Simpkins Draws the Start
- Thread starter hbkmyr
- Start date
Nice game off the bench from Mike Williams
Whoever starts on this team is really not important .Rotation of players and who is on the floor at the end of the game is what counts. We are a 2nd half team .
Lets not act like we won cause we changed a starter The start was abysmal and the change was expected to fix the bad starts.
Hope he gets some confidence from this.
Just because it didn’t work out in one game doesn’t mean it wasn’t the right move. It was the right move.
It's a move. There is no right or wrong. I think a case could be made Simpkins is a better fit coming off the bench as an up-tempo jump starter playing with the second unit. I like both Simpkins and Williams and I defer to Sha on how he decides to play them.
Team is also built for a late season run, stay healthy and we are going to be wearing other teams out as we get late in the season. Bringing in fresh guys with motors at the 10-12 minute mark of the second half of games is key.
That's why this move was over a month late. It's two fold. Starting the better player and having Williams,, who was playing so well early on, to be able to relax, watch the game and then contribute.
Win win. Took the pressure off of Williams in my opinion and gives him a chance to shine off the bench. He's a very reliable defender and takes care of the ball. I see him as a great team player, most of this team has bought into Sha's vision, which in todays world is no small task for any coach to achieve. Williams skill set showed better coming off the bench.
It’s all mental. That’s part of coaching and dealing with players who are not robots. Looks like coming off the bench did something for Williams; can’t be a coincidence he had his best game in a long time.
And Simpkins had a very good game despite the lack of shots: 7 rebounds, 5 assists, 1 TO. Also some nice drives picking up fouls, which he does as well as anyone.
It’s the right move. Simpkins is a much better all-around player. Williams is a pace guy.
And Simpkins had a very good game despite the lack of shots: 7 rebounds, 5 assists, 1 TO. Also some nice drives picking up fouls, which he does as well as anyone.
It’s the right move. Simpkins is a much better all-around player. Williams is a pace guy.
Fwiw, we scored 6 points in the first 9 minutes, down 10-6. If we played that way with Mike starting, we need a word for apoplectic squared lol.
We won. Mike woke up. I try same lineup again on Wed. But...
The change needed to happen regardless of outcome. Najai for Steph needs to happen too. We can't keep spotting teams 8-12 point leads before the under 12. Before yesterday, we were starting three guys who are struggling to score. Two of those guys have backups who are not struggling to score. Why not at least give it a try and see what happens? Shaheen says he cares more about who finishes the game anyway. So why let a clear problem with starting lineup persist?
And FWIW, we've used 6 different lineups for at least 50 possessions this year. The most efficient (offensive and defensive) of those lineups has been Budd, TJ, AJSM, Fisher, and Hines. The least efficient - by a mile - has been.....
our starting lineup.
1. Budd, TJ, AJSM, Fisher, Hines (63 possessions, +28.8 adjusted points per 100 possessions)
2. Budd, Mike, TJ, Fisher, Steph (50 possessions, +27.6 adjusted points per 100 possessions)
3. Budd, TJ, AJSM, Fisher, Steph (155 possessions, +26.8 adjusted points per 100 possessions)
4. Trey, TJ, AJSM, Dar, Hines (52 possessions, +26.8 adjusted points per 100 possessions)
5. Trey, Mike, TJ, Josh, Hines (50 possessions, +25.5 adjusted points per 100 possessions)
6. Budd, Mike, AJSM, Fisher, Steph (321 possessions, +9.3 points per 100 possessions)
our starting lineup.
1. Budd, TJ, AJSM, Fisher, Hines (63 possessions, +28.8 adjusted points per 100 possessions)
2. Budd, Mike, TJ, Fisher, Steph (50 possessions, +27.6 adjusted points per 100 possessions)
3. Budd, TJ, AJSM, Fisher, Steph (155 possessions, +26.8 adjusted points per 100 possessions)
4. Trey, TJ, AJSM, Dar, Hines (52 possessions, +26.8 adjusted points per 100 possessions)
5. Trey, Mike, TJ, Josh, Hines (50 possessions, +25.5 adjusted points per 100 possessions)
6. Budd, Mike, AJSM, Fisher, Steph (321 possessions, +9.3 points per 100 possessions)
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Are the starting minutes segregated anywhere? Cause our starters yesterday were bad, even for us. Maybe our team just starts poorly. (I often thought some KW teams started poorly.)
fwiw ts has played 150 more minutes than mike this year. TS 3rd in total minutes.
Mike has played more in 3 BE games, the first nova game , the uconn game and the first butler game, maybe we lost them cause ts played poorly lol.
I would start TS again. Yesterday it had nothing to do with why we won unless it took pressure off Mike to help him get going again. I dont like lots of messing with the starters.
fwiw ts has played 150 more minutes than mike this year. TS 3rd in total minutes.
Mike has played more in 3 BE games, the first nova game , the uconn game and the first butler game, maybe we lost them cause ts played poorly lol.
I would start TS again. Yesterday it had nothing to do with why we won unless it took pressure off Mike to help him get going again. I dont like lots of messing with the starters.
Their stats are very comparable and one game is one game. If there is a trend where Mike plays better off the bench, then it was the right move.
I did like the way Simpkins gets the ball to Hines….probably the most effective guard at doing that.
Yesterday, our starting lineup was basically our worst lineup (-19.2 points per 100 possessions). There were two other lineups that graded out worse, but they only played a possession or two together. Our best lineup yesterday (oddly enough) resembled our starting lineup - Budd, Mike, AJSM, Dar, and Payne (+116.2 points per 100 possessions).
To your point about us starting poorly, it's definitely a trend with Shaheen's teams. Basically all of his teams, dating back to the St. Peter's days, have been bad in the first four minutes of games.
Sha took over play calling from Budd later in the second half, per his interview with Jerry. This led to nice open looks for McCray and Williams was the key to win. Kudos to whoever set the screens, Budd executing the plays and the McCray and Williams hitting those big 3s.