What I didn't see last night...

[CatfanMike47]

You are exactly right. That was probably an NIT team either way. Which is kind of sad considering is was full of 5*'s

It wasn’t full of 5 *s. Poythress, Goodwin and Noel and Wiltzer that’s it

 

[BoxterS]

It wasn’t full of 5 *s. Poythress, Goodwin and Noel and Wiltzer that’s it

Oh ok, my bad, only four 5*'s. Hell, no wonder we went to the NIT. We only had four 5*'s

 

[Joneslab]

Knox definitely jumped out to me. You don't see guys that big moving that fast very much unless they're playing professionally. He has the same sort of "You've got to be kidding me" stuff in his game that we saw with Wall and Co.

Washington's skills jump out. Diallo's athleticism does.

All in all they've been better the times I've seen them that I thought they would at this point. Insane length. The lack of a dynamic point guard is going to hurt, and we'll take some L's because of it.

As for the lack of a traditional post man: that might be a good thing. I believe Cal relies on posting up a little too much. Spread them out and drive it relentlessly.

 

[Caveman Catfan]

I'd say Richards defense is polished....his offense is slow, no dribble skills, can't hang on to the ball, brings it down before going up, getting stripped. Will his defense be enough to keep him on floor? Cal said at the end of the day, the 5 best defenders will be on the floor. The guy had 8 blocks last night, nearly a triple double. Can't complain with those stats but will his defense be enough?

I hope you are correct about his defense. I don't know how to judge someone's defense from a Blue White game. He did not have to man up against anyone with any kind of offensive power and I did not see him really be forced to move laterally. I saw some nice blocks, but did not see enough to feel comfortable agreeing with your post. But, hope he has the defensive side. That would be key with this young team.

 

[WildMoon]

Richards defense is not polished. But his defensive potential is insanely high. I expect him to be one of the elite blockers even by Coach Cal's team standard.

NOT NN or AD.

but he will be in discussion for next level group. I could see him around just tad bit below 4 per game. Had 8 this game, and team is clearly aware of his athleticism and height, yet he still got 8.

 

[kev69]

I didn't see John Wall, Anthony Davis, Nerlens Noel, Julius Randle, Karl Towns, or DeAaron Fox - in other words, a transcendent talent you could build a team around. I didn't see a team with Brandon Knight, Jamal Murray or Malik Monk --a guard with big time scoring ability.

I wanted to see a dominating player in Knox. And he's a talented kid who will be an NBA player. But right now the person he reminds me of (though with important differences) is freshman Terrance Jones - lots of potential but not ready to dominate a game.

Add in the youth factor and this is a team that will struggle for awhile at best. The Kansas game may be like the Connecticut game of 2010 when the team looked overmatched. Road games in the SEC against tough, veteran teams could be ugly. If Cal gets this team to jell as a defensive juggernaut with enough offense to make a run in March Itll top 2011 and 2014 and mark his greatest coaching triumph.

It's still really early.

Plenty of time for guys to flourish.

 

[EliteBlue]

Why are so many people harping on other's opinions?

No one said the team sucked or predicted the season outcome. No one said the kids won't improve. No one said they were devastatingly disappointed.

Some are discussing their thoughts on the scrimmage while others want to discuss their thoughts on other poster's comments... get over yourselves and talk basketball without the false accusations.

It's the culture of the world today. If someone sees something differently then attack, slander, and belittle instead of counter discussion

 

[DanHalen88]

Reading through all theses responses has actually been refreshing! I love a thread that stays on topic and shows that our fan base can talk serious college basketball! I've agreed with several of you all! I'll just say this team will go 28-6, and that's if we get decent production from our guard play. (Which I think we will)
I think most of us agree with our length and athleticism we will be fantastic defensively. Bottom line is we gotta make shots!!