Hi everybody, let's do one last chat before the Thanksgiving holiday. The Husker basketball team plays Dayton tomorrow night in the first round of the Wooden Legacy in California. I'm also willing to hear your takes on best and worst Thanksgiving dinner foods.
You can't teach 6-foot-11, 275 pounds, which is what Jordy is right now. But you're right. There's a lot of work to be done there. I think Jordy is a smart guy. And everyone says he works hard in practice. But it's going to take time for him. He's only been playing basketball for five years. If the Huskers can get him to a point this season where he can protect the rim, rebound, and defend without fouling, I think they'll call that a win for this season.
@PTHUSKER: I'm with you on the yams. I'll eat them, but only if there's a lot of glaze involved. Give me mashed potatoes and gravy all day.
@CD: You're exactly right. We asked Tim Miles about that after the Louisiana Tech game. He said it was tough to rotate Jordy in because of La. Tech's small lineup and they way the pressure on defense. Nebraska needed ball handlers on the the court, and they were able to match up with their "smaller" lineup. Jordy will get his chances down the road.
@PTHUSKER: That certainly wouldn't hurt. And some more confidence as well. I think the transition to Division I maybe caught him off guard a little bit. And he's just so raw that he hasn't yet figured out how to adjust.
Dayton game is going to be a tough one for NU. Flyers have two really good guards. Charles Cooke is averaging 23 points and seven rebounds a game. Scoochie Smith is averaging 15.7 points and 4.3 assists. Also, is named Scoochie.
@PTHUSKER: Agreed. I think they might be a year away from being pretty good, but there's talent there. Just have to develop it.
@Trash: I think so. Dayton tomorrow is going to be tough, even with the Flyers' injury situation (two starters are out). Nebraska will have to play really well to beat them. Lose that one, and you're likely looking at playing Portland on Friday, which should be a win. Then Sunday gives you a couple possibilities, but I think Nebraska would be favored against any of the four teams on the other side of the bracket other than maybe Texas A&M.
@Chris: His head is swimming for sure. Miles has said that about all his freshmen. I feel like he needs a game where he gets in there and just makes a couple "reaction plays" -- get a big drop-step dunk, blocks a shot in transition, something like that, to give him a spark. It's the old "just play the game" adage.
@Trash: Cranberry casserole. Woof. I don't hate creamed corn, but I also grew up on a farm where we ate corn with just about every meal. Dry turkey isn't great, but at least you can smother it in gravy.
@Trash: Solid agree from me here.
@HuskGuy: They have to get him going. The problem, like Miles said, is that he's going to have to figure it out against high quality competition. He's a guy who can get to the rack and draw fouls, but his jumper right now isn't good enough for him to use it as a weapon. He needs to see the ball go in the hoop, and his jumper isn't going in the hoop right now.
@HuskGuy: I think Jeriah Horne has been a revelation so far. He's playing with a ton of confidence, and he can get buckets. I saw someone on Twitter the other day say that Horne is playing like they thought Gill would play, and I think that's accurate. If he keeps improving defensively, he'll keep getting more and more minutes. A really gifted offensive player. and Roby getting more minutes is no surprise, at least to me. He maybe has the most natural ability on the team. It's just a matter of translating it to the court.
@Chris: I watched him warm up a couple hours before the Louisiana Tech game, and he was making everything. We obviously haven't seen enough of him to know, but I feel like he's a streak shooter. If he can get hot, I think that helps everything else out. He's quicker than heck, and he can help on the defensive end. But I also think it's a lot easier to play defense when things are going well on offense.
The other part of the Gill equation is Evan Taylor. He's 6-foot-5 and played 26 minutes the other night. He can guard bigger guards, but his big issue has been turnovers. If he gets those under control, he'll get on the court more and that makes the NU backcourt even more crowded.
@Trash: I feel like you and I would get along just fine at the dinner table.
@Chris: I can totally see that. I'd like to see him get some minutes this weekend and try and play through whatever is holding him back.
@HuskGuy: They have a ton of options when they want to put a smaller lineup on the court. A lot of 6-7, 6-8, 6-9 guys who can score in a variety of ways. It becomes a matter of how Miles wants to match up defensively. We're seeing Jack McVeigh guarding a lot of 3s right now, and he has good enough length to guard a 4. Will be interesting to see how they work that going forward.
@Chris: Yep. He had six against Chadron in the exhibition, which is way too many against anyone. I'm with you -- I think he's really settled down as he's gotten more playing time.
@PTHUSKER: Kenya Hunter is Nebraska's post player coach, and I think he's a good one. The problem is, he hasn't had a true back-to-the-basket post player in his four years here. You're right, it's a unique talent and one we don't see much of anymore. I'm sure it's taken some time for him to build a relationship with Jordy as well and get him to understand what it is he wants out of his big men.
@Chris: Miles had a great quote about that in the press conference the other day: "He did something revolutionary - he caught, and he shot-faked. And the guy jumped and he just drove right to the basket."
McVeigh is a really smart, fundamentally sound player, and I know he's worked hard on that part of his game since the end of last year. I wouldn't be shocked if he ended up leading the team in scoring this year - he's that gifted offensively. He'll get his opportunities to drive to the basket, especially if he keeps shooting 53 percent from 3-point range and teams gameplan to take that way.
@HuskGuy: I would bet we'll see it settle at 9 guys as the season goes on, it's just a matter of who. Miles said the other day he likes to play his best eight guys in the second half of games, so that will be something to keep an eye on as well. Fuller can help, but he's at a pretty loaded position right now. But he is a tough dude and has been in some battles before. He may not play a ton, but he'll be a guy Miles can throw in there in a pinch if he needs to.
@Braden: Nick sprained his ankle pretty badly in the open scrimmage to start the year. It was a high ankle sprain, and those are really tough to come back from. He finally suited up against Louisiana Tech, so he's starting to feel better. I would bet he gets on the court in some kind of role this weekend.
@PTHUSKER: Love how Morrow has played this year. We're seeing what the coaches saw in him when they were recruiting him. Just a monster athlete with no fear. He's going to dunk over somebody in Big Ten play this year and it's going to blow the roof off of PBA.