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Blackhammer

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How did a team with two top five picks in the NBA draft not even finish at 500?
 



With two stars all you need is a few decent role players .For a couple of elite players who can score it should be a great situation. I suspect youth was a big factor in their record.If you were a Rutgers fan it had to be very disappointing .
 






Blackhammer said:
How did a team with two top five picks in the NBA draft not even finish at 500?
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I think there are a bunch of reasons...take Indiana away...Bailey had 39 points, Harper didn't play, they lost by 10.
Everybody's mantra is playing seniors from the portal...these two teenagers are playing teams of grown men 4, 5, 6 years older.
NBA drafts on potential...what they they think you can be in the future.
Playing on the road and winning takes experience.
As many said, the supporting cast didn't help enough 2 through 6 chipped in 8,7,6, and 6. Harper Bailey led in every stat across the board. Points wise 19 and 18 a game.
Big Ten is tough.
 









Holy Man said:
In a defense oriented program, that’s ironic.
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I thought the same thing but that's the risk of a lesser program recruiting a couple of top-rated players. It reduces the funds for other recruits; you're only getting them for one year (right now, those two are rated as #2 and #3 in mock drafts); and you have a limited ability to groom them into playing "your way."
 

you have a limited ability to groom them into playing "your way."

With the changes in college hoops over the past couple of years, it seems that instead of "playing right to please the coach and earn playing time", it's more like "coaching right to please the player and get him to stay another year". sigh.
 

Chico Gopher said:
you have a limited ability to groom them into playing "your way."

With the changes in college hoops over the past couple of years, it seems that instead of "playing right to please the coach and earn playing time", it's more like "coaching right to please the player and get him to stay another year". sigh.
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What is true for every program that relied more on development and "system" is that that way really can't work anymore. Your system has to be simplified so new players can pick it up within a short time on campus. Getting players who fit still matters, but don't count much on roster continuity to pass down "the way". I don't think Pikiell has mastered this new way (and I also think he may have compromised too much to get the studs on the squad).
 

studentgopher94 said:
Basketball is a team sport and the rest of the team sucked. Plus Baily is being drafted more for upside than production, he wasn't amazing, also Harper was injured at one point.
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Ace Bailey did not meet the hype.

Harper looks like he is the real deal. Will put in the work. Bailey is certainly talented, but perhaps he hasn’t figured out professionalism yet. I think Harper certainly knows what he needs to do.
 

Blackhammer said:
With two stars all you need is a few decent role players .For a couple of elite players who can score it should be a great situation. I suspect youth was a big factor in their record.If you were a Rutgers fan it had to be very disappointing .
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Young and playing against some 8th year vets
 


Bad defense, not great shooting and a lot of one on one play. They finished 10th in scoring in the conference but last in assists.
 

studentgopher94 said:
Basketball is a team sport and the rest of the team sucked. Plus Baily is being drafted more for upside than production, he wasn't amazing, also Harper was injured at one point.
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You're not wrong but I'm just pointed out that his ceiling is so high that a 18 points and 8 rebounds for a 6'10" FR is considered "meh" production.

He doesn't really feel like a Morey guy though.
 

It has to be demoralizing for the Rutgers fan base to have two (2) of the top three (3) talents in the Draft and not even make the Dance.

Which Gopher squad was the most underachieving team in our program's history?
 

60's Guy said:
I think there are a bunch of reasons...take Indiana away...Bailey had 39 points, Harper didn't play, they lost by 10.
Everybody's mantra is playing seniors from the portal...these two teenagers are playing teams of grown men 4, 5, 6 years older.
NBA drafts on potential...what they they think you can be in the future.
Playing on the road and winning takes experience.
As many said, the supporting cast didn't help enough 2 through 6 chipped in 8,7,6, and 6. Harper Bailey led in every stat across the board. Points wise 19 and 18 a game.
Big Ten is tough.
Click to expand...
Duke survived the youth factor quite well. Your other points I agree with.
 

WoodburyTim said:
Duke survived the youth factor quite well. Your other points I agree with.
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Duke had multiple elite young players, not just 2 like Rutgers. Cooper Flagg was considered head and shoulders the best freshman...put those two things together and then compare the culture/tradition of Duke compared to Rutgers and they are not apples to apples comparisons.

I watched the Kansas game early on and the Houston game in the Tournament. Duke melted down in both losses I don't think it is a stretch to blame it on inexperience.
 

GopherBlood777 said:
Can we take the Rutgers talk to ScarletHole please
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Yeah guys stop talking about Big Ten basketball! It’s really hard to navigate around the forum in the offseason when there are like one or two new threads every day!!

Edit: Jake Jarmel called, add another exclamation point!
 

60's Guy said:
Duke had multiple elite young players, not just 2 like Rutgers. Cooper Flagg was considered head and shoulders the best freshman...put those two things together and then compare the culture/tradition of Duke compared to Rutgers and they are not apples to apples comparisons.

I watched the Kansas game early on and the Houston game in the Tournament. Duke melted down in both losses I don't think it is a stretch to blame it on inexperience.
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Rutgers has 2 freshmen who will be drafted in the top 5. Duke will have 2 or 3 in the top 10. Yeah nothing comparable about those 2 at all…
 

WoodburyTim said:
Rutgers has 2 freshmen who will be drafted in the top 5. Duke will have 2 or 3 in the top 10. Yeah nothing comparable about those 2 at all…
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Sure, ignore what i said and you are arguing with yourself. You should win that.
Duke has 5 players expected to be drafted. Rutgers two. This illustrates the deficit that Rutgers operated under. 2? or 5? It's not the same.
 

60's Guy said:
Sure, ignore what i said and you are arguing with yourself. You should win that.
Duke has 5 players expected to be drafted. Rutgers two. This illustrates the deficit that Rutgers operated under. 2? or 5? It's not the same.
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Yes they are not the same. But they are comparable.

It is sad that these sort of simple things need to be explained.
 

WoodburyTim said:
Yes they are not the same. But they are comparable.

It is sad that these sort of simple things need to be explained.
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We are talking basketball. 5 players play at a time. If Duke has five of the top 59 draftable players in the upcoming draft and Rutgers has two...then it stands to reason the answer is they are not comparable situations.

Jimmy Butler's scoring is down vs the Timberwolves. A major reason for that is that much of the defensive focus can be on stopping Butler. If Curry is out there it frees up Butler to score more.

5 elite players on one team achieving success are not comparable to only two on another team.
 

60's Guy said:
We are talking basketball. 5 players play at a time. If Duke has five of the top 59 draftable players in the upcoming draft and Rutgers has two...then it stands to reason the answer is they are not comparable situations.

Jimmy Butler's scoring is down vs the Timberwolves. A major reason for that is that much of the defensive focus can be on stopping Butler. If Curry is out there it frees up Butler to score more.

5 elite players on one team achieving success are not comparable to only two on another team.
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Yeah....people get overly hung up on individual talent and often assume that is a guarantee of team success even when proven over and over again that just having great players doesn't guarantee anything.

Harper and Bailey are great individual talents and I am sure that just having them on the floor won some game for Rutgers because they are so talented. But it takes more than just a couple talented players to be a great team which is why Duke was competing for a championship while Rutgers was sitting at home watching.
 

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