What: Jordan Brand Classic
Where: Madison Square Garden, New York, NY
When: Saturday, April 17th, 8:00 PM
TV: ESPN2
More future Tar Heel goodness on the court. The trio of incoming Tar Heels take the court in New York. Reggie Bullock will be playing for the East. Harrison Barnes and Kendall Marshall will play for the West. No, I have no idea how these teams get divvied up.
Comments if you have ‘em as you bask in the glow of reassurance emanating from Harrison Barnes that next season will be okay.
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THF,
So OK to call Barnes a freak, the second coming of a mix of Hansbrough and Jordan, and discuss all expectations of how great he will be in a UNC uniform
BUT
Not OK to discuss potential weaknesses in the game of a 5 star PG recruit that will be playing for UNC next season.
So can you explain how that leads to a balanced discussion?
So it is OK to slobber all over the potential success of incoming recruits, but not OK to point out any deficiencies that may have been witnessed in an incoming recruits game? Then maybe we should stop having threads that are dedicated to anyone that has not played a game for UNC yet and not even mention recruits until they play their first game in Chapel Hill. As a result, the new rule could be that when freshmen are allowed to talk to the media then we’ll be able to discuss their performances and games on this BLOG.
It’s not okay to write them off before they even show up. That is some of what I am seeing here. Not everyone but there is at least one reader who wants to claim that Marshall is too slow to run Roy’s offense and still others who think there is no difference between a five star PG recruit and Quentin Thomas or Larry Drew for that matter. Discussing weaknesses is one thing, but in my opinion some of the discussion is overtly pessimistic and making way too many snap judgments about players on the basis of three all star games. Plus you know as well as I do that team dynamics and chemistry, fitting into the system and a host of other factors will make or break these kids when they show up. And yes, for the record, that extends to positive judgments as well though I think the body of evidence on Barnes is pretty darn solid given he has played well in all three games. I would not drop Jordan or Hansbrough references but I do think he is a freak.
^OK, understand your initial point better now…….
For the record, Kendall Marshall had four wisdom teeth pulled today. He was told by the doctor he should NOT have played in the Jordan game.
According to his Twitter, he also lost 12 pounds in the last 10 days because of the teeth.
I’ll say this for the young man; he really wanted to be in that game to play through that. I really wonder if the Ty Lawson that showed-up in CH as a freshman would have played in the game with that issue. This kid must be pretty tough!
John Henson just revealed he is now weighing in at 203. He was listed at 195 at the start of the season.
Bomani Jones asked for a picture of the scale, Henson says he will oblige tomorrow.
^Wouldn’t surprise me if he is in the 215 range by the start of next season, which would put him right about where Brandan Wright was.
He indicated one night he was headed to the Dean Dome to work out. “Gotta get better” he said. Hopefully his work ethic is what it needs to be. Now if we can get some tweets from Graves reporting his weight headed in the opposite direction, we will be in business.
Not saying UNC doesn’t have an approach like this these days, but it seems like I remember Bill Guthridge working with the big guys on shooting around the basket……10 shots with the right hand, 10 shots with the left. Over and over.
If Zeller and Henson could really develop a rhythm with some “go to” shots this off season, they would be hard to defend next year. Hope they’ve got that on their summer “do list”.
Looking like Sunglare will not EVEN test the waters and return back to the empire. We are going to have a tough mountain to climb.
^Layne Staley has been drinking the Kool-Aid from the Duke brass that he will be a lottery pick next year. I am not sure about that.
Wayne,
I think that we are in for some pleasant surprises this upcoming season. Have you not at least assumed that the over-under was in favor of Singler coming back? I think that most of us assumed he would be, but only after testing the waters.
In the end, all of the bulbs flash hottest on the Dook program once again…and all of the scrutiny, disdain, Vitale superlatives, ESPN drool, and national disgust will be back in full force.
C’mon, admit it…all of you. When Dook were get outed early or blown out in the NCAAT, you felt like something was missing. Now, let them be the targeted, while we collectively regain the hunger to get back to the top.
As a fan base, we need to collectively CHILL…we’re starting to look like the Red Sox fans to the Yankees fanbase. Sox fans have long been viewed as fatalists, who just waiting for the axe to fall, or the rug be pulled from under their feet. I’ve always been proud of a fanbase that prides itself on winning with class, expecting the best out of the Heels at all times, and supporting our team through the ups and downs.
Well, our “downs” came on the heels of a very, very special season. We, as a fanbase, have been on a whirlwind unseen in my many moons of supporting North Carolina basketball. We’ve been hit with a lot, A LOT of stuff…too much too think about, let alone mention. Now, as we find out that our nemisis will again be the #1 faves, and in good shape to repeat as champs for the second time in 20 years (ain’t gonna happen, sorry folks), we are all a little dizzy-yet this ride never seems to end.
Take comfort in being the upstarts once again. I hope to never experience such an emotionally-draining span of 365 days (as a UNC fan) EVER again. I still can’t make sense of how, this time last year, Roy had an .825 winning pct. at UNC, how we were the “Team of the Decade” (Sporting News), had the “Coach of the Decade” (Roy), and “Player of the Decade” (Psycho T). Back in October, ESPN were saying that other coaches marvelled at how UNC had “distanced themselves from the other programs.” The alumni game, Barnes commitment…
then this endless stretch of bad memories…now Singler returns. I’m telling you, these bad runs end at some point, most often when you LEAST expect it. Can you honestly name one Dookie who said, upon hearing that HB commited to UNC, “That’s okay, we’ll still win it all this year.” HELL NO!
Something’s gonna give, and it will do so in the near future. it all starts with Roy Williams and doesn’t stop until we are again a notch above the rest. Again, it might be more fun to fly in under the radar for once (in a long while), and let the team build unity…
I’m all for a pre-season ranking of #18-unranked. Let’s see them bust their butts while Dook beat highly-ranked (but literally over-ranked) RPI teams (who were better the year before) by 25-30, while our guys scratch and claw through some tough non-conference games against top-flight competition. It doesn’t stop until we’re back on top. The timeline for dominance these days is quite short. Enjoy your brief stay there, Dook.
I did some research. I found out that all of the player selected to the Nike Hoop Summit US team who didn’t go directly to the NBA draft ended up being significant contributors on their college teams. This goes back to its resurrected form since 2004. The verdict is still out on players Drew Gordon and Mike Moser(ironically both UCLA recruits.)
Winning when you are supposed to win is tougher, than winning when everything thinks you will lose. Dook will have immense pressure next year to repeat.
Barnes vs Singler will be the matchup of the ACC, and Barnes will be ready. His leadership is huge for the team, and teamed with Henson playing his natural spot, we will have an nice tandemn to build around.
Larry, it is ON you, and he has to get over all the BS, and play basketball, he has it in him, just take a deep breathe, and run the team.
I am excited about being the forgotten underdog, media will be low on the heels, and Roy, sucking up all the pro K stories than can handle, but Barnes will be waiting, ready to return the heels to prominence.
*fixed,
^I remember in 2004-05, reading a lot of publications which had Wake Forest and Illinois winning the National Title. Maybe if Chris Paul didn’t punch Julius Hodge in the junk they would have earned that last No. 1 seed over Duke. Of course, if they still should have beaten West Virginia. It wasn’t the Deacs year.
“Larry, it is own you”
No truer words have ever be written on this blog (except replace own with on), DrewII’s performance will determine if next year’s team is just an NCAAT team (65 team field) or a contender for the NCAA Title.
“Larry, it is on you”
So all of a sudden after several disagreements, the expectations of the team now rests on the PG?? lmao!!
It always rests on the PG. It is college basketball and guard play generally makes or breaks you. The problem last season was the PG was inexperienced and did not play well AND neither did anyone else for most of the season.
UNC has to get good ball handling, good decisions and a decent amount of offense out of Drew and Marshall.If that happens I think the other pieces are there to make this a very good team.
“So all of a sudden after several disagreements, the expectations of the team now rests on the PG??”
There was never any “disagreement” that the PG was vital for success. Saying the PG will determine the level of success of next year’s team is not the same as you saying over and over again “Carolina’s PGs aren’t good enough to play fast so Roy has to slow it down”.
Issues with the 2009/10 season:
1) Outside Shooting
2) Ball Handling
3) Go to scorer
4) Perimeter Defense
5) Leadership
6) Decision Making
The incoming recruits should help with the majority of those weaknesses (especially 1 through 4), and the two biggest pieces remaining are PG Play (Ball handling & Decision Making) and Leadership, with the majority of the responsibility of those areas laying at the feet of LDII (with assistance from Graves on leadership one).
Of course PG will be an issue next year. Who will be the primary ball-handler and will he be able to make good decisions and run the show? That is the one area where this team will be questionable. Defense will be the other problem, it will always be a problem for any Roy Williams coached team, let’s just accept it and move on. Otherwise this team will have perimeter shooters, they will have go to scorers and believe it or not they will have leaders as well, because this time around there won’t be any preordained hand-selected leaders based solely on seniority versus leadership qualities and playing skills.
^
Henson looks like he is ready to take on the leadership role, but next years success comes down to (1), (2), and (6).
“Defense will be the other problem, it will always be a problem for any Roy Williams coached team, let’s just accept it and move on”
Defense wasn’t the problem this year, it was offense. And next year’s team can increase its chances of success more by improving their offensive efficiency YTY vs. their defensive efficiency. I guess Roy will just have to live with the rep of being a coach that wins championships without his team ever playing defense. Maybe if a Roy Williams coached team grabbed and held on every defensive possession like Duke then he might get considered a defensive genius like K.
“believe it or not they will have leaders as well, because this time around there won’t be any preordained hand-selected leaders based solely on seniority versus leadership qualities and playing skills.”
First thing you’ve posted in the past month that I have agreed with 100%.