Point guard play?

[WBfaceofisu4022]

i really hope colvin takes over sometime during the season

[Bobber]

Kobe Bryant played for us?

Actually guards used to be able to do that fairly routinely. It's becoming something of a lost art.

[Erik4Cy]

Point guard play in BB = DL line play in FB for Iowa State this year. Those positions will make or break the respective seasons.

[pyrocyz]

Personally, I kinda hope that DG starts this season. It has been a while since we have had a guard that was an upper classmen with experience playing that position. With the weapons that we will have at the at least 3 other positions, the point guard should only have to distribute the ball and maybe drive to open up others. Both things DG has shown that he can do. If he gets beat out, so be it, I just hope that we can have upperclassmen leadership in an import position like point guard.

[brokenloginagain]

I am a huge fan of DG - he came to us as an unheralded recruit who had to be thrown into the fire without the benefit of a redshirt season. Sometimes I feel our fans think the guy was a McD's AA or a rivals 5 star guy.

He responded by averaging 6pts and 2asts per game as a frosh, and flashed some pretty good potential in a handful of a games. Last year he averaged 10 and 6, showing IMPROVEMENT. Was the guy perfect? Of course not. Could he have been more consistent? Sure. But again, he had numerous games where is showed the type of player he can become.

But the guy had NO help - he's had two years where he's the only guy on our team who can dribble. He's either had walk-ons or other unprepared freshman to help him out. All of our past superstud PG's have had help: Tinsley had Horton, Blalock had Stinson, Holloway had Willoughby/Hoiberg, Bayless had Thigpen, Hornacek had Thompkins/Stevens. DG has had.....Bryan Peterson????

GMac has been quoted has saying he would like to move DG off the ball "occaisonally" so that he doesn't have the "weight of the team on his shoulders every posession." That doesn't mean DG is going to be coming off of screens launching threes....it just means that he'll have Colvin or Buck to help bring the ball up the court, and initiate the offense. And we'll also have Christopherson and Gilstrap to handle the ball a bit as non-PGs.

I'd like to look FORWARD a bit, and think optimistically about our guards. Let's not be so rigid in the analysis that we have to have 1 PG, and that 1 PG does only 1 thing. We will finally have TALENTED players returning with experience as well as some great recruits (Colvin).

Watch other teams play...Johnny Flynn at Syracuse would spend several possessions in the corner, while Rautins/Devendorf/Harris created from the top. Sherron Collins had Tyshawn Taylor to bring the ball up the court. There are tons of examples.

I have no idea how the minutes and rotations will work out - all I know is that for the first team in ages we have several viable options: DG, Buck, Colvin, Christopherson, Lucca, Gilstrap, Boozer....that's seven guys and 120 minutes per game at the 1-3 positions.

Should be fun watching how it all works out....and don't forget that if DG continues to average 5 assists per game..he'll be 2nd all time in career assists. And yet the guy gets killed on here for not being a good PG.....

[Al_4_State]

I can't see McD giving Colvin much PT this year. Don't ask me why, just a gut feeling.

[cycloneML]

Yes, that was the extent of the off-season work that these guys did.

you're right buddy, maybe we will be lucky and guys like sherron collins will have to play with only one hand this fall.

[cgwarrior33]

Actually guards used to be able to do that fairly routinely. It's becoming something of a lost art.

No one would routinely post up on the perimeter and hit the turn around J with someone in their face from 18. First of all its a low %age shot. Secondly, if the player is settling for that as part of the offense routinely...he is not playing. We have had shooters would could make jump shots with someone in their face....mainly getting the ball late in the clock or coming off a screen. Shooting with someone in your face is not a lost art, its a confidence thing.

[kingcy]

Would you like to make a friendly wager on this? You can put a slasher at the 2 and be juuuuuuuuuuuust fine.

Slash all you want if you cannot finish what good is it.

[IcSyU]

Slash all you want if you cannot finish what good is it.

You don't always have to finish. Just finish enough that they respect you can finish. If you can slash, pull Brackins' man away from him or Ham's man away and dish off for an easy dunk, you did your job. If you can find Gilstrap for an open midrange J, you did your job. If you can get it back to the PG to drive, you did your job. You gotta finish just enough for them to respect you getting to the hoop, and you gotta pass it just enough to keep them honest.

[cgwarrior33]

Slash all you want if you cannot finish what good is it.

The ability to distribute when you are slashing is good too. Its not always about getting to the rim. Its about getting to an attacking zone and forcing the defense to either help or stay at home.

[Bobber]

No one would routinely post up on the perimeter and hit the turn around J with someone in their face from 18. First of all its a low %age shot. Secondly, if the player is settling for that as part of the offense routinely...he is not playing. We have had shooters would could make jump shots with someone in their face....mainly getting the ball late in the clock or coming off a screen. Shooting with someone in your face is not a lost art, its a confidence thing.

Let's see. Dedric Willaby, Kantraill Horton, Michael Nurse, Barry Stevens, Freddy Hoiberg all had pretty shots from the outside with people guarding them(I'm sure I'm missing some other Cyclone greats.) Go on the Iowa side of the fence, Bobby Hanson, Mark Gannon had a pretty sweet outside shot.

I'm not talking a off balance guards over your head circus shots like Kobe makes. I'm talking a spot up tear drop shot with some one guarding you. My favorites used to be the ones from the side of the basket just inside the 3 point line.

Seems to me over the last 20 years guards have moved more to slashers who like to drive first and shoot on the outside second. In the old days you tended to have more shoot first and slash second. Both styles have their strengths and weaknesses.

[cyismydog]

Let's see. Dedric Willaby, Kantraill Horton, Michael Nurse, Barry Stevens, Freddy Hoiberg all had pretty shots from the outside with people guarding them(I'm sure I'm missing some other Cyclone greats.) Go on the Iowa side of the fence, Bobby Hanson, Mark Gannon had a pretty sweet outside shot.

I'm not talking a off balance guards over your head circus shots like Kobe makes. I'm talking a spot up tear drop shot with some one guarding you. My favorites used to be the ones from the side of the basket just inside the 3 point line.

Seems to me over the last 20 years guards have moved more to slashers who like to drive first and shoot on the outside second. In the old days you tended to have more shoot first and slash second. Both styles have their strength and weaknesses.

A tear drop for three? What are you talking about?

[Bobber]

A tear drop for three? What are you talking about?

No inside the 3 point line. A simple arcing shot over a guards raised arms.

[Cyclonepride]

One of the things I'm excited about is that Colvin doesn't have to jump right in with the weight of the world on his shoulders. Sometimes I think younger guys can excel more quickly when they are playing without pressure because of the talent around them.