I was able to be at practice for almost two hours today. And this time I actually took notes!
Buford was on the stationary bike when I got there, and he did not participate in anything more strenuous than free throw drills. Doolittle seemed to have already hurt his foot or lower leg and was playing through it (quite well) but had to stop maybe 15 or 20 minutes after I got there. He did not participate further either.
So without those guys, the 1st team was Woodard-McGusty-Odomes-Cole-Lattin and the 2nd was Strong-Shepherd-James-Freeman-McNeace. I was surprised to see James with the second team, but that may have been just for practice reasons.
In post-up drills, before Doolittle left, there seemed to be a definite "bullying order". Lattin was getting punished by Freeman, who then got punished by Doolittle, who then got bullied by C. J. Cole, of all people. Cole had some crafty finishing moves against the freshman. For some reason I didn't mention McNeace in my notes; can't remember how he did. I do wish Lattin had gained some weight in the offseason, because he's still skinny as a rail. All of the post players except Cole seem to prefer fadeaway jumpers.
McGusty finally did miss a 3-pointer, but it took him quite a few tries. He's still automatic when not guarded.
I must temper my earlier praise of Shepherd. He has good ball skills and made some tough shots, but his lack of size makes it difficult for him to get into the lane or to play physical defense. Woodard straight abused him a few possessions with ball fakes.
Speaking of Woodard, he is as good as I expected. He was hitting his threes at a nice clip, and he had one sequence in transition drills where he went behind his back at midcourt to evade the first defender, crossed over the second one to get into the lane, and dropped off a sweet pass to Lattin for an easy layup. He plays like the veteran that he is.
Freeman's shooting could be a very useful tool down the road. He and James had a nice little high-low action going during 4-on-4 drills... Freeman was high and James was low. In transition drills he was trailing a play and his man was already waiting for him in the lane. So Strong kicked it to him at the top of the key for an easy 3, which he nailed.
I have to talk about the listed sizes of the players. Here's the roster from soonersports.com:
Buford and Doolittle are listed at the same height with Buford a few pounds heavier. There is no way that's true. Doolittle has him by at least an inch, and I would guess 20 pounds. I would like to see the two of them standing with Odomes, because I suspect Odomes is also taller than Buford.
And McGusty certainly looks shorter than James. But that could also be due to the fact that James is built like a football player and McGusty is a rail.
I would guess the depth chart looks something like:
PG: Woodard, Strong, Shepherd
SG: James, McGusty, Shepherd
SF: Odomes, James (in small-ball)
PF: Buford, Doolittle, Freeman, Cole
C: Lattin, McNeace, Freeman (for shooting)
But those who know basketball better than I do may have a clearer picture.
Buford was on the stationary bike when I got there, and he did not participate in anything more strenuous than free throw drills. Doolittle seemed to have already hurt his foot or lower leg and was playing through it (quite well) but had to stop maybe 15 or 20 minutes after I got there. He did not participate further either.
So without those guys, the 1st team was Woodard-McGusty-Odomes-Cole-Lattin and the 2nd was Strong-Shepherd-James-Freeman-McNeace. I was surprised to see James with the second team, but that may have been just for practice reasons.
In post-up drills, before Doolittle left, there seemed to be a definite "bullying order". Lattin was getting punished by Freeman, who then got punished by Doolittle, who then got bullied by C. J. Cole, of all people. Cole had some crafty finishing moves against the freshman. For some reason I didn't mention McNeace in my notes; can't remember how he did. I do wish Lattin had gained some weight in the offseason, because he's still skinny as a rail. All of the post players except Cole seem to prefer fadeaway jumpers.
McGusty finally did miss a 3-pointer, but it took him quite a few tries. He's still automatic when not guarded.
I must temper my earlier praise of Shepherd. He has good ball skills and made some tough shots, but his lack of size makes it difficult for him to get into the lane or to play physical defense. Woodard straight abused him a few possessions with ball fakes.
Speaking of Woodard, he is as good as I expected. He was hitting his threes at a nice clip, and he had one sequence in transition drills where he went behind his back at midcourt to evade the first defender, crossed over the second one to get into the lane, and dropped off a sweet pass to Lattin for an easy layup. He plays like the veteran that he is.
Freeman's shooting could be a very useful tool down the road. He and James had a nice little high-low action going during 4-on-4 drills... Freeman was high and James was low. In transition drills he was trailing a play and his man was already waiting for him in the lane. So Strong kicked it to him at the top of the key for an easy 3, which he nailed.
I have to talk about the listed sizes of the players. Here's the roster from soonersports.com:
Code:
No. Name Pos. Ht. Wt. Yr. Hometown (Prev School)
0 Darrion Strong G 6-1 180 Jr. Chicago, Ill. (Coffeyville CC [Kan.])
1 Rashard Odomes G 6-6 200 So. Copperas Cove, Texas (Copperas Cove HS)
3 Christian James G 6-4 218 So. Houston, Texas (Bellaire HS)
4 Jamuni McNeace C 6-10 215 So. Kankakee, Ill. (Allen HS)
5 Matt Freeman F 6-10 217 RFr. Auckland, New Zealand (Westlake Boys HS)
10 Jordan Woodard G 6-0 187 Sr. Arcadia, Okla. (Edmond Memorial HS)
11 Kristian Doolittle F 6-7 215 Fr. Edmond, Okla. (Edmond Memorial HS)
12 Khadeem Lattin F 6-9 208 Jr. Houston, Texas (Redemption Christian Home School Academy)
13 Jordan Shepherd G 6-2 175 Fr. Asheville, N.C. (Asheville Christian Academy)
15 Grant Quinn G 6-4 185 Fr. Argyle, Texas (Liberty Christian HS)
20 Kameron McGusty G 6-5 170 Fr. Katy, Texas (Sunrise Christian Academy [Kan.])
21 Dante Buford F 6-7 221 So. Greenville, S.C. (Arlington Country Day School [Fla.])
22 Daniel Harper G 6-1 190 Sr. Norman, Okla. (Norman HS)
25 C.J. Cole F 6-7 245 Sr. Sperry, Okla. (Sperry HS)
30 Marshall Thorpe F 6-9 235 RFr. Tulsa, Okla. (Bishop Kelley HS)
40 Richard Anderson G 6-2 180 Fr. Midwest City, Okla. (Midwest City HS)Buford and Doolittle are listed at the same height with Buford a few pounds heavier. There is no way that's true. Doolittle has him by at least an inch, and I would guess 20 pounds. I would like to see the two of them standing with Odomes, because I suspect Odomes is also taller than Buford.
And McGusty certainly looks shorter than James. But that could also be due to the fact that James is built like a football player and McGusty is a rail.
I would guess the depth chart looks something like:
PG: Woodard, Strong, Shepherd
SG: James, McGusty, Shepherd
SF: Odomes, James (in small-ball)
PF: Buford, Doolittle, Freeman, Cole
C: Lattin, McNeace, Freeman (for shooting)
But those who know basketball better than I do may have a clearer picture.
