Recent content by Costa Rican Gopher

Age limits, or age minimums?

Honest questions. Are there other unions that limit how old you can be? Wouldn't that just shift the liability for a discrimination lawsuit from the NCAA to the union itself? As long as the players are paying their union dues, why does the union care if it's a 33 y/o former NBA player, or an 18...

No one wants to change the rules when they're winning.

Was surprised at how out of shape Turner looks in person. He's also got a lot to learn. Watching how Niko uses his Centers at the top of the key, and to distribute the ball, it's clear that making smart decisions moving the ball is just as important to Niko as how well a guy can rebound.

I think it's almost certainly an upgrade in talent, but above all else Niko has a system and seems to have recruited players who fit that system.

I've been saying for some time now that we're just one lawsuit away from aging NBA players, moving down to college ball where they can still earn & compete at a high level. The players are no longer amateurs. They are professionals. They work for the U. We don't discriminate at the U against...

My take: Tyson is a lot more than just a slow, 3 point shooter. He can put the ball on the floor competently, run transition, rebound pretty well for his position, has a B1G build (probably put on 10-20lbs of muscle since that 22-23 highlight reel) & of course is a very good 3 point shooter. He...

I came away very impressed with Reynolds. He looked much better than I imagined he would. Limited sample size of course, but he looked athletic enough to play in the B1G, played very hard and is probably the toughest guy on the team, pound for pound. He looks to be a defensive asset, and a...

He gave the team a big, physical body to practice against & gave us a few good minutes off the bench. That out-performed my expectations for the 10th man in the rotation.

There's no money for another big whether Nikko wants one or not. Eric Reader is 6'9". He's probably our 3rd big.

That's a nice list. How many of them play significant minutes? Jack Wilson was 6'11" 285lb, but wasn't of much use.

Big Frank was hurt much of the season, and didn't seem to work real hard on defense much of the time when he was healthy. That led to him being in poor defensive position. Being short, not a great leaper & consistently getting bad defensive position in the post is a bad combination. Will...

Everyone would like to have an athletic, skilled 7' big who can run the floor, but they're unicorns & they're not cheap. Same way every team in football wants an athletic, 320lb nose tackle who can take on double teams & penetrate. There's like 20 of them in all of football, and the Gophers are...

I don't blame you for being a downer, the skepticism is well deserved. That said, CBJ was hired on potential, then the entire landscape changed with NIL & CBJ was in over his head. Tubby was a big name, but had lost his fire & his best coaching years were behind him. Nikko has a system, a...

I think the success of Koi Perich really helps. It shows: 1. A high profile recruit can thrive here at the U, and doesn't need to leave for a bigger stage. 2. The Gopher staff is serious about getting that player on the field early, and utilizing him in exciting ways