Shavon officially 6'7 now

[TheKamdyMan]

 

We find that post season play really helps draft stock.

Sincerely,

Trey Burke and Mitch McGary

paul pierce, who is comparable to Shavon...played the 2,3,and 4 in the league last season...btw comparable in size, and herky jerky movement not skills.

 

 

The only comparison between the two is size.  Outside of that Shields is merely a small fraction the player Paul pierce is and was.

[Norm Peterson]

 

We find that post season play really helps draft stock.

Sincerely,

Trey Burke and Mitch McGary

paul pierce, who is comparable to Shavon...played the 2,3,and 4 in the league last season...btw comparable in size, and herky jerky movement not skills.

 

Comparable in physical height.  Pierce was much, much quicker.  Explosive first step when he was at that age.

[bobcat402]

 

 

We find that post season play really helps draft stock.

Sincerely,

Trey Burke and Mitch McGary

paul pierce, who is comparable to Shavon...played the 2,3,and 4 in the league last season...btw comparable in size, and herky jerky movement not skills.

 

Comparable in physical height.  Pierce was much, much quicker.  Explosive first step when he was at that age.

 

i agree with that, im not trying to compare the two...Paul Pierce will be a HOF and top 75 greatest players in the game....Shavon will be lucky to catch a cup of coffee at this point, given his skill set, im trying to make the point to chester, that the traditional 6'9 6'10 4 isn't has necessary and given certain match ups Shavon at the 4 needs to be exploited, and i don't think were at the point to be playing a guy at a position to get him noticed by the league...

[Searching 4 Chester Surles]

He lacks a little lateral quickness and would be exposed, at least for now trying to defend the two.  However, his size could offset the lack of quickness.

 

Well, the skillset that Shavon displayed last year fits mostly in the mold of a 4.  He'd have to develop a lot more quickness and explosiveness to effectively guard opposing 2s and 3s.  His size is more 3, his game is more 4.  He's effective because of a very high if not extremely high hoops IQ and a massive heart.  It'll be interesting to see if he can effectively guard the 3.  Try him at the 3 and make sure he can handle that before we try him at the 2.

 

So neither of you think he can guard the 2 (Norm even has doubts about the 3)??

 

CWG.. you say he "would be exposed". Shouldn't that be "has been exposed"? Because Shavon has already defended college 2s. And glorified 2s, masquerading as 3s. Yet I don't remember him having many problems.

 

Norm.. what made Shavon look like a 4? The fact that he was one of the best rebounders on a really weak rebounding squad? To me he looked like a guy being forced to plug inadequacies of the team.

[Huskerpapa]

I have no specific incidents Chester.  Just a humble observation based upon watching him defend last year.  Shavon is strong, yet he appeared to lack lateral quickness.  It is my opinion that unless he can body up, he could be beat in the open court by top tier shooting guards.  Perhaps (and I hope) my gut feeling will be proven wrong. 

 

Honestly, I do not recall Shavon playing or defending the "2" much, if at all last year.  Perhaps it happened, but more often than not Shavon seemed to be playing either the "3" or "4" last year.  And again, my memory is a bit foggy, Shavon did struggle at  times last year with fouls. 

[bball23]

I'm kind of hoping Shavon turns out to be comparable to Ryan Anderson.  Not overly athletic by any means, but a VERY smart player that just has a way of being in the right position at the right time.  If Shavon can develop his shot more and more every year he could be a damn good player.  I already love the guy and everything he does, and I think the ceiling is very high for him.  We have to remember he was one of our best players last year as a true freshman.  When most players are physically and mentally beat up by the end of the year (especially freshman) he was actually getting better.  Plus, as somebody pointed out, he was in foul trouble a lot.  So you give him a few more minutes and I really think his numbers could have even been better. 

 

Not only that, but he has some more talent around him this year.  Which I think is naturally going to help not just him, but the rest of the team.  Last year teams knew in certain situations who was going to have the ball in their hands and it was easy to defend.  This year NU should have many more options. 

[ajb5856]

I'm kind of hoping Shavon turns out to be comparable to Ryan Anderson. Not overly athletic by any means, but a VERY smart player that just has a way of being in the right position at the right time. If Shavon can develop his shot more and more every year he could be a damn good player. I already love the guy and everything he does, and I think the ceiling is very high for him. We have to remember he was one of our best players last year as a true freshman. When most players are physically and mentally beat up by the end of the year (especially freshman) he was actually getting better. Plus, as somebody pointed out, he was in foul trouble a lot. So you give him a few more minutes and I really think his numbers could have even been better.

Not only that, but he has some more talent around him this year. Which I think is naturally going to help not just him, but the rest of the team. Last year teams knew in certain situations who was going to have the ball in their hands and it was easy to defend. This year NU should have many more options.

Hoping Shavon turns out to be like Ryan Anderson? Really? Anderson was a smart player and nothing against him but I think Shavon has already surpassed where Anderson was and his talent, athletic ability, and size are much greater and give Shavon a higher upside. Sorry. But to me if Shavon turns out to be like Ryan Anderson that would be a regression. And for all of those questioning Shavon's quickness and athleticism, I think you're going to be pleasantly surprised this year. Shavon looks much quicker, much more explosive, more athletic.

[Cookie Belcher]

Shavon is already better than Ryan Anderson.

[hhcmatt]

 

He lacks a little lateral quickness and would be exposed, at least for now trying to defend the two.  However, his size could offset the lack of quickness.

 

Well, the skillset that Shavon displayed last year fits mostly in the mold of a 4.  He'd have to develop a lot more quickness and explosiveness to effectively guard opposing 2s and 3s.  His size is more 3, his game is more 4.  He's effective because of a very high if not extremely high hoops IQ and a massive heart.  It'll be interesting to see if he can effectively guard the 3.  Try him at the 3 and make sure he can handle that before we try him at the 2.

 

So neither of you think he can guard the 2 (Norm even has doubts about the 3)??

 

Was it the 2s, the 3s, or the 4s that were fouling him out of half the games?  Not meant to be rhetorical...I really don't know.

[Huskerpapa]

 

 

He lacks a little lateral quickness and would be exposed, at least for now trying to defend the two.  However, his size could offset the lack of quickness.

 

Well, the skillset that Shavon displayed last year fits mostly in the mold of a 4.  He'd have to develop a lot more quickness and explosiveness to effectively guard opposing 2s and 3s.  His size is more 3, his game is more 4.  He's effective because of a very high if not extremely high hoops IQ and a massive heart.  It'll be interesting to see if he can effectively guard the 3.  Try him at the 3 and make sure he can handle that before we try him at the 2.

 

So neither of you think he can guard the 2 (Norm even has doubts about the 3)??

 

Was it the 2s, the 3s, or the 4s that were fouling him out of half the games?  Not meant to be rhetorical...I really don't know.

 

I thought many of the calls on Shavon were outside the paint.  I may be very, very wrong, but that was my short-term memory.  Hey, the kid is a player and he will adapt to where he is put.  I just do not picture him at the 2.

[Norm Peterson]

Norm.. what made Shavon look like a 4? The fact that he was one of the best rebounders on a really weak rebounding squad? To me he looked like a guy being forced to plug inadequacies of the team.

 

Just my observations.  What he did with it when he had the ball in his hands.  He's a decent but not great outside shooter and he didn't shoot a lot from outside, fewer than 40 attempts beyond the arc.

 

Chart his shot selection.  For the most part, he's taking it inside.  And not on dribble drives from the wing like a Dylan Talley.  He just seems to possess the game of a classic power forward who could step out and hit an outside shot from time to time like a Tony Farmer, for example.

 

He didn't seem to me to possess the explosiveness of a 2 or a 3 and I definitely don't see him regularly matched up against opposing 2s.  Unless he's gotten quicker.

[FredsSlacks]

I think there is a very high chance Shavon is our starting 4 this year. The reports about Leslee Smith having some knee/hamstring pain makes me think he is not going to be able to play too many minutes.

[Huskerpapa]

I think there is a very high chance Shavon is our starting 4 this year. The reports about Leslee Smith having some knee/hamstring pain makes me think he is not going to be able to play too many minutes.

 

I also think David Rivers will play a lot of minutes at the 4.  He seems to be the forgotten man on this team.

[Searching 4 Chester Surles]

Honestly, I do not recall Shavon playing or defending the "2" much, if at all last year. Perhaps it happened, but more often than not Shavon seemed to be playing either the "3" or "4" last year. And again, my memory is a bit foggy, Shavon did struggle at times last year with fouls.

 

Definitely. More often than not, we were forced into having SS guard the opponent's second (or third) biggest guy. But there were times when we played teams with 3 (or even 4) guard lineups, where Shavon was defending, what amounted to, a SG. I just pulled last year's Penn State game up on ESPN3 (not a ton of reference material available out there) and Shavon isn't guarding anyone over 6'4".

 

 

But to me if Shavon turns out to be like Ryan Anderson that would be a regression. And for all of those questioning Shavon's quickness and athleticism, I think you're going to be pleasantly surprised this year. Shavon looks much quicker, much more explosive, more athletic.

 

I can agree with this somewhat. This is kinda what caused my initial post (and was actually a part of a lengthier rant that I deleted out of that post). I don't want to see us having to use a guy, that would be better suited in a different position, playing PF for us.

 

I think Ryan Anderson was a pretty decent player, but I think his development was stunted by him having to man the 4 at NU. I don't want to see that with Shavon. I think he's absolutely capable of playing other positions, and would be better suited on the wing. And he's definitely not going to up his perimeter defense by getting pounded on in the post by bigger guys.

 

Like I've said before, I think he has the highest ceiling on the team. As this thread points out, he hasn't even stopped growing yet, and I think he may still be trying to catch up to that growth.

 

 

Was it the 2s, the 3s, or the 4s that were fouling him out of half the games? Not meant to be rhetorical...I really don't know.

 

It's hard to say. But I think it was more a product of him being a freshman. I mean, a nice chunk of them could've come from over-aggressive help D. He's definitely active and wants to challenge every offensive possession.

[bball23]

 

I'm kind of hoping Shavon turns out to be comparable to Ryan Anderson. Not overly athletic by any means, but a VERY smart player that just has a way of being in the right position at the right time. If Shavon can develop his shot more and more every year he could be a damn good player. I already love the guy and everything he does, and I think the ceiling is very high for him. We have to remember he was one of our best players last year as a true freshman. When most players are physically and mentally beat up by the end of the year (especially freshman) he was actually getting better. Plus, as somebody pointed out, he was in foul trouble a lot. So you give him a few more minutes and I really think his numbers could have even been better.

Not only that, but he has some more talent around him this year. Which I think is naturally going to help not just him, but the rest of the team. Last year teams knew in certain situations who was going to have the ball in their hands and it was easy to defend. This year NU should have many more options.

Hoping Shavon turns out to be like Ryan Anderson? Really? Anderson was a smart player and nothing against him but I think Shavon has already surpassed where Anderson was and his talent, athletic ability, and size are much greater and give Shavon a higher upside. Sorry. But to me if Shavon turns out to be like Ryan Anderson that would be a regression. And for all of those questioning Shavon's quickness and athleticism, I think you're going to be pleasantly surprised this year. Shavon looks much quicker, much more explosive, more athletic.

 

Ryan Anderson did a lot more for the team than people give him credit for. He ended his career #3 on the 3 pointers made list and #5 on the all-time steals list.  I think had he had better players around him he would have been even better.  Still as a senior he lead the team in scoring, rebounds, steals and 3 pointers made. 

 

I'm definitely hoping Shavon turns out to even be better than Anderson, but he did a lot more than people give him credit for.  One of the smarter players NU had on its roster in a long time IMO.  Plus he always had to play out of position.  Sure he wasn't as quick laterally to maybe guard the 3 man, but offensively he could have been so much more affective in the 3 spot opposed to the 4 where he had to play.