Thoughts on Cal and his offense....

[Ollie]

Last year, we beat the national champion and the runner-up handily. No one questioned our offense.

I guess I'm a "basketball Bennie" and there are things I can't stand about Cal's offense. I would just like to know his philosophy.

It stared with me in 2010 when we got beat by WVU in the NCAA tourney and they ran a 1-3-1 and Cal had no idea what to do. I get it, you don't know everything but you better have someone on your bench that DOES know what to do against a 1-3-1. I've only coached kids, but guess what? I prepared my team what to do against EVERYTHING I've ever seen in my life.

So a guy like Cal, he's thinking in his mind...I just beat the National Champions and the runner-up team, so I don't need to change anything I'm doing.

We need to find someone close to him that he listens too and let him know, he needs to start coaching again and act like you are the "little man" (UMASS) and coach these freakin' kids and teach them basketball !!

 

[ukcatz12]

It stared with me in 2010 when we got beat by WVU in the NCAA tourney and they ran a 1-3-1 and Cal had no idea what to do.

Cal had plenty idea what to do. That was a young team that simply choked under pressure. They kept shooting and shooting despite being told not to. It's pretty well documented that team simply didn't execute the game plan in that game.

 

[Jmeeks54thebest]

Cal had plenty idea what to do. That was a young team that simply choked under pressure. They kept shooting and shooting despite being told not to. It's pretty well documented that team simply didn't execute the game plan in that game.

The starters were young (minus Patrick) but the rest of the team was fairly old. Especially compared to Cal’s UK teams afterward

 

[kingdom come cat]

The starters were young (minus Patrick) but the rest of the team was fairly old. Especially compared to Cal’s UK teams afterward

Yeh, We kept shooting threes in that WV game, couldn't thrown it in the ocean. I kept thinking put Jorts in. Try something different. But Cal made no changes. And what 7 years later, same Cal he cant or wont make changes when things arent looking good. Try something, some kind of press, a press to steal the ball, get some easy baskets, and just to wear the other team out. Most teams we play cant match our player quality 1 thur 10. Play guys in 3 to 4 minute stretches rotate players in and out. Forty mintues of hell. Play some zone defense. Ask your assistant coaches what are they seeing.

 

[CB3UK]

He doesn't have the hunger anymore. He's gotten lazy and bloated. UMass Cal with these players could beat the brakes off folks. Today's Cal talks about wanting to score 80 a game and then goes out there and coaches rock fights.

 

[blue woman]

when a bloated EGO believes it knows everything---no dissent is allowed.

begok is all about their vision and desires. nothing else matters.

begok has zero ability to change. that is admitting begok is WRONG. woe be anyone telling begok it is wrong.

rr

 

[ck-2]

My thought are Cal should’ve retired.
And he has no offense.

 

[Backer cutter]

when a bloated EGO believes it knows everything---no dissent is allowed.

begok is all about their vision and desires. nothing else matters.

begok has zero ability to change. that is admitting begok is WRONG. woe be anyone telling begok it is wrong.

rr

My hardon goes away after reading your post. Damn.

 

[podgejeff_]

He doesn't have the hunger anymore. He's gotten lazy and bloated. UMass Cal with these players could beat the brakes off folks. Today's Cal talks about wanting to score 80 a game and then goes out there and coaches rock fights.

At the end of the day I think Cal falls back on defense when the going gets tough, the thing he's really never had a problem with, as his go-to. Hence the rock fights.

Also, Cal's half-court offense sucks. If defenses continue to take away the transition game, he needs to find some assistant who is a guru in half-court offense (that he'll actually listen to). Oscar is so good at getting rebounds that other teams seem to give up on the offensive glass to set up their defense early, and then a rock fight is born.

 

[the nail at the foul line]

The offense is built to peak the fourth Thursday in June.

 

[Montana81]

 

[docholiday51]

He doesn't have the hunger anymore. He's gotten lazy and bloated. UMass Cal with these players could beat the brakes off folks. Today's Cal talks about wanting to score 80 a game and then goes out there and coaches rock fights.

I agree he doesn't have the hunger anymore, I think the jury is still out on what this team is or isn't. We have played 2 teams that have some level of D-1 talent and lost to both of them. We have 2 players(Oscar and Wallace) who aren't afraid to compete at the level it takes to beat D-1 teams. Maybe Reeves fits that bill as well but we don't know.

Cal seems reluctant to put what appears to be the correct combination of players on the floor at the same time. He keeps trying to fit a round peg in a square hole.

Tomorrow's game should give us some insight as to what this team is. An extremely neutral court. Can the team generate it's own momentum, will Cal engage in a rock fight type of game?

 

[cbrwalt]

We were the best team in the country last December - up till the moment Tyty turned his ankle in the Auburn game (we were up 9 at Auburn). After that moment it was all downhill. Health was a major factor (Grady's planter fasciitis). But yes a large part of it was poor coaching, especially on the offensive end.

 

[bigblueinsanity]

He doesn't have the hunger anymore. He's gotten lazy and bloated. UMass Cal with these players could beat the brakes off folks. Today's Cal talks about wanting to score 80 a game and then goes out there and coaches rock fights.

This. He went from the confident, motivated, slick talking Don to the old grandpa eating snacks on his recliner.

The irony of his "toes up eating Cheetos" analogy is that it's literally describing him

 

[kyjeff1]

Cal had plenty idea what to do. That was a young team that simply choked under pressure. They kept shooting and shooting despite being told not to. It's pretty well documented that team simply didn't execute the game plan in that game.

You
Have
Got
To
Be
Joking

 

[ukjenning44]

I think his ego wants him to prove the Dribble Drive and playing multiple bigs together still works.
He is hell bent on proving his way works.
It will NOT work in todays game and we will continue losing a lot of games until he retires.

 

[kyjeff1]

We were the best team in the country last December - up till the moment Tyty turned his ankle in the Auburn game (we were up 9 at Auburn). After that moment it was all downhill. Health was a major factor (Grady's planter fasciitis). But yes a large part of it was poor coaching, especially on the offensive end.

*We were the best team in any game that was a track meet.

Go look at the games we dominated. KU and uNC played dumb, they kept their foot on the gas and UK will destroy most teams in that type of game.

Now, when teams abandon rebounding and just concentrate on getting 5 guys back to set their defense, that's where Cal struggles.

In a half court game, you can't have 2 and 3 non shooters on the floor and you damn sure can't combine that with no high screens, no back screens, no pnr, no back cuts and no actual offense that's worth a damn.

You can't just ask Wheeler to try to beat his defender, who is sagging off, then create in the lane after beating help defense.

Cal runs the same offense no matter who his personnel is. You can run dribble (drivel) drive with Wall, Teague, Knight, Fox and Ulis, you can't run it with Greene, Hagans, SGA, or Wheeler.

If we can just convince every opponent to run with us, we would go 38-2 every year.

Too bad Cal allows the opponent to dictate everything. He’s a terrible bench coach and an even worse game preperation guy.

 

[MethodUK]

Just my opinions below

1. Still runs a motion offense/ dribble drive that has gotten old and not efficient.

2. If you run the same offense your opponents only have 1 set to study for... Lot easier to scout that

3. Goes to the honey hole too much. When Oscar averages 15 the win % is much higher than when he averages 19-20pts per game.

 

[chattanoogawildcat]

My hardon goes away after reading your post. Damn.

TMI

 

[CatPhight]

 

[Ima Alien]

..."Ask your assistant coaches what are they seeing."

As a friend of mine liked to say; This is the main R-Tickal!

 

[Montana81]

*We were the best team in any game that was a track meet.

Go look at the games we dominated. KU and uNC played dumb, they kept their foot on the gas and UK will destroy most teams in that type of game.

Now, when teams abandon rebounding and just concentrate on getting 5 guys back to set their defense, that's where Cal struggles.

In a half court game, you can't have 2 and 3 non shooters on the floor and you damn sure can't combine that with no high screens, no back screens, no pnr, no back cuts and no actual offense that's worth a damn.

You can't just ask Wheeler to try to beat his defender, who is sagging off, then create in the lane after beating help defense.

Cal runs the same offense no matter who his personnel is. You can run dribble (drivel) drive with Wall, Teague, Knight, Fox and Ulis, you can't run it with Greene, Hagans, SGA, or Wheeler.

If we can just convince every opponent to run with us, we would go 38-2 every year.

Too bad Cal allows the opponent to dictate everything. He’s a terrible bench coach and an even worse game preperation guy.

It’s just mind boggling how bad Cal has gotten. Ive said it over and over, he wasn’t always this bad. offensively we weren’t always this bad. He ran more stuff in his early years here.

I sometimes wonder if something is actually wrong with him.

 

[kyjeff1]

It’s just mind boggling how bad Cal has gotten. Ive said it over and over, he wasn’t always this bad. offensively we weren’t always this bad. He ran more stuff in his early years here.

I sometimes wonder if something is actually wrong with him.

It takes a lot of effort and energy for a coach to do what Cal did at UMass, Memphis and his first 6 years here. I just don't think he has it in him to work that hard anymore.

 

[CatPhight]

It takes a lot of effort and energy for a coach to do what Cal did at UMass, Memphis and his first 6 years here. I just don't think he has it in him to work that hard anymore.

But has no problem being paid a mile above his pay grade for produced results...utterly laughable when you factor actual dollar value for each win...or worse, endless debacles since his castration in 2015...

 

[kyjeff1]

But has no problem being paid a mile above his pay grade for produced results...utterly laughable when you factor actual dollar value for each win...or worse, endless debacles since his castration in 2015...

Then he talks down to the fanbase, while he puts in far less effort than he used to, but still has no problem accepting his full paycheck. He's stealing money at this point.