Likes
-- Jordan Daniels as the main (only) point guard. Daniels has some real issues and it will be interesting to see if ACC teams exploit his size in matchups, but for now he's just what we need. He's got good handle. He can start the offense. He can penetrate. Improvement is needed on his shots and as the clock winds down, but Daniels can play.
-- Ryan Anderson near the basket. You can see how Anderson is going to improve as he thickens out. He moves well without the ball. He also has a good eye for rebounds.
-- Heckmann and Jackson's 3s. These guys made some big shots to change momentum and kill their momentum. Heckmann had a nearly perfect shooting night. As GMan said, having him come off the bench might be a nice dynamic.
Dislikes
-- Shot selection. There is still not enough penetration or driving to the basket. They dumped it to Clifford plenty but I think we need to see more dribbling/driving towards the basket to get some easy shots and more movement.
-- Offensive rebounding. We need more second chance shots. Plus these guys seem to have a bad habit of swatting and tipping it to a teammate instead of rebounding.
Posts
14 comments:
i did not see this game but watched the two previously and i agree on daniels. he's a confident ballhandler and has a good first step/burst. he is a tiny guy though.
anderson has also looked good off the bench.
really hope we settle into a rotation in these next 4 games. other than harvard, the other 3 should be winnable. then ACC play begins and its going to get ugly.
Anderson started yesterday. Donahue went Daniels-Jackson-Humphrey-Anderson-Clifford with KC, Moton, Heckman and to a lesser extent Cahill coming off the bench.
In the last two games, I think you are seeing the benefit of going to a shorter lineup. I think there will be spot situations where Odio, Rubin, and Cahill can help us out, but its good for the kids to be thrown in the deep end, as they are starting to swim.
I think Daniels has stepped up in the last two games with Moton injured, and thats a good thing. On a competitive (not great) team, I think you would be looking at Daniels as the change of pace point guard and Moton as an occasional defensive specialist. If Daniels can get some real experience this year and help us break in our PG recruit next year, the two seasons after that could be fun to watch from the PG position.
I think the interesting guy is Dennis Clifford though. He has shown some offensive moves, and while he definitely needs to put some muscle on in the off season, I think he could be a solid option for us in the coming years. I would like to see us work the ball inside out a little more to take advantage of Dennis' above average passing skills for a freshman big.
JD great points. Daniels is not an ACC caliber 30 minutes a game point guard.
Not to be a buzzkill but Daniels played 39 minutes, had ZERO assists and took allot of bad shots. He was 0-8 from 3. Plus the white guy torched him in the second half.
Man are we grasping for straws or what.
Jackson and Heckmann were 8-10 and he wasn't even getting them the ball.
I am now actually buying into the fact that all they are missing is a good lead guard and some D.
Clifford, Anderson, Heckmann, Caudill and Lonnie are going to be good players
Should we retroactively celebrate the football team's win over UMass?
"It will be interesting to see if ACC teams exploit his size in matchups."
I don't think it will be interesting to watch, it'll be depressing to see him getting abused by bigger more athletic players. I also don't like to see him taking 16 shots. But he's young and overall the offense just runs a lot better with him out there.
I think JD hit the nail on the head, Daniels will be a great change of pace sub as he develops, and if Hanlan or Rahon can pick up the starting PG duties, we could start to see something with these guys.
I really wish that the Don had let Odio redshirt, he seems like the perfect guy to spend a year bulking up and developing his game. He's got the athleticism, now he just needs to become an adult. Donahue could learn some lessons from Mike Brey at ND who overcame a lot of recruiting issues by employing this strategy.
I liked that Heckman and Jackson showed a pretty good shooting touch from outside the arc. One of my main dislikes is that on numerous occasions, Daniels dribbled the ball around until there was 15-10 seconds left on the shot clock before starting the offense. It led to a lot of rushed 3 pointers at the end of the shot clock (could be a reason why Daniels was 0-8 from 3).
Clifford and Anderson are being pushed under the basket too far and are out of position to rebound. This results in the tapping the ball out, rather than catching it. This problem is a function of muscle and technique. It can be corrected. I see BIG upside to these two frosh as they mature physically and get experience.
Daniels reminds of Muggsy Bogues; i.e., a waterbug/change-of-pace point guard with real potential. As his conditioning improves, he will hit more three pointers. His teardrop floater looks good. He can shoot free throws if he can draw the fouls. I see a lot of upside to Daniels.
Stony Brook was one shot away from the NCAA tournament last year.
Lenny - remember when we were freshmen, we had an undeafeated team - 20 wins 0 losses(freshmen were not allowed to play varsity back then. We had six scholarship players recruited by (or who came because of) Bob Cousy. Pretty exciting time - I know, as I was on the end of the bench :-)
Jim Kissane from NY, Jack Kvancz from CT (HS Player of the year) and Steve Adelman from Framingham maybe could have broken into the varsity starting lineup as freshmen (We had John Austin [one of the all time greats], so that slot was filled for sure, as well as Willie Wolters at center). Some of the other positions may have been up for grabs, although still very tough for first year players. Certainly they would have contributed quite a bit. But even those great players would have had adjustment problems in the first month of the season, even playing alongside upperclassmen.
Ed Rooney from Albany (one of those guys who could heat up), Steve Kelleher from Worcester and Big(6'10")Tom Pacynski from Bay City, MI were also available.
Hopefully our guys will learn from their lumps this year and get stronger and improve each year going forward.
Go BC
BJK:
I remember skipping out of class early in the afternoon to sneak into Roberts upstairs so I could watch practice. Cooz would be there in a polo shirt, gym pants, and sneakers. When he touched the ball, it was magical. I never saw a man with hands so large and fingers so long. Even then...what he could do with a basketball!!
Bill Flynn would be down on the floor level, standing by the reservoir end door, peeking in. We'd stop to say "hello" to him.
One of my favorite memories was visiting Mrs. Roberts for tea at her home across the street, overlooking the center named for her husband. It is very sad that the name disappeared when the old building came down-Same with McHugh Forum.
The players you mentioned got better with each year and were truly some of our BC all time greats. Its a coincidence you should mention the frosh team.
I was surprised when I had to explain on a BC board how Power Gym derived its name. Frank Power was a legend at BC. I can see him still at the frosh games. Yes, I went to most of those frosh victories you mentioned. I was also a proud member of the "Zoo Section" at Roberts for every home game. We listened to every road game on the campus radio, piped through the dorms on WVBC--no cars for students on campus in those day (except for Paul "the shot" Hurley).
I still remember the night Jimmy Walker of Providence lit us up for 50 points. Never seen anything like it and likely never will. This was before the 3-point shot.
I'm rambling; but I get angry seeing all of those empty seats there in Conte. There is a fine basketball tradition at BC and we need to see that it is preserved. The current kids will be okay and surprise us with how well they will do.
Well said about the fans, Lenny... absolutely nothing better than you and BJK reminiscing.
Jack, show yourself... were you a manager on the basketball team back in the day?!
Matthew - I made the team at tryouts as a walk-on as a favor to my father. I had to practice against these guys every day and then cheer them on during the game. We bench warmers weren't too bad either, but obviously not as good as the scholarship guys.
Who was the toughest guy to guard in practice? John Austin for sure - unless you include the legend himself, Bob Cousy. He was about 36 years old at the time, so still in very good shape. As Lenny mentioned, his hands were big and his fingers were exceptionally long. Watching him move the ball down court was quite an exciting experience. What the heck - we Bostonians idolized the guy from his Celtics days.
The coach never palmed or carried the ball in his life! He was tough to guard because you didn't know if you could foul him. :-) Plus the obvious reasons.
Those of us who shot from outside think it's a disgrace to award 3 points for a 20 ft. jump shot. That's how I made the team. Kissane didn't think he had to guard me outside, so it was bombs away, 4 in a row until Frank Power himself ordered Jim to get on me. :-) - plus blocking several of Pacynski's shots while giving away 7 inches. As big as he was, Tom couldn't jump very well.
It was fun playing one on one with Adelman in practice - the man had good moves and could shoot. Kissane was too tall and Kvancz too fast, so I could only challenge Adelman, Rooney and maybe Kelleher. :-)
My main problem was that I was cigarette smoker then and the fast break would eventually wear me down. But fun days for sure - in spite of a severe ankle sprain half way through.
That's amazing Jack, thanks for sharing... what amazing memories you must have.
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