Wow... I loved Frank's aggressiveness in this game. Reminded me of Sherron.
We need alpha-dog behavior, but spread well throughout the team. I did think all our guys put out a better effort the second half. Don't know how much of that was driven by Frank, how much of that was driven by Self, chewing some major butt at half. I bet it was LOUD in their locker room.
I still think we need more direct floor leadership.
@Kcmatt7 said:
He obviously likes to show off his vocabulary and quick whit as well
As well he should and we are fortunate anytime we can read words that can dance.
Yes.... but I enjoy JB's insights, even when (and especially when) he is hyper-focused on something.
He reminds me of Thomas Edison.... nose to the grindstone and hyper-focused.... eventually he made major discoveries.
Good post. Yeah... it is interesting to see where the spokes of the hub go. Also nice to see the spokes leading off of Larry Brown, Bobby Knight, etc.
Here is a story that says quite a bit about Bruce and his blunders with players... primarily on recruiting mishaps.
When Bruce Weber Failed The Illini ↗
"There have been a few recruiting mishaps during Weber's time in Illinois. During the great run in the early years, Charlie Villanueva verbally committed to the Illini under Bill Self but then signed with UConn."
Was I the only one that noticed the handshake line last week in AFH? It didn't really look like Bill and Bruce were in love.
I guess if you use the tape correctly you can keep fat from jiggling....
What about kinesiology tape?
Does it do anything? Kind of seems like more "tattoo wear" to me.
Yikes.... not a very flattering photo.
He had his sport coat on when I saw him.
I usually look at faces and I thought his face looked thin and healthy. Good skin.
It is a great thing when you can respect and applaud your adversaries.
I've respected and applauded Lon Kruger since the early 70s, when he led K-State to two Big 8 Championships under Jack Hartman, another man of great character. It was tough for me to acknowledge that back then because I was already deep in crimson/blue.
OU is on a roller coaster which took them so high last year, only to drop them down into the depths of despair this year. They will be back. As long as Lon stays in Oklahoma, you can count on a big fight from the Sooners every time we hook up.
Kudos to Lon for being a great man and an excellent mentor for so many players and young people today!
Meet Lon Kruger, the nicest guy in college basketball ↗
Lon is a great competitor and has always finished first in the big picture.
I'm trying to imagine.... no wait... no I'm not!
If we can just kill Jay Bilas' crusade against contact, we can start wearing helmets in games.
"I keep telling you guys KSU is legit."
We can't annoint KSU with legitimacy because if we do that, we have to accept Weber as being legitimate!
Ha... but seriously.. you know there are mixed feelings about Bruce in here and that impacts how people grade the kitties.
You don't have to convince me. I know they are legit. My only question all year (concerning KSU) is if they hurt us, or help us (like they usually do).
I remain optimistic that the purps will help us by taking down the other top contenders in our conference.
All we have to do with the purps is go into the Sherronagon and bring Sherron's spirit with us.
BTW: Bruce may be a bad recruiter, but the guy can coach! Very impressed with his skill set.
Now THIS is a fine example of how two opposing forces on an issue can address it with each other in a public environment... with humor and reaching out for common ground (Grayson smackdown).
Pay attention, Washington DC.
"Has anyone else noticed that Self has gained a lot of weight?"
I think he put on some holiday weight.
I saw him a couple of months ago and he looked great! He had definitely lost weight and looked to be in good health. He wasn't breathing heavy like I have seen him do in the past.
I've also noticed he seems to be really into the game this year. He's standing and pacing in the bench area during games. And I think he is a bit more vocal during games, too. He clearly enjoys coaching this group...
And we do want to be surging upwards at the end of the year. Peaking early is not the right thing, but is this team capable of peaking this year anyways? I guess another injury could make it hard for us to come up to where we are before the injury.
It is hard to say what we would become (moving forward) if we still had Doke. We have to just stay focused on the positive, and there is plenty to be positive about with this team!
I'm with you... I love this team and I love the 4-guard attack!
I think we have crazy potential to lift up to a much higher level. Most of it will just require energy and leadership. We already know these guys are capable of locking down on defense. And we know they are capable on offense....
You know I have the upmost respect for you and also your opinion on letting the rivalry die.
And I definitely relate to your animosity to the filthy beasts to the east.
But you can't deny our university being connected to the border war. It is our history.
I've always related well to our school and the Jayhawk name, and our fight to be a free state. That means a lot to me, maybe more because of my ethnicity. It helps me often. It helps me keep my temper towards others in check. It helps me develop my first opinion about others in a positive light.
In my own family history we had battles in Arkansas and Oklahoma.
It is personal with me, and I not only take great joy in whipping their arses... just seeing both our schools on the marque for the game gives me a sense of right and wrong and being on the right side (though we weren't angels in that conflict either).
"But I’ve gotta say that I don’t see a leadership issue on the team."
So in March, when we are down by 8 with 3 minutes left in the game, do you see a player stepping up and giving the entire team a pep rally?
I don't think we need a babysitter at PG. But I know how valuable it is to have someone out there leading, directing, motivating, pushing the right tempo.
Actually... just thinking of the last item, tempo, we are already lacking leadership to try to control tempo. Even Fran has been mentioning it about our games. We are playing home games against inferior competition and we let them control tempo. That is a leadership issue.
It will certainly be a test for Baylor. Welcome to the top, Baylor, where every opponent circles your game and is outrageously motivated to play you!
Baylor has a mixed record with West Virginia. I'm not sure I would make this the Bell Weather game to decide on Baylor.
I worry about overall minutes, too. But I worry more about the style of play. I think Frank is more selective on when he goes full bore to the hole against defenders. Some of those situations are just flat out dangerous and definitely contributing to him getting banged up over a season.
Our guys are in good shape, and a few minutes here or there shouldn't mean a big difference (I'm saying this while crossing my fingers).
The key (more than anything) is to try to pull a player when he absolutely looks fatigued out there. Those moments increase chances of risk.
I think I put Devonte at a higher standard than most fans do.
I expect total greatness from Devonte every game. I see him as the overall most-gifted player we have.
But I get frustrated with him just like I did with Wayne Selden. Wayne just seemed to be too laid back most of the time and would just kick in the afterburners for certain games or certain situations. There was no way to count on that and often, in big games, it wasn't there. That is not the right recipe for winning out in March.
Ultimately... I'm focused on what WE get out of it.
Yes, there is the negative that we will be exposed to a few games against an opponent that is lowly ranked but has a real chance to win because of the motivation factor.
But we can't replicate a rivalry somewhere else. The emotions are REAL with our Mizzou rivalry. That should help us play with more emotion throughout the season because when we don't come jacked up for a Mizzou game, we are toast, I don't care how high we are ranked and how low they are ranked.
I still kind of wonder if Devonte has lifestyle issues negatively impacting his court performances.
I wonder if he is eating/drinking properly, and sleeping right, too.
That can easily explain his issues with leg cramps. That is just the first sign. If his physical status is lower, good chance it is impacting his mental side, too... (ie focus)
And these are just my opinions...
I can't say I totally understand the chemistry on this team. It may work out fine. But from a historic perspective, I think it is extremely valuable to have someone loud and demonstrative calling the shots as a leader and staying on guys to perform at their best.
Not even tackling our struggles on defense.... Looking at offense, I think we are in for a huge reality check soon. I think we have been masking the overall health of our offense because we have such stud scorers that have continually bailed us out.
Look at our assist numbers. They are okay, but more or less middle of the pack type numbers. If you look at the volume of scoring we are putting up, our assist numbers should be much higher. I don't take that as a complete negative though, because in past years I sometimes thought our offense had too many assists. We were too "team offense" oriented, creating a crutch of individual players to push their limits in an alpha-dog situation of one-on-one.
Now we have several players not afraid to take their man on in order to score. But are we also masking inefficiencies in our offense? I think so. It will come out when we finally play a tougher opponent... some day.
We definitely did not play with dominance in our first 3 games.
"So, for the sake of anybody’s “love” for 1 goddamn rivalry, you would want our players subjected to that?"
Very solid statement against renewing the rivalry with Mizzou.
When they left the Big 12 my first feeling was relief... to finally end that trashy relationship.
But I have recently gravitated to renewing the rivalry. And in doing so, Kansas and the Big 12 are holding all the cards.... essentially we OWN the paper on the double-wide trailer of Mizzou. They have become just what I thought they would become... a complete outsider to all of college sports. Their basketball program has figuratively collapsed.
I do think there is a benefit by renewing the rivalry. I'm not sure there is another rivalry in college sports that matched that one because it was rooted in a bloody history that still is felt today.
I don't want to shield our players from racist pinheads and trailer trash. Whether we like it or not, those people are everywhere in our country and in mass... so our guys need a lesson in reality and they should be taught how to respond to the struggles they face with toughness, with executing winning ways. We get tougher by facing struggles... and we should also become closer as a team when facing those struggles together.
I'm still for renewing the rivalry, but with Kansas and the Big 12 calling all the shots and Mizzou having to deal with it. They can take it or leave it but we all know they have nothing to lose and everything to gain.
Hey.... no one despises these jack rabbits more than me. I used to date a girl from Columbia and I faced some real showdowns on visits there including being denied service in restaurants because I wore KU gear, and 3 punk Tigs thought they would try to intimidate me and I easily backed them down.
Good post.
"People are rarely in 100% health throughout the season."
I'd probably go further and say NO ONE is 100% healthy at this level of competition throughout the season. Not even walk-ons.
Playing "hurt" is part of the game. By the end of our season pretty much all our guys will need a break to heal.
One big issue is that players compound the number of "injuries" in their bodies throughout the year and having so many can debilitate their performance when it counts most, in March. We've seen this in Frank in past years.
Our largest concerned area now is with our post guys. We can't really afford to lose Landen or Carlton.
There is no question (concerning Devonte) that he has been dealing with a few issues this year relating to his health. Probably his biggest issue is cramping. That is a serious issue. Sensitivity to cramping relates to both lifestyle and genetics. Certain players are more-likely than others to face the problems of cramping. Devonte may be one of those players because it has been happening in a pattern.
This is something that should be addressed with a sports physician and probably a dietician. I'm not certain, but I think there was a blurp out there from our basketball program mentioning Devonte being treated for this in hopes to prevent further issues. If anyone knows, please post it.
And maybe this all needs to develop "organically." Maybe this is all just a process that will finalize with Devonte becoming more animated and communicating with his teammates.
I hate it when we lose. But maybe we need a loss or two and more struggle to find ways of becoming better.
I think this team has toughness... has the skills... has the pieces needed for March. I think we just need to create the right synergy to handle any situation (like coming from behind on the road).
The sad thing.... the political toxicity bleeds out into just about everything. Now we look at college sports....
I'm pretty sure sports fans from North Carolina might have a lot to say about this.
Politics goes from anything very far right over to very far left. I think in the past the main voices were more moderate. But in today's world of internet, 24-hr "news" media, all the opinionated medias... it has come to the point where the fringe elements are getting their ways now (in both directions).
I hope this all settles down, but I don't think it will. "News" media makes their money on sensationalism, and there is no sensationalism in the center.
Now the far right and Trump are getting into power. But watch what happens... in a few years it will embolden the far left to take power. Trump flubs this up, he may be helping someone like Sanders get elected.
And the media loves it. All Americans glued to their media, awaiting to know what small unique group will demand their own toilets, how much will Trump collude with Putin. And all it does is build fear and hate from within our society. And that is what will drive our elections from here on out.
Frank is amazing. I think he leads by example.
I just believe we need someone demonstrative. Frank shows zero of that. He hardly even cracks a smile after a big play.
It is about communication. When your guys are softening up you give them a demonstrative kick.
I don't see us winning in March without that. Visible leadership. An icon.
I don't want this to seem like a bash on Frank. I adore Frank's play. Everything except the demonstrative part. Even Bill makes fun about him having a stone face.
The game is still largely about emotion. We only have to look back to last year and see the proof with Villanova. They are well-coached.... but what pushed them over the edge was their emotions. Playing with the right level of emotion that kept them in the groove.
Just think about how bad they want to beat us and help capture a little bit of redemption for a tough start to their season.
Yeah.... you called it right on Walton. I just can't ponder existentialism while trying to focus on hoops.
Close your eyes.
Kick back.
Dream basketball.
Envision Devonte bringing up the ball, assessing the defense, controlling the tempo, calling out signals, pointing fingers and starting the offense. All his theatrics in use every play.
That's what I want to see. And that is his ticket to the big league. And that is one huge asset we are missing out on because we don't have someone specifically in charge. No definite leadership. I fear it is going to cost us again this year. The old words of "leading by committee" and "he leads by his actions" are just excuses for not having a real leader. Someone needs to stand up on this team and lead it. Devonte is the right guy to do it. It is in his DNA.
I fear another lost March. I fear everyone pointing fingers in the wrong places; a bad ref call, cold shooting, turnovers....
There are so few teams that really have a leader. It was enough to take WSU to the Final Four a few years ago with all their juco players.
I've always liked Knight calling the games. Sure, you have to put up with him messing up player names, etc., but he actually KNOWS basketball and is truly one of the architects of the game.
I've tried to tolerate Fran, I really have. But he makes it tough.
"Early senility? He’s lost all perspective."
The business of sports media is a frenetic business area full of fear-driven non-sports media and marketing wonks. I worked for over a decade in that field. These people are always looking over their shoulders... afraid they are being passed up on the ratings charts.
I kind of wonder if they are attempting to bring back the "color man" concept? Remember that? The idea was to have one sportscaster "off his/her rocker" to bring in a different perspective and kind of break things up. Keep it light and jovial.
I say that after having to tolerate Bill Walton doing UCLA games. Sad thing is, I'm a Walton fan... going back to his UCLA/Wooden days. But his thoughts have become so distorted that he is taking away from the game he is calling. I'm there to watch the Bruins, not to listen to Bill's ramblings.
Fran is just a half-step away from Bill (Walton) now. Fran says crazy things but he usually has enough vagueness in there to keep his bases covered. Walton just goes off, completely unfiltered.
"Missouri took a 26-20 lead into the locker room, but failed to hold on as the Tigers lost their sixth consecutive game."
Gosh.... when you can't win some games in the SEC, your program must stink.
Think back.... we lost a lot by losing that famous rivalry... think about what Mizzou lost? It was all they had.
You are correct... here are the details....
Newly Adopted Legislation
Proposal No. 2015‐53
Effective: August 1, 2016
In men’s basketball, permit the institution to provide up to 24 official visits in a rolling two‐year period.
• Up to 30 official visits for service academies.
• Limit of 12 official visits may occur before the initial signing date of
the National Letter of Intent.
I think Devonte has a solid chance to make it in the NBA as a PG. Not sure why we don't give him those responsibilities now?
If any still don't know what responsibilities a PG has... go back to our game with Nova last year and pay attention to Ryan. No way Nova made it to the Final Four last year without him.
You gotta love how he stopped gathering and usually goes directly into a scoring move when he catches the ball.
Bravo, Landen!
He's starting to figure out that scoring in the low post isn't about focusing on going OVER the competition.
Scoring is about looking down at the feet.... your feet, the defenders' feet, and knowing where you need to be to finish and knowing how to get there. A little practice and it becomes automatic. Use the body, the goal and backboard to your advantage to protect the ball.
Players like George Niang got it. He was 5 inches or so shorter than Landen but had no problem scoring in the low post. It really isn't rocket science.
I put Fran in a similar light as Bilas. Bilas might be more knowledgable about the game, definitely on subjects outside of the Big 12... both of these guys make plenty of good points in their broadcasts. But they both seem to have axes to grind and that biased approach doesn't cut it with me.
I could give both of these guys fairly high marks for their work if they just cleaned up their acts.
It's all innuendo. He didn't say it was in order.... but one could make that assumption since media usually puts things in order starting from the top. He was working in AFH, and yet the first top venue that comes in his mind is the Hilton? And he had remarkable enthusiasm for the Hilton and just sort of mentioned AFH because he had to.
I'm not trying to whine or be over-sensitive... just pointing out his style of doing things and when you have the microphone you should be thinking about how things appear.
This is his style and how he does things, and most of his negative energy towards Kansas is innuendo and other tactics often hard to "prove."
Like I said, he should be a politician, or a lawyer, or like most politicians, both.
Lots of struggle down in Norman. I hope Lon gets it worked out. He's a great coach and a strong OU is good for our conference.
We all now see how important Landen is to our success this year. The real test will be when he has to face a team like Kentucky. Can he hold his own?
Even though he still needs to be tested on the court, there is no doubt that his character should be admired. He didn't come to Kansas as a McDs AA. He was thought of as a reserve. As you say... "you've come a long way" and that fact alone deserves plenty of respect.
I really loved what he did yesterday just before half. That helped slow the momentum of TT considerably. That was a senior move. He kept his cool. Landen... kept his cool, and he and we were rewarded.
It is about time we use our POISE to impact how the game goes, including with the refs.
I could like Bilas if he didn't have such an agenda. I just can't get past that. I can't get past him using the microphone to empower himself to decide the future of college basketball.
What has he done to deserve that kind of power? He "politics" with the microphone. All I want from the game barkers is to call the game they are hired to chat about.
You are right... he put AFH in his list of 5 greatest venues.... the "innuendo" was he said Hilton first. Most of the time, in these media days, a list starts from the top.
Heck, he should be a politician.
It was an accident. He was trying to rack the #ell out of him and failed.
Welcome aboard, Sam!
Size, athletic, skilled... but I think the real chemistry Sam has with Bill is toughness.
Fran Fraschilla.
Love him, hate him... or consider him milk toast not worthy of emotional entanglement.
However.... did I hear him right today during the game? Did he really put the Hilton above AFH in top venues? Maybe I heard it wrong. Or, maybe it was innuendo... Fran is pretty good at that.
BTW: I don't want to be negative about ISU, their fans, or their venue. They deserve some respect for building up their program and I hope more teams in the Big 12 develop the fan enthusiasm they have. But come on....
@DoubleDD said:
As I sit here after KU’s win. I’m just tripping.
Did you watch the game with Grayson Allen?
Didn't take long for him to get back to his old tricks.
I think our biggest issue on this team is maintaining intensity. This team already knows how to play good defense, including some of the best defense I have seen in a Jayhawk uniform for a long, long time. This is largely a structural issue, which I address below, as it relates to leadership.
I feel like our offense has grown stagnant, just like our defense. But it is being masked by the fact that we have so many killer offensive weapons that often masks poor offensive play by being able to hit tough, guarded shots.
Making tough shots and scoring without overly hustling truly is "fool's gold." It is ENABLING our guys to play lazy basketball. Gosh, in that KSU game I can't count the number of times I saw our player WATCHING the game instead of PLAYING the game. Just because they didn't have the ball didn't mean they should take the play off and just watch. Go back to your DVRs and watch it again. I've seen the KSU game 4 times now, and have watched the last 4 or 5 games at least 3 times. This has been a process where we have migrated into playing with less intensity.
We may need to lose a game or two to wake up. I hope not. We definitely need something proving to these guys that their current intensity level just isn't cutting it. They are starting to talk the talk, but walking the walk is what counts.
This is the time when our experienced players need to step forward and lead. I've been skeptical about Frank staying at point for this very reason. He isn't verbal or expressive, but we need a leader to step forward and push the guys along. Ryan did it for Nova last year and that was the difference for them. Josh is magnificent. But he is a freshman and I look at him more like a catalyst than a leader.
I'm sticking to my original idea that Devonte is the key to this team going far in March, and maybe winning another Big 12 championship. He has the experience, intelligence, social skills and respect from his players to lead this team. This is THE FATAL FLAW with this team moving forward. He needs to be given the keys to this team and the responsibility of leading them. If we give him that ownership he will quickly become a completely different player, and hence we will have a completely different team. As it stands now, Devonte is being totally under-utilized. He may be our most-gifted player and for the most part, he hasn't been showing us what he can do.
@Texas-Hawk-10 said:
US troops have never been well trained or prepared for guerrilla warfare tactics. It’s why Vietnam was a disaster and why Iraq and Afghanistan dragged on for so long.
Much of my family has served, including my father and his 5 brothers. There has always been military discussions at our dinner table.
You are correct. Our general forces are structured for the old, traditional military theatre. Just look at our massive military budget and how money is spent on conventional war. If we appropriated more funds to contemporary situations we would be well served.
Also, what most civilians don't realize is how much goodwill our military does around the world. We perform the development of all kinds of civil improvements around the world, from building fresh water facilities to aiding in vaccinations and helping secure situations and rescue efforts. This goes on every single day and has so for decades.
I've always felt like walk-ons are very important to the development of a team. They do a lot of the ugly work that largely goes unthanked, but in return they get to have an amazing experience during their college days. And if they show an interesting in a career in sports, like coaching or administration, their experiences as a walk-on give them a notch up on others.
Sometimes their appointment may be politically motivated, but they still have to do their role to help keep the team running. A spoiled brat kid that gets in because of daddy is highly unlikely and can hurt a team. James Fraschilla most-likely had his dad's weight behind getting on... but he had to "play ball" and fulfill his obligation. That is the only thing certain in all of this. James had to be responsible to hold on to his spot on the bench.
@JayHawkFanToo said:
Maybe the NCAA should stick to sports and stay out of politics?
Unfortunately, they can't. They can't because they live off of sponsorship, and sponsors are like all other entities having to deal with the public. Some of the public needs to see issues addressed through all levels of everything. This is often motivated by political and news organizations that use whatever they can to push the issues.
Or... should I say "fortunately" because the common people have more than an election vote as their power, they also have their spending dollars to influence politics.
All of these "can of worms" relates to the public becoming more political as politics weighs heavy on all media and especially socially media. It is creating a more complex life for all of us, organizations, businesses, governments.... but maybe that is necessary to have more of the public involved in decision making.