Tennessee/Indiana to Play Public Charity Exhibition in TBA

#376
#376
DonDiego said:
I like Milicic, I feel he'll come around and be an important part of the team in the spring--Phillips too. I'm much more worried about Chaz.
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I think I had my expectations too high for Igor. Came away pretty disappointed. Felt like he was just kinda there. Chaz you at least noticed he was in the game (on account of all the bricks).

The only one I really liked was Okpara. He’s going to be quite good for us.
 
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#377
#377
All right gentlemen and ladies ...
Pony up... Your regular season win # ...
I will make my guess: 24 wins, I think it is possible you get one more, but I am trying to be realistic.
Just so we are clear, I hit it on the number last year at 25. So, I am not smoking or drinking. I actually liked what I saw within the parameters that Rick played.
What you got?
 
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#379
#379
I’m guessing that Barnes was more concerned about players following the plan rather than adjusting to cold shooting. IU was almost giving up the outside shots, so it might be better practice to be disciplined and keep taking the open outside looks than to try to score against their big fellers down low.

Same thing with time outs. Instead of calling the rare time out other than late he’s teaching them to play through adversity. If the game counted there would have been a lot more coaching adjustments.

Right now he’s trying to identify who will follow the game plan with the most discipline. He didn’t like it when ZZ threw up the late 3-pointer when a made 2 would have put the pressure on IU.
 
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#381
#381
Had a busy Sunday afternoon, so I missed it live but went back and watched it. Hard to tell what we really have, but that’s kind of the point of an exhibition against a good Indiana team. Test the team, throw a bunch of young, raw, or new players into a game situation and see what works/doesn’t work. We weren’t getting a full look at the team, even with everyone getting time.

Felix was the story for me today. I really like his game and his aggressiveness is impressive.
Beyond that, it’s an exhibition and a team with key components still learning to play together. We were spoiled by DK last year, so anyone expecting to see last years team performance today (or really any time early this year) needs to reset expectations.

Indiana looks good. I think they know what they have and were dialing some things in. Their biggest issue is their starters were absolutely gassed near the end. Speaks to our defense, which will be as good as ever - and maybe better than last year. All the xfers looked like they were adjusting well to the pace and intensity.
 
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#382
#382
The Dog said:
I hope you are right. Milicic has the game and size to be an NBA player. Hopefully, he has some Dog in him and starts scoring. I think Chaz has no fear and will continue to fire it up, shot looks good to me, it will drop. I think Lanier gives us, right around 15 a game. We need another guy besides ZZZ and Felix, a pure scorer, I'm hoping that's Milicic. If he gives us around 15-18 a game, this team will be a problem
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Think he will be fine. He has the intangibles and looked good at a lower tier program last year. Thing is, he’s getting an entirely new level of coaching and expectations this year and there’s going to be an adjustment period for him.

Same with Lanier. Guard rails were not up today, Barnes let him shoot through it, albeit without really coming out of it. The thing that stood out to me was his shot remained really good and his form was very good throughout - just one of those days were nothing was falling. I would not expect to see Barnes allowing that long of a leash again for anyone.
 
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#383
#383
Thunder Good-Oil said:
I’m guessing that Barnes was more concerned about players following the plan rather than adjusting to cold shooting. IU was almost giving up the outside shots, so it might be better practice to be disciplined and keep taking the open outside looks than to try to score against their big fellers down low.

Same thing with time outs. Instead of calling the rare time out other than late he’s teaching them to play through adversity. If the game counted there would have been a lot more coaching adjustments.

Right now he’s trying to identify who will follow the game plan with the most discipline. He didn’t like it when ZZ threw up the late 3-pointer when a made 2 would have put the pressure on IU.
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Yeah that’s basically what he said post game. Lots of things would have been different if it wasn’t an exhibition game (practice). He was very upset we didn’t play to the game plan and said that happened from the opening tip. He’ll get that ironed out quickly IMO
 
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#384
#384
The Dog said:
I hope you are right. Milicic has the game and size to be an NBA player. Hopefully, he has some Dog in him and starts scoring. I think Chaz has no fear and will continue to fire it up, shot looks good to me, it will drop. I think Lanier gives us, right around 15 a game. We need another guy besides ZZZ and Felix, a pure scorer, I'm hoping that's Milicic. If he gives us around 15-18 a game, this team will be a problem
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Chaz was making nearly all his 3’s in warmups. It was impressive. It felt like he was hurrying his shots during the game and he was off. Milicic got scolded by Barnes after that first shot from the top of the key, which was a bad look. After that, he seemed pensive and just wasn’t hunting his shot. I think he will be good for us. It’s so early.
 
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#385
#385
cardvolfan said:
Chaz was making nearly all his 3’s in warmups. It was impressive. It felt like he was hurrying his shots during the game and he was off. Milicic got scolded by Barnes after that first shot from the top of the key, which was a bad look. After that, he seemed pensive and just wasn’t hunting his shot. I think he will be good for us. It’s so early.
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i feel like igor was solid even tho passive. 8 points and 8 boards is solid no matter what type of game.
 
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#386
#386
vols 30 said:
VN-

Last year - " what a performance against Michigan State. Talent is there for a final 4"

This year - " it's an exhibition. It doesn't mean anything"

😆
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Dalton was the only transfer starter and he thrives on street ball. Transfers don't learn the offense/defense in 30 days.
 
#387
#387
Well one exhibition game doesn't make a year, but it looks like a typical Barnes team. Excellent defense, head scratching, can't hit a barn with a baseball kinda offense. Gonna be hard to watch a lot of nights and definitely gonna be blown out by any team that is shooting well. BTW, everybody should realize that Indiana was missing key starters and backups. With those, this game may have been over by halftime.

Why not make a crazy, wild, underserved prediction from a single exhibition game?

Probably lucky to make the 2nd weekend of the tournament. Last year we had a player that could literally carry the team on his back, this year... more of the same.... Barnes...

I ain't complainin' (much), just muttering things under my breath.
 
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#388
#388
Lots of sloppy miscues such as bad passes -timing on alley-oops. Some issues with rebounding at times and knowing who should be covering what.

Decently generated looks. Just didn’t knock em down. (I care more about generating looks than I do making shots when evaluating)

Indiana was pretty good. That’s gonna be a good team. Super impressed with Rice.
 
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#389
#389
VOLtaism said:
Dalton was the only transfer starter and he thrives on street ball. Transfers don't learn the offense/defense in 30 days.
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And to realize he was not going to start but got the call due to illness/injuries if I recall.
 
#390
#390
Just comparing yesterday's lineups and performance to what has transpired over the last month or two, I'd encourage everyone to assume something close to nothing. Indiana played a tight rotation (missing some guys too) and played to win. We played a hodgepodge of lineups to see how things fit, and still played IU tight to the buzzer. A few things are worth noting: Mashack couldn't practice last week full-speed much after the knee collision with JP in the Davidson scrimmage. JP has two minor injuries to go along with his major one (foot). Lanier has been in the doghouse over defensive assignments and didn't start or finish last night. He has also been nursing a foot injury and has been limited in practice. When Lanier is in rhythm, he will score. Don't worry about that. He will get his points. He is also a better defender than what he showed yesterday. Igor doesn't have an injury to blame, but has been playing in different lineups and I get the feeling this is causing a chemistry problem. The Dubar experiment has been a strained one. I think we'll see Dubar minutes go way down. He has a body type Barnes wants, but he is getting lost too often. Barnes has been trying to play around a weakness at the (true) 3 by playing a hybrid position there in two different small/big lineups. This is a new development over the last three weeks, as we previously thought we'd have a cleaner solution there. Going forward, we'll see a lineup with Igor, Felix, ZZ, Mashack and Lanier/Gainey, with some alternate versions with a three forward lineup that moves Igor out and drops JP or Cade into sharing space with Felix. Obviously there is also a version of the starting lineup that just rests Felix and drops Cade or JP into that spot. Yesterday we saw both Igor and Lanier out of sorts for different reasons. Igor thrives in the lineup where he is a four who plays in a tight range low and extends when guards drive, but he is struggling when he plays outside. He can do either well and has shown that at Charlotte. He will settle with more playing time and gelling. I think he'll be a consistent 10-16 points. It's also worth noting that Felix played a great game against a seven footer with serious mass. He held space and played both ends well and only had a couple of mistakes. In a game against a more mortal 4/5, Felix is going to have a lot more clean blocks and be on the end of many one pass possessions from ZZ to him. A couple of things that need to happen: Mashack has to take a more hungry roll in scoring. He's put in the time and the shots and he needs to pull the trigger on threes and drives. Igor needs to get enough time in one lineup to gain his confidence back. The five minute flash he showed yesterday is something he can do all game when he settles in. I understand he will need to play outside too, but we need some flow right now. Lanier needs to be on the court at the end of the game. He needs to get right with his defensive assignments. He is the go to scorer. With the lineup swaps, the defensive assignments/switches defensive box out assignments etc looked much worse than a typical Barnes team. There were also a lot of lazy passes and dribbling through traffic. I hope/assume all will improve greatly. All in all, this looked like a scrimmage early in the year, but with the added pressure of injuries and unsettled lineups.
 
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#391
#391
THEONLYTENISEE said:
You'll get run out of here with a comment like that. And LOL at all the people getting their feathers ruffled over a simple conditional statement.

"If", If people...we get that kind of offensive performance in conference games we play this year we will be a middle of the pack team. Never said we definitively would, in fact go back and read the first post about observing the game today. Defense will look like a Rick Barnes defense. But offensively, it's hard to tell yet.

Lanier missed a ton of shots. He has the capability of putting up some numbers but my concern and question is where does the offense come after him. ZZ will get his, but some others have to step up.
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I just think we looked easy to guard. Ler's say Lanier is that shooter everybody thinks he is. He will draw a ton of attention on defense especially late in games. Where does the scoring come from at that point? We are gonna be a grind it out defensive team like pre-DK but I don't really have a huge problem with that because wins will still come. Indiana couldn't score against our starting lineup.
 
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#392
#392
ColinS said:
So we shouldn't worry about not having a backup point guard again this year? This is a major concern with this team
I just think we looked easy to guard. Ler's say Lanier is that shooter everybody thinks he is. He will draw a ton of attention on defense especially late in games. Where does the scoring come from at that point? We are gonna be a grind it out defensive team like pre-DK but I don't really have a huge problem with that because wins will still come. Indiana couldn't score against our starting lineup.
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You got to have a scorer to advance in the tournament.
 
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#398
#398
Stoerner Fumbles said:
Just comparing yesterday's lineups and performance to what has transpired over the last month or two, I'd encourage everyone to assume something close to nothing. Indiana played a tight rotation (missing some guys too) and played to win. We played a hodgepodge of lineups to see how things fit, and still played IU tight to the buzzer. A few things are worth noting: Mashack couldn't practice last week full-speed much after the knee collision with JP in the Davidson scrimmage. JP has two minor injuries to go along with his major one (foot). Lanier has been in the doghouse over defensive assignments and didn't start or finish last night. He has also been nursing a foot injury and has been limited in practice. When Lanier is in rhythm, he will score. Don't worry about that. He will get his points. He is also a better defender than what he showed yesterday. Igor doesn't have an injury to blame, but has been playing in different lineups and I get the feeling this is causing a chemistry problem. The Dubar experiment has been a strained one. I think we'll see Dubar minutes go way down. He has a body type Barnes wants, but he is getting lost too often. Barnes has been trying to play around a weakness at the (true) 3 by playing a hybrid position there in two different small/big lineups. This is a new development over the last three weeks, as we previously thought we'd have a cleaner solution there. Going forward, we'll see a lineup with Igor, Felix, ZZ, Mashack and Lanier/Gainey, with some alternate versions with a three forward lineup that moves Igor out and drops JP or Cade into sharing space with Felix. Obviously there is also a version of the starting lineup that just rests Felix and drops Cade or JP into that spot. Yesterday we saw both Igor and Lanier out of sorts for different reasons. Igor thrives in the lineup where he is a four who plays in a tight range low and extends when guards drive, but he is struggling when he plays outside. He can do either well and has shown that at Charlotte. He will settle with more playing time and gelling. I think he'll be a consistent 10-16 points. It's also worth noting that Felix played a great game against a seven footer with serious mass. He held space and played both ends well and only had a couple of mistakes. In a game against a more mortal 4/5, Felix is going to have a lot more clean blocks and be on the end of many one pass possessions from ZZ to him. A couple of things that need to happen: Mashack has to take a more hungry roll in scoring. He's put in the time and the shots and he needs to pull the trigger on threes and drives. Igor needs to get enough time in one lineup to gain his confidence back. The five minute flash he showed yesterday is something he can do all game when he settles in. I understand he will need to play outside too, but we need some flow right now. Lanier needs to be on the court at the end of the game. He needs to get right with his defensive assignments. He is the go to scorer. With the lineup swaps, the defensive assignments/switches defensive box out assignments etc looked much worse than a typical Barnes team. There were also a lot of lazy passes and dribbling through traffic. I hope/assume all will improve greatly. All in all, this looked like a scrimmage early in the year, but with the added pressure of injuries and unsettled lineups.
Click to expand...
Yeah agree with a lot of this. Igor looked like a guy who spent a lot of time with his country's Olympic team this summer and needs to figure out his role. Lanier easily has most confidence offensively which is something Barnes teams players can sometimes lack. Dubar really did look lost and out of place whenever he was on the court and not sure how long Barnes lets that continue instead of riding with Carr/Phillips.

The backup pg is something I'm not sure what the answer is. Gainey doesn't really look like a natural playmaker. Maybe Mashack?
 
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