Whats the deal with Papa?

by **DickerJames** » Thu Mar 06, 2008 10:36 am

12 minutes and 0 points. The only player with less floor time last nite was Spencer. Is he in the doghouse with Doh?

by **PonySoprano** » Thu Mar 06, 2008 11:05 am

He looked like he just didn't have it last night. Was a step slow, had a couple of bad turnovers (including a pass that went right through his hands).

by **Hoop Fan** » Thu Mar 06, 2008 1:43 pm

hands down the most disappointing aspect of the night. Looking for improvement and to see visible upside from these freshmen. The upperclassmen carried us last night, which is not what you hope for. Would like to be seeing a changing of the guard this late in the season, or at least decent balance. No spark from Walker either. Harp got a few scrappy boards but thats about it. I really thought Papa would get up for that game last night and show why he is thought to be a big time talent. Even on senior night, you gotta see more out of your future, if this is the future.

by **mr. pony** » Thu Mar 06, 2008 2:51 pm

Bamba and Alex Malone mixed it up with those guys. Finished some nice plays under big duress. They were plusses from underclassmen.

Ritter was tough again, but he won't be back.

by **Bergermeister** » Thu Mar 06, 2008 3:25 pm

mr. pony wrote:Bamba and Alex Malone mixed it up with those guys. Finished some nice plays under big duress. They were plusses from underclassmen.

Ritter was tough again, but he won't be back.

Bamba is still too much of a lightweight - consistently outmuscled, but... he is what he is. Maybe the youngsters will take over the show against Rice and in the brief appearance in the CUSA tourney. (Ritter always reminded me of Slugo in the "Nancy" cartoon strip.) Thanks, seniors.

by **indianmustang** » Sat Mar 08, 2008 3:55 pm

8 points and 8 rebounds in first half

by **SMUmessageboardScreename** » Sat Mar 08, 2008 4:04 pm

I have been SO impressed with Bamba this year. He will never be a banger, but his aggressiveness and confidence is just amazing compared to the last few years.

1. Ike Ofegbu
2. Bamba Fall
3. Jon Killen

.....Matt Doherty has turned these guys from a whole lot of wasted talent to really good players. I think it is a pretty big testament to how good of a coach he is.

by **PonySnob** » Sat Mar 08, 2008 5:05 pm

SMUmessageboardScreename wrote:I have been SO impressed with Bamba this year. He will never be a banger, but his aggressiveness and confidence is just amazing compared to the last few years.

1. Ike Ofegbu
2. Bamba Fall
3. Jon Killen

.....Matt Doherty has turned these guys from a whole lot of wasted talent to really good players. I think it is a pretty big testament to how good of a coach he is.

He might be a good "teacher" but so far, his "coaching" hasn't helped us improve in the win column yet. Hopefully next year, we will start to see some improvement in the win-loss record so that we can remember why exactly Dement and Tubbs were fired..................

by **Treadway21** » Sat Mar 08, 2008 5:12 pm

game high 20 points for Papa.

by **Alaric** » Sun Mar 09, 2008 7:18 pm

great work papa. 20/11

by **Original Frank** » Sun Mar 09, 2008 9:23 pm

Papa just can't shoot. He had lots of nice moves early in the season but then he would constantly brick the shots. I can't count how many 10-12 foot jumpers in the lane he has delived only 9-11 feet. Even with his 20 points today, he still shot less than 50%. A big guy in the paint has got to shoot around 50%. It's not like he is out there shooting 3's. And the missed FTs... Against Memphis his shot was again about a foot off. Airballs, barely rim, bad misses. And ugly turnovers. But I still really like him. I love his enthusiasm at a time when many players try to avoid any display of emotion at all. He remains one of the few that look to score with the ball (I hate the constant hesitancy to take open shots displayed by all but Killen, DRob, Bamba, Papa, and Malone). SMU needs guys that want to score, that look to score! While I love Papa's offensive aggressiveness, Papa just can't finish with any regularity. Result: Loss of confidence; diminished playing time.

Maybe next year. I still really like his upside. Great body and great enthusiasm. He'll be a good one before he is finished.

by **Alaric** » Sun Mar 09, 2008 9:58 pm

Original Frank wrote:Papa just can't shoot. He had lots of nice moves early in the season but then he would constantly brick the shots. I can't count how many 10-12 foot jumpers in the lane he has delived only 9-11 feet. Even with his 20 points today, he still shot less than 50%. A big guy in the paint has got to shoot around 50%. It's not like he is out there shooting 3's. And the missed FTs... Against Memphis his shot was again about a foot off. Airballs, barely rim, bad misses. And ugly turnovers. But I still really like him. I love his enthusiasm at a time when many players try to avoid any display of emotion at all. He remains one of the few that look to score with the ball (I hate the constant hesitancy to take open shots displayed by all but Killen, DRob, Bamba, Papa, and Malone). SMU needs guys that want to score, that look to score! While I love Papa's offensive aggressiveness, Papa just can't finish with any regularity. Result: Loss of confidence; diminished playing time.

Maybe next year. I still really like his upside. Great body and great enthusiasm. He'll be a good one before he is finished.

It looks to me like Papa has a little hitch in his shot and ends up shooting on the way down and has too little arc upon release. That being said, I think his shot can be drastically improved since he's young. I don't know when he started playing basketball but it probably wasn't too long ago so he probably hasn't been reinforcing that bad shot since he was 6 which is good...he's a stud and his shot will improve even if the coaches decide not to change his mechanics drastically.

Whats the deal with Papa?

Whats the deal with Papa?

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