So because of the format of the scrimmage, three periods of eight minutes, it isn't really possible to talk about the team so I will talk about individuals. That being said two team notes, one now and one at the end.
-The offense, everything but the pinch post, was nearly identical to what we've ran in the past. Guard movement/exchanges around the perimeter, high ball screens from the bigs, big handoffs to the guards with the option to pass to a backdoor, high/low action, a few ISO sets. So when we hear the inevitable "the offense looked so much better, don't believe them. I will give credit to the coaching staff for this though as it seems they are trying to coach to the strengths of this team instead of taking a veteran team and trying to force them into something they are not.
The playersRod- Was everything you'd expect, he was good looked like this was a continuation of April.
JO- WOOF! If not for another starter he would have been far and away the worst player today. He was devoid of any positive emotion. The only time he seemed to care about anything was when he was pouting. Chet yelled at/encouraged him more than once. I didn't track minutes but I know he and Rod played the most and he didn't grab a single rebound. I've been the conductor on the JO train since he was a freshman, but today he was trash. This was sophomore season JO without the blocked shots.
Angel- Gave the section 17ers a wink, nod, and point when he saw the PR flag. He was very good, best starter outside of Rod. He hit jump shots and took care of the ball. We'll see what happens when game play starts but it looked like the game has slowed down for him. For two periods he played against Will and he played very intense defense, it was like he took something personally, maybe he channeled how I feel about Will. Not that this is any surprise but when Angel & Will did play together in the third period Angel played point exclusively.
Will- The more things change...look this guy isn't a shooter. What excuse will he use for shooting 32% this year? He was 1-8. Not that this matters much but there was a pre scrimmage 3 point contest and he looked terrible in that too. The shooting bothers me because it appears that he is the starting shooting guard. What's equally troubling is that when he played point guard he still had no interest in keeping the ball in his hands for more than 2 seconds. There were two different occasions where he got the ball in the back court and didn't even attempt to bring it up. He, the point guard, outletted the ball to the hash to someone else. I didn't see any change at all.
Gip- A little trimmer, a little quicker. Pretty aggressive, still short. I really like his motor, but he's going to struggle a bit against skilled bigger players.
Diaz- Another player who didn't look different at all and that's not necessarily a good thing. He did seem to be a bit more aggressive, he had the only two dunks, both after taking a dribble to the basket. The two possessions when JO was motivated Adrian couldn't handle him. He stretched his range taking an inexplicable 19 foot baseline jumper.
Tay- Looked no different, he would be invisible for long stretches and then hit two threes in three possessions.
EMAPE- So for today anyway, all the hype was deserved, may have even been under hyped. He shot the hell out of the ball. Good looking mid range jumper, baseline jumper. I don't know if he'll be able to get to the rim off of the bounce, but he shot the ball very well. He was the second best offensive player today outside of Rod.
Shane- barely noticed he was there, made a couple of baskets, nothing else to say
Nino- meh, I'm only mentioning him because of the pre season talk about him. He did play with energy but he just doesn't seem skilled to make an impact. He will have 2 or 3 games when people will
him and he will make things happen with how hard he will play otherwise
DJamer- WOW!!! He's the team's best shot blocker, today and that's no slight on JO or Adrian. He is an athletic defender, an amazingly quick jumper. He's very energetic. He had 6 blocks in his limited time including turning back an Adrian dunk attempt. That being said he was not good offensively, he'll need to develop his hands.
Mike Orris- Didn't do anything really, I'm just mentioning him because if anyone compares him to Will, I will drive to any house anywhere and slice your tongue out with a rusty knife. He is a pass first point guard, but not a ball mover. He looks absolutely nothing like Will on the floor. Not to take a shot but Orris looks like a basketball player. He has a little swag to him and he definitely won't be a tuck mascot like Will is.
Final team note. The last eight minute period was played starters vs. twos. The starters got pounded because none of them outside of Rodney did a damn thing. The starters were Angel, Will, Rod, Gip, and JO. The twos were Tay, Southwell, Omari, Nino, & Diaz. Orris and DJamer played very little in this portion of the scrimmage.
