In fairness, I’m not sure JNJ ever demonstrated he was ready to be a primary creator.  He was a turnover machine when asked to perform that role. He was best in transition or on straight line drives when other actions opened up a path to the rim.

Free Quebec wrote:

Will he really get better looks? I think many of you overrate him. To paraphrase LSF, the easiest player to overrate is someone who scores points on a bad team.

What Maceo is, is an above average shooter (career 35% from 3, 86% from the line) with few other discernible skills. He is a below average defender, not a ball handler or shot creator, and not an exceptional athlete (he’s slow).

His offensive rating against Tier A completion was just 14.2 as a freshman, 50.8 as a sophomore, and 89.6 as a junior -all way below average (and his junior year is boosted by a good showing vs Vermont, but his Ortg was dreadful in our other 5 tier A games). . Add Tier B games, and his Ortg still tops out at 91.9 last year.

In other words, he has demonstrated absolutely no ability to make a positive impact against highly athletic, high quality teams. He is, and always has been, a decent low-major player.

I’m bummed he’s leaving, but I would be shocked if he went to a BCS type program and made a big impact. At best, I think it would be like Toro, as an 8 or 9th man who makes little impact. Nelson, on the other hand, while he may be a below average offensive player, has the athleticism to play just about anywhere.


Also wanted to add, in response to this debate about whether the drop to 22 minutes a game pushed him out, I think you are all missing something. It’s not just the drop in minutes, it’s the drop in usage with this new Bishop or one pass offense.

Maceo’s usage rate was 18.8 as a freshman and he took 19% of the shots when he was on the floor. As a sophomore under MoJo, he used 20.8% of possessions and took 25% of the shots when on the floor. Last year, under JC, he used just 16.5% of possessions and took 21% of the shots.

This year, he was using only 11.2% of possessions and taking a career low 14.1% of the shots. Granted, with fewer shots, his efficiency was sky rocketing, but it has to be frustrating for him to not get his shots even when he does play.

FQ just hit the nail on the head, the more Maceo played the more his efficiency declined. In other words, he was a better 21 mpg player than a 30+ mpg player. Couple that with his liability as a defensive player and JC undoubtedly recognized that his role needed a downward adjustment. from 2019-20.

Maceo and Jameer were 2 vastly different situations.   Not only was Maceo pretty much as Free described him, but he was also in his 4th  year.   He had no long term friends on the team since they all transferred away or graduated.  Even with the Covid 5th  year, he was not the future of this team.   He was pretty much, what his numbers said he was.  Still, at this point in his college career, I will contend that he was one of the 5 best options on the team, if the team was looking to win games (as opposed to developing a future).  I thought that he was one of the more versatile scorers on the team and should have been an option in the final seconds of the past 2 embarrassing losses.  In the end, his transferring was not a great loss.  However, Jameer was a loss.  Again, Free did a good job of assessing him, but unlike Maceo, he was only 7 games into his sophomore year, displayed incredible athleticism, hustled, and was one of the few players who defended even a little.   As GWMayhem pointed out, his numbers were no worse after his freshman year than some very good players, but he never had the chance to develop.   Over his last 2 games, he played about 10 minutes per game and came off the bench.  Further, as the son of a former long term NBAer and a conference star, he was one of the few things (if not the only thing) that the basketball program could point to with pride.  The fact that he would become so disgruntled after such a short period of time that he felt the need to leave speaks volumes about something.  I am not certain about what, but whatever it is does not reflect well upon the program.   

Last edited by Long Suffering Fan (12/29/2020 10:53 pm)

jf wrote:

Before Maceo transferred under duress, a number of posters here were wondering why he did not start and played so little minutes? A look back would show that.
Treating Maceo and JNJ whose potential was aptly described by LSF, like this will have consequences this year and in the future.
It's not who we want to be.
And we get to cut moral corners while losing to UMBC,Hampton,William and Mary etc.
A real lose-lose scenario.

I don't think the word "duress" means what you think it means. 

But it's comical when you use the word "duress" to suggest the conditions under which Maceo left but then insist on the Chalk Talk that JC force Lindo to play right now or pull his scholarship. That was you right?
 

Last edited by GWRising (12/29/2020 10:54 pm)

Gwmayhem wrote:

Yes, I have to go along with the notion that "duress" was not in play here.

One troubling trend is that we have now lost 4 players under JC in the middle of a season.  I understand that today's transfer market can be compared to the wild, wild west but even still, I am not sure I can recall too many players transferring out from GW in the middle of a season.  Hunter Dean obviously came in this way, and Regus Koundjia did as well many years ago.  Am sure there have been others, but 4 players over two seasons (the 3 this year plus Justin M.) does seem high.

We are in a hyper transfer environment now. It is happening elsewhere too. Mount St. Mary's just lost their leading scorer who was averaging 30+ minutes per game. COVID has made adversity much more difficult. Can't see your parents, your family, your girlfriend, and no interaction with classmates outside of class, etc. So when things go bad on the court, all of that comes into play as well. There is no outlet. Some handle that better than others. Convinced that if COVID wasn't here one or both of Maceo and Jameer would have at least stayed for the remainder of the season.

Great, great landing spot for Maceo.  Buffalo was a 20 win team last year and a juggernaut under Nate Oats prior to that.  Plus, it brings Maceo back home where family and friends will be able to closely follow him (and hopefully see him play in person one can hope).  Am assuming he can play right away and again in 2021-22 if this is his preference.  Really good news.

He'll sit out this season and compete next season.  His Mom is the head women's basketball coach there.  Good for him!  https://ubbulls.com/news/2021/1/10/maceo-jack-to-join-ub-mens-basketball-program.aspx
 

It is a better program.
  But,especially with Jamison out,we could have used Macro,who should have played more this year. He was a proven A-10 player.
  From the announcement: "Last season,, he appeared in all 32 games and made 28 starts. He finished the season ranked second in the Atlantic 10 Conference in three-point field goals made (83) and averaged a career-high 11.7 points per game. Jack's best performance as a collegian came in a 4OT win against Davidson, in which he scored 35 points."

16 points last night

Maceo is starting for a good Buffalo program, always good to see Colonials shining

Maceo has made all 13 starts for Buffalo, he's shooting his characteristic 91% free throw

Last year for GW he shot 100% from the line, 90% from 2 and 40% from 3.

6'5 and can really shoot it