clarkwgriswold

The kid is a real player. Joe Dunn had him on Big Time Sports last week and he is mature and composed beyond his years. I was very impressed. Well spoken, top notch student and a talented basketball player. He is a real steal for a MAC school.

Deji has really grown on me. He plays harder than anyone on the team and his game has really matured. I do like the chemistry that is developing with this crew. If last year's team had this chemistry, they could have been dangerous. Fortunately, the biggest threat to last year's chemistry is now at Fairmont State.

Nick Harney is a one man summary of Akron basketball- talented yet frustrating as hell.

That was a painful game to watch. Poorly played and poorly officiated. This team may be the most frustrating UA team in years. KD is trying everything, but something seems to be missing with this squad. KD has always been able to understand the psyche of each of the players, but this group seems to be a mystery. I trust KD enough to hope they start to click, but it is getting too late in the season to "hope for hope" much longer.

That game was a step back after weeks of progress since the Toledo game. I like and trust KD too, but this group seems to lack the intensity and killer instinct of his past teams despite being one of the most talented.

I am with you on the concern over the lack of a true point guard, but Evans and Betancourt have been so bad it is worth the risk at his point. If it bites you in the keester, make a quick switch to Evans.

I think you need to get 5 of your best on the floor and go from there. You can really put subs in a specific rotation as who comes in depends on many factors- who may be struggling, who may be in foul trouble, whether the other size has a speed or size advantage, whether you need a shooter/ballhandler/rebounder, etc. Much of the rotation troubles could be remedied by Harney shaking the attitude and playing hard all of the time, as he can play multiple positions. At this juncture, I would start Diggs, McAdams, Forsythe, Tree and Harney. Kretzer, Johnson and Evans would be my first options off of the bench, with Betancourt, Ibatayo an Cheahtam only seeing minutes here and there.

AA would certainly help, but let's remember a couple of things. First, he is an awful defensive player whose weaknesses were often covered up by Zeke erasing his mistakes. Second, AA had trouble getting into shape when he was active. I can't imagine what shape he is in now, what commitment he would make to getting back into shape, or how long it would take him. Also, I am not sure we could trust him. He not only got himself in to trouble, but then compounded it with a probation violation when he still had a chance to get back to the team.

Holy smokes, that was just brutal. I wish I could say it was just an off day, but it just seems that this team is not gelling and that Dambrot is having a tough time mentally figuring them out. We are half way through the season and we still have no semblance of a regular rotation, and it is rare that we have 5 of our top players on the court together. Forsythe needed to settle into the bench today as he just was not there, and Betancourt's and Ibatayo's roles need to be cut way back.

Build it and they will come?

Carmelo is not ready and is a turnover machine and Obatayo is awful. That's the one position where they do not have a capable backup. We'll see what Dambrot comes up with. Who would have thought Miami would have been Alex's last game.

Forsythe will never be the defensive presence that Zeke is, but his offensive skill set is already superior to Zeke's.

I enjoy watching Rico play on offense, but he is painful to watch play defense. His inability to stay in front of the man he is guarding coupled with his tendency to get distracted and lose his man, are often maddening.