He made some really nice clutch buckets but I don't think he was a consistent off-dribble scorer. But not a bad call. That said, my original point was that this team is more talented than most NU teams. Someone stated that the absence of an off-dribble scorer means the talent is not really better--I don't think guys like Demps equalize talent, though he would be a decent addition to this team.
Other than Gaines and maybe Pardon, team plays with no confidence
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He made some really nice clutch buckets but I don't think he was a consistent off-dribble scorer. But not a bad call. That said, my original point was that this team is more talented than most NU teams. Someone stated that the absence of an off-dribble scorer means the talent is not really better--I don't think guys like Demps equalize talent, though he would be a decent addition to this team.
If that is your sole determining factor of athleticism, not sure what to say. Generally you expect that out of the PG or possibly the 2 guard. We already know we are short a starting PG and that is the big issue as that is who you expect to take someone off the dribble. While we have one (and he has shown that he can get to the rim, other parts of his game are not solid enough to get him minutes yet. Otherwise, the team is athletic enough.
Look, CCC is an outstanding recruiter. It takes that to get just to the middle of the BIG at NU. But the rest of the BIG has upped their games as well and the BIG is recruiting overall at the highest levels I have seen in decades making the job that much tougher even though we likely have the best overall HC we have had. The coaching in the BIG overall is really the best I have seen it, So other than the top couple coaches, there is very little separating the rest of the conference. Who in the conference is a bad coach? Frankly I don't see one.
This seems a little hyperbolic to me. Collins has gotten some good recruits who proved successful, but those were at the start of his tenure and largely based on where he had been and what his name was as well as who he is as HC of NU. He has landed a few highly rated guys who have yet to show if they match hype, and if they do, i will agree with the outstanding recruiter accolade.
With 4espect to being the best HC NU has had, he had a one very good year as far as results go. Another one might cement the title with respect to success at NU as the criterion for best HC.
From a strict standpoint of demonstrating through a total body of work (not just at NU) I think you would have to say Winter and Foster were better coaches to this point in CCC's career, and if you look at the total package of building a good team from scratch for a single season, I think Rich Falk and the 82-83 team is the best in my years as Cats fan.
Sorry but I do not really think there is a bad coach in the BIG. A couple that may not have lived up to some expectations but not really a bad HC. Mills this year is the victim of the dreaded injury bug. Chambers did pretty well last year and this year rebuilding.,
CCCs recruiting has been pretty solid by comparison to anything we have seen at NU in a while. He had an unfortunate situation in that the PG of the future did something at the last minute leaving a huge hole. But overall for this years class he had 3 4 stars slated to come in. And another, the highest rated recruit in next years class. You can argue whether he has the right overall mix but not about the level of his recruiting
If you cannot see the talent level in this years recruits, I do not know what to say. You can argue whether we have the right mix, but not the quality. And had Lathon not pulled a Lathon, this team likely would have been just fine. His actions potentially cost this team two years as thinking we had our PG, recruiting for that position took a back seat for the class of 2019 and recruiting of top PGs had NU pretty much out of the picture. While maybe we might get a late high level PG or a grad transfer at the position (more likely and a one year solution) truly addressing it will have to wait for the 2020 class.
Sorry but other than when we had both Hachad and TJ, we have never had more than one at a time. While we are short this year, and possibly next year, because of Lathon's actions, it won't be forever.
This years Frosh class was good enough. The loss of Lathon really set us back and Nance development has been stunted by the Mono. They only real chance for this years class to make a major impact was Lathon as we had depth at the other positions keeping them from seeing a lot of the floor. I expect pretty good things starting next year out of Nance and Kopp as they have a shot at a lot of open minutes with the departure of Law, Taylor and Pardon. I think Young could be a real surprise. And hopefully Greer takes that next step
No, you really CAN argue the quality. Because quality has to translate to production, and so far, there has been very little production from this year's freshmen class. None of them is shooting better than 35 percent from the field, averaging more than 1.5 rebounds or 3.8 points a game. Do they have potential? Maybe. We'll see as they mature. But you can't make declarations about their quality based on this year's production alone.
Nor can you make blanket statements that this year's team "would have been fine" had Jordan Lathon showed up. Right now he has more personal fouls than assists, and nearly as many turnovers. Would he have been a nice addition to a team without a PG? Absolutely. But he would have been a freshman in a very tough league. Maybe he makes the difference in a game or two. Maybe not.
There is still a lot to be written in the story of this year's recruiting class, and I don't think any of us knows how that story will play out just yet.
