Moneyball Recap --- 6/29/17

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MONEYBALL

Night #1 and the place was packed. I get that it's minimal defense and intense pick-up ball, but I still think some valid takeaways. Some brief observations on individual players.

1) Nick Ward - Slimmed down Nick Ward, sounds like 10ish pounds. He played the entire 38 minutes and played HARD. Ran the floor, rebounded, and demanded the ball. We had him at 46 points. Tried a lot of face up game on the perimeter with minimal success. This is the time to try it, but still not sure how much of that will be in his game next year at MSU. I love a post player who knows he's a post player and that is what Nick is. Small point was he faked over right shoulder three times, came back to what could've been a natural right handed jump hook to the left shoulder, but shot it with his left hand. Needs to add confidence in that with the right against marquee D.

2) Cassius Winston - He and Ward together gave them more chances to practice screen and roll. We had him for 21 and a ton of assists. It's even more fun to watch him play without restrictions as his handle and creativity is really high in games like these. Three small things he does that will continue to make him special: passes with the left hand with accuracy + zip, defines what it means to play with pace, and is a master in the ball screen game. There were times last year where a ball screen him at the top WAS the MSU offense. Why is he so good? Well, it's draw his man to the screen, explosion dribble, pocket dribble to scan (so good at this and what I think is the separator between great and good ball screen guards), and then immediate decision. I'd love to see him come off the screen and one dribble shoot the "3" a little more. Shot the "3" well, but because he uses his legs so well in his shot, needs to be on balance or there is a major difference. Didn't see anything (nor did I expect to) that would show improvement in his #1 issue last year, controlling dribble penetration as a defender.

3) Xavier Tillman - Had to check Ward for most of the night. We had him for 14 points. Really showed some great vision when he caught and faced up, hitting cutters and using dribble hand-offs. Seemed every bigger shoulder to shoulder than last time I saw him, which is hard to imagine. Didn't see much in terms of back to the basket post moves when he caught it deep, clearly an area to improve. With his size, hands, and feet, I'm sure DJ is going to love improving the post skill set. Did a much better job than expected defending on the perimeter. Was switched onto guards and contained the bounce and even got a steal.

4) Kyle Ahrens - Shot the ball with a lot of confidence. Spent a lot of time checking ultra quick guards on the perimeter, which is great practice for him. Spent so much time defending 4's this year, but I think a key to him getting some minutes will be his ability to defend on the wing. I see MSU's perimeter shooting as a potential weakness this year, so his ability to stand there and knock down and uncontested "3" is what it's all about for him.

5) Miles Bridges - First, it's like the President of the United States arrives when he gets on site. And I've never seen anyone handle it better. From Kay Felder trash talk to grandma's wanting to take selfie's, he handles it within amazing maturity. He scored almost all of his 33 on highlight dunks and rainmaker 3's. Went through the motions a bit in the first half, but when Felder started running his mouth, Bridges hit some deep 3's and played at a different level. Showed off some mid-range post game that has NBA written all over it. Face-up from 15 feet, fakes, fade aways, and Far be it from me to nitpick a top 5 pick and one of the greatest Spartans ever, but shot fake or jab step and one dribble 15 footer still doesn't seem to be a big part of his game. We see glimpses of it, but it truly would make him the 4 level scorer (3's, mid range, post game, attack the rim).

6) Kenny Goins - My #1 biggest surprise of the night was how good the perimeter jumper of Kenny Goins looked. I had him at 4/8 from "3" and made some mid-range jumpers. Shot it with great lift and with confidence. But most importantly, he looked healthy. Between injuries and just getting beat up playing the "5" last year, he looked to have a different type of spring and looked comfortable playing in the short corner and elbow. Does he have pick and pop potential in the MSU offense?

7) Tum-Tum Nairn - He is some kind of on the ball defender, which you all know. But when you are guarding a guy who plays in the association and you hold your own, it just emphasizes it again. He and Felder had some great battles, some Felder got the better of Tum on, but plenty where Tum contested and forced misses. He shoots it with so much more confidence at Moneyball, but that is the same as last year. He made one move that I think is the one that could give MSU the most benefit next year. He was flying up the court in transition, went from middle to right hash, back to the free throw line. Then, stopped on a dime and hit a 15 footer. The ability to do that and to make defenders honor that, would be a nice addition and he's capable of it.

8) Matt McQuaid - We only saw the first half and had him for 16 points, including 4/6 from "3." I'm not as concerned with his ability to hit the "3" off the bounce, but saw him do that a bit. Most importantly, catch and shoot "3's" with confidence, lift, and quickness. Flashes of that were good, but didn't have to shoot it under much duress. I'm not sure there are two players that will be more important to the ceiling of MSU than Langford and McQuaid. Many point to the lack of a healthy off-season for him last year, so here's hoping that is the case this year.

* Not in action tonight = Jaren Jackson Jr, Josh Langford

* There to watch = Ben Carter, Gavin Schilling

* Other notable information

- Kay Felder battled tonight. Guys like Jalen Hayes kind of went through the motions, but Kay played like a kid hungry for a scholarship, not someone in the NBA. That was great to see. 2 comments to/about Bridges raised a few eyebrows:

- "You should've went pro last year" to Bridges

- "He didn't go pro because he was scared" out loud after the game

- Colin Jones (LCC) had the place buzzing during the Bridges game. Big fella is a JuCo matchup nightmare, scoring from "3" and off the dribble. Fun kid to watch play, ton of confidence

- Devin Oliver (Dayton) can still really play. Guarded Bridges quite a bit and really competed

- Jonathan Jones (Oakland) had a chance to dunk one right on Bridges, that would've been a major highlight. Missed it off the back of the rim and slapped the basket support as he knew what a highlight it could've been

- Presley Hudson (CMU) completely took over the women's game. I'd pay to watch her play any day. Baller

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