Billiken Rich Posted December 4, 2003 Share Posted December 4, 2003 Good points. We get a little rattled too! If you could've heard the whining (myself included) about our early season losses last year you'd have thought the wailing wall was in St. Louis. We all want the Bills to be great. We'd all like Reggie to lead us as Marque did last year. Hopefully we can get it together by the end of this year as we did last year. PS We're all there hoping with ya and it is actully one hell of a compliment to Reg that we are comparing him to Marque! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
slufanskip Posted December 4, 2003 Share Posted December 4, 2003 Sorry ... but I think that if you are going to play the 4 or the 5 at this level then you have to be able to score some inside. So far JJ has not, he has been getting the ball at the 8-12 ft range and shooting what appears to be a nice soft jumpshot. Thats great... but he needs to get offensive boards and score inside and/or draw fouls, then convert. If we can't get him the ball inside, either due to his inability to get position or the guards inability to get the ball too him, then he needs to be able to take it there himself when he gets it outside. I know he is only a freshman ... but if he is on the floor he needs to be able to do it. We will not be a successful team with out a presence on the inside, and not just defense and putbacks. I missed the 3rd game but we couldn't do it in the first two. IMO that has something to do with our poor outside shooting so far. Teams have to respect our inside game to create space for the perimeter Official Billikens.com sponsor of H. Waldman Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tonka Posted December 4, 2003 Share Posted December 4, 2003 I hope Reggie has big shoulders as there is a LOT of pressure on him. I, for one, am personally expecting a ton from him! Disagree with me if you want, but I think this ENTIRE season comes down to him. If he can start lighting it up, I think it will make the difference between a bad season and a good season. I don't think there will be an in-between. I think a bad season will be 12 wins or less and I think a good season will be 18 wins or better. I really believe that will be the case, either we totally suck or we win 18 games. I use to say that if we do not make the tournament then it's only a mediocre season. I still beleive that in a lot of senses, but judging from things early, I think 18 wins will be a success this year. If Reggie has what Brad says he has and he can come out and really play, then that will help so much. I think that will make everyone else better. If teams start keying on him then others will hit their shots and may not have to create their own shots which the majority are incapable of doing. Also, maybe IO will not feel pressure and maybe relax and make things happen. Although, last year Marque performed and IO still sucked. Sloan will always play and fill in the gaps. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jjray Posted December 4, 2003 Author Share Posted December 4, 2003 >> Sorry ... but I think that if you are going to play the 4 or the 5 at this level then you have to be able to score some inside.<< Then you would not have allowed Kenny Brown to play center "at this level"? Is not JJ's current offensive ability ahead of KB's already in his freshman year? Granted, we would all wish for more ... but Santa does not hand out college big men for Xmas. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
slufanskip Posted December 4, 2003 Share Posted December 4, 2003 I am speaking purely about what we need offensively ... and you are right to be a top tier team Kenny Brown cannot be your center unless you have outstanding talent everywhere else, especially the 4. Obviouslry Santa does not hand out big men for xmas, he doesn't hand out wins either ... they come along with a dominant inside game. Official Billikens.com sponsor of H. Waldman Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
slufanskip Posted December 4, 2003 Share Posted December 4, 2003 Damn ... I had a 6'9' 240 lb power forward with a 36" vertical and the skill level of Carmelo Anthony on my wish list. I was then going to donate him to Brad in trade for my choice of seats at the new arena. Official Billikens.com sponsor of H. Waldman Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jjray Posted December 4, 2003 Author Share Posted December 4, 2003 > Damn ... I had a 6'9' 240 lb power forward with a 36" >vertical and the skill level of Carmelo Anthony on my wish >list. I was then going to donate him to Brad in trade for my >choice of seats at the new arena. > It never hurts to ask. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
billiken_roy Posted December 4, 2003 Share Posted December 4, 2003 while kenny brown did not have a lot of fancy post moves or a sweet 20 footer, he was able to convert putbacks and open five footers. all i think our center needs to be able to do is play strong defense, clog the middle, and rebound or at least contain his man so sloan or whomever else can rebound. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
slufanskip Posted December 4, 2003 Share Posted December 4, 2003 And with KB as our center ... we had a nice late season run ... but the final result was an NIT bid and a bad loss in the opening round. If we want to be a top-notch team ... we must do mor from the 4 and the 5. Official Billikens.com sponsor of H. Waldman Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
billiken_roy Posted December 4, 2003 Share Posted December 4, 2003 gotta walk before we can run. i would love to find the clone of the okafor kid from uconn, but i am also realistic and dont see that happening right away. that said, you would think we could match what we had. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jjray Posted December 4, 2003 Author Share Posted December 4, 2003 Agree with Roy. The goal is for the team to get incrementally better. KB was just a strong defender. If we can get strong defenders who are more athletic and can knock down the 5-10 footer, active on the boards on both ends, then we are improving. If we can get JJ types (assuming he grows as a defender by improving his positioning and brings the same effort level I saw during the WVa game) now, then maybe it puts us in the position a few years from now to get a real front line player who brings the whole-9 yards with a back-to-the-basket game from the blocks. We would all love to find a player like this but they are the most precious thing to possess in college basketball. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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