KM needs to lead, LIKE, RIGHT NOW

[Bobby Metzinger]

This coming from the guy who wanted to cut, waive, trade, etc.. Kyle Cassity. You are the biggest two faced rat on the planet. You are in no place to tell anyone what they should or shouldn't say. With that said , criticism is valid but people do seem to be piling on a bit

Kwamain Mitchell is one of the best recruits to ever play at SLU and with the exception of a few games this year, he's lived up to the fanfare. Sure he needs to step it up, but so does everyone else.

Kyle Cassity couldn't handle pressure if it was deep fried and served on a stick. You've been watching the same games I have.

[RiseAndGrind]

This crap on Kwamain is pretty bush league, fellas.

Not only has the kid more than likely hit a wall from a physical standpoint, he's probably dealt with a ton of psychological issues getting his mind right and back on the books too. He's gone through plenty of adversity and hasn't once badmouthed the school, the process or anything like that in public. He's kept his mouth shut, his head down and has my admiration for that.

Compared to his counterpart at Xavier, Kwamain is an exemplary student-athlete and a young man trying to get back on track. He doesn't run his mouth or try to be something he isn't (i.e. a gangsta).

Let's all just relax here a bit. He's a good kid and while he's struggling a bit, just put yourself in his kicks for a bit for some perspective.

Alrighty, so that settles it. Bobby says we can attack Kyle, but not Kwamain. Glad that is settled.

By the way, I hope we play in Louisville or Omaha - flying to Portland or Albuquerque is damn expensive.

[moytoy12]

I haven't re-read all the posts in this thread, but is anyone really bashing KM? I think the general consensus is that he isn't playing up to past standards and we're all hoping he gets back to that version.

Can we not critique players any longer?

And, metz, given your history of bashing players, spare me the b.s.

[RiseAndGrind]

I haven't re-read all the posts in this thread, but is anyone really bashing KM? I think the general consensus is that he isn't playing up to past standards and we're all hoping he gets back to that version.

Can we not critique players any longer?

And, metz, given your history of bashing players, spare me the b.s.

How dare you speak about our Jesuit brother in such terms. May the Glory of God grant you forgiveness.

[Cowboy]

-i don't know if KM needs to lead or follow but i would sure like to see more of the great parts of the soph KM than we are seeing

[Archy McNally]

This coming from the guy who wanted to cut, waive, trade, etc.. Kyle Cassity. You are the biggest two faced rat on the planet. You are in no place to tell anyone what they should or shouldn't say. With that said , criticism is valid but people do seem to be piling on a bit

Agreed. Rationalization to blame the 5th or 6th guy instead of one of the leaders and favorite players.

I am ecstatic the team has done this well this year. And I was hoping for the 1 road win for the last 7 days. And I think we are holding all the home games and winning at least 2 more on the road and possibly 3.

Saying that KM has disappointed. Essentially, his production has been replaced by BC. I am not going to talk about vague things like leadership and taking control. His production and play is not up to what he was as a Soph, much less what I expected from the "only player that Majerus had the NBA talk" and all the other stuff that was mentioned. His 2-pt shooting % is not very good, can't convert a layup recently, his FT % is poor, he is not penetrating enough to lead to baskets by himself and others, and he made some boneheaded fouls on those 3-ptrs. And his underperfomances are usually against the better teams. The only good team I thought he played well against was Washington, a game which he was great, not just good.

I would not mind if he actually pulled up for a mid-range jumper on the drive. When he does pass off the drive, more times than not, SLU gets a basket, so I would like to see more of it.

By the way, as much as KM has not met expectations, BC has exceeded them. I don't think those two items are correlated. If KM gets his game back, SLU can be really tough, instead of "On the Bubble".

I also want to say Ellis has been good, and a turnaround from last year. Offsetting that, I think RL has struggled for the most part, but I think he is just starting to come out of it.

[Tonka]

It's hard to keep up with all the threads. However, there always seems to be a few constants on Billikens.com - everybody gets all emotional and loses rationale when we lose and criticism of players often goes overboard.

I agree with Moy though that the remarks about KM have been pretty fair.

There's one thing that comes to mind when I think about KM - this is his first year playing without WR. Some players play better with other players in the lineup. Some players stand on their own no matter what and who they play with. KM and WR had big dreams for this team and now half of that equation has been removed. Should KM have been able to adjust by now? Probably. Is it really affecting him with WR gone? I have no idea. But, sometimes players get their confidence from their teammates.

Even with BC stepping up, WR was a different type of player and I do think it has affected KM more than we think.

Heck, I even think CR's best flashes came when WR was on the team.

Not making excuses for KM, but clearly something is missing.

[slu72]

Tonka, you may well have hit on something with your post. Still, I respect KM for coming back to SLU. He could have easily slid out of town and gone to UWGB or possibly even a BCS'er given the way he played his SO year. But he came back. and we're all glad he did. SLU really was the best place for redemption. I really hope he and RM had this rumored talk. RM, more than any of us here, knows what he had in KM two years ago. And quite possibly told him, you're just not playing w/ the passion and dedication you did then. Sometimes that's all it takes. A little talk between the 2 guys that can most help us get to where we want to go. I will say this about this thread, there are a lot of Bills fans who just dying for a dance invite. And, dammit, we want it bad, but only if we earn it. Contrary to what Broy thinks, SLU is still in "the little engine that could" class. And, Broy, I think RM recognizes this as well.

[thetorch]

All you need to know about this years Kwamain

He's led the team in scoring 3 times this year. 1 of those was against UI-Springfield.

In 09-10 he led the team in scoring 21 times.

[Tonka]

All you need to know about this years Kwamain

He's led the team in scoring 3 times this year. 1 of those was against UI-Springfield.

In 09-10 he led the team in scoring 21 times.

It's Willie Reed Syndrome (WRS). It can and will go away.

[slu72]

All you need to know about this years Kwamain

He's led the team in scoring 3 times this year. 1 of those was against UI-Springfield.

In 09-10 he led the team in scoring 21 times.

Not sure how WR syndrome plays into this, but one reason is definitely the emergence of Conk as an inside scorer. In Nov we saw how effective our ball movement was in creating open looks for BC and we took advantage of it. That's great basketball. Now teams know better how to game plan us and BC's production has taken a bit of a hit, a bit. Now's the time for the guards to start picking up the scoring slack. Look as long as KC's in there we're playing 4 v 5. If you don't think coaches are looking at him as nothing but a passer, you're sadly mistaken. Another thing that's maddening about KC is he's not all that great a distributor of the ball in the vein of driving inside and getting it to an open man. KM did this very effectively his SO year, plus his 3pt shot seemed more consistent. Sure would like to see more of KM going inside and either taking it to the hoop, dishing it off to a big, or kicking it out to an open CE, MM, or RL.