I don't understand why someone who is as good a shooter as Thiam is very often will not take the shot when he is open. He had several times today when he was open and just would not pull the trigger. He only attempted two shots in the entire game. He made a three in the first half and we got the ball back with just over 20 seconds before the half. Thiam rushed a three with about 18 seconds left and it was a bad air ball. Purdue than got fouled and made 2 foul shots with one second on the clock. That was a very poor sequence as we should have played for the last shot of the half.
Thiam needs to pull the trigger when he is open.
- Thread starter knights1212
- Start date
Wish Bullock could give him 30lbs...then Thiam might have something _ and Bullock would benefit too!
Also, finding that Bullock (when he plays) ....has GAME!
Thiam acts as if he was tutored by Mensah: .don't shoot ... DON'T SHOOT!
He should have been tutored by Douby~
MO
The rushed three before half was inexcusable. The one time he finally shoots is when we should have been holding for the last shot. Instead he chucks up a contested transition three and they go down and hit two free throws. That can't happen. Things like that are the difference in close games. It's elementary understanding of situations in a game.
Agreed on Thiam that he needs to be aggressive when open. Shot before the half though aggressive was not smart. Sure he got ripped by coaching staff for it that may have hindered his confidence for second half
What can I say. I know, if you think Thiam was the reason we lost the game and his minutes are wasted, then are coming across as someone who doesn't know anything about basketball. He has struggled at times and other times he has played well. Stop the " absolute definitive" comments. Yeah he could have held for the last shot. What would everyone be saying if he made it. I guess you missed one of Piles presses where he has said the entire team n staff are begging him to shoot more
Definitive comments are the worst. Thank you for saying this. Here's the thing, we as fans, all want to be an NCAA team with 20 plus wins year after year, but when you look at where we are, there are a lot of reasons for it and they are improving, but it's a slow climb.
I agree!!!!!!
And Doucore was scoreless again!
He is a 7 foot guy in incredible shape
but when you only take 2 shots a game ....you come up with zip
KEEP pounding,,,,,dunk a few,,,get some freaking points !!!
Here is my take
He is really slow with limited balance. Same body type as Herve as a frosh., except Herve moved with balance and skill
It takes thiam a lot of time and Space to shoot his shot . A lot. Therefore he can only shoot it when wide wide open with ball rotation and on balance to catch in shoot in perfect rhythm ...-and certainly nothing off the bounce and pull
This is actually part of the reason why he shoots a good percentage
But we have a shot clock and you can’t havs five guys waiting for the optimal look shot on the floor.
He just has a limited skill set. At least for now.
He is really slow with limited balance. Same body type as Herve as a frosh., except Herve moved with balance and skill
It takes thiam a lot of time and Space to shoot his shot . A lot. Therefore he can only shoot it when wide wide open with ball rotation and on balance to catch in shoot in perfect rhythm ...-and certainly nothing off the bounce and pull
This is actually part of the reason why he shoots a good percentage
But we have a shot clock and you can’t havs five guys waiting for the optimal look shot on the floor.
He just has a limited skill set. At least for now.
I agree that his set up and release are incredibly protracted thus he may lack the confidence to get it off even when he looks open to most viewers. The starting point on the shot release needs to get raised to quicken the process.
Thiam has the potential to be a productive player with his size and shooting ability.His passive movements on the court along with lack of offense from the center position puts Rutgers in 5 against three player matchups which puts added pressure on Sanders,Baker and Freeman to carry the offensive load which means taking some bad shots .
Thiam's issues appear to be in his head. as in confidence and confusion. Trying to figure out what he needs to do. I am sure he is getting a lot of coaching.
Shoot more.
Drive more.
Fake more.
you can see he really cares and is trying to do what he is asked. BUT executing that feedback has him confused at times...he doesn't want to screw up and (appears to get) locked in on that feedback and again needs to learn the flow and application of it.
Shoot more..then forces shot.
Forces bad shot then doesn't take the shot.
Doesn't take the shot, is likely told so, then he drives into a "so called" charge next time for 5th foul. .
Shoot more.
Drive more.
Fake more.
you can see he really cares and is trying to do what he is asked. BUT executing that feedback has him confused at times...he doesn't want to screw up and (appears to get) locked in on that feedback and again needs to learn the flow and application of it.
Shoot more..then forces shot.
Forces bad shot then doesn't take the shot.
Doesn't take the shot, is likely told so, then he drives into a "so called" charge next time for 5th foul. .
Yeah, but the team and staff aren’t begging him to take dumb shots. He is our best 3 point shooter. He needs to take 4 good 3 pointers a game. Four good 3 point shots per game. More if he is feeling it. This team needs him.
Thanx for the obvious message about taking dumb shots. Could be he felt he was taking a good 3 point shot.
Very true. Thiam appears to care a lot and I believe is trying to be perfect, leading to overthinking and hesitation instead of playing instinctually and decisively. I think (and hope) with an off-season of coaching, he will florish next year.
How many games have you watched this year? If the answer is more than 1 you clearly know nothing about the game of basketball.
Thiam plays very good and often outstanding defense so his minutes are rarely "wasted".
Does he need to gain confidence and pull the trigger more often? Yes no question.
It's like he's at the poker table waiting for AA and AK, and won't bet an AQ or JJ. He's improved a lot from last year - and hopefully he improves as much going into his junior year.
On the occasions when he does ball fake he gains advantage, neither draws contact and get to the line nor beats man off dribble.
I've watched every game, many of them from up close. It has not been pretty at times. I think I know at least a tiny bit about basketball, certainly more than nothing. You are right, though, I am being too hard on Thiam. One player does not lose a game. But man, he does not make much of an impact on the score sheet, other than in minutes. Just needed one more three from him and Rutgers might have won.
Thiam's defense is great. Very nimble quick feet for a player his length and can guard players half his size on the perimeter. That's very impressive. Once he learns how to lead, be confident with his shot and drive to the basket under control Thiam can be an All BIG level player.
GO RU
GO RU
Don’t take this the wrong way, but who cares what he felt? He took a dumb shot. A contested 3 point clunker, when we could have taken the last shot. Not a good shot, and I am sure he wishes he could have that shot back.
I really like Thiam, and I have said in other threads that this team needs for him to take at least four good 3 point attempts every game going forward.
Last edited:
Yeah but then let Thiam go 2-13 from 3p like Young did yesterday and then many folks here will be irate, lol.
I think it’s mental & physical with Thiam.
Lack of confidence and he needs to get stronger and improve his ball handling this off season, hopefully real competition for playing minutes will also motivate and aid his growth & development.
Thiam had a long way to go when he arrived at RU. Part of it was do to his lack of strength. Part of it was due to the poor competition he faced in high school. The speed of the game was too much for him. Although we all would have liked to see greater progress this year, I believe there have been positives. His defense is very good. On offense he is putting the ball on the floor more often and attempting to take his man off the dribble. I concede he has not been that successful on offense, but there are signs of more confidence. I can envision him becoming a more effective offensive threat next season. All conference - no. But a quality player - yes.
The question is...can he get open for 4 good three shots a game
The three spot needs to be scoring 17-18 ppg in 40 minute. He is playing 30 minutes a game. That’s 14 points we really need
Since he rarely gets to the line ...He needs to shoot the ball 12-14 tines a game to get 14 points in the minutes. He just doesn’t get open enough to get enough looks to go so
He's got to talk to Eugene to figure out how to get to the line. So far this year, he's scored 7 more points than Eugene even though he's been to the line 72 fewer times. I hope he and Eugene show as much growth next year as they have this season. By the way, Eugene and Shaq are the only 2 players on the team with a higher shooting % than Issa if you look at all games this year.
His failure to shoot is due to a lack of confidence that he can get his shot off safely, even when he appears open. He needs to work on a quicker release and gain confidence that he can release his shot and hit it with a defender closing.
I agree with Willis he needs to work on his release and needs to elevate more on the jumper because he should be able to get his shot off against anyone he almost always has a height advantage
Thiam would have better scoring chances if he could drive to the basket. Defenses know this and pressure him on the perimeter. He only has 17 free throw attempts all season...amazing... it's difficult to have toughness to drive when you have his built. As Pike noted at at CC meeting, his game is best suited on very good teams to come off bench for some instant offense.
Similar threads
