NUdiehard

Put Roby on Coffey

Palmer taking bad shots on offensive end and getting destroyed on defensive end

Dean Smith have to eat some crow

I don’t even like the 3 big men concept for this team. In the last game Miles experimented for awhile with a Roby, Copeland Tanner lineup and it was a disaster IMO. I would much rather continue to go with the small ball lineup and force opponents to adjust to us rather the us adjusting to them.

ESPN top 100 Draft rankings came out yesterday. Roby at #33. Palmer #68. Copeland did not make top 100. ESPN Top 100 Sam Vecenie of the Athletic came out with his 2019 NBA Draft Big Board and Roby listed at #47 and Palmer at #55. Copeland did not make top 100.

Consider me concerned. Plantar is not something that goes away quickly or easily. Anyone remember Marcus Perry? He battled plantar his entire senior year at NU and if I recall he almost never practiced that whole year and simply played in games when he could. Roby has had numerous nagging injuries since the day he stepped foot on campus and such injuries may just be his kryptonite. Hopefully he can shake it and be at full health the rest of the season but not off to a good start.

Norm, all of your points are fair. I actually agree that Roby's efficiency most like would have gone down with a higher usage rate. But I still think his efficiency would have been tops on the team even with a much higher usage rate, and I feel if he is healthy and on his game this year, the same will hold true. One thing in talking about Roby's low usage rate is not only his lack of shooting per minutes on the floor, but for me, a huge frustration last year was him limited minutes actually playing for so much of the season. Roby ended the season averaging only 24 minutes per game. For the first half of the season (until Jordy quit and came back), Roby was averaging about 19 minutes per game. I said it then and I will say it again now, that is absurd! For those who know me on this board, you will know that I was making this same argument in real time early in the season last year (and to be fair there were many others on this board or felt strongly that Roby should be starting over Jordy). Imagine if Jordy had never quit, would Roby have ever been inserted into the starting lineup? Something so painfully obvious and beneficial to the team should not take so long to be discovered by its head coach. I can't find the game by game statistics off-hand, but I am quite certain that in the 2nd half of the year, as Roby's minutes went up he continued to be the most efficient player on the floor on average. As to basing his usage last year on his freshman year, all I can see is it was apparent to my naked eye from the first game that Roby was a much stronger, much more polished player right from the start of his sophomore year. I would have to imagine this would be visible to Miles as well since he sees him everyday in practice and in games. Plus, efficiency is much more than just 3 point percentage. Roby's unique profile allows him to get off midrange shots and drives to the basket that few players can and he was extremely efficient in those areas all year last year. I have to believe this was pretty evident in practice as well. The speech Miles gave Roby this summer frustrates me. Not because it is wrong, but because it is a year too late. That same speech should have been given to Roby last summer before his sophomore year. Yes, Roby was (and always has been) reluctant to shoot the ball. But we have all watched the games and seen how Roby was handled, right? Again, if one were to go back to Roby's freshman year, I was expressing my frustration with Miles constantly yelling at Roby and pulling him out of the game for every little mistake while other players seemed to be allowed to get away with much more sloppy play. Miles continued to do this early in the season last year. In one game, Miles went ballistic and yanked Roby for getting called for an illegal screen when replays clearly showed he didn't touch anybody and that two Minnesota players ran into each other. l Is there any wonder Roby was reluctant to be aggressive and take chances? Roby by nature is reluctant. Yelling and having a fit every time he makes a mistake is not the way to boost his confidence and encourage him to take chances and be aggressive. Roby was probably worried if he missed a shot he would be yanked--and he was probably right! I went to every single game. I rarely rarely saw sets which were designed around Roby (at least not until the very end of the season). Roby should have been made the focal point much earlier and much more often. I hope to see that this year. For what its worth, my goal is not to be hyper-critical of Miles. I have never advocated for Miles to be fired and I was fully supportive of him coming back this year. In fact, I think Moose should have given him a longer contract and am not thrilled with how he is being handled. But that doesn't mean I won't call it the way I see it on particular players or issues. And I am sure others will disagree (I imagine Dean has a response waiting for me As a long-suffering Husker Hoops fans, each year we just hope to see something special. Something to make it all worth it. That can be in the form of a successful record, but also being able to watch a special player. Since first signing Roby I felt he had that something special. I watched a video of him dunking from the free throw line in a HS dunk contest. There are only 10 or so players in the entire NBA who can do that! Guys like Roby come around about once every 20 years at NU, and here MIles was benching him and constantly taking him out of games and yelling at him. I just didn't get it and still don't get it. I am hopeful that will change this year, but Miles is going to have to make it clear to guys like Palmer that he doesn't need to shoot 15-20 times each game.

When I try to think of a player comp for Roby, I keep coming back to Kawhi Leonard. Kawhi is 6'7", 230lbs with a 7'3" wingspan. Roby is 6'8", 230 lbs with a 7'3" wingspan. Kawhi also registered a 32.5" verticle (surprisingly low to me) while I think Roby's is much higher than that. On the flip side, Kawhi has freakishly huge hands and while Roby appears to have very large hands, I am not sure is in full freak mode like Kawhi. What makes Kawhi so special is his athleticism combined with his wingspan and great anticipation and quick hands. I see so much of these same attributes in Roby. Roby is excellent at getting deflections and being disruptive on defense. Obviously Kawhi has elite athleticism, but when I watch Roby and the way he is able to move his feet at his size and to move laterally as well as straight away when defending. He can cover so much ground so quickly can really wreak havoc on the defensive end. As for his shooting, Roby's efficiency numbers were off the charts last year, but they were on a very low volume and most likely unsustainable. Nonetheless, it is clear that Roby should be much, much more of a focal point in the offensive scheme this year. Roby's efficiency is so much better than Palmer's its not even comparable and I feel Roby is just beginning to tap his potential on that end. Royalfan, I hear what you are saying about Roby needing to prove his efficiency on the offensive end with higher volume to be a lottery pick, but take a look at Kawhi's numbers out of college (San Diego State) where he shot an abysmal 32% on catch and shoot jumpers and 28% on pull-up jumpers. Kawhi did average more points per game, but on much higher usage rates. Roby is a far better shooter in college than Kawhi ever was and i think he has good shooting form right now. Kawhi relentlessly worked on his shooting form after college and remarkably has turned himself into one of the better jump shooters and 3 point shooters in the league and it is impossible to speculate if Roby can do that. But if we are comparing where they both were at the same point in their college careers there is little doubt Roby had the better stroke in his sophmore year than Kawhi (Kawhi only played 2 years at San Diego St.). Roby needs to tighten his handle in traffic, but he has shown promise with his dribbling and passing, especially for a 6'8" player. When healthy, Kawhi is a top 5 player in the league (and maybe higher), so I am not saying that Roby is that or will ever be that. But Roby's profile is similar enough that it does make one wonder if he might just be the steal of the draft if he does fall out of the lottery as most project that he will. It is also why I feel (and have felt and been vocal about) that Roby has been vastly underutilized during his 2 years here and I am hoping that changes significantly this year. Palmer is good, but he shot under 31% on 3s last year. Roby can be a 3-level scorer, was by far the most efficient scorer last year, and should be put in position and given every opportunity to score this year.

Is it just me or has anyone else noticed that whenever HuskerHoops has these short video clips of practice that Roby is never participating in the actual basketball activity (and I don't see him in this picture of the entire team sprinting either). I could be wrong about this, I just know that everytime I see one I look for him and cannot ever seem to find him as part of the drill or workout. Does anyone know anything about his status? Is he 100%? Do they hold him out of some drills and sprints as a precaution?

For those who didn't listen, both "analysts" ranked Roby as their #1 NBA prospect in the entire B1G. (I have no idea the credibility of these guys, but I do think The Stepien is a pretty reputable scouting service and I know a different The Stepien podcaster was recently hired as a scout by the Sixers. They definitely had considerable and advanced stats to support their positions.) They both basically said they could do an hour-long podcast "gushing" on just him they like his potential so much. They both ranked Roby as a 1st round lottery pick and one of them considered ranking him as a top 10 pick in next year's draft. They went on to name Palmer as their #12 B1G prospect (Copeland did not make their list of about 20 prospects).

It's always intriguing when the Husker Hoops team photo comes out because the photo doesn't lie about height (unless some players cheat and stand on tip-toes :). The one big take away from this year's photo is that our new "big" is really not-so-big. Chan is listed at 6'8" on the roster and was recruited to be a potential backup big after the departure of Jordy. Ummm, I sure hope his wing-span is about 8 feet because he is the exact same height as our new PG Amir Harris and our new SG Karrington Davis (and 5 lbs lighter at that). He stands right next to Copeland and is dwarfed by him. On the flip side, it does appear Harris and KD are legit 6'6", which is pretty solid for a PG and SG. Roby looks like he has bulked up nicely.

Miles doesn’t have to listen to anybody. He is the head coach. He can do whatever he wants. Never meant to suggest otherwise.

1. For the first half of the season Roby was only playing 19 minutes per game on average. He averaged just 24 minutes per game for the entire season, which is less than Anton Gill and Evan Taylor. 2. If Roby didn't have the "confidence" to be more of a playmaker, gee, I wonder why? Roby would get pulled out of the game and ripped on time and time again for any small mistake. We all saw it. If you were Roby, and you knew you were going get benched and ripped if you made a single mistake, would you be overly-aggressive in attacking the basket or trying to shoot or create or make things happen? Heck, one time he got yanked and ripped for being called for an illegal screen when two Minnesota players simply ran into each other. And the argument that he couldn't play longer because of fouls doesn't hold water because by the end of the year was playing over 30 minutes a game which proves he could. 3. I don't have much inside info to share with this board, but I do happen to know that there were prominent people around the basketball program who were imploring Miles last season to make Roby a more prominent part of the offense and to quit pulling him out of the game every time he made a little mistake 4. I agree that more shots will decrease his efficiency, that is going to be true with any player. But the odds are that he will still be more efficient than average. Palmer finished the year shooting under 31% from 3. That is not efficient at all. Palmer is awesome. He was awesome last year and carried the team though a stretch in the middle of the season. But then when his shot quit falling towards the end of the season, there was no plan B. Roby should have been groomed to be plan B or even A throughout the entire season, but he was not. There were very few sets that were run through Roby. My observation was that mindset was never instilled into Roby by Miles or the coaching staff. 5. Somebody above said Copeland was our most efficient offensive player, but that is not correct. Copeland shot 37% from 3 and 47% overall. Roby shot 40.5% on 3 (granted on much lower volume, but that is partly my point) and a whopping 56.5% overall. And this may surprise some, but Roby actually shot and made more free throws than Copeland on the year even though Copeland played 31 minutes/game and Roby only 24/game. Oh, and Roby averaged more rebounds than Copeland per game even though he played 7 minutes less per game. Not to mention twice as many blocks. 6. I hope all of this is water under the bridge. Last year is over. The hope is that lessons have been learned and Miles and staff now understand what they have in Roby and tailor their offense (and defense) to maximize his production and involvement in every aspect. Roby is not just "potential". He is the best player on the team right now. The best player should be the focal point, but we'll have to see if it plays out that way.

Roby is the best player on the team. Last year he was woefully underutilized on offense. Roby was by far the most efficient scorer on the team and was one of the most efficient scorers in the B1G. He should be the focal point of the offense and most sets should run through him. The days of Palmer shooting 15-20 times every game should be over and Miles should be exhorting Roby to be more aggressive and looking to both score and create for others. He also should have the green light to bring the ball up the court on a good portion of his defensive rebounds.

Norm on this one I 100% agree with you (and LadyHusker) and frankly I am shocked by how poorly Moos handled his situation and am just as shocked that all true Husker Hoops fans can’t see that. Thers were only 2 viable options for Moos after the end is the season: 1. Immediately give Miles at least a 2 year extension; or 2. Fire Miles and hire “his” coach Playing the waiting game and putting out feelers and then giving just a token 1 year extension was the worst thing he could do and if I/we/you have to take the time to repeatedly explain why then it’s not worth the effort because some will just never get it.

Miles needs to recruit some guys who can shoot the ball. The modern game is all about space and pace and shooting 3s and driving to the rim. Need shooters do space the floor get easy points and open the paint. As for this game: Copeland played 31 minutes and had 2 rebounds and poor defense. Watson. 3-12 Palmer 5-15 (including a meaningless cheapy at end) Didn’t look like a tourney team tonight in any respect. At some point a program like NU has to earn respect rather than whining about adversity

Copeland has played 24 minutes and has 1 rebound

Coaching incompetence. Quit guarding him so far out on the perimeter

Why are they guarding that guy so tight way out on the perimeter? Why?!?

Copeland’s defense has been atrocious so far

What’s the point of having a wider 3 Point Ln. if you’re not going to call three seconds?

Everyone is focusing way too much on Nebraska's non-conference schedule. What doomed NU from the start is the collective poor performance of OTHER Big 10 teams in the non-conf. The most important factor in having a chance to get into the dance is having ALL Big 10 teams do well in the non-conference. Those bad losses by teams like PSU and Iowa, Illinois, were absolute killers, not only for those teams that lost, but for ALL teams in the B1G. When those other B1G teams lose in non-conference, they bring their poor RPI into the conference, and that brings down every conference team because even beating those teams can actually drop your RPI. It makes it impossible to get multiple Quad 1 wins, etc. If every team in the Big could come into conference with an RPI of 75 or better, that would allow all teams multiple, multiple, multiple changes at Quad 1 wins. And apparently it doesn't matter how many you lose (ie, Oklahoma) as long as you rack up a few wins. Thus, no more laughing when Iowa or Illinois loses to Sisters-of-the-Poor in non-conference because that loss could potentially hurt us as much as them.

This X 1000. The lesson we need to all learn from this year is that what matters most is the collective success of ALL Big 10 teams in the non-conference. When our fellow B1G teams struggle or have bad losses in the non-conference, it absolutely crushes the chances of teams like Nebraska trying to get into the Dance because even 13 wins in conference play don't mean a thing because the conference is seen as being full of bad teams. Once league play starts, all the low (or even average or middle) RPI Big 10 teams hurt all the other teams and the cycle never ends. The factor of most importance is to have ALL (or as many as possible) Big 10 teams do well in non-conf. and all have good RPIs going into to conference play because if they don't then it is almost impossible for a team to move up in RPI no matter how many wins. Those terrible losses by teams like Iowa and Penn State this season in non-conf. were killers, for all teams in Big except the top 3 which just were so good and had such good non-conf. wins to overcome it.

Nobody is legislating anyone’s earning power. Nobody is forcing them to go to college. If you think they have more value then you should start a new league and sign them and make millions.