The idea for any hope to win and for the future is a team effort.
We have been overreliant on James, as LSF noted most recently, in the tournament. Which
was generally good, but not for the long term.
It's not a group of individuals, however talented.
And James certainly would want to show he can be on a winning team and be on a
winning team for his final year at GW.

LeBron. Michael. Steph.

One thing interesting, and I know someone else commented on this, but James is not taking the 6-12 foot pull ups that were his bread and butter the last three years.  He’s either getting all the way to the rim or passing.  I’m sure that is a coaching move, striving to increase our 3&rim %, which was low last year (because we were efficient in the midrange).   

James can get that pull up any time, but getting to the rim or passing more will help him play as a pro somewhere.

James is averaging 20 points 5 dimes and 40% from 3. and 93% from the line, his shooting marks have rocketed up this year.

40% is a career high as is 93%.   If JBIV can sustain this level of shooting, does he have a possible future as a points off the bench NBA piece?

The Dude wrote:

James is averaging 20 points 5 dimes and 40% from 3. and 93% from the line, his shooting marks have rocketed up this year.

40% is a career high as is 93%.   If JBIV can sustain this level of shooting, does he have a possible future as a points off the bench NBA piece?

Love James, but I don’t see his defense playing in the NBA, given that he often struggles to keep his man in front of him at college level (though he’s improved a lot).

He will have a nice career and make money playing basketball overseas.

Hopefully, a performance like tonight, will be remembered when the votes for A10 POY come in.  

JBIV played a lot of games this year trying to unselfishly get everyone else involved, anytime GW has needed him, he's been delivering these 30ish point gems.    His ability to flick the switch and pour in points when needed, is rivaled by few in GW history.


 

He would have to pick up the pace considerably to break the all-time scoring record or have a long post seasons both of which are possible

More importantly he and the coach have turned the program around!!
One sason ago, James Bishop IV became the first George Washington University men’s basketball player to lead the Atlantic 10 Conference in scoring since 2000, as the Baltimore native averaged 21.6 points per game while becoming the first, first-team all-conference honoree at GW since 2006.

Odds are, the senior-to-be held several cards deciding the fate of how he would extend his basketball career. Returning to GW was ultimately the deck he chose, in part because he trusted the vision that second-year coach Chris Caputo had for both the short- and long-term of the program.

once again, Bishop IV is lighting up the scoreboard and stuffing the stat sheet for the Revolutionaries, who themselves are off to their best start in nearly a decade.

“I think it was just what we were building at the school,” Bishop IV said of his return. “This program has been really up and coming the last couple of years, and I’ve spent a lot of time here. I’m comfortable here. It’s close to my home. And I just believe in what Coach Caputo has planned for the program, and you’re starting to see it.”

It’s easy to understand why an offensive-minded player such as Bishop IV finds Caputo’s system enticing. The Revolutionaries are averaging more than 80 points per game and have the freedom to push the ball in transition and shoot early in the shot clock.

That offensive output has been a big reason for the team’s 12-3 record.

What is so interesting to me FQ is that his shot selection hasn’t been terrible the past two games. For someone who came to GW and was very inefficient scoring his first two years here, he has greatly improved his shot selection under Caputo. For the last two games though, he just isn’t hitting his shots. Several of the threes he has taken have been wide open and he just can’t knock them down.

I’m assuming it is something mechanical that he may just be able to fix in practice or just by continuing to shoot, but either way, this slump has not been ideal.

Free Quebec wrote:

James is a great kid, but his inconsistency this year and his regression in some categories is holding us back.

Some stats on his inconsistency this year:


Over the last two games he’s a combined 2-17 from 2 pt range, with each game being worse from 2 than any game last year.

He’s had 9 games already this year in which he has made 2 or fewer two point shots; last year he had just 6 all season.   In those 9 games, he is 11-49 from 2: last year in those 6 games he was 11-39.

Overall, last year he shot 50.6% from 2, this year he’s at a career low 43.2% from 2. 

And while he’s significantly improved his three point shooting (37.4% this year, 30.3% last year), his turnover rate is way higher (14.4 last year, 19.0 this year) and his assist rate is down. 

I don’t know why he has regressed this year (we’ve seen other guys better than second to last year than their last, like Kwame Evans IIRC), but if we want to finish in the top half of the A10, Bishop just has to play better than he has.

dmvpiranha wrote:

I think the stats above truly highlight just how fantastic and important Brendan Adams was for the team last season. He was ridiculously efficient offensively from all over the floor making him tough to stop so teams couldn't hone in on JB. While Max, Jun, and Garrett are all talented players in their own right, they are all still relatively inexperienced and do not command the same amount of attention/respect that BA did last year.

Exactly.  Thank you. I also couldn't agree more with comments above about Bishop. Great kid, but the turnovers and missed shots are really hurting us. And his average per game turnovers are 3.9 almost back up to where he was in his first year at GW when he was 4.0. His second season his turnover rate dropped to 2.3 and the 3.1 in his third year.  I fear it will only get worse this season because the competition only gets tougher the rest of the season compared to the cupcakes we played earlier in the season.

I have long thought we need a point guard who can run the offense, with a low turnover rate compared to assists, and is looking for assists before scoring, but can score. Anyone remember Alvin Pearsall?

It will be interesting to see next season if Hutchinson can fill that role. Let's hope we don't lose him to the transfer portal.