Miggy
1st String
Posts: 2,260
Joined: Aug 2019
Reputation: -4
I Root For: Eastern Michigan and Tem
Location:
|
RE: Jake Forrester will soon join Temple's playing rotation
(11-27-2019 07:45 PM)jedclampett Wrote: (11-27-2019 10:43 AM)Miggy Wrote: I had high hopes for Forrester till I saw him play twice and on both occasions he was out of control and saw a pass to him slip through his hands. He played 14 minutes in one game, shot 1-5 from the field, 3-4 from the foul-line, had three defensive rebounds, one block, one turnover, and had four fouls. Others who watched him play were very disappointed. ...it’s possible what we witnessed was an aberration.
...it’s possible since I saw him play two months ago that the coaching staff has turned him into a bb player. He sure looked like one in his highlight video.
.
6'9" Forrester's preseason performance could be a concern, but I'm focusing more on the way he played at Indiana last season. His scrimmages may not be representative of how he will play this season, and might have been affected by being under the weather, being unfamiliar with his teammates, adjusting to his new role, or various other factors.
Some guys perform better in game situations than in practice scrimmages. JPL may be an apt example. Like JPL, Forrester might surpass preseason expectations.
Further, some players who expect to be redshirted can understandably be slightly less primed than active players during the preseason. Now that Forrester knows that he's likely to be activated very soon, he may well get a sudden burst of energy, and his focus may improve.
Yes, it might take him a little while to get into game shape, and he may have some skill gaps to work on, but you can bet the coaching staff is going to put some extra effort into helping him improving his game.
Since Coach McKie didn't hesitate to play both JPL and Parks by game 2, it seems likely that he'll give Jake some playing time at some point in Orlando.
The guy's obviously not an unskilled stiff, given the fact that he averaged nearly one (0.9) pt, rb, stl, or blk per minute of play at Indiana in 4.3 mpg in 13 games last season.
At first, he might only play a few minutes, and it might take a few games for him to get fully acclimated. But all Temple needs is for him to play a few minutes in a limited role, at first, by protecting the rim, grabbing a few rebounds, scoring a put-back or jam, and blocking a shot or two.
As with Damion Moore, Coach McKie won't necessarily need Jake to play much more than 10-12 mpg, at least between now and the start of conference play. After that, if he improves sufficiently, he may be able to compete with Hamilton and Parks for additional playing time.
Coach M probably has the PF position covered adequately by Moorman and Perry (although Moorman's play needs to improve considerably). As long as that is the case, he will soon have the option to play a committee of four players at the 5 position: D Moore, JH, Parks, & JF, unless he prefers to play JF as his #3 bench player at the 4 position.
At first, JF's main task may be simply to help make up for D Moore's absence, by either freeing up Moorman from having to play the 5 position, or to play 4 for a few minutes when Moorman is playing 5. As such, he would be the #4 option at the 5 position.
Assuming that he acclimates and develops his game steadily, he could become a valuable contributor despite playing a mainly defensive and rebounding role. Beyond that, we know that he added more points than rebounds while playing at Indiana, so he may eventually play enough mpg to contribute some interior scoring.
There's one thing we do know: One of Coach McKie's priorities for 2020-21 will be to prepare Forrester to become an impact player who can play significant minutes, bolstering Temple's rebounding and interior defense after D Moore's departure. By 2021-22, Forrester may be in the best position to start in the front court alongside Parks, or to alternate minutes with Parks at the 5 position.
Fans need to see Forrester play before allocating his playing time. We’ll get a good idea regarding his skill set when McKie decides to play him. We need to wait and see McKie’s confidence in Forrester.
As for JPL, it’s clear he can get to the hoop.
But his excessive fouls and turnovers may well limit his playing time. Temple will have a difficult time winning unless he greatly reduces his negatives.
(This post was last modified: 09-20-2020 07:37 AM by Miggy.)
|
|