So after watching the Memphis game and following online to yesterday's game I had two concerns, one which was alleviated last night. My primary concern was the team chemistry. I want to see the players take the best shot available, I want to see the ball moved around, and I want to see it so that we do not have a go-to guy on our team. That is what I loved about our 2008 team, there was not a go-to guy. EVERY single player that played significant minutes could contribute heavily on any given night. How do you stop a team like that? Anyway, the game last night showed me that this team is capable of that. Now on to my second concern...
So through three games I think my biggest concern is now Tyshawn Taylor. What is going on with him this year? Is it cause for concern? I understand its the way beginning of the season, but I thought he was supposed to be a potential first round draft pick. I thought he was supposed to blossom into one of the big leaders on this team behind Cole Aldrich and Sherron Collins. Unlike Collins and Aldrich, Taylor has yet to make his presence felt on the court in any significant way. Is it just a matter of time before he finds his niche on the team? Or were his immature antics this offseason a sign of where his head is truly at?
I think Taylor is a nice player... but, not much more than that. I just would like to see him play SMARTER when he has the ball in his hands. He is going to play a lot of minutes this season and he needs to realize his role on this seasons team. We need him to not turn the ball over and hit open shots. There is too much talent on this team for him to create shots for himself or be selfish. He will have much more of a roll next season when Sherron and X are gone. Mainly, it will be Taylor and the Morris twins leading this team next year.
I like what I saw from CJ last night. This was his first game action since HS 4 years ago. I think he will eventually see more time on the floor as the season progresses. He should see more minutes than Morningstar and Reed during the conference games.
The Morris twins are different guys this season... in a good way, obviously. I was wooried about them going into the year. They seem to have grown up mentally and physically since last year. They look great so far and I can't wait to see what they can do the rest of the season.
I know last night means nothing in the long run, but I would like to see Cole more involved on the offense!
I agree w/ rec21 about CJ seeing more minutes but only if he gets healthy and stays that way. I also agree about the twins being much improved but still need to realize they need to be around the paint. On next seasons leaders I also see CJ and Mario stepping up along with Withey providing a defensive presence. T-Rob could be a beast if he listens to Manning!!
So after watching the Memphis game and following online to yesterday's game I had two concerns, one which was alleviated last night. My primary concern was the team chemistry. I want to see the players take the best shot available, I want to see the ball moved around, and I want to see it so that we do not have a go-to guy on our team. That is what I loved about our 2008 team, there was not a go-to guy. EVERY single player that played significant minutes could contribute heavily on any given night. How do you stop a team like that? Anyway, the game last night showed me that this team is capable of that. Now on to my second concern... I definitely agree about the 2008 team. Having different players step up (Arthur, Rush, Chalmers, Robinson, et al) each night made it difficult for an opposing team to game plan against the Jayhawks. Pick your poison, right?
I've said this before on this forum but I'm not sure games v Central Arkansas, FHSU, and PSU really tell us that much. KU is supposed to win big in these games and when they do, am I supposed to be awed? Or impressed by the fact that we're bigger, faster, and deeper? Essentially, we held serve. Nothing more. Seeing Tyrel drain 4 3s or seeing CJ score 8 in his D1 debut makes us all feel good but it doesn't really tell us much about how they can be expected to consistently perform against tougher offenses and defenses.
So through three games I think my biggest concern is now Tyshawn Taylor. What is going on with him this year? Is it cause for concern? I understand its the way beginning of the season, but I thought he was supposed to be a potential first round draft pick. I thought he was supposed to blossom into one of the big leaders on this team behind Cole Aldrich and Sherron Collins. Unlike Collins and Aldrich, Taylor has yet to make his presence felt on the court in any significant way. Is it just a matter of time before he finds his niche on the team? Or were his immature antics this offseason a sign of where his head is truly at? Tyshawn will be fine. I have no concerns about him. The fight and facebook posts are a thing of the past. He's a competitor and has put that stuff behind him - coach made sure of it. I don't care what the play by play guy or the color guy said during the game. You and I know this team better than they do...surely you know they're just reading their notes on the table in front of them.
While we were hanging out at the pool or sitting in the A/C this summer, here's what Tyshawn was doing: Led the USA Basketball U19 team to the gold medal at the FIBA U19 World Championship in New Auckland, New Zealand, in summer 2009... The gold medal was the first for the U19 USA Basketball team since 1991... Was named to the FIBA U19 World Championship five-man All-Star Team... Led the team with a 10.8 scoring average and 35 assists... Tied for the team high with 14 steals... Missed one of the nine games played due to the flu... Had 18 points, six assists and five steals in the 88-80 win against Greece in the gold medal game. This is from his bio on kuathletics.com. So he was the catalyst for our international team in U19 ball and now, all of a sudden, he can't play? I know his performances in the first games hasn't been what we were expecting. But he averaged 9.7 ppg last year as a freshman for KU (3rd leading scorer). I'm willing to give him the benefit of the doubt in these early games and chalk it up to nerves or having to adapt to changes Coach Self has made due the addition of X.
Here's some stats on his freshman year in the Big 12: Ranked second among Big 12 freshmen in scoring (9.7 pgg), assists (3.0 spg) and steals (1.1 spg)... Named to the Big 12 All-Rookie Team by the conference coaches and the Big 12 All-Freshman team by the media... Was a four-time Big 12 Rookie of the Week, the most ever for a Jayhawk... Reached double figures in scoring in 18 games... Had three 20-point efforts... Was second on the team with 104 assists... Scored a career-high 26 points on 8-of-13 shooting in win at No. 3 Oklahoma (2/23) My point? This kid can play. And we shouldn't be writing him off just yet. KU needs production from the #2 spot. It could be Tyshawn, Elijah, Morningstar (when he returns), Reed, or CJ. The important thing is that Coach is getting production from all 5 positions for 40 mins, not how many pts Tyhsawn has or how many TOs he had this game.
Taylor has the athletic ability, and the moves, to be as good as Jacque Vaughn. The issue has always been whether he makes good decisions when he has the ball. He often loses his mind for stretches during a game. Sometimes for lengthy durations. His turnovers are often times momentum killers. Or worse, they often prevent a KU momentum shift from occurring.
I'd like to see him have to compete for his spot a little more. I hope the plan is for Johnson to see at least 15-20 minutes a game. I really like how he takes care of the ball.
I'd also like to see what Morningstar will be like with this team. I know most of you are assuming he will not see much time, but I strongly disagree. I think Morningstar will eventually be the 6th or 7th man on this team, and will eventually fight Tyshawn for minutes and potentially the starting roll.
"So after watching the Memphis game and following online to yesterday's game I had two concerns, one which was alleviated last night. My primary concern was the team chemistry. I want to see the players take the best shot available, I want to see the ball moved around, and I want to see it so that we do not have a go-to guy on our team. That is what I loved about our 2008 team, there was not a go-to guy. EVERY single player that played significant minutes could contribute heavily on any given night. How do you stop a team like that? Anyway, the game last night showed me that this team is capable of that. Now on to my second concern..."
the answer is you don't...you only hope they stop themselves...which is what we did against Memphis, by not utilizing all our weapons and not trying to score in a variety of ways...
I also agree it will be good that we don't have a go to guy...I am somewhat confident Self will figure this thing out by the next big game, that an offense must be diversified and must put fear into the defense by showing we can beat you a variety of ways on offense...not just depending on one aspect
By the way Taylor will never touch Vaughn, he has the athletic talent, but nowhere near the skill... I have no idea what this comment means but since Jacque played four 4 years and Tyshawn has only played one very impressive season - more impressive than Jacque's freshman season - I can only conclude that you need to reserve judgment on Tyshawn until we get more exposure to him. If ppg means anything, Jacaue's freshman ppg was 7.8 while Tyshawn's freshman ppg was 9.7ppg.
Jacque Vaughn had an extremely high basketball IQ, so did Jerod Haase. I was there when these guys were in school, and I watched them play at the Phog. I never saw Rex Walters play in person, but I would imagine he was up there as well. Taylor doesn't appear to be on their level.
Taylor has shown flashes of brilliance. At the same time he as also shown flashes of absent mindedness. That is something Vaughn never did.
But you have to admit, skill wise, Taylor has all the gifts. Its just a matter of whether he can figure out the mental side. I believe the term is mental toughness.
