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ccgeneral

(2015) C Thomas Bryant to IU

By ccgeneral, in Indiana Men's Basketball

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PointBlank    116

PointBlank
Posted

Is Bryant really a difference maker for IU? I am not too sure if he will see much of the ball offensively unless he has a stick back. Is he a vast improvement over an experienced HMP? Last year HMP only averaged 4 shots per game and how many of those were a result of his own offensive rebound? In my opinion, Yogi as the PG still does not include his teammates enough and the man down low is not a priority to him. Vonleh averaged 7 shots per game. Zeller naturally averaged more shots, but Yogi wasn't in control as much and Zeller had a much better supporting cast. Bryant is a consensus 4 star (very good) but I do not see him as the missing piece to get us further. He looked ordinary in the McDonalds game and looked good against a team not comprised entirely of McDonald players. Defense at the major college level is one of the hardest things for a player to comprehend and get right. Thon Maker is a different story if he were to come to IU and if they get him the ball.  

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Five Prime    1,093

Five Prime
Posted

Is Bryant really a difference maker for IU? I am not too sure if he will see much of the ball offensively unless he has a stick back. Is he a vast improvement over an experienced HMP? Last year HMP only averaged 4 shots per game and how many of those were a result of his own offensive rebound? In my opinion, Yogi as the PG still does not include his teammates enough and the man down low is not a priority to him. Vonleh averaged 7 shots per game. Zeller naturally averaged more shots, but Yogi wasn't in control as much and Zeller had a much better supporting cast. Bryant is a consensus 4 star (very good) but I do not see him as the missing piece to get us further. He looked ordinary in the McDonalds game and looked good against a team not comprised entirely of McDonald players. Defense at the major college level is one of the hardest things for a player to comprehend and get right. Thon Maker is a different story if he were to come to IU and if they get him the ball.


I can't imagine him not being an improvement defensively and rebounding over HMP. We have a gaping hole at the post position barring vast improvement by our current bigs.
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mdn82    25,510

mdn82
Posted

1857 posts. Have we reached Mosses Abraham levels yet? I would hate to have this many posts about a guy, only to ditch us in the last second. I hope he announces soon. I really think his decision has a barring on the Tom Crean decision.

Atleast this dude can bang.
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IUfan_Charlie    3,867

IUfan_Charlie
Posted

Is Bryant really a difference maker for IU? I am not too sure if he will see much of the ball offensively unless he has a stick back. Is he a vast improvement over an experienced HMP? Last year HMP only averaged 4 shots per game and how many of those were a result of his own offensive rebound? In my opinion, Yogi as the PG still does not include his teammates enough and the man down low is not a priority to him. Vonleh averaged 7 shots per game. Zeller naturally averaged more shots, but Yogi wasn't in control as much and Zeller had a much better supporting cast. Bryant is a consensus 4 star (very good) but I do not see him as the missing piece to get us further. He looked ordinary in the McDonalds game and looked good against a team not comprised entirely of McDonald players. Defense at the major college level is one of the hardest things for a player to comprehend and get right. Thon Maker is a different story if he were to come to IU and if they get him the ball.  

So are you saying that you don't want a MCDAA Center on the team?

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truthseeker    13

truthseeker
Posted

Is Bryant really a difference maker for IU? I am not too sure if he will see much of the ball offensively unless he has a stick back. Is he a vast improvement over an experienced HMP? Last year HMP only averaged 4 shots per game and how many of those were a result of his own offensive rebound? In my opinion, Yogi as the PG still does not include his teammates enough and the man down low is not a priority to him. Vonleh averaged 7 shots per game. Zeller naturally averaged more shots, but Yogi wasn't in control as much and Zeller had a much better supporting cast. Bryant is a consensus 4 star (very good) but I do not see him as the missing piece to get us further. He looked ordinary in the McDonalds game and looked good against a team not comprised entirely of McDonald players. Defense at the major college level is one of the hardest things for a player to comprehend and get right. Thon Maker is a different story if he were to come to IU and if they get him the ball.  

 

I'd argue his offensive production is somewhat irrelevant. You can say what you want about Crean (and there is a lot to say) but he is a good offensive coach (I base my opinion on what the numbers say and not aesthetics or preferred style), so the offense is not really an issue. 

 

The McDonald's All American point is silly. I don't think his performance in that game matters either way. However, let's compare his performance to Cody's performance in that game:

**Zeller - 15 minutes, 10 points (5/6 FG), 3 rebounds

**Bryant - 16 minutes, 9 points (4/5 FG), 3 rebounds

That said, I still don't think his performance in that game matters.

 

The defense is what matters. The problem with Hanner is his inability to rebound. He is not near the rebounder that Holt or Williams are. That is a problem. The biggest thing that he can do is rebound for us. From what I gather, this is probably where he will help the most in college. As the old adage goes, the defensive possession does not end until the rebound is grabbed.

 

Will a post with actual size solve all of our problems? No, the biggest defensive problem appears to be the perimeter defense at this point, but Bryant will be a big addition. From strictly a size standpoint, he will make it more difficult to just score over the top of him more difficult than what we throw out there at the 5 now (he is already taller and bigger than Hanner).

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Beachfront Property    619

Beachfront Property
Posted

Is Bryant really a difference maker for IU? I am not too sure if he will see much of the ball offensively unless he has a stick back. Is he a vast improvement over an experienced HMP? Last year HMP only averaged 4 shots per game and how many of those were a result of his own offensive rebound? In my opinion, Yogi as the PG still does not include his teammates enough and the man down low is not a priority to him. Vonleh averaged 7 shots per game. Zeller naturally averaged more shots, but Yogi wasn't in control as much and Zeller had a much better supporting cast. Bryant is a consensus 4 star (very good) but I do not see him as the missing piece to get us further. He looked ordinary in the McDonalds game and looked good against a team not comprised entirely of McDonald players. Defense at the major college level is one of the hardest things for a player to comprehend and get right. Thon Maker is a different story if he were to come to IU and if they get him the ball.  

Hey, I think you're exactly right. Many people have made Thomas Bryant into some sort of savior, but those expectations are unfair to him. He has the chance to be a very good player at IU. However, he is not going to come in and be Cody or Vonleh. On the defensive end, he can definitely help us but let's not forget that Perea has all the physical tools in the world and still doesn't have a clue how to play defense after 3 years in the program.

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PointBlank    116

PointBlank
Posted

I'd argue his offensive production is somewhat irrelevant. You can say what you want about Crean (and there is a lot to say) but he is a good offensive coach (I base my opinion on what the numbers say and not aesthetics or preferred style), so the offense is not really an issue. 

 

The McDonald's All American point is silly. I don't think his performance in that game matters either way. However, let's compare his performance to Cody's performance in that game:

**Zeller - 15 minutes, 10 points (5/6 FG), 3 rebounds

**Bryant - 16 minutes, 9 points (4/5 FG), 3 rebounds

That said, I still don't think his performance in that game matters.

 

The defense is what matters. The problem with Hanner is his inability to rebound. He is not near the rebounder that Holt or Williams are. That is a problem. The biggest thing that he can do is rebound for us. From what I gather, this is probably where he will help the most in college. As the old adage goes, the defensive possession does not end until the rebound is grabbed.

 

Will a post with actual size solve all of our problems? No, the biggest defensive problem appears to be the perimeter defense at this point, but Bryant will be a big addition. From strictly a size standpoint, he will make it more difficult to just score over the top of him more difficult than what we throw out there at the 5 now (he is already taller and bigger than Hanner).

 

Apples and oranges comparing Zeller and Bryant. Bryant couldn't carry Zeller's jock strap if they played at the same time. Zeller was a much more polished and complete player than Bryant. 

 

With the exception of Zeller, how has Crean noticeably developed any other IU center offensively? Some would argue even Zeller didn't progress as much offensively under Crean's system as expected.

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Alford Bailey    12,386

Alford Bailey
Posted

Apples and oranges comparing Zeller and Bryant. Bryant couldn't carry Zeller's jock strap if they played at the same time. Zeller was a much more polished and complete player than Bryant. 

 

With the exception of Zeller, how has Crean noticeably developed any other IU center offensively? Some would argue even Zeller didn't progress as much offensively under Crean's system as expected.

You are right. We need to ease up a little on expectations of Bryant next year.

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