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Open Practice (Oct. 9th)
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<blockquote data-quote="combes" data-source="post: 1665343" data-attributes="member: 3226"><p>The first hour and a half was a regular practice. Lots of drills. At one point, the team split into bigs and guards. Grandison and Williams went with the bigs. Goode and Melendez went with the guards. About half way through the drill, Grandison, Williams and Hawkins joined the guards.</p><p></p><p>During the drills part, the team shot the ball exceptionally well, especially Plummer. Can't miss type shooting. Same with Hutcherson, Goode, Podziemski and Frazier. Frazier is shooting the ball as well as I have ever seen him. There were some Wisconsin fans sitting near me, and one of them commented about what a great shooting team this is.</p><p></p><p>Underwood was not happy with the defensive intensity. He even commented to the crowd after practice that he hoped the team would play some defense the next time they saw them. At one point, he jumped on Damonte for lack of effort, and Williams responded positively. Probably used Damonte as an example knowing that he could take the criticism.</p><p></p><p>When they finally scrimmaged, it was four 4 minute quarters although time was added to set up plays. The team was mix and matched. No set lineups.</p><p></p><p>Kofi- an average practice for him. Dunked a lot. Did not take a shot other than a dunk or layup. Dominate. But I've seen him a lot better. He did make several nice passes out of the post. He was bothered at the rim a few times by Payne and didn't finish. Not concerned, though. He is an All American.</p><p></p><p>Curbelo- He is probably the best player on the team or at least tied with Kofi. He shot the ball well from outside in both drills and scrimmage although he did force a few threes. He is uncanny getting into the lane. He was deadly with that little ten foot fadeaway in the lane. He did not turn the ball over that I remember. If he doesn't turn it over, his efficiency is off the charts. The Wisconsin fans even high fived each other when Curbello did a spin move in the lane and somehow ended up with a layup.</p><p></p><p>Hutcherson- not his best practice. I've seen him much better. Very good in the drills. Shot the heck out of it. He played a lot of point in the scrimmage. Coach Frazier was working with him before practice on point skills. He turned it over a couple of times and seemed to be overthinking it. If there was a game tomorrow, Frazier would be the backup point. Hutcherson needs more time there to improve but developing a third point guard is a good move even if Hutcherson is not ready to do it against BT teams. On the wing, he played much better. Made a nice three and brought the crowd to life with a drive to the rim. He was a foot above the rim as he went for the dunk, but he was hammered by Payne and the dunk missed. Made both free throws. He is healthy, though, and will be a factor even if it takes some time.</p><p></p><p>Frazier- played very well today. Confident. Played D, handled the ball and hit shots. He did force a couple of shots and Underwood let him know they were bad shots. Best I've seen him in awhile.</p><p></p><p>Grandison- had a really good practice. Hit open shots and even finished at the time a couple of times. He plays D and passes well. He is a glue guy that the opponents can't leave open. Starter if the game was tomorrow.</p><p></p><p>Plummer- never seemed to miss a shot in drills. Such a quick release. In the scrimmage, he hit his first shot but did not shoot the ball well afterwards. Played defense and did not turn it over. Not worried about him. Great shooter who will carry the team in some games.</p><p></p><p>Payne- I expected a bit more offensively. Good backup center for Kofi. Altered shots and made Kofi work. did not take any outside shots. All at the rim. Will be a matchup problem for some teams. Great on the screen and roll. I don't see him at the four often. </p><p></p><p>Hawkins- has definitely gotten bigger but is still pretty thin. He is playing with a lot of confidence. Looks for teammates and goes to the boards. Unselfish. He missed all threes that he took today. If he hits a few of those, he will be a matchup nightmare.</p><p></p><p>Williams- after a slow start, he played well. Was off on his three ball, but he had a couple of nice layups in traffic that I haven't seen from him before. Likely starter if game was tomorrow.</p><p></p><p>Goode- wow. Was the surprise of the scrimmage. Shot the carp out of the ball. Smooth stroke and he did not pass up any open looks. He even went by a defender running at him and hit a midrange shot. Also had a putback in the lane. Could have been the leading scorer in the scrimmage. If he plays like this every day, he will get minutes.</p><p></p><p>Podziemski- made everything in drills. Really good stroke. In the scrimmage, he had trouble getting open looks. He did not back down on defense as he checked Frazier and Hutcherson at times. A year away.</p><p></p><p>Melendez- if Goode hadn't been so good, I might be talking more about RJ. Very athletic. Hit a few jumpers and had a thundrous alley oop dunk. He needs to tighten his handles but he has a bright future.</p><p></p><p>BBV- Will get a few minutes here and there as the third center. He is healthy. Has trouble finishing at the rim against Kofi and Payne. But he fights defensively and rebounds.</p><p></p><p>Lieb- pretty darn skilled. Had a couple of dunks. Last fall, he would have been knocked down with lack of strength. Still really skinny but noticeably stronger. I don't know if he will ever see the court consistently at Illinois, but he has some talent. At least a year away.</p><p></p><p>Here are my picks for best practice today. Not my starting lineup, but who had the best practice today.</p><p></p><p>1. Curbelo</p><p>2 Frazier</p><p>3 Goode</p><p>4. Kofi</p><p>5. Grandison</p><p></p><p>I almost put Goode ahead of Frazier, but I thought I might be overreacting to the "new toy" that was deadly from three today.</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="combes, post: 1665343, member: 3226"] The first hour and a half was a regular practice. Lots of drills. At one point, the team split into bigs and guards. Grandison and Williams went with the bigs. Goode and Melendez went with the guards. About half way through the drill, Grandison, Williams and Hawkins joined the guards. During the drills part, the team shot the ball exceptionally well, especially Plummer. Can't miss type shooting. Same with Hutcherson, Goode, Podziemski and Frazier. Frazier is shooting the ball as well as I have ever seen him. There were some Wisconsin fans sitting near me, and one of them commented about what a great shooting team this is. Underwood was not happy with the defensive intensity. He even commented to the crowd after practice that he hoped the team would play some defense the next time they saw them. At one point, he jumped on Damonte for lack of effort, and Williams responded positively. Probably used Damonte as an example knowing that he could take the criticism. When they finally scrimmaged, it was four 4 minute quarters although time was added to set up plays. The team was mix and matched. No set lineups. Kofi- an average practice for him. Dunked a lot. Did not take a shot other than a dunk or layup. Dominate. But I've seen him a lot better. He did make several nice passes out of the post. He was bothered at the rim a few times by Payne and didn't finish. Not concerned, though. He is an All American. Curbelo- He is probably the best player on the team or at least tied with Kofi. He shot the ball well from outside in both drills and scrimmage although he did force a few threes. He is uncanny getting into the lane. He was deadly with that little ten foot fadeaway in the lane. He did not turn the ball over that I remember. If he doesn't turn it over, his efficiency is off the charts. The Wisconsin fans even high fived each other when Curbello did a spin move in the lane and somehow ended up with a layup. Hutcherson- not his best practice. I've seen him much better. Very good in the drills. Shot the heck out of it. He played a lot of point in the scrimmage. Coach Frazier was working with him before practice on point skills. He turned it over a couple of times and seemed to be overthinking it. If there was a game tomorrow, Frazier would be the backup point. Hutcherson needs more time there to improve but developing a third point guard is a good move even if Hutcherson is not ready to do it against BT teams. On the wing, he played much better. Made a nice three and brought the crowd to life with a drive to the rim. He was a foot above the rim as he went for the dunk, but he was hammered by Payne and the dunk missed. Made both free throws. He is healthy, though, and will be a factor even if it takes some time. Frazier- played very well today. Confident. Played D, handled the ball and hit shots. He did force a couple of shots and Underwood let him know they were bad shots. Best I've seen him in awhile. Grandison- had a really good practice. Hit open shots and even finished at the time a couple of times. He plays D and passes well. He is a glue guy that the opponents can't leave open. Starter if the game was tomorrow. Plummer- never seemed to miss a shot in drills. Such a quick release. In the scrimmage, he hit his first shot but did not shoot the ball well afterwards. Played defense and did not turn it over. Not worried about him. Great shooter who will carry the team in some games. Payne- I expected a bit more offensively. Good backup center for Kofi. Altered shots and made Kofi work. did not take any outside shots. All at the rim. Will be a matchup problem for some teams. Great on the screen and roll. I don't see him at the four often. Hawkins- has definitely gotten bigger but is still pretty thin. He is playing with a lot of confidence. Looks for teammates and goes to the boards. Unselfish. He missed all threes that he took today. If he hits a few of those, he will be a matchup nightmare. Williams- after a slow start, he played well. Was off on his three ball, but he had a couple of nice layups in traffic that I haven't seen from him before. Likely starter if game was tomorrow. Goode- wow. Was the surprise of the scrimmage. Shot the carp out of the ball. Smooth stroke and he did not pass up any open looks. He even went by a defender running at him and hit a midrange shot. Also had a putback in the lane. Could have been the leading scorer in the scrimmage. If he plays like this every day, he will get minutes. Podziemski- made everything in drills. Really good stroke. In the scrimmage, he had trouble getting open looks. He did not back down on defense as he checked Frazier and Hutcherson at times. A year away. Melendez- if Goode hadn't been so good, I might be talking more about RJ. Very athletic. Hit a few jumpers and had a thundrous alley oop dunk. He needs to tighten his handles but he has a bright future. BBV- Will get a few minutes here and there as the third center. He is healthy. Has trouble finishing at the rim against Kofi and Payne. But he fights defensively and rebounds. Lieb- pretty darn skilled. Had a couple of dunks. Last fall, he would have been knocked down with lack of strength. Still really skinny but noticeably stronger. I don't know if he will ever see the court consistently at Illinois, but he has some talent. At least a year away. Here are my picks for best practice today. Not my starting lineup, but who had the best practice today. 1. Curbelo 2 Frazier 3 Goode 4. Kofi 5. Grandison I almost put Goode ahead of Frazier, but I thought I might be overreacting to the "new toy" that was deadly from three today. [/QUOTE]
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Open Practice (Oct. 9th)
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