AB34 Posted December 14, 2004 Share Posted December 14, 2004 All of this may have been said before, and it may be rather elemetary. I think Clarke and Polk would compliment each other well. It's a small guard lineup, but I think it could work. I think it's a given that we need to let Polk play 30+ minutes a game. I think Clarke has shown some decent skills in the short time he's been given to play the past two years. It's clear to me that Drejaj is the same player he's been the first two years: for every good play he makes, he makes a bad one and he can go on a tear and make some shots and nice passes but also can go cold and play sloppy. Why not see if Clarke can do better? And why shouldn't Meyer be given a chance to play? I know it may be a case of "he's not performing in practice." He averaged 28 in high school; he's got to have some offensive skills that could be useful, especially for this inept team. And I know this has definitely been said before, but we lack that 6-8 beast who finishes strong. Ohanon is too soft and for whatever reason, Frericks can't jump. We need that guy who gets the offensive rebound and goes up and slams it. Hard to find, I know. At this point, I think a .500 season would be acceptable, given the start and how tough the conference may be. It's not what I hoped for, but I'd take it and our chances in the CUSA tourney and move to next year. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NYBill Posted December 14, 2004 Share Posted December 14, 2004 I think a .500 season would be a tremendous rebound. I don't think we'll see double digit wins this season. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jjray Posted December 14, 2004 Share Posted December 14, 2004 You are not suggesting Clarke takes minutes from Reggie Bryant are you? Clarke is listed at 6'4" so he is not a small guard. A small lineup would be Polk / Bryant in the backcourt, Clarke at SF (backup up by Meyer), Newborne at 4 (backed up by JJ), and Izik at center. This is the most athletic, offensive minded lineup we can muster. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
billiken_roy Posted December 14, 2004 Share Posted December 14, 2004 ab34 said, "I think it's a given that we need to let Polk play 30+ minutes a game." here are two players per game statistics: A B fg%...38%....30% 3pt%..31%....18% ft%...88%....57% reb....4......2 Asst...2......4 to.....2......3 stls...2......2 guess which one is polk and which one is drejaj. the point is, your given is based on potential of future years, not current play. the fact is, polk is not a given based on actual numbers. the problem of this team is not our guards. it is our inside players. they make more shots, convert putbacks, defend better, it takes pressure off our guards and it wins these close games. drejaj and bryant have as many rebounds as any two of our bigs. that is damn sad. couple that with ian, tom and bryce shooting a combined 31% from the field, there is our problem. while i agree our guards need to be better as well if we want to go to the ncaa tourney, right now i just want to win as many games as we lose, and to do that, we got to fix the inside imo. izik and newborne are serviceable, but the other three are a gaping hole that is killing us. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jjray Posted December 14, 2004 Share Posted December 14, 2004 Why don't we just bench our 3 centers and see what happens? Can it get any worse? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
billiken_roy Posted December 14, 2004 Share Posted December 14, 2004 i have thought about that. letting izik play center and newborne at the pf. i fear that we will get out rebounded by everyone and be dominated by teams with strong inside players. but on the other hand, a loss is a loss and maybe that is the answer. with justin johnson getting first look off the bench. right now i have zero confidence in the three centers contributing much this year. bryce and ian could do the most good in the weight room and regular vists with a nutritionalist imo. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AB34 Posted December 14, 2004 Author Share Posted December 14, 2004 Hey it worked with Donnie Dobbs, Donnie Cambell, and The Admiral in 94 and 95. Bottom line is this team is frustrating. Rboy, you're right, the numbers don't back my argument and I'm basing it on the future. I think you've got to let Polk play this out though. He'll be so good. So quick. Sometimes it almost looks like he think he's with Vashon players. Like there was one play in the Zags game where he had a steal and was one on two at halfcourt. At Vashon, two guys would have busted their tails to fill the wings and go in for a dunk. That play, no one followed him, he dribbled into the lane and no one was around. Anyway, just trying to get some talk going about lineup combos, because it certainly doesn't seem like Soderberg has an idea right now of what works. Hope it's figured out on Wed. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
billiken_roy Posted December 14, 2004 Share Posted December 14, 2004 i have no problem with stating that polk plays to get experience for the future, but the way i read your original post i got the impression you were saying he had more than earned it with his play thus far. that is far from the truth. of course, neither has drejaj. neither has set the world on fire. but one would be pretty tunnel visioned to not admit that if they both suck play the upside. and at this point, on sheer athleticism, polk is the better choice. but again, it isnt because he has outplayed drejaj thus far. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
davidnark Posted December 14, 2004 Share Posted December 14, 2004 Yes, but one player has all of a halfdozen games under his belt and is still adjusting to the speed, size, and strength of D1 ball, along with a brand new offensive and defensive system. Before the season is through, his numbers should go way up. The other player is a third year veteren who doesn't have the athleticism or natural shooting ability to bring much more to the table. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alonzo P Hawk Posted December 14, 2004 Share Posted December 14, 2004 where is herenow when you need some humor before your last final? i want to hear some drejaj talk. ------------------------------------------------------------ *Official Billikens.com sponsor of Mike Beczkala Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cowboy Posted December 14, 2004 Share Posted December 14, 2004 "I have no problem with stating that polk plays to get experience for the future" B-Roy, does this line of thinking go for any other players? If not, who is going to play with DP in the future? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
guest Posted December 14, 2004 Share Posted December 14, 2004 izik at center newbourne at power forward polk, drejaj, reg this is the line up we have been using down the stretch in all of these first few games, these guys played the majority of the minutes in the second half. i say stay with it, it can't get any worse. i know everyone is panicing, i'm going nuts, but every game we have had is close, the only one game we got blown out was Gonzaga, milwaulkee beat us by ten, two good teams, gonzaga has a couple nba guys, milwaulkee, we hung in until about two minutes left.don't give up the season yet, the out of conference games are meant to prepare us for the conference. shots will fall just keep shooting and defense wins championships, consist defense is what we got. just keep encouraging these guys, and lets go blazing into conference play. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
billiken_roy Posted December 14, 2004 Share Posted December 14, 2004 still david, the fact is that drejaj's stats right now are better than polk's. marginally, but better. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
guest Posted December 14, 2004 Share Posted December 14, 2004 you want to here drejaj talk huh?, well here it goes, about time he went into the starting line up, yeah he laid an egg, but, was agressive about time.0-7 4 assists and 3 tos 18 minutes heres a little more humor for ya -- the last time we won DREJAJ had double digits, in matter that was the last time he started, now oh yeah the last 2 out of 9 games slu won drejaj had double digits. going back into that last two nit games last year.theres some humor. hope you all did well in your finals have a happy hanukah and a merry christmas and a happy new year. HAVE A GREAT WINTER BREAK. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jjray Posted December 14, 2004 Share Posted December 14, 2004 >>izik at center newbourne at power forward polk, drejaj, reg<< I was thinking: Izik © sub Frericks Newborne (PF) sub Johnson Clarke (3) sub Meyer, Brown Bryant (2) sub Clarke Polk (1) sub Drejaj That's the most offense we can get on the floor with the most athletic players. Give them extended minutes together to bond as a unit. Just see what happens. As our season is pretty much a wash, I would be tempted to sit Tom and play Ian / Husak to build upon for next season. Getting a read on JJ for next year is crucial. If he can be made to feel a part of the program and contribute in a meaningful way this season, he could be an important part of next year's team. That would allow us to take a freshman PF instead of being forced to look for another juco. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
slufanskip Posted December 14, 2004 Share Posted December 14, 2004 A point guards play isn't about stats ... its about running the offense. I know you have watched the games and should be able to see that Polk is a much more creative pg than Drejaj. Polk has been getting the guys the shots, we just cannot make them. If the team shoots 40% I would bet Polk would have 5.5 - 6 assists per game with 3 turnovers per game for close to a 2-1 ratio. We would also have quite a few more wins and this wouldn't be an issue. We are missing shots that HS kids should make that is not on DP. The problem I have with Polk is his own shooting percentage ... especially at the line and from the 3. Those are open looks that the shouldn't be any difference from HS. He has to make those. Official Billikens.com sponsor of H. Waldman Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Quality Is Job 1 Posted December 14, 2004 Share Posted December 14, 2004 The season is NOT a wash. This team IS better than its 1-6 record. We cannot just mail it in. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Box and Won Posted December 14, 2004 Share Posted December 14, 2004 I like your thinking. I think this team is capable of putting a nice run together at some point this season. Let's not lose hope already. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jjray Posted December 14, 2004 Share Posted December 14, 2004 >The season is NOT a wash. This team IS better than its 1-6 >record. We cannot just mail it in. I did not say "mail it in". What I am talking about is making a decision to prepare the team for next year as opposed to making W v. Ls paramount this year. An argument can be made for either course. Question: Is it more important to the team as whole and its future to give minutes to Ian & Bryce to see if they improve as the season progresses (and / or who offers the most as the starting center next year) or to play Tom who right now is only marginally better than our other two centers and who is leaving after the season? Should more concern be given to developing Justin Johnson as a player with PT this season (and finding out if he will respond as a player to getting more minutes) even if coach believes the team may play maginally better placing the minutes elsewhere? My guess is that coach (being ultra competitive) is only thinking about how to make the team win this year as opposed to next season. Personally, I'd bump up the minutes for the younger players to see what they bring and to gather experience. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tonka Posted December 15, 2004 Share Posted December 15, 2004 Give me Husak and Ian for a summer. I will bulk them up. As far as big man skills in the middle, I will have to defer. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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