The next two games are winnable. If we pull that off, we are 12-7 and I’ll “officially” be excited. 
Liking What Oats Is Showing
- Thread starter 4Q Basket Case
- Start date
Come on "Delivery" - if you haven't done so already, you are about to lose any credibility to be this blind to incredible improvement. Seems as you are doubling down on your negativity.
I am impressed with what he has done with this team, if I was a recruit that liked to get up and down the court I would love to get a call from coach Oats. This team is just now getting comfortable in his style of play and you can tell that they like it.
I only wish we had our two guys back from injury and the other kid that transferred from 'Nova. The team we have is playing hard, improving, and getting some wins, but I doubt we will have the firepower or depth to finish this season like we would like without those other guys. Guys that play hard are fun to watch, though.
Prior to CNO, I sat a watched talented teams coached by CAJ with little or no concept or philosophy and acted as though the coaching they received was “let me roll the balls on the court and y’all go play”.
Even in our losses, you’re seeing an improvement in play, and a consistency in approach. And it appears in the last couple of games we are learning how to finish games.
And doing this with a thin front court. I’m excited about what the future holds with CNO.
I agree that the lack of effective inside guys limits how far this team can go. As I posted earlier, that won't change this year.....we'll just have to rehab and recruit our way out of the situation.
Also agree on the fun part. They do play hard, all the time. If Missouri had had just a good day at the FT line (as opposed to an all-time record day), we'd have won by 20+.
You've hit on something I overlooked....the philosophy.
One might or might not agree with Nate Oats' approach. But there is no doubt what his philosophy is -- shoot 3s, and drive to the basket where you either get a layup / dunk, or kick the ball out to somebody behind the 3 line who puts it up. Don't take shots in the 5 - 22 foot range. Play good defense and harass the opponent into turnovers. Don't be stupid about it, but don't worry too much about fouling.
At least as important, everything he does supports that philosophy.
I too was impressed that we followed up a good win (Auburn) with another SEC win. For the last several years, we were bad to play well in one game, and just sleepwalk through the next.
This team has some gaps that coaching can't fix this season, and I fully understand what that means. But for the first time in a long time, I have no doubt whatsoever that we're on the way to something good here.
Last edited:
I haven't been able to find any NCAA stat sites where you can look at partial season, but in our last 11 games
Bama - 87.3 ppg opponents - 74.4 ppg. This scoring margin would rate top 20 in the NCAA.
Bama - 87.3 ppg opponents - 74.4 ppg. This scoring margin would rate top 20 in the NCAA.
I think probably one of the most important things in basketball is philosophy and concept of play, along with recruiting and coaching to that philosophy.
Nolan Richardson (40 minutes of hell) to Paul Westhead (Fastbreak and transition offense) to Dean Smith (motion offense and four corners prior to shot clock) all the way back to Wooden (high post offense) all were consistent in philosophy.
And you can recruit the best of the best, but it means little if those players don’t fit conceptually. Sheer talent CAN make up for some coaching deficits, but in key moments it mostly comes down to executing what your built to do as a team.
And consistency in concept and philosophy is what allows lesser talented teams to be competitive against those that are seemingly more talented.
I have a buddy that is an attorney by trade but missed his calling in life. He is the son of one the best high school basketball coaches around here. And the acorn doesn’t fall far from the tree. My friend coached AAU in his spare time and was unbelievable in his success. He was playing zone trap and pressure defenses long before it was fashionable. He played transitional offense off the trapping defense.
That was his “philosophy”. And he was great recognizing those kids that fit and didn’t fit his system, both athletically and intellectually.
Early in the year, it was hard to swallow the losses. But you could accept the mistakes, poor shot selection (at times) and turnovers because you could see where CNO is trying to go (mostly with a squad he didn’t recruit). CNO’s success at Buffalo was not by dumb luck.
And Calapari’s comments wasn’t just off the cuff niceties. He sees an Alabama team growing in CNO’s system.
My only issue with not taking 5-10 footers in the lane is that people are starting to clog the low post which is putting our guards flat on the floor too much. Stop and pop has a place. And would keep Bolden and Kira out of foul trouble.
I think Petty actually did this at least twice (to my surprise) vs Missouri. I've been crying for it a long time and Lewis seems to have been the only one that would occasionally do a pull-up, runner, or floater.
I believe it will happen.The next two games are winnable. If we pull that off, we are 12-7 and I’ll “officially” be excited.
You've always been a pretty good "Cheerleader for Oklahoma"! That being said, I find it hard to "get along" with your honest opinion that shows not much basketball knowledge.
I hope you're right. We've already slain some of our internal dragons this year. Understanding that Vandy is really struggling, we haven't played well on the road in the SEC for several years now. And the weird court setup in Nashville has given us fits forever.
It would be great to win at Vandy, struggling though they may be, and beat a good Big 12 team at home. We'd be rolling into Baton Rouge with some real momentum and confidence.
I was about to say anytime we win “up there” in Nashville is big. That place has always been a difficult place for us win, regardless of how well Vandy is playing.
I'm OK with the "Wait and See" attitude! But, if you are going to "Wait and See" then it probably be better to "wait and see" before posting in a thread such as this? JMHO
If we can at least split the upcoming matchups with LSU and Arky that will be huge. Personally I hope we get a win out of both.
I love the energy and optimism being shown to the program. Its exciting to see. This team has fully brought in and has given us something as fans to cheer about. Hoping they can keep up the momentum of growth and finish the season strong.
There was a point in the latter part of the game where the announcer was showing shot charts. I didn't have the sound on, but am guessing the chart was for Bama, which showed 3s and layups with a handful of mid range 2s. Looked like an NBA shot chart.
We've had trouble landing prolific shooters in the last few years. Now, just show 'em this chart.
Earlier it was mentioned about CNO's offensive style. Not only is it fun to watch but if I'm a player I'm smelling what he's cooking!!!
Latest threads
-
-
FSQ QB Thomas Castellanos calls out Bama: "They don't have Nick Saban to save them. I just don't see them stopping me."- Started by BamaNation
- Replies: 29
-
-
-
-
