is this team really that much more improved
- Thread starter mjdickens
- Start date
Although not a 'plodder', Sanchez did seem to put on some pounds since his Monroe days.
It looks like he has heavy feet to me. He is very skilled, but he is not going to blow by anyone. He does have a solid vertical and excellent coordination, but he is not what I would consider athletic and he is definitely not what I consider to be quick--even relative to his position.
I must say again, though, I really expect him to be a huge asset to this team. I maintain my prediction that he will start at center for us. I think his ability to get the ball off the glass and move it around with his dribble and passing skills will be huge. I remember posting before Brownlee's senior year that every top lineup I thought of had Brownlee in it. I am thinking the same way with Sanchez. I am very curious to see what kind impact he will have blocking shots. That stat from his first year at Monroe was ridiculous, but I've never seen him do that in the handful of games I have seen him play. He doesn't have any holes in his skill set.
There is no doubt are team is much improved... Our roster is full of talented kids IMHO the most talent we have had In 15 years. However i still think our ability to gaurd the 3 pt shot will a huge telling tail! Last year we helped way to much on d and left the wings with wide open looks! And from what I'm told Christian jones is going to play a much bigger role!
Getting back to the topic regarding improvement of team, let us consider the following: 2012 Phil was starting PG and Jamal played, got hurt, and was inconsistent. All of us know that Phil was not a PG who could create for others. 2013 Jamal and Rysheed at PG. Both of them can create for others and Rhysheed is an underrated passer. Should definitely be better this year.
2012 SG D'Angelo with a poor attitude, his words, not mine. Marco played but struggled and Dom also spent time at SG. None of us wanted to see Marco or Dom handling the ball. 2013 D'Angelo with a new and improved attitude. If you don't think so look at pictures of D'Angelo hanging out with teammates and fans at a soccer game posted on another thread. Phil will be his backup. Phil was never comfortable at the Point. He now can just concentrate on scoring and defense. This year we have four players in the backcourt who can handle the ball.
2012 SF Dom, Amir, Felix. Dom played well in spurts, Amir was inconsistent, and Felix was a freshman. 2013 Dom has improved each year and this year we have Max to back him up and provide 3 point shooting off the bench. Marco and Felix may also get minutes here.
2012 PF Jakarr, Christian, Amir. Jakarr was BE Rookie of the Year, nuff said. Christian was offensively challenged and struggled. Amir put forth effort but was not consistent. 2013 Jakarr, Christian, and if we want to go big we can play Jakarr at SF, Orlando at PF, with Chris or Gift at C. We did not have options like this last year.
2012 C Chris, sometimes Christian. 2013 Orlando, Chris, Gift. This combination should definitely improve our rebounding. Orlando can do a little bit of everything and his passing out of the post will definitely be an asset. Chris is working to improve offensively and is still a defensive presence. I think that people forget that Gift averaged almost 10 pts in 11-12. All of our big men should be helped by having better PG play.
Intangibles, chemistry "appears" to be a lot better this year. Guys are hanging out together more. Trip to Europe helped to encourage bonding with teammates.
As for how this team ranks in comparison to previous St Johns teams, I will wait until the end of the season to say. Let's be real, "We ain't even played a meaningful game yet".
2012 SG D'Angelo with a poor attitude, his words, not mine. Marco played but struggled and Dom also spent time at SG. None of us wanted to see Marco or Dom handling the ball. 2013 D'Angelo with a new and improved attitude. If you don't think so look at pictures of D'Angelo hanging out with teammates and fans at a soccer game posted on another thread. Phil will be his backup. Phil was never comfortable at the Point. He now can just concentrate on scoring and defense. This year we have four players in the backcourt who can handle the ball.
2012 SF Dom, Amir, Felix. Dom played well in spurts, Amir was inconsistent, and Felix was a freshman. 2013 Dom has improved each year and this year we have Max to back him up and provide 3 point shooting off the bench. Marco and Felix may also get minutes here.
2012 PF Jakarr, Christian, Amir. Jakarr was BE Rookie of the Year, nuff said. Christian was offensively challenged and struggled. Amir put forth effort but was not consistent. 2013 Jakarr, Christian, and if we want to go big we can play Jakarr at SF, Orlando at PF, with Chris or Gift at C. We did not have options like this last year.
2012 C Chris, sometimes Christian. 2013 Orlando, Chris, Gift. This combination should definitely improve our rebounding. Orlando can do a little bit of everything and his passing out of the post will definitely be an asset. Chris is working to improve offensively and is still a defensive presence. I think that people forget that Gift averaged almost 10 pts in 11-12. All of our big men should be helped by having better PG play.
Intangibles, chemistry "appears" to be a lot better this year. Guys are hanging out together more. Trip to Europe helped to encourage bonding with teammates.
As for how this team ranks in comparison to previous St Johns teams, I will wait until the end of the season to say. Let's be real, "We ain't even played a meaningful game yet".
westchesterjoe
Active member
Beast, interesting observation on that 85 team if Artest was on it..I have always believed that Louie did not adjust during the game to the box in 1 on Mullin.. And, playing Mike Moses instead of Mark Jackson was a mistake.. I thought Louie should have gone more to Berry since Mullin was bottled up by Wingate in the box.. Berry might have gotten Ewing in foul trouble given his unorthodox left handed offense. But, Louie wasn't good at mid game adjustments, as we know. Also, Louie didn't use Ron Rowan much that season but, if he and Mullin were on the court at the same time, the Box and 1 might have come undone with Rowan hitting from outside.
I'm not sure if Artest would have been a good fit on that team, even though he was a super talent..Barkley had to reign in Ron a lot as he tended to do too much all the time..
And, Willie Glass wasn't that bad at small forward as a soph on that team.. Willie didn't get a better jump shot until his senior year but, he was athletic enough to compete against those Hoyas.
The biggest things I'd like to see improved over last year are the 3 point defense, point guard play (should immediately improve if Branch is healthy, Rysheed lives up to hype, and Phil doesn't play PG), and not settling for 18 foot jumpers at the end of the shot clock.
MarkRedman
Well-known member
To answer the original question succinctly, the obvious answer is YES!!!!!
More talent + more depth = "much more improved" team
More talent + more depth = "much more improved" team
Ray Morgan
Well-known member
The college game is a guard's game. I just get the feeling that our ceiling is tied to Rysheed's development. If he soars so does SJU. If he is playing 10-15 minutes a game, then we will be a better team because of natural improvement from experience and the addition of Sanchez. That will be nice, but not enough to be a memorable season.
Good post. I am hopeful for Jordan, I just have a hard time trusting freshmen. I think Branch is the x-factor for this team, but we need someone who can get to the basket consistently. If that is Jordan instead of Branch...great. Branch was not nearly as aggressive as we needed last year. That won't be a problem with Jordan...the opposite likely will be.
I'm sure we'll see plenty of three guard lineups whenever Dom is on the bench--and probably some with Dom in at the four.
Beautiful post bro it's pretty much what I have been thinking about all summer long you took the words right out of my head. Just to add to this amazing post . The fact that we now have bodies that can rebound we are going to be on the break a lot more which will give us easy transition points being that we are the most athletic team in the country. D lo can now play his natural position which is going to make life a lot easier for him on the court with sheed and branch. Zone defenses killed us last year , to beat a zone you attack the middle/ high post , I think we fed the high post 3 times all of last year . With Sanchez now he will fix our problems there , having hooper out there will help us bust those zones up. Felix , Marco won't see much of the court maybe in spurts , jones and gift will battle for mins in different games but the 9 man rotation will be set. As for our defense , defense comes from the heart , how bad do you want to stop your opponents , how hard are you willing to play on d , how focused you are in stopping your man from scoring , sometimes fatigue can be a factor . Well this year we are so deep that if someone is missing their assignment lavin will not hesitate to yank them right out . Fatigue will not and should not be a factor because bottom line we are 11/12 deep if we want to be . I highly agree with you on the chemistry , hopefully we can delvope that , hopefully there will be no chemistry issue but that is all on lavin . Defense and chemistry are the two most important ingredients to winning championships.
Feel the same way . Top 25 team for almost the whole year
Most athletic team in the country , 5 NBA players on the roster , 11/12 deep if we want to be , guard heavy , big bodies , experienced upper class man . We are a much more improved team , we will win at least 25 games , we will be a top 25 team all year , we will make a deep run in the tourney , we will beat Syracuse , we will make the nation respect us , we will bring back college basketball to the greatest city in the world .
