1. I'm not sure I've seen such an experienced team still yet to reach its potential. It's still very early in this season, but it can be such a tease to see Hopson one night look like an NBA player, then Prince show he can dominate the next night, then Tatum look so much improved, then Wayne seemingly turn it on at will, but not that often.
2. The Purdue/Bama game really showed the difference between a top team and one trying to improve. Bama really struggled down the stretch and the big difference was defense. Purdue's defense was exceptional. I did come away, however, thinking the Vols would be one of the top 3-4 teams in the nation if we just had Senario Hillman on our team.
3. It's interesting how little we know about teams until January and February. Texas is #2 and has not really been tested in 8 games. They beat Pitt on a neutral floor, but so did Indiana. KY appears to have the best resume so far, but they haven't been tested in a true road game against a top 25 team yet. There's a lot of basketball to be played.
4. Our PG play continues to frustrate because it appears that we have a couple of guys with 2G mentality playing PG. Maze looks great when his 2G skills are on display, but it is extremely frustrating to watch him and goins go 1 on 3 sometimes when a pass to an open teammate is screaming to be made.
5. The Vols are in a good spot. Our only loss is to the cream of the Big 10 crop. Purdue may not lose until February. They may spend most of the season in the top 5. And we gave that game away. I'm interested to see how we play at USC. We seem to be sleep-walking against these mid-majors. If we take care of business, we could be sniffing the top 5 by the time Kansas comes to town.
6. Where do we need to improve. Scotty has got to find his groove. He can be the best player on the court most of the season. Tyler needs to find his perimeter game to open up everything else in his arsenal. Wayne needs to bring it every time he is on the floor and stay out of foul trouble. Our PGs and 2Gs need to play better with the ball in fast break. Hopson's ball-hog charge against MTSU is an example of missed opportunities that have happened too often.
7. It's good to see KY and FL having good years. That will only help the entire conference.
2. The Purdue/Bama game really showed the difference between a top team and one trying to improve. Bama really struggled down the stretch and the big difference was defense. Purdue's defense was exceptional. I did come away, however, thinking the Vols would be one of the top 3-4 teams in the nation if we just had Senario Hillman on our team.
3. It's interesting how little we know about teams until January and February. Texas is #2 and has not really been tested in 8 games. They beat Pitt on a neutral floor, but so did Indiana. KY appears to have the best resume so far, but they haven't been tested in a true road game against a top 25 team yet. There's a lot of basketball to be played.
4. Our PG play continues to frustrate because it appears that we have a couple of guys with 2G mentality playing PG. Maze looks great when his 2G skills are on display, but it is extremely frustrating to watch him and goins go 1 on 3 sometimes when a pass to an open teammate is screaming to be made.
5. The Vols are in a good spot. Our only loss is to the cream of the Big 10 crop. Purdue may not lose until February. They may spend most of the season in the top 5. And we gave that game away. I'm interested to see how we play at USC. We seem to be sleep-walking against these mid-majors. If we take care of business, we could be sniffing the top 5 by the time Kansas comes to town.
6. Where do we need to improve. Scotty has got to find his groove. He can be the best player on the court most of the season. Tyler needs to find his perimeter game to open up everything else in his arsenal. Wayne needs to bring it every time he is on the floor and stay out of foul trouble. Our PGs and 2Gs need to play better with the ball in fast break. Hopson's ball-hog charge against MTSU is an example of missed opportunities that have happened too often.
7. It's good to see KY and FL having good years. That will only help the entire conference.
lol: I'll be watching for sure!
