Does he see Fla as validating his conviction that a team should have a high-scoring lead guard like Walter Clayton, Jr. who is the best closer in all of college basketball?
Does Houston's sustained success tell White he is correct to consider that a dominant defense is more important than a high scoring offense like Auburn's and Florida's?
When our coach sees that all the Final Four teams lack a classic, pure facilitator PG, does he think that it's ok for us to lack one too?
Fla and Houston ranked in the top 10 for O rebounds. Auburn and Duke were in the top 40. Does that confirm for White that he is right to prioritize front line rebounding ability over shot creation skills?
Does White interpret Houston's ability to body up and play a physically demanding style of man to man in your face defense against Duke a validation that this old school style of physical play is superior to Auburn and Fla's embracing of the wider spacing and more elegant European style of play? Does he take this as a holy sign from the Basketball Gods that UGA should imitate Houston more than the Gators? Or does he recognize that Houston's age and experience is superior to Duke's youthful collection of freshmen phenoms?
My point is that when you pick and choose your stats like you choose your entrees and side dishes from a smorgasbord buffet, you risk overlooking that the roster of Grade A players are so elite and versatile in abilities that it makes comparisons to our middling roster talent and depth like comparing apples to oranges. A coach has to build a roster to fit his philosophy. The Final Four teams rebound well because their rosters are stacked with physical beasts who love to rebound. Not because the style of play triggers it. Those same players are versatile enough to shoot well from the perimeter and to create their own shots in the absence of a pass first distributor.
The most important skill set shared by Fla, Houston, and Auburn are their experience and age. They play like veterans and their bodies more resemble that of pros than our underclassmen's bodies do. So I hope White does not overestimate the value of the systems. roster construction and schemes that we are watching this weekend. He should recruit talented upperclass transfers first and do it looking to fit the system he plans to run. He doesn't have the luxury afforded to Sampson, Pearl and Golden to search for individual pieces that fill in the few holes needed in the center area to make a complete jigsaw puzzle. We are still searching for the big picture perimeter frame edge pieces of the jigsaw puzzle.
The teams in San Antonio are four of the 10 most efficient teams since KenPom began keeping his stats in 1996. They are nothing like our roster despite our playing with a defensive efficiency that is 31st this season. It would however be interesting to run the statistical analysis to identify which of the Final Four teams we most resembled in overall style of play. But we shouldn't think that their way of playing and building a roster is the right way for us to do it in Athens.
For a fan like me who hopes to see White adapt his playing philosophy next season, I worry that this particular Final Four may send the wrong message that old school emphasis on D, ball screens and shoot first guards is the way to go.
Does Houston's sustained success tell White he is correct to consider that a dominant defense is more important than a high scoring offense like Auburn's and Florida's?
When our coach sees that all the Final Four teams lack a classic, pure facilitator PG, does he think that it's ok for us to lack one too?
Fla and Houston ranked in the top 10 for O rebounds. Auburn and Duke were in the top 40. Does that confirm for White that he is right to prioritize front line rebounding ability over shot creation skills?
Does White interpret Houston's ability to body up and play a physically demanding style of man to man in your face defense against Duke a validation that this old school style of physical play is superior to Auburn and Fla's embracing of the wider spacing and more elegant European style of play? Does he take this as a holy sign from the Basketball Gods that UGA should imitate Houston more than the Gators? Or does he recognize that Houston's age and experience is superior to Duke's youthful collection of freshmen phenoms?
My point is that when you pick and choose your stats like you choose your entrees and side dishes from a smorgasbord buffet, you risk overlooking that the roster of Grade A players are so elite and versatile in abilities that it makes comparisons to our middling roster talent and depth like comparing apples to oranges. A coach has to build a roster to fit his philosophy. The Final Four teams rebound well because their rosters are stacked with physical beasts who love to rebound. Not because the style of play triggers it. Those same players are versatile enough to shoot well from the perimeter and to create their own shots in the absence of a pass first distributor.
The most important skill set shared by Fla, Houston, and Auburn are their experience and age. They play like veterans and their bodies more resemble that of pros than our underclassmen's bodies do. So I hope White does not overestimate the value of the systems. roster construction and schemes that we are watching this weekend. He should recruit talented upperclass transfers first and do it looking to fit the system he plans to run. He doesn't have the luxury afforded to Sampson, Pearl and Golden to search for individual pieces that fill in the few holes needed in the center area to make a complete jigsaw puzzle. We are still searching for the big picture perimeter frame edge pieces of the jigsaw puzzle.
The teams in San Antonio are four of the 10 most efficient teams since KenPom began keeping his stats in 1996. They are nothing like our roster despite our playing with a defensive efficiency that is 31st this season. It would however be interesting to run the statistical analysis to identify which of the Final Four teams we most resembled in overall style of play. But we shouldn't think that their way of playing and building a roster is the right way for us to do it in Athens.
For a fan like me who hopes to see White adapt his playing philosophy next season, I worry that this particular Final Four may send the wrong message that old school emphasis on D, ball screens and shoot first guards is the way to go.
