But was Bond a player evaluation problem, or a gamble? Like there was probably a McKoy-esque average PF who was 6ā8" who we could have taken rather than gamble on Bond.
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Bond is going to be a good college playerā¦ā¦somewhere.
Am I the only one who thinks it ridiculous people are calling any player a bust or miss in the redshirt freshman year? What are we even doing?
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Iām not even of the opinion that the evaluations in particular were bad. The evaluations in terms of how well said players fit our schemes were bad, and I think thatās more of an indictment on the schemes than the players at this point.
I know that recruiting service rankings are by no means a be all/end all when it comes to categorizing players, but itās hard for me to accept that the problem is a talent issue when our rotation features seven former top 150 recruits, two transfers who were rated as 4 stars and Jake Groves who has proven himself to be a very capable role player. Put this same rotation in a more free flowing system that pressures the ball more, creates turnovers and takes advantage in transition off the dribble and I think we wouldnāt be having this discussion. And of course on the other side of that, you could argue if our staff truly does want to win running Blocker/Mover and packline with their methodical principles then we need to be more rigid in who weāre willing to take as fits within our system. Thatās how you get the Maliq Brown/Ian Schiefflin types in your program that establish a really solid base but might not give you a title ceiling, which is what we had from 2012-2017.
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Well see weāve had multiple 20+ point blowouts and he has done nothing in any game this season.
He is also 6ā5" and cannot shoot, dribble, or pass
I think a gamble. I think if he is able to convert to a true wing he has an incredibly high ceiling but until then heās a 6ā5 power forward who has worked on his 3pt shot (the form looks way better) but is afraid to take them in game at this point
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Because he is a redshirt freshman on a 5 year plan.
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Common H&T - is part of the 5 year plan him growing 3 inches?
??? No the plan is developing him into a wing
Why canāt he be a small ball 4?
I would LOVE for Bond to be a quality small ball 4 for us, but IMO that would require a change in scheme. If weāre still running B/M and packline that means youāre basically asking a 6ā5 guy to both set picks as a mover on offense and hedge ball screens on defense. Even if he gains 20-30 lbs. like Zay did thatās a tough ask if itās his regular role and not just situationally.
Much more likely to get PT in our system if heās able to develop some wing skills and play the 3. And honestly heās probably gonna have to do that regardless, most small ball 4ās nowadays are just bigger, switchable wings.
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Basically what @UVApride7 said. He absolutely can, but not in mover blocker.
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Disagree on ācanāt shootā. Heās absolutely butter from mid range. Needs to extend his range but heās at least got a really pretty jump shot.
He needs to develop into a wing. He handled the ball a lot in HS so I think he can get to a point where his handle is strong enough to be a 3. But right now his strengths and tendencies donāt align with his size. Great against a team like Tarleton State but an ACC team thatās throwing size at him, you see him lose trust in his skill set and settle for jumpers. Classic tweener right now.
Hope he stays because thereās a good player in there eventually
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it feels overly deterministic to forecast the trajectory of a first year after this season.
- heās young
- the offense has sucked
- heās only been in recent games in very difficult situations
Agree with some of the questions that need to be solved for Bond. But all seem relatively solvable with time. Or, at minimum, itās hard to make a case that the issues are completely unsolvable given how this year has gone.
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Thereās been some smoke that Mike Jones (Who?) is going to flip both Rodney Rice and Matthew Hodge to ODU over the last few days, today some more subliminal tweets but maybe just from the echo chamber.
Tyrell Ward might also transfer. Exactly what we are looking for at the 3 spot but I remember after we offered him going to his Instagram and seeing his profile pic be some rapper with huge stacks next to his head and was like āoh yeah probably notā . Georgetown since they are in a spending spree apparently.
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Edit: Trilly heard Maryland is the school trying to loosen the stone here. (but I think its been mentioned before the school that loosens the stone apparently doesnāt land the kid when they are actually in the portal often)
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Did Rodney Rice ever land anywhere? Or is he still a student at Tech?
ElMarco Jackson
Isaac McKneely
Tyrell Ward
Ian Schieffelein
Blake Buchanan?
Gertrude 6th man Hunter off the redshirt
Bliss
Bond/Tucker Anderson/Cofie (one of the latter two redshirts/ Tucker could be Tonyās chance to redshirt someone off the portal and pitch our shooters)
Robinson
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Thatās a great question. Know he isnāt on the team anymore but no idea if he left the school.
Rumors about Matthew Hodge switching to ODU have been swirling for a few days. I donāt know anything about it. But I think itās funny when stuff like this happens and totally destroys the excuses people make about recruits. Remember Villanova threw a huge NIL deal at Hodge? Thatās why nobody else stood a chance. But now suddenly ODU can top themā¦haha
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