(10-13-2020 10:59 AM)Dukester Wrote: (10-13-2020 08:58 AM)JMUNation Wrote: We don’t know how good Lewis can be until there is some talent around him. Lewis has faced three years of having defenses game plan to stop him. Teams basically forced the rest of the Dukes to beat them. This strategy has worked well. If the new talent is good enough to where opposing defenses have to pay more attention to defending them, Lewis should be freed up for more open looks. In past years, almost every shot he took was highly contested and one he had to get on his own.
Lewis' game seems to be a little like Fanning was in the day at a more talented level. I'm not so sure how much his game will change even with a new coaching staff or the players around him. Maybe it doesn't have to with the new flow of the offense.
It will be interesting to see how it plays out.
The problem hasn't been surrounding talent the past 3 years. The problem has been the coaching. Lewis was allowed and even encouraged to heave shots and we've seen his shot selection is not good on his own accord. Hopefully, Byington reins that in and actually results in a less is more approach. Fewer shots, but better shots, can result in Lewis scoring more than ever and the team actually winning in the process.
We'll see. All we can do is hope, because the ink on the contract is dry. Byington will have to be a much better coach than he has ever been and that is a hope for someone going into his eighth year as head coach with a career track record of always being the bridesmaid, but never the bride.
He has won zero conference championships.
He has won zero conference tournaments.
2014 7th place, lost in semifinals
2015 2nd place, lost in finals
2016 5th place, lost in play-in round
2017 3rd place, lost in quarterfinals
2018 3rd place, lost in semifinals
2019 2nd place, lost in semifinals
2020 4th place, quarterfinal W then Hoops cancelled for COVID
this was in a weak conference ranked even lower than the CAA over the past 7 years.
CAA avg conference rank = 16, his avg conference rank = 19.7