I really like Houston tho, is there a more physical team? They have a little Baylor in them.
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This is a really great point, Joe. If Casey and JAR panned out as our track record with players of that pedigree would indicate then we are in a completely different spot. Whatâs so crazy about our teams from 2013-2019 is just how few misses Tony had. A majority of the players recruited in that era either turned into a stud or at worst, a serviceable role player.
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Yep great team, but basically rebuilt from last year (at least they have a star) and we werenât even competitive, game over at first media TO. That is the thing that got me
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Sasser and Edwards are great guards and theyâre upperclassman.
Also they both hit really tough shots⌠I thought our defense was good.
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One more note in wrt to recruiting⌠CTB thought he would have Trey Murphy this year when he was recruiting.
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Whatâs frustrating about that is you just know Franklin would be coming off the bench if Murphy was here so we could run Kihei and Reece together
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He knew heading into last offseason and portal recruiting cycle that he wouldnât have Trey. We added Franklin but really couldâve used another guard who can play. Unless heâs actually committed to playing Carson and Taine a lot (Iâd prefer to see Taine get the minutes frankly)
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CTB is stubborn the way Roy Williams was stubborn, they just like their guys and they accepted it.
To me, this was the bright spot for the game. At the start of the game, he looked tentative and unsure. At times in the second half, he was a totally different player - tough, aggressive and confident. Will be enjoyable seeing him develop.
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Houston is a bit like Baylor, but without NBA upside guards. Their guards are just good for college. We got worked by a âjust goodâ college team ⌠for all the reasons the various posts have laid out well discussing our roster deficiencies. Iâm a critic of what Tonyâs doing with lineups, but even I acknowledge that the roster overall is the primary culprit.
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My takeaway from last nightâs game and this season at this point is you canât make Chicken Salad out of Chicken Sh$t.
Thatâs a harsh and admittedly unjust criticism of the current roster, but what I mean this team has a lower ceiling of potential than we are accustomed to seeing from CTB Virginia teams. I honestly believe CTB could move parts around Carson in, Kihei out, Taine pick the names, and the results against a team like Houston, is going to be the same result. Navy was an upset and that happens, but with the pieces UVA has available to them currently beating a quality top 25 team is going to be a struggle.
As Joe and several others have stated the misses on recruiting and a few transfers left the cupboards bare. Basketball is a tricky game in that one or two players can change a programs fortunes.
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Random observation: Taine has Braxâs touch from the mid range. He has a sweet stroke from the perimeter and has a couple crafty moves at the rim. But his mid range shots are all U-G-L-Y and furthermore, have no alibi.
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This is a small thing, but there is also a part of me that wonders if we made a mistake taking Hauser. I understand why you do it - he was great for the one year he played and we did eek out an ACC title (banners are always worth it, even in a year when the conference was terrible), but having him take a scholarship for two years and ward off any wings from wanting to commit here all so he could give us one year seems like an overall strategic mistake.
In my ideal world weâd only take transfers with 2+ years (and really preferably 3 years) available to us. Yes, the elimination of the red shirt year means you donât lose that extra year of scholarship and they can chip in right away, but our system is entirely based on experience and cohesion - we seem to be a team uniquely poorly suite to band aid type additions. The red shirt year was honestly great for what we do, but itâs gone now, so it is.
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I think youâre discrediting Edwards and Sasser a bit here.
Edwards has just as much upside that Butler had. Mitchell was a great college player but heâs not a sure thing in NBA, he was 23 in college⌠when I compare Sasser and Mitchell, I think theyâre both great college guards and Mitchell didnât have his breakout until the same age as Sasser is right now.
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Eh, weâll see. Davion did develop a bit later. Thatâs true.
Disagree- we got two wings when Hauser was here: one was drafted 17 by the Pels and the other was top 40 or so (JAR) but didnât work out. I think Henry Coleman would be a nice piece on this team but I donât think Hauserâs presence deterred him.
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I was meaning more in the 2019 recruiting class as opposed to Abdur-Rahim in the 2020 class, but fair. And Murphy is such a frustrating case. Gave us some great contributions and his example will certainly help with recruiting, but only got one year out of him, and half of it he was still trying to find his place in our system and the team. Still, was a great addition (who technically had two years of eligibility when we got him)
I still am not a fan of one-year transfers, but maybe Iâm just being stubborn.
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Even with the 2022 class coming in, we need to hit the transfer portal hard in the off season. Canât expect them to be major contributors day 1, especially if he doesnât play them heavily (like Taine Igor or Carson). Need a strong talent infusion.
We may go on a win streak in ACC play only because the ACC for the last 3 years has been mid-major level competition.
On this roster there isnât someone who is going to step up and appear to raise our teamâs ceiling. In 2019-2020 it was Mamadiâs offensive development.
In 2020-2021, it was the emergency of Trey Murphy.
So far Jayden and Armaan are who they are. Reece and Kihei are who they are playing with each other. Maybe Kadin or Igor getting minutes? idk
We need more BEEF, and toughness in the Darion Atkins, Akil Mitchell, Mamadi Diakite, athleticism wise (even if not as refined)- even Jayden Gardner is a bull, but would like someone a bit taller and more athletic. I would also take ANOTHER Jack Salt tough guy.
Agree about the portal. And your point about the 2022 class is why we need to play the hell out of Taine and Igor (and Carson I guess but I think Taineâs ceiling is higher). We need those guys ready to contribute next season and not getting their first real role like Shedrick is now in his 3rd year in the program
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