Please summarize...

B

BeatYaEasyEasy

250+ Posts
Wow, just woke up and realized that conference play is about to start and we're pretty damn good. Been having these wierd dreams where we have a really good football season and then lose the national championship game...strange.

Anyway, in all seriousness, can someone sum up for me please the first two months of the season? I'm deployed overseas and managed to follow football pretty well, but one sport was all I could handle. I DO know that we beat UNC and Michigan State, though.

Can someone fill me in?
 
Let's see:

I started typing a post and it got way too long. We have an abundance of riches and no excuses to miss the final 4. We play very good defense, and we have six guys who could score 20 points on a given day. There are two weaknesses in my view, team free throw shooting and depth at Center.

Damion James and Dexter Pittman are having great seasons so far. Both have been dominant, and have played more consistently. Gary Johnson has been the sixth man of the year in my view. He's very productive on both ends, and plays very tough. (How many power forwards can apply on-ball pressure on a PG at the top of the key, get a steal, and then lead a break for a dunk).

At guard we have so many options that the tough thing is keeping a good mix on the floor. Balbay has been great. Brown has been a better shooter than I expected, and is our primary ball handler in crunch time due to FT shooting. Bradley has shown a tremendous defensive prowess, and has the offensive skills to make him a complete player. If he can play offensively with the same attitude that he brings to the D, then he will be a monster. Lucas has only played a few games, but can really shoot the rock from outside. He needs to cut down on turnovers, but he's still shaking off the rust of a long layoff. Losing Varez Ward for the year and still having this much depth just shows how stacked we are.

Hamilton is an enigma. He just oozes class and potential, and has been frighteningly good at times. He can also really stink up the joint. He's got to find a way to play within the offense. I think he's the guy who can make the most difference on this squad. If he figures it out by March, we will win it all.

Mason and Wangmene are role players who can contribute, but IMO will see fewer minutes than we expected at the start of the season.

Hill, Chapman, and Williams may see the court some, but probably not a lot now that we're in conference play.

So that's my summary. I'm sure there are different opinions out there. We have great talent and depth at Guard, a dominant Center, a team-leader and strong two-way player in James, a potentially lethal slasher in Hamilton, and quality depth. We have better outside shooting than we've had in a couple of years, and we're better defensively than I can ever remember.

I hope you get to tune in for some of the games.
 
First of all...thank you..,.for what you give, for what you sacrifice and for what you stand for.

This is going to be a very fun team to follow this year - hope you will be able to keep up with them. They have so much talent and a lot of heart. Amazing how unselfish they are and all seem to really respect each other.

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Syracuse gave a great summary. Here are my thoughts about individual players roughly in order of their contributions:

Damian - Clearly the leader of the team. Playing with a 'FU to the NBA for not taking me last year' attitude. Consistently a double-double every time he laces them up.

Pittman - Finally playing like the dominant player that we all knew he could be. When he is on the court, defenses must adjust to him. When he gets the ball, he is now showing the poise to make them pay. He's shooting like 70% for the season! Still getting penalized for fouls because of his size.

Avery Bradley - Started from day one and quickly becoming one of the best players on the court. Touted as a defense, he's got the offensive skills to match. Probably the 2nd best freshman in the country (to Wall from Kentucky).

Balbay - A bit surprised that I'd be listing him this high, but the guy has earned. He brings great energy on both ends of the court (as well as in transition). Still doesn't have a jumper, but drives to bucket with abandon and finds shooters (of which we now have plenty).

Brown - Now at shooting guard, which is where he should be. Probably our most consistent 3 point shooter and hitting 90% of his free-throws.

Gary Johnson - For some reason he's not the first off the bench (as Wangmene typically subs for Pittman after the first 3-4 minutes), but I'd agree that Gary is the best 6th man in the country. He brings the same intensity that Damian on defense. And, he's not near the 'black-hole' that he once was on offense. Instead, he's showing even more ability to get to the rim with shots and rebounds.

Hamilton - I know he doesn't start, but this guys has tremendous upside and shows flashes of brilliance. At 6-7, he can get a shot off pretty much any time. OK, he's a bit trigger happy, but has a beautiful shot. He also runs the floor and handles the ball well. And, with his length, also quietly collects a good number of rebounds.

Mason - OK, I'll list him next - but really he's been a non-factor. People will use words like 'glue-guy' but IMO his starting in front of Hamliton is mostly ceremonial - and a way for Barnes to keep Hamilton focusing on improving his game to get more playing time.

Jai Lucas - Just starting to get playing time but with Balbay playing so well, it may be difficult. Jai is perhaps even smaller than TJ. He does have a good outside shot, but isn't really driving the lane like we need the PG to do. And, his size may be a liability against bigger guards.

Wangmene - With his length and athleticism, he's been doing an adequate job as back up center. I would have thought that job would be Chapman's, but Clint was out with the flu the first couple weeks and hasn't made it back into the rotation.

Hill - Like Chapman, he's unfortunately getting buried in the depth chart.

Shawn Williams - Saw some early playing time, but has been hurt. But, it seems obvious that he's not at the same level as the rest of the incoming freshman that have had an immediate impact.

Varez Ward is out for the season. He went down with a freak accident - knee during warm up drills.

Perhaps most importantly, we are playing well as a team. Between Barnes and Damian, we have infused a determination on defense. And, as Syracuse says, we have enough offensive weapons to not be dependent on any one person (e.g. AJ last year).

I'm sure will see a few bad road games as we get into conference - especially with a #1 bullseye on our jersies. But, make no mistake. This is the best team under Barnes. I'll quite frankly be dissappointed if we don't make to the Final Fourt.
 
The beauty of this team is that the depth is so great, Barnes can make personnel changes and not have any real drop-off in ability level. And I've never seen a Texas basketball team have that kind of depth.

It's truly a great time to be a Horn!
 
The team has talent, but I don't know if I'd be upset if they missed the Final Four. An awful lot of other factors (luck, etc.) bear into a Final Four berth, but they certainly have the talent to win it all. Enough talent, that I would be disappointed/upset if they didn't make the Elite Eight....they should make it that far on talent alone. In other words, I expect an Elite Eight appearance from these guys. Anything else, in my mind, is gravy.
 
I've always believed that the Final Four is promised to no one. There are too many good teams and too many bad things that can happen in a tournament like that.

But this team definitely is good enough to make it. So that's a big leap for me.
 
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