Happy birthday to one of the new kids on the Hill. He's going to be a monster in another year or so.
Stay tuned
Stay tuned
Sterling Manley
- Thread starter FlaTarHeel
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Funny is that the consensus was that he would be the least productive of our 3 freshman.
Can't wait to see how he plays with a year or two under his belt.
Can't wait to see how he plays with a year or two under his belt.
I predicted that Garrison would be the most ready Game 1 and would be the starter to begin the season but I will admit that I had very low expectations for Sterling this year. If he doesn't progress any more this year, he has already exceeded my expectations. I look forward to watching him develop as I think he has a very bright future.
There is a ton of growth that the kid needs to do before we really see what we have with him. His defensive rotations, his blocking out, and frankly his over all physical stamina are still very much works in progress. But for a kid that missed so much high school playing time and virtually all of his off season development and PT on the AAU and EYBL summer circuts, this kid shows a heck of a lot of promise.
I really wonder how high he would have been ranked, how much more of a player he would be now had he not missed so much time due to those injuries in high school. I honestly think he may well have been a 5 star ranked guy, maybe even top 5 or 10 in his class, had it not been for the obstacles that jumped in his way and sadly may never have considered us because the one and done factories would have been all over him.
IN any event, I am glad we have him and very glad we now have his former team mate committed as well, the way the domino's have fallen seems to have created a very nice pipeline in an area not known to be a hot bed for us and that is the kind of stuff that pays on going dividends for long periods of time!
I think before he is done at UNC, based on how well our staff develops especially big men, this kid will be a monster for us and has a chance to become jersey in the rafters great, his mid range offensive ability is butter already!
I really wonder how high he would have been ranked, how much more of a player he would be now had he not missed so much time due to those injuries in high school. I honestly think he may well have been a 5 star ranked guy, maybe even top 5 or 10 in his class, had it not been for the obstacles that jumped in his way and sadly may never have considered us because the one and done factories would have been all over him.
IN any event, I am glad we have him and very glad we now have his former team mate committed as well, the way the domino's have fallen seems to have created a very nice pipeline in an area not known to be a hot bed for us and that is the kind of stuff that pays on going dividends for long periods of time!
I think before he is done at UNC, based on how well our staff develops especially big men, this kid will be a monster for us and has a chance to become jersey in the rafters great, his mid range offensive ability is butter already!
I considered him to be the least predictable of our frosh big men and while I would say he is at least as if not slightly more effective than Brooks at this point, it is still really hard for me to really get a solid feel for how good this kid can be when he develops more physically. I suspected he would lag the rest of our frosh bigs because he does have so much that needs to be physically developed.
The kid is a bit like Tony in that Tony was not really ready for extended minutes, he would come in and play solid for 3mins or so but noticeable tire and Roy had to pull him. Tony got better as the season progressed because he began to build more stamina suggesting that he learned in practice that you had to work hard or lose PT, that hard work paid off in the stamina dept, suspecting a similar thing with Manley this season. Just as with Tony, had Tony come back to us, the next off season for Manley has to be dedicated to improving himself both stamina wise as well as over all physical strength. I felt there was a really special player inside Tony had he done that this past off season and come back as a soph, I feel the same about Manley thou Manley is behind where Tony was as a frosh, he should be because Manley missed to much PT in his high school career due to those nasty injuries.
I was one of the few that predicted Manley would be the most prodictive of the three and was his biggest cheerleader on the board for the kid. I watched this kid very close in his last year of high school and was very impressed with his polished post moves. I worry about Manley because he has had a couple of scary falls thus far.
Manley has played really well in his opportunities thus far through the season. The post game was a question mark coming into the season, but between the play of Maye, Manley, Brooks, and even the smaller amount of time for Huffman, I feel very good about that area at this point in the year. There is certainly room to grow, but the new guys seem to have solid foundations.
I knew he was ahead of Huff Just because I didn't like Huff's Footwork But I am still impressed with all 3..
Absolutely love this kid. Cant wait to watch him when his stamina is up to full strength.
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I bet his first thought every morning is dread for what Jonas has in store.
Manley has closed any gap between him and Tony, and I will go on record that his career will be better, barring anymore injuries of course.
I can't say that Manley has pulled even to Tony at this point, sorry but can't go there with ya but I do agree that Manley IMO will have a much better UNC career than Tony had, just hope Manley can snag one of those cool rings like Tony has. I think Manley's individual UNC career will be better simply because I see him with us at least as a Jr, Tony would have been VERY special had he stayed thru a Jr season with us, IMO hard to say which has the most upside.
Just watch him in this clip and you will see several things to like about Sterling's game.
If Manley is wearing a UNC uniform as a senior, he is going to be a nightmare for opponents.
How many really good games did TB have last year? I say no more than 3.
Manley has at least 2 already.
We are talking about a kid that was on no one's radar. His improvement just over the last month is something to behold.
Totally agree Archer. Something that really stands out in there is how he puts his hands up everytime asking for the ball in the post. This is a kid who is showing that he wants the ball in his hands while fighting for better positioning,. I like that confidence and agressiveness, especially this early in his career. I would say that definitely stands out to the upperclassmen guards who are looking to get the ball inside and him showing that readiness and willingness is going to give them confidence to feed him the ball especially as he is showing that he can convert it effectively.
His turn around jumper on the left block is a thing of beauty with his high release and soft touch, you could see that move is his bread and butter and is very tough to defend because you can't! He could even add a little drop step like Luke has done to shake things up and make that turn around jumper more effective.
On the offensive glass, I like how he doesn't shy away from hitting the boards and getting positioning, with height and length like his he will have a lot of opportunities for easy put backs and and 1 opportunities.
Defensively, I think how he claps down on the ball when rebounding, again showing a want to get the ball.
When he checks into games, I get excited because I really see a special player in him and someone who is constanly improving, the great thing is that he's only getting started. He's in the right place to develop his game and improve his conditioning because our staff is going to get him where he needs to be. He has already showed his willingness to put in extra work from that night he was working with Vasco after the game and that is just one time to our knowledge, I can bet you he does that regularly on his own.
Yep, he is starting to demand the ball down low, an indicator that his confidence is growing. He is starting to realize that he can play at this level. And he has just scratched the surface of his talent.
With a work ethic like he has, the sky’s the ceiling.
With a work ethic like he has, the sky’s the ceiling.
Don’t think it will take that long. He and Garrison will form a formidable frontline by their junior year. I think Sterling may start by next year, provided he passes his required run times.
Same handful who rain on everybody’s parade when people are being optimistic. They should have more faith in Roy, he didn’t offer these bigs just because they were warm bodies.
Let's not underestimate the intelligence it takes for him to take the strides that he's taken thus far. Coaches can repeat instructions over and over but that doesn't necessarily mean that the player will "get it". Sterling is obviously very coachable and possesses the intelligence to grasp what he's being taught. I believe he's got 95% of the whole package and that before he leaves here will be mentioned in conversations of top big men in UNC history, assuming he stays healthy. I would still like to see some Rasheed Wallace alpha male attitude to complete the deal.
For me, Manley has been the biggest surprise for 2017-2018 Tar Heels team. Even more so than Maye. I thought he would have the potential to produce in the future, but I really wasn't expecting much out of him this season. You can tell by watching him play how much he wants to get better. So glad he's a Tar Heel.
How many times do we have to see this type of thing before we realize that Roy and his staff are excellent talent evaluators! I've seen ratty and Slimy make mistakes recently and then assign these bums to their benches. (or are they just too enamored of their own image that they don't bother to try to work with these kids) How many actual busts have you seen from Roy?
Manley's potential screams out at you from the very beginning. The first clips showed me he had the tools and his work to come back from injuries showed he had the work ethic. What we couldn't foresee is how fast he would develop. If he continues at this pace, we will not have to wait long for the beast to arrive AND we might be sweating an early exit as soon as next year!
I Love all 4 of our BIgs!
Manley's potential screams out at you from the very beginning. The first clips showed me he had the tools and his work to come back from injuries showed he had the work ethic. What we couldn't foresee is how fast he would develop. If he continues at this pace, we will not have to wait long for the beast to arrive AND we might be sweating an early exit as soon as next year!
I Love all 4 of our BIgs!
I differ on the Manley/Bradley comparisons. By that I mean they have both been pleasant surprises early but I feel Bradley was way better at the beginning of last season than he was at the end. He scored in double figures in about the first 6 or 7 games as I remember it. His surprise early contributions along with Kenny Williams early play last year led me to believe we would be contenders last year. May have been the concussion or something else but Tony played his best ball in a Tar Heel uniform at the absolute start of the year. He did hit a couple of key timely baskets against Gonzaga. I am greatful to have had him here but clearly the guy could have used another year in school.
The comparison is not relevant and an insult to Bradley, quite frankly. Not that Manley hasn't shown flashes and been much better than many including myself anticipated.
But Bradley was a different beast entirely. I do think Manley can eventually get there, though.
But Bradley was a different beast entirely. I do think Manley can eventually get there, though.
Maybe a little over exuberant in the comparison but certainly not an insult to Tony. I see our bigs getting a little better every day and they will be sorely tested in the ACC. We're going to need more production from them than we've gotten in the last couple of games if we're going to contend for the ACC regular season championship.
I will reiterate what others have said. They need to get lower, spread out, pin their man, and offer a bigger target for the entry pass. I've noticed that they are too vertical on defense as well, Sterling in particular. But those are things that can be taught and learned.
I really think we'll see a big improvement next year, after a year with Jonas and a year in the system. But if they can give us 2/3's of the 16 and 13 they've given us to date, against tougher ACC competition, we just might make a run this year. Arkansas has beaten Oklahoma, UConn, and Minnesota. They are an ACC caliber team. Tennessee has beaten Purdue, Wake, and GT. They are an ACC caliber team as well.
Here is the combined production of Brooks, Huffman, and Manley against the five ACC caliber teams we've played to date.
Arkansas 8/6
Tennessee 19/16
OSU 5/5
Michigan 14/11
MSU 14/11
That is an average of 12/9.8 over those five games. That's still pretty good for freshmen, especially when you consider that Huff isn't playing much so most of that is coming from Brooks and Manley.
I will reiterate what others have said. They need to get lower, spread out, pin their man, and offer a bigger target for the entry pass. I've noticed that they are too vertical on defense as well, Sterling in particular. But those are things that can be taught and learned.
I really think we'll see a big improvement next year, after a year with Jonas and a year in the system. But if they can give us 2/3's of the 16 and 13 they've given us to date, against tougher ACC competition, we just might make a run this year. Arkansas has beaten Oklahoma, UConn, and Minnesota. They are an ACC caliber team. Tennessee has beaten Purdue, Wake, and GT. They are an ACC caliber team as well.
Here is the combined production of Brooks, Huffman, and Manley against the five ACC caliber teams we've played to date.
Arkansas 8/6
Tennessee 19/16
OSU 5/5
Michigan 14/11
MSU 14/11
That is an average of 12/9.8 over those five games. That's still pretty good for freshmen, especially when you consider that Huff isn't playing much so most of that is coming from Brooks and Manley.
Also Tony had the advantage of playing beside an experienced Big. That does make a huge difference.
While this is definitely true, we could also say it hamstrung him a bit as far as numbers and development went. Say he'd have been a freshman on this years roster- I believe we'd see him progress throughout the season to averaging monster numbers by march just due to the extra minutes and not being on the court in short spurts, which he really was all last year.
Insult was a harsh word choice on my part. I just think we saw Bradley do very well in limited minutes and impact a lot of games in ways Manley and the other bigs just can't-yet.
Oh, I agree. Tony was at least one level above any of our freshman bigs, just as his rankings suggested. I won't be surprised if Sterling and possibly Huffman are playing as well in 4 years as Tony is though.
Had Tony missed nearly half of his high school career and all his summer league play I think most would see this comparison much differently. For Manley to be producing what he has with such major obstacles that he has had to over come is remarkable.
Tony was hidden in a deep lineup , he could have been an all ACC this year, the skill set was very impressive and 25 minutes a night the numbers would have been sick..
