I was 7 and lived in Newsday country.
The Point Guard Debate
- Thread starter dk423
- Start date
Bangkok Johnny
Well-known member
Agreed! Coach recruited Ian because he's very good player. Recruitment of the other PGs fell through, and Ian was lauded as the next great StJ PG. Dylan was brought in as the backup but the need for a court general seems to be outweighing the concept that the position is dead.
L J S A
Well-known member
Not sure if he got $4m, but I remember it was well over $3m. We weren't competing that late in the game with those numbers I don't think.
Is Lefteris Liotopoulos still on the basketball team? With a roster that is a little short on guards, it seems weird that he received no minutes against 'bama or William and Mary. In my opinion, Lefty was a decent shooter with decent size. Maybe not the defensive stopper SJU often has on the bench. Has anyone seen 'Lefty' on the bench or participating in practice? If he is in the dog house? I'm surprised the transgression has not reached this site.
It’s been talked about. He did play ten minutes or so in the second half vs W&M
I don't know why some are convinced Darling is an afterthought. Is it because he was a late signing? Maybe because he came from a mid-major? If my memory serves me correctly, Walter Clayton and Daniss Jenkins also played at mid majors. I don't have to remind anyone they're in the NBA right now.
Yes, Darling came from a mid-major but it's not like he mailed it in before he got here. You've read all this: Big Sky Player of the Year...unanimous Big Sky first team all conference...20 points a game (24th nationally)...almost six assists a game (28th nationally). Only two other division one players in the nation can say that. In high school he was Washington State Player of the Year with gaudy stats that included 33 PPG. Pedigree? His father was a ten year NFL player. The apple apparently isn't falling far from the tree.
He came in and changed the course of the William and Mary game. Sure, we probably would have won by at least 15. We won by 33. Mark my words...he's our John Stockton.
Yes, Darling came from a mid-major but it's not like he mailed it in before he got here. You've read all this: Big Sky Player of the Year...unanimous Big Sky first team all conference...20 points a game (24th nationally)...almost six assists a game (28th nationally). Only two other division one players in the nation can say that. In high school he was Washington State Player of the Year with gaudy stats that included 33 PPG. Pedigree? His father was a ten year NFL player. The apple apparently isn't falling far from the tree.
He came in and changed the course of the William and Mary game. Sure, we probably would have won by at least 15. We won by 33. Mark my words...he's our John Stockton.
I like Darling a lot, but please pump the brakes here w the Stockton references jeez..
I think most fans don’t view Darling as an afterthought. Frankly, many assumed SJU had all the pieces to contend for a title, although it was evident that some challenges awaited; getting new offensively geared guys to embrace defending, testing Ian’s suitability and ability to play point and figuring out rotations.
Too often things like high school laurels and how we look on paper cloud our objectivity. Unfortunately, Darling is put under the microscope out of concern he may not be our prime orchestrator and to his detriment, Sellers is our default option. I think Darling, warts and all, may surprise us. We’ll have a better sense of that when we play the big guys in ooc play. I strongly feel we are a top 15 team that may not be a Final 4 favorite, but has enough talent and HOF staff to certainly be a Sweet 16 squad capable of further advancing beyond that depending on the match up.
Enjoying the ride!
Exactly
I didn't write he's John Stockton...I wrote he's our John Stockton. This is based on the premise we have a real shot at a final four...or elite eight at worst.
the holy trinity
Member
Love the kids shooting stroke, but unfortunately he can’t stay in front of the ball handler, laterally he’s a liability and we all know how Pitino feels about lateral movement. And as of right now defensively Darling is just getting by defensively, shows a ton of hustle but lets see how he does with the more athletic/talented teams we have coming up.
We are not short on guards, we have plenty of them with the majority ready for prime time. What we are short on are guards who play the point.
FFS, it's not like he came off the bench and gave them a spark. He started the game and played 17 minutes in the first half! The "course of the game" (ie the poor first half) was partly, by his own admission, to his poor defense. And as I said earlier in the thread "our John Stockton" had 3 assists in 31 minutes.
Look, I get that everyone roots for the scrappy white kid, and as other have said he may prove to be functional at the point despite his weaknesses. But there's no reason to invent things that didnt happen. Lets see how it goes in Vegas and take it from there.
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I don't know that I would count having Sellers and Sanon as "plenty" but I agree the SG/wing position will sort itself out (with assistance from Pitino) and that the point situation is Darling by Default at the moment unless and until that proves that it will or won't work and/or Pitino comes up with a different formulation.
Last I looked I am white and don’t exclusively root for “the scrappy white kid”. Speak for yourself.
was about to comment the same thing reading the thread updates... thinking someone should call this out.... lol
Kid played the whole 1H... resulting in a 5pt lead lol.
Good, aggressive player. Excited/anxious to watch him up close in Vegas.
If we're going to root for the scrappy white kid, let it be Prey who's jumped leaps and bounds in the year and change he's been with us.