Why has Cal only played this lineup for a total of 20 possessions all season?
Wallace
Reeves
CJ
Toppin
Oscar
Wallace
Reeves
CJ
Toppin
Oscar
So the question here is…
- Thread starter kyjeff1
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It's another example of where the fans clearly see something that Cal does not (like Livingston at the 4). I have to guess that in practice because of experience Wheeler gets the nod to run the team with Wallace as a sort of 2. I said two games ago if I see Wheeler start again there is no hope. I like Wheeler under control and he should sub for Wallace. It's not rocket science. But, there seems no hope and against Tenn when we see this same line-up it likely will be over before it starts.
Surely Cal has seen this… right? Is he so in love with Wheeler and Collins that he's willing to flush the season down the drain?
Or does he just go shoot pool after games with the assistants?
And if Wheeler is the one causing the locker room riff, that should be the final nail in his playing time coffin. Well, that and his ridiculously bad free throw shooting and defense… and… the turnovers.
Or does he just go shoot pool after games with the assistants?
And if Wheeler is the one causing the locker room riff, that should be the final nail in his playing time coffin. Well, that and his ridiculously bad free throw shooting and defense… and… the turnovers.
I want someone with some stones to ask Cal why he isn’t playing the lineups that being the best results.
Oscar
Toppin or Livingston
Reeves
CJ
Wallace
Have to have three shooters and Livingston has to play the 4. Or Toppin would be ok even. But why will Cal not do it?
Only thing I can come up with is that he promised Livingston and his family he would play him at the 3 to prepare him, and you know Cal will go down with a promise like that. What else could be holding it up? Seriously? I’m asking, what else?
Oscar
Toppin or Livingston
Reeves
CJ
Wallace
Have to have three shooters and Livingston has to play the 4. Or Toppin would be ok even. But why will Cal not do it?
Only thing I can come up with is that he promised Livingston and his family he would play him at the 3 to prepare him, and you know Cal will go down with a promise like that. What else could be holding it up? Seriously? I’m asking, what else?
Because that’s the lineup the fans want him to play. It’s almost like he’s against the fans, and is desperately trying to prove us wrong and show us he can do it by playing 2 bigs and his style.
Cal's back is against the wall right now, so if he doesn't come out of the gate on Saturday with this lineup and has Wheeler and Collins in there instead, we're definitely done. It means he simply cares mire about their feelings than winning games.
Of course, Topping and Wallace need to be healthy though.
I think he wants to play Livingston at the 4 but can’t due to some bullshit promise he made the kid and his family. I’ve been racking my brain and this is the only thing that makes sense to me. But I mean, maybe Cal is just that stubborn.
That's the other thing about recruiting these one-and-done kids, sometimes Cal has to make promises and if he struck a deal like that with Livingston's camp, it means he hasn't learned a damn thing. That’s desperation.
This is where the assistants should be in Cal’s ear, pointing this out to him. But maybe they are.
If Cal is still making promises after the Sharpe fiasco, he really is a dumbass.
Definitely think this could be a good combination but:
Fredrick missed time
Wallace has now missed time and perhaps will miss more with a back
Toppin has missed some time physically and a lot mentally
It’s a very small sample and we’ve seen Cason struggle at PG some
I don’t think Cal trusts Reeves and I can’t say I blame him
While this looks great I will caution the same lineup swapping Reeves for Livingston is the exact opposite and absolute worst on that list by an equally large margin.
While I have my doubts, that group has to be one because guys like Livingston, Collins, Ware are such nothing burgers.
Fredrick missed time
Wallace has now missed time and perhaps will miss more with a back
Toppin has missed some time physically and a lot mentally
It’s a very small sample and we’ve seen Cason struggle at PG some
I don’t think Cal trusts Reeves and I can’t say I blame him
While this looks great I will caution the same lineup swapping Reeves for Livingston is the exact opposite and absolute worst on that list by an equally large margin.
While I have my doubts, that group has to be one because guys like Livingston, Collins, Ware are such nothing burgers.
Everyone still enjoying the "process" so far?
Cal will never play that lineup regularly. Because if he did and found success with it, that would mean the fans were right about something and he can't have that. He'll do it his way and be wrong to the detriment of the team.
Cal will never play that lineup regularly. Because if he did and found success with it, that would mean the fans were right about something and he can't have that. He'll do it his way and be wrong to the detriment of the team.
If he doesn't bench Wheeler now, it's over and he should hear about it.
I hope that’s not the case because him playing the 3 at Kentucky has not done anything for his stock in fact his stock has probably dropped .
Yeah, Cason has struggled some at the 1, which is why he should have been getting the bulk of the minutes at the 1 all this time. He would be up to speed by now.
As far as Reeves, I would be down for putting Thiero in that spot, who is another guy that would be ahead of the game if he had been playing all this time.
Thiero was apparently tough enough to play in that Alabama game when the chips were down, but got no time Tuesday night when we needed a spark. Awesome.
Yeah, but Cal doesn't read, or hear what we say anyway, so it shouldn't matter to him who was right or wrong. He could come out and tell us he finally figured it out and nobody else could have possibly thought to play those 5 together and it would be fine.
But in reality, he most likely made a bunch of promises to a bunch of players and their camps and now he’s backed into a corner.
Personally I feel like the only guys who give you anything offensively which is what we need most regardless of Jimmy Dykes is Wheeler, Wallace, Reeves, Fredrick, Toppin, Oscar. Regardless of which 5 at a time that is essentially the only 6 that need to be playing. Give each player the majority of the minutes and have depth guys give spells for a couple minutes at a time max.
In reality games like Tuesday have one position manned all 40 minutes by a guy not in my above 6. While we still should have beat USCjr, you won’t beat anyone good with Ware and Collins playing the whole game for the 4 spot.
Yeah, our defense is bad, but our offense is worse.
Even bad teams, like South carolina, get to the rim and hit threes, but our offense is a struggle. We’re relying on 15 footers as a primary weapon if we can't get the ball to Oscar, who.is always triple teamed.
It’s not like teans are scoring 90 or 100 points on us, so to say Cal needs to focus more on defense, is laughable.
You can't play a horrid team like usc and only score 68 total points. Usc only had 71, the fact that we couldn't even score 72 against that team, in Rupp, should tell everyone that our offense is the problem.
A lot of these issues can be fixed by simply fixing the locker room problems. If the players hate each other, you're going to get what we saw the last 2 games.
Sit Wheeler's ass down.
I don’t think Cal cares enough to practice floor spacing. He seems hellbent on continually playing the same guys. Its been a recipe for disaster. If this team suffers another blowout, the majority will just check out (if they haven’t already).
I would seriously take any type of line up change, but I’m sure we’ll see the same group starting at tip off.
I would seriously take any type of line up change, but I’m sure we’ll see the same group starting at tip off.
The answer is right there in the data. That lineup has absurd offensive firepower, but it also has relatively low defensive efficiency. That’s a yank and a rest and an “I forgot about him” for Cal.
The data also show that lineup has a superlative overall efficiency margin, both raw and adjusted. So the dip in relative defensive efficiency there shouldn’t mean bupkiss to the outcome. Play winning basketball though, even when it runs counter to his notions about defense? That’s just not how Cal rolls.
The data also show that lineup has a superlative overall efficiency margin, both raw and adjusted. So the dip in relative defensive efficiency there shouldn’t mean bupkiss to the outcome. Play winning basketball though, even when it runs counter to his notions about defense? That’s just not how Cal rolls.
Because Cal uses defensive matchups determine his lineups . Besides , didn’t you hear Jimmy Dykes? Offense is not our problem. That’s why we had 24 points at halftime, lol .
I think Cal gets too involved in punishing players for things he sees in practice.
I bet he doesn't play that lineup because he sees those individual players do the little things that Cal doesn't like in practice, but ignores the mistakes his favorite guys do.
He also has different expectations for each player. Like, if Thiero throws the ball away in a scrimmage, he’s not playing that night, but if Collins manages to put his shoes on the correct feet that day, he’s gonna get 25 minutes.
That’s an extreme example of course, but I believe the premise is accurate.
Yeah, but if your defensive guys suck this bad, then at least put a team on the floor that can outscore a 7-8 team. They can't possibly defend any worse than his defense-first guys did.
Yeah , I certainly don’t agree with him , but that’s the reason. It goes against his nature.
Are the Assistants even allowed to tell Cal an opinion? My impression is Cal conducts himself as an authoritarian manager. Remember the argument during a game he had with Chin and like a dictator made him go sit? The days of Bobby Knight and my way or the highway are long gone if that is the case. We will likely never know for sure what occurs behind the scene. But, certainly there is something off. I posted elsewhere what I suggested was a last hope for Cal an it reflects now much of what is being said here with the line-up although there is much more than just that needed.
Why hasn't he tried moving Oscar to the 4 spot and pulling him away from the low block? It would allow him to more easily crash the boards. It would give us a look other teams haven't game planned for. Move Ugonna to center and Oscar would be in a better matchup defensively plus we'd have rim protection.
IDK, Oscar is a college 5 and his game is best served around the basket.
Putting Ugonna in there with Oscar, gives them two non outside shooters and you just know Cal would put Wheeler in there with those two.
