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TrueBlue
Posts: 29144
Alba Posts: 12
Joined: 9/20/2006
Member: #1172
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I'll be the first to say it won't surprise me to see O.J. stay in school another yr. He's hinted there's a good chance he comes back for his sophomore yr. If he isn't about money and wants to fine tune his game some more, well he'll be playing D-1 ball again next yr. Personally I feel he needs to stay. He's not ready to take over a team and lead at the point position. No way No how, not right now. He could play 10-15min/gm at the two in the NBA and not hurt a team while out there.
Now on to the game....
The best player on the court tonight was Billy Walker... Oh My the guy was unreal in the first half. They went away from him in the second half because the team clearly was trying to establish Beasley. Walker's handle, shooting touch, shooting range, power, athleticism, and BB IQ was off the charts. He knew exactly what to do when he was being guarded different ways. He carried the team while Beasley had foul trouble. He set the tone for the game and basically put the team on his back while the superstar was tamed. Didn't know much about the kid before today but I was totally impressed how he played from jump ball to zero on the clock. Another talented Freshman(Red Shirt).
O.J. and Beasley are clear leaders but I'll start with Mayo....
Positives(Mayo)
I was more impressed with two things from Mayo. His leadership and defense. These two areas tonight dwarfed anything he did offensively. Every time(well almost) one of his teammates was at the line he'd go way to the other end to get in ear shot distance of Tim Floyd to communicate. I don't know if this was by design because I haven't watched any USC games this yr but it looked as if Mayo was the initiator at times, trying to tell Floyd some of things he was noticing and explaining games situations with him. His on ball defense was Top Notch. He picked up his man on quite a few occasions out high and forced the ball handler to give it up well before he wanted to. He has very long arms and a solid frame. Looks bigger than his actual size. When his team was down for most of the first half he was constantly clapping his hands letting his teammates know they were very much into the game. He communicated a lot with his back court player too. He can see over the top of defense with ease, has very good deep court vision and is very dangerous in the open court. Has potentially deep shooting range and is a very unselfish player.
Negatives
Dribbles with his head down quite often. He got bailed out on a couple calls, practically star treatment calls as he barreled into his defenders. Likes to jump to pass and throw cross court. It worked a couple times and it didn't work a couple times. The times it didn't work were extremely costly to his team. Very shotty jumper, there were times he put up shots and it was clear they had not chance of going in. Stands around on offense a lot when the ball isn't in his hands. Had trouble with defensive trapping. Not as fast as I thought he would be and slow penetrator in a half court/zone set.
As of right now I'd say Mayo is a very poor mans Brandon Roy. He needs to stay in school, honest he does but I doubt he will.
Positives(Beasley)
The guy drew so much attention on the court tonight especially in the first half it was unreal. He was triple teamed for at least half the time he spent on the court and double teamed the other half. The attention allowed so many opportunities for his teammates. When the guy wasn't scoring he still impacted the game. Sheer Raw Power. He should enter THE WORLDS STRONGEST MAN competition. He's 6'10" but plays like he's double that size. He's put together like some kind of Lab experiment gone wrong Hulk Style. If he's going to the rim with 1 clear dribble past his defender, no matter how far away he's from the basket, who's ever at the rim to meet him forget about it he's already won. Players were bouncing off him as he would finish at the rim. Great body control and hands. Foot work when he got the chance to showcase it was excellent. His shooting touch anywhere on the court, even at the foul line when he got going is almost perfect. The guy has tons of natural raw ability but of all the players on the court tonight you could clearly tell his skill level is unmatched. Oh and when he rebounds the ball you better give this GROWN AZZ MAN 50ft. This is a player who definitely works on his game. He has noticeable high BB IQ. He knew where to be pretty much at all times and every once in a while directed some of his teammates on the court. I'd bet $1mil he probably has the best work ethic of any NCAA player in the tournament. I saw no signs of a player with attitude or problems. He was constantly being subbed in and out, his coach was doing his best to protect him while at the same time not have him too detached from the game. He would have a seat right next to his coach and talk with him about game situations. Appeared to be very coachable. When he scored his team's energy and confidence would just soar. There's nothing he can't do offensively. In 3yrs he'll be ruling the NBA.
Negatives
Sets horrible screens to be a front court player. Needs to defend better particularly players his size. Saturday's game should be telling against Wisconsin because OMG half their roster are Nephilum. He gets overpowered at times on the block. That's it..... improve his man D and there you have it the most absolute perfect front court player.
As of right now I'd say Beasley>>>>>Amare
Billy Walker #12. I don't know if this kid will declare for the NBA or if this game was a 1 hit wonder but he has NBA ready skills. A definite high second round pick if not a low number 1 if he declares. He may need another yr though himself. He's coming off some major leg injury of last season. Youtube this guy for real.
I sat right next to some K-State fans and they were informative about their ball club, especially the mom. BTW K-State's point guard played well also I forget his name.
Oh and one more BTW Tim Floyd is a Bum!
LMFAO @ the Bio [url]http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stephon_Marbury[/url]
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