Sure, UT having a cakewalk to the S16 is a twist of the knife, but twisting the knife wouldn't hurt at all if Murray State hadn't buried it in our hearts. This one's not even close for me.
I told my friends that I may become a UT fan. I figure it's like the Seinfeld episode 'The Opposite, where if all of my instincts have been wrong, the opposite must be right.
ok, so no one is talking about this and i agree at this point and time but if we stand here again next year i hope some others join me.
if vandy does the same thing next year, with all this talent and yet another year under their belt, and they fall yet again in the first round, is it time for stallings to go? he has brought as much talent to the program that i can ever remember. but these recent tournament performances or misses are really starting to sicken me. that much talent and you can't motivate your players to play harder, crash the boards, keep their butterflies in check and hit free throws? i realize it's not all on coach and i LOVE stallings. but next year there will be no excuse.
i've always applauded stallings for the talent he brings in, but i've never understood his in-game strategy or his game planning. he just doesn't seem like an x's and o's guy. i think he's more likely to do less with more a la rick barnes.
This is an interesting point for our program on a number of levels. Naturally, the biggest question, which will be answered soon I think, is AJ. Does he stay or go?
Frankly, if he stays, I like our chances next year. While losing Dolla is going to hurt significantly, I still feel confident that Brad can get the job done at point. I don't think any of the sophomores are anywhere close to their ceilings yet, and I have no doubt that we'll see improvement out of that crew.
That being said, the front court is going to significantly worry me next year, perhaps even more so than a thin backcourt. I like Steve T., and I feel like he'll be a solid player in that rotation, but the 5 spot is very questionable to me next year.
This isn't to say anything bad about Fez. His raw ability is unquestioned. But I don't see the fundamental aspects of his game improving in one offseason to the point where he can be a starting center for us next year. Perhaps after another year of rotational duty I can see it. But he still has timing issues in the post, which results in a lot of awkward steps, and consequently a lot of travels. We can't afford to have a big man turn the ball over all the time when we get it fed into the post. Not to mention that his free throw shooting will need to drastically improve, since teams will simply hack him and take their chances (good ones at that) from the line.
This team needs AJ next year, badly. And while I would understand if he chose not to come back (to play in Europe, because it certainly won't be the NBA), I still firmly believe that his best shot of getting to the highest level in his game is to stay right here.
I think the real question for the remainder of the tournament is whether you want Murray to win or lose. Win, and show that they really are a good team, or lose, for the sake of (indirect) vengance?
I don't think anybody here really dislikes Murray, so my guess is most would want to see them beat Butler.
I'm not worried about the front court. I really think AJ returns. He's not going to the NBA, no way. Now he may want to play pro in Australia but I think he really cares about Vandy and enjoys it here. I think he's back. Fez isn't the best but I think he will polish his skills and be even better next year. He is physical and seemed to get better every game. Steve T the same. All that plus Henderson comes in (6'11 player). He's skinny but it's another big body. Hopefully he puts more heart into his workouts than AJ seemed to and he'll bulk up.
Walker, Taylor and Lance aren't small or anything and can provide help down low plus Odom comes in next year and adds yet another 6'7, 6'8 body on the floor.
Fuller will certainly be the frosh expected to contribute immediately with the loss of Beal, but if all 3 of these guys can come in and contribute we're adding 2 to our depth chart from this year. I hope McClellan can step up some more and get more PT too. He's really good on the defensive side. Hopefully we can steer clear of injuries.
This tournament has been awesome so far. Wish we were still in it. UT hurts but not even close to our loss. I wish them luck. Maybe Georgia Tech will beat Ohio State and make their road to the final four easy.
AJ loves the vandy frat life and would not give that up. He will be drafted in the NBA because of his size and technically fundamental skills to be the backup power forward. It would just be nice to see him put the same effort on the court that he does into highlighting his hard and trimming his mooooustache.
14 comments:
Sure, UT having a cakewalk to the S16 is a twist of the knife, but twisting the knife wouldn't hurt at all if Murray State hadn't buried it in our hearts. This one's not even close for me.
This strikes me as an "insult to injury" scenario
I told my friends that I may become a UT fan. I figure it's like the Seinfeld episode 'The Opposite, where if all of my instincts have been wrong, the opposite must be right.
ok, so no one is talking about this and i agree at this point and time but if we stand here again next year i hope some others join me.
if vandy does the same thing next year, with all this talent and yet another year under their belt, and they fall yet again in the first round, is it time for stallings to go? he has brought as much talent to the program that i can ever remember. but these recent tournament performances or misses are really starting to sicken me. that much talent and you can't motivate your players to play harder, crash the boards, keep their butterflies in check and hit free throws? i realize it's not all on coach and i LOVE stallings. but next year there will be no excuse.
Couldn't agree with Joe more..
i've always applauded stallings for the talent he brings in, but i've never understood his in-game strategy or his game planning. he just doesn't seem like an x's and o's guy. i think he's more likely to do less with more a la rick barnes.
This is an interesting point for our program on a number of levels. Naturally, the biggest question, which will be answered soon I think, is AJ. Does he stay or go?
Frankly, if he stays, I like our chances next year. While losing Dolla is going to hurt significantly, I still feel confident that Brad can get the job done at point. I don't think any of the sophomores are anywhere close to their ceilings yet, and I have no doubt that we'll see improvement out of that crew.
That being said, the front court is going to significantly worry me next year, perhaps even more so than a thin backcourt. I like Steve T., and I feel like he'll be a solid player in that rotation, but the 5 spot is very questionable to me next year.
This isn't to say anything bad about Fez. His raw ability is unquestioned. But I don't see the fundamental aspects of his game improving in one offseason to the point where he can be a starting center for us next year. Perhaps after another year of rotational duty I can see it. But he still has timing issues in the post, which results in a lot of awkward steps, and consequently a lot of travels. We can't afford to have a big man turn the ball over all the time when we get it fed into the post. Not to mention that his free throw shooting will need to drastically improve, since teams will simply hack him and take their chances (good ones at that) from the line.
This team needs AJ next year, badly. And while I would understand if he chose not to come back (to play in Europe, because it certainly won't be the NBA), I still firmly believe that his best shot of getting to the highest level in his game is to stay right here.
I think the real question for the remainder of the tournament is whether you want Murray to win or lose. Win, and show that they really are a good team, or lose, for the sake of (indirect) vengance?
I don't think anybody here really dislikes Murray, so my guess is most would want to see them beat Butler.
No?
Additionally, go Bobcats
I want to see Murray State beat Butler for the sake of my opponents getting less points in our bracket pool at work.
Additionally, go Duke.
I'm not worried about the front court. I really think AJ returns. He's not going to the NBA, no way. Now he may want to play pro in Australia but I think he really cares about Vandy and enjoys it here. I think he's back. Fez isn't the best but I think he will polish his skills and be even better next year. He is physical and seemed to get better every game. Steve T the same. All that plus Henderson comes in (6'11 player). He's skinny but it's another big body. Hopefully he puts more heart into his workouts than AJ seemed to and he'll bulk up.
Walker, Taylor and Lance aren't small or anything and can provide help down low plus Odom comes in next year and adds yet another 6'7, 6'8 body on the floor.
Fuller will certainly be the frosh expected to contribute immediately with the loss of Beal, but if all 3 of these guys can come in and contribute we're adding 2 to our depth chart from this year. I hope McClellan can step up some more and get more PT too. He's really good on the defensive side. Hopefully we can steer clear of injuries.
This tournament has been awesome so far. Wish we were still in it. UT hurts but not even close to our loss. I wish them luck. Maybe Georgia Tech will beat Ohio State and make their road to the final four easy.
AJ loves the vandy frat life and would not give that up. He will be drafted in the NBA because of his size and technically fundamental skills to be the backup power forward. It would just be nice to see him put the same effort on the court that he does into highlighting his hard and trimming his mooooustache.
At least the Vandy women won their first round game in the tourney...
No offense, but besides UCONN no one really cares about women's college basketball..
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