Can we please play good basketball again?

[GTrob21]

http://espn.go.com/blog/collegebasketballnation/post/_/id/100011/im-excited-to-see-the-acc


I remember the national championship run, I remember Jarrett Jack, Marvin Lewis. BJ Elder, Big Luke.

I remember after that run, the season tickets selling out in less than an hour...

I remember when Tech used to be talked about challenging the top of the ACC, and everybody who would write an article about ACC basketball had to include us... how things have changed, we are not even mentioned in this article...

I look forward to the time when we are relevant in basketball...again

 

[Connell62]

The thing is that we have beat every team on that list with the exception of Pittsburgh & Florida State.

Both Miami and Syracuse on their home court. Things certainly aren't great, but we're not as bad as much of our fan base lets on.

Some could argue that we are only a few pieces away from being back in the mix.

 

[GTrob21]

I hope you are right Connell, I have read your posts and respect your point of view. having somebody of your caliber say that, actually gives me a glimmer of hope.

 

[Stinger90]

I hope you are right Connell, I have read your posts and respect your point of view. having somebody of your caliber say that, actually gives me a glimmer of hope.

What are the rest of us? Chop liver??

 

[Peacone36]

Everyone is only "a few pieces" away. Problem is we cant land those pieces or develop them lately.

 

[Connell62]

I hope you are right Connell, I have read your posts and respect your point of view. having somebody of your caliber say that, actually gives me a glimmer of hope.

Thanks Rob..I prefer to look at the glass half full when it comes to GT basketball. Otherwise, it could be maddening. We may not see a huge jump next season, as in being a tourney team, but I do expect us to exceed expectations next year. I feel like we're going to surprise some folks. If we gel early, who knows what they can do. There is some talent.

Jorgensen and Jackson are both very solid pieces to build around in the backcourt and they're both still young. Lots of good size upfront with good experience. A good season on the court is much needed, and would really help move the needle in the right direction for the program as a whole.

 

[Connell62]

His first recruiting class hasn't even started their junior years yet..not much of a sample size to say they can't develop players. If anything, I'd say that there is more evidence that they can, than can't. Didn't they do a pretty good job with Danny Miller once they took over. Capitalizing on some high-level local talent is a must, but let's see what happens as they have more of their guys in the program.

 

[dtm1997]

@connell62 you & I are usually on many of the same pages and I certainly think we're revocering well after a strange offseason and bumpy recruiting trail, but I'd counter a couple of your previous points.

That "not their junior year" line is kind of doublespeak coming out of BG's mouth. Every March, as freshmen step forward to drive teams in to the tournament, announcers say "they're not really freshment anymore after playing a full season". It's a coin flip and it's a selfserving statement, which I know BG has said directly.

Agree that Daniel Miller is a great example of player development. Robert Carter certainly had flashes also. I think Kam did some good things within his abilities when he wasn't driving Peacone crazy with his 2 travels per game. I'm left with what-ifs over whether MGH & Bolden were hindered by Golden's presence and if Bolden lost all confidence after last summer's issues.

Agree we need to capitalize on local talent.

Call bunk on more of their guys in the program. They're all his guys now, recruits or transfers, so that doesn't fly anymore.

 

[Peacone36]

I would agree Daniel Miller developed very well. I just dont understand how we can give credit to this staff for DMs development in thir time here but not give them a bit of crap for the minimal improvements of others.

In regards to my frustration its about 70% recruiting, 10% development and 20% game management/planning. Its a catch 22 though because you arent going to be sucessful recruiting until you:

A) develop talent you can actually land on campus into a winning team

B) show some kind of structure on offense. 3 years in and when was the last time we looked like we had a clue on offense against an ACC caliber team? (Maybe for a half against St. Johns) Some of this may be a direct correlation to personnel on the court but i digress.

 

[orientalnc]

I would agree Daniel Miller developed very well. I just dont understand how we can give credit to this staff for DMs development in thir time here but not give them a bit of crap for the minimal improvements of others.

In regards to my frustration its about 70% recruiting, 10% development and 20% game management/planning. Its a catch 22 though because you arent going to be sucessful recruiting until you:

A) develop talent you can actually land on campus into a winning team

B) show some kind of structure on offense. 3 years in and when was the last time we looked like we had a clue on offense against an ACC caliber team? (Maybe for a half against St. Johns) Some of this may be a direct correlation to personnel on the court but i digress.

You & I mostly agree. I think we do. But my percentage breakdown varies a lot. My frustration is migrating from three years ago when it was 10% recruiting, 30% development, 30% game management, and 30% offensive scheme. It's now a hybrid: 20% pure recruiting, 40% development, 10% game management, 30% offense. At times I think his offense is the primary cause of our recruiting problems.

I posted this a while back and it's still true. Our offense revolves around the idea that you pass the ball around until one of three things happens. One, we commit a turnover. Two, the clock forces us to take a contested trey. Three, the defense makes a mistake and we get a pass inside or offensive rebound. Only with three do we frequently score. This seems to actually be the plan. It works in high school, but the ACC is still better than that.

 

[Peacone36]

And outside of Heyward, noone can make a post entry pass, so you are basically only passing betweeen 3 people most possessions.

 

[Connell62]

@dtm1997 No worries, we won't always agree, but just for the sake of our conversation, let me try and clarify. When I say that they haven't started their third year here, my point is more that we have a limited sample size of the staff's ability to recruit more than a defense player development.

Hence the comment that this his first recruiting class is just now in their third year of the program. I'll be the first to say that I thought both MGH and Bolden would have taken bigger steps forward last year, and that certainly wasn't the case, however, if both of those guys come out this year and exceed expectations, would every have the same feelings.

Guys, I'm not here to defend the honor of this staff and I'm not going to be an apologist for them... there is obviously some work to be done here, and IMO, it all starts on the recruiting trail, but without a doubt, it is time for the rubber to meet the road on the court as well..This staff may prove that they aren't capable of getting it done, and if that time comes, I trust the Bobinski will be leading the charge, but I just do not think that the sky is falling like many of our fans.

@Peacone and I certainly know that we have more than one guard capable of throwing an entry pass...LOL In fact, with a healthy Jorgensen, the addition of Josh Heath and Travis Jorgensen, you will see one of the more skilled passing set of guards that we have had in a while.

 

[Peacone36]

That may very well be the case ( I think it is safe to probably assume what you said there is true) but I have not seen JH play and ive seen TJ play very little. Didn't catch a lot of early GT games last year, I was at the mercy of the WatchESPN app. Going by the general consensus, which is generally very optimistic, TJ is a very pure, pass first PG. I am excited about seeing him develop.

Post entry, like free throw shooting, defensive rebounding and mid range jump shots, are becoming lost arts, and more often than not, the consistently good, well coached teams generally do those things very well

 

[Stinger90]

Guys are working on things as I type.

@Peacone36
Using the backboard is a lost art.