A+!
I'm a huge fan of Gordy.
drgnslayr
11251 posts
Send smoke signals. (I just needed the excuse to post these...)
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"They are on every single list. Drake, NBA players, it all helps build the brand ..."
I'm not a fan of Cal... but there is little doubt about his ability helping build the UK brand.
I want to see us take the LEAD more on the trends in college basketball, instead of FOLLOW. If we could get out there FIRST on a new structure to maximize player development, we could take the LEAD on that. It would make UK's "Hollywood approach" look absolutely stupid!
Kentucky held its "Big Blue Madness" last Friday. Drake did a video message and several past Wildcats were in attendance.
"He (Calipari) unsubtly mentioned all the wins and his 2012 national title and that just about every move Kentucky makes these days gets on national TV – even practices and, ahem, the on-campus combine for NBA scouts that no one else in America has even attempted."
I hate to say that this is the direction college basketball has gone in... but this is the direction college basketball has gone in. A video message from Drake is a big deal. Having a Kentucky basketball practice on TV is a big deal. Running your own combine is a big deal.
It is all about glitz. It's about saying Kentucky basketball is "Hollywood" (even though Lexington is 3400 miles away from the glitzy town).
So what wins out with kids? Having a museum and burial place of the founder of basketball, or a video clip from Drake?
Kentucky's madness event smears the national headlines. Kansas' late night... not so much. (nothing)
!nancy-sinatra_boots-walking.jpg ↗
"These boots are made for walkin'... and that's just what they'll do... one of these days these boots are gonna walk all over you!"
It has become very frustrating to be a Kansas basketball fan because we continually receive additional recruiting information. We get frustrated with all the news of guys we lose.
In the end, we seem to do alright with recruiting... but our methods seem to be to get our guys late. Maybe it is the recruiters. Maybe they don't want to sign guys early? Could that be?
It doesn't really seem like we put on the hard close early on anyone.
We just get more and more frustrated when we watch us lose guys to other schools. A big part of our frustration must be from not knowing what is really going on. We just read the results.
I'm frustrated with it all, too.... and I think most of us in here get frustrated with it from time to time.
Let's see where we are next summer concerning filling all our post slots.
"Maybe this could be the debut of KUBuckets Publishing!!!"
Good idea! We'll shorten the name slightly to save on valuable ink -
KUBucks Publishing House
Probably cashed their checks and moved on....
I think he's become a little bored living without enough to do. He is young, has lots of energy and money....
"Do you have any idea if Self and his staff know about it and approve, or just don’t know about it?"
Good question.
I believe as long as @Statmachine uses a responsible filter, this can continue. Two wrong events have to happen in order for a problem to arise; first, a player has to say something he shouldn't. Second, @Statmachine would have to let it by his filter.
I have confidence in the stat man being responsible and we all will receive an extended bonus because of it!
"Chab" (Sir Charles Barkley) was the same height as Wayne, but played 20+ lbs heavier. He played the 4 and dominated.
For Wayne, it is all about the "size of the fight in the dog."
I'm guessing they are limited on bringing in "lady guests?"
What a pity...
It has taken me all this time to digest Self's "fool's gold" comment. I still view it as an overall negative to the team and to the direction we were on last year.
But I didn't sit in on practices.
I believe Self specifically targeted that comment to BG. I believe Self is frustrated with BG because BG hasn't focused enough on developing his skill set around his perimeter shooting.
Out of everything Self has ever done, it has been the "fool's gold" comment that has stuck on me as perhaps his biggest mistake. Maybe I was wrong and I really am not ready to "out-coach the coach."
If BG polishes up the rest of his game, he could have a shot in the NBA. But until then, he's just one of the best players of H_O_R_S_E on the planet.
Doing all the non-glamorous parts of the game well (everything except shooting the ball) is partly about skills and hugely about attitude.
My warning to all in here (stating again).... I'm adopting BG as my son who needs discipline this year. I'm not going to give him a break. Anything sugar-coating his current state of play isn't going to help motivate him to give his best shot at his NBA dream.
I thought the women's basketball team would live there, too? It used to be promoted that way...
Okay.... jokes aside..... I wonder how they pick the other lucky students who will get the swank treatment without risking an ACL injury?
This month marks the grand opening of McCarthy Hall, a state-of-the-arts dorm facility that was designed by Donald Trump, Hugh Hefner and Kansas Head Coach, Bill Self.
It is hard to envision 4 walls and a roof creating so much buzz around the college basketball world, but trust me, there is more buzz on Planet McCarthy than in all the honey beehive farms in the northern hemisphere.
McCarthy Hall is more than a dorm facility; it is an expression from Kansas Jayhawk fans on just how much they appreciate Jayhawk basketball players... to the point of creating a heaven for the Gods!
I wonder if any of the current buzz spreading through the elite recruiting world has been fueled from the announcement of who will be sharing common space with the team in their new digs?
Last one in the hot tub is a rotten egg!
(no malice, no harm, yada-yada)
Love it!
I don't see BG in the NBA, period. I like him a lot, but he's pretty easy to see without crimson/blue glasses on and he simply doesn't have near enough game to make that jump. It would help his stock a great deal if he could learn to score off the dribble and work on his footwork enough to create his own shot. That could at least get him a look from scouts.
He could shoot 100 for 100 from trey in one spot and that simply doesn't mean anything. NBA isn't a game of H_O_R_S_E.
I'm going to be the guy who goes down hard on BG this year for developing more game. He has been living in "fool's gold land" if he thinks his shot alone will earn him PT.
Bravo! Very cleaver method of working your rotation. I really liked how you started by tagging each slot with an abbreviated description.
" Self doesn’t doesn’t give a crap what a player’s projected NBA position is..."
Might that be relevant to some of our recruiting hiccups? I know if I was an elite recruit, I would get it written in blood that I would develop at that school in my most-likely NBA position.
I do agree with you... Self doesn't seem to care about a player's projected NBA position.
I know I'm the odd one in my thoughts about BG. I just don't see him as a 3. He doesn't have the handles or tenacity for the position. But maybe in just a reserve role...
Where are the manners with these guys?
One lady and they make HER stand?!!!!
Does our Diallo situation hurt us in early polls?
I'm sure you are right!
Okay.... call me a cynic... but it sure looks like KU went to efforts to block out the lower part of the chairs so we can't see which guys are standing on tiptoes. Perhaps part of the known "gotcha" concerning "KU inches."
Zoom in on the photo and look down at the bottom of the chairs.
@jaybate-1.0 - please, file this in your ongoing investigation of ShoeCos... you never know, but perhaps they "advise" their schools.
Heck... we haven't had this much age and experience on our team since 2012. You would think that we could actually develop more offense now since we don't have to spend so much of the team practices on the basics. Guess it depends on our freshmen... how fast they learn and how much we will rely on them.
@Statmachine mentioned an idea that we might get more development out of players because of the new apartments. I hope he is right and I believe there will be some gain there, if for no other reason than convenience for guys to go put in more side work.
Really makes me wonder about floor position.
Typically, the PG and 2 aren't positioned "right" and "left." PG is usually more centered and might go to either side for various reasons.
I can see a "right" and "left" being advantageous, and I can see it failing to offer good execution of some plays.
Or perhaps Devonte or Frank really does play PG and runs the show from the top and we just say we run a 2 PG offense. Or they flip back and forth, even while both being in the game at the same time.
All players are different. Some players really don't do well to move around in different spots. They may lack some of the skill or comfort in switching. IMHO, we had that as one of the issues with EJ.
After Svi gets polished up and strengthened... he seems to be a guy that could play several positions well. Good overall skill level and basketball IQ.
So you think Self has been "Mayor-ized?" ;) I'm not holding my breath waiting to see us start exploiting individual player strengths on offense. Wish we would do it and run offense to exploit our individual advantages more.
After reading Tom Keegan's article this morning... it made me wonder....
Column: KU guard Graham big key to success ↗
So Self has been sending out media messages about "playing small" with Devonte and Frank playing together a lot this year.
Makes me wonder what players will land in what chairs?
First... it definitely sends the message that Wayne will be a 3 this year... and Self implied it himself in this article. I believe most of us thought this was coming, and most of us like the idea.
Second... if Devonte and Frank fill the PG and 2 spot... where will Svi play? Or... will he play? Will he share PT at the 2 and the 3? He really seems to be a 2 and not a 3... especially when looking ahead at the next level.
When running Frank and Devonte together... how much of a distinction exists between the PG and 2 positions? Obviously, one guy will "run the squad." Who will that be? We've sort of taken for granted that Frank will be our "designated PG"... but might he be pushed over into the "designated 2" so Devonte can start trying to improve the offense from the PG (and leadership) role?
I do believe, regardless of the chairs our guys sit in this year... we will need to redefine the PG and 2 spot and officially change their names to DPG (designated point guard) and D2 or DSG (designated shooting guard).
Will Self be attempting to adapt the PG and SG into "right" and "left" perimeter positions? Sort of like some of our variants of the hi/lo where we have two low post players, a right and a left.
From all of this, my main concern and questions concern Svi.
UPDATE: Looks like Devonte will get more (or most) of the DPG minutes -
[link text](
Does the line between the snake and the text represent the bench? Looks like you have Bragg, Vick and Svi pretty close to the line....
I am totally appreciating your connections and posts! Great work and thanks BIG TIME!
I want at least one team from Florida. It is east coast and it has a good recruiting base.
Maybe ditch W.Virginia. How many recruits have we ever signed from W.Virginia?
Two things stick out at me when picking new schools... TV markets and recruiting.
JMHO
I meant pull-up off the drive. That could be anywhere from about 8 to 15-feet.
I don't think it is reality to say we are only going for dunks (layups) and treys. Just not realistic, and before long, neither layup or trey will come easy because teams will give up on everything else to defend the trey and the rim.
How many layups or stuffs did Wigs make at KU? How many did he miss? I venture to say he would have batted a much higher average had he done more than take it to the rack. Other teams learned they could just pinch him near the rim and make him ineffective.
I look at Wigs and I see a young Kobe Bryant. A guy that brought his drive to the league, and within a few years went from an inside game to a perimeter game. A huge part of his success was learning to score in mid-range.
I really like how you mentioned exploiting match ups. That is something we simply do not do. I thought we would pick up some things from the Mayor when he was around. He sure made it look easy with all of his juco transfers....
"What Self did with Wiggins was vastly underutilize his talent."
I think I would change the word "talent" with "potential." Wigs talent in HS was mostly pure athleticism. He didn't possess great handles, and (for the most part) only had his spin move.
What I believe we should have done was have someone work with Wigs to develop a few main moves. Like... how about a pull-up jumper? But, instead, Wigs was told to always take it to the rack. Okay... he got fouled often. But he made almost zero finishes at the rack. Why? Because he grew fearful of getting bashed and potentially injured. Just teaching him how to locate his spots on the floor and to create a drive move and pull-up is like teaching a fastball pitcher his second pitch... a breaking ball. Suddenly, the pitcher advances past AA ball and hits the majors and is vying for the Cy Young award!
Just teaching him a pull-up would have made him so much more effective and given him confidence. He would have handled the rock much better because he would then have options instead of just brute forcing it at the rim.
How hard could that have been to teach? Really?
I thought Late Night was done really well this year. Of course, I only caught it on the tube and not in person. Bet it was really something to see in person!
Wow! And let's face it... Perry plays just like Karl Malone did! ;)
But seriously... that image of Svi makes it look like he has aged 10 years over the past 6 months. It could be from the use of a testosterone spray.
"to show a young recruit the best new living quarters in all of college basketball;"
Heard Hugh Hefner was in town for the christening of the new quarters and to proclaim them as "the swankiest digs in college basketball." I presume Withey (and Co.) were in tow and smashed the bottle after a ceremonial romping on the pool table.
I guess he said something about Playboy expanding considerably into sports coverage since they decided to extend the female "coverage."
And is it really negative? (that a player has to actually EARN his PT?)
I do understand (at least I think I do) Self and his desire to recruit players that are not only talented, but have a down-to-earth mentality (humility).
Yes... it sounds like he is leaning back into Kansas again. He would be a great get for us. He reminds me of Perry, but with more ability to score in the low post.
I almost wrote them off after the past month or so. They just didn't have the magic that carried them through the summer. Suddenly, they went from being one of the best teams with runners in scoring position, to one of the worst. I think they are back to trying to regain their identity, and hopefully last night inspires them to do it!
I've thought that Houston sort of reminds me of our Royals last year. Young, without experience but driven, focused and playing footloose with nothing to lose and everything to gain.
I kind of think the Royals are tasting a bit of what Kansas basketball has to deal with. Now... the expectations are high so they perhaps play a bit stiff and defensive... just trying NOT to lose instead of trying to win. They definitely have become more conservative and they don't put the pressure on other teams with their speed on the bases.
Ha hahahehehahe.... not THAT blue nation!
Congrats, Royals, for keeping your composure and getting the job done!
And thanks for making the Governor of Texas look like the j-ass he is!
Texas governor’s official account tweets congratulations to Astros for winning ALDS ↗
Universities and ADs don't operate the way they used to.
It is ALL about money. It is run similar to a corporation. The real shock is in endowments.
Why do universities need so much money? I know they need money to operate and to develop. But seriously.... I'm not sure, but I think KU has assets over a $billion!
Every year I get hit on and it feels like panhandling.
I look at universities now the same way I look at big corporations. They suck in huge amounts of capital out of our economy and where does it go?
When our economy fell in '07-'08... where was big corps? They were sitting on fat, fat equity, and most still are. Was it just "riding the storm?" And the ones that weren't had their hands out looking for a gov bailout. Couldn't they have played a bigger role in "stimulus" instead of having our gov go in more debt to stimulate the economy with a "stimulus package?"
I know he's a nice guy... but I hope he isn't THAT nice! He has to be able to get down in the lane trenches and fight for everything.
Cheick to the basketball...
like flies to the cheeseburgers fresh off the grill
like some attorneys swarming an accident scene
like John Calipari buzzing around all Top 50 recruits
like politicians near a TV camera
....
I bet you can write a lot more of these than I can!
It's like there is a sun halo around his head! I am very excited to watch him mature as a Jayhawk. I hope he stays with us for a long time!
"Thinks about it…why would I contribute to and AD that goes out of it way to block me from watching the sports I really want to watch?"
True... but also... would you contribute to a program that is the complete laughing stock of D1 football?
The conversation has focused on our biggest recruiting hurdle since Self arrived in Lawrence.
After the Tarc debacle Self mentioned he would adjust his recruiting tactics. We are all pretty sure that one of those addressed his past attitude of freshmen having to earn their spots over more-seasoned players, even if they were elites. Self even went as far as almost promising Oubre minutes. But the reality of what happened is very different.
This is where we get hammered in recruiting.
Most people are focusing on Cliff's disastrous year as the excuse for us lagging behind this year in recruiting.
I challenge this.
I tend to think it was the delay in giving minutes to Kelly that had the bigger impact. He did pan out his freshman year and is gone. Might he have gone higher in the draft had he played from Day 1 in Lawrence? I think that is a question opposing recruiters are asking recruits that are considering Kansas.
Our "formula" of mixing long-stay players with OAD-types requires care. It does require freshmen (even elites) to earn their PT and not be given lots of extra leeway.... however... there must be a show of good faith that an elite recruit will pay off eventually when our coach shows a bit of patience.
I still think our recruiting suffers from Self showing freshmen the fast hook. It isn't hard sifting through vintage video footage to find a plethora of examples.
Bragg is a great example of what I'm talking about. Yes... if Diallo gets "legalized" we'll have plenty of options with more experience than Bragg. However... Bragg is the only big (besides Perry) that has perimeter shooting skills. With Bragg and Ellis on the floor at the same time, the opposing bigs will be forced out away from the basket. Typically, that creates a plethora of offensive options...
And if Bragg gets put on ice... what does that say to the recruits considering Kansas? Plenty!
I believe this gets into my topic of how much our current football program is costing all our sports. A big chunk of it is money and fundraising. I bet we have to fight harder to raise capital for our entire AD largely because of the problems we have in football.
I don't think people realize how much time and effort is put into KU fundraising. All universities do the same thing, but I believe we have to fight harder for contributions because our football program stinks.
At least... that is the impression I was given at a KU fundraiser by Zenger himself.
At Late Night Self mentioned this team as having more depth than we've had for a long time.
I know he has to slim down minutes and go with a core crew of around 8... and I'm pretty sure Svi is in that group. But that will leave behind at least 2 guys that should still get some minutes (when possible) so they can still potentially produce late in the year... when we could have an injury or just need further depth down the stretch. Plus... other players offer differing skills and sometimes they just fit better in a situation.
I think this impacts recruiting, too. More the guys in the middle, but the level of player we often want for development and depth. Except for a walk-on, no one wants to come to Kansas and get put in the deep freeze for entire seasons. Talk about stinting someone's potential...
I've become a little worried after Late Night and Self's comment about using them together a lot this year. Obviously, I'd like to see them get some minutes together, but just not overdone.
I just hope we use all the talent we do have. Svi can be a force this year but he has to get continual minutes or he'll rust up like the tin man. Last year, he was put in the deep freeze.