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The Work 3-21 (Basketball Edition)

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DCF in LA said:
We have talent for a Sweet 16 or better run, assuming everybody sticks.
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That's the rub though.
No one knows who is going to stick around and who is going to bolt.
And I say this not because I am an insider, it's more to do with the landscape
of college hoops and how players tend to move around.
 
It would be idiotic for someone to bolt. If someone transfers, they're going to have to sit out next year. All Coach L needs to do is convince one of the guards to redshirt, and then that solves the problem. We lose McClellan, Rodriguez, Jekiri and Cruz-Uceda after next year. There will be plenty of room of the guard who redshirts next year. It would mean sitting out a year, but they'd be sitting out a year if they transferred anyway.

As it is we're poised for a DEEP run in the NCAAs next year. I'm extremely pumped.
 
Since it's now officially, "next year," I think the best candidate for a redshirt might actually be Lecomte. I thought it was Palmer before the NIT, but Newton seems to the be backup PG, and also very capable if Angel gets hurt or struggles. Reed and Mac can also run the show if needed. Manu should have redshirted last year, but couldn't. He seemed to be the odd man out during the NIT, even with Angel out.

Lastly, I think we need to schedule a little better in OOC next year, with an eye towards RPI. Our SOS wasn't good enough this year, and neither was our RPI. I know some of that had to do with bad losses, but some can be fixed with better scheduling. I know you can't predict how teams will do, but you can try, and you can stay away from horrible RPI teams.
 
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I think if you ask Manu to redshirt as a junior, he's gone back to Belgium and probably goes straight to the pros over there. The cynic in me says good riddance, but the realist says you can never have enough healthy players. All it takes is a couple injuries, and suddenly he's needed for major minutes again.

Ultimately, unless he transforms his mindset (and body) to emulate Nate Robinson, he's a short, timid AND undersized dude caught in the wash against bigger, stronger, more aggressive players. It is a fixable problem, but only if he really wants to fix it. All on Manu to make something of himself, or continue to be a JAG and get passed by.
 
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Well, it looks like we probably need someone to redshirt, because they won't be enough minutes to go around.
 
Plenty of minutes per player for a team that did not make the tournament. Who didn't get enough PT? Burnett? Aceda? They can both rot on the bench forever.
 
Forget all of this "not enough minutes to go around" stuff. Coach L has to sell the team as a whole on getting healthy, getting better at playing together from 1 thru 13, and sticking thru it all to win titles. If someone has a concern about not getting enough minutes, then their focus isn't on winning titles. That has to change, or they're welcome to leave in my book.

I'd rather have 10-11 guys who all play and aren't worried about getting their minutes but instead on winning, as opposed to a bloated roster with half of it concerned with getting their PT.

Coach L and the staff have to remind these guys that injuries like the ones to Angel and Tonye like we had down the stretch tend to occur--so just because you're not getting a ton of minutes when they're healthy doesn't mean we won't need you to step up and play major minutes if/when something like that happens.
 
BWCD said:
Forget all of this "not enough minutes to go around" stuff. Coach L has to sell the team as a whole on getting healthy, getting better at playing together from 1 thru 13, and sticking thru it all to win titles. If someone has a concern about not getting enough minutes, then their focus isn't on winning titles. That has to change, or they're welcome to leave in my book.

I'd rather have 10-11 guys who all play and aren't worried about getting their minutes but instead on winning, as opposed to a bloated roster with half of it concerned with getting their PT.

Coach L and the staff have to remind these guys that injuries like the ones to Angel and Tonye like we had down the stretch tend to occur--so just because you're not getting a ton of minutes when they're healthy doesn't mean we won't need you to step up and play major minutes if/when something like that happens.
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Yep. Joe Thomas rotted on the bench for half a season, but was there to save our asses in that round of 8 NIT game when we were down by 18. He stayed ready and when called, mashed on the offensive glass and energized the whole team for the comeback. This **** happens every year, to practically every team; players get hurt or don't play well and deep reserves get a chance to shine.



The difficulty with this team moving forward is that I think a few of these younger guys have 'me' in their heads instead of 'winning basketball', and that's where we dovetail from L's previous teams. Newton and Burnett haven't bought in to running yet the sets efficiently and with a steady hand. They scramble around like the roadrunner and take bad shots as the clock winds down. Angel needs to stop jacking up 25 footers, when we are going to have an ****nal of players who can get in closer and find a higher percentage look.

Jekiri, Reed and Sheldon need to be getting fed all game long. Uceda started to come on towards the end of the season, and he will definitely be a great asset next year as the stretch 4. So that's already 4 guys who need to be given touches, which means your PGs should be facilitators instead of scorers. Inside out everything. Jekiri has gotten better every off-season and will be a problem for opposing centers. Sherman has plenty of talent and will get better. Murphy will add F depth that we sorely lacked. The parts are in place.

2016 is riding on Angel, Newton, Burnett and Frenchie to be better point guards. We have a squad that can do serious damage and make a deep Tourney run.
 
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Joe Thomas was a grad transfer who averaged 1.5 ppg for his career and had Akpejori like offensive skills. The other guards are all 4-star recruits. While what y'all are saying is nice, we're talking about 18-20 year olds here.

And, Frenchie, is a Belgie
 
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Notsince1985 said:
Joe Thomas was a grad transfer who averaged 1.5 ppg for his career and had Akpejori like offensive skills.
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Yep. He flashed in moments for us, but he's not a major loss at the end of the day. Losing him and gaining Murphy/Lawrence is a coup of sorts...especially if we can keep the rest of the team with that.

The other guards are all 4-star recruits. While what y'all are saying is nice, we're talking about 18-20 year olds here.
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...which is why it's on Coach L to do a great coaching job and keep these kids together. I think the kids trust them, the question is--can they get enough trust to keep this team intact for a run next season. That will tell the tale. If they keep it all together and can make it work...watch out.

And, Frenchie, is a Belgie
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Oui. And they still speak French in most of Belgium, Flemish (Belgian Dutch) in the rest, German in the extreme eastern part. Manu, being from Brussells, likely speaks both French/Flemish. #themoreyouknow
 
BWCD said:
Notsince1985 said:
Joe Thomas was a grad transfer who averaged 1.5 ppg for his career and had Akpejori like offensive skills.
Click to expand...
Yep. He flashed in moments for us, but he's not a major loss at the end of the day. Losing him and gaining Murphy/Lawrence is a coup of sorts...especially if we can keep the rest of the team with that.

The other guards are all 4-star recruits. While what y'all are saying is nice, we're talking about 18-20 year olds here.
Click to expand...
...which is why it's on Coach L to do a great coaching job and keep these kids together. I think the kids trust them, the question is--can they get enough trust to keep this team intact for a run next season. That will tell the tale. If they keep it all together and can make it work...watch out.

And, Frenchie, is a Belgie
Click to expand...
Oui. And they still speak French in most of Belgium, Flemish (Belgian Dutch) in the rest, German in the extreme eastern part. Manu, being from Brussells, likely speaks both French/Flemish. #themoreyouknow
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Trust me, I know very well the intricacies of Belgium. My mother worked in NATO. Also, about 60% of Belgians are native Flemish speakers. The French speakers are the minority, though judging by his name, Lecomte, is likely Wallon, or French speaking. Now, with that said, I've met plenty of Belgians, and they would rather die than be called "French," let alone "Frenchie."
 
Things I learned today

1. Sheldon McClellan is coming back for his senior year
2. Sheldon McClellan doesn't know the correct use of there/their

Sheldon McClellan @ShelMcClellan
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At least I can say we beat the national champions at there house!
Congrats Duke, see ya next season
 
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When your name is Manu Lecomte and you get trucked by every guard in the conference, you are officially Frenchie until you play well enough to be called something else. Ain't got no **** time for dat.
 
DCF in LA said:
When your name is Manu Lecomte and you get trucked by every guard in the conference, you are officially Frenchie until you play well enough to be called something else. Ain't got no **** time for dat.
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Not sure if serious. Dropped 20+ at Duke
 
Notsince1985 said:
Trust me, I know very well the intricacies of Belgium. My mother worked in NATO. Also, about 60% of Belgians are native Flemish speakers. The French speakers are the minority, though judging by his name, Lecomte, is likely Wallon, or French speaking.
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Thank you for the new info--honestly. I was going off of what I knew from my couple of years of college-level French, and that's been a decade ago for me.

Now, with that said, I've met plenty of Belgians, and they would rather die than be called "French," let alone "Frenchie."
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Agreed.
 
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BWCD said:
Notsince1985 said:
Trust me, I know very well the intricacies of Belgium. My mother worked in NATO. Also, about 60% of Belgians are native Flemish speakers. The French speakers are the minority, though judging by his name, Lecomte, is likely Wallon, or French speaking.
Click to expand...
Thank you for the new info--honestly. I was going off of what I knew from my couple of years of college-level French, and that's been a decade ago for me.

Now, with that said, I've met plenty of Belgians, and they would rather die than be called "French," let alone "Frenchie."
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Agreed.
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Belgium is a lovely and messed up place
 
DCF in LA said:
When your name is Manu Lecomte and you get trucked by every guard in the conference, you are officially Frenchie until you play well enough to be called something else. Ain't got no **** time for dat.
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In all fairness, he was getting trucked down the stretch due to injury. He sprained his right knee against Richmond and was trying to play thru it--kudos to him for that. He had to play hurt because Angel just couldn't. Before that, Manu played awesome in spots. He wasn't always throwing up big numbers, but was a threat to every night if he got a good matchup.

He's got the same issue as several other guys on our team--consistency. Being a threat to have a big night every once in a blue moon isn't enough...teams need to worry about every guy on the roster every single night. If our guys can become more consistent hitting open shots, driving the lane, playing solid D, etc...then we'll be a force to be reckoned with by anyone we face next year.
 
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