2010-2011 ACC Basketball Thread

[HarkTheSound]

Just got done watching UNC win in their exhibition game against Barton 108-67 in the Dean Dome. Impressions:

-Harrison Barnes was bad. Really bad. Like, 2-9 shooting, 6 turnovers bad.
-Tyler Zeller is the key to this team. Looked really good out there, scored 25 points, played very aggressive in the paint.
-Henson still takes some quirky shots, but hes a real talent on boards and defense. 10 points and 11 rebs. Still sucks at FTs.
-Drew, Strickland, McDonald, Justin Watts played solid. All shot the ball well, confidence appeared much higher than was displayed last year.
-Kendall Marshall is a sniper at passing the ball. Not much of an offensive threat otherwise though.
-Reggie Bullock missed some shots, but I expect him to make those when it counts. Nothing to worry about.

Hopefully, Barnes and Bullock got out the first game jitters cause they played sloppy, especially Barnes. He dropped the ball it seemed like every time he touched it.

I cant wait for next Friday...bring on Lipscomb and the start of the regular season!

[drewbs]

Quote: Originally Posted by xlegendkillax

Just got done watching UNC win in their exhibition game against Barton 108-67 in the Dean Dome. Impressions: -Harrison Barnes was bad. Really bad. Like, 2-9 shooting, 6 turnovers bad. -Tyler Zeller is the key to this team. Looked really good out there, scored 25 points, played very aggressive in the paint. -Henson still takes some quirky shots, but hes a real talent on boards and defense. 10 points and 11 rebs. Still sucks at FTs. -Drew, Strickland, McDonald, Justin Watts played solid. All shot the ball well, confidence appeared much higher than was displayed last year. -Kendall Marshall is a sniper at passing the ball. Not much of an offensive threat otherwise though. -Reggie Bullock missed some shots, but I expect him to make those when it counts. Nothing to worry about. Hopefully, Barnes and Bullock got out the first game jitters cause they played sloppy, especially Barnes. He dropped the ball it seemed like every time he touched it. I cant wait for next Friday...bring on Lipscomb and the start of the regular season!

I'm not worried about Harrison Barnes. He will get it together, he didn't look quite right all night. I hope the pressure isn't getting to him, its been unfair how much the media has been hyping him up. I fully expect him to put up around 16/6/3 and shoot around 45-50% this season. Not Kevin Durant or Carmelo numbers because I expect that we will be feeding the post.

But did you see Tyler Zeller run the floor? When was the last time you saw a big man in college run the floor like that? I have to say though that my heart skipped a beat on a few plays where he dunked. We can't afford an injury to him, Knox is a nice backup but that's all he is. I'll take his scoring down low with a grain of salt for now because the guy guarding him looked close to 8 inches shorter than him. Not impressed by his rebounding or boxing out.

Henson still looks weak. He is still getting pushed around down low by guys much smaller than him. There was a play where he went up in transition to dunk the ball and a Barton player who couldn't have been taller than 6'4-6'5 just stopped him in mid air like a brick wall.

But overall solid. Kendall Marshall is going to compete with Drew for minutes from day one it looks like. Dexter Strickland looks ready to take the next step, and McDonald and Watts are looking like serviceable bench guys.

[NDAlum]

The issue: depth with the bigs. The Wear brothers departure is going to hurt quite a bit.

I'm excited to see the season get underway.

[RColemanVT]

Quote: Originally Posted by Krioniq

I hear that freshmen K.T. Harrell (guard) and James Johnson (forward / center) are going to get major playing time for the Hoos. I have no idea if either are any good; I like to play dumb with regard to recruits and evaluate them based on what I see in person, rather than what recruiting websites tell me.

Jarrell Eddie also may get an expanded role with Chaney and Thompson out. Actually he better because Bell is the only other player besides Raines, Davila, and Allen I even trust down in the low post so we are going to need the shooting from him and Manny Atkins this year.

Also, I don't look forward to playing Harrell at all this year, the kid is going to be good.

[drewbs]

Watched Duke play Princeton last night.

I don't care what Duke fans say, the Plumlee brothers are terrible. I always thought Mason Plumlee was overrated coming out of HS and Miles is just plain bad at basketball. They're also playing a different type of game and I want to see how they fare against better passing teams with better athletes who can beat their press.

I'm not ready to call them a lock for a title. I can very much see them losing to a team like KSU or MSU.

[NDAlum]

I hate that dook is so good...

[BunnyHardaway]

Quote: Originally Posted by drewbs

Watched Duke play Princeton last night. I don't care what Duke fans say, the Plumlee brothers are terrible. I always thought Mason Plumlee was overrated coming out of HS and Miles is just plain bad at basketball. They're also playing a different type of game and I want to see how they fare against better passing teams with better athletes who can beat their press. I'm not ready to call them a lock for a title. I can very much see them losing to a team like KSU or MSU.

See, most UNC fans here are level headed give Duke props, and most Duke fans here do the same, but this is some Len Elmore-esque hate right here.

Just because they aren't filling up the box score and getting double doubles doesn't mean they're "bad at basketball". Their main responsibility is to play defense, run the floor during the fast break, and get rebounds/putbacks, and that's exactly what they did. They don't need to put up huge numbers with Singler/Smith/Irving/Curry/Dawkins around them. Not to mention this was only the first game of the season, every team is going to look shaky at some point while they're trying to iron out everything.

All you've been doing since you've started posting in here is taking ridiculous shots at Duke...how they use shady recruiting tactics, how they're horrible in general, etc. When HBFU signed with Carolina, I didn't see any non-UNC fans claiming shady recruiting tactics on Roy's part...or calling any UNC players "bad basketball players" for no reason.

[drewbs]

Quote: Originally Posted by JJLinn

See, most UNC fans here are level headed give Duke props, and most Duke fans here do the same, but this is some Len Elmore-esque hate right here. Just because they aren't filling up the box score and getting double doubles doesn't mean they're "bad at basketball". Their main responsibility is to play defense, run the floor during the fast break, and get rebounds/putbacks, and that's exactly what they did. They don't need to put up huge numbers with Singler/Smith/Irving/Curry/Dawkins around them. Not to mention this was only the first game of the season, every team is going to look shaky at some point while they're trying to iron out everything. All you've been doing since you've started posting in here is taking ridiculous shots at Duke...how they use shady recruiting tactics, how they're horrible in general, etc. When HBFU signed with Carolina, I didn't see any non-UNC fans claiming shady recruiting tactics on Roy's part...or calling any UNC players "bad basketball players" for no reason.

It wasn't a pot shot at Duke.

I said they weren't a lock like all the pundits are pretty much calling it, not like the 07 Florida team or 09 UNC team were (they weren't "locks" either, but they were as close as you can get to it).

I have some very good long time friends who are Duke alumni who I watched the game with last night. They echo my sentiments on the Plumlees. You're right, their job is the run the floor, and get rebounds and putbacks, but I fail to see how they performed their job when they combined for 6 rebounds and 1 offensive rebound and both picked up 3 fouls in less than 20 minutes of play against Princeton. Those are not good numbers. I will give due credit to Duke's backcourt. They scare the living **** out of me. But don't pretend that the biggest reason for Duke's success last season was using their size inside to dominate on the glass. Replace Zoubek and Lance Thomas with the Plumlees and that team gets pounded by Baylor. I'm not hating on Duke here. I'm saying that they're playing a different style from last year and the jury is still out. At this point, I do not see them being this unbeatable team. If their pressure defense can consistently stop athletic backcourts then I will feel much more comfortable about their chances at repeating. Otherwise, they don't have the same dependable advantage of Zoubek and Thomas in the paint that was so crucial last season.

The recruiting shot perhaps shouldn't have been aimed at Duke, moreso Austin Rivers than Duke. There was serious smoke trickling down from higher ups at Texas regarding that and they have no hatchet to bury with Duke.

And I'm not saying Duke is horrible in general or that the Plumlees suck for no reason. Saying that Duke could potentially lose to teams like MSU or KSU is not calling them "horrible in general." As for the Plumlees, think what you will about them. I will do the same.