What is this team's identity? Or perhaps a better question is--what should be this team's identity because right now we don't have one.
Good teams have an identity. Last year our team had more of an identity led by our defense that had guys flying all over the court -- led by guys like Beverly, Vanderbilt, McDaniels.
This year's version has no identity. There is nothing cohesive about our team whatsoever. We have 'length' but that length is not being used to any discernible advantage. I'm not sure how to fix this and what this team's identity should be going forward.
What is this team's identity?
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What is this team's identity?
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Krapinsky
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What is this team's identity?
FinnTheHuman wrote: Your post is just garbage.
NewWolvesOrder wrote:Garbage post, indeed.
Re: What is this team's identity?
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cmoss84
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Re: What is this team's identity?
On defense...the Invisible Man.
On offense...the Pope (launching up as many prayers as possible)
On offense...the Pope (launching up as many prayers as possible)
I'd rather have a bottle in front of me than a frontal lobotomy.
Re: What is this team's identity?
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Calinks
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Re: What is this team's identity?
Starting to think we puit too much faith in the young guys Jaden and Ant. They are very talented but they are also still 21/22 year olds who are asked to play with a lot of poise. They don't have the best, most experienced and most disciplined vets to play alongside them in the starting five and their mistakes can't be cleaned up easily. When Ant blows assignments or Jaden goofs, it's really costly and smarter players are exploiting it time and time again.
I think our identity is aimed to be a tough, long, big, defensive team who can create a lot of chaos, grab boards, and dominate with size. On top of that we are supposed to be hard to stop. We haven't shown any of that.
I think our identity is aimed to be a tough, long, big, defensive team who can create a lot of chaos, grab boards, and dominate with size. On top of that we are supposed to be hard to stop. We haven't shown any of that.
When luck shuts the door skill comes in through the window.
Re: What is this team's identity?
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winforlose
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Re: What is this team's identity?
Our identity is the Chris Finch organized chaos approach to basketball. Our philosophy is was on full display last night. Make no mistake, we got a ton of open shots with people we want shooting in the spots we want them shooting. We just didn’t make them. KAT 3 of 9 from 3, Ant 3 of 9 from 3, Dlo 2 of 8 from 3, all pretty much wide open. JMAC, Nowell, MCD, Prince, Anderson, Naz, and maybe even Forbes can all get uncontested looks whenever they want them. But we are shooting sub 30% from 3.
The best way I can explain this is to use a football analogy. In football you need both an effective run and passing game. If you cannot run the ball they will blitz you non stop and hinder the passing game. If you cannot throw the ball they will stack the box and kill the run. Balance is necessary for efficiency and in some cases just basic function.
Our shooting has been so bad that our stars don’t always trust their teammates to score if they pass. Our stars also want the glory of being the ones to fix it. KAT has been good about not falling too far down this rabbit hole, but Ant and Dlo have not. Hitting more open 3s and mid range shots will help to open the paint more. Moreover, hitting shots builds confidence which in turn builds momentum and helps facilitate not only the offensive flow we want, but also the trust that allows the ball to get less sticky. Some of this is early season conditioning issues, some is spacing issues, some is developing chemistry, and some is poor decision making. However, there is no doubt we have an identity, we just need to embrace it more.
As for our defensive identity, we are a inside outside team, just like last year. Finch believes in protecting the paint first and foremost. He is willing to defend the line with run outs, and he is willing to give quasi open mid range looks. He believes in a mix of switching schemes, zones, and high level concepts like high wall, drop, and “forming the wall” (a preemptive double team near the nail to prevent the most skilled paint players from getting to the rim. Our identity is fast paced attack the ball, and rotate to the shooters when they become open.
Our problems are 3 fold.
1. We lack POA defenders. Neither Dlo nor Ant can really stay in front of elite guards and defend without fouling. Once the guard breaks down the first defender, someone is open often from 3 or the paint.
2. We lack the wisdom to trust Rudy in the paint and help less. We don’t kick out smalls on bigs enough or rotate absent a formal switch. Guys ball watch and don’t get matched up in transition either. We are trying to run high concepts but lack individual awareness and BBIQ.
3. We are bad defensive rebounding team. We don’t box out well. We don’t adjust back into coverage after giving up an offensive rebound to our opponents. Often times we get the miss but not the stop. This is killing our momentum and prevents us from closing out games.
Our identity is not the issue on either end of the ball. We know who we should be. The problem is making it work at the moment. Some of this is youth and inexperience. Some of this is needing time to build chemistry. Some of this getting settled within the scheme. But some of this is laziness or sloppiness or indifference, and that must stop.
The best way I can explain this is to use a football analogy. In football you need both an effective run and passing game. If you cannot run the ball they will blitz you non stop and hinder the passing game. If you cannot throw the ball they will stack the box and kill the run. Balance is necessary for efficiency and in some cases just basic function.
Our shooting has been so bad that our stars don’t always trust their teammates to score if they pass. Our stars also want the glory of being the ones to fix it. KAT has been good about not falling too far down this rabbit hole, but Ant and Dlo have not. Hitting more open 3s and mid range shots will help to open the paint more. Moreover, hitting shots builds confidence which in turn builds momentum and helps facilitate not only the offensive flow we want, but also the trust that allows the ball to get less sticky. Some of this is early season conditioning issues, some is spacing issues, some is developing chemistry, and some is poor decision making. However, there is no doubt we have an identity, we just need to embrace it more.
As for our defensive identity, we are a inside outside team, just like last year. Finch believes in protecting the paint first and foremost. He is willing to defend the line with run outs, and he is willing to give quasi open mid range looks. He believes in a mix of switching schemes, zones, and high level concepts like high wall, drop, and “forming the wall” (a preemptive double team near the nail to prevent the most skilled paint players from getting to the rim. Our identity is fast paced attack the ball, and rotate to the shooters when they become open.
Our problems are 3 fold.
1. We lack POA defenders. Neither Dlo nor Ant can really stay in front of elite guards and defend without fouling. Once the guard breaks down the first defender, someone is open often from 3 or the paint.
2. We lack the wisdom to trust Rudy in the paint and help less. We don’t kick out smalls on bigs enough or rotate absent a formal switch. Guys ball watch and don’t get matched up in transition either. We are trying to run high concepts but lack individual awareness and BBIQ.
3. We are bad defensive rebounding team. We don’t box out well. We don’t adjust back into coverage after giving up an offensive rebound to our opponents. Often times we get the miss but not the stop. This is killing our momentum and prevents us from closing out games.
Our identity is not the issue on either end of the ball. We know who we should be. The problem is making it work at the moment. Some of this is youth and inexperience. Some of this is needing time to build chemistry. Some of this getting settled within the scheme. But some of this is laziness or sloppiness or indifference, and that must stop.
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