On Klay Thompson, Lost iPods, Ken Bone, Rules And Discipline
by Jeff Nusser on Feb 20, 2011 10:20 PM PST
in 2011-2012 WSU Basketball News
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PrintIn surfing around the Internet tonight, I happened to run across a comment thread on Facebook where people were hammering Klay Thompson for being benched at the beginning of yesterday's game, which turned out to be a devastating loss to the last place ASU Sun Devils.
If you haven't heard, Thompson said he was not in the starting lineup because he was late for the bus from the hotel to the arena. Why was he late?
"I lost my iPod, so I was stressing there," he said when asked why he was late.
You might remember that Thompson was benched at the beginning of the UW game in Seattle last year after being similarly tardy, and I remember Bone saying (paraphrased) that he has hard-and-fast rules for certain things, and being late to team activities means you don't start.
Now, I'm all for discipline. As a teacher, it probably won't surprise you that I'm one of those idealistic people who actually believes part of what our college athletics do is create better human beings by teaching, among other things, discipline.
However, my years as a teacher have also taught me something: That having hard-and-fast rules is rarely a good idea, because they try to introduce black-and-white solutions to problems that are rarely black and white.
Let's take this incident. While it's true that whether you're late or on time is a matter of black and white, the punishment for the infraction isn't handed out in a vacuum. It's assumed that WSU is a better basketball team with Thompson in the starting lineup, otherwise he wouldn't be in the starting lineup in every game. So, in this instance, when you punish Thompson by holding him out of the starting lineup, you're ostensibly punishing the entire team.
Let's step away for a moment from whether that's fair. I don't even like conversations about fair because, well, life ain't fair. So I could care less about whether it's fair. What I'm more concerned about is that Bone has a rigid rule that potentially negatively impacted his team's chance to win a game that could potentially be important.
I can already hear those of you who blame Thompson. After all, shouldn't he have known where his iPod was? It's his fault he was late, no matter how you want to slice it, something I'll readily concede. But if I'm Klay Thompson, and I've misplaced an expensive piece of technology -- like, say, my Android phone -- you best believe I'm looking for that thing until I find it. Whoever's waiting for me is just going to have to wait.
But let's say you still want to blame Thompson. Fine. We can agree that punishments are designed to correct behavior, right? If that's the case, what behavior do you think is going to be corrected from this? Do you think Klay Thompson has now learned how not to misplace anything ever again?
I'll take it even further. Let's assume Thompson did learn something from this -- that he now has the mind of a Jedi and will never misplace his iPod again thanks to being held out of the starting lineup. Was causing that little bit of growth in one individual worth potentially costing a team a game? It's possible the benching had no overall effect. But it's also possible that, in a game the Cougs ended up losing by two, Thompson's presence in the starting lineup might have been worth at least two points.
This is a results-based business. If this was the NBA, with its endless marathon of 82 games, benching a guy for a game -- which, incidentally, is 20 percent longer, further minimizing the impact -- probably isn't a big deal. But in a 30-game season, it is a big deal. One game might be the difference between, say, making the NCAA Tournament or not making the NCAA Tournament.
We all can obviously agree that this team's chances of making the NCAA Tournament as an at large is somewhere between slim and none. But for argument's sake, let's say the Cougs win these last three regular season games. And then, let's say they play No. 3 seed UCLA in their first game of the Pac-10 Tournament and win, then play No. 2 seed UW and win, then play an epic overtime game against No. 1 Arizona before losing.
Selection Sunday rolls around ... and they're left out. They're right there ... but they've got just one too many bad losses.
Oregon was bad. Stanford was bad. But ASU? Could it have been prevented if a coach didn't feel the need to draw a line in the sand?
Obviously, this is an improbable scenario. And we'll never know the answer to that last question. But if there's even a fraction of a chance it could happen this way, don't you try to avoid that? Don't you say to your team, "Hey, I know we have a rule about being late. And trust me, Klay will be dealt with. But for the good of everything we've all been working for, Klay's going to start today. Let's go out and get a win."
I tell my students that I will never promise to be fair in my decisions, but that I will promise to treat each of them fairly as I make my decisions. What is good for one student might not be good for another, and part of my job is to figure out which buttons I need to push to get the desired outcome with each student. They just have to trust that.
I only wish Bone had given himself the same flexibility. Who knows if missing the tournament this year ends up being the thing that eventually seals his fate at this school. We just don't know, but it seems like an odd chance to take in the name of enforcing a rule in a way that is unlikely to make any kind of long-term positive difference but could have all sorts of negative consequences.
Maybe there's more to the story. Maybe Bone knows something I don't know and he felt like he just had to hold a hard line on this one, and benching his star made precisely the point he was trying to make. If that's the case, this team is a lot more messed up than any of us even begin to realize.
But if all of this is to be taken at face value, I gotta say I believe Bone made a major blunder here.
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Lose, lose situation
Jeff, I see your point but I feel like the situation was lose, lose either way. Say we do win yesterdays game if Klay starts but if you don’t draw a line in the sand what happens if someone is late again to the bus, say a bench player who may or may not affect the team in the court? Enforcing a rule based on the magnitude of the game is a slippery slope. I like Bones decision, that being said if it was against U of A, i don’t think he would’ve done it. Makes me wonder, if even he was taking this game relaxed.
I did actually consider that last point.
But the post was already long enough and I didn’t want to suggest that, because I don’t want to play amateur psychologist.
by Jeff Nusser on Feb 20, 2011 10:38 PM PST up reply actions
Well thought out Jeff
If he had been goofing off in the locker room before, say, a shoot around on Friday (which I’m assuming they took, if they didn’t I’ll use it as a for instance) I’d be completely alright with it.
I’m still alright with it in this situation but less so. I can understand Bone being a little perturbed they were running late because someone had misplaced an iPod. It’d make me a little mad too. However, you’re right, it is an expensive piece of technology I certainly wouldn’t leave somewhere without destroying the place looking for. Still though, he shouldn’t have been late, misplaced iPod or not.
What surprised me was how long he was out for. For a transgression this small, I would’ve waited for the tip, then sent him right to the scorer’s table to check in on the first dead ball. That’s about as much punishment as I think he deserved.
Don't give up, don't ever give up. -Jim Valvano
by Michael The Coug on Feb 20, 2011 10:44 PM PST reply actions
this argument is nuts...
… we are talking about a hotel room – there are not many places to lose anything. Tearing up the place should take no more than 5 minutes. the implication is that he should have his shit together well in advance so nothing creeps up last second. Its a basic principle of accountability. As far as the whole team getting punished, that is the point. We are accountable to each other and if one of us fails, we let down the team. if the super star gets held to the same rules, then discipline can flourish. if not, chaos ensues.
I find the whole tone of this post ironic given the recent upheaval about what is and is not a ban-worthy offense in this forum.
Damn, my eyeball tastes good.
"if the super star gets held to the same rules, then discipline can flourish. if not, chaos ensues."
Really? Chaos? Don’t you think you’re being a little overly dramatic?
no, I don't think I'm being dramatic.
… I didn’t use any exclamation points.
Seriously, you are publishing this post if Brock Motum got the same punishment? I don’t think so. You are basically arguing that if the superstar commits a rule violation that he should be held to a different standard because he is the superstar and he has the power to affect the coach’s job security. These two facts supersede any possible negative affect that pampering the star may have on the rest of the team.
I’m sorry, I’m in the corner of the coach with personal integrity and a true team mentality.
Damn, my eyeball tastes good.
Brock Motum hasn't been a starter until recently.
And that’s honestly beside the point, which I must have done a really bad job of making since you’re the second person to miss it. My issue is with having rules that paint you into a corner in the first place. I’m pretty sure that someone being late for a bus — in and of itself — is not going to cripple a team, and I’m equally sure that choosing in a single instance to handle an infraction differently is not going to cause chaos.
As someone who has studied leadership a fair amount, I believe that flexibility is a key characteristic of any leader, and that simple rule enforcement is not what leads to the respect of your followers. In my experience, followers have much more respect for leaders who make the right decision at the right time, whatever that decision is. Maybe in this instance the right decision was to punish a player. But this sort of rule doesn’t even give the opportunity if it’s not the right decision.
by Jeff Nusser on Feb 21, 2011 10:39 PM PST up reply actions
Either way
Whats really disappointing is we come out flat for games that appeared easy but had huge implications. Stanford game at home, i remember Grippi saying if we had gone 2-0 that week we’d not finish below 4th. Every fan knew how big a game yesterday was, I am sure the players were aware but they came out all flat. My final point is that FT shooting is all mental unless you are Shaq size and very rarely do teams that shoot poorly,improve drastically late in the season. Its more an off season, mental prep thing so think its going to be hard to rely on making FT’s. With Moos, this might be a make or break three games for Bone.
Bone isn't going anywhere
Moos would be nuts to fire the guy after two seasons and only two recruiting classes in. Don’t forget: he’s had virtually not scholarships to offer the last two years.
Don't give up, don't ever give up. -Jim Valvano
by Michael The Coug on Feb 20, 2011 10:51 PM PST up reply actions
On coming out flat:
I remembered talking to my dad a year ago during football season. He said something like “I don’t know what Paul Wulff says to them before the game but it’s obviously not the right thing because we get killed in the 1st quarter”. That’s the exact same way I feel about this team. Probably the last 6 games we have let the opponent get out to an early lead, basically just giving us an early hole to dig out of.
Attractive, Intelligent Reader
Benching Klay not key to outcome
Klay had one of the best games of the Pac 10 season even being on the bench. His scoring has been very inconsistent lately. Maybe the benching helped him. A few more free throws and they would have won. 50% free throw shooting like this and in some of the other games is one of the reasons we might not make it to the tournament.
It's called responsibility
Nuss (and Klay): The lesson here is simple… You are at an age where your actions in life have an effect on other people. It is a slow, hard lesson to learn, but one that all adults in the real world have to understand if they are going to be productive members of society. Sports, just like education, are an outlet in which young individuals are able to learn this lesson. As a teacher, it is a message I drill into my 16-year old students over and over again. Hopefully as a teacher and father, it’s one you instill as well.
While I am absolutely not his biggest fan, this is Bone’s team, and obviously one of his rules is be on time for everything. I would venture to say this is something that every team member is made aware of from day one of practice. Klay from both previous lectures from bone and his own unfortunate experiences knew this, and he chose to look for his ipod beyond the time in which he knew he was due for an appointment. (Actually, he knew the policy, and he chose to be careless with his ipod…shows a lack of responsibility/learning that can be discussed at another time).
Bottom line is this: Klay is an adult… time to start acting like one in the matter of doing what he knows one of his boss’ hardened-rules dictates
by CougLifer on Feb 21, 2011 12:18 AM PST reply actions 1 recs
Exactly.
I’ve lost an iPod. I looked for it for as long as I could, but I knew that at 7:25 AM, I had to walk out the door or I would be late.
I walked out the door at 7:25. When I got back to my room that evening, the search resumed (with success).
by Aaron Whiteman on Feb 21, 2011 7:32 AM PST up reply actions
Um.....
I doubt they were able to go back to the hotel after the game. I bet it was straight to the airport. Its not he could go back and look later.
We will call him Zatara.....sounds fearsome....It means driftwood.
In the interest of clarity
I believe they were scheduled to return to the room, but Klay uses the iPod for his pregame music (which most players do) so he felt like he needed it.
ok nevermind then
I do agree with you on giving your self some wiggle room. I am a middle school resource room teacher. If I started looking at the world in black and white terms then things would unravel pretty quickly.
Phil Jackson used to say when dealing with players like Rodman/Artest that you have to treat everybody differently. Only when you look at a situation through fresh eyes can you make a fair decision. Hard line rules tend to fall apart quickly. If Klay was a couple of min late to the bus one time, then I think its ok to let it slide. But thats my style of teaching/coaching.
We will call him Zatara.....sounds fearsome....It means driftwood.
really?
he chose to be careless with his ipod…shows a lack of responsibility/learning
Are you kidding me? I’ve lost things that were really important to me. Not because I choose to be careless but because It was an accident. A mistake. It happens.
currently a zag, always a coug
by spencer peaty on Feb 21, 2011 11:40 AM PST up reply actions 1 recs
Like Spencer, I was with you up until this part
Actually, he knew the policy, and he chose to be careless with his ipod…shows a lack of responsibility/learning that can be discussed at another time
I’ve lost things before. I’ve lost things extremely important before. I’ve lost things super unimportant before. Because I’ve misplaced them, though, doesn’t mean I was careless. I set my watch down on the nightstand one night and in my sleep, I must have knocked it off, under the bed. I looked for it for 20 minutes and couldn’t find it. It fell perfectly into a box under the bed, and other things fell on top of it. I didn’t misplace the watch because I was careless, I misplaced the watch because shit happens sometimes.
by Kyle Rancourt on Feb 21, 2011 1:08 PM PST up reply actions
I don't see Klay's benching as having anything to do with the loss
Klay came into the game at the 14:13 mark in the first half, the score was 13-10 ASU. The Cougs lost all that ground to the Sun Devils with Klay in the game. He played the rest of the game without coming out.
Klay played 34 minutes this game: his season average right now is 34.3 minutes. The benching seems to be mostly symbolic with Klay simply losing an official “start” but not losing any amount of playing time.
And ultimately, it is hard to say if having this hard-an-fast punishment is bad or not without knowing the lockerroom culture that led to the rule. Especially with the punishment mostly being symbolic. Look at how things are handled here on CougCenter. There are some infractions that are old, tired, and need some sort of automatic response (think tired memes). This could be some problem that was endemic to the team and needed such a response. My point is that it is impossible to know without being closer to the team.
So I have to disagree. I don’t think this was a blunder by Bone. I don’t know the circumstances or context in which the rule and punishment arose. Additionally Klay didn’t miss out on any extra playing time, and the collapse happened with him in the game, so I don’t see his benching having anything to do with it (past some hand-waving “team chemistry among starters” argument).
I remember this happening when I played in college.
A player lost his (Zach Morris) cell phone in his hotel room. He communicated with everyone what was going on and coach didn’t punish him because he was aware of the circumstance. Maybe KT didn’t communicate with Bone what was going on, and the whole team was waiting for KT and no one knew why, but now we are speculating. I don’t have a problem with Bone not starting Klay. Besides this ASU loss, a lot of our other losses shouldn’t have happened. It’s pathetic if our NCAA tournament chances hinged on this decision. Trust me, I get the point of your article, but if we want to think of reasons why we don’t get into the tourney, I can think of a lot missed FTs this season that ruined our tournament chances or even a healthy Aden yesterday (our 2 leading scorer), if we want to go that route.
"Yaka Fest from outside for Klay Thompson" – Marques Johnson
perspective
I was really torqued when we lost this game, but the fire Bone, Klay’s not a leader, and the team’s not committed because they’re out drinking-threads are all indicative of how hard up we are to find somewhere to place the blame for this disappointing season. I think Cougar nation needs to take a deep breath.
by SigmaNu83 on Feb 21, 2011 7:47 AM PST reply actions 1 recs
One thing to keep in perspective
This season is only a disappointment in relation to our expectations. The Cougars are having a really great year by their historical standards. Yes, it’s disappointing that we aren’t competing for the Pac-10 title, or that we haven’t all but clinched a berth to the tournament. However, this team is good, getting better every year, and seemingly led by a coach who knows what he is doing.
Breathing deeply.
I feel like Charlie Brown trying to kick the football. Ugh
Really great year????
Geez HitKing69—raise your standards. We currently sit 7th in a 10 team league with two of our final three games against two tops teams. In all likelihood, we finish 8-10 in seventh place when we we’re picked to finish 5th.. With a little luck (Oregon/Cal losses) we might avoid the dreaded Wednesday night play in game in the Pac-10 tourney. This team is NOT getting better this year…point of fact, it is getting progressively worse….and if KT goes to the NBA our Pac-10 record next season will rival ASU/OSU.
About the only thing I can be happy about right now is" the season of unfulfilled potential" is nearly over. The sloppy ASU game—marred by turnovers and our team leader on the bench—was a perfect summation of this year.
I am breathing deeply. The more calmly I assess our team the worse it looks.
by coug79 on Feb 21, 2011 9:27 AM PST up reply actions 1 recs
this has me the most worried...
The one year I actually am going to be headed to the Pac-10 tourney…
I “strategically” didn’t take wednesday off work and am flying into LA first thing thursday morning. I didn’t think there was any chance we would be sitting in the 7-10 spot…. if we play Wednesday and get bounced, I’m gonna be a little upset…
"I used to play sports. Then I realized you can buy trophies. Now I'm good at everything." - Demetri Martin.
by LeaveItToWeaver on Feb 21, 2011 11:00 AM PST up reply actions
I had to delete a comment under this because an italics tag was left open.
Just letting whoever it belonged to know. It wasn’t something that was said, it just messed the rest of the thread up.
CougCenter, SBNation Seattle, @FloydCoug
Night Editor - SBNation.com
Agreed
But, I do think Bone made the right decision benching Klay. He benched Casto earlier in the season I believe. I can’t remember why but Bone can’t start picking favorites on the team, or our team could fall apart.
by luciuswolfey_96 on Feb 21, 2011 9:21 AM PST reply actions
Some people insist it does.
Those same people also think its players play “basketball.”
by Jeff Nusser on Feb 21, 2011 10:30 AM PST up reply actions
I agree with Bone 110%
I think in this day and age, it takes courage for a coach to stand up for his rules, many do not. It sucks in the short term, but I feel coachs that do this are setting up there team/school for success in the long run. If he is late again, bench him again. The rules are spelled out, and it’s not like the game was a surprise or snuck up on Klay. As a leader of a team he needs to set an example for the other players. What message do you send to your players and recruits if you show favorites?
Maybe this point was lost in what I wrote
But my main issue is having rules that paint you into a corner in the first place. Usually ends up biting the rule-maker in the butt at some point.
My bad
I thought since there was a poll on whether you thought it was a good or bad idea I would vote and then express why I voted the way i did. I actually am all for having the rules in place. I think standards are important, kids need to have a tangible idea of what will happen if you mess up. If you don’t put the rules in because you are afraid of having to follow through with the punishment…I don’t know, that seems like bad ju ju to me:)
Oh, I totally wanted to know what you thought.
And I understand your point of view. I’m not sure there’s a right answer to it. My “flexible” rules have caused problems for me, too.
Confused
OK I get what your saying Jeff, I should have been paying more attention. I do agree with what your saying now.
I was just confused
by luciuswolfey_96 on Feb 21, 2011 9:50 AM PST reply actions
Like Kirt said: he played 34 minutes
He averages 34.5 overall… And 34.2(!) in Pac-10 play.
This benching was a non-issue as far as I’m concerned. It doesn’t matter the reason. Being organized is a part of being on time…
Discipline, by its very nature, is going to be unfair sometimes. I’d rather have that than no discipline at all.
Writer: CougCenter Twitterer: @GradyClapp
That's kind of a non sequitur
There’s obviously a reason he doesn’t play 40 of 40 minutes every night. It’s not that the backups are better than he is.
Most players need periodic rests to operate at full efficiency. 34 minutes straight is not nearly as good as 34 minutes with 6 minutes of strategically interspersed rests.
"We don't want our people to be preoccupied with seminude, crazy men jumping up and down who are chasing an inflated object," said Sheik Mohamed Osman Arus, head of operations for the Hizbul Islam insurgent group.
This argument doesn't hold water...
Klay scored 24 of his 28 points in the second half so he obviously wasn’t tired from the lack of strategically placed rest breaks. In fact he played a pretty good all around game and was the only reason the Cougs were even in it late. Now you could possibly argue that Klay had a slow start due to the punishment or the change in routine. I think our lack of depth is what really kills this team. A walk on playing 20 minutes, in which he actually played pretty solid for the most part, is a prime example of this.
Just my 2 cents on the situation.
I really don't think Thompson or Bone are contributing to this team's struggles.
I think it comes down to Moore, Motum, and Aden not playing at a tournament-type level.
To me these three seem like they have a high upside offensively, but they go on these long stretches of uproductive play on offense, which of course sucks the defense onto Thompson.
My question is does anyone see these three improving on offense over the next couple years, or is it just in my head that they have high offensive upside? Because right now those three not emerging is what is killing this team in my opinion.
meh
Thompson missed six minutes of basketball. He misses six minutes of basketball every game. We were down three when he checked in.
No, benching Thompson does not teach him to never forget anything ever again, but it prevents a slippery slope from happening.
So next road trip, Player B is being lazy about getting out of bed and getting to the team bus. When Coach Bone asks Player B where he’s been that may cause the team to miss their flight, Player B says he couldn’t find his phone. Coach Bone has now allowed all players to be late….as long as they couldn’t find something.
Big deal out of nothing.
Benching Thompson
I agree with not starting him, but he should have been subbed in at the first dead ball opportunity. Thus a minute or so perhaps less.
I understand Klay broke a rule and was punished accordingly and I agree to an extent
My problem, to go along with what Jeff said, is that this rule really only has impact on 6-7 players (Casto, Klay, Reggie, Capers, Abe and Brock/Aden) depending on who’s been starting. All of the other players don’t have that punishment hanging over their head because they don’t start (ie Charlie shows up late – Charlie won’t start – big deal, he never starts). From my point of view the rule is under inclusive because not all players are affected equally by it. I think a different punishment would be more appropriate, but at this point it would cause Bone to lose some credibility among the players as a disciplinarian.
Eventhough, Klay got his normal minutes, he missed the first several minutes. While we were only down 3 when he entered, had Klay started, its possible thatwe could have had a lead and been in better position to win, especially considering that Aden was out with an injury. Regardless its all moot because Bone has taken a hard line on the rule and left no wiggle room.
Disappointed
I am disappointed, Jeff, that a teacher would take such strong issue with the discipline imposed by Coach Bone. I understand it may be de rigueur for a blogger to feel compelled to offer up strong opinions, but it seems out of character as a teacher to be so critical in this instance. That’s the risk, I guess, in wearing two hats.
One way (not the only way) to look at a situation like this is to change the name of the coach and the name of the star player to dissociate it from WSU. Would the discipline be a major blunder? Perhaps so, perhaps not. Many of us might say we don’t know enough of the facts to conclude the discipline was out of line. Those who are teachers might even be less willing to offer criticism, knowing the difficult challenges.
I think you are slightly misreading Jeff here
As another teacher I’ll offer my opinion of what he is saying and he can correct me if I am wrong.
Jeff wasn’t saying that the discipline was incorrect. He agrees with the discipline that has been laid out being followed,
What he doesn’t agree with is the rule that was in place to start with. And here is why, the rule is too black and white and does not allow intepretation based on a situation. Rarely in a classroom or other teaching environment do true black and white rules work (except of course in extreme cases such as violence, etc.). The problem isn’t that Coach Bone followed the discipline course he outlined to his players, it is that he outlined a discipline course that may be too stringet.
In my mind the reality of the world is far too complicated to have hard and fast rules. The key, in todays world of hyper communication abilities, is that the dialogue is open. And that is a piece we don’t know about. Was Klay just late, or was he late but had sent a message to Coach Bone about why?
Here is my final example, from teaching, of how hard and fast doesn’t always work. I had a paper due last Wednesday before midwinter break. It was due in printed form in class and in digital form to a plagiarism website by midnight. I had a student that emailed me, through their iPhone, that their internet was down at home the moment he got home. I could have held hard and fast to that rule that any paper not turned in to both places at the due date is considered late, and had that student deal with the consequences. But as the problem was verified, as I knew it was out of character for the student, and as my rules is really that they must communicate with me, I let it go and will not count the essay as late. Maybe I’m too soft, maybe not. But I think Jeff was advocating for rules that allow for flexibility instead of rules that require certain action regardless of the reason or situation that led to the violation (madatory minimums anyone).
That's pretty much it in a nutshell
If anything, I think Bone needs to rethink the rule itself. As a teacher, mine isn’t a bottom-line business — Bone’s is, and I think there’s a reasonable argument here that his decision affected a short-term result for questionable long-term benefits. That’s mostly the point I was trying to raise.
And as I said at the end, all I can do is take the information we have at face value.
My point exactly
Without knowing all of the facts, it seems especially surprising for a teacher to be critical of what Coach Bone has done. A teacher would seem to have even more empathy for the position that a coach is in. Teachers get a whole lot of criticism from students, parents and others. Their fellow teachers know that it rarely is quite that simple.
We can debate forever both the definition and the merits of “hard and fast rules”, whether in parenting, coaching, teaching, or any other facet of life (supervising, adjudicating, etc.). I am not wading into that. I am saying that of all people to be declaring a major blunder in this instance, I am surprised it came from a teacher. But, then again, bloggers are expected to express strong opinions, and there is absolutely nothing wrong with that.
see your point, but...
I understand where you’re going, but the examples you used don’t match the circumstances. Klay was late due to carelessness. Given the early start, he should have been packed and ready to go the night before…including locating his IPOD.
The student who couldn’t send a paper due to an internet malfunction was stuck with a situation totally out of his/her control. So, it makes sense you were flexible. Now if Klay got stuck in the elevator (a situation out fo his control) then I could see Bone showing some flexibility….but as a team leader, Klay can’t be given “special treatment” when the circumstances don’t warrant it.
Disappointed we lost
Whatever the agreements are between Bone and the team are theirs and they all know what they committed to. I am just disappointed that we lost a game we should have have won. We’ve lost too many of those this season and we’ve won only one no one expected us to. I hate it when that happens. It would be nice to have a good ending…….Go Cougs!
Whether Klay
Started or not, does not change the fact that this team shot 50% or worse from the “charity” stripe. This is the PAC 10 people you don’t go out and shoot 50% from the line and win many games.
Spokane WA only 2,266 miles from Foxboro MA
They actually shot 56%.
CougCenter In Reid We Trust, Twitter!
by Craig Powers on Feb 22, 2011 8:31 AM PST via mobile up reply actions
You dont win games shooting 56% from the line
I dont care what league you play in beer league ncaa nba whatever. That is not acceptable, and there is one way to get better at free throws and that is to just go shoot them… for as long as it takes.
Spokane WA only 2,266 miles from Foxboro MA
Not to be argumentative
But there are many coaches who believe shooting free throws “for as long as it takes” is actually detrimental psychologically. Not saying it’s true — just saying there’s that school of thought. It’s often times not mechanical for these guys.
We are 6-4 in games where we shoot below 60% from the free throw line.
CougCenter In Reid We Trust, Twitter!
by Craig Powers on Feb 22, 2011 6:56 PM PST up reply actions 3 recs
Conversely, we are 2-4 when we shoot over 80% from the foul line.
CougCenter In Reid We Trust, Twitter!
by Craig Powers on Feb 22, 2011 7:14 PM PST up reply actions 3 recs
That makes us 9-2 when we shoot between 60 and 80%.
Someone get Ken Bone on the phone and let him know we need to shoot a medium amount of free throws in practice!
CougCenter In Reid We Trust, Twitter!
by Craig Powers on Feb 22, 2011 7:17 PM PST up reply actions 3 recs
Ken, Practice those free throws
At a medium pace
thank you for making this post in three parts
brilliant move to get rec’d three times.
I'm really just a rec whore.
CougCenter In Reid We Trust, Twitter!
by Craig Powers on Feb 23, 2011 3:07 PM PST up reply actions
Not Voting
I am not going to vote nor am I going to create one on the teacher who took the late paper. That’s between you and your students. Those are your classroom agreements. It’s not my situation. I do know that sometimes life lessons are more important than my hopes being dashed by some twenty somethings that don’t even know me. Then there’s the lesson for any competitor on how you bounce back from a devastating loss. I’m sure sure I’m not the only one that felt that at the end of the UA game. Having said that, I will still be hoping for the best each and every game for each and every player wearing the crimson and gray.
Klay's lost iPod
and Bone’s decision to not start him has nothing to do w/ the performance of this team. The team doesn’t show up ready to play, their effort is inconsistent, and they brain-lock for long periods of time. I think Vince G is right when he says that no one outside the program really knows what is going on w/ this team.
I'm not sure anyone INSIDE the program knows what's going on with this team
Otherwise, things might have gotten fixed by now …
I would say that
Casto’s missed dunk against U of A was the microcosm of the season. Does anybody have any indication as to what Bone thinks he is missing to turn this program around? Sounds terrible; but gosh we are again trending in the wrong direction in the second half of the conference season. I guess it’s a bit unfortunate that Bone hasn’t exactly had scholies to give out, but he didn’t exactly walk into poor talent, ie. Wulff. He also has a core of Juniors that have played significantly.
DISCLAIMER: this is my opinion only
We are missing another big man (a window-washer, someone who can clean the glass) and a consistent, second scoring threat/option.
(Of course, when Klay bolts next year, we will a consistent first and second scoring threat/option.)
Hopefully Aden can regain his shooting touch next year. I just hope next year isn’t year one in another dark age of Coug hoops. The team will have Reggie, Capers and (maybe) Casto. I would like to see Simon get some major minutes down the stretch to see if he can be the scoring threat I think he can be.
I think the fact that Bone was given one guy who could hit an open 15 footer speaks volumes about the talent that was on this team
two if you count Nik, i guess, but he’s not here anymore.
Outside of Klay, Reggie and Faisel, is there anyone you feel comfortable with taking anything more than a layup?
Also...
What is a universities responsibility to an existing scholarship athlete? Let’s say a coach realizes that Player C. just isn’t going to work in his system, can a coach essentially “cut bait”? Not that I am hoping for this scenario, and I believe that every athlete offered a full ride should get it regardless, but does it have to be fulfilled as an athletic scholie that counts against the team?
This is correct
All scholarships are at the will of the university. Now, it’s generally considered bad form to pull the scholarship out from under a player — for evidence, check out the heat Nick Saban is getting for his oversigning tactics — but it can be done.
And, to be honest, it happens all the time. They pull a player aside and say, “Hey, you want to play don’t you? Well, you’re probably not ever going to play here.” Think Nick Witherill a couple of years ago, or Anthony Brown last year. They just quietly move on, and that’s that. Happens all the time.
If Klay comes back, there could be a crunch.
If there’s a possibility of anything — pure speculation on my part — it’s that Bjornstad ends up with a medical schollie, a la Fabian Boeke.
Charlie came in as a walk-on, so moving him back to walk-on status would be the most politically safe move
sorry if this is rosterbation.
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