Team weaknesses

[DoubleJayAlum]

With all the Valley love going around, I would like to hear about the weaknesses with each team. In other words, share the things you believe your team needs to work on or solve before the conference season begins.

I'll go first. For the Jays, I think there are two issues after the first exhibition game (our second game is tomorrow). The first is defense. CU's defense was pretty lackluster if not downright horrible in the first exhibition. Altman's emphasis, like many MVC coaches, has always been defense. While the Jays return 4 of 5 starters (if you include Dotzler) plus Funk, the bench players do not have a lot of game time experience. As a result they were regularly out of position on D and allowed an unacceptable number of points in the paint. hopefully, this will improve as the bench guys see more playing time and Dana continues to work their *****e$ off in practice.

The second issues is at PG. CU simply has to find someone to effectively execute Dana's system until Dotzler can return (which, by the way, may not be until mid to late December). Bahe struggled the first game with four turnovers. Dana reminded everyone that Bahe has essentially not played in a true game setting for almost three years and was understandably rusty. The freshman Isacc Miles looked pretty good, but also showed the inexperience one would expect from a freshman in his first game. Miles also looked notably tentative at times. I would have loved to have him take a few more shots. (Don't get me wrong, Miles will be a stud and he is fun to watch. Unfortunately, CU may need him to play like a stud much sooner than initially expected). I suspect that Miles will probably be starting at PG after game 3 or 4....

Someone else's turn....

[DUBulldog]

Drake's biggest weakness is post-play....both offensively and defensively.

[MikeKennedyRulz]

The Shox weaknesses are probably inside height and scoring in the post. I think Thomasson, Wilson, and Martin will be just fine defensively and rebounding, but posting up and getting points in the paint will take some work. I have been encouraged by Thomasson and Martin inside offensively in the first two exhibition games, but those are exhibition games against DII teams. Also, getting the Freshman on the same page and up to speed defensively by conference time could be an issue.

[wufan]

WSU will have to find a way to play against big front courts. This is a well known fact, and we do have an answer; play quicker and stronger. It is a good plan and it looks like we can do it, but we just won't know until we get to face a 6-10 big bodied stud. The other would be playing under control. I think WSU is as talented as anyone in the league, but Karon Bradley, Gal Mekel, Kyle Wilson (to a degree), and Phillip Thomasson can get going so fast they don't know which end is up. They play similar to Braeuer as a freshman, but with more talent.

From a tactical standpoint, we need to have a better understanding of the defense from our freshman and our big men need to pick up some boards. Thomasson had 7 in each of the exhibitions, but he could have had double digits if he would have better timed his jump and had stronger hands. Luckily our guards board VERY well. Kicking the ball inside out and shooting at a higher percentage needs to be a focus as well.

[Khan4Cats]

For the Panthers I think the first weakness is obvious: Youth and all that comes with that. If the new guys, both the Freshman and some returnees who will be asked for much more floor time can adjust to those demands we could be dangerous, the talent is there.

Second: Perimeter defense, inside we will be solid with Stout, Coleman and a 7'1" Egleseder. We have to be able to contest jump shots and pressure the ball and passing lanes.

Lastly: We have to find a consistent outside scoring threat. We don't have any one player who stands out, it could be a who's hot tonight scenario. The focus, however, will be on defense first for the guards.

This team has as much talent as we have ever had, much of it young. If we gel and the new guys adapt to the college game-watch out. We are picked 5th and that has been a good omen recently. My guess is it will be an up and down season until mid-January and then you will see this team start to hit a stride and be dangerous down the stretch.

Go Panthers:panthers:

[Pocket Aces]

Same old song and dance................

Depth, especially at the back-up PG spot and rebounding. We got outrebounded by about 10 in the exhibition against Southern Indiana.

[shockerfan13]

I'm not TOO worried about the post defense really. I think WSU will be quick enough to get some bigs in foul trouble. Post offense is a little bit of a concern, but I think it will be good ENOUGH.

My biggest concern and probably what I see as the biggest weakness right now...rebounding. Granted you can look at the stat sheets in the 2 exhibition games and say, "Well the rebounding doesn't look that bad to me." but it has been pretty obvious that WSU hasn't been rebounding like a typical WSU team. But Turgeon is a stickler for rebounding so I am sure it will not be a problem for long.

[unipnthr]

For the Panthers I think the first weakness is obvious: Youth and all that comes with that. If the new guys, both the Freshman and some returnees who will be asked for much more floor time can adjust to those demands we could be dangerous, the talent is there.

Second: Perimeter defense, inside we will be solid with Stout, Coleman and a 7'1" Egleseder. We have to be able to contest jump shots and pressure the ball and passing lanes.

Lastly: We have to find a consistent outside scoring threat. We don't have any one player who stands out, it could be a who's hot tonight scenario. The focus, however, will be on defense first for the guards.

This team has as much talent as we have ever had, much of it young. If we gel and the new guys adapt to the college game-watch out. We are picked 5th and that has been a good omen recently. My guess is it will be an up and down season until mid-January and then you will see this team start to hit a stride and be dangerous down the stretch.

Go Panthers:panthers:

I agree, depth is going to be an issue for us if either Stout or Coleman get into foul trouble. And our guard play needs to improve on both sides of the ball.

But you better watch yourself when you come to the Jungle...:bounceblue:

[Phantom]

Even though we have a good amount of returning experience back, our biggest weakness is probably the fact that we are going to have to rely quite a bit on the newcomers to produce. We have one of, if not the best recruiting class in school history, but we have to hope they all mature and step up to the plate right away. So far so good though I must say.

After seeing some practices and our exhibition game, there is much to be excited about. But still the biggest X-factor is how fast our team can gel and learn to play together. From what I saw in our exhibition game, the chemistry and communication is coming along very well. We are much further ahead of where we were last season at this point, and thats encouraging.

We finally have the personnel in place to run the system that Moser has always wanted to run. We have good size, speed and athleticism, and no matter who we start from game to game, we will have scorers coming off the bench. This amount of depth and the options we have are things we havent had here in a very long time.

But again, it all comes down to how fast the team can learn to play together. That, and asking our new guys to step up immediately are the 2 biggest weaknesses we have. Neither of those things will be easy to do in our conference, but the outlook is good.

:redbirds: :valley:

[Ace Happy]

Same old song and dance................

Depth, especially at the back-up PG spot and rebounding. We got outrebounded by about 10 in the exhibition against Southern Indiana.

I would like to add Defense since we gave up a lot of points to teams last year and with the same starting five, I don't know if that will change much. I would also say that we do not have a clear "go-to" guy. Some will disagree and say that is Webster, but he can be contained by some of the centers we have in the league.

[BearsCountry]

For the Bears - post play and Barry Hinson.

[MSNSaluki]

I've got a big surprise for you concerning SIU ... the Salukis aren't that good offensively. I know, I know ... you guys think I'm crazy.:original:

Actually, we should be a little better this year since we did play primarily sophomores and freshmen last year. Our problem isn't going to be stopping people ... it'll be scoring enough points. Tatum and Shaw are our keys. If those two step up and not play out of control (Tatum) or retreat into a shell (Shaw), we'll be okay.

If we improve any offensively, we could be in for a very special season. If we don't, we'll thug our way into the NCAA tournament for the 6th straight year and get dough-popped in the first round again.:salukis:

[Hein72]

For WSU I think our main issue will be rebounding and post offense. Our gaurds so far have done very well helping out on rebounding. Kyle has shown some improvement in the post but it is hard to tell since we havent played 2 great post teams. Thomason and Martin should get some points in the post but both are short for their positions. I guess we will see soon, probably November 18th.

[BradleyBrave]

Bradley's problems mostly center around the post. They have very little frontcourt depth, very little frontcourt size, and therefore rebounding looks to be a problem. Going 0-2 from Richfield, MN (6'6" Ray Brown suspended for the year due to a failed drug test, 7'0" Xavier Crawford failed to qualify academically) has really put an early damper on a season where BU looks to sustain their winning ways and make back-to-back postseason appearances for the first time in nearly a decade. Add to those 2 losses the slow recovery and big questions with 6'9" Sam Singh, and you have a very thin frontcourt with no margin for error or injury. I'm not putting it past BU to make an NIT run, but losing 2 scholarship players before the season even starts already puts the Braves behind the 8-ball.

[SubGod22]

Post offense

[Maggie]

Post offense

I agree. This is where losing Durley hurts a bit. I have never been impressed by Wilson inside, PT (despite a couple good exhibition games) is unproven and Martin, although I love the kid (WSU would not have made the Sweet 16 without him), is way undersized.

They should be OK in the rebounding department. As someone else pointed out -- WSU's guards rebound well.
.

[TNMSUFAN]

Not as quick as we have been in the past and I am a little worried about our defense because of it. Also, our rebounding hasn't looked that good in the preseason games so that is a concern.

[DannyCooksey]

The Redbird weaknesses as I see them:

Inside scoring
FT shooting
rebounding
PG play????

I'll start with PG play. Though I am very encouraged with what I have seen/heard from Richardson thus far, I have to see it in a real game against a solid team. Last season's torture of watching our PG and our halfcourt offense has forever made me cynical on the position. I hope we have this position solved, but I am not 100% convinced. On to the rest of the weaknesses....

They don't have a guy that has a legit back to the basket game. They don't. Dilligard has problems scoring other than on put backs and on the break or from a steal. He still appears to be abysmal from the FT line also.

The rest of the post guys have limitations. Slack may be able to use his quickness to gain an advantage inside, though he concerns me because he lacks bulk. So I have to wonder where their points in the paint are going to come from. This ultimately could be their achilles heel because I like the perimeter players this team has.

I am not sure how they will shoot FT's as a team. The newcomers seem to be decent shooters, so hopefully that will improve, but right now it is a concern. I am also concerned about the rebounding. Dilligard will need help in this area. Slack grabbed 10 rebounds in the exibition game and if he can get near that figure on a game in and game out basis that would be huge. It appears that Dyer has improved in this area and I think Eldridge could be a guy that grabs 4-5 boards a game so we'll see.

Moser wants to push the tempo and while I think he finally has the personnel to do this, it starts with a defensive rebound and I'm not sure we will be strong in that area. If we are not vastly improved in the rebounding area, we will be a poor team once again.

[btisu22]

1. Will we rebound better....I think we will but will it be enough?
2. Experience!!!
3. Who will step up and score? As a team, I think we are better then we have been in a few years. We will now be as one dimensional as we were with Moss. We will miss Moss, don't get me wrong. But I think that Moore will step up and Tunnel will also make another step forward with progress. Also, I think that Holmstom will more than fill in where Schnitker left us. WE WILL NOT MISS GREY!!! Most of the Tree fans were ready for him to leave! :bounceblue:

I think that the Trees are a season or two away, but I think I might see some light at the end of the 1,000,000 mile tunnel!
:sycamores:

[Ricky Del Rio]

1. Will we rebound better....I think we will but will it be enough?
2. Experience!!!
3. Who will step up and score? As a team, I think we are better then we have been in a few years. We will now be as one dimensional as we were with Moss. We will miss Moss, don't get me wrong. But I think that Moore will step up and Tunnel will also make another step forward with progress. Also, I think that Holmstom will more than fill in where Schnitker left us. WE WILL NOT MISS GREY!!! Most of the Tree fans were ready for him to leave! :bounceblue:

I think that the Trees are a season or two away, but I think I might see some light at the end of the 1,000,000 mile tunnel!
:sycamores:

You forgot 1-13.

[underdawg2]

No thug depth--too many DUI's:original:

[GoCatsGo]

UNI's weakness: Brooks McKowen:cursing: :chair: :bash: :ranting:

If anyone wants to rip me on this, please give logical explanations on why he is a good player and I will counter them with three points: 1. Tournovers. He commits them in excess. 2. Not a good ball handler. If somebody puts pressure on him, he will get scared and will get himself into traps. 3. Can't make a basket to save his life.

I'm sure Brooks is a great person but personally, I don't want him to run point guard. Those are my opinions. Take them or leave them. My suggestion would be take them.:panthers:

[skinny_uncle]

I've got a big surprise for you concerning SIU ... the Salukis aren't that good offensively. I know, I know ... you guys think I'm crazy.:original:

Actually, we should be a little better this year since we did play primarily sophomores and freshmen last year. Our problem isn't going to be stopping people ... it'll be scoring enough points. Tatum and Shaw are our keys. If those two step up and not play out of control (Tatum) or retreat into a shell (Shaw), we'll be okay.

If we improve any offensively, we could be in for a very special season. If we don't, we'll thug our way into the NCAA tournament for the 6th straight year and get dough-popped in the first round again.:salukis:
Nah!
We gotta work on our D. Giving up 28 points to a lower division team is unacceptable.
:no: