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Purple and White

There is always the excitement of seeing all of the players. Although, it is not a good indication of how they might contribute in a real game.

This year, there is the added interest, for me at least, in how all of the new rules will change play. Also, this year, there is a new emphasis on an old rule. When a player steps out of bounds, even when forced out by a defender, they can not be the first to touch the ball when they return to the court. That rule has not been enforced much over the last 30 years, but it will be this year. The biggest effect will be on the baseline picks to free up a shooter on the wings. The shooter will not be able to run out of bounds and return for the pass and shot, without the ball first being passed to another teammate.

Let the games begin! :coffee:
 
Two days!

Most years I would have already given up on football and looking forward to basketball. This year has a little different feel to it. Football is beginning to win and last years basketball was such a downer. However, this year, once again, has a totally different feel to it. In fact, all of athletics at WSU seems to have a new spring in its step. I fully expect basketball to return to its normal operations. I think that the fans are going to like the product on the floor. So far, we are undefeated. :coffee:
 
oldrunner said:
Two days!

Most years I would have already given up on football and looking forward to basketball. This year has a little different feel to it. Football is beginning to win and last years basketball was such a downer. However, this year, once again, has a totally different feel to it. In fact, all of athletics at WSU seems to have a new spring in its step. I fully expect basketball to return to its normal operations. I think that the fans are going to like the product on the floor. So far, we are undefeated. :coffee:

I don't think it is necessarily the product that worries fans. I'm fairly confident that our basketball team is one of the best in the conference. It is all of the other things. I hate the home preseason schedule, the post-season tournament in Reno, and the fact that all of the teams in the conference get an automatic pass to that tournament. It is really hurting my overall enthusiasm for Weber State Basketball. But, probably the worst thing, is the fact that athletics just doesn't care enough about the product to really market the team and build excitement for the program. Why should I get excited about something if the administration over that program doesn't? This is what Weber is known for and nothing. :ohno: Sad state of affairs that athletics is in right now. I almost want to say the entire university is in a funk.
 
oldrunner said:
Two days!

Most years I would have already given up on football and looking forward to basketball. This year has a little different feel to it. Football is beginning to win and last years basketball was such a downer. However, this year, once again, has a totally different feel to it. In fact, all of athletics at WSU seems to have a new spring in its step. I fully expect basketball to return to its normal operations. I think that the fans are going to like the product on the floor. So far, we are undefeated. :coffee:

I think this year has the most different feel of any I can remember. I sense a disconnect growing between the fan base and the athletic department. We all should be super excited right now and it just isn't there. And for the record Olds. I have reached out to the athletic department and voiced concerns. Look at how Wil just responded to Tal in the thread about the video feed. He passes the buck then talks to us like we are idiots.
 
After I totally misjudged our Defensive toughness after last years scrimmage not sure exactly what to make of it this year. But here is what I saw.

Kiko - I like how this guy plays. I see him getting some minutes and helping us. He and Hill out rebounded and out hustled Bolomboy and Braxton in the second game. The three extra boards cane on the offensive end.
Hill- I thought he played really well tonight. It looks like he has grown. I am not sure he will be playing much 3. I thought he looked more comfortable on offense and less lost on defense.
Senglin - I only saw Jeremy duck his head once tonight. I thought he looked sharp.
Bolomboy - Started strong and really dropped the hammer in the last game and stepped up the intensity, I was really looking forward to seeing he and Braxton on the floor together and I was a little disappointed.
Braxton - He had a few good offensive moves. I was hoping to see more from him on defense and on the boards.
Cannon - He has some good skills. I think he got caught in the air a few times looking for the pass. One of them turned into a great lob to Joel.
Baker - impressed me a little at first but then went away.
Dallas - If he is not 7 feet he is darn close. I think a red shirt would help him.
Jefferson - he played well would have liked to see more from him.
Gittens - I thought was pretty good.

I wonder if we will see more zone this year? I don't remember that much in previous scrimmages.
 
Good observations grad02.

I also really liked what we saw from Kiko. I've been to a couple of practices and that is the best he has looked to me. His shooting was good, but his rebounding was great. His D was OK. He should be able to contribute a little for us. However, I don't see him beating out Hill as the first big man off the bench. He is probably still the fourth option.

Jordan had some good moments, and you can really see his potential. He just needs to finish growing and mature a little bit. He is going to be a monster for us in the future. I wish we had one more experienced big man so that both he and Kiko could red shirt, but we don't.

Hill has put on a lot of muscle and is playing with a lot more confidence. He isn't showing that deer in the headlights look on his face this year. That bodes well for him.

Bolomboy and Braxton are simply monsters. Good luck BSC, trying to guard them both. Go ahead and send a double team at them, I dare you. Double down on them, I dare you.

Both Cannon and John are making freshmen mistakes, but let's face it, they are true freshmen. I predict that they will both play reserve minutes this year. One could red shirt, but we may well expand our rotation a little this year.

Gittens, Senglin, and Richardson looked solid and in charge. They didn't do anything to make me think they are not the starting backcourt.

Jefferson looked like he might explode onto the scene at any moment. He will get reserve minutes on the guard line.

Baker looks better each time I see him play. He really has good court vision, makes great passes, shoots when he should, and rebounds really well for a guard. He may well be the primary back up at 3. He could even play a little 4 against some teams. He is smart enough to handle the switch.

Williams did not play. I can only assume that he has not yet been cleared to play full contact. That is a strong indication that he may be a red shirt. It's just that 70% of the competition for minutes has already taken place. He just hasn't had a fair chance to compete.

As for all of the zone we saw. I think it is more a matter of learning to attack it with a shot clock at 30 seconds. I really like the new rules. :coffee:
 
My observations:
Stavrev: I didn't think he shot all that well. Kept coming up short, especially from the 3.
Baker: I liked what I saw from him last night. He has a nice shot and was able to get inside a few times.
Cannon: he impressed me more than John.
Richardson and Jefferson: I was hoping to see more from each of them. You can see during the shoot around that both have the potential to knock down a lot of 3s. Just didn't see it in the games.
Braxton: at times he looked overmatched against Bolomboy. But that's probably to be expected.
Dallas: definitely 2 inches (at least) taller than Bolomboy and Braxton. Has some skills. But as others have said, needs to put on some weight/get stronger. Would love to see him redshirt. I would if I was him. he is definitely the last big in the rotation, as Bolomboy, Braxton, Hill, and Stavrev started each of the 3 games.

I know this is based on watching only 26 minutes of scrimmages, but I wouldn't be surprised if the starting 5 are Bolomboy, Hill, Richardson, Gittens, and Senglin, with Braxton, Jefferson, Baker, and Cannon getting most of the minutes off the bench.

I can see this team being quite good. Senglin and Bolomboy both have the potential to be conference player of the year.
 
This was probably the most boring Purple and White game I have been too, but its all good. Still fun to get out and see the team. I do wish they would get the fans more involved like they did a few years ago. They would let a player pick a fan and together would have a 3 point contest against another player and fan. The winner got a gift certificate from The Pie. I won it with JP Silveria the year he played. 50$ from The Pie was pretty awesome. :rockon:
The only observations worth noting to me were: Bolomboy and Senglin are really really good. Baker is going to be that glue guy we really missed last year. Cannon I thought was the best looking of all the Freshman. No way he Redshirts. He does need to get a tan though. YIKES, I thought I was white. Maybe its an Idaho thing. haha.
Starting 5
1. Senglin
2. Richardson
3. Gittens
4. Bolomboy
5. Braxton

First 3 off the bench
1. Hill
2. Baker
3. Cannon

Will play a little here and there
1. Starvev
2. Jefferson
3. John

Redshirts
1. Williams
2. Dallas.
 
wazzuwildcat03 said:
This was probably the most boring Purple and White game I have been too, but its all good. Still fun to get out and see the team.

Did it appear that the refs were calling it super tight on hand checks and such? I wonder if their is going to be added focus on that stuff this season.
 
I was somewhat taken back by the sparse crowd in attendance at the festivities last night. That has got to be the worst attended P&W game since Rahe took over as coach. Wow...the Dee was empty. I guess that is something this team can get use to playing in front of; especially when you have the likes of Multnomah University visiting. I really hope not, but it isn't looking good. If the department had any sense...I would start advertising for the USU game now. Something about meeting the Aggies on Friday the 13th! but, the best we can hope for are a bunch of signs on campus that don't really explain anything other than "FOOTBALL FREE." What do those even mean? There isn't any information on those signs that would tell students what is actually free, where you can get the free thing, and when. Terrible...

Anyway, as for the game.

NEWBS: Gotta be nice

I was very impressed with Dusty Baker. I thought he brought something to the floor that was missing last season; maturity and toughness. He isn't flashy, but just plays the game. He is a basketball player. To me, he was the biggest shock.

Kiko missed a lot of shots because he kept falling away instead of going straight up. But he looks like he is going to end up being a better than advertised player. His defense is soft, but he is young and will come into his own. Out of him and Dallas, I feel that he is more prepared to go right now.

Dallas has a lot of potential. He is going to be a beast and is definitely 7', but needs time to grow into his body. But one can see his skill level is high. I really feel a red shirt would do him a lot of good for him as he develops. He could end up being a very special athlete in the future. Give him time!

John looked a little overwhelmed at times, but is talented. I think him missing Summer Rat Ball kinda put him behind a bit. We really didn't get a chance to see much of his skills since he was being moved from the 1 to the 2 all night.

Cannon...two seasons ago, I had a chance to talk to Chad Leckington about McKay. Leckington told me that McKay never stops. He is a hard-nosed guy who takes no prisoners. It kinda made me smirk at the moment. After watching last night, I understand now. He is a true point guard, who plays solid defense, and is a team first guy. He made some great passes last night and would have executed a sweet pick and roll if the team he was playing against weren't his teammates. I liked him the most out of the new guys.

Jefferson is extremely talented and can really run the floor, but made a couple of bad plays in transition. I'm really glad he is a Wildcat though.

Braxton...he was playing against Bolomboy all night. He won't face another player this season with the freaky athleticism of Joel Bolomboy. Having to play against Joel is going to make him a lot better. Even still, he looked good. He is our starting Center.

Juwan didn't see the floor which tells me, he isn't ready to play due to his injury. During warm ups you could see one of the biggest reasons why we wanted him; his length. He has long arms and he is strong. Both major pluses for him going forward.

Returnees: Gonna thrown down

Richardson...I'll be honest. I was not impressed with Ryan last night. He looked out of place and was doing things that he did last year. He has to improve his decision making skills and his passing. Also, they tried, I think three times, having him shoot off the curl and it was ugly. He looked cocky and out-of-control. To me, he is not a starter right now, but is the player with the most to gain from hard work. His upside is enormous.

Bolomboy...GET YOUR ASS IN THE MIDDLE. Stop taking fad away 15' footers. You are too damn skilled and talented to take the easy approach. He is a beast in the paint and yes, I know he can stretch the floor, but that is a last case scenario. He is a rebounding machine and our best chance for second chance points. He must be closer to the basket to get those opportunities. After grabbing an offensive rebound, Who the HELL can stop him?? Those are easy points for Joel. Next, he has to get tougher. He has put on some serious muscle and looked like a Greek statue, but was soft. He can get away with some of his soft antics in an intra-squad game, but he won't be able to against other teams. Next, he is still having a hard time passing out of a double-team. The coaches need to attack him constantly with that. He needs to become a better passer. He has come a long way, but can still develop soooo much more. To bad we don't have a bigs coach.

Senglin...he is Jeremy and was awesome! He got a bit flustered because Cannon was guarding him well. But did a good job of teaching McKay about DI refs and what you can and cannot get away with. It was fun to watch him. HE IS OUR LEADER!!

Gittens...he did what he always does. He is our best defender and he can keep opposing defenses honest. But he can't disappear like he did last night. He has serious speed.

Hill, Kyndahl was the biggest surprise out of everyone last night. He looks taller, stronger, and more focused. He is a 4 with the speed of a 3. Even though the 3 experiment didn't pan out last year, it definitely helped him speed up his game and become a better passer and ball handler. He and Baker have great chemistry and found each other time and again last night. It was fun to watch. He still needs to get tougher, but I can see why he can play the 5 if needed. He is our strongest player.
 
We need to be careful to not read too much into an inter squad game. These guys know each other inside and out. They know the offenses and defenses. The defensive side of things always looks better when you know what is coming to the level that you do, your own teammates. For most of the teams we will be playing, we are certainly big enough, athletic enough, and skilled enough to be very competitive. Now, the question really is, do they have the desire, togetherness, and endurance to take it to the opposition, night in and night out? We will see. :coffee:
 
wazzuwildcat03 said:
This was probably the most boring Purple and White game I have been too, but its all good. Still fun to get out and see the team.
...
The only observations worth noting to me were: Bolomboy and Senglin are really really good. Baker is going to be that glue guy we really missed last year. Cannon I thought was the best looking of all the Freshman. No way he Redshirts. He does need to get a tan though. YIKES, I thought I was white. Maybe its an Idaho thing. haha.
Starting 5
1. Senglin
2. Richardson
3. Gittens
4. Bolomboy
5. Braxton

First 3 off the bench
1. Hill
2. Baker
3. Cannon

Will play a little here and there
1. Starvev
2. Jefferson
3. John

Redshirts
1. Williams
2. Dallas.

From what I saw :sleep: I have to agree with nearly everything in your post, the one exception is I see Starvev getting some time as the season rolls on. He reminds me of a young KBull both in looks and in play. He shot better in warm-ups than the "fadeaways" in the scrimmage but looks quite capable.
 
So does anyone know if we have a private scrimmage on the books this year? I'm guessing so, since we only have one exhibition.
 
We do have a controlled scrimmage against another D1 school. However, there will be no announcement on it, and they will not be disclosing the where, when, or who of it. I believe that those are the rules. :wtf:
 
talhadfoursteals said:
I was somewhat taken back by the sparse crowd in attendance at the festivities last night. That has got to be the worst attended P&W game since Rahe took over as coach. Wow...the Dee was empty. I guess that is something this team can get use to playing in front of; especially when you have the likes of Multnomah University visiting. I really hope not, but it isn't looking good. If the department had any sense...I would start advertising for the USU game now. Something about meeting the Aggies on Friday the 13th! but, the best we can hope for are a bunch of signs on campus that don't really explain anything other than "FOOTBALL FREE." What do those even mean? There isn't any information on those signs that would tell students what is actually free, where you can get the free thing, and when. Terrible...

Anyway, as for the game.

NEWBS: Gotta be nice

I was very impressed with Dusty Baker. I thought he brought something to the floor that was missing last season; maturity and toughness. He isn't flashy, but just plays the game. He is a basketball player. To me, he was the biggest shock.

Kiko missed a lot of shots because he kept falling away instead of going straight up. But he looks like he is going to end up being a better than advertised player. His defense is soft, but he is young and will come into his own. Out of him and Dallas, I feel that he is more prepared to go right now.

Dallas has a lot of potential. He is going to be a beast and is definitely 7', but needs time to grow into his body. But one can see his skill level is high. I really feel a red shirt would do him a lot of good for him as he develops. He could end up being a very special athlete in the future. Give him time!

John looked a little overwhelmed at times, but is talented. I think him missing Summer Rat Ball kinda put him behind a bit. We really didn't get a chance to see much of his skills since he was being moved from the 1 to the 2 all night.

Cannon...two seasons ago, I had a chance to talk to Chad Leckington about McKay. Leckington told me that McKay never stops. He is a hard-nosed guy who takes no prisoners. It kinda made me smirk at the moment. After watching last night, I understand now. He is a true point guard, who plays solid defense, and is a team first guy. He made some great passes last night and would have executed a sweet pick and roll if the team he was playing against weren't his teammates. I liked him the most out of the new guys.

Jefferson is extremely talented and can really run the floor, but made a couple of bad plays in transition. I'm really glad he is a Wildcat though.

Braxton...he was playing against Bolomboy all night. He won't face another player this season with the freaky athleticism of Joel Bolomboy. Having to play against Joel is going to make him a lot better. Even still, he looked good. He is our starting Center.

Juwan didn't see the floor which tells me, he isn't ready to play due to his injury. During warm ups you could see one of the biggest reasons why we wanted him; his length. He has long arms and he is strong. Both major pluses for him going forward.

Returnees: Gonna thrown down

Richardson...I'll be honest. I was not impressed with Ryan last night. He looked out of place and was doing things that he did last year. He has to improve his decision making skills and his passing. Also, they tried, I think three times, having him shoot off the curl and it was ugly. He looked cocky and out-of-control. To me, he is not a starter right now, but is the player with the most to gain from hard work. His upside is enormous.

Bolomboy...GET YOUR ASS IN THE MIDDLE. Stop taking fad away 15' footers. You are too damn skilled and talented to take the easy approach. He is a beast in the paint and yes, I know he can stretch the floor, but that is a last case scenario. He is a rebounding machine and our best chance for second chance points. He must be closer to the basket to get those opportunities. After grabbing an offensive rebound, Who the HELL can stop him?? Those are easy points for Joel. Next, he has to get tougher. He has put on some serious muscle and looked like a Greek statue, but was soft. He can get away with some of his soft antics in an intra-squad game, but he won't be able to against other teams. Next, he is still having a hard time passing out of a double-team. The coaches need to attack him constantly with that. He needs to become a better passer. He has come a long way, but can still develop soooo much more. To bad we don't have a bigs coach.

Senglin...he is Jeremy and was awesome! He got a bit flustered because Cannon was guarding him well. But did a good job of teaching McKay about DI refs and what you can and cannot get away with. It was fun to watch him. HE IS OUR LEADER!!

Gittens...he did what he always does. He is our best defender and he can keep opposing defenses honest. But he can't disappear like he did last night. He has serious speed.

Hill, Kyndahl was the biggest surprise out of everyone last night. He looks taller, stronger, and more focused. He is a 4 with the speed of a 3. Even though the 3 experiment didn't pan out last year, it definitely helped him speed up his game and become a better passer and ball handler. He and Baker have great chemistry and found each other time and again last night. It was fun to watch. He still needs to get tougher, but I can see why he can play the 5 if needed. He is our strongest player.

I worry a little about a comparison you make here. ALL last year we were soft in the middle. It never got significantly better and Joel did not look much (if at all) improved in this regard in the P/W game. Then to say that Braxton will not play anyone as tough seems a little strange. We made other teams post players look better than they deserved last year. I hope this won't be a repeat performance. This team needs an attitude and an enforcer to improve on last year, and I don't see it yet. I hope I am wrong.
 
WSUfan4ever said:
I worry a little about a comparison you make here. ALL last year we were soft in the middle. It never got significantly better and Joel did not look much (if at all) improved in this regard in the P/W game. Then to say that Braxton will not play anyone as tough seems a little strange. We made other teams post players look better than they deserved last year. I hope this won't be a repeat performance. This team needs an attitude and an enforcer to improve on last year, and I don't see it yet. I hope I am wrong.

Defense is really a team effort. That holds specially true in the post. Teams try to exploit matchup problems by setting picks and forcing switching. That is why we played better D last year with the bigger lineup and teams couldn't get the switch to Hill that they were looking for. That is also why the pick and roll with a guard and a big can create matchup problems for a defense. That is where incorporating a third defender, the helper, becomes so important. After that, a defensive rotation occurs called 'helping the helper'. It all starts with one on one defending, but it becomes far more complex as offenses seek to disrupt that normalcy.

My feelings are that Hill will be a bit stronger this year, Bolomboy has always been a good help side defender, the addition of Braxton can help if he is tough enough, and we have length and athletic ability on the guard line for the rotation process. I feel that our interior defense will be much improved over last year. Time will tell. :coffee:
 
WSUfan4ever said:
I worry a little about a comparison you make here. ALL last year we were soft in the middle. It never got significantly better and Joel did not look much (if at all) improved in this regard in the P/W game. Then to say that Braxton will not play anyone as tough seems a little strange. We made other teams post players look better than they deserved last year. I hope this won't be a repeat performance. This team needs an attitude and an enforcer to improve on last year, and I don't see it yet. I hope I am wrong.

That's a good point and something I've given a little thought to as well. Joel certainly has the ability to swat shots but never really has "imposed his will" in the paint. He has never seemed to carry the role of "enforcer" and I'm not sure his body or natural position is such to play that role.

Hill, with his new and improved bulk would seem capable but he may have seemed the most timid of the lot the first few seasons. Of anyone in recent years, Hill has been the most disappointing to me in that he seems chalk full of athletic ability but seems so timid and slow to use it. It the PnW game there were a couple of times he had the position and it took him soooo long to take advantage of it. He always seems to be going in slow motion. I'd love to see him have a "break out" year and be that force around the paint that he seems capable of being.

Maybe Braxton won't play anyone as athletically gifted as Bolomboy this season but he will certainly play against bigger, powerful, and talented post players. This is Braxton's first go at it vs D1 talent, I think he's going to come along fine. I liked his effort and his determination. He wants to play and he wants to do well, it's obvious in his demeanor. Did you catch him getting frustrated a time or two against Joel and then talk to a ref and an assistant coach about the specifics of a play and non-call? He was competitive and had the desire to best Joel-- a tall order if you ask me. That's the competitiveness and fire that will lead to good things with Braxton, the body and talent is already there. I hope Braxton can be a difference maker this year with Joel still on the court but that might be fairly high expectations for the FR. Hill really needs to step up this season, between he and Braxton I think the trio could do some exciting things together.
 

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