continuity is the word you are looking for.what very little we have of it
12/26/2007 11:56:02 AM
Sorry but.. Johnson didn't become eligible until now. He COULDN'T play any minutes.
12/27/2007 5:45:19 AM
he was eligible the last two games, which is what everyone is referring to.
12/27/2007 6:50:25 AM
well then to hell with me...self pwnt ftl
12/27/2007 6:57:49 AM
hahahacomedy
12/27/2007 9:31:27 AM
I worry a little about MJ's ability to get us into our offense against pressure defenses, based primarily on his having to "back" the ball up the court and not looking very comfortable in the Red-White game. Of course, he has a bigger body and maybe "backing" it up could work...that's all Atsur did and our offense clicked pretty well at the end of the season. Javi has looked uncomfortable pushing the ball up and making people pay when he gets pressured, but did look at least a little better late in the Cincinnati game.
12/27/2007 9:37:54 AM
12/27/2007 9:46:00 PM
MJ looked like he was gaining confidence and easing into the flow of the game. We utilized smart passing with Fells and Costner providing a lot of help breaking the press, as we should. Once we got into the half court set MJ looked increasingly comfortable and confident in executing our offense. Javi and MJ have very different styles, and hopefully at least one of them will play well for us each game (and by well, I mean protect the ball and get us into our offense, hitting open shots here and there). There are definitely kinks that need to be worked out (like noone rotating to the top of the key to defend transition a couple of times), but the good news is we have 3 of the worst teams in Division 1 to work those out against. I just hope we don't develop any bad habits or get out of sync before playing UNC.
12/28/2007 9:16:44 AM
12/28/2007 9:40:50 AM
m johnson is damn good, and he's got potential. i'd play him over degand possibly. he has the presence of a point guard more than degand did (not saying degand wasn't decent, b/c i hope he plays a lot next year and he is fast)honestly though i hope somebody (costner / fellse / gonzalez or johnson) can establish themselves as a 3pt threat to open up the middle to our top 5 in the nation post players underneath the basket more. otherwise we are going to see more easy double teaming of hickson and more 65-70 point games on offense.throw in 3-4 extra 3pointers a game + hickson / grant / mccauley getting 15-20 points each a game and we've got some 80-90 point games of offense this year (something we are going to need if we want to beat duke or unc or any other team with high scoring offenses)
12/28/2007 10:23:15 AM
I can see why Lowe didn't play Johnson in the Cincy and Davidson games. When Johnson first came out he looked a little uneasy and rightfully so since it was his first real game in over a year. Johnson even admitted that he felt uneasy at first and that he didn't feel at ease until a little bit later. I think Lowe really wanted to wait until the stretch of "bunnies", as Doug Gottlieb liked to put it, to play Johnson and ease him back into the college game. Also it would have allowed the other players to get used to him in a real game situation. That was probably the other reason Lowe didn't play him in those two games, he didn't want to mess up the chemistry that the other players had established with Degand and Gonzalez. Lowe wants to win games and go with what's working. He doesn't mind tinkering if he thinks it would be good for the team as long as it's during games that can allow him to do so such as the upcoming bunny stretch.
12/28/2007 10:33:43 AM
Degand was money on threes when he was left open. Fells can get hot, Grant's outside shot has improved much this year, BC and Horner have shown the ability to shoot in the past, and maybe Javi's shot will come back as he gets further from the thumb injury. What will help our shooting as much as anything is improved point guard play, so Grant/Fells/Costner don't have to do so much just to get us into our offense, and can get in position to hit shots. I don't want us putting up 20-25 3 pointers per game, just enough to keep the defense honest and give us room to work inside.
12/28/2007 10:34:06 AM
if hickson and mccauley have a chance to get busy down low w/o threat of double or triple team every possesion we won't be stopped, even by the hansblowin order to do this somebody is going to have to hit a lot of 3 pointers in the next 3 games before UNC to keep carolinas guards and maybe a forward near the perimeter most of our possesions.but even if we establish a 3pt threat during the next couple games, i bet unc will look right past that and keep lots of guys on mccauley/ costner / hickson down low. b/c gonzalez and johnson have shown they aren't going to hit much from outsidein conclusion: plz to start practicing 3's johnson and gonzalez, and also fells or costner
12/28/2007 10:47:31 AM