Does OU really have a go-to player?

[AdaSooner]

This quote was taken from the Norman Transcript thread, "Nobody in a starring role for Sooners":

“I think we have some candidates for that, but we don’t really have anyone playing with that level of confidence to step up and do that consistently,” he said.

I agree with Coach Kruger to some extent, but tend to take what he said one step further by saying that this team does not really have a star player who is capable of stepping up at crunch time, at least on a consistent basis. Now that last year's quality depth issue is a thing of the past, the abence of a go-to player is front and center as the biggest weakness we have this season.

Osby, the most likely candidate, is a tweener who is good at taking the ball to the hole and scoring inside, but lacks the ability to knock down jumpers consistently when closely guarded. Pledger is arguably the best shooter, yet he has trouble in creating his own shots when defenses move to stop him. I believe in time that Hield, and perhaps Hornbeak, have the goods to become go-to players. They're just not ready to accept that role right now.

Am I right in my assessment or way off base on this one? If you think this OU team has a go-to player, who would you pick and why?

 

[pnkranger]

I think we have 3 players who could become go-to players this year:

Pledger
Osby
M'Baye

Pledger is going to have to start shooting better to become that player. Osby is going to need to actively call for the ball if he wants to become that player. M'Baye is going to have to refine his role...

 

[WTSooner]

I agree with pnkranger that those three guys are the go-to players on the team.

What I think this team is missing, and maybe this is what you are getting at, or maybe not, is that star player. This team doesn't that Najera, or Minor, or Hollis Price, or Blake Griffin/Willie Warren. And obviously if you have a star like that, that is probably your default go-to player.

So while I'm happy with the roster, and the guys LK is bringing in.....and while I think a guy like Hield or possibly Hornbeak "could" turn into that star, we don't currently have one. I love Pledger, but he is not that guy. I don't think Osby or M'Baye is that guy either. But you are right, those three SHOULD be the guys we're trying to get the most shots for, and the shots in crunch time.

 

[Krugerfan52]

last year Pledger was the go to guy. Now nobody is.

 

[Stikboy]

I believe Hield is probably the best shooter on the team, including Pledger. Hield can also score in more ways than Pledger. But right now Pledger isn't the turnover machine Hield is. And, being the senior, I think they are running more plays through him... If Hield could value the ball more I wish they'd run more stuff through him...

 

[AdaSooner]

I agree with pnkranger that those three guys are the go-to players on the team.

What I think this team is missing, and maybe this is what you are getting at, or maybe not, is that star player. This team doesn't that Najera, or Minor, or Hollis Price, or Blake Griffin/Willie Warren. And obviously if you have a star like that, that is probably your default go-to player.

So while I'm happy with the roster, and the guys LK is bringing in.....and while I think a guy like Hield or possibly Hornbeak "could" turn into that star, we don't currently have one. I love Pledger, but he is not that guy. I don't think Osby or M'Baye is that guy either. But you are right, those three SHOULD be the guys we're trying to get the most shots for, and the shots in crunch time.

That's exactly what I was trying to say.

While all of us had hoped that Osby, Pledger, Clark or M'Baye would turn into a dependable go-to player when the game was on the line, the reality is that no one on this team has demonstrated the ability to do that so far. I went beyond that, though, by suggesting that we may not have a star quality player who could become this year's version of a HP, Najera, Minor or WW. Blake was in a class of his own, just like WT. We may never seen anyone even close to their level again.

I agree that there's a lot to like about this team. The missing ingredient, at least IMO, is a go-to player who can consistently carry the team on his shoulders at crunch time.

 

[boutaroust]

The key word is "consistent".

All of our returning guys/starters that have returned from last year played the role of "go-to-guy" at least once during last season, but not consistently enough for the team to have a great W-L record. That level of play has basically continued thru our early games this year.

M'Baye, with his preseason build-up was expected by many to come in and help fill that role. Hasn't happened....yet.

The three FR, who I think have played pretty well so far, have not been able to step up to that level, consistently,either. Hield has had a couple of games where he got hot and basically filled that role, scoring 12-16 pts or so, to get wins,, but not consistently, and not without other games where his play was so erratic, that it hurt us.

I haven't checked the stats, but I'm sure up to the Ark game, the guys from last year have been playing fewer minutes this year, to accommodate the newer players. The priorities of these early games seems to have been experimentation/development at least as much as just winning the game. I think we had a couple of close calls, that could have easily been losses, because of that approach. As a result the veterans may have just not been able to get into a rhythm, and haven't been as productive as last year because of lesser playing time.

That seemed to change in the Ark game. CLK went with the vets more, I believe, when the game was on the line, and though we came up short, it was definitely a winnable game. I think we'll see more of that approach as the season progresses. With more time on the court, and with not having to worry about player development as much, the individual players and as a team may get into a rhythm that will allow one or more players to better fill the roll of " go-to-guy".

 

[Respectisearned]

The veterans need to step up.. Hield is multi-dimensional, athletic prowess and can shoot on his good nights but for a newcomer he is still learning the ropes.. I think time will reveal as I have seen flashes of his potential but it all requires patience and chemistry to be successful in the long run..