From last nights game, they said we are bottom 5 nationally in our scoring from 3's (16.5 % of our points from 3's), and rank 300+ in 3 pt shooting %. I know we're better than that, but these guys need to step it up.
Wow, terrible stats
- Thread starter mikbrenhum
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And I thought after UK's exhibition games that this could be UK's best 3-pt shooting team EVER.
I mean, unless you really believe that Ulis, Murray, Briscoe, Willis, Poythress are the worst group of top 5 shooters UK has ever had on a roster, then you should expect a regression to the mean at some point.
Are they going to be great at it? I very much doubt that. But there have been a number of UK rosters with much worse shooting potential.
Just like when you see a team shooting 47% from 3 collectively for the season (I'm looking at you, Kansas), you can't trust it to stay that way for too long. If they maintained that all season, that would mean that their 6 three-point shooters are on average as good from 3 as Doron Lamb.
We know that's not true.
And we know that this squad is not the worst shooting UK squad of all time.
Give it time.
Are they going to be great at it? I very much doubt that. But there have been a number of UK rosters with much worse shooting potential.
Just like when you see a team shooting 47% from 3 collectively for the season (I'm looking at you, Kansas), you can't trust it to stay that way for too long. If they maintained that all season, that would mean that their 6 three-point shooters are on average as good from 3 as Doron Lamb.
We know that's not true.
And we know that this squad is not the worst shooting UK squad of all time.
Give it time.
Wonder what the worst 3 pt shooting team that recently made the FF? Our '13 squad couldnt have been more than a 33% shooting team. Long way to catch that number...
And I thought after UK's exhibition games that this could be UK's best 3-pt shooting team EVER.
Seemed like we were running better offense in the exhibition games. Not a big fan of what we are doing now which is putting your head down and driving into traffic with no where to go.
I believe Cal asked one of the coaches to not play zone in one of the exhibitions. Not sure if that was the case for both or just the one. As we saw against Duke, teams that play us straight up man to man will likely pay for it as it plays right into our strength (multiple penetrating guards). We're not going to see that again.
And I thought after UK's exhibition games that this could be UK's best 3-pt shooting team EVER.
Yeah, me too. Lot of things can cause shooting problems though. I don't know what practice is like but dead legs can cause shooting issues. I'm not convinced the team will always shoot so poorly.
They also seem to be hell bent to work the ball into the paint either by guard penetration or passing. I understand that because without it, March will be a short ride. Once they master that we could see a more polished perimeter attack.
Dude were not playing chump change state from division 2 or 3 anymore, playing real teams with real defense. get real.
I don't think all the poor shooting can be explained by defense, maybe some of it. We pass up a lot of open 3 point shots. I don't know why we are performing so poorly in this category but I do believe we can do much better.
By the way, you could argue that the fact that this team is 8-1 (including a win over a top 10 team) without relying on outside shooting is a positive, not a negative. If that starts clicking, we are a Final Four contender. If not, we're looking at Sweet 16 at best unless our defense improves dramatically.
Without a post presence it puts so much pressure on the guards to make every play.
And we have absolutely zero post presence.
And we have absolutely zero post presence.
Personally, I saw several opportunities where they could have worked the ball into the paint and probably score, but jacked up a 3 and didnt even fight for the rebound. At least they are fighting for rebounds on inside missed shots
The truth is Cal, dating back to his Memphis days, does not believe the three point shot is the game changer that it is. It's the truth whether or not some want to admit it or not. Lots of people make excuses for it, claiming "that's what Mulder is for" or "he didn't expect player X to shoot this poorly" , but it's obvious to anyone trying to understand that he simply doesn't care. How well you're able to shoot the long ball is way down his list of priorities when recruiting. IMO that line of thinking has cost him several championships. His methods work, no doubt about it. But he sells himself short. The guy is a floor spacer from having 3 championships.
i also think cal is the coach of Kentucky and he's not going to get the foul calls he needs with his style late in the year, and so far he hasn't. He's not coAchig Duke. He won't get the head charging penetration calls in the final four. We need some shooting to keep defenses honest and keep the game balanced.
Having said that his results are what they are and maybe sometimes I expect too much out of him.
i also think cal is the coach of Kentucky and he's not going to get the foul calls he needs with his style late in the year, and so far he hasn't. He's not coAchig Duke. He won't get the head charging penetration calls in the final four. We need some shooting to keep defenses honest and keep the game balanced.
Having said that his results are what they are and maybe sometimes I expect too much out of him.
It's potentially a big problem, but luckily they don't decide the championship on 3 pt shooting. A couple years ago UConn hit I think 2 or 3 of them in their two FF games combined.
Neither of UL's recent Final Four teams were good three point shooting teams.
I sort of believe the same thing you do, although I'd argue that 3 point shooting isn't super low priority for him, more that defensive potential is the clear #1 - long arms, fast laterally, athletic - he keeps churning out top 15 defenses year after year once he gets 4-5 of those guys in the rotation and teaches them how to coordinate their efforts against a range of offenses.
I think he likes shooters, foul drawing ability, strong rebounders, guys who don't turn it over, and a number of other attributes, but those all fall way to the back behind defensive potential when he's recruiting.
And the thing is, as somebody else noted earlier, there are rarely guys around who are both deadeye shooters and also have the potential to become elite defenders at the D1 level. I don't know if it's a problem with AAU or what, but seriously - think about the last 5 recruiting classes, and name all the guys who fit Cal's defensive mold and were also stone cold snipers.
Brandon Knight? Brad Beal? Okay, those are two names which certainly qualify.
Justise Winslow did in retrospect, but he sucked at 3s in HS and raised his level in college.
I mean, the list is really, really short for guys who both have an A in defensive potential and an A in 3 point shooting coming out of high school, and I think the former is what Cal has the hardest time compromising on. When he does, like with Wiltjer, the fit doesn't always work out.
And the level of the opponent has nothing to do with how you run your offense, maybe you should be the one that gets real. If I could circle how I would. Comprehende?
The hell it dont. Dudes in d2 and 3 are not as whole built like d1 athletes it certainly dictates what and how you might run something.
We are obsessed with the 3-pointer as a fanbase.
We will shoot it better as the season progresses.
We will shoot it better as the season progresses.
Why does it matter how we get our points? That first stat is irrelevant.
Do you know the % of points we had from 3 last season? 21%. It rated 326th in the NCAA.
2014? 20.4% (323rd)
2013? 23.0% (290th)
2012? 21.8% (307th)
We did pretty good those years if I recall.
It's always gonna be like that because with Cal we don't take many 3s to begin with. We also drive alot and get fouled. More points gained from the foul line and less from 3.
The second stat is more troubling but we are dealing in small samples here. That will go back up.
Jamal Murray isn't a sharp shooter but hes a great 3 point shooter...has all the tools to be and has shown flashes of it...hopefully he can get going. Aaron Harrison was considered by some analysts to be the best 3 point shooter in his class, we know how that worked out. U just never know whats gonna happen once these kids get into the college game where most teams put a premium on defense...something they aren't used to.
