03-05-2023, 12:39 AM
I've been pretty busy lately so I am often reading posts a little late. One of the things that has struck me about many of the "negative" posts recently is that they are very similar to football posts when the offense is struggling and everyone's perceived savior is the backup quarterback. It's mostly based on the hope/wish that we were playing better and the assumption that the person not playing as much would save us. One example here is the call for Ashton to play a lot more. That is simply not supported by her play on the court. I think she is great and can hit the three but her post offense and defense has generally not been up to the level of the other post options. That is a big cost of playing her. Simply putting her on the perimeter would not, and has not, had the amazing improving effect on our offense that some hope for because opposing defenses have not needed to change their base defense to cover her shooting.
It's fine to complain about playing time for Jones but watching every game, she is more often missing shots in the first half of games than in the second. She generally seems to shoot better in the second half. Jones' shooting percentage this year is a problem, and it may be related to her playing too much time, but it could also be any number of other factors. Jones is a very calming and savvy basketball presence for the team and Tara has great confidence having her lead our team in most important games. I don't think Tara is wrong about this. Even though I sometimes get frustrated with Jones' mistakes, she makes a lot more positive plays than mistakes.
Like others, I get really frustrated and upset with the team when they play a terrible fourth quarter like last night. (They played a good game through 3 quarters and I kind of felt like we would win even when UCLA was coming back. Maybe the team fell into the same trap.) When I'm mad like that, I just stay away from the board so that I don't say foolish things and sound like an idiot. In that mood, it's easy to make comments that are overly critical of our team/coaches and to take offense at others' posts. I encourage everyone to take a step back. The culture here has long been one of being highly respectful and supportive of our coaches, student athletes, and other posters. That doesn't meant we can't be critical but it does mean we should read the room before spouting off in frustration and anger. (I'm sometimes fail at this.)
This year's team is a challenge. I absolutely love the way they support each other and the way many players have improved over the year. I am disappointed that we haven't seen the team improve to the unstoppable force that I dream of them being. I've been saying to my wife for most of the conference that 3-5 losses were likely. I also feel like this team could actually find a way to win it all or even lose in the second round, they are that tough to predict. Either way, I really love the great things this team has done and hope we at least make it to the Final Four.
Cheers,
Pete F.
It's fine to complain about playing time for Jones but watching every game, she is more often missing shots in the first half of games than in the second. She generally seems to shoot better in the second half. Jones' shooting percentage this year is a problem, and it may be related to her playing too much time, but it could also be any number of other factors. Jones is a very calming and savvy basketball presence for the team and Tara has great confidence having her lead our team in most important games. I don't think Tara is wrong about this. Even though I sometimes get frustrated with Jones' mistakes, she makes a lot more positive plays than mistakes.
Like others, I get really frustrated and upset with the team when they play a terrible fourth quarter like last night. (They played a good game through 3 quarters and I kind of felt like we would win even when UCLA was coming back. Maybe the team fell into the same trap.) When I'm mad like that, I just stay away from the board so that I don't say foolish things and sound like an idiot. In that mood, it's easy to make comments that are overly critical of our team/coaches and to take offense at others' posts. I encourage everyone to take a step back. The culture here has long been one of being highly respectful and supportive of our coaches, student athletes, and other posters. That doesn't meant we can't be critical but it does mean we should read the room before spouting off in frustration and anger. (I'm sometimes fail at this.)
This year's team is a challenge. I absolutely love the way they support each other and the way many players have improved over the year. I am disappointed that we haven't seen the team improve to the unstoppable force that I dream of them being. I've been saying to my wife for most of the conference that 3-5 losses were likely. I also feel like this team could actually find a way to win it all or even lose in the second round, they are that tough to predict. Either way, I really love the great things this team has done and hope we at least make it to the Final Four.
Cheers,
Pete F.