Fullbacksympathy

We have one of the beat starting 5s in the country. They should play a lot of minutes. I don’t think any of them would ask for less.

I don't think Roby is an NBA prospect because he has the potential to be a scoring machine. It's his defensive versatility, all-around skillset, athleticism, passing, ability to finish at the rim, and character that are getting him looks. Iggy is still a top 15 SF in the league, and he's only averaging 6pts, 3rbs, 3a per game. But defensively he is disruptive as hell. I think we're forgetting that our center could probably legitimately defend opposing point guards if he was tasked to do so. I also agree that Roby needs to shoot the damned 3 when he's open.

It's rhetorical, but he looks smaller than he is, shoots a set shot (a beautiful one), etc. It's like Steve Nash. Dude is 6'4"--2 inches short than Jordan, the same height as DWade--but everyone thinks he overcame his tiny body.

Dammit! Thanks.

I don't see Tom as a 1. He's such a good natural scorer and phenomenal shooter that I want him roaming at all times if I'm TM. Also, he's 6'2" and a pesky defender. However, I could see him as a PG by committee with Burke and/or Green. Regardless, I think 1-3 spots are absolutely loaded for next season from a scoring perspective and it'll be interesting to see how that shakes out. I think they'll be very explosive. I can't see Akenten being anything other than a 4. He's not a ball handler. Both he and Arop offset their height with absurd athleticism (Nana is a good rebounder) and the ability to shoot threes, not to mention their abilities in transition. It's happened several times over the past couple of years where we get beat up on the glass for the first half and then run opponents into the ground in the second half largely because we are playing small ball in the front court. I can agree in principle that we need another big, but I don't think we'll find a grad transfer better than Brady. He's actually a good player at the D1 level, and has proven it every time he's in a game this season. I completely trust him. So, assuming this, I'd think we try to find a 6'7" - 6'9" freshman who can run the court and/or spot up from deep and develop him along with a PG with decent size like Zaire Wade who can be developed as well. When I say "Big" moving forward, it's gotta be understood that I'm not talking about a traditional post player. Miles is done recruiting those, which I think is a very smart move. I'm talking about a versatile defender who can play the 4-5 on offense, and switch off of screens defensively on the perimeter. Consider the Warriors championship lineup (pre-KD) of Curry (6'3"), Thompson (6'7"), Iggy (6'6"), Draymond (6'8") and Harrison Barnes (6'8"). Scaling that to the size of NBA players, and that was a puny lineup as well, but they were versatile defensively on the perimeter, could run, and score from anywhere on the court. I think we'll have a college version of this next season.

Not for Tanner. Sorry if that wasn't clear. I was saying that Brady is currently sharing time with Tanner as Roby's backup this season, and will likely be Roby's sole backup next season. I agree it's a good idea to bring in a big, but not because Brady needs more time to develop. I think we should be looking for a freshman big to develop and get spot minutes rather than a grad transfer (unless the grad transfer is phenomenal, which is beyond rare). Copeland will be sorely missed, but I think Nana and Arop will be utilized as pesky small 4s next season. Arop is going to be a mini-Roby for us, but doing the same nightmarish things to opposing 4s. http://www.hudl.com/profile/8733361/Akol-Arop <-- he's way above the rim, and a nightmare in transition, and can switch on screens and guard 1-4. We're going to have plenty of versatility defensively. I'm guessing the rotation will be something like: Allen / Adams-Woods (don't sleep on him as he is our only true PG next season) / Harris Green / Harris Burke / Harris Akenten / Arop Roby / Heiman ^^^ 1-5 of this starting lineup can make an open 3 and switch on every screen when guarding the perimeter. If I'm recruiting, the biggest weakness I see for TM's system is a lack of a true point guard. I don't think we fully realize how important GW III in keeping our turnovers low with his great ball handling. I'm not sure who that is going to be next season. Until Harris learns to shoot, I think his role will be relegated to a really, really, good utility player. His ballhandling and defense will get him on the court, I just don't know where that will be.

We don't need any big man transfers. Brady and Tanner are both more than serviceable, and we'll very likely have Roby back next season. If Brady wasn't playing behind Roby's freakish skillset (next year as well) and sharing time with Tanner's experience, I'm very confident he'd have plenty of double doubles as a true freshman. He's not that light (220 easily by now) and he's way more physical than I thought he'd be. Very athletic kid to boot. He belongs in the realm of our standard 4* talent. And, yes, I'm tooting my own horn as I've thought this kid was the truth since his senior year of hs.

Sometimes being the team leader means being able to guard 1-5 extremely well, lead the team in blocks and rebounds, be able to initiate the fast break from the 5, pass well from the post, set good screens, have big time finishes at the rim, play your ass off loyally for the duration of your collegiate career through its ups and downs, and earn a reputation for being one of the most polite and caring players imaginable off the court.

He’s has a very durable frame at 215 lbs. He’s going to match up well at the high D1 level physically. I think this kid will end up being one of our biggest recruiting steals ever.

12:02. Second half. This was the play that made me think we learned a lot from the Minnesota loss. We had an offensive rebound and Palmer considered bringing it back out to run clock. You could see the light go off like “Nah. We’re gonna murder you instead.” Drove it to the rack and got two free throws instead. The same attitude was there when we beat the shit out of Creighton. That Minnesota loss is helping us big time. We have had two A games since. Tom Allen is starting to look like his high school tapes. The kid is a gifted scorer. Great, great defensive effort again. Glad to see TM get a special win.

I thought Moos handled TM’s deal very well last season. He is understandably waiting for a successful, competitive continuity from TM’s program, and I think that’s what TM is about to give him. If TM succeeds this year, Moos will do exactly what he did with Frost—hire our guy as a conglomerate vote with the pulse of the fan base, and I believe and hope that guy will be TM.

Pike's 42 pt game. Dude was unconscious.

It’s a great sign that the sky is falling after an early road loss to a formidable conference opponent who was playing for infinitely more than a simple home win. Say whatever you want about the loss, but this panicky nature is solid evidence program expectations have been raised to a hell of a lot higher level than they were before TM got here. I’ve actually seen enough good play last year AND this year to give TM my full support moving forward. Give the guy a chance to coach what he’s built. We’re going to win a lot of games. I wouldn’t dare change things considering what the expectations as a fan had been for, what, two decades now? Like it or not, your TM tears after THIS game indicate program success. The loss was an anomaly compared to the rest of the season so far.

We have way too much talent to play not to lose and sit on the ball. We are best when we force the issue and play in transition. Trust the athletes. We didn’t let them win the game. Creighton is monumental.

@ KU in '99 is one for sure I would think.

PSU showing up for the B1G with that win. Wow.

Are you thinking of Marvin Williams? He went 2nd after averaging 11/6 as a true freshman. I actually think that's one of the better comparisons to Roby's upside. Williams is now in his 12th NBA season and has averaged about 10/5. They are similar in measurement and athleticism. Williams' defense has always been elite and is what's kept him in the league this long. I think we're greatly underestimating Roby's perimeter defensive ability at the next level because we need him in the post here. I've gotta think he will be able to guard just about any stretch 4 and a whole lotta 3s in the league. Those defensive bodies are rare, and healthy Copeland may mess around and become one of them as well. Being able to switch on picks and run people off the three point line is imperative in the NBA moving forward.

It could certainly be argued that TB's minutes vs. Missouri State and Clemson were both pivotal to picking up Ws in those games. Heiman has held his own as well--way more physical than I expected. The two of them >> Jordy's minutes in my opinion, and that's pretty surprising. They don't make mental errors and play better defense. I trust both guys when they are in the game.

Agree it was called pretty fair for 95% of the game. Great straight up Q1 road win against a talented team. What a clutch block from Cope. JPJ was fearless. Gotta say it though: we haven’t even scratched the surface of what we can be yet this season. We were 10pts better than Clemson imo (and it should’ve ended up that way after JPJ’s dunk), but thrilled with the win. The asswhooping from TTech and the scare from Clemson are both great lessons for this team early on.

Exactly—as if our team wasn’t dogshit when they were starting and they weren’t getting killed by our transfers in practice.

I think Heiman has earned at least a few minutes a game, FWIW. I like what he brings on both ends—size, skill, and smarts. He’s a lot more physical than I expected.

1. He’d be a senior. 2. I watched Iowa State, and he’s still a defensive liability in the pick and roll (he can’t/won’t switch onto a guard) and has poor lateral quickness. 3. No way he gets minutes over Roby and Cope, but he’d obviously be better off the bench than Tanner or Heiman (at this point). 4. Greatly improved offensive game. MJ is a good player overall now—better than average—but he made the right choice in leaving. He’s too good to be a D1 bench player at most institutions. Tough spot he was in in hindsight.

I’d like to see us be more creative with Roby offensively. By that I mean a pick and roll situation with he and Cope. There are plenty of opposing 5s that have a good ability to guard laterally but would have no clue what to do if they were the ones being picked. A pick and pop game with those two could be terrifying, and Roby is tall enough/heady enough to make good perimeter passes if he drew help. I really think Roby could play a Lebron/Simmons role for us in the half court which would help us get into sets faster when he brings the ball up.

We didn’t shoot well at all and rebounded terribly on the defensive end. That’s a recipe for distaster for this team as we have the capability to make up for bad shooting with transition buckets. We were also awful at the line when we got there. I think we’ll be fine, but we have to make @ Clemson our god damned super bowl. It’s the most important game of the year. Props to Copeland for showing up for every game this season.

Solid team win with another great defensive effort. We are hard as hell to score on consistently. Healthy Copeland sure looks like our best player so far this year, and Glynn was leading with confidence again. Cope has the most underrated leaping ability ever. Not worried about JPJ. They were set up to stop him defensively. He had very few iso opportunities and found his teammates. Roby found the real Roby again late. He needs to be the right place, right time guy for this team. Points will come, but he’s special defensively, on the glass, as a passer, and in transition. He needs to stay agressive in those ways. Unsung hero: Tanner. He gave us fantastic minutes in the first half on both ends. Great leadership and toughness. Outside of JPJ’s offense, basically everyone else was pretty solid. MSU will beat some teams this year. Tomorrow is huge.