Quote :

"So do we want UNC to win and get the bye or do we want to avoid FSU again?"

Well the ONLY way we make the NCAA tournament is by winning the ACC tournament, and no team is going to do that having to play 5 games. So, we want the bye.

3/4/2021 2:04:00 AM

that's a very wordy way to say you're a UNC fan

3/4/2021 2:24:53 AM

3/4/2021 2:52:14 AM

I wonder what the record would be if this team was playing like this with DD and rotated more players.

or was DD holding us back, or did him going down light a fire under this teams ass. let's make a run and fuck some shit up in the ACCT.

I haven't seen them play much lately, do to putting kids to sleep. but we racking up the Ws

3/4/2021 8:26:02 AM

Quote :

"and lol at the lack of posts here after winning 5 straight ACC games for the first time since 2004"

I think I heard that it was the first time we won 3 ACC Road games in a row since '74. Now we've won 4 consecutive ACC Road games... when's the last time that happened?

Quote :

" I never though Seabron would be playing like this based on the first half of the season."

And just imagine, PB said that Seabron may be playing ACC-quality basketball by his junior year. I can't wait!

3/4/2021 9:34:39 AM

Keatts has done a great job this year. His hand was forced with the injuries, but he did a nice job tweaking things to fit the team we had (not the team he envisioned).

I don't think it was DD holding us back -- maybe Allen, but not DD. He played hard and unselfish for the most part. But him going down forced others to grow up fast. I think it also gave Hayes and Seabron the confidence to be more aggressive and play looser, and it's paying off.

Speaking of Seabron -- man. That kind of speed and agility at 6'7 is rare -- he can be an absolute shutdown 1-on-1 defender with his length. If his handle and outside shot improve just a little, he's got first-round NBA talent.

3/4/2021 9:53:03 AM

Quote :

"I think I heard that it was the first time we won 3 ACC Road games in a row since '74. Now we've won 4 consecutive ACC Road games... when's the last time that happened?"

Also was in 1974, we went 12-0 in the ACC and won all 5 of our road games.

3/4/2021 9:53:21 AM

Also saw we jumped up like 10 spots in the NET ranking overnight. We're at #66 now, ahead of a few bubble teams (notably Mich St)

3/4/2021 9:59:26 AM

Quote :

"And just imagine, PB said that Seabron may be playing ACC-quality basketball by his junior year. I can't wait!"

Our own coach who according to you knows way more than us was not playing him at all.

The team is doing well because Keatts is doing what jocristian and myself have been screaming all year: have Beverly come off the bench as a spot shooter, let the freshmen run and learn, and feed Funderburk in the post.

3/4/2021 10:13:32 AM

Just a hypothetical, but do you think some freshmen aren't ready at the beginning of the season, and have to be eased in and get some real-game experience before they're ready to be "let loose"? And if they're thrown to the fire too early, it shakes their confidence and is detrimental to their development? Just speculation. All the freshmen had some bumps in their limited playing time early in the season. They're playing much better now.

3/4/2021 10:39:53 AM

Another hypothetical.

Perhaps when you are a freshman who is due to get yanked every time you make a dumb turnover or mistake (it was happening early in the season) and then never play crunch time minutes, it shakes your confidence and you play tight and uncreative basketball which in turn leads to less playing time.

Then when you get forced into big minutes due to injuries in the backcourt and the season circling the drain, you begin to play loose and up to your abilities because you know that you aren't gonna get yanked after every mistake which allows you to build your confidence and leads to you scoring a career high in the last game of the season.

It was clear even before DD went down that BB and Allen weren't the solutions for our primary guards. It didn't take a genius to see that if we had any chance at all, it was with the freshmen--although at the time, I didn't include Seabron in that group. Once DD went down, it was damn near coaching malpractice to play BB and Allen the type of minutes he did while keeping the young guys on the bench and sitting DJ during crunch time.

This team turned around when Keatts decided to commit to the freshmen and take whatever downsides that comes with. It should have happened 7 games before it did.



[Edited on March 4, 2021 at 10:58 AM. Reason : d]

3/4/2021 10:55:37 AM

I always understood your side of the argument for shak and cam, although I disagreed a little, but Seabron looked terrible early in the season.

3/4/2021 11:02:41 AM

absolutely shocking that boozie and others aren't coaches, since they know so much more than actual coaches

3/4/2021 12:00:46 PM

That is such a ridiculous argument.

It's every bit as dumb as the idea of not being able to criticize decisions made by players because you aren't a D1 player.

If only players and coaches are allowed to discuss basketball games, what the fuck are any of us doing here? to bitch about the refs? Oh, we can't do that either because none of us are refs.

[Edited on March 4, 2021 at 12:08 PM. Reason : perhaps you could address the merit of the argument, rather than use appeal to authority falacy]

3/4/2021 12:06:08 PM

Quote :

"was DD holding us back, "

Yes, he was holding is back so much, that's why we went 1-4 immediately following his injury. This is such a terrible take. He was incredibly efficient as the number 1 offensive option and was a key defensive player. His injury has directly led to Seabron getting a large increase in minutes and while it's nice to see flashes of his potential, he's nowhere near as good as Daniels.

3/4/2021 12:12:02 PM

You make it sound like Keatts is some moron with zero basketball iq who doesn't realize that Funderburk is a good player and there is no other possible explanation for his playing time this year. Or that freshmen don't mature and improve their games at different rates than one another and that players might not be ready immediately and might need time to develop. Or that Beverly is somehow shooting a much higher percentage than he was earlier in the season, or other tired arguments that are just flat out wrong.

This whole "we're playing better because the coach finally did what I said" argument is ridiculous and tiresome

[Edited on March 4, 2021 at 12:16 PM. Reason : ^^]

3/4/2021 12:16:16 PM

Most coaches don't start their freshmen, and try to ease them in more as the season(s) progresses, if they have the option to play capable and more experienced players. That's not unique to KK.

(there are obvious exceptions, most commonly if the freshman is a blue-chipper, or they just don't have the skill/depth)

3/4/2021 12:26:55 PM

^^^One could make the argument that DD indirectly held us back. Yes, he was our main offensive option. Yes, he was reasonably good in the half court ISO. That said, he was a black hole on offense and the half-court offense ground to a halt regularly with him getting the majority of on-ball time. It was Daniels ISO after Daniels ISO in the second half of many games. We blew so many second half leads largely because of this. At the time, I don't think that any of the other players were ready to take on the offense so he did what he had to do.

We had lost 4 straight leading up to the wake game where he got injured including an awful game against a terrible Miami team without their two best players. The season was NOT looking good before he went down. The losing streak probably wouldn't have been as bad, but the winning streak led by the freshmen and a half-court offense that has movement on every possession may not have happened either.

^^Never said Keatts was a moron. Of course he knows more about the game than I do. That doesn't mean he can't have a blind spot because of his affinity for a player. It doesn't mean that he can think about winning and losing the same way I can as a fan. At a point in the season, I could look at it realistically and say "fuck it, put the freshmen in. It can't get worse than it is now." His job obligates him to think about it differently and prioritize winning in the short term so he makes different decisions.

It's pretty clear that the Allen and DD injuries basically forced his hand and it wasn't so much a decision that he made. That turned out well because the freshmen were clearly ready to step up into that role, but it could have gone badly too.

[Edited on March 4, 2021 at 12:33 PM. Reason : d]

3/4/2021 12:33:10 PM

Unfortunately it's impossible to prove, the freshman look ready now but that doesn't mean they were ready before

Also i believe you were clamoring for more Hayes and Moore, not Hayes and seabron?

Moore and funderburks minutes haven't really changed much

Finally Beverly played near season low minutes vs Duke and fsu and still played close to 30 min these last 2 games.

Quote :

"lost 4 straight "

3 straight. And two of them are likely tourney teams. We lost 4 of our next 5 and lost most of the Wake lead without. Those 4 losses are one more tourney teams, and a middling Duke and Cuse team

[Edited on March 4, 2021 at 12:56 PM. Reason : E]

3/4/2021 12:52:40 PM

Okay so is Boo calling someone to play for the weekend or what?

Team is hot and needs chances to compete, NCAA tournament chances or not.

3/4/2021 1:36:41 PM

I do think that while Shak's minutes are about the same, his role is larger. He is playing the important minutes down the stretch. He is on the ball more.

Seabron was not on my radar at all for more playing time. In his limited minutes, he looked like an athletic kid without the skills needed to compete in the ACC. He has been a pleasant surprise. However, at the time I would have been happy to see ANY of the freshmen to get more time. When the season is over, there is no point in continuing to run the veterans into the ground. Give the reps to your freshmen and get ready for next year.

3/4/2021 1:47:31 PM

^^from Jonas Pope

Quote :

"Don’t get your hopes up for a makeup game for Saturday, State fans. I’m told the school started putting together a list of possible opponents on Tuesday, have gotten a bunch of thanks, but no thanks. Too much to lose this close to the end of the season. Still making calls. "

3/4/2021 2:46:06 PM

Quote :

"That said, he was a black hole on offense"

TIL that the most efficient guard on the team (who is also second on the team with 3.1 assists/game) is a black hole. you people

3/4/2021 3:58:17 PM

TIL that justin doesn't watch games. He looks at the stat sheets afterwards.

I dare you to go back to any conference game that DD played in and watch the second halves and come back and say he wasn't a black hole. He got the ball, pounded it, tried to drive or take a shot. That doesn't mean he never scored or did good things. Look through this thread during game times. It was a shitload of people bitching about Daniels

3/5/2021 12:26:57 PM

I guess if he's scoring and doing good things why does it matter that he's a black hole

3/5/2021 12:39:32 PM

Quote :

"Look through this thread during game times."

Because kneejerk reactions to specific plays in real-time is the best way to evaluate players, not what they do over time with a much larger sample size

3/5/2021 1:26:12 PM

Sure. A sample size that largely includes a cupcake non-con schedule. Not his fault of course. He did the best with what we had. He was our best player at the time. No denying that. It's not a reach for anyone who watched our conference games then vs now on our win streak and compared them to see the stylistic difference on the offensive end.

Then the offense stagnated regularly and the guards kept the ball (Daniels chief among them)--particularly in the second half of games. Now, our offense has movement throughout on nearly every possession. We share the ball and at least attempt to feed it inside.

I'm fine if you don't want to place the blame on that difference on Daniels. I don't necessarily place it on all him either, but there damn well was a difference that may not show up on the stat sheets but was certainly there in the games.

The main thing I am getting at is that this team was basically terrible as soon as we hit tougher opponents which happened before DD going down. Our season going to shit didn't happen when he went down.

3/5/2021 1:59:35 PM

Quote :

"team was basically terrible as soon as we hit tougher opponents"

The unc win is our 2nd best win and played clemson even.

3/5/2021 2:29:50 PM

This sucks having our game canceled today. I need more Wolfpack wins.

3/6/2021 12:37:18 PM

https://twitter.com/giglio_OG/status/1368367541777760264?s=19

Things could not have went better for us, other than maybe getting a game today. 9 seed against Syracuse. Now UVA is #1 and get them in round two if we win. Then likely GT/Clemson.

3/6/2021 8:38:04 PM

Don't have it as easy as unc, who gets nd/wf and then possibly a bye if VT can't play.

3/6/2021 9:09:01 PM

I like our draw, although most people think we have to win 3 games to have a shot at ncaa tourny.

3/6/2021 11:00:42 PM

3 is the bare minimum, yes.

3/6/2021 11:27:41 PM

Jericole Hellems made Honorable Mention All-ACC team.

Manny Bates made All-Defensive Team.

(Keatts didn't get a single vote for Coach)

3/8/2021 11:33:42 AM

At least Manny made the all-defensive team this year. Hilarious that Huff got more DPOY votes though.

Also hilarious that the VT coach won since they played absolutely nobody in conference.

3/8/2021 12:41:22 PM

Syracuse->Virginia->Clemson->Va Tech for the orange championship

3/8/2021 12:52:12 PM

Quote :

"NC State was 4-8 in the ACC on Feb. 13. Its season was toast. Three weeks and five wins later, NC State is back on the bubble. What the Wolfpack needs to make the NCAA tournament .. https://t.co/NopnCKCKkg https://t.co/cIP8lQzMln"

3/8/2021 4:57:51 PM

3/10/2021 7:49:34 AM

are we dancing now? how many more wins we need to dance? or is ACCT championship the only way?

3/10/2021 9:27:53 AM

Not dancing, no. Probably gotta win 3. If we win 2 maybe we’ll at least be in the conversation. As it is now, we aren’t even really on the bubble, I think.

The stupid thing is if we beat Cuse they may actually drop from Q1 to Q2. I know there has to be a cut off somewhere for each quadrant. But the fringes of each Q are kinda silly. There’s no discernible difference between the #48 team and the #52 team, but they’ll count differently for quadrants. Or for example, lose to #134 on the road and it’s a Q2 L (generally considered not a bad loss). But if you lose to #136 on the road it is a bad loss.

3/10/2021 10:13:20 AM

Seems pretty likely we need to at minimum make the championship game to have a shot at the tourney. The good news is that the team is playing well and I actually (perhaps foolishly) think it's doable.

Hopefully with the covid complications for this season, the committee will take into account how hot the team has been at the end of the year.


^Agreed. It's not even the fringes that are so dumb about the quadrants. The fact that a home win against a #1 is somehow graded similarly to an away win against #66 is completely dumb.

[Edited on March 10, 2021 at 10:21 AM. Reason : d]

3/10/2021 10:17:33 AM

Refs really letting them play down low.

3/10/2021 12:16:42 PM

By them you clearly mean syracuse

3/10/2021 12:18:38 PM

Make Free Throws!!

3/10/2021 12:19:37 PM

We are getting the shit beat out of us inside with no fouls

and fuck Buddy and his whole family (but is mom in the nice way).

3/10/2021 12:37:25 PM

Send in Farrar to take out Boeheim.

[Edited on March 10, 2021 at 12:39 PM. Reason : That was a a foul on Cam for both of them going for it?]

3/10/2021 12:38:47 PM

No time added there??? Looked like at least 1.5 seconds.

Edwards with two blatantly obvious travels that led to four points.

3/10/2021 12:48:58 PM

Yep it should have been close to 2 seconds. But these refs have been awful so i don't know what else you'd expect.

3/10/2021 12:50:34 PM

Not really a fan of Bates in the middle on O vs the zone. He’s no threat to score from 15’. He’s not gonna put it on the floor. He’s just a big target to catch and pass

3/10/2021 12:54:50 PM

Yeah he looked like a deer in headlights every time he got the ball there. But hellems hasn't been good there today either.

3/10/2021 12:56:17 PM