(02-04-2021 08:14 PM)Centdukesfan Wrote:  The idea that last year's team was significantly less talented is revisionist history. Darius banks and Dwight Wilson are putting up great numbers at their new schools. They were very good players. Dwight Wilson basically averaged a double double last year.

This just boils down to the fact lou was in over his head. It's all water under the bridge. I hope he catches on as an assistant at a good program in the next few years.

Away from politics we frequently see things similar.

Things that are frequently wrongly said that cause eye rolls.

- It's a difference of talent.
- They left because they were over recruited.

The pieces fit together this year, because you have a better coach. The talent is similar. The same people that say this team is more talented and deep, are the same ones that talked about how talented we were the last few years.

If it's talent, than how come with lost to Morgan St and Norfolk St? Because we were not a good team. Mark improved the sum of the parts over the last 2 months.

Coaching matters.... A TON.

Different types of talent- did last years team have someone as quick as Strickland on defense- did last years team have a guy with the jumping ability that Justin Amadi has?

(02-05-2021 09:27 AM)NJDuke97 Wrote:  Different types of talent- did last years team have someone as quick as Strickland on defense- did last years team have a guy with the jumping ability that Justin Amadi has?

Dwight wilson is 2nd in the country at FG%. Who cares about jumping ability when you get the biscuit in the basket 70%(!!!!) of the time. To be fair, amadi isnt far behind wilson on this (and is comically shooting 100% from 3pt land). Darius banks can absolutely jump and is only about an inch shorter than amadi.

I think you are right that Dwight was a defensive liability, but then again a lot of people were on our team, mostly because the last coaching staff for whatever reason did not instill that in his team.

The difference this year is by a long shot coaching, the second is we have more complementary pieces, third is a marginal talent difference. I do believe that in many cases the whole can be greater than the sum of its parts, but that is more due to coaches vs puzzle pieces fitting together.

(02-05-2021 09:34 AM)Centdukesfan Wrote:  

(02-05-2021 09:27 AM)NJDuke97 Wrote:  Different types of talent- did last years team have someone as quick as Strickland on defense- did last years team have a guy with the jumping ability that Justin Amadi has?

Dwight wilson is 2nd in the country at FG%. Who cares about jumping ability when you get the biscuit in the basket 70%(!!!!) of the time. To be fair, amadi isnt far behind wilson on this (and is comically shooting 100% from 3pt land). Darius banks can absolutely jump and is only about an inch shorter than amadi.

I think you are right that Dwight was a defensive liability, but then again a lot of people were on our team, mostly because the last coaching staff for whatever reason did not instill that in his team.

The difference this year is by a long shot coaching, the second is we have more complementary pieces, third is a marginal talent difference. I do believe that in many cases the whole can be greater than the sum of its parts, but that is more due to coaches vs puzzle pieces fitting together.

100% - that is coaching.

The results of the team under Rowe was less than the sum of the parts. "At worst" Lou had top 3-4 talent the last 4 years. Look at the transformation of Lewis.

(02-05-2021 10:23 AM)Dukester Wrote:  

(02-05-2021 09:34 AM)Centdukesfan Wrote:  

(02-05-2021 09:27 AM)NJDuke97 Wrote:  Different types of talent- did last years team have someone as quick as Strickland on defense- did last years team have a guy with the jumping ability that Justin Amadi has?

Dwight wilson is 2nd in the country at FG%. Who cares about jumping ability when you get the biscuit in the basket 70%(!!!!) of the time. To be fair, amadi isnt far behind wilson on this (and is comically shooting 100% from 3pt land). Darius banks can absolutely jump and is only about an inch shorter than amadi.

I think you are right that Dwight was a defensive liability, but then again a lot of people were on our team, mostly because the last coaching staff for whatever reason did not instill that in his team.

The difference this year is by a long shot coaching, the second is we have more complementary pieces, third is a marginal talent difference. I do believe that in many cases the whole can be greater than the sum of its parts, but that is more due to coaches vs puzzle pieces fitting together.

100% - that is coaching.

The results of the team under Rowe was less than the sum of the parts. "At worst" Lou had top 3-4 talent the last 4 years. Look at the transformation of Lewis.

I think we’re not far off from being in 100% agreement what I’m saying is that if you watch this team vs last year of course there are differences in terms of energy and pace that are 100% because of coaching but I’m saying some is personnel too - having a guy inside who is active (even though he’s undersized) can play above the rim, can run the pick and roll a step or two quicker, can get up and disrupt shots get in passing lanes even past the 3 point line and create deflections and turnovers and a guard in Strickland who can be so disruptive on the perimeter makes a big difference in terms of how other teams play against JMU.

Those guys weren’t on the roster last year even if they were we know they wouldn’t be employed as effectively but I’m just giving credit to those guys their impact on our program as true freshmen and that the coaches recruited them to JMU and know where they fit why they fit and how they can help us win games. Heck we didn’t even have a 3 point shooter like Hodge can be (folks clamored for Richey in that role and he’s getting no run at Samford) or a second ball handler who could shoot (Parker vs Morse) on last years roster the way we do now.

It’s coaching and Rowe had some talent in the program obviously but this roster is better in terms of talent snd skill. It’s deeper too and that’s not even considering Mensah and Taylor who I believe have talent but need some seasoning this year before that shows on the floor in the rotation.

Man - just looking back on stats - can we talk about darius' regression in the 3 pt category. He went from almost a 50% 3 pt shooter his sophomore year to a 33% shooter his junior year. Thats wild!

Wow, who woulda thunk that all we needed was a good coach?!

I can't help but wonder how much better this team would be if they had a normal offseason/season.
For the screwball that's been thrown, they deserve to be given a bit a slack. Both the staff and the players. For a brand new staff to come in at a time like this has been, I'm truly shocked we're seeing positive results this season.
In addition, the entire team deserves the credit for making the most of the time they are given. The players are pivotal in this. They had to buy in under circumstances that no JMU MBB has EVER had to. They have had less team time and practice time and game time than any JMU team has ever had at this point. And yet, they are getting better. They are better than they have been in years. Yet some forget to consider these things and instead view this as any other year. It isn't. Nor is it fair to compare this team to any other team in the country. Every team has its own struggles and its own adversities. Not one adversity is better/worse than another. They have dealt with their own adversity in the best way they can and for that they deserve massive props.
Regardless of the outcome, I am very excited for the future of JMU Men's Basketball (it's been a long, long time since I've felt this way and truly mean it)

(02-04-2021 07:33 PM)JMUNation Wrote:  I agree coaching is part of the equation for Matt but I also think the depth of talent around Matt is much greater. Matt doesn’t have to force things because he has teammates that can produce and flat out ball. He also has teammates that play lock down help defense and are gaining confidence with every win. Matt isn’t shouldering the burden of carrying this team every game.

Don’t underestimate the win at NU. That told this team they could beat any team in the conference and on the road. The Dukes have had a swagger since.

This team can win the CAA. There isn’t another team in our league with the depth JMU has. With Strickland and Christmas playing better than at seasons start, how do other teams game plan against us? Stop Lewis and Vado? Right. The rest of the team steps up and wins the game going away. The magical chemistry that a coach wishes for is there with this team and they are just touching the tip of the iceberg if they can continue their recent trajectory.

We diehards have waited since the Lefty years for this team. I can’t wait until the next game. This team is so much fun to watch. I love their heart. Win or lose, I know they are going to get after whoever they are playing.

That is an oxymoron!

Two years ago our roster breakdown went like this:

Bigs
6-10, athletic Develle Phillips
Dwight Wilson (double digit scorer)
Zach Jacobs to do the dirty work inside

Perimeter scorers
Matt Lewis
Stuckey Mosely (along with Matt could handle the ball and tied him for team lead in scoring)
Darius Banks (deadly three point shooter that year, athletic, double digit scorer

Primary ball handler
Deshon Parker

Glue Guys
Greg Jones
Antanee Pinkard

There is nothing wrong with that roster construction. It could go 9 deep and decent coaching should have gotten 20+ wins out of that team. It had:
3 legit big men,
3 perimeter scorers (and really 4 by the end of the year, as Parker could at least keep teams honest),
3 ball handlers
2 glue guys who could guard multiple positions

We should have been able to beat teams inside and outside, out-athlete most of the CAA and have had the depth and skill set to play any style we wanted.

I will admit it is very likely the three freshmen came in this year with their defensive intensity already in place and that By did not need to coax it out of them, but he has everybody else buying in, too. Most importantly, they are playing as one unit. So yeah, it is a difference in coaching. The talent has been there.

(02-05-2021 09:27 AM)NJDuke97 Wrote:  Different types of talent- did last years team have someone as quick as Strickland on defense- did last years team have a guy with the jumping ability that Justin Amadi has?

Those two have been really impressive - in fact they are probably the prototype of what Coach Rowe wanted... a lot of Allen iverson's running and creating and super quick. However, I think that style can't work for an entire team (or create a sense of team) and is the antithesis of X and Os

I think yesterday showed the stability the alphas continue to give us.

So many players to continue to improve, but the maturity & confidence Vado, and Matt provide late in games is huge to this team. The really seem to control the last 5-7 minutes of games. Over the weekend in both games you could see the team struggling to score late in the last 10 minutes of the game and each time they just seemed to take control of the games.

(02-05-2021 10:54 AM)Centdukesfan Wrote:  Man - just looking back on stats - can we talk about darius' regression in the 3 pt category. He went from almost a 50% 3 pt shooter his sophomore year to a 33% shooter his junior year. Thats wild!

A small body of work because he has only played since mid January but he is 3-19 thus far this year.

I think we are witnessing the creation of another alpha

We talk about the Alpha's, but on any given night it seems like there are 7 or so others that can step up big time.

That's what is so fun. Mark is able to get things out of all of his players.

(02-15-2021 04:29 PM)Dukester Wrote:  We talk about the Alpha's, but on any given night it seems like there are 7 or so others that can step up big time.

That's what is so fun. Mark is able to get things out of all of his players.

This freshman class reminds me of the 12-13 class, not in skill set but in grit and fearlessness. This is unquestionably Matt's team, just as that was unquestionably Devon's team, but the new blood is completely changing the on court attitude, just like that year.

The difference is this team seems to truly be all in for each other and has completely bought in to all of the coach's philosophies.

(02-15-2021 05:05 PM)purplesanman Wrote:  

(02-15-2021 04:29 PM)Dukester Wrote:  We talk about the Alpha's, but on any given night it seems like there are 7 or so others that can step up big time.

That's what is so fun. Mark is able to get things out of all of his players.

This freshman class reminds me of the 12-13 class, not in skill set but in grit and fearlessness. This is unquestionably Matt's team, just as that was unquestionably Devon's team, but the new blood is completely changing the on court attitude, just like that year.

The difference is this team seems to truly be all in for each other and has completely bought in to all of the coach's philosophies.

Interesting comparison. I just started another thread comparing 2008-2009 trio to this this year's trio.

Brady's records were overall good, but looking at some of the talent on his teams, I think he underachieved as a coach.

(02-15-2021 05:18 PM)Dukester Wrote:  

(02-15-2021 05:05 PM)purplesanman Wrote:  

(02-15-2021 04:29 PM)Dukester Wrote:  We talk about the Alpha's, but on any given night it seems like there are 7 or so others that can step up big time.

That's what is so fun. Mark is able to get things out of all of his players.

This freshman class reminds me of the 12-13 class, not in skill set but in grit and fearlessness. This is unquestionably Matt's team, just as that was unquestionably Devon's team, but the new blood is completely changing the on court attitude, just like that year.

The difference is this team seems to truly be all in for each other and has completely bought in to all of the coach's philosophies.

Interesting comparison. I just started another thread comparing 2008-2009 trio to this this year's trio.

Brady's records were overall good, but looking at some of the talent on his teams, I think he underachieved as a coach.

Yeah, I still think the comparison to the 12-13 class is closer.

Wells and Devon were both double digit scorers. Because of Juwan's injuries, you could argue that it was really Devon's team from the beginning, even with Curtis and Swanston still there. This year's freshmen aren't asked to do that. The flip side of course, is that Wells didn't play great D until his senior year. For his first couple seasons, Sem was more likely to flop than to attack. Devon was given the toughest defensive assignment from day one, but his game was to be as smooth as possible and try to keep things under control. There is no way those three would have thrown their bodies around or kept loose balls alive with the tenacity of this year's class

Nation , Cooke and Curry all averaged under 10 points. Their job was to be absolutely relentless for 20+ minutes per game. Even with the senior scorers, the team kind of took on their attacking defensive style as its identity, just like this year.

I 100% agree about Brady, though. He was very underrated as a recruiter, but it wasn't until Junior and Senior year Ron Curry that I thought he got the most out of his team.

With the CAA tournament only 2 weeks from Saturday, and Matt not looking that great last Sunday, do you think if Matt could not play again this year it would increase his odds to return for another semester?

(02-18-2021 11:24 AM)Dukester Wrote:  With the CAA tournament only 2 weeks from Saturday, and Matt not looking that great last Sunday, do you think if Matt could not play again this year it would increase his odds to return for another semester?

I think Matt will once again put his name in draft consideration, and I think most talented players should since they no longer risk their NCAA eligibility. He put his name in last year and was able to take part in workouts and get honest feedback (kind of like we can do with resume critiques), and look at the result. Now, I don't think that's the whole story; I think the coaching staff and their new system also impacts Matt's well rounded stats and play this year. But I think he could enter the draft without signing an agent like last year. If he comes back, we should be a favorite in the CAA. If he doesn't, we should still be a favorite in the CAA. Oh what a feeling.