Tonight was my first game of the season. A few observations:
1. The team won't be very good this year but I love Pitino's system. Tubby's "motion free" offense is becoming a distant memory;
2. The players look to be in excellent shape;
3. King and Smith don't look like B1G players. Under normal circumstances they wouldn't be here. I don't see the King/Rychart comparisons other than they are both white, about the same size and they have short black hair. Rychart was a very good rebounder, passer and defender. I haven't seen those skills in King.
4. Mathieu is really fun to watch but he will struggle in the B1G when the guards are bigger and just abut as quick. Dre Hollins will play more point in the B1G season.
5. Both Hollins look really good. The mediocre recruiting class is going to hurt because there won't be anyone to replace Austin next year.
6. Otto has exponentially more confidence than last year. It's fun to see.
7. Eliason is becoming a leader. Mo's transgression was a big step backward.
8. The team won't win more than six or seven games in the B1G but they will upset a couple of top teams at home and those are the games that we will remember.
9. The players work much harder than under Tubby.
10. Pitino will win the B1G title in the next 2-3 years.
Always enjoy seeing your posts Jamiche, I agree with a lot of your observations so far.
1. Agreed, the competition hasn't been great but it's refreshing to see guys moving and taking the open shot when it's presented to them.
2. Harder to tell from the computer, but Elliott is moving much better and Mav is much leaner.
3. I agree with this, but I do think King has some of the inside "craftyness" that Rychart possessed. He's missing the other attributes. I think he can play a role.
4. I've noticed a few instances where Mathieu's size was a detriment in the first two games, so I expect it to be more of an issue as well. The plus side is he's a solid ball handler and should still be able to create some.
5. Agreed and we didn't have anyone to replace Trevor this year. We need an elite recruiting class soon, hope Rashad comes back home.
6. I've noticed this as well, I think Oto was one of the guys who was intimidated by Tubby and it affected his game.
7. Would love to see Eliason tone down the antics a bit, but he's been very good alerting shots and rebounding. Mo needs the playing time he's missing.
8. Your prediction was my fear going in to the year. I am not sure teams 4-7 in the B1G will be as strong this year, so I still hold out hope for 9 wins and dancing.
9. I thought the guys worked really hard for Tubby, especially in his first few years, I trust your opinion from the seats though. That's a good sign.
10. I am pretty encouraged with what I have seen on the court from both a strategy and a team response perspective, but teams like Indiana, Michigan, and Illinois are bringing in elite talent. We've got to start hitting a few home runs on the recruiting trail to make your prediction a reality.
