Thoughts on this mornings scrimmage?
- Thread starter W-S HerdFan
- Start date
From what I saw, it's going to be a work in progress. When all the redshirts are decided, then when Taylor can play in Dec., that's when we'll see what's really going to happen. I didn't see anyone who can shoot off the dribble too well and a couple of players (no names) look like their confidence is down a bit. But, there seems to be no lack of effort.
From what a few practice attendees have been saying, Taylor should have his fate determined sometimes next week, per DD.
I didn't make it to the scrimmage but what I have seen from the practices that I have seen I would have to agree with you 300. I am concerned about our overall shooting. As one time Lincoln Jr. High coach Don Massey told my Dad's team in the 1950's...Gentlemen that basket has an 18" diameter....the object of the game is to put this round ball through that hoop. I don't care how you do it just do it." Years later Coach Aldo Paletti at HEHS took my Dad out of a game when he made a jump shot. Paletti allowed only set shots.
And there's also no truth to the rumor that DD is recruiting anyone named Barney for the backcourt duo of Andy and Barney. 
Keep tryingAnd there's also no truth to the rumor that DD is recruiting anyone named Barney for the backcourt duo of Andy and Barney.
There is a very in depth report on Herd Fans. Since I didn't write it I won't copy and paste it.
Opening up the scrimmage noted here to the free board. Tagging @Sean Hammond for any follow up.
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Prior to the scrimmage, there was a nice walk through session of some defensive principle installations, lead by Coach Rigot. Some man & zone principles were shown, while explaining why we do what we do. I know forcing baseline has been a topic of conversation on here, but explaining how it’s designed to lead to traps and turnover opportunities was informative. I saw them go over more zone principles and we played more zone in the scrimmage than I’ve seen us use in the past. I think with our length, we’ll use it more to mix it up and give teams some different looks to help throw them off.
First of all, let me say that the “scrimmage” was somewhat uneventful. I get more out of practices where I can watch D’antoni coach, correct, and chew on some guys. He was mostly quiet during the scrimmage, where Mark Cline lead one team and Corny Jackson lead the other. 5:00 segments where D’antoni changed the teams between each segment. It was good to see the different combinations & matchups as the scrimmage went on. I didn’t take notes, so this is from memory. If anyone else was there and would like to add anything, please chime in.
-I questioned Andrew Taylor’s lead guard abilities after the first practice I saw a few weeks ago. Most of that practice was geared around half court sets. In the scrimmage, you could see more of what this kid can do and I’m really excited about his abilities. My concerned about our future lack of PG was calmed a little after yesterday.
-I was also pretty hard on Goran, the 7’0 Euro. He showed yesterday why people have bestowed some praise on him. He is athletic for his size and does have some skill. I think he’s getting used to the faster pace and more physical play and if he continues to progress, I think he can give us a few quality minutes in spurts by time we reach conference play. Keep an eye out on him and be patient early.
-I still like Marko Sarenac, but he needs to become more consistent as a scorer before we expect much from him. He’s a nice spot-up shooter, but off the dribble he can put up Nikolic-like shots. That’s not me being negative, just tempering some expectations I may have set a few weeks ago. His court vision & passing ability is still very special.
-Kinsey is going to be fun. He made some very difficult finishes in transition look easy yesterday. I think he’ll have some games where he has a very sneaky 16-20 point games. He’ll get 4-6 in transition, 4-6 at the foul line, and make a couple of 3s and boom he’s looking at a 20pt game.
-Cam Brooks-Harris showed me some things yesterday. The redshirt year did him a lot of good. He’s gaining confidence right now and should give us some nice production off the bench.
-Iran Bennett is going to give us what you expect. My fear with him though is that when he’s on the floor and in the PnR game, we’ll see teams blitz the ball and dare him to beat them playing off of that. His FT shooting is concerning and teams might start fouling him often.
-An intriguing lineup yesterday showed Iran at the 5, Beyers at the 4, Williams at the 3, Kinsey the 2, & West @PG. Williams playing that 3 spot in that Austin Loop, spit up corner 3 role is intriguing to me. More size, athleticism, rebounding, defense, etc than Loop. I’ve gotten used to Dan using more of a guard/slasher type at the 3 spot with Burks, Watson, George, or Kinsey. Seeing Williams there yesterday, giving us that length at that spot, and seeing how much that spaces the floor again, I’m liking our big lineup more and I think Williams can really flourish there.
-Jarrod West is just a leader. Constantly directing & coaching while on the floor. He got hot and buried 4 threes in a row (1 was an Elmore-like step back). He started to come on and become more aggressive with the ball in his hand during the CIT last year. Yes, he’s limited in some aspects (one being his height), but he’s such a likable player.
-I like what I’m seeing from Beyers when he’s making the easy plays and playing within himself. He pulled up off the dribble and shot a handful of threes yesterday and they were just so unneeded. Early in the shot clock, off the dribble, not forcing the defense to stop our sets, etc. He can launch all day in catch & shoot situations in our offense. Hopefully #Danalytics makes him realize that pulling up off the dribble in early offense is not efficient basketball.
-I just don’t see Dajour Rucker helping is this season. I think a redshirt season, while allowing Dan to refine his skill set is much needed. He’s not long & not very quick. He has a solid body, but needs some better ball handling and a more consistent shot to go with it.
I’m always cautious to getting too high or low after a scrimmage. Are things looking good because their counterpart within the squad is bad (and vice-versa)? I came away yesterday feeling pretty good, but I’m not going to get too high on that until they can show it against an opponent. Regardless, I’m excited to watch Dan develop this team. I’m excited to watch these young pieces grow.
***************************************
Prior to the scrimmage, there was a nice walk through session of some defensive principle installations, lead by Coach Rigot. Some man & zone principles were shown, while explaining why we do what we do. I know forcing baseline has been a topic of conversation on here, but explaining how it’s designed to lead to traps and turnover opportunities was informative. I saw them go over more zone principles and we played more zone in the scrimmage than I’ve seen us use in the past. I think with our length, we’ll use it more to mix it up and give teams some different looks to help throw them off.
First of all, let me say that the “scrimmage” was somewhat uneventful. I get more out of practices where I can watch D’antoni coach, correct, and chew on some guys. He was mostly quiet during the scrimmage, where Mark Cline lead one team and Corny Jackson lead the other. 5:00 segments where D’antoni changed the teams between each segment. It was good to see the different combinations & matchups as the scrimmage went on. I didn’t take notes, so this is from memory. If anyone else was there and would like to add anything, please chime in.
-I questioned Andrew Taylor’s lead guard abilities after the first practice I saw a few weeks ago. Most of that practice was geared around half court sets. In the scrimmage, you could see more of what this kid can do and I’m really excited about his abilities. My concerned about our future lack of PG was calmed a little after yesterday.
-I was also pretty hard on Goran, the 7’0 Euro. He showed yesterday why people have bestowed some praise on him. He is athletic for his size and does have some skill. I think he’s getting used to the faster pace and more physical play and if he continues to progress, I think he can give us a few quality minutes in spurts by time we reach conference play. Keep an eye out on him and be patient early.
-I still like Marko Sarenac, but he needs to become more consistent as a scorer before we expect much from him. He’s a nice spot-up shooter, but off the dribble he can put up Nikolic-like shots. That’s not me being negative, just tempering some expectations I may have set a few weeks ago. His court vision & passing ability is still very special.
-Kinsey is going to be fun. He made some very difficult finishes in transition look easy yesterday. I think he’ll have some games where he has a very sneaky 16-20 point games. He’ll get 4-6 in transition, 4-6 at the foul line, and make a couple of 3s and boom he’s looking at a 20pt game.
-Cam Brooks-Harris showed me some things yesterday. The redshirt year did him a lot of good. He’s gaining confidence right now and should give us some nice production off the bench.
-Iran Bennett is going to give us what you expect. My fear with him though is that when he’s on the floor and in the PnR game, we’ll see teams blitz the ball and dare him to beat them playing off of that. His FT shooting is concerning and teams might start fouling him often.
-An intriguing lineup yesterday showed Iran at the 5, Beyers at the 4, Williams at the 3, Kinsey the 2, & West @PG. Williams playing that 3 spot in that Austin Loop, spit up corner 3 role is intriguing to me. More size, athleticism, rebounding, defense, etc than Loop. I’ve gotten used to Dan using more of a guard/slasher type at the 3 spot with Burks, Watson, George, or Kinsey. Seeing Williams there yesterday, giving us that length at that spot, and seeing how much that spaces the floor again, I’m liking our big lineup more and I think Williams can really flourish there.
-Jarrod West is just a leader. Constantly directing & coaching while on the floor. He got hot and buried 4 threes in a row (1 was an Elmore-like step back). He started to come on and become more aggressive with the ball in his hand during the CIT last year. Yes, he’s limited in some aspects (one being his height), but he’s such a likable player.
-I like what I’m seeing from Beyers when he’s making the easy plays and playing within himself. He pulled up off the dribble and shot a handful of threes yesterday and they were just so unneeded. Early in the shot clock, off the dribble, not forcing the defense to stop our sets, etc. He can launch all day in catch & shoot situations in our offense. Hopefully #Danalytics makes him realize that pulling up off the dribble in early offense is not efficient basketball.
-I just don’t see Dajour Rucker helping is this season. I think a redshirt season, while allowing Dan to refine his skill set is much needed. He’s not long & not very quick. He has a solid body, but needs some better ball handling and a more consistent shot to go with it.
I’m always cautious to getting too high or low after a scrimmage. Are things looking good because their counterpart within the squad is bad (and vice-versa)? I came away yesterday feeling pretty good, but I’m not going to get too high on that until they can show it against an opponent. Regardless, I’m excited to watch Dan develop this team. I’m excited to watch these young pieces grow.
they will be on the floor at the same time, many times. We will also see Taevion bringing the ball up many times. Danny doesn't use labels or position numbers much.
The thing you have to love about West is his defensive ability... I know that DD's system is built on out-scoring everyone but having a guard who can cover the ball 94 feet for long stretches of the game to put pressure on the opponent is a luxury we have.
That's where he was recruited to play. We would like to see that happen, but I will be the first to say that if he does, he needs to develop that head/ball fake and then dribble/drive to the rack.
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And there's also no truth to the rumor that DD is recruiting anyone named Barney for the backcourt duo of Andy and Barney.
Why not? After all, Herd football has already had a "Coke Head" combo!!
