Heyo! I was able to make it down for the scrimmage this year and, rather than having to cobble together poorly angled videos and other accounts of the game to parse out what’s relevant – I got to see everything with my own two eyes. What fun! Seriously, though, it did feel like a treat to watch the team in a more casual environment like that. I have watched the film that’s out there (kudos to you sneaky folks, so there’s that coupled with perception from catching it live. This is a first look so it’s likely I missed some things and we won’t have all of the answers yet because we’ll need to see it against real opposition (and I’m sure they aren’t showing everything yet). While I wish I had 40 minutes of proper game film to digest some of the changes, I’ll give my thoughts from what we saw and look forward to the opening game even more to do so.
But I’m getting ahead of myself some here. There’s always misleading stuff from these – stuff that appears to carry more importance than it will when the actual seasons starts. There’s also always things you can learn from these that do carry into the season and foreshadow what’s to come. This will be my best attempt at figuring those things out. What can we learn from this intersquad scrimmage about the upcoming season, namely, what’s an overreaction and what’s not… and I’ll conclude with how what we saw has helped to shape my thoughts on what I’d love to see for the team this year and for the future.
Changes to The Offensive System
Not An Overreaction
After the crushing 42-point output against Colorado St. and the consistent interviews after recruiting visits that the team was overhauling their system this season, this has become the biggest question. And, while I will say that I do expect us to see some of our old stuff this coming year, this was definitely a new look offense with new wrinkles and concepts. Interestingly, it fits in pretty well with our portfolio, if you will, in that there were actions that sometimes resembled all three of our other offenses but there were both subtle and overt differences and they appeared to be combined within a different system.
The core of the offense was keeping the team primarily spread around the three-point line and then playing off of that spacing. There were still some pin-down screens, curls into the lane, and two-man games that you would expect from a more extended “Wide” Sides. There were ball-screen situations with the team shelled around the arc, similar to what you might see in Flow. But these were baked into a more fluid and diverse series of actions that it looked like the players were reading and reacting to while playing more naturally and a little less scripted (or, maybe more accurately, directed).
There was a lot more going on here. There was a lot of passing into the high post and then running DHO actions and cuts off of that. There were tons of DHOs between players on the wing in general. Ball screens came readily and for a greater diversity of players with the screeners slipping or resetting. These came at basically any point on the perimeter was probably the most defining element of the offense. There were dives from the top of the key through the lane. There were also fluid triple screening actions that put the defense in tension:
On one beautiful play, Bliss passed to Saunders at the elbow with Rohde in the near-side corner and Power and Sharma on the weak side, spread around the arc. Bliss cut by Saunders, who faked the hand off, and then set an off-ball screen for Rohde rotating back up toward the point. Saunders transitioned into what amounted to a zoom DHO with Rohde, also setting a second screen on Rohde’s man for the stagger screen effect. As Rohde gathered the ball and the defense scrambled to recover to him, Bliss popped back out to the three-point line on the wing, drawing attention, and Saunders looped around him and cut back door for the dunk, which was wide-open because of the occupied defense and the threat of shooters on the weak side. Rohde hit him with a gorgeous no-look pass to complete the play. This was a clear look at how we’ve incorporated more modern concepts to increase the flexibility of our motions and to put defenses in tension with more complex screening motions (and how our spacing improved to execute).
There was an increased effort (read: any… but it was noticeable) to post up players on the block or in the mid-post, which included traditional bigs but also guard mismatches. Sometimes players would cut through the lane on the perimeter and then occupy a vacant strong-side block and call for the ball.
On one play, we ran what just looked like straight-up Sides where Buchanan set a pin down screen for Power, but then posted up on the block to take a return pass. He showcased a nice little drop step to hit a layup over ARob. Note – the fact that I couldn’t actually tell if this was Sides or a very similar variation within their new system is encouraging because it means they weren’t running it enough to get stale or predictable and it means teams shouldn’t be able to be able to anticipate the motions so easily. Often when we ran pin down screening actions on the wing that looked like Sides, they were out wider. Additionally, the actions weren’t symmetrical on both sides, the side with the screening action often turned into a two-man game and the opposite side of the floor remained static, spread around the three-point arc for spacing/three-point shooting opportunities which is different than we’ve traditionally run the offense.
But on another, Warley passed the ball to Buchanan in the high post, cut off of him similar to how Bliss did in the play described earlier, but this time dove down the lane and then posted Ames up initially on the block but on the mid-post by the time he got the ball. Buchanan kicked the ball to McKneely on the strong side wing and then, himself, dove to the opposite block. McKneely fed Warley and rotated up and away from the play to pull his man. From there, Warley posted Ames, got into the lane, drew defenders, and dumped a nice little bounce pass off to Buchanan for an easy dunk. It was exploitive of a mismatch; but it was also intentional within the offensive design.
There was some straight-up one-on-one basketball from the perimeter looking to drive and finish or kick out to a shooter. More players were willing to take their man off of the bounce than last year. There was a significant uptick in cross-court passes to spot-up shooters after actions drew help defenders….
On one play we saw Elijah Saunders bring the ball up the floor, pass to TJ Power on the wing, who passed to Andrew Rohde posting his man with his back to the basket but all the way out on the three-point line. This was for the purpose of Power cutting off of Rohde and taking a hand off back, potentially freeing up a three-point shot. With that not open, they rotated the ball back out to the point, which was now Warley, Saunders took a pass on the opposite wing, Bliss cut through baseline to the corner Rohde vacated, Warley dove down the lane, Rohde came all the way around the top of the key from the opposite wing to take a DHO from Saunders, took a ball screen back from him the opposite direction, and then whipped a skip pass from the wing to the opposite corner for Bliss to hit an open three!
So… yeah. Different! It’s certainly a framework (which could still incorporate old sets and I’m not sure it didn’t during this scrimmage) of a more modern style offense with actions we haven’t previously utilized often. It wasn’t perfect by any means. There were times of stagnation where someone had to scramble at the end of the shot clock because we didn’t get the look we wanted – although we seemed to have a greater number of acceptable options to turn to when that happened. And there were some repetitive actions, but not nearly as much as with our base sets and there was plenty of room to incorporate a lot of wrinkles that we didn’t see Saturday. What I’ll be interested to dig into when we start to see it against real competition is whether it’s truly more read and react or whether it’s more prescriptive, how extensive the actions are and the diversity of them.
It’s safe to say that there is a new offense they’re working on for this season that speaks to the philosophy articulated over the offseason of modernizing – but it still very much feels in the spirit of our brand of basketball with team offensive play and doesn’t preclude them from trotting out some comfort foods from time to time. I’m really looking forward to diving into it as the season begins!
Quickened Pace of Play
Overreaction
Now, don’t get me wrong, the team absolutely played faster than I’ve seen us play previously… maybe ever. There was urgency on offense to attack whenever the opportunity arose, and the team didn’t seem to be following the whole “pass up good to get great” style (while still not taking many bad shots aside from late in the shot clock). The team brought the ball up the floor and got into the offense more quickly; all of the movements were more purposeful, more players seemed empowered to attack and try to make a play, and the timing of these opportunities did not seem to matter. All of that did create a different feel different that there has been a concerted effort to play more freely on the offensive end.
That being said, there was no greater emphasis on transition or pushing the ball like we’ve seen in practice clips. If there was an open opportunity, like when Jalen Warley picked Christian Bliss’s pocket at mid-court and pushed it ahead for a nice Elijah Saunders one-handed dunk ahead of the pack, they took it – but they always do that. As mentioned, there were still plenty of possessions (helped by the fact that we were also defending ourselves) that came down to the end of the shot clock and needed someone to force a shot up. And, again, despite the intent to replicate intensity, this was a scrimmage with three 10-minute periods rather than two 20-minute halves; so the need to walk the ball up the floor to rest after a defensive stand wasn’t there. There was also upbeat music throughout, like in an NBA game, which does tend to increase the tempo of play organically. Lastly, this is an environment where you do try out things you’ve been working on because there are no stakes; but I’m not sold it’s going to translate into necessarily playing faster. When the chips are down and you need to revert to winning close games for your tournament resume, it’s hard not to go back to familiar habits and try to squeeze everything out of every possession. It’s what we’ve always done.
That being said, it’s not an over-reaction that the mentality around the offensive approach did feel different. It’s not going to be some dramatic stylistic shift for me to put a ton of weight behind this one, but it’s certainly possible and maybe even likely that we won’t see ourselves at the very bottom of pace of play this year. It’s not that there’s nothing to the chatter, it’s just that I don’t think the natural tendencies of the program change enough that it really matters that much from a pace perspective. I’d welcome being wrong on this one! There is clearly some intention.
Starting Lineup Implications
Not An Overreaction
I’m a firm believer that UVa tends to open these scrimmages with what they consider their “A” team vs. their “B” team at least to this point in time. Of course, that can change between now and the start of the season, but it doesn’t normally change that much and is often good insight.
On Saturday, they opened the contest with their “White” team with Jalen Warley, Isaac McKneely, TJ Power, Elijah Saunders, and Blake Buchanan as their apparent starting five. Now, if you’ve been reading my stuff this offseason, you’ll know that I’ve been advocating strongly in favor of playing Saunders at the SF and Power at the PF alongside a Center… and here they were, playing alongside of each other only with Power at the SF and Saunders at the PF! Despite that small difference, having those two on the floor together alongside a Center and Warley at the PG made for a huge lineup that was exciting to see. I was thrilled to see my hypothesis in action. What’s more, that group was dominant when they were playing together! Warley used his size effectively to get into the lane and distribute, even posting up once. IMac and Saunders got going from outside early. Blake had a nice post move and finish, and defensively they were just locking down the Blue team when they all played together. It was definitely the most lopsided stretch of the entire three periods when our presumptive (BIG!) starting 5 were all playing together (the margin finished the same as the 3rd period but that was largely due to subbing).
Of course, the first off of the bench for that group was Andrew Rohde and he entered for Blake Buchanan (you could have probably made a stronger case for anyone else), causing us to switch from being huge to playing small with TJ Power and Elijah Saunders at 4-5. It was at this time that Blue started to make some noise fueled mostly by the size mismatch Jacob Cofie posed as a skilled and active big (more on this later). He had a convincing dunk on Power where TJ just bounced off of him and offered no resistance; and throughout the scrimmage he did a good job keeping rebounds alive and being a formidable presence on the glass when faced against these smaller lineups.
Interestingly, and something I expected but was happy to see play out, the key to margin of victory in these periods seemed most tied to having access to these bigger lineups. The first period was won by White 15-8 with their starting lineup with Power, Saunders, and Buchanan 3-5, the third period was also won by White 16-9 with their starting lineup including Power, Cofie, and ARob 3-5. The second period was the closest contest was won by Blue 12-13 and they had access to Power, Saunders, and ARob at times (although they tended to play smaller with that group which I thought was the biggest factor in the period being closer). The common factor in all three winning sides was TJ Power and the ability to play him at Small Forward. If I’m not mistaken, he was the only player expected to get playing time this season to win all three periods. More on him later; but I think that speaks a lot to the value of having his skillset as a BIG SF who can shoot and put the ball on the ground in a lineup flanked by more size. I’m going to be beating this drum all year, but although it does appear they’re also valuing going small, they seem equally if not more enamored with playing bigger which is welcome news.
The question then becomes, who is the sixth man as of right now? That’s a little less clear. Perhaps they could have been trying to balance the teams a bit more early – but I don’t actually think so. I’d expect Andrew Rohde to be in that sixth man spot as of right now. This is probably not welcome news to many after last season, if true, and it’s also one of the more interesting developments on the team because there are a glut of those kinds of guys who seem capable and ready to slot in there, but with better shooting. Although Rohde didn’t shoot it much from outside himself, he did quite well as a passer in the system; navigating the new offensive sets quite well and finding some of the prettier looks of the night. He was also the best defender on ball of that group (seeking those guard minutes) and seemed more effective with his rotations off-the-ball. He even ran point at times when Warley rested and Ames/Bliss were on the other team. The situation seems fluid; and I wouldn’t be surprised to see Taine in this role or Sharma as the season progresses.
Rohde certainly still seems to be in this team’s plans and I’m not sure that’s a bad thing depending on how the rotation shakes out (more on this later).
Player Groupings
Okay, now I’m just going to briefly touch on the players as they group together, how they looked, and their prospective roles on the team and each other. Still a lot to develop and learn on this team, and the rotation will probably start out bigger and tighten (although maybe not as much as is normal under CTB) as the season progresses, but this is a good place to start to get a read on what the coaching staff is thinking and what might play out.
Center/PF
The main thought I had is that Cofie is probably already, or will be at some point of the season, ahead of Robinson on the depth chart. He was just so active throughout the game; making his impact felt on the glass, finishing around the rim on one authoritative dunk and another tip in, getting second chances for his team on the glass to reset a possession, often putting the ball on the floor and making some nice passes. One of these included a cross-court dart, after driving and drawing the defense, to Taine for an open three. His defense was a work in progress systemically and he needs to stabilize himself within the offensive flow, but there weren’t glaring or irreconcilable issues there and he seemed to generally have a solid grasp on things. His length was visible on a steal where he crashed down to poke the ball away from a player, and he had a nice block from behind after he got caught trailing a cutter. He just looked every bit the part on both sides of the ball; and I think it will be hard to keep him out of the rotation, especially when he can play either the 4 or 5 for you and gives more room to keep Power at the SF. With Cofie, you’re elevating your skill level with your options and improving your lineup flexibility without losing athleticism/length, and I want to see us lean into that.
Robinson, on the other hand, looked crazy athletic and popped as a rim protector; once going straight up and muscling a rejection on Buchanan right at the rim on an attempted two-handed dunk. This was one of those “wow” moments of the night because it was both athletic AND strong. He also blocked a jump shot, and at other times would just come flying in to inhale shots from help position (many blocks negated by fouls on other players). His ability to bother shooters inside was encouraging; but that “raw” reputation was also on display as he got caught napping on a back door cut by Lang once, didn’t set the impactful screens that you’d hope or expect for his size (didn’t often take good angles or sustain contact), and was hardly noticeable on offense. I don’t know how extended the rotation will be here, especially if Power plays a good deal of SF, but I could see Robinson’s minutes drying up.
Both will sit behind Blake Buchanan as the starting Center… and probably behind Small Ball with Power and Saunders if Saturday was any indication. The latter I hope we avoid except for in obvious matchups – and my ideal would be finding all three players minutes on the back of TJ Power’s ability to play SF.
As for Buchanan, he looked a little bigger, had confidence on a nice post move on one of the first possessions of the scrimmage, but he still looked awkward on offense at times. I think he’s still working to get his mobility back fully. That being said, he did a lot of nice things in this game and was also one of the reasons Robinson was unheard from offensively. When Blake was out and we went small in his stead, the difference in rebounding quality was very visible. Expect him to be the key Center this year as he’s the most complete player of the group and still has shown plenty of room to grow. When he’s resting, I imagine we’ll try a variety of options to fill that need ranging from Small Ball, to Robinson, to, hopefully, Cofie.
Point Guard
Jalen Warley is going to be this team’s starting PG. I’ve been talking him up a lot lately to help everyone realize the unique advantages that he brings and because of some of the handwringing around his lack of an outside shot; but it was obvious on Saturday. Neither Ames nor Bliss had much for him; he blanketed both when guarding them only ceding a couple of personal fouls (a couple shooting) to each. Meanwhile, he often used his size and speed to get by them in the lane, finish around the rim or get fouled, dish to others or kick out passes to teammates around the arc. He even just posted up Dai Dai in the mid post as mentioned earlier. In one visible moment, he stood up to and pounced on Bliss’s dribble at mid-court, deflecting the ball to iMac who was able to toss it ahead to Saunders for a one-handed dunk in transition. It wasn’t quite as extreme as the whole lineup size factor, but whichever side had Warley on it felt like it had a significant advantage off the jump and, though we’ll talk about both right after this and both had their moments, there was a significant drop-off in quality from what Warley offers to any of the backups. Ames and Bliss will be competing for those backup minutes or to find some other way to stick in the rotation.
Ames’s best moments expectedly, but also very visibly, came when Warley wasn’t guarding him, as I’m sure will be the case for many an ACC PG this season. He had some moments where he flashed and looked downright quick with the ball in his hands. He attacked the rim on occasion and had a nice and-1 over Blake Buchanan’s help on a drive. He hit an open three on one kick out by TJ Power, but he also had some pretty extreme misses (airballs) on some pull up jumpers from outside toward the end of shot clocks. Similar to when he was at KSU, he didn’t look for his outside shot much; and I noticed he passed up a couple of opportunities he likely would have taken if he were more confident in that element of his game. He was also a little looser with the ball than you’d ideally want and I thought his defense was just okay; fairly quick and strong but not intrusive or overly supportive from a team perspective. I don’t think you want him playing alongside Warley much; they’re two of your weakest shooters on a team on which you have plenty, and we utilized him in that way – always keeping him and Warley separate as the distinct lead PGs on their respective squads in this scrimmage. So, yeah, I think he’s got the nod at the moment for backup PG and that will probably stay that way but, unlike some recent decision making with other players in past seasons, I don’t think the staff will feel compelled to force him onto the floor.
Bliss might be one of those polarizing players who seems to carry high hopes from fans, but who I’m not sure will find that role or live up to that billing (stress, “not sure” not “won’t” but I am skeptical at this point). It’s just an impression for now, but even the assessments of his play on Saturday that I’ve seen are wide-ranging. I was surprised, as I think were many, at his appearance in the three-point shooting contest alongside iMac. Apparently, he won his way onto that stage in practice (although I believe there were more wrinkles than just a solo competition to get in). He shot 18-25 in the contest and then hit a nice three from the corner in the scrimmage. I was a bit worried that his shot wouldn’t translate to a game after watching the contest because it seemed very slow and awkward. He was pulling his support hand off of the ball early and one-handing it from deep like someone working on their form from the FT line. It felt more aimy and less shooty. That being said, I was impressed when the ball came off of his hand in the scrimmage and he appeared far more capable than I was expecting having not seen him play. He had a couple of nice drives that were more on the methodical under-control side. He also did some subtle things to set his teammates up for success including good screening, solid awareness on where to go on offense to stretch and confuse the defense, and a couple of nice passes including one to Rohde for a nice reverse layup. But I also thought he looked pretty slow in comparison to both Warley and Ames which, could be him still coming back from injury, but felt like it was more his playstyle. Neither he nor Ames had much to effectively stop Warley when he decided it was time to slash, but Ames did a much better job with his positioning (he just wasn’t often long enough to stay with the reach), where I noticed Bliss often just conceded significant driving angles because of reaction time. He did make a couple of nice anticipatory plays on passes, though. He was also the most loose with the ball of all of the primary ball handlers, with the glaring turnover at mid-court but also turning it over to Sharma on a botched DHO as well. It’s certainly possible that Bliss ends up as the backup PG but I would be pretty surprised.
More likely, if he is able to get on the court it’s as a complimentary guard alongside Warley or Ames – which was the role he played most of the time on Saturday. As mentioned, because Warley and Ames were always on opposite teams from each other, Bliss was assigned twice alongside Ames and once alongside Warley. Likely another nod that Warley and Ames are viewed as the primary PG options. Of note, the period Bliss and Warley played together they lost (Warley’s only loss). Bliss covered Ames while Warley took Taine which negated some of the advantage Warley’s teams were enjoying by having him on the ball. When Jalen played with Rohde, Rohde defended the SF (just pointing this out because it’s something I’ve theorized for a while now – you want Warley on the ball as much as possible because it helps shut down the opposition’s offensive flow).
The problem for Bliss is there’s a glut of guys in that 2-3 range who offer the ability to shoot the ball well (probably better), offer more size, and seem capable putting the ball on the floor themselves within this offense. He was also first off the bench for the Blue team in that first period, with Dai Dai Ames, Taine Murray, Ishan Sharma, Jacob Cofie, and Anthony Robinson as the back-up starting five. That’s certainly not a lock to be meaningful by the time the seasons starts, but also probably isn’t a great sign for his place within the pecking order of guards.
The last thing I’ll throw out here in the PG discussion is that you still have Andrew Rohde as a potential player to tap into in this capacity. Rohde had a big role in handling the ball and having the offenses flow through his passing and game direction on Saturday. As mentioned earlier, he did play point a small amount of the time. And, while he didn’t appear as effective as any of the three other PGs at getting into the lane off of the bounce, I thought he was the best passer on the floor and his on-ball defense, especially against smaller players, was effective. In a world where Rohde is probably going to get minutes no matter what, I’m not opposed to shifting him up in the rotation to give him more offensive initiation responsibilities and see what that looks like. I think this new offense suits him much better in that capacity because his outside shot is still not his strength and, once again, we have plenty of guys who can do that well now. But his ability to read the defense and set up an offense with his court-vision and control could be something. Either way, I’d much rather his time come at the expense of some of Ames and Bliss (especially with Chance Mallory waiting in the wings as the more likely heir apparent to the PG position) than at the expense of iMac, Taine, Sharma, and Power 2-3.
Speaking of…
Shooting Guard/Small Forward
Let’s get right into the heart of it. As alluded to, TJ Power was eye-opening for me. Previously, I’d advocated for Elijah Saunders to play some three (because I think he slides very well and can be a great perimeter defender), but Power proved up to the task on Saturday, much more so than when he kicked into the PF. Power is considerably more mobile than I expected after watching his Duke film last year. Perhaps he was paralyzed by his role within that team, but he served more as a stationary catch and shoot guy when he was in and, although he occasionally surprised positively on tape with his slides, he often struggled there as well (they also played him much more at SF when they did). Power’s shooting was as advertised and he’s a really tough close out, but it was his ability to put the ball on the floor and make things happen that changed the way I evaluate what we’re likely to do with this team.
On one occasion, he drove in from the wing, quickly double bounced his dribble with his off (left) hand to extend it away from a defender, and then spotted and found Dai Dai Ames with a great pass on the three-point line (which Dai Dai converted). On several other occasions he’d press his advantage off of a curl screen or something similar and get into his midrange jumper (which wasn’t on but seemed viable and he could get his shot over help defense). Having Power not just be a static jump shooter when he’s on the floor unlocks a lot of the ways we’re typically willing to play, and a lot of big lineups, as he can be paired with either Saunders or Cofie at the PF alongside either Buchanan or Robinson at the Center. Couple that with Warley at the point and that’s just a huge team you’re trotting out! This means Saunders will more likely play PF consistently when he’s out there (or Center) and there’s more opportunity for Cofie to see time. It turns out, Power may actually be the “X factor” regarding lineup versatility!
Now, don’t get me wrong, I don’t think he’s our “best” player, as his defense is still going to be tested wherever he is on the floor. He just looks more capable at the SF because he’s quicker than expected (but still not quick compared to most SFs) and he has length. Additionally, he does give up size and considerable physicality when he’s playing the PF, as evidenced by how often Cofie got the better of him inside (and how easy some of it looked) at times. It’s possible they’ll do something like put Saunders on whoever the better offensive player is between the 3-4 and let Power cover the other, which would be a smart approach and would speak to Saunders’s defensive flexibility. There’s a reason they love those two together! Power not finding a suitable player to defend is the biggest hurdle, but I’m not convinced he’s actually a worse option in this regard than some of the other options who could be playing here (like Taine or Sharma). But, yeah, their apparent starting lineup with Power at the SF and the fact that he played there a bunch throughout the scrimmage and all of his teams won is something to be encouraged by.
Now I’m going to say something probably controversial but bear with me… I’m not sure that Isaac McKneely needs to be the 30+ mpg uncompromisable lineup feature this season that he was last. He’s the best shooter on the team until proven otherwise and I believe he’s the best defender among Sharma and Murray – he actually had two separate instances where he forced shot clock violations early in the scrimmage because of his slides stymying players at the end of the shot clock. He needs to be the starting SG and play the most minutes, that part is not in question so please exhale…. But both Murray and Sharma need to see time, too, Rohde is lurking in the mix, and the team is best (I believe) with Power at the SF. Candidly, how much worse is the team with either Murray or Sharma at the SG than iMac? For sure some, but I don’t think that much. He’s a proven slite shooter on volume at this level and both are worse defenders is the main reason, but not by a ton. Sharma was actually quite imposing physically at times, like when he ripped the ball from Bliss, but didn’t have as much of a handle on the system, Taine is slower footed with his reaction time (although that’s improved). Both are bigger – Sharma is probably closer to Rohde’s height than iMac’s. Both are similar (excellent) quality shooters (although Taine might not have as quick of a release and neither are as tested at volume or under pressure), and both are better at putting the ball on the floor to make something happen – Taine as a straight-line driver and finisher around the rim, Sharma more to get into his jumper (although iMac certainly has those “wow” moments as well from deep – Sharma already seems more effective and willing at this in the midrange) – he had one absolutely sick shot from distance at the end of the shot clock and a couple of nice other shots. You can have confidence that all four of those guys (including Power) are going to knock down the open looks, and you can play 2 of the 4 most of the time (if you’re willing to scale back Rohde here). But I think the best practice is going to be to default to iMac and Power but be willing to rotate both Sharma and Murray in interchangeably for either depending on how all are playing and how game flow/matchups dictate. Sometimes iMac isn’t able to get to his shots as effectively. Sometimes players are off. If he’s viewed as an indispensable lineup staple who has to be on the floor no matter what (as long as he’s rested) then I think we’re going to miss out on some of the value that both Taine, but especially Sharma as he develops, can provide… OR, we’ll skew more toward Small Ball to make room for three of the four more often than we should which will create defensive issues. But, yes, please sanitize what I’m saying, I still want a ton of iMac – I just don’t want to be rigid around playing him no matter what because I believe we do have options who can help and it will help us on the whole to tap into them at the right times and flex time shares.
Speaking really briefly to both, Murray appeared to be mostly the same… a solid role player who knocked down outside shots at a good clip and made a few promising drives (drew one nice foul) to the rim as a slasher. He is going to capitalize on opportunities created more than take over a game, but is efficient at doing so and his defense appears to have continually improved such that it’s not glaring any longer (though not a strength). I hope we don’t shy away from using him this year when the situation calls for it.
Sharma, on the other hand, just absolutely looks like a promising piece to build around for the next four years and you’re going to want him on the floor. I believe he was only 3-11 shooting from the field, but everything off his hand looked like it was going to fall and most of the looks he did get were created off of the dribble either backing people off at the three-point line or getting to his midrange (he hit one very nice fade away from the elbow). Not a ton of wide-open conversion opportunities for him that will hopefully come in game situations. He just played with confidence, wasn’t overmatched physically (the opposite in some cases), and has the feeling of a guy who can get you a lot of points in a hurry who doesn’t shy away from any shot. We need to find ways to get this guy on the floor this season, which is a big part of the talking points above about that 2-3 minutes share as well as how to otherwise use Rohde (given that we probably will).
Power Forward
Elijah Saunders! End of paragraph.
Saunders did a little bit of everything on Saturday, from knocking down two early threes within the flow of the offense, to getting multiple baskets around the rim (in both the half court and transition), to playing very good defense, to even bringing the ball up the floor after rebounds. He’s strong and physical, he’s a versatile defender, and his shot is both quick and threatening. I still don’t love the idea of playing him at Center because I don’t think the offensive benefits outweigh the defensive concessions in most cases – but there certainly were offensive benefits on display and those lineups could cause some teams fits in the right situation. I think he’s going to be our best all-around player this year and, coupled with how we use Power, will give us so many options.
I do just want to give one more shout out to Jacob Cofie, though, who does appear very viable and has the ability to carve out a role for himself on the floor this season with the developments we’re seeing. He could spell Saunders at the four alongside Power and a Center, he could provide good coverage for a three-guard lineup alongside a Center, he could be an effective Center himself in Small Ball alongside Saunders OR alongside both Power AND Saunders (which really wouldn’t be small at that point but could still space the floor and have a team full of players who can handle the ball). All of the developments that we saw with roster utilization on Saturday made it seem very likely that he has a strong path to play this year rather than redshirt, and I’m both hopeful for that and encouraged by that.
In Conclusion
I’ve been higher on this team’s potential this season than I think most conventional wisdom out there. That’s primarily because there’s a larger redundancy of functional size and skill/shooting available to tap into.
You shouldn’t have to worry about where the buckets are going to come from; and you have considerable options to turn to if your regulars are cold. Last year you had iMac and Taine and Groves as functional shooters on the roster and all of them really needed that look created for them. This year you have iMac, Taine, Power, Saunders, Sharma, Bliss, and potentially even Ames or Cofie – all of them (including iMac and Taine who have improved) are better at putting the ball on the floor, too, and functioning within a new and less predictable offensive system.
We’re longer and more athletic on the interior than we’ve been in a while (collectively); and we have much more versatility in how we can structure a lineup without giving up some of the things CTB on which CTB won’t compromise.
And, while we don’t have the individual talent that we had with Reece or Dunn last season on this roster, we have considerably more offensive talent net-net across all positions AND more collective defensive talent among the supporting cast. Not to mention, an individual defender in Warley who should still be one of the best, if not the best, perimeter defenders in the conference.
Furthermore, watching Saturday gave me hope that we won’t fall into some of the recent pitfalls of playing too small unnecessarily or playing too many non-shooters on the perimeter. Some things I was watching closely – how in favor did Bliss and Ames seem and how did their games look? How are non-traditional “ball handlers” supported within the new offensive scheme? How much did we seem to try to prioritize Small Ball and do Cofie and Robinson look viable? Are we willing to play big with Power/Saunders at the 3-4? All of those answers came back positively, in my opinion, to support that the coaching staff appears aligned with what I believe will be the most effective way of utilizing this team. It was very encouraging, at least in my mind.
So, I doubt it’ll be a smooth ride and there will be lows along the way, but I’m bullish on this year’s team compared to expectations and expect us to have a similar finish as last year within a much stronger ACC; but to be a better and more complete team in so doing.
One last thing I’ll say is that Saturday also gave me some clarify on what I’m rooting for this season both in terms of this year AND in terms of roster building for the future. Previously, I was still pretty unclear having not seen so many new faces in action nor what systemic changes we were making. All of that helps to clarify.
To over-simplify, I think we should make Warley, iMac, Power, Saunders, Buchanan, Sharma, and Cofie our priority seven players who we ensure are getting regular and considerable time (assuming they’re playing at all at the level they showcased they’re capable of). In my opinion, it’s the best combination of current, differentiated talent, combined with future upside. Of that group, only Warley is not eligible to return next year, but he’s by far the best option this year in that role, and you’re immediately supplementing him with Chance Mallory at the PG position. Make sure they’re getting the opportunity to contribute (because they should greatly at times) and see the path forward next season so that we keep that core on Grounds.
Then you supplement playing time this year with the rest (Rohde, Ames, Bliss, Robinson, Murray). The time of these individuals might fluctuate more significantly from heavy playing time to no time at all, depending on need and how everyone else is playing. It’s possible (and probable) that some of that group would get more time on occasion than the seven, especially at the PG position or if Rohde is playing well, etc., but keep going back to the well with Sharma and Cofie while being willing to scale back on the time of this group. Only accommodate who is playing the best rather than establishing them as locks in the pecking order as we did with Rohde and Harris last season, much to our detriment. Murray is guaranteed to leave (and will likely be an important player this year), but I think you should both expect and be comfortable with losing at least some of the rest of this group next offseason without angst. That core seven above (with Mallory instead of Warley) should provide a talented and strong enough base that any combination from this group (ideally one of the Gs and Robinson, not to forget Elijah Gertrude hopefully returning from injury) and/or matching the quality of players we landed in the portal this offseason should set us up to be in a great position heading into 2026 and onward! This team is young and talented – and now it’s about development and retention while trying to maximize results from this year.
I have, for a while now, beat the drum about playing young talent to retain it and give it exposure… but between Sharma and Cofie, I think both are talented enough to do that while still being a part of our best roster constructions now!
One last disclaimer before I close, this is a lot to take away from a small sample size on an inter-squad scrimmage. Guys can have bad nights; you’re only comparing the performance against your own team, etc. But most of these opinions are based on collective information from extensive game film review along what news is trickling out of the locker room combined with how guys pass the eyeball test and what system changes we’re making. So, just to clarify, these aren’t isolated thoughts just to this experience – it’s one piece. But it’s still going to evolve! Perhaps Bliss is hampered by his foot right now. Perhaps Rohde puts it together this year and is more consistently effective. Perhaps ARob starts to build some momentum and physically take over games…. It’s all still on the table! But I do feel as though the picture is becoming clearer and the path toward this program returning to where it wants to be is more tangible than it was not that long ago!
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Alright! That’s the last big solo piece from me, Cuts, before the start of the season. The hopeful plan between now and first tip is that StLouHoo and I will get together and have a chat about the upcoming season and post that for your perusal. More off-the-cuff and casual thinking might yield something interesting or unexpected, who knows!
I’ll be at more games this season live (feel free to say “hi” if you see the shoes) but will attempt to continue a schedule of doing recaps of (most) all of the games with video analysis this season. Looking forward to it!
Until then, thanks for reading!
Update! This piece has been augmented with a companion piece that dives into the 12 most impactful video Cuts from the first and second period.
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