Hawkins foot speed

[Section_316]

Isn't good. Shields does a much better job of staying in front of guards… Can Nathan improve that area of his game to be a more solid defensive contributor for us the next 3 years or will this always be his hinderance? He is playing very minimal minutes and getting beat routinely off of the dribble when he is in the game. Props to him for a Big 3 yesterday though! 

[colhusker]

He is a true freshman, if he is still doing this in a couple years I will be concerned by it.  Ray use to get beat like a red-headed step child on defense which is why he seldom played for Doc and many wanted him to transfer.  He has improved to the point he is a pretty salty defender.

[TheKamdyMan]

Remember Hawk was playing PF and C in high school so he hasn't always had to worry about having the quickest feet in the world. Now he's having to guard SG's in one of the conferences in the country. It's a huge transition in many ways. I have a feeling he looks a lot different next year.

[HuskerCager]

Remember Hawk was playing PF and C in high school so he hasn't always had to worry about having the quickest feet in the world. Now he's having to guard SG's in one of the conferences in the country. It's a huge transition in many ways. I have a feeling he looks a lot different next year.

OK, so here is a dumb question from a true fan, but also a true novice when it comes to player development (mainly because I never played myself).  How does one work on foot speed?  I'm guessing foot speed is 80% God-given ability and 20% driven by training, but what do I know?

Good question, 316, I've seen the same thing.

[hskr4life]

There are plenty of drills that you can use to work on foot speed. Just like lifting though, it needs to be done on a regular basis to have improvement.

[Ron Mexico]

I believe that his foot speed can be improved dramatically from his fresh-soph year. Once the season is over he will have a lot of time to work with S&C staff. Physically he looks a little soft, thus adding some good muscle alone will help his lateral quickness. I believe that Nathan has a very high ceiling for improvement.

[tcp]

Footspeed isn't everything. Shavon isn't all that quick, either. But he's smart, and he anticipates where people want to go. The best defenders are players that know their opponents tendencies and act on those decisively. That's a mental function. It's also about discipline: trusting your scouting reports, and staying on those instead of getting happy feet. I've seen plenty of blazing fast players suck on defense because they're not mentally geared to stopping their opponents.

 

Look how quick Biggs is, and how awful he could be defensively.

[Fullbacksympathy]

Intelligence >>>> athletic ability on D.  Once you get both, you're elite.  The kid has the build to be a good defender.  He seems intelligent enough.  Coach will put him in a position to be a good defender.  

[bobcat402]

nathan as a great frame, offenseive footwork looks pretty good (i.e. how he moves with ball, feet placement on shot, the necessary quick movements needed) i think as TCP said it could be more lack of mental prepardness, and just a lack of physical readiness. an offseason will do him wonders, as i imagine, fuller will come back ready to contribute. So far S&C staff have done amazing things, with the nautraul talent, of our current players, i cant wait and see what they do with Webster, Fuller, and Hawkins.

[Section_316]

Good point about shaven TCP. I agree that shields seems a little more in tune defensively than Nathan does at the moment. I like a lot about Nathan's game, just worry that he will be able to keep guards in front of him the next few years. 

[Huskerpapa]

If you can't be fast, then you better be physical.  He will be one or the other...and maybe even both!

[nuled2dance]

A nice off season workout regime and time with coaches will have him an tai way better next season

[Dean Smith]

There are plenty of drills that you can use to work on foot speed. Just like lifting though, it needs to be done on a regular basis to have improvement.

There are lots or rope ladder and plyometric stuff but what gets overlooked a lot when discussing speed and quickness (two totally different things) imo is getter stronger. For every action there is an equal and opposite reaction. You have to be able to drive your foot into the ground with force or you will get no return no matter how quickly you pick it up. Lots of SAQ guys are now talking about shorter strides so you can keep you foot on the ground longer to create more force. You feel slower but move faster. Bottom line is your right, there are lots of things you can do to improve speed and quickness. 

[Norm Peterson]

He's here to be a shooter and he needs to spend a bunch of time on that, too, IMO.  In conference games, he's currently 5 of 16 from beyond the arc and 0 of 8 from inside the arc.  Five of 24 shooting isn't going to get the job done.  I'm not saying he can't improve.  I am saying he needs to.

[hhcmatt]

He's here to be a shooter and he needs to spend a bunch of time on that, too, IMO.  In conference games, he's currently 5 of 16 from beyond the arc and 0 of 8 from inside the arc.  Five of 24 shooting isn't going to get the job done.  I'm not saying he can't improve.  I am saying he needs to.

 

Missing shots isn't what is keeping him on the bench.  Some of those shots are also when he's the guy shooting at the end of the shot clock in garbage time.

[KZRider]

I'm sure the drills will be useful to him but how much of it just comes from confidence that you know what you are doing? I would expect as a true freshman coming off the bench he is overthinking what he is doing a lot of the time. Especially if he is a more natural offensive talent than defensive it would make sense that his speed would be less on defense. As he gets increasingly comfortable playing at this level, his decisions will become more instinctive and his feet will follow.

[hhcmatt]

I would expect as a true freshman coming off the bench he is overthinking what he is doing a lot of the time. 

 

When you think about it, how impressive has it been for Tai Webster to play as much as he has this year?

[royalfan]

Amazing how guys with good instincts on defense seem quicker.  Hopefully, he will develop these instincts as time goes on and he gets used to the speed of the game. 

[KZRider]

 

I would expect as a true freshman coming off the bench he is overthinking what he is doing a lot of the time. 

 

When you think about it, how impressive has it been for Tai Webster to play as much as he has this year?

 

Agreed. I still have very high hopes for Tai. He shows flashes that are very exciting. Just not as many of them as I'd like. Also, I don't think he is by nature a point guard either and that is what he's being asked to be.

[Norm Peterson]

 

I would expect as a true freshman coming off the bench he is overthinking what he is doing a lot of the time. 

 

When you think about it, how impressive has it been for Tai Webster to play as much as he has this year?

 

I agree.  I'm not one who is down on Tai at all.  He's very composed for a true freshman starting every game at point.  He's got some developing to do but look where he is compared to where Terran Petteway was as a freshman.  There's a good, solid foundation there to build on and he'll come back next year even better.  The greatest amount of improvement in a player usually happens that summer between the freshman and sophomore seasons.  Tai will know a lot better what he needs to work on this coming summer than he did last summer.

[TheGov21]

Improving his footwork can help him be more quicker.  Let's also not forget about confidence.  I'm assuming with a year under his belt he'll be much better.