Torian Graham 2014 JUCO SG

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david aka the TYZ said:
I agree. He needs to get stronger which I think he will. He's not going to bulk up but he can add strength. The problem with me for a guy like Shaq is his game doesn't translate to the slower paced style that we always fall back on. His attributes are his jumping ability and maybe beating a man one-on-one off the dribble, which he shows some with a nice spin move or dribble fake, but he loses the ball making a move as much as he doesn't at this point. In the half-court and with college defenses those attributes can be nullified. His defense has improved, especially on his man. He still gets lost on switches, which doesn't help him stay on the court with our defensive style. That can be taught in theory, it's on him to grasp it though. I hate to say it, but honestly I see Morman and KJ being able to give us what he does in as many minutes, especially with athletes like Lawrence and Clark flying around like we want Shaq to. KJ is obviously smaller which is important, he doesn't really fit the three mold. My point is give KJ or Morman 23 minutes and tell me they won't average at least 7 a game. On the opposing side, SK is gone so 23 minutes next year for Shaq and he'll probably by default take more shots and thus score more.
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UC needs to play in a much faster tempo for Shaq Thomas to be effective. Hell, it would help everyone on this roster.
 
Bearcat_NTS said:
UC needs to play in a much faster tempo for Shaq Thomas to be effective. Hell, it would help everyone on this roster.
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That was exactly my point. As far as helping everyone on the roster, I don't know. It would definitely help us score, but we would give up more points. Regardless of the pace, we'll still get the ball the same amount of possessions as our opponent. The question is would our defense be as effective in an uptempo style. 2nd halves vs. Houston and Temple where we started moving uptempo would suggest not. Those teams scored at will on us. I think when you struggle to score increasing the number of possessions doesn't really help your chances of outscoring someone. You're a numbers guy, the more opportunities you get the more the law of averages balances out.
 
david aka the TYZ said:
That was exactly my point. As far as helping everyone on the roster, I don't know. It would definitely help us score, but we would give up more points. Regardless of the pace, we'll still get the ball the same amount of possessions as our opponent. The question is would our defense be as effective in an uptempo style. 2nd halves vs. Houston and Temple where we started moving uptempo would suggest not. Those teams scored at will on us. I think when you struggle to score increasing the number of possessions doesn't really help your chances of outscoring someone. You're a numbers guy, the more opportunities you get the more the law of averages balances out.
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That is what we have per possession statistics for! Cincinnati was #320 in tempo at 63.1 possessions per game and ranked #9 in adjusted defense allowing 0.915 points per possessions. I do agree that typically good defense teams all are fairly slow teams (Florida is #321, Virginia is #346, etc) however you've still got VCU and Louisville who play at a fast tempo and still have efficient defenses. The common factor between those two teams is they press and score in transition. UC did a good job forcing turnovers/bad shots but did a poor job converting those opportunities. I do have hope that this will change with Caupain and Johnson playing more minutes in the backcourt.
 
There are moving parts in all of this so for anyone to say anything as definitive is off base in my opinion. Sure there are targets and preferences but imo the staff hasn't solidified anything yet. They won't sign anyone unless it betters the team and meets a need and they are still trying to get people on campus. And please stop the Guyn speculation. Conjecture with no basis in fact.
 
Any way we can start a thread on just generic recruiting? Every time I go on here I think there's an update or at least discussion on Graham and.....nothing.
 
Bearcat_NTS said:
That is what we have per possession statistics for! Cincinnati was #320 in tempo at 63.1 possessions per game and ranked #9 in adjusted defense allowing 0.915 points per possessions. I do agree that typically good defense teams all are fairly slow teams (Florida is #321, Virginia is #346, etc) however you've still got VCU and Louisville who play at a fast tempo and still have efficient defenses. The common factor between those two teams is they press and score in transition. UC did a good job forcing turnovers/bad shots but did a poor job converting those opportunities. I do have hope that this will change with Caupain and Johnson playing more minutes in the backcourt.
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My point is when you have a team that shoots bad or to put in your terms, its points per possession is bad, then increasing possessions just makes that scoring gap even bigger. I suppose in theory your defensive rating should remain the same regardless of the tempo, but by that logic, so should the offensive rating and then we wouldn't need to adjust tempo to improve the offense.
 
I'm worried that Kentucky's players (Harrison twins especially) will take advantage of this tourney run and head to the NBA...opening a scholarship for Torian Graham...
 
jacobkdoyle said:
I'm worried that Kentucky's players (Harrison twins especially) will take advantage of this tourney run and head to the NBA...opening a scholarship for Torian Graham...
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He has already said he does not want to go to UK anymore because he feels like a "back-up" plan and not a priority.
 
I know uk was his dream school. But right now he is their back up plan, uc has had him as the their number 1 option for a while now
 
I've heard he feels like UK's back up plan. That all sounds good but if they came calling i have a hard time believing he would turn them down. But maybe I'm just overthinking it bc he hasnt officially committed yet.
 
Bearcatboy said:
The public has known for a week Graham will probably be a Bearcat now the "experts" are just now finding out wow recruiting is crazy.
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You mean the public "thinks," not "knows." Again, they likely know more than the average Twitter user. Seeing Jerry Meyer flip his prediction certainly makes me more comfortable.
 
wow i've been away from the board for a while, but if we get graham my outlook on next season went from rebuilding year to a top 25 team. Deberry and graham are both ready to play college ball right now, I don't know which I'm more excited to see, but are 2 worse players next year are going to be our 2 seniors, no question about that.
 

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