@JayHawkFanToo I concur with you
AsadZ
2224 posts
I am a big Alex Smith fan and was hoping to see him back in KC but considering his age and contract value this move by Chiefs was a no brainer, it had to be made.
@BShark You are only taking 2pt into consideration. I am certain you know MGs 3pt % is at .185. Opposing teams don't even guard him on the perimeter. By taking both 2pt and 3pt into consideration Cunliffe is shooting almost 5% better than MG in a very limited role.
Marcus D is solid but his O is terrible, he just can't score. That puts a lot of pressure on other 4 players. Self is being irrational here.
Good for Cain although it is much more than what was being predicted for him. I wish him well. Hosmer should be next in line.
@BShark Garrett is a liability on Offense, his rebounding and D is solid but the kid just can't score. Yesterday he even missed many FTs, almost cost us the game. One easy way to get Sam on the court is by giving some of MG's minutes to Sam.
@HighEliteMajor I feel by giving minutes to both, each player has the capability to help in March. They have their strengths and shortcomings, one is strong in D/rebounding and other on Offense. I think both will help in March but both need minutes especially Sam for his confidence.
@HighEliteMajor I concur with your comments. I think Self should give some of his minutes to Sam. I feel it would bring more competition and would provide meaningful minutes to Sam to showcase his abilities and increase his confidence.
@HighEliteMajor What's your take on giving some of Marcus G minutes to Sam C?
Considering our thin bench and the large number of minutes being played by our guards, I was expecting Cunliffe to get more minutes.
I see several benefits, give some breathing room to other guards, give him PT to polish his game for down the stretch, provide more competition etc. While Garrett is good on D and rebounds he is a big liability on Offense. Self can give some of Garett's minutes to Sam. It will only benefit him and KU.
I thought KU played quite well even in the first half. They beat the press much better than previous years. Their D was really solid. They took away WV strength, offensive rebounding, and made them into a jump shooting team.
I thought Self had an excellent game plan and execution by players was good. The few TOs in the early stages can be expected, more mental lapses.
@jaybate-1.0 Shoot lots of 3s, keep firing away from downtown.
Folks, I have a question about Sam Cunliffe, I expected more minutes for him. He is extremely athletic and plays solid D thus lack of PT is perplexing for me.
How things turnaround in college BB is amazing, a few months ago we were looking really good regarding our depth in front line and now we are thinner than a razor.
At that time Self most likely told him that he will be 3rd or 4th option, can't blame either one, decision made sense for both parties.
In a different thread I had brought up for discussion possibility of Mitch red shirting next year. Looking at next year's roster and assuming Dok is back, simply going by talent level Mitch will be our 4th or 5th Big after Dok, Lawson brothers, Silvio. With this in mind and considering our deep guard situation it is safe to assume that Self will play 4 guard line up majority of times. Barring any unforeseen situation and/or injury one can assume that Mitch will not be getting more than 10 minutes a game.
Mitch is a great kid. He plays with tremendous energy and passion. But he is not very big, even Self said it after the game last night. This year Self has no choice but to play Mitch. The situation will be different next year. If his minutes will be limited why not take the opportunity and improve your game and becoming bigger and stronger and provide greater contribution to the team in years 3 and 4. We have seen this formula work with other players - Releford, Lucas, Morningstar, Traylor as an example.
@HighEliteMajor Alex had an excellent year and no matter how much we as fans would want to keep him business circumstances are dictating to go in another direction provided we get decent return.
Regarding Andy Reid, I give him full credit for turning around the culture and environment in KC. He took over a 2-014 team and has made playoffs in 4 out of his 5 years. He is a very good coach. At the same time I feel that he becomes very conservative in critical situations especially when stakes are high. This was his pattern at Philly as well.
How can we explain H2 meltdown in yesterday's game, in a playoff at home, great home field advantage at Arrowhead one of the loudest stadiums, when you are up by 18 points. Titans made adjustments during half time and Chiefs could not do anything. This loss stings.
This game is on Reid, no way should we lose with such a lead. The play calling in H2 was terrible. If a trade needs to be made Hunt needs to wake up and trade Reid.
@drgnslayr You have raised some valid points especially regarding KU's solid compliance department. I would only add that KU should do a better job of vetting out these issues so we do not have to get Compliance involved. Now KU may be doing its best and the issues we have experienced may be unavoidable, I am not certain.
@jaybate-1-0 has raised some points that needs to be looked into, is KU getting left over elite talent in the likes of Cliff, Diallo, Preston etc. that other top schools in the likes of UK, AZ, Duke, UNC etc. were already aware and as such did not pursue these players?
Is there something else going on behind the scenes that is causing these issues?
Royals traded Soria and Alexander for couple of prospects from Dodgers - Alexander to Dodgers and Soria to White Sox. I like Soria trade but I wish we had kept Alexander. But this is a harsh reality of a re-building process.
@BeddieKU23 You raise an interesting point, is KU at fault here by recruiting players with issues that is causing a problem. Should KU be doing a better job of vetting.
When recruiting top talent we are going against UK, Duke, AZ etc. and it does seem that high ranked players going to other schools do not have so many issues that we seem to be having.
It appears that it takes forever for NCAA to make ruling on KU players, recall situation with Cliff, Diallo and now Preston. There is also an impression that NCAA treatment on KU is harsher than other big CBB programs, recall how UNC got away with academic fraud case.
Thus I am wondering if NCAA is biased against KU? If so why would this be the case. Is our connection with Adidas versus Nike has anything to do with it? Or is it simply not true and some KU fans have a wrong sentimental feeling on this issue?
@Kcmatt7 I see what you are saying, the positives with Hosmer are that he is still young and he is an excellent player in the clubhouse. He is a perfect player to groom some of the younger guys we should be seeing through the next rebuild. He also has excellent chemistry with Salvy.
I agree that it’s great for Glass to make such an offer for Hos, most lucrative in Royals history.
@DCHawker I see what you are saying although Self is playing 4-1 with 7 man rotation, small ball, and he has been preaching the team to play fast. I believe these extended minutes, high tempo flavor has taken a big toll on the guards and with Dok's back issues the problem is getting worse.
Your post does let me think about another issue? Hudy is one of the best in business but looking at the number of injuries we face every year are we over training in the offseason and during the season, and is it taking a further toll on our players when rotation is so thin? Should KU be evaluating correlation of injuries to its conditioning program to make necessary adjustments?
This is a good article from Jesse Newell. He has made several valid points about this team:
The reality is this: These Jayhawks have been put in a tough spot because of a roster crunch. Mental toughness can only help KU so much.
The Jayhawks are stuck in a vicious cycle. With only two big men, they have to play small. And if they play small, they have to play with constant energy to be effective defensively. And to have constant energy, they need a breather every once in a while.
And because there are only two big men … there’s no break. Perhaps it’s no surprise that the almost-expected Allen Fieldhouse run — the one so many other Jayhawks teams have made during their 13-year conference streak — never materialized in the second half.
USA Today is reporting that Royals have offered a 7 year $147M deal to Hosmer. That's much more than what I had expected. Personally, I hope he takes it.
Unless Dok is in foul trouble I do not see Self going to zone in this one, perhaps a few possessions here and there but not much. On Fridays game against TX Bamba was on fire and TX had trouble getting him the ball when KU went to zone D. Now this Tech team does not rely on any one player like TX does so this is the main reason why I believe Self will use his preferred man D.
@jaybate-1.0 the rules are complex but i am not aware of a rule that will prohibit him from coming back to KU. Now if he was attending classes at ASU and/or had practiced with the team he will have to sit out yet another year before becoming eligible to play.
@jaybate-1.0 During rape investigation at Men's basketball team dorm, police found drug related stuff in Bragg's room. There were reports that Bragg had been involved in drugs, Furthermore, around the same time, you may recall he was involved in a fight with a female student.
Bragg could never work with Self. Bill wanted him to play 5 spot, whereas Bragg wanted to play as a stretch 4. He did not like to be a banger type of player but Bill needed him to play differently. They clashed.
Its a pity. What a waste of talent. I hope he can get needed direction and find inner peace.
@BigBad One has to keep in mind that DG is playing almost 40 minutes/game and he is the only PG on our team. He is our main ball handler. We are a very thin team. As it is he is being taxed. I see him playing hard already and I just cannot imagine how much harder he has to play under the current circumstances.
I'd like to take the opportunity and wish all members of this board a very happy and prosperous new year. I hope that this coming year and beyond bring prosperity in our lives and peace in our minds. At the same time I hope that this year is a special one for our basketball team.
If I have offended anyone with my past posts and comments I ask for your forgiveness.
Happy New Year.
Mahomes has some talent, wow, the kid made amazing throws. He can play for sure. It will be an interesting offseason to see how the QB position plays out.
TX coaching job would be a tremendous job for any coach.
With availability of so much talent /resources/funds/endorsements/facilities/own network etc. etc. imagine how much damage can a good coach do while coaching at UT.
Trae is a special player, I will get heat on saying it here, he is the most talented guard in Big 12.
@mayjay I agree I believe he put it when we were finally able to get some points in the paint and he kept thinking that we will eventually cool off
But luckily our shots kept falling especially after every TX run
@jaybate-1.0 I concur, with 50 lbs. of muscle he will be a monster, I would not be surprised if he is a top 5 pick in next year's draft.
Wow so refreshing to see Self evolve as a coach, he threw the zone that confused TX. Our Zone was not very good but TX was definitely not prepared and it helped us steal some possessions and turn down the momentum on couple of occasions. Shaka could not take advantage.
@HighEliteMajor Some great commentary here. I was fortunate to be at this game. I'd like to make one comment about Mohamed Bamba. I have never seen a kid with such incredible blocking skills. The kid is only a freshman, he was an absolute load to handle and looks very smooth for a Freshman. He is a better shot blocker than Jeff W. I don't see very many teams winning at TX, if we were not hot from 3 point line KU would have lost this game as we had no answer for Bamba.
@RockChalkinTexas I will try to make it, came into town yesterday evening
One positive aspect of Preston’s late eligibility is that it will be challenging for other coaches to scheme against potential different line ups Self could deploy. They won’t have lot of scouting reports and tapes. This can also help in March.
@JayHawkFanToo Its a god idea to see what we got in him and simultaneously provide rest to Alex.
@REHawk Also Lucas
@BeddieKU23 I concur that front court could be too crowded and while we haven't seen some of the players, going strictly by ranking and highlights, Mitch would find it difficult to have decent amount of PT.
There have been considerable discussion here on Mitch lately. I'd like to bring another topic for discussion - Mitch's playing time and red shirt option heading into 2018.
Before starting the discussion, looking at depth and quality of guards available for next year, it is safe to assume that Self will rely mostly on a 4 guard line up.
With this in mind, first, let's assume either Dok or Billy are back next year. In this case we will have one of them plus Cedric, Silvio, McCormack and Lightfoot, Bigs playing with 4 guards most of the time. Self may use a lot of 3-2 line up here but I think Mitch will be our 4th Big option after Dok/Preston, Cedric and Silvio - limited playing time.
Now assuming both Dok/Billy are gone, Mitch would be our 3rd big option and minutes will increase somewhat but still limited unless foul trouble dictates otherwise.
In either case, barring any unforeseen circumstance, I do not see a significant role for Mitch next year. Thus I am wondering if Mitch should red shirt next year.
Will Mitch consider this option? Would an additional year in the system and extra work in the gym with Hudy make him a valuable contributor with increased playing time in his 3rd and 4th year. How do others feel?
@JayHawkFanToo I feel the same way and hope Chiefs can keep him.
@wrwlumpy Thank You. I hope to meet up
Are there any fans going to this game and is anyone aware of a pregame event in Austin?
Alex Smith has raised his level of play immensely this year, he is a completely different QB from what we have seen in this past. The big issue raised with him was the arm strength in that he could not throw deep balls and he is a game manager QB. With playmakers like Hill and Kelce available, he has thrown a lot of deep balls this year. His overall improved play could be attributed to improved play calling, continuity with offensive coaching, competitive pressure from Mahomes etc. Regardless he is playing at a very high level.
The question is what to do with Alex going forward. Do Chiefs let him go and turn over the job to Mahomes who was picked in round 1 as Chiefs future QB.
What to fans think about Alex, should he be kept or let him go?
Wiggins overall numbers are down this year, slight disappointment considering he had signed a huge contract coming into this year.
Having no scouting report, if we get Preston and Silvio by Big 12 play, Self can make lives of opposing coaches quite difficult by throwing in different line ups, mixing and matching them with Dok. It will be fun to see how this all shakes out.