Lindy's Sports IU Preseason #4

[Old Friend 8,389]

Not productive?

Basically...no.  154 points and 100 rebounds in a season is not very productive.  He's a body.  He's not going to do much.

[Old Friend 8,389]

 I've seen Morgan play and he actually handles his self pretty well in the post.

My point was we shouldn't have to rely on Hartman and Yogi to defend the post this year.We had zero options last year.

He's still a freshman, and he's still only 6'7".   He may be fine at the high school or AAU level, but against 21-22 year old Big Ten post players?  I don't think so, yet.

[The Ola Depot 1,213]

I see people saying that realistically we won't be as good defensively because we've only added a true freshman. Did anyone ever think, maybe, just maybe, the players we still have from last year actually got better. I know most will agree Crean isn't the best coach, but he's not stupid enough to not focus on a glaring weakness as this. That sandpit we got is going to do wonders. Their horizontal quickness is going to be so much faster.

[Josh 12,747]

I see people saying that realistically we won't be as good defensively because we've only added a true freshman. Did anyone ever think, maybe, just maybe, the players we still have from last year actually got better. I know most will agree Crean isn't the best coach, but he's not stupid enough to not focus on a glaring weakness as this. That sandpit we got is going to do wonders. Their horizontal quickness is going to be so much faster.

This.  Some people will insist that the coaching staff can't see this, but the truth is they can't see it themselves.

[MikeRoberts 7,329]

I see people saying that realistically we won't be as good defensively because we've only added a true freshman. Did anyone ever think, maybe, just maybe, the players we still have from last year actually got better. I know most will agree Crean isn't the best coach, but he's not stupid enough to not focus on a glaring weakness as this. That sandpit we got is going to do wonders. Their horizontal quickness is going to be so much faster.

maybe:)

Nobody is saying we won't be better defensively. Nobody is saying Bryant won't help, Crean doesn't realize we suck at D or that our tenured players won't get better. What people are saying is that Crean isn't known for being a defensive mind, Bryant is only one guy and a freshman at that and the tenured players are not likely to go from horrible to good over the summer. Better is an improvement but to be as good as Lindys predicted us to be, we need to be great and it's just not very likely given what we have and what we know about our defense

[HoosierD 504]

The excuse about not having enough rim protection to pressure full-court is BS. I thought all year that a press would force some guys to be involved more and make them defend, but all we heard was a lack of rim protection. When you have a team that is athletic and long, to me that adds up to wanting to extend your pressure. Hopefully we can see more of that, and I really believe the more we see, the better our defense will be.

[Brass Cannon 24,982]

I think Yogis height and JBJs lack of D would have doomed a press. Bryant brings a dimension to improve both offense and defense. If we see a significant notable improvement to D we could easily be a top 10 team v

[MikeRoberts 7,329]

I think Yogis height and JBJs lack of D would have doomed a press. Bryant brings a dimension to improve both offense and defense. If we see a significant notable improvement to D we could easily be a top 10 team v

yes, if. what side of the debate are you on? Do you think with the pieces we have we will improve from the 214th best D to top 50? I say top 50 because very few top teams fall outside of the top 50

[Brass Cannon 24,982]

I would say top 75 but then because of our offense be one of the few exceptions you spoke of

[Alford Bailey 12,424]

I would say top 75 but then because of our offense be one of the few exceptions you spoke of

Thats a huge improvement

[Brass Cannon 24,982]

Yes it is. But a competent big man can be a big part of that. Sellers first year he helped us jump over a 100 spots.

Bryant's precense and our comparably more athletic team now than then could see an ever more dramatic jump.

[Alford Bailey 12,424]

Just took a quick glance at Lindys preseason top ten kenpom adj.D from last year. 8 were top 50, Iowa. St. was 71 and IU 214.

[MikeRoberts 7,329]

Yes it is. But a competent big man can be a big part of that. Sellers first year he helped us jump over a 100 spots.

Bryant's precense and our comparably more athletic team now than then could see an ever more dramatic jump.

that would still put us at 114 assuming that same level of lift. It's virtually impossible to be a top 4 team like Lindys predicts and be that bad at D. That's what we are trying to say. Nobody is saying we won't improve, we better, just not expecting to see improvement like no one has ever seen before

[Uspshoosier 47,111]

that would still put us at 114 assuming that same level of lift. It's virtually impossible to be a top 4 team like Lindys predicts and be that bad at D. That's what we are trying to say. Nobody is saying we won't improve, we better, just not expecting to see improvement like no one has ever seen before

in 2012-13 kentucky started the season as a preseason top 5 team in the country and ended that season with the 129th rated defense. Whicita state on the hand wasn't in the preseason top 25 or on anyone's rader and made the final 4 and had a top 20 defense. Preseason rankings are fun to look at but really don't mean much in the grand scheme of things. Curious to see that syracuse team that beat us in the tourney was a preseason top 8 team that year

[Brass Cannon 24,982]

that would still put us at 114 assuming that same level of lift. It's virtually impossible to be a top 4 team like Lindys predicts and be that bad at D. That's what we are trying to say. Nobody is saying we won't improve, we better, just not expecting to see improvement like no one has ever seen before

Yeah the rest of the jump would be our freshman starters gaining experience and maturing. Troy playing D to prove to the NBA he can play D and a deeper bench of quality players.

[Old Friend 8,389]

I see people saying that realistically we won't be as good defensively because we've only added a true freshman. Did anyone ever think, maybe, just maybe, the players we still have from last year actually got better. I know most will agree Crean isn't the best coach, but he's not stupid enough to not focus on a glaring weakness as this. That sandpit we got is going to do wonders. Their horizontal quickness is going to be so much faster.

I would agree with you if we had players with the right makeup.   You cannot simply work on defense and hope to get better.  You have to be stronger.  You have to have an attitude.  You have to be physical.  You have to understand positioning, rotations, and pay attention to where other teams try to exploit you.  You can't change defenses in the middle of a possession.   You can't spend half your time in man and half your time in different zones.  You have to know how to help and help/recover.  You have to play without fouling.   (Some of that is coaching....and we still have the same coach who over-thinks it all the time)

 

Indiana is weak defensively.  They have been since Oladipo and Zeller left, and those two covered up a lot.  I think Indiana can improve because they are older and perhaps stronger.  Maybe they're better able to deal with physical teams than they were, but we still don't have a perimeter defender who can take away penetration.   We don't know if we can play without fouling.  We don't yet know if we can protect the rim.  And we don't know if we can stop transition.   Getting better at defense takes more than the lip service to say you're going to, and until I see a concerted team effort to be better, I'm going to assume that it will be "marginally" due to maturity.   Yogi, for example, has had 3 years to "get better," and he's only improved marginally.   Because of experience and age.  The steps need to be bigger than that.   Here's hoping.

[Bobman1 2,909]

I'm disappointed they stopped making the snapchats of the workouts. I loved watching them. But as far as the team goes, I agree with Ola Depot, you would have to have mental problems, to not focus on defense this summer. Crean might be mental, but he can't be that stupid. I expect a defense anywhere from Top 50 to Top 200

[Yogi'sBicep 1,048]

Gotta score to win you know

Glad we can put the ball in the bucket.

No D is better than no O, other teams can get cold and then we don't even need it :)

[HoosierTrav 7,928]

You know what I'd be interested in seeing? How many teams have had a terrible defense while having a truly elite offense (Top 3 in nation) and what type of finish are they capable of? I suspect that there aren't many teams that have been in this position. I think our defense is going to improve drastically. We will be a top 75 defense IMO and  possibly the top offense in the country. I'm excited for this season. I just hope our fans dont carry over their boos from last year. If that's how the fan support turns out for these boys to start, then we arent giving them much incentive to give it their all going forward.

[recker222000 1,010]

I don't know about you, but I am looking forward to a run for a title this year.

I could not agree more and I expect 30 plus wins. Mr Bryant is just what we needed to become a legit top 5 team. He is a beast!

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