bluesaxe;842762613 said:
UCI isn't great, but they are well coached and played disciplined smart ball. Moore was amazing. Coming back from way down showed some serious poise.
The thing I love about Moore was at no time did he seem stressed. Made pressure free throws, was aggressive but under control, ran the plays and didn't get too crazy. I see the Randle comparisons, but Randle was never this in control as a frosh.
This team could be very good if they all get some time on the court together.
+100
What a great game by Charlie Moore. What I liked most about Moore in this game was he has brought the mid-range jumper back to Cal basketball, in bunches. I have written several times that in the modern game with defenders splitting their time guarding the rim or a post player and guarding the perimeter, there is this 10 foot or so wide semi-circular area between the three point line and the lane that often provides open looks for a jump shot. True, it is only worth two points instead of three, but the percentage of hitting an open mid-range jumper is quite a bit higher than the average percentage for an open 3 point shot. So why not take what the defense is giving you? In the Irvine game, that is exactly what Charlie Moore did.
I was also impressed by Moore's free throws. His mechanics were repeatable, and he was so calm under pressure. In fact, his facial expression is one of calm, and it never changed throughout the game, as far as I could tell on TV.
A better ball-handler than either Wallace or Brown. You don't have to worry about him bouncing the ball.
As to the assists question, you can win games against weak or average teams with few assists (Cal had 8) and a big game from a star player, but night in, night out, against PAC12 teams and better, you need some more sharing of the ball to be a great team. Nothing wrong with Moore not getting assists in early games, especially when he is working with a group that did not include the primary players he will be making passes to in upcoming games: Rabb, Bird, and Mullns.
This is one game, a great one for Moore, which followed two so-so games, by all reports. Now we know something of which he is capable at this level, and we only need to see if he can be fairly consistent, night in and night out. Another question I have is how he will fit in when Rabb, Bird, and Mullins return to action. You will then have 4 players who need the ball to be successful, and you need two or three of them to be successful when you play the better teams. So how will Moore react to a role where he takes fewer shots and has the ball less than he did in the Irvine game? And when he shoots fewer shots, will his shot still be consistent? Finally, how will Moore (and Cuonzo) react when opponents get video of Moore and scheme to stop him, especially his mid-range game?
This is in no way critical. Only to say that we have only seen a part of his game so far, and we will see more of it in the games to come. I am excited to see how he does in the next few games and how he will develop over the season and his career.
