I was going to post a couple of things last week but still relevant today...

[Reality Man]

1. I saw Chatman on the floor...Purdue game I think and I looked at the guy and said...Wow..guy looks like a more physically developed Jalen Rose but plays like Jerod Ward. I am not going to give up on him (before today) and the bottom line is JB HAS to develop him. This is the guy JB needs to play well.

JB has developed a limited Donnal and that is encouraging. Irvin has developed but he is hot/cold x 10. Just think if Chatman was as good as his ranking. Think this team would be much better? Yeah.

Doyle is limited. Irvin is Irvin which is a volatile stock. Donnal is now developed into a JB type 5 which is what it is. It's Chatman. It's Wagner. These guys have to make contributions. It's up to JB.


2. JB's system only succeeds with good play from the #4 against good teams...well at least 95% of the time. Say Morgan...I say Novak. You say McGary I say GR3 when playing well.

3. A CBS halftime analyst was mocking UM by saying that way to stop them is to take away the 3 pt shot and they have nothing. Wasn't necessarily the case today but that is about right. My point is that there is a perception with the JB system (right/wrong) that if they don't hit 3 pt shots then they can't beat you. I think that should tell JB that his offense needs some tweaking.

Going forward JB is going to either have to focus on looking at recruits who can play defense or dribble/drive or guys who can create a double team down low. The perception/reality (pun intended) is that opponents now just play the 3 pt shot. See Robinson. See hitting the offensive glass.



RM

 

[Mroad]

Our roster is what it is. The announcers yesterday said Maryland has 4-5 future NBA players on their roster....do we even have 1? I guess you could say since we beat Maryland once and played them very tough in the second that Beilein must be a heck of a coach because there most certainly is a talent disparity. It was nice seeing Kam have some success yesterday although he was pulled because he was lost on defense a few times so that needs to be improved. Donnal had a monster game. He still has to gain some strength and toughness but he is coming along nicely, particularly with the three point shot. As you mention, Irvin continues to be inconsistent...starting the game with an air ball from three point range. I still think he is at his best when he's attacking the basket...as long as he eliminates the turnovers. Walton is the toughest player on our roster and we certainly need more toughness. Doyle is still struggling, just doesn't seem to have the coordination/athleticism to make things happen. And whatever happened to Dawkins? I was expecting big things out of him this year and he has been MIA. We need to take care of business against Northwestern.