If you watch Pastner's recent pressers you will see a coach who is one relaxed guy. That nervous, frantic energy is gone. He must have said at least ten times that he likes his team and that the team is going to be good by the time the conference slate rolls around. Pastner has never been one to extend false praise to his own teams or predict success.
In game one, we saw the Alvarado hole in the last nine minutes. That was the time when Alvarado would have taken control of the team and provided the energy and clutch confidence that the entire team could feed off of. Maybe it was inevitable that the team had to take a bruising in this regard at least once as they scramble to find accountability.
If Pastner is not worried, is not making excuses and is predicting success, then I see no reason why I should worry and poison my enjoyment of the season. It looks to me like we have a lot of pieces to develop. Should be a fun ride.
I am encouraged so far by the rebounding. The big correction is the turnovers. I think Deebo sees more and more minutes and his shooting ability is a necessary compliment to what Usher brings to the table. Those two make each other better. I think having the outside shooting threats of Deebo and Devoe will prove to be a necessity on the offensive end. We'll see if Miles Kelly has the physical strength to hold up in ACC play to be a player in that wing rotation.
The talent and intensity makes me optimistic that the team will get progressively better as the year goes on. My one worry is that Pastner does not maintain the long rotation because of an "old habits die hard" kinda deal. If he doesn't play his bench, we will lose players to the portal after this year. I hope he maintains some self-discipline and plays his bench.
