Theory + a couple of observations

[TMvol10]

If the elder statesmen on this roster were that jealous of the younger kids then they are mentally soft and wouldn't have won anything of merit anyway.

I honestly can't believe how many are blaming the freshmen for our woes this year. They aren't without fault, but if you are to list the 10 reasons this season was disappointing, Springer and Keon are not on that list.

I don’t think anyone is “blaming” the freshmen. To me, it’s the team as a whole. The build of this team just didn’t work. It never meshed. Looked great at times and poor at others. That’s what individual talent looks like. A great team (like the Admiral and Grant teams) look good/great pretty much all the time. The issue with this team, and the freshmen specifically, is that we can’t shoot from the outside. Springer and Keon are great at driving to the paint but that doesn’t do anything when the opposing team just clogs the lane rendering the drive ineffective and the kick out ineffective (missed open 3s). The freshmen are great at what they do, but for their game to be successful they needed consistent shooters around them to stretch the defense, or they themselves needed to be good, consistent outside shooters. Early on we saw some really impressive performances by them (ie kentucky) where they got downhill to the bucket and scored easily. Then teams adjusted and clogged the lane, basically saying “we aren’t gonna let you drive it down our throats. You’re going to have to beat us from the outside.” And we couldn’t do that. Occasionally we would get hot from the outside (Kansas, SC) and we’d deceivingly look like we have a good offense. But in reality, it was just a lucky shooting night.

Sadly, this trend will continue until Vescovi, Bailey, 3J or a new addition become consistent threats from the outside. Chandler will be great at creating open shots for other players but if defenses continue to clog the lane and we can’t make them pay...it won’t matter.

 

[Thunder Good-Oil]

Here’s a theory. Josiah Jordan James is not a good player...at all. He had no business being rated a 5 star, or even a 4 star for that matter.

The guy that had 13 rebounds yesterday? He’s not a good player? At all?

 

[TMvol10]

If the elder statesmen on this roster were that jealous of the younger kids then they are mentally soft and wouldn't have won anything of merit anyway.

I honestly can't believe how many are blaming the freshmen for our woes this year. They aren't without fault, but if you are to list the 10 reasons this season was disappointing, Springer and Keon are not on that list.

I don’t think anyone is “blaming” the freshmen. To me, it’s the team as a whole. The build of this team just didn’t work. It never meshed. Looked great at times and poor at others. That’s what individual talent looks like. A great team (like the Admiral and Grant teams) look good pretty much all the time. The issue with this team, and the freshmen specifically, is that we can’t shoot from the outside. Springer and Keon are great at driving to the paint but that doesn’t do anything when the opposing team just clogs the lane rendering the drive ineffective and the kick out ineffective (missed open 3s). The freshmen are great at what they do, but for their game to be successful they needed consistent shooters around them to stretch the defense, or they themselves needed to be good, consistent outside shooters. Early on we saw some really impressive performances by them (ie kentucky) where they got downhill to the bucket and scored easily. Then teams adjusted and clogged the lane, basically saying “we aren’t gonna let you drive it down our throats. You’re going to have to beat us from the outside.” And then occasionally we would get hot from the outside (Kansas

 

[C-town Vol]

As Rucker puts it this season was a total collapse, explain why? It’s easy to me, the “elder statesmen” didn’t live up to their ability, why, my theory stands?

Not sure why your theory of Fulkerson, Yves, etc being selfish, malcontents who suddenly decided to not care about the good of the team still stands.

You do get what you’re saying right?

Those two guys are lacking in several ways as basketball players, but the empirical evidence of their time in Knoxville is that they are selfless guys who really care about their teammates.

“Theories” like yours are so jaded and negative I don’t know why any of us bother addressing them.

 

[C-town Vol]

The guy that had 13 rebounds yesterday? He’s not a good player? At all?

Have a feeling some of these folks at heart just want to be shock jocks. They want to be on First Take.

 

[csheaton]

The guy that had 13 rebounds yesterday? He’s not a good player? At all?

He’s the weakest 5 star recruit we’ve had. Dane Bradshaw was arguably just as impactful as James thus far. JJJ is 7th in scoring on our team. I mean really, 5 measly points in a tournament game? Pfft

 

[Hbg]

Not sure why your theory of Fulkerson, Yves, etc being selfish, malcontents who suddenly decided to not care about the good of the team still stands.

You do get what you’re saying right?

Those two guys are lacking in several ways as basketball players, but the empirical evidence of their time in Knoxville is that they are selfless guys who really care about their teammates.

“Theories” like yours are so jaded and negative I don’t know why any of us bother addressing them.

You got a better one for their fall? They aren’t even close to being the players they were last year

 

[njvols]

Because we haven’t recruited natural shooters.

JJJ - Keon - Springer - Bailey - Yves

all very athletic guys who have had to develop a shot.
We need guys who were born to shoot.

Think this represents our issue. We've got some great one on one slashers, but too much we didn't play to their strength. Additionally, Vescovi didn't really improve his outside touch this year. Probably the biggest issue was our inside was really inconsistent. Barnes likes to play inside-out, but when we're not respected inside, things tighten up for the guards to have more leeway to play their game.

 

[njvols]

Here’s a theory. Josiah Jordan James is not a good player...at all. He had no business being rated a 5 star, or even a 4 star for that matter.

wrong-o. He may not always be at the top in scoring, but he is in most every other relevant category. Granted, I'd really like to see him get more aggressive with trying to score instead of being a bit passive at times when he has the ball.

 

[Shadowfax20]

Barnes reminds me a lot of Tubby Smith when he was at KY. He is very good at coaching up lesser talent, like Fullerton, but not as good at coaching up superior talent. It ultimately cost Tubby his job at KY and I have a feeling it will cost Barnes here eventually.
We just didn’t play like a disciplined team. When you watch the tournament and see these teams with far inferior talent competing, and sometimes beating, much stronger teams, it kind of makes you think — what if?

 

[Sudden Impact]

I don’t necessarily agree. The adjustment is to shoot the 3...and we shot plenty of 3s...we just didn’t make enough of them.

Yes you are right, but he never incorporated the 3 ball shot in his offense. His offenses never run a 3 point focused scheme,it is always a 2nd option to shoot and not an inside out rotation.

 

[Batman1948]

1. This team was better BEFORE the freshmen moved into the starting lineup. The team ran through Fulky, Yves, and JJJ. At around the time the freshmen entered the starting line-up, the offense started bogging down and we played roughly .500 ball.

Theory:
Starting the freshmen botched the on-floor chemistry. I think everyone on the roster are great kids and outstanding teammates. However, the older guys don’t seem to be “alpha” personalities. As the freshmen were pushed forward, those veterans shrank back. Keon seems like an “alpha”, and I think guys like Fulky/Yves/JJJ slipped into more comfortable secondary roles and as a result regressed. It felt like Fulky reverted to Grant/Admiral years Fulky. I really believe much of Fulky’s regression came as a result of the two freshmen being pushed forward.

2. It’s tough to keep future lottery picks on the bench. I don’t necessarily fault Barnes, because they are better players. But I think the timeline would reveal that change altered the trajectory of the season for the worse.

3. I think Barnes skipped a step. It’s fun seeing the spotlight that came to our program when we signed Keon / Springer. I enjoyed cheering for them and I’m glad they came, BUT, I think college programs are better served trying to sign guys ranked between 25-75. Now we have gaping holes on the roster, and lower ranked guys on the roster have lacked the minutes necesssry to actually develop.

4. Everyone has said it, but I’ll confer...Barnes has to recruit / sign some pure shooters. We have a bunch of legit athletes, who are not natural shooters and are trying to develop a shot. Gotta sign a couple of guys who came out of the womb bombing 3’s. Bowden, and Vescovi to a lesser degree, are the only two pure shooters I can recall on our roster in the Barnes years.

5. All that said, this was my least favorite of Barnes 6 teams in Knoxville. They were painfully frustrating to watch. I love the individual parts, but the sum of those parts was not a fun team to follow.

I have thought the very same thing since the freshmen became starters. I believe it disrupted the team chemistry and they never got it back. If you're gonna sign 5 star guys, it's hard to keep them coming off the bench but these two players needed to keep coming off the bench this year. It'll be interesting to see who hits the portal before next year and to see who we get from the portal.

 

[EZE]

Yes you are right, but he never incorporated the 3 ball shot in his offense. His offenses never run a 3 point focused scheme,it is always a 2nd option to shoot and not an inside out rotation.

Vols shot 26 3s to OSU’s 21. I think there was plenty of focus on launching them. The problem is that Vols only made 5 of the 26 (OSU made 10 of 21).

 

[sechamp2012]

It wasn’t the freshmen taking in a bigger role or being put in the starting lineup. It was we played a weak schedule before SEC play and then we got exposed

Colorado and Missouri were in those wins before JS & KJ were starting and both are in the big dance and Colorado was a #5 seed like us and blew out Georgetown and beat Oregon State by 28 Points earlier this year.

 

[Volinnooga]

In my view, it isn’t that difficult to figure out. No real inside scoring threat. Very average shooters from outside and no scoring threat that could single handedly take over a game when we weren’t shooting well. Good solid players but no dominant presence on the offensive side. The freshmen are really really good but not ready to take over a game playing against guys older and more experienced.

 

[aWhiteLoftonChism]

It wasn’t the freshmen taking in a bigger role or being put in the starting lineup. It was we played a weak schedule before SEC play and then we got exposed

They had some terrific games on the schedule but didn’t get to play them.

 

[ZZ13]

Oregon State is just on one of those rolls where they are doing everything right and shooting well. They've now beaten four tournament teams in their last four games. UCLA, Oregon, Colorado, Tennessee. We actually did that once, believe it or not. Way back in DeVoe's first year. Were plodding along at 12-11 and 6-6 in the conference. Then won 9 in a row to finish 2nd in the conference, win the SECT, and finally win our first NCAAT game ever.

 

[aWhiteLoftonChism]

To me it is quite simple. Jam the middle defensively against the Vols and you shut down the offense.

Problem is we had no Answer and CRB never adjusted the Offense to Counter defenses the jamming of the Middle.

He didn't have the Horses Inside he once had to balance the offensive threat.

This is a Coaching Issue without Adjustments.

Barnes is not a 3 point Guy and is a Pound the Middle and 2 fer Guy...He has not figured out the balance of a 3 point and a 2 point offense.

Maybe he will eventually.

20 3’s attempted a game isn’t enough? Most of them are good looks, especially last game. Barnes, English, and staff can’t make them for them.

 

[Dougie_D]

The expectations were too high because we had 4 “returning starters”.
That doesn’t mean “returning talent”.

 

[C-town Vol]

You got a better one for their fall? They aren’t even close to being the players they were last year

Yeah. It was the Original Post that started this thread... the thread titled “Theory + A Couple of Observations”.

That’s my theory

 

[Jackjon90]

1. This team was better BEFORE the freshmen moved into the starting lineup. The team ran through Fulky, Yves, and JJJ. At around the time the freshmen entered the starting line-up, the offense started bogging down and we played roughly .500 ball.

Theory:
Starting the freshmen botched the on-floor chemistry. I think everyone on the roster are great kids and outstanding teammates. However, the older guys don’t seem to be “alpha” personalities. As the freshmen were pushed forward, those veterans shrank back. Keon seems like an “alpha”, and I think guys like Fulky/Yves/JJJ slipped into more comfortable secondary roles and as a result regressed. It felt like Fulky reverted to Grant/Admiral years Fulky. I really believe much of Fulky’s regression came as a result of the two freshmen being pushed forward.

2. It’s tough to keep future lottery picks on the bench. I don’t necessarily fault Barnes, because they are better players. But I think the timeline would reveal that change altered the trajectory of the season for the worse.

3. I think Barnes skipped a step. It’s fun seeing the spotlight that came to our program when we signed Keon / Springer. I enjoyed cheering for them and I’m glad they came, BUT, I think college programs are better served trying to sign guys ranked between 25-75. Now we have gaping holes on the roster, and lower ranked guys on the roster have lacked the minutes necesssry to actually develop.

4. Everyone has said it, but I’ll confer...Barnes has to recruit / sign some pure shooters. We have a bunch of legit athletes, who are not natural shooters and are trying to develop a shot. Gotta sign a couple of guys who came out of the womb bombing 3’s. Bowden, and Vescovi to a lesser degree, are the only two pure shooters I can recall on our roster in the Barnes years.

5. All that said, this was my least favorite of Barnes 6 teams in Knoxville. They were painfully frustrating to watch. I love the individual parts, but the sum of those parts was not a fun team to follow.

Number 5 is my favorite. This team was painful to watch. And definitely my least favorite. The coaching on offense was awful. I really don’t understand why all season guys get the ball and rarely square up. Nobody looked to square up and take it to the hole. And they played offense like they were so scared to make a mistake. And who could blame them. Barnes rips them after every game for every little detail. Barnes needs to up his game, or get some assistants that can help.

 

[csheaton]

wrong-o. He may not always be at the top in scoring, but he is in most every other relevant category. Granted, I'd really like to see him get more aggressive with trying to score instead of being a bit passive at times when he has the ball.

Yeah, believe me, I’ve noticed. Being solid in rebounding, steals etc still does not warrant the 5 star recruiting rating he had. 5 points in tournament game is not going to cut it. Period. He is easily the weakest 5 star player UT has had thus far.

Every single guy who plays significant minutes in our rotation was either meeting and playing to their recruiting ranking, or surpassing it; except James. And there is nothing anyone can say to change my mind about that. He is not horrible, but to me he looks more like a 3 star recruit than a 5.

 

[Sudden Impact]

20 3’s attempted a game isn’t enough? Most of them are good looks, especially last game. Barnes, English, and staff can’t make them for them.

Just because you Shoot 20 3s does not mean you are running an offense that supports it...Compare to previous offenses of the past...They did not either.

This year CBR had to make adjustments and the offense focused on the shots at the foul line and driving the ball to the heart of the defense.

Teams jammed the middle and CBR never adjusted the Offense.

Maybe he did after teams continually jammed the middle, but it does not appear that way.

Watched Springer and Johnson continually drive the ball to the Middle of the Defense and continually get jammed up....Worked at first of season but failed at the end... The 3 ball was always the 2nd, 3rd option...

It was CRBs worst coaching years since he has been here

 

[aWhiteLoftonChism]

Just because you Shoot 20 3s does not mean you are running an offense that supports it...Compare to previous offenses of the past...They did not either.

This year CBR had to make adjustments and the offense focused on the shots at the foul line and driving the ball to the heart of the defense.

Teams jammed the middle and CBR never adjusted the Offense.

Maybe he did after teams continually jammed the middle, but it does not appear that way.

Watched Springer and Johnson continually drive the ball to the Middle of the Defense and continually get jammed up....Worked at first of season but failed at the end... The 3 ball was always the 2nd, 3rd option...

It was CRBs worst coaching years since he has been here

They got jammed up because they made poor decisions at times and turned it over too much. When teams are packing it in the offense EVERYONE runs is drive and kick. Drive and kick 3’s are a shooters dream but only Santiago and Springer shot above average. Barnes practically begs guys to shoot more and not pass up open looks. What offense would you run?

 

[EZE]

20 3’s attempted a game isn’t enough? Most of them are good looks, especially last game. Barnes, English, and staff can’t make them for them.

Bingo. We shot 26 and only made 5. They shot 21 and made 10.

Not hard to see the difference in the game...not the number of 3s taken, but the number of 3s made.