Niagara Game & Other Dribbles ...

[DT_PITT]

** “I can’t believe that shot didn’t go down.”

** That’s what my friend and I said to each other about a dozen time during our saddened walk down the hill.

** Had that final shot from Xavier’s impressive last second drive had gone down, oh what a different tone we would all be taking the evening about this edition of our Panther Basketball Team.

** In fact, when the Panther went down by 12 in the stretch run, I said then to my friend that if the Panthers can find a way to win this one, it would be their most impressive win of the season.

** But is the reality between Xavier’s shot falling or not all that big of a difference?

** The answer is most likely no, and it’s worth talking about why.

** Sure, just like nearly every Panther Hoops fan, I was thrilled with the basketball we played before this evening.

** But deep down, we all know the reality that this group, which despite how much they are improved from a year ago, is still a few critical pieces short of being any type of a legit contender.

** And for this season to be more than just an improvement over last year (as it most certainly will be), our young men are going to learn to need to find a way to execute against zone defenses.

** That was pretty evidence from the 4 minute mark of the first half until about 7 minutes to go in the game when Niagara outscored our Panthers by a 40-21 margin.

** That was by far our most disappointing stretch of the season, as we could not get any good shots in our half court offense, and allowed points far too easily on the other end.

** There were many reasons for this terrible stretch.

** First, our inability to get any kind of legit offense from the post hurt us more than at any time during this early season.

** Second, we were far too careless with the basketball, especially when we forced our dribble drive offense.

** Third, we were overplaying far too much on the defensive end, making us vulnerable to the second and third pass, and Niagara made us pay by hitting open jumpers and even layups.

** Throw that altogether and it’s easy to find yourself down by a dozen.

** But we responded well to adversity, and for that I’m no likely less discouraged by this one point loss than I should have been encouraged by a one point win.

** Sure, it would have been nice to think that had Xavier’s shot fell into the net, that there might be some sort of special, almost magical, quality about this team.

** But that too would have been folly.

** Nevertheless, all the same I was thrilled and excited by the battle our Panthers showed when trying to close the gap. They showed all of the heart and attitude needed to come back and win this contest in impressive fashion.

** Hopefully, our men will learn that they are not nearly talented enough to win a game like this when they don’t play with that same heart and attitude for 40 minutes.

** This was especially the case in the last four minutes of the first half when the Panthers allowed Niagara to end the half on a 12-2 run. Looking back, that really might have been the ballgame right there.

** On the very positive end, should we believe that the Panther press that helped the Panthers force 6 turnovers in the final five minutes is a future force to be reckoned with?

** I believe it’s possible that it could be if the Panthers play most games with 40 minutes of passion like they did in the final five minutes.

** And I also believe that our offensive execution was a positive down the stretch in that we got ourselves to the line as needed near the end, but missing two front ends of one-on-ones, not to mention open looks, will often leave your team a point short in the end.

** As for this fan, I must confess that I loved the battle at the end. Until the clock hit 0:00, I still believed that the Panthers just might pull this out.

** Like Iowa game, I loved living and dying with every possession. That’s such a great and important feeling for me as a fan, and having this feeling makes me grateful for this team.

** While Xavier nor Trey nor Au’Diese weren’t perfect this night, knowing that they combined for 41 points in this loss makes me pretty confident that they are an absolutely legit trio for this Panther program to build upon for the future.

** As was mentioned earlier, this trio still needs some pieces alongside them to make them legit contenders. Unfortunately, those pieces just aren’t on the roster this year.

** That being said, despite our apparent shortcomings, which one last missed shot made all the more clear, in my eyes, overall this Panther Hoops program is still ahead of schedule on its road back to contention.

 

[Bethlehemjohn]

A little disappointing, but doesn't detract from my love of the team!

 

[Joe the Panther Fan]

You know, Xavier Johnson has been more than any of us had any right to expect. He's done some really wonderful things already in his short career. He is a gamer in the very best sense of the word. So I say this not so much as a criticism as a hope for the future. Imagine how good Johnson is going to be when he figures out that those other four guys on the court wearing the same color jerseys that he wears are what is known as "teammates", and that sometimes instead of forcing up falling away, off balance circus shots against guys who are a half foot or more taller than he is that he can pass the ball out to one of these "teammates" who happen to be standing all by themselves because the defense had to react to his drive to the basket.

He's already good, and he's going to be so much better when he realizes that he doesn't have to do it all by himself.

 

[DT_PITT]

You know, Xavier Johnson has been more than any of us had any right to expect. He's done some really wonderful things already in his short career. He is a gamer in the very best sense of the word. So I say this not so much as a criticism as a hope for the future. Imagine how good Johnson is going to be when he figures out that those other four guys on the court wearing the same color jerseys that he wears are what is known as "teammates", and that sometimes instead of forcing up falling away, off balance circus shots against guys who are a half foot or more taller than he is that he can pass the ball out to one of these "teammates" who happen to be standing all by themselves because the defense had to react to his drive to the basket.

He's already good, and he's going to be so much better when he realizes that he doesn't have to do it all by himself.

This is a tough thing for any good player to figure out, quite frankly. And when things aren't going well, it's a pretty nature instinct to try to win games for your team.

And also quite frankly, Xavier nearly did just that at the end. After all, he scored 10 of the Panthers' last 18 points.

It also might help if some of the players around Xavier were capable of making a few more plays that they proved they could tonight.

Overall, I don't wish to negate your main point which certainly has legitimate merit. But it would have more merit if some of Xavier's circus shots didn't sometimes appear to be our best chance at offense.

 

[Joe the Panther Fan]

This is a tough thing for any good player to figure out, quite frankly. And when things aren't going well, it's a pretty nature instinct to try to win games for your team.

And also quite frankly, Xavier nearly did just that at the end. After all, he scored 10 of the Panthers' last 18 points.

It also might help if some of the players around Xavier were capable of making a few more plays that they proved they could tonight.

Overall, I don't wish to negate your overall point which certainly has legitimate merit. But it would have more merit if some of Xavier's circus shots didn't sometimes appear to be our best chance at offense.

For the record, I am not just talking about the end of the game. In fact for the most part I'm not talking about the end of the game. He got himself a great look on that last shot, it just didn't go in. But heading into tonight's game Johnson was shooting 47.9% at the rim. And I think the technical term for that is "awful". To put it into perspective, that is the lowest percentage on the team. And I don't mean the lowest percentage among guys with a certain number of attempts. I mean that lowest percentage even going all the way down to Samson George, who is 1-1 at the rim this season.

To put it into perspective, Wilson-Frame is a smoking 76.5% at the rim. Ellison is 61.0%. Toney is 66.7%. McGowns is 54.8% (which also isn't that good). If he's not going to kick the ball out when he gets himself in trouble then he needs to finish a whole lot better than what he has so far.

 

[Sean Miller Fan]

Need a lot more from Ellison. And McGowens. The Centers go without saying but I think they are playing to their ability. Mcgowens and Ellison just look out of sync or something.

 

[Joe the Panther Fan]

Need a lot more from Ellison. And McGowens. The Centers go without saying but I think they are playing to their ability. Mcgowens and Ellison just look out of sync or something.

Ellison is playing for us pretty much exactly the way that he played for St. John's. He is what he is. And that is not some sort of all league performer that some people convinced themselves he was going to be based on the self-interested statements of a certain former assistant coach who will remain nameless. Some people tried to warn everyone not to expect some sort of great college basketball player, but when it seemed like that might be our only hope for significant improvement this year some people allowed themselves to be convinced.

 

[DT_PITT]

For the record, I am not just talking about the end of the game. In fact for the most part I'm not talking about the end of the game. He got himself a great look on that last shot, it just didn't go in. But heading into tonight's game Johnson was shooting 47.9% at the rim. And I think the technical term for that is "awful". To put it into perspective, that is the lowest percentage on the team. And I don't mean the lowest percentage among guys with a certain number of attempts. I mean that lowest percentage even going all the way down to Samson George, who is 1-1 at the rim this season.

To put it into perspective, Wilson-Frame is a smoking 76.5% at the rim. Ellison is 61.0%. Toney is 66.7%. McGowns is 54.8% (which also isn't that good). If he's not going to kick the ball out when he gets himself in trouble then he needs to finish a whole lot better than what he has so far.

No doubt ... but I think you know what I mean about this rest of the team helpingl out too.

And in the same vein, I think you are also recognizing that Xavier has played far above any expectations as well.

I also think it would help if we started working to give X more pass options while driving. All that's typically there are deep kickouts. Think what a player who knows how to get offensive position in the paint (like a Chevy Troutman) would do with X's penetration.

There just isn't a player like this for the Panthers this year.

 

[Protes]

** “I can’t believe that shot didn’t go down.”

** That’s what my friend and I said about a dozen times to each other during our saddened walk down the hill.

** Had that final shot from Xavier’s impressive last second drive had gone down, oh what a different tone we would all be taking the evening about this edition of our Panther Basketball Team.

** In fact, when the Panther went down by 12 in the stretch run, I said then to my friend that if the Panthers can find a way to win this one, it would be their most impressive win of the season.

** But is the reality between Xavier’s shot falling all that big of a difference?

** The answer is most likely no, and it’s worth talking about why.

** Sure, just like nearly every Panther Hoops fan, I was thrilled with the basketball we played before this evening.

** But deep down, we all know the reality that this group, which despite how much they are improved from a year ago, is still a few critical pieces short of being any type of a legit contender.

** And for this season to be more than just an improvement over last year (as it most certainly will be), our young men are going to learn to need to find a way to execute against zone defenses.

** That was pretty evidence from the 4 minute mark of the first half until about 7 minutes to go in the game when Niagara outscored our Panthers by a 40-21 margin.

** That was by far our most disappointing stretch of the season, as we could not get any good shots in our half court offense, and allowed points far too easily on the other end.

** There were many reasons for this terrible stretch.

** First, our inability to get any kind of legit offense from the post hurt us more than at any time during this early season.

** Second, we were far too careless with the basketball, especially when we forced our dribble drive offense.

** Third, we were overplaying far too much on the defensive end, making us vulnerable to the second and third pass, and Niagara made us pay by hitting open jumpers and even layups.

** Throw that altogether and it’s easy to find yourself down by a dozen.

** But we responded well to adversity, and for that I’m no likely less discouraged by this one point loss than I should have been encouraged by a one point win.

** Sure, it would have been nice to think that had Xavier’s shot fell into the net, that there might be some sort of special, almost magical, quality about this team.

** But that too would have been folly.

** Nevertheless, all the same I was thrilled and excited by the battle our Panthers showed when trying to close the gap. They showed all of the heart and attitude needed to come back and win this contest in impressive fashion.

** Hopefully, our men will learn that they are not nearly talented enough to win a game like this when they don’t play with that same heart and attitude for 40 minutes.

** This was especially the case in the last four minutes of the first half when the Panthers allowed Niagara to end the half on a 12-2 run. Looking back, that really might have been the ballgame right there.

** On the very positive end, should we believe that the Panther press that helped the Panthers force 6 turnovers in the final five minutes is a future force to be reckoned with?

** I believe it’s possible that it could be if the Panthers play most games with 40 minutes of passion like they did in the final five minutes.

** And I also believe that our offensive execution was a positive down the stretch in that we got ourselves to the line as needed near the end, but missing two front ends of one-on-ones, not to mention open looks, will often leave your team a point short in the end.

** As for this fan, I must confess that I loved the battle at the end. Until the clock hit 0:00, I still believed that the Panthers just might pull this out.

** Like Iowa game, I loved living and dying with every possession. That’s such a great and important feeling for me as a fan, and having this feeling makes me grateful for this team.

** While Xavier nor Trey nor Au’Diese weren’t perfect this night, knowing that they combined for 41 points in this loss makes me pretty confident that they are an absolutely legit trio for this Panther program to build upon for the future.

** As was mentioned earlier, this trio still needs some pieces alongside them to make them legit contenders. Unfortunately, those pieces just aren’t on the roster this year.

** That being said, despite our apparent shortcomings, which one last missed shot made all the more clear, in my eyes, overall this Panther Hoops program is still ahead of schedule on its road back to contention.

I missed the first half and caught the second.

I can't disagree really with any of what you said, except to add that sometimes the other team just gets hot and sometimes just darn lucky.

There was one play where the Niagara player was going for a rebound and accidentally knocked the ball in the hoop.

Then there was that one ill-fated sequence where they got 3 chances, starting with an airball that XJ thought would go out of bounds, only to have the Niagara player throw it off him him and save the possession.

The so-called "50/50" balls seemed to be going nearly "100/0" in their favor. For our guys to come back as they did and have a chance to pull it out showed some character.

 

[Joe the Panther Fan]

No doubt ... but I think you know what I mean about this rest of the team helpingl out too.

And in the same vein, I think you are also recognizing that Xavier has played far above any expectations as well.

I also think it would help if we started working to give X more pass options while driving. All that's typically there are deep kickouts. Think what a player who knows how to get offensive position in the paint (like a Chevy Troutman) would do with X's penetration.

There just isn't a player like this for the Panthers this year.

Johnson is so much more than we had any right to expect. He's been very good. He has the room to get even better. If we had someone in the paint who could take advantage of his drives (and actually catch passes thrown to them on a relative frequent basis) it would make it that much easier on Johnson. It is amazing how infrequently either of our two centers are open and ready for a dump off pass when Johnson is attacking the opposing center. That should be the easiest part of their game, and neither one of them can manage it.

 

[recruitsreadtheseboards]

Just one of those games. Rebounds bouncing off our hands out of bounce allowing Niagara to maintain possession. Shots missing. Shots for them going in.

Just a weird game that I thought we still would win, hell if there were 7.6 seconds instead of 6.6 seconds left in our last possession we would have won, because JWF's last hail mary heave went in.

 

[PittMan2003]

Just one of those games. Rebounds bouncing off our hands out of bounce allowing Niagara to maintain possession. Shots missing. Shots for them going in.

Just a weird game that I thought we still would win, hell if there were 7.6 seconds instead of 6.6 seconds left in our last possession we would have won, because JWF's last hail mary heave went in.

Agree. That stretch in the second half where Niagara got every bounce and made every thing they put up was maddening. One of those games for sure.
I thought we could have put them away before that mess happened but Niagara got some offensive rebounds and second chance points that gave them confidence.

 

[DC_Area_Panther]

Yep. Thought there was something about missed shots coming back to Niagara players like yo-yos on a one string-it seemed uncanny as did that one guard's 3-point shooting.. These things happen sometimes. Probably the classic and way better than last evening's game example was the Ed Pinckney Villanova team's win over Georgetown for the National Championship years ago. Villanova had lost to Georgetown 3-times in the Big East season and tourney prior to the National Championship game. But Villanova shot something like 73% in that game. Every shot seemed to fall like it was radar guided. Villanova was "in the zone" had found that "sweet spot in time." As said, sometimes (to a greater or lesser degree) this happens to individual players or teams and they play beyond their normal ceiling for a brief period or for a single game. I think we were partially the victim of some degree of that last evening. Nevertheless, a better center on the roster, or just a few more clutch FTs made and it would not have mattered in the end.

 

[Fsgolfdr]

For the record, I am not just talking about the end of the game. In fact for the most part I'm not talking about the end of the game. He got himself a great look on that last shot, it just didn't go in. But heading into tonight's game Johnson was shooting 47.9% at the rim. And I think the technical term for that is "awful". To put it into perspective, that is the lowest percentage on the team. And I don't mean the lowest percentage among guys with a certain number of attempts. I mean that lowest percentage even going all the way down to Samson George, who is 1-1 at the rim this season.

To put it into perspective, Wilson-Frame is a smoking 76.5% at the rim. Ellison is 61.0%. Toney is 66.7%. McGowns is 54.8% (which also isn't that good). If he's not going to kick the ball out when he gets himself in trouble then he needs to finish a whole lot better than what he has so far.

This is where your blinded by statistics , out of all those players who'd you want driving to the basket and putting up that last shot . JWF I don't think so .

Whose the knockdown shooter he's supposed to kick the ball out to . There's no PS on this team . JWF looks great when he's hot , but he's just not that reliable . I have nothing against JWF he is what he is , looks great at times and then he doesn't.

I will agree that he's forcing too much action , is that his nature , is it a statement on his teammates abilities or the need to get a shot off ? I think it's all three .

X will improve with experience , he has a great desire to improve and win . The video of him shooting FT after last nights game tells you all you need to know about the kid .

Stats have there place , but they're not everything . Four Panthers have over 40% 3 pt shooting % , is Pitt loaded with outside shooters ? ( Stevenson is 1/1 =100% ! ) Even 3 players would suggest a great shooting team .

X is a great find for this program , try and remember he's a freshman on an inexperienced team . He's not NBA ready nor is he playing with NBA ready guys . He will improve and his teammates will improve .

 

[pittbb80]

This is where your blinded by statistics , out of all those players who'd you want driving to the basket and putting up that last shot . JWF I don't think so .

Whose the knockdown shooter he's supposed to kick the ball out to . There's no PS on this team . JWF looks great when he's hot , but he's just not that reliable . I have nothing against JWF he is what he is , looks great at times and then he doesn't.

I will agree that he's forcing too much action , is that his nature , is it a statement on his teammates abilities or the need to get a shot off ? I think it's all three .

X will improve with experience , he has a great desire to improve and win . The video of him shooting FT after last nights game tells you all you need to know about the kid .

Stats have there place , but they're not everything . Four Panthers have over 40% 3 pt shooting % , is Pitt loaded with outside shooters ? ( Stevenson is 1/1 =100% ! ) Even 3 players would suggest a great shooting team .

X is a great find for this program , try and remember he's a freshman on an inexperienced team . He's not NBA ready nor is he playing with NBA ready guys . He will improve and his teammates will improve .

You make a great point that I brought up in another thread. Just about everyone recognizes the need for help at the 4 and 5 positions, but IMO the team needs a drop dead shooter from 3 just as badly. I really like JWF but Im sorry hes not the answer and if he were more of a reliable shooter from outside, this teams upside this year would be much higher, even without the bigs. I think JC needs to recruit a kid who can fill it up from three and at least come off the bench to be the zone buster.

 

[wbrpanther]

** “I can’t believe that shot didn’t go down.”

** That’s what my friend and I said to each other about a dozen time during our saddened walk down the hill.

** Had that final shot from Xavier’s impressive last second drive had gone down, oh what a different tone we would all be taking the evening about this edition of our Panther Basketball Team.

** In fact, when the Panther went down by 12 in the stretch run, I said then to my friend that if the Panthers can find a way to win this one, it would be their most impressive win of the season.

** But is the reality between Xavier’s shot falling or not all that big of a difference?

** The answer is most likely no, and it’s worth talking about why.

** Sure, just like nearly every Panther Hoops fan, I was thrilled with the basketball we played before this evening.

** But deep down, we all know the reality that this group, which despite how much they are improved from a year ago, is still a few critical pieces short of being any type of a legit contender.

** And for this season to be more than just an improvement over last year (as it most certainly will be), our young men are going to learn to need to find a way to execute against zone defenses.

** That was pretty evidence from the 4 minute mark of the first half until about 7 minutes to go in the game when Niagara outscored our Panthers by a 40-21 margin.

** That was by far our most disappointing stretch of the season, as we could not get any good shots in our half court offense, and allowed points far too easily on the other end.

** There were many reasons for this terrible stretch.

** First, our inability to get any kind of legit offense from the post hurt us more than at any time during this early season.

** Second, we were far too careless with the basketball, especially when we forced our dribble drive offense.

** Third, we were overplaying far too much on the defensive end, making us vulnerable to the second and third pass, and Niagara made us pay by hitting open jumpers and even layups.

** Throw that altogether and it’s easy to find yourself down by a dozen.

** But we responded well to adversity, and for that I’m no likely less discouraged by this one point loss than I should have been encouraged by a one point win.

** Sure, it would have been nice to think that had Xavier’s shot fell into the net, that there might be some sort of special, almost magical, quality about this team.

** But that too would have been folly.

** Nevertheless, all the same I was thrilled and excited by the battle our Panthers showed when trying to close the gap. They showed all of the heart and attitude needed to come back and win this contest in impressive fashion.

** Hopefully, our men will learn that they are not nearly talented enough to win a game like this when they don’t play with that same heart and attitude for 40 minutes.

** This was especially the case in the last four minutes of the first half when the Panthers allowed Niagara to end the half on a 12-2 run. Looking back, that really might have been the ballgame right there.

** On the very positive end, should we believe that the Panther press that helped the Panthers force 6 turnovers in the final five minutes is a future force to be reckoned with?

** I believe it’s possible that it could be if the Panthers play most games with 40 minutes of passion like they did in the final five minutes.

** And I also believe that our offensive execution was a positive down the stretch in that we got ourselves to the line as needed near the end, but missing two front ends of one-on-ones, not to mention open looks, will often leave your team a point short in the end.

** As for this fan, I must confess that I loved the battle at the end. Until the clock hit 0:00, I still believed that the Panthers just might pull this out.

** Like Iowa game, I loved living and dying with every possession. That’s such a great and important feeling for me as a fan, and having this feeling makes me grateful for this team.

** While Xavier nor Trey nor Au’Diese weren’t perfect this night, knowing that they combined for 41 points in this loss makes me pretty confident that they are an absolutely legit trio for this Panther program to build upon for the future.

** As was mentioned earlier, this trio still needs some pieces alongside them to make them legit contenders. Unfortunately, those pieces just aren’t on the roster this year.

** That being said, despite our apparent shortcomings, which one last missed shot made all the more clear, in my eyes, overall this Panther Hoops program is still ahead of schedule on its road back to contention.

Nice post. Let's keep in mind one main fact. This current group is just the beginning. And as a group they give great hope for the future. 2 one point losses in which our freshman guards had point blank shots not go in at the buzzer. When those two freshmen are sophomores we probably win both games. The rebuild has started and the need for inside help and perimeter shooting are the most glaring needs right now. Capel will get that done over the next couple of years and it is comforting to know that, although we are going to lose a good many games in the meantime, we will have an enjoyable show to watch.

 

[Franb]

You make a great point that I brought up in another thread. Just about everyone recognizes the need for help at the 4 and 5 positions, but IMO the team needs a drop dead shooter from 3 just as badly. I really like JWF but Im sorry hes not the answer and if he were more of a reliable shooter from outside, this teams upside this year would be much higher, even without the bigs. I think JC needs to recruit a kid who can fill it up from three and at least come off the bench to be the zone buster.

Wilson-Frame is shooting 44% on 3's. Not going to get too much better than that from anyone. The career leader is just under 47%.

 

[JS School]

I'm really impressed by Toney. The other two freshmen are really dynamic, but they try to force things at times. Toney lets the game come to him a little more. He has a nice all around game, and he seems to be doing a nice job rebounding for a 6'6" freshman wing.

He made a few freshman mistakes last night, but I was thinking during the comeback that I actually feel more comfortable with him in the game as opposed to Ellison and maybe even Wilson-Frame.

 

[PittInMissouri]

Stevenson is 1/1 =100% !

I forgot he was even on the team until you mentioned him.

 

[pittbb80]

Wilson-Frame is shooting 44% on 3's. Not going to get too much better than that from anyone. The career leader is just under 47%.

I suspect that the % is padded by his performance against lesser teams. perhaps its just my perception but I rarely remember seeing him fill it up against better teams and more importantly hit the key shot to win the game. He also seems to have trouble getting open against better teams. Again thats just my perception.

 

[pittbb80]

I'm really impressed by Toney. The other two freshmen are really dynamic, but they try to force things at times. Toney lets the game come to him a little more. He has a nice all around game, and he seems to be doing a nice job rebounding for a 6'6" freshman wing.

He made a few freshman mistakes last night, but I was thinking during the comeback that I actually feel more comfortable with him in the game as opposed to Ellison and maybe even Wilson-Frame.

Tony is a long athlete who rebounds and plays great D. He also has a decent outside shot. This kids upside his very intriguing.

 

[Joe the Panther Fan]

This is where your blinded by statistics , out of all those players who'd you want driving to the basket and putting up that last shot . JWF I don't think so .

Whose the knockdown shooter he's supposed to kick the ball out to . There's no PS on this team . JWF looks great when he's hot , but he's just not that reliable . I have nothing against JWF he is what he is , looks great at times and then he doesn't.

I will agree that he's forcing too much action , is that his nature , is it a statement on his teammates abilities or the need to get a shot off ? I think it's all three .

X will improve with experience , he has a great desire to improve and win . The video of him shooting FT after last nights game tells you all you need to know about the kid .

Stats have there place , but they're not everything . Four Panthers have over 40% 3 pt shooting % , is Pitt loaded with outside shooters ? ( Stevenson is 1/1 =100% ! ) Even 3 players would suggest a great shooting team .

X is a great find for this program , try and remember he's a freshman on an inexperienced team . He's not NBA ready nor is he playing with NBA ready guys . He will improve and his teammates will improve .

So wait, I am too blinded by the stats but then you admit that you agree with my point that Johnson is forcing the action too much. Okaaay.

I posted the stats because the stats back up exactly the point that I was making about what I see during the games. I guess if someone wants to take me to task for something it should be that I posted something so obvious that even you figured it out. I apologize for that, I guess.

 

[Fsgolfdr]

So wait, I am too blinded by the stats but then you admit that you agree with my point that Johnson is forcing the action too much. Okaaay.

I posted the stats because the stats back up exactly the point that I was making about what I see during the games. I guess if someone wants to take me to task for something it should be that I posted something so obvious that even you figured it out. I apologize for that, I guess.

Critizing X's decision making when he's obviously the biggest reason for Pitts early success is wrong . He does need to learn more restraint , but he's played in all of nine D1 games and in time his decisions will improve . He's making things happen and sometimes being aggressive backfires , but his stats vs JWF get serious . I bet JWF has fewer turnovers maybe he should be the point guard . Stevenson is 100% from 3 pt range maybe he should be their outside shooting specialist .
Maybe you should sit down so you don't faint because I'm going to tell you something you can't grasp...stats only tell a small part of the story !

 

[Joe the Panther Fan]

Critizing X's decision making when he's obviously the biggest reason for Pitts early success is wrong . He does need to learn more restraint , but he's played in all of nine D1 games and in time his decisions will improve . He's making things happen and sometimes being aggressive backfires , but his stats vs JWF get serious . I bet JWF has fewer turnovers maybe he should be the point guard . Stevenson is 100% from 3 pt range maybe he should be their outside shooting specialist .
Maybe you should sit down so you don't faint because I'm going to tell you something you can't grasp...stats only tell a small part of the story !

Wait, so I'm doing something wrong when I criticize his decision making, but then when you criticized his decision making you are doing something different?

I'm going to tell you something that you can't grasp. You not only don't understand the stats of the game, you don't understand what you see when you watch the game either. That's why you spent two years as one of Kevin Stallings biggest fans when others told you from day one he was a huge mistake.

 

[MyNameisJoe]

Wait, so I'm doing something wrong when I criticize his decision making, but then when you criticized his decision making you are doing something different?

I'm going to tell you something that you can't grasp. You not only don't understand the stats of the game, you don't understand what you see when you watch the game either. That's why you spent two years as one of Kevin Stallings biggest fans when others told you from day one he was a huge mistake.

And to be honest Joe, I didn't take much of what you wrote as "criticism" as much as...man, if he can improve upon x, y and z this guy will really be special. Call me crazy, but that's what I took from your posts in this thread

 

[SoufOaklin4Life]

And to be honest Joe, I didn't take much of what you wrote as "criticism" as much as...man, if he can improve upon x, y and z this guy will really be special. Call me crazy, but that's what I took from your posts in this thread

His driving will be more successful if teams have to respect his ability to dish off of it.

 

[levance2]

His driving will be more successful if teams have to respect his ability to dish off of it.

I believe you can teach decision making, but you can’t teach aggression and assertiveness. We just spent the last two years watching players afraid to go beyond the 3-point line. I much prefer over-aggression.

Give me a Carl Krauser any day.

 

[Joe the Panther Fan]

And to be honest Joe, I didn't take much of what you wrote as "criticism" as much as...man, if he can improve upon x, y and z this guy will really be special. Call me crazy, but that's what I took from your posts in this thread

Well you are crazy, but one would think lines like "Xavier Johnson has been more than any of us had any right to expect" and "he's been very good" would lead you to think that I like his game. But I guess any criticism at all is too much for some people to bear, even when he essentially is agreeing with my main point while arguing that I don't know what I'm talking about.

His lack of self awareness can be stunning at times.

 

[SoufOaklin4Life]

I believe you can teach decision making, but you can’t teach aggression and assertiveness. We just spent the last two years watching players afraid to go beyond the 3-point line. I much prefer over-aggression.

Give me a Carl Krauser any day.

I don’t disagree.

 

[Sean Miller Fan]

I believe you can teach decision making, but you can’t teach aggression and assertiveness. We just spent the last two years watching players afraid to go beyond the 3-point line. I much prefer over-aggression.

Give me a Carl Krauser any day.

You need to be able to playmake at the PG position. Unless you have big-time scorers you are playing beside, there is no need for a "caretaker" PG. I really believe there isn't much difference between TJ McConnell and James Robinson. McConnell just had more scorers around him. If your SG is Cam Wright, you have to be able to create offense at the PG position. For better or worse, Xavier Johnson has no problem creating, that's for sure.