ClayK said:

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It's pretty hard to have a rotation of more than eight in big games. A lot of your team success comes from on-court familiarity, and with the transfer portal, that's even harder to come by.

The prime example, of course, is UCLA, which only used six players to win the national title.

Games are really not that long. There are a lot of breaks (time outs, etc.), and though elite 20-year-old athletes do need some rest, they don't need much.

Having too many talented players is sometimes more of a problem than a solution, as those not playing are unhappy and can be disruptive.

Or look at it this way: There are 200 player/minutes to go around. Let's say your five starters each play 28 minutes. That's 140. You now have 60 minutes left. Your next three in the rotation will get about 12 minutes each, which is not a lot in a two-hour game. That's 176.

You've got 24 minutes left -- for the rest of the roster. And if your five through eight play 15 minutes each, you only have 15 left for nine through 11.

The classic high school roster was always this: The eight best players and the four nicest people.

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Really agree with this. And you were conservative: there are going to be times when you want and/or can justify a bench player getting 20 minutes. Also, if you go more "two headed monster" at center, then the second player there is easily at 20+ minutes as well.

Will ask you: do you feel its more accurate to ask "conditioning" questions, over "fatigue" questions in some cases?

annarborbear said:

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All the way back in our Final Four season, we played an eight player rotation and then cut it to seven in the tournament. But I don't see why we can't give more people a chance against weaker non-conference opponents. Especially our younger players. Otherwise, it seems like guaranteed transfers out.

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this certified idiot appreciates all our wise posters shares with lurkers, tnx.
except obviously ya gotta have at least 10 talented bodies to scrimmage.
# just wait till next year

annarborbear said:

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All the way back in our Final Four season, we played an eight player rotation and then cut it to seven in the tournament. But I don't see why we can't give more people a chance against weaker non-conference opponents. Especially our younger players. Otherwise, it seems like guaranteed transfers out.

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Definitely a consideration, but in the new world of yearly roster turnover, how much more valuable are game minutes in terms of building continuity?
In any given off-season, the question is going to remain-did players transfer out because of lack of minutes, or because they were recruited over?

mbBear said:

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annarborbear said:

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All the way back in our Final Four season, we played an eight player rotation and then cut it to seven in the tournament. But I don't see why we can't give more people a chance against weaker non-conference opponents. Especially our younger players. Otherwise, it seems like guaranteed transfers out.

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Definitely a consideration, but in the new world of yearly roster turnover, how much more valuable are game minutes in terms of building continuity?
In any given off-season, the question is going to remain-did players transfer out because of lack of minutes, or because they were recruited over?

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I guess that I am dreaming that this might still resemble something like college sports.

We should probably cancel seniors day and just have a transfer-in / transfer-out day.

annarborbear said:

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mbBear said:

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annarborbear said:

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All the way back in our Final Four season, we played an eight player rotation and then cut it to seven in the tournament. But I don't see why we can't give more people a chance against weaker non-conference opponents. Especially our younger players. Otherwise, it seems like guaranteed transfers out.

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Definitely a consideration, but in the new world of yearly roster turnover, how much more valuable are game minutes in terms of building continuity?
In any given off-season, the question is going to remain-did players transfer out because of lack of minutes, or because they were recruited over?

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I guess that I am dreaming that this might still resemble something like college sports.

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I respect that dream.

annarborbear said:

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mbBear said:

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annarborbear said:

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All the way back in our Final Four season, we played an eight player rotation and then cut it to seven in the tournament. But I don't see why we can't give more people a chance against weaker non-conference opponents. Especially our younger players. Otherwise, it seems like guaranteed transfers out.

---

Definitely a consideration, but in the new world of yearly roster turnover, how much more valuable are game minutes in terms of building continuity?
In any given off-season, the question is going to remain-did players transfer out because of lack of minutes, or because they were recruited over?

---

I guess that I am dreaming that this might still resemble something like college sports.

We should probably cancel seniors day and just have a transfer-in / transfer-out day.

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On the transfer out day do we get to throw rotten eggs and rotten tomatoes at the players?

RedlessWardrobe said:

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annarborbear said:

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mbBear said:

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annarborbear said:

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All the way back in our Final Four season, we played an eight player rotation and then cut it to seven in the tournament. But I don't see why we can't give more people a chance against weaker non-conference opponents. Especially our younger players. Otherwise, it seems like guaranteed transfers out.

---

Definitely a consideration, but in the new world of yearly roster turnover, how much more valuable are game minutes in terms of building continuity?
In any given off-season, the question is going to remain-did players transfer out because of lack of minutes, or because they were recruited over?

---

I guess that I am dreaming that this might still resemble something like college sports.

We should probably cancel seniors day and just have a transfer-in / transfer-out day.

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On the transfer out day do we get to throw rotten eggs and rotten tomatoes at the players?

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I don't blame the players at all. Under this system, the transfers are encouraged and rewarded.

annarborbear said:

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RedlessWardrobe said:

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annarborbear said:

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mbBear said:

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annarborbear said:

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All the way back in our Final Four season, we played an eight player rotation and then cut it to seven in the tournament. But I don't see why we can't give more people a chance against weaker non-conference opponents. Especially our younger players. Otherwise, it seems like guaranteed transfers out.

---

Definitely a consideration, but in the new world of yearly roster turnover, how much more valuable are game minutes in terms of building continuity?
In any given off-season, the question is going to remain-did players transfer out because of lack of minutes, or because they were recruited over?

---

I guess that I am dreaming that this might still resemble something like college sports.

We should probably cancel seniors day and just have a transfer-in / transfer-out day.

---

On the transfer out day do we get to throw rotten eggs and rotten tomatoes at the players?

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I don't blame the players at all. Under this system, the transfers are encouraged and rewarded.

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I agree. It was just a fun thing to say.

Granted, I did not watch a lot of games all the way through, so I can't speak to the poor fourth quarter play -- but assuming it's correct ...

Usually late-game struggles are more mental than physical. Again, games aren't that long, and these are elite 20-something athletes in very good condition.

(Digression: When I was a young coach, I said what pretty much every young coach says: "We will be the best-conditioned team on the floor" -- and I ran kids to death. Now I do almost no conditioning, letting the drills do the work. Very few top teams at any level grind really hard because the game is played or worked on year round, and when you have athletes pushing themselves in the weight room, injuries are all too common.)

Part of it, I think, is the nature of the game. For the first three quarters, say, you can implement your strategy for the game, your new sets or whatever, but by the end of the game the other team knows what you want to do and has seen it a bunch of times. So have to revert, in some ways, to just playing basketball -- and here's where familiarity and continuity come into play. If you've played with someone for a while, and the other team is taking away your plans, you become more reliant on knowing what your teammates like to do, and what you like to do.

Also, it's a reflection of an overlooked skill: The ability to focus for an entire game. Some people have the mental ability to stay on point for longer than others, but most people have trouble keeping full concentration under pressure for long periods of time.

You can practice that and work on it, but it's hard if kids are going to class and dealing with academics because they are mentally exhausted when they arrive at practice. And again, I think continuity makes a difference, because if you've been at a school for two or three years you understand the overall situatiuon and you're less likely to be surprised and stressed -- which impacts your ability to concentrate.

So you have two competing factors: Familiarity on the court with your top seven and mental fatigue after a demanding game. You can play more kids but you lose familiarity, or you can stick with your top players and hope they can stay on point.

Coaching isn't easy ...