BGSU post game notes

[Valpo Zip]

Just got back from BG, what a great game ! - Nick Dials and J-wood were not on their days, they were strugling... it is unclear why but the clear thing is that KD was able to do the adjustments at halftime and modify the rotation and kill BG. - Quade was phenomenal in the second half, i still cannot believe what he did, and quoting the CAVS commercial: "you had to be there". I can't explain how huge he was, i lost count of his blockshots and his dunks (some of which were alley-hoops). Huge, huge game from the big guy... a couple of his sibblings were sitting next to me and he made them real proud. - Romeo had a big game too, his FT shooting is much better than before, impressive 100% on the road and very good Deffense too. - Dru was solid in penetrating, i think that he committed a bit too many turnovers, but still the general of the floor, forced some good TO to balance it. - Nate Linhart, lady's and gentleman, we are talking about an NBA prospect here. Nate is improving very quickly and starting to dominate. How often do we have a 6-7 guy who can drive to the basket, shoot a floater and a jumper and the three, play great defense and grab a handful of rebounds? not very often if you ask me. - Cedrick is definitely blessed with his speed, he can be unstoppable in penetrations, his defense is decent, his shot selection could have been a bit better. - Connyers, McKnight are coming along... nothing too impressive tonight. - Goddard had a three in Garbagge time... something Rybak still can't do.We were 5 rowdies and we totally dominated the arena in the 2nd half, their people were so quiet and we were rocking and rolling and doing our chants... one of my best zips nights... definitely worth the trip.

[Bleacher Bum]

Nicely done Sami! Good to hear you make it out there. Can't beat OU in overtime today. Looks like everyone is 2-1.

[zip37]

Quade's rerally coming on strong-- correct me if I'm wrong but about this time last yearwasn't there some chatter on this boarb about a wasted scholarship, hummmmmmmmmmmmm?With ball ammunition lock and load and, sa always,

[sgm405]

Great analysis, although I must heavily disagree with one thing...Nate Linhart = NBA Prospect? Now, I like Nate...but in no way can I ever see him in the league. He's averaging about 7 points and 3 rebounds a game. In 15 games so far, he's scored over 10 points only three times and has only gone over 5 rebounds three times as well. He has a decent shot and plays excellent defense, but does seem to have trouble against better competition, and struggles at times when pressured. He is a nice, solid role player. He's not the best player on the team, and I'm not sure he ever will be. I hope I'm wrong, but I think Nate would be extremely lucky to get paid to play overseas one day...and trust me, nothing to be ashamed of there. But NBA? I just don't see it...

[timmyboy]

good game zips. cant state is up next!

[Valpo Zip]

I see what you're saying SGM but hear me out:The fact that Nate is not scoring outstanding numbers is nothing to be used against him considering the balanced offense we have and the way KD's rotation is. Moreover, Nate is only in the first half of his sophomore year and he is already a big part of the team... I strongly believe that his numbers will improve a lot with time.In my humble opinion, the main reason our guards cannot make it to the NBA is because of their speed and size. The only one who got the NBA speed might be cedrick but he is at 6-0. The average NBA guard size is 6-4. I know there are exceptions, but i am talking about the norm.For big guys, (PF and C), the reason preventing them from going to the NBA is their size. You may argue that Romeo or J-wood are as skilled as Gooden or Varejao but the fact remains that the average size of an NBA PF is 6-10, 6-11 while Rome and J-wood are in the 6-6, 6-7 range. Nate is the only guy who has both the size (6-7) and the skills (speed, shooting) of an NBA prospect. with all due respect, did you ever see J-wood dribble ? did you see him driving the ball in a fast break ? he can't because he is a big guy... well Nate is an inch taller than him and he can drive the ball and shoot and all the other stuff that very few people of his size can do.I am not saying that nate is polishe and ready and that he should enter the draft tomorrow or next year, but i can easily say that he got all what it takes to be an NBA small forward (compare to Sasha pavlovic for example).

[sgm405]

I see what you're saying SGM but hear me out:The fact that Nate is not scoring outstanding numbers is nothing to be used against him considering the balanced offense we have and the way KD's rotation is. Moreover, Nate is only in the first half of his sophomore year and he is already a big part of the team... I strongly believe that his numbers will improve a lot with time.In my humble opinion, the main reason our guards cannot make it to the NBA is because of their speed and size. The only one who got the NBA speed might be cedrick but he is at 6-0. The average NBA guard size is 6-4. I know there are exceptions, but i am talking about the norm.For big guys, (PF and C), the reason preventing them from going to the NBA is their size. You may argue that Romeo or J-wood are as skilled as Gooden or Varejao but the fact remains that the average size of an NBA PF is 6-10, 6-11 while Rome and J-wood are in the 6-6, 6-7 range. Nate is the only guy who has both the size (6-7) and the skills (speed, shooting) of an NBA prospect. with all due respect, did you ever see J-wood dribble ? did you see him driving the ball in a fast break ? he can't because he is a big guy... well Nate is an inch taller than him and he can drive the ball and shoot and all the other stuff that very few people of his size can do.I am not saying that nate is polishe and ready and that he should enter the draft tomorrow or next year, but i can easily say that he got all what it takes to be an NBA small forward (compare to Sasha pavlovic for example).

A few quick hits then on to my main point...1) I never said that Jeremiah Wood was an NBA prospect. He is what he is - a solid college post player. 2) Romeo Travis and Jeremiah Wood are nowhere near as skilled as Drew Gooden and Anderson VarejaoI just don't see why you view Linhart as an NBA prospect. What does he do great? Can he take over a game? Do you ever watch him and say "wow, he's something really special..."??? He may have NBA size, but he lacks NBA speed and agility...overall athleticism really...he also lacks NBA court awareness. Do you realize how good a guy has to be to make it to the league? Nate Linhart is a role player. You don't think Dambrot would center the offense around him if he had the capability to dominate? He's done it before (Tarver) and would do it to win. The offense is set up as is because the Zips don't have a guy who can take a game over consistently, they don't have an NBA prospect...but they do have a bunch of guys who are very solid college players who can step up at different times throughout a season...and that's great. Do you remember Derrick Tarver? 6'4", 215 two-guard. Had the ability to score in bunches. Took over games all the time. Far, far, far superior to Linhart...and all he got was a tryout with the Cavs (as a favor to LBJ). Nate Linhart is a good player with a decent shot and plays excellent defense. He'll have a solid career here at Akron. But NBA? Not a chance.

[Zip Watcher]

I often watch Nate and think to myself, he might be the best talent on the team.Remember the WMU game @ the Q last year? I'd say Nate took over the game there. 14 rebounds .. he changed a lot of shots. Taking over the game doesn't require dropping 30 on them. The Nevada game also .. their SF (Kemp) is on a few mock draft boards already .. and Nate & Jimmy pretty much took him out of the game in a man defense.The beauty of this team & we will see more & more of it is that you can't shut down one guy & beat the Zips. You have to force the Zips into bad shots & bad decisions (Zone helps). Clamping down on one guy won't beat them. That's why neither KD, nor any of the guys are in a hurry to have anyone taking 30 shots & scoring 20 a night. It's just not as effect & efficient as having 7 guys combining to average 67 points / game. I think the thought that Derrick Tarver was a better player (ever) than Nate Linhart is now is pretty funny. No offense to DT, but he couldn't carry Nate's basketball jock. Tarver was a one on one guy .. completely unable to play within a team, had suspect ball handling skills & no defensive desire whatsoever. Point of order however, Tarver played for D. Hip, not KD. And the recruitment of Tarver probably led to the ultimate nail in that coffin.Nate's got the best combination of size, speed, quickness, ball skills & court awareness (and his is excellent) that I've seen here since Andy was a Freshman. I was sure Andy would be in the league one day & still believe it would have happened if it weren't for that trip to WKU. I think that Nate's release probably needs to be sped up .. and he needs to continue to improve. I don't think he's a drafted guy right now .. but I do think he's an Ira Newble type .. may show up a few years later after working on his game across the pond. Anyone actually remember Newble @ Miami?

[Bleacher Bum]

There is a reason that the AK-Rowdies chant "MVP" for Nate Linhart.

[skip-zip]

I can't even believe that I am going to comment on this, but I will.We all love the Zips, and wish them the best, but there are NO players on this team with even a remote chance of playing in the NBA. I've been following MAC basketball for 25 years. When a MAC player possesses NBA-level talent (not an every day occurrence), he looks "special", appears to be somewhat dominant over everyone else on the floor, and makes even non-fans want to go to games just to watch him play.You think this describes Nate Linhart?A few weeks ago, people were wondering if he was even going to be a starter anymore.There's dozens of players in the MAC at Linhart's talent level, or higher. And only a couple of them will ever wear an NBA uniform. Unless he develops into a guy who can bury shots from every spot on the court, and pull down 10+ rebounds a game, he's never even going to be on any NBA scout's radar screen.

[Zip Watcher]

I've been following MAC basketball for 25 years. When a MAC player possesses NBA-level talent (not an every day occurrence), he looks "special", appears to be somewhat dominant over everyone else on the floor, and makes even non-fans want to go to games just to watch him play.You think this describes Nate Linhart?

Since you've been watching the MAC for so long, I'll ask my question again. Do you think that describes Ira Newble when he was at Miami? You bought a ticket just to see him? Do you even remember him @ Miami?Did you buy a ticket just to see John Edwards? Did he dominate .. rise above all the other players on the court?No one here is saying that Nate is a future lottery player or first team All-NBA'r .. the observation has been made that he has a ton of game & could one day get there.

[sgm405]

Random responses...- John Edwards made it to the league because he is 7 feet tall. That's a horrible comparison IMO. - Tarver might have lacked on defense and might not have been a team player but he had a far greater ability to take over a game than Nate Linhart has and probably ever will have. - Marcelus Kemp is a two guard, not a SF...and he did good but he didn't exactly shut him down (12/4 for Kemp...Nate went for 7/4). Let's see Nate guard an NBA SF prospect. Or score against one.- Linhart had 6 points, 14 rebounds in the game against WM last year. It was the only time last year (or in his career) that he's gone over 10 boards. He had a big game...but that's definitely not the norm. Again, I like Nate Linhart. But we're talking about a role player on a mid-major team that's averaging about 8/4 a game. He is going to get better, and he will have a very nice career at UA...but he lacks the speed, agility, awareness, and ability to score and create his own shot. He never gets to the free throw line. He averaging just about 3 fouls per game in just about 22 minutes per game. He's not the best SF in the MAC, he's not the best player on his team...not even close. Hey, I'd love to be wrong...but Nate Linhart in the NBA seems like a total pipe dream to me...just not gonna happen.

[Valpo Zip]

The NBA hosts around 450 players... no more than 50 are superstars who can score in bunches and dominate. The rest of them are role players. In other words, every NBA player does not have to take over games to be there. Ira Newble is a good example, Sasha Pavlovic is another example. Every big guy (6-11) and above, with some athleticism, even if he lacks basketball skills, will be drafted... and the teams will work on them (see: Martynas Andriskevicius, Desagana Diop, Can't State's Edwards etc...) Kids who are (6-6 -->6-8) and have basketball skills (can drive the ball to the basket, dribble without traveling, shoot, and play defense) will get a look too.Once again, Nate is not going to be drafted this year... he's not even the big guy at Akron yet. He's only a sophomore. He has a lot of room to improve in the next 2.5 years to develop and become an NBA "role player".

[Dr Z]

I think the thought that Derrick Tarver was a better player (ever) than Nate Linhart is now is pretty funny.  No offense to DT, but he couldn't carry Nate's basketball jock.  Tarver was a one on one guy .. completely unable to play within a team, had suspect ball handling skills & no defensive desire whatsoever.  Point of order however, Tarver played for D. Hip, not KD.  And the recruitment of Tarver probably led to the ultimate nail in that coffin.

For me, the difference between the two boils down to this.The more I watch Nate, the more I like him, the more I watched Tarver the less I liked him. Hopefully that statement will still be true in a few years.

[sgm405]

I think the thought that Derrick Tarver was a better player (ever) than Nate Linhart is now is pretty funny.  No offense to DT, but he couldn't carry Nate's basketball jock.  Tarver was a one on one guy .. completely unable to play within a team, had suspect ball handling skills & no defensive desire whatsoever.  Point of order however, Tarver played for D. Hip, not KD.  And the recruitment of Tarver probably led to the ultimate nail in that coffin.

For me, the difference between the two boils down to this.The more I watch Nate, the more I like him, the more I watched Tarver the less I liked him. Hopefully that statement will still be true in a few years.

For me, the difference between the two boils down to this. Derrick Tarver, like him or not, was a go to guy. Nate Linhart is a role player. A good player...but a role player.

[Hilltopper]

I think the thought that Derrick Tarver was a better player (ever) than Nate Linhart is now is pretty funny.  No offense to DT, but he couldn't carry Nate's basketball jock.  Tarver was a one on one guy .. completely unable to play within a team, had suspect ball handling skills & no defensive desire whatsoever.  Point of order however, Tarver played for D. Hip, not KD.  And the recruitment of Tarver probably led to the ultimate nail in that coffin.

For me, the difference between the two boils down to this.The more I watch Nate, the more I like him, the more I watched Tarver the less I liked him. Hopefully that statement will still be true in a few years.

For me, the difference between the two boils down to this. Derrick Tarver, like him or not, was a go to guy. Nate Linhart is a role player. A good player...but a role player.

Tarver had been around the block a few times before his Zips career. He had been kicked out of several highschools and been involved in a few run ins with the police. How old was he when he played here? Alot of being the "Man" at crunch time involves self confidence and Tarver never lacked for that. Give Nate a few more years of maturity and you never know what can happen.

[sgm405]

I'm not saying Linhart lacks the confidence to the "The Man"...he lacks the skills. Again, I hope I'm wrong...but I don't see much more than a very good role player.

[Zip Watcher]

I guess I'm looking at a different guy here .. because I see a guy who has all the tools, physically & mentally to put it together. Again, I think Newble is a good example of a guy who was never "go-to" by your definition in the MAC, yet has hung around the league for quite awhile.

[sgm405]

I guess I'm looking at a different guy here .. because I see a guy who has all the tools, physically & mentally to put it together. Again, I think Newble is a good example of a guy who was never "go-to" by your definition in the MAC, yet has hung around the league for quite awhile.

I see Newble as far more athletic than Linhart...maybe that's just me. I'm actually surprised to see how many people think Linhart is an NBA prospect.

[Zip Watcher]

Regardless, it will be great to watch Nate develop. I think if he can speed up the delivery of his jumper, he becomes a VERY tough guy to guard in this conference.

[Z.I.P.]

I think the thought that Derrick Tarver was a better player (ever) than Nate Linhart is now is pretty funny.  No offense to DT, but he couldn't carry Nate's basketball jock.  Tarver was a one on one guy .. completely unable to play within a team, had suspect ball handling skills & no defensive desire whatsoever.  Point of order however, Tarver played for D. Hip, not KD.  And the recruitment of Tarver probably led to the ultimate nail in that coffin.

For me, the difference between the two boils down to this.The more I watch Nate, the more I like him, the more I watched Tarver the less I liked him. Hopefully that statement will still be true in a few years.

For me, the difference between the two boils down to this. Derrick Tarver, like him or not, was a go to guy. Nate Linhart is a role player. A good player...but a role player.

No other Akron player has been offered a scholarship by the likes of Bobby Knight or Fresno State and I think UNLV. For all he lacks, D-Tarv had some tremendous ability offensively.So where's he at now? Update us, Captain!

[Captain Kangaroo]

So where's he at now? Update us, Captain!

Apparently, all the points he scored in garbage time...the trash-talk...it all ironically paid off.

[sgm405]

So where's he at now?  Update us, Captain!

Apparently, all the points he scored in garbage time...the trash-talk...it all ironically paid off.

Actually Tarver is making pretty damn good money playing overseas and it looks like he's doing well:http://www.eurobasket.com/swe/d1.aspPlayer of the Year in his league...not too shabby.

[LUCKYONE]

Just got back from BG, what a great game ! - Nick Dials and J-wood were not on their days, they were strugling... it is unclear why but the clear thing is that KD was able to do the adjustments at halftime and modify the rotation and kill BG. - Quade was phenomenal in the second half, i still cannot believe what he did, and quoting the CAVS commercial: "you had to be there". I can't explain how huge he was, i lost count of his blockshots and his dunks (some of which were alley-hoops). Huge, huge game from the big guy... a couple of his sibblings were sitting next to me and he made them real proud. - Romeo had a big game too, his FT shooting is much better than before, impressive 100% on the road and very good Deffense too. - Dru was solid in penetrating, i think that he committed a bit too many turnovers, but still the general of the floor, forced some good TO to balance it. - Nate Linhart, lady's and gentleman, we are talking about an NBA prospect here. Nate is improving very quickly and starting to dominate. How often do we have a 6-7 guy who can drive to the basket, shoot a floater and a jumper and the three, play great defense and grab a handful of rebounds? not very often if you ask me. - Cedrick is definitely blessed with his speed, he can be unstoppable in penetrations, his defense is decent, his shot selection could have been a bit better. - Connyers, McKnight are coming along... nothing too impressive tonight. - Goddard had a three in Garbagge time... something Rybak still can't do.We were 5 rowdies and we totally dominated the arena in the 2nd half, their people were so quiet and we were rocking and rolling and doing our chants... one of my best zips nights... definitely worth the trip.

OMG you must be linharts brother, mother, sister whatever to even think he is an NBA prospect, only way he gets to the league will be to buy a ticket.overrated comes to mind , I can think of at least 5 guys on the team that are better.

[Captain Kangaroo]

Actually Tarver is making pretty damn good money playing overseas and it looks like he's doing well:http://www.eurobasket.com/swe/d1.aspPlayer of the Year in his league...not too shabby.

Good for him. Euro games, with the emphasis on offense, suit him to a tee. He never came close to living up to his press clippings while he was here. Dan Hipsher had a way of bringing out the worst in a lot of players. And, if I had to take the court alongside Bryan Hipsher...and be expected to win Division 1 basketball games...I'd probably play some angry, crappy basketball too. I'm glad he overcame.