hey herb sendek, fuck you buddy.

2/27/2009 1:57:12 PM

Quote :

"HerbSendek New Recruit 44 Posts user info edit post you guys ran me out of town and threatened my kids, in a sense, I was fired yes it is hot here"

Don't believe this HerbSendek character. I am the real Herb Sendek. Melanie sends her regards. Good luck to Coach Lowe.

HJS

2/27/2009 2:12:14 PM

EPIC

DOPPELGANGER

POSTINGS

2/27/2009 2:15:15 PM

i was herbsendek before you even went to college son

you are a n00b

i am the orginal and real herb

2/27/2009 2:16:25 PM

All one needs to do is look at our profiles to see who is the real Herb Sendek.

The real Herb Sendek would never use profanity in his profile. Who do you think you are, Roy Williams?

HJS

2/27/2009 2:19:30 PM

but why would herb sign up in 2006?

2/27/2009 2:22:41 PM

^^ If the real Herb Sendek had ever said anything that funny he would never have been booed by the fans.

2/27/2009 2:23:43 PM

But Herb's not 19.

[Edited on February 27, 2009 at 2:25 PM. Reason : I don't know what to believe in anymore.]

2/27/2009 2:24:50 PM

Quote :

"It's not like everyone was calling for that lineup"

I was in that crowd. Mostly people who don't know basketball said it wouldn't work.

2/27/2009 6:27:15 PM

actually, plenty of people supported that lineup. you put the best players on the court and let the pos numbers sort themselves out. I hate faggots coming up here trying to claim credit for basic coaching strategies.

2/27/2009 7:08:19 PM

He's not your buddy, Guy.

2/27/2009 7:17:56 PM

^^we played by that mentality last year and look where it got us


just saying

2/27/2009 10:58:29 PM

^^he's not your guy, friend

^he's not your friend, buddy

2/28/2009 12:04:39 AM

^he's not your buddy, jesus

2/28/2009 12:14:03 AM

jersey represent

[Edited on February 28, 2009 at 12:21 AM. Reason : holla]

2/28/2009 12:18:33 AM

Quote :

"Yeah at this point it looks pretty bad the start of the season. Everyone was clamoring oh but we don't have any talent. "

No packboozie, we weren't. State has talent, I understand that. So do the rest of us. Truly we do. And, if someone doesn't think we have talent, please assume they do not speak for the rest of us. Ok? Good, I'm glad we got that cleared up. Sorry for the confusion.

Speaking of confusion, I need to clear something else up too. It appears some people, including you packboozie, are implying (or outright stating) that b/c State "has talent" they must therefore be a "good team." For the sake of argument let's just assert that State should have won "more" games at this point b/c of said talent. Talented team = good teams = winning teams. That does seem perfectly reasonable, I have to admit.

But then again, I'm sure you'll concede that there are, with some flexibility of course, key components every team needs in order to be successful. You know, like ball handlers, sharpshooters, penetrating guards, shot blockers, etc. Depending on the team you have, you can run certain systems to best utilize your players.

So, let's start with ball handling. Who's going to bring the ball up court? Your PG options are Javi, Degand, and Mays. Javi is awkward, Degand can get out of control, and Mays is a freshmen and doesn't have great speed. Well, that's not terrible if you've got sure-handed wing players. Fells has trouble taking anyone off the dribble, Costner and Horner aren't good ball handlers, and everyone else is inexperienced. So, it should be expected that the Pack will struggle at times, as they did last year, bringing the ball upcourt.

Now, ball handling isn't everything. You can make up turnovers from a pressing defense with good execution on offense. So, who can create plays off the dribble? Well, no one really. Going into the season everyone was HOPING that Degand would come back strong from his injury AND that Gonzalez would at least become serviceable after his freshman year. Ok, well you can get around that by utilizing good post players, whom can draw the defense and kick it back out. So, do you have any dominating post players? Well McCauley is solid, and a good passer, but at 6'9" (or 6'10" depending on what stat sheet you reference) he won't physically dominate most teams' big man. Tracy Smith has shown promise, but he's prone to turnovers and needs to work on his free throw shooting. Costner and Fells are good small forward options, but they prefer to operate on the wing, and both are somewhat bi-polar in that they can dominate a game as quickly as they can disappear entirely.

OK... well... so you're saying that State doesn't have good ball handlers, or penetrating guards, or dominating post players. On top of that, State doesn't have the most critical component: someone who can run the offense. Of the upperclassmen on the team, none are PGs. And of the PGs, none are either experienced or "ACC calibur" in talent. To top it all off, none of the leading scorers were recruited by the current coach. That means that the coach is running the team with underclassmen that he recruited and upperclassmen that he didn't.

Still, there is indeed talent on this squad. Costner and Fells are 5-star recruits that can at times carry the offense. McCauley is a solid post player, a good passer, and a senior leader. Tracy Smith has the potential to emerge as the next solid, dependable post player. Degand does have good speed and, with good coaching, could give the Pack a good slashing PG. Horner is a decent player that can come off the bench, hit a few 3's, and give rest time to other post players. And other players on the team may develop and contribute in smaller ways.

Well, if we add this all up, I'd say our season this year is going to look like this:

The Pack is probably going to struggle a bit at the start of the season. State will need time to develop its offensive identity, hopefully getting breakout performance from Fells or Costner here and there to bridge the gap. Lowe will probably have to call a lot of set plays (like he did with Grant running the point in year #1) while Gonzalez and Degand develop. Ultimately one of the two will need to become dependable distributors of the basketball. This will be critical, b/c State will need its core of post players to be the primary source of offensive production. This should open up 3-pt shots on the wing. State will definitely need somebody to step up and establish themselves as 3-pt threats without being significant defensive liabilities (see Horner and Williams). The team will likely commit a higher than average # of turnovers, though hopefully as the season progresses we'll see some improvement on this area.

On defense, playmaking PGs and dominant big men will obviously pose serious problems. Aside from Fells, State doesn't have any shutdown defenders. State will likely have to be resourceful on this area, utilizing a variety of zone and man-to-man defenses depending on the line-up on the floor. Success on defense will depend heavily on effort and execution. Lowe will probably need to find a way to keep his team focused. He may have to resort to rewarding playing time based on the individual players' intensity in practice and on gameday.

One thing is for sure - nothing is going to be easy this year. State doesn't have a guard that can make a play by himself. State doesn't have a JJ Hickson type player who can dominate the post. State doesn't have great team speed or ball handing. State will have to, to one extent or another, be very deliberate on both ends of the floor. They'll likely deal with long hot and cold streaks, depending on how well their set plays or defensive schemes are executed.

The key will be how the team develops as the season wears on. If Lowe can keep the team together and focused, I wouldn't be surprised to see the team show some marked improvement in the 2nd half of the season. Making the NCAA tournament will likely be a longshot, but hey anything is possible. I certainly wouldn't bet on it though. You can't lose Gavin Grant and JJ Hickson, gain Julius Mays, CJ Williams, and also Thomas and Degand from injured reserve, and seriously believe this team will be vastly improved from last year.

So yeah, I'd say a good result would be a 7-9 record in the ACC, a decent showing in the ACC tournament, and a respectable run in the NIT. I'd also like to see some improvement from key players. That and the intensity MUST pick up. If we got all that, I'd say that's a successful season.


Now, some of you (like perhaps packboozie) will disagree with this assessment. I understand that. But honestly the season has unfolded pretty much EXACTLY the way I expected. If anything, at this point I think Lowe's done a solid job making the most of the players he had. And for all of you who criticized him for using the 10-man rotation need to realize all the positives from doing it. Lowe found out real quickly who was prepared to earn their playing time. Tracy Smith stepped up. Horner and Williams did too. Gonzalez remembered how to shoot the ball. Degand has been more in control this year despite being hampered by persistent knee problems. McCauley has yielded the low post to Smith and taken on a role as a distributor and rebounder. Fells has committed himself to, in a number of games, shutting down the opposing teams' best player. Costner has been hit and miss as usual, but he's carried the team at times and is still dangerous from beyond the arc and in the post.

This is why, with or without great contributions from Fells, McCauley, and Costner, State is finding ways to win. And if State can hang in ballgames without those 3, I don't see any reason to panic going into next year. Especially when Lowe is bringing in the calibur recruits he needs to compete in the ACC.



Out.

2/28/2009 12:34:54 AM

you could have said that in so many less words; now you're just ensuring that 90% of tww is going to say tl;dr and pass right over that speech/rant that you probably spent way too much time on

summary: Erios says he was right all along and what he's said all season pretty much happened

2/28/2009 12:49:27 AM

wow, start a blog or something

2/28/2009 12:56:58 AM

^^^good read

2/28/2009 12:57:24 AM

^^^^I disagree about Tracy Smith being turnover-prone, unless you mean that he has trouble catching questionable chest passes from the perimeter. He rarely commits turnovers, because he usually tries to score as soon as he gets it.

But I mostly agree with the rest, solid post.

2/28/2009 12:58:23 AM

Not reading your blog Erios sorry.

2/28/2009 3:52:20 AM

I, too, use laziness as an excuse to hide that I'm wrong.

2/28/2009 7:52:00 AM

I knew the outcomes of every game before we ever played them. I knew what the final scores would be. I was exactly right about everything.

2/28/2009 9:31:48 AM

Not reading your blog Erios sorry.

2/28/2009 10:58:35 AM

but I'll read it since I'm simonn's alter ego, you know the optimistic side.

2/28/2009 11:10:49 AM

simohnn Wall

2/28/2009 11:18:05 AM

Quote :

"I, too, use laziness as an excuse to hide that I'm wrong."

What exactly was I wrong about?

2/28/2009 12:04:55 PM

wow. that's one of the longest posts i've ever seen in ST

2/28/2009 12:34:09 PM

^^everything



See what I did there? I used laziness so I didn't have to elaborate.

2/28/2009 1:27:57 PM

lol, erios. don't you know you can't make sense in this thread.

2/28/2009 3:15:38 PM

quality post, Erios.

2/28/2009 5:34:36 PM

^^ truer words have never been spoken...

Also, I was implying that Tracy Smith was more turnover prone at the beginning of the year, and honestly that had more to do with his relative inexperience. As the season has progressed Smith has become more comfortable and, in turn, has become a reliable post threat. That and McCauley has either yielded the low post or been on the bench when Smith is in the game.

The Pack's recent success offensively has had a LOT to do with Smith becoming the key low post threat. I also truly appreciate McCauley switching gears to become the primary high post passer (ala Eptimov), taking passes off the inbounds to help break full court presses, and snagging rebounds on both the offensive and defensive ends of the floor. That shows a lot of maturity when your SENIOR leader is willing to change roles midseason and allow an underclassmen to become the go-to guy on offense.

Quote :

"Not reading your blog Erios sorry."

Fine, that's your choice. But then drop this attitude about "proving people wrong." That's crap. When I've written short responses, you've taken my words out of context. When I fully explain myself, you whine about having to read too many words. Aside from giving up and leaving (which admittedly would be the sane approach), I don't see any other alternatives.

Again, you can disagree with me. That's fine. Many people do. But honestly the fact that, even after my ridiculously long post, you have the nerve to say "What was I wrong about"... that says that you're have taken ZERO time to take an in depth look at our bball team as it stands today. That makes you no better than rest of the fans who are also bitching and whining about State not winning enough games.

You guys can all gripe about the team and the coach all you like. Seriously go ahead. Hell I'll join you. I've bitched and moaned about State bball going on 10 years now. And when they play poorly and lose I get just as ticked off as you do, if not more... BUT... the team's performance is tied to a number of factors that are bigger than any one player, coach, style of play, or the outcome of a play, a game, or even a season. As a result I am NOT going to throw anyone under the bus unless I've put some time and effort into determining that they DESERVE IT.

Oh and simonn? Quit being a fucking douche with that John Wall alias. I am lame enough to write dissertation-length posts on back-to-back days (sadly ), but you got me beat by a mile. Way to irritate the rest of us by pretending your an 18-year-old black guy. And way to copy and past packboozie's insightful post. Kudos... really...

Quote :

"I knew the outcomes of every game before we ever played them. I knew what the final scores would be. I was exactly right about everything."

Cute. Yet another dissenting opinion making a snide remark instead offering a rebuttal. Still, you're right, OhBoyeee, in pointing out that I came off as a know-it-all. I knew some would take it that way. Not disagreeing with that sentiment either. But most of it truly was my outlook going into the season. Believe me or don't believe me, that's your call. Just try to recognize that the "story" certainly makes sense when you look at it as a whole.

What makes the Sidney Lowe situation so tough to evaluate is that there are several very HUGE factors that have shaped his tenure thusfar. You've got the recruiting angle, which started slow but I believe has picked up nicely. You've got the experience factor (same deal - very encouraged by the N&O article about Lowe seeking advice btw). Then there's the style angle, b/c hey... it's not easy for the players, much less the coach, to switch gears and run progressively different system... and do so under an entirely new coaching staff. Then, as an X-factor, you have the fact that he's an alumni... and a former player... and a former captain... AND a member of our school's last championship team.

(damnit this wasn't supposed to turn into another rant... eh fuck it )

In the end though, what gives me the most hope are three things - Lowe's passion, his knowledge, and his ability to bring in bigtime recruits. The 1st is easy: Lowe obviously bleeds Wolfpack red. No debate needed.

Lowe also knows the game. How many difference defenses have the Pack run this season? I've seen the 2-3, 1-3 and chaser, Box and 1, triangle and 2, and of course the man-to-man. I've seen State run a successful full-court press with arguably the least athletic team in the ACC. You ever see all that under Herb? I sure didn't. And keep in mind that State has run these systems successfully without stellar PGs to manage them.

Finally, I've seen Lowe go out and put State in the running for a LOT of very talented recruits. No offense, but if Sendek is still hear this year, John Wall never considers State. Period. Lowe's competing locally, where he's picked up Tracy Smith and CJ Leslie. Lowe's already established a pipeline into Atlanta, where's he's most recently snagged Brown, Howell, and Harrow. Read some articles and you'll hear about how credible Lowe is to the local high school coaches in regards to developing players into NBA prospects. That's HUGE. He's also obviously made in-raods in Indiana, where he landed underrated Julius Mays and VERY underrated Scott Wood. Finally, consider that Lowe landed JJ Hickson, a monster prospect that really had no incentive to come to a NC State squad, seeing as he was a one-and-done prospect on a team without a great PG to give him the ball. Now Lowe is at again with Demarcus Cousins, after missing narrowly on Favors. State could snag Cousins, even though we're currently having another disappointing year and there's no guarantee that things will turnaround next year. That tells me that recruits are buying into Lowe's sales pitch (which I hope doesn't involve anything shady, like new cars and bags of money )

Lowe is obviously still sorting things out, from the players to his style of play to his familiarity with the college game, but make no mistake about it. Lowe isn't trying to make State a good team. He's trying to make them a GREAT team. Lowe is thinking big, and I like it. Now to be fair, I felt this way about Amato. Yes, I see the parallels. But Amato got his fair shake, and after 7 years (which would include 3 years with only his players) it became clear that State was on track towards committing more TO's, more penalties, and losing more games. It was clear that Amato benefited heavily from having Rivers. It was clear Amato couldn't deliver using his own players. And considering the assistant turnover and gaffes in the media, it was clear Amato was not the person for the job. Lowe deserves that same chance.

All that's certain is that the breaking point is coming very soon. Either State fans are going to grow so restless and the administration will decide to boot him, or Lowe will finally hit his stride in time to win some games and avoid getting run out of town. What I'm not certain of is how soon this breaking point is going to come. The point is that Lowe HASN'T gotten his fair shake yet. Next year Lowe will be relying almost exclusively on his own recruits. That's when we'll know whether Lowe has a future as State's bball coach.


....



Damn I need to get a life...



[Edited on February 28, 2009 at 6:00 PM. Reason : s]

[Edited on February 28, 2009 at 6:02 PM. Reason : k]

2/28/2009 5:46:47 PM

We.....don't.....fucking.....care.

Stop already

2/28/2009 6:17:58 PM

^ your holier than though attitude is getting old dude.

Erios, some people here do appreciate a well thought out post. as long as you are offering some insight, whether i agree or disagree, i'm willing to read. it's good to see people actually thinking before they type.

2/28/2009 6:51:55 PM

Yes we all want to come on here and read a book....that's why I get on TWW.

2/28/2009 7:40:49 PM

As opposed to coming to TWW for some non-weak attempts at trolling?

2/28/2009 7:46:37 PM

Quote :

"We.....don't.....fucking.....care."

Hahahaha...this was posted on page 98.

2/28/2009 7:53:35 PM

Quote :

"Oh and simonn? Quit being a fucking douche with that John Wall alias. I am lame enough to write dissertation-length posts on back-to-back days (sadly ), but you got me beat by a mile. Way to irritate the rest of us by pretending your an 18-year-old black guy. And way to copy and past packboozie's insightful post. Kudos... really..."

i assure you that is not me.

would i send these to myself?

Quote :

"From : John Wall To : simonn Received : Sunday March 1, 2009 at 2:37 PM Subject : Referee? So DeMarcus Cousins and I are gonna play 1v1, and we need a ref. Can you do it? Loser has to commit to NCSU."

Quote :

"From : John Wall To : simonn Received : Friday February 27, 2009 at 7:00 AM Subject : Optimistic Side Hey simonn, your optimistic side here (aka John Wall). Just look on the bright side today."

oh and i copied/pasted packboozie's post about not reading your blog b/c it's fucking annoying. you come in here and say the same three sentences stretched into 10 paragraphs like you're making a point.

[Edited on March 1, 2009 at 4:33 PM. Reason : i don't even agree w/ packboozie, except that your posts are incredibly overdone.]

3/1/2009 4:31:38 PM

I haven't posted in here in a while, mostly because I've been pleased with the direction the team has gone the 2nd half of the season. That's not to say that 10th in the ACC is acceptable, because it isn't. But the end of this year and all of next year is about growth, and I've seen enough to be at least partly satisfied.

I expect a slightly worse season next year if BC does indeed leave, which would be fine as long as we make the Tourney the following year.

3/1/2009 4:55:47 PM

Quote :

"I expect a slightly worse season next year if BC does indeed leave"

you had convinced me of that, but lately i don't know. some underclassmen have been playing well. that said, it'd be great if he came back.

3/1/2009 5:04:02 PM

I think next season depends on who comes as well. We need a big, we don't need Wall. I think if DC comes we should be making the tournament next season. If John Wall comes instead I don't think he'll help us as much since we already have Brown. If we get both and don't make the tournament, its going to be a shitfest around here, although I still think Sid should get his 5th year.


That being said, I'd rather have Wall than not...just to get that out there. We just need Cousins more.

[Edited on March 1, 2009 at 5:06 PM. Reason : ]

3/1/2009 5:05:10 PM

as long as we're being ridiculous: if we got cousins and wall and miss the tournament, sid's got to go. he's not going to get any better players than that.

we're never going to get both though, and we're sure as hell not going to miss the tournament w/ both.

3/1/2009 5:07:04 PM

Erios

A++ ANALYSIS WILL READ AGAIN

PLEASE POST MANY MANY MORE

3/1/2009 5:08:33 PM

Wall is going to be able to contribute right away at a MUCH higher level than Brown will. There is a reason he is pretty much the consensus #1 overall NBA draft pick next season. In fact, I'd bet if there was no age limit he'd be the #1 overall pick THIS year. Kid is freaking sick and I think he would take us to the next level...

Brown is good, but Wall is Derrick Rose.

Quote :

"some underclassmen have been playing well. "

They are, though I feel most of them are better suited to be role players. That said, I give all the credit in the world to Lowe for developing Javi to the point he isn't an embarrassment to start in the ACC... but in an ideal world he's be back to being the 2nd/3rd PG on an ACC roster. A Quentin Thomas type.

[Edited on March 1, 2009 at 5:11 PM. Reason : x]

3/1/2009 5:09:59 PM

i would kill a man to have QT on this team right now, as much as the way he runs on his toes and those ridiculous corn rows annoy me.

3/1/2009 5:14:24 PM

"Yes we all want to come on here and read a book....that's why I get on TWW"

From the quality of your posts, you'd be well served if you read several books. If you're tired of reading my longs freakin' posts, then quit giving me so much material to work with.

Look, packboozie, there's a lot of stupid in this thread, and you only constitute a tiny fraction of it. But your throwing State's coach under the bus, and you're using piss poor reasons to do it. And as a diehard State fan, I'll be damned if I'm going to sit idly by while you or anyone else trash the guy's reputation. State fans have it hard enough, being the red-headed step-child of the Big Four. We don't need our fans prematurely turning on our own fucking coach.

Oh, and since you hate reading uber long posts, let me summarize for you: You're shitty ass "we got talent" argument was torn to pieces. Now shutup and wait til next season so your criticisms will have some actual merit... if they end up being valid...

And simonn, I apologize for the accusation, but not for the posts. Deal with it.

3/1/2009 5:25:16 PM

i deal w/ yours like you deal w/ mine about not reading the same, played out post over and over.

3/1/2009 5:25:59 PM

RAWR RAWR RAWR

lets get this motherfucker to 100 already.

and when wall commits, can this thread be locked?

3/1/2009 5:30:10 PM

Quote :

"I'll be damned if I'm going to sit idly by while you or anyone else trash the guy's reputation"

so brave and honorable with your 10 paragraph posts, you are

3/1/2009 5:35:06 PM

wait, so, after putting up with so much bullshit and stupid shit in this thread, people are really complaining because Erios has an adderall induced SUPERLONG post every now and again?

Really?

come on now, you people are getting ridiculous.

3/1/2009 5:38:11 PM