Bajaden on College Hoops (merged)
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Wall is a walking highlight reel. He's fun to watch. 15 points and 6 assists. Once again though, 5 turnovers. The kid plays with a flair and sometimes trys to make plays that aren't there. Other than that, he's as advertised.
Cousins got himself into foul trouble and that limited his playing time. Still I believe he scored 16 pts and had 7 boards. I'm starting to like Cousins. He's a pretty good athlete. He's deceptive in that he only does what he needs to do. If he doesn't need to move at high speed, he doesn't, but its there if he needs it. So far, he just seems bigger than anyone he plays against. He's also starting to show a little more of his offensive skill.
Alabi didn't have a particularly good game. He had little or no impact on the game. The only player on Florida St. that really had a great game was Singleton, a 6'9" SF/PF. He reminded me a lot of Steven Jackson in his style of play. He also played good defense.
In fairness to Alabi, the guards on Florida St. stink. The had great difficulty getting the ball into the post, and when they tried the ball was stole 50% of the time. So on the offensive side of the ball Alabi had very few touches. He is a presence on defense, but like Thabeet, he just lives in the paint, which you can't do in the NBA. He's very long, but needs to add some weight. He needs to improve his lower body strength. Its just one game, and I think Florida St. got surprised by Florida's defense, which had them rattled the whole game.
So far this young season, my favorite players are, Wall, Turner, Cousins, Favors, and Johnson, as in Wesley. Patterson is playing very well, but I expected that. I really like Pittman in the first game I watched, but in the second game he got into early foul trouble, and wasn't a factor.
So far my best all around players are, Wall and Turner.
Back to my closet thread. I feel like the obituary writer for a newspaper. Anyway, once again, Kentucky played. What is this, the fifth time I've seen them this season already. Cousins was in foul trouble the whole game and that of course limited his playing time. Before fouling out he scored 13 pt's on 5 of 8 shooting with 5 boards and 3 blocked shots.
Wall and Patterson both had nice games. Patterson with 12 points on 5 of 9 shooting and with 11 boards. Wall had 23 points on 7 of 15 shooting, with 5 assists and 2 blocked shots. Once again he also had 5 turnovers. I'm really not that concerned about the turnovers at this point. He's such a talented player with so much confidence that he just tries to do too much at times. Almost all of his turnovers are unforced.
They played Stanford, and the game was closer than the final score indicated. Stanford gave them everything they wanted in way of a competition. Stanford has a nice player in Landry Fields. They list him as a SG/SF. But he seems fairly tall, and has an NBA body. He had 23 point and 13 Boards.
I also watched the Vanderbilt/Arizona game. A.J. Ogilvy had a very nice game. For those that don't know. Ogilvy is a 6'11" center. I don't know his weight offhand, but he looks to be in the 250 to 260 range. He's orginally from Australia. He's not a great athlete, but knows how to use his body very well. He had 20 points on 9 of 15 shooting, with 7 boards and 4 blocked shots. I definitely want to see more of him.
Arizona had an interesting player off the bench. I don't know much about him, but he impressed me in the limited time he played. He's a 6'10" center from the Ukraine. Kyryl Natyazhko. Please! don't ask me how to pronounce that name. He only played 18 minutes, but scored 9 pts on 2 of 4 shooting and had 6 boards. He appears to be a very physcial player.
Final note. I didn't see the game, but according to the stats Xavior Henry had a nice game for Kansas. Can't say the same for Aldrich. I can't really comment though, having not seen the game.
Wall and Patterson both had nice games. Patterson with 12 points on 5 of 9 shooting and with 11 boards. Wall had 23 points on 7 of 15 shooting, with 5 assists and 2 blocked shots. Once again he also had 5 turnovers. I'm really not that concerned about the turnovers at this point. He's such a talented player with so much confidence that he just tries to do too much at times. Almost all of his turnovers are unforced.
They played Stanford, and the game was closer than the final score indicated. Stanford gave them everything they wanted in way of a competition. Stanford has a nice player in Landry Fields. They list him as a SG/SF. But he seems fairly tall, and has an NBA body. He had 23 point and 13 Boards.
I also watched the Vanderbilt/Arizona game. A.J. Ogilvy had a very nice game. For those that don't know. Ogilvy is a 6'11" center. I don't know his weight offhand, but he looks to be in the 250 to 260 range. He's orginally from Australia. He's not a great athlete, but knows how to use his body very well. He had 20 points on 9 of 15 shooting, with 7 boards and 4 blocked shots. I definitely want to see more of him.
Arizona had an interesting player off the bench. I don't know much about him, but he impressed me in the limited time he played. He's a 6'10" center from the Ukraine. Kyryl Natyazhko. Please! don't ask me how to pronounce that name. He only played 18 minutes, but scored 9 pts on 2 of 4 shooting and had 6 boards. He appears to be a very physcial player.
Final note. I didn't see the game, but according to the stats Xavior Henry had a nice game for Kansas. Can't say the same for Aldrich. I can't really comment though, having not seen the game.
I watched Florida St. play again. Their a very good defensive team. Thats about where it ends. Alabi was in foul trouble and it restricted his playing time. Right now, he's just not playing very well. One of Florida's problems is their guard play. Or lack thereof. Alabi just isn't a very polished offensive player and getting him the ball when open is crucial. Its simply not happening, and problem won't. They miss Tony Douglas big time.
Its still early in the season so there's plenty of time for Alabi to pull it together. But he's going to have to if he wants to be drafted in the upper half of the first round. I think he'll go first round no matter what. Someone will always take a chance on a 7'1" defensive specialist.
Its still early in the season so there's plenty of time for Alabi to pull it together. But he's going to have to if he wants to be drafted in the upper half of the first round. I think he'll go first round no matter what. Someone will always take a chance on a 7'1" defensive specialist.
I had to watch the UCONN / Duke game. Ive addopted UCONN as my college basketball team because BC just isnt very good, and I cant stand The Blue Devils. I felt good about UCONNs chances coming in, but man ... year after year Duke puts together a good team that just wins. I never really know how, but they have a great coach and they just find ways to win.
Neither teams have any players Im really interested in for the Kings, I like Stanley Robinson a little bit..
Neither teams have any players Im really interested in for the Kings, I like Stanley Robinson a little bit..
Yeah, I watched that game also. I didn't comment on it because there's no one at this time of significance to report on. Duke has one player that will get drafted and UCONN, maybe two, but probably only one and in the second round. But your right about Duke. They just keep winning and they do it with good solid fundamental basketball.. I doubt that they're a final four team, but they make the tourney every year, and manage to make a splash without any truely great players. I thought going into the season that they had UCONN ranked a bit too high. We'll see...
I went back and checked my notes on the UCONN game and remembered a freshman they have starting this year that bears watching. Alex Oriakhi. Not sure how big he is but looks to be in the 6'9" to 6'10" range. Hard to say because all I could do was compare him to their center whose suspossed to 7 foot. Anyway, he's a live body that rebounds well and blocked a couple of shots. Second time I've seen him play. I don't know if he's one of those one and done players, but if so, he could be someone to pay attention to as the year goes on...
Just finished watching number 3 Texas play Rice. The game was much closer than the final score indicated. I doubt Texas will stay at number 3 once they start playing better competition..
I got my first extended look at Avery Bradley. He's listed at 6'3" and as a SG. He's a very nice player. He handles the ball well and has serious, serious hops. I was very impressed with his defense. He kept his man in front of him and he fights through screens well. He made some nice passes on offense which leads me to believe that he may have played point guard in highschool. I'm showing my ignorance here. I can't comment on his outside shot, because he didn't really shoot all that much. He does have good form on his shot though. Most importantly, he made his presence felt, which for a freshman, moves him into the limelight. I'll add that so for, I'm impressed with all the freshmen that I've seen. Unlike last year when we were waiting for someone to step up.
Damion James didn't have a good game. He just never got going. James is a 6'7" SF, and a very good player. Rice is a very good transition team and kept Texas in a halfcourt game. James flourishes more in a run and gun game. I'm sure he'll bounce back. He better if Texas wants to go far in the tourney. He's a senior by the way.
Dexter Pittman had a very nice game. 21 points and I think 8 or 9 boards I know he blocked at least 2 shots, but the total could be as high as 4 or 5. Dexter is listed at 6'10" and 295, and he looks every bit of that. He has pretty good hops for a man of his size and he has surprising lateral movement. He's great at posting up close to the basket, and when, and the when is a big if with the Texas guards, he gets the ball in that position, he's almost unstoppable. He keeps the ball high and doesn't put it on the floor. He has a dropstep little jump hook thats impossible to block, unless you double him from the weakside. He's incredibly strong. Rice doubled and tripled him the entire game. And thats before he got the ball, which made it tough to get the ball into him. On one play after he got the ball he powered the ball up through three players arms and almost made the shot. Which brings us to freethrow shooting.
He shoots around 47% from the line. Not very good. His form really isn't that bad, so I don't think it would be that hard to correct. He's far from polished either defensively or offensively. But its hard to not notice the things he does well. Were talking about a guy that came into the program weighing 385 pounds, and now weighs 295 pounds. He looks like some of his current weight could still be converted into muscle. Word is that he's a super nice person and very coachable. I look forward to seeing him play again..
I got my first extended look at Avery Bradley. He's listed at 6'3" and as a SG. He's a very nice player. He handles the ball well and has serious, serious hops. I was very impressed with his defense. He kept his man in front of him and he fights through screens well. He made some nice passes on offense which leads me to believe that he may have played point guard in highschool. I'm showing my ignorance here. I can't comment on his outside shot, because he didn't really shoot all that much. He does have good form on his shot though. Most importantly, he made his presence felt, which for a freshman, moves him into the limelight. I'll add that so for, I'm impressed with all the freshmen that I've seen. Unlike last year when we were waiting for someone to step up.
Damion James didn't have a good game. He just never got going. James is a 6'7" SF, and a very good player. Rice is a very good transition team and kept Texas in a halfcourt game. James flourishes more in a run and gun game. I'm sure he'll bounce back. He better if Texas wants to go far in the tourney. He's a senior by the way.
Dexter Pittman had a very nice game. 21 points and I think 8 or 9 boards I know he blocked at least 2 shots, but the total could be as high as 4 or 5. Dexter is listed at 6'10" and 295, and he looks every bit of that. He has pretty good hops for a man of his size and he has surprising lateral movement. He's great at posting up close to the basket, and when, and the when is a big if with the Texas guards, he gets the ball in that position, he's almost unstoppable. He keeps the ball high and doesn't put it on the floor. He has a dropstep little jump hook thats impossible to block, unless you double him from the weakside. He's incredibly strong. Rice doubled and tripled him the entire game. And thats before he got the ball, which made it tough to get the ball into him. On one play after he got the ball he powered the ball up through three players arms and almost made the shot. Which brings us to freethrow shooting.
He shoots around 47% from the line. Not very good. His form really isn't that bad, so I don't think it would be that hard to correct. He's far from polished either defensively or offensively. But its hard to not notice the things he does well. Were talking about a guy that came into the program weighing 385 pounds, and now weighs 295 pounds. He looks like some of his current weight could still be converted into muscle. Word is that he's a super nice person and very coachable. I look forward to seeing him play again..
OK, back to my closet analogies. Watched the Wake Forest/ Gonzaga game. I was interested in getting a look at Al-Farouq Aminu. Just one game but I didn't see all that much improvement. He did hit one three point shot that I remember in the second half, but most of his scoring was in attacking the basket. Of course he's extremely athletic and very quick. He has decent handles, but not great by any stretch of the imagination. He missed some easy putbacks, and he mishandled several passes. He really didn't have much impact on the game since he was in foul trouble the whole game and eventually fouled out. Just one game, so I'm not going to draw too many conclusions from it. But its obvious he still has a ways to go.
On the other hand, this is the third time I've seen Gonzaga play, and I believe that if they were in the Pac 10 they might win it. Its really hard to not like Matt Bouldin. A 6'5" senior PG/SG. He plays with such intensity and he's a terrific passer. He has good handles, but not great. He's very strong and not afraid to get in and bang for rebounds. He plays good defense at this level and has all the fundamentals down. He doesn't have great lateral movement or great foot speed. But he's extremely good at anticipating where the offensive player is going. He's also great at playing the passing lanes. I don't see him as a PG at the next level, but as more of a poor man's Brandon Roy. He has similar skills as Roy, but not nearly as athletic. He's a fun player to watch, and I think he'll be a productive player in the NBA. Especially if he improves his 3 pt. shot a little more. He has a very good midrange game. I recommend giving Gonzaga a look see. And Bouldin while your at it.
On the other hand, this is the third time I've seen Gonzaga play, and I believe that if they were in the Pac 10 they might win it. Its really hard to not like Matt Bouldin. A 6'5" senior PG/SG. He plays with such intensity and he's a terrific passer. He has good handles, but not great. He's very strong and not afraid to get in and bang for rebounds. He plays good defense at this level and has all the fundamentals down. He doesn't have great lateral movement or great foot speed. But he's extremely good at anticipating where the offensive player is going. He's also great at playing the passing lanes. I don't see him as a PG at the next level, but as more of a poor man's Brandon Roy. He has similar skills as Roy, but not nearly as athletic. He's a fun player to watch, and I think he'll be a productive player in the NBA. Especially if he improves his 3 pt. shot a little more. He has a very good midrange game. I recommend giving Gonzaga a look see. And Bouldin while your at it.
I also watched the Cal/Iowa St. game. Cal destroyed Iowa St.. Cal is without a doubt the best team in the Pac 10 this year. At least that I've seen. If you've never seen Jerome Randle play, he's worth the price of addmission. He's a 5'10" PG. Yeah I know! Not another one of those little guys. Yep! And man is he quick. I don't know if any PG in the NBA is quicker than Randle. The guy is just lightning in a bottle. And, he can do it all. Good shooter from the outside. Absolutely terrific at driving the lane and dishing to an open man. Cal also has Patrick Christopher. An athletic SG/SF. And they have a freshman center from China thats 7'3". He speaks very little english at this time, which makes drawing up plays with explaination a little difficult. I'll have to look up his name so I don't misspell it.
Craig Brackins had a nice game for Iowa St. He appears to be in much better shape than last year. He looks slimmer and is definitely quicker. This is my second time seeing Brackins. He didn't play all that well in the first game, but in this game he was more physical and attacked the basket more than he did last year, when he fell in love with his jumpshot. For those that don't know, Brackin's is listed at 6'10" and 230 pounds and plays PF. He's definitely talented, and I'm happy to see him going into the post more. I'm not sure he's as tall as listed, but my only comparison was Cal's center, who towered over him, and blocked his shot on occasion, I might add.
More later, game time....
Craig Brackins had a nice game for Iowa St. He appears to be in much better shape than last year. He looks slimmer and is definitely quicker. This is my second time seeing Brackins. He didn't play all that well in the first game, but in this game he was more physical and attacked the basket more than he did last year, when he fell in love with his jumpshot. For those that don't know, Brackin's is listed at 6'10" and 230 pounds and plays PF. He's definitely talented, and I'm happy to see him going into the post more. I'm not sure he's as tall as listed, but my only comparison was Cal's center, who towered over him, and blocked his shot on occasion, I might add.
More later, game time....
I've seen Baylor play three times now and there's a guy that bears watching. If he keeps playing at his current level his name will start appearing on the draft boards. His name is Ekpe Udoh. I looked up his college spec's so take them with a grain so salt. He's listed as a 6'10" 245 pound C/PF. I must admit that he looks every bit of that when I've seen him play. He's an extremely good shot blocker and a very good rebounder. He's mostly a post player from what I've seen and has a somewhat limited offense. Apparently he was redshirted for a year at Michigan. He didn't think the progam at Michigan suited his abilities and transfered to Baylor. So far its been a good move for him.
Another guy to keep an eye on is Yancy Gates. Man, I'd draft him just for the name. Sounds like a gunslinger from the old west. He's a 6'9", 245 pound PF from Cincinnatti. Very good physcial player that also excells in blocking shots. I've only seen him play once, but he stood out to me. Anyway a couple of heads up.
Another guy to keep an eye on is Yancy Gates. Man, I'd draft him just for the name. Sounds like a gunslinger from the old west. He's a 6'9", 245 pound PF from Cincinnatti. Very good physcial player that also excells in blocking shots. I've only seen him play once, but he stood out to me. Anyway a couple of heads up.
I watched the Georgetown/Butler game. Mainly to get a look at Monroe. I came away much impressed. He's playing much more aggressively this year. He's attacking the basket instead of standing on the outside and shooting or passing the ball. He still makes some terrific passes, but I was pleased to see him down in the paint getting dirty. He's also aggressively rebounding the ball. I believe he ended up with 14 in this game. His rebounding numbers are up from last year. He looks taller to me than last year. he still needs to put some muscle on his frame. His arms are way too skinny for a guy his size. He could easily carry another 20 pounds without affecting his mobility. All in all I came away impressed with his overall game. He's definitely trying to take it up another notch.
There's a kid on Butler that impressed the hell out of me. He's a 6'9" sophmore that plays G/F. His name is Gordon Haywood. Apparently when he was sophmore in highschool he was 5'9" and played point guard. He was 6'8" last year, so he's grown an inch in the last year. He's a very good outside shooter. At first glance he looks like the typical soft white kid that stands out on the perimiter and shoots three's all day. But then you see him fly in from nowhere and grab a rebound between three players on the other team. You think to yourself that it was just luck, and then you see him do it again, and again. Then you notice how well he handles the ball and then passes the ball. He plays aggressive defense and seems to have excellent lateral movement. His only flaw, if you want to call it that, is his unselfishness. He gives up the ball too many times instead of looking for his own shot.
He's a very talented kid thats hard to notice at times because of his unselfishness. But he managed to score 24 points despite that and I think he had 10 boards. Someone to watch..
There's a kid on Butler that impressed the hell out of me. He's a 6'9" sophmore that plays G/F. His name is Gordon Haywood. Apparently when he was sophmore in highschool he was 5'9" and played point guard. He was 6'8" last year, so he's grown an inch in the last year. He's a very good outside shooter. At first glance he looks like the typical soft white kid that stands out on the perimiter and shoots three's all day. But then you see him fly in from nowhere and grab a rebound between three players on the other team. You think to yourself that it was just luck, and then you see him do it again, and again. Then you notice how well he handles the ball and then passes the ball. He plays aggressive defense and seems to have excellent lateral movement. His only flaw, if you want to call it that, is his unselfishness. He gives up the ball too many times instead of looking for his own shot.
He's a very talented kid thats hard to notice at times because of his unselfishness. But he managed to score 24 points despite that and I think he had 10 boards. Someone to watch..
I've watched Kansas play three times now. My main interest being Aldrich. So far he's turning out to be more of a defensive player than a offensive player. He's blocking a couple of shots a game and grabbing close to 10 rebounds a game, and in general playing pretty good defense. But, he just doesn't knock your socks off. I'm certainlly not drawing any long term conclusions on him just yet. I'm curious to see how he plays against top competition. Today Kansas plays UCONN. That should be a great matchup.
One player thats living up to his highschool press clippings is Xavior Henry. He's a smooth graceful athlete thats seems to make playing the game look easy. He plays excellent defense. Shoots well from the outside and is lightning quick off the dribble going to the basket. He moves well without the ball. He could improve his handle a little bit, and I haven't seen him pass the ball enough to make a judgement on it. But all in all, he's a pretty well rounded basketball player.
If a team is in the market for a SG/SF type player, there are quite a few of them that are going to be very good at the next level in this coming draft.
One player thats living up to his highschool press clippings is Xavior Henry. He's a smooth graceful athlete thats seems to make playing the game look easy. He plays excellent defense. Shoots well from the outside and is lightning quick off the dribble going to the basket. He moves well without the ball. He could improve his handle a little bit, and I haven't seen him pass the ball enough to make a judgement on it. But all in all, he's a pretty well rounded basketball player.
If a team is in the market for a SG/SF type player, there are quite a few of them that are going to be very good at the next level in this coming draft.
I took in the Kentucky/UCONN game and the Syracuse/Florida game. I posted my comments on the Kentucky game on the draft position thread. Now the Syarcuse game. I wanted to get a second look at Onauku, a 6'10" C/PF. In his first game he was just so so. In this game he was just horrible. He looked slow and out of position a lot. Got into foul trouble which limited his minutes. He was basicly a non-enity in the game. On the other hand its hard not to fall in love with his teammate Wesley Johnson. A 6'7" SG/F. He's just a complete basketball player. He's one of those quietly effecient types. If your not paying attention you might not notice him and at the end of the game he'll have 20 points, 10 rebounds and a couple of steal and a few assists. I believe he was 17 and 10 in this game. I've compared him to Evan Turner in the sense that both play the same postions and both are outstanding rebounders for their position. Where I would define the difference is in their style of play.
Turner is just more explosive, and therefore more noticable. Its sort of like comparing Vince Carter to Grant Hill. Carter will stand out more during the game, but at the end of the day, Hill has the same stats as Carter. If I had to choose between them as to who is more likely to be a star at the next level, I would choose Turner. But it just as easily could be Johnson.
I think Johnson is a better outside shooter than Turner, but Turner has better handles and is quicker getting to the basket. I also think that Turner is a better passer. But the differences aren't very much. I like both players and would be happy with either one.
Turner is just more explosive, and therefore more noticable. Its sort of like comparing Vince Carter to Grant Hill. Carter will stand out more during the game, but at the end of the day, Hill has the same stats as Carter. If I had to choose between them as to who is more likely to be a star at the next level, I would choose Turner. But it just as easily could be Johnson.
I think Johnson is a better outside shooter than Turner, but Turner has better handles and is quicker getting to the basket. I also think that Turner is a better passer. But the differences aren't very much. I like both players and would be happy with either one.
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I also watched the Cincinnatti/Miami of Ohio game. Cincinnatti has a young player named Lance Stevenson. A 6'5" SG and a freshman. This is a very talented kid. He has an NBA body already and is extremely athletic. He runs the floor like a deer and has good hops. his outside jumpshot is a little irratic, but he has good form. He rebounds well for his size and plays tenacious defense. Yes he makes mistakes on defense at times, but thats to be expected for a freshman. I'm not quite sure what to make of him yet, but he's definitely a diamond in the rough right now. Having said that, he's easily the most gifted player on Cincinnatti's team, and may be their best player right now. Gates is coming off the bench for them right now and only played around 20 or so minutes in the game. He's certainly a physcial specimen. He looked a little clumsy at times, as though he was trying out new things he just wasn't comfortable with yet. I would call him a long term project at this point, but someone to watch as the season goes on.
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I went back and checked my notes and thought this worth mentioning. I had watched the Kansas/Radford game. Mainly to see Cole Aldrich, the 6'11" center from Kansas. He didn't have a particularly good game. Ended up getting his rebounds and a few points, but I didn't think he was that much of a factor in the game. What was interesting was who he was matched up against. Radford has a 6'11", 260 LB center named Art Parakhouski. It was obvious that Aldrich was very uncomfortable going up against Parakhouski, who was bigger and longer than Aldrich. I have to see Parakhouski play more to really have an opinion on him. But I will say this. He's built like a greek god. I also know that in the games prior to this one he went for 23 points and 14 rebounds against Duke. He had 26 points and 20 rebounds against Duquesne, and 21 points and 14 rebounds against Winthrop. While he was on the floor, Aldrich couldn't do diddley scwat against him. Fortunately for Aldrich Parakhouski got in foul trouble in the first half and had to sit for a lot of that period. During that time Aldrich did most of whatever damage he was going to do. In the second half Parakhouski pretty much dominated and ended up with 22 points and 13 rebounds.
Aldrich is a big dude, but Parakhouski is bigger and stronger. Way stronger. Aldrich couldn't move him on the block. To be honest, I had never really heard much about Parakhouski, but I was impressed. He kind of reminded me of a young Sobonis. Not comparing the passing skills, but I really want to see this guy again. Needless to say, this didn't help Aldrich's cause.
Aldrich is a big dude, but Parakhouski is bigger and stronger. Way stronger. Aldrich couldn't move him on the block. To be honest, I had never really heard much about Parakhouski, but I was impressed. He kind of reminded me of a young Sobonis. Not comparing the passing skills, but I really want to see this guy again. Needless to say, this didn't help Aldrich's cause.
