Basketball...

[bigbadbob]

Anyone else here think this season is entirely different if we have JamesOn and Kenny Cooper?

[MemphisPoke]

Depends:

JamesOn: The one that we all knew could light up the scoreboard and play an excellent game OR the one that would occasionally go MIA in a game. Probably would be better off with him still on the team.

Kenny Cooper: Again the one that would occasionally shows flashes of what he was capable of OR the one that would go MIA during a game. This one I am not so sure about. Kind of a coin flip.

[WyomingOSUAlum]

Good question.

I sure would have liked to see Cooper play this year. I would have been interested to see how much progress he made in a year. He had some assertive moments last year. A little more confidence for that guy would have made a world of difference, I think.

[andyokstate]

Kenny didn't get all that much playing time last year. It was only the last 2-3 games that Sean put him in for a large amount of time. With Boggan and Monds gone, Kenny would have played significant minutes. I'm guessing we would be better...I wish we could have found out.

[Boss 24]

Kenny should've stuck around if for no other reason but it took me almost 1 minute to remove him as my adopted basketball player in my sig.

[KissMyButt]

we would still have the same undisciplined team---just two more guys to throw in the rotation. For whatever reason our guys refuse to play discipline ball. That goes back to the head coach unfortunately for Sean.

[Lewis the Pike]

Cooper wouldn't have helped, he was apparently too much of a mama's boy. Good potential, but it wouldn't hurt for him to grow a pair.

Curry would have helped, but the kid would be throwing money away if he was here, and after a while that would wear on him as well.

[CaliforniaCowboy]

Cooper wouldn't have helped, he was apparently too much of a mama's boy. Good potential, but it wouldn't hurt for him to grow a pair.

Curry would have helped, but the kid would be throwing money away if he was here, and after a while that would wear on him as well.

Cooper would have been a big, big help... don't kid yourself.

a 6-10 kid that knows the system is EXACTLY what we need.

Please folks, do not needlessly bash our players or former players by calling them names. It is not necessary to make your point.

[OSU-DNA]

Most certainly the team would have been different and better. We unexpectedly lost 40% of our starting rotation and BB recruiting is done even further in advance then FB recruiting. By the beginning of a Junior year in high school the blue chippers are already narrowing their selections so when these losses occurred the ability to recover was very limited.

Dove's play has been both a pleasant surprise offensively and his defense is what we all want everyone to play.

Eaton, in my view is our second best defensive player. My son made mention that half of his fouls are not on his man. In other words, he is covering for someone who lost their man. Eaton's shot seems better, he is not getting himself trapped nearly as often down low on drives and frankly he appears to be our only option for bringing the ball up court. Now if could only cut his fouls in half and stay on the court.

Anderson will be great, but needs substantial coaching. When he gets frustrated offensively he has been driving to the hole and getting his shot smashed. Also this usually means he has left his feet and winds up on the floor creating an automatic 5 on 4 situation. His defense for now is token, hopefully the Semester break will see a dramatic improvement.

Thomas could be Dove in another year. He shows flashes of good defense, seems to have a good understanding of where to be for rebounds but gets manhandled due to lack of strength. He has a great touch for a big, add the strength and he will do well.

Harris has certainly improved year over year. His shot is substantially better, his defense improved but we need to see it versus B-12 competiton.

If we had Coop, Thomas if he started might actually be the 4 allowing Dove to guard the best wing.

If we had Jameson, Eaton would be spelled, Harris and Anderson would be more prolific because we would have another legitimate scorer on the court, one capable of penetrating a defense.

Obi would be better because we would not need to strain him in bringing the ball up and he could concentrate on the 2 and 3.

And we would have 5 more fouls on bigs with Coop.

[bigbadbob]

I think that we would be a significantly different team. JamesOn would take a significant load off of Anderson and Kenny would instantly be the best defensive big we had.

My point is that these were two players we were counting on, and counting on big and neither are here. And neither left for any reason having to do with Sean or discipline.

Why are we dogging on Sean so bad in this scenario? Sure we dont play that great, but really, with this team-does that surprise you that much? We just aren't that talented, in my opinion.

[CaliforniaCowboy]

and I think the team is super talented, they (the newbies) just haven't yet learned to play TEAM DEFENSE, or learned that you can make your own breaks on the defensive end of the floor.

I think they're coming togehter, but it's going to take a bit more for them to really get it. There is plenty of talent.

[Roman Craig]

just haven't yet learned to play TEAM DEFENSE, or learned that you can make your own breaks on the defensive end of the floor.
They also are still learning a complicated offense. Eaton is constantly yelling at one of them to get in the right spot, so is Dove. Give them time, we have a very good base to work with in the future.

[frankeaton]

We just aren't that talented, in my opinion.

why not, don't we have 3 macd's all americans and 3 that were nominated?

[bigbadbob]

Goes to show that recruiting isn't all its cracked up to be. How many other point guards in the league would you rather have than Eaton? Several for me...shoot maybe even give me Andrea Riley...

Now James Anderson is the real deal.

With that said, I would rather have a team full of them than not, but consider this: Eddie didn't have a single McD's AA until Glendon Alexander and he seemed to do pretty well, but don't take that as sayingSean can't coach like Eddie then.

I just don't believe we have great talent.

[bigbadbob]

why not, don't we have 3 macd's all americans and 3 that were nominated?

Who is the third and the other three anyway?

[MemphisPoke]

For what it is worth, and I don't want to start some argument about all this, IMHO I equate the McDonald's All American moniker that some of these kids carry, with those stupid stars used for classification in football.

The kid can have all the talent in the world and could have played heads and tails against any HIGH SCHOOL competition he had, BUT if he comes into college and doesn't work to learn a system, doesn't give it his all in practice, doesn't care to improve upon that talent and doesn't play with heart....then that classification is worthless. Some rise to the occasion quicker than others and unfortunately some never quite "get it".

This in no way is a slam against our players, but just an observation. Just because they are McDonald's AA's doesn't mean that they will go out and be automatic stars and pour through bucket after bucket and guard other players like a glove. It simply means that they have talent and were deemed to have had more coming out of high school than other comparable players.

So then the argument falls to the coach. "He isn't coaching them enough." "He doesn't know how to utilize the talent." "He isn't playing the kid enough." "His system isn't working."

Coaching is a two way street. You can teach, but someone has to absorb and learn or otherwise you are just talking to hear yourself talk. I believe that JamesOn saw the light early and opened up and learned. He started with very good people around him to help him see that light. I wish he was still here so that his influence and experience could be passed on to the youngsters we have now, but that is not the case. Eaton and Dove are trying to be that beacon of knowledge but that light is going to have to come on for these kids before we see improvement.

Again, just MHO.

[PaleRider]

I really think one of the biggest things missing with our teams the last few years is one of those hard nosed scrapper types. I noticed this around the time we started to get some of the more highly rated recruits, that we were missing that fighter type. We have some real good guys with some real talent, but with out that killer mentality. Look back at guys like Melvin Sanders, Joe Adkins, Doug G, Victor Williams, and Terrance Crawford... Guys who had good talent, but who weren't all world rated out of high school, and had to fight to get to be where they wanted to be.

Living up here in Omaha, all I get to hear about is Nebraska football, and I even can see the similarities between that program and our basketball program. When they fired Solich, they stated that it was because he wasn't getting the recruiting talent, and wanted to attract the type of recruits that would win big time. They got rid of the walk on program, and brought in a big time recruiter in Callahan. Callahan got all these big name recruits, who would show flashes of talent but who never would fully develop. Nebraska would get punched in the face (ala our game vs them this year) and suddenly these big time guys would fold up like a cheap tent!

I almost would rather have a team of "3 star" guys who are fighters over a group of 5 star guys that aren't smart or humble enough to give themselves completely over to the team and coaches and play with in the system.

[Verb]

I almost would rather have a team of "3 star" guys who are fighters over a group of 5 star guys that aren't smart or humble enough to give themselves completely over to the team and coaches and play with in the system.

Amen, Rider, amen.