6 Big East Predictions

I don't care if Obekpa gained 40lbs of muscle, he wasn't "pushed around" on the low block last year, he just didn't have great one-on-one defensive skills. That means not jumping out of his sneaks for every shot fake, and anticipating when to rotate in the zone.

Is he a little thin? Sure. And I'm sure nba scouts care a lot about that. But for us, size wasn't his issue. Call it technique or defensive awareness, but he found himself out of position a lot.
That said, it's good to hear that the guys have been working out. Can't hurt.
 
I don't care if Obekpa gained 40lbs of muscle, he wasn't "pushed around" on the low block last year, he just didn't have great one-on-one defensive skills. That means not jumping out of his sneaks for every shot fake, and anticipating when to rotate in the zone.

Is he a little thin? Sure. And I'm sure nba scouts care a lot about that. But for us, size wasn't his issue. Call it technique or defensive awareness, but he found himself out of position a lot.
That said, it's good to hear that the guys have been working out. Can't hurt.
Click to expand...

Obekpa was actually the only player that we had that wasn't pushed around down low. That's not to say he wasn't outmuscled at times, but everyone else was thrown around like rag dolls.

Obekpa will be much better in the middle of the 2-3. That is what he played in high school.
 
Last year, by mid-season, coaches realized that the best way to attack Obekpa is to put a shoulder into his chest and back him up. See Nate Lubick. Avoiding contact with him allows him to time his blocks and makes it harder to score against him.
 
I don't care if Obekpa gained 40lbs of muscle, he wasn't "pushed around" on the low block last year, he just didn't have great one-on-one defensive skills. That means not jumping out of his sneaks for every shot fake, and anticipating when to rotate in the zone.

Is he a little thin? Sure. And I'm sure nba scouts care a lot about that. But for us, size wasn't his issue. Call it technique or defensive awareness, but he found himself out of position a lot.
That said, it's good to hear that the guys have been working out. Can't hurt.
Click to expand...

Obekpa was actually the only player that we had that wasn't pushed around down low. That's not to say he wasn't outmuscled at times, but everyone else was thrown around like rag dolls.

Obekpa will be much better in the middle of the 2-3. That is what he played in high school.
Click to expand...

Think we play mostly 2-3 this season? Is that what they were doing in Europe?
I wouldn't be opposed.
 
I don't care if Obekpa gained 40lbs of muscle, he wasn't "pushed around" on the low block last year, he just didn't have great one-on-one defensive skills. That means not jumping out of his sneaks for every shot fake, and anticipating when to rotate in the zone.

Is he a little thin? Sure. And I'm sure nba scouts care a lot about that. But for us, size wasn't his issue. Call it technique or defensive awareness, but he found himself out of position a lot.
That said, it's good to hear that the guys have been working out. Can't hurt.
Click to expand...

Obekpa was actually the only player that we had that wasn't pushed around down low. That's not to say he wasn't outmuscled at times, but everyone else was thrown around like rag dolls.

Obekpa will be much better in the middle of the 2-3. That is what he played in high school.
Click to expand...

Think we play mostly 2-3 this season? Is that what they were doing in Europe?
I wouldn't be opposed.
Click to expand...

I would like to see full court pressure. They have the athleticism and depth to create a lot of steals.
 
I don't care if Obekpa gained 40lbs of muscle, he wasn't "pushed around" on the low block last year, he just didn't have great one-on-one defensive skills. That means not jumping out of his sneaks for every shot fake, and anticipating when to rotate in the zone.

Is he a little thin? Sure. And I'm sure nba scouts care a lot about that. But for us, size wasn't his issue. Call it technique or defensive awareness, but he found himself out of position a lot.
That said, it's good to hear that the guys have been working out. Can't hurt.
Click to expand...

Obekpa was actually the only player that we had that wasn't pushed around down low. That's not to say he wasn't outmuscled at times, but everyone else was thrown around like rag dolls.

Obekpa will be much better in the middle of the 2-3. That is what he played in high school.
Click to expand...

Think we play mostly 2-3 this season? Is that what they were doing in Europe?
I wouldn't be opposed.
Click to expand...

I think the team is better suited for it. The matchup the played the last few seasons is really complex and it reallys asks the big guys to do a lot. Obekpa had to defend the perimeter in certain situations and then get back to the tin. Now, he'll be able to play goalie.

We neeed to press like crazy to get the out of this season. I always use this analogy, but it's like the option with football. You either are an option team or not. You can't just run option once in a while and be successful....same goes for pressing in basketball.

The 2-3 is a nice defense to fall back into after a solid press. The downside is the weakside rebounding, but you get over that by making teams pay for crashing weaskide glass with secondary transition.
 
I don't care if Obekpa gained 40lbs of muscle, he wasn't "pushed around" on the low block last year, he just didn't have great one-on-one defensive skills. That means not jumping out of his sneaks for every shot fake, and anticipating when to rotate in the zone.

Is he a little thin? Sure. And I'm sure nba scouts care a lot about that. But for us, size wasn't his issue. Call it technique or defensive awareness, but he found himself out of position a lot.
That said, it's good to hear that the guys have been working out. Can't hurt.
Click to expand...

I don't think Obekpa is a good post defender, but his ability not to bite for pump fakes is uncanny.
 
I don't care if Obekpa gained 40lbs of muscle, he wasn't "pushed around" on the low block last year, he just didn't have great one-on-one defensive skills. That means not jumping out of his sneaks for every shot fake, and anticipating when to rotate in the zone.

Is he a little thin? Sure. And I'm sure nba scouts care a lot about that. But for us, size wasn't his issue. Call it technique or defensive awareness, but he found himself out of position a lot.
That said, it's good to hear that the guys have been working out. Can't hurt.
Click to expand...

Obekpa was actually the only player that we had that wasn't pushed around down low. That's not to say he wasn't outmuscled at times, but everyone else was thrown around like rag dolls.

Obekpa will be much better in the middle of the 2-3. That is what he played in high school.
Click to expand...

Think we play mostly 2-3 this season? Is that what they were doing in Europe?
I wouldn't be opposed.
Click to expand...

I think the team is better suited for it. The matchup the played the last few seasons is really complex and it reallys asks the big guys to do a lot. Obekpa had to defend the perimeter in certain situations and then get back to the tin. Now, he'll be able to play goalie.

We neeed to press like crazy to get the out of this season. I always use this analogy, but it's like the option with football. You either are an option team or not. You can't just run option once in a while and be successful....same goes for pressing in basketball.

The 2-3 is a nice defense to fall back into after a solid press. The downside is the weakside rebounding, but you get over that by making teams pay for crashing weaskide glass with secondary transition.
Click to expand...

Couldn't agree with this more. Press, then match-up 2-3. Half-court D a little bit easier to mix up (man/zone). Totally agreed that pressing 94 feet is a different animal. You don't have to do it all the time, but you have to do it enough in order to become effective with it.

Also agreed Obekpa didn't get pushed around last year. For the most part he was the only true big we had last year. Still good for him to become even stronger and more of a presence, particularly on the glass (where he was weak to start the year, and came on huge in the second half). That aside, the issue last year under the basket was more systemic than having to do with any one player. We weren't just outmatched on the backboards, we were overwhelmed in many games last year. The -15 at home against Georgtown was astounding.

A lot of cliches get thrown around about how rebounding is about positioning and determination. Sure, that's well and good. But it's nice to have some trees who are built out of steel too. Added strength across the board plus the addition of 2 big bodies should improve us dramatically in this department.
 
I don't care if Obekpa gained 40lbs of muscle, he wasn't "pushed around" on the low block last year, he just didn't have great one-on-one defensive skills. That means not jumping out of his sneaks for every shot fake, and anticipating when to rotate in the zone.

Is he a little thin? Sure. And I'm sure nba scouts care a lot about that. But for us, size wasn't his issue. Call it technique or defensive awareness, but he found himself out of position a lot.
That said, it's good to hear that the guys have been working out. Can't hurt.
Click to expand...

As Obekpa improves, I believe his shot block numbers will decrease. He was so out of position at times after going after shots, that an offensive rebound put back was a pretty good bet if Obekpa didn't block the shot, even if he did alter a lot more than he actually blocked. Even at 2.5 blocks per game, if his rebounds improve to 8-10, and his overall defense improves, he can be amazing. The tools are there, and this year he will have a lot more help down low.
 
Do you guys think we could see a line up of D'lo, Hooper, Marco, Jakarr, Sanchez?

I know we are trying to get away from Dlo being on the ball, but having 3-4 shooters on the court could be nice. I'm just thinking about line ups and this one popped in my head. There are a lot of downsides to this line up too. lol
 
Do you guys think we could see a line up of D'lo, Hooper, Marco, Jakarr, Sanchez?

I know we are trying to get away from Dlo being on the ball, but having 3-4 shooters on the court could be nice. I'm just thinking about line ups and this one popped in my head. There are a lot of downsides to this line up too. lol
Click to expand...

No.
 
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