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A thought.......seeking discussion

perryhawk

HB Legend
Apr 3, 2008
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Perry, Iowa
So, a few qualifiers first: 1) I'm not a bball expert so I don't claim to be right. 2) I think the world of this coaching staff so this is not a critical review. 3) I am not in practice and don't have access to those things so I know I am most likely completely uniformed in this topic.

With that said, here is my observation. Wagner is first off of the bench at a position that appears to be interchangeable with Dale Jones.......yet Jones is clearly the better offensive player, and from my observations a slightly better rebounder. Defensively I can't see a big difference between these two, but as I said I am not in practice. I wonder if Wagner starts because he brings more energy in practice and in a game? Is coach trying to send a message to either Jones or the rest of the new guys? Or am I just reading this situation incorrectly?

Any way, I would be interested in others insight and opinions.....just for discussion and being analytical, not for someone to state something as absolutely fact when in fact it is their opinion.
 
My best guess is Wagner has caught on to the offense/defense and his role in it faster than Jones. It also has to do with team need. We needed a guy willing to bang down low, come out and set picks, the stuff that Wagner is a bit better at right now.

However, it is early in the season and as impressed as I am with the current development of the newbies, I expect to see more, lots more. And, I wouldn't begin to put a serious prediction together as to who earns the most minutes by the end of the year.

One thing that I kind of consider a clue is how McCaffery stated that Wagner came from a program with a great high school coach. Sometimes, imo, these guys can show up thinking they've already learned everything. And when Fran specifically mentions a coach? I wonder who he is sending a message to? As in, learn from me. Look what Wagner is doing and maybe he got coaching that you didn't?
 
Team need I'd say. Desperately need an inside presence and Woody and Uhl just aren't enough. Jones is needed for shooting, but he is essentially behind Uthoff and obviously Uthoff isn't going anywhere. Wagner provides the inside body that we need.
 
...the good thing about going to Coppin game was you could hear some stuff on the floor...Can't remember if it was 1st or 2nd half...Fran ...yells (really loud) at Dale Jones "Dale... find someone to guard".

I like Jones ... reminds me of Ben McGilmer, as I recall Ralph Miller wasn't very happy with Bennie's defensive effort but man he could shoot. I isolated watching Jones on defense in all 4 games - I think he has improved from Exhib game 1 to Coppin. Really have 3 different type of guys in Uhl, Wagner & Jones...I feel good about all 3 as backups to Woody & Uthoff.
 
Wagner has a real good grasp of what Fran wants from him. Good at screen and roll and is a good passer. As has been mentioned a bit the ball stops in Jones hands. He's still learning the offense on how to play without the ball.

Wagner's screen & roll is way ahead of any player I've seen at Iowa in recent memory...has his hands up..really really good. If thats' from his high school coach...kudos to him.
 
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Wagner's screen & roll is way ahead of any player I've seen at Iowa in recent memory...has his hands up..really really good. If thats' from his high school coach...kudos to him.

..back on Wagner .. his screens are also outstanding - doesn't leave early. He fights for every rebound. He also has that look on his face like man this is fun. Once again Fran's recruiting .. wow ..the thought of Cook & Wagner ... along with the other guys... holly crap..scary.
 
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So, a few qualifiers first: 1) I'm not a bball expert so I don't claim to be right. 2) I think the world of this coaching staff so this is not a critical review. 3) I am not in practice and don't have access to those things so I know I am most likely completely uniformed in this topic.

With that said, here is my observation. Wagner is first off of the bench at a position that appears to be interchangeable with Dale Jones.......yet Jones is clearly the better offensive player, and from my observations a slightly better rebounder. Defensively I can't see a big difference between these two, but as I said I am not in practice. I wonder if Wagner starts because he brings more energy in practice and in a game? Is coach trying to send a message to either Jones or the rest of the new guys? Or am I just reading this situation incorrectly?

Any way, I would be interested in others insight and opinions.....just for discussion and being analytical, not for someone to state something as absolutely fact when in fact it is their opinion.
Jones is not the better rebounder, tho he is a good rebounder
 
Jones is not the better rebounder, tho he is a good rebounder


I thought I read somewhere that in practice Jones was the leading rebounder for the entire team.....and it appears like he gets after it there in the games as well. He has long arms and does a good job of positioning or pursuing boards......Wagner might be one of those guys that is better at rebounding out of his area. That said, if you have some other info please post. Thanks.
 
Wagner's effort on the boards reminds me of Reggie Evans - anyone else? The effort. Granted, my observation is limited to the Augie and Coppin State games but the guy is a bull.
 
Wagner's effort on the boards reminds me of Reggie Evans - anyone else? The effort. Granted, my observation is limited to the Augie and Coppin State games but the guy is a bull.

And he's just getting started. I love how he played for All Ohio Red and was the guy doing all the grunt work while a couple others were doing all the scoring. He's certainly displayed his team mentality. It's also worth checking out his twitter as clearly he's loving being a Hawkeye.

I was/am concerned about his free throw shooting as I believe I saw that in high school it was under 50%. But I suppose that could have come from having just played football, or I could be wrong, or it may be something he's improved upon. It will be a huge factor as guys will bust him up to put him on the line if he can't make them pay.
 
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Sometimes it is about combinations. Maybe coach likes him better with the guys that are already in the game and is saving Dale for a different lineup. I do think Wagner brings a lot of energy when he comes in so there's that too.
 
Dale has the ability to shoot you back into a game, but I do have concerns about his defense. Especially since he came from an offensive oriented juco. Now, I think he can develop that part of his game, but how quickly that happens is the question. He is too talented offensively to not play him plus he obviously can play the four and grab some boards. However, he is the definition of a stretch four.

I see Wagner as more of a pure four who can bang down low. I think he is further along defensively at this point. He does not have the ability to stretch defenses like Dale, but he will be getting just as many minutes. People initially compared Wags (yea Im calling him that) to Basabe and rightfully so. Similar in height and position, but I think Ahmad is much more physical and stronger than Mel ever was.
 
Wagner's effort on the boards reminds me of Reggie Evans - anyone else? The effort. Granted, my observation is limited to the Augie and Coppin State games but the guy is a bull.
You cannot be serious. Reggie was a monster who cleared his way before the ball reached the rim. His rebounding was so good that he became an NBA mainstay! Opponents were afraid to get in his path!
 
You cannot be serious. Reggie was a monster who cleared his way before the ball reached the rim. His rebounding was so good that he became an NBA mainstay! Opponents were afraid to get in his path!

.... and there it is: the over-reaction to a post which was deliberately narrow and specifically focused upon a single competitive aspect by which all players are judged, namely: effort - a word which was intentionally singled out for mention for consideration by itself not in conjunction with any other aspect or set of unique skills attributable to Reggie Evans in order to avoid hysterical knee-jerk reaction by a reader who may accidently get excited or mistakenly assume that the comment was limited to a single competitive trait and not in any way a comparison of the players skills or abilities now or in the future. Congratulations, you failed the test.
 
.... and there it is: the over-reaction to a post which was deliberately narrow and specifically focused upon a single competitive aspect by which all players are judged, namely: effort - a word which was intentionally singled out for mention for consideration by itself not in conjunction with any other aspect or set of unique skills attributable to Reggie Evans in order to avoid hysterical knee-jerk reaction by a reader who may accidently get excited or mistakenly assume that the comment was limited to a single competitive trait and not in any way a comparison of the players skills or abilities now or in the future. Congratulations, you failed the test.

bamdropsmic.gif
 
.... and there it is: the over-reaction to a post which was deliberately narrow and specifically focused upon a single competitive aspect by which all players are judged, namely: effort - a word which was intentionally singled out for mention for consideration by itself not in conjunction with any other aspect or set of unique skills attributable to Reggie Evans in order to avoid hysterical knee-jerk reaction by a reader who may accidently get excited or mistakenly assume that the comment was limited to a single competitive trait and not in any way a comparison of the players skills or abilities now or in the future. Congratulations, you failed the test.



Where's the douchebag button?
 
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Two things I'm not sure I saw mentioned about Wagner:

1) he was often the first guy down the floor on offense, which is great for our transition game after losing White. In the first half both Ells and Gesell missed him over the top out in front in transition but in the second half he caught a deep pass like a receiver and finished.

2) He "gets" Fran's defensive tactics - he's getting good position defending the low post in the half court game and providing decent help-side when needed. More impressively, he's doubling the handler on ball screens and transitioning quickly back to his man underneath. You can see this at the 11:15 mark in the 1st half against Coppin St and again at the 17:00 mark in the 2nd half. That second one led to a steal by Gesell followed by the sweet pick and roll bucket by Wagner. I imagine there are plenty of young guys who are slow to execute these types of things at the speed the college game requires. Wagner appears to have the athleticism and athletic instincts for this, and as Fran would say, "he gets what we're trying to do."
 
Wagner seems to give great effort and has really good fundamentals on both ends of the court, especially for a true freshman. Drawbacks are that he needs to work on his shooting and seems to be very foul-prone. As noted, Jones needs work on the defensive end and at moving the ball on offense. His outside shooting, along with his rebounding, will earn him consistent minutes. I think Wagner and Jones will both end up getting about 10 min/game, depending mostly on how much Uthoff plays the 3.
 
So, a few qualifiers first: 1) I'm not a bball expert so I don't claim to be right. 2) I think the world of this coaching staff so this is not a critical review. 3) I am not in practice and don't have access to those things so I know I am most likely completely uniformed in this topic.

With that said, here is my observation. Wagner is first off of the bench at a position that appears to be interchangeable with Dale Jones.......yet Jones is clearly the better offensive player, and from my observations a slightly better rebounder. Defensively I can't see a big difference between these two, but as I said I am not in practice. I wonder if Wagner starts because he brings more energy in practice and in a game? Is coach trying to send a message to either Jones or the rest of the new guys? Or am I just reading this situation incorrectly?

Any way, I would be interested in others insight and opinions.....just for discussion and being analytical, not for someone to state something as absolutely fact when in fact it is their opinion.
 
You cannot be serious. Reggie was a monster who cleared his way before the ball reached the rim. His rebounding was so good that he became an NBA mainstay! Opponents were afraid to get in his path!
I actually liked the comparison. Reggie came to IA as a jc junior whereas Wagner is just a freshman. Both are/were very instinctive rebounder with great noses for the ball, what I call "rebound hounds". Wagner is still young but who knows what he'll be like when he gets to 21 years old like Reggie was when he came.

Oh, and Wags sports the headband, too. Now if he starts to shave his head, look out!

;)
 
I was/am concerned about his free throw shooting as I believe I saw that in high school it was under 50%. But I suppose that could have come from having just played football, or I could be wrong, or it may be something he's improved upon. It will be a huge factor as guys will bust him up to put him on the line if he can't make them pay.


You should be. It seems to be his Achilles heal at this point. I watched him shoot 20 FTs in warmups the other night. He made just 2. Ouch

As much as I expect him to get to the line both this year and in the future, he'll need to improve. I have confidence he will.
 
"but in the second half he caught a deep pass like a receiver and finished." I think he was an All State receiver wasn't he? I am sure he was a football star, got interest from some nice programs but committed to BBall long term.

Me, I love Wags already! This kid plays with a non stop motor, very physical and already very strong. Opponent's bounce off him.

Hopefully Wags can improve the terrible free throw shooting. A late game foul on Reggie was pretty much a forced turnover. Wags, unfortunately looks to have a terrible shooting form when more than four or five feet. I'm guessing he will draw a lot of fouls in his career so he needs to get those ugly looking kinks smoothed to at least get him up to like 65-70%. But, right now he fills his role perfectly. I see a lot of big plays at the end of the head band (also cool).
 
"but in the second half he caught a deep pass like a receiver and finished." I think he was an All State receiver wasn't he? I am sure he was a football star, got interest from some nice programs but committed to BBall long term.

Me, I love Wags already! This kid plays with a non stop motor, very physical and already very strong. Opponent's bounce off him.

Hopefully Wags can improve the terrible free throw shooting. A late game foul on Reggie was pretty much a forced turnover. Wags, unfortunately looks to have a terrible shooting form when more than four or five feet. I'm guessing he will draw a lot of fouls in his career so he needs to get those ugly looking kinks smoothed to at least get him up to like 65-70%. But, right now he fills his role perfectly. I see a lot of big plays at the end of the head band (also cool).
Offered by stoops at Kentucky
 
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