New player assessments
- Thread starter RU_fan435
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Kiss was awesome. Harper is a player. Mathis not the best game but he will be fine. Myles with some great D. New guys look great overall. We have team.
Can’t wait to see these guys play based off your assessment. Based off the stats it seems like we have a balanced team and we’re not too reliant on one guy
Kiss, Myles and Harper look like future stars. Mathis needs some development but is obviously very talented. McConnell looked pretty shaky at point. Carter looks long and athletic but needs some work, but hard to tell for how little he played.
They will certainly score. Defense was a little slow to adjust but they started to click - though FDU had foul trouble early.
I know small sample size but Harper has picked up where he left off over the summer. Think that kid has a chance to be special.
I liked how the kids were slapping five when the game was close or they were down at the beginning. Good chemistry - that will be important when the season starts to grind.
I know small sample size but Harper has picked up where he left off over the summer. Think that kid has a chance to be special.
I liked how the kids were slapping five when the game was close or they were down at the beginning. Good chemistry - that will be important when the season starts to grind.
McConnell looked like he was asking his 1st girlfriend ever out on their 1st date. Johnson is our future big man and Harper looks like a real good get. Mathis you saw spurts but also a bunch of freshman moments. Kiss is better than advertised.
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McConnell looked fine, he will be a player as well down the line, it's his first game..
Kiss Harper and Myles all looked great. Mathis and McConnell need to be stronger with the ball and play more decisively on offense. Shaq only played at the very very end in mop up but looks extremely athletic
Based on what I saw tonight, I rank the newcomers as follows
Kiss
Johnson
Harper
Most impressed with Johnson. He's probably our best big. Doorson also played well. Mathis was a negative player tonight and needs to settle into a role.
Kiss
Johnson
Harper
Most impressed with Johnson. He's probably our best big. Doorson also played well. Mathis was a negative player tonight and needs to settle into a role.
One thing to keep in mind is Kiss and Johnson have been with the team for an extra year...we shouldn't criticize Mathis based on his first game (not you I just mean in general)
I was expecting Mathis to play more minutes than Harper but I would say those minutes should be reversed now. The "he needs to get into shape" constant posts were nonsense. He can play in spurts he's not playing 30 mins as a freshman
Kiss looked like a really capable scorer and a guy that will play a huge role the next three years. Johnson was very impressive and Harper looked great too. McConnell and Mathis struggled but their athleticism and potential is very obvious.
Kiss, Johnson, Harper were all impressive in their RU ddebuts.
Johnson will be our starting 5 very soon. Love that we have a low post scoring presence. Was very active defensively also.
Kiss has a very high bball IQ. Extremely efficient stat line. Has to improve his on the ball defense, but he can score.
Harper is going to be good. Looks a bit doughy, and, like Kiss, had to improve defensively, but has a great feel for the game.
Mathis was ok. Game was moving too fast for him at times, he was over thinking, and hesitant at times. A few bad TOs. He going to be fine though. A year in the weight room is going to do wonders for him.
McConnell did fine. Didn't hurt us. Definitely some jitters. The potential to create off the dribble is there.
Carter. Surprised we didn't see him earlier, but I think that's telling. Looked a bit stiff in the limited minutes he was out there. Hopefully, he can be an affective banger soon.
Johnson will be our starting 5 very soon. Love that we have a low post scoring presence. Was very active defensively also.
Kiss has a very high bball IQ. Extremely efficient stat line. Has to improve his on the ball defense, but he can score.
Harper is going to be good. Looks a bit doughy, and, like Kiss, had to improve defensively, but has a great feel for the game.
Mathis was ok. Game was moving too fast for him at times, he was over thinking, and hesitant at times. A few bad TOs. He going to be fine though. A year in the weight room is going to do wonders for him.
McConnell did fine. Didn't hurt us. Definitely some jitters. The potential to create off the dribble is there.
Carter. Surprised we didn't see him earlier, but I think that's telling. Looked a bit stiff in the limited minutes he was out there. Hopefully, he can be an affective banger soon.
Kiss has composure and doesn't force things. Always has his head up looking to make a pass. Extremely efficient. He was excellent on the offensive end
Harper looked more comfortable handling the ball than McConnell. He's going to be a player.
For me, Myles stood out the most—very polished game. Next was Harper. Kiss was good but I was less impressed than others, esp defensively. (Have to see how Ron and Peter perform when shots aren’t falling.) MM will have to figure out how to best use his skills. MConnell was really tentative, too early to judge. Shaquille C very limited minutes.
One Word--- CHEMISTRY
You see it on IG, these players are all tight. Doesn't matter who looks good who looks bad they all want to win for each other. It's a foreign concept on a Rutgers team but if 1 or 2 or 3 people are off the rest of the team will pick up the slack. So what Mathis and McConnell had a rough first game. Mathis will have a night where he scores 20+ on 9-12 shooting, he will be fine. McConnell will be fine too for a 2/3 playing back up point his fr year. Kiss averaged 13 ppg @Quinn his fr year, I don't know why anyone would think he wouldn't average at least that or more this year. RHJ won the 3 pt competition at MM for a reason, heard he can spot duty point forward, and he has NBA pedigree. Glad Myles Johnson did so well he was such an unknown but he could turn out to be steal, if he continues to develop. This team could be really good for 2 straight years, esp losing only Doorson, add Mulcahy, JY and one other recruit.
You see it on IG, these players are all tight. Doesn't matter who looks good who looks bad they all want to win for each other. It's a foreign concept on a Rutgers team but if 1 or 2 or 3 people are off the rest of the team will pick up the slack. So what Mathis and McConnell had a rough first game. Mathis will have a night where he scores 20+ on 9-12 shooting, he will be fine. McConnell will be fine too for a 2/3 playing back up point his fr year. Kiss averaged 13 ppg @Quinn his fr year, I don't know why anyone would think he wouldn't average at least that or more this year. RHJ won the 3 pt competition at MM for a reason, heard he can spot duty point forward, and he has NBA pedigree. Glad Myles Johnson did so well he was such an unknown but he could turn out to be steal, if he continues to develop. This team could be really good for 2 straight years, esp losing only Doorson, add Mulcahy, JY and one other recruit.
Was very impressed with Harper and Myles.
I knew Kiss was gonna be a force, was impressed as well. Wondering about D. Not worried.
Caleb & Mathis were nervous. Couldnt be less worried about our young guns. We have an amazing core to grow with and were adding Mulcahy next year. Sit back and enjoy.
I knew Kiss was gonna be a force, was impressed as well. Wondering about D. Not worried.
Caleb & Mathis were nervous. Couldnt be less worried about our young guns. We have an amazing core to grow with and were adding Mulcahy next year. Sit back and enjoy.
I agree with all of this...and will add that Johnson and Harper also have very high b-ball IQs. Baker is already way up there and Eugene never stops hustling.. It’s a very easy team to root for.
This group reminds me of Bannon’s first class - Dahntay Jones, Rashod Kent, Jeff Greer and Billy Collins. The kids could all play.
There were dunks and energy/chemistry that has been missing. The RAC is coming back!
How players were used tells me more than how they played today. Let's not get sucked in to a 1 game sample size. I want to at least get through the St. John's game before making any preliminary conclusions.
Also liked Pike walking Mathis off the court at halftime. This guy gets it. $$$$
.......and Baker was encouraging.
I think people's expectation of Geo Baker the basketball player is too high, but his overall impact to the program is enormous.
Kiss and Harper stood out the most
Shaq Carter buried to mop up time would seem to need the most development
biggest surprise of the night was 6 players in double figures
Shaq Carter buried to mop up time would seem to need the most development
biggest surprise of the night was 6 players in double figures
I agree that Kiss and Harper stood out the most, but the real revelation was Johnson. We’ve had great guards in the past few years, but it’s been more like decades since we’ve had a freshmen center debut with great hands, touch around the hoop and passing ability in the low post that Johnson showed tonight.
All the guys looked very good. Where are the guys who said we wasted a scholarship on Harper and said he would hardly play. He was 7-8 on fg's and scored 15 points.
Could very well be a player but not at the point as Mulcahy and the Texas kid are better. Harper is the real deal.
We haven’t had first year players (at RU) show this much offensive skill early since...
I know it’s FDU but stIll Kiss, Harper, and Johnson looked great. Mathis will be fine just based on reputation which in hoops is so much more predictable than football.
I’m highly encouraged.
I know it’s FDU but stIll Kiss, Harper, and Johnson looked great. Mathis will be fine just based on reputation which in hoops is so much more predictable than football.
I’m highly encouraged.
He says, prior to making 30 preliminary conclusions before the next two games complete...
