Tyler Zeller is glad to be back and really believes he can help.
Via Inside Carolina:
On getting back into the flow:
“It’s definitely different, having been out for 13 weeks, and especially the first eleven when I didn’t get any physical action. I’m a little behind in reaction speeds, getting to places. That’s why I got so many fouls. But it felt great to be back out there.”That first turnaround jumper—was that instinct taking over?
“Yeah, it was kind of all instinct on offense. Offense I’m fine, because I’ve been able to shoot, I’ve been able to do stuff. It was more on the defensive end, just reacting to people’s drives, going around people, getting a hand in there to help—that’s what I was struggling with.”On hearing the crowd’s reaction while waiting to enter the game:
“It was one of those things where I expected it, but when you get 22,000 people cheering for you, it’s a great feeling. It was amazing when I got up and went to the table. But when I got in and found out who I was guarding, I didn’t really hear much after that.”How’s the wrist feeling now?
“It feels fine. I don’t really have any problems with it. No stiffness or anything. I’m still doing a little bit of rehab, trying to get the last little bit back. But for the most part I have all motion back and no pain.”What went into the decision to come back now instead of red-shirting?
“It was one of those things where I talked to coach about it a little bit, and then I just felt like it was the best thing for me to help me prepare for next year. In these games, I can learn a lot, which is, I can tell you, I already learned a lot from tonight’s game. Just little things you have to work on to get better. You can’t get that kind of experience if you don’t play. I feel like I can help now, just our depth, just playing. It does get difficult in the ACC [Tournament] when you’ve got three games in a row, so I feel like I can help and give other guys a couple extra minutes’ break so they can go in and play full force.”Are you concerned about giving up a whole season for the last five or six games?
“Um, yes, but no at the same time. Yes, because it is one of those things where I’m losing like half a season. But no at the same time because these are my teammates. I’ve got to help support them. If I can help them in any way, then I have to come back and help them. I feel like I’m obligated to them because they’ve been great to me the whole way I’ve been injured, and then as I come back. If there’s anything I can do to help them, help them get to their goals, winning a national championship, then I want to help.”On ways he can help:
“Anything really. Rebounding, like I said, giving them a couple more minutes out. Score a little bit here and there. Just whatever I can find to do.”
Roy Williams said back when the Ty Lawson class came in that the defensive principles are tough to pick up. It was evident Zeller was struggling with that aspect and it will take a few games to get into the flow of the defense in terms of being where he is supposed to be. That in itself is reason enough to have him play games this season as opposed to just practicing. Still the week off after the Maryland game will hopefully aid Zeller in getting up to speed. I thought Zeller looked good on offense. The three shots he took were good shots.
Zeller indicated his decision to come back hinged on his desire to further his develop by playing but also to help his teammates. Roy often talks about having high character kids and Zeller clearly fits the bill. Zeller came back for many reasons but I honestly believe the biggest reason was to help his team. He also has the right perspective on it saying he is willing to do “anything” to help which is a great approach.
Like Bobby Frasor’s threes versus Duke or Deon Thompsons first half points in that same game, I think Tyler Zeller will have a similar game at some point before this season out which will really helped the Heels in a tough game.
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It will be interesting to see how Roy uses the 4 talented big men he has at his disposal. If last night’s game is any indication, the 80 minutes for the forwards will be divided like this:
30 – Hansbrough
25 – Deon
15 – Ed
10 – Zeller
This way, he can tell the players to go 100%, and we won’t have to worry about foul trouble.
Totally off subject but didn’t I see Will Graves on the bench last night? Is this unusual for a suspended player? For his sake I hope he is working to get back in good graces of the Coach.
This is a nice story. After losing some players, we actually get one back….one with a great attitude and a desire to do whatever he can to help. It was fun seeing how the crowd responded to him last night and fun watching him get his feet wet. He’s a very well-coordinated 7 footer with a sweet looking shot. It’s the kind of stroke that looks very dependable if he picks his spots and doesn’t force it. And his defense will improve. The thing I’m really curious about is his energy level in establishing strong defensive positions and going after rebounds. I think has the appearance of a slightly passive player because of the the way he glides around, but I expect he’s a real competitor.
D,
Graves is not allowed to play. He can practice and be with the team, even on the bench but he will not “represent UNC in competition” was the phrasing Roy used.
wb3,
i agree with your breakdown of minutes for the 4 bigs. however, other than the big games left (e.g., senior night, acc finals, elite eight onwards), i would like to see tyler’s minutes to be less than 30 minutes. i want him as fresh as possible to dominate in the big games. our first 4 (wayne, ty, tyler and danny) have been playing 30 minutes plus recently, so there may be a time in key situations where we HAVE to rely on somebody. and if tyler is fresh and pain-free, i like our chances.
Good discussion, I think the return of Zeller has helped increase the excitement and anticipation of Tar Heel fans. It seems to me the last second win at FSU then crushing Duke (the emergence of the best PG in the country) has changed our outlook from “nervous” about a National Championship to a more positive feeling we had at the beginning of the year. I know I felt a little down when it was announced Graves and Ginyard were out and we had some very poor defensive outings.
I’m sure the minutes for our bigs will be dictated by the matchups, foul trouble and who is and who is not playing well. As a rule I think Roy will work toward a fresh Tyler Hansbrough the last 10 minutes of the tourney games.
I think even more important will be trying to keep Ty fresh for a deep tourney run. He has been able to dominate some games late due to his conditioning and to the fact that he’s not playing 40 minutes a game. It will be important if Roy can steal minutes with a Drew/Frasor combo so that Ty only has to play ~32 minutes (or less). However, with the lackluster play of Drew (against good competition) and Bobby’s lack of scoring, I don’t know if that’s going to work out once we get to the big dogs in the tournament.
^ Agreed, Good points. Frasor will be needed to spell Green/Ellington due to Grave’s abscense. Drew will get in for 1-2 minutes before the long TV timeouts. However, I almost think Drew needs some longer stretches to gain confidence (when the game is still in doubt).
I agree about needing playing time, HP, regarding Drew (and generally most any freshman). But it seems this always ends up being one of those “Catch 22″ type arguments. If you’re not good you don’t get much playing time but the only way to get good is to get more playing time. Through this point in the season, it doesn’t appear Drew is going to get a whole lot better (this year at least) , but I keep hoping.
Larry, Bobby, Ed, and Zeller will certainly need to play more minutes in the ACC tournament if we are going to win 3 games in 3 days. Hopefully Larry and Zeller will get some good experience then and be able to contribute a few minutes at a time in the NCAA tournament. Ed and Bobby are obviously critical substitutes.
Curious as to why you think they will need to play more mihutes than they do now to win ACC tournament, wb3. Won’t the teams we will be playing have the same challenge? Unless they give their bench players significantly more minutes, we shoudn’t have to either.
That will depend on how seriously Roy takes the ACCT. Some teams will go all in and play guys 38-40 mins. UNC on the other hand will probably keep doing what they have been doing because the goal is to win the national title.
Larry – The easy answer is that the players get worn out playing three days in a row. The teams that can rotate and keep the players fresh have the best chance of winning on the second and third days in my opinion. I think that is why we have won the past two years.
And even if you did play your starters the full game 3 days in a row and won, they would be sapped for the NCAA tournament.
What UNC does in the ACCT depends entirely on their next four games. Win them all and the ACCT becomes a practice, a la Kentucky in 1996.
UK lost in the 1996 SEC Tournament but rolled to the NCAA title which I guess was your point.
Yup. UK entered the SECT 26-1 and on a 25-game win streak. They won the first two and lost the title game to Miss St. Most people believe that Pitino “threw” that game because he didn’t want UK going into the NCAAT with a 28-game win streak. I tend to agree with this logic. UNC would be looking at a potential 17-game streak, which is right on the cusp of being too much. Additionally, this team has shown a remarkable ability to bounce back from losses over the past two years.
What was weird about that was the two teams UK lost to ended up in the Final Four with them. Kentucky played UMass to start the season and lost but beat them in the Final Four. They did not get another shot at Miss St since Syracuse beat them.
Talk about a unmemorable Final Four. Only one traditional power, two flashes in the pan and well Syracuse.
I really hate Syracuse.
You’re probably right, wb3. I’m much better at digging up stats than interpreting them , but here are some of our playing-time stats from the last two tournaments:
2008 ACC Tournament (Bench Minutes)
Game 1 63 min.
Game 2 59 min.
Game 3 52 min.
2007 ACC Tournament (Bench Minutes)
Game 1 73 min.
Game 2 62 min.
Game 3 58 min.
Now, of course, this shows nothing about the quality and depth of the bench, or the closeness of the games, but, nonetheless, I find it an interesing sequence of game 1 through the championship game.
^ Yep, that makes sense. Use the bench liberally in the opening game again the weaker opponent. But once you reach the championship game, try to win the thing.
I might also add, as a basis of comparison, that our bench minutes during ACC play, to date, average 50 minutes per game.
“I really hate Syracuse.”
Syracuse is my least favorite team in college basketball, period. Growing up in upstate NY, they are to me, what NC State is to all of you Carolina guys and gals.
“^ Yep, that makes sense. Use the bench liberally in the opening game again the weaker opponent. But once you reach the championship game, try to win the thing.”
Except that may not work this season. At the present rate of things, UNC could end up seeing Miami on Friday,
^ If we get Miami in the first round, Roy has a tough choice to make. Burn the starters out over three days or let the bench players play and see what happens. Not sure what he will do.
Yeah, this may be the one year being a 1 seed is bad. The 8/9 team will actually be fighting for a bid to the Dance, whereas the 5-7 teams will probably be pretty safe after winning on Thursday.
So far this season Zeller wins my Bill Bradley award for being the guy who looks the most sensational out on the court, regardless of actual statistics.
Like Dave Hanners, Zeller is a former Mr. Basketball from Indiana. Does anybody know if we have had any others? Rick Fox was from Indiana, but I don’t think he won it.
Bill Bradley, as most probably remember, was a great college player, and a decent, but well-coifed, pro at best, but is also remembered for probably being the least among those ever elected into the Basketball Hall of Fame. Like Joe Namath, being a New Yorker, always helps.
^ Sean May was Mr. Basketball in Indiana in 2002.
That is right, thanks wbt.
And Eric Montross.
Mr. Basketball + Center + UNC = National Title.
I bet that really pisses off Indiana fans…
Especially when you consider that May was hand-delivered to the Heels by Bobby Knight.
Montross doesn’t get his due in my opinion, probably because he had a poor pro career. He had the ability to dominate a game in a way that none of our current guys do.
There was some story about Mike Davis making Sean mad during the recruitment.
Sure hope Zeller brings us luck with that track record. Also, his “home” game will be the NCAA Midwest Regional at Lucas Oil Field, I am guessing.
Bobby Knight told Scott May that he would never speak to him again if Sean went to Indiana. Sean then looked into Texas Tech when all of the controversy was surrounding the program in 2003, but ended up staying.
If Zeller can hit four out of ten shots from the floor (slightly higher than he is shooting now), he will be an offensive demon compared to our other subs except for Ed. Surely he can accomplish that.
Here is a question for THF – who is really backing up Danny Green at the 3 position? I know we have Drew backing up Ty, and Bobby playing a little bit at both the 1 and 2, but, other than Wayne doing the occassional backup job at the 3, I don’t really see anyone. Which leads to my next question – do you think Roy should go with a big lineup every now and then? Maybe put Zeller or Hansbrough at the 3, with the other and either Davis or Thompson playing the 4 and 5?
How many minutes would Zeller last? Judging from last game, he would get his four shots in but still foul out pretty quickly….
ericomac,
No one.
If you notice, Roy has gone three guards with Lawson, Ellington and Frasor at times with Hansbrough and Thompson or Davis.
Except for point, a little bit, does Roy even pay attention to those one through five numbers?
I think he sees perimeter and inside players. He also sees it as either going big or small. Danny is a hybrid. He can play inside or out. That means if he is not in the game UNC either has three true perimeter players on the court with two big men or three big men with two perimeter players. It is usually the former. Be interesting to see if that changes with Zeller back.
“does Roy even pay attention to those one through five numbers?”
Nope. He has that attitude in recruiting, too. He recruits basketball players, not positions.
Danny is much more of a leaper than I ever expected.
ericomac,
good pt about the backup guy for danny. it looks like wayne has been the player who has had to play the most minutes as the lineup got thinner. the FSU game (1/28) was the last game for will graves (he played 3 minutes). wayne was playing 27.0 mpg up to that game. for the last 7 games incl. the FSU game, wayne’s mpg jumped by 6.7 mins to 33.7 mpg.
ty was playing 27.8 mpg and it jumped 5.2 mins to 32.4 mpg in last 7 games.
bobby was playing 14.7 mpg, jumping 2.7 mins to 17.4 mpg in last 7.
tyler was playing 28.8 mpg, jumping 2.3 mins to 31.1 mpg in last 7.
danny was playing 25.8 mpg, jumping 1.9 mins to 27.7 mpg in last 7.
ed was playing 19.9 mpg, dropping 2.6 mins to 17.3 mpg in last 7.
drew ii was playing 11.3 mpg, dropping 3.8 mins to 7.4 mpg in last 7!
at the pace that UNC likes to play, i’m worried that wayne and ty will get worn out at this rate. we NEED bobby and drew to be able to fill in more.