2023-2024 Season

[thetorch]

-with classes starting this week, some questions/comments I have for the season

-In the duh category, life beyond Yuri, Fred and JPerk. - We weren't that great with them, we aren't that great without them.

-Is it Larry? Cian? Meadows? Who runs the show most of the time? - Larry is the pg for this season.  Meadows, Parker will also handle the ball.  Cian will backup.

-Guessing no waiver meaning our bigs are young, how are they used? How long a leash? Who plays? - Dalger will end up playing most of our 5 minutes.  I think Zhang and Van Bussell will both be useable but for now only in short spurts.

-Speaking of a leash, who will have a short one and who will have a long one? - Jimerson has a long leash.  Parker will have a short one to the detriment of the team.

-Is our offense changed or are the young bigs going to handle the ball at the top of the key like we have seen?  If so, do they have free reign to shoot 3’s? will they know how to set legal screens? - Offense will look a lot different.

-In June on Frank’s show CFord said great things about Thames, does that translate to playing time? Yes he will get backup minutes on the wing and 4.

-How do we change the trend line of decreasing defensive efficiency?  A fix here would be a big help for the season. - On ball defense will improve with Hughes & Thames getting more minutes.  I can see us getting more steals but our rim protection will be nill.  Our DE will be worse than last year, no way around it.

-When teams throw a blanket on GibJim what’s our answer?  - Hargrove Obviously, he'll average 24/12 and be 1st team All A10.  Don't know why Ford never plays him.  But really it is Parker who will average double figures this year and to a lesser extent Meadows.

-Does CFord feel any heat?  Does his game behavior change?  Interaction with media change? - Already feeling the heat.  NCAAs or he loses his job.  No chance with this squad save for a miracle A10 tourney run.

-CMay was quoted in STLPD as saying “we have to take the next step of being in the NCAA Tournament and in position to make runs”  Just sayin’ - May shot himself in the foot by firing the womens coach.  He raised the bar for the athletic program. Now he wants to retain Ford or doesn't have the cash to buy him out when he needs to.  The Mens program should have minimum expectations of an NCAA tourney bid, year in year out.  Ford has not competed to that level.  May backing him may be a sign that the AD is the problem, not the coaches.  NCAA tourney or bust.  There are no consolation prizes.  If we want to stay alive in the changing landscape of NCAA athletics we have to make the tourney on a regular basis.  Any fan who isn't pushing for this now I hope you are happy when we are a glorified D-2 program.

[RUBillsFan]

13 hours ago, thetorch said:

-Is it Larry? Cian? Meadows? Who runs the show most of the time? - Larry is the pg for this season.  Meadows, Parker will also handle the ball.  Cian will backup.

Ford has shown that he doesn't have an issue with handing the PG duties to a freshman in the past with Goodwin and then Yuri.  I have a feeling it'll be closer to Larry & Cian splitting PG duties with Meadows and Parker handing the ball as some as well.  I do think Larry plays more than 1/2 the time & move off ball when Cian is in to play the point.

[VeniceMenace]

1 hour ago, RUBillsFan said:

Ford has shown that he doesn't have an issue with handing the PG duties to a freshman in the past with Goodwin and then Yuri.  I have a feeling it'll be closer to Larry & Cian splitting PG duties with Meadows and Parker handing the ball as some as well.  I do think Larry plays more than 1/2 the time & move off ball when Cian is in to play the point.

Parker didn’t get much PT last season as a shooting guard so missing the logic on how Ford will trust him enough to man the point.

[wgstl]

2 hours ago, VeniceMenace said:

Parker didn’t get much PT last season as a shooting guard so missing the logic on how Ford will trust him enough to man the point.

I think ford moves away from the one man show.  In limited minutes, I thought Parker did pretty well with the ball. I could easily see him being part of a committee where there isn't a true PG or when Cian isnt in.

[billiken_roy]

i will be shocked if parker plays a lot of point guard.   i think we are reasonably fine at the guard spots particularly at the wings.   and our main two point guards have fantastic skills just lack experience.  let them play.   our worries are in the lane.   we have zero expectations there.  

[thetorch]

6 hours ago, RUBillsFan said:

Ford has shown that he doesn't have an issue with handing the PG duties to a freshman in the past with Goodwin and then Yuri.  I have a feeling it'll be closer to Larry & Cian splitting PG duties with Meadows and Parker handing the ball as some as well.  I do think Larry plays more than 1/2 the time & move off ball when Cian is in to play the point.

My sources say Cian is down in the rotation. Not ready to give the keys to. Hughes has been strong and is taking the job.

 

[Aquinas]

7 hours ago, VeniceMenace said:

Parker didn’t get much PT last season as a shooting guard so missing the logic on how Ford will trust him enough to man the point.

Last year Ford was committed to Perkins as his play maker. Parker may be the only player we have, who can create his own shot.  Teams will focus on Jimmerson until we have an answer. 

 

[HoosierPal]

1 hour ago, Aquinas said:

Last year Ford was committed to Perkins as his play maker. Parker may be the only player we have, who can create his own shot.  Teams will focus on Jimmerson until we have an answer. 

 

Dalger can create off the dribble. (And Jimerson has only one m.)

[gobillsgo]

Any chance Curcic factors into the ball handling mix?   Frank labeled him a “difference maker” when hinting at his commitment.  Any truth to that, or is it typical Frank carrying the water for Ford and the program?   
 

He looks good in euro clips, but so did Ingvi and Andre. 

[wgstl]

18 minutes ago, gobillsgo said:

Any chance Curcic factors into the ball handling mix?   Frank labeled him a “difference maker” when hinting at his commitment.  Any truth to that, or is it typical Frank carrying the water for Ford and the program?   
 

He looks good in euro clips, but so did Ingvi and Andre. 

It’s Frank…

[Dr. Holly Hills]

When will we know if Ezewiro received a waiver?

[johnbj14]

32 minutes ago, gobillsgo said:

Any chance Curcic factors into the ball handling mix?   Frank labeled him a “difference maker” when hinting at his commitment.  Any truth to that, or is it typical Frank carrying the water for Ford and the program?   
 

He looks good in euro clips, but so did Ingvi and Andre. 

As much as it is nice having someone in the media to advocate for the program, Frank basically parrots whatever he’s told. Curcic could be a difference maker, but as a late arrival to campus, might not play a ton early on. 

[thetorch]

2 hours ago, gobillsgo said:

Any chance Curcic factors into the ball handling mix?   Frank labeled him a “difference maker” when hinting at his commitment.  Any truth to that, or is it typical Frank carrying the water for Ford and the program?   
 

He looks good in euro clips, but so did Ingvi and Andre. 

No one has seen him play yet. The staff is high on him. He very well could be in the mix.

[Aquinas]

Are there any practice reports on Van Bussel?

[WVBilliken]

38 minutes ago, Aquinas said:

Are there any practice reports on Van Bussel?

Last we saw he was in a "boot" about a month ago.  So ...... ???

[BuiltFordBills]

19 hours ago, WVBilliken said:

Last we saw he was in a "boot" about a month ago.  So ...... ???

At the soccer games on Thursday he was in a post-op shoe but moving fine. That doesn't mean he had surgery but may have had a foot sprain or toe injury.

[Cowboy II]

-one other question on the season, last year we were on 4 of the Friday Showcase games, how many this season? one would not surprise me

[wgstl]

13 minutes ago, Cowboy II said:

-one other question on the season, last year we were on 4 of the Friday Showcase games, how many this season? one would not surprise me

Im sure we will see UD and VCU on it, maybe even both UD games. I also really enjoy early Sunday games. Wouldn't mind one of those. 

[billikenbill]

Home game scheduled vs. Hofstra on 12-9. Hofstra was 25-10 last year with an NIT win over Rutgers. They return 9 key contributors. We’ll probably be a home dog for that one.

[Aquinas]

If I'm Ford, I'm setting the team up to run the A10 tournament table, as that is the only way we dance this year. In my view the only way we have a chance to run the table is with our international bigs playing big minutes at the 5. Dalger has to be a 4. If Dalger is our 5 we are cooked. We will be too small run the table or beat almost any tournament level team.. So, play the bigs and use the season to coach them up and gain experience. Don't worry about about the record. 

[VeniceMenace]

4 minutes ago, Aquinas said:

If I'm Ford, I'm setting the team up to run the A10 tournament table, as that is the only way we dance this year. In my view the only way we have a chance to run the table is with our international bigs playing big minutes at the 5. Dalger has to be a 4. If Dalger is our 5 we are cooked. We will be too small run the table or beat almost any tournament level team.. So, play the bigs and use the season to coach them up and gain experience. Don't worry about about the record. 

Agreed, if BE is ruled ineligible, which seems likely. Cal was awful last season but the top two bigs (seniors) were foreign players Harry obviously recruited…as was their top 3-point shooter, another foreigner…that projected A10 Freshman of the Year listing someone posted earlier is bulletin board material for Zhang Dynasty.

[wgstl]

If one player- who isn’t a big transfer - is the reason we’re saying the season will be bad, nvm. 

[HoosierPal]

[thetorch]

48 minutes ago, HoosierPal said:

Even though I think SLU will be mediocre at best this should be bulletin board material for Gibson. I think we could finish 10th and he'd still be in the running for POY.

[BrettJollyComedyHour]

8 hours ago, HoosierPal said:

I'm so tired of Dayton always being at the top of these damn things.