Its Time to Realize it...

[ThatsMyForte]

Yes, I am new to this board, but I have been reading for quite some time. I'm also a Kentuckian born and raised that somehow escaped the "BBN" to fall in love with the Carolina blue about 20 years ago. Don't think a lot of people realize, but we finally have a team that is a wonderful mix of our 05 and 09 teams.

Starters:

PG: Joel Berry= Ty Lawson
-The burst of quickness isn't there, but getting to the rim sure as hell is. Not to mention if you leave either one open, they're going to knock down the shot, add in there sense of changing speeds and we might have another cousy winner on our hands.


SG: Theo Pinson= Jackie Manuel
- We all know how their shots pan out most of the time, but hey, they can guard whoever and wherever. I know that you always need that one lockdown defender that you can count on, because if you go back and watch the Illinois game, Jackie Manuel played most likely the biggest role in that title.

SF: Justin Jackson= Marvin Williams
-Both hybrid forwards, with inconsistent shots, but with high basketball IQ. Not afraid to do the dirty work inside, and besides a handful of players, (Psycho T) there aren't many that play harder than they do.

PF: Isiah Hicks= Tyler Hansbrough
-I'll just leave this here, and let you all wait for the season to begin. Get your popcorn ready.


C: Kennedy Meeks=Sean May
-I mean, they're related aren't they? The biggest improvement of Meeks this year will be his on the floor leadership.

Bench: Nate Britt= Quentin Thomas
-"Get Nate Out, Wow how in the world did he do that" was my reoccurring phrase for Nate this past year. And yes, I had quite a few more words for our rapper Q, but he also would do some good things. There games don't necessarily match up, but their decision making does...

Bench: Tony Bradley=Deon Thompson
-If you're looking for Zeller or Henson here, don't be so silly. No one will ever run basket to basket like those gazelles. But if you're looking for a real nice post game with limited to defense, look no further than these two.

Bench: Seventh Woods= Larry Drew
-I know, I know, I'm saying it too. "I hope to goodness not," but in reality it is what it is. Highly touted recruits that fell in the rankings once they got to the Hill. Larry Drew really wasn't bad, though. Hell, you put him in against Kansas and we may go to the FF and win it all...


Bench: Kenny Williams= A poor Wayne Ellington
-Wayne is definitely the better player, but who is to say Kenny can't be who Wayne once was. Their ability to score without the ball will be the biggest comparison.

Bench: Brandon Robinson= Reyshawn Terry
-Man, Reyshawn was one of my favorite player. Especially when him and Noel went into Rupp and I got to witness (to be honest) an unexpected win. With both standing at 6'5, they have the body to finish inside, and the footwork to create their own shot on the perimeter. I hope Mr. Robinson blossoms a little better, though.


Bench: Luke Maye= Will Graves
-No, I don't think Luke will be kicked off the team, and man I really wish Graves could've figured it out, because he was your perfect junk yard dog. I see a lot of that in Luke, and also a much higher IQ. You'll see Luke Maye shoot more threes than last year before he's done at UNC, and most likely be like Luke Harangody by his senior year.



I may be back, I may not. Depends on how bored I get at work. I know everyone won't agree with , so I'm interested to hear some more comparisons with our last two national title teams.

 

[DSouthr]

Yes, I am new to this board, but I have been reading for quite some time. I'm also a Kentuckian born and raised that somehow escaped the "BBN" to fall in love with the Carolina blue about 20 years ago. Don't think a lot of people realize, but we finally have a team that is a wonderful mix of our 05 and 09 teams.

Starters:

PG: Joel Berry= Ty Lawson
-The burst of quickness isn't there, but getting to the rim sure as hell is. Not to mention if you leave either one open, they're going to knock down the shot, add in there sense of changing speeds and we might have another cousy winner on our hands.


SG: Theo Pinson= Jackie Manuel
- We all know how their shots pan out most of the time, but hey, they can guard whoever and wherever. I know that you always need that one lockdown defender that you can count on, because if you go back and watch the Illinois game, Jackie Manuel played most likely the biggest role in that title.

SF: Justin Jackson= Marvin Williams
-Both hybrid forwards, with inconsistent shots, but with high basketball IQ. Not afraid to do the dirty work inside, and besides a handful of players, (Psycho T) there aren't many that play harder than they do.

PF: Isiah Hicks= Tyler Hansbrough
-I'll just leave this here, and let you all wait for the season to begin. Get your popcorn ready.


C: Kennedy Meeks=Sean May
-I mean, they're related aren't they? The biggest improvement of Meeks this year will be his on the floor leadership.

Bench: Nate Britt= Quentin Thomas
-"Get Nate Out, Wow how in the world did he do that" was my reoccurring phrase for Nate this past year. And yes, I had quite a few more words for our rapper Q, but he also would do some good things. There games don't necessarily match up, but their decision making does...

Bench: Tony Bradley=Deon Thompson
-If you're looking for Zeller or Henson here, don't be so silly. No one will ever run basket to basket like those gazelles. But if you're looking for a real nice post game with limited to defense, look no further than these two.

Bench: Seventh Woods= Larry Drew
-I know, I know, I'm saying it too. "I hope to goodness not," but in reality it is what it is. Highly touted recruits that fell in the rankings once they got to the Hill. Larry Drew really wasn't bad, though. Hell, you put him in against Kansas and we may go to the FF and win it all...


Bench: Kenny Williams= A poor Wayne Ellington
-Wayne is definitely the better player, but who is to say Kenny can't be who Wayne once was. Their ability to score without the ball will be the biggest comparison.

Bench: Brandon Robinson= Reyshawn Terry
-Man, Reyshawn was one of my favorite player. Especially when him and Noel went into Rupp and I got to witness (to be honest) an unexpected win. With both standing at 6'5, they have the body to finish inside, and the footwork to create their own shot on the perimeter. I hope Mr. Robinson blossoms a little better, though.


Bench: Luke Maye= Will Graves
-No, I don't think Luke will be kicked off the team, and man I really wish Graves could've figured it out, because he was your perfect junk yard dog. I see a lot of that in Luke, and also a much higher IQ. You'll see Luke Maye shoot more threes than last year before he's done at UNC, and most likely be like Luke Harangody by his senior year.



I may be back, I may not. Depends on how bored I get at work. I know everyone won't agree with , so I'm interested to hear some more comparisons with our last two national title teams.

I have to give this some think time but in the mean time WELCOME and PLEASE join in the discussions!!!

 

[TPFKAPFS]

That's a lot to digest right there and a strong first post! Welcome to the board and do come back.

I love the handle since Forte was an awesome player that peeps seem to forget about. Without the mommy issues, he might've gone down as a fan fave! I loved his game.

Weezy and Psycho are the most stretched on first blush, but overall an excellent synopsis and hopefully it will be prophetic!

 

[dadika13]

PF: Isiah Hicks= Tyler Hansbrough
-I'll just leave this here, and let you all wait for the season to begin. Get your popcorn ready.


C: Kennedy Meeks=Sean May
-I mean, they're related aren't they? The biggest improvement of Meeks this year will be his on the floor leadership.

This type of analysis won't be missed if you decide not to come back.

 

[Archer2]

First, welcome to the board.

Second, I think both the '05 and '09 teams were significantly more talented than the '17 team. I have a hard time even comparing them, the differences are so stark. TBS, we should have a team capable of returning to the FF if a few questions are answered positively.

 

[BillyL]

I'm interested to hear some more comparisons with our last two national title teams.

Welcome.

Kind of hard to compare this team to any others until we actually see them play a few games. Too many questions that we don't have the answers to just yet . . this would be an excellent thread to revisit in December.

 

[gunslingerdick]

This type of analysis won't be missed if you decide not to come back.

Tough crowd.

While I don't agree with some of what he wrote (Hicks is the new Hansbrough) and the poast was inaccurate in parts (Reyshawn Terry measured 6'7" and played even bigger) I kind get what he's saying. And I can appreciate an optimistic prognostication. See you around.

 

[Bur-Heel]

This type of analysis won't be missed if you decide not to come back.

LOL!!...SORRY ..BUT I HAD TO LAUGH AT THAT ONE!!

 

[adwood81]

PF: Isiah Hicks= Tyler Hansbrough
-I'll just leave this here, and let you all wait for the season to begin. Get your popcorn ready.

Sorry but can't let this stand. I like Hicks but until he averages a double-double and wins National Player of the Year honors it is hard to put them in the same sentence, much less compare them.

 

[soap - new and improved]

Sorry but can't let this stand. I like Hicks but until he averages a double-double and wins National Player of the Year honors it is hard to put them in the same sentence, much less compare them.

The Hansbrough and May comparisons are just sooooooooo wrong. IF ONLY Hicks and Meeks played like Tyler and 2005 Sean!! IF ONLY!! We would not lose a game. Not one.

 

[Spaceytoyz]

Kennedy will have a good year and get drafted, that's a good prediction..

 

[Ozheelfan]

I think the Heels have a very good team this year, but unlike the OP I don't think you can compare to previous teams at all. The closest you can get is with JB at the point and the comparison of Theo and Jackie (though Manuel was more consistent as a defender)

There wasn't a Justin-like player in '05 or '09, the '16-17 front court needs a massive jump to reach the heights of '05 and '09 and I'm not sure of the bench.

All that said, this could be a special team. The Junior Leadership is coming across as very determined: every twitter or Instagram post includes #unfinishedbusiness so it could be a fun year ahead.

 

[superstar57]

Berry... Lawson. Umm. Nah. Lawson could give you 20pts anytime and way way faster and his game was fast. Berry is good, but two diffrent PG

JJ... Marvin Williams.. Both cause matchup problems.

Hicks.. Hans. Ummm. Nah. Hans was mister consistant and scrappy. Hicks is just a way diffrent player.

Theo... Jackie. I see they have same strenghts and weaknesses.

Meek.... May. Did we watch the same guys?

 

[RyanJamesIII]

This feels disrespectful to Hans, Lawson and May. Those guys were beasts.

 

[ThatsMyForte]

Hey I'm back! Now listen, I'm not comparing production whatsoever. I think my OP got misconstrued. I'm just comparing the types of players. For instance, Meek-May (Same Body, Same Game). NO, NONE OF OUR CURRENT PLAYERS ARE LIKE THE NATIONAL TITLE TEAMS PLAYERS. I'm not that much of a brainwashed Kentuckian. Gawd I hate Kentucky. Sometimes that just types itself.

I'm a player development trainer and high school basketball coach so I was just having fun comparing guys to what their potential COULD be.

Hicks will lead all of our big men in scoring and rebounding, that's what I was getting at, not averaging 20 and 10....

And Ty lawson never even was close to averaging 20 points a game for a season?
Ty Lawson and Joel Berry BOTH averaged 12 points a game their Sophomore years...so why is the comparison so off? You can go look for yourself, but all of their Sophomore year stats are as close to identical as you can get...... TO ratio's, FT %, everything...


But all in all, this team has physical-like abilities of previous title teams, but certainly not mental-like abilities. I was hoping that with the recipe of some players LIKE former guys.

We can agree to disagree, but at the end of the day we want the higher score total on the side of the Tar Heels!


On a sidenote, to no one in particular, there is no reason to be an a$$hole.

 

[ThatsMyForte]

This feels disrespectful to Hans, Lawson and May. Those guys were beasts.

No one is being disrespectful to anyone is the thing. Some of you all are taking what I said and saying, "This dude thinks so and so is as good or better than so and so" and that's not the case at all.

 

[heelbent]

On a sidenote, to no one in particular, there is no reason to be an a$$hole.

Stick around...some folks just don't need a reason.

 

[RyanJamesIII]

No one is being disrespectful to anyone is the thing. Some of you all are taking what I said and saying, "This dude thinks so and so is as good or better than so and so" and that's not the case at all.

Gotcha, i was reading it like you were downplaying how great those 3 players were.

 

[superstar57]

I was not trying to be a butthole, but Hans and Meeks is a reach trying to compare. Hans played the game like a bull as Hicks uses his athleticism to create havoc. Berry and Lawson I cannot see. If Lawson was told go get me 20pts tonight we all know with his explosion and willingness for a guy his size to finish at the basket it prolly will happen. Berry is the man this year but he will be the man by hitting his open jumper controlling pace and setting his guys in position to receive the ball.

Theo and Jackie I would compare because there strenghts and weaknesses are about the same.

If we are comparing physical make up of players then yes I agree.

Again not trying to be a butt, but adding to an off season convo.

 

[adwood81]

Hey I'm back! Now listen, I'm not comparing production whatsoever. I think my OP got misconstrued. I'm just comparing the types of players. For instance, Meek-May (Same Body, Same Game). NO, NONE OF OUR CURRENT PLAYERS ARE LIKE THE NATIONAL TITLE TEAMS PLAYERS. I'm not that much of a brainwashed Kentuckian. Gawd I hate Kentucky. Sometimes that just types itself.

I'm a player development trainer and high school basketball coach so I was just having fun comparing guys to what their potential COULD be.

Hicks will lead all of our big men in scoring and rebounding, that's what I was getting at, not averaging 20 and 10....

And Ty lawson never even was close to averaging 20 points a game for a season?
Ty Lawson and Joel Berry BOTH averaged 12 points a game their Sophomore years...so why is the comparison so off? You can go look for yourself, but all of their Sophomore year stats are as close to identical as you can get...... TO ratio's, FT %, everything...


But all in all, this team has physical-like abilities of previous title teams, but certainly not mental-like abilities. I was hoping that with the recipe of some players LIKE former guys.

We can agree to disagree, but at the end of the day we want the higher score total on the side of the Tar Heels!


On a sidenote, to no one in particular, there is no reason to be an a$$hole.

Thanks for the clarification. When I see = in and equation, I take that to mean what it says. I like our 2016/17 team and think that the only real comparison to the 05 and 09 teams will be that we start 5 players and will have 3/4 important players coming off the bench. After that this years version will develop it's on character and I hope they perform in the clutch and that they score the last points in our last game to win the Natty.

 

[dadika13]

I'm just not in the business of comparing our legends with guys who haven't proven that much yet. Whether you claim you are or not, when you put "Isiah Hicks = Tyler Hans" you're going to get backlash (as you should).

 

[DSouthr]

Yes, I am new to this board, but I have been reading for quite some time. I'm also a Kentuckian born and raised that somehow escaped the "BBN" to fall in love with the Carolina blue about 20 years ago. Don't think a lot of people realize, but we finally have a team that is a wonderful mix of our 05 and 09 teams.

Starters:

PG: Joel Berry= Ty Lawson
-The burst of quickness isn't there, but getting to the rim sure as hell is. Not to mention if you leave either one open, they're going to knock down the shot, add in there sense of changing speeds and we might have another cousy winner on our hands.


SG: Theo Pinson= Jackie Manuel
- We all know how their shots pan out most of the time, but hey, they can guard whoever and wherever. I know that you always need that one lockdown defender that you can count on, because if you go back and watch the Illinois game, Jackie Manuel played most likely the biggest role in that title.

SF: Justin Jackson= Marvin Williams
-Both hybrid forwards, with inconsistent shots, but with high basketball IQ. Not afraid to do the dirty work inside, and besides a handful of players, (Psycho T) there aren't many that play harder than they do.

PF: Isiah Hicks= Tyler Hansbrough
-I'll just leave this here, and let you all wait for the season to begin. Get your popcorn ready.


C: Kennedy Meeks=Sean May
-I mean, they're related aren't they? The biggest improvement of Meeks this year will be his on the floor leadership.

Bench: Nate Britt= Quentin Thomas
-"Get Nate Out, Wow how in the world did he do that" was my reoccurring phrase for Nate this past year. And yes, I had quite a few more words for our rapper Q, but he also would do some good things. There games don't necessarily match up, but their decision making does...

Bench: Tony Bradley=Deon Thompson
-If you're looking for Zeller or Henson here, don't be so silly. No one will ever run basket to basket like those gazelles. But if you're looking for a real nice post game with limited to defense, look no further than these two.

Bench: Seventh Woods= Larry Drew
-I know, I know, I'm saying it too. "I hope to goodness not," but in reality it is what it is. Highly touted recruits that fell in the rankings once they got to the Hill. Larry Drew really wasn't bad, though. Hell, you put him in against Kansas and we may go to the FF and win it all...


Bench: Kenny Williams= A poor Wayne Ellington
-Wayne is definitely the better player, but who is to say Kenny can't be who Wayne once was. Their ability to score without the ball will be the biggest comparison.

Bench: Brandon Robinson= Reyshawn Terry
-Man, Reyshawn was one of my favorite player. Especially when him and Noel went into Rupp and I got to witness (to be honest) an unexpected win. With both standing at 6'5, they have the body to finish inside, and the footwork to create their own shot on the perimeter. I hope Mr. Robinson blossoms a little better, though.


Bench: Luke Maye= Will Graves
-No, I don't think Luke will be kicked off the team, and man I really wish Graves could've figured it out, because he was your perfect junk yard dog. I see a lot of that in Luke, and also a much higher IQ. You'll see Luke Maye shoot more threes than last year before he's done at UNC, and most likely be like Luke Harangody by his senior year.



I may be back, I may not. Depends on how bored I get at work. I know everyone won't agree with , so I'm interested to hear some more comparisons with our last two national title teams.

Forte, I think my struggle with this is in it being limited to just those 2 particular UNC teams, it makes the individual comparisons to bit to far a stretch for me.

Sean May and Meeks, honestly the only similar I see in them is they both were big bodies. Actually Deon may be more similar to Meeks in that both were not really over the rim guys but more below the rim operators. As well similar in they both had big time weight losses and now somewhat similar bodies.

Hicks and Tyler Hansbourgh, yeah, well, that is about like me trying to spin Stillman White in to Joel Berry, good effort but a lost cause. I would buy Ed Davis more than T-50.

Tony Bradley and Deon, I think very different style players, if I had to stay with just those 2 teams I would maybe call Tony a bigger version of Jawad but that is stretched so far as to not recognize, maybe a McAdoo as a freshman with better size?

7th and Drew, oh no, 7th is immensely more athletic, Nate would be closer to Drew than 7th. Actually if I had to compare 7th to someone on either of those teams, about as close as I could get would be a very rich version of Q.

Brandan Robinson and Rey Terry, no where close for me, if anything I would say a very poor man version of McCants in that they are similar heights and both outstanding jump shooters but McCants much stronger and carried a good bit more weight. As for Rey Terry I would see him more as a Justin guy in that both are known more for their offense than defense & rebounding. I would put Justin some where between a Rey and Marvin, closer to Marvin than Rey.

Kenny Williams and Wayne Ellington, not so sure I would call him all that poor a man's version of Wayne. Wayne shot better than kenny has so far but give that some time and I think their shooting will be closer than many seem to feel right now. I am higher on kenny than most seem to be. PJ maybe because both struggled to score as freshmen?

I think the rest are about as close as you can get with being limited to just those 2 UNC teams to pull players from. That being said, I think this UNC and those 2 UNC teams are VERY different dynamics, those old UNC teams were able to pound the ball inside to established college big men that were extreme scorers, those 2 teams absolutely featured that. This UNC team that IMO is more its weakness than strength, at least none of our front court players have yet to establish themselves as go to scorers.

IN addition, this current UNC team does not yet have what I would consider a go to scorer that is constantly looking to score rather than facilitate, Joel by nature is a facilitator more than a "I am going to take over the game with my scoring", kind of guy, like McCants was, like T-50 or Sean were. Meaning, Ray had McCants, Sean, Marvin, Jawad...Lawson had T-50 & Wayne...Joel has who as his established go to scorers, Justin, not sure I see Justin as a go to scorer based on what we have seen in his first 2 seasons, hopefully that is different this coming season.

 

[dadika13]

IN addition, this current UNC team does not yet have what I would consider a go to scorer that is constantly looking to score rather than facilitate, Joel by nature is a facilitator more than a "I am going to take over the game with my scoring", kind of guy, like McCants was, like T-50 or Sean were. Meaning, Ray had McCants, Sean, Marvin, Jawad...Lawson had T-50 & Wayne...Joel has who as his established go to scorers, Justin, not sure I see Justin as a go to scorer based on what we have seen in his first 2 seasons, hopefully that is different this coming season.

This is such a great point.

So many have talked about JB, Theo, or Hicks being the key to this season's success. To me, it's Justin. If he makes that leap to be the go to scorer that gives us 18-20ppg then we should make the FF. If he doesn't, we're looking at a second weekend exit.

 

[mikeirbyusa]

On a sidenote, to no one in particular, there is no reason to be an a$$hole.

No doubt!

Opinions will differ, so what?

 

[mikeirbyusa]

If he doesn't, we're looking at a second weekend exit.

Think we heard the exact same thing last season. ;-)

 

[dadika13]

Think we heard the exact same thing last season. ;-)

Not really...

We knew how loaded and deep we were and Marcus was our go to scorer. Justin wasn't expected to be (or needed to be) a 20ppg scorer. I'm arguing we don't have the same depth of talent that we had last year and Justin will need to be the guy for us to be a top 5 team. I don't think this is all that crazy of a thought.

 

[DSouthr]

Not really...

We knew how loaded and deep we were and Marcus was our go to scorer. Justin wasn't expected to be (or needed to be) a 20ppg scorer. I'm arguing we don't have the same depth of talent that we had last year and Justin will need to be the guy for us to be a top 5 team. I don't think this is all that crazy of a thought.

" I'm arguing we don't have the same depth of talent that we had last year and Justin will need to be the guy for us to be a top 5 team"

^ I would argue that we do not have the ESTABLISHED depth of talent we had last season. No, we don't have Marcus who was expected to have been our main go to guy to carry us at times as our established scorer. Truth is we never really got the Marcus as a senior we expected due to that nasty extended shooting slump. This time last season, we expected Brice to be solid, we did not expect what Brice actually gave us, I saw Brice going in to last season similar to how I see Hicks coining in to this one, he can be solid if he can stay on the floor more and out of foul trouble.

I frankly feel we have more talent on this team than the last one, it just is not as proven and don't know to what extent it will show itself because a lot of it is freshman & soph talent that may or may not be ready to produce. We do not have the front court depth we had last season so a lot depends on a freshman in that front court but he is a pretty darn talented big man freshman.

 

[dadika13]

I frankly feel we have more talent on this team than the last one

Agree to disagree on this one. We just went to the freaking NC game with that "last one".

 

[mikeirbyusa]

Agree to disagree on this one. We just went to the freaking NC game with that "last one".

Only time will tell which of you is correct. But this old Tar Heel will remember Marcus & Brice for years to come.

 

[DSouthr]

Agree to disagree on this one. We just went to the freaking NC game with that "last one".

And agree to disagree is cool !

I do believe we have more talent on this coming team, that does not mean they will play or play together as well as last seasons team did. I think they can but all our talent is not going to be ready this coming season, does not mean the talent is not there.

To give an example, IMO the one key difference last season, that one thing that set us over the top and lead us to that natty game was Joel Berry as our starting PG. Everything else just clicked when that move went in place but Joel didn't start as a frosh and really didn't play much till late in his frosh season. Going in to last season, I was one of the very few that screamed (screamed for it when Joel was a freshman as well), you guys read it over and over from me, start Joel Berry at the point and we will be very good and yes, I said final 4 good, I again think we are final 4 good for this coming season. That one move and I think giving Theo time at the 4, were to me the real keys for last season. FYI, that key personnel move for this season, either kenny or 7th owning the 2 guard spot...I think it will be kenny.

 

[Deacon Jim]

Hey I'm back! Now listen, I'm not comparing production whatsoever. I think my OP got misconstrued. I'm just comparing the types of players. For instance, Meek-May (Same Body, Same Game). NO, NONE OF OUR CURRENT PLAYERS ARE LIKE THE NATIONAL TITLE TEAMS PLAYERS. I'm not that much of a brainwashed Kentuckian. Gawd I hate Kentucky. Sometimes that just types itself.

I'm a player development trainer and high school basketball coach so I was just having fun comparing guys to what their potential COULD be.

Hicks will lead all of our big men in scoring and rebounding, that's what I was getting at, not averaging 20 and 10....

And Ty lawson never even was close to averaging 20 points a game for a season?
Ty Lawson and Joel Berry BOTH averaged 12 points a game their Sophomore years...so why is the comparison so off? You can go look for yourself, but all of their Sophomore year stats are as close to identical as you can get...... TO ratio's, FT %, everything...


But all in all, this team has physical-like abilities of previous title teams, but certainly not mental-like abilities. I was hoping that with the recipe of some players LIKE former guys.

We can agree to disagree, but at the end of the day we want the higher score total on the side of the Tar Heels!


On a sidenote, to no one in particular, there is no reason to be an a$$hole.

Wow, I was with him until the hating Ky. thing!!! I guess he doesn`t realize that Kentucky is an old Indian word meaning Land of the beautiful people who love basketball.

 

[mikeirbyusa]

Wow, I was with him until the hating Ky. thing!!! I guess he doesn`t realize that Kentucky is an old Indian word meaning Land of the beautiful people who love basketball.

Not exactly what I heard it means in Cherokee.

 

[Deacon Jim]

I haven`t been keeping up over hear Mike but I hope you`re feeling good. Is the news any better than it was.

 

[mikeirbyusa]

I haven`t been keeping up over hear Mike but I hope you`re feeling good. Is the news any better than it was.

No better, but praise the Good Lord, no worse. Getting transfusions every other week at Duke. Still no match to be found.

 

[Deacon Jim]

No better, but praise the Good Lord, no worse. Getting transfusions every other week at Duke. Still no match to be found.

Keep fighting Mike. I`ll be praying that they find that match.

 

[Steat]

It's very simple folks. Who will be this year's Marcus Paige? Remember when the Heels were down several points in the NCAA title game and Paige almost won the game by himself? Rival teams will stack the lane this year. Someone has to step up and hit the outside shot in crunch time. Williams must establish himself early as deadly shooter off the bench from day 1. Can Theo exceed expectations and make first team ACC?

 

[alabamaheel]

It's very simple folks. Who will be this year's Marcus Paige? Remember when the Heels were down several points in the NCAA title game and Paige almost won the game by himself? Rival teams will stack the lane this year. Someone has to step up and hit the outside shot in crunch time. Williams must establish himself early as deadly shooter off the bench from day 1. Can Theo exceed expectations and make first team ACC?

I agree Steat, but I also want to add how some players stepped up when Marcus was in his funk last year. That spot is wide open.

 

[DSouthr]

It's very simple folks. Who will be this year's Marcus Paige? Remember when the Heels were down several points in the NCAA title game and Paige almost won the game by himself? Rival teams will stack the lane this year. Someone has to step up and hit the outside shot in crunch time. Williams must establish himself early as deadly shooter off the bench from day 1. Can Theo exceed expectations and make first team ACC?

Yeah steat but remember who kept us in that natty game in the first half, It was Joel, who got hurt early second half and was slowed due to that but that kid was amazing in that first half.

I am going to differ just a little with you on Kenny and say that he has to work his way in to be that deadly shooter and be ready to step to that role by the beginning of conference play. And if Kenny can't do that then we will need 7th or Brob to take that opportunity. One or more of those 3 fellas have to step up and claim the spot and role of knock down jump shooter out to the trey. To me that is a critical piece for this team, it eases the burden on our front court guys, gives them more space to operate, and takes away the double teams. Even when Marcus was missing last season defenses still had to guard him hard because they knew he could heat up white hot with a single made jumper.

 

[Archer2]

I am going to differ just a little with you on Kenny and say that he has to work his way in to be that deadly shooter and be ready to step to that role by the beginning of conference play. And if Kenny can't do that then we will need 7th or Brob to take that opportunity. One or more of those 3 fellas have to step up and claim the spot and role of knock down jump shooter out to the trey. To me that is a critical piece for this team, it eases the burden on our front court guys, gives them more space to operate, and takes away the double teams. Even when Marcus was missing last season defenses still had to guard him hard because they knew he could heat up white hot with a single made jumper.

You and I are on the same page here and perhaps in the minority. If we don't have someone at SG who can at least be a threat from the perimeter, say 33%, there will be a lot of pressure on Joel and JJ to make treys. And I don't want them to have that pressure on them. I want to see JJ and Joel go to the basket more and not settle for outside jumpers, take them if they're wide open but don't settle for them. And while I think Joel and JJ will be our leading scorers, Joel still needs to be a facilitator as well.
So I think perimeter scoring from our SG is crucial. We've got 3-4 good options there and one of them is going to have to step up. We know Kenny and Theo can guard that position, can they be legitimate perimeter threats? If not, I'm confident Brandon or 7th will step up. If not, the lane is going to be very congested. Just one more reason that I wish Roy would use Kennedy in the high post and work the high low with JJ and Isaiah. But I have no confidence that Roy will do that if he hasn't tried it by now. And it puzzles me because it seems like such a no brainer, given Kennedy's lack of lift, his penchant for setting up too low in the post and allowing the rim to act as another defender, his ability to pass and knock down the 15 footer. But I'm just another armchair coach.

 

[DSouthr]

You and I are on the same page here and perhaps in the minority. If we don't have someone at SG who can at least be a threat from the perimeter, say 33%, there will be a lot of pressure on Joel and JJ to make treys. And I don't want them to have that pressure on them. I want to see JJ and Joel go to the basket more and not settle for outside jumpers, take them if they're wide open but don't settle for them. And while I think Joel and JJ will be our leading scorers, Joel still needs to be a facilitator as well.
So I think perimeter scoring from our SG is crucial. We've got 3-4 good options there and one of them is going to have to step up. We know Kenny and Theo can guard that position, can they be legitimate perimeter threats? If not, I'm confident Brandon or 7th will step up. If not, the lane is going to be very congested. Just one more reason that I wish Roy would use Kennedy in the high post and work the high low with JJ and Isaiah. But I have no confidence that Roy will do that if he hasn't tried it by now. And it puzzles me because it seems like such a no brainer, given Kennedy's lack of lift, his penchant for setting up too low in the post and allowing the rim to act as another defender, his ability to pass and knock down the 15 footer. But I'm just another armchair coach.

Yeah arch, that has been my point on Theo at the 2 all along, it would be fine on some of our past teams but on this particular team I just think it is vital that we have someone at the 2 guard position that makes defenders have to respect his jump shooting and cannot drop off our 2 guard and double someone else. Even a cold shooting Marcus had to be defended as a shooter and with Joel showing his shooting chops, defenders could not double off of them. No matter who starts at the 2 for game 1, it will not be long before this becomes crystal clear.

IMO, we are going to see a lot of zone defenses, fortunately we had Brice be able to step to the middle of those zones last season and hit those mid range jumpers, not sure I have confidence right now we have anyone that will do that from a big man position. Very fortunate last season Brice was able to do that because both Marcus and Justin were in very long shooting slumps so we didn't get as much can opener long range jump shooting as we expected, Joel's jump shooting was a very nice surprise.

I agree, I would like to see Meeks move more to the high post so he can use his ability to pass and I think he can hit a lot of those mid range jumpers as well. Just really don't love him posted deep inside because he struggles to finish up and thru contact and IMO Hicks is solid with that as well as being a really solid guy from the charity stripe.