03-22-2023, 06:19 PM
Some very thoughtful posts and interesting ideas. Even after painful losses to UCLA in the PAC-12 semi's and then to Mississippi in the NCAA 2nd. round, it might be easy to forget we're only 2 years removed from our National Championship season and only 1 year removed from our Final Four. How many Div. 1 teams would love to have had a 29-6 record?
Having said that, I have questions about how best we can move forward.
1) For better or worse, the physicality of the game has dramatically increased in recent years. Our worst match-ups last season came when our opponents were more physical than us, especially Mississippi. Our current team is talented, but inherently not especially physical. What options does Tara and the staff have to address this challenge next season? I don't believe you can teach/train someone to be more physical. Does that mean we recruit more physical players? I'm not sure it's that easy. One must be physical but also talented and/or athletic.
2) Ironically, despite having had two All-Americans in the starting lineup, we struggled offensively. We had such a deep bench and Tara kept changing the lineup throughout the season, looking for the best combinations to ignite the offense, but as several of you have noted, playing time from that deep bench became less and so did productivity. I'm wondering, could the struggle to score be less about who was playing with whom and more about the type of offense we were running, that so many of our opponents knew so well? Given the talent we do have, what would be a more effective offensive style? Does Tara go back to the Princeton, the Triangle? or something else? Would a high/low post game (Brink and Betts, or even Brink and Kiki) with scoring options in the corners and more driving and shooting from our guards have merit? I never thought we really took advantage of our size last season.
3) Watching the Tournament, it seems as though every successful team has at least one dynamic guard who is quick, athletic and can create their own shots. Some teams have 2 or more. The subject of recruiting elite guards has been a discussion point on the Cardboard for quite some time; especially the 'ones that got away'. But we have played teams in recent years, including mid-majors, who have on their roster very talented guards; maybe not elite, but darn good. I will argue that this was our #1 problem. To address it, will Tara (now) be more receptive in using the portal to acquire a high-level, experienced guard who could make that difference in our offense?
I have greatly enjoyed viewing many of your posts that have offered interesting insights and facilitated good constructive dialogue. I have tried occasionally to offer my own thoughts- perhaps some that could have been better worded or thought-out. Thanks for letting me participate. It's been fun and I can't wait to see what develops over the Spring and Summer.
Having said that, I have questions about how best we can move forward.
1) For better or worse, the physicality of the game has dramatically increased in recent years. Our worst match-ups last season came when our opponents were more physical than us, especially Mississippi. Our current team is talented, but inherently not especially physical. What options does Tara and the staff have to address this challenge next season? I don't believe you can teach/train someone to be more physical. Does that mean we recruit more physical players? I'm not sure it's that easy. One must be physical but also talented and/or athletic.
2) Ironically, despite having had two All-Americans in the starting lineup, we struggled offensively. We had such a deep bench and Tara kept changing the lineup throughout the season, looking for the best combinations to ignite the offense, but as several of you have noted, playing time from that deep bench became less and so did productivity. I'm wondering, could the struggle to score be less about who was playing with whom and more about the type of offense we were running, that so many of our opponents knew so well? Given the talent we do have, what would be a more effective offensive style? Does Tara go back to the Princeton, the Triangle? or something else? Would a high/low post game (Brink and Betts, or even Brink and Kiki) with scoring options in the corners and more driving and shooting from our guards have merit? I never thought we really took advantage of our size last season.
3) Watching the Tournament, it seems as though every successful team has at least one dynamic guard who is quick, athletic and can create their own shots. Some teams have 2 or more. The subject of recruiting elite guards has been a discussion point on the Cardboard for quite some time; especially the 'ones that got away'. But we have played teams in recent years, including mid-majors, who have on their roster very talented guards; maybe not elite, but darn good. I will argue that this was our #1 problem. To address it, will Tara (now) be more receptive in using the portal to acquire a high-level, experienced guard who could make that difference in our offense?
I have greatly enjoyed viewing many of your posts that have offered interesting insights and facilitated good constructive dialogue. I have tried occasionally to offer my own thoughts- perhaps some that could have been better worded or thought-out. Thanks for letting me participate. It's been fun and I can't wait to see what develops over the Spring and Summer.