Purdue made Gicari Harris's final six.
- Thread starter Abugabby
- Start date
Agree that an overall increase in athleticism is very helpful but a number of the guys on your list are just not very good basket players, so I very much disagree with you there.
You might feel different about Wheeler had the coach used him properly.
Wheeler's 5th year at SJU is what he could have been at Purdue.
He would have delivered Purdue to the Final Four in 2019 had he been
blocking out Diakete of Virginia instead of Eifert.
I know Eastern wasn't much of an outside shooter (some of that was on coaching), but he brought so much else to the table.
Are you high or is it a head injury?
To be clear, I'm not laughing at you, but you're stretching so far to pin this on the coaching staff that you're ready to topple over. If you were to say that you wanted more guys like Nojel, Kelsey and Aaron as athletes I'd completely agree. Saying that you want more of them as players ignores their shortfalls.
Nojel's development was such a cluster**** for reasons that IMO, had nothing to do with the coaching staff, that it's hilarious to me that anyone would choose him as an example of the type of player that you'd want. The type of athlete? Sure. Wanting players with some of his attributes, particularly on defense? Yes. Wanting more Nojel's in aggeregate? I just don't see it, even though I always liked the kid and thought he was a good teammate.
Similar story with Barlow. Probably not as much of a headcase on the court as Nojel but wasn't willing to put in the work and couldn't get out of his own way.
I loved Wheeler, great kid, but the idea that he underperformed because he was mismanaged is nothing short of laughable. Yes, he shot better at St. John's, good for him, but he certainly wasn't transformed as a player and didn't play winning basketball. He got more run and was asked to think less and play less disciplined basketball on a team that went 17-15 overall and 8-11 in conference. If you're willing to live with that level of results in order to give players more freedom we just disagree.
Your post is good. I will always be a huge Purdue basketball fan. I think its
possible to have more offensive freedom for all 5 guys without sacrificing
much in the loss column. This is where Painter needs to change. After Zach
is gone, I want the end of a 1980's post-centered offense. So far, the future
commits are getting away from this mold thank God! 2010 and 2019 are the
Purdue teams I want year in and year out because its more modern basketball
(can play any style) with the best chance to make the FF and win a NC.
Guard-oriented with bigs like Hummel and JJ are what Purdue needs more of.
If Purdue were to somehow make the FF, etc. with Zach this year, great!!
But I will believe it when I see it. Give me teams like 2010 and 2019 any day
of the week. This is how Purdue teams should be constructed every year.
Purdue would have made the 2019 Final Four had 6'9'' Wheeler been
in the game blocking out 6'9'' Diakite of Virginia instead of 6'6'' Grady
Eifert on that play of the game at the end. Hard to get over that one.
Wheeler could not catch or make a pass, and could not not dribble without banging it off his leg or foot. He was given so many opportunities just never could cash in.
I have to believe if wheeler stayed at Purdue he would have improved his game. I also believe Purdue was a better team without him. His talents did not blend with the talents of other players. Yes, his stats improved after he left, but so did his minutes. Rather than saying he was better based on his stats, I look at his team’s winning percentage. Were they a better team because wheeler joined them? It sure doesn’t appear that he helped his team win many games.
I agree with most of your posting thus far but this is revisionist history. Wheeler was prone to turnovers and hanging around the 3pt line and not rebounding. Despite Grady being small, dude was always banging on the boards.
Trevion Williams should have been on the blocks instead of Eifert...any ball that Trevion touched was his.
I was
watching Eastern today playing with the Men Of Mackey. Looks like he might have gotten most of his head out of the way. Drilled a three and later hit some FF silky smooth. Most importantly can get to the rim and finish with either hand. What could have been.
I remember Painter saying in an interview that he had thought of putting Trevion in, but didn't want him getting fouled immediately in that situation since he was a bad FT shooter.
He then admitted that he over thought the situation and should have had Trevion in to rebound and let the rest play out after they secured the possession.
One of the reasons I like Coach Paint is he is the first to tell you when he is wrong most of the time...
Grady was a better rebounder than Wheeler too IMO. Much better hands, instincts, and grit...
Okay back to the topic at hand.
Sounds like he really showed off at the Adidas All-American Camp.
Sounds like he really showed off at the Adidas All-American Camp.
His overthinking cost Purdue the Final Four.
Diakite jumped straight up over Eifert's gritty block out
and tipped the ball out for Virginia to send it to OT.
Wheeler would have jumped straight up and gotten that rebound.
That was nothing more than a jump ball rebound. Wheeler had hops.
Trevion would have done a better job than Eifert, too, but no
guarantee Diakite would not have still tipped the ball out for OT.
Jumping high off the ground quickly was the key to that rebound,
and that's what Wheeler could do.
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Trevion was a force as a rebounder in traffic, but he made a cardinal sin about 3 times in not blocking out on the FT lane while at purdue . Easy to remember those errors. And yes missed FTs were a concern as well as NOT making mental mistakes to make the unlikely more likely.
The problem there is, if Trevion gets that rebound, he would have been immediately fouled. Now you have Trevion at the line with 5 seconds left.
Or Cline could have just made a free throw. Although it’s our constitutional right as fans, it takes very little knowledge or skill for any of us to second guess.
Validating as a second guess is best understood when the first guess is known and understood...something we can only speculate since we have only game time to understand and even then many times bias fits in due to selective memory.
Didn't improve his fitness or play once he cashed in in The League.
I loved the young man & grieved what ensued.
I've said it a million times, unless you're a lottery pick NBA teams will provide all the resources you could ever want but they aren't going to give you the individual attention and caring that you get at a place like Purdue. I'm all for guys both following their dreams and getting a paycheck but the assumption that the NBA is the best place for everyone to develop is faulty.
I don't know about that. I know it is impossible to prove one way or the other, but I disagree with your guess at this.
It was a very high rebound that Diakite barely got a hand on. Wheeler would have still been looking at the basket. It was a bang-bang play. Wheeler was simple not that quick.
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I was thinking Diakite left a bit early and shoved Grady in his back forward. All that saw that will never see that duplicated again the rest of our lives...just too many ways had to happen for it to end up as it did IMO
And the person in charge of the clock didn't start it until the ball was all the way in the back court. Not enough time to get the shot off if it starts after Diakite tips it, but I digress
And if Cline hits his second FT before this…we go up 4 and we go to the F4 more than likely. Or maybe if we let UVA attempt a 3 instead in the final seconds maybe they miss… part of the game though. Hope we can get some luck this coming March and make a deep run, even into April.
He got tossed around the G league ringer and never seemed to break back into the league. I don’t think it is easy for any guy but he was a 5/4 tweener. Not big enough and athletic enough to be a 5 and too big/slow to be a 4.
He also got the COVID bubble year and opted out. That was the beginning of the end unfortunately.
247 has a new article up breaking down his top 6, but it is behind a pay wall. Not sure how in depth they go, or if there is anything new, but for those who are pay members of 247 enjoy.
Incorrect, it started right away and was at 3.8 or so when Clark retrieved it. Yes Diakite pushed Eifert, would have pushed Wheeler, and in those circumstances it never gets called.
Last I watched it I thought the ball was past half court. Of course I only watched it once... lol
I was there and I videotaped it. The ball was closer to mid court than where Diakite was standing when he tapped into the backcourt.
Please explain how the coaches made his shot so bad.
I think you overestimate Wheelers impact by about 1,000%
