BobSaccamanno

4 hours ago, dgambill said:

We should but I don’t remember us ever having a pipeline to these type of players. Not Europe, Australia, or Africa. Heck we don’t even get them from Canada. 

We need a player personnel department with energy.  Woody can’t be expected to know who some player is in Finland.  But the importation of foreign players is not going away and is in the first inning of the trend.   We can’t continue to ignore this.   

I am betting we get an announcement on a redo of our player personnel department with substantial investment and maybe more analytics too.  We can’t continue to pretend that the NET isn’t a thing.  This isn’t the NBA where your seeding is based on record.  I’m tying the two because you may keep the coach and turn around the infrastructure around him.  Reorg.  

3 hours ago, OGIUAndy said:

I believe we have a couple of capable QBs. So I don't think it will be the end of the world if QB1 goes down imo. 

I hope you’re right.   I think Cherry will be damn good but it may be awhile.  The jump from high school will be massive.  Tayven will get really good coaching but he needs a makeover and we will just have to see.   Lowry is a complete unknown.  Let’s see what the staff can do.  They are very good with QB’s.  Having said that, the B1G is very tough and after QB1 I am not we can get bowl eligible with the others.  Would love to see a huge jump.  

3 hours ago, btownqb said:

 

 

If QB1 stays healthy, I think our offense will be very solid.

3 hours ago, btownqb said:

 

 

Love the use of the word "violent" in relation to football.  

As impressive as CCC is, a big part of it is his staff.  CCC knows what he wants everywhere but he also knows the importance of the staff.  Top to bottom, this seems like a very well thought out staff.  I have been watching the interviews and he relies on them but he also has a hand in things.

It's interesting that CCC is in his 60's yet he has a staff of young, energetic, smart guys.  Not a bunch of guys his age who are his cronies.  Top to bottom he has developed an impressive coaching staff working in concert.  And I love his loyalty to his staff.

2 hours ago, 13th&Jackson said:

Currently, I regret that Mr and Mrs Naismith ever met. 

Post of the year bwahahaha 

Imagine this scenario.  

SF defers. 
KC kicks a FG

SF kicks a field goal. 
You are now in sudden death 

KC kicks a field goal and wins  

Shanahan gets skewered for getting too cute. 

You get the ball first, you potentially get more possessions.  

I think Shanahan is a great coach and they didn’t lose because of the call.  Shanahan is innovative and developed a brand of football emulated all over the league.  They lost because they didn’t make the plays.  My scenario above was just as likely if their players made plays.  

I don’t see this as some all time dummy thing like with the Falcons blowing the lead or Seattle not running on the goal line.  Media likes to create these narratives.  

11 minutes ago, IowaHoosierFan said:

The one thing they need to start call in college basketball again is those freaking push offs to make space.  They almost never get called anymore and guards do it all the time.  This was criminal 

Moving screens are another problem, at least in the B1G.  Ok, fine you set a screen.  If the defender gets around it, so be it.  Shouldn't be allowed to drag the screen for as long as it takes.  It's ridiculous and outside the spirit of the rule. Freedom of movement is part of basketball and the B1G gets killed in this area.

You have to credit Woodson for closing on every single recruit we’ve landed.  I don’t think that’s the issue.  I think he’s good with the players and parents.  

Just now, ledies22 said:

I get it. the over ranked part, but the failure part is not a comparison. KL couldn't even get on the court on a bad team. I was thinking maybe Romeo Langford ish. But Romeo had the ball in his hands more thus better stats. 

I mean MM is still producing. KL never did.

💯. Can’t disagree there.  And MM has ability and can get better.  He just needs to do things differently IMO.  Maybe he will.  

4 hours ago, kyhoosier29 said:

Normally, I’d say you’re nuts thinking we’d beat Northwestern at home, but not Nebraska. I’d switch those two… then winning all three remaining home games…. I’ll take what you’re smoking. Agree with Wiscy bc I’ll be there… auto loss. Would hope we’d beat MSU at home. 

But as inconsistent and sporadic as this team is…. you could be right. Who knows! 

I agree.  I doubt we pull the upset with Northwestern but who knows, maybe we flip the switch.  We’d have to play pretty well.  They will be very confident coming in against us.  Hopefully TG leads us to glory.  He will fight.  

4 minutes ago, ledies22 said:

not even close.

I think he just means being over ranked. 

There’s nothing in IU’s history that tells you that they’d make a play for Beard, Oats or Pearl.  

Quinn may have brought us Woody and Dolson tried to put in guardrails with Matta and Fife.  But Woody was the guy who made Dolson fly to him for the interview and Fife and Matta didn’t take.   That’s the picture that formed.  When I was a kid my grandmother had two dogs, a big muscular one and a tiny one.   The little one had a temper and acted like it was going to go berserk every time another dog would come by.   The big dog stayed calm.  The little dog knew the big dog was there for him.  Woody has had Quinn.

But Quinn’s character can never be questioned.  He’d never treat IU like his personal playground for a buddy.  It’s way bigger than one person and he knows it.  I think he will know when it’s right.   But will they switch to going after a flamboyant guy like Pearl or a guy like Beard?  I will believe it when I see it.  

Also it’s not shooting percentage alone.  It’s volume.  That’s the real issue.  

Lot of guys can make threes if they wait until they are wide open and have as much time as they want to get it off.  It’s an entirely different thing to be Steve Alford.  

Just now, ledies22 said:

Some people are just to focused on 3pt shooting they forget about every other aspect. Yes we need 3pt shooting. But i'd much rather have a well rounded kid that shoots 33%, than someone that sits on the arc and shoots almost 40%

Defense for sure is a huge issue.  Motor, defense, smarts (along with shooting).  I made a comment some time back in another thread that 35% in college is like 40% in the pros. 

May did go to one final four and was very competitive there.   I saw his team beat Arizona this year.  They run a good style of ball on both ends.  No comparison to Archie.  Bless his heart but Archie doesn’t have the horsepower schematically or with adjustments etc.  May runs a form of motion and uses Knight principles on D too.  It’s far more pleasurable to watch than what we do.  Let’s see what May does this March.  But after watching them beat Arizona, I doubt anyone wants to see them then.  

MM was theoretically a five star recruit.  I think we can all agree that’s an over ranking.  We can debate whether he’s a high 3 star or a low 4 star.  He is also not exactly a poster child for high school coaching in NJ.   He has not been exposed to the quality of coaching he’d get throughout Indiana.  Big difference. 

Why do I bring that up here?  Because Sisley is the guy we’d need, not MM.  If he goes to Purdue and we are stuck with MM, nothing highlights more how much we have lost our way.  

MM is not a winning player (at least now).  He’s the type of guy who would be at Michigan or someplace like that and we would kick his ass with the Sisley type of guys who know how to make winning plays.  Now it’s upside down.  Hopefully MM gets better but let’s be honest with ourselves.  

On 2/6/2024 at 2:13 PM, Maedhros said:

Ranking matters insofar as a lower ranked team is going to have a lower Adjusted Efficiency Margin.

Efficiency metrics are predictive. Any hypothetical matchup between the two would have a predicted spread, based on their current efficiences. Beat that spread and your AdjEM improves. Underperform that spread and your rating will drop. Even in a win. That's why our rating and rank dropped like a rock after playing Army.

Interesting. Do you recall the before and after NET from the Army game (even ballpark)?

53 minutes ago, IowaHoosierFan said:

I had a wonderful steak dinner for my 50 birthday tonight out with my lady.  Ruth's Chris Steakhouse is hands down worth the money.  Didn't think about Indiana Basketball once and completely forgot we were playing until i was home and doing something else.  Decided to check the score and hit the forums.  So very happy i didn't even think about this team today.

 

Happy birthday!  That’s a big one.  

Just now, Bushmage said:

I would bet a substantial amount of money this is lost on the program. If it weren't, we wouldnt get the answers or direction we do from CMW.

It sure feels like we lost a lot when we lost Matta. 

3 minutes ago, Hoosier987 said:

Can someone also explain why we don’t continue to go to the PnR game? It’s the one thing we actually do well. It’s much better than the post up, triple teamed system 

You’d think Gallo and Ware/Reneau would be very effective in this.  

4 minutes ago, bronkonagurski said:

Seriously, what make believe world is Woody living in if he thinks we are still in the thick of anything? We are nowhere near the NCAA tournament bubble. We are probably on the wrong side of the NIT bubble. I am flabbergasted by his statements. Like he is disconnected from the reality of how poor our current position is.

All season he’s given the impression that he doesn’t understand the importance of NET, analytics etc.  Presumably we have staff members focusing on it.  The staff has to know what needs to get done in terms of analytics so the computers look at your output favorably.  Michigan State isn’t much better than us but they have the metrics working for them and we don’t.  This can’t be lost on the program.  

Just now, Seeking6 said:

Is he the same Braden who went 3 for 20 last year in two losses? Let's not make him more than what he is. 

Maybe so but I’d take him over XJ.  I want us to get back to identifying mentally tough, smart, and savvy guys with big motors.  The state produces those guys like it is an assembly line and we haven’t focused enough on capitalizing on it.  

Purdue’s best player may be international but their roster is stacked with in-state players.  

2 minutes ago, BGleas said:

 

 

There’s a Braden Smith thread from when he was in high school.  Might be an interesting read to see if the stupid and bad IU fans were right to want to offer him or two coaching staffs who didn’t.  

My predictions for next year, driven by Dolson:

1. Woody is back 

2. At least one assistant is gone 

3. 6 or 7 new players 

4. A player personnel reorg is announced 

5.  New emphasis on player development 

If Woody balks at any of 2-5, he could walk away.  Dolson is the boss and that needs to be clear