GLE, & the 3 position.

[3zagda]

Is this the key to a deep run this season?
Lots has been said here about how well PK played in the NWN game. & the return of KO is anticipated by all of us. I am convinced we will be strong @ the 1,2,4&5 positions. That leaves the 3.
Regardless of Karno, I was most impressed with how good GLE looked in the exhibition game. Granted it was NWN, but I thought it was the best he has looked in a Zag uniform. Strong on both defense & offense. Hart looked good too.
How much has GLE improved? Can KD contribute at the 3, or is he more of a 1 or 2?

[adoptedzag]

Imo, you'll see Draino at the 3 in spots, much like when Carter was at the 3 last season.

[Hoopaholic]

I have said before and stand by my view that the key to a long successful run this year is consistent, does not need be stellar night in night out, but consistent play from the three slot on both ends of court. Give me solid defense, 8 points a game 4 rebounds and 2 turnovers while playing solid perimeter defense zags make a deep run. I think gle is ready to provide that, with "drains" waiting in wings if need be

[MDABE80]

Edi looked much much improved. He's got that certain athleticism sure to be noticed. Mike Hart might not be as athletic but he really surpised as well. 10 pts, 9 boards, no mistake and his usual clingy defense. He's lots weight and seems quicker at least to me.
Dranginis has got a great future. I do believe we do have superior wingplay from the two seniors and Kyle will be a major contributor as well. Other teams should have such a problem.

[MickMick]

Edi looked much much improved. He's got that certain athleticism sure to be noticed. Mike Hart might not be as athletic but he really surpised as well. 10 pts, 9 boards, no mistake and his usual clingy defense. He's lots weight and seems quicker at least to me.
Dranginis has got a great future. I do believe we do have superior wingplay from the two seniors and Kyle will be a major contributor as well. Other teams should have such a problem.

Agree with all of the above. GU doesn't have NBA players at wing. They have experienced, hard nosed, rebounders and defenders.

Wing not a problem.

[Baldwinzag]

Not so fast, my friends.

Last season: lack of offensive or scoring production from the 3-spot. CDC did a terrific job covering this throughout last season and stating why -- read his past posts. For instance, when Edi made a couple shots i.e. as he did vs BYU in WCC & West Virginia in NCAA, we were unstoppable, even unbeatable at times. Also, rebounding from the wing was lacking at times.

This season: 3-spot is covered in spades. Maybe even overkill. Guys like Barham & Dranginis are heralded perimeter players and can stretch any defense/keep this honest. Edi can slash, defend, and looks quicker and just more in tune than last season. He's healthy, understands the offense now, and can utilize his athleticism to his & the team's advantage. He'll be the starter, yet share major minutes, imho. Also, don't forget about Hart who can come in during rough defensive patches, close out games, end of halves, full-court press, etc to do the small things such as provide intensity, rebounding, defense, take a charge = momentum changer.

Bottom line, the 3-spot is in good hands this season.

The key or 'question mark' to a deep run...

Its been eluded to by most pundits, talking heads, and most recently, our Head Coach.

Key of 2012-2013: Interior defense. Interior toughness. Interior foul-trouble.

All go hand-in-hand, and something we believe is there, yet have never seen it on the court.

Yes, guys like Karnowski are big, yet he's never played a lick of physical, hard-nosed defense for extended time.

Dower, Olynyk, & Harris have been highly foul-prone and known to rack up fouls in a short period of time due to lack of positioning, focus, and fundamentals.

Sacre bailed out our team defense numerous times last season, especially when Harris or Dower would give up position or be forced to hack at them.

Harris is tough, well, most of the time and only in stretches. Same with Dower. Olynyk led the team in fouls during his time as a starter and routinely had 3 fouls in 3-5 minutes when he last played, due to poor defensive position.

Who guards the Jared Sullingers' on this team? I don't know -- yet.

Dower showed zero defensive improvement(mostly focus) vs NWN(exhibition) and collected 5 fouls in 20 minutes of play.

We all witnessed Harris' improvement on defense last season, due to more consistent hustle, but he still routinely got burnt one-on-one or if he played along the perimeter.

As of right now, this is the 'key' to a deep run in WCC or NCAA. A team with good bigs might abuse us underneath and/or present foul trouble.

We will find out in the next couple weeks where this team is at underneath, on the defensive end.

West Virginia has 3 very tough, skilled, and big posts threats underneath. We've met one, yet they have two other Top-50 ranked bigs eligible this season. It'll be a big test.

Also, Oklahoma has a couple good, young, talented bigs in the front court.

Personally, I'm hoping KO's biggest improvement was, indeed, his defense at this point, b/c we'll need it.

[CDC84]

GLE has improved, and, most importantly, is finally healthy.

I liked how they used him offensively in the exhibition game. Especially those post up plays in the lane. I think it is important for Few and Co. to run plays for him, either in the lane or going towards the basket. It keeps the defense honest, and if he misses, he's great at attacking the offensive glass.

I still expect to see Elias at the "3" some of the time once Olynyk becomes eligible. It's not something you will see regularly, but Few has talked about it to the press. They need to free up more time for the other big guys. Obviously, Dranginis will get some time there as well.

I love Mike Hart and what he brings to the team, but I think he is best used as a non-main rotation player. He is just too limited on offense. I would use him in special situations (end of the half) or when Gonzaga has to get some extra defense at the wing.

[Robzagnut]

Is this the key to a deep run this season?

No.

The key is getting a high seed and getting good matchups in the NCAA tournament.

This team is primed and ready to go. It's just a matter of performing on the court, getting a little better each game and peaking at the right time.

[CDC84]

There is a subregional in Salt Lake City, and the west regional is in Los Angeles. The Zags would have a nice set up if they get a high enough seed.

[MDABE80]

Baldwin sez "West Virginia has 3 very tough, skilled, and big posts threats underneath. We've met one, yet they have two other Top-50 ranked bigs eligible this season. It'll be a big test."

And we have 1 ( Elias). This is the one thing we've overlooked. Huggins will have WV ready. This is the only thing that worries me. KO's gone for that game. It's a problem. Hope Sam gets busier. Hope Karno is moving along speedily. We lose the boards otherwise. Things don't go well when we lose the boards. Yikes......potentially a very big YIKES!

[SteelZag]

Rebounding?

Baldwin sez "West Virginia has 3 very tough, skilled, and big posts threats underneath. We've met one, yet they have two other Top-50 ranked bigs eligible this season. It'll be a big test."

And we have 1 ( Elias). This is the one thing we've overlooked. Huggins will have WV ready. This is the only thing that worries me. KO's gone for that game. It's a problem. Hope Sam gets busier. Hope Karno is moving along speedily. We lose the boards otherwise. Things don't go well when we lose the boards. Yikes......potentially a very big YIKES!

Last season the Zags were only out-rebounded 3 games in which we lost. In those games Sacre had 2, 3 and 4 rebounds. I'm more concerned about our shooting, in which GU shot 43.5 or under in 5 of the losses. And turnovers don't help much either. I'm hoping for team defense, better shooting and taking care of the rock!

[MDABE80]

Defense wise, Zags will be fine. for the 1,2and 3 spots. ELias will too if he focuses.
We need bigs to anchor the low blocks and get the rebounds
I agree though, our shooters must put up some points. We have 4-5 good ones. 4 start.
Defense is key to everything. Defense wins games. Defense wins championships.

[GonzaGAW]

many well thought out points presented here and i agree with most.

will the 3 spot be the key to a deep run in the tourney and is it our achilles heel? no and no imo.

first i'm not too concerned with the 3 spot given we have so many different players to plug in. gle is strong and slashes to the rim, hart gives spot defense, kd and barham from the outside, plus i think we will see harris at the 3 a few minutes a game. heavy responsibiity on coach to get the right player on the floor for the right circumstances.

i think more key to a deep run will be our interior defense, can dower, ko and pk step up. also as good as kp and gbj were last year, they need to show improvement. a couple more assists per game for kevin and a few more shot attempts by gary. if these 5 guys can show real improvement, even modest improvement over last year i think we are going to be very happy campers this season.

[DADoZAG]

There was a stretch during the second stint of the first platoon where the defensive rotation was exceptional. I think it starts at the 12:00 minute mark or so of the first half.

Although, IIRC, that was the segment when Dower missed showing on a ball screen, the rest of the time the D was a thing of beauty. Rotating properly, switching only when needed but fighting through screens most of the time.

If the ZAGS can get where that is the norm, oh baby.

Go ZAGS!

[Reborn]

It's too early for me to tell how we will be at the 3 because the only game I have seen was last Friday's, and the Zags were not tested. We'll know more about this soon. I did like what I saw out of Edi and Dranginis, although I wish Edi could shoot better from the outside. Because Dranginis can, I feel he is going to see considerable playing time. Dranginis showed me a lot of determination, fight, and tough mindedness during the preseason opener, and he does have the skills to play at the D1 level. Will he demonstrate this against WVU? That is the question I am asking at this time.

I did not see a whole lot from Barnham. But Mark Few does seem to have confidence in his outside shooting. We shall see soon.