GD that guy is a beast man. Really loving his game and style. He’s the reason we are wining and his development has been faster than any utep big I’ve seen. His free throw shooting was also on point today. Looking back I wonder if KJ saw the writing in the wall. MW, PT and more importantly smith would eat up his minutes. PT was non existent today and that didn’t matter. Can’t wait to get Wilms back. Great game miners
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- Thread starter kappasigmaminer
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Smart kid, good moves in the paint and finishes with power. He can shoot free throws too. He only needs to keep the ball high in the paint and be ready for the passes!
Thomas plays better with Willms and gets more opportunities around the rim. He needs to block out and rebound though. His jumper has been a little off as well. Free throw shooting is poor and he is still making some fouls that make me SMH. He is playing a little more above the rim though. There was one play early on when he had a wide open lane to the rim and just settled for a 15 footer that he missed. Attack that rim Paul!
Anybody heard anything about Wade? Nobody seems to mention when he might be back. His brother is busy posting videos of himself dunking so I guess life goes on....
Also an interesting note that Lamar Norman is getting what looks like an unofficial visit to Michigan State after scoring 29 points in front of Izzo.
Thomas plays better with Willms and gets more opportunities around the rim. He needs to block out and rebound though. His jumper has been a little off as well. Free throw shooting is poor and he is still making some fouls that make me SMH. He is playing a little more above the rim though. There was one play early on when he had a wide open lane to the rim and just settled for a 15 footer that he missed. Attack that rim Paul!
Anybody heard anything about Wade? Nobody seems to mention when he might be back. His brother is busy posting videos of himself dunking so I guess life goes on....
Also an interesting note that Lamar Norman is getting what looks like an unofficial visit to Michigan State after scoring 29 points in front of Izzo.
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He does have some really nice post moves reminiscent of players from the 70s and 80s. But let me remind you who we played last night. Howard.
Tirus is a beast for sure. What i like most is that he's fighting for the ball on every offensive/ defensive rebound. Sometimes it's s little clumsy and out off control, but you can't teach that kind of heart and determination. It'll pay dividends as he grows into his game.
As for wade-- i said before that i don't think he returns to ELP, and unfortunately that looks to be the case.
Regardless on how the remaining season plays out, this program is 3yrs in the hole once again. The timing of floyds departure (not that I'm complaining bout it) means:
1) we have no recruiting class to speak of this year, and the uncertainty of our coaching position will keep it that way
2) many of our remaining crop of underclassmen will be transferring in all likelihood
Hopefully tirus is one of the few that sticks around...
As for wade-- i said before that i don't think he returns to ELP, and unfortunately that looks to be the case.
Regardless on how the remaining season plays out, this program is 3yrs in the hole once again. The timing of floyds departure (not that I'm complaining bout it) means:
1) we have no recruiting class to speak of this year, and the uncertainty of our coaching position will keep it that way
2) many of our remaining crop of underclassmen will be transferring in all likelihood
Hopefully tirus is one of the few that sticks around...
Excellent post USAF. Tirus continues to improve, and has a great attitude. While he is not a super athlete, he does display a nice skillset for a young interior player. His offensive game will only get better once he starts hitting some midrange jumpers. He would pair very well with a long shot blocker and rebounder. Tirus can be a real load as a junior and senior.
As for next year's team, even before any player defections, we were already looking at a major rebuild. The freshmen that were signed early, look to be more developmental guys even if they all still show up; minus Norman who has already decomitted. The longer the decision drags on to replace Floyd extends the time to turn around the program. I am not a fan of hiring Johnson, although I think he is a decent coach. Based on the current talent level on the team, and experience, I think they should have won the games they have won since Floyd's departure.
Wade is still repping UTEP, so we'll see but I won't get caught up if he leaves.
I actually think that the rest of the freshman might stay. Smith's younger brother is here with his family on an unofficial visit. The other three players that signed have not asked for their release. Losing Norman hurts but there will be a few late bloomers, qualifiers and transfers that a new coach could go after. Thomas has not lived up to expectations this year so I don't see him tranferring up for 1 year. Add Touchet and possibly Osborne and we should be fine. Royster could add some size too if he sticks with us. Basketball is easy to turn around with 1-2 players.
What the future holds is concerning mainly because it's so fuzzy. What the present holds is no clearer. Speaking of fuzzy, it seems PT was floating around in a fog last night and just can't get it all together. He takes a step and invariably knocks someone down and "bang" he's in foul trouble. It's not a case of lack of effort or physicality it just appears that he has no confidence.
Harris, Smith and Frazier we're s combined 19 of 36 from the field while Thomas , Gilyard and Magee we're 2 of 16. That's very concerning.
Harris, Smith and Frazier we're s combined 19 of 36 from the field while Thomas , Gilyard and Magee we're 2 of 16. That's very concerning.
Johnson and Braswell both like Thomas and have high expectations from him. They both want him to get going and think this team can win. Johnson has reiterated that rebounding is the key for him. Braswell mentioned that he plays much better next to Willms because of what they can run on offense. Thomas went on a good run during CUSA play last year. He is capable of a double double every night when rebounding is his priority and when his jumper is dropping. Lets hope he gets it right and starts attacking the rim more too.
The thing that I really liked yesterday was the defensive intensity at the start of the game. That effort allowed us to jump out to a quick lead. Problem was that we were unable to sustain that type of effort throughout the game. As mentioned, Thomas is really struggling right now, especially with his shooting. He had a number of open looks, but failed to connect. Gilyard is struggling as well, although he did a decent job on Cole, who is a tough cover. Magee was ok; nothing spectacular but consistent. I think this is pretty much what was expected from the young point guards. Johnson did play both Magee and Gilyard at the same time for a few minutes, but I thought the production/efficiency was about the same with only one of them on the court.
I totally get that. Who knows what's in store in the near and distant future? I will say, though, that I much prefer the UNCERTAINTY of a future with possibility than the limited CERTAINTY we were headed towards until recently.
Also, I'm thinking that this last Willms injury may turn out to be beneficial in the long run this season. Tirus, despite the lack of competition he's playing against, has got to be riding on a wave of confidence that will serve us well in conference. With Willms healthy, Smith most likely is only playing mop up minutes as of late,and at the very least, is not a focal point heading into CUSA play.
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I wasn't big on Smith earlier in the season because it seemed like he often missed layups and other shots right under the basket. Looks like he's stepped up filling in for Willms now though. Nice power game these last few games. Times have changed. Under Coach Haskins he would have rarely played at this point. Now he looks to be a potential freshman of the year candidate if this spills over to conference play
I don’t think Tirus would have eaten up many of Jones’ minutes — he’s not really a center. Jones would have been playing a lot with Matt’s injury plague. Losing Jones is going to hurt come conference play IMO.
