Quick stuff (GT game)...

[gary-7]

...and this will be a bit longer for those who get it.

So... once again we come out flat, but most noticible is that nobody (other than maybe Seth) is playing anywhere near their abilities right now. Bigs aren't looking to score, we don't finish with any consistency, Drake looked lost, RJ is forcing shots and Eliot is forcing passes. Ultimately, it does no good to scapegoat individual players --- as I've tried to explain, the underlying issue here is SCHEME.

- Before I get into that, two 2nd half moments exemplified our struggles: EC hits ahead to RJ in transition wide-open at his favorite Wing 3 spot, and misses pretty badly. Moments later, RJ on a called play (same spot) freezes his man with his patented step-back, but again, clang. I'll bet I wasn't the only one here saying "last year RJ makes that", huh? OK, so reality is RJ is in a bad shooting slump right now --- slumps happen --- but what it should expose is that we shouldn't HAVE to rely on RJ to shoot us out of trouble.

What's getting us in this trouble is scheme. THAT is the catalyst for most of the issues we're (painfully) watching.

- To wit: Since I started keeping specific game notes back in 2014, I create a grid to track our scores by 4 categories:
Fast Break (primary with number advantage or ahead of the defense)
Secondary Break (including iterations and reversals)
Half Court (Freelance or player-called actions on the fly)
Set Plays (Called from bench or OB situations)

- As an example of how things CAN work, during the last Natty season 16-17 there were some games in which there were more points in the Secondary box than any other (all wins, unsurprisingly). Most of those points won't show up in box score "fast break" stats, but it has been the key to our success.

- In stark contrast, today (aside from 4 FTs in late Press Offense, we had 5 --- count'em FIVE --- Secondary points (and 7 vs bama). Folks, that dog ain't gonna hunt. Look, I've already explained exactly how we've f***ed up the Secondary scheme, so I won't revisit it, but it also has a ripple effect by making us start Freelance from a static set vs an unstressed defense.

- That then leads us into the foibles of unsound 5-out offense. Yikes. Unless you're raining in Steph Curry range 3s, 5-out actually creates LESS perimeter space than 4-out, and makes us just too damn EASY to defend. Moreover, there's a reason coaches have long preached "inside-out" --- it's basic applied geometry. The ball has to periodically go inside WITH A PURPOSE. The Big needs to look to score (and not just be a passer), because even if it's not always successful, it STRESSES the defense vertically thus making it difficult to track perimeter motion. Right now, defenders are just anticipating and swarming RJ's cuts without having to look over their shoulders, and they're also anticipating Eliot's PnR dishes. We are easy to scout.

- Our impotency in inside threat also showed up vs their 1-1-3 matchup --- and jeez, can't even flush a perfect lob play. It's not good when our "paint" points are almost all from Guards driving.

- OK, some positives: I still can't believe we out rebounded them. It was definitely a group effort, which it will need to be going forward for sure.

- Starting just after the under-8, we legtimately turned up some defensive intensity and shut them out of FGs for a long stretch. Seth was a terror, and gotta give a shout-out to EC here, who despite apparently fighting a virus, was also key. In particular, when EC was out Stoudamire was having his taller PG iso RJ, but Eliot absolutely stoned him with some damn good footwork.

- Although we missed three front-end FTs, Seth and Ian knocked down the big ones in crunch time. Now, why we were somehow still in 1-and-1 so late is a whole nuther issue, but we'll leave that for another day.

- Finally, bottom line is there's no way this Tech team should lead us during the 2nd half of a game. I mean, they are competitive but their most dangerous shooter transfered to Auburn --- speaking of whom, found out what the ACC knows about the striped treatment at HIS, the sort of home-cooking we can never seem to get --- but I digress. Our issues these days are self-inflicted.

Anyway, we toughed out a win that shouldn't have been so hard, so there's that. And I don't mean to down-play this win --- Lord knows a loss would've been disastorus --- as the guys sucked it up and fought for 8 key minutes down the stretch for the W. The bad news is that right about now, we're Fast Break or "Hoo-Boy", so I've said it before --- December is for adjustments, and we are in dire need of doing just that. The upcoming practices and LaSalle would seem to be the ideal time. I'd rather not wait untiI UF and UCLA. I suppose we shall see...

 

[notashelbyfan]

This team is don't think is top 5 or a final 4 team but I do thing they are way better than they are playing. I also thing the scheme is the issue, and that points back to coaching.

 

[GoNtheDistance]

This team is don't think is top 5 or a final 4 team but I do thing they are way better than they are playing. I also thing the scheme is the issue, and that points back to coaching.

wait we have a scheme? 😂

 

[Spaceytoyz]

You just have to get a combined 20/20 from your frontline to even start to compete it’s a low number for a whole frontline but you got to get that …

 

[NathanFielder]

@gary-7 I know you (probably proudly) don’t see eye to eye with me but in the 1H when RJ missed a couple of very make-able 3s off decent action, then made a one legged contested banked 2 while going right towards the baseline, I kind of chuckled. Especially knowing how I might be the only one here that wants a high volume of 3s.

There was a play in the 1H that got under my skin. GT was zoning and UNC broke it. Good ball and man movement and Seth got it on the left wing and had RJ in the corner next to him and it was a 2 on 1 situation where the defender was frantically recovering to Seth. Instead of swinging it for an open 3, Seth hesitated and may have taken a dribble before swinging it. And RJ was cooked and had to create something out of garbage. Must be a lot of things going through their heads. A confident and well schooled team swings that thing without any hesitation.

I hated almost all of Cadeau’s looks. I don’t have it tracked this season but I can’t imagine he’s a good wing 3PT shooter. I think he clanked 4 wing 3s. Just not a fan of that shot for him (and coming from a MORE 3S person here, lol). He didn’t look confident taking them. I guess it makes sense if he’s fighting an illness.

Honestly, good job getting out of this one with a win. If I told everyone the following… I think many as predicting a loss.
- 5/24 from 3
- 18 turnovers
- Cadeau almost 1:2 ast/to ratio

But obviously they have a lot to solve. This right now isn’t a very good and definitely not a confident basketball team.

 

[notashelbyfan]

wait we have a scheme? 😂

Yes a shitty one!

 

[39 Feet Above Sea Level]

My 95 year-old MIL told my wife that she was watching this game with baited breath.
Seriously guys, stop doing that to such a nice old lady.

1. Get well, Elliot. When healthy, be more judicious with your passes.
2. Teammates of Elliot on the floor: expect the pass to come to you and catch it.
3. Screeners: set your screens, stand in place, keep your elbows in.
4. Defenders: keep getting after it; rebounding and stopping GT in crunch time won this game.
5. Shooters: relax and don’t lose your confidence.
6. Coaches: mix up defensive sets, rotate the bigs, and stress/practice the secondary break as the
key to our success this season.

 

[gkss]

...and this will be a bit longer for those who get it.

So... once again we come out flat, but most noticible is that nobody (other than maybe Seth) is playing anywhere near their abilities right now. Bigs aren't looking to score, we don't finish with any consistency, Drake looked lost, RJ is forcing shots and Eliot is forcing passes. Ultimately, it does no good to scapegoat individual players --- as I've tried to explain, the underlying issue here is SCHEME.

- Before I get into that, two 2nd half moments exemplified our struggles: EC hits ahead to RJ in transition wide-open at his favorite Wing 3 spot, and misses pretty badly. Moments later, RJ on a called play (same spot) freezes his man with his patented step-back, but again, clang. I'll bet I wasn't the only one here saying "last year RJ makes that", huh? OK, so reality is RJ is in a bad shooting slump right now --- slumps happen --- but what it should expose is that we shouldn't HAVE to rely on RJ to shoot us out of trouble.

What's getting us in this trouble is scheme. THAT is the catalyst for most of the issues we're (painfully) watching.

- To wit: Since I started keeping specific game notes back in 2014, I create a grid to track our scores by 4 categories:
Fast Break (primary with number advantage or ahead of the defense)
Secondary Break (including iterations and reversals)
Half Court (Freelance or player-called actions on the fly)
Set Plays (Called from bench or OB situations)

- As an example of how things CAN work, during the last Natty season 16-17 there were some games in which there were more points in the Secondary box than any other (all wins, unsurprisingly). Most of those points won't show up in box score "fast break" stats, but it has been the key to our success.

- In stark contrast, today (aside from 4 FTs in late Press Offense, we had 5 --- count'em FIVE --- Secondary points (and 7 vs bama). Folks, that dog ain't gonna hunt. Look, I've already explained exactly how we've f***ed up the Secondary scheme, so I won't revisit it, but it also has a ripple effect by making us start Freelance from a static set vs an unstressed defense.

- That then leads us into the foibles of unsound 5-out offense. Yikes. Unless you're raining in Steph Curry range 3s, 5-out actually creates LESS perimeter space than 4-out, and makes us just too damn EASY to defend. Moreover, there's a reason coaches have long preached "inside-out" --- it's basic applied geometry. The ball has to periodically go inside WITH A PURPOSE. The Big needs to look to score (and not just be a passer), because even if it's not always successful, it STRESSES the defense vertically thus making it difficult to track perimeter motion. Right now, defenders are just anticipating and swarming RJ's cuts without having to look over their shoulders, and they're also anticipating Eliot's PnR dishes. We are easy to scout.

- Our impotency in inside threat also showed up vs their 1-1-3 matchup --- and jeez, can't even flush a perfect lob play. It's not good when our "paint" points are almost all from Guards driving.

- OK, some positives: I still can't believe we out rebounded them. It was definitely a group effort, which it will need to be going forward for sure.

- Starting just after the under-8, we legtimately turned up some defensive intensity and shut them out of FGs for a long stretch. Seth was a terror, and gotta give a shout-out to EC here, who despite apparently fighting a virus, was also key. In particular, when EC was out Stoudamire was having his taller PG iso RJ, but Eliot absolutely stoned him with some damn good footwork.

- Although we missed three front-end FTs, Seth and Ian knocked down the big ones in crunch time. Now, why we were somehow still in 1-and-1 so late is a whole nuther issue, but we'll leave that for another day.

- Finally, bottom line is there's no way this Tech team should lead us during the 2nd half of a game. I mean, they are competitive but their most dangerous shooter transfered to Auburn --- speaking of whom, found out what the ACC knows about the striped treatment at HIS, the sort of home-cooking we can never seem to get --- but I digress. Our issues these days are self-inflicted.

Anyway, we toughed out a win that shouldn't have been so hard, so there's that. And I don't mean to down-play this win --- Lord knows a loss would've been disastorus --- as the guys sucked it up and fought for 8 key minutes down the stretch for the W. The bad news is that right about now, we're Fast Break or "Hoo-Boy", so I've said it before --- December is for adjustments, and we are in dire need of doing just that. The upcoming practices and LaSalle would seem to be the ideal time. I'd rather not wait untiI UF and UCLA. I suppose we shall see...

Thanks gary-7. I was disappointed when our bigs, especially Lubin worked extremely hard to gain position down low, and our guards wouldn’t feed them the ball-one particular time we had a mismatch. You are spot on with a commitment to going inside with a purpose! Go Heels!

 

[gary-7]

@gary-7
There was a play in the 1H that got under my skin. GT was zoning and UNC broke it. Good ball and man movement and Seth got it on the left wing and had RJ in the corner next to him and it was a 2 on 1 situation where the defender was frantically recovering to Seth. Instead of swinging it for an open 3, Seth hesitated and may have taken a dribble before swinging it. And RJ was cooked and had to create something out of garbage. Must be a lot of things going through their heads. A confident and well schooled team swings that thing without any hesitation.

I did notice that. This team is uncomfortable due to the factors I mentioned.

 

[worthy is the best]

I did notice that. This team is uncomfortable due to the factors I mentioned.

To Gary and those that get it. We now have team without point guard shooting guard big man and transfers I do not know what to Say, Stepped out of bounds twice I saw quit paying attention to game in second half. Sophomore has become freshmen 7 turnovers 28 minutes . Freshmen had 15 minutes 1 reb and assist. Can not be used right now. One kid had good game played hard other freshman tried at times but lost puppy dog. PG now lobing passes sideways backwards not even going forward. Big man did not have heart to look at stats do not want to know. No one this is scheme issues in that sense. Senior sg threw pass in corner to Trimble turned him 180 degrees backwards. Was that Trimble fault? What is he superman must be. The press conference afterwards not one smile all positive talk. Questioned team without naming playersl who bleeping cares?. Gary what do you want coach to do ether blow up team can not be done or swap team nothing is working?. What a mess. Worst game I ever saw did not care if won or lost.Five four four five serious who cares? Hope Wilson father did not come to game nobody has that much kindness in their heart.

 

[DSouthr]

One of the most ugly wins I can recall, this team needs to spend a lot of quality practice court time and finally we do have a few days for that. This team has lost it's identity, it's leadership is gone? Players look really confused and because they are confused the buy in is not there. When you see that there should be little question of what needs to happen, you have to simplify things. As a coach you must ask yourself, am I putting my players in the best situation that allows them to maximize what they do.

This is not nearly as complicated as we fans tend to spin it as. You tell me, is making Jalen in to a back to the basket deep paint guy the best use of his ability? Jalen is a face the basket guy and he is just not overly physical so sure why not use him like we did Bacot? Cadeau is not a great jump shooter, his shooting form does not look any different from last season yet all we heard coming in to this season was how much better his shooting was, really... ? You have JWit spending a LOT of time camping out in the deep corner and yet he rivals Cadeau as a jump shooter? RJ is trying prove he deserves to be a NCAA AA and has been forcing things that just are not there. You have 2 big time freshmen that are just going to get lost but especially so when you try to be to complicated. You have a VERY quiet team, guys that just are not vocal as a team must be depending on extreme communication, especially on the defensive end?

I see 1 and only 1 guy consistently playing to his strengths, Seth but the freshmen are coming along, I do not like Drake at the 4. The starting line up yesterday was EC, RJ, Seth, Drake and Lubin (a line up many fans here have been calling for). Drake at 6'5-6" as the power forward and Lubin at 6'8" as our center, sitting our 6'9" power forward and our 6'10" center? A really really small team gets smaller as the solution?

Now for all those that I saw in the game thread talking about how this team can not play, asking is this even a NIT team, sharing how the sky is falling, I do want to remind folks, this is the same team that battled back from HUGE holes against 3 top 5 teams and even Dayton looked very much like a top 20 team to me but against those teams we played really bad first halves, if you can play like that for 1 half you can play like that for 2. This team can play and play well but it has to constantly be put in position to maximize what our individual players can do well.

One thing that has to get fixed like right now, our big men MUST expect a pass from Cadeau at all times, I am not going back and looking but a LOT of the TOs Cadeau has are actually due to the guy he is passing to not being ready for the pass. I think it was MSU, a Cadeau TO that stuck in my head, Cadeau drives is doubled, Cadeau drops a sweet little pocket pass to Lubin who had a free lane to the basket, was not expecting the pass, TO on Cadeau? Now yes, Cadeau does need to read when a guy is not ready but it isn't all on him. Yesterday, what was it, twice Cadeau passes to guys that cut off their spot ending up in Cadeau TOs?

Going to end this reply with simply this, this team does not look like the are having fun out there right now, it look looks more like labor than fun, it has got to be fun, when they are having fun they are free wheeling and playing the game they love, not play like you are on your way to the dentist office. This team has fun when they are playing free and loose, ripping and running. When they do that they get lost in to the game, they are not counting points or anything else, they are just playing, the other team scores so what, you barely notice, you are lost in the game, you pop open for a clean shot there is no pressure on you, pressure is not there when you are lost in the game. Example, there have been spots this season where JWit gets lost in the game and he just explodes for 5-6pts, snags boards, plays really strong defense, just it all flows, the ball finds him and he just does what he feels comfortable with but just as quickly the light switch flips off and he starts thinking and out comes bad JWit? Get out of your head and just play...

 

[DSouthr]

Let's take a look at the box score vs GT:

1) We won the battle on the boards 48-37, we got 13 offensive boards to their 11. Good EFFORT !

2) We had 10 assist to 23 made shots, stil under the 50% mark you want to see.

3) 18 turn overs to 10 assists, at no level is that acceptable

4) RJ was 5-15, 33% from the filed, 2-8 from 3, 25%? Beats the 1-11 last game...

5) RJ played 38mins, the next closest to him in minutes played was Seth at 34

6) Seth was our leading scorer at 19, was 5-6 from the field and 8-9 from the line in his 34mins

7) We team rebounded 1 guy with 8 boards (Lubin), 2 guys with 7 (Seth and RJ), 3 guys with 6 (JWash, JWit, Cadeau)

8) We scored 31pts in the first half and 37 in the second half, where did the 50+ pt halves go?

 

[What Would Jesus Do?]

1) We won the battle on the boards 48-37, we got 13 offensive boards to their 11.

The more misses, the more rebounding opportunities. But, yeah, better than many games.

 

[gary-7]

One of the most ugly wins I can recall, this team needs to spend a lot of quality practice court time and finally we do have a few days for that. This team has lost it's identity, it's leadership is gone? Players look really confused and because they are confused the buy in is not there. When you see that there should be little question of what needs to happen, you have to simplify things. As a coach you must ask yourself, am I putting my players in the best situation that allows them to maximize what they do.

You summed it up concisely. They are not being put in the best situation, and the remedy is not rocket science:
1. Restore the Carolina Secondary to Dean/Roy standards and practices, and trigger half-court offense off of it whenever possible
2. Play more inside-out and less surround. That starts with getting the ball to JWash and/or Lubin in the mid-post triangle for scoring opportunities.
3. Be less predictable on defense.

 

[heels05champs]

It feels like we’ve been saying restore the Carolina secondary and principles taught by Dean and Roy for four years now. For whatever reason, it seems apparent this all Carolina staff refuses to use the blueprint that was successful for decades.

 

[gary-7]

It feels like we’ve been saying restore the Carolina secondary and principles taught by Dean and Roy for four years now. For whatever reason, it seems apparent this all Carolina staff refuses to use the blueprint that was successful for decades.

Not exactly. They got away from it at times but restored it and the results came with it when they did.

The most egregious was during the debacle two seasons ago when they first tried (disastrously) the 5-out nonsense --- or as @Tarheel75 and I called it, "the unfortunate offensive experiment".

As we speak, I'm actually sitting here watching last season's dook game at HIS and the Secondary was alive and well (and making me nostalgic). Having some different personnel now is no good reason to change Dean's greatest invention.

 

[notashelbyfan]

Not exactly. They got away from it at times but restored it and the results came with it when they did.

The most egregious was during the debacle two seasons ago when they first tried (disastrously) the 5-out nonsense --- or as @Tarheel75 and I called it, "the unfortunate offensive experiment".

As we speak, I'm actually sitting here watching last season's dook game at HIS and the Secondary was alive and well (and making me nostalgic). Having some different personnel now is no good reason to change Dean's greatest invention.

My concern is why does this staff feel the need to reinvent the wheel every year?

It's almost like they don't want to do what has been done here for years, like they are hell bent on creating their own identity that is far from what they know works.

That is the attitude that was one of the factors in what send Dougherty down the road.

 

[gary-7]

My concern is why does this staff feel the need to reinvent the wheel every year?

It's almost like they don't want to do what has been done here for years, like they are hell bent on creating their own identity that is far from what they know works.

That is the attitude that was one of the factors in what send Dougherty down the road.

That is a legit question the staff should ask in the mirror.

 

[tcb22]

It's really strange that this group of coaches does not use what worked for Dean and Roy. They all played for one or the other and experienced success I just don't get it.

 

[dtodd4475]

I did not get a chance to watch the game. Was surprised at how low scoring it was, not surprised that we rebounded better, as Ga. Tech has a small ball lineup as well.


Not sure if any real progress was made with how the game is being described here, but it dang sure beats taking an "L" at home to open up conference play.

 

[gary-7]

It's really strange that this group of coaches does not use what worked for Dean and Roy. They all played for one or the other and experienced success I just don't get it.

Y'know, back when Dean introduced the Secondary Break the conventional wisdom was you never tried to do what today we call "transition" unless you had a number advantage like 2-on-1. Hell, even when I started coaching, it was pretty much only the "Carolina guys" who used our Secondary. Some guys used what we used to call a "number" break (it was much easier to defend) but there was still a lotta resistance to running without advantage.

As to what you said, it's not like the Secondary is obsolete --- just the opposite --- because since the shot-clock came in, it has been copied by many. Roy added myriad variations and big-time guys like Mark Few have adopted it in recent years. Hell, even Izzo has gone from his long-time number break to a more Carolina version.

Hubert needs to get it through his head that just surrounding defenses in transition is a fad that makes us really easy to defend. Fact is, the Carolina Secondary ain't broke, so why try to "fix" it with something that is?...

 

[worthy is the best]

Are you saying our pg should not look in mirror? Do not get beat by his quickness allow crazy passes and let him hesitate to shoot. Not even snapping passed ahead right now does not appear to understand how to do it. Rj not pg being forced to do it. Trimble same thing have no pg on team last three or so games.

 

[notashelbyfan]

Are you saying our pg should not look in mirror? Do not get beat by his quickness allow crazy passes and let him hesitate to shoot. Not even snapping passed ahead right now does not appear to understand how to do it. Rj not pg being forced to do it. Trimble same thing have no pg on team last three or so games.

I think they all need to look in the mirror, they all have sucked together. I never argee with anything Gary and he does seem to handle EC with kid gloves but I somewhat agree with Gary on this one.

What Hubert is asking our players to do and play is the equivalent of Tiger Woods coach telling him to play left handed and then when he doesn't play as well blame him with the point of contention being "golf is golf no matter how you do it"

 

[2DDIMOND]

I’ve heard rumors that Trimble’s parents & Cadeau’s parents are not happy with RJ’s role & ball dominance. Anyone know if there is any truth to that?

 

[gary-7]

Are you saying our pg should not look in mirror? Do not get beat by his quickness allow crazy passes and let him hesitate to shoot. Not even snapping passed ahead right now does not appear to understand how to do it. Rj not pg being forced to do it. Trimble same thing have no pg on team last three or so games.

You are barking so far up the wrong tree you're about to find a crow's nest. Completely off-base.

 

[worthy is the best]

You are barking so far up the wrong tree you're about to find a crow's nest. Completely of-base.

You are protecting favorite player who right now could not last week in g league playing like that.

 

[gary-7]

I’ve heard rumors that Trimble’s parents & Cadeau’s parents are not happy with RJ’s role & ball dominance. Anyone know if there is any truth to that?

There is some discomfort with how things are going. What we're doing right now has turned RJ into a ball-stopper. I don't put the blame on him as much as on the schemes, but our ball-movement too often stalls and RJ ends up forcing.

 

[gary-7]

You are protecting favorite player who right now could not last week in g league playing like that.

Oh bullshit. You've proven very quickly on here to have absolutely no clue what you're talking about.

 

[ACokeForRoy]

This team is don't think is top 5 or a final 4 team but I do thing they are way better than they are playing. I also thing the scheme is the issue, and that points back to coaching.

There is no scheme. I have no idea what this team is running on offense. No idea. Looks like hero ball.

 

[ACokeForRoy]

I’ve heard rumors that Trimble’s parents & Cadeau’s parents are not happy with RJ’s role & ball dominance. Anyone know if there is any truth to that?

I have noticed it also. Its almost like the offense stops when he gets the ball. He's dribbling the ball for 5-6 seconds then forcing into the lane too often. I hope this week of practice focuses on getting back to basics and getting EC better healthwise.

 

[ACokeForRoy]

It's really strange that this group of coaches does not use what worked for Dean and Roy. They all played for one or the other and experienced success I just don't get it.

Who knows what the assistance are telling HD. Perhaps HD is disregarding advise from the staff and doing his own thing. I know Lebo has some positive input to fix some of these issues.

 

[worthy is the best]

Who knows what the assistance are telling HB. Perhaps HB is disregarding advise from the staff and doing his own thing. I know Lebo has some positive input to fix some of these issues.

Latest mock draft projected 46 in 2026 draft. Dropping like a stone every day.

 

[Kool1234567]

I’ve heard rumors that Trimble’s parents & Cadeau’s parents are not happy with RJ’s role & ball dominance. Anyone know if there is any truth to that?

This is why I think the thread about RJ not coming back is fair…We have to many guards that need the ball in there hand to be effective…Also could have used the money RJ is getting to land a Big Man….Perfect Starting Line up this year would have been…

PG—-EC
SG—Seth
SF— IAN
PF—Lubin
C—-Portal 5

Bench
Drake
JWit
Jalen
Cade
Ga Tech kid forgot his name


Just like last it’s tough to defend teams with 2 guards under 6foot…I am hoping they get it together but man I don’t know…

 

[ACokeForRoy]

Where is this Hubert Davis.

 

[What Would Jesus Do?]

I’ve heard rumors that Trimble’s parents & Cadeau’s parents are not happy with RJ’s role & ball dominance. Anyone know if there is any truth to that?

Those 3 guys play the most minutes and take the most shots. Not sure why the parents would be mad that their kid is in the top 3 along with an All American.

The problem is that RJ is in a slump. Is HD giving him iron man minutes hoping that he'll play through it faster? That's not entirely unreasonable.

The other thought is what sometimes seemed true when many were bitching about Caleb. Namely that HD probably would have played him less if he had anyone else he could trust.

HD seems to trust Seth and EC; maybe Seth a bit more.

What's interesting is that Ian is coming along very fast now, after a sluggish start. He's getting HD's trust it seems. But he isn't taking RJ's minutes. Who's minutes is he taking? At a glance, the guys who are losing minutes are Cade, JWash and JWit.

 

[2DDIMOND]

Those 3 guys play the most minutes and take the most shots. Not sure why the parents would be mad that their kid is in the top 3 along with an All American.

The problem is that RJ is in a slump. Is HD giving him iron man minutes hoping that he'll play through it faster? That's not entirely unreasonable.

The other thought is what sometimes seemed true when many were bitching about Caleb. Namely that HD probably would have played him less if he had anyone else he could trust.

HD seems to trust Seth and EC; maybe Seth a bit more.

What's interesting is that Ian is coming along very fast now, after a sluggish start. He's getting HD's trust it seems. But he isn't taking RJ's minutes. Who's minutes is he taking? At a glance, the guys who are losing minutes are Cade, JWash and JWit.

Just relaying what I’ve heard, you can second guess all you want.

 

[alabamaheel]

This is why I think the thread about RJ not coming back is fair…We have to many guards that need the ball in there hand to be effective…Also could have used the money RJ is getting to land a Big Man….Perfect Starting Line up this year would have been…

PG—-EC
SG—Seth
SF— IAN
PF—Lubin
C—-Portal 5

Bench
Drake
JWit
Jalen
Cade
Ga Tech kid forgot his name


Just like last it’s tough to defend teams with 2 guards under 6foot…I am hoping they get it together but man I don’t know…

RJ got his own nil. Like you’re supposed to. lol would have could have. All those guys you listed have had a chance. Seth and Ian are the only ones taking advantage of the chance.

 

[DSouthr]

Those 3 guys play the most minutes and take the most shots. Not sure why the parents would be mad that their kid is in the top 3 along with an All American.

The problem is that RJ is in a slump. Is HD giving him iron man minutes hoping that he'll play through it faster? That's not entirely unreasonable.

The other thought is what sometimes seemed true when many were bitching about Caleb. Namely that HD probably would have played him less if he had anyone else he could trust.

HD seems to trust Seth and EC; maybe Seth a bit more.

What's interesting is that Ian is coming along very fast now, after a sluggish start. He's getting HD's trust it seems. But he isn't taking RJ's minutes. Who's minutes is he taking? At a glance, the guys who are losing minutes are Cade, JWash and JWit.

The only AA I see for us right now is Seth, neither RJ or Cadeau are playing at even a 3rd team ACC level right now and to allow them to continue doing what they have been doing so far is not working. Hubert has a blind spot for guys like RJ and Caleb, volume shooters that are not efficient. I don't care that RJ hit those shots last season any more than I care that Tyson hit a lot of shots for Belmont, this is not last season.

If I were Hubert, I would have to make a hard decision, a decision that could blow this team up or could put it back to a winning path, I am starting Seth at the 2 and Drake at the 3. I have to put us in the best position to win games and the way to do that is by maximizing the talent we have. It does not good at all to now lament the fact we should have got a center from the portal, does no good to lament that the shooter we did get from the portal was not ready for this level, that is all junk we can not change at this point, someone may want to quote the serenity prayer right about now.

The other major change I would make would be to switch Jalen and JWit, use Jalen more as a 4 than a 5, I just don't think he can consistently play physical enough deep in the paint, it is the weakest part of his game. JWit is much more physical, makes some fantastic cuts thru the paint, and lives to flush it. JWit is not a consistent outside the paint jump shooter. Granted, Jalen is NOT jump shooting well right now either but we know he can. It seems like Jalen is playing as the last option to score, as if that is his current mindset, takes very few shots and that has to change. Simply put, Jalen has to want the ball and want his shot.

 

[gary-7]

The only AA I see for us right now is Seth, neither RJ or Cadeau are playing at even a 3rd team ACC level right now and to allow them to continue doing what they have been doing so far is not working. Hubert has a blind spot for guys like RJ and Caleb, volume shooters that are not efficient. I don't care that RJ hit those shots last season any more than I care that Tyson hit a lot of shots for Belmont, this is not last season.

If I were Hubert, I would have to make a hard decision, a decision that could blow this team up or could put it back to a winning path, I am starting Seth at the 2 and Drake at the 3. I have to put us in the best position to win games and the way to do that is by maximizing the talent we have. It does not good at all to now lament the fact we should have got a center from the portal, does no good to lament that the shooter we did get from the portal was not ready for this level, that is all junk we can not change at this point, someone may want to quote the serenity prayer right about now.

The other major change I would make would be to switch Jalen and JWit, use Jalen more as a 4 than a 5, I just don't think he can consistently play physical enough deep in the paint, it is the weakest part of his game. JWit is much more physical, makes some fantastic cuts thru the paint, and lives to flush it. JWit is not a consistent outside the paint jump shooter. Granted, Jalen is NOT jump shooting well right now either but we know he can. It seems like Jalen is playing as the last option to score, as if that is his current mindset, takes very few shots and that has to change. Simply put, Jalen has to want the ball and want his shot.

The dysfuncton we're seeing is not about personnel. --- It's all about what they're being asked to do.

 

[DrJaaay]

I don't see this team doing much of anything this season (which is fine ... we can't always be a championship contender) and to be fair, I've only watched a little bit of the season:
1) Kansas game. Although we looked like a high-school team against a D1 team, we fought hard in the second half which gave me hope for the season.
1) second half against Dayton ... I expected us to look good because we won that half by twenty ... we didn't look good. We looked to be about the same as Dayton (with respect to size and skill level).
2) Auburn game. We looked like a high school team playing against a D1 team. We never had a chance and Auburn knew it.
3) Michigan State game. We looked like a high school team playing against a D1 team. Although we took them to overtime, I don't think MSU ever thought they would lose that game .... and I don't think we ever thought we would win it.
4) Georgia Tech game. We looked to be about as skilled as G. Tech. The bright spot in that game was that there was a two minute stretch where Seth looked like the best player in college basketball.

We're not fun to watch. We stand around the perimeter and wait for RJ or EC or Seth or occasionally Ian try to drive to the basket. J. Wash doesn't get involved in the offense, and despite the fact that we have out-rebounded other teams, it doesn't look like we out-rebound the other team. The opposition's best offense is to just shoot the ball and get their own rebound and put it back in. It doesn't look like our coaches are coaching anything, and I know that that is not the case .... but I don't really know what they're trying to get us to do. It wouldn't surprise me if we finish around .500 for the season. I hope I'm wrong. Go Heels!