Tobe Okafor - C - Maine Central Institute - Pittsfield, ME

Quote from: ras on May 21, 2012, 06:42:16 PM

Quote from: Poison on May 21, 2012, 06:37:46 PM

Quote from: Lapchick65 on May 21, 2012, 06:29:05 PM

I agree that Gift can play in the BE.  I think we'll see great things out of him next year.

Who did he play well against? Depaul?

Ironically he played great against Kentucky. I dont think he will be great next year ,but will provide valuable minutes off the bench.

That's the thing, he didn't play well against UK. Actually no one did. Gift started scoring points once the game was completely out of hand. It's like hitting a home run when your team is down by 15 runs. In the box score it looks good. If UK had any interest in stopping Gift they clearly could have, but it was pointless to bother doing it.

Sorry but your wrong. I was at the game and we were so outsized it was unreal. It looked like kids amongst men.

Gift played well against UK. Everyone who sat in our section was saying so.

Quote from: Dave on May 21, 2012, 03:21:33 PM

Really nice kid who was really under the radar last summer but he's no way near a Big East player.

All the big boys mentioned with him must feel they have room to take a chance and see if he blossoms.  That's if they are in fact really on him.

Were they mentioned with him in the fall?

Stock always rises in the spring for big men, doesn't mean their talent does.

Quote from: Moose on May 21, 2012, 03:40:41 PM

Quote from: Dave on May 21, 2012, 03:21:33 PM

Really nice kid who was really under the radar last summer but he's no way near a Big East player.

All the big boys mentioned with him must feel they have room to take a chance and see if he blossoms.  That's if they are in fact really on him.

 

Stock always rises in the spring for big men, doesn't mean their talent does.

Kind of like Big Girls at bars late in the night.

They always look better than they did early in the evening

Gift is a Big East player, he isn't an All-League player, but he has enough quality attributes to be a contributing scholarship player.

Quote from: Dave on May 21, 2012, 08:48:15 PM

Quote from: Moose on May 21, 2012, 03:40:41 PM

Quote from: Dave on May 21, 2012, 03:21:33 PM

Really nice kid who was really under the radar last summer but he's no way near a Big East player.

All the big boys mentioned with him must feel they have room to take a chance and see if he blossoms.  That's if they are in fact really on him.

 

Stock always rises in the spring for big men, doesn't mean their talent does.

Kind of like Big Girls at bars late in the night.

They always look better than they did early in the evening

At least guys have an excuse that they were drunk in this case.

Quote from: mjmaherjr on May 21, 2012, 08:50:09 PM

Quote from: Dave on May 21, 2012, 08:48:15 PM

Quote from: Moose on May 21, 2012, 03:40:41 PM

Quote from: Dave on May 21, 2012, 03:21:33 PM

Really nice kid who was really under the radar last summer but he's no way near a Big East player.

All the big boys mentioned with him must feel they have room to take a chance and see if he blossoms.  That's if they are in fact really on him.

Stock always rises in the spring for big men, doesn't mean their talent does.

Kind of like Big Girls at bars late in the night.

They always look better than they did early in the evening

At least guys have an excuse that they were drunk in this case.

However Lavin did get Ryan Hollins very late, who previous to that had a "best" offer (and committment) of St. Louis.....
 

Quote from: Moose on May 21, 2012, 03:40:41 PM

Quote from: Dave on May 21, 2012, 03:21:33 PM

Really nice kid who was really under the radar last summer but he's no way near a Big East player.

All the big boys mentioned with him must feel they have room to take a chance and see if he blossoms.  That's if they are in fact really on him.

Were they mentioned with him in the fall?

Stock always rises in the spring for big men, doesn't mean their talent does.

I know.  Thats why on the Redmen.com thread where it was posted about the bigger schools on him I mentioned how this is why I like stashing ships.  Big schools see something now that wasn't seen in the fall.  Take a flier.  If it works great, if not no harm.  We right now might 'need' a big man like him if Chandler can't make it here.

Quote from: Dave on May 21, 2012, 08:51:36 PM

Quote from: mjmaherjr on May 21, 2012, 08:50:09 PM

Quote from: Dave on May 21, 2012, 08:48:15 PM

Quote from: Moose on May 21, 2012, 03:40:41 PM

Quote from: Dave on May 21, 2012, 03:21:33 PM

Really nice kid who was really under the radar last summer but he's no way near a Big East player.

All the big boys mentioned with him must feel they have room to take a chance and see if he blossoms.  That's if they are in fact really on him.

Stock always rises in the spring for big men, doesn't mean their talent does.

Kind of like Big Girls at bars late in the night.

They always look better than they did early in the evening

At least guys have an excuse that they were drunk in this case.

However Lavin did get Ryan Hollins very late, who previous to that had a "best" offer (and committment) of St. Louis.....
 

I'm not saying there isn't talent left in the spring but there are plenty more mistakes that are made in the spring.

It's also two fold. It's a mistake by the school as well as the player. If a school reaches and never use the player they wasted a scholarship and for the player he might not be happy never seeing the floor.

I think Tobe would be a tremendous fit in the NEC, Patriot, American East, or MAAC. If he's improved some more then maybe the CAA too.

 What it ends boiling down to is what's your philosophy.  When height/size is an issue, do you a) Grab what you can for the sake of adding some beef/length, or B) just keep grabbing athletic players who fit your system.


 

Kind of like Big Girls at bars late in the night.

They always look better than they did early in the evening

Ah, memories.

Quote from: Poison on May 21, 2012, 06:54:43 PM

Quote from: ras on May 21, 2012, 06:42:16 PM

Quote from: Poison on May 21, 2012, 06:37:46 PM

Quote from: Lapchick65 on May 21, 2012, 06:29:05 PM

I agree that Gift can play in the BE.  I think we'll see great things out of him next year.

Who did he play well against? Depaul?

Ironically he played great against Kentucky. I dont think he will be great next year ,but will provide valuable minutes off the bench.

That's the thing, he didn't play well against UK. Actually no one did. Gift started scoring points once the game was completely out of hand. It's like hitting a home run when your team is down by 15 runs. In the box score it looks good. If UK had any interest in stopping Gift they clearly could have, but it was pointless to bother doing it.

Sorry but your wrong. I was at the game and we were so outsized it was unreal. It looked like kids amongst men.

Gift played well against UK. Everyone who sat in our section was saying so.

How does being at the game give you more of an understanding of how he played than watching it on TV? The point is that unless he makes dramatic improvement, he shouldn't be getting significant minutes here. I hope he graduates and wins a Nobel Peace prize, but come back to earth, he was lost last year.

We are hoping that he plays and learns this summer, but that is asking a lot.

How does being at the game give you more of an understanding of how he played than watching it on TV?

It makes a huge difference.  Just ask Bobre

Quote from: mjmaherjr on May 21, 2012, 08:33:44 PM

Quote from: Poison on May 21, 2012, 06:54:43 PM

Quote from: ras on May 21, 2012, 06:42:16 PM

Quote from: Poison on May 21, 2012, 06:37:46 PM

Quote from: Lapchick65 on May 21, 2012, 06:29:05 PM

I agree that Gift can play in the BE.  I think we'll see great things out of him next year.

Who did he play well against? Depaul?

Ironically he played great against Kentucky. I dont think he will be great next year ,but will provide valuable minutes off the bench.

That's the thing, he didn't play well against UK. Actually no one did. Gift started scoring points once the game was completely out of hand. It's like hitting a home run when your team is down by 15 runs. In the box score it looks good. If UK had any interest in stopping Gift they clearly could have, but it was pointless to bother doing it.

Sorry but your wrong. I was at the game and we were so outsized it was unreal. It looked like kids amongst men.

Gift played well against UK. Everyone who sat in our section was saying so.

How does being at the game give you more of an understanding of how he played than watching it on TV? The point is that unless he makes dramatic improvement, he shouldn't be getting significant minutes here. I hope he graduates and wins a Nobel Peace prize, but come back to earth, he was lost last year.

We are hoping that he plays and learns this summer, but that is asking a lot.

Because apparently everyone who was at the game saw something you didnt.

Gift actually looked small compared to the Kentucky front line. He definitely played well that day. He showed up that day and had a lot of fire. Kentucky fans were even impressed by him

Quote from: Poison on May 22, 2012, 08:53:57 AM

Quote from: mjmaherjr on May 21, 2012, 08:33:44 PM

Quote from: Poison on May 21, 2012, 06:54:43 PM

Quote from: ras on May 21, 2012, 06:42:16 PM

Quote from: Poison on May 21, 2012, 06:37:46 PM

Quote from: Lapchick65 on May 21, 2012, 06:29:05 PM

I agree that Gift can play in the BE.  I think we'll see great things out of him next year.

Who did he play well against? Depaul?

Ironically he played great against Kentucky. I dont think he will be great next year ,but will provide valuable minutes off the bench.

That's the thing, he didn't play well against UK. Actually no one did. Gift started scoring points once the game was completely out of hand. It's like hitting a home run when your team is down by 15 runs. In the box score it looks good. If UK had any interest in stopping Gift they clearly could have, but it was pointless to bother doing it.

Sorry but your wrong. I was at the game and we were so outsized it was unreal. It looked like kids amongst men.

Gift played well against UK. Everyone who sat in our section was saying so.

How does being at the game give you more of an understanding of how he played than watching it on TV? The point is that unless he makes dramatic improvement, he shouldn't be getting significant minutes here. I hope he graduates and wins a Nobel Peace prize, but come back to earth, he was lost last year.

We are hoping that he plays and learns this summer, but that is asking a lot.

Because apparently everyone who was at the game saw something you didnt.

Gift actually looked small compared to the Kentucky front line. He definitely played well that day. He showed up that day and had a lot of fire. Kentucky fans were even impressed by him

Again, I wish only good things for him. I hope he improves tremendously this summer, and makes 3rd team all BE, but he needs a ton of work. He doesn't know the game. It moves too fast for him. How many times did we see him just freeze with the ball? I don't think you can tell very much from a game where Gift scored 18 points in a blow out loss. Darryl Hill used to do that with regularity. It's didn't mean much. UK, Marq, SU and Co can let one or two guys score points once it's a 35 point game does it really matter?

Give GIft a chance. He was a one man big man show last year.

Quote from: Poison on May 22, 2012, 08:53:57 AM

How does being at the game give you more of an understanding of how he played than watching it on TV?

It makes a huge difference.  Just ask Bobre

You're learning.  It'd be nice if scouts could stay home but it just doesn't work that way.

Quote from: Moose on May 22, 2012, 08:57:41 AM

Quote from: Poison on May 22, 2012, 08:53:57 AM

How does being at the game give you more of an understanding of how he played than watching it on TV?

It makes a huge difference.  Just ask Bobre

You're learning.  It'd be nice if scouts could stay home but it just doesn't work that way.

That's why I actually go and watch these kids play HS and AAU.  So I don't watch a highlight video and wax poetic.

Quote from: bobre45 on May 22, 2012, 12:52:40 PM

Quote from: Moose on May 22, 2012, 08:57:41 AM

Quote from: Poison on May 22, 2012, 08:53:57 AM

How does being at the game give you more of an understanding of how he played than watching it on TV?

It makes a huge difference.  Just ask Bobre

You're learning.  It'd be nice if scouts could stay home but it just doesn't work that way.

That's why I actually go and watch these kids play HS and AAU.  So I don't watch a highlight video and wax poetic.

True, but there's a difference between what you do - seeing recruits in person rather than just highlights, and watching a full game in person and watching a full game on tv.   You're not missing as much when you see a full game, even if it's on tv.   

As far as Gift goes, to me it's this simple - I may think I'm a basketball-wiz, but our coaches get paid for their acumen and I respect them a lot.  As the season wore on, they saw more of Gift, and even though we were losing players (Nuri, Stith) they chose to play Gift less and less.  They would rather have an all freshmen frontline of 6'8, 6'6, 6'5 than play Gift major minutes.  That tells me a lot.

From my own perspective I think it was clear that once teams saw a game video of him, and realized he wraps his arm around the defender when he spins... that was all the scouting they needed to know.  It took away Gift's best offensive move. 

As for the Kentucky game, I do think he played more aggressively.  And his aggressiveness on the boards was only half the reason that was his best night of the year... to me the big reason he was more effective that night than most was that he didn't turn the ball over.  One game later against Detroit he had 5 or 6 turnovers.   That habit of dribbling the ball off your foot can be a killer.

IMO Dave hit the nail on the head; Gift is a contributor at this level but not difference maker.   And that's ok.     

Quote from: Moose on May 22, 2012, 01:05:26 PM

Quote from: bobre45 on May 22, 2012, 12:52:40 PM

Quote from: Moose on May 22, 2012, 08:57:41 AM

Quote from: Poison on May 22, 2012, 08:53:57 AM

How does being at the game give you more of an understanding of how he played than watching it on TV?

It makes a huge difference.  Just ask Bobre

You're learning.  It'd be nice if scouts could stay home but it just doesn't work that way.

That's why I actually go and watch these kids play HS and AAU.  So I don't watch a highlight video and wax poetic.

True, but there's a difference between what you do - seeing recruits in person rather than just highlights, and watching a full game in person and watching a full game on tv.   You're not missing as much when you see a full game, even if it's on tv.   

As far as Gift goes, to me it's this simple - I may think I'm a basketball-wiz, but our coaches get paid for their acumen and I respect them a lot.  As the season wore on, they saw more of Gift, and even though we were losing players (Nuri, Stith) they chose to play Gift less and less.  They would rather have an all freshmen frontline of 6'8, 6'6, 6'5 than play Gift major minutes.  That tells me a lot.

From my own perspective I think it was clear that once teams saw a game video of him, and realized he wraps his arm around the defender when he spins... that was all the scouting they needed to know.  It took away Gift's best offensive move. 

As for the Kentucky game, I do think he played more aggressively.  And his aggressiveness on the boards was only half the reason that was his best night of the year... to me the big reason he was more effective that night than most was that he didn't turn the ball over.  One game later against Detroit he had 5 or 6 turnovers.   That habit of dribbling the ball off your foot can be a killer.

IMO Dave hit the nail on the head; Gift is a contributor at this level but not difference maker.   And that's ok.     

+1

Quote from: Moose on May 22, 2012, 01:05:26 PM

Quote from: bobre45 on May 22, 2012, 12:52:40 PM

Quote from: Moose on May 22, 2012, 08:57:41 AM

Quote from: Poison on May 22, 2012, 08:53:57 AM

How does being at the game give you more of an understanding of how he played than watching it on TV?

It makes a huge difference.  Just ask Bobre

You're learning.  It'd be nice if scouts could stay home but it just doesn't work that way.

That's why I actually go and watch these kids play HS and AAU.  So I don't watch a highlight video and wax poetic.

True, but there's a difference between what you do - seeing recruits in person rather than just highlights, and watching a full game in person and watching a full game on tv.   You're not missing as much when you see a full game, even if it's on tv.   

I know.  Not sure if you knew where I was coming from but Bobre has a propensity to attack some of our fans who are displaced and not in the NYC area and can't come to games.  A full game is a full game no matter where your watching it.  As for HS and AAU yes there are more and more games on TV each year which is awesome.  But still more than not are not televised and seeing those games in person trumps the Ball is Life quick hitters.