I'm pretty sure Lester is going to take a big hit in PT with the new staff.

I would have to agree. Considering his defensive ability or lack thereof, I just don't see him getting major minutes over guys who are much better defenders

AJ can hit the three. He didn't take many shots behind the arc because it wasn't needed among our perimeter heavy roster. His rebounding was much more important, and slashing was something he does naturally. But AJ, to reiterate, can hit the three. And he has been damn fine at doing so on limited shots, choosing wisely, suggesting to me that he could continue to do so if asked to play SG rather than wing, or even at the wing. Lester's time to develop has already come and gone, largely a motivational issue with the last coach I think - I wrote previously that it's got to be tough for a freshman to be asked to play 3 after being a 5, then to be used at 3, 4, and 5 on offense all in one year's time most recently....always to be stuck at 4 and 5 on defense while being criticized for coming up "short". Lester is not a true wing, but an undersized power forward that has not been coached into a real wing. AJ is a real wing, and I think he has the natural work ethic to become a tremendous SG, too, with some proper encouragement anf coaching. If Lester doesn't play D and put the ball on the floor better, I think AJ gets the major time instead.

With the new post and slashers we now have, I expect a strong dribble penetration offense with reliance on layups, dunks, and short range jumpers...kicking it out for a 3 when open, rather than forcing it as the modus operandi. The perimeter won't be an emphasis. Our offense will be reinforced by defense, no more dependence on high scoring but too close games.

My two cents.

(08-26-2015 12:54 PM)shampoo Wrote:  AJ can hit the three. He didn't take many shots behind the arc because it wasn't needed among our perimeter heavy roster. His rebounding was much more important, and slashing was something he does naturally. But AJ, to reiterate, can hit the three. And he has been damn fine at doing so on limited shots, choosing wisely, suggesting to me that he could continue to do so if asked to play SG rather than wing, or even at the wing. Lester's time to develop has already come and gone, largely a motivational issue with the last coach I think - I wrote previously that it's got to be tough for a freshman to be asked to play 3 after being a 5, then to be used at 3, 4, and 5 on offense all in one year's time most recently....always to be stuck at 4 and 5 on defense while being criticized for coming up "short". Lester is not a true wing, but an undersized power forward that has not been coached into a real wing. AJ is a real wing, and I think he has the natural work ethic to become a tremendous SG, too, with some proper encouragement anf coaching. If Lester doesn't play D and put the ball on the floor better, I think AJ gets the major time instead.

With the new post and slashers we now have, I expect a strong dribble penetration offense with reliance on layups, dunks, and short range jumpers...kicking it out for a 3 when open, rather than forcing it as the modus operandi. The perimeter won't be an emphasis. Our offense will be reinforced by defense, no more dependence on high scoring but too close games.

My two cents.

Well said, I think your two cents are going to be quite accurate. Less emphasis and dependency on the 3-ball

It is one thing to make a single 3 every other game, when people are laying off you and playing you to slash, as A.J. has thus far. It is quite another to be a 3 point threat that keeps the defense honest by forcing them to come out and play you, as Lester does.

Unless the Bucs establish a serious 3 point threat, they will see nothing but packed in defenses. Right now, the two guys that are an established 3 point threat are Lester and T.J.. Until someone else establishes themselves as the kind of serious 3 point threat they are, they will see plenty of playing time.

The danger with this Bucs team is not that they will rely too much on the three. To the contrary, it is that they will rely on it too little. I'm pretty sure that a one dimensional team is NOT what Forbes wants. Therefore, I am pretty sure that Lester and T.J. will see plenty of floor time.

But at this point it's all just an educated guess. Can't be too certain about very much in August.

(08-26-2015 01:58 PM)swvabucsfan Wrote:  It is one thing to make a single 3 every other game, when people are laying off you and playing you to slash, as A.J. did. It is quite another to be a 3 point threat that keeps the defense honest by forcing them to come out and play you, as Lester does.

Unless the Bucs establish a serious 3 point threat, they will see nothing but packed in defenses. Right now, the two guys that are an established 3 point threat are Lester and T.J.. Until someone else establishes themselves as the kind of serious 3 point threat they are, they will see plenty of playing time.

The danger with this Bucs team is not that they will rely too much on the three. To the contrary, it is that they will rely on it too little. I'm pretty sure that a one dimensional team is NOT what Forbes wants. Therefore, I am pretty sure that Lester and T.J. will see plenty of floor time.

This, AJ hasn't proven in a game him can make the 3 on a regular basis, heck even Petey tossed in a 3 now and then because nobody was playing him for it. I am not saying he can't, but he hasn't showed he can like Wilson has. If we don't have some people hitting the 3 or a legit threat it is going to get really clogged in those lanes and underneath.

Think we can be assured we want be seeing. Dribble, Dribble, dribble, shoot any more.

(08-26-2015 10:35 AM)swvabucsfan Wrote:  A.J., with his passion, enthusiasm and hustle, has been my favorite Buc the last 2 years. I have said repeatedly that I wish that Lester played with same intensity. But A.J. has averaged 16 made 3’s a year. Lester has averaged 70 made 3's for three years now. He hits at a pretty fair clip (.351) even though people, especially last season, were overplaying him to shoot from the perimeter. http://www.sports-reference.com/cbb/play...son-1.html

Despite the holes in his game, Lester has averaged 27.1 minutes over his career. That’s because he can hit the 3 in bunches, even when people know he’s going to take it.

If anything, this year’s Bucs need the perimeter shooting even more, with Rashawn and Jalen Riley gone. T.J. Cromer is the only other guy on the squad who has a record of hitting lots of 3’s (107 makes).
And this year’s Bucs, with more length and athleticism and Forbes preaching on tough defense, can probably cover for the holes in Lester’s game better than before.

My bet is that Lester will continue to get major minutes.

Assuming "major minutes" is 20+...I'll take that bet. See him in the 15 range - if that.

(08-26-2015 01:58 PM)swvabucsfan Wrote:  It is one thing to make a single 3 every other game, when people are laying off you and playing you to slash, as A.J. has thus far. It is quite another to be a 3 point threat that keeps the defense honest by forcing them to come out and play you, as Lester does.

Unless the Bucs establish a serious 3 point threat, they will see nothing but packed in defenses. Right now, the two guys that are an established 3 point threat are Lester and T.J.. Until someone else establishes themselves as the kind of serious 3 point threat they are, they will see plenty of playing time.

The danger with this Bucs team is not that they will rely too much on the three. To the contrary, it is that they will rely on it too little. I'm pretty sure that a one dimensional team is NOT what Forbes wants. Therefore, I am pretty sure that Lester and T.J. will see plenty of floor time.

But at this point it's all just an educated guess. Can't be too certain about very much in August.

This team will shoot it's share of 3s - intelligently. Wilson however won't be taking anywhere near what he has in the past. He's a volume shooter who needs a lot of shots to shoot an average % - and provides nothng else. Plenty of other guys better all around players.

Like too many generals, you’re fighting the last war. It was last year’s team that was severely undersized and overly dependent on guards shooting 3’s.

This year’s team is stocked full of long, athletic slashers with short to mid-range games. Unless we want to face packed in defenses every time out, our 2 proven 3 point threats, T.J. and Lester, will get 20+ minutes to spread the floor.

70 made 3’s per year on a good shooting percentage do not get thrown away in this setting.

Lester has been a key contributor for us and will play a key role role for us this season too. Forbes will give Lester a role that allows him to succeed. I think it's a mistake to devalue a player who can spread the floor like Lester.

A standstill, spot-up shooter doesn't spread the floor. If he could handle the ball and drive to the goal it would be a different story, but he can't or hasn't the past three years. Unless he greatly improves his defense and rebounding, spot duty only.

I think with the bigs and athletes this year that we will likely see a ton of zone. I think Lester will get a solid number of minutes. He is also a decent rebounder for his size. Spot up streaky shooters can definitely spread the floor and bust the zone especially with so many tall athletes to get the offensive rebounds. Until someone else proves they hit multiple 3s in a Division 1 game, Lester is our only designated 3 point shooter.

Poor Lester.

He got less love on here today than the white kid.

(08-26-2015 05:56 PM)swvabucsfan Wrote:  Like too many generals, you’re fighting the last war. It was last year’s team that was severely undersized and overly dependent on guards shooting 3’s.

This year’s team is stocked full of long, athletic slashers with short to mid-range games. Unless we want to face packed in defenses every time out, our 2 proven 3 point threats, T.J. and Lester, will get 20+ minutes to spread the floor.

70 made 3’s per year on a good shooting percentage do not get thrown away in this setting.

Okay. So what's the stakes? The only way Wilson gets 20+ is if AJ goes down - and it isn't guaranteed even then.

(08-26-2015 08:12 PM)Just Buc Wrote:  

(08-26-2015 05:56 PM)swvabucsfan Wrote:  Like too many generals, you’re fighting the last war. It was last year’s team that was severely undersized and overly dependent on guards shooting 3’s.

This year’s team is stocked full of long, athletic slashers with short to mid-range games. Unless we want to face packed in defenses every time out, our 2 proven 3 point threats, T.J. and Lester, will get 20+ minutes to spread the floor.

70 made 3’s per year on a good shooting percentage do not get thrown away in this setting.

Okay. So what's the stakes? The only way Wilson gets 20+ is if AJ goes down - and it isn't guaranteed even then.

JustBuc is right. Lester is not an efficient scorer and the fact that he has had the volume of shooting that he had the past 3 seasons tells me that it's highly unlikely he will improve his efficiency with decrease volume . Yes, Lester can be a lot of fun to watch when he hits two or three 3 pointers in a row, but there is so much more to D1 basketball than just that. Lester will have an impact on the team this season but it will be as a 10-15 min a game player coming off the bench.

To be successful, you have to know your identity! This year's team will be defined by their defense and transition offense, not their 3pt shooting. As everyone has mentioned on this board numerous times, we finally have size and athleticism and for the mid-major level, we have elite size and athleticism. Why the heck would we not want to maximize every ounce of it? It would be like Ruth's Chris Steak House saying yeah we have world-class steaks, but let's start making more grilled cheese sandwiches.

I met Guyn, Bello, Glass, Banks, and Cromer tonight hanging out in the Culp Center between my night classes. Guyn, Bello, and Guyn were especially personable. Bello was scooting around on one of those motorized two wheel footboards. Random.

I would still like to see what Guyn, Merriweather, Bello, Lufile, and Jurkin could do in certain matchups. The transition game could be daunting. Cromer doesn't seem as explosive on film, but a shooter to anchor the team is still important.

Top 8

Guyn
Jurkin
Merriweather
Cromer
Lufile
Bello
McClain
Holley, Stokes, Banks, or Wilson depending on matchups and effort.

And then some

Bradford
Johnson

Perea
Glass

(08-26-2015 10:05 PM)BlackBart Wrote:  

(08-26-2015 08:12 PM)Just Buc Wrote:  

(08-26-2015 05:56 PM)swvabucsfan Wrote:  Like too many generals, you’re fighting the last war. It was last year’s team that was severely undersized and overly dependent on guards shooting 3’s.

This year’s team is stocked full of long, athletic slashers with short to mid-range games. Unless we want to face packed in defenses every time out, our 2 proven 3 point threats, T.J. and Lester, will get 20+ minutes to spread the floor.

70 made 3’s per year on a good shooting percentage do not get thrown away in this setting.

Okay. So what's the stakes? The only way Wilson gets 20+ is if AJ goes down - and it isn't guaranteed even then.

JustBuc is right. Lester is not an efficient scorer and the fact that he has had the volume of shooting that he had the past 3 seasons tells me that it's highly unlikely he will improve his efficiency with decrease volume . Yes, Lester can be a lot of fun to watch when he hits two or three 3 pointers in a row, but there is so much more to D1 basketball than just that. Lester will have an impact on the team this season but it will be as a 10-15 min a game player coming off the bench.

To be successful, you have to know your identity! This year's team will be defined by their defense and transition offense, not their 3pt shooting. As everyone has mentioned on this board numerous times, we finally have size and athleticism and for the mid-major level, we have elite size and athleticism. Why the heck would we not want to maximize every ounce of it? It would be like Ruth's Chris Steak House saying yeah we have world-class steaks, but let's start making more grilled cheese sandwiches.

Not efficient??? The definition of efficiency is knocking down your shot with regularity, even when the defense is geared to stop it. Lester's 70 makes per year over 3 seasons at .351% is only the best in ETSU history through 3 years. Another 70 and he breaks Courtney Pigram's career record of 276. Pigram's career 3 point percentage was .342. Lester is frustrating because he has not fixed the holes in his game, despite having the kind of overwhelming athleticism that makes it seem like he should be able to do everything on the floor. But some people are so fixated on what Lester doesn't do well that they undervalue what he does extremely well, even historically well.

Saying "it's my identity" is a poor excuse for being one dimensional. Basketball ain't burgers. Serve up the same stuff every time down the floor, and other teams will send it back in your face. No matter how talented you are. Just ask Tim Smith - brilliantly talented, but his last two seasons were the same thing over and over. He had an identity alright. But the world adjusted, and it was frustrating to watch.

This Buc team can, and should, be so well rounded that nobody can stop them by packing the defense in. For that, they need a 3 point threat. Lester will be a big part of that.

(08-27-2015 06:25 AM)swvabucsfan Wrote:  

(08-26-2015 10:05 PM)BlackBart Wrote:  

(08-26-2015 08:12 PM)Just Buc Wrote:  

(08-26-2015 05:56 PM)swvabucsfan Wrote:  Like too many generals, you’re fighting the last war. It was last year’s team that was severely undersized and overly dependent on guards shooting 3’s.

This year’s team is stocked full of long, athletic slashers with short to mid-range games. Unless we want to face packed in defenses every time out, our 2 proven 3 point threats, T.J. and Lester, will get 20+ minutes to spread the floor.

70 made 3’s per year on a good shooting percentage do not get thrown away in this setting.

Okay. So what's the stakes? The only way Wilson gets 20+ is if AJ goes down - and it isn't guaranteed even then.

JustBuc is right. Lester is not an efficient scorer and the fact that he has had the volume of shooting that he had the past 3 seasons tells me that it's highly unlikely he will improve his efficiency with decrease volume . Yes, Lester can be a lot of fun to watch when he hits two or three 3 pointers in a row, but there is so much more to D1 basketball than just that. Lester will have an impact on the team this season but it will be as a 10-15 min a game player coming off the bench.

To be successful, you have to know your identity! This year's team will be defined by their defense and transition offense, not their 3pt shooting. As everyone has mentioned on this board numerous times, we finally have size and athleticism and for the mid-major level, we have elite size and athleticism. Why the heck would we not want to maximize every ounce of it? It would be like Ruth's Chris Steak House saying yeah we have world-class steaks, but let's start making more grilled cheese sandwiches.

Not efficient??? The definition of efficiency is knocking down your shot with regularity, even when the defense is geared to stop it. Lester's 70 makes per year over 3 seasons at .351% is only the best in ETSU history through 3 years. Another 70 and he breaks Courtney Pigram's career record of 276. Pigram's career 3 point percentage was .342. Lester is frustrating because he has not fixed the holes in his game, despite having the kind of overwhelming athleticism that makes it seem like he should be able to do everything on the floor. But some people are so fixated on what Lester doesn't do well that they undervalue what he does extremely well, even historically well.

Saying "it's my identity" is a poor excuse for being one dimensional. Basketball ain't burgers. Serve up the same stuff every time down the floor, and other teams will send it back in your face. No matter how talented you are. Just ask Tim Smith - brilliantly talented, but his last two seasons were the same thing over and over. He had an identity alright. But the world adjusted, and it was frustrating to watch.

This Buc team can, and should, be so well rounded that nobody can stop them by packing the defense in. For that, they need a 3 point threat. Lester will be a big part of that.

I know Swa, suddenly everyone is saying Wilson really isn't a good shooter. Of course going by the Hype on this board, not sure if anybody would think Pigram would be good enough to play on this team. I don't get it, I understand being excited but some people are going WAY around the bend, we haven't see any of these guys play and the ones who have played other places (other then Cromer at JUCO) they don't have that good a track record in college. Nobody BUT Cromer has scored in their college career. I haven't added it up but what he average per game is probably pretty close to what all the other transfers averaged combined. I want them to do well, I hope they do well, but lets seem them DO something before we decide they are the all time greatest team in ETSU history. Not being a Downer ( am sure at lest Captain will say I am) I am just trying to be realistic. All new guys and they have never played together, lets give them some time.

Flame away.

Your points are well taken, Rod. It seems like we're comparing players from different teams - as if this is a zero-sum game where someone has to suck for someone else to be good. Just Buc appears to be rooting for Lester's failure by stating "what are the stakes if Lester doesn't avg. 20 mpg...." Sheesh. Then again, I don't expect anything from someone who breaks a federal law on a message board and takes no ownership of it whatsoever.