Platoon
- Thread starter JonathanW
- Start date
One would think. But then your mission has to be winning titles. That’s no longer the mission here and hasn’t been for some time. Not sure how many iron heads on here refuse to believe it but we won’t get a whiff of another title til this dude is gone. It’s all about showcasing. Why do folks have a hard time accepting that? For example, in this game getting ready to start, it’s a showcase game. That means that Wagner, Edwards and possibly Bradshaw will be showcased. Even if it means losing the game, because he’s not here for that. This board will be in meltdown mode in 2.5 hours.
But we're being told its too hard to manage that type of system which is laughable.
Also, no shot clock in '96 so the game has changed the way defense is managed. How many teams apply any press today?
Not have to. For example, you could do 5 4-minute intervals each half, so the one unit could get in 1 more interval per half for a 24-16 split. Or you could have it even until say the final 8 minutes, and then go with whoever is playing best to finish it out.
I would agree. But I’m just not sure anymore that that is the objective. We fans are like sharks to blood. You give us one title, it just makes us hungry for more. The draft picks recognition is something that’s good for recruiting but it’s fleeting and quickly forgotten by the sharks of which I am one of. I believe team success leads to individual accolades not vice versa. No higher accolade for a team than the NCAA championship. I point to Alabama in football as an example. Do people think if Saban only won 1 title in 15 years that it would enough to keep Tide fans happy?
What? We aren't talking about team success vs individual success. We are talking about how a platoon, even an unbalanced one, could increase our chances at team success (a Championship).
In an ideal world where each unit is as effective as the other, then sure, it would be an even split. But the reality may be different, depending on the conditioning of each squad and how long they are able to retain their intensity over time.
Also, the goal is not simply to wear out the opponent (although that is a primary objective) but also to play better than the opponent during the course of the game. So it is a combination of how well a particular squad performs along with how well they are able to tire out the opponent.
FWIW, in 2015, I was in favor of having one squad be a more bruising grind it out type of team (using the Harrison twins, Dakari etc.) and then having a faster blitz squad (using Ulis, Booker, Lee etc.). One would run more of a half-court grind it out punishing physical style and the other would try to run you out of the gym, press, spread out the floor etc.
The key in such a scenario is not necessarily how much absolute time each squad received, as much as how well they were at their job at maintaining the pressure on the opponent. I could imagine the blitzing pressing team might only be good for about 4 minutes of play before they need a rest, while the more deliberate team could go for longer stretches. Or maybe the opposite depending on which style worked better against the opponent.
I would say that the threesome of Rob, Reed and Adou is at least equal to and, maybe, more potent than tyler, book and trey
Great point about the two units. I had the same thoughts about having a “Blue Thunder” big half court team and a “White Lightning” small ball run and gun team in 2015. That would have made us even harder to scout and game plan for. Definitely should have done this especially after Poy went down and the “next man up” was Hawkins.
I said at the time and still believe that the most important player on the 2014-15 team was Derek Willis. He had played great in the Bahamas and IMO was capable of stepping in when Alex Poythress went down with injury. No he wasn’t as good as Poythress, but he could have done well enough to preserve the pure platoons. (Or Dominique Hawkins although Cal really wasn’t playing three guard lineups too much at the time.)
As it was I don’t think Cal had enough confidence in Willis (or Hawkins) at the time and while Cal retained elements of the platoon for most of the season, as it went along Cal started to stray further and further from the platoon elements. And each time he did, predictably the team played worse.
