We need basketball players. Not athletes that they feel 'might' turn into basketball players
It is 2018. The fact that every basketball team in every league in the free world is built around shooting the three and our coach is Chris Mullin yet our best / only decent shooter is a 6-7 240 pound guy is pretty ridiculous.
We have plenty of shooters. We don't have guys that can dribble to set them up. I don't understand why that's so difficult for you to see. Clark and Simon average a turnover every three dribbles inside the three-point line. It's a crazy team when you feel the second most confidence in a reckless kid like Ahmed handling in the lane. Clark, Simon, and Owens have no body control at all and their layups look like they are trying to smash an animal's head with a big rock. They have no chance of using a jump stop, slowing down, or changing direction.
Marillac , having met you I can honestly say you are a good guy and in the past I generally could see your point even if I didn't agree with it. So no disrespect meant when I say this year some of the stuff you are saying basketball wise is insane. Ponds thing has passed well into Carmine territory and your Simon hate is bizarre. He is clearly our 2nd best player. Flaws and all. Not even sure who could challenge that. A s far as shooting, UGH. Ponds is a very good player. Fun to watch and w/o him we might not score 25 points. He can't shoot. Statistically he is terrible and he also fails the eye test. Form is a disaster. Only guy whose outside shot I think can go in is a 6-7 guy who needs to be open with his feet completely set. I don't care if John Stockton and Magic Johnson's point guard love child came to play for us. No one is making this bunch good shooters.
Ponds just dropped 37 pts on over 50% shooting on the #1 team in the country. He did so being the only player on the team that can dribble the basketball, being forced to cover a future NBA player, and being required to be our best rebounder. His shooting mechanics are fine and his release is perfect. He front rims a lot of shots because he has no legs playing the entire game and carrying 4 dudes who can't control their bodies at all. It's a really bad sign when Ahmed is the second best dribbler inside the three point line.
Simon, Clark, and Owens take layups like they are trying to smash an animal's head with a large rock. None of those guys are capable of changing their pace or direction, utilizing a jump stop, or making a shot fake in the lane. Simon and Clark look like they are trying to throw a javelin 100 yards when they take "floaters."
Ponds just scored at will on Nova the second half and it wasn't enough because he made the mistake of passing the ball. Three times he had to get the ball back when Simon tried give it away. I think Simon's mistakes are so puzzling they catch teams off guard and his teammates are able to get it back.
Clark is shooting 43.8% on 4.1 attempts
Lovett was shooting 38.5% on 5.6 attempts
Ahmed is shooting 36% on 4.2 attempts
Owens is shooting 33.3% on 1.0 attempts
Trimble is shooting 30.0% on 2.4 attempts
Simon is shooting 50.0% on .7 attempts
And Ponds shot 38% last year on 6 attempts and has to be guarded at all
times this year regardless of his % (made three shots with his foot on the line at Nova). We're not losing because we can't shoot. We can't dribble.
Dwight Hardy shot 35.4% on 5.3 attempts when we made the tournament and he was universally considered oirnbest shooter then.