Come on man - that was not a prediction for Clark knowing Tony like I do. That was a wish - that we would actually play real sized lineups with real shooters alongside Reece. And I had no desire to watch Reece and Kihei on the floor together for 32 minutes a game. And I still donāt. Thereās a reason Reece averaged a triple double over his last 2 high school seasons. And itās not because he played more as there are only 32 minutes in a high school game.
Serious tangent off of this - one of Pomeroyās wackier ideas (not really āhisā, but I heard him talk about it) is to have āopenersā rather than starters. He has noticed that teams are very risk averse for the first several possessions. He made an analogy to the current (or recent) trend to use bullpen guys to start the game, and said maybe coaches should play their most high energy chuckers to start the game, and then let the better players come off the bench.
Itās a wacky idea, but some smart young coach in a low/mid major will probably start experimenting a bitā¦
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I like this a lot. The āsecond windā thing is real when you start. Never noticed it coming off the bench. And no one at UVa came off the bench more than your guy here Haney
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Video review of last night: Va Tech scored 62
Points allowed per player - includes blow byās that cause an assist to another player. Original primary defender gets the points allowed.
Caffaro: 14
Shedrick: 11
Clark: 11
Gardner: 10
Franklin: 5
Last minute fouls: 4
Beekman: 3 (all free throws) and first point was with 4:57 remaining in the game
Poindexter: 2
Stattmann: 2
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I think thereās some merit to that line of thought. In some ways CTB has done something similar to this with Papi and Kadin. I remember Big John was always said itās about who is going to finish the game not start the game. In the NBA Spo does that with Herro coming off the bench for the Heat heās a 6th man playing starters minutes,
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(New-ish topic) Next year thought: I havenāt seen any charting like in past years, but it seems we are playing like 2/3 to 75% or more base sides (aka blocker-mover). Whatever you think of the wisdom of our lineups, I think Sides is probably the best way to max out these guys on offense. The previous 3 years (natty year, defense year, and Hauser/Murphy year), we had de-emphasized sides and mixed in more ball screen (continuity and spread) and 3-man motion / inside triangle.
Last year, it seemed to me that Tony took some time to settle on his rotation, and then decided on a mix of offenses that maxed out their skills (heavy mix on 3-man, some spread ball screen, some sides). This year, we really didnāt change much (yes, some tweaks).
There are guys on our bench and guys we have coming in that would seem to be better at offenses we are featuring less this year, and some that might be better off in sides. I canāt remember what Igorās Orange Academy team ran, but I do remember Taine ran a lot of ball screens in FIBA.
Just another thing to keep in mind as we transition to thinking of offseason and next year stuff (not shutting the door on this year; just letting my mind wanderā¦) ā Who fits into what offense? And what offense fits which guys?
Intriguing questions:
- Traudt as a roll man? (thatās not really a question, but I did add a question mark)
- Where does Bond fit?
- McKneely seems like a natural fit for sides, but what about the other offenses?
- London Johnson is an example of someone whoās done an amazing job and is being recognized more and more, but I donāt watch much video until kids commit, so I donāt know what to expect there.
- Dunn is the promised child and would be perfect for any system.
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Game film #2:
Pedulla intentional foul on breakaway - called a common foul - should have been 2 FT"s for Clark plus the ball. Aluma fouled Gardner on an and 1 not called. Alleyne fouled Franklin off ball. Murphy fouled Gardner on a miss inside - not called. Cattoor made a 3 off an illegal screen by Murphy. Mutts hit Gardner on the wrist on a little jumper missed. Gardner called for a foul on Mutts when he was straight up. Shedrick was clearly fouled by Aluma on a dunk attempt. Sheds fouled by Murphy on an and 1 - not called. Also hilariously bad was the steal by Beekman in the last minute and they awarded the ball to Tech - were then forced to go to replay and had to reverse it. When they reversed it they also did not reset the shot clock when UVA possessed it. Not resetting the clock there has resulted in suspensions in some leagues.
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I think this is the play that they showed a replay and the announcers were just like āGreat play by Alumaā even though it was obvious that he hit Shedrickās forearm and never got ball.
I understand how refs can miss calls. I donāt really understand how announcers completely botch replay commentary even though it happens a lot.
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Saw some people say that was the worst game of Clarkās career. He was 1/9 with 2 turnovers.
Heās played 119 games.
Heās had as many as 9 FGA 43 times. Of those 43 games, he shot 50% or better 10 times.
In 55 games heās made 2 or fewer FGās.
Heās made more than 6 shots 3 times.
Heās had double digit assists twice and 17 total games of 7 assists or more.
46 games of 3 turnovers or more with a high of 9 turnovers.
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His hand literally only got as high as Shedās wrist.
I think itās because theyāre not just watching and reacting ā they know they have to say something. So theyāre watching while trying to come up with something to say. I.e., silence isnāt an option.
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Sean McDonough is the best. He would just come out and say that the ref blew the call. It seems like a lot of guys are afraid to admit the obvious.
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Agreed having done some on air work, itās a lot harder to fill that space in the moment esp when youāve been at it for an hour or more. There are obviously some who are better than others, but I get that it happens esp if youāre only getting 1 look at it and have are reading a stat sheet, listening to someone in your ear and keeping an eye on the live environment.
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I am definitely not backup QB guy if the starter performs well in games. I couldnāt care less how guys perform in practice if it doesnāt translate to the game. We talkinā 'bout practice?
Referring to my preferred starting lineups has nothing to do with Hoo i think is better individually. It has to do with putting together a rotation that actually works with pieces together on the floor at all times that fit together.
Are you serious about wanting a starting lineup of 6-2 - Reece, 6-3 - Isaac, 6-4 - Armaan, 6-5 - Jayden and 6-11 - Sheds?
Franklin at SF and Gardner at PF do not fit - plain and simple. Neither can shoot from 3 and Franklin is a terrible rebounder - not average or mediocre even - heās terrible. Heās a terrible shooter too. And practice makes donāt make one a good shooter.
When I said bring Gardner off the bench - I think you inferred he wouldnāt play much. Not what I was saying. But next year I donāt want him anywhere near the 33.3 minutes heās playing in ACC games this year.
Next year our best player all around at the start of the season is likely to be Reece. So why not put a team around him that maximizes his skills?
I love how immediately people react to Igor or Taine or Carson only on one end - who will they guard??? How about who will guard them??? Nobody worried about who Ty or Kyle would guard did they? News flash - Guy was a bad defender his whole time at UVA.
Igor and Taine are the best rebounders on the team after Papi, Sheds and Gardner - by all rebounding numbers - over the whole season and in ACC games only. Defense is not over before securing the rebound.
So yes - I prefer a starting lineup that doesnāt have a bunch of short guys at their positions that also canāt shoot.
Rotations I like, regardless of who starts.
Reece, Isaac M, Igor, Gardner, Sheds
Reece, Franklin, Murray, Traudt, Caffaro
Plug in Bond for energy or God forbid as a small ball 5 and we press or trap teams into oblivion. I dream of 3-4 minutes of all out pressure with a 5 of Reece, Isaac M, Dunn, Igor, Bond
I really donāt wanna see Gardner and Papi on the floor together at all. Unless the other 3 are knockdown shooters and athletic. Like Isaac. M, Igor and maybe Bond or Murray
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Are we sure Gardner canāt shoot the three ball? Given how automatic he is from the mid range, I got
to think he could be a 33% or better from the corner.
I understand why he doesnāt get the shots. His best asset is in the post and not sure how his handles are on the perimeter. But it would be nice to draw up a play for him 3-4 times per games.
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Gardner hit two nice 3ās against Iowa in the second half to jump start that comeback.
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If Gill didnāt get to shoot threes Gardener never will
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Gill was a 40% 3 point shooter before UVA and after.
He was a 67% 3 point shooter at UVAā¦ 2/3 on threes
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Va Tech has 2 sophomores and a freshman who all get double digit minutes per game all year long. Thatās one of the reasons they struggled early and why they are doing better now. Those guys are well seasoned and contributing a ton now.
2 of them are shooting 50% from three point land in ACC games. Imagine that??? Playing young talented shooters early and often so that you have quality depth and shooting later onā¦
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Hav brought to my attention and love the Pedulla kid. Think hes gonna be really good