T.J. Taylor

BigTime

BigTime

The Red Wig
Joined
Nov 2, 2008
Messages
11,626
Reaction score
0
The more I think about it, the more excited I get about TJ and his future at OU. Here is a guy that didn't get to compete in last year's AAU season (where kids get the most exposure by the ranking services). He also committed to Oklahoma very early in the process (another way to not get a ratings bump by scout or rivals).

He has the body to come in and make an impact against the physical guards of the Big 12. I love the way that he finishes in traffic and his scorer's mentality. He also competes really hard on the defensive end.

I think all OU basketball fans should be thanking their lucky stars that Coach Capel landed this guy because he will be a major cog in getting this program back on track.

-BT

Work hard this summer, TJ. We are going to need you to come up big next year.
 
BigTime , I said in a thread yesterday I thought T.J. would be better next year than Cam will be. Not that Cam won't be good. I think T.J. will have a real good year. Of course, just like this year, it depends on his mind and if he is mentally ready too.
 
I'm excited about all the newcomers...because we havent seen any of them play at this level and we dont know what to expect out of them...i'm sure they all have potential but that word doesnt mean a thing to this program right now...

Gonna be fun watching this team and seeing who steps up...
 
When are all the new players going to be on campus? The Sooner the better. Start building some team chemistry.
 
I am looking for minutes and defense from TJ. I think he'll come in and provide those. I anticipate him eventually covering the best perimeter player on the other team.
 
Edmond Sooner, you're correct when you say we have not seen them at this level. I see the capabilities of both T.J. and Cam though.

In T.J. I see a guard that is really without fears. He is a play maker first and a scorer second. He can switch the two attributes if needed. He is physical and has the body to counter older and stronger players. I think he will be a great shooter when he is done here. He reminds me of T. Everett with his style of play and his passing ability. The only reason I think he will be initially better than Cam is because of his body.

In Cam I see a very aggressive player and he see's plays ahead of real time. He can score from anywhere and his strength is deceptive. Jumps very well and will finish at the rim often. If he learns to do that early in his college career it will be a quick transition. Reminds me of Durant with his body type. Long and lean and shoots from everywhere and could possibly play the four if he had too. His arms look really long and shoot benefit him in rebounding and guarding.

Cam should be better, than T.J., on D this first year.

This is what is fun about first year players; you never know what you are going to get from them, good or bad.
 
Last edited:
Cam should be better, than T.J., on D this first year.
Click to expand...

I see this the opposite. I think TJ is a better defender now than Cam. I think Cam has a higher ceiling. Watching Cam in camp this hear and watching Ricky Scott get into his body and muscle him ala the way guys use to do Tony early in his career, leads me to believe Cam needs to bulk up some. Cam's length is a huge problem once he gets his things in order though.
 
DM said:
I see this the opposite. I think TJ is a better defender now than Cam. I think Cam has a higher ceiling. Watching Cam in camp this hear and watching Ricky Scott get into his body and muscle him ala the way guys use to do Tony early in his career, leads me to believe Cam needs to bulk up some. Cam's length is a huge problem once he gets his things in order though.
Click to expand...

Cam,done put on 10lbs since the season been over he been workingout.
 
Ideally I like the idea of TJ as an on ball defender and Cam as a guy that can close out on the wing. Cam is a very solid shotblocker too. Both of these guys are athletic upgrades.
 
DM said:
Ideally I like the idea of TJ as an on ball defender and Cam as a guy that can close out on the wing. Cam is a very solid shotblocker too. Both of these guys are athletic upgrades.
Click to expand...

Agreed. One of my favorite parts of Cam's game is his ability to block shots as a help-side defender. He is very good at doing that.
 
Saw Cameron this weekend. Though he was wearing a baggy shirt, it did reveal enough to say he hasn't put on enough weight at this point to make an appreciable difference.

TJ did play in some of last season's summer circuit. He looked very explosive and was the best player on the court in a few of those games. That's quite a statement with two top 30 players on his team alone, in Cameron and Phil. Phil made everybody look better than they were (including TJ), but it did give TJ the ability to show what he could do when paired with an elite facilitator.

After coming back from his injury, the explosiveness was understandably gone, as was the resulting aggressiveness. As the high school season progressed, he regained some of the aggressiveness, but the explosiveness still hasn't returned. Because of all of this, I believe people are sleeping on him a little at the next level. If he gets that natural explosiveness back, people will likely be shocked at the vertical and lateral athlete he is.
 
SoonerDAZE said:
Saw Cameron this weekend. Though he was wearing a baggy shirt, it did reveal enough to say he hasn't put on enough weight at this point to make an appreciable difference.

TJ did play in some of last season's summer circuit. He looked very explosive and was the best player on the court in a few of those games. That's quite a statement with two top 30 players on his team alone, in Cameron and Phil. Phil made everybody look better than they were (including TJ), but it did give TJ the ability to show what he could do when paired with an elite facilitator.

After coming back from his injury, the explosiveness was understandably gone, as was the resulting aggressiveness. As the high school season progressed, he regained some of the aggressiveness, but the explosiveness still hasn't returned. Because of all of this, I believe people are sleeping on him a little at the next level. If he gets that natural explosiveness back, people will likely be shocked at the vertical and lateral athlete he is.
Click to expand...

I realize that you are still sore over me not agreeing with you about Peters (we will just have to see. I actually hope that you are right as I really like the kid). But my point regarding TJ still stands. Yes, he did play in some early AAU events, but he didn't get to play in enough to gain the exposure that would have allowed him to gain the recruiting ranking that Cam did. TJ was actually ranked ahead of Cam by one of the major sites before the AAU season began. Your point regarding his explosiveness is a valid one. I didn't get to see him much before the injury, so I am not sure how far away he is from his orginal explosiveness.

As for Cam, its hard to tell if a kid has put on ten pounds if he is wearing baggy clothing. I think I will go with chico on this one as he is very connected to Cam.
 
BigTime said:
I realize that you are still sore over me not agreeing with you about Peters (we will just have to see. I actually hope that you are right as I really like the kid). But my point regarding TJ still stands. Yes, he did play in some early AAU events, but he didn't get to play in enough to gain the exposure that would have allowed him to gain the recruiting ranking that Cam did. TJ was actually ranked ahead of Cam by one of the major sites before the AAU season began. Your point regarding his explosiveness is a valid one. I didn't get to see him much before the injury, so I am not sure how far away he is from his orginal explosiveness.

As for Cam, its hard to tell if a kid has put on ten pounds if he is wearing baggy clothing. I think I will go with chico on this one as he is very connected to Cam.
Click to expand...
Cam's dad has him on a 4day workout in their inhome gym outside of Cam,working out at Aspen Athletic club.Dad told me he is training Cam the old fashioned way 4boiled eggs aday which he said Cam,hate penutbutter sandwichs,2bakedpotatoes,and pasta and Cam has to workout on a full stomach,he has Cam on some kind of jumping routine i was over they house oneday and man that routine looked very hard but he wouldnt tell me what it was he said it was a secret.
 
chico got game said:
Cam's dad has him on a 4day workout in their inhome gym outside of Cam,working out at Aspen Athletic club.Dad told me he is training Cam the old fashioned way 4boiled eggs aday which he said Cam,hate penutbutter sandwichs,2bakedpotatoes,and pasta and Cam has to workout on a full stomach,he has Cam on some kind of jumping routine i was over they house oneday and man that routine looked very hard but he wouldnt tell me what it was he said it was a secret.
Click to expand...

Thanks for the updates chico! Dude sounds like a hard worker...with his work ethic and as athletic as that kid is he is going to be scary good in a few years!!
 
BigTime said:
I realize that you are still sore over me not agreeing with you about Peters (we will just have to see. I actually hope that you are right as I really like the kid).
Click to expand...

Ah man, it's all good. Not interested in worrying about disagreements, only interested in OU getting the right guys! DFW is full of guys who would fit that bill over the next few classes. Both Cameron and TJ fit that bill. Both are Big12 level. Both want to be here. Both fit glaring needs that have to be filled.

TJ is not the player he was prior to the injury, but in my opinion, that's almost a good thing, in that his ceiling is so much higher than most will expect of him! National ranking services see 90% of the kids they rank during 10% of the games they play, and 10% of the kids during 50% of the games they play. This is not a formula for overly accurate assessments, especially when taking those rankings literally for use in comparing one player to another.

As for Cameron, he has always been a hard working player. He will arrive in Norman more skilled and stronger than last we saw, I'm quite certain. However, playing the three in the Big12 is a huge physical leap from North Texas high school basketball.

He dominated many games and scored a ton of his baskets based on a marked advantage in athleticism, height, and strength. All three of those distinct advantages go away the moment he steps on the floor in conference play. What he will have in his hip pocket that first conference game is his nose for the ball. He rebounds very well from the perimeter - especially on the offensive end. When the competition calls for it, he's almost relentless. That will definitely translate into production from the jump.

Remember this about Cameron, he was "johhny-come-lately" to the national ranking consciousness. He was relatively unknown when he joined Team Texas last summer. His stock literally skyrocketed during the summer. He's a stud whose ceiling, like TJ's, is way above what people give him credit for.

Wait 'till these two start to hit stride. They have been rivals for a long time. Now it's time to tag team the competition. It should be fun to watch!
 
Kevin durant's max on bench in college was below 135 his freshman year and he is freaky Skinny and I think that guy is kinda good.. I think cam will be fine especially hearing from Chico that he's working hard..

Cam = my favorite
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Similar threads

W
NIL article
Replies
0
Views
126
WichitaSooner
W
W
Uzan's struggles
Replies
19
Views
937
CMSOONER
CMSOONER
C
Quick Intro and a few thoughts
2
Replies
20
Views
1K
opsooner
O
S
New Hire Director of Recruiting, Influence and Branding Stategy
Replies
0
Views
230
Soonercuda
S
C
Play at the Rim
Replies
2
Views
505
BoulderSooner
BoulderSooner
Back
Top