Olaseni Making Progress

ssckelley

ssckelley

Well-Known Member
Olaseni often gets over looked, he was not hyped coming in and does not start even though he now gets as many minutes as Woodbury. But take a look a look at his statistics:

Abodunrin Gabriel Olaseni Stats | College Basketball at Sports-Reference.com

In almost every catagory he keeps doubling his production year after year. I am sure the coaches regret not being able to redshirt him his freshman year as I can only imagine how good he might be in 2 years. The only negative I see his his FG percentages are down and he is turning the ball over just a little bit more than last season. But I think this is due to the fact he is getting a lot more touches when he is on the court than he did last season. Through the rest of this season and into next I wonder if we won't see more of those double doubles that herby envisioned 2 years ago.

I can't help but wonder if Olaseni can make the jump to the next level? His downside right now is he does not have a mid range shot and he still needs to pack on some more muscle. But, IMO, the ability is there.

I am attempting something different, we have way to many negative threads on here for a top 10 team. So can a topic discussing something positive about a player take off?
 
He has improved and I was a big detractor last season. As I look back, I guess I thought he was taking away minutes from Woodbury and that was a bad idea. Gabe has what Woodbury does not, "athletic ability". Gabe is a tall athlete, but not a good basketball player. Woody is a decent basketball player with no agility or jumping ability, (his ability is his height).
It's fun to watch Gabe as he can do things on the court with his length and agility.
He has zero chance to play in the NBA (he has no hands or ability to score outside of 5 feet) so let's stop that talk and enjoy what he brings to the team.
Go Hawks!
 
I was wrong about Gabe this year. He didnt play well against the worst teams Iowa played. Now he is playing his best basketball against better teams. He is boxing out. He isnt leaving early. He is better at controlling his body while trying to block shots. His offensive rbs and put backs have been great.

He is starting to calm down and its really helping his game. He still gets a little bit of the happy feet when he thinks he might get to dunk it but thats understandable.
 
brozley said:
He has improved and I was a big detractor last season. As I look back, I guess I thought he was taking away minutes from Woodbury and that was a bad idea. Gabe has what Woodbury does not, "athletic ability". Gabe is a tall athlete, but not a good basketball player. Woody is a decent basketball player with no agility or jumping ability, (his ability is his height).
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Kyle Meyer says hi

It's fun to watch Gabe as he can do things on the court with his length and agility.
He has zero chance to play in the NBA (he has no hands or ability to score outside of 5 feet) so let's stop that talk and enjoy what he brings to the team.
Go Hawks!
Click to expand...

No
 
Also the thing that both Gabe and Woody has surprised me with is their free throw shooting. For big men, they both shoot a decent clip.

If we weren't as deep as we are, Gabe would be averaging closer to 10 pts and 8/9 rebounds a game. Maybe Herby was on to something when he said he would be averaging a double double.
 
What is Olesani's offensive rebounding efficiency? It's gotta be top 5 in the country. The kid can do a lot more than run and jump (although his speed up and down the court is incredible for a center). Seems like a nice young man and great teammate, too.
 
I wager to say the biggest contribution to Gabe's success has been the competition he gets each and every day of practice going against Woody and Melsahn over the past 2 years. Those guys are constantly pushing each other in a way that only a staff like Fran's can achieve. Perhaps one day it will change but right now the depth of this team can only help make each of them better. I am confident we would not be seeing the level of improvement without and I also still believe the same can be said for Woodbury even though his improvements currently may not show up quite as much in terms of the box score (passing, ball handling, free throw %, defensive positioning without fouling, etc). The even greater thing is knowing it's not just them. Nearly every player on this squad has added or improved at least 1 skill when compared to last season.

White - outside jumper and stamina
Woody - elbow jumper and ball handling
Gesell - attacking the rim, on-ball defense
Marble - more under control and running jumper
Gabe - baseline jumper and ball handling
Mel - ball handling and help defense
Oglesby - more relaxed and quicker/consistent release
McCabe - defensive footwork and solid at the line
 
brozley said:
He has improved and I was a big detractor last season. As I look back, I guess I thought he was taking away minutes from Woodbury and that was a bad idea. Gabe has what Woodbury does not, "athletic ability". Gabe is a tall athlete, but not a good basketball player. Woody is a decent basketball player with no agility or jumping ability, (his ability is his height).
It's fun to watch Gabe as he can do things on the court with his length and agility.
He has zero chance to play in the NBA (he has no hands or ability to score outside of 5 feet) so let's stop that talk and enjoy what he brings to the team.
Go Hawks!
Click to expand...

Can we merge Olaseni and Woodbury into one player?
 
Love is aggressiveness, and he is continuously showing improvement. Still a few too many times where he is out of position or lets someone get to the block too easily.
 
1977Hawkeye said:
Can we merge Olaseni and Woodbury into one player?
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At least this way they will both be back next year. Gadam Woodleseni would be the number 1 pick in the draft at the end of the year.

Unless you're talking about Adabe Olibury. That dude could compete with Lil Lick for worst Hawkeye player ever.
 
I kinda think Utoff starts at the 3 White Moves to the 4 and GO backs up both with Meyer geeting whats left. But Im just guessing
ssckelley said:
Honestly I think a lot has to do with Meyer's development if he is ready to step up into a back up role.
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I love Olaseni's athletic ability. For a guy his size, it is remarkable. I took a LOT of flack early in the season when I said Olaseni would play as much as Woodbury, but I really believe in him and I've been proven correct.

Clearly, he hasn't played the game as long as others. He gets out of position defensively and I cringe when I see him set screens. (he's always moving) But his learning curve is going nearly vertical. I see amazing improvement game to game.

I think Fran is using Gabe and Woody as one player and I'm fine with that. Each compliments the other.
 
1hawkeye1 said:
I love Olaseni's athletic ability. For a guy his size, it is remarkable. I took a LOT of flack early in the season when I said Olaseni would play as much as Woodbury, but I really believe in him and I've been proven correct.

Clearly, he hasn't played the game as long as others. He gets out of position defensively and I cringe when I see him set screens. (he's always moving) But his learning curve is going nearly vertical. I see amazing improvement game to game.

I think Fran is using Gabe and Woody as one player and I'm fine with that. Each compliments the other.
Click to expand...


He was and is soo many little things away from being one of the best centers in the BoneG. I didnt think at the beginning of the season that he would be able to calm down enough to play. Mentally it looks like he matured 2 years in the last 7 games.
 
These guys remind me a lot of Acie Earl and Les Jepsen, both of whom played in the NBA. Or at least they havr the potential to be so. I like the way Mr. Davis got them both on the court in the year they were on the same team. Both were great players in their own ways, as these 2 are. I am just thrilled to have 2 great centers on this team. Iowa has not had that in some time.
 
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