Final ZipsLive show - KD's comments

[Z.I.P.]

We dont need a PG as much as we need a straight up baller. We need that guy that wants to be a ball hog and take it to the rack. Pardon me for saying it, but a Can't type player. PG is really the least of my worries. If they bring in a slasher that can take it to the hoop, we're in a great spot. To me, thats what we've been missing, and what we need.

++ Concur with that sentiment -- as if I haven't been saying it for months. And, if TPSjuggler is correct -- we will be down to Zero on any slasher-type players. Is this addition by subtraction??

[skip-zip]

One thing really stuck out at me.

Nik as a #3?

[zipboy]

Lots of good points, a few extra thoughts.

1. On the way home from the Green Bay game, French said that Euton is slotted to play the 5 next year. Obviously that can change. This would give us a lot more spacing ala Rob Preston.

2. I hope that Humpty doesn't transfer. While he needs to be more consistent, he is explosive and we need explosiveness. I don't know the interworkings, but he is an emotional guy, KD is emotional. Dials and KD would get it on the sideline as well, just the nature of competitive people. I don't read much into guys getting wound up on the sidelines during a game. Although one thing Humpty said in a postgame around the middle of the season stuck with me. Joe Dunn asked about the transition from high school to college ball, etc. Humpty said something to the effect - "It's weird. You love it and hate it at the same time." I just thought that was an insightful comment.

3. I agree Dr Z, adding 25 lbs for Zeke is a lot to hope for. One thing that I really like about him - he is an athletic and graceful kid. He moves like an athlete, not a clumsy guy. It is hard to teach that to a big guy, they have it or they don't. 15lbs of muscle would be great.

4. Our most productive line up a couple years ago was the 3 guards, Joyce, Dials, and Middleton. Even Dials, Middleton and McNees or Roberts was used a lot. We have not played the 3 guard line up much at all the last 2 years. It is hard to do with the smaller less physical guards that we have today. None have Cedric's kind of body. If the 4th guy is more like a Cedric type and hopefully even a little taller, minutes may shift from the bigs to the smalls. With an improved Zeke, a 3 guard line up may be more effective than this past year.

[ZachTheZip]

A JUCO PG would allow McNeese to move back to the 2-spot. A PG that can slash is the kind of player that would put things over the top.

[Dr Z]

I hope that Humpty doesn't transfer. While he needs to be more consistent, he is explosive and we need explosiveness. I don't know the interworkings, but he is an emotional guy, KD is emotional. Dials and KD would get it on the sideline as well, just the nature of competitive people. I don't read much into guys getting wound up on the sidelines during a game. Although one thing Humpty said in a postgame around the middle of the season stuck with me. Joe Dunn asked about the transition from high school to college ball, etc. Humpty said something to the effect - "It's weird. You love it and hate it at the same time." I just thought that was an insightful comment.

I never thought of Humpty transferring until I read this thread. I hope he doesn't and I don't think he will. I think back to times in the MAC tourney like the time he went over to Nik on the bench to talk to him and cool him down. It seemed to me like he was progressing in team communication on the bench to me at the end of the season. He didn't have the body language of a guy that was transferring. I think he has a lot of potential and just needs to focus more. Although, knowing very little about the kids feelings, it wouldn't surprise me either.

[Dr Z]

A JUCO PG would allow McNeese to move back to the 2-spot. A PG that can slash is the kind of player that would put things over the top.

IMO it would be like getting 2 for 1.

[GoZips]

A JUCO PG would allow McNeese to move back to the 2-spot. A PG that can slash is the kind of player that would put things over the top.

Steve McNees has shown, as has Nicola, that he can slash to the basket quite effectively. Oh, and so

can Humpty. The trick is to not have Steve droning at the point. But, I digress.

[ZachTheZip]

A JUCO PG would allow McNeese to move back to the 2-spot. A PG that can slash is the kind of player that would put things over the top.

Steve McNees has shown, as has Nicola, that he can slash to the basket quite effectively. Oh, and so

can Humpty. The trick is to not have Steve droning at the point. But, I digress.

Steve can either play the point, or he can slash. Very rarely has he done both at the same time. That's why getting a JUCO PG who can slash would be such a big deal. It improves two positions for the price of one scholarship.

Getting a JUCO SG would cause all sorts of conflicts on the depth chart, though.

[Let'sGoZips94]

I love the idea of the JUCO PG. I think we will see this new guy, Humpty, and Ronnie at the PG with Drob and McNeese at the 2 guard. I think Egner will be our 3. He seems like a Jordan Crawford type of player. Our biggest need is a scorer/playmaker.

[Dave in Green]

In reference to players leaving, I think that Bardo's name has also come up in other threads. Although he has another year of eligibility, my understanding is that he is already doing post-graduate studies. Don't know what his future plans are, but they probably don't include basketball at the next level. Does he plan to still be in school all of next season, and is he willing to put in all the work required to play just a few minutes a game as Zeke's backup? This is all pure speculation. But it's another possibility for opening up one of the two extra scholarships required to take care of the 3 incoming forwards and 1 guard with only 2 scholarship players known to be departing (Conyers and C. McKnight).

[2Ball]

A JUCO PG would allow McNeese to move back to the 2-spot. A PG that can slash is the kind of player that would put things over the top.

Joe Dunn said Steve McNeese is one of the best point guards in the midwest and people want to move him to the 2-spot. How can anyone question Joe Dunn's basketball IQ?

[zippy5]

A JUCO PG would allow McNeese to move back to the 2-spot. A PG that can slash is the kind of player that would put things over the top.

Joe Dunn said Steve McNeese is one of the best point guards in the midwest and people want to move him to the 2-spot. How can anyone question Joe Dunn's basketball IQ?

I don't get the fascination is with steve at the 2 spot. Maybe two years ago, but get out of the past! He's been playing some great ball lately, and at the point guard position.

[ZachTheZip]

A JUCO PG would allow McNeese to move back to the 2-spot. A PG that can slash is the kind of player that would put things over the top.

Joe Dunn said Steve McNeese is one of the best point guards in the midwest and people want to move him to the 2-spot. How can anyone question Joe Dunn's basketball IQ?

I don't get the fascination is with steve at the 2 spot. Maybe two years ago, but get out of the past! He's been playing some great ball lately, and at the point guard position.

Should a Point Guard average just 2.5 assists per game? Sure he doesn't turn the ball over, but he also doesn't facilitate the offense. I'll take someone who turns the ball over 3 times per game if they average 8 assists. Especially on a defensive team like Akron where TOs don't always translate to opposing points.

[Quickzips]

A JUCO PG would allow McNeese to move back to the 2-spot. A PG that can slash is the kind of player that would put things over the top.

Joe Dunn said Steve McNeese is one of the best point guards in the midwest and people want to move him to the 2-spot. How can anyone question Joe Dunn's basketball IQ?

I don't get the fascination is with steve at the 2 spot. Maybe two years ago, but get out of the past! He's been playing some great ball lately, and at the point guard position.

Steve is playing PG somewhat by necessity. Humpty has apparently been too turnover prone for KD and Steward has never been able to get healthy. That leaves Steve as the primary ball-handler, but he's always been better off doing most of his damage off the ball spotting up and knocking down the 3 while only being a secondary ball-handler. If the Zips had a true point that KD had some trust in, a Dru Joyce type, then Steve would be playing primarily at SG.

[zippy5]

A JUCO PG would allow McNeese to move back to the 2-spot. A PG that can slash is the kind of player that would put things over the top.

Joe Dunn said Steve McNeese is one of the best point guards in the midwest and people want to move him to the 2-spot. How can anyone question Joe Dunn's basketball IQ?

I don't get the fascination is with steve at the 2 spot. Maybe two years ago, but get out of the past! He's been playing some great ball lately, and at the point guard position.

Steve is playing PG somewhat by necessity. Humpty has apparently been too turnover prone for KD and Steward has never been able to get healthy. That leaves Steve as the primary ball-handler, but he's always been better off doing most of his damage off the ball spotting up and knocking down the 3 while only being a secondary ball-handler. If the Zips had a true point that KD had some trust in, a Dru Joyce type, then Steve would be playing primarily at SG.

Explain to me his "damage" at the end of the season while running point guard...id say he's done pretty well of spotting up and hitting the three while running point. Disregard the assists to turnovers right for a second. He's been scoring, while at the point. Add in his assist:turnovers and its a no brainer, imo.

[zippy5]

Is

A JUCO PG would allow McNeese to move back to the 2-spot. A PG that can slash is the kind of player that would put things over the top.

Joe Dunn said Steve McNeese is one of the best point guards in the midwest and people want to move him to the 2-spot. How can anyone question Joe Dunn's basketball IQ?

I don't get the fascination is with steve at the 2 spot. Maybe two years ago, but get out of the past! He's been playing some great ball lately, and at the point guard position.

Should a Point Guard average just 2.5 assists per game? Sure he doesn't turn the ball over, but he also doesn't facilitate the offense. I'll take someone who turns the ball over 3 times per game if they average 8 assists. Especially on a defensive team like Akron where TOs don't always translate to opposing points.

I started to take you seriously until you called our team defensive.

[Quickzips]

A JUCO PG would allow McNeese to move back to the 2-spot. A PG that can slash is the kind of player that would put things over the top.

Joe Dunn said Steve McNeese is one of the best point guards in the midwest and people want to move him to the 2-spot. How can anyone question Joe Dunn's basketball IQ?

I don't get the fascination is with steve at the 2 spot. Maybe two years ago, but get out of the past! He's been playing some great ball lately, and at the point guard position.

Steve is playing PG somewhat by necessity. Humpty has apparently been too turnover prone for KD and Steward has never been able to get healthy. That leaves Steve as the primary ball-handler, but he's always been better off doing most of his damage off the ball spotting up and knocking down the 3 while only being a secondary ball-handler. If the Zips had a true point that KD had some trust in, a Dru Joyce type, then Steve would be playing primarily at SG.

Explain to me his "damage" at the end of the season while running point guard...id say he's done pretty well of spotting up and hitting the three while running point. Disregard the assists to turnovers right for a second. He's been scoring, while at the point. Add in his assist:turnovers and its a no brainer, imo.

He wasn't really doing "damage" to the Zips at the end of the season, but he sure could have been doing a lot more damage to our opponents playing off the ball more. A guy whose primary weapon is the 3 point shot (if you disagree with this statement, then there is just no arguing with you) becomes more and more effective as he gets more space to get the shot off. Playing him off the ball would theoretically facilitate more space for Steve to get his shot off. Further, as has been pointed out, while Steve doesn't turn the ball over, his assist totals are simply unacceptable for a D-I starting PG. A good D-I PG should be able to get you at least 4-5 assists per game, and the numbers across D-I bear this out. Steve gets you 2.5. For comparison sake, Dru Joyce, the last true PG to really start for this team averaged 5 his junior year and 4.3 his sophomore and senior year. Not elite, but more like what you are looking for from your starting PG.

[RACER]

steve is a two guard.when he plays point he get the ball over the time line,and that's about it.he never penatrates the lane.

plays with his back to the defender all the time.he is better for akron as a two guard where he can come of screens

for three point shots.kd has a point guard in humpty,but for whatever reason they had some issues.maye with zeke

at center it will take pressure off all the guards now.the first option should be to try to get the ball to zeke.he can shoot

or pass the ball back out for open jump shots.i don't kd did a good job of coaching the ball movement of this team.

[tpsjugglerdude]

We dont need a PG as much as we need a straight up baller. We need that guy that wants to be a ball hog and take it to the rack. Pardon me for saying it, but a Can't type player. PG is really the least of my worries. If they bring in a slasher that can take it to the hoop, we're in a great spot. To me, thats what we've been missing, and what we need.

++ Concur with that sentiment -- as if I haven't been saying it for months. And, if TPSjuggler is correct -- we will be down to Zero on any slasher-type players. Is this addition by subtraction??

Don't worry I wasn't right at all.

[GoZips88]

Could be a VERY interesting off-season ...

[zippy5]

A JUCO PG would allow McNeese to move back to the 2-spot. A PG that can slash is the kind of player that would put things over the top.

Joe Dunn said Steve McNeese is one of the best point guards in the midwest and people want to move him to the 2-spot. How can anyone question Joe Dunn's basketball IQ?

I don't get the fascination is with steve at the 2 spot. Maybe two years ago, but get out of the past! He's been playing some great ball lately, and at the point guard position.

Steve is playing PG somewhat by necessity. Humpty has apparently been too turnover prone for KD and Steward has never been able to get healthy. That leaves Steve as the primary ball-handler, but he's always been better off doing most of his damage off the ball spotting up and knocking down the 3 while only being a secondary ball-handler. If the Zips had a true point that KD had some trust in, a Dru Joyce type, then Steve would be playing primarily at SG.

Explain to me his "damage" at the end of the season while running point guard...id say he's done pretty well of spotting up and hitting the three while running point. Disregard the assists to turnovers right for a second. He's been scoring, while at the point. Add in his assist:turnovers and its a no brainer, imo.

He wasn't really doing "damage" to the Zips at the end of the season, but he sure could have been doing a lot more damage to our opponents playing off the ball more. A guy whose primary weapon is the 3 point shot (if you disagree with this statement, then there is just no arguing with you) becomes more and more effective as he gets more space to get the shot off. Playing him off the ball would theoretically facilitate more space for Steve to get his shot off. Further, as has been pointed out, while Steve doesn't turn the ball over, his assist totals are simply unacceptable for a D-I starting PG. A good D-I PG should be able to get you at least 4-5 assists per game, and the numbers across D-I bear this out. Steve gets you 2.5. For comparison sake, Dru Joyce, the last true PG to really start for this team averaged 5 his junior year and 4.3 his sophomore and senior year. Not elite, but more like what you are looking for from your starting PG.

He shot 37% from three. Averaged about 5-6 three pointers attempted per game...at least in the last 15 games or so I looked at. Would these numbers change if he wasn't running point? do you expect the kid to go 6-10 from 3 every night? After the first pass is made in the set, he's just as much as a shooting guard as anyone else is, he can still "facilitate space to get his shot off." He's been at the top of the +- and help value charts after every game also. But I digress.

[Blue & Gold]

We dont need a PG as much as we need a straight up baller. We need that guy that wants to be a ball hog and take it to the rack. Pardon me for saying it, but a Can't type player. PG is really the least of my worries. If they bring in a slasher that can take it to the hoop, we're in a great spot. To me, thats what we've been missing, and what we need.

++ Concur with that sentiment -- as if I haven't been saying it for months. And, if TPSjuggler is correct -- we will be down to Zero on any slasher-type players. Is this addition by subtraction??

Don't worry I wasn't right at all.

What?!?! A member of ZNO admitting they were wrong?! Are you sure you're familiar with the ZNO culture? You might want to go see a doctor, man. Lol.

Actually, I believe you're referencing a possible transfer by Humpty. So, man, I'm glad you were wrong about that! I'm excited to see Humpty's game next year. Turn him loose KD! Fast! Fast! Fast!

In fact, as an aside, I was listening to the Jackson v Gahanna Lincoln game last night and the announcer, watching Stevie Taylor bring the ball up the court, commented, "Wow, Stevie Taylor brings the ball the length of the floor in about one second."

That's exactly the type of game Humpty has. Now, if we're going to tell our PG's to simply jog the ball up the court, they why recruit a 5'8" burner of a PG. If we're just gonna walk the ball up the court for a half-court set, then just have a F do it. B-Mac & Nik could both bring the ball up. They could simply toss it over the heads of the opposing guards. But if we're recruiting 5'9 Humpty, 5'10" Steward and 5'8" Stevie who's athletic advantage is burning up the court, they why are we walking the ball up? Either we need to start running the fast break AMAP, or we need to stop recruiting this type of player.