The book is closed on Elijah Gertrude: when healthy, which is rare, he’s a very athletic, fluid guard who can be disruptive defensively and can attack the basket but he can’t shoot and his handle is a bit suspect. Because he’s not a true ballhandler, he’s not competing for minutes as a point guard with Mallory and Vide. So he’s got to play the 2 or 3. But he can’t shoot. At his size, there really isn’t a role for him to play if he can’t shoot. His defensive prowess alone isn’t going to earn him any minutes. Virginia can’t play a guard out on the wing that you don’t need to defend.
And Gertrude is competing for minutes in a crowded backcourt. He’s got four guards ahead of him who are all bigger than him in Lewis, Adekunle, Dixon, and Harmon. And they can all shoot. There is no way you’d play Gertrude over any of those shooters.
End of story, right?
But in the preseason, suddenly Gertrude CAN shoot.
Gertrude played well against Vandy, but I largely ignored that because it was a novelty outdoor exhibition in blinding daylight where no one shot well. I figured he got hot. But then against Richmond, he shot 3-for-5 from deep and scored 11 points. I sat up a bit. And then, last night against Villanova, he shot 5-for-6 from deep. That’s 8 for 11 in his last two games. And Odom says he’s been lighting it up in practice. And Odom has rewarded him with a ton of minutes. He played the fifth-most minutes against Richmond and the sixth-most minutes against Villanova.
But I keep reminding myself that it’s still just exhibition season. And Harmon has been recovering from a broken foot and got his first three minutes of play last night – and immediately scored six points on 2-2 shooting from deep.
Should I believe my own lying eyes? Is Gertude really ahead of Dixon and Harmon? Is he actually going to be a significant contributor this year? That would be the feel-good story of the year given his journey.
This was my (hopeful) answer to the thread premise.
My actual answer is that there are big differences for Elijah whether he’s a 20% shooter (liability), 30% shooter (Dallin hall shoot it if left open mode), or a 35% shooter.
I was worried it’d be 20% but the hot postseason makes me optimistic that 30% is more of a likely floor, fingers crossed.
It’s easy to forget that college basketball seasons are actually small sample sizes. Even if it is “fool’s gold”, it doesn’t mean he couldn’t ride a hot streak through an entire season. Just look at Justin Anderson’s last year.
Tbh I think this is what happened with Jacari White. I think in an 82 game season he would be insanely streaky and inconsistent, but for 30 games he just looks like a ridiculous shooter (which he is when hot, tbf).
I’ll always miss that insane verticality in his shot form
But I don’t think he has earned the trust to suffer a bad game or two, so that hot streak would have to be consistently hot, and right from the start. He’s 8-for-11 in the last two games. If he goes 0-11 in the next two games, he’ll still be shooting 36% in those four games, which is strong. For a player with a reputation as a shooter, you’d let him play through it. But Gertrude would be buried on the bench if that happens because he has a reputation as a poor shooter. So he’s got to start the season very, very hot. Unrealistically hot. The pressure is on. I think everyone is rooting for him but he has a lot to prove and his exhibition performance will be forgotten the moment they tip off against Drexel.
I would say that I’m glad that his talent is beginning to shine through. I see his shot is much more compact and consistent which I’m extremely happy for him. I was wondering if working with Malik and Jacari last year really helped him visualize/realize how he can be used and the types of shots that he can get.
This will be a WONDERFUL comeback story…
Not only him but adding Harmon and Martin Carerre and them being able to shoot really tightens up the backcourt even more. If we can just have Jan become a good defender and take care of the ball then that would be great.
Ideal world is Elijah is a great 6th man this year then starts next to Chance next year. Hard to imagine a a backcourt that would be more beloved by any fan base than one featuring a guy who overcame multiple injuries + stayed through 2 coaching changes and the hometown hero
Gertrude has been the biggest positive surprise during preseason for me (with Grünloh’s lackluster play being the biggest negative, I guess). Really hoping for Gertrude to carry his much improved game into the real season, and for Grünloh to step it up big time.
Although I didn’t see the game, I think we should take note of those steals. That suggests that he is feeling comfortable stressing those knees. Healed legs will certainly help a guys shooting stroke as well.