Hey guys, here is just a few things that I observed during practice today.
First and foremost, all players played today including AK. They didn't limit his reps in any way, and they seemed to push him to get him back in shape. Not to say that he's way out of shape, but he would get winded after a few fast break drills. Overall, I'd say that he will definitely see a decent amount of playing time and will probably start the season behind Spangler and Lattin but he may push Lattin for that time. He had a great rejection on one of Buddy's shots. One of the things I'd like to see more from him is fighting for offensive position. A lot of times, he seemed like he'd watch the play instead of fighting for a position on the block. He had the chance to take a couple of shots down low when they fed him the ball. His touch was a bit "hard" on the baby hooks, but he can step out and hit the jump shot. His free throw shooting was pretty solid as well, so I don't see teams using him as a "hack-a-shaq.
Hield, enough said. The guy even looks more athletic than last year and he was lights out.
Cousins looked really good as well. He was knocking down some beautiful jumpers, some very contested. He had a very nice drive and finish in the paint too. To me, he looks like he's quicker than he was last season and his ball handling looked more controlled as well.
Woodard looked similar to last year, but has stepped into more of a leadership role. He was commanding parts of the practice today. I thought he played some pretty good defense today.
Spangler also looked pretty good out there today, not a whole lot of difference from last season. Maybe slightly slimmer, but it's hard to say.
Jamuni will probably be the last big man to see time. He's improved from last season, but still looks like he lacks confidence in himself. It seemed like he wanted to pass first the second he got the ball. He did make one really good move down low for the slam. Shortly there after, he turned the ball over trying to make a move in the paint.
Walker made some tough shots today, and looks like his 3pt percentage will be improved which would be a big plus for us.
The freshmen all looked pretty good today. Odomes has a college body right now, and is a lefty. His shot really wasn't falling today, I don't know if it was just a bad shooting day or not. He played good defense and I really like his effort on the boards, he will be a good player for us down the road. At the beginning of practice I was more impressed with Odomes than James, but as the practice went on, James started really impressing me. He was hitting some very contested shots and also plays with great hustle and effort. He seemed like he is very willing to listen and learn. I think he will see playing time pretty early, and will definitely help out this squad immediately. Buford looks like he's going to be a pretty good player, maybe an 8pt 6reb type player. He has a quick release, but it looks a little like Shawn Marion or something, I don't know... Once practice started to get going he was really finding his stroke.
Overall, I think this will be one of the best teams we've had in awhile. I think the defense will be the strength of this team. I'm hoping that we cure the unforced turnovers from being out of control, I still saw a little bit of that today when they would try to go too fast. This is one of the deepest teams that I can remember us having. I think we make the trade off this season of having better interior defense, but will lose some interior offense with the loss of Thomas. I hope this paints a little better picture for some of you guys, and if you have any questions about anyone or anything else, just let me know and I'll try to answer them as best I can. Come out and support this team, we are going to have a good one to watch! :OU-logo:
First and foremost, all players played today including AK. They didn't limit his reps in any way, and they seemed to push him to get him back in shape. Not to say that he's way out of shape, but he would get winded after a few fast break drills. Overall, I'd say that he will definitely see a decent amount of playing time and will probably start the season behind Spangler and Lattin but he may push Lattin for that time. He had a great rejection on one of Buddy's shots. One of the things I'd like to see more from him is fighting for offensive position. A lot of times, he seemed like he'd watch the play instead of fighting for a position on the block. He had the chance to take a couple of shots down low when they fed him the ball. His touch was a bit "hard" on the baby hooks, but he can step out and hit the jump shot. His free throw shooting was pretty solid as well, so I don't see teams using him as a "hack-a-shaq.
Hield, enough said. The guy even looks more athletic than last year and he was lights out.
Cousins looked really good as well. He was knocking down some beautiful jumpers, some very contested. He had a very nice drive and finish in the paint too. To me, he looks like he's quicker than he was last season and his ball handling looked more controlled as well.
Woodard looked similar to last year, but has stepped into more of a leadership role. He was commanding parts of the practice today. I thought he played some pretty good defense today.
Spangler also looked pretty good out there today, not a whole lot of difference from last season. Maybe slightly slimmer, but it's hard to say.
Jamuni will probably be the last big man to see time. He's improved from last season, but still looks like he lacks confidence in himself. It seemed like he wanted to pass first the second he got the ball. He did make one really good move down low for the slam. Shortly there after, he turned the ball over trying to make a move in the paint.
Walker made some tough shots today, and looks like his 3pt percentage will be improved which would be a big plus for us.
The freshmen all looked pretty good today. Odomes has a college body right now, and is a lefty. His shot really wasn't falling today, I don't know if it was just a bad shooting day or not. He played good defense and I really like his effort on the boards, he will be a good player for us down the road. At the beginning of practice I was more impressed with Odomes than James, but as the practice went on, James started really impressing me. He was hitting some very contested shots and also plays with great hustle and effort. He seemed like he is very willing to listen and learn. I think he will see playing time pretty early, and will definitely help out this squad immediately. Buford looks like he's going to be a pretty good player, maybe an 8pt 6reb type player. He has a quick release, but it looks a little like Shawn Marion or something, I don't know... Once practice started to get going he was really finding his stroke.
Overall, I think this will be one of the best teams we've had in awhile. I think the defense will be the strength of this team. I'm hoping that we cure the unforced turnovers from being out of control, I still saw a little bit of that today when they would try to go too fast. This is one of the deepest teams that I can remember us having. I think we make the trade off this season of having better interior defense, but will lose some interior offense with the loss of Thomas. I hope this paints a little better picture for some of you guys, and if you have any questions about anyone or anything else, just let me know and I'll try to answer them as best I can. Come out and support this team, we are going to have a good one to watch! :OU-logo:
