Askia Booker: ESPN's Pac-12 Incoming Sleeper

[Goose]

ESPN has a nice article up about incoming freshmen in the Pac-12, and Ski is the sleeper to watch.

Incoming sleeperPG Askia Booker at Colorado
Booker will be able to play both guard positions due to his explosiveness, shooting ability and ballhandling. He was a bit of an enigma out West with those questioning his position at the next level. However, when you combine his physical attributes and fearlessness you're going to have a player who will make an impact. He'll need to tone down his shot selection and improve his savvy, but he should be an immediate scoring threat coming off the bench for the revamped Buffaloes. Looking down the road, Tad Boyle has to feel good about his potential in the backcourt with Booker and national sleeper 6-3 Spencer Dinwiddie.

http://insider.espn.go.com/college-...lorado-backcourt-future-looking-strong-pac-12

 

[BeBe]

I really like this pair of freshmen. Especially since "national sleeper 6-3 Spencer Dinwiddie" is 6-5 or 6-6.

 

[boulder77]

Stoopid Espin ........... don't they know his name is Dinwiddie (what a name!) Spencer????????

 

[slider]

I really like this pair of freshmen. Especially since "national sleeper 6-3 Spencer Dinwiddie" is 6-5 or 6-6.

Anyone think this is actually a bad thing if he is going to be a PG

 

[Buffnik]

Anyone think this is actually a bad thing if he is going to be a PG

Nope. You get some matchup advantages. If he could move his feet well enough at 6'3" to defend jitterbug small 1s, he'll be able to do it now. But the extra height will give him more reach for steals and blocks while also improving the angles he gets on the offensive end to make passes.

 

[Creebuzz]

Didn't Magic basically play the point at 6'8"?

 

[Buffnik]

Didn't Magic basically play the point at 6'8"?

Not just "basically". He defined the position for a decade.

Generally, your PGs are going to be the best basketball players in the world from the 6'3" and under set. You've got to consider that those guys make up, by far, the largest demographic of human beings. It's the home for them in the game and there are some super talented guys when you draw from such a large pool. Most of the guys who are 6'5" and above are going to be shifted to other positions where great players are more scarce. But there's no reason that taller guys can't make great PGs. Penny Hardaway was another guy who was spectacular, albeit for a short period of time.

 

[Creebuzz]

Not just "basically". He defined the position for a decade.

Indeed. The poorly used "basically" was a reference to the fact that Magic played at all five positions, and would shift to 2,3,4, or even 5 depending on who was in the game. I remember when Coop would come in and play the point. Anyway, it may be slightly too much pressure to compare young master Dinwiddie to Magic. :smile2:

 

[buff4bcs1985]

i like the ring of "lil dinwiddie"

 

[TDforTD]

Anyone think this is actually a bad thing if he is going to be a PG

Eh. Offensively, we should create several matchup problems with all of our height and athleticism in our backcourt. His height should allow him to shoot over smaller defenders and create offense simply because he will be able to see over just about anyone the opposing team puts on him. I do wonder how good his handles are, but I'm not worried about it considering everything I've read suggests he is a true PG in every sense of the word.

Defensively, it will be a huge advantage when we go zone. We should be able to cut down passing lanes and force a lot of TOs to help our offense score on the break. I can definitely see him struggling against smaller, faster PGs in man defense, but I don't really expect much defense out of a PG; it's simply too hard of a position to guard anyway. At the very least, he'll have the length to block some shots. I'm pretty excited to see him in action.

 

[dyemeduke]

I can definitely see him struggling against smaller, faster PGs in man defense, but I don't really expect much defense out of a PG; it's simply too hard of a position to guard anyway.

...I'm trying to understand what you're trying to say... ...but I can't. False. In my opinion, your defense starts with your guards' ability to stop and put pressure on the ball. This doesn't mean you're shutting down their point every play, but you can't let their point penetrate and easily look around for teammates.

Booker is exciting on paper...I hope he finds some time on the court, but I have to admit, I've always been enthralled with Sharpe's athleticism. I'm rooting for Sharpe to get court time, backing up Dinwiddie once the heart of conference play starts (Nate being a specialist).

Dinwiddie's growth to me is more intriguing on the defensive end. I know he's probably still skinny, but if he's tough enough, we could stick him anywhere from the opposing team's 1-3. He probably can't handle the strength of some bigger 2/3's, but if he can do somewhat okay, then we could bring on Booker or Sharpe and play quicker.

 

[TDforTD]

...I'm trying to understand what you're trying to say... ...but I can't. False. In my opinion, your defense starts with your guards' ability to stop and put pressure on the ball. This doesn't mean you're shutting down their point every play, but you can't let their point penetrate and easily look around for teammates.

A good PG has all of the advantages on offense. They're not only *usually* your quickest player, but they're also your best ball handler. Then when you consider that most offensive sets begin at the top of the key, in the middle of the court, where the offensive player can blow by you in either direction and the task becomes impossibly harder. It's why lockdown defense at the PG position is so rare that only Gary Payton, Jason Kidd, and Rajon Rondo would qualify in the last 10 years. Even your better defensive PGs like Chris Paul, Kirk Hinrich, Mario Chalmers, etc get blown by just about every time down the court.

My point was that if we're going to be a good defensive team, it's going to be because of help defense, an area we failed at last year. I don't expect lockdown defense out of Dinwiddie, I don't even expect good defense out of him. I'm hoping that his length helps to cause TOs and that opposing teams struggle to shoot over our tall guards.

 

[bigbang2]

Having a tall point guard is actually an advantage. Defensively and offensively would provide a mismatch against shorter guards.

 

[dyemeduke]

A good PG has all of the advantages on offense. They're not only *usually* your quickest player, but they're also your best ball handler. Then when you consider that most offensive sets begin at the top of the key, in the middle of the court, where the offensive player can blow by you in either direction and the task becomes impossibly harder. It's why lockdown defense at the PG position is so rare that only Gary Payton, Jason Kidd, and Rajon Rondo would qualify in the last 10 years. Even your better defensive PGs like Chris Paul, Kirk Hinrich, Mario Chalmers, etc get blown by just about every time down the court.

My point was that if we're going to be a good defensive team, it's going to be because of help defense, an area we failed at last year. I don't expect lockdown defense out of Dinwiddie, I don't even expect good defense out of him. I'm hoping that his length helps to cause TOs and that opposing teams struggle to shoot over our tall guards.

Perhaps this is just a syntax difference, but I still can't agree with you. I do agree with you on some things: Point is your quickest player, point is your ball handler, it is harder to find lockdown points, and help defense is big. However, no - the offensive player cannot and should not blow by you in either direction. Sure, some guys are going to penetrate, but as the guy on the ball, you can't let the ball just blow by you every play. If you are, get off the damn ball and let someone else do it. You have to stop the ball. Yes, help defense is huge in stopping the ball, but once you help on a good passer, they should find either the person whose defender is helping or rotating/cutting. You don't need to be a lockdown defender to do this. I not only expect Dinwiddie and all of our guards to be good defenders, I expect Boyle to demand this from them. I'd go insane if my damn point kept letting his guy get by him and penetrate. If you're playing an elite college player like Wall or Irving or Ford, then sure, you sort of have no choice but to help defend. That's what makes them elite though - your team can't be making everyone seem that way. Once penetration via pass or drive occurs, you're defense is catching up to stop the ball. The key is that you're catching up - the offense is one step ahead. Chauncey wasn't a lockdown defender, but he still stopped the ball (was a great defender too). NBA is also a little different too with a lot of top point guards being able to drive at will - the physical abilities of NBA players is just amazing...

If you find yourself having a lot of problems with penetration, then go zone.