Early observations after 5 games

[mtvols]

1. Chism can dominate inside if he sets his mind to it. It's a joke that Oglivy is 1st team all SEC and Chism isn't.

2. Both Hopson and Tatum need to be more agressive offensively and take the ball to the basket and draw fouls. Hopson just disappears in games. Can score 20+ one night and only 6 the next game.

3. Prince, Woolridge, and Williams are liabilities on offense. Prince can only shoot layups, Woolridge thinks he is a guard still, and Williams is not agressive at all. Tired of seeing Prince and Williams whine about fouls.

4. Our PG play is better, but only because Goins is an improvement over Tabb. Maze still plays out of control at times and so far I am not that impressed with Goins.

5. McBee will contribute and play more minutes than anyone expected. Will be a surprise.

6. FT shooting looks to be much improved and so does our defense.

7. The teams that will give us problems will be teams with good guard play that can handle our press and not turn the ball over.

8. We still don't have a clue what to do on last second possessions.

 

[Rasputin_Vol]

7. The teams that will give us problems will be teams with good guard play that can handle our press and not turn the ball over.

Stating the obvious on this one... but good job on the others.

 

[volfanjustin]

1. Hopson will be back next season.

2. Tyler Smith is an ok player disappears when we really need him, won't be missed next year.

3. Chism is the best player on the team but that was a dumb shot.

4. I love Peal, he has taken us where I was not sure UT basketball could go. Having said that, if he does not get control over the players and quit letting them jack up as many 3s as they want we will probably never get past the sweet 16.

 

[TennesseePride]

1. Hopson will be back next season.

2. Tyler Smith is an ok player disappears when we really need him, won't be missed next year.

3. Chism is the best player on the team but that was a dumb shot.

4. I love Peal, he has taken us where I was not sure UT basketball could go. Having said that, if he does not get control over the players and quit letting them jack up as many 3s as they want we will probably never get past the sweet 16.

Those are about the most inaccurate statements I've ever read on this board.. Wow..

 

[Special Ed]

9. This team could use a good shot of Negedu's basketball-playing ability and enthusiasm for the game.

 

[volfanjustin]

Those are about the most inaccurate statements I've ever read on this board.. Wow..

Tell me where I am wrong, we are better than that team we lost to and we were better than Ok. St. last season.

 

[JohnWardForever]

Those are about the most inaccurate statements I've ever read on this board.. Wow..

Really. Where was Hopson last night? (couldn't hold on to the ball) Tyler was up to his usual wild spins in the lane and losing the ball in the process, may miss his defense, not his out of control play. Wayne is the best CONSISTANT Vol, But none of them know how to screen.
These statements are on point.

 

[TennesseePride]

1. Hopson will be back next season. Agree

2. Tyler Smith is an ok player disappears when we really need him, won't be missed next year. Tyler Smith will be extremely missed next year.. He does his job on the court.. If you think otherwise you don't know much about basketball

3. Chism is the best player on the team but that was a dumb shot. To an extent yes, but Chism hasn't shown anything to be called the best, Chism has his nights, Smith has his nights and Hopson has his nights, but again, neither are consistent enough to be called the best..

4. I love Peal, he has taken us where I was not sure UT basketball could go. Having said that, if he does not get control over the players and quit letting them jack up as many 3s as they want we will probably never get past the sweet 16.

Shooting 3's is a part of Pearl's offense and he highly encourages it.. Live by the 3, Die by the 3... Way it's been since he got here..

 

[TennesseePride]

Really. Where was Hopson last night? (couldn't hold on to the ball) Tyler was up to his usual wild spins in the lane and losing the ball in the process, may miss his defense, not his out of control play. Wayne is the best CONSISTANT Vol, But none of them know how to screen.
These statements are on point.

People have off games.. Did you score 20 in every pick up game you ever played?.. Tyler handles himself with composure and plays his game the way he should.. He was doing his wild spins and losing the ball because he wasn't getting much help in the paint.. I don't think williams played well at all last night.. Chism in his 4 years here has never been CONSISTENT... 4 years..
Those statements, while your opinion.. Are inaccurate..

 

[cd12]

Goins is terrible and a a good Coach will expose McBee on the defensive end. JP well he is still JP.

 

[volfanjustin]

Shooting 3's is a part of Pearl's offense and he highly encourages it.. Live by the 3, Die by the 3... Way it's been since he got here..

That is fine against Austin Peay, but we will never get past the sweet 16 with this offense. Any player who takes a 3 being down 1 should run the next practice til he can't feel his legs.

 

[utvolinbama]

Shooting 3's is a part of Pearl's offense and he highly encourages it.. Live by the 3, Die by the 3... Way it's been since he got here..

I agree, but some (Woolridge in particular) should not even attempt a 3. At least CBP finally got through to JP that he can't shoot from outside. Hopefully Woolridge gets that message too.

 

[therickbol]

Woolridge should never have the chance to shoot from anywhere on the floor because he should never leave the bench. He is quite bad. He came in the first half and I told my wife, "watch what #0 does." He turned the ball over, picked up a foul, and then shot a 3-pt attempt off the side of the backboard.

 

[72 KPT VOL]

The Vols will either win the SEC or come close to it. There are areas of improvement needed, but trust Coach Pearl. He is a great one.

 

[Hardwood_fanatic]

Shooting 3's is a part of Pearl's offense and he highly encourages it.. Live by the 3, Die by the 3... Way it's been since he got here..

There is a difference in living by the three, (by purposefully working for 3 point shots) and settling for terrible three point shots when the set offense fails, or when there are no rebounders set. This killed you guys last year, and is still lingering this year. Its just not as noticeable because of the lack of competition in the first 3-4 games.

The "oh hell I'll just shoot it" mentality will bury you against good teams.

 

[armchair]

Shooting 3's is a part of Pearl's offense and he highly encourages it.. Live by the 3, Die by the 3... Way it's been since he got here..

will make the final four, much less win a title. It doesn't happen. Teams that rely on the three tend to play sloppy basketball and take too many bad shots, and they tend to be soft teams, ultimately. You want Chism with the ball in the paint for the last shot, not hoisting one up from 25. That's just a fact...You gotta guy like Lofton, yea, shoot the three, but shooters like him are pretty rare. Good teams bang in the clutch.

 

[GoBigOrangeVols]

Goins is terrible and a a good Coach will expose McBee on the defensive end. JP well he is still JP.

agreed. He is virtually no threat on the offensive side unless he is cherry picking on a fast break, and defensively he is to slow and can't get off picks. He is a decent passer off of the wing because he is lanky and has long arms to get the ball down to the inside, but other than that I have struggled to find any quality in his game.

Tatum is much more of a threat on the offensive side out of that spot, and I wouldn't mind seeing more of McBee at the 2 and Hopson slashing off the wing.

If Tatum and Hopson could get into any rhythm playing at the same time we would be very dynamic with those two being able to slash to the hoop and take the long jumper, especially if Chism can establish himself inside. Then we'd have McBee coming in to spell them and he'd have chances at big spot up shots and Prince would be able to come in and play small minutes where his defense can't be exposed quite as much.

I think(and hope) as the season goes on and Tatum and Hopson become more reliable, Prince's minutes will decline even more than they already have. JMHO.

 

[SGMVols]

I agree, but some (Woolridge in particular) should not even attempt a 3. At least CBP finally got through to JP that he can't shoot from outside. Hopefully Woolridge gets that message too.

I don't think Woolridge should be playing meaningful minutes period, much less jacking up 3s.

 

[OrangeWilly]

1. Hopson will be back next season.

2. Tyler Smith is an ok player disappears when we really need him, won't be missed next year.

3. Chism is the best player on the team but that was a dumb shot.

4. I love Peal, he has taken us where I was not sure UT basketball could go. Having said that, if he does not get control over the players and quit letting them jack up as many 3s as they want we will probably never get past the sweet 16.

dumb statement.

 

[i2amavol]

The Vols will either win the SEC or come close to it. There are areas of improvement needed, but trust Coach Pearl. He is a great one.

I'm as frustrated as the next guy about the game, but I think the final score was pretty much an indicator of the the game: Number 10 loses to number 6 in the country by one point on a missed last second shot.

Being number 10 is a good thing. We have room for improvement. That is a good thing. If we had made a last second shot, most people's attitude would have been rosy about the team.

I am disappointed in the play of JP, Maze and Woolridge. I feel like Maze dribbled away time unnecessarily long on that last play. With 3 to 4 more seconds, someone could have driven to the basket. Actually, other than that, I thought he did some good things. Williams does more good than most people give him credit for. Hopefully, JP will get his head on straight for the SEC and beyond...

Having said that, we get 20+ wins with coach Pearl, year in and year out. His style is what it is, and I do believe with the right talent, he can go all the way to a national title. Is this the year? I don't know, but a few guys are going to have to step it up a notch or two.

 

[volfanjustin]

dumb statement.

Yea you are right, I sure will miss those 5-10 points he gives us in big games, or how about when he spins in the paint around 3 defenders and they strip the ball and have a fast break. Man I will really miss those plays next year.

 

[Goliver24]

1. Hopson will be back next season.

2. Tyler Smith is an ok player disappears when we really need him, won't be missed next year.

3. Chism is the best player on the team but that was a dumb shot.

4. I love Peal, he has taken us where I was not sure UT basketball could go. Having said that, if he does not get control over the players and quit letting them jack up as many 3s as they want we will probably never get past the sweet 16.

You got one out of the 4 right. Tyler Smith is playing as a team player this year and it stepping up when he needs to other than the last minute possession, but clearly Chism was the man to go to in that game.

Chism could possibly be the best player on the team, but he has to show that game in and game out, which he hasn't done, but he hasn't really had time to do this. If he plays like that against some more top notch opponents this season then your statement could be right.

Your have half of it right. Pearl has brought UT basketball to a new level and I love it. However, the two threes at the end of the Purdue game were both wide open 3's and you have to take those shots. Maybe Chism should have drove in on the last drive, but either way he was hot that night and had hit a three already, so I really didn't have a problem with him taking that shot. This team really can dominate if our 3 point shooters are on, but as you can see we will struggle if we are not hitting 3's. Hopson and Tatum are going to have to step up in big games and not just be all stars in the games that we should route the opponent by 50-75 points.

 

[Goliver24]

Really. Where was Hopson last night? (couldn't hold on to the ball) Tyler was up to his usual wild spins in the lane and losing the ball in the process, may miss his defense, not his out of control play. Wayne is the best CONSISTANT Vol, But none of them know how to screen.
These statements are on point.

I agree that Tyler does take some crazy spins and shots during the game, but to say we won't miss his defense or offense next year is crazy. Tyler and Chism is who leads this team and keeps them motivated. Tyler was so pumped up during this game and actually had some great buckets.

 

[volfanjustin]

[/COLOR]

You got one out of the 4 right. Tyler Smith is playing as a team player this year and it stepping up when he needs to other than the last minute possession, but clearly Chism was the man to go to in that game.

Chism could possibly be the best player on the team, but he has to show that game in and game out, which he hasn't done, but he hasn't really had time to do this. If he plays like that against some more top notch opponents this season then your statement could be right.

Your have half of it right. Pearl has brought UT basketball to a new level and I love it. However, the two threes at the end of the Purdue game were both wide open 3's and you have to take those shots. Maybe Chism should have drove in on the last drive, but either way he was hot that night and had hit a three already, so I really didn't have a problem with him taking that shot. This team really can dominate if our 3 point shooters are on, but as you can see we will struggle if we are not hitting 3's. Hopson and Tatum are going to have to step up in big games and not just be all stars in the games that we should route the opponent by 50-75 points.

I think Chism is the best player on this team, however he has to take that ball to the basket. If we were down 2 I am ok with him pulling a 3, but not down only 1.

 

[Goliver24]

I think Chism is the best player on this team, however he has to take that ball to the basket. If we were down 2 I am ok with him pulling a 3, but not down only 1.

What is the difference? A three is going to win the game in both instances if he makes it or lose it if he doesn't. Obviously down one if he would have drove in and made it, it would have won the game.....but taking a three down 1 or 2 is irrelevant.