PiPress: Gophers expect big things from Walker as a starter

[BleedGopher]

per Marcus:

When Gophers senior Mo Walker is fighting for position this season, he knows his coaches and teammates are intent on getting him the basketball.

He's not competing for playing time or for a starting spot with fellow center Elliott Eliason anymore.

The 6-foot-10, 250-pound center is the low-post scoring threat that the Gophers (1-1) hope can take them to the next level.

Starting is a fairly new role for him. He only had three career starts before this season.

"I definitely want to establish myself as one of the best post players in the league," said Walker, who will get his third straight start Thursday against Division II Franklin Pierce at Williams Arena. "My guys are behind me everyday, encouraging me and telling me I can be that. So I'm just trying to do whatever for this team and be the best I can be."

http://www.twincities.com/sports/ci...rce=rss&utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=twitter

Go Gophers!!

 

[EG#9]

I worry about this change from a psychological perspective with Elliott Eliason. It was clear to me that Eliason really struggled once Mo got going last year. Early in the year he carved out a nice niche as our anchor on the defensive end of the floor and a guy who did a lot of the little things well on the offensive end. Once Mo started playing well, especially in the post, Eliason's play dipped on both ends of the floor. Offensively he was more aggressive as if he was almost trying to prove he could do what Mo could, and defensively he just wasn't the same impact guy we saw early in the season.

In the extremely small sample of two games, we are getting the less effective version of Eliason from last year and it didn't go unnoticed how long it took for him to see the floor versus Western Kentucky. If this team is going to reach its full potential, it will need the Eliason who blocks shots and grabs rebounds at a high rate. That's not to say Mo shouldn't start, just that Elliott needs to realize that the elements of the game in which he is good at are of as much importance as the guy who is scoring 10 + a game.

On the positive side, Mo looks even better than last year in terms of how well he's moving and jumping. The only negative with Mo was that he fell back in to a bad habit of not going up strong on a couple of his deep post touches.

 

[Monty519]

If Eliason struggled just knowing Mo was coming along and getting more minutes despite starting, then sending him to the bench officially doesn't really change much. He's gonna have to figure it out regardless, cause we're gonna need him.

 

[HOOP DREAMS]

I worry about this change from a psychological perspective with Elliott Eliason.

Contrarily, I'm optimistic what it could do from a psychological perspective with Mo.

I like EE off the bench too, get in there and bust some A$$.

 

[WanderingGopher]

I worry about this change from a psychological perspective with Elliott Eliason. It was clear to me that Eliason really struggled once Mo got going last year. Early in the year he carved out a nice niche as our anchor on the defensive end of the floor and a guy who did a lot of the little things well on the offensive end. Once Mo started playing well, especially in the post, Eliason's play dipped on both ends of the floor. Offensively he was more aggressive as if he was almost trying to prove he could do what Mo could, and defensively he just wasn't the same impact guy we saw early in the season.

In the extremely small sample of two games, we are getting the less effective version of Eliason from last year and it didn't go unnoticed how long it took for him to see the floor versus Western Kentucky. If this team is going to reach its full potential, it will need the Eliason who blocks shots and grabs rebounds at a high rate. That's not to say Mo shouldn't start, just that Elliott needs to realize that the elements of the game in which he is good at are of as much importance as the guy who is scoring 10 + a game.

On the positive side, Mo looks even better than last year in terms of how well he's moving and jumping. The only negative with Mo was that he fell back in to a bad habit of not going up strong on a couple of his deep post touches.

I agree with most of this. Eliason controlled the paint against some pretty good teams in the first half of the year last year (Syracuse, Ohio State). We need to recapture that Eliason. I still think he should start, let Mo come off the bench. A front line of King and Mo Walker is very weak from a defense and rebounding standpoint.

And Mo still drives me crazy with his weak hands and lack of explosiveness around the hoop. He has some good skills, but he's a below-the-rim player.

 

[MadtownGopher]

EE has never really developed since arriving to the U. He has just gotten a little stronger and a little more coordinated. Overall, he's been a bit of a disappointment. He's a good hustle guy off the bench though.

 

[HOOP DREAMS]

EE has never really developed since arriving to the U. He has just gotten a little stronger and a little more coordinated. Overall, he's been a bit of a disappointment. He's a good hustle guy off the bench though.

He's seems to be underrated on GH, but I agree, I was hoping for more development especially in the strength and coordination department from the 7'er.

 

[cjbfbp]

I agree with most of this. Eliason controlled the paint against some pretty good teams in the first half of the year last year (Syracuse, Ohio State). We need to recapture that Eliason. I still think he should start, let Mo come off the bench. A front line of King and Mo Walker is very weak from a defense and rebounding standpoint.

And Mo still drives me crazy with his weak hands and lack of explosiveness around the hoop. He has some good skills, but he's a below-the-rim player.

I thought Eliason played pretty well against WKU and he played almost as much as Mo. I agree with some of the things you say about both centers but Pitino mentioned that he liked Eliason coming off the bench for the time being to bring energy. I think Eliason may actually be a little more relaxed coming off the bench as long as he gets significant playing time. I believe that Pitino won't hesitate to pull Mo if the interior defense starts breaking down and Mo is fairly foul prone in his own right so I see plenty of playing time for Eliason.