What does everyone think happened to Christian James game this year?

[sooner8693]

Like some others have said, I think he looked a little thick this year and his feet looked like he had lost a step. Maybe those two things probably go hand in hand. However, I think toward the end of the season he started to find a new aspect to his game that can really help him going forward. In the last home game, TCU, he had some really nice drives/moves to the rack with a couple of nice spin moves and finishes at the rim. Maybe those can begin to help him get his confidence back and then he can relax from behind the arc. Thoughts?

 

[MsProudSooner]

Like some others have said, I think he looked a little thick this year and his feet looked like he had lost a step. Maybe those two things probably go hand in hand. However, I think toward the end of the season he started to find a new aspect to his game that can really help him going forward. In the last home game, TCU, he had some really nice drives/moves to the rack with a couple of nice spin moves and finishes at the rim. Maybe those can begin to help him get his confidence back and then he can relax from behind the arc. Thoughts?

He started out the season well but when JW missed those games early, he seemed to put too much pressure on himself. You could tell that he was frustrated and down on himself when he would miss a shot or foul someone. He did seem to be on more of an even keel late in the season.

 

[sdcloud9]

To me, he appeared bigger but lost some athleticism but that's just a layman's opinion.

 

[SoonerBounce13]

I think he was overvalued last year b/c of playing with 4 great teammates.

And honestly, go look at his per 40...it isn't that much different from last year. Actually, it is nearly identical. He actually shot it better from inside the 3 this year b/c he drove it more. The only difference b/t the two years is he didn't shoot the three as well. And that is b/c he didn't play with hield, cousins, spangler, and woodard on the court.

He is who he is, and that is a role player on a good team. That isn't a bad thing to have. He still has value to the team.

 

[inoref]

Lack of help for one, and his head at times is not in the game

 

[Stikboy]

I sure wish I could see tape of that phantom Oregon scrimmage, to at least give me hope for next year..

 

[Zimwillett]

I think he was overvalued last year b/c of playing with 4 great teammates.

And honestly, go look at his per 40...it isn't that much different from last year. Actually, it is nearly identical. He actually shot it better from inside the 3 this year b/c he drove it more. The only difference b/t the two years is he didn't shoot the three as well. And that is b/c he didn't play with hield, cousins, spangler, and woodard on the court.

He is who he is, and that is a role player on a good team. That isn't a bad thing to have. He still has value to the team.

I agree that fans (myself included) went a little overboard on expectations for James after basically just one good performance in a tournament game. And to be sure, I don't think CJ will ever be a truly great scorer. However, I still think he has the ability to be a 10-12 ppg sort of player.

He was actually scoring on roughly that pace for the first month of the season and was on fire from 3 (see e.g. 5-5 vs. Clemson). But you can almost pinpoint the moment when he started to lose confidence. His awful shooting against Wichita State and Auburn basically cost OU two games, and after his garbage performance vs. TCU, the coaches had no choice but to dramatically reduce his minutes/role. He never really recovered.

Whether this has something to do conditioning is difficult for me to say. I think that may be part of it, but as much as anything, I think it's just a classic sophomore slump. I'm hoping the offseason and lighter expectations will help him find his shooting stroke again next season.

 

[Big Old Booger]

I agree with the fact he was a little heavy but the real problem wasn't so much the missed shots it was the fact it affected him mentally which caused him to play really bad for a long stretch of games. Many games it appeared he was hurting us more than helping and it wasn't until the final 8 games of the season where he finally started helping by playing with more effort. He started doing the little things like getting rebounds, getting steals, and making assists. That led to him being more confident in driving to the hoop instead of just relying on his 3 point shot that was not there.

I noticed when his shots started to not fall his attitude went south too. I've heard it affected him in the locker room and with the team. I could see his body language on the court like when he missed a shot, he just stood there. When the ref called a foul he mouthed back, things like that. Just play. Keep playing and putting out the effort when your shot isn't falling and eventually good things will happen. He learned that the hard way.

 

[oudna]

Mental

 

[Northbase]

The only difference b/t the two years is he didn't shoot the three as well. And that is b/c he didn't play with hield, cousins, spangler, and woodard on the court.

That is not correct. This year James had many open 3s and they never fell. He missed open 3s all year long. He probably had more contested 3s last year than this year and still shot the ball better. It had nothing to do with who was on the court.

 

[AdaSooner]

I agree that fans like me could have expected more from Christian than he was capable of delivering.

However, I think MsProud is spot on in saying he put too much pressure on himself when Woodard went down with an injury. The timing is too perfect to be a coincidence. CJ was averaging better than 50% from three through the first ten games of the season. His shooting woes didn't begin until the first game Woodard wasn't available.

I have said for sometime that Christian saw himself as the perimeter scorer everyone was relying on this season. And, why not? Posters on this board were saying he and Jordan were capable of picking up right where Buddy and Isaiah left off last year. When Jordan was not available anymore, the spotlight was on him to take up the slack. The self-inflicted pressure he felt led to one missed shot after another. He lost confidence in himself and the rest is history.

What I believe he experienced is similar to a golfer who suddenly starts to miss four and five feet putts. It's more mental than physical. Golfers call it "the yips." It gets in your head, and it's not as easy as some may think to get it out.

Christian played better in the last few games of the season. The shooting stroke he put on display late last season and in the first ten games this season may not be back on every shot, but he appeared to be more focused on other parts of his game. I hope I'm right, because I still believe he can be a major contributor to our success the next two years.

 

[usedtobe1]

I thought (and posted several times) that CJ was too heavy. It affected him early in the season mostly with his defense. He just didn't move quick enough and got into early foul trouble. He's a physical defender like Odomes but couldn't beat his man to the spot. The early foul trouble didn't allow him to get into a flow of the games. Then he started his shooting slump and spiraled downhill.

I thought he played a lot better late in the season. I think he probably dropped a few pounds. Played smarter, too, even though he never really regained his shooting stroke. If he can adjust his attitude and works hard in the off-season, he can still be a key player going forward. It's up to him.....

 

[SoonerBounce13]

That is not correct. This year James had many open 3s and they never fell. He missed open 3s all year long. He probably had more contested 3s last year than this year and still shot the ball better. It had nothing to do with who was on the court.

I mean I get what you are saying but its mental too. Knowing you aren't relied on to make your open shots is different than your team needing you to hit the open shots.

 

[AdaSooner]

I thought (and posted several times) that CJ was too heavy. It affected him early in the season mostly with his defense. He just didn't move quick enough and got into early foul trouble. He's a physical defender like Odomes but couldn't beat his man to the spot. The early foul trouble didn't allow him to get into a flow of the games. Then he started his shooting slump and spiraled downhill.

I thought he played a lot better late in the season. I think he probably dropped a few pounds. Played smarter, too, even though he never really regained his shooting stroke. If he can adjust his attitude and works hard in the off-season, he can still be a key player going forward. It's up to him.....

Yes, you did. You told me CJ was too heavy in one of our telephone conversations long before I considered that as a possibility. I noticed the additional weight he had put on after you mentioned it.

I agree his weight was likely a factor in his footwork and his defense. I also don't rule out the possibility the extra pounds he has been carrying could have affected his shooting by keeping him from reaching the apex of his jump shot. I have focused more on the pressure he was under as the primary cause for his shooting slump, mainly due to the timing. He went from shooting lights out through the first ten games to a player who couldn't hit the broad side of a barn in the very first game after Woodard went down with an injury.

 

[BoulderSooner]

Yes, you did. You told me CJ was too heavy in one of our telephone conversations long before I considered that as a possibility. I noticed the additional weight he had put on after you mentioned it.

I agree his weight was likely a factor in his footwork and his defense. I also don't rule out the possibility the extra pounds he has been carrying could have affected his shooting by keeping him from reaching the apex of his jump shot. I have focused more on the pressure he was under as the primary cause for his shooting slump, mainly due to the timing. He went from shooting lights out through the first ten games to a player who couldn't hit the broad side of a barn in the very first game after Woodard went down with an injury.

except he played his best ball of the year at the beginning of the season ..

including dominating (per all reports) against a very very good Oregon team

 

[usedtobe1]

CJ was rated as the #1 shooting guard in Texas after his junior year in HS, and had a good AAU summer before he got hurt. He was probably Oregon bound before his injury. The guy is a good player. He just needs to regain his confidence.

 

[AdaSooner]

except he played his best ball of the year at the beginning of the season ..

including dominating (per all reports) against a very very good Oregon team

I'm confused by your response to my post. Maybe you didn't read all of it, or perhaps you didn't read what I said about CJ's slump being tied to Woodard going down with an injury.

His shooting performance during the early part of the season and in a scrimmage against Oregon fits the timeline I established in both posts: No sign of a slump when he was shooting 50% from three in the first ten games of the season. Woodard goes out with an injury and CJ's shot goes south in the very first game when Jordan was no longer available and stays there. That's why I think he put undue pressure on himself, went into a shooting rut and never recovered.

 

[cvangild]

I think CJ's struggles were all mental. He started off the season playing well...and the team was playing pretty well. But as the season progressed, and Woodard's absence putting even more pressure on him to produce, led to him struggling for a few games. Then conference season started...and he just never really got on track.

Who knows how losing his starting job impacted him. It certainly didn't help his confidence. And when you continue to lose several very close games....those kind of things can impact players in different ways. And we are not even factoring in ANY other part of his life where he could have had issues impacting him mentally.

I think adding someone like a Trae Young...who wants to be the man, plus the continued improvement of Kam & Doolittle will take a lot of pressure off of CJ and will allow him to do what he did last year...come in and shoot the ball.

Winning breeds confidence. I wouldn't be at all surprised to see him make huge strides and get back to how he played earlier this year!

 

[sanguinetti]

i went to a practice in October while visiting my pops in Norman......watched the guys and Lon run through some things....and CJ looked like the best player on the floor, cool and confident when he touched the ball.

i live in Colorado and so i follow here and whatnot.

i was really surprised when it started to go how it did.

anything can happen in a 20 year old's world.

i'm pulling for a big year from CJ next year. i think we are better with him contributing.

wouldn't surprise me at all for him to have a bounce back 2017-2018 year.

 

[GregFrom918]

I'm definitely in the mental group. He looked lost out there at times and made a lot of very bad decisions. You could see it in his face how frustrated he got and he couldn't hit wide open threes to save his life. He missed a lot of bunnies, as well. If he comes back next year, hopefully he's able to regain that confidence and become the player a lot of us thought he would.


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