Walker out scores Hayes

[bleedXblue]

Apparently Walter lost a bunch of weight this past summer/fall. So, he probably still has a ways to go is my guess. Lets not write off a senior in high school please. Geesh. Hes over 7'0' from most accounts. Lets see what happens over the next year......

[Anti-Homer]

Anti you can’t read.....

Every player has the desire to improve

Few players have the desire to put in the work needed to do so

The players that have that burning desire to put in the work are the ones that don’t need to be told to shot free throws on their own. They are the players that you have to kick out of the gym, not beg or threaten to get them to show up for practice on time. They are the players that do the extra sets in the weight room or do some extra running on their own. They are the players that push themselves beyond what the average player does.

Just look at how many kids come into college as “can’t miss” prospects and never pan out....not just at X, but all across the country. You can measure height, reach, weight, strength.....but you can’t measure heart. Heart/desire can make a bad player good, and a good player great. But LACK of heart can take a great athlete and turn him into not just a “has been”, but a “never was”.

Heart/desire is not 1/1000, 1/100, or 1/2 of the equation...it’s almost everything.

Believe me when I tell you that it one of the things that college coaches always evaluate when looking at prospects and when making judgements about player potential......and it’s one of the hardest things to judge quickly and accurately.

Ky,

First of all, I'm very sad that you had to resort to an insult in trying to make your point. You obviously never watched Mike Brady in action as a kid as I did.

Secondly, my reading skills are fine, as evidenced by the D's I received in Remedial Reading at X. My chair even had " Mman was here" inscribed on it. I think you meant to deride my comprehension skills. I'll try to do better this time around. As I cut and paste your point verbatim where you stated that," Every player has the desire to improve. Few players have the desire to put in the work needed to do so," I believe it clearly states that your point is while EVERY PLAYER has the desire, FEW put in the work. Did I nail it this time?

Few means the minority, so of a team of 13 players, your statement would infer that only 2, 3, or possibly even 4 players have both the desire, and work ethic required to be successful. I'm curious: Whom on this team are in the lucky minority who possesses both traits, leaving the majority to be in the dreaded underachieving group.

Sorry, I must be a Pollyanna, because I think all players on this team possess both the desire and work ethic to succeed. I think it's time to permanently remove the ridiculous misnomer of Anti in front of my name.

[Biggernlife]

Kyrex; whatever it’s worth Stainbrook was very productive as a fresh before we got him. Also FWIW he wasn’t,t out of Cleveland State but rather out of Westerm Michigan University- .....Biggernlife

[kyzrex]

So homer

Do you really think that it’s just athletic talent, raw physical skills, that separate an All-American player from anyone else? Is it only the 5-Star recruits that will become all-Americans? I ask you, why does a player like Bluiett improve from his freshman year to where he is now? Do you think that it’s all because of what he does in practice? Is it just good genes? He was just blessed with the God given talent? While it is true that not every athlete has the same amount of physical gifts, if you measure “success” based on how well the athlete developed those talents and how close they came to reaching their potential, then it is quite possible that every player on the roster could be deemed successful, and not an “underachiever”.

As I stated before, when you COMBINE raw athletic talent with desire and with the willingness to put the work needed to hone that talent to its highest level....you can get a special player. That doesn’t mean that every player will become great, no matter how much they work, physical attributes or deficiencies will still make a difference.

But physical talent will only take you so far. Sooner or later you are going to come up against someone with equal or even better physical talent and skills. What then? I truly believe that it’s the athlete with the bigger drive, the bigger desire, and the one that has put in the most work honing their talents that will prevail 9 times out of 10.

Good examples....Johnny Manziel, Johnny Football. People will tell you that he had as much physical talent as anyone they ever saw. But his ex teammates will also tell you that he didn’t do near as well when it came to watching tape, practicing hard, training, looking after his body, etc. A #1 draft pick, Player of the year in College, All-American, etc. You would hope that every player in college, and especially every player in the pros has a desire to be great. Compared to 99% of the population. They are ALL great athletes. But there are countless examples of players that come onto college campuses or onto pro teams with all of the accolades that anyone could desire, and yet don’t pan out. An opposite example...Tom Brady. 7th round draft pick that might be the best QB ever. Does he have the same physical talents that Manziel does? No. Did Manziel ever have the drive and desire that Brady has? No. Who would you rather have on your team?

I don’t know any of the players on the current X team. I’ve never met any of them. I sincerely hope that each and everyone of them has the desire to put in the work that it willl take to reach their potential. I certainly am not going to call out players by name, either the ones on this team, or the ones on past teams. But I think that it’s pretty obvious to anyone that has been watching past Xavier squads just who put in the extra work, and who didn’t. Even the coach talks about EFFORT in practice being one deciding factor in who gets minutes in the games, and who doesn’t.

I will tell you that I personally, during my time at Xavier, did many times observe the men’s BB team practicing. Couldn’t help it, often we were practicing at the same time in the same facility (Schmidt), separated only by a curtain. It was pretty obvious to me that certain players were working hard and certain players were going through the motions. I also remember very clearing the whole team being chastised for not doing their lifting that they were expected to do....on their own. I remember it because I was flabbergasted that they were all provided FREE memberships at a local health club. FREE!? And they didn’t take advantage of that!? Couldn’t believe it! I had to PAY for mine MYSELF, and I had to EARN that money by actually WORKING at a JOB all summer.

And they were not very successful during that time, were they? Ever wonder why?

[kyzrex]

Kyrex; whatever it’s worth Stainbrook was very productive as a fresh before we got him. Also FWIW he wasn’t,t out of Cleveland State but rather out of Westerm Michigan University- .....Biggernlife

Bigger...you are correct about W. Mich. He was from Cleveland, but didn’t play there. I forgot. He also had some success there during his freshman year and sophomore years. But he certainly became a better player at X and averaged more points and rebounds per game at X than he did a WM, and against better compition than he saw in the MAC. He was more than serviceable by the end of his senior year. (2nd team All BE) Other than his height, he lacked much in raw athletic talent. Not real quick, not a great leaper. But he DEVELOPED a few shots and moves that could be relied on and became a very good passer out of the post.

[kyzrex]

Back on subject...Walter

Jake had 16 points and 12 rebounds in yesterday’s game against Cincinnati LaSalle.

[Anti-Homer]

Back on subject...Walter

Jake had 16 points and 12 rebounds in yesterday’s game against Cincinnati LaSalle.

Ky,

You do realize that Lasalle typically has centers who are about 6'3", 200 lbs right? Their model has always been to have undersized quicker post players to fit their aggressive defensive philosophy, as they switch everything. Ironically, their former coach Dan Fleming, who just retired, was close to taking a seat on X's bench. Insiders on this board can probably confirm that if Kelsey didn't come to X, CM was going to bring Fleming, for reasons similar to why OSU hired Kerry Combs from Moeller.

I watched a game about 6 years ago when Chane Behanan, a 6'5" 230lb center played at Lasalle. They doubled and triple teamed him whenever he touched the ball, and I think he finished with 37 & 15, so some ridiculously similar line when it was all said and done. Behanan, also had over 30 at X, who had a tall (6'8"?) but less skilled big.

Everyone hopes Walter does well, but the numbers posted for a 7 foot center are hardly eye-popping. His modest line against Moeller was more impressive because they too have a project post player going to a high major in Hayes. IF JW scored his points hitting 17 footers, 6 foot half hook shots, or taking his man off the dribble, it would be much more encouraging. I suspect many were scored as putbacks, or similar point-blank attempts.

I've seen highlights of him, and he is less mobile than either Frease or O'mara, who had much better numbers in h.s., and were more highly rated. Whether he was offered because we struck out on all of our major targets is unknown. Because of the latter, he was a risk worth taking. X's history of taking under skilled or under-heralded players, particularly in the A-10 years when the league made it difficult to attract high caliber players and turned them into productive ones (Aaron Williams, Brian Grant, J Love) is well established. I'm hoping Jake follows their path .

[kyzrex]

Homer

I realize that HS numbers are almost meaningless for anyone. Other than the Kentucky’s, Duke’s and the NC’s of the world, almost nobody regularly get kids straight out of HS that are ready to be productive from day 1.

Just thought some out of town Xavier fans might be interested to keep up on how one of the recruits is doing.


By the way.....there is a 7’1” senior center from Nigeria that transferred into Walnut Hills HS from a Deleware school where he won a state champtionship last year(still waiting to get his eligibility worked out), a 6’10”/215 lb center at Withrow who is also from Nigeria, and a 6’8” forward at Anderson who can really shoot....all according to the local paper. The two kids from Nigeria were teammates on the Delaware HS team last year. There IS some POTENTIAL talent in the Cincinnati area this year that appears to be flying under the radar...and much of it has good size.

[edgecliff hall]

Hey, Anti, I always enjoy your inside take on basketball. Me, on the other hand, I can just about understand when the ball goes in. Further, I enjoy all the posts, and the chatter, and the give and take of everybody on this MM thing. Wishin' ya all to be happy in this semi religious, semi pagan season. I guess it's what they call a mixed blessing. Well, I say "Up The Blessing Part" and All Good To Your Hearts!

[Anti-Homer]

Homer

I realize that HS numbers are almost meaningless for anyone. Other than the Kentucky’s, Duke’s and the NC’s of the world, almost nobody regularly get kids straight out of HS that are ready to be productive from day 1.

Just thought some out of town Xavier fans might be interested to keep up on how one of the recruits is doing.


By the way.....there is a 7’1” senior center from Nigeria that transferred into Walnut Hills HS from a Deleware school where he won a state champtionship last year(still waiting to get his eligibility worked out), a 6’10”/215 lb center at Withrow who is also from Nigeria, and a 6’8” forward at Anderson who can really shoot....all according to the local paper. The two kids from Nigeria were teammates on the Delaware HS team last year. There IS some POTENTIAL talent in the Cincinnati area this year that appears to be flying under the radar...and much of it has good size.

Agreed,

And O'mara is a perfect example of a guy who took time to develop, but really shined in the tourney last year, his Jr. year, and is continuing to play very well now. We knew he would be a productive low post scorer this year, but his defense has been very solid as well. He had a couple of very key blocks yesterday. He's brimming with confidence. He's the template JW should follow for success.

Hayes wasn't on anyone's radar until he apparently blew up in some AAU tourneys last year. Reports are that JW is a late bloomer as well, and he also has a great pedigree. His dad was a good hardworking lineman, and am sure he instilled the same work ethic in Jake.