Swiss tastes good, but has holes in it..
Same with this KU team.
Offense tastes good.
But no trey ball or offensive rebounding or protection.
Defence tastes good.
But who can guard a DI big?
Passing and ball handling taste good.
But holes in protection.
KU memes @KUmemes · Nov 10
"@MedcalfByESPN: Who is in your Final Four right now?"
KU. A team that loses to KU in Final 4. A team that loses to KU in Championship. Team
I was unavoidably detained (Bill Murray Caddyshack voice) during the game last nite but watched replay on the WatchESPN app later.
I ALWAYS love the Jayhawks but this team has some questions. I thought last nites game showed some good signs of experience (couple lobs) but i keep worrying we're just so short inside. How can we defend against UK?
We are gonna need to play with more intensity than our opponents and not turn the ball over. Hitting 5-10 threes per game would also help.
Do you think it at all unusual that so many EST Media-Gaming Complex folks are picking us so high, when we are so short inside, and so short of proven trifectation, when in prior years we had so much experience and so much talent and had so many of the pieces in previous and they underreported KU?
Rose colored glasses on: they have learned their lessons underestimating Self and the Father of All Basketball Programs.
Rose colored glasses off: bettor expectations are being inflated in order pop them at the right time.
Its a hypothesis, of course.
But media ether seems unusually thick this season.
Notice that our steadfast man of basketball candor, Jay Bilas, the man who once spoke candidly about referees managing game length by whistle management, does NOT pick KU in his Top Five teams this season.
I hear you. They were all so hesitant to pick us last year with all the talent of Wiggins & Joel. Maybe they have come to the realization that once every so often if they pick us they might get it right? LOL. No, I think Myron is just considering what the potential of the team will be by the time March rolls around.
The probabilities are the team will still be short inside in March.
Traylor and Ellis are upper classmen likely past their growth spurts. Lucas and Mickelson seem past theirs too and Lucas and Mickelson seem to be viewed by Self as 4th and 5th backups.
Cliff, apparently one of the top three in the big man rotation might grow, but he looks pretty darned physically mature,doesn't he?
Oubre? He might add an inch, if Self decides to play him out of position at the 4, because he can't shoot the trey.
But bottom line, if Myron likes our chances in March it must be because he likes short teams, that don't offensive rebound, and that don't shoot the trey very well unless they bring in guys that are still young enough to be prone to TOs.
Hard for me to read Myron, except to say that he has never appeared as friendly to the KU basketball program, as say, Jay Bilas.
No doubt it was the new forgiving, let the treys fly, Bill Self.
No doubt Svi will start against UCSB, because, well, because Bill is just so laid back about shooting now.
Everyone on KU is now a "volume shooter," like Conner Frankamp. :-)
While watching the first 10 minutes at a Tanners because of of TWC blackout included with the ESPN3 blackout, I was thinking you were right Jaybate, They could easily lose to UCSB. After running out of beer money, I listened on the radio as they went over 100 pts. With all the Basketball savants on this sight, can anyone, with certainty, pick the starting line for Friday?
We really don't know how much more Coach Self want to test different lineups. Keep in mind that last night he twice replaced 4 players at a time and had 4 freshmen of the floor.
I t really depend on whether he wants to match up with the opponent or he wants the opponent to match up with KU and how much experience he wants to give to Svi. I would guess that a line up of Mason, Graham, Selden, Ellis and Lucas is possible with maybe Greene replacing Graham. Other than the fouls, Lucas played very well last night and I think he earned a starting spot. Having said that, at this stage anything is possible. I think Coach Self will follow the fouls issue with the bigs closely; way too many against ESU, think how that translates against UK...scary.
We are about to find out how dedicated Bill Self is to letting the trey ball fly this season. From strictly strategic and tactical terms, with Frankamp gone, and Greene in one degree of post concussion vulnerability, or another, Self really has to seriously consider starting Svi again, even though Svi failed as a volume shooter in his first outing. Svi is the only guy left that can handle the ball from the wing AND have a prayer of becoming a 40% trifectate. Man did Conner leaving and Greene's dinger make this team vulnerable to Saggy Spandex Defense!!!!
Its not enough that Devonte can shoot open trey looks (if he really can at D1 speeds and levels of guarding and violence) and hit his share. Someone on the other wing has to be able to, also. So far, Selden looks very unconfident in his trey, less so than last season, which surprises heck out of me, and makes me wonder about his knee rehab.
And Devonte is going to be needed to fill for Frank, and play with Frank frequently, in order to keep the ball handling level high enough to keep the opponents from just triple teaming our short bigs and ignoring the trey ball. If we are not big inside, and not great trey ballers, then we have to have a second point guard that can attack from one pass away to keep some kind of pressure on defenses not to overplay us everywhere. The off-ball point guard has to be a threat to take a pass and get in the lane, or go to iron, or it is going to be 5 defenders on our two post men.
So: Svi is the answer, except that he was not the answer against ESU, which is pretty scary looking down the road.
IMHO, Self really has no choice but to start Svi again against UCSB and pray Svi can get untracked.
The feeds of Svi playing back in Eurasian ball indicated that he was the quintessential volume shooter. Volume shooters are streaky shooters that can go 1-7 and 6-7, so you have to give them their 1-7s to get their 6-7s.
If Self were NOT to start Svi, then he would basically be voting no confidence and doing with Svi more or less what he did with players last year, which he has explictly indicated he did not intend to do.
(Note: I have always figured that he went public with that to prepare fans for him leaving one volume shooter in, or another in for some 1-7 games and starting them again the next game.
Self does not dare go into Indy without a credible trey baller. It would be an epic blow out.
And even if Self does not start Svi, he has to bring him in with 17-15 minutes to go in the first half if KU is not separating with the efficient passing game.
@jaybate-1.0 Looks to be Svi or Greene. Gotta hope that one is on fire in Indy; preferably both. With Frankamp's defection, the door opens wide for Svi or Greene to capitalize on promise. The probable scenario will test Bill Self like never before in his Kansas tenure.
@JayHawkFanToo I thought Lucas looked exceptional. His demeanor shouted poise, confidence, and determination. He has really grown up, hasn't he?
So many are concerned about the height of this team. Relax no really Relax. Here lets blow the dust of this old relic of a saying. Ah here it is.
It's not the size of the dog in the fight, its the size of the fight in the dog that matters.
Rebounding and defending is more than just height and size. Sure it helps but Rebounding and defending is mostly about heart. The willingness to do the dirty work. The desire to rip somebodies arm if they even try to take that ball from you. KU is going to be fine.
"The feeds of Svi playing back in Eurasian ball indicated that he was the quintessential volume shooter. Volume shooters are streaky shooters that can go 1-7 and 6-7, so you have to give them their 1-7s to get their 6-7s. "
Exactly. And now you know why Conner left his dream school. Conner was a volume shooter but he wasn't going to be developed as a volume shooter at Kansas. My guess is Svi will be developed to get up more shots and approach the status of "volume shooter."
I'm sure it took a complete slap in the face for Conner to leave Kansas.
@DoubleDD - thank you for your post! I'm glad I'm not the only one willing to defend the concept that the fight in the dog is most important! Calipari isn't counting on teams to think this way. He intends to intimidate teams with their size so they will take the wrong approach to playing them, and will basically hand Calipari a freebie win by focusing on playing "tall ball" when they should focus on their advantages at "small ball."
What do you consider a volume shooter? 15 shots per game? 20? 25? 30?
@jaybate-1.0 Regarding Selden, I think his hesitancy is based on the change to his shot .. shooting from out front vs. pulling it back over his head, like he did last season (and probably his entire life). I think that it will make him a better shooter when all is done this season. His shot looks great from a fundamental standpoint.
@JayHawkFanToo @drgnslayr Volume shooter -- see Andrew Wiggins. The 6 of 14 shooting night, two of them three pointers, plus 4 free throws made = 18 points. The volume shooter comment was made by Self to refer to the studs in high school who shoot in bunches. That's all. They score massively because they shoot massively. No way they can do that in college.
My comment was in relation to Svi who was referred to as a volume shooter. In looking at his record, the only time he took double figure shots was when he played for the under 16 team here he was by far the better player and expected to take a lot of shots and score a lot, With the under 18, the National team and the professional teams he played, he averaged well under 10 shots per game (6-7???); not exactly what you would call a volume shooter. Also, his average from the 3 fluctuated wildly between games and with all games considered, his average from 3 probably slightly over 0.300, not a slouch but not 3 point ace either. This information is available on various sites
Unfortunately, the site where is used to get all the detailed stats now requires registration and a fee and I am not about to pay to get stats from East European country Leagues. It is not a big deal either.