Me because I made a bet on exactly that here. Also, him being good is kind of important if this KU team is going to be good.

Udoka would have to develop quite a bit to do it, but he's still so young that he could.

Graham has certainly impressed me this year. He's been one of the best guards in the NCAA. Not sure he has a NBA future but he might be able to play a bit there.

I'll take every road win in the conference.

I thought we'd get mopped as much as TCU was hyped. They weren't as good as I expected.

This road win makes up somewhat for the dreadful Tech home loss, but not all the way. Self is really going to have to consider playing Lightfoot more considering what he showed on both ends today.

I figured KU would get dumped as much hype as TCU was getting and as tough as they've been in prior years.

They didn't play well. At all. KU turned up the intensity, but they did a mountain of dumb shit. And if Doke doesn't get in foul trouble, it's ugly.

Lightfoot = 6 blocks ROFL

Nice to put a game away with freethrows.

He's been playing a shitload of minutes because if Doke is out, it's him. Except the couple of possessions that Svi was the 5. :spock:

Winning at WVU will make me forget about the Tech beat down.

Need to take care of Iowa State and K State at home first though.

If they want to win the B12 still, they'll probably need to win at WVU or at Tech. They are both very good (if you can call what WVU does basketball) and have the one game advantage right now.

Actually winning home games would be nice too. Past KU teams tended to do that.

He should probably play even more than that if today is any indication of what to expect when he gets big minutes. You probably give up a bit of scoring and rebounding by having him at the 5, but he's a better rim protector than Udoka and there looked to be the makings of a PnR game there with him and Graham today.

As rapey as Doke was, I think he still gets the minutes. Lightfoot is going to get minutes and if he lights it up like today, you just give Doke some more rest.

This conference is sick. It’s loaded and it’s gonna eat itself. Lots of games to go.

I had totally forgot that Barnes went to Tennessee after UT. He knocked off Kentucky today.

Major down year for all of the blue bloods this year. North Carolina and Kentucky aren't good by their standards, Kansas is soft, and Duke doesn't guard at ALL.

Heh. Coincidentally KU is the only team you listed that won today.

Lots of top 25 upsets today.

Lightfoot's block rate is top 12 in the country now. Self has stuff to consider.

We need less Malik Newman. I was really jacked about this kid before I saw him play. Most expected him to be the 1st or 2nd leading scorer on this team. I've actually liked his attitude. He seems humble and trying, he's just not good. He came in with the opposite stereotype.

I hope he's just playing hurt and shell shocked, but that looks increasingly less likely every day.

No doubt about that.

Malik Newman is going to have decisions to make this summer...likely decisions about which school he's going to transfer to. He's not going to get minutes next year with Garrett and the recruits coming in.

Don’t forget KJ Lawson taking his PT next year too.

Newman really needs to focus on the little things. Defense, rebounding, ball movement.

We have enough scoring. Find another way to contribute if the shots aren’t falling.

Watching WVU play basketball is one of the most disgusting things in sports today.

It’s like putting your dick on an anvil and beating it with a hammer.

However this KU game isn’t materially better. Dumb**** still standing around. Just 1/00 as many fouls.

At least it is basketball.

True. And graham and that wigginton kid can play.

Is preston dressed?

Well that was a pretty terrible half. Devonte not himself while Vick going for 3 straight single digit scoring games while doing basically nothing else on the court.

The mighty KU perimeter defense.

Newman has been great tonight, been very effective rebounding

This team is just flat out bad. No defense whatsoever.

This whole team is aids. It sucks from top to bottom.

Worse team in the bill self era.

This is the worst ISU has been in a decade by far and they are scoring at will against KU. Doesn't bode well for this game, this conference season, or the tournament.

He's probably had worse, but this team is by far the softest.

I'll be surprised if KU wins this game. I don't understand what they're doing on defense. Newman has saved their asses so far. Graham is off his game big time.

This is what KU looks like when Devonte is out of gas (has he hit the wall that Frank usually hit around February even earlier?) and not playing like the top 10 player in the NCAA he has been all season. Ugly.

Wow, complete trash.

6 point lead with two minutes left. Can they finish?

Prohm should have called timeout after the fast break basket. May cost them the game.

That bucket by Svi ends it.

That guy has been watching too much NBA. He didn't realize they call intentional fouls on that play in college. LMAO

This team needs Preston and De sousa badly. So thin in the frontcourt.

Without them no shot at the Big 12 regular or conference title and a for sure opening weekend exit.

Washington in Sprint is a preview of KU in the NCAA tourney.

I have no idea why people are surprised with the defense? We basically have one post player with six players playing the majority of minutes. They play to conserve energy and limit foul trouble. They are trying to figure out how they can best tread water until more help arrives (if it does).

So, are you guys judging this team against that backdrop, or against fully stocked teams of the past? They are playing in the toughest conference night in night out and 3-1. They don't have the luxury of playing hard every possession because they don't have the freedom to play as aggressively as they might because they have to conserve fouls. They can't go as full speed because they have to conserve energy. Its really not a mystery why they play like they do.

Remember Coach Bill "fool's gold" Self? Yeah, me neither. That's because he tells them they don't shoot enough threes? Why? Well, he has good shooters and one big man. Is that what Self wants his team to be? I bet you it isn't, but he's adapted with what he's got. This team has adapted to what it's got. What it has is a better chance to outscore the other side than to take possessions away from them. Maybe that changes if and when we get some more post help, but this team doesn't "have aids"/"isn't good". Its a team finding its best way to win with the understanding the margin is razor thin.

Part of the defensive problems is there is no rim protection. Azabuke as good and big as he is has no defensive instincts. And Lightfoot gets a few blocks because he’s a tiny white guy and dudes underestimate his instincts. But while he gets a few blocks he isn’t doing anything to change shots around the bucket.

Welp, that was a muddy win!

KU has now moved to 348th in the country in FT rate, ahead of Columbia, North Florida, and USC Upstate.

at home in Allen field house. Already lost 2 games this year. tie game at 3:30 left in the game against a winless big 12 team, barely above .500 team. Not exactly rock chalk Jayhawk.

Throwaway year

Next 2-3 years is our next window

Bail will shit the bed tho probably then too

My goodness...some real crybabies in here. Last I checked, we are 13-3 (3-1 B12) and ranked #12 in the country, which is probably a better record than we should have with the squad we have to put out each and every night. A win is a win, and given the limitations of the players we have this year, not a single fan should expect us to blow any team out. It's as if some of you would rather have lost to ISU last night, since we didn't beat them by 20 because they are so terrible.

It's a sport. Some of you must have awfully pathetic lives to come on here and bitch about how "bad" this team is. KU and Self have a virtually unprecedented streak that has turned a few of you into spoiled babies.

He also has zero rebounding instincts. I've never seen a guy as big as him so horrible at rebounding. What he lacks in rebounding instincts, he makes up for in being soft in going for the rebounds he sees. Just never seen a big man like him.

I would be ok with him being soft and going for rebounds. Half the time he doesn't even do that. He watches the ball... I've never seen a bigman let the ball hit the floor in front of him off a missed shot as many times as he does. Go get the mother****er, for god's sake.

This is not about their record.

Have you watched every game this year? I have. Anyone who has watched this team knows its a soft team thats easily thrown off their game on the court. Its plain as day to anyone who watches the games. Its just a fact thats independent of their record.

It's a players/chemistry issue, not a Self issue.

I've also said that I think Preston on the floor will make a difference, even maybe just maybe, allow us to make a tourney run if he clicks with the other players come march.Anytime I post anything about my life down here, I get some shit. Lets just say most people would think its not pathetic.

This is one criticism I can agree on.

I know this isn't a new thought, but with the exception of Embiid (who I'd argue is an all-NBA talent regardless), we have not developed one great big since Manning left to coach Tulsa.

Yes. I watch every game. I attended last night's game and generally go to most home games.

I agree that they play nothing like past teams, but a simple solution would be to just not watch the games if watching a soft team makes you that upset or disgusted.

Hasn't he only been playing organized basketball for 6 years?

Ku fans are so spoiled, 1 FF the last decade is a special treat you can't just take for granted, only 40 slots were available. And we were blessed to have grabbed one

That game yikes. ISU isn't even good I see a Bradley like game in your tournament future.

Yep, and if he makes any kind of strong move, the refs whistle him for a foul. He gets shoved/grabbed constantly on rebounds with very, very few fouls called on the other team.

Doesn't help that he's literally our only big man on the floor when he's out there so it's 2 or 3 on one.

We get it. You don't like Bill Self. You don't like the conference record talk. You think that Self is a failure in the tournament. Do you have to bring it up in every. single. post.?

1. We need a rim protector
2. We are thin up front
3. What's up with Billy Preston?
4. We need to shoot a ton of 3s, but that's fools gold
5. Wow this league is fantastic again!



That's the last 50 pages and next 200. I just saved you the time since you hate redundancy

I think you have to take into account that most of the great big men are one and done. Hard to develop in just one year.

Right. Hey PB, we could have hired Ernie Kent or Tom Crean. Would you have preferred that?

Not to divert but holy shit Tom Crean is a shit color guy. He had interesting content but it’s like there is a short to his transmitter and there are a bunch of bad packets (for you radio nerds)

What's bullshit is that this is not supposed to be the team we were going to put on the court. And everyone - including Oliver Luck - knows that Preston and De Sousa dramatically change the nature of this team and raise their floor and ceiling several levels.

You don't come in here to talk KU basketball. You come to complain about the same stuff over and over and it's the reason you got banned from the last KU thread.

Plus when they were recruiting big men they can’t have though Diallo was our. He had no business declaring but did anyway.

It's a good thing Self doesn't actually think like this. Otherwise the program would have never become the most successful in the country for over a past decade.

De Sousa cleared, will be in uniform today.

https://twitter.com/KUHoops/status/9...225299969?s=09

:thumb:

http://kuhoops.com/ku-basketball-news/194479934/


If eligible, Silvio De Sousa is good to go for “short spurts,” KU’s Self says

Former IMG Academy forward Silvio De Sousa | Gregory Payan | AP


January 12, 2018
By Gary Bedore gbedore@kcstar.com

Pushed by head coach Bill Self, big man coach Norm Roberts, strength coach Andrea Hudy and other staff members, freshman Silvio De Sousa has been focused on conditioning since his first Kansas men’s basketball practice Dec. 27.

“It’s primarily running,” Self said on Friday, offering an update on the progress of De Sousa, a 6-foot-9, 245-pound recent IMG Academy graduate who has been busy on the court and in the weight room while awaiting clearance from the NCAA to play in games. That clearance did not come Friday, but Self said he still was hopeful the NCAA would clear De Sousa on Saturday morning prior to the 11 a.m. game against Kansas State. (Meanwhile there’s no news on the eligibility of Billy Preston and no timetable, Self said.)

“I made him do a drill in front of the team, which was a totally exhausting drill,” Self said of a Boot Camp-type exercise De Sousa tackled at practice Thursday. “He was all excited when he finished it. I said, ‘OK, now on the line. You’ve got to run this and this.’”

De Sousa hasn’t been overwhelmed by the prescribed up-and-back sprints, Self said.

“He knows he needs to get in better shape. He’s the first one to tell us that. It’s a big difference from high school to college,” Self said.

“When you stop and think about it, this dude is playing high school ball three weeks ago and he’s been here two weeks. I think it’s expecting too much for him to be 80 or 90 percent of what he can be in the first couple weeks. Certainly by Feb. 1, I believe that could be the case where he could be 100 percent of what he could be.”

De Sousa will be awarded minutes as soon as the NCAA deems him eligible for competition in games. He’s been cleared academically but has been waiting for the NCAA to clear his amateur status.

“I do think his conditioning is lacking. When your conditioning is not as good, I do think sometimes you pace yourself and he’s not going to play enough early on that we’re going to expect him to play 10 straight minutes. It’s going to be short spurts,” Self said.

“There’s no reason he can’t give us two to three to four minutes where his energy level is very high knowing he’s probably not going to be in much longer than that any way.”

De Sousa, from Angola, was Rivals.com’s No. 25-rated player in the Class of 2018. He is ready for major-college basketball, Self said.

“He’s been with us long enough I’d trust to play him in a game. I don’t know if I’d trust him to play in the last three or four minutes,” Self said. “Play in a close game? Midway through the second half? Absolutely, no question.

“When he and Doke (7-footer Udoka Azubuike) are in there together, that would be OK. If he and Mitch (Lightfoot, 6-8) were in there together, that would be fine. He could still play the 5. Mitch can play the 4. It depends on the situation. A late-game situation first game in? I don’t think I’d put that on anybody.”

KU sophomore guard Malik Newman was asked about De Sousa’s shooting ability.

“He is not a good shooter right now, but he can shoot it. He’s made a couple that we were like, ‘Wow, he made that?’” Newman said Friday.

“I would say that. I could also say that about Malik too,” Self said. “We could say that about Devonté (Graham) at times or Lagerald (Vick) at times. He’s not going to play to making an 18-footer. That’s not what we’re going to play to. Around the basket I would think Malik would say his shooting is much better. He does have a nice touch, no doubt about it. But expecting him to come in and be a pick and pop guy and stretch the defense from behind the arc, I don’t think that’s going to happen. Will he be that? Absolutely. I don’t think he’s ready to do that after two weeks.”

Self said it seems De Sousa has been with the team more than just a couple weeks.

“I actually do feel we know him pretty well. We’ve spent a lot of time with him,” Self said. “His attitude is unbelievable because he’s doing two or three times more than everybody else every day whether it be going to Watkins (Health Center) and getting certain tests done or the extra physicals or meeting with compliance two hours a day to finalize it (eligibility). I think his attitude has been absolutely terrific.”

He not only works with the coaches, but with strength coach Hudy.

“Andrea will work with him after every practice, whether it’s to do extra in the weight room where he’s primarily doing what his teammates do,” said Self, who hopes to soon add another big or two to the rotation. Forward Billy Preston also is waiting on clearance from the NCAA.

“I see good potential,” Self said. “I see mainly when the ball is in the air who goes and gets it? I see mainly that being the biggest addition. Where we’ve got to figure it out is how are we going to guard. We’ve been switching everything. Now we obviously won’t be able to do that quite as much with two bigs in.”

Cool. That gives him 6 weeks to get up to elite college level from his high school level before crunch time.

And I wonder if Prestons draft status is being effected by his long absence?

If you have a car, you need to make sure you have some kind of paperwork showing who owns the car, registration etc. with you at all times. Thats the law. As a Div. 1 athlete, you should know this more than anyone.

Good news. :clap: Now come on NCAA, what about Preston?

Maybe doke should start shooting granny style free throws

Tied at half, 34 all. haven't seen Silvio yet, unless I missed him.

He played for a couple of minutes. Crowd went wild when he came in.

Dang it, been in and out all the 1st half, wanted to see it. Maybe he'll be in again.

WTF did I just witness? Why did Lagerald Vick just bat the ball to KSU players past the halfway line in his own end?

Such a low basketball IQ.

He was checking in at the same time doke banked a free throw. The crowd was going nuts, although I'm not sure which was more of a factor.

This team is a complete mess without Graham on the floor. Reminiscent of the Frank Mason effect.

last year, at least graham could handle the point, maybe not as good with the assist, or driving to the basket, as Mason, but he could handle point. This year seems like we have NO point guards except for Graham.:(

Vick can't dribble and Newman doesn't pass, so it's a bad combination.

Getting pushed around by KSU at home. Soft.