Let's talk about the transfer portal...

[rocky_warrior]

...and I don't mean Shaka using it.  Is this the point in the season when "transfer portal" teams can eclipse Shaka's "home grown" teams?

No doubt we started on a tear and looked like one of the best teams in the country.  All credit to Shaka.  We've also had a few injuries (Kam, Stevie, Chase, Zaide) that held us back.

Legit, the first few games where we fell behind in the first half but ended up winning I was hoping Shaka was instructing his guys to take it easy in the first half.  I don't believe that's the case.

Can Shaka overcome very talented rosters that eventually gel, with his home grown (also talented) rosters?

[rocky_warrior]

Let's also talk about Shaka the "sports psychologist".  Early in the first half, I think at the under 16 TO, he yelled (reading lips) to Kam "That's not you" when Kam threw the ball out of bounds. 

Kam has never not been himself, he's surprised us all by being such a good passer.  Not sure why Shaka would knock him down there.  We need Kam the fearless, not Kam questioning if he's being himself.

[PistolPete]

Let's also talk about Shaka the "sports psychologist".  Early in the first half, I think at the under 16 TO, he yelled (reading lips) to Kam "That's not you" when Kam threw the ball out of bounds. 

Kam has never not been himself, he's surprised us all by being such a good passer.  Not sure why Shaka would knock him down there.  We need Kam the fearless, not Kam questioning if he's being himself.

I'm pretty sure Shaka said 'he can't guard you'

[rocky_warrior]

I'm pretty sure Shaka said 'he can't guard you'

Ok, I'm just an amateur lip reader.

Edit: Just rewatched, it's at 16:56 in the first half.  "He can't guard you." "C'mon man" ?

[willie warrior]

...and I don't mean Shaka using it.  Is this the point in the season when "transfer portal" teams can eclipse Shaka's "home grown" teams?

No doubt we started on a tear and looked like one of the best teams in the country.  All credit to Shaka.  We've also had a few injuries (Kam, Stevie, Chase, Zaide) that held us back.

Legit, the first few games where we fell behind in the first half but ended up winning I was hoping Shaka was instructing his guys to take it easy in the first half.  I don't believe that's the case.

Can Shaka overcome very talented rosters that eventually gel, with his home grown (also talented) rosters?

Hmmmm....How many transfers does Pitino have in his rotation? Two or three? How many does Shaka? Zip. Who won and is in first place? Let the name calling begin.

[The Sultan]

I think in retrospect this was an imperfect team that played over its head to start the year, and now its imperfections have been exposed.

And yes, I think a lot of the "playing over its head" was because they didn't have to integrate transfers into the mix.

[tower912]

Rocky, your initial question is an interesting one.  MU's continuity certainly appeared to be an advantage early.  Other teams have found their rhythm.  And, conference opponents know what MU is going to run and have plans to stop it.  UConn knows they aren't going to help.  SJU crashes the boards with even more intention. 
    So, now that everyone knows who they are and what they want to do to MU, what adjustments can MU make?  Last season, MU had the January slump and the late season injury slump.  The January slump ended when TKo started dominating the ball again.  The equivalent this season would be for Jones and Joplin to start making shots.

[Uncle Rico]

Hmmmm....How many transfers does Pitino have in his rotation? Two or three? How many does Shaka? Zip. Who won and is in first place? Let the name calling begin.

How many transfers does DePaul have?

[Newsdreams]

Rocky, your initial question is an interesting one.  MU's continuity certainly appeared to be an advantage early.  Other teams have found their rhythm.  And, conference opponents know what MU is going to run and have plans to stop it.  UConn knows they aren't going to help.  SJU crashes the boards with even more intention. 
    So, now that everyone knows who they are and what they want to do to MU, what adjustments can MU make?  Last season, MU had the January slump and the late season injury slump.  The January slump ended when TKo started dominating the ball again.  The equivalent this season would be for Jones and Joplin to start making shots.

This and teams / coaches have figured out Jones drives and spin moves, they're forcing him to spin at harder angles plus has been getting blocked recently. They're allowing him to take the 3 point shot and his shooting has become very inconsistent. Some of his shots are way off, very unlike Kam. I wonder if it is injury or mental, caused by all the pressure he is getting.

[rocky_warrior]

Last season, MU had the January slump and the late season injury slump.  The January slump ended when TKo started dominating the ball again. 

This is good to remember.  Though I'm not certain there's any similar adjustment for Kam & Jop. Obviously, best case is it's just a slump, and the starters will start making 3s at a higher clip again. That makes everything look better, and the offense work better.

[MuggsyB]

I don't buy it.  I just think our level of play has dropped offensively because guys aren't making shots, it's snowballed, and has led to great frustration. 

[79Warrior]

I think in retrospect this was an imperfect team that played over its head to start the year, and now its imperfections have been exposed.

And yes, I think a lot of the "playing over its head" was because they didn't have to integrate transfers into the mix.

I would agree. Ben has really struggled. Disappeared the last few games.Tough to have a big man starting that struggles to contribute anything. Reminds me a bit of Craig Butrym.

[tower912]

Ben was at almost 50% from 3 in league and had back to back games of 13 and 9 rebounds within the last two weeks, as well as scaring Matta into changing his lineup and keeping  Screen away from him.  He has struggled the last couple if games.  He isn't alone.  Ebbs and flows.

[Uncle Rico]

Ben was at almost 50% from 3 in league and had back to back games of 13 and 9 rebounds within the last two weeks, as well as scaring Matta into changing his lineup and keeping  Screen away from him.  He has struggled the last couple if games.  He isn't alone.  Ebbs and flows.

He sucks and I hope he transfers

[Its DJOver]

Ben was at almost 50% from 3 in league and had back to back games of 13 and 9 rebounds within the last two weeks, as well as scaring Matta into changing his lineup and keeping  Screen away from him.  He has struggled the last couple if games.  He isn't alone.  Ebbs and flows.

Are you saying that college players are inconsistent?  That must only be an MU thing and not effect any other team in the country.

[dgies9156]

Reminds me a bit of Craig Butrym.

OUCH!!!!!

I'll leave the coaching to Shaka and how to turn this team in the direction it needs to go.

That said, I agree with Brother Sultan that this is a somewhat flawed team. After the pre-conference season, our expectations became sky-high. The team probably is good enough to win one, maybe two NCAA tournament games but will struggle mightily beyond that point. We can't compete yet with the Auburns, Dukes or, as we saw, Iowa States of the world. Not yet, anyway.

Our guys are playing their heart out but you can see fatigue setting in, mentally and physically.

The good news in all of this is our younger players are stepping up. Our recruiting is focusing on a more complete team and as time moves on, we'll become less finesse and more physical.

[Shooter McGavin]

Kam playing at an all American level is the answer.  MU is not the same team as they were early in the season because he is not currently.  Fair or not, he is the major factor that will define this year's ceiling.

Joplin is Joplin.  He will never be consistent on offense and even more importantly as an offensive decision maker/ball handler.  He wouldn't even be on the floor playing like he did last night on offense if not for his defense.  Shaka simply doesn't have the proper depth at his position.  Owens is not productive enough on offense at this stage of his career and is a turnstone on defense currently.  This is the only position a portal player could/should have been taken IMO.  But maybe Owens doesn't come then. I believe in Shaka's system.  But it will lower the ceiling's of some teams while he is here.  I accept this.  I want Shaka here a long time.

On the bright side.  These offensive slumps are causing the team to need the bench to step up.  Parnham and Zaide last night looked good. Really liked their takes to the hoop as well as making the threes (obviously). This Kam slump is forcing others to be better.  If and only if Kam comes out of this our ceiling will be a little higher for it.

Let's hope it happens soon.

[CountryRoads]

KState will be an interesting team to keep an eye on with regards to this topic. Bunch of (highly paid) transfers and finally starting to win.

[MuggsyB]

Indiana's transfers seem to be coming together. 

[tower912]

Indiana's transfers seem to be coming together. 

Along with their aircraft carrier and midrange shooting.

[rocky_warrior]

Indiana's transfers seem to be coming together. 

Is that a transfer problem, or a Mike Woodson problem?

[MUfan12]

For a team with the "recruit and develop" model, I'm disappointed with the maturity level of this group. The slow starts, swings in their focus and effort level, particularly on the defensive end, are what I'd expect of a younger team. Also, the adventures they have hanging on to a late lead are not what I'd want to see from a group that has 3/4 of their minutes come from upperclassmen.

Too many mental errors coming from guys who have played in a ton of big games. Jop looked like a freshman last night getting backcut over and over. Kam's dumb fouls and sloppy-ass high dribble that led to a few turnovers. Stevie flying into guys like Ronnie Lott and getting in foul trouble. The less said about Ben the better.

I should trust this group a lot more than I do, given what they've accomplished. But they just can't seem to get out of their own way lately.

[tower912]

Is that a transfer problem, or a Mike Woodson problem?

Yes. 
Woodson was a mediocre NBA coach.  The only reason he got that job was he played for Knight.  Nepotism hire. IU should have canned him last offseason and snagged May.

However, IU got the exact kind of transfers MU fans are clamoring for.  And they run the old school sets MU fans are clamoring for.  The only thing left now is to figure out why it didn't work.  Player combinations?  Coaching?  System?  Some of everything?

[The Equalizer]

...and I don't mean Shaka using it.  Is this the point in the season when "transfer portal" teams can eclipse Shaka's "home grown" teams?

No doubt we started on a tear and looked like one of the best teams in the country.  All credit to Shaka.  We've also had a few injuries (Kam, Stevie, Chase, Zaide) that held us back.

Legit, the first few games where we fell behind in the first half but ended up winning I was hoping Shaka was instructing his guys to take it easy in the first half.  I don't believe that's the case.

Can Shaka overcome very talented rosters that eventually gel, with his home grown (also talented) rosters?

I think this thought was started in another thread last week, but it makes logical sense that MU is going to have less upside during the season than a team built with a number of transfers in key roles.

The benefit to continuity is that a team has been playing together for years--Kam and Mitchell and Joplin have been together 3+ years.  "Newcomers" Ross and Gold are now 2+ years on the team. 

Honestly, after 3 years how much more are Stevie and Kam going to learn about playing together? They already instinctively know just about everything about each other's skills, instincts, capabilities, etc. Every player can get better, but MU's continuity has probably means that as a team, they're at or near maximum team capability.

Compare that to St. Johns with 4 transfers--3 in starting roles.  Assuming practices start in October, by the first nonconference games they have been playing together for only about a month. No matter how individually talented those players are, they're going to learn a lot about each other over their first few months working together.  They have a ton of upside that will evolve over the course of the season.
 
A team with continuity is going to look great in non-conference, but has less upside for improvement.

A team incorporating transfers is going to look suspect in non-conference, but has a lot of room for improvement.

[We R Final Four]

Legit, the first few games where we fell behind in the first half but ended up winning I was hoping Shaka was instructing his guys to take it easy in the first half.  I don't believe that's the case.

?
You honestly believed that Shaka Smart would instruct any player at any time ever to "take it easy"??
I hope you came to the right conclusion that Shaka would never ever do that.