Inside the Hall - Latest Comments in The Four Spot: Who ya got?

Re: The Four Spot: Who ya got?

plane1972 — Thu, 31 Jan 2008 11:19:29 -0000

Not questioning here, Chuck. Just curious what you've been seeing. I hadn't picked up on that.

Re: The Four Spot: Who ya got?

Thu, 31 Jan 2008 10:43:54 -0000

I guess the best thing about Big D is he's the best passer of the three.

That and he is most in sync with Ellis because they've played together for so long.

Re: The Four Spot: Who ya got?

SocksShortsSwish — Thu, 31 Jan 2008 09:35:48 -0000

I hear Ivan Renko is available...

Re: The Four Spot: Who ya got?

DS — Wed, 30 Jan 2008 22:52:50 -0000

Bambale Osby!

Re: The Four Spot: Who ya got?

Chuck — Wed, 30 Jan 2008 21:36:43 -0000

The biggest thing Deandre Thomas needs to work on is his ATTITUDE! Right now it is not a good one. He gets that taken care of and I think he has the skills to be a nice contributor.

Re: The Four Spot: Who ya got?

PB — Wed, 30 Jan 2008 18:45:28 -0000

Man, that lack of production is shocking...Does George Leach have any eligibility left?

Re: The Four Spot: Who ya got?

Jerry — Wed, 30 Jan 2008 17:26:17 -0000

Crawford showedon Saturday he can guard an athletic 6'9" guy so he could in fact play in a 4 guard set but not play man to man D. UCONN absolutely killed us when we tried this man to man. Why did't Samson watch the Providence game film and zone these guys.

Re: The Four Spot: Who ya got?

Jerry — Wed, 30 Jan 2008 17:23:49 -0000

I think if the question is offense then my first option is for Ellis to score more so this position is not as critical............lets run some offense for him instead of forcing him into garbage.

My next option is McGee due to his offensive mindset . Dre needs to play more so we can better see what he can do before he is an option fo rme. Stemler does not appear able to adjust his game to be more offensive minded. WHite is an offensivve zero

Re: The Four Spot: Who ya got?

peaychris — Wed, 30 Jan 2008 17:23:30 -0000

What about just going small and running all over the place? i think it would be a good thing to put crawford (TUO) in the starting 5. you always have the flexability to use stemler or De if you need to. I like the fact that we could have potentially 3 people that can drive the lane at any time. It seems to me they arent getting and quailty shots. Since i spent the last 3 years in miami i got to watch D Wade play and i think EJ could style his play a little more like him. EJ is so strong i would love to see him drive it and kick out to crawford. i also think that this would take pressure off EJ to have other scorers on the floor.

Re: The Four Spot: Who ya got?

deedubbadoo — Wed, 30 Jan 2008 15:39:55 -0000

It should go White>Stemler>Thomas. Mike White maybe undersized but his strength is his redeeming quality. Unlike Stemler when he gets a rebound he can actually hold on to the ball and not let someone rip it right out of his hands. Look I will be honest when Stemler was brought in, he was supposed to be lights out from 3 point range. That is great but means nothing if he is scared to shoot the ball, no one else has a problem chucking threes up, why does he seem hesitant? Aside from Gordon and Basset he is shooting the 3 ball better than both Crawford and Ellis. Mike White for boards and defense, Stemler for hustle and offense. DeAndre if both of them need a break at the same time. I still would like to see more of Brandon McGee though.

Re: The Four Spot: Who ya got?

deedubbadoo — Wed, 30 Jan 2008 15:39:42 -0000

It should go White>Stemler>Thomas. Mike White maybe undersized but his strength is his redeeming quality. Unlike Stemler when he gets a rebound he can actually hold on to the ball and not let someone rip it right out of his hands. Look I will be honest when Stemler was brought in, he was supposed to be lights out from 3 point range. That is great but means nothing if he is scared to shoot the ball, no one else has a problem chucking threes up, why does he seem hesitant? Aside from Gordon and Basset is shooting the 3 ball better than both Crawford and Ellis. Mike White for boards and defense, Stemler for hustle and offense. DeAndre if both of them need a break at the same time. I still would like to see more of Brandon McGee though.

Re: The Four Spot: Who ya got?

kylehornsblyrules — Wed, 30 Jan 2008 15:26:28 -0000

I think we need to go with the 4 guard line up with dj alone. Make the other team adjust to us. crawford, gordon, bassett and ratliff. Those for need atleast 28 minutes a game

Re: The Four Spot: Who ya got?

Alan — Wed, 30 Jan 2008 15:20:20 -0000

Though I do not think Stemler has the toughness and strength needed to play down low he has to be my first choice because he can hit an open lay up, knock down the wide open trey on occasion and does hustle more then Dre. Second choice would have to be M. White, he can push people around wih his strength and has been a decent rebounder at times, no shot though even on bunnies. Dre really bothers me, missing two uncontested lay ups is unacceptable for a man of his size. I do not like his rebounding at all, does he ever get one, and can he even jump haven't seen much air between his feet and the floor all year. His size doesn't help much when he won't hustle, rebound or hit shots when asked to.

Re: The Four Spot: Who ya got?

Tom — Wed, 30 Jan 2008 13:51:29 -0000

white>thomas>stemler
i agree that we these guys should just concentrate on being gritty inside, we have others to do the scoring.

you know who i miss? jeff newton. i know it's random, but if we had someone like him this team would be so much better.

Re: The Four Spot: Who ya got?

SocksShortsSwish — Wed, 30 Jan 2008 13:44:11 -0000

We can't play 4 on 5 on offense, no matter how good the 4 we have are.

Re: The Four Spot: Who ya got?

Wed, 30 Jan 2008 13:02:26 -0000

I still like Mike White getting the bulk of the minutes.

That position isn't supposed to score. That's what Gordon, White, Ellis and Basset are for.

Mike White is the toughest and the best defender out of the three. If our offense is struggling to score, that's when Stemler or Big D can come in and help.

Right now i'd say the order of minutes should go White, Stemler, Big D

Re: The Four Spot: Who ya got?

TomCoverdale's Eyebrows — Wed, 30 Jan 2008 12:03:57 -0000

Just to add a little more:

The IndyStar report that "A wrist injury will not keep Indiana University star guard Eric Gordon off the court for Thursday's game against Wisconsin, his father said this morning. Gordon came down hard when going for a rebound in practice Tuesday and put his left (non-shooting) hand out to protect himself.
"He did injure his wrist, but there's no swelling," Eric Gordon Sr. said. "He's going to be able to play. What they'll probably do is put some protective padding on it, and he'll play." Gordon is the leading scorer in the Big Ten at 21.7 points per game.
IU (17-2, 6-0 Big Ten) leads the conference while Wisconsin (16-3, 6-1) is tied with Purdue and Michigan state for second. Gordon likely will have to play with protective padding for several weeks, his father said."

Re: The Four Spot: Who ya got?

Steve — Wed, 30 Jan 2008 12:02:19 -0000

my vote is none of the above. play McGee

Re: The Four Spot: Who ya got?

Quincy — Wed, 30 Jan 2008 11:59:35 -0000

The Indy Star is reporting that EJ fell in practice and caught him self with his non-shooting hand. Is is reportely ok to play against Wisconsin. He may wear a pad on it.
Now Lets Go take Bucky Badger Down!!!!

Re: The Four Spot: Who ya got?

Alex Bozich — Wed, 30 Jan 2008 11:40:14 -0000

Chris Engel from the basketblog just posted that he heard from J.D. Campbell, the media relations contact for IU hoops, and Campbell hasn't heard anything about Gordon being injured.

Re: The Four Spot: Who ya got?

kelin — Wed, 30 Jan 2008 11:24:33 -0000

My vote is still for DT...that is why we brought him here. I do not believe for one second this is the first time this kid has played against someone taller than he is. It is a matter of having a place in our offense and working "with" DJ. That simple...

These EJ rumors I have just hear about but it is simple to smash...has anyone seen him on campus with a freakin' caste on his arm? Someone speak up....

Screening 2008

Re: The Four Spot: Who ya got?

plane1972 — Wed, 30 Jan 2008 10:30:25 -0000

Mr_C,
Great minds think alike.
Good post!
plane1972

Re: The Four Spot: Who ya got?

plane1972 — Wed, 30 Jan 2008 10:28:35 -0000

There are 12 fouls to give between those three guys. It would have been nice to see some big bodies (that were not wearing the home whites) moved around in the paint during the UConn game. I don't want opponents to get injured playing us, but I want them to have some scrapes and bruises from being under the bucket. Certainly Kong and Dre can make their presence felt more around the basket. Let's just get tougher down low. That is the missing "identity" that Kelvin was constantly talking about last year. It's not there right now.

Re: The Four Spot: Who ya got?

Mr_C — Wed, 30 Jan 2008 10:28:28 -0000

I think the four man in our case should play with the great Ron Artest philosophy of "no layups". They need to come in and not look to foul, but make it hurt when they do -- especially against a guy like Thabeet who can't shoot charity shots. Also with the sheer size of MW and De, they should be setting more screens and jamming the lane. When it comes to the offense Lance is obviously the best bet. I like the physical play of MW, but he can't finish.

I heard that there is no break, just a hairline fracture.

Re: The Four Spot: Who ya got?

xxZPxx — Wed, 30 Jan 2008 09:57:56 -0000

I actually liked Mike Whites physical play at the beginning of the UCONN game but then he started taking shots. I think the 4 man needs to understand his role more than anything. When Mike White is in to guard bigger, physical players he needs to do just that. He comes up with big boards on occasion and his strength on defense can sometimes overcome the fact that he is not a great basketball player. On the offensive end he needs to only set screens and go for offensive rebounds. We should never throw him the ball in the post, ever. Lance should get the bulk of the minutes unless the other teams 4 man is huge. He is a smart enough player to understand what he can and cant do and the last few games he has been the least 4 man to make me agitated. Deandre Thomas, wow, I can not believe that he attempted a turn around jumper in that UCONN game and was not immediately taken out of the game. I just dont think he can play against most teams. He seems to hurt us more than help us and I think that brings me back to what Big A is saying. We dont need a whole lot from this position. The only time any of these players should attempt to score is when they have a wide open lay up or Lance has a wide open trey. And I mean wide open. Mike White going up for a contested shot is almost comical. So if these three can understand their purpose on this team and not do things they cant do than I think we can survive. However, the 4 position is without a doubt the main reason why we arent a top 5 team. Even though he was a relatively small 3-4, I miss Vaden more than ever this year.