so, olaseni STILL not starting over woodbury . yeah, I went there again

[mrolympia]

if you even up the mintues for both these guys, Olaseni would beat Woodbury in every area but assists and absolutely destroy him in some very important stats (ppg, blocks, less turnovers, FG and FT percentage). Why in the hades is woody still starting? ANY other coach in america would have started olaseni halfway through last year.

 

[JonDMiller]

One of the most overrated things in sports is who starts. the 'best' five players don't always start...certain people have personalities who are better in one place or another. Me, I'd rather play more minutes.

 

[WindsorHawk]

It could be because Woodbury usually wins the tip. It could be so there is some punch coming off the bench. Gabe is getting his minutes and it's not costing us games IMO so it doesn't matter to me one way or the other. I highly doubt Gabe cares.

 

[PCHawk]

5 games ago I would say they are pretty even. As of now I would say the minutes should be 30 for Gabe and 10 for Woody. It's possible that 5 games from now it will be even again. Probably not likely though unless Gabe goes into a funk because he's playing at a level that might be higher than Woody's ceiling right now.

 

[HawkPrdatr40]

One of the most overrated things in sports is who starts. the 'best' five players don't always start...certain people have personalities who are better in one place or another. Me, I'd rather play more minutes.

Sure I get that. However when your the clear and I mean CLEAR better player, then I want my best players on the court to start the game. Gabe is a Sr as well, so give the guy the starts and lets come out punching..


Last Night Game

Gabe 22 Minutes
Woody 18 Minutes?? 18 Really.. lol Wow..

Should be

Gabe 30-32 Minutes
Woody 8 to 10 Minutes..

 

[djwoody98]

Adam needs to find the confidence he had earlier this year.

 

[ChosenChildren]

No, no, no, a thousand times no. Here is why:

1. Woodbury is a better defender and rebounder (IMHO)
2. Most importantly, Gabe can't go 30 minutes the way he plays. He runs the court. He has to be rested.
3. Fran likes bringing Gabe and Sapp off the bench because of the energy they bring. Fran also talked about this the other night.

Fran is playing this perfectly. On the post-game last night, Jim Jackson asked Gabe about not starting and he acted like he didn't care about it at all. I say give Gabe 25 and Woody 15. Who starts is irrelevant.

 

[mopkins]

I remember in the second half Gabe came in with around 17:40 on the clock. So Woody started the first 2 minutes and 20 seconds of the second half

 

[drew003]

I actually like bringing Olaseni off the bench. He changes the look and athleticism of the team. He's also good to have out there with some of the second unit because he makes that unit much stronger. We stayed strong in the first half with the second unit because Olaseni was drawing fouls on all sorts of fools. It gives nice balance. Woodbury is probably the better on-ball post-defender.

Then, end of game, you play whoever his playing better.

 

[allup86]

My guess is that either (a)Gabe is more comfortable off the bench (b) Fran wants Gabe and his energy to pick up the 2nd unit or (c) Fran thinks it helps Adam's confidence if he starts as opposed to getting the same amount of minutes off of the bench. I don't really see it as a huge issue.

 

[hawkjunkie]

If Gabe goes down in Hawkeye history as never being a starter, that would be a travesty at the minimum.

To me it is about respect. In sports you are the scrub if you are not the starter. If you have played organized sports, then you know what I am talking about....

Aside from that, it does matter in some cases who starts. If one player does not match up well with another, or does not lead as well as another could, the other team takes advantage and scores off of these opportunities. That gives the other team the lead & mental edge right out the gate. Does that matter??

There are other reasons of course, and that can be huge. Look no further than our QB situation...

 

[SnapBack2]

Ignore all posts from those suggesting Woodbury shouldn't start or Gabe should play 32 min a game.

1. Jon is right, starting doesn't matter.
2. Don't know how, but Woody wins most tips.
3. Do you think Gabe would be as effective tired or fouled out?
4. See other posters above explaining other valid points.

 

[WindsorHawk]

To me it is about respect. In sports you are the scrub if you are not the starter. If you have played organized sports, then you know what I am talking about....

I disagree. I played organized sports. I didn't feel like a scrub when I didn't start. I didn't feel superior to the other guys when I did start.

I also know when I coached my players didn't feel like scrubs when they didn't start. If a player feels like a scrub when then don't start then that's on the coach. I'm pretty confident that Fran doesn't make his players feel like scrubs when they don't start.

 

[WindsorHawk]

Ignore all posts from those suggesting Woodbury shouldn't start or Gabe should play 32 min a game.

1. Jon is right, starting doesn't matter.
2. Don't know how, but Woody wins most tips.
3. Do you think Gabe would be as effective tired or fouled out?
4. See other posters above explaining other valid points.

Well said.

 

[Tierney]

If Gabe goes down in Hawkeye history as never being a starter, that would be a travesty at the minimum.

To me it is about respect. In sports you are the scrub if you are not the starter. If you have played organized sports, then you know what I am talking about....

Aside from that, it does matter in some cases who starts. If one player does not match up well with another, or does not lead as well as another could, the other team takes advantage and scores off of these opportunities. That gives the other team the lead & mental edge right out the gate. Does that matter??

There are other reasons of course, and that can be huge. Look no further than our QB situation...

They both add something different to the team. Gabe looked like an all-American at times against a depleted Nebraska front line. He might not look so good against Michigan State. Gabe has improved a lot in his career. I hope the best for both the centers. Hopefully, Olesani and Woodbury will both tear up Michigan state.

 

[hawkjunkie]

I disagree. I played organized sports. I didn't feel like a scrub when I didn't start. I didn't feel superior to the other guys when I did start.

I also know when I coached my players didn't feel like scrubs when they didn't start. If a player feels like a scrub when then don't start then that's on the coach. I'm pretty confident that Fran doesn't make his players feel like scrubs when they don't start.

We can agree to disagree on that part...

Yes Fran does great job of balancing the starting/non-starting roles. He plays it out well in the media, too. Something KF should learn from.

 

[1hawkeye1]

There is no sport in which "starting" matters less than basketball. Gabe is contributing much more than Woody right now. Why does it matter if he starts?

Only soccer moms get all wrapped up in starting

 

[HawkPrdatr40]

Ignore all posts from those suggesting Woodbury shouldn't start or Gabe should play 32 min a game.

1. Jon is right, starting doesn't matter.
2. Don't know how, but Woody wins most tips.
3. Do you think Gabe would be as effective tired or fouled out?
4. See other posters above explaining other valid points.

You honestly think Gabe Iowa's most athletic player can't be effective playing 30 minutes?

 

[smhawk]

I've seen Woodbury be a smarter defender, but as of late I don't know if I'd say he's better defender overall. And his rebounding has not improved much, lately seems like he's been lets boards bounce of his hands too much.

Gabe is averaging 18 minutes, I wish it'd be more in the area of 25. In three of four of Iowa's loses, Gabe played 13, 11, and 14 minutes. Feel like his play on good games has earn him enough credit to let him play out of struggles.

I don't really care who starts, but if you have to, put them both in at times just to see Gabe out their more. Spacing usually isn't too good but neither is the starting fives sometimes.

Who's minutes should Gabe take to get more? Maybe Uhl, even though he hasn't done too bad.

 

[Knight78]

You honestly think Gabe Iowa's most athletic player can't be effective playing 30 minutes?

I don't think he would be. He'll get more tired. When more tired, you commit more silly fouls simply because you're tired. He already commits enough silly fouls, usually caused by being out of position (watching the ball hoping to get a blocked shot). 20-25 minutes is his sweet spot. Gets him enough rest to keep the silly fouls to a minimum and yet enough minutes to be effective.

And I agree with a lot of posters here. It's not important who starts.... it's important who finishes.