Judd Zulgad column: Coach's patience wears thin with Ralph Sampson III's approach

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Confusing column. Seems to fit with our ambivalence.
 

I don't think Ralph was mentally prepared for the season

Perhaps his dance with the NBA draft last spring distracted him from focusing on having an excellent senior season. He just does not seem to play with consistent energy or enthusiasm. If Ralph enjoys basketball, it is not clear from his visage on the court. He is having a disappointing senior campaign, for sure.

Ralph is not a leader-type; Rodney has assumed more of that role, but I expected more out of Ralph given that this is his last year of college ball. He makes the same careless mistakes with the basketball that lead to so many turnovers.
 

Tubby wants him to start lifting weights???? Now?
 




How different of a player would he be if played for a coach like Izzo or ryan?
 

The quotes in this article would be acceptable if Sampson were a freshman. This is clueless.
 

bga1 said:
The quotes in this article would be acceptable if Sampson were a freshman. This is clueless.
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Agreed. You really have to shake your head at some of Tubby's comments.
 



station19 said:
Agreed. You really have to shake your head at some of Tubby's comments.
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Strength is so fundamental to a big man. This is comparable to telling your senior point guard that he needs to start working on his dribbling skills. Watching the Spartans the other night- they beat Iowa by 35 by just totally manhandling them physically.
 

WOW

bga1 said:
Strength is so fundamental to a big man. This is comparable to telling your senior point guard that he needs to start working on his dribbling skills. Watching the Spartans the other night- they beat Iowa by 35 by just totally manhandling them physically.
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Iowa manhandled us. What will the Spartans do to us??
 


I could care less what Ralph's facial expressions say. What bothers me is the lack of intensity with which he goes after the ball. His face can say "I don't care" so long as his actions say "I do care", but that is not what his performance on the court says.
 



bleedsmaroonandgold said:
I could care less what Ralph's facial expressions say. What bothers me is the lack of intensity with which he goes after the ball. His face can say "I don't care" so long as his actions say "I do care", but that is not what his performance on the court says.
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Exactly. Duncan a lot of the time shows "I don't care" but he works and plays his tail off.
 

I think Ralphs lack of physicality was Okay with a healthy Mbakwe, Mo Walker and Colton Iverson. Ralph is what he is. Some games he'll have a great advantage and Tubby will be able to utilize his skills inside and out but he's not real physical and neither was his dad. He's not quite as boney as his dad was but he ain't 7'4, if he were he would be able to dominate more.
 

Strength is important, but if you run around like a 6-year old chasing a butterfly on the court, it doesn't do you much good. Mentality is just as important.
 


Let's remember

Ralph is not a paid athlete and is representing a university. I think this has less to do with Ralph and more about expectations around him. Asking him to be tougher is like asking Elliason to jump higher. It is probably not going to happen. Instead, they should utilize his strengths -- shooting mid-range jumpers and blocking shots. You can put someone in a position to succeed or you can put them in a position to fail and then blame them for failing. I think this is what is happening to Ralph.
 

benlaur said:
Ralph is not a paid athlete and is representing a university. I think this has less to do with Ralph and more about expectations around him. Asking him to be tougher is like asking Elliason to jump higher. It is probably not going to happen. Instead, they should utilize his strengths -- shooting mid-range jumpers and blocking shots. You can put someone in a position to succeed or you can put them in a position to fail and then blame them for failing. I think this is what is happening to Ralph.
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As of today- I totally agree. As of 4 years ago- he certainly could have gotten a lot stronger, which could have also given him a little more confidence to mix it up. But at this point you are exactly right. Ralph is an outside shooter and could have won us the Iowa game had he been used differently against that zone.
 

benlaur said:
Ralph is not a paid athlete and is representing a university. I think this has less to do with Ralph and more about expectations around him. Asking him to be tougher is like asking Elliason to jump higher. It is probably not going to happen. Instead, they should utilize his strengths -- shooting mid-range jumpers and blocking shots. You can put someone in a position to succeed or you can put them in a position to fail and then blame them for failing. I think this is what is happening to Ralph.
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You're comparing apples to oranges. If Eliason was physically capable of jumping higher than he currently does, I'm sure he would choose to do so. Ralph is fully capable of attempting to box out like everyone else, but he simply chooses not to. It's not about physical ability, it's about mentality and all he has to do is get low and box out and not let skinny wing players push him all the way out of bounds where he can't get a rebound. If he starts doing that and stops giving up offensive boards to the other team's smaller players fans will start to get off his back. He's also going to have to stop letting teams simply take the ball out of his hands followed by him slowly jogging back on defense. As soon as he starts playing with a little bit of urgency and some sort of passion (not talking about facial expressions) fans will love him. Until then....
 

Ralph is what he is. An OK player who's not phyiscal enough for his position and doesn't care enough to change that. He hasn't changed in 3.5 years and he's not going to now. Accept it and move on.
 

Since Trevor went down, the truth is the Gophers probably played their best basketball right after Orlando, when Ralph came off the bench for a game or 2 because of his bum ankle. He blended in nicely (appears that's the way he prefers things) coming off the bench. Got nothin' to lose by trying that again?
 

GophersOnTheRise said:
You're comparing apples to oranges. If Eliason was physically capable of jumping higher than he currently does, I'm sure he would choose to do so. Ralph is fully capable of attempting to box out like everyone else, but he simply chooses not to. It's not about physical ability, it's about mentality and all he has to do is get low and box out and not let skinny wing players push him all the way out of bounds where he can't get a rebound. If he starts doing that and stops giving up offensive boards to the other team's smaller players fans will start to get off his back. He's also going to have to stop letting teams simply take the ball out of his hands followed by him slowly jogging back on defense. As soon as he starts playing with a little bit of urgency and some sort of passion (not talking about facial expressions) fans will love him. Until then....
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Your presuming hustle is not something inherent, just like jumping. How come everyone who is 6'7" does not rebound like Dennis Rodman? It should be easy. Ralph should be used in a way to take advantage of what he does have.
 


SelectionSunday said:
Since Trevor went down, the truth is the Gophers probably played their best basketball right after Orlando, when Ralph came off the bench for a game or 2 because of his bum ankle. He blended in nicely (appears that's the way he prefers things) coming off the bench. Got nothin' to lose by trying that again?
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Not a bad idea.
 

benlaur said:
Your presuming hustle is not something inherent, just like jumping. How come everyone who is 6'7" does not rebound like Dennis Rodman? It should be easy. Ralph should be used in a way to take advantage of what he does have.
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Rebounding like Rodman is asking a lot. Bending your knees and at least attempting to stand your ground is not.
 

bga1 said:
The quotes in this article would be acceptable if Sampson were a freshman. This is clueless.
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Agreed. Also, Tubby's quote makes it seem like this is his SUGGESTION. "Hey, maybe you should think about getting in the weight room."

They should have locked him in the weight room and thrown away the key the fall of his freshman year.

Tubby baffles me.
 

GophersOnTheRise said:
Rebounding like Rodman is asking a lot. Bending your knees and at least attempting to stand your ground is not.
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Physical play recipe:

-Begin preparation 3 years prior to serving
-Start with two parts strength
-Add two parts desire
-Add one part guts- use "Miles Tarver Extra Lean" brand
-Mix thoroughly
 



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