It is still early, but picture may be clearing up. It seems Smith, Moody, Sills and Tate have established themselves as solid starters and will see action 30 minutes a game.
The fifth spot is open for grabbing. And Muss may rotate that fifth starter based on who we are playing.
For those who think Sills will come off the bench halfway through the season, forget it. Sills is the only who can attack the rim right now and Hogs are not the same team when he is not on the floor. I don’t think Notae will replace Sills. Notae’s tendency is to shoot and you are not going to change that. However, based on his tendency to shoot, he is the perfect 6th man, microwave scorer that you need off the bench.
Candidates for the 5th starter are Jackson, Vanover and Williams. I think Jackson is a streaky shooter. He is going to be off and on. Still not sure if Vanover can stay on the floor for more than 15 minutes once SEC play starts. So, is Williams that guy? Don’t know. He just seems not ready for prime time right now. We will see if that changes.
Now with this lineup, rebounding is possibly going to be an issue once SEC play starts. And we may actually see Henderson move up the bench and play. Right now he is so far down the bench, he is hardly noticeable. On the other hand, I am waiting to see if Henderson transfers out at the end of the Fall semester or he is content to sit on the bench remainder of his career here.
That leaves KK and Davis.
I expect to see KK on the floor during the SEC play for 8 to 10 minutes max.
It is difficult to see Davis getting any time. With the projected roster next year, with all guards returning except Tate and Chance Moore coming in. What does that mean for Davis, even next year. One of the cons of having a deep roster.
Really can’t understand the lack of respect for Vanover on message boards. If I was going to start a thread about 4 that have solidified their starting spots after that game. I wouldn’t have Desi on that list he was terrible. Out of control and didn’t do much. I mean what was Smith 4 for 15? Tate had a great game but it was against a bad team? When Vanover has a good game all I read is how bad that team was but not so much on anybody else? Moody is a rock solid starter and Desi probably and it’s obvious that Muss loves Tate. I think KK will eventually earn a lot of PT. Williams is a future player but to leave Connor out of your 4 is questionable?
Vanover is gonna have to figure out how to defend the pick and roll or people are going to take us apart when he’s in there (or he’s not going to be in there much).
Not sure Vanover can go more than 15 min/gm once SEC play starts. That means Jackson/Williams are going to have to give solid 12-15 min/gm. I don’t see any lack of respect for Vanover here. I think folks have been pleasantly surprised by his strong play out of the gate. He’s gotta do better defending the pick and roll.
It wouldn’t surprise me if Muss tweaks his defense on occasions when he wants more than 15 minutes from Connor, if he’s playing great. Maybe something like a modified “box and one”, with the “one” being Connor as a “goal tender”.
OK let me guess you have played basketball? Coached? Yeah that pick and roll just ruined Connor. I’m just going to give up. You guys better not quit your day job. You sure couldn’t make money coaching! LMAO on the Connor sucks but damn that Justin Smith is awesome. 4-15 but you know the competition didn’t matter unless it is about Connor. I’m going to go back and watch that game and see if they were destroying us when Connor was in the game. I honestly wish Connor would just leave and transfer Arkansas fans are something else
Exactly. Muss will have to play some type of zone to keep Connor on the floor. I think it is more than PNR. I just don’t think Connor can play the man defense that Adrio played last year for Muss. And everyone knows man defense is the flagship defense for Muss. That is why I mentioned that we cannot count on Connor as a solid starter or how many minutes he can get.
Many say that they are surprised how well Connor has played so far. I am not. This is exactly how he played for Cal in the second half of the season.
• Muss knows exactly what he is doing
• Desi’s going to start and is the leader of this team.
• Coach Muss loves Tate and what he brings to the floor offensively and defensively.
Justin Smith may not have shot great the night, but dude is n all-around baller and vital to Arkansas’ success this season.
• Muss already knows when and how much he is going to use Connor and has been plotting and studying it for over a year.
• Connor will start more games than he will be brought off the bench. He’s better than some of you are giving credit. He’ll average over 20 minutes.
• Vance Jackson is more the player he was in the first game. Being sick (not covid) hs limited his minutes and effectiveness in the last two outings.
• JD Notae will play plenty, but his minutes will be determined on how he come along defensively.
• Somene mention the other day that Moses Moody isn’t that athletic. Huh?
• Jaylin Williams and KK Robinson will continue to add minutes.
• Devo will play, but it will be fourth on the freshmen time play
A+. Can’t find a single thing to disagree with. And, believe me, I tried to come up with something.
I’ll admit, I was wrong before the season started about how much 2 players would positively affect the success of this season. Connor and Notae. They’ve both demonstrated they are going to be a big part of this team.
Sorry you feel that way. I actually like to go back and forth. But if you choose to not respond fine. I suspect you are friends with the huntin guy you guys been on here a while. IMO Connor is a weapon and if Muss can’t figure out the pick and roll he’s not the coach I think he is. But from what I have seen he’s definitely a starter that should play more than 15 minutes.
Agree My Dawson with about every one of your opinions. I agree on Smith my point was that when he plays well he’s the greatest thing ever and when Connor dominates all you read is he’s going to get killed by the SEC…Not you DD but a lot of posters are saying this on every site I post on.
I do. I wonder why the competition seems to matter so much but only when it comes to Connor? Can you tell me why? I just went through Connors minutes the recording picked up at 9-9. If Connor got abused on the pick and roll like you guys say? We have different views of what abused is. Their guard hit a difficult three over Connor and then Cruz made a three that Connor should have been closer on but it wasn’t terrible. As far as your question on why I think everybody is saying it? I said a lot not everybody. It’s sure not everybody but just because you follow the herd doesn’t mean you are right. If I can get the first part of the game I’ll go back and look at Connor in the pick and roll but he wasn’t abused in this game. Two different sets of rules for you guys. I mean Smith is 4-15 and all you have is Connor got abused on the pick and roll…OK carry on I’ll leave your party.
I know PNR has been talked about on this forum, but actually all the discussions I have had with fans regarding Connor, no one mentioned PNR. The issue has been playing Muss’s tight switching man defense due to not having the lateral foot speed needed to play that. At times, he will end up guarding the PG if the switch back does not happen. So, a lot of fans think Muss may have to play some type of zone to have him on the floor.
Offensively, I think he is the best shooter on the team, yes better than Moody and way better than Smith and a total mismatch for opponent’s 5. I am glad we have him. Even 15 minutes of him will win us some games.
Connor will play a ton of minutes this season. I am sure they will figure out what they want from him on the pick and roll. I also think there have been times that the coach was experimenting with combinations and players. You want to see what some do when the lights are on compared to practice. It is fun to see Vanover do certain things. He is a unique player with high skill. The pick and roll was always going to be a problem for him, but I bet Musselman will figure out what to do to keep him on the floor. I will say that in the SEC, it’s a basic set that every team is good at – some really good at. It’s the basis for offense by some teams. That’s why Musselman wants to make sure they get that figured out now. I defer to Musselman’s thoughts on this more than anyone who posted here. That’s the only opinion that matters. He wants the pick and roll to be defended a certain way. I bet he gets his way.
Agree he’s going to play 20 plus minutes and he will figure it out. Muss will make adjustments or do what a lot of guys on here think just not play him.
He is a force on defense with his reach and shot blocking. He gets pushed around for sure. That’s not going to change he’s just very tall and not strong enough and probably won’t ever be. Muss will decide but if he doesn’t figure it out I would be very surprised.