Melvin Ejim Appreciation Thread

[marothisu]

Mel looked great. Prior to the game if someone told me how many minutes he would play and how productive he would be I would have said you cannot ask for any more. He was a big part of a team win.

Biggest reason for our 2nd half push and getting the tempo going was him. He was great in the 2nd half.

 

[IcSyU]

Yep. Royce's passes can be suspect as well. There were 2 or 3 passes to start yesterday's game though where Melvin should have had them and they rolled out of bounds or BU stole it.

I really think of Ejim works on those things he'll be a guy averaging 15 or 16 points and 10 rebounds a game by his senior season.

One was at his ankles and another was a heater at 93 over his head when a simple bounce pass was an easy layup. Pass it right through Melvin's chest and give him a chance.

 

[BostonPrep]

Biggest reason for our 2nd half push and getting the tempo going was him. He was great in the 2nd half.

Thanks to good coaching sitting him after his second early foul. A luxury deep teams get to experience

 

[LostinIowaCity]

I'll admit that I can get down on Ejim as well. Even at the beginning of the Baylor game, I was mad that he couldn't catch what I thought were two decent passes. But day in and day out that kid works his *** off for the team and plays about four inches taller than he actually is. I'm often surprised by Ejim's stat line at the end of the game. He's often near a double double with a high FG percentage and that's a "quiet" game for him.

Mel's developed a nice mid-range jumper this year in addition to improving around the basket. If he continues to progress (improved catching, higher percentage from 3, maybe even a dribble drive), then I can see him making all-conference his senior year. Even if he doesn't, Ejim has been a great player to watch grow and is a big reason the team is where it is.

 

[swarthmoreCY]

I think you need to watch some games again. Missing a two foot shot to me is about 90% inexcusable, however you need to watch the games again. Most of the layups I'm talking about which he misses, he completely misses the entire rim. It's not even close. Honestly, go back and watch every single game this year and you will know EXACTLY what I'm talking about. He takes it up too strong or completely uses the wrong angle on the backboard to lay it in. At least hit the rim when you're going to lay something in.

Not handling passes? Sure, happens all the time to every single player, but again watch the games. Many of them are passes he has no business in missing and some he's missed are bad passes and not his fault.


There's a difference between "perfection" and something that should be a given or expected to do. Where the **** did I say he's not making all his shots? Did I talk about his jump shots? No. I didn't. So don't put words of "perfection" in my mouth. There's a lot of shots he has taken where I would never get upset about. However, there are many times for the two things I mentioned above where it is upsetting because he SHOULD be doing those things. Please tell me how getting upset about not even hitting the rim on a layup or 2 foot shot is "perfection." That is something that should be at least done if the ball doesn't go in the hoop. Air balls on layups are not excusable. Period.


And my point in all of this is that even though he has some big things to improve on, he's only a sophomore and he's very important to our team and has still played decently well. Scary though to think if he corrects the things how good he could be in a few years.

You are really struggling in proving your contention, not to mention lost, as this is a Melvin appreciation thread. Again, all players miss shots they "should" make, drop passes they should catch. As a 6-6 post, I am sure Melvin may miss a bit more than normal, but to suggest he needs a lot of improvement is laughable. He is damn near all-conference level right now.

 

[JDDCy]

Mel also has become our second best defender after Babb. He just works his tail off keeping guys who are 2-4 inches taller than him out of scoring position. His hands will improve as he continues to develop but at 6-6 he is always going to miss a few layups as an undersized 4. I will take 2-3 mishandled balls per game in exchange for everything else he does for this team.

Another guy that deserves a little praise is Booker. He has actually became a pretty decent defender and rebounder while still knocking down the open 3's. Earlier this year he was afraid of contact, now he seems to relish it.

 

[bosco]

Sure there are passes and bunnies he should be making but there are rebounds he shouldn't be getting but yet still does. If Melvin continues to develop his mid range jumper he is going to a very good B12 player.

I was thinking last night about next years lineup and after last nights performance there is no way Ejim does not start. Think about it people. He is a a 2 year starter as a soph on one of the better ISU teams in history. Depending on how the team does they will most likely be preseason ranked next year and he'll be a starter on that team as a junior.

 

[Cincyclone]

Yep. Royce's passes can be suspect as well. There were 2 or 3 passes to start yesterday's game though where Melvin should have had them and they rolled out of bounds or BU stole it.I really think of Ejim works on those things he'll be a guy averaging 15 or 16 points and 10 rebounds a game by his senior season.

One was at his ankles and another was a heater at 93 over his head when a simple bounce pass was an easy layup. Pass it right through Melvin's chest and give him a chance.

Exactly.

 

[ThatllDoCy]

I could be wrong, but hasn't Melvin been playing out of position at the 4? He is a 3 right? I think he deserves a lot of credit for going up against guys who are larger, and consistently playing well. Not flashy, but effective.

 

[SouthJerseyCy]

I think you need to watch some games again. Missing a two foot shot to me is about 90% inexcusable, however you need to watch the games again. Most of the layups I'm talking about which he misses, he completely misses the entire rim. It's not even close. Honestly, go back and watch every single game this year and you will know EXACTLY what I'm talking about. He takes it up too strong or completely uses the wrong angle on the backboard to lay it in. At least hit the rim when you're going to lay something in.

Not handling passes? Sure, happens all the time to every single player, but again watch the games. Many of them are passes he has no business in missing and some he's missed are bad passes and not his fault.


There's a difference between "perfection" and something that should be a given or expected to do. Where the **** did I say he's not making all his shots? Did I talk about his jump shots? No. I didn't. So don't put words of "perfection" in my mouth. There's a lot of shots he has taken where I would never get upset about. However, there are many times for the two things I mentioned above where it is upsetting because he SHOULD be doing those things. Please tell me how getting upset about not even hitting the rim on a layup or 2 foot shot is "perfection." That is something that should be at least done if the ball doesn't go in the hoop. Air balls on layups are not excusable. Period.


And my point in all of this is that even though he has some big things to improve on, he's only a sophomore and he's very important to our team and has still played decently well. Scary though to think if he corrects the things how good he could be in a few years.

He may miss the occasional pass/layup, but he is about 100x better with his handles than he was last year. The second half of last year he was atrocious, and I'm actually quite pleased at the improvement he's made in that area.

 

[MaccloNe]

I think you need to watch some games again. Missing a two foot shot to me is about 90% inexcusable, however you need to watch the games again. Most of the layups I'm talking about which he misses, he completely misses the entire rim. It's not even close. Honestly, go back and watch every single game this year and you will know EXACTLY what I'm talking about. He takes it up too strong or completely uses the wrong angle on the backboard to lay it in. At least hit the rim when you're going to lay something in.

Not handling passes? Sure, happens all the time to every single player, but again watch the games. Many of them are passes he has no business in missing and some he's missed are bad passes and not his fault.


There's a difference between "perfection" and something that should be a given or expected to do. Where the **** did I say he's not making all his shots? Did I talk about his jump shots? No. I didn't. So don't put words of "perfection" in my mouth. There's a lot of shots he has taken where I would never get upset about. However, there are many times for the two things I mentioned above where it is upsetting because he SHOULD be doing those things. Please tell me how getting upset about not even hitting the rim on a layup or 2 foot shot is "perfection." That is something that should be at least done if the ball doesn't go in the hoop. Air balls on layups are not excusable. Period.


And my point in all of this is that even though he has some big things to improve on, he's only a sophomore and he's very important to our team and has still played decently well. Scary though to think if he corrects the things how good he could be in a few years.

You are probably a fat middle aged man that never played basketball on any level. Busting on ME shows how pathetic your life must be. Leave the guy alone.

Massive neg rep for you if available.

 

[Rabbuk]

seems like ejim has really caught on

 

[singsing]

I for one have been hard on Melvin for what I saw as a lack of toughness. I stand corrected and apologies for any negative posts because something's lit a fire under him and he is probably our scrappiest player this year. Loved the T a couple games ago..no reason to take the crap he got given from anyone. Great player/student athlete to have on the team and look forward to two more seasons.

 

[marothisu]

You are really struggling in proving your contention, not to mention lost, as this is a Melvin appreciation thread. Again, all players miss shots they "should" make, drop passes they should catch. As a 6-6 post, I am sure Melvin may miss a bit more than normal, but to suggest he needs a lot of improvement is laughable. He is damn near all-conference level right now.

1) I'm not disagreeing with you that all players miss shots they should make.
2) I didn't say a LOT of improvement, I said SOME. There's two correctable things which I've mentioned. He can get inside, he can rebound, he can shoot FTs, he has a jump shot sometimes, and every once in awhile he can shoot a 3 pointer but he's not taking them carelessly, and plays with as much intensity and hustle as anyone on the team. If I ACTUALLY said "a lot of improvement", I didn't mean that. I meant some.


HOWEVER:

1) I think Melvin is a good player for being a sophomore.
2) Melvin airballs/misses the rim on layups and bunnies quite a bit even when he's not being hacked or well contested. Sure, it happens to most players, but the amount of which it's happened to him this year is not excusable. I don't give a **** if you're a freshman, sophomore, junior or senior. If you are on a Division 1 basketball team in one of the top conferences in the nation and starting for them, there's absolutely no excuse to do that. Sure, sometimes is excusable, especially if you're being hacked, but if you aren't, that is NOT an excuse.


I think the guy is good especially for being a sophomore, but I still think he needs improvement on his layups/bunny shots and handling some passes. If any of you actually think I"m busting this guy's balls need to get better at reading comprehension. Without Ejim, we would have at least 4 or 5 less wins than we do and probably wouldn't be going dancing.

 

[MaccloNe]

seems like ejim has really caught on

Unlike your attempt at a pun.

 

[marothisu]

You are probably a fat middle aged man that never played basketball on any level. Busting on ME shows how pathetic your life must be. Leave the guy alone.

Massive neg rep for you if available.

You need to go back and re-comprehend what I've written. The guy is good, but what I'm saying is that his numbers don't speak for how good he is/can be and if he'd work on TWO things, the guy would be something even more special. Without him, we wouldn't be going dancing. He's been a big x-factor for us. I wouldn't be surprised to see him averaging a double double his senior year.

 

[marothisu]

He may miss the occasional pass/layup, but he is about 100x better with his handles than he was last year. The second half of last year he was atrocious, and I'm actually quite pleased at the improvement he's made in that area.

Yeah, very true about his handling. I wouldn't expect most 6'6" 220 lbs guys to be great handlers. He wasn't last year, but you are right in saying he's immensely improved the ball handling this year.

 

[FarminCy]

Agreed... ME is the perfect high school recruit... 4 year player. Keeps getting better... contributes for 4 years... and I think by the time he's done here will not only be known as one of the all-time greats... but may have the chance to go to the next level.

Agree 100% Melvin has the perfect combination of size and athleticism that allows him to fill gaps and step in at a lot of different positions. I have always felt that his upside may be the highest on the team. I think with two more years of coaching and continued progress we could very easily see his named called on draft day. NBA loves guys like him that can play multiple positions and be effective at each one. Sure there are areas he needs to improve at to get to that level but he is only a sophomore. I am real excited to see what kind of player he can be the next two years. If his skill catches up to his passion on the floor he will be a great one.

If he continues to get better and end up all big 12, in the NBA etc. his story would be one heck of a recruiting benefit.

 

[heitclone]

Melvin has definitely bought in to his role on the team this year and his energy has been huge. He has his ups and downs but I'm liking the type of player he's developing in to...and he's only a soph!

 

[CyBer]

Ejim is going to be a beast. (sort of already is).