BTO’s ETSU Postgame Report

[bleedingTNorange]

1. I mentioned that I wanted to see what we looked like with Fulk back before completely declaring an offensive identity shift, he was back and the offense definitely looked a bit different than the previous 2 games we saw, not nearly as many 3’s and more midrange jumpers, but was still super efficient. That’s what happens though we you shoot 44% from 3 and 89% from the FT line, it’s early in the year but so far this is looking like a really good shooting team, which probably has something to do with the play they’re getting at PG.

2. Little deeper dive into some analytics, Tennessee posted a 125.3 offensive rating and 82.7 defensive rating…both of those are really good, that’s 2 games in a row where offensively we are over 125, those performances have moved Tennessee up a few spots on KenPom and now sit at #9. The offense and defense both have performed better than expected by KenPom, the defense was much better today than last Saturday imo.

3. Great game from Olivier Nkamhoua, that’s 2 strong games from him to start the year and giving some hope that the glowing off season reports on him were accurate. He appears more confident, just making his moves and playing rather than seemingly overthinking each step, his touch from outside has also been impressive and he’s done a good job taking good shots.

4. Kennedy Chandler is sooooo good, probably gonna get sick of saying it but man, for a freshman he just has an unbelievable feel and control of the game. His outside shot is much better than expected and that’s really taking his game to another level…enjoy him while we got him, they don’t come around like him very often.

5. This has a lot to do with #4 but the shots this team is getting right now are such good looks…guys aren’t forcing midrange shots off 1 pass and no passes, a guy like VJ Bailey has been really efficient, Powell as well, doing a great job of taking good shots and not forcing lower percentage looks.

6. The competition is about to ramp up in a major way, hopefully we can at least split in CT and come back with a W…I will be intrigued to see the rotation, my guess is against Villanova we probably won’t see Plavsic, but could be a game that we see Zeigler and Mashack…on the flip side we play Purdue and Uros probably gets some minutes. Seeing Chandler on the big stage will be fun as well, Villanova obviously has great guards and so this will be by far his biggest challenge.


GBO!!!

 

[Volprofch05]

Appreciate the thoughts!

Great to see ON coming on strong; hope he keeps it up. KC is a beast! Go Vols!

 

[Thunder Good-Oil]

6. I think we’ll see ZZ every game. Not seeing him could be defined as not being on the court at some point with KC also in the game. I think he will spell KC for about 5 minutes in every game.

 

[Thunder Good-Oil]

I’d love to see more Mashack, but minutes are hard to find right now. If JJJ leaves after this season TN will still be in good shape with QD AND Mashack in the wings (no pun),

 

[golfballs]

6. I think we’ll see ZZ every game. Not seeing him could be defined as not being on the court at some point with KC also in the game. I think he will spell KC for about 5 minutes in every game.

I really like what he brings. I’m not familiar w the redshirt rules but maybe see how he fares against Nova to help gauge what we might see of him going forward

 

[youcancallmeAl]

1)

he was back and the offense definitely looked a bit different than the previous 2 games we saw, not nearly as many 3’s and more midrange jumpers, but was still super efficient.

That's because he makes our offense look so much smoother with his post play. If we can get that from one other - hopefully two other - posts, we'll have that balance that Barnes wants.

5).

a guy like VJ Bailey has been really efficient,

I noticed Bailey was putting it on the floor and driving baseline today and scoring. That's what he has to do to keep defenses honest, and he'll get a little more room to shoot his 3 ball.

6)

I will be intrigued to see the rotation,

Me, too. Barnes has had three games now to tinker with the rotation, watch differnet combinations, and get a feel for what he has now. i'm gonna guess UP comes in only for a minute or so to give someone a breather. Our post paly will be a rotation with Fulk, B2H, and ON. And, depending on match-ups, JJJ will get some time at the four. The starters are set. I'm anxious to see if Zeigler gets significant minutes. I doubt Masack plays with all the other options we have at the two and three spots. Chandler is still spotty on defense. This will be learning curve time for him. Can't wait to see this team in action against top opponents.

 

[golfballs]

16/34 from around the rim... got to be better than that. Maybe Fulk needs to kick off some dust. BHH is a freshman and will probably be inconsistent but he needs to be better against a team like ETSU. That was the only obvious downside I saw today, but I’m not really worried about it. I’m feeling pretty good about pulling out at least one win this weekend.

 

[Vol49er]

Weird quirk I just noticed. We have given up 62 points exactly against all three of our opponents

 

[Thunder Good-Oil]

I really like what he brings. I’m not familiar w the redshirt rules but maybe see how he fares against Nova to help gauge what we might see of him going forward

Seems like ZZ’s kind of the PG in waiting with KC likely to be a one-and-done. He needs minutes this year so he’ll be ready to play big minutes next year. Especially early.

Right now the basketball redshirt rule after limited play will not mirror the 4 appearance football rule. It would be a gamble to roll the dice for a rule change with retroactive application (with Mayshack, QD, and/or Aidoo). Tamba is looking like the only planned redshirt. But Barnes is well connected and likely knows if a redshirt rule change is possible.

 

[youcancallmeAl]

Seems like ZZ’s kind of the PG in waiting with KC likely to be a one-and-done. He needs minutes this year so he’ll be ready to play big minutes next year. Especially early.

Right now the basketball redshirt rule after limited play will not mirror the 4 appearance football rule. It would be a gamble to roll the dice for a rule change with retroactive application (with Mayshack, QD, and/or Aidoo). Tamba is looking like the only planned redshirt. But Barnes is well connected and likely knows if a redshirt rule change is possible.

We'll get a read this weekend as to whether Z3 will get a significant role this year. I hope he can somehow earn Barnes trust as a back up PG this season rather than having SV carry that load. The team seems much more potent if SV is just a SG and not a PG.

 

[Thunder Good-Oil]

We'll get a read this weekend as to whether Z3 will get a significant role this year. I hope he can somehow earn Barnes trust as a back up PG this season rather than having SV carry that load. The team seems much more potent if SV is just a SG and not a PG.

24 minutes in 2 games and loads of pre-season praise by Barnes. He looks like he’ll be part of the rotation.

13 out of 14 have played and there is a boat load of talent at 11, 12, and 13 (Mayshack. QD, and Aidoo). There might be a lot of games this year with 11 or 12 players getting minutes that aren’t just end of game garbage time/mop up duty.

 

[Thunder Good-Oil]

Right now it looks like there will be 8 regulars (KC, ZZ, SV, JJJ, BHH, Fulk, Powell, ORN) with Bailey possibly holding on to a 9th in the primary rotation. Uros, Aidoo, Mashack, and QD will be competing for the minutes going to the 5th-8th most minutes off of the bench. I think that 9 regulars with a rotating 10th will be a common theme. Right now Uros is that 10th regular. Any of the other 3 could easily emerge. The talent at 1-13 (or 14 if including Tamba) is unreal.

 

[The Dog]

Right now it looks like there will be 8 regulars (KC, ZZ, SV, JJJ, BHH, Fulk, Powell, ORN) with Bailey possibly holding on to a 9th in the primary rotation. Uros, Aidoo, Mashack, and QD will be competing for the minutes going to the 5th-8th most minutes off of the bench. I think that 9 regulars with a rotating 10th will be a common theme. Right now Uros is that 10th regular. Any of the other 3 could easily emerge. The talent at 1-13 (or 14 if including Tamba) is unreal.

Bailey is in the rotation, no doubt, imo.
Edit: 10 minutes a game, at least

 

[golfballs]

24 minutes in 2 games and loads of pre-season praise by Barnes. He looks like he’ll be part of the rotation.

13 out of 14 have played and there is a boat load of talent at 11, 12, and 13 (Mayshack. QD, and Aidoo). There might be a lot of games this year with 11 or 12 players getting minutes that aren’t just end of game garbage time/mop up duty.

I can only think of Jabari McGhee in his soph season who played a lot of early minutes but don’t the rest of the season but he transferred, so not sure the situation there. You could be right that Zz is part of the regular rotation this season but that would probably mean that Barnes also plays a slightly deeper rotation this year than he has. So we’ll see I guess

 

[Volfan1000]

1. I mentioned that I wanted to see what we looked like with Fulk back before completely declaring an offensive identity shift, he was back and the offense definitely looked a bit different than the previous 2 games we saw, not nearly as many 3’s and more midrange jumpers, but was still super efficient. That’s what happens though we you shoot 44% from 3 and 89% from the FT line, it’s early in the year but so far this is looking like a really good shooting team, which probably has something to do with the play they’re getting at PG.

2. Little deeper dive into some analytics, Tennessee posted a 125.3 offensive rating and 82.7 defensive rating…both of those are really good, that’s 2 games in a row where offensively we are over 125, those performances have moved Tennessee up a few spots on KenPom and now sit at #9. The offense and defense both have performed better than expected by KenPom, the defense was much better today than last Saturday imo.

3. Great game from Olivier Nkamhoua, that’s 2 strong games from him to start the year and giving some hope that the glowing off season reports on him were accurate. He appears more confident, just making his moves and playing rather than seemingly overthinking each step, his touch from outside has also been impressive and he’s done a good job taking good shots.

4. Kennedy Chandler is sooooo good, probably gonna get sick of saying it but man, for a freshman he just has an unbelievable feel and control of the game. His outside shot is much better than expected and that’s really taking his game to another level…enjoy him while we got him, they don’t come around like him very often.

5. This has a lot to do with #4 but the shots this team is getting right now are such good looks…guys aren’t forcing midrange shots off 1 pass and no passes, a guy like VJ Bailey has been really efficient, Powell as well, doing a great job of taking good shots and not forcing lower percentage looks.

6. The competition is about to ramp up in a major way, hopefully we can at least split in CT and come back with a W…I will be intrigued to see the rotation, my guess is against Villanova we probably won’t see Plavsic, but could be a game that we see Zeigler and Mashack…on the flip side we play Purdue and Uros probably gets some minutes. Seeing Chandler on the big stage will be fun as well, Villanova obviously has great guards and so this will be by far his biggest challenge.


GBO!!!

Chandler gets this team easy looks and he is like Russell Westbrook and Trae Young in that aspect.

The Villanova game will be tough and the tournament will help this young team mature quickly.

 

[Thunder Good-Oil]

Bailey is in the rotation, no doubt, imo

But he is surrounded by alternatives. He needs to avoid those 1 for 12 shooting performances, play excellent defense, and be a leader. SV, JJJ, and Powell are ahead of him (and maybe ZZ when on the court with KC) and there’s not necessarily a huge gap between Bailey and Mashack/QD. Plus TN can go with 3 bigs since they all are versatile and not pure low post/centers.

 

[Thunder Good-Oil]

I can only think of Jabari McGhee in his soph season who played a lot of early minutes but don’t the rest of the season but he transferred, so not sure the situation there. You could be right that Zz is part of the regular rotation this season but that would probably mean that Barnes also plays a slightly deeper rotation this year than he has. So we’ll see I guess

Kwe Parker. He had 7x double digit games in the first half of 2016-17 but only did that once in the back half.

Barnes is almost forced to have a deep rotation of regulars this year. Too much talent to go all Corey Walker or DJ Burns on anybody. We need to keep the freshmen engaged as they all should have big roles as graduation and KC/BHH early departures materialize. This freshman class doesn’t look like one that will be recruited over and is probably why the 2022 class currently sits at just one player.

 

[The Dog]

But he is surrounded by alternatives. He needs to avoid those 1 for 12 shooting performances, play excellent defense, and be a leader. SV, JJJ, and Powell are ahead of him (and maybe ZZ when on the court with KC) and there’s not necessarily a huge gap between Bailey and Mashack/QD. Plus TN can go with 3 bigs since they all are versatile and not pure low post/centers.

Agree, but so far, he has and Barnes loves experience. Like I posted in another thread, every team that wins championships and big Tourney games, has a guy like Bailey

 

[Thunder Good-Oil]

Agree, but so far, he has and Barnes loves experience. Like I posted in another thread, every team that wins championships and big Tourney games, has a guy like Bailey

I was told that Barnes can’t win Tourney games.

 

[mtt2d]

Good write up. Thanks.

Another talented and well coached bball team on Rocky top. Should be a fun next couple of weeks or so. Go Vols.

 

[JRVOL11]

Can’t wait to see Tennessee guards against Nova’s guards. Also interested to see a matchup between KC and Purdue PG Ivey. Two lottery picks .

 

[BruisedOrange]

... 6 ...Chandler is still spotty on defense. This will be learning curve time for him. Can't wait to see this team in action against top opponents.

A question from one who has only seen one game: Against better, more experienced teams and guards, will Chandler's journey up the learning curve be marked with fouls on Chandler, or fouls on bigs having to defend the lane against penetration?

We may all become "anxious to see [if, how & why] Zeigler gets significant minutes."

 

[bleedingTNorange]

I’d love to see more Mashack, but minutes are hard to find right now. If JJJ leaves after this season TN will still be in good shape with QD AND Mashack in the wings (no pun),

He’s gonna continue to find minutes, can tell he’s a guy Barnes loves…he’s gonna be the guy Barnes goes to when other guys aren’t “bringing it defensively”.

 

[bleedingTNorange]

16/34 from around the rim... got to be better than that. Maybe Fulk needs to kick off some dust. BHH is a freshman and will probably be inconsistent but he needs to be better against a team like ETSU. That was the only obvious downside I saw today, but I’m not really worried about it. I’m feeling pretty good about pulling out at least one win this weekend.

That was the crazy part, obviously some of those missed we got rebounds on and scored still, but shoot a decent number around the rim and our offensive numbers look ridiculous in that game. And yes on BHH, gotta be better around the basket, I worry how he’ll fare against more physical front courts.

 

[bleedingTNorange]

Right now it looks like there will be 8 regulars (KC, ZZ, SV, JJJ, BHH, Fulk, Powell, ORN) with Bailey possibly holding on to a 9th in the primary rotation. Uros, Aidoo, Mashack, and QD will be competing for the minutes going to the 5th-8th most minutes off of the bench. I think that 9 regulars with a rotating 10th will be a common theme. Right now Uros is that 10th regular. Any of the other 3 could easily emerge. The talent at 1-13 (or 14 if including Tamba) is unreal.

Not sure why you’d have ZZ and also Powell to a lesser extent ahead of Bailey, you used minutes played as evidence for Zeigler but yet Bailey has more minutes than Powell or ZZ.

Your 5 is KC, SV, JJ, ON & Fulky

Bailey, Powell & BHH are clear first 3 off the bench in some order, giving you 8.

Zeigler & Uros 9&10 abs depending on matchup their minutes will vary.