Brief Intel (pt. 2)...
- Thread starter gary-7
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I hope you are right. He's strong and quick and shows flashes of great stuff. I'd like to see him get 10+ minutes each at PG and SG before conference play starts. By then we'll know not just how much he's advanced and where he should play.
The problem is that to get all these guys meaningful PT, our best players may have to sit more. Is that good for them (keeps them fresh) or bad (slows their development)?
I mean if Joel and Theo and Cam are playing 30 or more per game, and we are trying to give all our bigs as much PT as possible, what does that leave for guys like Jalek, Kenny, Brandon or Andrew?
Funny. A few months back, before we got Brooks and Cam, I was thinking guys like Shea and Aaron might even get meaningful minutes (because Theo would be playing a lot of 4). Now it's hard to see them getting even token minutes.
This is just my personal opinion, but ideally Jalek should get all the spare PG minutes. 7th needs to play off the ball, and stay there during his career here. Just better for everyone.
All you got to see last season was a very limited shooting sample space from a kid who was frankly lost most of the time playing out of position. I can tell you the guys who actually play with him feel pretty darned good about his ability to fill it up. But hey, if you want to be concerned, knock yourself out.
Shooting guards don't have to be lights out shooters any more, but they do need to be scorers. 7th is a natural scorer and I bet he gets to show it this season. For the 1000th time, we have plenty of marksmen, but we need his slashing and mid-range to make things easier on our youngsters in the post!
I still believe he can be a PG too! (I've been accused of being a bit optimistic, though)
I still believe he can be a PG too! (I've been accused of being a bit optimistic, though)
Disagree. It's harder and harder for a perimeter player to be a non-shooter, because it screws up spacing. If the ball swings to you and you can't take the open jumper, the offense bogs down.
I agree that it certainly helps, but Demar Derozen can't really shoot and he's still outstanding at the 2 spot.
Thanks for the Intel on seventh. I know I like an eclectic group of heels. And I certainly like the superstars as well but to me I love the players that for the most part people seem to want to crap on. It is never lost on me that they are kids and good kid's at that. Tokato in particular took time out of his day at the mall to chat with my wife and I he even shouted out my daughter all of which is on my wife's fb timeline. My daughter loves jp and has followed his profile career she thinks it's a crime he isn't allowed to be the Superstar she knows he is. Anywho I love seventh I just think all the mean comments to him need to stop. Glad he is working hard on his game. Even more glad that berry has taken him under his wing.
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2 guards do not have to be lights out shooters but it is darn sure nice when they are! 7th, he can jump shoot, he is a streaky shooter as opposed to a consistent, at least has been from HS thru last season. 7th never really single minded focused on his jump shooting, he was asked to be more a scorer than catch and shoot guy. It was a bit easy for him to put the ball on the floor and slash and finish strong at the rim with his ability and frankly, the level of competition he had in private school.
I am not ready at all to give up on 7th as a PG and unless his shooting becomes a lot more consistent (a lot to work on but a lot to work with as well), I am not sold on him as a 2. Yes, 2 guards do not have to be knock down shooters but they do need to shoot well enough to force the defense to respect the shot, last season I would have dared 7th to shoot until he proved he could. A 2 or a PG, if the threat to shoot is not there then it makes it twice as hard to drive and when you do you end up surrounded without any passing lane out of trouble.
You have to keep in mind, not only was 7th new to the PG role, similar to Dex when he came to us, but he began last season dinged up, nagging injury that lasted at least half the season. Joel came to UNC healthy from the start and really only had Britt to contend with for PT (Marcus was doing more of a 2 guard thing to free him up on the offensive end), Joel didn't really come on till the second half of that season and never started. But 7th had a very seasoned Joel ahead of him and a seasoned sr in Britt as well as a senior in Stillman who had been a starter in post season.
That's a fair counterexample.
DeRozan is one of the most dynamic mid-range scorers in the league, though, especially from within 16 feet. Seventh isn't likely to develop that dimension, simply because he's not 6'6".
Of course, a guy like Briscoe was successful at UK despite not having a reliable jumper. Seventh isn't doomed without a shot, but it would certainly help.
In this particular example, having Cam and Luke on the floor should balance that out to some degree.
Agree there. If your 3 and 4 spots can shoot than it certainly helps if your 2 can't.
I love the thought of the lanes that could create for 7th in a scorers mindset. Pull bigs out the lane, dish to Woods, and watch him fly. That's mixtape 7th.
I think 7th's development, along with Brandon Robinson, and Kenny William's recovery is a big X factor for this team that is talked about less and less due to the obvious inexperience of our bigs. the challenge here will be whether 7th earns minutes. look at our backcourt, there's some heavy hitters in front of him, along with Jalek coming in. there's a log jam in the backcourt which is a great problem with the talent and depth we have. Will 7th rise to the occasion and earn minutes or fall towards the back of the line. we need him to be productive in the time he does get on the court, it starts there. for the sake of discussion although I clearly hope I'm proven wrong, I worry that 7th may be a casualty of our depth in the backcourt this year. Just think there's too many on our roster right now better than he is.
Exactly. Remember, Theo our starting 2 shot like 24% from 3 last season, but he was always a threat, and could drive the rock and slash and create. As someone else posted, we have plenty of outside firepower in Luke and Cam (and Kenny and BRob), and of course, JB. A slasher 2 could fit right in.
And again, 7th is a more effective shooter than he showed last season.
I never liked his game. He was a slasher 3, which would've worked fine for their system, except:
1. He was a black hole who forced drives and had horrible shot-selection (I always said I hoped he made his first 3 because that would just encourage him)
2. Fox couldn't shoot a lick from 3 either.
I don't get the comments that Seventh seemed dejected. I didn't see that at all. I also don't think "he's a guy who doesn't smile or show his excitement". He absolutely did. Go watch Luke drain that shot against Kentucky again (you should be doing this daily anyways). No one is more excited than Seventh. Same if you watch a lot of the championship highlights. I thought he had a great attitude for someone who was on the bench most of the time.
However, I still think with our team and the guys we have coming in for 2018, if he's ever going to earn huge minutes it will be because he's also become a good shooter, or he's really honed his PG skills. Otherwise he'll be a backup to Cam, Coby, Jalek, Kenny, B-Rob, etc.
However, I still think with our team and the guys we have coming in for 2018, if he's ever going to earn huge minutes it will be because he's also become a good shooter, or he's really honed his PG skills. Otherwise he'll be a backup to Cam, Coby, Jalek, Kenny, B-Rob, etc.
Unfortunately, Kenny has been on the shelf this whole off season, still recovering right now, point being honing in that jump shot that was so needed for him has not happened. So IMO he could end up being the odd man out, if we do see what I think we will from BRob and 7th, Jalek as well.
I really think solid scoring from our 2 guard spot is going to have to come because I just do not expect it from our 4 & 5 spot and I don't know how much scoring Theo can give us. I think we have the talent to snag around 14 a game from our 2 spot and another 16 from our wing spot.
Unless KW gets more injuries he's not gonna be odd-man-out. He was our top 3-pt shooter from the 2 position last season and if he gets a chance to get his legs under him for a full season there's no reason he can't flirt with 40% out there. Plus, when you play D like he does? You're gonna play.
Ditto. Whenever we played them I was happy whenever he put up a shot.
The defensive aspect is one area that has not been talked about as much as the offense, but I believe that it is going to be an area of even more focus right from the start. I believe that we have the personnel to apply extreme pressure on the ball without a lot of double teaming that opens up other areas and people. If everyone that steps on the court plays ferocious defense without letup there will be plenty of minutes to go around just to keep fresh bodies in the game. Pressuring the ball and cutting off passing lanes, etc. could lead to an exciting brand of small ball.
Glenn
I agree with Gary. I have a hard time seeing Kenny not getting major minutes this year, either as a starter at the 2 or the first wing backup off the bench.
He already has the defense down really well. I wouldn't read a ton into his .340 3-pt shooting average. It's on only 80 attempts, so there's quite a bit of noise. If he hits even 4 more three's last year he's at 39% and no one is saying he still hasn't found his shot. I fully expect him to be a good shooter this year, a good defender, and a smart overall player.
He already has the defense down really well. I wouldn't read a ton into his .340 3-pt shooting average. It's on only 80 attempts, so there's quite a bit of noise. If he hits even 4 more three's last year he's at 39% and no one is saying he still hasn't found his shot. I fully expect him to be a good shooter this year, a good defender, and a smart overall player.
And if he missed his next 4 he is 30%. A large portion of his 3s came against one team which lacked size.
Agree, KW isn't starting. 1-4 will be JB, TP, CJ, LM... mark it down. The final spot will be one of the freshmen bigs.
Yes I know. My point was there was a lot of noise in his stat line, so don't read too much into it. He was solid from 3 last year, but given his reputation out of high school and strong mechanics I fully expect him to be a good shooter. If Vegas had an over/under on his 3-pt shooting percentage I doubt they'd set it at 34% is my point. Probably 36 or 37 %, and I'd still take the over.
I agree. I've posted on here several times saying I think Cam will start. Just saying I wouldn't be shocked if Kenny does, particularly at the beginning of the season. He has definitely been a better defender than Cam to this point in their careers.
If Kenny came in totally healthy at the start of camp I would bet on him starting. However he will probably have to ease into things for at least the first couple of weeks.
Who starts will have a whole lot to do with who plays D and catches on to Roy's system fastest. It's not always about who can score.
KW has a beautiful text book shot. Looks like everyone of them is going in. Don't sell him short.
KW has a beautiful text book shot. Looks like everyone of them is going in. Don't sell him short.
Yup...We won a Natty with Jackie at the 2/3. And he couldn't shoot a lick. But we had McCants, Jawad, and Marvin on the floor with him
Agreed. If he can rebound well from the knee injury I expect Berry , Theo , Maye , Cam , and Kenny finishing games down the stretch and possibly even starting games.
I really like Kenny's defense, but we'll already be starting 2 "non-scorers" (guys who will really only score as the beneficiary of other action), with Theo and a freshman big. I'd rather not start 3. That'd place a ton of pressure on Berry and Maye.
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