Illinois Basketball 2016-2017

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#301      

haasi

haasi
New York
haasi
BirdDog9048 said:
Well obviously, but my point is that NBA defenses are often glued to Butler, but that doesn't prevent him from getting open for dunks. Clever play design and proper spacing would allow for it to happen. We could even run it similar to the Bulls with Finke being the trigger man. Move Mav out to the opposite baseline, which is actually one of his preferred mid range shots, and the basket should be open for an attacking wing.
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I like it. Finke is a good high post/top of the key passer. Malcolm can do it too. Really hard to assess Groce's abilities as a play caller/offensive strategist with all of our injuries and roster problems, but if we do get the right personnel in the next couple of years, we will learn the answers to those questions
 
#302      

WesterveltVictoryCigar

WesterveltVictoryCigar
WesterveltVictoryCigar
Tevo said:
I was just wondering, if we get the waivers to go through, and Black is back, if we don't see the rare sophomore redshirt after playing as a freshman. Aaron Jordan, for example, isn't likely to see a lot of floor time next year with legitimate PGs on the roster and JCL, Nunn and Malcolm showing so much scoring potential. The year after that, however, there is serious 2/3 time available with Kendrick and Malcolm gone and only incoming freshman to fill in. Having JCL as a junior, Jordan as a soph, and then recruits as freshman would be a nice group.
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These guys don't want to sit, if they do it's more likely as a transfer to another school. And I hope that doesn't happen in either case.
 
#303      

GameOfThrows

G
GameOfThrows
Second and Chalmers said:
Also, if we have Black and Thorne (or a 5th year big replacement), our rotation is overcrowded as it is.

Abrams
TJL
JCL
Nunn
Hill
DJW
Black
Finke
Mav
Thorne

10 guys! Too many, probably. And that's shunting Aaron Jordan out, who has shown flashes on a college floor, something Nichols is yet to do.

I think I'm being misinterpreted here. I'm not saying Kipper can't ever be productive, I'm saying there are both player-based and roster-based reasons to think he won't have a big role to play on next year's team, good bad or indifferent.
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Agree with you on Kipper. I'm going into next season not expecting any production from Nichols because we won't need him. He will be necessary in the '17-'18 season after 6 seniors move on.

Question: Can Aaron Jordan redshirt next season. Develop his body, defense and handles? Also would help with class balance a bit since Black will probably be a sophomore next season.

In any case, sure is a nice problem to have. Too many players. Competition in practice has only helped teams. Could be a fun season. I'm not saying we'll be a top 20 team, but we could win 20 plus games and make the tourney which would make being an Illini fan fun again!!!
 
#304      

IlliniDent

IlliniDent
Chicago, IL
IlliniDent
GameOfThrows said:
Agree with you on Kipper. I'm going into next season not expecting any production from Nichols because we won't need him. He will be necessary in the '17-'18 season after 6 seniors move on.

Question: Can Aaron Jordan redshirt next season. Develop his body, defense and handles? Also would help with class balance a bit since Black will probably be a sophomore next season.

In any case, sure is a nice problem to have. Too many players. Competition in practice has only helped teams. Could be a fun season. I'm not saying we'll be a top 20 team, but we could win 20 plus games and make the tourney which would make being an Illini fan fun again!!!
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Would love to see Jordan redshirt of black and Thorne are back next year because otherwise it would just be too crowded. Add him to the class with tjl and kipper would help balance the classes out and I think he would really improve as a player. He has a really high upside as a player and you would hate for him to have wasted a year or 2 when he could be very valuable in the future.
 
#305      

Kramer116

Kramer116
Chicago
Kramer116
Barring a season ending or nearly full season injury, I would be pretty shocked to see anyone redshirt next season jmo.
 
#306      

Obelix

Obelix
Obelix
Kramer116 said:
Barring a season ending or nearly full season injury, I would be pretty shocked to see anyone redshirt next season jmo.
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It's very rare for anyone other than freshmen to voluntarily RS, so given that TJL and Nichols will both play, it is very unlikely that anyone will RS.
 
#307      

Obelix

Obelix
Obelix
youlikeroses said:
Finally, we have depth that creates a program. Go back 10-20 years and freshmen never hit the floor. I would love to see us get back to those ways. Freshmen, 3-5 minutes a game, sophomores, 5-10, by the time they become juniors and seniors, they know the system, have confidence, are winning, while others sitting and learning how to do it for when its their turn...
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Huh? Garris, Sergio, Cook, Dee, Deron, Luther, Archibald, Powell, even Frank and Bradford (first year of eligibility), etc. all played major minutes. Actually one can make the opposite argument, that once we stopped playing (and getting) quality freshmen who could contribute right away, then problems started.
 
#308      

Cubby Blue

C
Cubby Blue
youlikeroses said:
Finally, we have depth that creates a program. Go back 10-20 years and freshmen never hit the floor. I would love to see us get back to those ways. Freshmen, 3-5 minutes a game, sophomores, 5-10, by the time they become juniors and seniors, they know the system, have confidence, are winning, while others sitting and learning how to do it for when its their turn...
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Well, I would prefer our juniors going into the draft (Dwill).....:thumb: and perhaps even a sophomore (meyers) but that is just me. :)
 
#309      

Cubby Blue

C
Cubby Blue
Obelix said:
Huh? Garris, Sergio, Cook, Dee, Deron, Luther, Archibald, Powell, even Frank and Bradford (first year of eligibility), etc. all played major minutes. Actually one can make the opposite argument, that once we stopped playing (and getting) quality freshmen who could contribute right away, then problems started.
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Noticing the Chicago/not Chicago vibe of them there names. :thumb:
 
#311      

Illini B-Ball Fan

Illini B-Ball Fan
Illini B-Ball Fan
GameOfThrows said:
Agree with you on Kipper. I'm going into next season not expecting any production from Nichols because we won't need him. He will be necessary in the '17-'18 season after 6 seniors move on.

Question: Can Aaron Jordan redshirt next season. Develop his body, defense and handles? Also would help with class balance a bit since Black will probably be a sophomore next season.

In any case, sure is a nice problem to have. Too many players. Competition in practice has only helped teams. Could be a fun season. I'm not saying we'll be a top 20 team, but we could win 20 plus games and make the tourney which would make being an Illini fan fun again!!!
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If you polled the current players on the bolded statement, I believe you would get a much different answer.
 
#314      

Obelix

Obelix
Obelix
Paul Kleevage said:
It's definitely not a coincidence that our struggles began when the downstate talent pool dried up.
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Garris, Dee, Luther, all from Chicago. Our last great team (05) had a very strong Chicago element, and then Deron was out-of-state. The other great team in the modern era of recruiting (89) also had strong Chicago element. Seems our problems started when we stopped getting better talent on this team.
 
#315      

IlliniRunIn07

IlliniRunIn07
Tampa, FL
IlliniRunIn07
Kramer116 said:
Barring a season ending or nearly full season injury, I would be pretty shocked to see anyone redshirt next season jmo.
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A lot could happen, and I know non-freshmen redshirts aren't exactly common, but I wouldn't mind if Jordan decided to redshirt. I think he can be a valuable contributor going forward, and he's shown glimpses. But he's not quite there yet.
 
#316      

CoalCity

C
St Paul, MN
CoalCity
Obelix said:
Garris, Dee, Luther, all from Chicago. Our last great team (05) had a very strong Chicago element, and then Deron was out-of-state. The other great team in the modern era of recruiting (89) also had strong Chicago element. Seems our problems started when we stopped getting better talent on this team.
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Funny how that happens isn't it??

:chief::ah:
 
#317      

BananaShampoo

B
Captain 'Paign
Phoenix, AZ
BananaShampoo
Obelix said:
Garris, Dee, Luther, all from Chicago. Our last great team (05) had a very strong Chicago element, and then Deron was out-of-state. The other great team in the modern era of recruiting (89) also had strong Chicago element. Seems our problems started when we stopped getting better talent on this team.
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Dee was not from Chicago, but from Maywood (and actually born in Mississippi). The only players from Chicago on the 05 team were Luther and Calvin Brock. You could maybe say Marcus Arnold but he came by way of IL State and redshirted that season. Can't disagree with your last statement. :thumb:
 
#318      

Tevo

Tevo
Wilmette, IL
Tevo
Obelix said:
It's very rare for anyone other than freshmen to voluntarily RS, so given that TJL and Nichols will both play, it is very unlikely that anyone will RS.
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I think you're right, but then it's very rare to have a team return 8 of it's 9 rotation players and ALSO add three other guys who are likely starters. If you're the 6th or 7th guy out of those 8, and thus likely to be the 9th or 10th next season, and there's a whole lot of playing time opening up in 2017 and 2018, maybe you give it a long look...
 
#319      

Ryllini

Ryllini
Lombard
Ryllini
I'm very excited about the minutes our freshman received this year, that experience can not be replaced. I'm most excited moving forward to see how they couple this experience with the development of their bodies with a full offseason under Coach Fletcher. Fletch seems to be an incredible asset to this program as he has played and seems to know exactly what basketball players need. Obviously, it ultimately is up to the player, but Mav's physical development during the season has been amazing and he has seen the results pay off for him.
 
#321      

CoalCity

C
St Paul, MN
CoalCity
Ryllini said:
I'm very excited about the minutes our freshman received this year, that experience can not be replaced. I'm most excited moving forward to see how they couple this experience with the development of their bodies with a full offseason under Coach Fletcher. Fletch seems to be an incredible asset to this program as he has played and seems to know exactly what basketball players need. Obviously, it ultimately is up to the player, but Mav's physical development during the season has been amazing and he has seen the results pay off for him.
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All very true. Can't duplicate game pressure in practice. The frosh that have played some meaningful minutes now have an understanding about how fast and strong the college game is compared to high school and should be able to put that to good use next season.

Mav in particular has really transformed and you can tell he's starting to understand he's stronger than he used to be. Still has a ways to go but another offseason in the weight room should really help him finish strong around the rim and be more confident about playing tough defense without fouling. Malcolm also has shed some baby fat and gained muscle.
 
#325      

Golfer63

G
Golfer63
FeelYourPaign said:
Its been said around here a few times that the team has not quit. Here it is in a black and white version
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I was referring to him saying they could make a run at the FF next year with everyone healthy. Seems bold but as a player, that's the mindset you need.
 
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