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JT - Back to the bench?

ObeseMuffins

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Jan 7, 2007
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Despite our win I think the elephant in the room here is Touissant’s slow and sloppy starts, relegating him to the bench early in the game. IMHO, he plays better coming in as our 6th and 7th man. He gets a chance to watch and observe the game speed and maybe chills out a little! What do you do?

Bench him for BE or let him ride out the struggles? Discuss.
 
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Agreed! Too much pressure, it’s obvious!

He’s not going to lose his speed by not starting. He just needs to control it. And he will.
 
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I think you leave him in to start to keep his confidence. He has toughness and can actually play defense so I think you want him out there. But his turnovers can put the team in a good sized hole.

He’ll be fine. He’s the type of PG we’ve been clamoring for for years. Xavier Simpson kinda had a similar start to his career at Michigan. It’ll come.
 
It's like he thinks he can make a play happen every time he touches the ball, and that's just not how it works. Even excellent players like Wieskamp and Garza read the defense and if the play just isnt there, you pass it and find a new way to attack. Joe T just doesn't make that read, he forces his decision no matter the defense.

The good news is there is obviously talent and athleticism there and if he develops, he could be a real playmaker i think. Fran has struck a good balance imo of involving him but keeping a short leash.
 
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I think he should go to the bench as he is clearly getting the Moss treatment right now.

I said from the start that I was in favor of Connor continuing to start but that was with JoBo. I think Bakari gives us a calm presence when he is in. The counterpoint to that is that we shouldn't mess up the rotation. Maybe Bakari feels better in that role?
 
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I wouldn’t mess with the rotation. Bakari is getting more of the minutes anyways..

id like this a few times. You grow JT and give Bakari more minutes when JT is struggling. JT has three years after this. BE is done after this. You keep him starting and let BE pick up the minutes and play him as you need. You have to grow JT into the patient player that the rest are. He’s athletic and will learn the BIG10 playing speed.
 
Joe is going to have his ups and downs and most everyone knew and knows that. He gives us something haven't had in awhile in a quick guy that can break down a defense and make them collapse. The problem is what worked in HS and the AAU circuit doesn't work at major D1 basketball. The drive out of control and dish just isn't there like it was in high school, and thats fine as time goes on he should learn from all these mistakes and become a better player for it.

I hope this offseason they help him develop just a average jumper cause once he is at least a threat to take a 3 or midrange jumper it will open up his driving even more. He's just a young kid trying to press and make plays. He just needs to slow down, and learn this year and he will be just fine.
 
id like this a few times. You grow JT and give Bakari more minutes when JT is struggling. JT has three years after this. BE is done after this. You keep him starting and let BE pick up the minutes and play him as you need. You have to grow JT into the patient player that the rest are. He’s athletic and will learn the BIG10 playing speed.
Agree and thought Joe looked good in the 2nd half, even better than BE. Notice Xavier Simpson didn’t try to go by him. And couple of nice drives to the hoop.
 
Joe T is a true freshman. He'll develop d 1 skills and will have some growing pains but his potential is obvious between the freshman mistakes.
 
I have been critical of Fran in a number of areas, but last night was, IMO, his best start to finish game of his career. He pushed all the right buttons at the right time and seemed to know who on the bench was capable of providing a spark and had the perfect 5 out there in crunch time.

Joe T needs more reps in the offense to gain confidence. Despite Evelyn being a first year player, he brings the grad transfer experience and CJ had the luxury of red shirting last season. Joe is a willing / scrappy defender, but he isn't there with his decision making.

Really like the lineup of JW, CJ, CM, RK and Luka. Kriener provides another multi-level scoring option to play off Garza or exploit guys shading CJ or JW.
 
Joe T reminds me of Dean Oliver as a freshman. I would think as Dean drove and got stuffed that he needed to remember he wasn't playing for Mason City anymore. Dean turned out fine and I believe Joe will as well.
 
His defense on Simpson was very good. I love the way he uses his quickness and strength to fight through the screen so we don’t get caught on the switch with Garza guarding Simpson and Joe guarding Tesche for example.
 
I would change nothing and the combination of him and Bakari, playing the hot hand is working very well.

Joe T is going to be fine but is learning what will and will not work. This is big time basketball and a big step up from high school, AAU & Kennesaw State.

What stands out also is his defense and toughness. A good PG like Xavier could not blow by him. We have not had that from the PG in a while.
 
If it ain’t broke don’t fix it. Three straight wins, two against top 20 teams and an impressive road win against NW.

For the last four years all I have read on this board is we need a PG who can go to the hoop and play defense. We have that in Toussaint. I say keep his confidence up and continue to let him start. He will work through the growing pains. Now if his playing the first five minutes of the game and the first five of the second half becomes a detriment (losses) then reevaluate. This team is clicking right now. Leave it alone.
 
It's like he thinks he can make a play happen every time he touches the ball, and that's just not how it works. Even excellent players like Wieskamp and Garza read the defense and if the play just isnt there, you pass it and find a new way to attack. Joe T just doesn't make that read, he forces his decision no matter the defense.

The good news is there is obviously talent and athleticism there and if he develops, he could be a real playmaker i think. Fran has struck a good balance imo of involving him but keeping a short leash.
I'm not gonna lie, this kid worries me.

His shooting is poor, guess I can live with that and assume it gets better, but he's been awful attempting to even make layups. Seriously, his shooting % on layups alone has to be abysmal doesn't it? 100 mph then throw it off the glass and pray isn't working.

I realize CJ redshirted and he has been outstanding, but he didn't play any DI Basketball last year either and the contrast in their games is off the charts in every respect (maybe defensively not so much seperation).

I realize he's got time and a great deal of the quicks, but he's got a lot of bad habits to overcome. I guess we don't really need him for another year unless another player goes down, but I'm definitely concerned. Hope the light comes on eventually.
 
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This x1000

Why mess with what’s working?

No coach will ever mess with a rotation while winning, but one might consider a game will be lost sooner rather than later by spotting the other team 6, 7 points every game.

Of course, maybe JT will make some adjustments and the team will ultimately be better off for sticking with him. I think fair points could be made both ways.

Either way, Bakari is playing very solid basketball and fits in well with the pass-first mentality that the team has embraced.
 
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I'm not gonna lie, this kid worries me.

His shooting is poor, guess I can live with that and assume it gets better, but he's been awful attempting to even make layups. Seriously, his shooting % on layups alone has to be abysmal doesn't it? 100 mph then throw it off the glass and pray isn't working.

I realize CJ redshirted and he has been outstanding, but he didn't play any DI Basketball last year either and the contrast in their games is off the charts in every respect (maybe defensively not so much seperation).

I realize he's got time and a great deal of the quicks, but he's got a lot of bad habits to overcome. I guess we don't really need him for another year unless another player goes down, but I'm definitely concerned. Hope the light comes on eventually.
The game is moving too fast for him right now. The good news is that we’ve seen some great flashes, it’s a matter of finding consistency... and he will
 
Honestly, back to the JT discussion, he just needs to solidify his role. We will need him in games where the opponent has a quick penetrating guard (Simpson, Winston, Cowan, etc.)

He allows us to play man more often. He isn't a complete player yet, but this is important time for growth in his game.
 
Agree and thought Joe looked good in the 2nd half, even better than BE. Notice Xavier Simpson didn’t try to go by him. And couple of nice drives to the hoop.

Joe was fighting over screens and not switching. It did help the defense when he was in. I actually like what Fran is doing right now....for the first time in Fran's time at Iowa, the substitution patterns make a lot of sense and he doesn't put out lineups with 4 guys that can't score.

Since Fredrick returned, Fran is keeping at least 2-3 scorers out there at all times. He starts with 4 guard look.Then Bakari comes in for JoeT, then Fran removes another guard and goes bigger with Kriener + Garza, then he pulls Garza for rest and brings in Pemsl and stays big...and he can go back to 4 guard later because he's able to rest guards with 3 guard lineup. Garza, JoeW, and Fredrick are playing big minutes because they are the 3 best scoring options. In years past, our best scorers might play 30-32 minutes, not 34-38 minutes.
 
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I think you leave him in to start to keep his confidence. He has toughness and can actually play defense so I think you want him out there. But his turnovers can put the team in a good sized hole.

He’ll be fine. He’s the type of PG we’ve been clamoring for for years. Xavier Simpson kinda had a similar start to his career at Michigan. It’ll come.
He plays decent 1 on 1 defense, but I noticed a few times he was switching or staying with his man on screens. Several times he was left standing and guarding no one.

But then he brings a different speed to the game. You have to keep playing him or risk hurting his confidence and worse transferring later.
 
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Michigan liked to switch their post coverage with him in the game. Don’t normally double but decided to double off Toussaint. A point guard isn’t used to moving off the ball, but he’s going to have to because he’s not a good enough shooter in catch and shoot.
 
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He has a short leash. Like most freshmen he is inconsistent. But when he is “on” he is really good. Fran can quickly see how he is playing and adjust his minutes accordingly. I kind of like how coach is using him right now.
 
Despite our win I think the elephant in the room here is Touissant’s slow and sloppy starts, relegating him to the bench early in the game. IMHO, he plays better coming in as our 6th and 7th man. He gets a chance to watch and observe the game speed and maybe chills out a little! What do you do?

Bench him for BE or let him ride out the struggles? Discuss.
JT needs to work through it so he can be an asset come post season play and the final stretch of the BIG regular season, also it is working, soooooo.....

Keep sending him up.
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He has a short leash. Like most freshmen he is inconsistent. But when he is “on” he is really good. Fran can quickly see how he is playing and adjust his minutes accordingly. I kind of like how coach is using him right now.
Last year I was tough on Conner and I was wrong about his potential. He is, IMHO, the glue on this team. I like JT even though he makes a lot of mistakes right now. I too like the way Fran is using him now, because he knows we will need him next year. Let him grow.
 
Agree with Sota, don't change what is working. If he makes early mistakes, bring in Evelyn. We want to keep JoeT confident and happy he is a Hawk...
 
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There’s no one on the current roster or coming in next season that can match his quickness and defensive tenacity guarding the opponent’s PG. Those are things that can be rarely developed through practice reps. If he learns to not force things in the offensive end, not forcing a low percentage pass and if he develops a more consistent jump shot he’ll be a huge asset to the team. Patience here folks.
 
JT has one speed right now, and that is fast and sloppy. Hopefully he will learn to use change of pace like the MI guards were using last night. As it is, offensively he is a turnover waiting to happen but defensively he is doing better. That's why he is still starting and why he should get minutes - he works very hard o the defensive end. But he has to learn to change it up on the offensive end or he will never be a PTP.
 
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I’m wondering if JT might come out more focused for RU as that’s really a local team for him (being as he’s from NYC).
 
I think you just leave things alone. JT is going to improve and settle down as the year goes on. Bakari is probably playing a smidge over his norm right now so just let it flow as the games go.
 
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