So sorry to upset you.

Styles1229 wrote:

phil95 wrote:

BluffHunter wrote:

link to the press conference:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W3MEYLXAp04

I can't believe that KD publicly & seriously referred to Rozier as a coach. I am also stunned to hear Rozier be allowed to publicly say he will be telling other players to go sit down at practice & he has to get them ready to play.

I really like Rozier but, he turned 18 at Thanksgiving & is, at this stage in his career, not even close to good enough to be a starting PG in the top half of the A-10.

KD didn't use the typical cliches of, "like another coach" or "having a coach on the floor" in reference to an accomplished player. He sincerely encouraged a reporter to ask a direct question of an 18 year-old freshman back-up because he IS a "coach".

How are the program's actual coaches supposed to feel about such statements? Does Kareem actually have the authority at practice to tell 24 year-old Brewer to go sit down if he doesn't like what Tevin is doing at that practice?

Just to be clear, I am not holding Kareem at fault in any way or questioning his motives/sincerity.

It's just...

On one hand, I am completely flabbergasted by KD's behavior but on the hand, I am impressed at this new and creative way he has designed to alienate players and push them out the door.  He was already a master of it  - but this is taking it to the next level!
 

Have you guys ever played in a competitive athletic team? (Not a slight in any way, just trying to gather the grounds for this perspective.). I loved this sentiment. High performance teams consist of members that take ownership and accountability for the success or failure of their collective efforts. A coach or a coaching staff alone will only get you so far. When players take on this type of ownership, the type that Rozier has exhibited here, they have a chance to do great things. To me, this shows that they are all in this together, and the fact that Dambrot who is nearing his 500th win in college basketball is empowering an 18 year old freshman to take on such a role within the team is a true testament to his leadership ability as well.  But again, we see what we want to see…

CityDuke wrote:

Styles1229 wrote:

phil95 wrote:

I can't believe that KD publicly & seriously referred to Rozier as a coach. I am also stunned to hear Rozier be allowed to publicly say he will be telling other players to go sit down at practice & he has to get them ready to play.

I really like Rozier but, he turned 18 at Thanksgiving & is, at this stage in his career, not even close to good enough to be a starting PG in the top half of the A-10.

KD didn't use the typical cliches of, "like another coach" or "having a coach on the floor" in reference to an accomplished player. He sincerely encouraged a reporter to ask a direct question of an 18 year-old freshman back-up because he IS a "coach".

How are the program's actual coaches supposed to feel about such statements? Does Kareem actually have the authority at practice to tell 24 year-old Brewer to go sit down if he doesn't like what Tevin is doing at that practice?

Just to be clear, I am not holding Kareem at fault in any way or questioning his motives/sincerity.

It's just...

On one hand, I am completely flabbergasted by KD's behavior but on the hand, I am impressed at this new and creative way he has designed to alienate players and push them out the door.  He was already a master of it  - but this is taking it to the next level!
 

Have you guys ever played in a competitive athletic team? (Not a slight in any way, just trying to gather the grounds for this perspective.). I loved this sentiment. High performance teams consist of members that take ownership and accountability for the success or failure of their collective efforts. A coach or a coaching staff alone will only get you so far. When players take on this type of ownership, the type that Rozier has exhibited here, they have a chance to do great things. To me, this shows that they are all in this together, and the fact that Dambrot who is nearing his 500th win in college basketball is empowering an 18 year old freshman to take on such a role within the team is a true testament to his leadership ability as well. But again, we see what we want to see…

 "High performance teams consist of members that take ownership and accountability for the success or failure of their collective efforts. A coach or a coaching staff alone will only get you so far. When players take on this type of ownership, the type that Rozier has exhibited here, they have a chance to do great things."  Of course I agree with that!  Are you a lawyer?  that seems like a lawyer trick - you make a statement everybody would agree with and pretend i'm disagreeing with that.  I have been on a competitive athletic team and I've worked with young adults most of my life.  NO WAY the guys on the team like a freshman "coaching" them.  Especially guys that have achieved something at this level.  I'm sure they are furthered bothered by KD's favoritism toward Kareem as well.  I've seen KD do this with other players since he's been here, but not to this level, and it seemingly alienated players as well.  It's one thing to be a vocal leader on and off the court as an unproven freshman - that is a welcome addition to any team (though even that rubs some guys the wrong way - but too bad) but what seems to be happening here is quite another.  That's all

CityDuke wrote:

Styles1229 wrote:

CityDuke wrote:

Have you guys ever played in a competitive athletic team? (Not a slight in any way, just trying to gather the grounds for this perspective.). I loved this sentiment. High performance teams consist of members that take ownership and accountability for the success or failure of their collective efforts. A coach or a coaching staff alone will only get you so far. When players take on this type of ownership, the type that Rozier has exhibited here, they have a chance to do great things. To me, this shows that they are all in this together, and the fact that Dambrot who is nearing his 500th win in college basketball is empowering an 18 year old freshman to take on such a role within the team is a true testament to his leadership ability as well. But again, we see what we want to see…

 "High performance teams consist of members that take ownership and accountability for the success or failure of their collective efforts. A coach or a coaching staff alone will only get you so far. When players take on this type of ownership, the type that Rozier has exhibited here, they have a chance to do great things."  Of course I agree with that!  Are you a lawyer?  that seems like a lawyer trick - you make a statement everybody would agree with and pretend i'm disagreeing with that.  I have been on a competitive athletic team and I've worked with young adults most of my life.  NO WAY the guys on the team like a freshman "coaching" them.  Especially guys that have achieved something at this level.  I'm sure they are furthered bothered by KD's favoritism toward Kareem as well.  I've seen KD do this with other players since he's been here, but not to this level, and it seemingly alienated players as well.  It's one thing to be a vocal leader on and off the court as an unproven freshman - that is a welcome addition to any team (though even that rubs some guys the wrong way - but too bad) but what seems to be happening here is quite another.  That's all

Thank you for clarifying, that is 100% a valid concern. However, we could never really know how players truly feel about Rozier’s role because we are on the outside looking in. But from what I have seen at games and from what I have heard from other players in post game interviews, they not only accept his leadership but they respect and encourage it. The best players are not always the best leaders, and the best leaders are not always the best players. Rozier may not be a proven player quite yet, but there is no debate that he is a proven winner. I think his presence and intangibles are extremely rare and give him a chance to be a great player.

I think we mostly agree CityDuke.  I like Rozier.  I think it would be better for him if KD just treated him like everybody else though and let the natural leadership ability play out on it's own.  The players may also love  Rozier but if they start losing and an "us vs them" dynamic emerges I want Kareem in the "us" camp.  

 

CityDuke wrote:

Styles1229 wrote:

CityDuke wrote:

Have you guys ever played in a competitive athletic team? (Not a slight in any way, just trying to gather the grounds for this perspective.). I loved this sentiment. High performance teams consist of members that take ownership and accountability for the success or failure of their collective efforts. A coach or a coaching staff alone will only get you so far. When players take on this type of ownership, the type that Rozier has exhibited here, they have a chance to do great things. To me, this shows that they are all in this together, and the fact that Dambrot who is nearing his 500th win in college basketball is empowering an 18 year old freshman to take on such a role within the team is a true testament to his leadership ability as well. But again, we see what we want to see…

"High performance teams consist of members that take ownership and accountability for the success or failure of their collective efforts. A coach or a coaching staff alone will only get you so far. When players take on this type of ownership, the type that Rozier has exhibited here, they have a chance to do great things."  Of course I agree with that!  Are you a lawyer?  that seems like a lawyer trick - you make a statement everybody would agree with and pretend i'm disagreeing with that.  I have been on a competitive athletic team and I've worked with young adults most of my life.  NO WAY the guys on the team like a freshman "coaching" them.  Especially guys that have achieved something at this level.  I'm sure they are furthered bothered by KD's favoritism toward Kareem as well.  I've seen KD do this with other players since he's been here, but not to this level, and it seemingly alienated players as well.  It's one thing to be a vocal leader on and off the court as an unproven freshman - that is a welcome addition to any team (though even that rubs some guys the wrong way - but too bad) but what seems to be happening here is quite another.  That's all

Thank you for clarifying, that is 100% a valid concern. However, we could never really know how players truly feel about Rozier’s role because we are on the outside looking in. But from what I have seen at games and from what I have heard from other players in post game interviews, they not only accept his leadership but they respect and encourage it.  The best players are not always the best leaders, and the best leaders are not always the best players. Rozier may not be a proven player quite yet, but there is no debate that he is a proven winner. I think his presence and intangibles are extremely rare and give him a chance to be a great player.

I played a lot & coached a little on successful basketball teams for about 8 years. I was not a good game coach. I was overly dependent on my scouting, game plans, & X's & O's.

In my professional life, I too have led teams of highly competitive youngsters since my early 20s.

A number of times I have been in the position of having a precocious line level team member run managerial circles around  their supervisor or department head. It is always a delicate situation but one, that if managed correctly, leads to truly great things for the team. I know this because I have both managed this scenario very well & very poorly.

Kareem is a very nice addition to the program. I love his killer attitude, mental approach, & leadership qualities. He also makes loads of mental mistakes on the floor because he is a true freshman that is also unusually young. The upside is that he is also really thinking the game.

How about that pointless bump foul 25' feet from the basket at the sidline toward the end of the game sending Fordham to the line for the double-bonus or his blown coverage on 1 of the 3-pointers that ended the game? (I truly believe those are experience/maturity errors he will put behind him.)

All I am saying is that I believe that  announcing publicly that this kid is a coach is extremely unlikely to be well received by coaching staff or players. How would you feel in their positions? After all,there are limits to managing your own ego.

Who am I to say if that is a genius move or moronic? Time will tell.

I also want to be on record as saying that the crap performance against Fordham is much, much more on the players than the coaching staff. This one really concerns me as an indicator of what is to come down the stretch.

Finally, how hard is it make your PG, Brewer now & Primo last year, to stop dribbling us to death or take him out of the starting lineup for a game or 2 until he does? KD is the king if holding some players accountable while letting others do as they wish. This has always puzzled me.

A10 Standings after a strange Saturday which featured Dayton losing to George Washington:
1. VCU (6-1)
1. SLU (6-1)
3. Dayton (5-2)
4. GW (4-2)
5. SBU (4-3)
5. GMU (4-3)
5. Richmond (4-3)
8. Fordham (3-3)
9. Duquesne (3-4)
9. SJU (3-4)
11. LaSalle (2-4)
12. UMass (2-5)
12. Davidson (2-5)
12. URI (2-5)
15. Loyola-Chicago (1-6)
 

I'm totally flabbergasted by the Rozier discussion. I had not heard KD's comments. For the Fordham game, we had 5, count 'em, 5 assists for the entire game. We have two point guards that are undersized, two point guards that can't drive to the basket because of their height, two point guards that can't shoot because they can't get open looks. How about recruiting a 6 foot PG then make Rozier a coach if he's such a great 18 year old motivator. Sorry to be negative here but this is the most ludicrous conversation I have ever heard.

CityDuke wrote:

KenOTR73 wrote:

I'm totally flabbergasted by the Rozier discussion. I had not heard KD's comments. For the Fordham game, we had 5, count 'em, 5 assists for the entire game. We have two point guards that are undersized, two point guards that can't drive to the basket because of their height, two point guards that can't shoot because they can't get open looks. How about recruiting a 6 foot PG then make Rozier a coach if he's such a great 18 year old motivator. Sorry to be negative here but this is the most ludicrous conversation I have ever heard.

Typically I wouldn’t engage down this path, but here I go. Yes, both point guards are undersized, but that is where the truth of your analysis ends. We have seen both drive to the basket all year. Matter of fact, we saw Rozier do this multiple times in a row just last game. We also have seen Brewer’s floater package all season. I seem to remember Brewer driving and making countless floaters against Dayton, the biggest team in the league. Not to mention his game winning floater at the buzzer against North Florida. While driving and finishing might not be the best part of their games, to question their ability to shoot or get shots up is absurd. Both are shooting above 40% from behind the arc this season. Brewer has the best percentage on the team at nearly 44%.

As far as assists, I wouldn’t read much into last game. Both guards have shown great ability to distribute. Brewer averages nearly 4 per game and an assist/turnover ratio of 3.11. This ratio ranks Brewer 8th nationally! Rozier, in just 15 minutes per game, averages over 2 with an assist/turnover ratio of 3.31. His ratio is even better but does not qualify for the rankings. That is elite distribution.

https://www.ncaa.com/stats/basketball-men/d1/current/individual/473

 It's nice when they tee it up nicely for you isn't it CityDuke?

Overall, I have loved the PG play this year.  Some defenses have exposed some weaknesses but that is to be expected.  It's up to the coaches to prepare the PGs for what they can expect and counter it.  I'm optimistic that will happen as the season progresses.  Above all else, I like that they do not turn the ball over.  Say what you will about Tevin (hes been as bad as hes been good this year) but I want the ball in his hands at crunch time to either distribute or make a shot.  defenses have learned how to shut him down at times but they seem to rarely pick his pocket.  he can dribble in a crowd