REDitus

I like your point about pairing with Tominaga. A couple of zone busters on the outside will really complement Mcgowen's game. Plus he has a year to dial in the 3pt shot to self compliment his driving skills. I wonder how many players were affected last year by the new 3 pt line and I wonder if shot % will inch back up overall? Was impressed by how well McGowen played the passing lanes on D.

Good pickup. He will drop right into the rotation to replace Webster and gets a sit-out year to fine tune his game.

When Matt A was doing his radio interview he talked about Banton and just from his description of what he brought to the table he made it sound like he would be one of the ball handlers to me. He also said their offense likes multiple ball handlers so that opens up the door to a variety of possible lineups. The thing I like about Banton is that he not only fits well within the offensive scheme his length will allow him to guard all those different positions as well. I disagree a little with Matt on the rebounding. I think it is hard to run and get into a transitional offense if you can't rebound. If you have a team that can generate steals you can get by perhaps. Also if you can't rebound your giving up 2nd chance points on both ends of the court so the only way to win is to never miss and hope they miss their bunnies. I thought that was our problem last year. IMHO every team needs at a minimum a few ball handlers and a few bigs. And when I say bigs I mean players that can rebound and defend down low.

After seeing Otchere's numbers I wondered about the offer but I get it after seeing video. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w4LGGIRYkwQ

Wow. That is a really good point and sobering. It's kind of crazy if you ask me.

On paper looks like a nice player to add but I am going to pass after seeing this. https://www.espn.com/mens-college-basketball/story/_/id/28534617/illinois-alan-griffin-ejected-stepping-chest-purdue-sasha-stefanovic He not only stepped on the guy, he threw a palm blow to the guy's groin prior to that. Shades of Brad Davidson? Pass.

That's what James Palmer was really good at. He was good at finishing. Jeter was also pretty good at that if I recall correctly. Petteway was too. Big10 is a physical league. It's probably why the do well in the NCAA tournament.

I think Hoiberg is a good coach. Glad we have him. If I were to critique his efforts this year (as an uninformed fan) I would point at shot selection by his players and player roles. So what I am thinking is you have some guys are taking way too many 3's when either they should stay with driving to the hoop or setting screens or crashing boards. They just don't shoot well enough for me to get a green light other than taking the occasional 3. The other is jacking up 3's from long long range or taking contested 3's or shooting 3's with no rebounders or crashers. The problem with my critique is that Hoiberg's offense demands that all his players or at least 4 of the 5 be able to shoot the ball and to play at a fast tempo. So I am trying to adjust to the philosphy. I would still like Hoiberg to better define player's roles in this offense to the skills that they can execute.

Wow these numbers are interesting! He clearly shot better on the central to left side of the court(facing the basket) I wonder what that is about? Am I jumping to a conclusion?

Me too! I find it a bit disappointing but onward we go. Hard to say what the impact is until the entire roster shakes out with adds&subtractions.

I did forget King. Shoot. Was going to put him in a separate category as incoming but unknown for first year eligibility and forgot.

I think the Leslie Smith comparison is a good one. I hope he stays here in Lincoln for the summer. I think it helps to have a teammate or two work together on their games vs on your own.

I think Yvan has a promising future. I have not seen him play live but folks are describing a power athlete, an athlete that is not fast twitch but is geared more towards power. In watching him in highlights he might also be mixed muscle. I think he needs to model his game after Maric. Maric was definitely in the endurance/power muscle group. Maric was not a leaper but was very good in positioning for rebounding and defense. Offensively, he learned how to pin guys and developed a go to move and a counter move to improve his offensive game. I think that is what Yvan needs to do. The hands issue is of concern but I don't think we can come to a conclusion on that yet. As freshmen some players are hesitant and fumble fingered because they get ahead of themselves and are rushing. It could also be a strength in the hand issue which can be solved by off season weight training. Or it could be a legitimate case of stone hands. I haven't necessarily seen that but again I haven't seen him live.

So to summarize would this be correct? Burke - Moving on Mack - Moving on Green - Moving on Arop - Staying? Easley - Staying but not on a 'ship? Thor - Staying Cross - Staying Yvan - Staying Returning Redshirts: Walker,Stevenson,Banton Incoming: Mayan,Allen,Webster

I think Allen can score. I wouldn't say he is a super athlete but he does have some strength and I think Hoiberg can get him open. I am hoping that Banton and Stevenson are guys that creates mismatch problems. So that is where my optimism starts. There's no fun in taking a pestimistic view. Thor improved his shot quite a bit this year I am hoping some of that is due to the new coaches so I am hoping other players will improve this summer. 2nd year should be better. We shall see.