Rodney!?

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who else has noticed his improved play/driving to the lane for monster dunks plus rebounds? ofcourse you'll all say he is no where near the NBA and he isnt scoring 30 ppg so he hasnt improved, but from last year he has really taken a step foward. Hopefully he can continue to play like this, but maybe shoot the ball a lil better for the B10 season
 

Rodney is much improved from last year, and will be key to the Gophers success this year.
 

He was the best player on the court for about 60 seconds yesterday and showed the potential he has. I like that he's putting the ball on the floor more, is definitely more aggressive on the baseline and has more confidence. As Holy Man said, he has definitely improved since last year, and we will need him to reach our potential as a team. He also has the ability to disappear for minutes at a time, to the point where you almost forget he's on the court, but if he can play great D, that will keep him on the floor even if he's not in the offensive flow.

Go Gophers!!
 

Holy Man said:
Rodney is much improved from last year, and will be key to the Gophers success this year.
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Rodney is slightly improved from last year, and is not the key to the Gophers success this year.

Wishful thinking. He had a great dunk off a wide open floor to the basket, sorry I think you are reaching.
 

NurumbiCongo said:
Rodney is slightly improved from last year, and is not the key to the Gophers success this year.

Wishful thinking. He had a great dunk off a wide open floor to the basket, sorry I think you are reaching.
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I would have to agree. Slightly improved, certainly not the key.
 


He was the best player on the court for about 60 seconds yesterday and showed the potential he has.

Perhaps the stupidest comment on Rodney this year. You might think that expectations would be a bit higher for our potential" lottery pick forward" than to shine for 60 seconds against a Ivy League school. Lets hope he can ramp up his game and maybe be the best palyer on the floor for 5 minutes at some point this year.
 

JMO (did not see Cornell game)
Rodney has made significant improvement. He was invisible his freshman year (few threes and dunks off of lobs per game). He started his freshman year behind - talk of redshirting from the fans. This year he is rebounding, has improved his defense and is trying to drive to the basket. He now has a Big Ten body. He has a long way to go - is clearly not ready for the NBA. Glad he is on the team and expect to see him back next year. He will be a good contributor.
 

Rodney knows what he needs to do. He just doesn't exactly know how to do it yet.
 

Gopher in Texas said:
JMO (did not see Cornell game)
Rodney has made significant improvement. He was invisible his freshman year (few threes and dunks off of lobs per game). He started his freshman year behind - talk of redshirting from the fans. This year he is rebounding, has improved his defense and is trying to drive to the basket. He now has a Big Ten body. He has a long way to go - is clearly not ready for the NBA. Glad he is on the team and expect to see him back next year. He will be a good contributor.
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Big Ten body?????? What????
I don't think he's gained that much weight from last season. Certainly not more than 7-10 lbs. Besides, I don't think he'll ever have a "Big Ten body." He's just one of those guys, like JaJuan Johnson and Mike Davis from Illinois, that's perpetually skinny, no matter how much he hits the weight room.
 



MaroonGopher said:
Big Ten body?????? What????
I don't think he's gained that much weight from last season. Certainly not more than 7-10 lbs. Besides, I don't think he'll ever have a "Big Ten body." He's just one of those guys, like JaJuan Johnson and Mike Davis from Illinois, that's perpetually skinny, no matter how much he hits the weight room.
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OK - agreed, but he was Austin Hollins skinny last year. Looks to me like he has definitely added muscle.
 

He is a bit stronger, and his game has improved.. he fouls less and he actually makes a move off the dribble sometimes. He still needs to work on his jumper and continue to improve in those other areas, but he's definitely improved since last year.

I think the key to our season is the PG position.. when Nolen gets back, can he pick up where he left off in Puerto Rico? Can Devoe shake off the rust and pick up where he left off in the Big 10 Tournament last year? With good PG play, our team can go far. That and improved FT shooting from our bigs, since they (especially Mbakwe) will go to the line a lot this year.
 

Rodney is the one guy you could take out of the rotation right now and not really notice his absence. Everyone on this board (me included) is desperate to see him expand his game by a significant amount and he hasn't. He's improved over last year but beyond the occassional highlight is still too inconsistent.

I just wonder if Mn is/was the bet fit for his skill set. The upside is if he continues to address his weaknesses there is still a chance for him to fulfill his potential. 60 seconds against Cornell isn't enough however.
 

His ESPN dunk was impressive. However as stated above, was on a wide open floor to the basket. I'm more impressed with his D, rebounding, blocking shots, and (this year) taking the ball to the hoop.
 




Rodney...

Great athlete but not a great basketball player. The great one's have shooting touch and a better awareness on the court. I've seen his shooting and some sily mistakes like leaving his feet on the drive to the basket too soon.

Rodney should shoot 200 FT's per day AFTER practice and work on his touch. He should forget about taking any 3 point shots until he improves his touch...We need a slasher and mid-range, pull-up jump shooter. We've got enough shooting with Hoffarber, Joseph and Nolen has improved his outside shot enough that I'd rather Rodney just drive and rebound, but stay more in control.
 

Rodney Williams is not important to the Gophers. He is not a great defender, he is not a good good shooter, he cant handle the ball very well. He is the best athlete in the Big Ten, possibly the best athlete in the country but he is bad at basketball. He doesn't get it and he never will. He just cant play the game. Name 3 things Rodney is good at on the court? He doesn't rebound well for his size/jumping ability, he doesnt shoot well, dribble well, pass well. He can dunk, he can block a shot per game and thats about it. By far the most over-rated player the Gophers have. I prefer the freshman guards over him.
 

He has improved in areas other than outside shooting. I keep hoping he will start hitting a few of those. Maybe he is rushing his shot a little. I think defensively he has improved and thought he did a good job saturday.
 


He didn't say that Rodney was THE key to the gopher's success this year. THE key implies he is the most important player and key means he's part of many. There's a huge difference.

I don't understand why people on here feel the need to rip on Rodney constantly. I think many seem to think that because he naturally has elite athleticism and great length that he should automatically be an elite player. They think that because he isn't a star that it means that he hasn't worked on anything other than dunking. Newsflash: just because he doesn't look significantly improved doesn't mean that he doesn't try. I don't know how hard we works, but it seems like people assume that he never practices shooting or ball-handling. Like athleticism, A LOT of shooting and ball-handling is natural ability.

NurumbiCongo said:
Rodney is slightly improved from last year, and is not the key to the Gophers success this year.

Wishful thinking. He had a great dunk off a wide open floor to the basket, sorry I think you are reaching.
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I mean, it obvious he's working on his ballhandling, he never put the ball on the floor once last year, now he takes it to the hole off the dribble at least once a game. next year i think he'll have a breakout year
 

I'm not sure it's negative commentary. Too many posts about his highligh dunks imo. Seen it, great stuff, fun to watch but with all the hype it should be more about his play. I doubt there are many players who've appeared on ESPN Top Plays more than RW and that's cool. Personally, I'm just looking for more out of him.

I do couple my expectations with his playing center in HS, playing AAU for Pulley and college with Smith. HUGE differences in philosophy and now playing a guard position. Think about the transition this kid is going through with regards to BB. Didn't grow up playing guard and now that's his future. Tough for the kid but if these draft "experts" would not have built him up, it would have been to his benefit.
 

How is continually bashing our player not negative commentary? People are obviously annoyed that he's projected to be drafted and they don't think he deserves to be rewarded when he hasn't put up very good numbers.

Duthasmon Smith said:
I'm not sure it's negative commentary.
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Not 'the key' or 'will be key' to gophers success this year.

underground629 said:
He didn't say that Rodney was THE key to the gopher's success this year. THE key implies he is the most important player and key means he's part of many. There's a huge difference.
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Originally Posted by Holy Man
Rodney is much improved from last year, and will be key to the Gophers success this year.

_____

Rodney is slightly improved from last year, and is not key to the Gophers success this year.

Thank you for speaking in behalf of Holy Man.

_____

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I don't agree that he is the key or key. I wish I did.
 

Just helping you out. He was arguing something different.

NurumbiCongo said:
Originally Posted by Holy Man
Rodney is much improved from last year, and will be key to the Gophers success this year.

_____

Rodney is slightly improved from last year, and is not key to the Gophers success this year.

Thank you for speaking in behalf of Holy Man.
Click to expand...
 

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