Italy All-Stars

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Jason94
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Italy All-Stars

Post by Jason94 »

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mgd2P-vbNTU

They posted the entire game on youtube. Some comments:

The level of competition here is difficult to compare, except that we were clearly better than they were and much taller. QMB and Robbins dwarfed their players. Our guards were also bigger than their guards were overall. We played pretty much every player available, and played every scholarship player extensive minutes, which is to be expected in these exhibition games. The floor also looked pretty slick which is not great.

The starters were QMB, Smith, Wright, Lawrence and Manjon. Wright and Manjon should start most games if not all, and Lawrence looked to possible be a good early season starter given his size and experience. Manjon is very quick and has good handles - didn't really look to shoot from the outside which is consistent with his shooting percentage in his previous seasons, is athletic but small. Smith looked very good as a PF with good size and athleticism, though I don't see him supplanting Stute when Stute is healthy as we need the shooting touch that he brings. QMB is steady, reliable and will get probably around 20 mpg regardless of whether he is starting or not.

The second team was essentially Robbins, Ansong, Thomas, Lewis and Shelby. Lewis was running point when in there with Shelby at the off guard and Thomas at wing forward. Ansong played a bit of an undersized PF similar to Mann last season, and looked good at the position with solid athleticism and quickness - difficult to determine his handles or his ability to handle a wing spot, which is what his height suggests he should be at. But looks about as good as you could expect for a very late pickup. Thomas was very aggressive with his shot, but that isn't necessarily a good thing as many of the shots he attempted would be blocked against SEC level competition, and his accuracy on his two point floaters and jumpers was not great even when he was able to get his shot off without pressure. It is disappointing that he missed several open threes. Lewis looked confident out there, and has a chance to be a reasonable backup PG option. Dort looked like he has some developing to do - great physical size but did appear to be a little lost out there, which isn't too unusual for freshmen centers. We won't rely upon him from a depth standpoint this season, though I had assumed he would be a little further along than he appeared to be. I was surprised that Shelby didn't look particularly aggressive offensively. He was recruited with a reputation as being a shooter so hopefully that will turn up as the season goes along.

I like the post depth we appear to have - we were without Dia and Stute but still had contributions from Smith, QMB, Dort, Robbins and Ansong in the post. I would be great if Ansong could handle a wing spot - he will be great on the break. I am concerned about our guard situation - if Lawrence is our starter than it is possible that neither starting guard will be a threat from deep.

The good news is that I see a ton of front court depth - someone who would have played extensively last year or the year before will struggle to get PT this season - I don't know who that might be but the numbers and talent suggest that this is almost a certainty. The guards are kind of what we expected - Manjon is going to run the point but at the moment his backcourt mate is someone who has a pretty major flaw or is largely an unknown. I did like what I saw out of Ansong though I don't know where he plays - backing up Stute and Wright is not a way to get a ton of PT. Should be an interesting season.


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Re: Italy All-Stars

Post by alathIN »

Great analysis. Thanks for posting.
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Re: Italy All-Stars

Post by Nashmann »

No scoreboard?? Never mind they showed it at the break.
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Re: Italy All-Stars

Post by Gambit »

Thanks for the recap, Jason. I watched most of the replay and don’t disagree with anything you wrote. Who was #13? I don’t see one on our roster page.

Guard positions are a concern for me, also. A rotation of Manjon, Lawrence, Shelby, Lewis and Thomas is not awe inspiring for me right now. If we could combine their traits into 3 players, then we’d have something. I like Manjon’s quickness and handle, but his outside shooting is suspect. Nice physique, though, to be able to handle physical SEC play, plus his experience, which I expect will have him the starting rotation all season. Lawrence is hugely athletic and a good defender, but I have concerns about both his outside shot and his handle in traffic. Shelby has a lot of upside, probably more than Lewis, but I don’t know what kind of competition he faced at Greenhill. Lewis is definitely tested from HS, so might be more game ready at the beginning of the season. Bishop O’Connell plays in one of the 2 or 3 best HS basketball conferences in the nation. It has Paul VI (of which this year’s Duke team had 2 starters), DeMatha, Gonzaga, Archbishop Carroll and St. John’s College HS, just to name a few. Thomas is what he is, a streaky shooter, with an average at best handle and a defensive liability. I like the kid a lot though. I don’t know much about Samuels or Keefe. The video wasn’t good enough for me to make who was who all the time.

We seem pretty strong in the front court, especially with a healthy Dia and Stute. Wright, Stute and Robbins/QMB plus a rotation of Ansong, Smith and Dia is some pretty good depth and gives Dort a potential redshirt year to develop, if he wants it.
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Re: Italy All-Stars

Post by Seadog73 »

Thanks Jason
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Re: Italy All-Stars

Post by commadore »

Gambit wrote: Sun Aug 14, 2022 8:58 am Thanks for the recap, Jason. I watched most of the replay and don’t disagree with anything you wrote. Who was #13? I don’t see one on our roster page.

Guard positions are a concern for me, also. A rotation of Manjon, Lawrence, Shelby, Lewis and Thomas is not awe inspiring for me right now. If we could combine their traits into 3 players, then we’d have something. I like Manjon’s quickness and handle, but his outside shooting is suspect. Nice physique, though, to be able to handle physical SEC play, plus his experience, which I expect will have him the starting rotation all season. Lawrence is hugely athletic and a good defender, but I have concerns about both his outside shot and his handle in traffic. Shelby has a lot of upside, probably more than Lewis, but I don’t know what kind of competition he faced at Greenhill. Lewis is definitely tested from HS, so might be more game ready at the beginning of the season. Bishop O’Connell plays in one of the 2 or 3 best HS basketball conferences in the nation. It has Paul VI (of which this year’s Duke team had 2 starters), DeMatha, Gonzaga, Archbishop Carroll and St. John’s College HS, just to name a few. Thomas is what he is, a streaky shooter, with an average at best handle and a defensive liability. I like the kid a lot though. I don’t know much about Samuels or Keefe. The video wasn’t good enough for me to make who was who all the time.

We seem pretty strong in the front court, especially with a healthy Dia and Stute. Wright, Stute and Robbins/QMB plus a rotation of Ansong, Smith and Dia is some pretty good depth and gives Dort a potential redshirt year to develop, if he wants it.
#13 was Ansong. Apparently he didn't get t o VU until 2 days before they left and couldn't get the Jersey number he will be wearing.
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Re: Italy All-Stars

Post by Nashmann »

Guards suspect. We have very little in the way of consistent 3 pt shooters until Stute gets back. The lack of 3 pt shooting will really hurt us this year unless it develops during the year. Dort needs a redshirt year.
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Re: Italy All-Stars

Post by VUaskew »

Why was Dia out? Injured or not there?
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Re: Italy All-Stars

Post by commadore »

VUaskew wrote: Mon Aug 15, 2022 10:10 am Why was Dia out? Injured or not there?
Someone said he was seen in a boot. That is all we've heard.
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Re: Italy All-Stars

Post by Versus75 »

In these days of easy transfers, I doubt you will see any decent player redshirted. He would would put his services up for NIL auction.
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