Catstatic wrote:
From the sounds of it, Zeus and Ashley got way more minutes than they deserved.
I have finally given up on this issue, as it is the way Miller is. The worst place to be on this team is a back-up big. If you start, you can screw up as much as you want and you will still play 30 minutes a game. If you are a back-up big (from our "tiny" team with KNat and Tree on the bench, to Chol having a great game and not getting on the floor the next game, to Grant hardly getting off the bench at all, to Victor seeing the writing on the wall, to Korcheck turning games around like he did a few games ago and still being absolutely frozen out on the bench, to Ristic who is by far our best low post option getting 3 minutes! In a game that Zeus seems to be stinking up the place? 3! That should help Dusan relax and play his best the next game, don't you think? 3!), you either get used to not playing or fill out your transfer papers. Your minutes will be spotty at best, non-existent at worst.
Miller does everything, and I mean everything else right in my book. Burying bigs on the bench is the most confusing, inexplicable and frustrating thing he does. His teams play the absolute best when he's rotating lots of guys in, and keeping his starters fresh and out of foul trouble for the stretch run. When Ristic and Korcheck get time, look how this team performs, particularly with Zeus and Ashley fresh to close out games. When they don't, look at what happens.
The ASU game seems like a case study to support this. Ashley and Zeus were completely out of it. Ristic and Korcheck get 3 minutes combined. It is the way Miller is, and I am beginning to think it will never change, though I have no explanation for it. None. And the apologists always say the exact same thing: Our back-up bigs suck.
Year after year after year after year? Okay.
Go Cats!!
I guess we are just from two different schools of basketball here. Unless a guy on the bench is an absolute stud and is CONSISTENTLY playing at a higher level than guys like Bash and Zeus (guys who are starting for a reason and have earned their roles), you ride with the guys who got you there. Contrary to Zeus' poor hands, Bash's poor defense, and both of their seemingly passive attitudes, those guys have strengths the team needs and relies on to win. Ristic (or Korcheck if someone is silly enough to argue it) have done absolutely nothing to show me they have better rebounding instincts than Zeus. Zeus is invaluable on defense and I will not belabor the point because others have expressed it numerous times. And on offense, despite his poo poo hands, he is still a huge body on offense too and u still have to respect him for that. Despite Bash thinking he is only a jumpshooter, he is still invaluable in terms of stretching the floor on offense and keeping teams honest. Ristic and Korcheck do not provide those positives, and the little positive they do offer, pales in comparison to what you get from Zeus and Bash.
There are flaws in every example you have given us. Tree and Nat were garbage. How well is Chol doing at the inferior San Diego State? Grant and Victor didn't have the balls to stay at the program for more than a year. You don't see how they defend in practice, how they play, how much they hustle and buy in, all of the mistakes they make, THEIR CONSISTENCY, etc. There is a reason some freshman get play and others dont.
Ristic is not our best low post option. Kid has some offensive promise, but that is only one part of the game, and defense is the biggest part of Coach Miller's. He is frequently out of position, doesn't defend well, and he is still learning the college game. He is not used to the speed at this level either.
