Thoughts On Possible Interior Presence

#26
#26
Volfan1000 said:
Starting on Saturday, I would possibly start Huntley-Hatfield against LSU since he brings scoring and rebounding potential to the lineup and bring Fulkerson off the bench.

BHH is not the best defender yet but he needs more minutes to show what he can do and Fulkerson seems to still be recovering from the Covid-19 virus.

If Huntley-Hatfield and Aidoo do not get more minutes as the season progresses, they could hit the transfer portal at the end of the season and Barnes might have trouble attracting top interior players to Tennessee in the future.

Thoughts from the board?
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Is fulkerson going to have COVID side effects the rest of his career? That’s all I’ve heard since last year.
 
#31
#31
Namorto1 said:
This squad will make the tournament but you would hope coming off a tough road loss they would have looked appreciably better than they played last night on their home court against an average Ole Miss squad. If we don’t improve our offensive consistency, perhaps a top 6 SEC squad, but that is about it. Otherwise on the positive side, folks need to appreciate Vescovi more than he is given. Ziegler is the most entertaining player to watch, especially on defense. He is a nightmare for opponents.
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Tennessee came out and hit Arizona in the mouth. I’m sure the intentions were to do the same to Ole Miss, but it just doesn’t happen that way in basketball. Expect the unexpected to happen, at least on occasion. My biggest expectations are that Tennessee will play hard every minute of every game. For the most part, they do that, with Vescovi being the de facto leader. Nkamhoua doesn’t hustle all the time, but he’s the only one who doesn’t, at least from my viewpoint.
 
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#32
#32
DowntownVol said:
You left out the part about him being old, not believing in analytics, that the game has clearly passed him by and he shoulda hung it up years ago, etc.
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Doesn't believe in analytics? Maybe, maybe not. Basilio's blog states that when BHH is on the bench, Vol defensive efficiency is 2nd in the country. When he's on the floor, their defensive efficiency drops to 130th in the country. Maybe BHH needs to work on his defense or maybe he just needs more time to develop it, but I'm pretty sure this staff follows statistics.
 
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#33
#33
DonDiego said:
Doesn't believe in analytics? Maybe, maybe not. Basilio's blog states that when BHH is on the bench, Vol defensive efficiency is 2nd in the country. When he's on the floor, their defensive efficiency drops to 130th in the country. Maybe BHH needs to work on his defense or maybe he just needs more time to develop it, but I'm pretty sure this staff follows statistics.
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Don’t worry, the Pearl nut huggers will tell you Barnes just needs to keep BHH out there even if he’s not contributing.
 
#34
#34
Volfan1000 said:
Starting on Saturday, I would possibly start Huntley-Hatfield against LSU since he brings scoring and rebounding potential to the lineup and bring Fulkerson off the bench.

BHH is not the best defender yet but he needs more minutes to show what he can do and Fulkerson seems to still be recovering from the Covid-19 virus.

If Huntley-Hatfield and Aidoo do not get more minutes as the season progresses, they could hit the transfer portal at the end of the season and Barnes might have trouble attracting top interior players to Tennessee in the future.

Thoughts from the board?
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Other than the scarecrow, we don't have a threat in the post and even he's prone to disappearing as much as he plays. I don't think I'm going to expect much from BHH this year and frankly, I'll be shocked if he's still at UT next year even if he's not drafted. We need to pray that the kid from Catholic and Aidoo are growing up as we speak and are more prepared to contribute next year when Edwards arrives. This team is going to live and die with the 3 ball and defense. And to be honest, I didn't think we would have games like Ole Miss where EVERY shooter on this team would be off at the same time. Now that I've seen that, I think my money is on dying with the 3 ball. Just enjoy the wins when we get 'em, but I have zero expectations for the post season.
 
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#35
#35
I know it’s easy to jump to the conclusion that BHH will hit the portal if he doesn’t start getting more minutes. He was interviewed a couple weeks back and he didn’t come across as disgruntled, instead he appeared bought into the process of improving in practice and earning more minutes to help the team. Who knows how sincere that was, but I found it encouraging.

He spoke intelligently. Maybe he has a good relationship with the coaching staff and teammates? No way he’s getting drafted on what we’ve seen to date. I’m still hoping he can gain more understanding of the team’s offense and defense and contribute 10-15 solid minutes a game
 
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#37
#37
DonDiego said:
Doesn't believe in analytics? Maybe, maybe not. Basilio's blog states that when BHH is on the bench, Vol defensive efficiency is 2nd in the country. When he's on the floor, their defensive efficiency drops to 130th in the country. Maybe BHH needs to work on his defense or maybe he just needs more time to develop it, but I'm pretty sure this staff follows statistics.
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That stuns me. So what are our numbers with Plavi in the game vs ON? If Plavi is playing better defense than BHH is capable of right now, that kid must be really be bad defensively....or he's lost and confused...or doesn't give a chit about defense? Hope he's not another of a long line of UT 5 star disappointments.
 
#38
#38
mr.checkerboards said:
I love the idea of throwing the kid a bone. Best case scenario he plays well and gives you what you need. Worst he's out at the first stoppage of play and nothing is hurt.
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Actually, what have we got to lose? Erratic production, even sometimes non-existent from our bigs. Give him 25 minutes and explain the expectations, and let the guy loose.
 
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#39
#39
If his practice effort and attitude are good then maybe they will. coaching the 5* types that aren’t just plug & play has to be difficult. The players have been hugely successful in hs and expect to continue with the same and probably have not been accustomed to swallowing their pride and working hard in practice to earn playing time.
 
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#40
#40
cardvolfan said:
Actually, what have we got to lose? Erratic production, even sometimes non-existent from our bigs. Give him 25 minutes and explain the expectations, and let the guy loose.
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I see this approach as detrimental to the team’s development. There’s some talented guys like Mashack, Frenchie, and Adoo who are also trying to earn pt. If you start handing it out to guys who haven’t done the things in practice the coaches are saying are needed to earn pt then those other guys become potentially disgruntled. Best thing is to have clear ground rules and let players complete to earn pt IMO.
 
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#41
#41
walkenvol said:
If his practice effort and attitude are good then maybe they will. coaching the 5* types that aren’t just plug & play has to be difficult. The players have been hugely successful in hs and expect to continue with the same and probably have not been accustomed to swallowing their pride and working hard in practice to earn playing time.
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At this level, even a 5 star has to work within the "team" framework. In HS and these AAU circuits, you can just do your thing. Can't have 4 guys on one page and an 18 year old 5 star on another. And let us not forget that this is still a kid. He should be in his senior year of HS. For all his physical talent, he's gone from a carefree HS environment to college life, classes and taking care of yourself all while playing for Rick Barnes in the SEC. Pretty full plate for a kid that's barely 18.
 
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#42
#42
walkenvol said:
I see this approach as detrimental to the team’s development. There’s some talented guys like Mashack, Frenchie, and Adoo who are also trying to earn pt. If you start handing it out to guys who haven’t done the things in practice the coaches are saying are needed to earn pt then those other guys become potentially disgruntled. Best thing is to have clear ground rules and let players complete to earn pt IMO.
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I tend to agree with you, in general. I think it’s just pure frustration for the fans at this point.
 
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#43
#43
cardvolfan said:
I tend to agree with you, in general. I think it’s just pure frustration for the fans at this point.
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That’s understandable. We all want the team to win every game and when they struggle it’s disappointing. I’m sure the coaches would say it’s a process to bring a team together and get them playing their best. Watching that process isn’t always entertaining
 
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#44
#44
LSU is tough at home. If Vols don't bring A game on O don't see this as a win. The #1 and 2 D's in the country I think I read. Will be another 50's scoring type game it appears. Auburn beat them but they were the home team and they shoot lights out at home.
 
#45
#45
OrangeBeachVol said:
LSU is tough at home. If Vols don't bring A game on O don't see this as a win. The #1 and 2 D's in the country I think I read. Will be another 50's scoring type game it appears. Auburn beat them but they were the home team and they shoot lights out at home.
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I think Tennessee shoots better this game. The odds are they will. We have some really good shooters on this team, and I want to see Wade, the cheater, lose at home.
 
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#46
#46
There's opportunity here for some strategic thinking about this matchup, where we have two of the nation's top defensive teams going against each other. What approach should our Vols take?

Do you double down on defense so that at the end of the game, even if you're down, you're guaranteed to be just a couple of 3s from taking the lead?

Do you find your hot shooter early and ride him to the finish, running the offense to benefit his game?

Do you focus on creating fouls, and win it at the line where there's no defense?

One thing's for sure--if we haven't fixed our inbound defense by game time, we'll be down by a dozen before halftime.
 
#47
#47
BruisedOrange said:
There's opportunity here for some strategic thinking about this matchup, where we have two of the nation's top defensive teams going against each other. What approach should our Vols take?

Do you double down on defense so that at the end of the game, even if you're down, you're guaranteed to be just a couple of 3s from taking the lead?

Do you find your hot shooter early and ride him to the finish, running the offense to benefit his game?

Do you focus on creating fouls, and win it at the line where there's no defense?

One thing's for sure--if we haven't fixed our inbound defense by game time, we'll be down by a dozen before halftime.
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Hit shots. Best approach for this team.
 
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#48
#48
BruisedOrange said:
There's opportunity here for some strategic thinking about this matchup, where we have two of the nation's top defensive teams going against each other. What approach should our Vols take?

Do you double down on defense so that at the end of the game, even if you're down, you're guaranteed to be just a couple of 3s from taking the lead?

Do you find your hot shooter early and ride him to the finish, running the offense to benefit his game?

Do you focus on creating fouls, and win it at the line where there's no defense?

One thing's for sure--if we haven't fixed our inbound defense by game time, we'll be down by a dozen before halftime.
Click to expand...

3 and D. That's this team's identity. The defense is elite and can at least keep us in any game we play, then you hope the offense hits enough shots to win it. And the way the roster is constructed, I don't really see any deviation from that plan. High ceiling, low floor: this team could get bounced by a 12 or 13 seed in the first round or it could catch fire in March and go to the Final Four.
 
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#49
#49
DowntownVol said:
3 and D. That's this team's identity. The defense is elite and can at least keep us in any game we play, then you hope the offense hits enough shots to win it. And the way the roster is constructed, I don't really see any deviation from that plan. High ceiling, low floor: this team could get bounced by a 12 or 13 seed in the first round or it could catch fire in March and go to the Final Four.
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Sometimes it looks more like D and no 3
 
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