PTL Observations, Highlights, Interviews

[SteveGarvey1]

Baer often reminds me of Bobby Jones, Philadelphia

Us old guys like that comparison. He fed it to Dr. J now and then pretty well.

 

[SteveGarvey1]

Baer moves without the ball better than any Hawkeye for a long, long time...plus, he is smart.

These two aspects make him very good...

A better shooting version of Kevin Boyle I think.

 

[NikeHawk21]

What I see as the starting line-up:

1. Williams
2. Moss
3. Jok
4. Baer, Wagner, or Uhl (hopefully, Baer or Wagner) won't be surprised if Jones is starting by B1G play.
5. Cook

I see one of the following two:

1. Williams
2. Moss
3. Jok
4. Uhl
5. Cook

Or:

1. Williams
2. Jok
3. Baer
4. Uhl
5. Cook

I prefer option #1 because I love a consistent Baer coming off the bench. He is good enough to start but having a rock on the bench is great for a coach. I think Uhl is vastly under appreciated on this board. Maybe it is because he slumped a little towards the end of the year. Last year he was asked to put on some weight and spell Woody guarding bigs, he did an admirable job of that. As it stands he may be our best post defender. On top of that he shot over 40% from 3. Plus I think his ability to handle the ball/ bring it up the court is a big part of Fran's plan this year, at least that's what I've garnered from player interviews. I think he does that better than any of our bigs.

 

[NikeHawk21]

I do think that's one of the intriguing things about this team. Fran could go a variety of different ways with the starting lineup, and I think he will throughout the season based on who's playing well, matchups, injuries etc.

FWIW Mark Emmert for Hawk Central is under the impression that Ahmad Wagner is a shoe in to start at center this year.

 

[revkev73]

Baer = "The Mechanic"...can fine tune the team from the bench. Not many can do that, well.

 

[WindsorHawk]

It is starting to seem like we're over looking Pemsl. He really seems to finish well in traffic. Something we have lacked in the past.

I like Pemsl a lot. But I worry about him staying healthy. If he's healthy he can't be ignored IMO. He's right there with a lot of the other guys.

Side Note - I had the same concern about Jok and he's stayed healthy thus far. I hope Pemsl has the same good fortune.

 

[WindsorHawk]

I do not see how Baer could be kept on the bench to start. The guy just has "it". I say he is a starter.

Jok, Uhl, Cook & Williams start the game with Baer. Wagner will be coming off the bench, unless he takes Uhl's spot.

I like his energy coming off the bench...or starting. But I think that hustle and enthusiasm and having 2 years in the program serves us well coming off the bench...this year.

 

[DP5555]

You know... it's interesting to me that we're here discussing the possibility of having guys like Uhl, Baer, Wagner, and Pemsl potentially coming off the bench. That's pretty awesome. Regardless who ends up being in the starting rotation Fran will have a lot more athleticism and scoring ability that he'll be able to bring in off the bench.

I really like what I've seen from Pemsl, and Baer already looks to be quite a bit improved from last season. Wagner appears to have improved his 3ball. Hopefully Uhl has tightened up his game. I think Dale Jones is a complete unknown because of his injuries. I wouldn't expect much out of him, but he could end up being a surprise as well.

I like the future of Pemsl and Cook in the post together because they are both bigger bodies who can score in different ways. Pemsl is more of a smooth finisher and jump shooter that uses the backboard. Cook is the athletic freak that just slams it home. Pemsl may just be a little too young at this point to crack the starting line up.