Milan Rumors - Hand Injury

[NY Chicago Fan]

I thought ISU was really trying to spread things out to get looks around the perimeter but KU was able to largely stick with the guards to not allow much room to operate.

KU's really good at perimeter D but it's even easier when there's not much of a viable threat from a 4/5 away from the hoop.

Dickinson had a couple of clear crisp passes out to Mayo (or someone else) from the elbowish and someone in the game thread asked 'why doesn't ISU do that!?'. Dickinson is overrated for how much press he gets but he can also hit from lots of spots and seems to have good timing for those kinds of looks. Therefore it's easier for KU to get that kind of look.

Something's off with Gilbert too as he doesn't appear to be moving at full stride and his shot looks hurried/pressed as well.

ISU got some good looks at 3pt shots and missed them, so KU game was rough

But one thing I noticed and think someone said on the thread there is nobody shooting any mid-range shots either. So the Defense only has to guard the paint (floaters, layups) and the 3pt line. And ISU does not shoot great outside of Jones so they can pack the paint and keep guards in front of them. Lipsey and Gilbert for as good as they are, are not going to consistently knock down pull up shots so they are having hard time driving when help defenders are able to double them up

 

[madguy30]

ISU got some good looks at 3pt shots and missed them, so KU game was rough

But one thing I noticed and think someone said on the thread there is nobody shooting any mid-range shots either. So the Defense only has to guard the paint (floaters, layups) and the 3pt line. And ISU does not shoot great outside of Jones so they can pack the paint and keep guards in front of them. Lipsey and Gilbert for as good as they are, are not going to consistently knock down pull up shots so they are having hard time driving when help defenders are able to double them up

They got looks but iirc not many in rhythm and most looked tight in the shooting motion. It's a sign of pressing/thinking too much imo.

 

[cyfan92]

Cincinnati 2/15 is my guess for Milans return (no inside info)

I agree on that timing. It's also B2B home games with Sunday and Monday to rest.

If Milan can play 3-4 games before the home Arizona game, that should give him and the team enough time to find a grove before Selection Sunday

 

[rochclone]

Can you cite where he said this specific thing?

Iirc he talked about running through the entire possession instead of taking it 1 on 3 or 4, forcing things etc.

I wouldn’t wait on that cite because it isn’t coming. TJ never said we have to learn to run the offense now. Poster just making stuff up.

 

[CYBootros]

ISU got some good looks at 3pt shots and missed them, so KU game was rough

But one thing I noticed and think someone said on the thread there is nobody shooting any mid-range shots either. So the Defense only has to guard the paint (floaters, layups) and the 3pt line. And ISU does not shoot great outside of Jones so they can pack the paint and keep guards in front of them. Lipsey and Gilbert for as good as they are, are not going to consistently knock down pull up shots so they are having hard time driving when help defenders are able to double them up

I was really hoping our guards would have worked on outside shooting in the offseason. I understand Lipsey with his shoulder surgery. Jones and Milan shoot the ball well, but could always use more reps. The guards I thought could be of the caliber of Villanova back in there championship run in 2016. Our guards would be begging to shoot the 3 and knock it down or use the pump fake to drive. Being we have undersized guards I thought that could help.

 

[Cyman42]

I thought ISU was really trying to spread things out to get looks around the perimeter but KU was able to largely stick with the guards to not allow much room to operate.

KU's really good at perimeter D but it's even easier when there's not much of a viable threat from a 4/5 away from the hoop.

Dickinson had a couple of clear crisp passes out to Mayo (or someone else) from the elbowish and someone in the game thread asked 'why doesn't ISU do that!?'. Dickinson is overrated for how much press he gets but he can also hit from lots of spots and seems to have good timing for those kinds of looks. Therefore it's easier for KU to get that kind of look.

Something's off with Gilbert too as he doesn't appear to be moving at full stride and his shot looks hurried/pressed as well.

Yeah with Keshon, 2nd half it was especially noticeable when he was trying to sprint from end to end he really couldn't make a full stride with his legs. Another thread someone mentioned he was grabbing at his groin area some too.

 

[madguy30]

I was really hoping our guards would have worked on outside shooting in the offseason. I understand Lipsey with his shoulder surgery. Jones and Milan shoot the ball well, but could always use more reps. The guards I thought could be of the caliber of Villanova back in there championship run in 2016. Our guards would be begging to shoot the 3 and knock it down or use the pump fake to drive. Being we have undersized guards I thought that could help.

Do you not think they worked on outside shooting?

 

[chuckd4735]

I figured it would be Cincy or Colorado before we saw him again.

 

[CYBootros]

Do you not think they worked on outside shooting?

Not to the level I was expecting. Yes I believe they tried and put up some shots. Was hoping for a percentage increase similar to what Lipsey showed us from Freshman to Sophomore year with a concerted effort on that aspect of the game.

 

[2076]

Not to the level I was expecting. Yes I believe they tried and put up some shots. Was hoping for a percentage increase similar to what Lipsey showed us from Freshman to Sophomore year with a concerted effort on that aspect of the game.

You can’t begin to imagine the amount of shots these guys put up in the offseason. They are working hard to raise that percentage. But if it were as simple as shooting 500 shots a day, there would be a lot more great shooters out there. Tough to play defense at the level we do against the best teams country night in and night out and not have some lulls during the season. This is a Final 4 level team. We will be fine.

 

[Statefan10]

Not to the level I was expecting. Yes I believe they tried and put up some shots. Was hoping for a percentage increase similar to what Lipsey showed us from Freshman to Sophomore year with a concerted effort on that aspect of the game.

I think that has more to do with your extreme expectations.. Lipsey went from shooting 20% to almost 40%. That's an astronomical improvement and not common.

Our guys are actually shooting it well from three as a collective this season and this conference season so far. The individual conference percentages show that. The only three point issues we have are that we're getting absolutely nothing from Heise. Nothing. He's not even shooting the ball. And the other thing is that we've had two games where no one could make a shot and that was the WVU game and then the KU game. The 3pt line was not the reason we lost to Kansas State. We shot 44% which is very good.

 

[MJ271]

Not to the level I was expecting. Yes I believe they tried and put up some shots. Was hoping for a percentage increase similar to what Lipsey showed us from Freshman to Sophomore year with a concerted effort on that aspect of the game.

FWIW, if any individual player had increased their percentage by an amount similar to what Lipsey did from his freshman to sophomore year, they would be one of the best shooters in all of college basketball. Lipsey's improvement from year 1 to 2 was crazy and definitely should not be the expectation.

 

[AllInForISU]

FWIW, if any individual player had increased their percentage by an amount similar to what Lipsey did from his freshman to sophomore year, they would be one of the best shooters in all of college basketball. Lipsey's improvement from year 1 to 2 was crazy and definitely should not be the expectation.

Seriously. Raising it 19% is unreal and an unrealistic expectation from anyone already shooting in the 30% range. Milan is up around 9% from last year, and honestly that’s crazy too.

 

[MJ271]

I think that has more to do with your extreme expectations.. Lipsey went from shooting 20% to almost 40%. That's an astronomical improvement and not common.

Our guys are actually shooting it well from three as a collective this season and this conference season so far. The individual conference percentages show that. The only three point issues we have are that we're getting absolutely nothing from Heise. Nothing. He's not even shooting the ball. And the other thing is that we've had two games where no one could make a shot and that was the WVU game and then the KU game. The 3pt line was not the reason we lost to Kansas State. We shot 44% which is very good.

You beat me to it on the Lipsey point.

On the latter, I think you make good points. The shooting without MM has been inconsistent, but at points, it's still been good, including against KSU. The issue against KSU is that even if the team is good from three, they aren't going to take them at a volume that demands that they be defended out there. The only player looking to shoot them is Jones. Lipsey, Gilbert, Jefferson, Heise, and Watson will all take them if open or as a last resort, but certainly aren't doing so as a first option or moving around the court looking to get a shot.

I think it's very similar to when Grill went out in 2022/23. He was the only player on the team who was looking to shoot no matter where or how he got the ball. Once he got injured and then left the team, the defenses just committed to the lane and dared everyone else to beat them from three. Even though guys like Holmes, Kalscheur, and Kunc were okay shooters, they weren't good enough to do it consistently.

 

[Statefan10]

3 point shooting in conference play:
Lipsey - 36%
Jones - 34%
Gilbert - 33%
Jefferson - 36%
Watson - 40%
Milan - 47%!!!
Heise - 7%!!!

 

[Statefan10]

You beat me to it on the Lipsey point.

On the latter, I think you make good points. The shooting without MM has been inconsistent, but at points, it's still been good, including against KSU. The issue against KSU is that even if the team is good from three, they aren't going to take them at a volume that demands that they be defended out there. The only player looking to shoot them is Jones. Lipsey, Gilbert, Jefferson, Heise, and Watson will all take them if open or as a last resort, but certainly aren't doing so as a first option or moving around the court looking to get a shot.

I think it's very similar to when Grill went out in 2022/23. He was the only player on the team who was looking to shoot no matter where or how he got the ball. Once he got injured and then left the team, the defenses just committed to the lane and dared everyone else to beat them from three. Even though guys like Holmes, Kalscheur, and Kunc were okay shooters, they weren't good enough to do it consistently.

Yep agreed but this team is far more talented than that team was and I think we'll get out of this slump. We've been allowing teams to dictate how the game is played rather than the other way around and we are being S.O.F.T. with the ball. It's like watching youth basketball sometimes with how careless we've been. We just need to be more fundamental and also lock in defensively to open up our offense in the full court.

I think we're thinking a bit too much as well. Guys are trying not to mess up instead of just playing. It happens. Teams go through swings throughout the year and this is our little hump we got to get over. I believe our guys will get things back together on Saturday and start having FUN again.

 

[CYBootros]

FWIW, if any individual player had increased their percentage by an amount similar to what Lipsey did from his freshman to sophomore year, they would be one of the best shooters in all of college basketball. Lipsey's improvement from year 1 to 2 was crazy and definitely should not be the expectation.

3 point shooting in conference play:
Lipsey - 36%
Jones - 34%
Gilbert - 33%
Jefferson - 36%
Watson - 40%
Milan - 47%!!!
Heise - 7%!!!

Looks about the same as last year with Lipsey, Jones and Gilbert for the whole year of 23-24. Agree I gave you guys one on the tee with Lipsey percentage increase. I was expecting the 3 point shot to improve and wasn't ever a showcase in the early games of look what we improved on. I Thought it was a way help push us to be more of a championship caliber team. I wanted to teams to fear us from outside. I know they work hard and still think we are right there in the mix.

 

[Statefan10]

Looks about the same as last year with Lipsey, Jones and Gilbert for the whole year of 23-24. Agree I gave you guys one on the tee with Lipsey percentage increase. I was expecting the 3 point shot to improve and wasn't ever a showcase in the early games of look what we improved on. I Thought it was a way help push us to be more of a championship caliber team. I wanted to teams to fear us from outside. I know they work hard and still think we are right there in the mix.

Yeah idk. I'll reiterate that I don't think it's a coincidence we lost one single game until Milan got hurt. We can all piss and moan all we want but losing a starter and our best three point shooter is definitely a large factor in why we're seeing the struggles we are. It contributes to a lot of things too, not just taking away a threat from three. Guys are having to play more all around to make up for it and we're tired. In this specific situation you can't have your "7th" man come in and not do a single thing. You just can't

 

[Klubber]

Cincinnati 2/15 is my guess for Milans return (no inside info)

That sounds about right. We're going to need him @ Houston and that would give him 2 games to get some rhythm going before that one.

 

[hoosman]

I admit I am obtuse. I don’t get it. 20 year olds in their physical prime are worn down from 60 minutes/ week of physical exertion. Add to that practice work - which maybe can be adjusted based on recovery needs. I get that sprains, strains, and contusions need to be rested to heal . Why is our team worn down and nobody else?