I dont think its that outrageous. Dante definitely looks more ready to impact the game. I dont think Gertrude redshirts but I also dont see how Gertrude helps us right off the bat. Dante Rohde serviceable playmakers. McKneely Rohde Groves Taine 3pt shooting. Dunn at the 3 and Leon for athleticism and length. Reece and Dante quickness as guard defenders.
This isn’t like last year where Traudt looked like a different level player over BVP over the Italy trip, blue-white scrimmage. Gertrude definitely the higher ceiling but definitely is rusty and also behind on adjusting to college game having just been cleared for 5 on 5 beginning of September.
I think if he works through it he can emerge midseason. Id be frustrated if Gertrude redshirts. I wont be frustrated if Gertrude clocks a few DNPs in close games but is at least competing to earn playing time.
Fwiw these notes are def injury/recovery related. Unless they’ve already agreed on a redshirt which seems highly unlikely given the recent statements from Bennett and Gertrude. We listed Bond and Traudt in pregame media notes. We’d do the same with Elijah if this was standard redshirt procedure (a few games then the talk).
I think it does in this case. He may not be projected to play now but could down the line during the season. Like Dunn. And it’s a different mindset when you are practicing to fight to earn playing time even if it’s limited. Plus the experience he gets on the court, even if limited, is much more meaningful in terms of psychological development than 1 million practice hours. This isn’t a raw prospect or a player who needs to add muscle to adjust to the college game. This is a top 50 prospect who is behind some and has some rust but can still impact the game; a less extreme version of this like Woldo having that injury and being hampered a little bit first half of the season but then catching fire. Or ty jerome and his double hip surgery or Dunn and his broken ankle recovery. Slow starts followed by exponential growths.
But now I see @haney typing and redshirts being mentioned so this thread is cursed and doomed. It’s coming…
I just don’t see how you leave a player like that on the bench , much less redshirt. He is probably still a little rusty so i hope Tony works him in where he can and by February we may have a beast. He’s a great defensive player so that should work in his favor. I believe he can help us this year big time
My concern with Harris is that he was an awful offensive player at Georgetown. Abysmal shooting percentages from both 2 and 3. So unless he’s massively improved on that front (to at least average), his defense will have to be superlative to just make him a net 0 in +/-. Absolutely fine with him as a third or fourth guard used strategically, maybe averaging 12-15 mins per game, but if he’s averaging 25-27, and squeezing out Elijah completely as a result, that’s just bad long term roster management.
Got it yeah. Dante is a perfect change of pace guard off the bench. I am hopeful from all the preseason churnings and behaviors that Dante will thrive in that kind of role. I dont think he’s getting 25+ minutes a game unless its a team with 3 small guards
I can say as far as Elijah goes the decision will be with him and his family. I dont know what they plan to do and if I did know I would not be able to share it anyway.
I personally dont think he would transfer either. And I cant wait to watch him on the court as a hoo!
Yeah I know you can never predict the future but Gertrude vibes a lot with Tony. Every interview he’s like “It’s privilege just to be at this institution and play for a man like Tony”. Kinda over the top, in a good way, like Bliss but without the social media activity. Seems to be really happy here regardless.
The real test, as we all know, is to see what his demeanor is like on the bench tomorrow. COVID and so on taught us we absolutely can read into it LOL
I think the worst problem was the 2021 class. There was no bench depth in 2022. The staff wasn’t able to evaluate anyone in the summer of 2020, and brought in no high schoolers from the USA. I doubt that Coach Bennett ever saw Murray or Milicic play in person. And, if there was a problem with Morsell and Shedrick, it was that they were poor fits. At least, Morsell was, and he’s proving that with his play at State. With Shedrick, who knows what he might have accomplished without the missed playing time. Stuff happens. Regardless, the staff is always going to take chances. Sometimes they work; sometimes they don’t. All recruiting is a crap shoot. And, none of this takes into account the unanticipated, premature departures of Jerome, Guy, and Murphey. While heading into the 2019 season, I think most of us assumed that Hunter was gone, but who was predicting that Jerome and Guy would enter the draft? When Murphey transferred to Virginia, I think most believed he’d be on the roster in in 2022 & 2023. Who was predicting he’d get his waiver, and that 2021 would be his only year? It’s an imperfect world in which we live.
Morsell would have been a fine fit had he not been 34% from the field and 20% from three. It’s as simple as that. He went from 22 min/game to 15 in his second year because he couldn’t hit the broad side of a barn.
The only reason he was a fit problem — hindsight only — is because he was in a slump out of which he never broke. In any offense — b/m, triangle, five out, four out — none of them.
I remember being in denial about Morsell’s shooting. Chalked it up to first year playing a role he probably wasn’t ready for. Arizona state game happens and I’m thinking we got a future star.
But so many of his shots just weren’t even close. Eventually I just conceded that he was never going to be a good shooter for us
