2/6 | Davidson | 7:00PM (ESPNU)

[section(105)]

.......whether or not there are any further changes in the starting line up, examples with Tate replacing Harris, I think there at most there will be tweaks in the minutes played but nothing more than that......to late in the season to kinda start over.......maybe some emphasis in getting the ball into JH in different spots than we have seen.......I mentioned above to start Tate for Harris and see what happens, I gotta believe Coach Cox knows best and will stick what he has been doing.....unfortunately with not much change in the use of the three and absent of any corrective actions.......

[rambone 78]

face JH up to the hoop not back to the hoop

set a pick for him for an open look

mix it up

You mean play to his strengths? What a novel idea, coach! I mean that, really.

As for ramster's last couple of posts, I think Thorr should create another assistant coach position, and give it to him!

Couldn't agree more with just about everything said!

Maybe DC should read this board....

[UCH21377]

If another team leaves you wide open from 3 and you have the potential to make the shot, you have to take it.
If guys just start blatantly passing up wide open 3's because of a bad stretch/bad season, you become so easy to defend.
Defense will just sag into the post and make it even harder for the big men to maneuver.
You'll get even more open shots, because it's not even worth extending the effort to contest.
Also in today's basketball environment, and chance a team has of getting "hot" is correlated pretty strongly to how hot they can get from the perimeter.
That doesn't necessarily mean volume, but hitting the shots available to you.
Probably not going to go on any streaks just trying to pound it in the post and avoiding the perimeter.

My only counter to that would be just making sure players are engaged.
You just have to make sure to put guys in the right position to be successful, and not everyone is successful standing around the perimeter waiting for a dish for an open shot.
Others would die for that opportunity.

Agree 100% on this. We HAVE to take open threes. Everyone yes even Fatts and Harris. No choice. You cannot run a viable offense without the three point shot. So for better or worse we have to keep firing away when open. Look on the bright side, we can pretty much only go up from where we are now.

[Rhody83]

Haven’t read a lot of the post so some of this may have been mentioned.
Since the Mason debacle their best games have come when they keep their 3FG attempts to a reasonable number.
SBU 13, LaSalle 8, VCU 9, SLU 18. All wins. Last night 25 and 1-12 in the first half.

No way Harris needs to take threes. Most teams PFs don’t take threes. They really only have two guys that can shoot the three - Jeff & Martin. Fatts and Thompson can’t hit an open three.

The issue with the offense is it doesn’t create enough open shots. They end up with the ball outside at the top of the key with nothing created and less than 10 seconds on the shot clock. Too many of their outside shots are in desperation to avoid a shot clock violation.

[Rhody22]

As others have said, a good coach puts players in position for them to be successful and, consequently, the team. I don't see that this year. Dowtin is a great floor general and assist man as shown in his first 2 years here. He spends more time off the ball now. Silverio has a good looking shot and is supposedly the best deep threat we have. Haven't seen him being set up for open 3s. Harris has a nice looking midrange shot and seems athletic enough to drive. How many times does he get the ball where he can do either? I bet if Omar and Jermaine were able to score a couple of baskets, their confidence would grow and maybe we'd see what we expected of them.

[rambone 78]

As has been said so many times here, we struggle in the half court, moreso when Fatts is the primary ballhandler.

Offense flows more freely when Jeff is at the point, and it's no coincidence that we take less 3's with him directing the offense.

So why doesn't he play the point more often? We've asked that question ad nauseum on this board...and there seems to be no answers from this staff forthcoming.

Cox it seems like, is searching for answers when the answer in this case is in plain sight....and it's irritating why he doesn't see it.

Just look at the results lately! This isn't rocket surgery.....

[Rhody72]

With good technique and practice, there is no reason why Fatts and CT can't become average three point shooters. They are simply not getting the coaching and putting in the practice.

When teams play zone against us, we have to take three point shots or we are not going to win. I shake my head when I see teams play us man-to-man. A team with two outside shooters is hard to defend.

JH plays a soft game.

[rambone 78]

I don't understand why JH seems to lack jumping ability....he just seems so hesitant when he's out there.

Could he elevate in HS? Don't remember.


72, technique and practice also applies to FT shooting. I have no doubt they practice them...but if their technique is off, no amount of practice will help. That's also a coaching issue.

Does Dave need to bring in a FT "shrink" like Dan did? This staff should have plenty of experience in these areas...didn't one of them write a book on the game, for cripe's sake?

[theblueram]

Fatts should research Jimmy Barron. And the work ethic he had on shooting. Hell, we should hire Jimmy to come back and be a shooting coach. And it seems the word of the year is Rocket Surgery!!!!!~

[rambone 78]

Fatts should research Jimmy Barron. And the work ethic he had on shooting. Hell, we should hire Jimmy to come back and be a shooting coach. And it seems the word of the year is Rocket Surgery!!!!!~

I think Jimmy is still playing and making a lot more than he would here....and I think he does want to get into coaching after he's done...he would probably be an excellent choice for an assistant someday.

[ramster]

83,
I think Fatts can hit open 3’s but he almost never takes an open 3. He is always shooting off balance, or whole running, or falling away. He seems like a player with low confidence this year - last year he was more confident. He reminds me of myself back then if I wasn’t hitting the open shots I’d try harder shots almost to justify the misses until I could get some baskets whereby my confidence fouls go back up. Sometimes you get in a rhythm where just about anything thrown up goes in.
I don’t know if it’s lack of practicing which obviously builds confidence or what.
Fatts is a 76% FT Shooter as is Dowtin and Harris. Fact is Fatts and Harris are capable of 80% or more. I think Dowtin can get to 80% too do all 3 can shoot FTs. Likely Martin too.

Thompson is simply not a good shooter. He is a 65% FT shooter. He shot 26% on 3’s his sophomore year and is there now too.
As you said, the ball movement is terrible, almost non existent
Nobody is getting wide open shots very often unless they decide to launch a 30’ or more shot which Thompson and Fatts are not averse to - and still they stay in the game

Good Passing is a missing art on this team as is unselfish play for some - not all.
Dowtin needs back at PG

Need Harris, Martin and Tate playing large roles come tourney time.
Thompson and Fatts diminished roles

[theblueram]

Can someone post me some pics of Fatts in the gym at 5:00 in the morning shooting 3's before class?

[rambone 78]

Cox has said something about "this generation" ….not sure that means some players aren't listening to the staff, or some aren't hitting the gym and or practicing as much as they should.

I don't think some of the players respect Cox as much as they did Hurley. Dan took no crap from his players....remember some tall kid didn't listen and got booted a while back.....

I also think the problem lies with a couple of the older players, not the freshmen....it might take them being gone to get the team back to really being a team....again no need to name them here. This doesn't seem like a very tight group like was here the last 2 years or more.

[theblueram]

Cox has said something about "this generation" ….not sure that means some players aren't listening to the staff, or some aren't hitting the gym and or practicing as much as they should.

I don't think some of the players respect Cox as much as they did Hurley. Dan took no crap from his players....remember some tall kid didn't listen and got booted a while back.....

I also think the problem lies with a couple of the older players, not the freshmen....it might take them being gone to get the team back to really being a team....again no need to name them here. This doesn't seem like a very tight group like was here the last 2 years or more.

Maybe that's why they play better at home? I know I'm screaming at them when they do dumb shit on the court. They get applauded for that at away games.

[rambone 78]

Well players who have their own agenda certainly aren't contributing to the team concept....I think Fatts and CT do their thing on the court and not worry much about the consequences....DC can yell at them all he wants but if he doesn't punish them for not listening...they will continue to do what they want.

Something tells me if coach K was coaching them....some of this stuff wouldn't be happening.

They are taking advantage of Cox's inexperience running his own team imo.

[PeterRamTime]

Bring Jimmy Baron in to give some shooting seminars in the summer

Like when he worked out with Hass and EC a couple years ago

[DC_Rams]

Well players who have their own agenda certainly aren't contributing to the team concept....I think Fatts and CT do their thing on the court and not worry much about the consequences....DC can yell at them all he wants but if he doesn't punish them for not listening...they will continue to do what they want.

Something tells me if coach K was coaching them....some of this stuff wouldn't be happening.

They are taking advantage of Cox's inexperience running his own team imo.

Coach K has a roster of 10 fricking 5 star players!

We have a rotation of 7 3* star guys, and 5-6 1 stars....

Stop comparing, we don’t have the horses and we damn sure don’t have Coach K.

Cmon Rambone, let the guys get through year 1. Brad Stevens wasn’t walking through those doors.

[reef]

I agree with those that say that we have to take the open 3s when teams zone us

All teams should just play us zone and make us take 3s

[section(105)]

.......regarding the free throws, last pregame in the coach segment in the AlimnimLounge, Coach Sutton was asked about the concern of poor free throw shouting....his response went like this; he said the coaching staff is concerned too, and that they shout free throws, hundreds as a team daily......in a variety of settings some with consequences for miss and some not.....he never said anything about coaching techniques nor other corrective actions.....

[rambone 78]

I would think there would be technique teaching involved....if not then don't expect much improvement.

[rhodylaw]

With the unbalanced schedule - if we finish 5/6 in the league that is an accomplishment for a team that lost 4 starters. Lots of work left to get there though.

[Ram96]

You can’t beat a 3 pt shooting team with 2’s. You also can’t beat them if you don’t make FT’s. We started jacking to over compensate for missing in both categories. We were out-played and out-coached, yet, I am still confident in this team and even more excited about the depth coming in next year. Who knows what turnover we end up having and who else comes in just yet. It’s okay to miss DH, but he’s gone. Play the cards we are dealt, the season isn’t over until it’s over. It’s so very hard to see the forest through the trees...but it’s there. I still love these guys even though they cause me to break at least one inanimate object around my house a week.

Face the facts, it’s over.