Poll - Pieces of the Puzzle
- Thread starter PollCat99
- Start date
They are all good points, but I have to go with the Grad students. First of all, having a legitimate 5 allows Young to go to 4 and Artis to go to 3, thereby strengthening 3 positions. Second, we were in need of a shooting guard. I like Jones and Cam for their shooting, but an additional threat was needed. Third, despite what others may have thought over the years, I have always been a fan of JRob and, although he has improved quite a bit this year, I do not personally think that it was unexpected. Finally, I do not want to discuss free-throw shooting as I truly believe that this is a dream and I am afraid that it will disappear if I acknowledge it.
Hail to Pitt!!!
Hail to Pitt!!!
Agreed, it all starts with the grad transfers. Each of them is better for this team than the guy they replaced. All the rest of the items stem from that. It should be a no brainier.
Our bench is certainly deeper this year and with capable guard depth, we can let Robinson be the best he can be within the system. Better outlets = Better James. So Graduate #1; Bench Improvement/Depth #2.
the grad transfers. they had a domino effect down the lineup. young going to his natural 4, artis going to the 3 letting his use his offensive abilities, s.g. able to hit 3's cause def have to sag on young, and j.rob. actually getting clear lanes to basket cause of the def have to guard against players in their right positions
Other: Maturity. Dixon players virtually always improve if they stay. Artis and Young have improved each year. Both have totally changed their bodies. Jones has improved too. And Jeter has been in the program two years now. Dixon teams depend on veteran upperclassmen who know how to play and win.
A close second is Fresh Legs, both from more depth and from guys spending the Summer rehabbing from various operations instead of competing and beating on each other practicing. Our famously physical practices may have helped our old grinfding, knock them down style teams but but being able to run and move quickly on healthy legs is vital with this group.
A close second is Fresh Legs, both from more depth and from guys spending the Summer rehabbing from various operations instead of competing and beating on each other practicing. Our famously physical practices may have helped our old grinfding, knock them down style teams but but being able to run and move quickly on healthy legs is vital with this group.
I voted for "other" because I would have said "improved guard play." This answer is a little bit of a cop out because it included a couple of the things you listed.
I voted "other", also, but for a different reason: Jamie Dixon is still the coach. We heard all summer how bad we'd be, Dixon couldn't recruit, Dixon won't adapt, etc.
Perhaps at some point, a few more folks will catch onto the notion that the guy really don't have some sort of clue about what he's doing.
He was a bit lost and he's not out of the woods yet...this season and what he does on the recruiting trail the next year will be telling.
I do agree that we agree to disagree on "fresh legs". When a significant portion of the roster have surgery to repair damage to lower body parts and everyone seems faster after recovery, maybe "fresh" should be replaced with "healthy", but rest and rehab can certainly be credited with a portion of the recovery.
The cumulative effect of frequent to constant stress in contributing to if not causing chronic injury cannot be ignored. I'm not taking Zara's silly position that an early Fall tournament in the Bahamas or a flight to Okinawa causes tired legs months later but I've seen too many of our players, guards in particular, be increasingly hobbled as the season progresses. Whether that is the effect of too much playing time, too much physicality in practices or in game action or just random bad luck, I suspect it to be as important a factor in post-season losses as Jamie getting "tight-a**ed."
Obvious cases include most of Page's senior year, much of Gibbs', ditto, and the second half of basically every year for James Robinson. Summer/Fall injuries to Jemaine Dixon and Cam Wright ruined their senior years, too. We could argue the effect of over-working compared to random chance in causing those injures, plus also Mike Cook's ACL or Levance's broken foot at Dayton, but more playing time obviously automatically increases the opportunity for injury.
Basketball players are always gonna play, but the physical stress and risk of injury is multiplied when guys are diving on floor for loose balls or getting knocked into stanchions on a fast break, which seens to happen to James 3 or 4 times per game. I'd submit the intensity is less and thus injury is less likely in pick-up games in the gym than in playkng even a cupcake at the Pete. Or maybe even than a game against, say, Ovie Soko at the ProAm.
I'll give you healthy (and that HAS been a real plus, so far hasn't it).
With the exception of Damon (and of course Nix), everyone started practice together and have all been working together.
Last year's team had enough problems going into the season, but Cam being out so long, Durand problem which had the same affect as an injury, Cam's shoulder and Joe's constant issues, that didn't help either I'm sure.
