Cobbs is playing summer ball at the Say No Classic, a league for college players down in SoCal.

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Justin Cobbs (CAL) killed once again this week as he dropped 24 points and was virtually unstoppable. Last week J Cobbs as I call him concentrated on getting his teammates more involved as he had more options to dish the ball to playing with David and Travis Wear (UCLA) and Orlando Johnson (UCSB). With none of those players playing today J Cobbs was aggressive from the jump and willed his team to the win. It seemed like on every play Cobbs was able to break the defense down and drive to the rim for layups. Before I forget let me mention one more thing, THIS GUY IS REALLY FAST. Justin Cobbs will have to sit out one year after transferring from Minnesota but will be eligible for the 2012-13 season as a redshirt sophomore. If the Pac-10 freshmen of the year Allen Crabbe stays around for his junior year the Cal Golden Bears could be very dangerous in the new Pac-12 conference.

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Obviously, Cobbs will be eligible THIS coming season, but it's nice that he's doing pretty well.

We really suffered against the faster point guards last year. Now if he can put up points when people actually play D, I will be on the Cal should be favored in the the Pac XII bandwagon.

gobears88;523138 said:

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We really suffered against the faster point guards last year. Now if he can put up points when people actually play D, I will be on the Cal should be favored in the the Pac XII bandwagon.

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Obviously, it's summer league ball and defenses aren't as organized but the kids play hard. It's not that matador sh*t you see, for the most part. These kids are all trying to get better. Recent NBA draftees Derrick Williams, Klay Thompson, Tyler Honeycutt, Malcolm Lee, Darius Morris, etc. played in the Say No last summer. And guys like James Harden, Russell Westbrook, Darren Collison, Taj Gibson, etc. all played in SayNo in previous years.

Are Crabbe and Solomon (or any of our other players) playing in any summer league events? No one's at the Pro-Am this year, so I'm wondering what everyone is doing during the offseason.

Impressive stuff, Mr. Cobbs. That's a real high level of competition and he's tearing it up. Shooting at a high level, tons of assists and very, very few TOs.

Funny thing is that most Cal players see him as an elite defender as well.

tsuba, did Cobbs display an outside shot in his offensive repertoire?

Cobbs
Guttierez
Crabbe
Solomon
Kamp

Is looking like the best starting five in the conference.

Just need one or two big men to develop into adequate reserves deserving of PT.

calumnus;523517 said:

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Cobbs
Guttierez
Crabbe
Solomon
Kamp

Is looking like the best starting five in the conference.

Just need one or two big men to develop into adequate reserves deserving of PT.

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Maybe. Weak link is Solomon until we know he has a back to the basket game and a steady jumper. Otherwise the spacing will be all out of whack--we might have to go to a 1-4 set like we did in 09-10.

UCLA's probably got us beat. Jones, Lamb, Lane, Nelson, Smith will be quite potent, especially if Smith really makes strides--NO ONE on Cal can guard him straight up.

LessMilesMoreTedford;523541 said:

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Maybe. Weak link is Solomon until we know he has a back to the basket game and a steady jumper. Otherwise the spacing will be all out of whack--we might have to go to a 1-4 set like we did in 09-10.

UCLA's probably got us beat. Jones, Lamb, Lane, Nelson, Smith will be quite potent, especially if Smith really makes strides--NO ONE on Cal can guard him straight up.

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Cobbs is playing with the Wear twins and just by the box scores, they look like they could contribute to UCLA also.

The blogger edited after getting corrected. Now:

"...THIS GUY IS REALLY FAST. Justin Cobbs has sat a year after transferring from Minnesota and will be eligible for the 2011-12 season as a redshirt sophomore. Team Cobbs with Allen Crabbe the PAC 10 freshman of the year and you have a very dangerous team."

drunkoski;524485 said:

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please please please let this be accurate

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If Cobbs is not only solid but in fact really good (which is hard to say based on the fact that he didn't exactly set the house on fire at Minnesota), this could be a really fun season. I also hope Rossi is the gunner that we think he is. These two guys could mask our lack of depth in the front court.

A few posters scoffed a few months ago when I opined that our "Big Three" (Gut, Kamp, Crabbe) might actually be a "Big Four", i.e. guys you want to have on the court more than 30 min. per game. And, of course, it was somewhat speculation (even wishful thinking) on my part, which is why I described Cobbs as an "X factor".

(Yes, if RS continues to emerge, we could have a "Big Five"!)

Cobbs seems like the kind of player that might be able to slide over to the off-guard spot for 10 mpg, too, which would enable Brandon Smith to get the minutes he probably will deserve.

I'm feeling really optimistic about the upcoming season!
Go Bears!

Cobbs practiced with the team during his transfer sit-out year in Berkeley, and our players' sporadic comments about Justin's game were very encouraging. Of course, Cobbs was a highly-regarded player at Bishop Montgomery HS, and was a teammate of Richard Solomon's before the latter transferred to Price HS for his senior year. The reports from the "Say No" League seem to confirm Cobbs "has game". I think Cobbs will be the Bears' PG catalyst this season. He'll benefit greatly from the European Tour.

Can't wait for the season to start!

Cal played much of last season with no real 2G. Jorge was the listed 2G but really Cal just played with 2 guards. Much of the penetration and dishing was done by Jorge. Brandon often found himself with somewhat open to wide open looks from the perimeter as Jorge would drive the ball. Brandon was used to bring the ball up but Jorge often would initiate half court offense. And Jorge was the guy the Bears went to late in the shot clock, as he was one of the few Bears able to get his own shot.

I expect Cal to play 3-4 guards this season as Smith , Cobbs and Jorge all can play PG to some degree or another. Murray is a good athlete and should get some time as well and Cal could go 3 guards at times. The Bears will not be deep in the frontcourt so their one advantage will be backcourt depth. Cobbs is a good player, but I would be careful into reading too much about his summer league performances as an idicator of college performance.

6956bear;524865 said:

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but I would be careful into reading too much about his summer league performances as an idicator of college performance.

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You're way off, man.

Sincerely,

Guy who gets excited by youtube highlights of prospects

I expect Cobbs to be good. But he has not played in a college game for over a year. Summer league games are an indicator of talent. But how that talent projects into a team environment in actual games is different. My point was and is I expect Cobbs to be good, but it may take a while to become consistent game performance. It may not.

I believe in my post I said Cobbs is a good player. I just do not expect him to become an instant star because he can score points in a defenseless summer league. Not saying he won't be, just saying it would be wise to temper the enthusiasm initially.

Sincerely,

Guy who gets excited by summer league performances.

6956bear;525621 said:

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.. just saying it would be wise to temper the enthusiasm initially.

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No way! Summer is much more fun with unrealistic expectations. You just have to be sure to have plenty of rationalizations and justifications handy when things don't work out.

This thread contains a mention by LessMiles that Richard may be a weak link. If Richard has not developed well enough for the Fall, we may have another option -- Kravish to me showed some encouraging possibilites in his recent highlight videos. I know video highlights have their limitations, but Kravish was swishing jumpers from all around the paint, and with his height and extention, he easily was able to get his shot off. Now, if he can focus on getting tougher inside and bang away on the boards, we may have something sooner rather than later!

He will be an excellent partner for Kamp. Remember, early on, Monty said he felt RS had the greatest NBA potential of his super recruiting class. He will be our most improved player with weight work, maturity and coaching. He may not be done growing. He may stay longer than Crabbe, and may prove to be a more successful pro.:Monty:gobears:

Does anyone know how Cobbs did this weekend? I did a quick search, and didn't see any recaps anywhere.

cmfan64;526002 said:

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He will be an excellent partner for Kamp. Remember, early on, Monty said he felt RS had the greatest NBA potential of his super recruiting class. He will be our most improved player with weight work, maturity and coaching. He may not be done growing. He may stay longer than Crabbe, and may prove to be a more successful pro.:Monty:gobears:

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He could. If he's willing to work.

LOUMFSG2;529460 said:

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Does anyone know how Cobbs did this weekend? I did a quick search, and didn't see any recaps anywhere.

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I don't know, but I saw this post from callove1 on the PG Position Battle blog:

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callove1
justin cobbs will start no doubt about it.best passer ,defender,penetrator , shooter ,pure pg .team loves playing with him ,makes every one around him better,natural leader. saw him this weekend in sayno had 29 pts 7 asst 4 steals on arizona pg fogge,sunday scored 23 pts 9 ast,2 steals ,battling againt ucla pg jones,josh smith got 3 fouls trying to guard him in pick and roll.has a pro style game loves to play pick and roll and penetrate and dish to open team mates.might be best pure pg in country.will be a very good year for cal bears.

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RicoRico;529766 said:

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I don't know, but I saw this post from callove1 on the PG Position Battle blog:

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I would be more impressed if that blog post came from bruinlove1 instead.

KoreAmBear;529867 said:

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I would be more impressed if that blog post came from bruinlove1 instead.

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http://www.saynoclassic.com/schedule/boxscore/week3/la/day001game005.html

http://www.saynoclassic.com/schedule/boxscore/week3/la/day002game003.html

buster99;529910 said:

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http://www.saynoclassic.com/schedule/boxscore/week3/la/day001game005.html

http://www.saynoclassic.com/schedule/boxscore/week3/la/day002game003.html

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I wasn't saying those aren't real stats. But man, come to think of it, that's doggone impressive. Esp. since no one else's stats on Cobb's team are blown up from those two games (maybe Orlando Johnson of UCSB who had 19 in the first game).

RicoRico;529766 said:

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I don't know, but I saw this post from callove1 on the PG Position Battle blog:

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He's probably the most talented guard on the team -- and that includes Jorge. A contact of mine down there feels that he's the guy that will get Cal over the top and help them win the league title. Respects to Smitty, but I dont see him winning this battle.

KoreAmBear;529913 said:

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I wasn't saying those aren't real stats. But man, come to think of it, that's doggone impressive. Esp. since no one else's stats on Cobb's team are blown up from those two games (maybe Orlando Johnson of UCSB who had 19 in the first game).

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Cobbs may be doing most of the scoring, but he is also doing most of the shooting. What jumps out at me though are all the free throws he is getting. Justin and Jorge could be the most aggressive back-court Cal has seen in awhile.

this is not in a structured offense, and no coaches are tugging his cape, but what these stats say to me is that is not a spot up shooter. You're right he took lots of shots, but only 4 from behind the arc in 3 games. Maybe that's not his game.

HOWEVER, he sure looks to be a scorer. From all those free throws he got, looks like he drives hard and either scores or gets fouled. Hopefully some of those makes are from pull up jumpers too.

And I do agree that if Cobbs is as aggressive on defense as he is on offense, then we've got a fierce perimeter defense. Looks like Monty will use less zone and let these two loose.

Civil Bear;529925 said:

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Cobbs may be doing most of the scoring, but he is also doing most of the shooting. What jumps out at me though are all the free throws he is getting. Justin and Jorge could be the most aggressive back-court Cal has seen in awhile.

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HoopDreams;529936 said:

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this is not in a structured offense, and no coaches are tugging his cape, but what these stats say to me is that is not a spot up shooter. You're right he took lots of shots, but only 4 from behind the arc in 3 games. Maybe that's not his game.

HOWEVER, he sure looks to be a scorer. From all those free throws he got, looks like he drives hard and either scores or gets fouled. Hopefully some of those makes are from pull up jumpers too.

And I do agree that if Cobbs is as aggressive on defense as he is on offense, then we've got a fierce perimeter defense. Looks like Monty will use less zone and let these two loose.

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I'm certainly hoping the zone will go back to change-up status where it belongs.

As for not shooting from outside, I view that as a positive in a PG. Hopefully he can shoot enough to keep defenses honest, but we've seen what having a chucker at the one spot can be like and it ain't all that great.

bluesaxe;530090 said:

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we've seen what having a chucker at the one spot can be like and it ain't all that great.

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Yah, that Jerome Randle guy worked out terribly.

Seriously though, Franklin wasn't a bad point guard because he shot the 3 a lot. He was a bad point guard because he took bad shots, missed them, and couldn't consistently get penetration or find his open teammates. Monty's had plenty of success with point guards who can shoot the three lights out and with those that can't. I'm more concerned about Cobbs' A/TO ratio in these games. I know the format probably wasn't conducive to team play, but 2/2 and 5/6 worry me, especially considering that he wasn't scoring very efficiently in the second game.

gobears7;530113 said:

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I'm more concerned about Cobbs' A/TO ratio in these games. I know the format probably wasn't conducive to team play, but 2/2 and 5/6 worry me, especially considering that he wasn't scoring very efficiently in the second game.

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All this, of course, is premature speculation/bloviation, but if indeed Cobbs tends to be careless with the ball, there is a guy named Smith who is not.

gobears7;530113 said:

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Yah, that Jerome Randle guy worked out terribly.

Seriously though, Franklin wasn't a bad point guard because he shot the 3 a lot. He was a bad point guard because he took bad shots, missed them, and couldn't consistently get penetration or find his open teammates. Monty's had plenty of success with point guards who can shoot the three lights out and with those that can't. I'm more concerned about Cobbs' A/TO ratio in these games. I know the format probably wasn't conducive to team play, but 2/2 and 5/6 worry me, especially considering that he wasn't scoring very efficiently in the second game.

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If GF made half his shots, I would have been all for him chucking them up the whole game. We had same offensive challenges early on (our infamous 5 pt. half). Still we turned into a pretty efficient offense by Feb./Mar. Monty power.