We have lost three of our top six scorers, two of our top four rebounders, our number one player in assists by a wide margin, and two of our best three-point shooters. So depending on what happens further in the portal, the freshmen are going to need to play a very important role this year. And a step-up from Lulu will also be needed. She has the talent.

annarborbear said:

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We have lost three of our top six scorers, two of our top four rebounders, our number one player in assists by a wide margin, and two of our best three-point shooters. So depending on what happens further in the portal, the freshmen are going to need to play a very important role this year. And a step-up from Lulu will also be needed. She has the talent.

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I think we need another shooter and big so minimum two more players

HoopDreams said:

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annarborbear said:

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We have lost three of our top six scorers, two of our top four rebounders, our number one player in assists by a wide margin, and two of our best three-point shooters. So depending on what happens further in the portal, the freshmen are going to need to play a very important role this year. And a step-up from Lulu will also be needed. She has the talent.

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I think we need another shooter and big so minimum two more players

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Would like to get Paurova from Oregon State - 6'1", 48% from the field, 37% from three. Have not heard who she is looking at. Hopefully, would value a Cal degree and major playing time.

HoopDreams said:

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annarborbear said:

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We have lost three of our top six scorers, two of our top four rebounders, our number one player in assists by a wide margin, and two of our best three-point shooters. So depending on what happens further in the portal, the freshmen are going to need to play a very important role this year. And a step-up from Lulu will also be needed. She has the talent.

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I think we need another shooter and big so minimum two more players

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Interesting take that you didn't specify the players.
I never mean to pile on any Cal players, but if last year, one of the top six scorers, and one of our best three point shooters that you are referring to is Kemery, it has to be regarded as addition by subtraction.
Big fan of Kemery, but last year her shooting was horrible, and her defense was extremely poor. So things may not be as tough as you stated it would be.

RedlessWardrobe said:

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HoopDreams said:

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annarborbear said:

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PWe have lost three of our top six scorers, two of our top four rebounders, our number one player in assists by a wide margin, and two of our best three-point shooters. So depending on what happens further in the portal, the freshmen are going to need to play a very important role this year. And a step-up from Lulu will also be needed. She has the talent.

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I think we need another shooter and big so minimum two more players

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Interesting take that you didn't specify the players.
I never mean to pile on any Cal players, but if last year, one of the top six scorers, and one of our best three point shooters that you are referring to is Kemery, it has to be regarded as addition by subtraction.
Big fan of Kemery, but last year her shooting was horrible, and her defense was extremely poor. So things may not be as tough as you stated it would be.

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Just noting the overall production we have lost. So far, we haven't replaced it unless the freshmen can do it. I am also hopeful about Lulu. But as a freshman, her shooting percentages were a little lower than Martin's.

Last year, Michelle managed to stay on the floor for only 19 minutes per game. The top posts in the portal are now gone, except for two from Texas A&M and Purdue. In the age of the portal and NIL, the best players are now going to winning programs where they can make even more NIL if they are successful. Don't like it at all, but that is now the nature of the college game, so we do have to go more international.

Transfer portal recruiting opens up tomorrow after the one-week shutdown.

Let's see what moves the Bears make.

annarborbear said:

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RedlessWardrobe said:

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HoopDreams said:

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annarborbear said:

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PWe have lost three of our top six scorers, two of our top four rebounders, our number one player in assists by a wide margin, and two of our best three-point shooters. So depending on what happens further in the portal, the freshmen are going to need to play a very important role this year. And a step-up from Lulu will also be needed. She has the talent.

---

I think we need another shooter and big so minimum two more players

---

Interesting take that you didn't specify the players.
I never mean to pile on any Cal players, but if last year, one of the top six scorers, and one of our best three point shooters that you are referring to is Kemery, it has to be regarded as addition by subtraction.
Big fan of Kemery, but last year her shooting was horrible, and her defense was extremely poor. So things may not be as tough as you stated it would be.

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Just noting the overall production we have lost. So far, we haven't replaced it unless the freshmen can do it. I am also hopeful about Lulu. But as a freshman, her shooting percentages were a little lower than Martin's.

Last year, Michelle managed to stay on the floor for only 19 minutes per game. The top posts in the portal are now gone, except for two from Texas A&M and Purdue. In the age of the portal and NIL, the best players are now going to winning programs where they can make even more NIL if they are successful. Don't like it at all, but that is now the nature of the college game, so we do have to go more international.

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Very relevant point. As I mentioned elsewhere, Michelle needs to signnificanty reduce fouls, and Marta needs to significantly reduce turnovers for us to be successful in the upcoming season.

One more post I will keep my fingers crossed on is 6'3" Cameron Williams from Michigan. She averaged around 8 ppg and 5 rpg. Not a great player, but solid and with four years of Big Ten experience, Her major was Kinesiology so not sure where the academic fit would be. Maybe Public Health. Has been on Big Ten all-academic team.

stu said:

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Schroeder71 said:

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...
Only two experienced college basketball players will still have eligibility remaining after this season: Lu Lu Laditan Twidale & Marta Suarez. The latter will be listed as a senior but has only played two years of basketball.

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Don't forget Claudia.

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To me, I think of her as a real wildcard. Was injured early, so to what degree she was ever completely herself during last season is an unknown.

Barring the signing of an elite player, Cal's offense is pretty much Ioanna Krimili -- a player who is relatively easy to control if you don't have to worry about anyone else.

Which means, for me, the key player is Marta Suarez, who was pretty awful last year. Her shooting was bad, but the A/TO was even worse. She needs to take a huge step forward and rather than get her 12 points a game by shooting more per minute than anyone else, she needs to be much more efficient.

I can't speak to her defense, but of all the players on the roster, she seems like the most likely to develop into enough of a threat to allow Krimili to get some decent looks. There's hope for Lulu, but I don't see any of the freshmen as impact scorers, and that's what Cal needs to compete at the P4 level.

annarborbear said:

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One more post I will keep my fingers crossed on is 6'3" Cameron Williams from Michigan. She averaged around 8 ppg and 5 rpg. Not a great player, but solid and with four years of Big Ten experience, Her major was Kinesiology so not sure where the academic fit would be. Maybe Public Health. Has been on Big Ten all-academic team.

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Her Michigan profile says School of Kinesiology, majoring in sports management. So, Haas School of Business??

I don't think Cal has a sports mgmt program yet. Hopefully that changes

SFCALBear72 said:

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annarborbear said:

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One more post I will keep my fingers crossed on is 6'3" Cameron Williams from Michigan. She averaged around 8 ppg and 5 rpg. Not a great player, but solid and with four years of Big Ten experience, Her major was Kinesiology so not sure where the academic fit would be. Maybe Public Health. Has been on Big Ten all-academic team.

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Her Michigan profile says School of Kinesiology, majoring in sports management. So, Haas School of Business??

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Claudia Langarita did miss games early in the season. She will be Cal's only 6-4 post that needs to re-adapt to playing inside. She possesses left-handed and right-handed hook shots that she used in the WCC at USF, averaging 10 ppg.

Last year, she fell in love with the three-point shot! Claudia stood out on the perimeter and launched threes. She had the worst shooting percentage on the team in every category: FG%=27.9%, three PT= 20%, FT=57%. Langarita's overall percentage was pulled down because she took 61% of her shots from long distance while regular inside shots constituted only 41% of her game. Charmin Smith played her only 9.8 minutes per game and she grabbed on average 1.5 rebounds per contest. Her game needs to be*** re-constructed to being a legit post player*** again who rebounds and scores inside with the occasional trey. Claudia hit 11-28 FG attempts from inside three-point range which was a much superior percentage of 39.3. Reclamation project. GO BEARS!

ClayK said:

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Barring the signing of an elite player, Cal's offense is pretty much Ioanna Krimili -- a player who is relatively easy to control if you don't have to worry about anyone else.

Which means, for me, the key player is Marta Suarez, who was pretty awful last year. Her shooting was bad, but the A/TO was even worse. She needs to take a huge step forward and rather than get her 12 points a game by shooting more per minute than anyone else, she needs to be much more efficient.

I can't speak to her defense, but of all the players on the roster, she seems like the most likely to develop into enough of a threat to allow Krimili to get some decent looks. There's hope for Lulu, but I don't see any of the freshmen as impact scorers, and that's what Cal needs to compete at the P4 level.

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Last season efficiency was a problem for our whole team. In conference play only Michelle shot better than .400 overall (.614) and Ioanna is our only returning player who shot over .250 on threes (.405). We did shoot well from the line (except Michelle) though we didn't get many free throw attempts. Also Ioanna is our only returning player with a positive A/TO ratio (1.7), next best is 0.6 and it goes rapidly downhill from there.

Our two incoming grads didn't shoot too well last season but both had decent A/TO ratios. I expect they will have a positive impact on our disappointing defense.

I agree it will be big if Marta can step up her game. And I sure hope a couple of our incoming freshies can help. Finally I'd like to see us add an experienced post.

wvitbear said:

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The real key is to compare Lelani's frosh year with Lulu's frosh year. Leleani shot 22.9 % hher froah year and Lulu shot 28.5 %. Lelani improved every year. If Lulu improves every year, then we will be OK.

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Problem is she shot only 21.9% from three when she was on the Australian FIBA team. So not clear yet if she can reach that higher level. This year in the ACC, we still do need another shooter with some proven shooting ability. Then see if Lulu can develop.

Some of Leilani's initial issues were that she only put up three point shots in desperation as the clock was running out. Once she started taking those shots more in rhythm when those shots were open, that helped her a lot.

I think that you can improve shooting form and shot selection. But ultimately you do have to have consistent shooting touch.

stu said:

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Schroeder71 said:

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...
Only two experienced college basketball players will still have eligibility remaining after this season: Lu Lu Laditan Twidale & Marta Suarez. The latter will be listed as a senior but has only played two years of basketball.

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Don't forget Claudia.



Isn't there a preferred walkon, I think from San Ramon ......She is not listed on the roster. Thank-you

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RedlessWardrobe said:

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ClayK said:

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RedlessWardrobe said:

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annarborbear said:

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wvitbear said:

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The real key is to compare Lelani's frosh year with Lulu's frosh year. Leleani shot 22.9 % hher froah year and Lulu shot 28.5 %. Lelani improved every year. If Lulu improves every year, then we will be OK.

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Problem is she shot only 21.9% from three when she was on the Australian FIBA team. So not clear yet if she can reach that higher level. This year in the ACC, we still do need another shooter with some proven shooting ability. Then see if Lulu can develop.

Some of Leilani's initial issues were that she only put up three point shots in desperation as the clock was running out. Once she started taking those shots more in rhythm when those shots were open, that helped her a lot.

I think that you can improve shooting form and shot selection. But ultimately you do have to have consistent shooting touch.

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I do not have statistics to back this up, but I watched almost every game this past season and there were many occasions in which Lulu was taking three point shots when the team was in desperation mode due to trailing late in a game, thus her three point percentage is not truly indicative of her ability. I'm not anti-Charmin, but we need to see an adjustment to our offense this season that results in Lulu and Ioanna taking more "catch and shoot" shots. Can't stress it enough.

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If a defense can focus on one or two players, it's very difficult to draw up anything that frees those two players up. You need at least three players who are consistent offensive threats to spread out a defense and create open shots.

Coaches cannot diagram plays that create open shots. What creates open shots is shot-making talent or the ability to break down a perimeter defender one-on-one and get into the paint, forcing a defensive rotation.

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I'll meet you half way on this issue. I think you need a combination of both.

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I appreciate the willingness to compromise ... but I feel obligated to reply.

Basketball is not a particularly complicated game. There are only 10 players on the court, and there's only so much you can do tactically, especially in a confined space. The old saying "There's nothing new under the sun" applies here -- you can draw up a nice little play, and after you run it once, the other team will adjust.

That adjustment, of course, depends on offensive threats the defense must deal with. If you have enough firepower, an adjustment will leave a player open who can score; if you don't have enough scorers, the adjustment is easy -- you just focus on the one or two kids who can beat you, and play the odds on the rest.

In the too many decades I've been coaching, I have come to the point that I really don't worry about plays that much. We can just screen on the ball or iso, as the pros do, and generate good looks without devoting a ton of practice time to plays and motions that can be countered with minor adjustments.

At my level, I work on shooting and finishing and decision-making, while Charmin has different things to deal with -- but those three are still more important than any play you might draw up.

Let me say that I have never coached basketball. I played through varsity basketball and have watched now for over fifty years. Also I respect the fact that evidently you have coached the game, regardless of what level that may be. But your statement, "coaches cannot diagram plays that create open shots", seems a little blunt to me.

Even in today's games, regardless of talent, I see certain teams that run better plays than others (both quality and quantity-variety), and it's not always about the shooting ability of the players on the floor. Also, the other factor has to be not only the play itself, but the execution of it provided by the players. Again I make my case that you can't exclusively limit the ability to create an open shot based only on the talent of the players. It certainly comes into play, but coaching still has to matter.

RedlessWardrobe said:

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Let me say that I have never coached basketball. I played through varsity basketball and have watched now for over fifty years. Also I respect the fact that evidently you have coached the game, regardless of what level that may be. But your statement, "coaches cannot diagram plays that create open shots", seems a little blunt to me.

Even in today's games, regardless of talent, I see certain teams that run better plays than others (both quality and quantity-variety), and it's not always about the shooting ability of the players on the floor. Also, the other factor has to be not only the play itself, but the execution of it provided by the players. Again I make my case that you can't exclusively limit the ability to create an open shot based only on the talent of the players. It certainly comes into play, but coaching still has to matter.

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This is all true. Some coaches are better at set plays, quick hitters and motion attacks than others.

My point, which I have not made particularly well, is that that particular coaching skill is not very high on the list of attributes that result in winning basketball games. For me, it would go something like this ...

1) Talent
*
*
*
*
*
*
2) Playing hard
3) Team cohesion
4) Understanding and buying into the offensive and defensive systems
5) Skill development
6) Teaching the offensive and defensive systems
7) The details of the offensive and defensive systems (all systems will work in the right circumstances; all systems will not work in the wrong circumstances).

ClayK said:

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RedlessWardrobe said:

---

Let me say that I have never coached basketball. I played through varsity basketball and have watched now for over fifty years. Also I respect the fact that evidently you have coached the game, regardless of what level that may be. But your statement, "coaches cannot diagram plays that create open shots", seems a little blunt to me.

Even in today's games, regardless of talent, I see certain teams that run better plays than others (both quality and quantity-variety), and it's not always about the shooting ability of the players on the floor. Also, the other factor has to be not only the play itself, but the execution of it provided by the players. Again I make my case that you can't exclusively limit the ability to create an open shot based only on the talent of the players. It certainly comes into play, but coaching still has to matter.

---

This is all true. Some coaches are better at set plays, quick hitters and motion attacks than others.

My point, which I have not made particularly well, is that that particular coaching skill is not very high on the list of attributes that result in winning basketball games. For me, it would go something like this ...

1) Talent
*
*
*
*
*
*
2) Playing hard
3) Team cohesion
4) Understanding and buying into the offensive and defensive systems
5) Skill development
6) Teaching the offensive and defensive systems
7) The details of the offensive and defensive systems (all systems will work in the right circumstances; all systems will not work in the wrong circumstances).

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I agree with your list! I agree with your ranking of the factors. So again, if the first factor, and maybe even the second factor has nothing to do with coaching, one could argue that factors 3 through 7 actually do. Which is why I was originally willing to meet you half way!

In any case, I think we have both disected the issue quite well now.

My hoped-for Michigan portal post transfer Cameron Williams has signed with Miami.

Quote:

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My hoped-for Michigan portal post transfer Cameron Williams has signed with Miami.

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Damn. I think we desperately need another big and I don't know that there's much out there anymore.

One of the last good posts in the portal - Mary Ashley Stevenson of Purdue - signs with Stanford.

Looking at Raoul's WBB Blog this morning and these post players are still available in the portal.

From the University of Texas:

Khadija Faye, 6'4 Sr Center from Senegal; 5.5 points, 3.5 rebounds per game last season
Tionna Herron 6'4 RS Freshman; limited playing time

Or perhaps.

Amanda Blake 6'2 Sr Center Grambling State 5.1 points, 4.3 rebounds per game last season

SFCALBear72 said:

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Looking at Raoul's WBB Blog this morning and these post players are still available in the portal.

From the University of Texas:

Khadija Faye, 6'4 Sr Center from Senegal; 5.5 points, 3.5 rebounds per game last season
Tionna Herron 6'4 RS Freshman; limited playing time

Or perhaps.

Amanda Blake 6'2 Sr Center Grambling State 5.1 points, 4.3 rebounds per game last season

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Khadija Faye is a good player. But she has signed with Pitt, another ACC team

So essentially, we are pretty stacked at the 1-3 positions... but will rely on Onyiah and a freshman, Abigor down low. That's a bit of a worry.

Honestly, sounds like the Warriors this year.