On defense, frankly I have not seen much mayhem on the court over the past two years (at least not on defense) and doubt that we will see it again this year, even if we still profess to be playing it.   Given that the team is (presumably) faster and more athletic than prior teams, hopefully this will show up on defensem where I would like to see them play man to man, if in fact we do have an advantage on athleticism.   The zone defense last season was really quite atrocious.   For the same reason, I hope we will play at a considerably faster pace this season on offense while being more under control (we got to improve that assist to turnover ratio), and that we would look to get everyone a touch, not just the point guard.    I am a believer in keeping your best team on the court as long as possible (duh...you want your better players out there as long as possible), but making sure that they have adequate rest each half.   So, ideally, I see an 8 man rotation, with the starters getting about 30 minutes each, with the exception of the "5", who I see getting closer to 20-25 minutes.   By my math, that is about 150 minutes for the starters, with the remaining 50 minutes being divided between 3 or maybe 4 players, with the backup 5 getting 15-20 of those minutes.   Of course, you don't want to push the frosh too hard too early, until they adjust to the college game, so I see their minutes increasing if they are (hopefully) any good.

Last edited by Long Suffering Fan (6/14/2021 5:32 pm)

LSF and 22ndandF, appreciate the responses.  I'd say what I am most curious about is how deep this team will end up being.  In order to play the style that I believe JC would ultimately like to play, you need a deeper bench than if you were playing most other styles.  It is of course true that the best players should play the most but the harder question to answer is whether say our 3rd best player playing tired is a better alternative than say our 7th best player taking away some of those minutes.  Over JC's first two seasons here, there is little question that he preferred playing his best players the most minutes (last season, the top 4 players each averaged over 32 minutes per game).  However, what appears to be different about this season is that the 6th-9th players appear to be closer in ability to the starting 5 compared to the past two years.

Assuming good health, it would stand to reason that Bishop, Lindo, Bamisile, Harris, Adams, Lee and Freeman all figure prominently into the rotation.  Nixon is a distinct possibility to join them, and a two headed monster of Dean/Brown should combine to receive backup center minutes.  Who really knows about the FGCU transfer or if the book entitled "Waiting for Gapare" will be completed sometime this season or not.

The point would appear to be that there seems to be a considerable amount of depth compared with recent seasons.  IMO, it will take a regular rotation of at least 8 and more likely 9 to see the fast-paced offense and mayhem defense that JC would, I think, like to install.

All I ask is that we are much more protective of the ball this season. I cannot recall a team over the course of multiple years having so many issues with passes going through hands or rebounds not being secured. I would hope that the higher level talent we are bringing in have been coached on how to secure the ball and to deliver crisper passes.

Gwmayhem wrote:

GW73 wrote:

There seems to be an assumption on the board that Amir Harris will be playing in the coming season. Does anyone know with any certainty if he is heathy enough to play in the coming season?

Amir is listed on the roster and in all fairness, I did say "assuming good health."

GWmayhem, I am a fan of your posts. Yes, you did say "assuming good health." I was just wondering if anyone knew more about Harris' health.  Because we get no media coverage, we never know the health of the team -- and a lot more about the team for that matter. Maybe some day the Hatchet will provide coverage that goes beyond game stories. 
 

Barring a setback in his rehab, the expectation is Amir will play in 2021-22.