashoya
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Post by tashoya on Jan 17, 2019 9:51:03 GMT -5
He'll be held accountable. Patrick has shown that. Keep in mind, there were nearly 40 minutes that lead to that play. And the kid that made it turned 18 in November. The game shouldn't have come down to that but it did. James shouldn't have blown the play, but he did. Patrick will handle it. Hopefully, the team improves as a result and we look back to this as a teachable moment. If he had hit the shot, I'd have expected Patrick to pat him on the back and also get on him for blowing the play. Unfortunately for James, his shot got blocked and so he has to deal with the fans on top of it. It happens. Freshmen are going to make freshmen mistakes. It says a lot that everyone expects more from James already. I'm still of the mind that I prefer mistakes made out of an abundance of (warranted) confidence as opposed to those out of fear (warranted or otherwise). It's over and they move on and, hopefully, improve. And you cheer just as hard for him next time out. Aren't folks upset because of the fact that this was two games in a row that Akinjo went away from what the coach called in crunch time? Didn't he have the "teachable" moment after the PC game? Seems to me you're bypassing a big part of why folks are getting on Akinjo... Not everyone gets things the first go around. If they did, we wouldn't really need teachers.
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EtomicB
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Post by EtomicB on Jan 17, 2019 10:47:12 GMT -5
Aren't folks upset because of the fact that this was two games in a row that Akinjo went away from what the coach called in crunch time? Didn't he have the "teachable" moment after the PC game? Seems to me you're bypassing a big part of why folks are getting on Akinjo... Not everyone gets things the first go around. If they did, we wouldn't really need teachers. This is a strange analogy Tas...
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s4hoyas
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Post by s4hoyas on Jan 17, 2019 11:01:47 GMT -5
I love the kid, but in this case he's got to man up/grow up and accept responsibility for blowing off the coaches' call...I applaud his guts and will to succeed in that moment, but the coach sees the "big picture" that on several previous drives, the shot blockers were waiting on him and blocked his efforts...thus, the play call to drive and make the shot blockers assume he's going to try to lay it up, and then dish it to an open teammate for the winning shot...Its critical for him to accept his responsibility and apologize to the coach for "ignoring the play call and trying to go it alone." Doing so will enhance his growth as a player and teammate, and help all parties move forward in a positive way...no one wants to "tame" his playing, the staff just wants to refine and improve it for both his benefit and the team's...
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seaweed
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Post by seaweed on Jan 17, 2019 11:06:54 GMT -5
He is sharing the ball well generally - 8 assists is a number we are not used to seeing lately - but the failure to run a play as called is an issue. I also note that he does not feed the post well, which should be our bread and butter. He did not have a single assist to Govan inside and I don't recall him delivering any effective entry passes, though I do recall seeing several instances where he opted not to enter the ball to the post and dribbled away from opportunity. We have a world class offensive big down there and he needs to be fed. If the "PG" isn't doing that, then we have a problem.
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vv83
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Post by vv83 on Jan 17, 2019 11:08:02 GMT -5
Akinjo just needs to learn that when he gets into the lane, he needs to kick it out to an open 3 point shooter if the drive is blocked and there is not an open teammate at the rim in the "dunker's spot" (when did this term come into fashion? Been hearing it a lot this season!)
Currently he just throws his body into the traffic and tries to draw the foul/get lucky on the highly contested shot. It should be a pretty simple fix, but it can take time to change a style of play that has been successful for him previously (almost always going to the rim himself). The other change could be more pull up jumpers/floaters. He has both of these shots and has used them at times, but his first instinct is almost always to go hard to the rim.
Maybe it will turn out that he can't make this change. But at this point - there is so much he does so well, and it should be expected that a freshman playing against bigger defenders for the first time is going to have a learning curve.
As for ignoring Ewing's play calls - sure, that will be a problem if it becomes his standard operating procedure. But Ewing wants aggressive guards, and he wants to give them a lot of freedom to do their thing. Again, it is not at all surprising that a naturally aggressive, confident kid like Akinjo is going to want to take the game into his own hands in these end game situations, especially when his coach has been drilling it into him to be aggressive and to play fast and aggressive basketball.
Akinjo has given us a chance to win two games with critical baskets in the closing seconds (USF and Providence). He has failed in the same situation a couple of times. that is how things tend to go, there are very few players who succeed in these situations every time. Can he improve at this? Sure. Should he learn when to play fast and aggressive, and when to calm it down and run a specific play called by his coach? Definitely. But is there some fundamental flaw in his game or in his mindset that should be deeply concerning to the fan base? I just don't see it. This seems like completely normal stuff for an aggressive, confident freshman point guard charged with leading a team by playing fast and aggressive basketball.
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Post by centercourt400s on Jan 17, 2019 12:13:19 GMT -5
Akinjo just needs to learn that when he gets into the lane, he needs to kick it out to an open 3 point shooter if the drive is blocked and there is not an open teammate at the rim in the "dunker's spot" (when did this term come into fashion? Been hearing it a lot this season!) Currently he just throws his body into the traffic and tries to draw the foul/get lucky on the highly contested shot. It should be a pretty simple fix, but it can take time to change a style of play that has been successful for him previously (almost always going to the rim himself). The other change could be more pull up jumpers/floaters. He has both of these shots and has used them at times, but his first instinct is almost always to go hard to the rim. Maybe it will turn out that he can't make this change. But at this point - there is so much he does so well, and it should be expected that a freshman playing against bigger defenders for the first time is going to have a learning curve. As for ignoring Ewing's play calls - sure, that will be a problem if it becomes his standard operating procedure. But Ewing wants aggressive guards, and he wants to give them a lot of freedom to do their thing. Again, it is not at all surprising that a naturally aggressive, confident kid like Akinjo is going to want to take the game into his own hands in these end game situations, especially when his coach has been drilling it into him to be aggressive and to play fast and aggressive basketball. Akinjo has given us a chance to win two games with critical baskets in the closing seconds (USF and Providence). He has failed in the same situation a couple of times. that is how things tend to go, there are very few players who succeed in these situations every time. Can he improve at this? Sure. Should he learn when to play fast and aggressive, and when to calm it down and run a specific play called by his coach? Definitely. But is there some fundamental flaw in his game or in his mindset that should be deeply concerning to the fan base? I just don't see it. This seems like completely normal stuff for an aggressive, confident freshman point guard charged with leading a team by playing fast and aggressive basketball. I strongly agree. And to seaweed's point, I watched this aspect closely in the 2nd half. It seemed like Marquette was doing a great job keeping Govan from establishing position close to the basket. His starting spots were 10 - 12 feet out, and sometimes 15. I may have missed a few where he was closer but in general he just was not able to establish good position for entries. In those cases Akinjo has a tough call to make as to whether to get it to him or look for another option. Govan with his back to the basket at 12 feet is much less effective than at 6 feet or for that matter at the three point line. Credit Marquette for good work on defense.
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Post by aleutianhoya on Jan 17, 2019 12:14:10 GMT -5
Akinjo just needs to learn that when he gets into the lane, he needs to kick it out to an open 3 point shooter if the drive is blocked and there is not an open teammate at the rim in the "dunker's spot" (when did this term come into fashion? Been hearing it a lot this season!) Currently he just throws his body into the traffic and tries to draw the foul/get lucky on the highly contested shot. It should be a pretty simple fix, but it can take time to change a style of play that has been successful for him previously (almost always going to the rim himself). The other change could be more pull up jumpers/floaters. He has both of these shots and has used them at times, but his first instinct is almost always to go hard to the rim. Maybe it will turn out that he can't make this change. But at this point - there is so much he does so well, and it should be expected that a freshman playing against bigger defenders for the first time is going to have a learning curve. As for ignoring Ewing's play calls - sure, that will be a problem if it becomes his standard operating procedure. But Ewing wants aggressive guards, and he wants to give them a lot of freedom to do their thing. Again, it is not at all surprising that a naturally aggressive, confident kid like Akinjo is going to want to take the game into his own hands in these end game situations, especially when his coach has been drilling it into him to be aggressive and to play fast and aggressive basketball. Akinjo has given us a chance to win two games with critical baskets in the closing seconds (USF and Providence). He has failed in the same situation a couple of times. that is how things tend to go, there are very few players who succeed in these situations every time. Can he improve at this? Sure. Should he learn when to play fast and aggressive, and when to calm it down and run a specific play called by his coach? Definitely. But is there some fundamental flaw in his game or in his mindset that should be deeply concerning to the fan base? I just don't see it. This seems like completely normal stuff for an aggressive, confident freshman point guard charged with leading a team by playing fast and aggressive basketball. Obviously none of us was in the huddle so we don't know exactly what was said. Maybe Ewing essentially said "this play has three options...it's in your hands which you pick." If that was the message, then James' decision was an error in judgment, but certainly excusable or at least understandable by, as you suggest, self confidence and an aggressive attitude. But the problem I have is that I doubt that was the message from Ewing. Just based on the play design, I assume the message was: get it to Mac off the diagonal stagger screen, if that doesn't look good look for Jesse off the next screen, and if all else fails, go yourself. Mac was open, and Jesse was as wide open as the BE title race appears to be. They had to get the ball. It doesn't matter how aggressive or confident you are, and frankly it doesn't matter if you're a freshman, a senior, 12 years old, or a ten year NBA vet. When the coach draws up a play, you have to run it. Period. Not executing is one thing, the play not working is another. Both will happen. But this really can't. Let's hope it doesn't again.
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EtomicB
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Post by EtomicB on Jan 17, 2019 13:11:08 GMT -5
Akinjo just needs to learn that when he gets into the lane, he needs to kick it out to an open 3 point shooter if the drive is blocked and there is not an open teammate at the rim in the "dunker's spot" (when did this term come into fashion? Been hearing it a lot this season!) Currently he just throws his body into the traffic and tries to draw the foul/get lucky on the highly contested shot. It should be a pretty simple fix, but it can take time to change a style of play that has been successful for him previously (almost always going to the rim himself). The other change could be more pull up jumpers/floaters. He has both of these shots and has used them at times, but his first instinct is almost always to go hard to the rim. Maybe it will turn out that he can't make this change. But at this point - there is so much he does so well, and it should be expected that a freshman playing against bigger defenders for the first time is going to have a learning curve. As for ignoring Ewing's play calls - sure, that will be a problem if it becomes his standard operating procedure. But Ewing wants aggressive guards, and he wants to give them a lot of freedom to do their thing. Again, it is not at all surprising that a naturally aggressive, confident kid like Akinjo is going to want to take the game into his own hands in these end game situations, especially when his coach has been drilling it into him to be aggressive and to play fast and aggressive basketball. Akinjo has given us a chance to win two games with critical baskets in the closing seconds (USF and Providence). He has failed in the same situation a couple of times. that is how things tend to go, there are very few players who succeed in these situations every time. Can he improve at this? Sure. Should he learn when to play fast and aggressive, and when to calm it down and run a specific play called by his coach? Definitely. But is there some fundamental flaw in his game or in his mindset that should be deeply concerning to the fan base? I just don't see it. This seems like completely normal stuff for an aggressive, confident freshman point guard charged with leading a team by playing fast and aggressive basketball. Obviously none of us was in the huddle so we don't know exactly what was said. Maybe Ewing essentially said "this play has three options...it's in your hands which you pick." If that was the message, then James' decision was an error in judgment, but certainly excusable or at least understandable by, as you suggest, self confidence and an aggressive attitude. But the problem I have is that I doubt that was the message from Ewing. Just based on the play design, I assume the message was: get it to Mac off the diagonal stagger screen, if that doesn't look good look for Jesse off the next screen, and if all else fails, go yourself. Mac was open, and Jesse was as wide open as the BE title race appears to be. They had to get the ball. It doesn't matter how aggressive or confident you are, and frankly it doesn't matter if you're a freshman, a senior, 12 years old, or a ten year NBA vet. When the coach draws up a play, you have to run it. Period. Not executing is one thing, the play not working is another. Both will happen. But this really can't. Let's hope it doesn't again. This x infinity...
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tashoya
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Post by tashoya on Jan 17, 2019 15:13:30 GMT -5
Not everyone gets things the first go around. If they did, we wouldn't really need teachers. This is a strange analogy Tas... Ewing and staff are his teachers. Akinjo very likely comes from a situation in HS where it was very natural for him to be the man with the ball in his hands trying to win close games. Fast forward less than a year from that mindset and you're in a close, important game at home and maybe the brain doesn't kick in as quickly as instinct does. Maybe there's a bit to unlearn there is all I'm saying.
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Jan 17, 2019 15:13:33 GMT -5
Ugly game for him the other night. He's young, he'll learn.
Less upset about the shot and more upset at the fact Jessie got 8 shots total. That's also on the PG. that more than anything is what "can't happen" for us to be successful this year.
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seaweed
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Post by seaweed on Jan 17, 2019 15:21:54 GMT -5
And to seaweed's point, I watched this aspect closely in the 2nd half. It seemed like Marquette was doing a great job keeping Govan from establishing position close to the basket. His starting spots were 10 - 12 feet out, and sometimes 15. I may have missed a few where he was closer but in general he just was not able to establish good position for entries. In those cases Akinjo has a tough call to make as to whether to get it to him or look for another option. Govan with his back to the basket at 12 feet is much less effective than at 6 feet or for that matter at the three point line. Credit Marquette for good work on defense. MU did a decent job of pushing Jesse off the blocks, agreed, but a post/re-post can address that. Also, Jesse is pretty smooth with the butter mid-range J, and much further out as you state. I think the biggest improvement in his game has in fact been in the mid-range, which makes sense since Patrick made millions using that shot at the Knicks. More importantly, Jesse can body smaller guys like Hauser and John down even if he does get the ball 8-10 feet out. He has multiple moves utilizing his big arse and his dribble that allow him to get into the lane from quite far out. Also, once he is working his way down, the double team tends to come and Jesse is pretty good at finding the open guy when that happens. As good as James and Mac are, the ball needs to be in Jesse's hands this year - pretty much every coach we have played against has pointed that out and our frosh PG needs to get that!
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tashoya
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Post by tashoya on Jan 17, 2019 21:54:09 GMT -5
Ugly game for him the other night. He's young, he'll learn. Less upset about the shot and more upset at the fact Jessie got 8 shots total. That's also on the PG. that more than anything is what "can't happen" for us to be successful this year. Agree completely. The bumps in the road aren't fun but they're unavoidable. By the same token, it makes the guys more fun to support when you see it all starting to come together for them. It'd be one thing if it were a case of "this is who they are" and that was pretty much it. This group has a lot of potential. Not just James. It's up to them and their coaches to see if and how much of it is realized both individually and as a team. It's obviously going to be another heart attack Hoyas season but this group feels like it's building. I don't know if that happens this year (fingers crossed that it does) but it seems to me that we're moving in the right direction.
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beenaround
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Post by beenaround on Jan 17, 2019 22:56:55 GMT -5
Not to mention AKinjo was having a horrible 1-9 game before the final shot and Mac was blazing hot. Personally, I think James wanted to make that shot more than he cared about seeing Mac or Jessie make it. He was frustrated and in my opinion acted selfishly. I am not giving him a pass because he is young. Just my opinion from the stands.
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tashoya
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Post by tashoya on Jan 17, 2019 23:11:54 GMT -5
Not to mention AKinjo was having a horrible 1-9 game before the final shot and Mac was blazing hot. Personally, I think James wanted to make that shot more than he cared about seeing Mac or Jessie make it. He was frustrated and in my opinion acted selfishly. I am not giving him a pass because he is young. Just my opinion from the stands. Could be. We have no idea. Just as I have no idea whether what I wrote is true. I trust what I've seen in terms of James improving and I trust Patrick to work it out. In the short term, it sucked but I'm hopeful that it'll pay off in the end for Akinjo and for the team. I hope it wasn't just coaches. It's important that players get together and police that sort of thing themselves. When the guys are accountable to each other and check in with each other without the need for a coach to tell them anything, that's when you've got something to work with.
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