I have heard chemistry among this group is at an all-time high. The young guns look up to and admire the veterans, especially Matt Bouldin. And Matt is as likeable as you'll ever find, but he is also the most vocal leader on the squad right now. Matt had this same situation in HS when he was the only returning starter for ThunderRidge. He led a group of young kids to a Sweet Sixteen finish. They lost 6 games that year, 5 of which happened when Matt was not playing or hobbled by an ankle injury.
So health and no injuries is key Saturday and, actually, all year. Matt is clearly the leader now and it could be a case of "The Zags go as Matt goes."
I'll be doing three things, primarily.
1) Watching each individual player and just getting an overall impression of their abilities, skill level, hustle, etc. I want to see what each guy is doing when without the ball. Does he float, does he keep moving, does he set screens, does he box out, etc?
2) Watching the coaches and what they say to whom. For instance, a sure way to know if someone is missing assignments or just generally making mistakes is to watch who the coaches talk to, either during play or during time-outs.
3) Watching teamwork. Does it all look ragged and sputtery, or are the guys running crisp plays and there's a semblance of flow to the action? Now, I fully realize there's only been a week of practices and it'll take the newbies time to get a grasp of the offense and defense so that will be taken into account.
I think all who attend will get an inkling of this edition of the Zags. If I were make a prediction, it would be that we'll see a ton of talent oozing from these Zags but it'll be a bit raw and unharnessed, something only time will take care of. But the upside potential for the future will have fans eager to get going.
So health and no injuries is key Saturday and, actually, all year. Matt is clearly the leader now and it could be a case of "The Zags go as Matt goes."
I'll be doing three things, primarily.
1) Watching each individual player and just getting an overall impression of their abilities, skill level, hustle, etc. I want to see what each guy is doing when without the ball. Does he float, does he keep moving, does he set screens, does he box out, etc?
2) Watching the coaches and what they say to whom. For instance, a sure way to know if someone is missing assignments or just generally making mistakes is to watch who the coaches talk to, either during play or during time-outs.
3) Watching teamwork. Does it all look ragged and sputtery, or are the guys running crisp plays and there's a semblance of flow to the action? Now, I fully realize there's only been a week of practices and it'll take the newbies time to get a grasp of the offense and defense so that will be taken into account.
I think all who attend will get an inkling of this edition of the Zags. If I were make a prediction, it would be that we'll see a ton of talent oozing from these Zags but it'll be a bit raw and unharnessed, something only time will take care of. But the upside potential for the future will have fans eager to get going.
Comment