cal83dls79 said:
Bear19 said:
bearister said:
I agree we have skilled players. We have 6 or 7 guys that can take it to the hoop and finish and some outside shooters as well. Defense and rebounding involve as much attitude as skill. Sometimes I think we need an attitude adjustment in those two areas.
Do you really think 6-7 players have enough talent to start, much less play, at any other Pac-12 school? Don't forget that this year, the Pac-12 is solidly ranked at the bottom of the Power 5 conferences. Maybe 2-3 Pac-12 teams might get into the March Tourney at the most.
Our lads barely beat Cal Poly SLO on our own floor. Cal Poly SLO carries an approximate rank of 300 in college MBB. Even accounting for the poor coaching, results in games seem to point to a distinct lack of talent on the hardwood.
we have had many successful or non-dismal years with 6-7 lads, with less talent. The arc of development under the recent regime has been dismal...and don't ask me to post stats and stuff...Name any area of our play that went from bad to ok, horrible to ok, ok to good, these last two years? Tough to do. That's coaching. But you get what you pay for.
I think in our haste to condemn the coach, we overlook, even bury his accomplishments. Last year many fans here wrote about what a poor-shooting team Cal was. This year we have made huge improvement in shooting the ball, and are so far one of the better shooting teams in the country. Read my thread on Cal's shooting for all the statistics, which do not lie.
Last year, many fans said we had no offensive plan. Last year, Wyking Jones had no point guard. This year he has one. In only 11 games, Wyking Jones Cal team has already had three games where they looked like they had an offensive plan, where most of their baskets came by way of an assist pass. That, I think is more good looking offensive games than all of last season.
For years, Cal fans complained about our coaches' inablity to recruit good players. Braun and Montgomery both were often criticized as not being able to recruit. Along came Counzo, who recruited two top rated recruits, and very little else. Wyking Jones has already demonstrated that he can recruit good players. He has filled every need except getting a center who can help right away, and that is a rare commodity. He has upgraded every position from last year, except center, and he has added some depth.
Finally, the few players he has left from last year's team all have improved individually. The head coach, Wyking Jones has had a hand in all of this.
I am fully aware of this team's deficiencies: We are not very good at defense and rebounding, and in most games, the offense struggles to play together. They are all young players with little experience. They make mistakes, and they panic when they get behind. They are freshmen and sophomores, for goodness sakes! What the heck do you want, the Warriors in Cal uniforms?
What do you want in a head coach? John Wooden? He won a lot of NCAA championships, but he struggled for many years before winning one, and Pete Newell had to retire first, and give him a chance to even get invited to the NCAA tournament. Jones has never been a head coach. He has made some blunders in all phases of coaching so far, but he is learning, and so are his players, in baby steps. And it is tough to take baby steps when you are supposed to be running a gauntlet. Cal fans are merciless, and unforgiving.
So if you don't see some positive signs of small improvement here and there, then perhaps you are smoking too much of whatever you are already smoking.
SFCityBear
