I think this year proved that TJ could take a group of guys and make them a competitive bunch, but I'm not ready to set expectations terribly high for next year either (pending some transfer news). I think they have a chance to compete for another tournament berth if things fall right, but that isn't my expectation.
I suppose its fair to rank us 8th because so much now is unknown, Brockington won us some games by himself almost, and while we suprised early, teams are more aware of what we do defensively, etc.
I know to many we are supposed to 'always' have high expectations but I basically agree (pending transfer news like you added). It will be hard to not WANT to see the same if not better results next season because we were treated to such a pleasant surprise. BUT...if you take Kansas for example...do we even have 1 potential starter who is as good as any of their starters this season at any position? Maybe Tyrese could play neck & neck with Harris, but just shows you how much the program has to evolve and grow talent wise yet. But I like the start.
Yeah, Tyrese is at that level for sure. Luckily, we don't have to match them talent for talent to compete with them (which is good, because that's not something we're likely to have often).
Yeah, all the rankings right now are pretty pointless because all the teams will look different in a couple months.
TJ Basically took a Campbell approach to the hardwood. He found guys that fit what he wants to do.
It's not accurate to say his only issue on offense was shooting from three at the end of the shot clock. He took a lot of shots for someone who has had bad efficiency for three years now and also turned it over a ton. I'm not saying run him off, but ideally he's in a very low volume role on offense next year. I said it elsewhere, but the Tony Allen role on the Grizzlies back when they were making some playoff runs would be perfect. Not a lot of shots, especially from three, minimize turnovers, and defend his ass off. He's got a lot of work to do to be a net neutral player on the offensive end, his numbers were an almost unheard of mix of high volume, really low efficiency, and a lot of turnovers.
Agreed. He definitely brings a ton to the team, and who knows? Maybe if he doesn't have to carry as much weight offensively he can really focus on what he does well and we see a different player altogether on that end.
Excellent point. As a leader on a team starved for offense, he may have pushed the envelope in trying to help carry the load. Also, don't discount the fact that, with very few options to break down the defense, jump shots were our only option on a lot of possessions.
He was one of the worst shooting guards in basketball but took 170 3Ps. That's not exactly a product of leadership. It wasn't as much as the offense was bad and therefore put Gabe in a bad spot. The offense was bad in large part because Gabe.
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We’ll have to wait and see but you could be talking about the best defensive backcourt in the Big 12 next year.
