Illinois Hoops Recruiting Thread (January 2019)

Status
Not open for further replies.
#1,451      

mattcoldagelli

The Transfer Portal
I, for one, think that the team culture appears to be much improved over the past two years

I mean, I would hope the culture has improved from last year, when we had locker room feuds being carried out on to the court and half the team transferred at the end of the year.

That's not really a feather in our cap, though.
 
#1,454      
This is my thought too. I have no expertise in the field of nutrition or fitness, but I know jump shots and free throws suffer when legs tire. I don’t have the solution but I think it may be part of the problem. Not blaming anyone but all the Fletch love is laughable to me. We aren’t a body building team. We need athletes that have the endurance required to play basketball at a high level for 2 halves. Nutrition and training may play a part....
Or maybe uncontested threes. When you watched Iowa decimate us, nearly every one of their threes were wide open with feet set. Nearly every one of ours are challenged. I see a team that doesn't share the ball like they should. There were two fast breaks in the Iowa game - one in each half - where the guard leading the break made the wrong decision on what to do with the ball - and the decisions were obvious to this old point guard - and we ended up with 0 points combined from a pair of breaks - one a three-on-one and another a two-on-one. We need to see Ayo create better shot opportunities for Trent and Aaron and to some extent Griffin (providing he gets enough playing time to get more than one perimeter shot per game). I see Feliz doing this, but he doesn't handle the ball nearly as much as Ayo.
 
#1,455      

pruman91

Paducah, Ky
To be completely honest, it's probably fair to say I fall into that camp from time to time.


giphy (8).gif
 
#1,456      

Tacomallini

Washington State
Not to put words in his mouth, but he didn't claim that. I think he was just speaking to what kind of results Fletch is looking for, i.e. not building for a basketball body, but rather just to increase measurable and perhaps things such as muscle size.

One thing I will say, we seem to be a very healthy team (i.e. lacking in muscle injuries). I will give him credit for that much. And that means a lot, especially considering prior to him we had some pretty bad injury years.
And now we're jinxed. Some things must be left unsaid/unwritten, says this superstitious fan
 
#1,457      

sacraig

The desert
And now we're jinxed. Some things must be left unsaid/unwritten, says this superstitious fan

Watch the last two episodes of the most recent season of It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia for the best take on sports superstition.
 
#1,458      
I’ve wondered, and it’s been discussed here, if the intense focus on strength training is a little misplaced or too much of a focus. Definitely debatable. When is the last time we were upper half of B10 in shooting %?
I think the conditioning is great and needed for the B10. I am "old" and old school and I remember as a kid in the 70's there was no swimming on a baseball night. I also won't lift weights and during golf season. Work outs, touch, and feel are very fine controls to be consistent in any sport. I am sure Fletch and the conditioning program is way smarter than a random old guy. The recipe is condition early, develop touch right before season starts, then go let the kids have fun. Hitting shots is all that they are missing to be a mid tier B10 program.
 
#1,460      
I agree that we put too much emphasis on strength training. Sure some people benefit from it, especially big men. But look at the best players in the NBA not named Lebron. KD, Steph, Harden. These guys are lean and long not big and bulky. I think it was Dee Brown who one year said he went overboard in the weight room and it affected his shot.

But that being said, that's not why we're bad at basketball.
 
#1,461      

Deleted member 8632

D
Guest
Were there any recruits/prospects at MSG today?
 
#1,463      

ivwilsoniv

Aurora, IL
I’m expecting we hear news about a Christian Brown visit soon. Anyone have any intel on this?
 
#1,464      
Obviously this was a great plus, win in MSG!! Players had to enjoy it. East coast recruiting bonus win, a win against a ranked team away from home, Tevian freed, and eating! We're getting closer to going 8-11 deep. We wouldn't have won if we didn't have the winners we've recruited and weren't growing so........haters go away.
 
#1,466      

Deleted member 633632

D
Guest
Big game Wednesday at Minny... Expext to hear some recruiting news late next week on a Brown visit date... Hearing Rutgers is the date they are targeting, if not it will have to be toward the end of the year which makes it tuff with the H.S. tourneys starting up
 
#1,471      

Deleted member 654622

D
Guest
I agree that we put too much emphasis on strength training. Sure some people benefit from it, especially big men. But look at the best players in the NBA not named Lebron. KD, Steph, Harden. These guys are lean and long not big and bulky. I think it was Dee Brown who one year said he went overboard in the weight room and it affected his shot.

But that being said, that's not why we're bad at basketball.
To be fair, Fletch isn't trying to make our players big and bulky...He is making them more explosive. That does come at a price of some additional muscles. But there is not one player on this roster that is at any risk of becoming so bulky that their shot mechanics becoming altered. I apologize but this conversation should stop coming up
 
#1,473      

Epsilon

M tipping over
Pdx
To be fair, Fletch isn't trying to make our players big and bulky...He is making them more explosive. That does come at a price of some additional muscles. But there is not one player on this roster that is at any risk of becoming so bulky that their shot mechanics becoming altered. I apologize but this conversation should stop coming up
Agreed on many levels. Also, iirc Fletch said he was changing the training program to meet the playing style of BU's system.

Also, you know what really kills speed? Dead weight and lack of training.
 
#1,474      

Deleted member 500209

D
Guest
Illini signees will improve more at UI over other universities because we have Fletch. Additionally, our signees will improve at an increasing rate over non Illini signees because they come to UI. /s

I agree the S&C discussion should end. No more bringing up how Fletch makes a difference. He doesn’t. His W.A.R. is terrible, but it’s not his fault.

Recruiting good basketball players, that give full effort and are good teammates and leaders will make the difference in winning vs losing. We have a coach (coaches, actually) that knows how to win.

Kudos to the staff for the improvement in that area. Sweet 16 and beyond in a couple years or so.

I am happy that the players seem to like Fletch and that he motivates them.
 
#1,475      

Epsilon

M tipping over
Pdx
Illini signees will improve more at UI over other universities because we have Fletch. Additionally, our signees will improve at an increasing rate over non Illini signees because they come to UI. /s

I agree the S&C discussion should end. No more bringing up how Fletch makes a difference. He doesn’t. His W.A.R. is terrible, but it’s not his fault.

Recruiting good basketball players, that give full effort and are good teammates and leaders will make the difference in winning vs losing. We have a coach (coaches, actually) that knows how to win.

Kudos to the staff for the improvement in that area. Sweet 16 and beyond in a couple years or so.

I am happy that the players seem to like Fletch and that he motivates them.
I'm actually not going to disagree with you. Don't know if he is a +/- for the team relative to another competent trainer. I just disagree with the argument that players should not do strength training midseason, and that this is a legitimate reason for poor play. Strength training has never been anything but positive for me
 
Status
Not open for further replies.