Wufan wrote:Snaggletooth wrote:Wufan wrote:
The 2013-14 Shocker team is deeper than most (or all) Valley teams, but not as deep as any of the last three Shocker teams and not as deep as many other top 25 teams.
Point is, as we talk about WSU on a national stage and we see threads talking about WSU in the top 10 and going undefeated, I think that the argument can be made against high rankings and tons of wins (relatively speaking) based on a lack of a deep bench ready to perform at the same level as the starters on a game by game basis.
I looked at 20 of 25 of the Top 25 teams, the average # of players they played any significant minutes was 8 in games this week.
#1 Arizona starters averaged 32.5 minutes, playing 7
#5 MSU starters average 33.4 minutes in their last game
The breakdown was
7 players deep - 7 teams
8 players deep - 6 teams
9 players deep - 7 teams
So you are wrong.
I'm still not talking about minutes. Got it?
If you have points/rebounds/assists off the bench and they show I'm wrong then I will admit it. I'm talking about quality production off the bench. I think we are weak in that area right now.
It is a straw man argument that I'm not going to participate in. WSU starters are as or more productive than last year. So of course the contributions of those coming off the bench is going to be down - but If that your argument go ahead and do some work and post the comparisons if you want.
You need to work on your critical thinking and and not get caught up group think. Perfect example:
Wufan wrote:
3) Early isn't playing well. Early is not living up to the hype of being a pre-season All-American and pre-season MVC POY. His outside shot isn't falling and his shot selection is inconsistent at best. He can get to the rim, but can't finish with contact.
If you look at Early stats compared to last year, in almost all areas they are just as good as last year and some are better. Before you say what FG% and 3pt% - that difference is 3 FG made over these 10 games.
You say his 3pt shot is not falling - falling compared to what? The difference between this year and last year is 1 shot not falling in these first 10 games. The most important thing It has fallen when WSU really needed it.
Only negative is slightly more turnovers. But he is averaging 14.2 ppg in the Shox hardest part of the schedule.
Where I would agree with you is on Early shot selection. I think he has bought into the hype and he thinks he should be putting up all-american numbers and is hurting himself with his shot selection and doing some dumb things at time. And his "fall away" jumper so he doesn't draw contact drive me crazy. Just go up strong and draw the foul at least and eventually you will some of those shot falling.
- Capture.JPG (34.41 KiB) Viewed 1674 times
The only way anybody can be down on him is because they have bought into the pre-season hype. If you have studied player development - the difference in performance from starter from their Junior to Senior year is generally noise. They are what they are.
Several recent Bears Jucos also showed big improvements in their game between their Jr and Sr years. Riks, Downing, and Gulley.
