🏀 KuBuckets Archive

I noticed that too! Good to hear the AFH rocking! I've always felt like the turn down the crowd on us most of the time. I know we are louder than UT and sometimes it doesn't sound like it on TV. Sixth man was big late I thought. All the boys were praising the fans on twitter after the game.

@jaybate-1.0 @REHawk @drgnslayr @etc. I wish my students cared as much about KU basketball as I do (or basketball period here in Texas) so that I could make them read some of these posts. It would be nice to show them what real analysis, complex inferences, and great writing looks like when done for fun! Keep it coming everybody!

I'm thinking some of the inside out play in the OSU game was to try to keep from having a hot game from outside when we didn't need it. @jaybate-1.0 always talks about shooting back to averages and wouldn't it be nice to have those averages on the way up on the road at ISU. We shot 3-12 last game after scorching Tech with 11-22. Self couldn't afford to let the guys go nuts from deep for a second game in a row and then most certainly be due for an off game from outside. Outside shooting is so streaky and unpredictable. Even really really good 3% teams will have the occasional 3-15 or 5-20 game. And it is very tough to win such a game.

We are better than OSU and had a great plan to wear out Forte by throwing length, then speed, then length, then more speed at him. He could barely walk out of that gym in the end. He wasn't hurt, he was tired.. We simply didn't need an outside in game against those short cowboys so why not gamble and try to save up for another hot shooting night at Hilton. I think Self might think he can beat this law of averages stuff. Let the team shoot bad from 3 on an inside out night when you can afford it to let them get hot on a night when we need it.

Every shooter knows that shooting gets easier after the first make. After Kelly made his first, did we go back to him? What about Wayne? Frank shot 5 but only made the last one (not 100% sure on that but it was definitely late!)! This might give even more insight into Greene's 3 minutes. His first shot was for the team a terrible shot. Selfish, hot doggin, and instigating. Don't want to nail one right in the face of their best shooter to light even more of a fire under him. BUT, it was a confident shot. Leave Greene in that game and no doubt he makes 3 or 4 shooting with that kind of confidence. So... sit him and piss him off for 37 minutes to hopefully let him loose against the Cyclones.

Jaybate is calling Perry going off this game, I say Greene has another 5 trey, 20 pt night! Go Brennan Go!!!

It's wrong. Next year people will know.

@bskeet
I have been thinking this too. I posted on another thread that I feel Cliff's low minutes might be for this very reason. Jaybate mentioned Self forbidding Perry's favorite spin move. I don't know that I would go that far, but it is certainly possible that Perry has figured out that everyone, even outside the big 12, knows he uses that move a lot and waits on it. He is definitely out of his comfort zone and I don't necessarily think that is a bad thing but it sure looks ugly right now.

I'm not an experienced enough player or coach (I do neither very well) but doesn't his jumper look a little weird recently. I notice it most on those trailing threes and baseline jumpers he has been taking more of. It looks almost like the ball is coming off his palm and not his fingers. That can mess with rotation and touch, which has certainly been lacking around the rim. On his free throws you usually see him swish or clang hard off the rim. OSU had many freebies rolling around the rim and falling in and that is no fluke. Forte and Nash both showed good touch at the line. Perry's touch is clearly off right now. Could it be mechanics? He is certainly in his own head. I do expect him however to come out of it. I don't think he has peaked as a player. He can still learn and improve and get better. I believe he will.

Anyone think Self is saving Cliff to breakout in later in the year the way Kelly has recently? Is Cliff just that far behind? Are there conditioning issues? We have heard injury talk (back, soreness, etc.). Is he not that good? Was this just a result of the T? Did he want to save him from the temptations you know Ford would throw at him? There has to be something going on because Alexander is too good of a player, too high profile a recruit to be spending this much time on the bench. 3 fouls. Has he ever had more than 3? That was the excuse early but let a guy foul out once. Let him learn to play with 3 or 4 because we may need him to come tourny time.

My secret hope is that the answer lies with the first question. Maybe Self knows Cliff will breakout if he just gives him the minutes and the scheme and he is waiting to unleash it vs someone soon. The leash is definitely tight on the big red dog. Let's set him loose and see if he takes off!

@jaybate-1.0

Totally agree. I wasn't disagreeing with the decision. It really seems to me that Frank is just a beast and will play nearly every minute of every game this year. He is so important to the offense of this team it is very difficult to sit him. It is nice having Devonte back to get him some in game rest as mentioned above. I am guessing we will see much more "resting" of Mason in this way throughout this tough Big 12 slate. We simply can't afford to have him out.

I have noticed these last couple of games some similarities developing between Devonte and Frank. Every once and a while I find myself wondering, "did Frank teach you that?" And they are a Freshman and Sophomore! Is it bad that I don't miss Conner at all? Like seriously, zero!

I was surprised to see 38 minutes for Mason as well, however, he got to spend a lot of that time off the ball and he rarely had to be the one chasing Forte all over the floor. I think that alone is a saving grace for our star point guard. I'm really starting to see why Frankamp transferred. No way does he beat out Frank or Devonte this year. Sure he could have earned some minutes with Graham's injury but there was no predicting that.

As for Greene's 3 measly minutes, he had to come out. A: he could not guard their tiny little quick guards B: he clearly tried to make that game about him with that 3 attempt. It was a moment that he tried to take over and that just isn't what we need from him right now. He could have gotten that shot at any time over Forte. That was a play where he was trying to show the other team up. It was not about the team and he deserved to be set. I'm sure he heard about it which led to the pouting (which I didn't see) which led to more sitting.

Agreed. I am certainly not 100% sure we will win the big 12 but I do think we are the favorite right now. I don't think it is unreasonable to think we may go undefeated at home. Not predicting we will, or guaranteeing we will, but it sure is possible. Texas is a mess right now, OU 's early start may have been overblown. Iowa St. and West Virginia seem pretty legit. I still agree in this years big 12 anybody CAN beat anybody any night, but I still like our chances in every game at Allen.

Hmm... I guess I haven't been reading the same things as you. I haven't seen anyone, especially on this board, say that the big 12 race is over and Kansas is the champ. If anything, the conversation has flipped from Kansas maybe being out of the race to now maybe being a front runner which I think is fair. Nobody else in the big 12 has proven they can hold home court or win on the road the way Kansas does year in and year out. The race certainly isn't over, really hasn't even started, but we have taken back the pole position.

I agree we need more recruits for 16/17 but I was just saying we have successfully avoided HEM's apocalypse proposal. To me it seems we are maybe even off the merry-go-round some what with our solid young point guards and talent that is more likely to stay (Selden, Ellis, Greene, Svi) than go (Oubre and maybe Alexander depending on how he finishes the year). Bragg is borderline OAD. We have had good success landing 1 or 2 possible OAD's in the spring. So basically I am saying, I'm not worried.

I think we are pretty secure from major disaster. Mason, Graham, Greene and Svi aren't going anywhere so our perimeter is not terrible. Perry is likely to stay along with Traylor, adding Bragg plus hopeful improvement from either Mickleson or Lucas, leaves us in decent shape everywhere. Now it seems to me our recruiting goals should be an impact perimeter guy to provide depth if Selden or Oubre leave, plus at least one more big to avoid having to rely on Hunter or Landan for much.

Yeah, not to defend Cal or anything but the platoon system did only work when you have 10 high level players at the appropriate positions. Without Poythress the whole thing kind of falls apart. So yes, he is abandoning the platoon somewhat but what choice does he have without a complete team on the bench to replace in a full line shift. I haven't watched any Kentucky games to really know anything but that is how I understood the system. Not to different from how I play my 2k college hoops games on my original X-box. Maybe I came up with the platoon!

I think a stat no one is talking about this game is turnovers. We only had 8! That is outstanding even in a slow pace game like last night. No player had more than two from what I saw. So while they may not have been as aggressive as they should have been, at least the boys protected. And I wasn't counting but pretty sure they won the deflection battle even if they didn't all turn into fast break points.

How we won a game where we shot 6 free throws, 29% from 3, and got out rebounded by 8 in a game with few possessions I have no idea. Throw in it is on the road, the opposing team shoots over 50% from 3, had 17 offensive rebounds and a quick little guard (usually our achilles heel) go for 25, and a W is a down right miracle.

Where Cliff was on the glass I cannot explain but he did come up with 4 huge assists as well as a couple of energy boosting dunks. He was certainly more active than Perry. It did appear to me that Baylor decided they were going to shove Jayhawk players anytime they left the floor and with the refs swallowing the whistle (both ways i felt) our young pup couldn't get a good handle on the ball in the air.

Anyone think he will beat out VanVleet or Baker for big minutes next season? I still don't get it. Can anyone point to ANY junior or senior guard for KU that didn't have a major role on the team? I hope Conner is happy but this feels like a cowardly move. Either man up and beat out some talent, or man up and tell your dad you can make your own decisions. Obviously I don't actually know the full situation. Just my thoughts on the matter.

He did it! Not at the start, but there was a point in the second half where Svi, Kelly, and Greene were all on the court at the same time. They pressured and it did seem to get to us a bit. At least once the ball was tipped out of bounds trying to get it across half court. Not sure, but it seemed that was a result of Greene or Kelly being out of position.

Doesn't Connor leaving say more about Connor than KU? Do you honestly think Self didn't give him the option to redshirt? Kelly has been very open about staying two or more years. Cliff is big and tough and above all tries hard every second he is out there. So lets not throw those young kids under the bus for expectations that have been put on them by the media.

What is disappointing to me is that right now Cal and UK are better than us in several ways. Talent: clearly, but they played harder on defense. They played more together as a team. They sacrifice playing time and egos for the good of the team and each other. They pass better. They help better. They share better. And some of that is they are better basketball players to start with but a lot of it is coaching. I've always been of the school that firmly believed Self is better than Cal, but I am seriously doubting my position at this point.

All of that said, I still believe we will come together, win the big 12, and make a run in the tournament. Maybe I'm delusional, but I will never give up on a KU team. Just can't do it.

(Texas does look scary though!)

I guess I don't really see the point of thinking this way. Obviously this is a worst case scenario and that can help in preparing for the future but honestly what is Self supposed to do. I've seen you advocate in the past that self go for the non AA 30-100 range recruit which is great. But just like with the top recruits, everyone else is going after those too, perhaps even more so since UK, Duke, UNC, Zone, and KU take all the top dogs. Even if KU jumps off the "merry-go-round" and attempts to get those "mid-range" recruits, it just seems like there aren't enough to fully sustain a program. Especially when mid-range guys like McLemore alwyas have the potential to turn into one and dones (even if he was 2 and done).

It seems to me that Self is doing a pretty good job recruiting these days even if it is too good with the OADs. If he doesn't go after top talent than he isn't really competing, especially after UK's 2012 run. And while I don't think self will ever have UK's 9 AA, he can and does have the opportunity for a good mix of high level talent plus experienced players.

So instead of focusing on the possible trouble that could come of overachieving individuals on an underachieving team, lets talk about the potential for this and next season to be approaching that perfect blend of OAD and 4 year players.

Also, lets not jump to conclusions about KU losing its big man U rep. We still signed the No. 4 overall prospect at power forward this year. And most were thinking we would still have Joel so that probably kept the footers away.

I agree. After rewatching the game I noticed a lot of Frank's shots, especially early were really good looks and they just didn't fall. I remember particularly a couple of nice, under control, floaters that bounced all over the rim before falling out. His stats also weren't helped by the fact that nobody could make a shot. A point guard has zero assists because there were only 11 shots made the whole game. That is not all his fault.

This game was a combination of having an awful shooting night against a great defensive team. It certainly wasn't all them or all us that led to 13% in the second half. A lot of that was just bad luck.

I felt before the game we were probably 10 points worse than Kentucky, meaning at their place it would be a blow out, at ours it could go either way and at a neutral cite it would be close. The first half that proved to be true. We had some bad luck early, played good defense, but couldn't score and went into the half down 10 but with some positive momentum.

I don't have anything to say about the second half as it was a complete mess and I don't like to think about it anymore. Why did I force myself to rewatch it. I have a problem.

Is anyone else still a little concerned about Embiid? I mean his stats for the game were about normal for him these days (14/11), but several times the announcers accurately pointed out that he looked "tired" or "gassed." Someone else pointed out that he didn't really go after that many blocks. Some of this may be do to the fact the Nyiang (sp?) was much more active this game and didn't just settle for 3s therefore wearing down Joel, but I wonder how much better his knee really is. Is he at 70%, 80%? It sure wasn't 95%. Here's hoping all it will take is time to heal and we won't have to mask a crippled big man all spring long.

@drgnslayr - Careful! There will be plenty of those too! I'm thinking 4 or less should do it. Hopefully we are learning how to win on the road (even if we haven't done it yet!). But I imagine these Hawks will surprise us with a home loss in conference at some point. They almost always do, and this team won't be any different.

Not sure why there is a dude with sunglasses in that last post! It was supposed to say 6-8 end parentheses. Also it was a reply to drgnslayr's comments about Tharpe.

I was really disappointed in Tharpe as well. There was a moment near the end of the game when we were still in it (down 6 or 8) and Florida made a free throw. Wiggins takes the ball out and there were no jayhawks on that side of half court. We got lucky and didn't turn it over (barely) because Traylor and Greene came back for it eventually. My first thought was maybe Self had done a weird offense defense switch so we had no point guard on the floor. But after rewinding and fast fowarding and really really really searching I found Tharpe standing in the absolute far corner as far away from the action as possible. Whether he floated there after the ball got in and Wiggins controlled it, I don't know. But where was he when Wiggins is literally jumping up and down on the sideline yelling for somebody to help. Wiggins had no idea how much help he really needs! All these guys better step up, but I was hoping Tharpe already would have.

The first half was obviously a disaster. We just haven't figured out how to punish teams for pressuring us yet. Breaking pressure should lead to easy buckets whether it is full court pressure or teams playing in the passing lanes. At this point the they are young excuse is a bit redundant but these guys just don't have the plays in their arsenal to make scoring plays.

Someone on here yesterday posted the last big Florida game. I watched part of it and noticed they played quite a bit of zone that game too. The difference was we had plays clearly drawn up to beat it. Back cuts, lobs, flare screens, cross cuts in the post, the list goes on. And that wasn't even the 2008 team with the 55 plays or however many in the playbook.

Jaybate used to write about Self sending teams out flat or amped. Flat being just kind of sent out there to play with no real edge from the coaching staff (i.e. plays for lobs, special defensive schemes, etc.) So the question is is Self saving this stuff for when they need it (conference), is he unable to communicate this edge to his team yet (inexperience), or was the passing just so bad that we never even had a chance to run "a play" (just bad)?

Either way, Self is a good coach who has proven in the past he can give his players an edge even when they are overmatched physically or less talented. So at some point you would have to think this physically gifted and clearly talented team will benefit from some scouting/coaching that will help make things easy for them. When will we see it? Is it weird that I actually hope it is later rather than sooner?