"Great"? Come on man.. Nothing about Morton's game will ever be 'great'. Iowa was the ideal matchup for him and probably very similar to the type of athletes and players he faced in high school where he excelled.
This is why….
- Thread starter bonefish1
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We've really set the bar so low. He did some nice things but the guy hasn't scored a point in 6 games. The guy has 8 points and 7 rebounds in 8 games. He does average two assists, which is pretty high but a lot of those assists are moving the ball around the perimeter or feeding the post, that rely on guys either hitting a three or Edey making a post move. Very few of his assist lead directly to a clear path baskets. Sasha averaged 3 assist per game in this offense and no one would confuse him with Magic Johnson.
At this point the starters are set and will probably play 30+ minutes when it counts. The only question is who gets the most back up minutes. Right now Colvin appears to be the 10th guy so Painter appears to be falling back on "safer" options.
We agree. I think if you read my 2nd ppg that points out M is not a long term solution.
Although both got minutes, I would like to see more minutes for Colvin & Heide. Not because their play deserved it, but for needed long term development. And particularly in a blow out, they should have both gotten more play.
You are wrong. Morton was great last night.
You are correct - Iowa was the ideal matchup for him. Morton while good last night, is NOT a long term solution. But there is no harm in giving him credit for last night.
Still in a blow out - it was a shame Colvin & Heide should have gotten more minutes. Not that their play warranted it last night.....but for development.
That is true, but in a close game you need two way players a lot of the time. Still, as you referenced the variability of the athletic ability and skill gives Matt some options. Myles also got minutes yesterday. I tried to watch Myles a bit on D and he got what looked from my seat a bad foul call on a drive into the lane apparently with his body and I do think he is working and trying to D up the ball. Away from the ball he seemed to hug his man (too close) on D some, but in fairness I do NOT know what if any different rules he may have had away from the ball. Unlike some I think these two are coming along fine. I see a lot of games yet to be played with many practice and learning opportunities as well as time in games. The speed of their growth is in their hands. Coaches evaluate the growth, but ultimately they control it not the coaches through playing time.
Tenn was a big game. That said, yes he is light and if no fouls are called teams are going to bounce him around. He knows the game and is generally a heady player. He couldn't have played years ago when D was more physical I don't believe. Since you are friends with Crawford that played with Jay decades ago I got an interesting text last night before the game from Jay (Matt Waddell's brother in law)that I wrote inside the game thread somewhere just prior to the game letting me know again how small the world is.
Kim came home early with a bad cold and I had an extra ticket. Called Jay and left VM since he didn't pick up. He sends me a text a few minutes later saying he already had to turn two tickets down as he was in the Westin at a prosecutors meeting. Said his college teammate (DJ Carstensen)was doing the game at Purdue last night and so now every time I see that tall DJ doing a game I think of him probably playing a post. Total trivia, but just shows some of the connections previous players had that are still involved in the game.
Heide and Colvin developing is crucial for us in March. We need people who have at least a shot at shutting down athletic players.
While very much true to your points TJ, Morton played 26 mins (!!!) which was more than anyone else. Heide and Colvin played only 14 each. Not sure if that’s due to the game being out of hand so Heide sat more and Colvin got mop up duty, but we know who Morton is and he has shown he doesn’t impact the game any more than Heide or Colvin. Maybe CMP was getting Morton some more mins in prep for later down the road where he won’t play as much? I dunno.
Remember the athleticism of Iowa vs others. Morton can play against the Iowas and Wisconsin type teams . He and Loyer cannot play defense against the Michigan St and athletic guard type of teams.
Got me curious: DJ was a HS star in Iowa. Went to Utica college and is in their bball hall of fame. 6-8 forward, led their team twice in rebounding. Now lives in Wisconsin and travels the country attempting to ruin every game he calls (obviously that last part was from the Dryfly web site)!
14 minutes is almost half a game that is loaded with players. 14 minutes is probably typical for some that have played for a couple of years or so. I think 14 minutes is great. Just off the top of my head (haven't seen any stats) I imagine Myles got 5 or 6 shots and I know Cam hit a 3 and missed a backscreen lob.
Purdue has many games to go and so here is a question I posed a few weeks ago. If you had a magic wand and you could get Cam and Myles to be as good as they could be this first year would you want that now? Why?
Purdue is capable of winning the next couple of months without them...and doing so in the tourney. If they could be as good as they could NOW (in our minds) then they obviously cut into minutes of other players that are older and are also growing some...as well as they would give a LOT of viewing to video for opponents to defend them. I want that same growth, but I prefer it to happen over the season in an evolutionary approach rather than a revolutionary approach. You see, I want the same thing, but to peak just prior to the tourney rather than months before. I think developing like that (if it happens) is more advantageous to Purdue than having it right now.
Neither of our wishes is important and neither us or the coaches control their growth. The other players want minutes as well. Nobody wants to sit. It is also important that the other players see their growth in practice to know they are earning minutes just like they had to do. Could you imagine the internal issues if other players that want to get on the court saw them constantly needing coaching on things in practice and knowing they haven't earned their minutes particularly if the team loss? Going further, why wouldn't the coaches ALSO want them to develop to make the team better? Do we not think that coaches want them to develop as well and know that when they are playing or not playing? Since the existence of man we have seen the importance of incentive. Cam and Myles have an incentive to get better. The coaches have an incentive for them to get better as well. The season is still quite young and I see progress and pleased with the growth I have seen, but this playing time isn't new. There were many that were distraught that those two didn't get a lot of time in the Arkansas practice game...and yet in spite of their time they have improved in my eyes.
It seems to me that too many look to them as a magic elixir as "THE" answer to their desires for success and all that it brings in the tourney. I look to them as a potential boost to an already damn good team and the strength of that boost has time to grow.
Thank you. I haven't looked him up and didn't know how tall he was. That explains it. Jay got a scholly to Utica out of high school before transferring to South Alabama after a year or two. Jay just said teammate and I pretty much know all his high school teammates and knew he was talking college. I've said it before....Jay was an outstanding high school player....I mean really good. Appreciate your find.
It seems to me you have the following options off the bench to play the one, two and three:
I say play the starters as many minutes as they can handle!
- One is a decent defensive player but challenged on offense
- One is a good offensive player who is challenged on defense
- One is just kind of okay at both offense and defense
I say play the starters as many minutes as they can handle!
Colvin has 4 against Marq - Heide had 9
Covin had 16 against Texas So - Heide had 14 (These were mop up minutes by both, so can almost throw out).
Covin had 2 against NW - Heide had 18
If he's getting the kind of NIL $ that I've heard, I'm not sure why he wouldn't come back... especially if the NBA is iffy for him.
LOL. Really dumb question. Blowfish will disappear when Purdue wins, crawl out from under his rock to beat his chest when they lose. And claim he gave $ 1 million to Purdue's NIL and it isn't being spent wisely. Lame welcher.
How far we going in 2024 March Madness?
My guess would be somewhere between Sweet 16
and National Championship. What do you think?
I understand that it's part of the fun for some people, but I never make predictions and I never bet on games. I just enjoy the ride as far as it takes me.
This is typical fan speak, i.e. incredibly uninformed. He gives you very little as a scorer, that is in no way the same as saying that he gives you nothing on offense. The guy who complains about turnovers on post feeds should know that.
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I agree that if you're asking Morton to guard a quick multi level scorer at the 1 or 2 you're not setting him up for success. He's much better on a shooter where his length can be a hinderance.
I honestly don't know Alabama or Arizona's rosters but would be surprised if there aren't some matchups there that he could handle if he's playing alongside Smith and Jones.
Posted elsewhere but minimal threat to score and minimal impact on the offense are two very different things. His lack of shooting is going to make him hard to play when teams are truly selling out to stop Zach and daring Purdue to shoot but that's generally going to be against overmatched teams. The better the competition the more likely they are to attempt typical post doubles and make you rotate the ball out of the post feed.
When you're playing with Zach and Braden and Fletch is shooting it well a guy who can move the ball, make good decisions and feed the post is more valuable to the offense than another shooter. Five assists to no turnovers is exactly what you need when you're trying to maximize possessions, get Zach the ball and get up shots so that ZE has a chance at offensive rebounds.
Yeah. We both know how our convo will go about this 😉 but I’ll continue to say, if he is efficient while he gets mins, then that’s all that matters.
Well we will have to ask him to not be on scholarship then haha and im not sure how that’ll work out for the rest of the front court
There’s no argument here. I agree that if Ethan isn’t hitting shots he’s a situational player. What others struggle to understand is that there are situations, primarily dictated by opponents defensive approach, where he can make your offense better without hitting shots.
Michigan State was not really even competitive against Wisconsin. Had no offense, even at home.
Now that CMP has rediscovered his man crush on Morton, that presents a new set of problems.
Problem is the rest of the BIG, especially those with quickness, will try hard to exploit that, like they have/do with Loyer. Will CMP adjust to his athletes as the season matures, or double down on Morton?
No offense (pun intended) but you could have replaced Morton with a walk-on and essentially got the same outcome.
I know, right!
I don't beat my chest when they lose, I just like to point out why are losses have a similar theme, especially in the tourney.
Lil Andy, So if Purdue is a 1 or 2 seed and doesn't get past the S16, would you consider that another failed tourney run?
I don't mind the post feeds, just not trying to do so every time down the floor when Edey has 4 guys hanging on him.
If they take away the post, you have to have other scoring option. Morton doesn't provide that ability. Any team would be happy to leave Morton open to jack up shots all day.
What doesn't make sense? All I said is that an overmatched Iowa team, with no athletes and down by 30 with no shot of ever coming back, is an ideal situation for Morton.
Northwestern didn't have four guys hanging on Edey, there were four or five post turnovers and a couple of those were bad reads by Zach out of doubles and the others were bad angles or passes.
As I posted elsewhere, I agree that there are teams that will put everyone in the middle and dare Purdue to shoot from the outside. It's really tough to play Morton in those cases if he's not making shots but that wasn't the case versus Northwestern. If that's not the defensive approach then Ethan's spacing, decision making and passing has a significant benefit to the offense. He played 13 minutes in the first half versus Iowa when the offense leading to a 21 point lead and finished the game with five assists and no turnovers.
Of course, Blowfish. You clearly hope it happens, and have even said so in the past. But Purdue is ranked in the top 5 with a team that isn't close to jelling. I'm enjoying watching the team grow. You, on the other hand, mope silently while they beat top teams, then come to the board with obvious glee when they stumble. Lame.
Lil Andy, my friend.....you misquoted me. I said, that when/if they make the FF, I'll be there in person. (although I have to check this years dates, might be right during spring break, in which case, we're out of the country.).
I enjoy watching the team, looking forward to see how they play against the two UAs coming up.
You said you hoped Catchings would decommit. Doesn’t sound like a diehard Purdue fan to me.
I said the same about Colvin in the same post. That was 10 minutes after the FDU debacle. Possibly alcohol fueled.
A diehard fan doesn't mean you can't criticize the coach or want change.
