Taj79

Injuries happen. We just have no depth and the talent is weak to begin with.

Our problem seems to stem from that noted inability to adjust ..... anot not so much defensively. We get shut down offensively in the second half. Stop me if you've heard this before ...... get out to (large) halftime lead and see it all evaporate almost immediately in the second half. Many nights, it a double-digit lead; last night it was only three points. The opposition seems to be able to immediately decipher our strengths at half time and then adjust right away. Since we have no scorer who can create his own shot and score, we miss a few, they make a few, we start to press and panic, and boom, we are on the short end. Ford's entire offensive scheme seems predicated on that gawd-awful weave. Last night, NCState's guards were so physical that they manhandled Medley, Meadows and Hughes all over the back court and then the frontcourt. We were trying to start our pitiful offense at the halfcourt line! Zhang had a few high post posts well outside the three point arc. NCState knew if you shut out Jimerson, we are in deep trouble. Not once did we set picks or screens to help the inbound ball receiver. Not once did we run at Burns and force him to pass the ball out (well, maybe once and they got a three out of it). Ford (and his teams) do what they do and that is it. We don't have anyone we can rely to get us a score when we need it. I think NCState will be a bottom feeder int he ACC when all is said and done. As Mrs. Taj said, that game was painful to watch.

As I saw the game, the 22's didn't really meet up, did they?

@Soderball you reply to me and then you state "good grief man .... he sounds like the second coming of Anthony Bonner according to this analysis." What analysis? I surely didn't make one. I'm taking a "wait-n-see" approach with Ezewiro hoping (against likely hope) to be Wowed.

@HoosierPal: why four games? The guy has been practicing since the summer. Being in shape should not matter. Speed of the game might be an issue but this is not a Zhang/van Bussel clone but rather a guy who has been there before. His numbers at his two previous spots were mediocre to say the least but that's kind of why you transfer. All season I have heard ..... "if we only had Brad." Well, now we do. So I am watching him this game with great curiosity. Not setting the bar too high; focused on his rebounding and defensive presence to start. Are Meadows and Hughes playing?

Potomac Yards is just off the southern end of Reagan Airport along the Potomac. It is along the Blue and Yellow linbes of the DC Metro system and has ample current parking garages and lots for Reagan National. Hotels are bountiful as they are around all major airports. Capital One Arena is a nice, modern facility. It is bulls-eye middle of DC. And has nice night life and dining around it. The badder parts of DC are areas with an 'east' in it .... Northeast, Southeast. I echo Wilbon's cry about taking the so called 'city game' out of the city. Northern Virginia has no real connection to the Wizard (who does) and both Cap fans and Bullets fans had to drive out ot Landover, Md., when the teams played there at the Cap Center. Most see this as a momney grab on the part of Ted Leonis who owns both franchises but has done little in advancing the Wizards, other than the poltiically-correct name change. In the 26 years since the name change, the Wizards have been to the playoffs nine times and eliminated in the first round six times. They have never made it past the second round. I do think the better question is will the A10 be around in 2027 and if so, will it be a D1 conference?

I understand there is a guy playinbg for VCU who went to school with and played with Magassa. And how is he eligible?

On the edge of my seat for both the Pop Tarts Bowl and the Tony the Tiger Bowl.

@cheeseman: agree. Ford has blown this smoke for some time now .... always going to uptempo, always going to run-and-gun, always going to press. And he always resorts to what his 30+ years tell him to do ...... walk it up and play a halfcourt, slow tempo game. Run a weave, three or four passes, ball to your out-of-place 7-footer at top of th elane, return to point guard, and panic. This year we do however have three guys (Dalger, Hargrove, Jimerson) willing to take off towards the basket. Add Parker and it would be four. Ford is again playing his coachspeak role to the hilt.

People reading what they want to read and interpret as it fits them.

good points all. thanks.

Why can't a NIL deal be like a free agent contract? Sign here for four years. Why does a NIL deal have to be one year? Or does it? Maybe like a pro contract, if certain milestones are not met, you cut the kid after a year or two. The pros do it all the time. Why not us?

NIL is a farce; it's pay for play. Call it what it is. Drop the charade.

The best comment above since my last post is torch's. Jimerson would be fantastic as the third option. And that would be his role: third option scorer, distance shooter, zone buster. Much better and more complete than a Travis Relaford, Shawn Haughn, Trent Brown and other long range gunners. You can say Meadows, Parker and Jimerson are collectively good enough, but you also need to factor in two other guys who likely need to be well above average to compliment those three. Perkins his first year here. Brian Conkiln his senior year. Dwayne Evans. Even a Hasahn French. You can like Thames and Hughes all you want but they are essentially freshmen having played little to none all last year. It seems guys are who they are when they get here and rarely go higher. Conklin was a rare exception. Perkins game was what it was when he first stepped on the court. Ditto French. Goodwin. Collins. What I'm saying is based on the eye test, this is going to be a long year, possibly reminiscent of 9 or 10 years ago. We don't rebound. We don't defend. And we are scoring-challenged. Roster construction is at the base of this leaky foundation.

@willie: No. My original post said that every player on this team is at best a role player. You then moved on to 'complementary." I agreed that Jimerson is indeed that, but with the right role. I never said no one could start elsewhere. Jimerson does start here but he's overtaxed as not only a starter but 'the man." I'm surprised he doesn't drop from exhaustion by game's end.

@willie: I'm not arguing that. Jimmerson reminds me a lot of Doug Collins but Doug Collins wasn't going to win many games all by himself. Jimerson would be a great pickup next year for many Top Ten teams. Hell, I thought he'd be at UVa this year for sure.

@willie and I still stand by that. They start four of the same guys from last year in Brantly, Brickus and Shepard, and replaced Nickleberry and the Drame twins with Gill (who was there as well last year) and Jocius (a light Euro who was also there last year). On a team that went 15 and 19 and 7 and 11. Maybe the state of Philly hoops just ain't good this year. Maybe Dunphy has made some inroads. Whatever the case may be, they are the same team as last year only getting better results. And if college is indeed a guards' game, six of their seven players are guards. Three are seniors and two are juniors. They've lost tyo Duke (by 30) and in triple OT at Temple. Otherwise, they've played no one.

As a side note, my buddy, a staunch Nova devotee and grad, is bemoaning the fact that Nova has spent $3 million on its roster this year in NIL funds and just lost to St. Joe's and now Drexel in the Big Five. Could it be true that La Salle rules Philly hoops?

@willie the key word in your post is 'complementary.' Complementary to a decent big,. a decent Power 4, a decent small forward and a decent point. Sure, guys have their 'moments.' But that's what 'complementary' players do. Our lone decent stud has a broken foot. No one else approaches decent in my point of view on being a starter.

Every player on this roster is a role player. Nary a one has starter talent whatsoever. Ford recruited this mess. Then added to it with a non-existent offense and apparently no defensive fundamentals. This collection of players, coupled with the coach, is a disaster. I don't think Drake will beat us by 41 or 39 or whatever but it too will be quite ugly. A total program shakeup is needed right now. And you can't press when two of your starting guards are in the locker room. Ain't gonna happen.

Computers don't measure heart, skill, basketball IG, determination or coaching morons.

Friday 12/01: VCU loses at home to Norfolk State 63 to 60. South Carolins crushes Geedubya in SC.

@Soderball: thanks. Always seem to forget Rob Loe.

Short of Ian Voyoukous name me a big man who has come to SLU and "developed" over his stay here? French came in and went out the same player. Okoro the same. Linssen the same. Forrester the same. Foreman the same. Conklin was a rare exception and that took three years. Plus Brian was only 6'6''. Not a "big" by my definition. The guys that did develop as time progressed were Bess, Goodwin, Jimerson. Noted gym rats shooting, shooting, shooting day in and day out. Kind of makes sense why Medley might like it here under Ford.

Dayton hangs on to beat a decent SMU team at SMU. Holmes with 20 but star of game is Brea with a career high 22 including 6 of 8 from three. Temple took down La Salle in three overtimes and Wichita State beat Richmond by 12 in Wichita. Over on A10 Talk, Billikens now rankled 11th out of 15 team A10.