Random thoughts from a cluttered mind

1) this is not a deep team and I do not think the talent is there on the bench. They are good for a few minutes here and there but not to catch up or supply an infusion of scoring.
2) KJ Adams is one of the keys to this team. He has to play aggressively and when he is saddled with fouls he cannot.
3) Harris has shrunk. I thought when he went on that scoring spree he would become the extra ingredient we needed, but shortly after that he went into severe silent mode.
4) Grady. For all the accolades being showered on him, his shot isn't falling. Finally in the second half he started to attack the basket off of shot fakes but he doesn't do that enough.
5) this team has to come out to play from the opening tip. Over and over we start off sluggish and dig a deep hole that takes a Herculaneum effort to get out of and it is just too much as we fade down the final stretch. Other teams are throwing haymakers in the first round and we seem to be playing rope a dope.
6) Part of the aggressiveness in #5 is driving to the basket with a purpose! Driving in to leave ones feet with no idea where to pass or go or driving in only to spin around an look for someone to pass it to is not having a purpose

Re: Dajuan…

IMO he has not been the same since his headplant in Manhattan. I was amazed to see him back on the court afterwards, and watching him then I thought he was playing differently. It seems to me that delta has continued in both subsequent games.

I’m probably wrong, and maybe I’m seeing what I want to see because I’m a fan of “the one” (as my phone fills in for Dajuan when I use the mic instead of typing). But that’s what I’ve been saying elsewhere since the splat happened, and his play continues to be so atypical for him.

Great thread. Pretty much agree with everything each contributor wrote.

Self's comments the other day about adjusting for a marathon are interesting, IMO. He's riding that tiger I mentioned before (in some other thread) - namely, adhering to his viscerally competitive spirit and desire to win the league by sticking with his best players versus developing the team for March and April, which would require playing a lot more green (yet fresh) bench guys, allowing them to play through mistakes in order to grow, and losing more games (and probably the league, given how stout it is).

Tough balance, and I speak just for me by saying I'd rather play for the ultimate prize, which is the post-season. We've got enough league title banners now to fill up a basketball museum's undisplayed storage stash - do we have to get another one this year? I mean, it's a true blessing when we are solid enough in a given year to get both (league title and deep post-season run), but I'm not sure this year is that year. Especially given how stout the Big 12 is - at least the Top 6.

With that being my take and preference, here's what I'd love to see going forward:

* Bobby only spells Dajuan as a PG backup - no more (ever) of Dajuan and Bobby on the court at the same time. (As they were in the Baylor game for a non-trivial sequence of H1 minutes, when Gradey got in foul trouble. 2 non-scoring PGs on the floor when no one but Jalen can score? Recipe for disaster, and that is precisely when Baylor extended their lead and took control of the game)

* (Warning, controversial take) Start Joe in place of Kevin and allow him to play into a rhythm. He is a better offensive option than Kevin, but clearly not a better defender. However, we need offense out of the gate, per Kong's point, and Joe has a better ceiling there than Kevin. When Joe gets enough PT, he has shown some capacity to shine. Give him that. And as for Kevin, he has shown a shrinking violet M.O. in big games - especially against fast, athletic teams - all season (Tennessee, KSU, TCU). Let's see how he responds as the first man in (6th man) off the bench, bringing great D, energy, and rebounding.

* Give MJ and one of either Udeh or Ejiofor a lot more PT minutes from this point forward. (RE: Udeh and Ejiofor, whichever is the staff's choice based on practice, matchup, and/or hot hand) Yes, in a backup role, but PT minutes nonetheless. And coach them in their role to focus on doing 3 things and doing them well: Playing good D, REBOUNDING on both ends, and setting screens.

To me, this is the recipe for a higher ceiling. But I'm not Coach Self - not by a long shot. Just calling it like I see it.

PS: NotO, to your point, I think the UK game is key to turning around the season. The reason is that, if we bounce back and beat them at Rupp (and I truly believe UK should be favored given our slide, Oscar's height and rebounding, and UK having recently turned their season around), we will regain confidence just in time for the huge rematch and revenge game against the Grapes at Allen come Tuesday night. But if we lose at Rupp, with only 2 days of rest/prep before a VERY confident and capable K-State team comes to town, I fear for the worst. I honestly believe, after watching the Purps at Texas, Baylor and Iowa State, they will have zero fear in our barn and will give us one hell of a dogfight. But I think we win that game - or stand a better chance of it, anyway - if we beat the Squidettes tomorrow. Here's to the favorable scenario playing out...

Please note that all the items I mentioned were fixable by the individuals. The question was could they and the Kentucky game showed that they could. Now they have to maintain that mindset going forward. Specifically...

1) this is not a deep team and I do not think the talent is there on the bench. They are good for a few minutes here and there but not to catch up or supply an infusion of scoring.

Udeh was big for us, literally and figuratively. We have to continue to get contributions from him.

2) KJ Adams is one of the keys to this team. He has to play aggressively and when he is saddled with fouls he cannot.

And with Udeh spelling him from time to time he was able to do that.

3) Harris has shrunk. I thought when he went on that scoring spree he would become the extra ingredient we needed, but shortly after that he went into severe silent mode.

Much better. Much much better from Harris. Back to early season from I would say. Would still like to see a more consistent three from him, but he hit a couple key ones early on and that forced Kentucky to take the threat seriously which opened up the lane more for him and everyone else.

4) Grady. For all the accolades being showered on him, his shot isn't falling. Finally in the second half he started to attack the basket off of shot fakes but he doesn't do that enough.

I may be harsh on the kid. He was an assassin with that three late in the game, but he still seems to be struggling a bit. His play in nearly every other facet of the game was outstanding and I will take it every game.

5) this team has to come out to play from the opening tip. Over and over we start off sluggish and dig a deep hole that takes a Herculaneum effort to get out of and it is just too much as we fade down the final stretch. Other teams are throwing haymakers in the first round and we seem to be playing rope a dope.

Much better. We did not fall behind by a huge margin. We took their shot and answered it... immediately. Well done

6) Part of the aggressiveness in #5 is driving to the basket with a purpose! Driving in to leave ones feet with no idea where to pass or go or driving in only to spin around an look for someone to pass it to is not having a purpose

Again, the aggressiveness was there in spades against Kentucky. Look at the rebounding, the drives in the pain with purpose, not veering off, etc. Much better. Still a few sloppy plays, but overall the aggressiveness was there and it paid of magnificently.

Finally, this team does not have a huge margin of error in conference this year. We have to play like we did against Kentucky every game. That energy, that focus, that aggressiveness has to come every game. I don't know if that is realistic, but with as tough as the conference is, it will be required.