From what I gather De Sousa played for Angola's U18, 19 team at the FIBA championships. When he was 15 he played for Angola at the U17 World Championships in Dubai. He came to the states in 2015 where he was at Montverde Academy before ending at IMG
BeddieKU23
31745 posts
If he wasn't an international player I'm confident his amateurism would have already been cleared. It's taking longer with the international wrinkle thrown in.
“There's been a lot of different things going on, because they have to give us the questions they need answered,” Self said.
Getting everybody over there to see what you want to do as their priority sometimes isn't the easiest thing to get done. It's not that easy doing that if you're calling somebody from the same town here in the States sometimes,” Self said. “We're kind of at the mercy of some other people getting the information to us, so that we can be sure and give complete information to the NCAA on that.
I can't recollect a player being ineligible for playing with pro's, it becomes problematic if they accept money to play with pro's right?
Maybe Billy is innocent here, maybe his Mother is right. Maybe not. Maybe naive in not even thinking the car he was driving would ever be in question. It's a plauisble thought.
I don't know whether the issue is centered around pre-existing relationships Billy or his family has with someone, if that is the reason KU compliance and the NCAA have taken a deeper look.
Nobody would care where the car comes from if he wasn't an athlete trying to play basketball. A Student wouldn't miss 14 going on 15 days of class for this.
The rules may be flawed, they are the rules but it doesn't mean they are right. Let's not act like the NCAA hasn't made some mind-boggling decisions in the past.
Cliff Alexander was ineligible for a loan his mother took without his knowledge?. How was that his fault? If he knew about it, that changes things. Did we ever know whether Cliff knew anything?
The NCAA once suspended Baylor's Perry Jones just before the start of the Big-12 tournament in 2011 and 5 games the following season because his mother accepted 3 seperate 15-day loans to keep Perry and their family from going homeless. They said Perry was suspended for "accepting impermissible benefits". What exactly did Perry accept? The person who loaned the Jones money to pay their Mortgage was someone Perry and the family knew since the 6th grade.
http://bleacherreport.com/articles/631738-baylor-basketball-breaking-down-perry-jones ↗
I'm not assuming the Preston situation is the same as other cases but what if Billy is innocent as others have been in the past and still paid the price
If I remember correctly it was Enes Kanter and it was because he played on a professional team overseas and received $.
and we could still add Langford in the spring to replace Vick. If Vick is gone we need Langford, not Newman IMO
Agree it is funny that self is usually tightening his rotation but this year isn't normal. This year probably breaks the mold where we are inserting up to 3 guys into the rotation now and maybe soon?
Sam will most likely stay in witness protection if we get these guys playing and judging from how he's being used now his role looks limited . This doesn't seem to be the type of team where someone like Sam can't enter the rotation, we certainly are not getting enough consistency from the guys ahead of him. Everyone should get a fair shake if how we played Tuesday is going to be something we see more of.
There is some intrigue because he hasn't been exposed.
I don't think too many people have said start him bench other players instead. However I don't know how it can be ignored that our perimeter starters are playing too many minutes and we just happen to have someone now eligible to play that can give guys rest. He gets a DNP against Texas then plays what a handful of minutes against Tech and does relatively well while we had starters having terrible games. We can do nothing but trust our coach here but at some point it sure would be nice to know whether Sam is better then the minutes he's getting or not
The counter to this would be to recruit the thousand or so other athletes that don't have any issues. Vet their off-the-court character as much as their on-the-court talent.
Preston had some academic red-flags that were known about him before so technically we could have gone a different way before hand.
Rumors started swirling around the time Diallo was announcing his College choice that his eligibility would be looked at.
Do I think the NCAA is singling out KU, No. It may seem that way but I don't think our relationship with Adidas has anything to do with it
Self's latest comments regarding the duo of P and Sousa
Bill Self says Kansas’ basketball program will find out “very, very soon” if and when freshman forward Billy Preston will be able to play in games for the Jayhawks.
“It’s a situation right now where we think we could know any minute on what his situation is,” said Self, KU’s 15th-year coach, Wednesday night on his weekly Hawk Talk radio show. “We actually feel very good about what the NCAA has in their hands what we submitted,” Self added.
Kansas recently submitted to college’s governing body findings over an issue that that KU has said concerns the financial picture regarding a car Preston has been driving on campus this school year.
“We were hopeful for one (answer) last week,” Self said of final word from the NCAA on whether or not Preston can play. “The reason we didn’t get it … it’s not the NCAA’s fault folks. They way it (KU’s findings) had to be submitted, it had to be turned in after it was completely done with corrections so that way the NCAA doesn’t come back and say, ‘We need more information.’ We tried to make it a complete file.
“When we got it (completed), it was very close to Christmas break. People who need to review it (at NCAA) don’t report until Jan. 2 (after a holiday break that started Dec. 22). It’s been 10 to 12 days with not a lot being done with it. That’s not anybody’s fault at all. I know it’s frustrating. It’s more frustrating for Billy and obviously his mother more than anybody else. We think we’ll have a final decision on this very soon. When that decision is made we are optimistic and hoping for the best.”
The fact Preston has been held out 14 games while KU compliance looked into this case is quite significant, Self said.
“If there is a problem, which we are not saying there is, but if there is one, he has already sat how many games now? Fourteen games? Gosh dang,” Self said. “We certainly hope and believe that would be sufficient (penalty) if there is one (problem). We are not even admitting there is one. That’s where we are at right now.
“I’m trying to be patient. Certainly the NCAA knows obviously there is a lot at stake, but what is at stake more than anything else is a young man’s well being. I’m certainly hopeful that we’re going to have him real soon.”
Self addressed the matter of why this has taken so long for this situation to be resolved.
“There’s a lot of different things that go into it when you go through all records,” Self said. “As an institution I know we have done a nice job of being very thorough to the point we presented this after more interviews and things like that that you can imagine. If you think of it like this, if you are looking into something and someone tells you one name, you’ve got to go talk to that one name. If somebody tells you two names, that’s two more names you’ve got to go talk to.
“It takes a little bit longer to do a thorough job to present to the NCAA where they could make their final determination. I know we as an institution believe we have been very cautious and very thorough and basically a young man has been hurt a pretty fair amount by something that he is totally oblivious to,” added Self, who did not expand on what that might be.
“Still,” Self continued, “by the rules and letter of the law, the rules say this, that you have to approach it that way.
Self added that “it would be nice if we would have been able to get all the information to them a month ago. That’s not the the NCAA’s fault. That’s not our fault. That was us continuing and attorneys continually trying to put the thing together (for NCAA review). I wish it was something you just say, ‘OK here is the situation. Boom. Here is one piece of paper that describes everything that could possibly have transpired with this.’ It’s a little bit more complicated than that.”
As far as the final report to the NCAA, Self stressed: “I feel good about it, that it’s an honest assessment on what has transpired.”
Meanwhile, the NCAA also is reviewing freshman forward Silvio De Sousa’s amateurism status, as it does all incoming student-athletes. De Sousa recently graduated from IMG Academy and is going through the normal process to get cleared to play college basketball, in his case starting immediately.
Self said it still could be a few days before De Sousa is cleared for participation.
“There’s obviously questions when you have an international player,” Self said. De Sousa hails from Angola.
“What teams did he play for? What travel teams did he play for? Were there professionals on the travel teams? If there were professionals did you get expenses? Did you get more than expenses/ How did you get from there to here? Who paid for it? You have all these amateurism questions that have to be answered,” Self said. “We just have to get them answered. We think we can have all answers hopefully to the NCAA in the next day or two. They’ll follow up if they have anything more they need to find out about.”
Self said De Sousa is in the process of learning the system and is a ways away from being able to contribute in games.
“He’ll need time. You need time to play without thinking,” Self said. “OK, if we run 2-3 zone what do you do? What’s the base thing to do if we run man or whatever. It’s getting him comfortable with the most simple things. We’re still probably a week or 10 days if things go perfect where he’d be able to play significant minutes and help us.”
I also thought signing Dotson would help us as well. That hasn't had the momentum it once had
I saw this tweet posted on another board that could actually be some solid information in this whole situation.
"The Billy Preston situation will come down to the NCAA's definition of what a pre-existing relationship is. How long do you have to know someone, so that they are considered a family friend and not an agent/representative."
Further tweets by this same person spoke on this making sense into why it took so long to gather information/evidence, why his Mom says they are innocent and why KU had to turn over documents to the NCAA. From what we gather Billy's family has been involved in Professional Basketball in some capacity in the past. The car could have been provided by a friend of the family and that relationship is in question and has required a paper trail.. Who knows.
KUSTEVE said:
@mayjay He looks real good going against pee-wees, not nearly as dominant against bigger and better athletes. IMO. I'll probably end up taking that statement back, but I guess all the hype has me wondering if he is as good as they say. I wonder what he would be like in a program like ours that emphasizes team first. Hmmm...
He's dominated better competition as well. He was the best player at the Team USA camps in the fall which included Grimes and a bunch of other top ranked kids FYI. Watching his local HS competition isn't going to give you the answer you were seeking IMO.
I have long thought he'd fit here, he's not a selfish player. I think any team would be foolish not to run their offense through him because of his off the charts athleticism and physicality. We have all seen his crazy dunks but he's got a ton of skill that gets overlooked. He doesn't hunt bad shots, shoots a high % inside the arc, he knows his limits on the perimeter right now. Weight is a concern, you probably don't want him playing at 270 as he could probably be lethal at the 245-250 range. Clemson is lucky he lives in the state.
HighEliteMajor said:
@BeddieKU23 I’ve been pleasantly surprised by Cunliffe. He seems more than capable of being a real contributor and I suspect Self’s confidence in him will increase. He has done well defensively which is big starting point.
Agreed he's looked eager to please in his limited minutes. It was big to see him hit that Corner 3. I've liked his activity level on defense. He certainly hasn't been exposed yet and because of that I think there is some intrigue there to see what he could do in extended minutes. I haven't seen anything so far that leads me to believe he shouldn't be getting some rotation minutes
About lost my coffee on that one
It is surprising Newman hasn't been the answer considering Self talked a good bit about Malik needing to be that "guy" to spell Graham in games before the season. I vaguely remember Self trying to do this in some of the non-conference games and seeing the result be a mixed bag at best. It often seemed like Graham was entering the game after one possession of seeing Newman initiating offense. We all know Self's reputation for the short leash on guys that don't do what he wants them to do. Malik might have already burned all his bridges there. What happens if DG gets in foul trouble or leg cramps, etc.. Who do we go to in that situation? Back to Malik who's barely been asked to run the team.
Peak Efficiency during a game is a very good point to make. Graham, Vick, Svi are all playing more minutes then they should be. Of course they were out of necessity and our post player debacle didn't help things. We have Sam now to help rest guys but as you mentioned after the Texas game Sam isn't trusted yet. I think he's getting a raw deal but our Coach doesn't see it that way right now..
I strongly dislike the weave offense. I've noticed that defenses that scout us well have largely ignored us when we use it. We dilly dally east and west to create seems and misdirection. Your post was spot on really. I think I've mentioned this each game chat that we don't run enough ball screen action. When shots go down its not as noticeable but when we struggle to score I notice how easily defenses are predicting our sets.
The hope would be that a De Sousa or Preston who both have capable jump shots and skills to roam that high post could create more diversity in our offense. Preston would be a perfect fit to run ball screen and pops or ball screen and dives to the hoops with. He has a skilled 8-12 feet shot in his arsenal
I absolutely agree Graham should never be playing all 40 minutes. That tells you how little he trusts Newman and Garrett to fill in that role.
We all know we whiffed hard on PG recruits and then signed Charlie Moore to sit this year, and then we went and recruited over him in 2018 anyway. Seems like a baffling move. We'll have PG depth next season, yay! But today we are struggling in multiple area's, not just in the post.
What's the solution?
I would seriously consider playing Garrett at the PG position 5-8 minutes and get Graham's minutes down to a respectable 32-35 area. His defense has been well discussed, maybe he's able to disrupt the opposing teams flow for a few possessions each half. He seems to have the necessary quickness to stay with smaller guys. He has generally moved the ball well (although at times I feel he makes the safe play such as a quick pass to avoid making a mistake). He was aggressive taking the ball into the lane against Tech. It's not a perfect solution but it seems to be the only one we have on the team. There could also be a long term benefit to this move ala next season. All options should be on the table at this point
OU has a back up point guard though. He played a lot when their starter went down last season with an injury.
KU doesn't have another PG on its team. We have a freshman who played the point in HS but hasn't been put into a situation to run the offense here. So maybe he's a PG capable of subbing for Devonte but apparently Self isn't too keen on switching Garrett to that role.
I know your question was directed at HEM but I wanted to chime in.
Are we being too critical of him just 15 games into his KU career? I thought that but then when I watch him play I don't see the guy he was acclaimed to be. I don't see where it changes with him. I don't really think the next 15 games will be much different then what we're getting currently.
Newman was probably the most coveted transfer last year. We heard a lot of good things about him from players and Self during the season on his progress. He seemed to say all the right things in interviews etc about maturing and becoming a better player. He did really well in Italy, showed out well at camps etc. So what gives? We get the most coveted transfer with a year of D-1 ball under his belt, tons of HS accolades, reputation as a scorer etc and 13 games into the season he loses his starting spot. So what gives? Has he checked out? Is he playing with another injury that's derailing his potential? This is all from a guy we expected to be OAD here, was expected to be OAD at his first stop. I see a lot of "me" ball from him, the same mentality he had growing up. Maybe he was just overrated all this time. It's certainly starting to look that way.. Just my 2 cents
I believe KU slow played this before sending this off to the NCAA for review/ruling. The NCAA may have asked for more material that KU compliance didn't get initially from them.
It still seems as if KU tried to get ahead of the curve by doing a lot of the leg work themselves in hopes that if they were diligent enough the NCAA would agree with their self-reported findings. . It feels as if Momma P is trying to put pressure on the NCAA to make a ruling in her son's favor. She knows what's at stake for her son.
Her twitter rant has now made ESPN. Could have been her ultimate goal, maybe not.
I would add that the De Sousa situation has also compounded the distraction.
if the jacket doesn't fit you must acquit
Straight from Momma P-
I’m tired of being quiet. I’m sick of watching people bash my child but if he suited up tomorrow he’d be the next coming of Jesus Christ to you guys. Enough is enough. Be a fan, be supportive, be empathetic or just be quiet until the NCAA does what they have to do. #kubball
— Nicole Player (@BartenderChic78) January 3, 2018
As soon as he is cleared..which I feel he should & will be..I will speak candidly on this situation, however, I will not sit quiet while “fans” put jackets on him that don’t fit. No one knows the stress that my family has gone through.
— Nicole Player (@BartenderChic78) January 3, 2018
Not only that..if I had anything to hide..I could’ve pulled him in November. This is taxing and stressful. But he’s there, being supportive, he hasn’t bailed on his team. He’s cheering and coaching & doing all he can.
— Nicole Player (@BartenderChic78) January 3, 2018
I don’t think they understand. Billy is 6’10 240 lbs..I could’ve sent him overseas in Nov. when this started, he would’ve been an instant millionaire and a 1st round pick . I allowed the NCAA in my personal life for Kansas. Guilty people don’t do that.
— Nicole Player (@BartenderChic78) January 3, 2018
Thoughts??? Things are heating up as the world turns with Billy
BigBad said:
DG played 40 minutes. It's absolutely ridiculous Malik can't help at the point for 10 minutes, especially with Cunliffe in the mix.
It's ridiculous that our staff thought he would be an option to play the point. He's the farthest thing from a point guard. We certainly haven't invested in letting Garrett run point either. Graham can't play 40 minutes but we have no other options. We knew this coming in
DCHawker said:
@drgnslayr This has become a recurrent theme - and, unfortunately, perhaps the identity of this team. TTU has scored more than 85 only twice this season, against mighty FAU and Savannah St! Even in the TX win, we gave up 85 to them and they have trouble scoring against anyone (only game they scored more was against Northwestern State). Gave up 95 to ASU on at AFU.
No resistance against penetration and no blocking out. Gave up 18 ORBs. TTU missed 38 shots from the floor plus a few missed FTs. Doke garnered just 4 of those missed shots. Fully healthy or not, that isn't acceptable. Whether driving into the paint or positioning for rebounds, it seems like our guys are allergic to contact.
Don't know if that will or can change with the current line-up - perhaps de Sousa or Preston will at least be willing to mix it up, even if they don't really know what they are doing on the floor...
Points off turnovers killed us last night as well. I know ESPN threw up the stat early in the 2nd half, Tech had 17pts off our turnovers and I know the final tally was more. Both losses prior to last night KU had given up a ton of points off turnovers. Some of them last night were just shake your head moments, fundamental errors that you would not expect upperclassmen to be making.
KUSTEVE said:
@BeddieKU23 Vick had his worst game of the year, yet I found myself being a lot more steamed at Svi. How many times did Svi have a chance to cut the lead, and just didn't deliver? I found myself wanting to see a lot more Sam last night, and less Svi and Vick. Oh well. The world didn't end last night. This is going to be a challenging year for us.
I don't necessarily disagree, Svi went mad cold in the 2nd half but I've come to expect it from him. He's always been this way, can't expect him to change now. Svi missed shots he should make, unfortunately everyone did the same. I thought Svi had some really good defense at points, jumping passing lanes, forcing a TO when we pressed. We know his limitations and Tech certainly exposed them as well.
Vick however was a total no show last night, Self even called him out. Not just the box score, it was the total lack of energy and aggressiveness. If he scores 17 last night the game is different (not necessarily a win), instead he let a few misses ruin his entire game. I was so disappointed in him last night. He had opportunities to drive to the hoop but he doesn't follow through. Not acceptable effort from him. But that's for coach to decide. Just voicing what I saw
It's clear Doke is playing through pain. So what's the remedy? Shut him down until he's healthier or continue to get what we get with him out there when he's clearly not 100%. I feel like we rinse and repeat this with our big's every season. Injury, eligibility, It's old.
There's a ton of issues with this squad especially when you can't hold serve at home. The effort thing @drgnslayr mentioned is absolutely correct. The team that played harder and executed won.
Our leading scorer gave zero contribution. 34 minutes, nothing. Soft is an understatement
Wouldn't be surprised if he ended up at Syracuse. It's very weird that he's leaving so early after waiting out an offer. I think he was probably not happy Barrett & Reddish coming in next year and Joey Baker the following as well
FYI Fran is calling the game tonight. Over under is set at 25 times he mentions KU losing to Washington
One time post target last year Schnider Herard is transferring from Miss St. Another Miss St that didn't do much while there is now on the move
Duke's Jordan Tucker is transferring as well after barely playing this season. I don't believe KU ever seriously went after him as he wanted Duke. How quickly things change.
Yeah Tech is a balanced team this season. We'll see whether their rotation tightens up playing better teams and having to go on the road as they are tonight. Last season they were 0-9 on the road in B-12 play and tonight is their first true road game. I think Self could get away with the 2-3 look regardless of foul trouble if Tech struggles to deal with the road environment. Crowd should be juiced given its the home opener and our guys should have high energy level getting to play at home for only the 3rd time in over a month. More than likely Self sticks to M2M unless we are struggling to guard and limit them getting to the hoop/foul line. This Tech team has 9 guys that have attempted 20+ FT's on the season compared to KU's 3 which shows you the opposite in style of play between the 2. We could simply use the Zone as a disruption of tempo and keeping them from establishing rhythm in their sets
Its probably not out of the realm of possibility that Bragg doesn't play D-1 ball again. Hope he gets his life together, this is the 2nd place he's left in a year
Just poking fun at what they usually say when they miss out on someone they really wanted. They certainly got 3 studs going their way despite Q going to KU but we arguably got the best of the bunch.
jaybate 1.0 said:
Will Self go back to M2M for the Red Raiders?
Or will Self show zone again to keep coaches preparing for it?
I would like to see the zone again tonight although we have to be careful because Tech shoots the ball well from 3 land. The biggest reason it could be used is to limit fouls. Tech is an aggressive team and gets to the FT line on average 11 times more then KU does a game (23 to 12). If the zone protects our limited front line from foul trouble and can force some misses it could have a positive impact again.
Will be interesting to see how fouls affect this game. Tech goes 10 deep.. They have made more free throws then we've attempted (which isn't anything new) but they have been more aggressive. So we'll see how the whistle plays into this game. Their top 4 scorers are guards, 2 are freshman and they shoot a very respectable 38% from 3 as a team.
Doke is a major mismatch for them inside. They have bigs but nothing to really challenge him if he's aggressive and we look to get him the ball consistently. 3 of their bench guys are primarily 3 point shooters accounting for 35% of their made 3's. So we have to be mindful of when they go to that 2nd unit.
It's Tech's first road game, this could be ugly for them or this could be a typical game where the opponent comes in fired up. We dominated them in Allen last year and many of those guys are back again. We'll see if the Baylor blowout was more of a product of Baylor being shorthanded or a sign that Tech is for real. I believe the key to victory is limiting Keenan Evans from having a big game, he's been their go-to guy when they've played better teams (29 vs BC, 25 vs Northwestern, 32 vs Nevada, 21 vs Seton Hall.
Jayballer54 said:
BigBad said:
KUSTEVE said:
@BigBad And DG isn't a leader, right? That's what you said during the game on Friday.
I'm a fan and I don't owe these guys anything. It isn't a crime to call it like I see it. I don't find Devonte Graham to be suited to lead from the PG position, shoot me. He takes awful shots and has to be told over and over again to run the offense and get the ball inside, as a SENIOR. Notice he had ZERO assists in the first half on Friday? I guarantee he got lit up by Self at half, then had 8 assists in the second. He tends to only play hard D after made shot(s), like an immature player does. Go back and watch Fridays game and watch how much he stands around and watches on the defensive end. I do understand he is really playing out of position and he is asked to play a ton of minutes, but as a senior he needs to make better decisions, play hard on the defensive end, and lead by example.
Ya , your right you are a fan and owe nothing to anybody here , and it's not a crime. I too am that way but I have people here that have issues with me and my post /and things I say at times, we don't agree on things at times but it's ok love the site and people's opinions ya know?
The difference I have with you on what you said is he only plays " HARD D " after made shot(s) . - - -umm THAT is not true. - -Not sure if your memory failed you or not but do you happen to remember back to last year - -who was assigned to Buddy when we played at Oklahoma? - - Do you happen to remember what happened with Buddy in that game? - -he got SHUT DOWN - -and no defense Devonte is the one that did that. - To say Devonte only plays hard after made shots couldn't be further off, you think he doesn't play hard you might as well say none of them play hard on the defensive end and that's just not true.
Awful shot? - - -he is one of the better shooters on the team, - -he is shooting right around 43% from the 3 which for 3 pt shooting is pretty decent. - it's ok you have your opinions on things but I just think you might be a hair of on some. - -ROCK CHALK ALL DAY LONG BABY
pretty sure he's talking about Graham's defense this season
Newman and Doke didn't practice Sunday I believe. Injuries must be more then just wear and tear. At this point though if a rest day helps then it's a no-brainer.
We have to tread carefully with this Doke injury and pray its temporary. It sounds like he fought through a lot of pain just to play Friday.
You have to wonder if the Newman injury is an old one. We knew he dealt with something at Miss St. It didn't seem that noticeable in the game that he was hurt but reports of pre-game was he was limping around..
Interesting comments about perimeter minutes possibly going down with De Sousa here. It makes sense but it's always interesting to hear it from the man in charge. In a perfect world I would think De Sousa is backup to Doke, bigger, more athletic, college ready body when he's learned his job. The key is how quickly can he learn his job and earn the trust of his coach. Is that sometime in January or the back end of conference play in February? We literally have nothing to compare it to at KU. Nationally the only Top-40 player to join midway from HS was Austin Wiley (5 star Center) at Auburn last season and he was solid but didn't make Auburn better. They went 11-11 with him in the lineup.
Giving Mitch the ability to be the sub in a traditional 3-2 set and getting him back to his real position instead of subbing at the 5 position could be critical. Mitch still gets his rotation minutes but either Newman sees less court time or Garrett sees less as the freshman low on the totem pole. If the Texas game was anything its Marcus that probably see's less time on a regular basis although I would strongly disagree with that move.
The key of course is whether Mitch's minutes at his traditional position increases his effectiveness on the court. I'm hopeful it helps but I'm not confident its enough. Despite Newman's struggles he's a double figure scorer and despite Garrett's lack of a perimeter shot and scoring in general his defensive impact is remarkable for a freshman. At some point one of these guys is going to improve their weaknesses. I see Mitch's shortcomings as harder to overcome then the guards. Mitch brings terrific effort and is a team-oriented player but his development is still behind and a work in progress.
I know we have looked at the additions of De Sousa and Preston possibly getting eligible as game-changers but what if it all backfires? We're just getting our feet wet in conference play, most teams are really getting settled in with rotations. This is uncharted territory for Self, adding players mid-season and plugging them into the current chemistry of the team. This is where Self gets to potentially show off his coaching prowess. He's in a unique position to change on the fly mid-season and push this team to what it could be by the time March hits.
I was happy Kansas St lost. Can't stand press Virginia's gimmick defense but I can't stand Weber more. 2 road wins for west Virginia already definitely puts them in the driver's seat this early
Tech has a few freshman playing really well. Besides the guys we already know they have great depth and can bring in a ton of fresh bodies. We will have to play our best at home to win, I see a high scoring game and one we must control Keenan Evans from scoring
Kansas st was terrible down the stretch
HighEliteMajor said:
@BeddieKU23 I've been in the Garrett camp as far as starting him over Newman for a while now (no secret there). Given our four out/one in scheme, the ability of the other three guards to score, and the luxury then of having Newman off the bench, I'd have Garrett as the starter. Makes perfect sensse.
Garrett works in a lot of lineup contructions -- but let's fast forward to next season, playing conventionally (3 out/2 in). Let's say we don't get Langford. Doke and Vick turn pro. We start Lawson/DeSousa down low. I would have to really think about starting Garrett with Dotson and Grimes. If the other choice is Newman or Cunliffe (assuming he might score better), I'd likely go with Newman or Cunliffe. Another way Garrett might work in is if we are a bad a*, defense first, possession valuing team -- what we might say is a real Bill Self team. I think Garrett has a higher upside than Releford, but it's a possible comparison. I expect Garrett to be one of our best players by his junior season.
However, as we saw last game, Newman was in late. Game situations will dictate. Newman's a much better free throw shooter than Garrett. And he seems to handle the ball better, at least from my eye.
Another thing to note -- Garrett's PER has continued to go down. But his box score +/- is still high, and solidly higher than Newman.
Did anyone see the quotes from after the Texas game? Self saying we might shoot 40 3 pointers; DG saying Self is telling them to shoot anytime they are open? Who is this Bill Self, anyway, and what did he do with the real* Bill Self?
Been in the same camp as far as Garrett starting he has the intangibles that Newman doesn't possess besides an occasional 3 BALL.
Do you think his PER has gone down because of his lack of scoring?
Telling that he prefers Newman in late but it's nothing new for self with regards to an upperclassmen to a freshman
The more minutes Marcus gets the better for next season
If our season revolves around Mitch it will end as every other does
What is malik's potential? If he's not a different malik by the end of the of the Xmas break he is who he is. Garrett starting now says Self is clearly trying to motivate him by playing a freshman over him
I mentioned that in another post that malik could be the type that is a turnover machine against press virginia
2 plays in particular stood out in the game in regards to Malik against Texas.
I'll start with the bad, the play where he drove to the hoop and bamba swatted the ball into the 15th row of the stands, doke is standing there all alone for a dunk but Newman still decides to try and float a shot over him. Selfish play in my honest opinion. Thats not a player buying in to the team. He knows Bamba is going to block it but he does it anyway. That would have been a oh WOW play.
Now to the other play. Newman is guarding the pg at the top of the key. Bamba comes for a ball screen, malik fights through showing great lateral quickness, even though malik gets through the screen well our defender hedges in to stop penetration, at this point Roach is open for a 3, Newman correctly sprints to him instinctly to contest the shot and forces a bad miss that leads to a 3 pointer in transition at the other end. It was a great display of defense leading to offense that can be quickly forgotten if your not looking for that detail
Obviously he's not playing great and there could be a bunch of reasons why. All we can hope is he finds a way to turn it around
Unc should have lost but wake has a 7 footer that could lose a free throw contest to doke
according to Kentucky they never recruited him lol otherwise he would be a wildcat.
I know I'm over glorifying a freshman that just had 39 and 14 in his first road game in big-12 play that beat one of the 3 unbeaten teams in the country because of his 2 free throws. Oh and I forgot leads the nation in scoring and assists and wait there's more was the first person in over 20 years to have consecutive 30 point scoring games and 10+ assists. But who's counting