The following mini-rant is not just a response to Screwball's comment, but also to all of the other posters who have misused the word "athlete" and who believe that Taylor Adway is our savior.

The word "athlete" has a meaning, and it does not mean "guy who jumps high." Many years ago there was a guy at Bowling Green High School named Andy Tracy. He was a great quarterback and punter on the football team, the star of the basketball team, and a standout pitcher and third baseman on the baseball team. He went on to punt for BGSUcks and starred as a first and third baseman for the Falcons. He had a long minor league baseball career, with many home runs, and he had a few short stints in the majors. If Tracy had opted instead to play golf, tennis, and soccer, he no doubt would have excelled at those sports, too. He was a great athlete. (By the way, he couldn't jump worth a damn.)

Is Taylor Adway a good athlete compared to his Rockets basketball teammates? I have no idea. All I know is that he jumps higher than any of them, but that's a different thing. I also know that Adway is not as good a basketball player as several of his teammates. Jumping high is a good thing in basketball. So is a good shooting stroke, floor vision, ball-handling, good decision-making, conditioning, unselfishness, physical strength, hand-eye coordination, and a number of other attributes. To suggest that Coach K should play his five highest jumpers shows a profound lack of understanding of the game.

I have nothing against Taylor Adway, but he is not our savior. Sure, thunderous dunks and soaring rebounds are fun to watch. But Adway and Weatherspoon are not my favorite K-era players. That would be Rian Pearson (also a pretty decent leaper). And even more than Pearson, I loved to watch Naama, and I currently love Santucci, neither of whom can even touch the rim.

So for those who have a fetish for "athletes" (that is, guys who jump high), I suggest that you go to a track and field meet. Come to think of it, maybe that's where Adway belongs.

I don't have a quarrel with much of what you said.

I never said Adway would be our savior. Just fun to watch.

Sure, there is much more to the game than "guys who can jump high."

But it sure helps. :-)

Larry Bird was a great athlete. Jordan was a great athlete. Rodman was not a great athlete. Am I warm? Things like hand-eye coordination and decision making are definitely underrated.

BTW, Adway may come as close to a savior as we got given that after Luke we have nothing else resembling a Big while we have multiple players at the three small positions.

(09-06-2017 08:36 PM)H2Oville Rocket Wrote:  BTW, Adway may come as close to a savior as we got given that after Luke we have nothing else resembling a Big while we have multiple players at the three small positions.

True, we NEED either Adway or Logan Hill to be our savior, but that doesn't necessarily mean either one will be. Here's to hoping, though.

The Oakland game will be interesting. A solid mid-major but haven't won a game in their conference tournament in a few years, so they're nothing special. If we can't beat them on our home floor, TK is taking the program nowhere. Neither team guards anybody, so it may be 93-91 one way or another. It would be a nice win for us because they're probably about as good as the good MAC teams. My guess is Kampe is still itching to prove we should've hired him. He's probably right.

(09-06-2017 08:34 PM)H2Oville Rocket Wrote:  Larry Bird was a great athlete. Jordan was a great athlete. Rodman was not a great athlete. Am I warm? Things like hand-eye coordination and decision making are definitely underrated.

???

I suppose it depends upon your cut-off for "great." One of the best defenders and rebounders in the history of one of the toughest pro leagues in the world not a "great" athlete then we probably shouldn't be even considering whether anyone on a local college team is a great athlete.

At the least, it's certainly no insult to not be included in the list of "great" athletes.

def: a person who is proficient in sports and other forms of physical exercise.

Manipulating a tv remote is a physical exercise. I am great at it. Off the credenza, off the lazy-susan, off the lazyboy, nothing but netflix. Move aside Michael Bird.

Rodman got more unchallenged defensive rebounds than anyone in history. I recall several instances of his snapping at teammates to let him get the board when five opponents were headed for the other end. He was much better at the "hard work" part of the game than the "skill" parts like shooting, passing, free throws, etc. Still, he somewhat fit the stereotype of "athlete" in that he was fast, jumped reasonably well and was fairly strong. The point is his overall proficiency in sports didn't nearly match Jordan's (athlete) or Bird's (viewed by many as a lesser athlete), in spite of those physical attributes, which was kind of Dwight's point I think.

(09-07-2017 05:57 PM)H2Oville Rocket Wrote:  Rodman got more unchallenged defensive rebounds than anyone in history. I recall several instances of his snapping at teammates to let him get the board when five opponents were headed for the other end. He was much better at the "hard work" part of the game than the "skill" parts like shooting, passing, free throws, etc. Still, he somewhat fit the stereotype of "athlete" in that he was fast, jumped reasonably well and was fairly strong. The point is his overall proficiency in sports didn't nearly match Jordan's (athlete) or Bird's (viewed by many as a lesser athlete), in spite of those physical attributes, which was kind of Dwight's point I think.

I suppose Dwight can fine tune it as intended. How many people do you think WOULD match Jordan's athletic skill? He's refered to one of the greatest if not the, for a reason right? If his in the definition, then a very select group. If not Rodman, that still a very select group.

Yes, to the point. Timing, prediction, precision, strength and leverage, these "non" stereotypical skills are athletic skills and most important for rebounding. I'd be impressed with the person that could show "more unchallenged" stacked up to 20 per game.

If someone wants to call the run and jumper the definition of "athlete," I'm fine with that. I don't come across many that would say "no" if asked directly they thought Bird was a great athlete. But there are those that insist Bird be included would challenge a bowler or a golfer or a dart player be included. :shrug:

To each their own. They have committees to decide these things officially.

(09-01-2017 11:01 AM)cnyrocketfan Wrote:  Non-conference schedule officially released -

http://www.utrockets.com/news/2017/9/1/m...ath=mbball

Conference schedule is out now. UT begins MAC play January 2nd at Buffalo (it will be on the CBS Sports Network).

Link to news release on the UT site -

http://www.utrockets.com/news/2017/9/7/m...ath=mbball

Link to the full schedule -

http://www.utrockets.com/documents/2017/...hedule.pdf

Men's squad had its first practice on October 1st.

http://www.utrockets.com/news/2017/10/2/...ath=mbball

Looking into the schedule and it's pretty good. Very few weak opponents.

St Joes was in the tourney 2 years ago, had a young team last year and lots of injuries and struggled but expected to be back in contention in the A10

Ohio Northern is the easiest game on schedule, lower division program but finished 3rd in their league last yr

Oakland is picked to win the Horizon

Syracuse is Syracuse, although this year's version isn't expected to be a powerhouse or automatic NCAA team

Cornell is a middle of the pack Ivy team with the league's top scorer and a veteran squad

Kansas is a preseason final four pick

Texas Southern went to the tourney last year, won their league 3 straight and is the favorite again. Coached by former Indiana coach Mike Davis. Should be a fun team to watch, got a good 5-7 pg, a 7-2 transfer from Auburn, a good grad transfer from UMass, conf POY preseason pick. They play the nation's toughest non-conf schedule. 13 straight road games opening with Gonzaga, Wash St, OSU, Syracuse and Kansas in the first 10 days of the season, plus Oakland, UT, Oregon, Baylor, Wyoming, TCU, BYU

Detroit is kind of in rebuilding mode but usually plays us tough and is a sleeper team in the Horizon with some good little guards and lots of size inside. They add in a former 5 star Michigan recruit and a good grad transfer, both athletic bigs.

Marshall won 20 games last year and is expected to be better this season. One of the higher scoring teams in the country.

Wright St also won 20 last yr and is expected to be in the mix in the horizon, although their top guy transferred out for his 5th yr.

Jackson St plays in Texas Southern's league and was devastated by injuries last yr but still finished 3rd. Expected to be pretty good and one of the oldest teams in college bball, they got no one under 21 years old or something.

Cleveland St is probably the 2nd weakest team on the schedule, but not without some decent players.

Penn is the up n coming team in the Ivy that finished last season on a run playing a bunch of freshman and could be pretty tough

No predictions on how we fare. this team is tough to gauge. Most talent we've had since Juice, JD, Drummond and them graduated. And good depth everywhere other than center. W Jackson will miss the first 9 games as a transfer. So, we'll get more physical and athletic as the year goes on and he works into place. Should be a fun group to watch with a good mix of experienced shooters, several dunkers, and good new talent. The key will be closing games strong and hopefully having Fletcher, a versatile 6-7 guy who can both score or distribute on the court in closing possessions will make us better in crunch time.

Sorta excited for this year. Most athletic we have been in a long while. Not an overly tall team, but I think we will hold our own.

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(09-02-2017 04:19 PM)Rocket_Fanatic Wrote:  Who is going to Syracuse? I am

As of now it looks like I'm going to the Syracuse and Cornell games; may as well take advantage of the Rockets coming to my neck of the woods. But my schedule is subject to change. Might not know about a change in plans until the day of the game, so we'll see.

And the last time I saw a Toledo team in person was the extra point fiasco in the Carrier Dome, so maybe it's best if I don't go.