Thank you, grfomycourt. Very well said. I appreciated MaizeBlue10’s assessment of Eli’s potential, and I agree with it. I simply was at a loss for words (which NEVER happens!) with his assertion that Simmons represents the ceiling for this team. I actually would have agreed with him after the open practice. I thought the young man showed the potential to do the things MB10 talks about. Like others, I thought Jaaron would be our starting PG as he learned the system and got comfortable in it. I also thought we got a “steal” with Eli, and I still do. We are now 1/3 of the way through our season and I, frankly, have not seen much star quality with Jaaron. I DO see the potential for that with Eli. So, I will reiterate, I would like to see Eli get 25 minutes a game in a starting role with Z getting 15 or so minutes as the backup.
I feel bad for Jaaron, but he IS, after all, going to get a graduate degree from MICHIGAN. He chose to come to Michigan. Coach B did not kidnap him. It would have been great if he could have done the things we hoped he would, but I just haven’t seen it yet. He is number three on the depth chart, and one great pass to Moe not withstanding, I haven’t seen anything to change that. Whether it is a statistical analysis or the eye test, I think Eli is the man. I think time is running out for Jaaron, and with any other coach I think it would have.
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I see it a bit differently with Simmons, so overall just a differing of opinions.
I see someone who’s playing tentative and not playing like himself. He looks like he knows he’s only playing 4-5 minutes and knows a mistake or two is going to get him taken out.
You mentioned his pass to Wagner last night, but I would also add his pass to Robinson. He got into the middle of the defense and kicked out to an open Robinson in the corner (he hit the 3). You didn’t see an open look like that at all in the second half. That’s what this team lacks when the go-to guys go cold. There was no easy dunk to Moe or pick n roll easy layup/jumper.
IMO, there is probably some truth in what you are saying as Simmons seems to be feeling the pressure and it is showing up in his play. His assist to MO was pretty awesome…I hope he can put together more highlight worthy plays in the near future…Who knows how this point guard situation is going to unfold…
It would be nice for Simmons to step up. But minus that the teams offense seems to flow so much better with Brooks. Zavier’s moves with the ball seems to not have a purpose at times and hopes something happens while Brooks movement seems to create something within the flow of the offense without being forced. The kids has the look of someone who knows how to play. Can’t wait for him to get through off season conditioning with camp Sanderson as getting stronger is the only thing that will hold him back in my view.
I think any of the three point guards would play significantly better and more comfortable knowing they were getting 25 minutes a game. There’s things to like about all 3. Brooks is the best shooter, can play off the ball a bit and could be the guy the next 3 years. Simpson pushes the break the best, is an active defender and has pretty good vision in spots. Simmons on paper has the highest ceiling and should be the best pick and roll guy (although he hasn’t shown it yet).
The frustrating part to me is no matter who you choose, I don’t think it raises the ceiling of this team much at all. Maybe we go from bubble team to 8-9 seed. None of these guys is going to flip a switch and be an all conference player this year. But I do think the inability to make a decision at the spot is negatively impacting all three of their performances so far and will continue to do so going forward. That said, if I could choose, I play Brooks 25-30 minutes per game and let Simpson have the rest.
Walton and Burke did have different styles but they could both take PNR and find their own shots in the half court.
2 things:
is anyone really that happy with how our offense has looked?
our PG rotation looks like a poor running back rotation where no one gets feel, flow, rhythm, etc.
We can’t continue like this and I only see Simmons as having the ability to change up the offense and really show improvement if given bulk minutes. JMO
I would agree MB10. Frankly, I think several of our players are playing tentatively. I’ll reserve judgement as to why I think that’s happening. We also showed last night that we just aren’t tough when teams get physical with us. A couple of our players, when considering whether to leave early, need to think about getting stronger and more physical, among other things. We ran our offense perfectly in the first half. It was a clinic for the Beilein offense, BUT Ohio State didn’t play defense in the first half. In the second half they got very physical on both ends of the floor and we didn’t respond. Are we capable of responding to that physicality? Well, I think we’ll see.
Well, I’m answering my own post. We didn’t play tentatively the first 33:46, we just shot the ball horribly. And many were on open looks and FTs. We had made a mini comeback but then it stalled again, and it didn’t look good for the good guys. Finally, though, the team showed something. They showed grit, resolve, fight. I think Z had a LOT to do with that. MAAR hit a three at the 6:14 mark, the crowd erupted, and lead by Z, Moe, and Charles, the team erupted, too. Great win, and just what these guys needed, I think, I hope. By the way, I thought we played pretty good defense pretty much the whole game, but in the last 30-35 minutes plus the overtime we played outstanding defense. Again, Z was VERY important to that, but it WAS a team effort.
I agree with chezaroo and wolverheel above, both of those two point guards had huge moments. Neither is perfect, no one is, but they both played very well and helped lead us to victory. So, I think we’re making great progress on our PG “problem” with two kids who bring something a bit different, but definitely important to the team.
If Z can play like he did the last stretch of regulation and OT, he will get the minutes. He was great on defense and was able to generate some layups and hit is one open 3 pointer there. It would be great if Duncan would start hitting from 3 again so having Z out there wouldn’t be 3-4 struggling or non-shooters out there with the second unit
Both Eli and Zavier need to not only keep the ball moving but need to move themselves without the ball. Give up the ball and cut… give up the ball and cut… for that matter our wings need to do the same thing because we have to many trips where the paint is never even threatened.
If you look at the combined stats of our point guards over the last 2 or 3 games, it is pretty impressive. Stats that I think we would be happy to have for the rest of the season.
I found it super interesting that JB went out of his way to say “we only planned on playing 2 point guards today” in his presser…the 1-2 minutes a game we are seeing Simmons play lately doesn’t make much sense to me and seems as if it might be on the way out
) with his assertion that Simmons represents the ceiling for this team. I actually would have agreed with him after the open practice. I thought the young man showed the potential to do the things MB10 talks about. Like others, I thought Jaaron would be our starting PG as he learned the system and got comfortable in it. I also thought we got a “steal” with Eli, and I still do. We are now 1/3 of the way through our season and I, frankly, have not seen much star quality with Jaaron. I DO see the potential for that with Eli. So, I will reiterate, I would like to see Eli get 25 minutes a game in a starting role with Z getting 15 or so minutes as the backup.