I hope the A&M game put to rest that ridiculous assertion.
We have a textbook case of DJ wearing down to refer to. Towards the end of last year, it was easy to see he'd lost a step, both when trying to get past defenders, and when leaping off the floor, especially on a second jump.
This year, there's been none of that. I understand he's played a lot of minutes, but he barely practices, and it's not like he's the only college player who has ever played the minutes he's playing. He's in fantastic shape, which is a credit to his offseason work. There's been no loss in his first step, whether on drives or off the floor. A lack of legs hasn't been the problem with him missing shots.
Now, mental fatigue very well could have set in to some degree. Barnes has put a lot on his shoulders, and DJ puts a lot of pressure on himself. Once he started struggling, there's a good chance it snowballed. Barnes noted he got too predictable in how he tried to score, attacking the basket even when other teams were concentrating on stopping him. He also started short arming his perimeter shots.
It was nice to see him get a little rest. How long has it been since he's only played 36 minutes? And foul trouble in the first half wasn't involved (which happened in one game)?
Anyway, physically, the guy is fine, and he wasn't last year at this stage. So no more BS about how he looks like he's wearing out, or I will have to make fun of you.
We have a textbook case of DJ wearing down to refer to. Towards the end of last year, it was easy to see he'd lost a step, both when trying to get past defenders, and when leaping off the floor, especially on a second jump.
This year, there's been none of that. I understand he's played a lot of minutes, but he barely practices, and it's not like he's the only college player who has ever played the minutes he's playing. He's in fantastic shape, which is a credit to his offseason work. There's been no loss in his first step, whether on drives or off the floor. A lack of legs hasn't been the problem with him missing shots.
Now, mental fatigue very well could have set in to some degree. Barnes has put a lot on his shoulders, and DJ puts a lot of pressure on himself. Once he started struggling, there's a good chance it snowballed. Barnes noted he got too predictable in how he tried to score, attacking the basket even when other teams were concentrating on stopping him. He also started short arming his perimeter shots.
It was nice to see him get a little rest. How long has it been since he's only played 36 minutes? And foul trouble in the first half wasn't involved (which happened in one game)?
Anyway, physically, the guy is fine, and he wasn't last year at this stage. So no more BS about how he looks like he's wearing out, or I will have to make fun of you.
