The overreactions to the Pitt scrimmage illustrate just how eager all Providence fans are for the season to commence. 99% of the fanbase (including yours truly) were making snap judgements about the team based off a reading and analysis of the box score, along with Providence providing a play-by-play update on its website like we are in the early 2000’s.
The Harvard scrimmage was the first time most of the fanbase was able to see this team play against somebody other than themselves, and I think we learned a fair amount about this squad heading into our season opener against Holy Cross.
Mike was in the building and provided his observations in the article below. I happily paid the $7 to stream the exhibition like the psychopath that I am and share my thoughts as well.
- Providence will continue the trend of having an All-Big East Freshman Team nomination for the third year in a row under English. I’m just not sure who it’ll be, and that’s a great unanswered question to have to answer.
When freshmen are getting significant playing time, it usually means one of two things: the team lacks talent and the freshmen are playing out of necessity or the freshmen talent is so readily apparent that they’ve forced their way into the rotation. The latter appears to be the case here for Jamier Jones and Stefan Vaaks, as both are going to play significant roles off the bench for the Friars. Jamier will be one of the best athlete on either squad every time he steps onto the court, but it was his ability to rebound and get downhill attacking in a halfcourt set against Harvard that really caught my eye. When the game was getting a little too close for comfort, Jones urged the Friars to take back control of the game with his play. That was telling.
Vaaks, simply put, just seems to have “it”. I think the Friars landed a real good one here, folks. He plays with a pace of play of a savvy veteran and really seems to know how to manipulate his defender. His stroke looks pure too, even if the shots aren’t falling. Vaaks is going to be an offensive dynamo for the Friars off the bench.
2. This team goes as Oswin goes.
I’ve stated a few times this team will go as far as Oswin is able to take them, and I stand by that after watching the Harvard game. I admit I was frustrated initially when I saw Oswin pick up a foul 45 seconds into the game, but he settled in and had an incredibly effective first half.
His lack of an impact in the 2nd half probably assisted Harvard climbing back into this one, if we are being honest.
Providence doesn’t have another big like Oswin, so it is imperative Oswin does everything he can to maximize his minutes. Providence will need him to play 25-30 minutes a game if they want to get back into the NCAA tournament.
3. Tale of Two Halves – Defense
I’m not overly concerned with the offense, as they hung 85 on a team that should challenge for an NCAA tournament birth out of the Ivy League despite the Friars only shooting 25% from 3. The offense, in my opinion, won’t be an issue like it has been historically because they have enough playmakers on the offensive end that can score in a variety of ways. Seeing 4 scorers in double figures with another few close to breaching that mark shows we’ll have plenty of offensive weapons.
The defense was Jekyll and Hyde from the first half to the second half. Holding them below 30 points brought back memories of the first year under English where the buzzsaw of Oduro, Hopkins, and Carter on offense carried over to gritty defensive play by Ticket and Floyd. The 50 points in the second half, on the other hand, gave me flashbacks to Marquette running up and down the court on us last year without anybody on Providence really giving a damn.
If PC is going to make the tournament, there needs to be buy-in on both sides of the court. Everybody wants to score, but the elite teams have guys who take pride in the defensive side of the ball (like a Justin Minaya). You can’t have halves like the second half and expect to win many games. Cold spells are inevitably going to happen on the offensive end, and you need to hang your hat on defense to weather those storms. I’m hopeful the absence of Floyd Jr. is a reason for the defense falling off in the 2nd half.
I’m certain an emphasis on defense will be transpiring all week this week in practice.
4. Rotation Crystallizing?
I think we probably have a clear understanding of what the starting line-up is going to look like to start the season: Floyd Jr., Edwards, Sellers, Powell, Oswin. The guys earning minutes off the bench appear to be Davis, Mela, Vaaks, Jones, and Hargrove. A 10 man rotation is probably one man too many for my liking, but let’s see it all play out as the season progresses.
This would leave Harrell, Pinnis, and Nil as the odd men out. Harrell and Pinnis, as I’ve expected, will probably be redshirt candidates while I’m trying to get more clarity on what is going on with Barron. If Barron is up for it, it may not be the worst idea to get a medical redshirt and retain two years of playing eligibility where his path to playing time is much more obvious after this year.
Regardless, knowing who your 10 are that will be playing is a sight for sore eyes, as last year a rotation was never established. Now, it is up to English to fine tune that 10 man rotation.
5. Big Fan of Sellers
Jaylin Sellers is what a grad transfer wing with pro aspirations should look like. The big bodied guard impressed me. He is what Gerard Coleman would look like after 4 years in a Big East S&C program, along with 4 years of skill development. Sellers can get to the cup with ease with a quick step, but also shows a smooth stroke from the perimeter. I anticipate he’ll get a few offensive boards and putbacks each game too.
I have loved the premise of pairing Floyd Jr. and Sellers in the backcourt for their physicality on the defensive end and nothing I saw on Saturday makes me shy away from that statement. I think they are both going to be complete headaches for the opposition in the way they attack their assignment defensively, and it should lend itself to creating turnovers and fast break opportunities.
6. Food for Thought – Full Court D?
My eyes turned into saucers as I saw Jamier Jones pick up his man after a made bucket and play full court defense. With a seemingly deep 10 man rotation filled with plus athletes, I’d like to see English implement a press D here and there to speed up the opposition. Sellers, Davis, Jones, and Floyd Jr. are all plus defenders. Use those traits and lean on our depth via the full court press to get a few easy buckets. More importantly, it’ll tire out the opponent and pay dividends in the 2nd half.
Yes, I’ve been writing about the desire for a full court press for 3 years now. I think we finally have the roster to do it.
7. Love the Rebounding Potential of this Team
The size and athleticism of this Friar squad jumped off the screen to me. I think this Friar team will be a Top 3 rebounding team in the Big East, even if they didn’t necessarily show it in the aggregate stats against Harvard. The size of Powell and Oswin is great for the frontcourt, but what makes me so bullish is the guard’s ability to get on the glass with Floyd Jr., Mela, Jones, and Sellers. It’ll be a team effort, but I don’t think we’ll see teams bully this Friar squad on the glass often.
Here’s a couple of my observations and although they don’t differ much from you and Mike.
Right now it looks to me like a majority of our scoring will come off of the dribble. I’m concerned with our outside shooting % especially from 3.
I am really concerned with the PG position at this time especially with Floyd Jr and Daquan as neither seem to distribute very well.
I”m also concerned with the coronation of Floyd Jr as a big-time contributor based off of his history. History say’s at best he’s inconsistent. Has a good all-around game then follows up with turnover after turnover, missed layup after missed layup etc. I even remember Floyd have matchup problems with bigger guards.
If it were me, from what I see Vaaks is your best bet as a PG distributor with the potential to add 10pts per game. Now I know, you and others will say, what about defense? Well, when you show me consistent defense from the supposed starting guards then, let’s talk.
I agree that almost all college teams are in the same position as Providence in trying to get that rotations down as well as working on their identities, my hope is that PC can find it starting next week because our non-conference schedule is anything but a cupcake.