2016-2017 Season

[jacobkdoyle]

What if your shot isn't falling that day? Is it a problem if he is a good passer. I am not following your train of thought. If he is a good passer that would be a luxury right?

Of course it'd be a luxury. I'm just not sure how much I buy it. And with Caupain and Evans out there, I don't know how often he'll be in a position to show off any type of elite passing skills.

 

[jacobkdoyle]

I think we might have players that COULD do it if they just upped their volume of shots. Caupain and Evans could be volume scorers. What I think we really need is someone who can consistently manufacture a score when we need it. We lost a lot of close games last year do to not really having that luxury. Last year we basically had one "go to" play...Troy put his head down and drove to the basket. Maybe that's okay once in a while but not every time. We need more options. I believe Evans gives us a lot more versatility with play selections.

Evans can certainly create his own shots. We don't need a 20 ppg guy if we have 2-3 players around 13-16.

 

[coachpipe]

Of course it'd be a luxury. I'm just not sure how much I buy it. And with Caupain and Evans out there, I don't know how often he'll be in a position to show off any type of elite passing skills.

Having all 5 guys able to shoot and pass the ball well keeps the defenders honest while also creates spacing for driving lanes and open shooters. Having post men who are able to find an open man can help the offense get easy baskets. Being a good passer in the post can cut down on forced bad shots. It could be something as simple as finding the open man to reposition yourself on the post to get a better entry pass.

 

[jacobkdoyle]

Having all 5 guys able to shoot and pass the ball well keeps the defenders honest while also creates spacing for driving lanes and open shooters. Having post men who are able to find an open man can help the offense get easy baskets. Being a good passer in the post can cut down on forced bad shots. It could be something as simple as finding the open man to reposition yourself on the post to get a better entry pass.

I'm definitely in agreement on all of this...make no mistake. I just don't know how much "extra" Washington adds passing-wise, nor do I think he needs to be exceptional. If he stays composed and finds the open man, that's good enough for me. I just don't see us running the offense through him and asking him to make many plays outside of scoring and rebounding.

 

[WAITE HOYT 2]

Of course it'd be a luxury. I'm just not sure how much I buy it. And with Caupain and Evans out there, I don't know how often he'll be in a position to show off any type of elite passing skills.

jake having a guy who can deliver the ball if needed in a offense that has multiple people that can score is certainly a plus. Of course the ball will be in TC's hands more often then not but having multiple guys who can see the floor is a good thing and deliver a pass is a good thing.

 

[coachpipe]

I'm definitely in agreement on all of this...make no mistake. I just don't know how much "extra" Washington adds passing-wise, nor do I think he needs to be exceptional. If he stays composed and finds the open man, that's good enough for me. I just don't see us running the offense through him and asking him to make many plays outside of scoring and rebounding.

I think the term excellent passer goes hand and hand with high basketball IQ. Something we havent had at the 5 since...............................................?

 

[waterhead]

I don't think nova had a 20 point scorer, nor duke the year before.

Usually the teams that win it all are teams that have
Multiple players who can put up 20 but don't average it. Nova had hart, Jenkins, and arch. Duke had okafor, jones, winslow and others.

When we had SK we lost to Harvard bc we had a 20+ ppg scorer but that was all we had on that side of the ball. We will have multiple offensive threats this season, from Clark to TC to Evans to Washington and also Cumberland is great scorer who draws a lot fouls

Not saying we win it all but we have more offensive depth than maybe ever before in a Cronin team, same goes for the year after

I just looked back and saw the offensive juggernaut Titus Rubles was 3rd on that team in scoring at 7.3 per game...lol! Last year we had 5 players over that mark.

 

[WAITE HOYT 2]

I just looked back and saw the offensive juggernaut Titus Rubles was 3rd on that team in scoring at 7.3 per game...lol! Last year we had 5 players over that mark.

The nice thing about this team is we will have a lot f options. Defending us will be a challenge.

 

[justinhub2003]

Honestly I expect an uptick in offensive production ( though our 73 ppg wasn't terrible last year) and offensive efficiency

But i also expect a down tick in defense as well.

Ellis was a rim protector who mostly avoided the foul. And Shaq could guard anyone.

But we could lose some defensive prowess because our D is so good, that even a slightly less good version of it, will be top 25 still.

Id love to see us not have any games where we score in the 50' and low 60's (though, Uconn will always be a rock fight and we might have to make the X game a rock fight too)

 

[TrillCosby]

Honestly I expect an uptick in offensive production ( though our 73 ppg wasn't terrible last year) and offensive efficiency

But i also expect a down tick in defense as well.

Ellis was a rim protector who mostly avoided the foul. And Shaq could guard anyone.

But we could lose some defensive prowess because our D is so good, that even a slightly less good version of it, will be top 25 still.

Id love to see us not have any games where we score in the 50' and low 60's (though, Uconn will always be a rock fight and we might have to make the X game a rock fight too)

No reason this team can't average 75+ ppg this coming year. That is a first for in the Cronin era, but it's not by accident. Cronin has shifted his recruiting philosophy since leaving the Big East towards more dynamic offensive players. Caupain, Evans, and Clark could all average between 13-16 ppg. Johnson, Cumberland, and Washington could average between 8-11 ppg as well.

 

[Bearcat_NTS]

I wonder how many consecutive years we will have "the best offense in the Mick Cronin era" before we actually have a top 50 offense. BTW having the best offense under Mick isn't much of an accomplishment.

 

[Bearcat513]

I wonder how many consecutive years we will have "the best offense in the Mick Cronin era" before we actually have a top 50 offense. BTW having the best offense under Mick isn't much of an accomplishment.

First, welcome back!

Second, I always get excited going into new seasons when Cronin says the offense will be up-tempo and improved. I know it won't but I still just have this blind faith that there's a chance it could be.

With that being said, I will say this team's starting five is probably the best complete offensive team, no? Troy, Evans and Clark have proven they can score. Maybe not all average 14-20ppg but I bet those three average between 10-14 pgg each.

Washington is expected to be an offensive improvement over Ellis. All reports throughout last season were he was working his butt off. Now, during the UA Camp he is at, national media have said he's been one of the best guys there. So, with better production from our 5 spot this season in Washington, combined with the three proven scorers above, that's 4/5 spots who are offensively gifted.

The 2 spot, starter wise, is the only question mark. KJ is not known for his offensive prowess, obviously. But, if he can defend the perimeter like we know he can, make 1-2 threes a game, he will have a good season. However, bringing in a top 50 recruit who has the body of a college player, and who was a known scorer at the HS level, will make up for KJ's lack of offensive skill.

So, on paper, why wouldn't this be his best offensive team? Yes, the bench isn't too deep, but again reports so far has noted slight improvements in JJ and Quad. Is Tre Scott lives up to his "hype" so far then I think this team can average 75 a game.

 

[UCalum08]

I know a lot of people get hung up on offense. I have always wanted to see a more fluent offense. I think Cronin is doing a better job of recruiting offense talent. I hope the coaches do a good job getting players to understand motion offense. But let's be honest, we lost a lot of games last year because our defense had more holes than Swiss cheese.

I am more concerned about if our players are going to play with a certain confidence and skill to be able to finish games. Besides SK's senior year, we struggle to finish out.

 

[Bearcat_NTS]

First, welcome back!

Second, I always get excited going into new seasons when Cronin says the offense will be up-tempo and improved. I know it won't but I still just have this blind faith that there's a chance it could be.

With that being said, I will say this team's starting five is probably the best complete offensive team, no? Troy, Evans and Clark have proven they can score. Maybe not all average 14-20ppg but I bet those three average between 10-14 pgg each.

Washington is expected to be an offensive improvement over Ellis. All reports throughout last season were he was working his butt off. Now, during the UA Camp he is at, national media have said he's been one of the best guys there. So, with better production from our 5 spot this season in Washington, combined with the three proven scorers above, that's 4/5 spots who are offensively gifted.

The 2 spot, starter wise, is the only question mark. KJ is not known for his offensive prowess, obviously. But, if he can defend the perimeter like we know he can, make 1-2 threes a game, he will have a good season. However, bringing in a top 50 recruit who has the body of a college player, and who was a known scorer at the HS level, will make up for KJ's lack of offensive skill.

So, on paper, why wouldn't this be his best offensive team? Yes, the bench isn't too deep, but again reports so far has noted slight improvements in JJ and Quad. Is Tre Scott lives up to his "hype" so far then I think this team can average 75 a game.

Would like to see them score more than 70 points in a conference road game, something that they didn't do last year. The lack of depth is very concerning but of course Mick left all these scholarship open "by design." If we make the tournament it will be a great success since I guess that's our program's ceiling. As talented as we will be next year, Mick will find a way to screw it up...he always does. I can already hear the post game presser after an OOC loss where he says: "Chuck, we don't even have enough depth to practice 5v5, it's so tough to prepare when you can't even get a full practice in." Can't wait to watch Johnson play minutes over Cumberland because he's a senior that "bleeds red and black" just the same as we saw Guyn play over Caupain and Thomas play over Evans.

 

[david aka the TYZ]

I know a lot of people get hung up on offense. I have always wanted to see a more fluent offense. I think Cronin is doing a better job of recruiting offense talent. I hope the coaches do a good job getting players to understand motion offense. But let's be honest, we lost a lot of games last year because our defense had more holes than Swiss cheese.

I am more concerned about if our players are going to play with a certain confidence and skill to be able to finish games. Besides SK's senior year, we struggle to finish out.

I agree. Caupain needs to close out games this year. The problem we had last year was we played behind too much and while we made a run and maybe took a lead we as a team couldn't finish. SK's senior year, we held leads and once it hit the ten minute mark we could put it in his hands and he found ways to score if the game got tight. But we never really relinquished the lead. This team needs to build leads and hope caupain can hold it. Being that he doesn't turn it over and has learned to drive and draw fouls there is some hope that can happen.

This year does have a chance to be really good. If caupain, Clark and Evans all mature like we hope, and nothing dramatic just natural progression, that's three solid scoring options and three smart basketball players. Clark needs to be more consistent. He was great in half the games and non existent in maybe 5-10 games. That can't happen. He needs to show up every night. Caupain just needs to be more aggressive. He'll never be a true point or lead an uptempo attack but if he can continue to not turn the ball over and look to drive more or be a spot up shooter he'll have a better year than last. Evans just excites me. Not having to split time with Shaq should be exactly what this team needs. Hopefully he and caupain can work off each other so whoever the defense focuses on the other can shine. Washington is interesting to me. Ellis was a solid defender but he went too much for blocks and took himself out of position for rebounds. If Washington isn't known as a rim protector (and honestly I don't remember Ellis blocking a ton of shots last year) maybe he'll focus more on rebounding. With him and Clark both being offensive options and both focusing on rebounds, I think not giving up second chances could nullify anything Washington gives up on defense compared to ellis.

KJ/Cumberland is the x-factor to me. First I'll say, I was never a huge fan of Cobb. Yes when he got hot he was the difference maker, but he was very one dimensional. I'll assume KJ starts and if Cumberland beats him out even better. But KJ is an upgrade over Cobb on defense and while I don't think he'll light it up like Cobb did, he's not bad as a fourth or fifth scoring option. And as a senior I think we'll see some improvement from him. Obviously first and foremost he needs to cut down on the turnovers and specifically the bad passes. But with caupain, Evans and clark, we don't NEED KJ to be a focal point of the offense so anything he adds is a bonus. If he can give us 8-9 points a game and play great D that's great.

The bench and depth is obviously our weak link. Hopefully Cumberland can contribute and even better if he can give us what Evans did last year. Jenifer is an unknown. If I'm playing street ball he's the first guy I'm picking. But thus ain't street ball and we all know we won't run, so does his game translate? I really wish mock could admit to himself hell never run and quit recruiting players like Shaq and Jenifer that only will be effective in uptempo attacks. With that said, he's the backup pg and should get 8-10 minutes a game out of necessity. Hopefully he can adjust to the game mick will run. Scott is interesting to me as well. I actually think he will surprise some people. Not sure what he'll provide offensively but hopefully he can come in a wreak some havoc defensively. We won't need a lot of minutes from him or Moore, but we will need them on the floor at times to spell clark and washington and hopefully they can hold their own and not hurt us out there. Brooks I really don't expect anything out of. Anything we get from him is a bonus. Not saying he will or won't be good, just not counting on it until I see it.

 

[rogerOH]

I really think this years team success hinges on the bench. Moore-Brooks-Jenifer-Scott-KJ(I think Cumberland will start) will have to be improved. Scott with his athleticism and motor I think will be fine. Moore and Jenifer have to play smarter and play to their strengths. Moore has to make open shots-Jenifer has to take care of the ball. I don't expect a lot from Brooks at first but we will need him at the start of conference play.

 

[#BearcatNation]

First, welcome back!

Second, I always get excited going into new seasons when Cronin says the offense will be up-tempo and improved. I know it won't but I still just have this blind faith that there's a chance it could be.

With that being said, I will say this team's starting five is probably the best complete offensive team, no? Troy, Evans and Clark have proven they can score. Maybe not all average 14-20ppg but I bet those three average between 10-14 pgg each.

Washington is expected to be an offensive improvement over Ellis. All reports throughout last season were he was working his butt off. Now, during the UA Camp he is at, national media have said he's been one of the best guys there. So, with better production from our 5 spot this season in Washington, combined with the three proven scorers above, that's 4/5 spots who are offensively gifted.

The 2 spot, starter wise, is the only question mark. KJ is not known for his offensive prowess, obviously. But, if he can defend the perimeter like we know he can, make 1-2 threes a game, he will have a good season. However, bringing in a top 50 recruit who has the body of a college player, and who was a known scorer at the HS level, will make up for KJ's lack of offensive skill.

So, on paper, why wouldn't this be his best offensive team? Yes, the bench isn't too deep, but again reports so far has noted slight improvements in JJ and Quad. Is Tre Scott lives up to his "hype" so far then I think this team can average 75 a game.

I think until proven otherwise, that 2011-12 squad had Mick's best offense. 2010-11 was up there too I believe. They were deep and could get hot so quick. I certainly see potential in our starting five, but like others have stated, it's tough to really believe in any form of consistency from a Mick-coached offense. I actually just looked it up on KenPom, and in Mick's 10 years, his best offense was in the 2010-11 season where we had the 53rd best offense in the country. We've had a couple seasons recently where the offense was in the 100s. Yikes.

I do like Mick, but it's completely fair-game to call out his offense. I think in an ideal world for Mick, you'd like the offense to be around 50th best or so, and have the defense in the top 10 or 15. That formula could win you a lot of games. I worry that if we do have a much improved offensive year, the D will slip, as we saw many instances of that last year. It'll be interesting to see.

 

[Bearcat_NTS]

Mick's been a head coach for 13 years and has never had a top 50 offense. At some point it's the coaching and not the talent...

 

[#BearcatNation]

Mick's been a head coach for 13 years and has never had a top 50 offense. At some point it's the coaching and not the talent...

It can be some of both, you know. Doesn't have to be so black and white. If that were the case, his offense with trash players in 2006-07 would've had a higher offense than 180th in the country. I don't think anyone would disagree that his 53rd best offense in 2010-11 had more talent.

 

[Bearcat_NTS]

It can be some of both, you know. Doesn't have to be so black and white. If that were the case, his offense with trash players in 2006-07 would've had a higher offense than 180th in the country. I don't think anyone would disagree that his 53rd best offense in 2010-11 had more talent.

Never had a top 50 offense, average tempo is 255 in his 13 years as a HC(with the last 3 years over 300th in the country)....like clockwork the articles and quotes from Mick come out about how "this is the best offense I've ever coached" and now we can finally play the uptempo style that I've always wanted to play because of player X. Throw in a few whiny comments about officiating from the past season...rinse and repeat. Of course UC fans who have settled that we cannot do better and will buy in and coddle his whining. Mick said he evaluated if UC would be better off with a fresh start during his UNLV drama...guess he came to the wrong conclusion.