Honestly it is mostly positive, but I thought I would break down what I have seen so far.
Positives:
- Williams continues to be hugely consistent. I see 1st team all American for him. He is even hitting threes this year, and his passing is better than ever. Complete player
- Pons is coming into his own and has been developed very well. He is hitting threes and is an obvious athletic freak. Plays great defense too. Needs to keep developing his game and practice free throws
- Bone is playing his best basketball ever. He is playing with a lot of confidence.
- Schofield is turning the ball over less this year and taking better shots. He, Willams, and Pons are an intimidating 3
- Alexander is playing great ball and I can see him getting a shot in the NBA
- Fulkerson is back to being what he is, a role player off the bench who brings instant energy. He is much more athletic than people think, too.
- Team passing is excellent
Negatives:
- Free throws. Overall the percentages are down. We know that can make a difference in close games.
- Turner is in a funk. We need him to come off the bench and provide a scoring punch, but his shot looks terrible right now.
- Bowden needs to take more shots. He is a good three point shooter. We need him and Turner to hit threes.
- Johnson and Walker are pretty much not playing right now, I'd like to see them a little more.
This team is not peaking right now, which is good. It's a very experienced and good team that can make the final four.
What I like about this team is their versatility. If Barnes had his way, he'd probably be winning 60-55 every night. But if the other team wants to run the floor and make it a shootout, we can win that kind of game too.
I think Turner will be fine. He's coming off a shoulder injury, so we shouldn't expect his shot to be there right away. If he just keeps shooting, they'll eventually start to fall.
Bowden, I'm not so bullish on. He needs to gain some consistency.
Everyone on the team, outside of Williams, is struggling at the stripe. Fortunately, Williams gets there FAR more than anyone else. He's finally being officiated like the star he is. Let's hope that carries over into SEC play.
