Buddy or Wayman?

[Eielson]

In Hawaii, Buddy scored 18 on Villanova in a game when we had five players in double figures. There was no reason for him to score more; the Sooners shared the ball and dominated the game.

Buddy was 6-17 against Villanova the first time, and 4-12 the second time. I think it's pretty solid logic to think Nova was capable of defending him. That's not to say if we played Nova a third time that he wouldn't go off. Buddy is capable of going off against anybody. He just doesn't dominate night in and night out the same way Blake did.

Blake scored 23 on UNC when he and Warren were our only options -- no one else shot worth a darn -- but even so, it was hardly a dominant performance. Blake scored his first points in the game -- a pair of free throws -- nearly 12 minutes into the first half, at which point OU was already down by 11, and he scored just four points in the game's final 15 minutes--none in the final four minutes.

I don't say any of that to knock him, but I would hardly call that domination. A dominant performance doesn't see a player disappear for long stretches like that. He had a strong 13-minute stretch, divided by halftime, but in the other 27 minutes, he scored four points.

Domination in that game would have been 36 or 39 points, carrying the team on his back for at least the second half, as Buddy did against Oregon.

Tyler Hansbrough was the POY the year before, and was almost unanimously considered the best player other than Blake Griffin by the media. Deon Thompson was also pretty good, and they brought a lottery pick off the bench in Ed Davis. Adding a young Tyler Zeller to round it out, UNC's ENTIRE frontcourt scored 24 points with 12 boards. Blake Griffin had 23 points and 16 rebounds. If having a better statline than the entire other team's front court isn't dominance, then I don't know what is. The previous POY had 8 points and 6 boards, so essentially 1/3 of Blake's statline. He may not have gone off for 40 points, but what more do you expect when a guy is getting doubled on nearly every play, and even tripled occasionally?

Finally, I honestly don't see anything personal in my remarks, but if they strike you that way, you have my sincere apology. I've gone back and read over your posts in this thread, and the impression that you are a Blake fan above all else stands. When you stress shooting percentage as an argument in BG's favor, that's a clear indication of a fan's bias. Blake ought to have had a better shooting percentage, given the nature of his game in college. He was shooting from six feet or closer most of the time, when he wasn't dunking it.

I'm a Sooner fan, and I loved watching Blake. I also loved watching Buddy, and I don't know why anybody on here would feel differently. Again, pretending as if I have some obsession with Blake, or that I dislike Buddy, doesn't do anything other than suggest you're grasping at straws.

 

[bgrch1350]

Buddy was 6-17 against Villanova the first time, and 4-12 the second time. I think it's pretty solid logic to think Nova was capable of defending him. That's not to say if we played Nova a third time that he wouldn't go off. Buddy is capable of going off against anybody. He just doesn't dominate night in and night out the same way Blake did.



Tyler Hansbrough was the POY the year before, and was almost unanimously considered the best player other than Blake Griffin by the media. Deon Thompson was also pretty good, and they brought a lottery pick off the bench in Ed Davis. Adding a young Tyler Zeller to round it out, UNC's ENTIRE frontcourt scored 24 points with 12 boards. Blake Griffin had 23 points and 16 rebounds. If having a better statline than the entire other team's front court isn't dominance, then I don't know what is. The previous POY had 8 points and 6 boards, so essentially 1/3 of Blake's statline. He may not have gone off for 40 points, but what more do you expect when a guy is getting doubled on nearly every play, and even tripled occasionally?



I'm a Sooner fan, and I loved watching Blake. I also loved watching Buddy, and I don't know why anybody on here would feel differently. Again, pretending as if I have some obsession with Blake, or that I dislike Buddy, doesn't do anything other than suggest you're grasping at straws.

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