Illini Basketball 2023-2024

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#201      
illini80
RockfordIllini said:
Still think he’s sneaky good pickup as a 6th/7th/8th man. Scoring guard with size. Think he gets hot off the bench and wins at least a few games for us.
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I don’t know if he starts or is first off the bench and don’t really care, but I believe he will be a critical piece of the team. All indications are he has a high BBIQ and will get the ball in the right spots. ie run the offense, which in and of itself will be huge compared to the 3 amigos from last year. He will make Ty’s job so much easier.
 
#202      
WyattEarp
illini80 said:
I don’t know if he starts or is first off the bench and don’t really care, but I believe he will be a critical piece of the team. All indications are he has a high BBIQ and will get the ball in the right spots. ie run the offense, which in and of itself will be huge compared to the 3 amigos from last year. He will make Ty’s job so much easier.
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confused three amigos GIF
 
#203      
RockfordIllini
And
foby said:
Leading scorer (14.0 ppg) and 36 game starter for a Utah Valley team that went 28-9, 15-3 in the WAC, and made the semis in the NIT going 3-1. Averaged 20.8 in those 4 NIT games including a career high 32 versus Cincinnati. Great pick-up.
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also if he thinks Sencire is just going to shake his hand and hand over those minutes he’s got another thing coming. Practice should be a battle.
 
#205      
goillini30
BretMyBeachHouse said:
While it went into effect on July 1 it was announced in January. This wasn't some surprise.

I think we had some serious deficiencies on the coaching side this past season. This move by the NCAA gave us an ability to try to fix that. Instead, we just have the exact same staff.

I get that this was not going to bring us a big name. That's not what I'm asking for. I'd like a person added who can help fix the problems that we're obviously seeing.

I could be wrong. Maybe moving Zach Hamer from the back room to the court will correct our deficiencies and we'll be worrying next year about how we can replace him after he gets stolen from us by Kansas or Kentucky.
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Agreed. We're the U of I and want to be counted among the big boys of college basketball? Then we should be trying to steal quality assistants from lower levels by offering more money than they were getting for recruiting spots. What's the downside? This is newest way that the richer programs can gain an advantage by out spending everyone else and we decided not to participate. I don't get it.
 
#207      
oldman
Compared to last year’s point guards: Ty can see the floor in a way the smaller PGs couldn’t; he will run the plays in a way they wouldn’t; he will hit the open man like they didn’t; he will not take shots he shouldn’t, Oh, and, he will guard like crazy. We’ll just have to find something else to drive us crazy, and I don’t doubt we are capable of that.
 
#208      
2020 Final Four
oldman said:
Compared to last year’s point guards: Ty can see the floor in a way the smaller PGs couldn’t; he will run the plays in a way they wouldn’t; he will hit the open man like they didn’t; he will not take shots he shouldn’t, Oh, and, he will guard like crazy. We’ll just have to find something else to drive us crazy, and I don’t doubt we are capable of that.
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Great analysis. The Illini should have 4 scorers on the floor and one distributor. Last year everyone was trying to get their own.
 
#209      
foby
oldman said:
Compared to last year’s point guards: Ty can see the floor in a way the smaller PGs couldn’t; he will run the plays in a way they wouldn’t; he will hit the open man like they didn’t; he will not take shots he shouldn’t, Oh, and, he will guard like crazy. We’ll just have to find something else to drive us crazy, and I don’t doubt we are capable of that.
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Bill Murray Applause GIF by MOODMAN
 
#210      
Emerson Bigguns
goillini30 said:
Agreed. We're the U of I and want to be counted among the big boys of college basketball? Then we should be trying to steal quality assistants from lower levels by offering more money than they were getting for recruiting spots. What's the downside? This is newest way that the richer programs can gain an advantage by out spending everyone else and we decided not to participate. I don't get it.
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We have a bunch of guys who will only be here for the upcoming season. Many of these guys just got here.
Perhaps coach just wants to focus on getting these guys up to speed with the terminology & the offense, w/o having to teach another coach as well. Maybe he values continuity in messaging, routine, and game planning.
As many have eluded, this could be a make or break year for BU & Co. Maybe he feels battening down the hatches and focusing on the process already in motion is the way to go for now.
 
#211      
ChiefGritty
oldman said:
Compared to last year’s point guards: Ty can see the floor in a way the smaller PGs couldn’t; he will run the plays in a way they wouldn’t; he will hit the open man like they didn’t; he will not take shots he shouldn’t, Oh, and, he will guard like crazy. We’ll just have to find something else to drive us crazy, and I don’t doubt we are capable of that.
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Well last year's point guards completely sunk the team, so....

The situation at the 1 is catastrophic and if it's not remedied we are going to be fatally less than the sum of our parts next year.

Ty Rodgers is a very promising player, but the idea of him as a point guard will survive contact with reality exactly as long as every other non-guard who people pretend can fulfill those duties because they have good passing vision.

illini80 said:
I don’t know if he starts or is first off the bench and don’t really care, but I believe he will be a critical piece of the team. All indications are he has a high BBIQ and will get the ball in the right spots. ie run the offense, which in and of itself will be huge compared to the 3 amigos from last year. He will make Ty’s job so much easier.
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More total make-believe.

I dunno man, it's an absolutely shocking failure of team building. I literally cannot believe we will go into the season like this, there's just no way a proper 1 isn't added to this roster.
 
#212      
SkyysNotFalling
I think Harmon is going to be really good for us. I know we like to criticize our group and lack of a true PG, but when comparing to other teams just in the Big Ten, top to bottom we are really really talented and experienced. I like our group, I think we will have a really good year.
 
#213      
Second place is 1st loser
oldman said:
Compared to last year’s point guards: Ty can see the floor in a way the smaller PGs couldn’t; he will run the plays in a way they wouldn’t; he will hit the open man like they didn’t; he will not take shots he shouldn’t, Oh, and, he will guard like crazy. We’ll just have to find something else to drive us crazy, and I don’t doubt we are capable of that.
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As a primary ball handler, will be make free throws, especially late in games?

Will he be able to shoot the ball to the point where a defender can't play five feet off of him?

You left out a couple of items that we've seen that he struggled with, to a legitimate fault, last year and replaced it with items that we haven't seen that he will be an upgrade.

It's a huge unknown and the #1 question mark going into the season.
 
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#214      
doowink
Second place is 1st loser said:
As a primary ball handler, will be make free throws, especially late in games?

Will he be able to shoot the ball to the point where a defender can't play five feet off of him?

You left out a couple of items that we've seen that he struggled with, to a legitimate fault, last year and replaced it with items that we haven't seen that he will be an upgrade.

It's a huge unknown and the #1 question mark going into the season.
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I will admit I'm looking at probably the best scenario that the Illini could hope for here....but as I stated in a previous thread...I can see the PG position being shared by 2-3 players this year, each having a different skill set that could give other teams terrible match up problems....Ty will be taller and stronger than most guards he faces...I can see him making passes over the top of some of these opponents starting the offense or backing his man down into the paint area drawing attention and then giving the ball up...he will be a tough defender over smaller guards and rebounding will be a plus.....then you have Sincere or Harmon that will give us the quicker better shooting guards from the field and the FT line (hopefully at the end of the game), they will probably be able to start the break a little easier and handle the press more easily.....I agree that the PG position is our weakest spot right now...but if what I've tried to describe above works out we'll be a real match up problem for a lot teams this year.
 
#215      
SummerofGeorge
ChiefGritty said:
Well last year's point guards completely sunk the team, so....

The situation at the 1 is catastrophic and if it's not remedied we are going to be fatally less than the sum of our parts next year.

Ty Rodgers is a very promising player, but the idea of him as a point guard will survive contact with reality exactly as long as every other non-guard who people pretend can fulfill those duties because they have good passing vision.


More total make-believe.

I dunno man, it's an absolutely shocking failure of team building. I literally cannot believe we will go into the season like this, there's just no way a proper 1 isn't added to this roster.
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The point guard situation is a concern for sure. What compounds this concern for me is my lack of faith that the coaching staff will develop an offensive scheme that can accommodate Ty as a point guard. If (when) we struggle next year the finger shouldn’t be pointed at Ty. I love that kid and everything he brings to the table.
 
#217      
dbeverly26
2020 Final Four said:
Great analysis. The Illini should have 4 scorers on the floor and one distributor. Last year everyone was trying to get their own.
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I'd go further and say that they will have multiple distributors on the floor most of the time, as opposed to last year when they could barely claim one. Even if Rodgers scuffles a bit in his new role, both Harmon and Domask might be better facilitators than any single player we had on the court last season, and I think Hawkins and Shannon will continue to improve in that role.

As a point of reference, both Harmon and Domask had assist rates of over 20%. Here's a list of players who were north of 20% on last season's team:


...Shannon and Hawkins were over 17% which is ok for a secondary distributor, but not great. Mayer, Epps, and *J were absolute black holes, and Clark was ineffective and then gone. I think the difference will be pretty noticeable, and in a good way.
 
#218      
Calvin
ChiefGritty said:
Well last year's point guards completely sunk the team, so....

The situation at the 1 is catastrophic and if it's not remedied we are going to be fatally less than the sum of our parts next year.

Ty Rodgers is a very promising player, but the idea of him as a point guard will survive contact with reality exactly as long as every other non-guard who people pretend can fulfill those duties because they have good passing vision.


More total make-believe.

I dunno man, it's an absolutely shocking failure of team building. I literally cannot believe we will go into the season like this, there's just no way a proper 1 isn't added to this roster.
Click to expand...

We're all going to judge the team by results, but it's possible (probable) that the staff sees things we don't. They may have believed this was a reasonable fallback plan and don't have the same questions we have from the outside because they know they're guys better than anyone.

Lot of reasons to question it. In fact, I'd say more questions than answers. Teams that contend for the title usually have minor question marks, and this one's a pretty big one.

I kind of disagree with your first statement. I think it was the chemistry and buy-in that sunk the team, not the point guard play. I see a lot of criticism of Epps, and for sure he had some issues and was a true freshman, but if I'm painting with a broad brush, it was attitude and buy-in that made the team's arc go from dark horse title contender, to rolling over down the stretch.

I'm not as concerned as most, but I'm like that most seasons. Not sure if this team can get to the second weekend, but willing to see it play out, and as long as they're playing hard and getting better, I'll probably enjoy the season.
 
#219      
IlliDan
Ty Rodgers looking more like a lean,mean,point guard every time I lay eyes on him. LOL
 
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