Ma'ake
11-22-2013, 10:05 PM
Saw the Lamar game tonight, up close. The silver lining in sparse attendance is you move down - of course - and you get to see the team being built, you can see the looks on the players' faces, see Coach K laser-beaming basketball knowledge into them with his eyes (dude is intense).
Lamar was pretty athletic, if a little undersized, and it's one game in a three night stretch.
Dakari Tucker is stronger and obviously more confidant, knows what's happening. Just a Soph? :)
Taylor is Taylor, knows the schemes cold, and is probably the best pure shooter. Same guy we saw last year, a floor general.
Loveridge is noticeably quicker, he looks good at 210, and is definitely more explosive, I think he'll be a decent 4 on defense, and a good rebounder in addition to a diverse offensive package.
Lenz has worked on his game, without question, the best shooting big and seems ready to play bigger. Bachinsky is a work in progress, but he seemed to be having fun, and I suspect he'll break out a little this year. Olsen will find a way to make a difference. He won't be a dominant big man, he's not going to blow anyone away on sheer size and athleticism, but the guy is very sound.
OK, the new guys:
I figured out who Delon Wright reminds me of: he's a 6-5 version of Kelvin Upshaw. Great length, natural feel for the game, highly disruptive defensively, sees the court well, can rebound, can dish, seems to have a knack for the ball, and I think the shot will eventually be needed. They need to lock him in the weight room after the season, but he's a talent.
Princeton Onwas is very explosive, and rangey, seems to get what's going on, and will be good, and if he gets tired of basketball, I'm sure Whittingham would be happy to have him try out as a TE or DE. Dude is definitely built.
Kenneth Ogbe is just a freshman, and has a long way to go, but finding out he's from Germany, he kind of reminds me of a skinny, shorter version of Boris Diaw, kind of has a funny, bouncy gait, but I think he'll be a contributor.
Ahmad Fields definitely is another long, rangey athlete who is just a freshman. If he stays focused and has an outside game, I can see him picking up some minutes later in the year, like Tucker did last year.
Parker Van Dyke is still adjusting to D1 athleticism and all the dimensions of the game that make it a different sport than HS ball, but I suspect he'll be just fine, and will be the beneficiary of a lot of his athletic teammates breaking down defenses.
Lamar was pretty athletic, if a little undersized, and it's one game in a three night stretch.
Dakari Tucker is stronger and obviously more confidant, knows what's happening. Just a Soph? :)
Taylor is Taylor, knows the schemes cold, and is probably the best pure shooter. Same guy we saw last year, a floor general.
Loveridge is noticeably quicker, he looks good at 210, and is definitely more explosive, I think he'll be a decent 4 on defense, and a good rebounder in addition to a diverse offensive package.
Lenz has worked on his game, without question, the best shooting big and seems ready to play bigger. Bachinsky is a work in progress, but he seemed to be having fun, and I suspect he'll break out a little this year. Olsen will find a way to make a difference. He won't be a dominant big man, he's not going to blow anyone away on sheer size and athleticism, but the guy is very sound.
OK, the new guys:
I figured out who Delon Wright reminds me of: he's a 6-5 version of Kelvin Upshaw. Great length, natural feel for the game, highly disruptive defensively, sees the court well, can rebound, can dish, seems to have a knack for the ball, and I think the shot will eventually be needed. They need to lock him in the weight room after the season, but he's a talent.
Princeton Onwas is very explosive, and rangey, seems to get what's going on, and will be good, and if he gets tired of basketball, I'm sure Whittingham would be happy to have him try out as a TE or DE. Dude is definitely built.
Kenneth Ogbe is just a freshman, and has a long way to go, but finding out he's from Germany, he kind of reminds me of a skinny, shorter version of Boris Diaw, kind of has a funny, bouncy gait, but I think he'll be a contributor.
Ahmad Fields definitely is another long, rangey athlete who is just a freshman. If he stays focused and has an outside game, I can see him picking up some minutes later in the year, like Tucker did last year.
Parker Van Dyke is still adjusting to D1 athleticism and all the dimensions of the game that make it a different sport than HS ball, but I suspect he'll be just fine, and will be the beneficiary of a lot of his athletic teammates breaking down defenses.