Tai and Nick and a word of caution

[huskerbaseball13]

I'd like to hear one instance where showed above average athleticism. He doesn't beat anyone off the dribble. For example, the numerous times he drives baseline jumps in the air and turns the ball over. 

 

I do remember him dunking over someone on the team before he played an actual game.  That got gave a few of us some warm fuzzy's.  Other than that...the athleticism has not done much for him on the court in an actual game. 

[The_Vault]

And again, I'm just speaking my opinion. That's what a forum is for. Don't have to agree with me!

P.S.- Last year I remember I ruffled some feathers early in the season when I said Benny was better than Tai. That turned out alright 

[HuskerBB]

 

Very good post Norm.   I don't think we have seen the last of Tai by a longshot.  I certainly hope we have not.   I think Miles is wanting to give Fuller a shot and that has taken minutes away from Tai.  But Fuller still has a ways to go to prove himself also.  He made some nice hustle plays last night - but also had a couple of monumental blunders.  (The one pass he threw away against he press break was like he was trying to throw it to Rutgers as there were not even any NU guys in the area.)   I am WAY more comfortable with Tai handling the ball against pressure defense than Nick - at least right now.

 

I certainly want both Nick and Tai to succeed here.  From what I have seen to date I am more comfortable overall with Tai on the floor than Nick - certainly that is true against the better more athletic teams.  But I would acknowledge that Nick has not really had a chance yet to prove himself and get comfortable in the rotation.  I think Miles is simply trying to give him that chance now. Remains to be seen if it works out well.

 

Why is that? In just 11 and 13 minutes vs Iowa and Rutgers Fuller produced more than Tai has in the past what...6 games?  Tai may be the better athlete of the two but in the short sample size I have seen Fuller appears to be the smarter basketball player right now.  And more importantly...someone who can put the ball in the hoop from time to time or at the very least, make the defender guard him. 

 

 

I am not looking at the stat sheet - just watching the game.   I am not down on Nick by any means but he is a long ways from being comfortable on the floor at this point.  He did get some nice hustle rebounds - but he also made a couple pretty obvious mistakes that were worse than anything I can remember seeing from Tai.   He seemed to me to be very nervous when he was in the backcourt trying to break the press - and the Rutgers press was child's play compared to what we saw against Cincy and a couple others (and compared to what we will run into the rest of the season).   Again - that is to be expected somewhat given his lack of experience and more playing time will certainly help.  But regardless of what any stats from their limited minutes might say - I don't think you have to watch very long to conclude that Tai is a better ball handler than Nick at this point.

[lanigan123]

Tai just isn't there yet. Remember he is a true Sophmore who played ball on the other side of the world. He has room to grow. Again, he had what 9 points in our best win of non con.

[Huskerpapa]

Miles seems to be the type of guy, that you earn your playing time in practice. 

 

Tai is up against Tarin Smith who is a better player overall for some minutes.

 

Tai seems scared with the ball in his hands. We need to take a deep breath and know that with maturity, he will learn to handle the downs better. 

 

He shows moments where he moves fluidly and is an excellent dribbler, but then he gets cute and makes a mistake.

 

I have faith that in a year Tai will start to get more steady minutes and will start to at least take advantage of his role. He will never be the superstar we all hoped for, but he will be decent--offer Benny type minutes and support off the bench.

Actually I am not sure that Tai is competing against TSmith for playing time.  Rather, he is now in the mix with Fuller, Shavon and TP.  TSmith, TP and Benny have been occupying the PG position (Mainly TSmith and Benny). 

[Huskerpapa]

By the way, I believe this is an entire thread that was devoted to Tai's athletic ability:

 

http://board.huskerhoopscentral.com/topic/1366-a-few-tai-webster-highlights/

[The_Vault]

Tai just isn't there yet. Remember he is a true Sophmore who played ball on the other side of the world. He has room to grow. Again, he had what 9 points in our best win of non con.

At some point that can't be an excuse anymore. Miles said last night in the press conference that he is averaging identical numbers as last year. That's not good. His build is the only thing that has improved thus far and that hasn't even translated into anything.

[The_Vault]

By the way, I believe this is an entire thread that was devoted to Tai's athletic ability:

 

http://board.huskerhoopscentral.com/topic/1366-a-few-tai-webster-highlights/

against incredibly inferior players. A 5 can look like a dime if she's surrounded by a bunch of 2s

[Huskerpapa]

And against the USA team made up of NBA players he did this:

 

Webster, who started and played 15 minutes, scored four points, blocked two shots and committed four turnovers with no assists. Not bad considering his head-to-head matchups were NBA All-Stars Derrick Rose of the Chicago Bulls and Kyrie Irving of the Cleveland Cavaliers.

 

http://www.omaha.com/huskers/huskers-tai-webster-enjoyed-facing-nba-stars-in-world-cup/article_d6a77dda-6dc4-5762-8e35-9161544ded4e.html

[Norm Peterson]

 

 

Also, when Miles said some players need to stop acting like they are 'too cool' I think he was referring to Tai. This benching will be a make or break moment for him.

Did Miles tell you that?  Or why do you assume that's who Miles was talking about?  Just curious.

 

I said I think. Just his demeanor on the court. It was either about him or walt.

 

So, because of what you've observed about his demeanor on the court, you've assumed that Miles was referring to Tai when he said some players think they are "too cool."  Have I got that right? 

 

You're assuming quite a bit, aren't you?  I mean, that's a big logical leap to take, wouldn't you agree? 

 

But that logical leap -- the assumption that it must be Tai that Miles was talking about when he made a random comment about certain unspecified players -- tells us something about you and the way you perceive Tai.  It's clear you don't like him.

 

Is that why you don't see his athleticism?  Is that why you've never been able to notice him beating people off the dribble?  Because he has.  To claim he hasn't is just patently untrue; I've seen him do it.  But, because you think he thinks he's too cool ...

 

You're biased.

[Norm Peterson]

And again, I'm just speaking my opinion. That's what a forum is for. Don't have to agree with me!

P.S.- Last year I remember I ruffled some feathers early in the season when I said Benny was better than Tai. That turned out alright 

Message board means you can offer your opinion.

 

Message board doesn't mean you get to offer your opinion and have a right to expect no one will challenge it.

 

If you can't defend it, that's on you and maybe reflects the quality of the opinion.

[Norm Peterson]

 

Tai just isn't there yet. Remember he is a true Sophmore who played ball on the other side of the world. He has room to grow. Again, he had what 9 points in our best win of non con.

At some point that can't be an excuse anymore. Miles said last night in the press conference that he is averaging identical numbers as last year. That's not good. His build is the only thing that has improved thus far and that hasn't even translated into anything.

 

Being a true sophomore isn't an excuse.  It's a fact. 

 

Research has proven with statistical certainty that seniors on average are better than juniors who, on average, are better than sophomores who are better than freshmen.

 

The rate of improvement diminishes as a player gets older.  But it is a fact that sophomores are, by definition, less experienced than juniors and seniors. 

 

In a way, you're right, though.  When he's a senior, we'll no longer be saying that he's only a sophomore.

[The_Vault]

 

 

Tai just isn't there yet. Remember he is a true Sophmore who played ball on the other side of the world. He has room to grow. Again, he had what 9 points in our best win of non con.

At some point that can't be an excuse anymore. Miles said last night in the press conference that he is averaging identical numbers as last year. That's not good. His build is the only thing that has improved thus far and that hasn't even translated into anything.

 

Being a true sophomore isn't an excuse.  It's a fact. 

 

Research has proven with statistical certainty that seniors on average are better than juniors who, on average, are better than sophomores who are better than freshmen.

 

The rate of improvement diminishes as a player gets older.  But it is a fact that sophomores are, by definition, less experienced than juniors and seniors. 

 

In a way, you're right, though.  When he's a senior, we'll no longer be saying that he's only a sophomore.

 

If you're so in to statistics, look at Tai's stats. Same as last year. So where's the improvement? He's no better than last year. Might want to double check whatever research you were referring to.

[atskooc]

Biggest stat change for Tai? Minutes played. I think Miles realizes the situation. He's even said Tai isn't ready yet (after starting for an entire season). That's not a good sign.

[Bugeaters1]

Someone explain to me how Tai is a superb athlete? He's slow, travels pretty much every time he touches the ball, can't finish layups. It's time people stop making excuses for the kid. He hasn't panned out at all yet and isn't going to unless he works his ass off.

Name me a college player who doesn't travel every time they have the ball in their hands.

[hal9000]

Remember the Tai we saw at the beginning of last season?  That's the Tai we need back, and I've heard it said by Miles that Tai practices well, inferring (I think) that Tai's problems are more mental.  I'm not giving up on him yet, because I've seen him play better, and I believe he still has the potential to elevate his game to a better place.

[Norm Peterson]

Remember the Tai we saw at the beginning of last season?  That's the Tai we need back, and I've heard it said by Miles that Tai practices well, inferring (I think) that Tai's problems are more mental.  I'm not giving up on him yet, because I've seen him play better, and I believe he still has the potential to elevate his game to a better place.

I'm certain he does.

[extremehoops]

 

[extremehoops]

 

 

Very good post Norm.   I don't think we have seen the last of Tai by a longshot.  I certainly hope we have not.   I think Miles is wanting to give Fuller a shot and that has taken minutes away from Tai.  But Fuller still has a ways to go to prove himself also.  He made some nice hustle plays last night - but also had a couple of monumental blunders.  (The one pass he threw away against he press break was like he was trying to throw it to Rutgers as there were not even any NU guys in the area.)   I am WAY more comfortable with Tai handling the ball against pressure defense than Nick - at least right now.

 

I certainly want both Nick and Tai to succeed here.  From what I have seen to date I am more comfortable overall with Tai on the floor than Nick - certainly that is true against the better more athletic teams.  But I would acknowledge that Nick has not really had a chance yet to prove himself and get comfortable in the rotation.  I think Miles is simply trying to give him that chance now. Remains to be seen if it works out well.

 

Why is that? In just 11 and 13 minutes vs Iowa and Rutgers Fuller produced more than Tai has in the past what...6 games?  Tai may be the better athlete of the two but in the short sample size I have seen Fuller appears to be the smarter basketball player right now.  And more importantly...someone who can put the ball in the hoop from time to time or at the very least, make the defender guard him. 

 

 

I am not looking at the stat sheet - just watching the game.   I am not down on Nick by any means but he is a long ways from being comfortable on the floor at this point.  He did get some nice hustle rebounds - but he also made a couple pretty obvious mistakes that were worse than anything I can remember seeing from Tai.   He seemed to me to be very nervous when he was in the backcourt trying to break the press - and the Rutgers press was child's play compared to what we saw against Cincy and a couple others (and compared to what we will run into the rest of the season).   Again - that is to be expected somewhat given his lack of experience and more playing time will certainly help.  But regardless of what any stats from their limited minutes might say - I don't think you have to watch very long to conclude that Tai is a better ball handler than Nick at this point.

 

 

 

 

Tai Webster has played 992 minutes in the last year and a half and Nick Fuller 52 minutes total.

 

Tai Webster has gotten starter minutes against non-conference and bigten teams to get better.

 

Nick Fuller has got most of his minutes against bigten quality teams and taking a look at that those comparison I think Fuller looks more comfortable on the floor than Webster has to date with 900+ less minutes under his belt.

[AuroranHusker]

If last year didn't prove that Nebraska Basketball is endless possible unlikely positive outcomes, I'm not sure what's going to turn your frown upside down.

 

That's fairly apt. Many Husker fans are in "worst case scenario" mode at all times...

[AuroranHusker]

 

Remember the Tai we saw at the beginning of last season?  That's the Tai we need back, and I've heard it said by Miles that Tai practices well, inferring (I think) that Tai's problems are more mental.  I'm not giving up on him yet, because I've seen him play better, and I believe he still has the potential to elevate his game to a better place.

I'm certain he does.

 

 

Maybe there are some things away from the court in Tai's life that are making their way on to the court. Just a thought... hopefully Webster can pull his way out of this funk sooner rather than later. Next year's recruiting class seems like a higher caliber of Bball IQ for NU, so no time like the present for Tai (and Nick) to make a case for major minutes THIS year.