CAA Men's Basketball Thread

[Tiger93 299]

9 minutes ago, TuTigers2012 said:

Interesting.  I just don’t understand Williams that high in POTY. 

I would agree. I know scoring is not the end-all-be-all of player assessment, but hard to imagine the 17th-ranked scorer in conference play being the race for Player of the Year. Also, even on that player breakdown they have him 14th on what appears to be a similar stat to WAR in baseball called PRPG (I find it interesting that Williamson is our highest ranked player on this at 21). He is first in what I believe is the average +/- per game. Although, I would guess that will change with trips to UNC-W and Charleston. 

[BK_Brian 31]

Kinda interesting/sad that in 2023 Charles Thompson was #2 on this list of POY and in 2024 he does not appear in the top 15.   https://barttorvik.com/poy.php?year=2023&conlimit=CAA 

[Tiger93 299]

20 minutes ago, BK_Brian said:

Kinda interesting/sad that in 2023 Charles Thompson was #2 on this list of POY and in 2024 he does not appear in the top 15.   https://barttorvik.com/poy.php?year=2023&conlimit=CAA 

That is kind of sad, although I do think the responsibility is spread out throughout the team for better or worse this year. Last year, we kind lived and died with Charles, Cam and Nick. This year, there about 7-8 guys that we can distribute various responsibilities. Of course, as we said I am not sure anyone is as much of a go-to offensive player as Cam or Nick. Although, I do think based on the Hofstra game we are getting to the point where Williamson and May are becoming our go-to guys, and Tarke is willing to play aggressive offensively for better or for worse (and it as been a mix of both).  

I also think guys like Sulaiman, Lowery and Jones are cutting into Charles' rebounding (in conference play) totals in a good way. Last year, Charles was one of three double-figure scores (along with Cam and Nick). This year there are three double-figure scores (Tarke, May and Williamson). I do think that takes some of the onus off him, and he can focus more on locking in on the defensive end and trying to help those guys get into good scoring spots. 

Here is rundown of his stats in 18 conferences games last year and 10 conference games this year:

2023: 11.8 ppg, 53% FG, 8.3 rpg, 1.6 apg, 0.9 steals per game and 1.7 blpg
2024: 8.6 ppg, 56.4%, 6.9 rpg, 2.6 apg, 1.2 steals per game and 1.5 blpg

As a team in 18 conference games in 2023 we averaged: 72.94 ppg (gave up 66.28 ppg), shot 44.6% (opp. shot 42.3%), shot 40.5% from three (opp. shot 33.1%), had a rebound margin of 5.0 rpb (36.3-31.3) and blocked 3.33 shots per game

As a team in 10 conference games in 2024 we are averaging: 67.7 ppg (giving up 62.5 ppg), shooting 40.9% (giving up 41.8%), shooting 36.4% from three (giving up 29.0%), have a rebounding margin of 3.3 rpg (37.1-33.8, I think this is partially because we are much worse shooting team and are giving people more def. rebounds because of it) and blocking 4.4 shots per game. 

 

 

[TuTigers2012 1,071]

3 hours ago, Tiger93 said:

I would agree. I know scoring is not the end-all-be-all of player assessment, but hard to imagine the 17th-ranked scorer in conference play being the race for Player of the Year. Also, even on that player breakdown they have him 14th on what appears to be a similar stat to WAR in baseball called PRPG (I find it interesting that Williamson is our highest ranked player on this at 21). He is first in what I believe is the average +/- per game. Although, I would guess that will change with trips to UNC-W and Charleston. 

He plays 22 mpg. He’s good but needs to be dominant for that amount of time to be considered.  

[Tiger93 299]

1 minute ago, TuTigers2012 said:

He plays 22 mpg. He’s good but needs to be dominant for that amount of time to be considered.  

Yeah, I definitely think the weakness in all these basketball analytics are always that they give too much credence to efficiency and not enough to someone who may have warts, but can carry a team for better or worse for 33-40 minutes of play. 

[TuTigers2012 1,071]

1 hour ago, Tiger93 said:

Yeah, I definitely think the weakness in all these basketball analytics are always that they give too much credence to efficiency and not enough to someone who may have warts, but can carry a team for better or worse for 33-40 minutes of play. 

I’d take white dubar Thomas etc over Williams. 

[mat1992 2,236]

I do believe in this quote:

"You either have to be part of the solution, or you're going to be part of the problem."

We can whine and bitch all day about bad performances on the court and sidelines. I like to attempt to give solutions to the problem in addition to the bitching. My lineup change for Monday:

1)Williamson

2)Lowery

3)May

4)Sulaiman

5)Thompson

Bench: Wait until the first timeout to make a sub. We have no continuity when making a change after two minutes (barring somebody picking up two quick fouls). Tarke in for Lowery, Tejada in for May. Jones in for Sulaiman. Keep Thompson on the floor assuming he's not in foul trouble. If the center is 6-9 or taller with limited athleticism or Amari Williams, use Paar. If not, and it's an athletic 6-7, 230ish guy like Davis or undersized center, I'm using Jones or Sulaiman at center. Jones did play the 5 most of his career at Wofford. Sam Sherry is their starting center at Elon (6-10, 220), who is more of a perimeter center, but Paar can probably handle him.

Tarke needs to score some. I'm not saying he should pass the ball every time he gets it, but his first inclination should be to drive and create. If you have a lane, take it to the whole, because he can finish with both hands. But don't forget to get Tejada, Williamson and May involved. They have to send a message to him. With Tarke playing this selfishly, the team is likely headed to the middle of the pack in the CAA. 

May needs to attack the basket with authority. When he takes off of two feet, he can throw the ball down with two hands, even in traffic. His drives are very awkward and he's avoiding contact. The jumper is erratic right now. His handle isn't great either. But I've mentioned Corey Kispert a dozen times on here and I know nobody watches the Wizards, but he attacks the basket off of cuts. Watch his highlights.  Uses screens and V-cuts very well. Not a great ballhandler. Bigger body (6-7, 225) and decent athlete. May shouldn't go 10 minutes though, without getting a shot or a decent look from 3. Delaware did a nice job on him on Thursday, giving him very few open looks early on. May is shooting just 38.8% from the field, 37.3% from the three-point line and 60.6% from the line. Last season, Timberlake shot 45.5% from the field, 42% from beyond the arc and 84.5% from the line. Obviously, there's no comparison on the offensive side, but the hope is that he takes another step next season. In Nick's redshirt sophomore season, in that ugly Covid year of 2020-21, he averaged 12.1ppg and shot just 35.7% from the field and 31.6% from beyond the arc. He made huge strides in the next two seasons shooting the ball. It also helped to have a player like Cam Holden getting him the ball in the right spots. Not sure there is a current point guard who can do the same with May.

With that opening lineup, I want to push the pace off of every defensive rebound because all of those guys can run the floor. Halfcourt offense isn't going to get much better, but in transition, we'd be interesting to say the least. Even some light pressure with Lowery in the game is a must. 

Tejada can be useful as a scorer. He has no conscience (34.6%), which can be good at times and also bad. Hopefully, he can adjust to that role of being a scorer off the bench. He can't play a lot of if he doesn't score and is not at least serviceable defensively.

Dylan has the oddest numbers for a double-digit scorer and you forget sometimes that he's a freshman. Shoots 41.3% from the field (attacking and finishing are improving), but just 31.5% from the three-point line and 63.6% from the free throw line (28-of-44). 

[Tgr4life 169]

4 hours ago, mat1992 said:

I do believe in this quote:

"You either have to be part of the solution, or you're going to be part of the problem."

We can whine and bitch all day about bad performances on the court and sidelines. I like to attempt to give solutions to the problem in addition to the bitching. My lineup change for Monday:

1)Williamson

2)Lowery

3)May

4)Sulaiman

5)Thompson

Bench: Wait until the first timeout to make a sub. We have no continuity when making a change after two minutes (barring somebody picking up two quick fouls). Tarke in for Lowery, Tejada in for May. Jones in for Sulaiman. Keep Thompson on the floor assuming he's not in foul trouble. If the center is 6-9 or taller with limited athleticism or Amari Williams, use Paar. If not, and it's an athletic 6-7, 230ish guy like Davis or undersized center, I'm using Jones or Sulaiman at center. Jones did play the 5 most of his career at Wofford. Sam Sherry is their starting center at Elon (6-10, 220), who is more of a perimeter center, but Paar can probably handle him.

Tarke needs to score some. I'm not saying he should pass the ball every time he gets it, but his first inclination should be to drive and create. If you have a lane, take it to the whole, because he can finish with both hands. But don't forget to get Tejada, Williamson and May involved. They have to send a message to him. With Tarke playing this selfishly, the team is likely headed to the middle of the pack in the CAA. 

May needs to attack the basket with authority. When he takes off of two feet, he can throw the ball down with two hands, even in traffic. His drives are very awkward and he's avoiding contact. The jumper is erratic right now. His handle isn't great either. But I've mentioned Corey Kispert a dozen times on here and I know nobody watches the Wizards, but he attacks the basket off of cuts. Watch his highlights.  Uses screens and V-cuts very well. Not a great ballhandler. Bigger body (6-7, 225) and decent athlete. May shouldn't go 10 minutes though, without getting a shot or a decent look from 3. Delaware did a nice job on him on Thursday, giving him very few open looks early on. May is shooting just 38.8% from the field, 37.3% from the three-point line and 60.6% from the line. Last season, Timberlake shot 45.5% from the field, 42% from beyond the arc and 84.5% from the line. Obviously, there's no comparison on the offensive side, but the hope is that he takes another step next season. In Nick's redshirt sophomore season, in that ugly Covid year of 2020-21, he averaged 12.1ppg and shot just 35.7% from the field and 31.6% from beyond the arc. He made huge strides in the next two seasons shooting the ball. It also helped to have a player like Cam Holden getting him the ball in the right spots. Not sure there is a current point guard who can do the same with May.

With that opening lineup, I want to push the pace off of every defensive rebound because all of those guys can run the floor. Halfcourt offense isn't going to get much better, but in transition, we'd be interesting to say the least. Even some light pressure with Lowery in the game is a must. 

Tejada can be useful as a scorer. He has no conscience (34.6%), which can be good at times and also bad. Hopefully, he can adjust to that role of being a scorer off the bench. He can't play a lot of if he doesn't score and is not at least serviceable defensively.

Dylan has the oddest numbers for a double-digit scorer and you forget sometimes that he's a freshman. Shoots 41.3% from the field (attacking and finishing are improving), but just 31.5% from the three-point line and 63.6% from the free throw line (28-of-44). 

Outstanding analysis. 

However, I don't like prearranged replacements. I would rather see how the game is going....tempo...shooters being hot or cold.....with the subs making the lineup stronger based on how the game is both being played and being called by the referees. 

[mat1992 2,236]

1 hour ago, Tgr4life said:

Outstanding analysis. 

However, I don't like prearranged replacements. I would rather see how the game is going....tempo...shooters being hot or cold.....with the subs making the lineup stronger based on how the game is both being played and being called by the referees. 

I hear what you’re saying. The women play like that especially in their front court and it’s been a disaster. If Tarke is hot, he should keep him in. Same with Tejada unless he allows 2 or 3 straight back doors.

[sr16 158]

25 minutes ago, mat1992 said:

I hear what you’re saying. The women play like that especially in their front court and it’s been a disaster. If Tarke is hot, he should keep him in. Same with Tejada unless he allows 2 or 3 straight back doors.

hard for players to get hot when they are rotated in and our every 3 minutes