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Post by Deleted on Jun 8, 2020 15:36:58 GMT -6
We may all be trying to stuff a square peg into a round hole. Highlights are for fans, not coaches. Either way, he's a 6-5 kid with some trophies to his credit. AS far as averaging 30 ppg, in the right offense, he can get that. What IS hard to coach is the ability to move without the ball and get positioning for rebounds and get down on the 50-50 balls.
Is he a replacement for Henderson? Yeah. How about Riley? Dunno ... your call on that. Better than Arte? Those are the guys he replaces.
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Post by Tom Servo on Jun 8, 2020 16:07:08 GMT -6
We may all be trying to stuff a square peg into a round hole. Highlights are for fans, not coaches. Either way, he's a 6-5 kid with some trophies to his credit. AS far as averaging 30 ppg, in the right offense, he can get that. What IS hard to coach is the ability to move without the ball and get positioning for rebounds and get down on the 50-50 balls. Is he a replacement for Henderson? Yeah. How about Riley? Dunno ... your call on that. Better than Arte? Those are the guys he replaces. From the highlights I would take him in a heart beat over all three of those guys and twice on Sunday. That's exactly why I think it's an upgrade. At least there is some hope of him being good down the road - 2 of the other three were not going to win you games. Henderson might have down the road, but given that he is going D2 that doesn't seem like it was likely to happen.
Henderson - To me he had the most upside of the three - He at least could shoot. He didn't handle the ball that well - which was a problem but he could have gotten better. Riley - couldn't shoot and turned it over way too much. Art - I think once you can't get off the bench for an 0-18 team - that pretty much says all that needs to be said.
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Post by Deleted on Jun 8, 2020 16:40:09 GMT -6
Definitely an upgrade. The next Larry Bird no. But yes I'd rather have him than all those three. Especially Art. Turrible.
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Post by bleedpurple on Jun 8, 2020 17:41:58 GMT -6
I have no idea who picks the Gatorade POY but assume it is a panel of people who are knowledgeable of the game of basketball and factor in offensive statistics, defensive statistics, caliber of competition as well other intangibles such as passion, team player etc but they picked Alex as the player of the year in Kentucky. I much prefer to believe that versus the self proclaimed experts on this forum that watch a video and deem him as”not overly athletic”, “a good player off the bench” and other not so positive comments and am looking forward to how much he can contribute at a high level to the program along with the other recruits particularly Samari and Trey.
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Post by acescott on Jun 8, 2020 17:52:27 GMT -6
Here's hoping that the Gatorade POY can electrolyte up the scoreboard next season. That was bad, I apologize...
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Post by Deleted on Jun 8, 2020 18:07:21 GMT -6
Like Mike....... If I could be like Mike.
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Post by municup14 on Jun 8, 2020 23:46:05 GMT -6
Only time will tell
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Post by Deleted on Jun 9, 2020 5:45:11 GMT -6
Considering what UE lost on the roster from last year -- and going winless in 19 games -- my considered hope is that the four or five kids Lickliter recruited will fit together as a team, which is really the only way to win in college hoops.
I am less interested in Matthews's game than in how he sees the program. When we listen to Marcus Wilson discuss the UE culture, that's what we want to hear and see.
I said this a few comments back that this is the sort of player that UE needs to cultivate. Some will have more maturity and adaptability than others. You have a roster full of kids who can learn, repeat the process and handle a tough conference schedule, you will at least sniff the Saturday round of the Arch Madness.
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Post by Deleted on Jun 9, 2020 7:18:29 GMT -6
I have no idea who picks the Gatorade POY but assume it is a panel of people who are knowledgeable of the game of basketball and factor in offensive statistics, defensive statistics, caliber of competition as well other intangibles such as passion, team player etc but they picked Alex as the player of the year in Kentucky. I much prefer to believe that versus the self proclaimed experts on this forum that watch a video and deem him as”not overly athletic”, “a good player off the bench” and other not so positive comments and am looking forward to how much he can contribute at a high level to the program along with the other recruits particularly Samari and Trey. I don't hear anyone on this forum proclaiming themselves as "experts". Most of us on this board understand videos of a certain player as "fools gold". It's a very biased snap shot of a particular recruit - but it is something to look at as opposed to nothing. No one needs to be a talent scout to know Alex is not particularly athletic - that is not a slam. Marty certainly wasn't either, nor was Dan Godfreid, and a host of others. But they understood the game, had great instincts, and put in the work to get better. Alex was offered by multiple universities - all low majors - but, just the same, those programs thought enough of him to reach out. I imagine his size and not being all that quick has something to do with that. You are correct - there are intangibles. Passion, work ethic, being coachable, putting the team first, etc. don't show up in the stat sheet. I am excited he joined the team and look forward to seeing how Coach Lickliter can enhance his already strong game.
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Post by Deleted on Jun 9, 2020 7:44:46 GMT -6
On size: Depending on the game, the 6-5 guy can still get tips to go, and he can play a guard on defense that will at least keep the opponent from getting a standalone 3-ball. Face it. The 6-9 guys are not coming to the Valley now. They . just . are . not. If they do (DeAndre Williams) they are likely bringing some baggage with them and won't likely stay anyhow. Without beating that horse carcass again, I think we might just hope that our 6-5 guys can do **most** of the things that need to happen. The **rest** of it is maybe in the category of **luck** ... and some of that may not all be good.
UE needs to play the game that fits its players, and if we're getting the best that's out there, I am thinking: This might be a pretty interesting season. I have no expectations -- low, high or moderate. The transition from Marty-ball to McCarty-ball, what we thought would be an exciting change, only to determine it was based on players not in evidence, now to an era that's still probably going to change in 2 more years.
I had hoped UE might work at becoming a program not unlike Butler or Wichita or Dayton. Plucking good players out from under the noses of the Kentucky Colonel ... this is a start, even if Alex Matthews is only a role player. I imagine most OVC schools were interested.
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Post by Deleted on Jun 9, 2020 9:00:15 GMT -6
The Missouri Valley actually has 18 players in the league that are 6'9 or over who will be returning next season. That does not include each team's new incoming recruits. It seems silly to me to infer if a big kid comes into our league that something has to be wrong with them. I am not trying to infer that the MVC is the ACC. But in my years of following the MVC I have seen plenty of bigs in this league that were quality players and succeeded. Danny Granger, Alze Johnson, Alec Peters, Patrick O'Braynt, are names to come to mind right away who were 6'9 or more who actually played in the NBA. I do agree, however, with your premise, that there is plenty of room for 6'5 guys in the MVC to be successful.
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Post by Aces&Eights on Jun 9, 2020 9:50:48 GMT -6
The Missouri Valley actually has 18 players in the league that are 6'9 or over who will be returning next season. That does not include each team's new incoming recruits. It seems silly to me to infer if a big kid comes into our league that something has to be wrong with them. I am not trying to infer that the MVC is the ACC. But in my years of following the MVC I have seen plenty of bigs in this league that were quality players and succeeded. Danny Granger, Alze Johnson, Alec Peters, Patrick O'Braynt, are names to come to mind right away who were 6'9 or more who actually played in the NBA. I do agree, however, with your premise, that there is plenty of room for 6'5 guys in the MVC to be successful. Not to rain on your fine research...but it is raining today. Granger played 1 yr at Bradley then left for 2 years at New Mexico. Johnson is listed at 6'7". Peters is listed at 6'8" and played all his games in the Horizon League. O'Bryant played 2 years at Bradley before being suspended 8 games for improper payment, then bolted for the NBA.
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Post by Deleted on Jun 9, 2020 10:19:06 GMT -6
The Missouri Valley actually has 18 players in the league that are 6'9 or over who will be returning next season. That does not include each team's new incoming recruits. It seems silly to me to infer if a big kid comes into our league that something has to be wrong with them. I am not trying to infer that the MVC is the ACC. But in my years of following the MVC I have seen plenty of bigs in this league that were quality players and succeeded. Danny Granger, Alze Johnson, Alec Peters, Patrick O'Braynt, are names to come to mind right away who were 6'9 or more who actually played in the NBA. I do agree, however, with your premise, that there is plenty of room for 6'5 guys in the MVC to be successful. Not to rain on your fine research...but it is raining today. Granger played 1 yr at Bradley then left for 2 years at New Mexico. Johnson is listed at 6'7". Peters is listed at 6'8" and played all his games in the Horizon League. O'Bryant played 2 years at Bradley before being suspended 8 games for improper payment, then bolted for the NBA. It's all good...really did not do any research, I just remembered them. I was disappointed Danny Granger left Bradley, but he did not like the coach (Jim Less), at all, (I think Les refused for his players to eat after one of their losses.). Alze Johnson was 6'7, and I was not sure if Alec Peters played just in the Horizon...but I have never seen him listed at 6'8. O'Bryant was an excellent player for the Bradley who left early for the NBA and was a first round draft pick. To say all of this another way, without naming other players, the MVC is not void of quality big players...not in the same way as a power conference. But you will find them just the same.
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Post by austinace on Jun 9, 2020 12:27:34 GMT -6
Another name that comes to mind for comparison is Adam Wing as he was around 6-4/6-5 and was in the running for Kentucky’s Mr. Basketball and was not the most athletic but gave it everything that he had on the court.
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Post by Deleted on Jun 9, 2020 13:38:44 GMT -6
For sure, not gonna win the NCAA with 6-5 guys. You can't coach players to be tall. But you can have a competitive team with players that size if they are strong, and resemble somebody who has the willingness to compete. If you wait around for the 6-9 guys like Alec Peters, you wait a very long time. The bigs who have come into Evansville, the ones who succeeded, are rare. Personally, I'd look to Europe to get big guys like Giddy. Harder to find? Yeah, because the top mid-majors know where to look. They are also likely to stick around for 4 years.
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