Stephens shot 38.5% from 3 last year with a messed up pinky finger. I'd absolutely call him a knock-down shooter. Having both Kendall and Dakota healthy should do wonders for our 3-point shooting percentage. I envision Edwards being a 35% 3-point shooter and if Cline plays, he will be up there too. I'll say we'll have 2 guys near or at 40% this year. Now I'd still take your shooting over ours but I think ours has a chance to improve quite a bit this year.
Bryant Impact...
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Stephens shot 38.5% from 3 last year with a messed up pinky finger. I'd absolutely call him a knock-down shooter. Having both Kendall and Dakota healthy should do wonders for our 3-point shooting percentage. I envision Edwards being a 35% 3-point shooter and if Cline plays, he will be up there too. I'll say we'll have 2 guys near or at 40% this year. Now I'd still take your shooting over ours but I think ours has a chance to improve quite a bit this year.
I'll believe it when I see it. We've heard this same type of talk about Stephens for two summers now. The prior year it was still his shoulder. Now it was his finger. I doubt he's even a starter for you guys, so it's like worse shooting version of Zeisloft coming off the bench. I'd expect Mathias to get better, but he's not the quickest and his shot is slower. Cline will be solid, not sure about next year, but he'll be good in time. I don't think your shooting will be night and day better than last year. I would expect some improvement, but not much honestly.
What would you know about rocket science?....it's obviously not a major at IU....
I'm wrong? Do you even watch the games? IU shot 5 of 16 from three at IU. Two of those five were shots made late in the second half. IU shot well below their average in both games against Purdue and against Michigan State and at Wisconsin just off the top of my head.
You like to use a lot of words like "never" and "zero" which are absolutes, when you try to make a point. IU didn't have "zero" inside game. You had Perea and he did pretty well until he got into foul trouble. Then you had zero inside game and I expect it to be exactly the same this year albeit with a different center. IU had one option last year inside and will once again have one and only one option inside. If you think a freshman is going to come in and play well without fouling, on a team that plays little defense? Then your special indeed. Against Purdue he will have two options, foul or give up points. To expect him to come in and completely change the dynamic of a weak defensive team against players like AJ with Swanigan weak side, is crazy talk. He may hold his own against cupcakes. But once B1G season comes around, he will struggle and sit.
I like how you compare his arrival to Zeller, but make it clear he isn't Zeller. That tells me exactly how your mind works.
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The year before last we had a top 50ish defense and were even better the year before that. That doesn't seem like "team that plays little defense." In fact, I think it goes more toward what I've been saying from the jump that you are literally too stupid to understand. When you don't have a big man, you have to try and hide that which led to over helping and ultimately was our downfall. Simple basketball concepts seem to be lost on you.
As for freshman playing well immediately, it's been done before. Do you remember Cody Zeller? He was a freshman. He came in and played defense without fouling. Oh, what about Vonleh? He was a freshman. He came in and played defense without fouling. Do you need more examples? I can provide them if you need. And did you miss the comments on how I said I don't expect him to be Zeller? I am comparing the situations. Again, too dumb to comprehend. I simply pointed out that a team without a legit big man (think year prior to Zeller at IU) but with some weapons and how bad defensively they were, changed once Zeller was there (think the team with weapons now had a big man) and the impact was immediate. Bryant won't be Zeller. But he'll have a similar impact to the team overall. Freshman big men come in and contribute in big ways every year. You must not watch much basketball.
So because you have good bigs the ONLY two options are foul or give up points? That's the dumbest thing I literally have ever heard. I think you should be banned just for that comment alone. It's seriously the dumbest thing you've said, and you say a lot of dumb shit.
Why don't you come to the main board. Throw out your projections in the B10 thread like your boy Methboy. You'll get laughed off the boards just like he did.
The IU vs PU game was won on defensive side. Purdue played harder both games in my opinion. Crean allowed PU guards to walk up the ball & allow AJ to setup on the block. All this offensive talk is pointless if you can't defend your opponent.
If IU plays the same D next year, they will probably lose. Pete, you ask about our 3s being iu's only option. Same can be said about guard play for PU. I read GBI guys who wanted painter gone by end of Dec last year, then after the PSU comeback W, things changed. The change was Octeus became comfortable playing outside of CMP's motion & sets, when they could not get a good shot. PJ is not the answer for breaking down the other team. If Johnny Hill still can't go to his left hand, PU fans will be all over CMP come mid Feb.
Oh, and tell me this.......Have you ever seen Bryant play? I'm talking about outside of all star games. Have you? I'd highly doubt it. I've watched him play a handful of times (live). I've seen him go up against some of the best bigs in his class. He held is own and did really well. You know, some guys who have the opportunity to be a first round pick (OAD). I think he'll be fine against bigs in the B10. Don't act like you know the kid or how he'll do unless you've actually seen him play.
Why are some of the guys who do this for a living high on the Hoosiers then this year? Are they just not smart and think Bryant is the piece we were missing? I think it's pretty weird that nobody really shares your views outside of your circle jerk PU homers. Strange, no?
Yup. Pete just doesn't want to believe that a freshman big man can come in and produce right away even though the last two McDonald's All American big men we've had at IU did just that.
I think the defensive side of the game against Purdue will be night and day different. We won't have guys playing out of position. We won't have to over help in the post. Pete's whole argument is based on something they have zero experience with, a legit freshman big man. They haven't had someone who came in immediately and played well in the post. He can't see outside of that dumpster fire that is West Laffy. Plenty of teams, including IU, have had really good freshman come in and play well on the blocks. I don't see any reason to believe that won't happen again at IU.
I'm not holding my breathe with our D. I hope it's better, but I only know Bryant from his AS games. If IU's D does improve, all the national publication that have us in top 15 will be accurate. If not, it could be another mediocre season with 20 wins and early out in march.
I believe the publications (and plenty of people) think the same way that I do in that just adding a big man down low who can protect the rim and rebound will do wonders for our overall defense. Hanner did two things last year, try to block a shot (and miss) or try to take a charge which left him out of position. I don't think it's a stretch at all to believe our defense will improve a good amount. I don't think it's going to magically turn into a top 25 defense, but going from where we were last year to being an adjusted defense in the 75 range wouldn't surprise me a bit.
Hanner is still out position somewhere in TN. Sorry, I enjoyed having Hanner but his instincts were... Uh... You can fill in the blank. Lol
Oh I think Bryant will produce. I think it's laughable that you think he will change your defense from somewhere south of 200 to top 75.
It's the way out there predictions you come up with that tickle me the most.
Your defense against Purdue will be exactly the same. We will isolate your big and make him switch between Hammons and Swanigan until he feels like he is guarding all five players at once.
Like I said before. Against Purdue, you had better hope your shooters are hot. Because you won't have a lane to drive and you won't get many rebounds. It could get very ugly if our guards shut down your shooters like last year in both games.
Why is it laughable? It's happened before. Like I pointed out, the adjusted defense for the team prior to Zeller's arrival was mid 100's level. That team had zero big men. Then Zeller got there. That team's adjust defense improved significantly, almost to a top 25 defense (IIRC we were like 28th or something). Then we got Vonleh. The team defense was an adjusted defense team ranked in the 50s. It seems like it's more likely to see the team defense improve than for it to be that bad or worse. Every time we've had an McDonald's All American in the post, we've had pretty good defensive teams. Go look at the end of year rankings for teams that Crean has had at IU. It's not like it's some outlandish claim. It's pretty much backed up by facts, you know, something you fail to consider.
If you think our defense will be the same against Purdue next year, well, you're not a smart person. We will actually have a big man who plays defense against Hammons and Haas. And lets not act like Hammons and Haas are some sort of All American types. Hell, they're not even first rounders. And your defense against us will be a little different than last year. You won't be able to push up on our guards and play the kick outs like you did last year. We had nobody who could score on the blocks. Guess what?! Now we do! Things are going to change. You are just praying they don't.
You're touting this Purdue team as if they're going to be contenders and someone we should be scared of and it's hilarious. Purdue won't even finish above IU this year! LOL.
You do realize Purdue was clearly the better team last year, right? And that IU couldn't guard a lamp post last year, right? And that, while Bryant is highly rated, IU also lost two baseline players whom they were counting on for significant contributions? As for Bryant, which games did you see him play in?
Wait, you said IU had no bigs last year, yet, I believe IU out rebounded PU last year. (I could be wrong )
Your argument holds as much water as Snu. There is a chance PU & IU finishes in 5-9 range. As every coach in any sport will tell you, each year is a completely different team. We won't know jack about PU until Jan. IU fans will have a good idea in early Dec after going to Duke.
I do, and I believe it was more a function of the lack of a defensive presence down low. I think that's a big cause of a lot of the problems. It wasn't the only problem, but I think it was a major problem. Yogi and Williams played on the Vonleh team which was a pretty darn good defensive team. RJ is a solid defender. Blackmon Jr. left a lot to be desired on the defensive end. But the main cause, IMO, was the lack of a defensive presence down low.
Saw Bryant in three of his games with Huntington Prep, the Derby game and the McDonald's All American game. I think I have a pretty good feel for how he MIGHT be for us this year.
So am I to assume that you expect Bryant to play all 40 minutes against Hammons and Haas? Who will back him up?
Obviously he won't play all 40 minutes. Holt or Beilfeld can sub in for him for a breather. I actually think Holt will be a solid player for us this year.
whaaaa? watch any game last year. any. focus in on troy. watch where troy usually ends up each play in relation to his man, the ball, and the hoop. mind-numbing. ya, we can be top 10 this year if only the defense is top 75 but don't pretend like we were a rim protector away from solid d. crean coaches historically bad d. last year stood out but what was his excuse all those other years?
I love how alll of our bench players will improve and be solid but guys on other teams are what they are and won't get better...and read your responses again if you think you aren't saying that
I generally think most players get better each year. How much they get better is up for discussion. I think I'm highest on Holt this coming year, maybe because we need another big man and I loved what he showed flashes of last year. Who else from our bench was I talking about? I'm not expecting a ton from Zeisloft. I do love Hartman but think he'll be pretty much what he was last year. Not sure on Beilfeld, but assume he'll be a relatively solid backup. Who am I missing? I don't think Troy's jumper will be significantly improved, but I hope I'm wrong. Not sure on JBJ's defense, but am hopeful he's at least a little better.
As for other teams, I don't think guys like Mathias are going to magically become quicker. I do think he'll shoot it better next year. Stephens I'm not sold on, by any means. We've heard the same thing from Purdue fans for the last two summers now. I'll believe he'll be more than a set shooter (and reliable) when I see it.
Again, I don't think our only issue was a lack of rim protector, but I think it's a BIG issue. Go look at Crean's rankings on adjusted defense. It's not that bad. Last year was an anomaly, even for Crean.
I hope this was DWS? If not, you may need to pump the breaks a bit...
It's possible. That's why I said "there is a chance". We have no idea. What if yogi gets hurt? I believe we finish 3rd or 4th next year. We have a favorable BT schedule.
You don't think other fans aren't saying the same things about us? Stephens came in with a rep as a shooter and has battled injuries to believe he can't blossom but Holt will?
Re read the rest of your posts and tell me that you have been as objective in your other posts
I never said IU don't have bigs last year. That's Snus argument to show how things will be different this year. You may want to read that again.
Too bad we'll never see you when that doesn't happen. Trolls like you always run and hide.
Rather embarrassing I would think to argue basketball to a draw with a Purdue grad.
#timetoquit
#timetoquit
How many games has Bryant played against 7'-7'2" and 290lbs+ players who are agile?
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If you saw some random players shooting stats that said he shot 37% from 3 his freshman year and 38.4% his sophomore year with a total 363 attempts, would you seriously say that the said player isn't a legit threat from 3?
Add to the players bio now that he's had injuries both years but had an 18 game healthy stretch where he shot 42.9% on 112 attempts.
Now try and tell me that you don't think this player could ever be a great shooter.
Hammons isn't 290lbs. Plus, let's not make them out to be All Americans. If they were that good, they would have been gone by now.
No he's 261. The year Hammons had last year would have sent him if he didn't have his motor questions in previous years. They want to see more of last year out of him as well as more development. Plus there is the consideration of his age. Hammons is about to be 23. That has a lot of effect on how high a team is willing to take him.
Yeah, I remember Cody Zeller. He came from a family of talented big men where he'd been schooled daily on the family court then had a quality HS coach. He learned how to play as a big long before he arrived at IU. Maybe Bryant will be a big step up but I'll be more than amazed if he is a dramatic improvement as a freshman over what you had last year and just because Zeller knew how to play D doesn't mean he learned it at Crean's school of D. If Bryant doesn't know how to play quality big men on D (and don't blow me smoke about all the great AAU bigs he's played against) he isn't likely to learn it from his new head coach.
Agreed. I just don't think they are as dominant as some (pete) are making them out to be. Yes, you guys are going to have a good team. Yes I think you guys should be a top five B10 team and make the NCAA tourney. However, when we play Purdue this year, I don't think it's going to be as easy as some (pete) think. First off, it's a road game for Purdue. Secondly, we addressed one of our biggest issues this year with Bryant. Say what you want, but I think his impact is going to be pretty significant (and I don't mean he's going to put up 15 and 10 last year, but I do expect him to make an impact on the defensive end and put up better numbers than Perea).
I think both teams are going to be in the top four or five of the B10 but I don't think either are going to be a real contender. Maryland is too stacked. I also personally think IU will take the game against Purdue this year.
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