The Official “Regular Posters of the Basketball Forum” Thread

[MoCo_Vol]

Does he, though? He's played in 14 career games, and only double digit minutes in 2 of them. He only hit more than 1 shot in 1 of those games. 23 career points on 29.6% shooting.

So far, it just seems like the idea of Cam Carr has far more value than the play of Cam Carr.

He’s young and I think if he is bought in will be an excellent player next season. We’ll get flashes from him this year too I think, but foolish IMO to talk about him taking minutes from Gainey.

 

[Lefteye]

He statistically doesn’t though…shooting under 30% FG & just 27.8% from deep. He hasn’t shown us any game. He’s been willing to defend and gotten some minutes because of that.

No stats do not support my opinion. But guys do mature at different paces tho

I’m talking about explosiveness off the floor. And making shots, with limited minutes. And doing it still in a system where he should know what time it is.

 

[Lefteye]

Does he, though? He's played in 14 career games, and only double digit minutes in 2 of them. He only hit more than 1 shot in 1 of those games. 23 career points on 29.6% shooting.

So far, it just seems like the idea of Cam Carr has far more value than the play of Cam Carr.

Imo yes. He’s got game to spare, if he’s bought in

 

[Col_Cathcart]

He’s young and I think if he is bought in will be an excellent player next season. We’ll get flashes from him this year too I think, but foolish IMO to talk about him taking minutes from Gainey.

How long does that stay true these days?

 

[Thunder Good-Oil]

No SeniorDrill sightings in over 2 years now. And his last post was over 4 years ago.

BigZiti disappeared a couple of years ago as well.

DallasBowlin still lurks around the BBF neighborhood.

Was there also an LMU Railsplitter fan other than EdYeary? EY lurks.

 

[Stoked]

No SeniorDrill sightings in over 2 years now. And his last post was over 4 years ago.

BigZiti disappeared a couple of years ago as well.

DallasBowlin still lurks around the BBF neighborhood.

Was there also an LMU Railsplitter fan other than EdYeary? EY lurks.

I wonder if SeniorDrill is still telling anyone that will listen that we need to bring Donnie back? Lol that guy was obsessed.

 

[MoCo_Vol]

How long does that stay true these days?

I mean he'll be 20 in a month, but I mostly meant he's lacking experience. I'm not quick to write off a player with just 60 minutes of court time. To me it's encouraging he saw that much last year as a true freshmen with a far deeper backcourt than we have this year.

 

[THEONLYTENISEE]

I will say though...I think our rotation will be more like this going forward until someone steps up

Starters:
ZZ
Gainey OR Lanier
Mashack
Igor
Felix

Gainey OR Lanier (whoever isn't starting) will get the bulk of the bench minutes
JP (when healthy) will be the next main bench player getting minutes
Cade/Dubar will likely round out the 8/9 man rotation

Carr is the wildcard on the roster...his size and wingspan would allow him to play in a lot of different position and he's supposed to be a great shooter as well
Bishop may earn trust as the season progresses, but I also could see him as a RS candidate...I don't think that'll be the case with just 11 on scholarship AND the way the portal works now. Hopefully Barnes lets him play minutes early and get through some of his growing pains could be needed this year and will absolutely need him next year with 6 seniors

Who’s the backup PG? How many minutes do you see ZZ averaging this year?

 

[Thunder Good-Oil]

Who’s the backup PG? How many minutes do you see ZZ averaging this year?

It seems like the staff would like it to be Bishop Boswell but he has a long way to go. Mashack, Gainey, and possibly Lanier would have to play the role. Maybe there will be a mid-season transfer grabbed to fill one of those 2 open spots. I’ll be surprised if Carr or Dubar would handle PG duties.

If ZZ’s season were to end early, we’d be in a world of hurt. Making the NCAAT would be a great accomplishment.

 

[VolArmy74]

I'm amazed (but shouldn't be) that the Barnes thread is so active after literally the best season in Tennessee basketball history, before we've even played a single game this season.

 

[VolsAgainstTheWorld15]

Finally got around to watching some of the IU scrimmage. Certainly some things to work on and almost certainly no DK level go to scorer on this team, but there is still potential there for a good season. Lot of new faces still figuring out their roles. Additionally, CRB is naturally still figuring out who can help this team win games and who can’t. Still, plenty of guys who can play defense the way Rick wants them to.

All of that to say, there is enough ability on this team for another successful season. Don’t put too much stock into the result of an exhibition game. Remember, Tyreke Key once dropped 30 against Gonzaga in an exhibition game, and and what turned out to be a pathetic Arkansas team beat final four Purdue in an exhibition game last year. Exhibition game results are ultimately not a reliable indicator of what the season holds. Gauge the talent level, athleticism, and size. This team is solid on all of those fronts.

 

[MoCo_Vol]

Who’s the backup PG? How many minutes do you see ZZ averaging this year?

Gainey or Lanier likely run point when ZZ is resting.

32+ mpg is my prediction.

 

[MoCo_Vol]

It seems like the staff would like it to be Bishop Boswell but he has a long way to go. Mashack, Gainey, and possibly Lanier would have to play the role. Maybe there will be a mid-season transfer grabbed to fill one of those 2 open spots. I’ll be surprised if Carr or Dubar would handle PG duties.

If ZZ’s season were to end early, we’d be in a world of hurt. Making the NCAAT would be a great accomplishment.

With 2 scholarships I % think this is the plan, not sure if they’re talking with an early enrollment HS player or maybe an overseas talent.

 

[Thunder Good-Oil]

With 2 scholarships I % think this is the plan, not sure if they’re talking with an early enrollment HS player or maybe an overseas talent.

Maybe a poster that follows recruiting can slip us a list. But on the other hand, ZZ wasn’t on the list of top PGs. Maybe there will be a January surprise.

 

[walkenvol]

Finally got around to watching some of the IU scrimmage. Certainly some things to work on and almost certainly no DK level go to scorer on this team, but there is still potential there for a good season. Lot of new faces still figuring out their roles. Additionally, CRB is naturally still figuring out who can help this team win games and who can’t. Still, plenty of guys who can play defense the way Rick wants them to.

All of that to say, there is enough ability on this team for another successful season. Don’t put too much stock into the result of an exhibition game. Remember, Tyreke Key once dropped 30 against Gonzaga in an exhibition game, and and what turned out to be a pathetic Arkansas team beat final four Purdue in an exhibition game last year. Exhibition game results are ultimately not a reliable indicator of what the season holds. Gauge the talent level, athleticism, and size. This team is solid on all of those fronts.

I finally watched it last night. My takeaway is ZZZ was surprisingly below his normal self. Mashack needs to shoot and drive the lane more. Lanier needs to shoot less. Igor needs to take a few of those open 3’s. Felix is better than I expected. Cade and JP will hopefully be solid parts of the rotation. Lottery Carr didn’t show up for Indiana.

 

[bleedingTNorange]

I finally watched it last night. My takeaway is ZZZ was surprisingly below his normal self. Mashack needs to shoot and drive the lane more. Lanier needs to shoot less. Igor needs to take a few of those open 3’s. Felix is better than I expected. Cade and JP will hopefully be solid parts of the rotation. Lottery Carr didn’t show up for Indiana.

I get the sense that this team likely will take longer to gel/reach their ceiling than many of the recent ones. Seems like most years we come out probably more ready than most teams and typically have a strong start OOC and in SEC play, but then there’s some talk about are we playing our best come March, to me this team likely takes a bit to put it together, assuming that they do eventually.

I think Zeigler having to learn essentially 6-7 new bodies around him on the court is why you saw him look a bit sloppy, I would expect that to improve with more and more time on the court together. I don’t have much issues with Lanier’s number of shots, I missed much of the game so forgive me for not knowing, but if his shots from 3 were of the open variety, or late in the clock having to force I have no issue. Now if he was taking contested early shot clocked forced shots then those need cleaned up, but otherwise we need him to be that guy that’s not afraid to pull the trigger.

This is likely an oversimplification, but this team has to shoot well from 3 imo…I don’t think they’ve got a dominant back to the basket post guy, I also don’t think they’ve got anyone who likely can drive the lane and either finish or draw fouls on a consistent basis. I think ZZ/Okpara can work some good stuff, but you can only run that so much, I think this once again will be a team that takes more the 25 threes a game, which is fine, but you better also hit 35%+ on those. Last year we averaged 25 threes a game, when we shot above 34% from 3 we were 19-1 with the lone loss being to Purdue, I think you’ll see a similar trend this year as well.

 

[cncchris33]

I get the sense that this team likely will take longer to gel/reach their ceiling than many of the recent ones. Seems like most years we come out probably more ready than most teams and typically have a strong start OOC and in SEC play, but then there’s some talk about are we playing our best come March, to me this team likely takes a bit to put it together, assuming that they do eventually.

I think Zeigler having to learn essentially 6-7 new bodies around him on the court is why you saw him look a bit sloppy, I would expect that to improve with more and more time on the court together. I don’t have much issues with Lanier’s number of shots, I missed much of the game so forgive me for not knowing, but if his shots from 3 were of the open variety, or late in the clock having to force I have no issue. Now if he was taking contested early shot clocked forced shots then those need cleaned up, but otherwise we need him to be that guy that’s not afraid to pull the trigger.

This is likely an oversimplification, but this team has to shoot well from 3 imo…I don’t think they’ve got a dominant back to the basket post guy, I also don’t think they’ve got anyone who likely can drive the lane and either finish or draw fouls on a consistent basis. I think ZZ/Okpara can work some good stuff, but you can only run that so much, I think this once again will be a team that takes more the 25 threes a game, which is fine, but you better also hit 35%+ on those. Last year we averaged 25 threes a game, when we shot above 34% from 3 we were 19-1 with the lone loss being to Purdue, I think you’ll see a similar trend this year as well.

The bolded is the part that scares me. I agree 100% with it. This team, much more so than recent versions, seems very one-dimensional. You'd like to have two of those things and attempt to mask the third one.

Last year, we had two of those things, even all three on some nights when Aidoo and Awaka were on their games, offensively. I saw enough from Okpara against one of the tougher mismatches he'll see this year (Ballo) that gave me a bit of hope that his offensive game may be a little more advanced than we had first believed. We just aren't likely to get it on a consistent basis, so most nights, we will only have the one offensive facet (outside shooting). Unfortunately, that facet is the least reliable and most prone to extremes.

We are really missing that guy(s) who can take his man off the dribble and get to the basket. ZZ can be that guy, but he's just so limited when he gets in the paint. It may be that we have to get creative with sets to get guys cutting without the ball and hit them with passes slashing to the hole to generate that kind of offense.

 

[TrippieRedd]

With 2 scholarships I % think this is the plan, not sure if they’re talking with an early enrollment HS player or maybe an overseas talent.

Hoping one of the freshman we get can enroll early.

Evans turns 19 in Janurary. Wonder if he would enroll early

 

[TrippieRedd]

I wonder if we would go after Dai Dai Ames or Isaac McKneely from UVA.

Hope one of them transfers. Wouldn’t mind having them as a backup guard

 

[VolsNetClippers2025]

The bolded is the part that scares me. I agree 100% with it. This team, much more so than recent versions, seems very one-dimensional. You'd like to have two of those things and attempt to mask the third one.

Last year, we had two of those things, even all three on some nights when Aidoo and Awaka were on their games, offensively. I saw enough from Okpara against one of the tougher mismatches he'll see this year (Ballo) that gave me a bit of hope that his offensive game may be a little more advanced than we had first believed. We just aren't likely to get it on a consistent basis, so most nights, we will only have the one offensive facet (outside shooting). Unfortunately, that facet is the least reliable and most prone to extremes.

We are really missing that guy(s) who can take his man off the dribble and get to the basket. ZZ can be that guy, but he's just so limited when he gets in the paint. It may be that we have to get creative with sets to get guys cutting without the ball and hit them with passes slashing to the hole to generate that kind of offense.

Don't think it'll be elite, but I think there's more to come from Chaz driving to the basket. He looked very athletic and was willing to take on the role, I think he drew a foul like that early.

I also think that the game was likely an aberration in terms of shooting from deep, several open looks were missed and everything we've heard about Chaz/Igor + know about ZZ says they'll make those at a much higher clip.

Finally, I was impressed by Okpara's ability to play with his back to the basket, he had two great shots over Ballo.

TLDR: I think that the team played sloppily + got unlucky with some shots, but has all of the makings of a more complete team than most people will credit based on their performance.

 

[MoCo_Vol]

The biggest question mark to me is still Igor and what he's fully capable of doing.

Can he drive around bigger/slower defenders (showed it a few times against Indiana) and if he's got quicker smaller guys can he back them down or make shots over them on a regular basis?

If he can do both those things then he'll be the guy that we can lean on when Felix isn't on and the 3s aren't dropping. Lanier, Mashack and even Gainey can drive to the rim and finish...but will they?

 

[bleedingTNorange]

The bolded is the part that scares me. I agree 100% with it. This team, much more so than recent versions, seems very one-dimensional. You'd like to have two of those things and attempt to mask the third one.

Last year, we had two of those things, even all three on some nights when Aidoo and Awaka were on their games, offensively. I saw enough from Okpara against one of the tougher mismatches he'll see this year (Ballo) that gave me a bit of hope that his offensive game may be a little more advanced than we had first believed. We just aren't likely to get it on a consistent basis, so most nights, we will only have the one offensive facet (outside shooting). Unfortunately, that facet is the least reliable and most prone to extremes.

We are really missing that guy(s) who can take his man off the dribble and get to the basket. ZZ can be that guy, but he's just so limited when he gets in the paint. It may be that we have to get creative with sets to get guys cutting without the ball and hit them with passes slashing to the hole to generate that kind of offense.

Igor/Okpara being able to consistently give you something from 2 is probably the biggest thing to watch/hope for.

 

[MoCo_Vol]

Igor/Okpara being able to consistently give you something from 2 is probably the biggest thing to watch/hope for.

We will see, what I like about both is that they've shown themselves to be efficient scoring.

Felix in 70 games with Ohio State shot 58.6% fg on an average of 4 attempts a game.
Igor in 66 games with Charlotte shot 48.2% fg on an average of 7.2 attempts a game.

I think jury is gonna be out until we see what happens in OOC.

Most important thing I'd point to after the Indiana game... we shot 14% better from FG and 18% better from 3 in the 2nd half while taking less shots. So Barnes got the message across about taking better shots and it showed.

 

[cncchris33]

Don't think it'll be elite, but I think there's more to come from Chaz driving to the basket. He looked very athletic and was willing to take on the role, I think he drew a foul like that early.

I also think that the game was likely an aberration in terms of shooting from deep, several open looks were missed and everything we've heard about Chaz/Igor + know about ZZ says they'll make those at a much higher clip.

Finally, I was impressed by Okpara's ability to play with his back to the basket, he had two great shots over Ballo.

TLDR: I think that the team played sloppily + got unlucky with some shots, but has all of the makings of a more complete team than most people will credit based on their performance.

Lanier attempted 16 shots and only one of them was going to the basket (where he was fouled) He took 12 3s and 3 mid-range 2s, and the fast break dunk from ZZ. So, I think the book is still firmly out on him in terms of being willing or able to do it in the halfcourt.

I think we all hope he can be that guy, but I have my doubts, especially in the SEC. Extremely small sample size, admittedly, but in that sample, he looked like another version of Jordan Gainey, to me, who is a better defender.

 

[Chaz-Vol]

Lanier attempted 16 shots and only one of them was going to the basket (where he was fouled) He took 12 3s and 3 mid-range 2s, and the fast break dunk from ZZ. So, I think the book is still firmly out on him in terms of being willing or able to do it in the halfcourt.

I think we all hope he can be that guy, but I have my doubts, especially in the SEC. Extremely small sample size, admittedly, but in that sample, he looked like another version of Jordan Gainey, to me, who is a better defender.

I thought most of his 3s were either in rhythm or he was open. The midrange 2s weren't great looks. Number one thing I hope he doesn't lose though is confidence and just keeps shooting. The hot potato offense with people being afraid to shoot with prior Barnes players is hardest to watch.