Will we be a better TEAM next year??

[Tornado man]

That's the point. The main focus was to get the ball to CB down low...or have MG on an isolation. Both did OK to get their own shot...but more often then not...it was a bad shot, forced shot. But you are almost dammed if you don't ride them or try it...both were capable of doing big things. It just didn't pan out.

Teams would throw constant doubles at CB all year. How many TO's did he have, frustrating possesions, forced - fall away jumpers?

Watch other teams. To counteract these double-teams, a teammate will come up and set a back screen on one of those defenders, who is then picked off when the star, say Brackins, then cuts back to the opposite side of the lane to hopefully receive the ball with a single defender on him. That's coaching, or lack of it.

 

[Tre4ISU]

Watch other teams. To counteract these double-teams, a teammate will come up and set a back screen on one of those defenders, who is then picked off when the star, say Brackins, then cuts back to the opposite side of the lane to hopefully receive the ball with a single defender on him. That's coaching, or lack of it.

In all honestly, toward the end of the season, teams did not double Craig all the time. They just let him float outside and a lot of the time he played into their hand by settling for jumpers. I still feel a lot of our offense was not allowed to be run because a lot of the time when CB and MG got the ball they were just looking to score. The guy I work with has watched the last few ISU games and every day after the games he mentions that when those two touch the ball they never look to create for someone else.

 

[HHWalters]

No. This team will have more breadth ... players to throw into the rotation ... but less depth ... players who can actually make a difference in this league. McDermott may start challenging Floyd's winning percentage with the Bulls.

 

[woodie]

NO,NOT WITH MCDERMOTT COACHING.

 

[Skyh13]

I kind of expect our offense to be this:
Our 3 (or 4) guards dribble the ball around and pass it amongst themselves, without really positioning themselves to do anything off the ball or with it. Then, they either turn it over, or when the shot clock is about done, throw up a forced, bad shot.
Dendy will try to post up, but our guards won't pass it to him. Or if they do, they'll wait till the defender has pushed him out another 10 feet from the basket, just like with Brackins. And Ham will try to post up to, but he still won't be passed the ball.

Those 100 sets start to blend together after a while, it seems..

 

[synapticwave]

I think we will be significantly better as a team. We will have less athletic talent and less basketball talent, but I think we'll use the talent we have much better.

The biggest reason for a much improved team is because (and I'm sure I'll get railed for this, but) Brackins sucks as a "star" player. Yaman3 already pointed out one major flaw with CB (and MG) trying to do it all themselves the last half of the season, and maybe that was what they were being told to do by the staff, but neither one of them were good at drawing the defense away from other players and distributing. In general, I was very unimpressed with Brackins, given the same number of touches a "star" player should have dominated a game and when he isn't getting touches it's up to him (not coaches or point gaurds) to get the ball and do something with it. Combine the lack of creation for other players with bad shot selection (everyone in the arena knew if he caught the ball outside of 10 feet we'd see the fade away) and not commanding the ball and our "Star", that our offense was supposed to revolve around, and we end up with the "record" we ended up with.

But besides the lack of playing really well, the big reason why Brackins drug the team down was his complete lack of ability to finish a game. Brackins was looked to by this team as the leader, he was supposed to be the guy that led us to victory, who set the tone for every game and for the entire program. He was supposed to be the man. Every great team (heck, every winning team) has the guy on the floor that everyone else looks to. That might not be the leading scorer or the point gaurd but every good team has that guy. And for this team, for the last 2 years, that has been Craig. The problem is, he's not that guy, he's not the closer, the general we needed. In my opinion, he would have been the greatest non-"star" player ISU has ever had if we would have just had someone else to be that guy and lead the team.

Without Brackins, next year someone else on the team will get their chance to take the reins of the program. I honestly don't know who that will be, maybe DG will get the nod from the team. Maybe Ejim will come in and start lighting it up in practice and turn into that guy, or maybe it's Boozer's hussle that the team ralleys around. I don't know who that guy is going to be, but the point is, it will be someone other than Craig and that is a refreshing thought for me. It's someone else's turn and maybe with another player as the "go to guy" we'll find a winner and some of those close losses will turn into wins.

I think someone will step up to lead this team, someone with a bigger drive to win than Brackins. And that will translate into a much better team and an improved record. We won't have the talent to play with the big boys, but we'll still be right in the middle of the pack in the conference. And next year, I think we see what a real leader can do, a winner; someone that brings it everynight and knows how to win.

 

[nickwc]

we will miss the talents of quez and brackins, but their production can be replaced. I'm really not too concerned on brackins leaving. I really think dendy can do what craig should have been doing all year, and that is bring an attitude and desire to the paint area.

 

[Cyclonepride]

I think they could be. While losing Brackins and Gilstrap is tough, our guard court will have more depth and experience, and that should be a huge positive. Diante did start asserting himself towards the end of the season, and I think that could play a large role in the turnaround. Add a few playmakers in to the mix, and we should be much more versatile with more positions being able to create their own shot. Much less predictable that way.

 

[URBCLONE]

NO,NOT WITH MCDERMOTT COACHING.

This. Just another wasted year ahead. Now UI gets the jump on ISU in rebuilding by making a necessary move.

 

[larrysarmy]

we will miss the talents of quez and brackins, but their production can be replaced. I'm really not too concerned on brackins leaving. I really think dendy can do what craig should have been doing all year, and that is bring an attitude and desire to the paint area.

This. CB is a talent, but a low post scorer he is not. I actually like Dendy more playing with his back to the basket than CB. Oh course he wasn't seeing all the double teams, but at times seemed like the best back to the basket option in the post. I don't recall any fall away jumpers on the baseline from Dendy. Dude...just make 60-70 of your FT and he'll do just fine.

This mornings DSM Reg has an article which is claiming that McD went to Dendy late Wednesday night and said that he needs to start getting ready for filling the role of Craig Brackins. Dendy responded very well and says he will get ready and will prepare harder than he's ever prepared for a season.

Sounds like he's not going anywhere...

 

[CTTB78]

Even if we're better, we'll have a losing record, certainly in the Big 12. While that will not be shocking to most, the real qustion is-- how many more years can we expect the same?

 

[SwirlingFloater]

Look...I like CB and MG...their talent is clear and could often get their own shot when ever they wanted. But sometimes getting them the ball would create a virtual black hole for our offense. At times, it would seem like we would do everything to get them ball, only to see forced shots, poor decisions when double team and the rest of our offense left standing around waiting for them to create.

I hope you are right, I think it is possible our offense will flow better. I saw entirely too much standing around and lack of of ball movement and good shot creation this year. I never knew whether to fault the players on this or the coaching.

Like many others have mentioned on CF, I caught myself cringing repeatedly due to poor shot selection/forced shots from CB, MG and others. I am hoping for the best next year.

 

[larrysarmy]

I hope you are right, I think it is possible our offense will flow better. I saw entirely too much standing around and lack of of ball movement and good shot creation this year. I never knew whether to fault the players on this or the coaching.

Like many others have mentioned on CF, I caught myself cringing repeatedly due to poor shot selection/forced shots from CB, MG and others. I am hoping for the best next year.

Exactly...For every pull up 3 by MG...or 15 ft pull up J by CB. There was a palethera of MG driving to the basketball into double team or getting charges. Or CB hoisting a 25footer or shooting the same fall away jumper.

We may indeed lack one stud who could get his own shot when needed, but I'd take my chances with a self-less group waiting and finding the best shot more often than not.

 

[CyCy]

So we're going to be a better club next year because we lose our top 2 scorers and don't have anybody back who averaged over 10 ppg.

When you look at other teams in the league do you say the following, "They weren't a very good ball club last year, but they're losing their top 2 scorers so they'll probably be a lot better next year".

Didn't I here the same refrain about Taylor and WJ - we'll be better without those guys.

In the B12 you win with stars, unfortunately we couldn't even come with an offense to do that.

 

[CyBobby]

I think that after four years of 15 wins per season on average its really clear to me that its gonna be More Of The Same Next Year....


15/16 wins 4/5 wins in the big 12 and more empty seats in Hilton.....


McDermott imo is just another mid major coach in over his head in a very good BCS conference and it really shows how tough it is for ISU to win in the big 12...


Hilton Magic is gone the glory days of Larry Ball is gone....

Nothing left boys but Losing and Apathy....Been There Seen It Done It Before!!!


Here We Go Again!!!!!!!!!!

 

[rholtgraves]

The people on this thread that argue we will be better because we lose Brackins and Gilstrap are truly delusional, or do not know what the are talking about. If it it wasn't for those two players we would have been losing games by twenty instead of 5. Brackins ended up taking outside shots because no one could get him the ball when he had good inside position, with the exception of Colvin sometimes, and when he did catch the ball downlow he was double teamed and everyone else just stood around and looked stupid. There were times where the team would go 6-7 minutes without scoring and it would corespond to not getting Brackins the ball. If we had good guards that could feed the post and drive and dish we would have probably won a lot of those close games. Also, think about the open looks people got because of Brackins and Gilstrap. Maybe the recruits we bring in will be really good and we will improve but to say that we will improve because we lost our two best players is just stupid.

Just think about how stupid this sounds; "kansas is going to be so much better next year because Collins and Aldrich won't be around" .

Anyone that thinks Dendy is better than Brackins is also delusional. Dendy can make shots within five feat from the basket and that is it. He can't shoot free throws and he is not as good of rebounder as Gilstrap or Brackins. Also, did you forget about his airball against UNI. Im not saying he is bad im just saying he is not as good as Brackins.

 

[Oldgeezer]

To be better this team needs to develop a synergy, that is, the whole is better than the sum of the parts. Sorta like UNI this year. The 4 top scorers in the Big 12 this year were L Dunn, Pullen, Huggins, and Anderson. Follow that with Clemente, Collins, Roberson, Tweety Carter and Muonelo and then look at the ISU situation. Nobody sees this, but Scotty played 8-10 games trying to recover from Mono, and physically looked like death warmed over, and surely lost 20 + lbs. But he averaged double figures and guarded the opponents best perimeter player during this span. So next year's guard court begins with a healthy SC. Colvin is the best chance we have to find a PG that makes his team mates better by driving and dishing and getting the ball in the right place at the right time. And he has been told to prepare to play the 2 spot. Which means?? 1. Garret is still the PG? 2. Phillips probably isn't Big 12 ready? Our only hope is synergy.

 

[CYKOFAN]

The Big 12 has been tough for a long time and should be tough for the foreseeable future. How tough is determined in the NCAA tournament. But coaches past and present have had to deal with the fact that it's a tough league and eats up coaches that can't compete.

 

[clone4good]

I think we will be. I think one of Ejim, Oliver, or Clyburn (if signed) will be better than expected. If Phillips provides us with that scoring threat I think we will be fine. I just think the team will operate a lot more smooth on the offensive end.

Oliver will not play next year. Ejim is the one that HAS to step up next year. We also need to get clyburn and wilkins.

 

[Tre4ISU]

The people on this thread that argue we will be better because we lose Brackins and Gilstrap are truly delusional, or do not know what the are talking about. If it it wasn't for those two players we would have been losing games by twenty instead of 5. Brackins ended up taking outside shots because no one could get him the ball when he had good inside position, with the exception of Colvin sometimes, and when he did catch the ball downlow he was double teamed and everyone else just stood around and looked stupid. There were times where the team would go 6-7 minutes without scoring and it would corespond to not getting Brackins the ball. If we had good guards that could feed the post and drive and dish we would have probably won a lot of those close games. Also, think about the open looks people got because of Brackins and Gilstrap. Maybe the recruits we bring in will be really good and we will improve but to say that we will improve because we lost our two best players is just stupid.

Just think about how stupid this sounds; "kansas is going to be so much better next year because Collins and Aldrich won't be around" .

Anyone that thinks Dendy is better than Brackins is also delusional. Dendy can make shots within five feat from the basket and that is it. He can't shoot free throws and he is not as good of rebounder as Gilstrap or Brackins. Also, did you forget about his airball against UNI. Im not saying he is bad im just saying he is not as good as Brackins.

Really? In which close games were MG and CB ripping apart the other team while the rest of our team ****ed it up? Go ahead give me an example. Down the stretch, in close games, those guys were not scoring and making plays. MG hit a few garbage threes in a couple games but we were beyond the point of winning. Where were those two against Texas?

Also, CB did not work that hard at getting inside position. Teams figured that out and figured out he would settle for jumpers so they quit double teaming him and singled him up and let him shot 35%.

We had a similar drought against Texas. Brackins and Gilstrap were playing. Where were they?

I am not saying we will definitely better without them, but I am saying they were not single handedly keeping us in games.