Gotta admit it...

Techster

Techster

Helluva Engineer
Messages
17,821
I think what we're starting to see is the "get old, stay old" model starting to mature a bit. Guys are getting use to playing with each other, adjusting and developing their game to this level, and taking on coaching. I mean, we have to see this progress play out the rest of the season, but I'm honestly kinda surprised at how fast things are progressing.

We'll lose AD and Alston next season, and only JB3 is an upperclassman among our big contributors. We'll have Alvarado and Devoe for at least 2 more seasons, Evans is going to be a solid contributor, and Moses flashes so much potential when he's on. He just needs to play smarter. Khalid Moore is gonna be good when his body develops and he's more seasoned. CBG needs to get to the form he was playing at before his injury, as he can be pretty good on the ACC level.

The scary thought is the guys are still getting use to playing with each other, and our core talent is still pretty young. This sets us up for a REALLY nice 2019/2020 season.

The one thing that can torpedo this, and some have touched on it, is our staff HAS TO do better on the recruiting trail. We whiffed on our big targets this year and it seems like we're scrambling. The "get old, stay old" model only works if you're consistently bringing in the talent to develop to take a player's place, or a high level talent to play right away.
 

YlJacket

Helluva Engineer
Messages
3,197
GTRX7 said:
I said at the beginning of the year that Pastner's teams are really easy to pull for. They give their all, play good D, and seem to improve as the year goes on. Despite losing by double digits, I was pleased with Saturday's result.

That said, at some point, just being a scrappy underdog team that is easy to root for is not going to be enough. I had hoped years 3 and 4 would show large upticks in talent, but that is not really the case. We are not really any more talented now than we were in year 1 with Okogie and Lammers. Pastner won't last past year 5 if he cant recruit. And, unlike football, Tech really doesn't have the same excuses. We should be getting one to two 4*s a year and probably a 5* every other year. Cremins and Hewitt were both recruiting at that level, and the ACC is really pretty mediocre right now apart from Duke, UNC, and UVA.

Firing LaBarrie instead of suspending him for 10 games or something was a HUGE mistake.
Click to expand...

I agree with your sentiments with 2 caveats

The ACC looks to be a 9 bid league this year. That doesn't fit "pretty mediocre" to me. It is not Cremins ACC but it is still probably the best league in the country.

This team is offensively limited in large part due to Devoe not being a legit ACC scorer first year - instead he is like most non-Duke freshman who come into this league - solid but not ready for a lead role. Plus Philips for whatever reason has been a total bust. That wasn't expected. Those are 2 solid pickups from a recruiting standpoint along with Banks. So the record isn't bare. But it does have multiple projects that I still don't fully understand for an ACC team.

I don't claim to know the inner workings of our recruiting efforts, but something is amiss. I wonder if it is only LaBarrie. ?
 
Peacone36

Peacone36

Helluva Engineer
Messages
10,362
Location
Maine
Gtbowhunter90 said:
Shem needs more playing time.. his mechanics are on point. Just needs to.put it all together
Click to expand...

I am not sure I agree. He makes very questionable decisions both passing and shot taking. He made one pass on Saturday that made me feel like James Caan from The Program:

"Don't throw the flaaaaatttt...." *Interception*
 

MWBATL

Helluva Engineer
Messages
6,152
Peacone36 said:
I am not sure I agree. He makes very questionable decisions both passing and shot taking. He made one pass on Saturday that made me feel like James Caan from The Program:

"Don't throw the flaaaaatttt...." *Interception*
Click to expand...
I winced when I saw that....and Pastner must have too because he came out right away after that pass.
 
gte447f

gte447f

Ramblin' Wreck
Messages
925
Gtbowhunter90 said:
Shem needs more playing time.. his mechanics are on point. Just needs to.put it all together
Click to expand...

I doubt we are going to see much of Shembari for the rest of the season. We are 20 games in and halfway through conference play, and he hasn't produced anything on the court when he has had chances. Pastner typically has not been keen to go deep into his bench and Shembari seems to be way down the bench due to his utter lack of production so far. He looks like a player. He dunks in warm-ups and has a smooth looking shot as you point out. He is more athletic than the rest of our guards. But, for some reason he has not been able to make anything of the opportunities he has had so far, so I don't expect him to get many more.
 
Top