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2/23/2022 11:35 pm  #26


Re: Game Thread - Davidson College Wildcats (H)

Postgame was an honest reality check, I will give KD that.

 

2/24/2022 12:03 am  #27


Re: Game Thread - Davidson College Wildcats (H)

This coach and team are the laughing stock of this league. That's obvious. Last I looked Okani is still sitting still at the three point arc. Nothing changes. I think it was A83 who said that the Dukes should hire the entire Robert Morris coaching staff and I couldn't agree more. You had Carry, Williams, Weathers, TDM, Hughes, Norman, Baker, etc...and couldn't finish better than fifth. Put that group together with a "decent" coach and your dancing. They all hopped on the next flight out. That tells you all you need to know about this coach. Go already. His postgame spiel has gotten very old. Makes one want to puke.

 

2/24/2022 10:25 am  #28


Re: Game Thread - Davidson College Wildcats (H)

Regarding Mike B, as one of my old acquaintances in the scouting community used to tell me, " The more he plays the worse he looks".

Classic talk of don't expose him, play him in small doses. 

 

2/24/2022 12:22 pm  #29


Re: Game Thread - Davidson College Wildcats (H)

Watching the game yesterday, I was impressed that KD started Hima and let him play. First off, he won the tip-off, then pulled down 10 rebounds, was very effective in the paint on defense. matched up well with Davidsons 6'11' center, got 4 points early, but in the second half with 4 fouls, he was a bit exhausted and like everyone playing with 4 fouls, laid back, still, he has great upside potential. Not only is he tall, but his vertical leap is impressive. At some point someone did a head-fake on him and he must have jumped 4 feet strait up.  Give this kid a lot of time these last couple of games and it's going to pay off next year. He has natural talent but lacks game time experience. He showed, at the least, that he belongs out there on the court more time than he got all season. 

 

2/24/2022 12:55 pm  #30


Re: Game Thread - Davidson College Wildcats (H)

Yeah, he's raw, needs time, and coaching attention going forward.   Should get him to hang with the OL from the football team in the offseason, lift with them(not as much obviously, but chest and legs), eat meals with them(gain 20 lbs of power), play some 2 on 2 with them, learn to take a bump and give a bump.   And to throw down dunks like that Osi kid from Bona.   Come back next year and just crush things.
He's gonna close out the season getting a lot of playing time.

 

2/24/2022 1:28 pm  #31


Re: Game Thread - Davidson College Wildcats (H)

townsonkid wrote:

Yeah, he's raw, needs time, and coaching attention going forward.   Should get him to hang with the OL from the football team in the offseason, lift with them(not as much obviously, but chest and legs), eat meals with them(gain 20 lbs of power), play some 2 on 2 with them, learn to take a bump and give a bump.   And to throw down dunks like that Osi kid from Bona.   Come back next year and just crush things.
He's gonna close out the season getting a lot of playing time.

If we get him back (I think we will) and then sign 1 of the two other bigs and keep Tre, we should be really strong up front (RJ Gunn too) next season.  The forwards and guards are another story...


"You have to be realistic about these things."  - Logen Ninefingers
 

2/24/2022 2:36 pm  #32


Re: Game Thread - Davidson College Wildcats (H)

I just watched Dambrot's Press Conference from yesterday.
My lowly opinion:  He was the most open he has been all year.  Will he win next year, I have no idea, but no subject was rejected.  If you haven't had a chance, watch it.  The only thing I thought he "could" have expanded on was when he said he thought they would be pretty good and they are not.  I would like to know what made him think that this was his best team ever.  I am not saying that in anger...I would love to know what he was seeing.

All other subjects were touched on and KUDOS to the sports folks who asked the questions.  They were hard questions and Dambrot was open.
 

 

2/24/2022 2:53 pm  #33


Re: Game Thread - Davidson College Wildcats (H)

FAM wrote:

I just watched Dambrot's Press Conference from yesterday.
My lowly opinion:  He was the most open he has been all year.  Will he win next year, I have no idea, but no subject was rejected.  If you haven't had a chance, watch it.  The only thing I thought he "could" have expanded on was when he said he thought they would be pretty good and they are not.  I would like to know what made him think that this was his best team ever.  I am not saying that in anger...I would love to know what he was seeing.

All other subjects were touched on and KUDOS to the sports folks who asked the questions.  They were hard questions and Dambrot was open.
 

The question of what KD was seeing that prompted his "best team yet" statement - I think he expected to have a much improved shooting accuracy from this group over previous teams. Although Weathers and Hughes were effective inside, one of the things that needed improvement was shooting accuracy from outside of the lane. Maybe that could have been an improvement this year if there was motion and ball movement. Instead, we got dribble drives, no screens and no assists.

Last edited by applecorps (2/24/2022 3:36 pm)

 

2/24/2022 2:59 pm  #34


Re: Game Thread - Davidson College Wildcats (H)

indygjm wrote:

CLK wrote:

It looks like Dambrot and staff will be back next year. If anyone heard the pregame interview Dambrot acknowledged that this team does not have the talent to compete and that he will be rebuilding again for next year. He said that his and staff are in a full rebuilding mode.

I repeat a comment I made earlier - 'how in the world did he misjudge the talent on this team so badly - calling it the best he had since his coming to Duquesne?'  He's right.  He needs to be in a full rebuilding mode.  But I don't have any confidence he can produce any better than last year - unless he shakes up his staff.  How do you compete in the A10 without a decent #5?   Last season, there was a focus on getting knock down 3-point shooters and point guards, and we still need them!  Ayers is streaky and Easley's shot is too flat.  We don't have a true power forward, and no one seems capable of catching the ball in traffic near the hoop.  Even Williams has trouble.  How many times has he turned the ball over on passes this year?  The offensive sets are poor - stand still, pass the ball, the first guy open - put up a 30-foot shot.  One of the better offensive plays tonight was Bekelja's no look behind the back pass to Easly for a wide-open look.  The defense was better tonight.  But I still see players who will not take a charge.  

KD gets paid a substantial sum for coaching this team and I'm sure his recruiting budget was increased when he took over.  He has no excuse, particularly if he doesn't address the talent for next year.  If he is having trouble evaluating players, get some new blood in there to help.

Sorry for venting... 1-13 does that to me.
 

I think this happened for two reasons:

1. KD had never utilized the transfer portal to this extent before. We had a couple transfers come in over the years that were solid contributors. The resumes of the transfers we had coming in were great on paper. Guys with 1,000 - 2,000 points, ready to swing up to the next level (or easley - played low, went high, back to middle). At face value, it could be easy to think "wow this worked for 1 or 2 players, why couldn't it work for these 4 or 5." Obviously as a high paid coach you don't just get to take a shot in the dark and hope it works out, but that seems to be what happened.

2. I can't remember the last time Duquesne had a truly dominant big other than Michael Hughes. I don't know if they are hard to come by at this level or what but it seems that Dambrot may have tried to go against his "inside-out" play style by recruiting a bunch of "small ball" players as that is the way a lot of teams are headed. Probably bet on Williams & Gunn banging around in the paint creating mismatches on slow bigs. 

These are just my observations as to how we went from "most talented team" to the dumpster fire that we are now.

The transfer portal is a great tool, but I strongly believe you have to have a pre-existing foundation built for it to truly benefit you. 
 

 

2/24/2022 3:48 pm  #35


Re: Game Thread - Davidson College Wildcats (H)

The Dukes definitely set screens in the first half when the motion was effective and Davidson was content to go under screens and give the shot to prevent the drive or pick and roll.  Once Tre went down Davidson got more aggressive on the perimeter and took away the perimeter shots that were open in the first half.  The Dukes had no answer.  The strategy when a slower team tries to play aggressively on the perimeter could be to drive the ball to the basket, but they recovered and were tall enough to affect the shots occasionally, and the Dukes helped by just flat-out missing some easy opportunities when they got to the iron, but didn't finish.  
I did notice that Davidson uses the screen on the perimeter very effectively by delivering to ball just as the shooter, such Lee or Jones curls off the screen.  I don't see that from Duquesne.  In fact I wondered if anyone else noticed that Lee, who is a very good scorer, likes to take the advantage of getting a running start with the ball after he curls off a screen.  It was very effective to get him more separation from the defense.  It was never called a travel as it could have been.  The  Dukes don't get those calls against the first-place team; so if Lee gets the running start 500 times in a season (just a random number) and gets called for the travel only once or twice; it becomes a huge advantage for Davidson.  The point is that if you see it on film and warn the refs in advance, you may get a call; and if he gets called for the travel early, it ;may stop him from using the move the rest of the game!  Advantage to the opponent!  By the way, Lee is in almost constant movement on offense.  He really works to put himself in position to come off a screen and get a shot.  That is what shooters can do to get their shots.

Last edited by levon1975 (2/24/2022 3:52 pm)

 

2/24/2022 3:51 pm  #36


Re: Game Thread - Davidson College Wildcats (H)

DuqHasBeen:

This is not a shot at you but rather, something I have been meaning to comment on for a long time.

Mike Hughes was, in no consistent way, a dominant big & there is way too much revisionist history being peddled by KD when he says how big & strong his big guys were during the previous 3 seasons. 11 & 7, with only 13 double-doubles in 77 games, & no conference awards makes you a good A-10 big but nothing more.

He had an excellent FG percentage but was a garbage 3PT & FT shooter. His FG percentage & 3PT percentage went down each year. He was a very good shot blocker & steal man for a center but also had a negative assist-to-turnover ration & fouled out the same amount of times he had a double-double. He led his team in technical fouls all 3 seasons & the conference once.

At 6'8", he was every bit as undersized as Tre Williams is now. The difference is that he had Weathers, (and for 1 year) Steele, Carry, & TDM playing next to him. Mike was referred to as an undersized center on a regular basis & was smaller than the opposing center more times than not. 

His on-court behavior caused he & his teammates to get no love from the conference refs. He was past his 23rd birthday when he played his last game as a Duke but, he acted like a 19 year-old.

In retrospect,  I would say that Mike had the ability & physical attributes to be an All-Conference player once or twice but that the lack of systemic discipline & high-end developmental coaching coupled with his own basketball immaturity prevented that from being the case. Based on his performance at FGCU this season, I would say the same is true for TDM.

Last edited by phil95 (2/24/2022 3:53 pm)

 

2/24/2022 3:58 pm  #37


Re: Game Thread - Davidson College Wildcats (H)

Phil,
Your comments are spot on.  Now, with that said, he played very hard and cared very much.  A lot of what he did do was because of his effort.  But he was somewhat of a head case on the court, and as you said, didn't win awards as being 'one of the best'...

 

2/24/2022 4:06 pm  #38


Re: Game Thread - Davidson College Wildcats (H)

phil95 wrote:

DuqHasBeen:

This is not a shot at you but rather, something I have been meaning to comment on for a long time.

Mike Hughes was, in no consistent way, a dominant big & there is way too much revisionist history being peddled by KD when he says how big & strong his big guys were during the previous 3 seasons. 11 & 7, with only 13 double-doubles in 77 games, & no conference awards makes you a good A-10 big but nothing more.

He had an excellent FG percentage but was a garbage 3PT & FT shooter. His FG percentage & 3PT percentage went down each year. He was a very good shot blocker & steal man for a center but also had a negative assist-to-turnover ration & fouled out the same amount of times he had a double-double. He led his team in technical fouls all 3 seasons & the conference once.

At 6'8", he was every bit as undersized as Tre Williams is now. The difference is that he had Weathers, (and for 1 year) Steele, Carry, & TDM playing next to him. Mike was referred to as an undersized center on a regular basis & was smaller than the opposing center more times than not. 

His on-court behavior caused he & his teammates to get no love from the conference refs. He was past his 23rd birthday when he played his last game as a Duke but, he acted like a 19 year-old.

In retrospect,  I would say that Mike had the ability & physical attributes to be an All-Conference player once or twice but that the lack of systemic discipline & high-end developmental coaching coupled with his own basketball immaturity prevented that from being the case. Based on his performance at FGCU this season, I would say the same is true for TDM.

Spot on. If we had a 6'11' center along with him, then maybe, or most likely, he would have been All-Conf.
 

 

2/24/2022 4:12 pm  #39


Re: Game Thread - Davidson College Wildcats (H)

townsonkid wrote:

Yeah, he's raw, needs time, and coaching attention going forward.   Should get him to hang with the OL from the football team in the offseason, lift with them(not as much obviously, but chest and legs), eat meals with them(gain 20 lbs of power), play some 2 on 2 with them, learn to take a bump and give a bump.   And to throw down dunks like that Osi kid from Bona.   Come back next year and just crush things.
He's gonna close out the season getting a lot of playing time.

I was thinking the same thing last night watching him. He does affect the paint on defense, but is timid on offense. I was telling a friend last night that if I were coach, I'd have him in practice 1 on 2 or 2 on 2 in the paint on offense every practice, every night. He is too tall and to mobile not to either split the D and dunk, or have a soft hook over everyone. He is so tall he can stand in the paint jump up and deflect 3's on there way to the hoop. You can't teach tall, but you can teach them what to do with it.

 

2/24/2022 4:30 pm  #40


Re: Game Thread - Davidson College Wildcats (H)

NapaDuke wrote:

townsonkid wrote:

Yeah, he's raw, needs time, and coaching attention going forward.   Should get him to hang with the OL from the football team in the offseason, lift with them(not as much obviously, but chest and legs), eat meals with them(gain 20 lbs of power), play some 2 on 2 with them, learn to take a bump and give a bump.   And to throw down dunks like that Osi kid from Bona.   Come back next year and just crush things.
He's gonna close out the season getting a lot of playing time.

I was thinking the same thing last night watching him. He does affect the paint on defense, but is timid on offense. I was telling a friend last night that if I were coach, I'd have him in practice 1 on 2 or 2 on 2 in the paint on offense every practice, every night. He is too tall and to mobile not to either split the D and dunk, or have a soft hook over everyone. He is so tall he can stand in the paint jump up and deflect 3's on there way to the hoop. You can't teach tall, but you can teach them what to do with it.

He is what KD thinks his approach to offense is. The inside game, and he is the cornerstone to that plan. Start in the middle, then work out from there. Just maybe all the parts are there next year if they develop Hima.
 

 

2/24/2022 4:46 pm  #41


Re: Game Thread - Davidson College Wildcats (H)

PistolPete wrote:

Postgame was an honest reality check, I will give KD that.

I would rather hear him tell us the positives of which players played well and why, as if he knew what was going on in the game than his generalization of the players failures instead of the coaching staff.  I was there, there were positives in the game. Yes we are not Davidson, but, we did play well in the first half and should have heard more about that than keep telling us it's the player faults instead of it's not good coaching. It's getting old.

 

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