🏀 KuBuckets Archive

@jaybate-1.0

I think it is well known that guards typically can get shots off much quicker than post players. I think this is part of why so many NBA plays end up with a perimeter shot (of course, the extra point is a big part, too).

Most post players have to catch the ball and set, then run some fakes, have some movement, all before getting off their shot. Not an opportunity for a catch-and-shoot.

The goal is never to get the shot off just before the shot clock expires. There should be around 3 or 4 seconds left in case the shot gets blocked or doesn't hit the rim so a rebound/shot is still possible.

Any NBA guard worth his weight in ShoeCo stock (thought you might like that one) can get his shot at any place and any time... regardless who is glued to him. I in know way put our Frank and Devonte in that league... but there aren't many D1 players that can make that claim either. But our guys are capable of creating for themselves with just a few ticks on the clock left. We are far ahead of most D1 teams. At least.... that is where my hope is!

@wrwlumpy

I haven't written him off at all!

We have all gotten spoiled on this crazy OAD ride, but it is players like Jamari that will be vital to a big run. I look for him to have an outstanding year. He will benefit from his own maturing, but also from the maturing of his teammates.

I hope he has been working on his offense and has more tools in his toolbox this year. Even without more, he can often present a challenge to opponent post players when he is slashing through the post.

I'm pretty certain, even though we have recruited in a couple of good post players, BamBam will still earn plenty of minutes, either as a starter or off the bench.

His chip is developing because every day goes by and he is a few tick tocks closer to ending his Jayhawk career and he will want to position himself well for a bright future in basketball.

Some fans really haven't been fair with Jamari. He wasn't a 5-star recruit with high expectations. He has worked hard for everything he has and I feel positive he'll end up being a great representative for Kansas.

Jack Harry, I anoint thee "d-bag of the century!"

Enjoy the title... it could have been worse!

@Crimsonorblue22

Totally agree... the trade was bad for the Cavs... GREAT for Wigs! He'll continue building his game and it won't be long before a team is built around him with the right guys capable in the playoffs. This current period is good for his soul and character.

The last guy I worry about is Wigs. His character and mind are BOTH sound... something RARE in the NBA!

@JayHawkFanToo

The ultimate is when guys wear pajama bottoms and pull them half way down their undies. Got to go with plaid undies.

I'm not even going to pretend I understand. I guess our parents thought we were nuts with our bell bottom pants and platform shoes! I miss those shoes!

@Texas-Hawk-10

Thanks for your post.... I've been saying that for a long time now. It is actually possible that LeBron and Wigs could have shared the floor together and could have been a dominant force... especially when throwing in a healthy Irving. Love never fit that team.

Cleveland blew it. But... whats new? Can they really claim they are jinxed when they are just plain stupid? I guess you can blame your stupidity on a jinx....

Okay... I've decided I want to be the new "media man" for Kansas basketball. I have 10 years experience in sports media directing in MMA.

I want to evolve Kansas basketball.

I want to push the envelope on the Jayhawk basketball media outlet to the press and to Jayhawk fans. Accessibility will never be higher! And for the rare Jayhawk games that are not televised, I want to port live streaming to internet sources so no Jayhawk fan is left out in the cold... ever... ever... again!

Here is my first cookie offering... some highlights on the Kansas vs Canada game... buried away on KUSports.com:

[link text](

My ultimate responsibility would be to help every Jayhawk player with personal development by showing them footage of their game... strengths and weaknesses. Including live in-game coaching help via:

!warriors-app-angle-good.jpg ↗

All of our scholarship athletes would have a video device during bench time in games. Individual footage and coaching would be sent over to players while taking a blow so they could be coached up DURING games. To my knowledge, there is no rules or regulations governing electronic devices on benches. This would be a first for the sport and something adopted in D1 all the way to the NBA. Players would put an ear pod in and could hear and see instructions even during the largest crowd outbreaks.

It is time for sports to start soaking in the available technology today.

@jaybate-1.0

So you aren't in on the theory that Bill Self 1.0 will upgrade into Roy Williams 2.0?

Imagine Self running Roy's high-octane offense but keeping his own focus on Billy Boy's M2M defense?

I can hear the recruiting lines already...

"Yeah, young man, if you go to UNC you will learn Roy's offense and it will prepare you for the NBA. Or you could go to Kansas and learn Bill's offense AND defense and it will prepare you for the NBA Playoffs!"

@REHawk

"I hope his gamble pays off."

It is a pity it has to be this way. But it seems like our guys get so nicked up in a season that the risks are high for staying in D1, too.

I think we need a special assistant that does nothing but plate our players with body armament. The technology in that area is growing rapidly and we should desire to be cutting edge. If we can build lavish suites for players to live in, we can afford the very best protection for their bodies!

Okay, okay... I'll take the job! Below is an illustration of how our guys will look this fall...

!17789301032011045041.jpg ↗

Imagine being able to play with that stick?!

@Statmachine

I guess I've just seen too many movies in my life -

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@Lulufulu

"I really think we need another x KU player on the bench. Id love to see Miles in there! Paul Pierce, Scot Pollard, Sherron, all other guys I would like to see there."

I'm right with you!

@JayHawkFanToo

"Maybe the question should be…have you seen any news about any of the other US teams that will be competing a the WUG?"

There are other USA teams at WUG??? (blush)

Seriously.... when I go on a rant you can't take me too literal or even literal at all. I'm like the Bluto in "Animal House" who goes on a rant about the Germans bombing Pearl Harbor. And the others said, "let him go, he's on a roll."

@HighEliteMajor

Nope. All the boxes are on summer vacation.

@Statmachine

I think we are on to something...

Can we still put threads in an archive folder for easy reference and addition later?

How about we start a thread:

Irrelevant Basketball Information

Seems I've had at least a dozen posts of totally irrelevant basketball info just on Cal.

@JayHawkFanToo

"Hard to tell what NBA teams will do."

I've always been shocked by NBA picks. It often seems like an owner who knows nothing about basketball overrides management and coaches.

@Statmachine

I put in "John Calipari taking a dump" and got 1,060,000 results. I guess there are a lot of people out there knowing he is full of it.

Which led me to the top news story:

John Calipari topless?

!coach-calipari-shirtless.jpg ↗

Isn't that his son with him?

Hey John... you better get some sunscreen protection on. We don't want to read in headline news how you got a sunburn!!!

@JayHawkFanToo

"I Googled “KU Canada Sprint Center” and I got 345,000 items including lots of summaries of the game as well as videos and photos; there is even reference to KUBUCKETS on page 3."

I just fed in your search terms and got 354,000 items (which is irrelevant).

But on the first page there was nothing but local references. I know it is more relevant locally... but heck... this is TEAM USA!

Lots to talk about.

First.. let's get the white elephant out of the room before his defecation reaches the ceiling...

Dang those sports media wonks! Just because their own beloved teams aren't playing they decide to leave USA (Kansas) basketball all together out of the news... even on the college basketball websites?!

I put "Kansas Jayhawks Canada" in a Google search and the returns were all local.... KUSports, KC... etc.

I'm sure if Duke's "rat face" went under the knife to reduce his extreme rat nose we would experience massive national coverage about every surgical detail.

I sure hope we do well in these games, just to rub it into all the sports media wonk's open neck sore that leaked out all their brain tissue.

Okay... I'm done ranting on that.

It seems to me that Kansas will be in excellent position to win a National Championship this year. Why? Outside of the fact that we have pretty good depth at all positions... what we have most that few teams have is PG play from Frank Mason and Devonte Graham.

I believe when the shot clock rules continue to reduce the shot clock it puts more importance on the PG. PGs have to move quickly to get into their offense. They have to work quickly to develop offense, freeing up players to hit shots. And PGs need to be able to score. Now, with a fast moving clock in D1, the ball will, inevitably, get stuck in the hands of the PG fairly often with just a few seconds left on the clock. Few teams (or realistically NO teams) in D1 have the scoring potential of Frank and Devonte. They bring experience, athleticism, talent, basketball IQ and guts to the table. Couldn't ask for more at this level of basketball.

Is it really a surprise that Golden State won playing small ball? I think Steph Curry would be my pick for players I would want to have the ball at the top of the key with just a few seconds left on the shot clock.

If we get good guard play out of Frank and Devonte, and our defense steps up and plays 24 seconds of defense on every defensive stand, I'm having a hard time thinking of a team that will beat us!

Forget Steve Rogers: KU's Frank Mason is the REAL Captain America, baby ↗

I'm glad all of our guys get a chance to play minutes in this. We always criticize Self for not playing his bench enough to season them. Well... he is the perfect opportunity to season our bench and not have it go against us in D1.

Plus... there is no way we need to push any of our guys to the point of attrition. We need to keep our troops healthy for the coming year!

Concerning ShoeCos influence on the college game.... sign me up for believing they play a major influence and will do so until something horrible gets exposed and Congress has to step in... or the DOJ.

@jaybate-1.0

"Agreed Aaron would be a good add. Don’t see why he would do a better job than Howard, though"

There just aren't many PGs anywhere on the planet that played more unselfish ball than Aaron Miles. He was our "ultimate creator" and a role model for what PGs should be doing with the ball. If he is able to project this ability to other players, he becomes my "world pick" for teaching PGs. I can't really say I remember Jerrance playing in college, but I'm doubtful he had the abilities Aaron Miles had (and has).

I know this could quickly become a lynching blog on Howard. My gut feeling about him isn't really all that positive. But I'm not going to go on the uber offense to take him down. Not without knowing facts. Ultimately, we have to put some trust in Bill knowing what is good for Kansas basketball. I seriously doubt he would hold on to Jerrance if he wasn't contributing to Kansas basketball.

Having said that... when do we sign Aaron? :-)

I just caught the end of the radio broadcast... hearing us close out the game.

Thanks to all who went and came here to fill us all in. It sounds like a positive experience for us.

I have a feeling that Jamari might be one of our guys that gains the most out of this. His hustle will pay off big in International play because there aren't many athletic players who hustle. If he can put a solid performance in on every game, that may help his confidence and focus on playing scrappy all year.

Great that Frank could take over, but that is a sign our offense isn't running well yet, unless Bill is intentionally running more offense for Frank. If he is doing that, then I see a season where we use Devonte more as a PG and Frank as a scoring 2. I don't think people realize how much of a volume scorer Frank was in HS. Very capable scorer. Start relieving him of some of the PG responsibilities and he could be a 18 or so point guy on a regular basis.

Usually for us we have to figure out where our offense is coming from. It isn't just "feed the post"... it takes looking at the stat sheets and seeing where we can get points.

The NBA draft will go down on Thursday.

Guess we should talk about it since I don't have whopper tomato stories from my garden yet.

Guesses on when Kelly goes? What about Cliff? Will he even make it in the second round?

Who goes #1? Okafor? Towns?

Will the squid go and talk it up about how many guys he got drafted? Guess it had nothing to do with the players' own talents that they brought with them to UK....

Is this a strong draft? Or a weak one?

I always focus in on point guards... who goes when... any of them make it to the lottery picks?

Timberwolves have the first pick. Who will they pick to play with Andrew, or will they trade their pick for a combo package?

I don't know that I want to blame any of our coaches for our lower assist numbers last year.

The results were largely in Frank's hands... but he wasn't a PG in HS. He was a shooting guard and a volume scorer. I think he has done a fabulous job of converting his game to point. That is the hardest adjustment to make in this game. Anyone who has never played point suddenly has to learn the job. The entire outcome of the game is in your hands to decide what will happen.

I think Bill should look far ahead and see that if he can score an assistant coach like Aaron Miles... he should jump a mile high to acquire his services. Aaron would really push Bill's success over the top. I have absolutely no problem stating that as perhaps the strongest opinion I have ever had in here.

Aaron is the John Lucas I cried for earlier. Even better... he is young and will be looking for a new career, and he is a lifelong Jayhawk! An opportunity like this won't come around often.

If I was Bill... I would be planting the seed to get him to Lawrence as soon as his pro playing days are over!

@HawksWin

"Why can’t our beloved coach get 5* guards? Should I blame Nike?"

I don't think we usually want to get a 5-star PG. Unless a guy is a total freak that can take a team to a NC I'd much rather have a system where we always have a couple of PGs and the starting PG is either a junior or a senior and the other PG is his backup and learning the job as a freshman or sophomore.

I really like Frank and what he has to offer. And I think Devonte is going to be phenomenal! Both will be with us for 4 years. Then, I hope next year we land another quality PG project. Someone to develop behind Devonte. Churn 'em out... It's what UCONN does. If you do it right you have a senior PG every second year, and the other year is an experienced junior. On a team like Kansas... those senior PGs should be taking us to the Final Four almost every time.

That is what I expect at Kansas. I don't think we should go beyond 4 years without making it to the Final Four. Handle the PG situation properly and we should be able to maintain that kind of consistency. Look at teams like UCONN... and they don't even get near the talent we get at all 5 positions.

Ever once in a while a player like Anthony Davis comes along and puts his footprint on a championship. But most of the time, it is a game for guards, especially PGs. Someone has to lead a team to a national championship and it is hard to lead from the back line.

I was a Negative Ned a while back and didn't receive a lot of backing on it. My concerns were injuries and that we might get smoked in WUG and then we make our program look bad. The idea we could recruit off of this was a total, 100% flop. We had a good recruiting year despite having to play in WUG.

Yes, we are isolated. And I hope that gets through to the troops and they develop a chip. I think we spoil our players with so much love and attention they don't realize that the rest of the world could care less about Jayhawks and them. That is something they need to know to develop a chip.

We already lost Graham, and I hope he can fully recover without a bleep on the screen for the upcoming season... but while I'm busy being Negative Ned I will state that I feel sure he will slow down a step this season and has the possibility of recurrence.

I just hope we don't lose anyone else.

And I hope the benefit of our little extra season pays off this coming year. I think we have a good chance of seeing that, especially since D1 has to run on a faster clock... a clock slower than what we will experience at WUG.

@Crimsonorblue22

"I’m guessing you didn’t know that the Jayhawk does live on old mcdonalds farm?"

I guess I didn't know. I'd think we would be able to recruit a lot more McDonald's All-Americans since our Jayhawk lives on their farm.

My priority goal is no one else gets hurt.

Beyond that... I expect that everyone participating in WUG will see a benefit by being able to practice and then try to execute in games while the rest of D1 isn't able to.

I think the 24 sec clock will become our friend. Moving it to 30 seconds in November will make the game seem slower while the rest of D1 thinks it feels faster.

It appears we got ZERO recruiting bump because of WUG. That aspect is disappointing. I guess all the OADs feel like they don't need extra practice to improve....

@globaljaybird

Right... no picnic but in the end we are pushed to produce, and I look back with total appreciation for the coaches that pushed me hard.

@Texas-Hawk-10

Thank you. I wanted to say that... but I'm trying to not sound like the one guy who is always targeting Snacks.

Aaron would be the perfect catch for a developmental coach, and I bet he could become a pretty good recruiter, too.

Let's all think about how important it could be to have a top development guy whose expertise is PGs. The PG position is the position that you typically don't want to put an OAD player. The best is a 4-yr guy that knows the system as well as he knows his underwear size. Short PGs never really have a spot in the NBA lottery.... so keep getting quality PGs that aren't too tall, and we have a 4-yr player, even if he is building a big stat line.

National Championships are typically built around the play of a PG more than any other position.

@globaljaybird

"And the two exhibitions against Canada aren’t even televised. Are you kidding me? We couldn’t pry some TV time away from some lame network?"… Maybe SZ’s price tag was too high for anyone to take serious interest in? Surely he wouldn’t gouge some lame network guy?"

Plus, summer TV is primarily the rerun market.. everyone off and preparing for the fall season (television). The viewership isn't as big but the tv time is affordable and expectations are less.

"Just ran across this quote from Dooley in the Star. It may be an awakening he is not expecting, Warm, fuzzy, or cordial may not be adjectives this kid will translate in describing his provisional verification of KUBB"

I think they want to make sure this guy doesn't view WUG like some kind of International vacation only.

It sounds like in another year or two, Aaron Miles will be in search of a new career. He mentions coaching.

What a snag he could be for Kansas. Nothing beats what he has done with his basketball career to prepare him to coach players, especially guards... especially point guards. There is a reason why Aaron is still the all-time assist leader at Kansas. High basketball IQ!

Good point: Former Kansas point guard Miles assesses play of Frank Mason III, Devonté Graham ↗

@Crimsonorblue22

I had to be honest with what I thought on first notice. But.. we have to trust Bill knows what he is doing. I think it was slim pickings on such short notice.

I'm sure this guy will be helpful. I doubt Bill would just take a guy over there if he didn't think he could help. World ball is a different beast. Very different from D1. Lots of skilled players, but a good American athlete finds ways to compete so I'm not too worried that he won't help us.

@Texas-Hawk-10

"If we’re comparing DeBose to Graham, Graham is miles ahead of DeBose. This is a net negative for the roster."

Those were my thoughts.

My son is 22 months old and he's already a Jayhawk. He watched this past year's game closely and he knows what a Jayhawk is! I know... call it "indoctrination"... guilty as charged.

Question: Is Tyrel Reed qualified for WUG?

If so, he's the guard to add for WUG. He stays in excellent condition, knows the Self playbook, has plenty of International experience, and would be like adding a coach instead of another newbie. A man playing with boys. Curious if he is qualified for WUG? Anyone know?

First, I've been a gun owner from birth. My father already had my first gun picked out for me before I arrived home from the hospital. My father and his 4 brothers were all military. When my age sprouted I took the necessary gun safety course and then began my half century enjoyment of firearms, both for sport target and for hunting and sometimes for defense.

Most of my friends are on the very far right. Most of them carry NRA cards. Most of them collect guns and ammo.

I have a very warped sense of what gun ownership is about because all of these people around me respect the capabilities of guns, so they are responsible and not the types to go into a church and mow down those in prayer. If I ran into some bad folks aimed to do me harm, I'd love to have any of my friends getting my back. It would be a very short exchange and we would be fine.

But I differ highly from most of my friends in what I believe. I do believe in the Constitution and the right to bear arms. But I draw the line when we discuss it as a "right" instead of a "privilege." Owning firearms is a privilege. But some of my friends think even a serial killer has the right to bear arms. There is no way to be safe as long as our concept is that everyone has the right to buy such vicious tools to kill other people with. Obviously, as we see on the news every night... plenty of whack jobs are using firearms to kill innocent people every day.

If the fight is about "rights" then why wouldn't driving a vehicle be a "right?" It serves a bigger utility purpose than carrying a gun in the city. But yet we are able to maintain a bit of rational thinking on automobiles so we view them as a privilege... as it should be.

My fear is that the NRA has had it their way for too long. We will reach that point at some time when something crazy happens, like 1000 kids get mowed down by a lunatic that had a careful plan... and then we will all lose ALL our firearm privileges. This country seems to like to do everything in extremes.

I look at that lunatic, disturbed kid in South Carolina and I see someone who is part of the problem and will end up one day making me lose my firearms.

I think we need to crack down on who has the privilege to own. It won't solve all the problems, but there is no one step fix for this.

@ParisHawk

Guess I didn't catch that. I wonder if they have him in a full brace? Muscular atrophy begins quickly. I could see this taking several months to come back from.

@REHawk

"The game seems to be growing exponentially stressful on young bodies."

I've thought that for several years now. The solution is feeding the problem. Players are better and better conditioned... which is supposed to help prevent injuries and does if the player is in the same play as he would have been in worse shape. But the truth is he is NOT. Guys are jumping higher and they are making much sharper cuts. They are putting their joints through hell... more so then 20 years ago.

Better chance for players like Curry to survive because he is light. For every pound shaved off a player's frame he is reducing the chance of injury by taking some of the pressure off his joints.

I wonder if it is really a partially torn quad or just a sprain or strain? Partially torn quads typically take longer than 3 weeks to heal.

I hope it isn't really torn.

@bskeet

I'm glad they didn't give the MVP just based on numbers. James had the big numbers because the Cavs ran out of big scorers and also a PG to diffuse the assists.

LeBron was impressive. Especially when you consider his age.

But the compelling story was Igoudala. And for him to suddenly be thrown in the spotlight and play as well as he did... satisfies me that he deserved the MVP. He could have put up monster numbers like James did if the Warriors were missing so many players, too. Maybe not as high of numbers as James, but at least getting him plenty of attention.

It is hard to give MVP to a player on the losing team, because if he was so valuable in the tournament, why didn't his team win it all?

For GS... it would have been a tough road without Igoudala. He not only gave them a huge offensive spark, but he did a great job of containing James.

I'm pretty sure even James is tipping his hat to Igoudala and willing to admit he deserved the MVP.

Had the Cavs won... obviously James deserved it.

JMHO!

@Statmachine

Got me thinking about the very reverend "Godfather of Soul" at the Triple Rock Baptist Church....

[link text](

"Brother... have you seen the light?!"

@Statmachine

BMac's song -

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@jayballer54

I'd love to see us land Jackson early. It would be a real spark to get our recruiting year off to a good start. Great momentum.

This is just my opinion... nothing factual... but I think if Love had been healthy GS would have won in 5 instead of 6.

I thought Tristan Thompson was amazing. He didn't have quite the offensive punch Love has, but he plays a heck of a lot better defense.

What kept the Cavs around in this series was their defense. They did a pretty good job of limiting the high-power offense of GS rack up the points like they are capable of.

And really... Tristan has plenty of upside left in his game. He has made huge gains already since turning pro. At least he plays defense and I feel the reason why Love will never win a title is because he doesn't play defense. You can get away with that all through the season, but not at the end. The champs are crowned based on playing solid defense.

Thompson and Mozgov did a very good job of defending the post, and sometimes Thompson stepped out and did a reasonable job, even against Curry.

If I was Cleveland I'd let Love go. Free up the money and invest in the future. Repair the mistake they made by trading Wiggins. Maybe they can buy him back?! :-)

Having said that... Cleveland did make some good moves. They would have given GS a real run for their money if Irving wouldn't have gone down. He did a very good job of containing Curry while offering another alternative than LeBron.

I'm not a huge LeBron fan... but the guy is amazing. In some ways I'd like to see him lift the curse in Cleveland. I think he suffered with some deja vu... He can't bring a title to Cleveland on his own. He has slowed down a half step. And he also conserves his energy in games. He just isn't the spring chicken any longer. I can't believe the sportscasters demanding that LeBron take it to the hole every single play. Don't they realize how tiring that is? I've already read criticism about James' performance. Really?

@Crimsonorblue22

Imagine being a top 10 recruit... talking to Miller then Self. I think you are right... Miller will sway him to Self!

@Statmachine

I like when Cheick dunks the ball he quickly turns around and sprints down court... something very rare in young players. Usually they want to look for a camera to do their King Kong chest beating impressions.

Here is the tape that has everyone foaming at the mouth....

[link text](

Said to have the athleticism of Wiggins but with a much higher skill set when compared at the same age!

@jayballer54

It is hard to believe Kansas is 75% and Arizona is 25%. Josh has been practicing for Sean Miller this summer in the U19 World Championships...

"Although Miller says USA Basketball isn't about recruiting, even though he's the U19 head coach, it can't hurt. After all, the Wildcats secured a commitment from five-star guard Allonzo Trier just two months after Trier played under Miller, who was an assistant coach on last summer's U18 team."

Arizona basketball: 5-star recruit Josh Jackson enjoys Tucson visit ↗

He has even visited the UA campus already...

@VailHawk

Maybe Under Armour... the sponsor of his AAU team, which is run by his mother! Better keep him away from Maryland!

Top 2016 recruit Josh Jackson: ‘I’m definitely going to college’ ↗

I'd go just for the kimchi!

@Crimsonorblue22

"when I think of you, I see shot fakes!"

Thanks! It could be a lot worse.... glad you don't see empty beer cans and cigarette butts!