Don’t freak out.

[cncchris33]

I'll be very surprised(but hopeful). He was the closest we had to a leader on this team. He's shown several times this season that he could still help without shooting the ball. going to miss the distribution. Breaks my heart for him and the team.

He is definitely the least expendable player on the team, IMO. Even with a bad shoulder and an apparently damaged outside shot, he still knew how to get the ball to playmakers, was our best ball-handler, and the obvious QB on the court. I would have rather lost anyone else.

My guess is PG is split between James and Bowden in the short-term, but that hurts both players current game. James, as our current leading rebounder, is now pulled out of the paint, and Bowden struggles to create his own shot, will miss being set up by LT if forced into minutes at the point.

 

[VolsSportsFan]

I’m not sure if I believe that...not saying it doesn’t hurt, but his play wasn’t helping a to obviousiy...he had a -22 at Cincinnati. If we can still play defense and limit turnovers with someone else then I don’t think it’s much difference.

I think most people were assuming LT would get out of the funk or get better. Now that he's out, things are worse.

 

[calban]

I think most people were assuming LT would get out of the funk or get better. Now that he's out, things are worse.

Barnes included. Said just a week ago he was optimistic about some of the things the trainers were doing with him. Expected him to improve.
Big loss. He was the heart of this team when they had it.

 

[BowlBrother85]

We will be ok. The defense holds. We need better rebounding. Obviously we need some offense. We can improve on it. Who will step up in the future ? Who can we rely on to score ? I was hoping Pons but inconsistency has been there. If we can get a tad bit of offense we will be good. Lately we are struggling but I think we will be okay. Barnes will address. Go basketvols.

After being a little spoiled by the last two seasons, it's hard not to feel bad about how this team is playing right now... but then I see how Florida is playing and it makes me feel a lot better:

Utah State 65
Florida 62
Final

The Gators fall to 7-4. LOL. Kerry Blackshear was 3-14 from the floor.

 

[CNeagleVolFan]

Still though get Plavsic eligible and we are a solid team! Probably a starting 5 of James, Bowden, Pons, Fulkerson, and Plavsic

 

[CNeagleVolFan]

Also, really wish that Vescovi could come in and be a serviceable back up to James this season. Especially now in the situation we’re in

 

[BowlBrother85]

I’m not sure if I believe that...not saying it doesn’t hurt, but his play wasn’t helping a to obviousiy...he had a -22 at Cincinnati. If we can still play defense and limit turnovers with someone else then I don’t think it’s much difference.

Based on how he played in our last two games? Not much of a loss at all. Having said that, Turner had a nice career and I wish him the best overseas.

 

[Lefteye]

My guess is PG is split between James and Bowden in the short-term, but that hurts both players current game. James, as our current leading rebounder, is now pulled out of the paint, and Bowden struggles to create his own shot, will miss being set up by LT if forced into minutes at the point.

Think we’ll see Gaines in that mix as well. He gets a little loose with his handle at times, but he has a knack for penetrating and either dishing or drawing a foul. His defense just keeps improving too

 

[LucidZ]

You are correct. I did misunderstand what you said/meant. For some reason I had the impression the jest of your post was about finding leadership as was talked about throughout the thread. Sorry for my error.....

It's cool. And no, I brought up what he said in a pre-season interview about not wanting to step on the toes of the seniors/not making it about him and then said what I thought he meant by that. He could have meant leadership, but I took it as not wanting to be selfish with the ball. That maybe he meant he was going to try his best to set them up for success first, since he's new to the team.

Then talking about how I think, from watching the games so far, that maybe he's realizing that he's going to have to do more than that for this team to succeed. Like being more aggressive with his scoring or looking to create looks for himself. Be a bit more selfish, if he has to. Because pre-season the coaches were saying that he was very selfless and they had to make it a point to remind him to shoot the ball more. Like,"Hey, we love that you're a selfless player and your passing is great...but don't be afraid to take some chances to find your shot too.". That's what I meant by him taking "some control". Wasn't talking about being the leader of the team, or having some captain mentality of being the one to call the shots for the team. Just taking more control of himself and not limiting himself.

And quite frankly, it looks like he's going to have to now with Lamonte out of the picture due to his injury. Everybody is going to have to step up a bit really. Hopefully the thing about Vescovi not playing has changed too and maybe he gets time more quickly than we think. JJJ's ball handling isn't as good as Vescovi's, I don't think. Hopefully I've explained myself a bit better.

 

[Thunder Good-Oil]

After being a little spoiled by the last two seasons, it's hard not to feel bad about how this team is playing right now... but then I see how Florida is playing and it makes me feel a lot better:

Utah State 65
Florida 62
Final

The Gators fall to 7-4. LOL. Kerry Blackshear was 3-14 from the floor.

Today was the first time that I've watched Blackshear. It was the last 5 minutes, but he looked to be very low energy on offense. Just stood around hanging out at the high post. I wasn't impressed at all. I'm glad that giving him a scholarship didn't cost us Vescovi.