Posted November 29, 2013 Hi Guys, First time poster here.. Just wanted to get your thoughts on Tai Webster?? What is his ceiling? Do you think he is an NBA prospect? Obviously he won't be one and done but could he make the jump after year two? I think he needs to be more assertive and more active on offence.. I heard he would have been a top 25 player if he had played high school ball in the states.. Am looking forward to big 10 play! 0 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Posted November 29, 2013 He is a bona fide Big 10 caliber recruit who is young and seems to have a good attitude. This early in his career that is about all one can say. We'll all find out his potential future course as we watch him develop. I, for one, am glad he decided to come here. 0 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Posted November 29, 2013 I heard he would have been a top 25 player if he had played high school ball in the states.. Top 50 I think. Those ratings indicate the perceived ceiling and a lot of guys never live up to the potential. Webster has shown flashes of it in stretches and should continue to get better game by game. If he can get drafted in the first two rounds of the NBA draft and decides to leave early, this means he had an awesome year and good for him. If he leaves early to play overseas it would be fairly disappointing. 0 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Posted November 29, 2013 Tai needs a good year, possibly two, before I think his potential truly becomes a reality. 0 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Posted November 30, 2013 He has the "it" factor, but even with that blessing, he has to work hard to get where he needs to be. He is going on a roller-coaster ride, and it likely will last at least through the semester break, if not the entire year. 0 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Posted November 30, 2013 Tai needs to become a better shooter to reach the NBA. He's not there yet. He should be able to stroke it from deep and have a decent mid-range pull-up J in addition to his ability to penetrate to the rim. Guys who reach the NBA are impact players who are basically good at everything and +++ in at least one skill area. Tai isn't there yet. 0 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Posted November 30, 2013 Tai needs to become a better shooter to reach the NBA. He's not there yet. He should be able to stroke it from deep and have a decent mid-range pull-up J in addition to his ability to penetrate to the rim. Guys who reach the NBA are impact players who are basically good at everything and +++ in at least one skill area. Tai isn't there yet. And make free throws. But he looks big-time if he can improve in those two areas. Put me down as still liking Tai. 0 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Posted November 30, 2013 He looks good at the line...until the ball is release. Then it clanks off the rim. It is focus my man. 0 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Posted December 1, 2013 That made me laugh out loud, very loud and made the dog jump off my lap. From where I sit it looks like he shoots a knuckle ball. Does anybody else see that? 0 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Posted December 1, 2013 https://twitter.com/Tjawtherula/status/406895375602044929That made me laugh out loud, very loud and made the dog jump off my lap.From where I sit it looks like he shoots a knuckle ball. Does anybody else see that? It's a fairly flat shot, not a lot of arc, but I have not been able to observe the rotation from where I sit. 0 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Posted December 1, 2013 At least Tai has a sense of humor. Was he really our best option out there the last 2 minutes at guard? Knowing we were going to shoot a lot of free throws, I would like to think we had better options on the bench - maybe not. 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Posted December 1, 2013 He may not be our best option at guard late in games now, but he's going to need to be at some point this season, so I think it's better to show confidence in him now. Ideally he would have made a couple of those late FTs and started feeling more confident. It didn't work today, but it makes sense to do that in a December game vs maybe what Coach Miles does in February. 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Posted December 1, 2013 https://twitter.com/Tjawtherula/status/406895375602044929That made me laugh out loud, very loud and made the dog jump off my lap.From where I sit it looks like he shoots a knuckle ball. Does anybody else see that? It's a fairly flat shot, not a lot of arc, but I have not been able to observe the rotation from where I sit. Does he know things rotate differently in the Northern Hemisphere? 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Posted December 1, 2013 He may not be our best option at guard late in games now, but he's going to need to be at some point this season, so I think it's better to show confidence in him now. Ideally he would have made a couple of those late FTs and started feeling more confident. It didn't work today, but it makes sense to do that in a December game vs maybe what Coach Miles does in February. A really good point, especially since Webster is one of the best on the team in drawing contact. 0 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Posted December 1, 2013 https://twitter.com/Tjawtherula/status/406895375602044929That made me laugh out loud, very loud and made the dog jump off my lap.From where I sit it looks like he shoots a knuckle ball. Does anybody else see that? It's a fairly flat shot, not a lot of arc, but I have not been able to observe the rotation from where I sit. Does he know things rotate differently in the Northern Hemisphere? Are you talking about Webster or Silverbacked's dog..... 2 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Posted December 1, 2013 https://twitter.com/Tjawtherula/status/406895375602044929That made me laugh out loud, very loud and made the dog jump off my lap.From where I sit it looks like he shoots a knuckle ball. Does anybody else see that? It's a fairly flat shot, not a lot of arc, but I have not been able to observe the rotation from where I sit. The rotation on his shot looked fine from where I was sitting. Focus and confidence seem to be his issues at the line. 0 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Posted December 1, 2013 https://twitter.com/Tjawtherula/status/406895375602044929That made me laugh out loud, very loud and made the dog jump off my lap.From where I sit it looks like he shoots a knuckle ball. Does anybody else see that? It's a fairly flat shot, not a lot of arc, but I have not been able to observe the rotation from where I sit. The rotation on his shot looked fine from where I was sitting. Focus and confidence seem to be his issues at the line. Hope he isn't getting a case of the yips 0 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Posted December 1, 2013 https://twitter.com/Tjawtherula/status/406895375602044929That made me laugh out loud, very loud and made the dog jump off my lap.From where I sit it looks like he shoots a knuckle ball. Does anybody else see that? It's a fairly flat shot, not a lot of arc, but I have not been able to observe the rotation from where I sit. AJB, you hit the nail on the head. We know the basket diameter is approximately twice the size of the ball's diameter. With a ball falling down from a high projectory there is 4 to 5 inches margin of error on an unguarded FREE throw to wander from center. When you shoot a flat free throw the margin for error can be cut to a significantly smaller margin.... Right now, Tia shoots this lower percentage shot....while getting 1/3 the points he should score. Once Tia uses more wrist and he allows the ball to approach the hoop from up high... he will make it so he can participate in the future end games. We need him to be able to participate in the end game for his creative offense...yet he will kill us if the opponent can just fouls him to get the disaster that is his current foul shot. It is not that hard to fix...when he does, it may be hard to recall he had the problem. Until he does, it will be hard to think of anything else when he is on the floor in the end game. Seriously, he may want to watch the women practice...and ask Rachel for a few pointers! 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Posted December 1, 2013 Wonder what mum had to say last night? 0 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Posted December 1, 2013 Tai: Hi mum! Mum : Hi son, it's your release. Tai: Huh? I was calling to see how you guys are doing. Mum: Don't change the subject young man. You know it is your release, and now you are letting it get between your ears. Tai: But mum... Mum: Don't "but" me young man. I raised you to overcome this little hiccup. Now, enjoy school, keep good friends, be a good boy; But doggone it, have a fizzy and get your head on straight.and next time we visit I want to tell you good on ya, mate!: 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Posted December 3, 2013 Does anybody know how well he shot free throws back in New Zealand? If he has always shot them well then I have no doubt it will be fixed, but if he's always struggled it could be a different story 0 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Posted December 3, 2013 He shot 65.6% in the 2013 New Zealand National League season. But ive seen him at junior national tournaments and he has usually been a pretty good foul shooter. I think that while he is clearly a confident kid, he might still be hung up on having 10,000+ people watch him shoot his free throws. Not that it makes him nervous as such, but changes his shot slightly. I'm guessing that with some time his percentages will rise (something that has happended with other New Zealanders playing college ball), 4 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Posted December 3, 2013 Thanks for the info Cell! He'll get things fixed - sometimes when you're undergoing as many adjustments as he is both on and off the floor, something simple like FT form gets away from you for a little bit 0 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Posted December 4, 2013 He hit some big time free throws against either Umass or Georgia, I can't remember which one. Late in the game, with some real pressure on. That gives me hope that these struggles can be overcome 0 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
