Comments on: Basketball: Five things I look forward to seeing as Bears open season with UC San Diego exhibition

By: jim crow

jim crow — Wed, 02 Nov 2011 01:02:58 +0000

BearFan,

When I think Randle, in addition to his spark, which I acknowledge, I think also of a shoot-first, poor defensive point guard. Jerome never did learn how to stay in front of his man and to me that was an attidunal problem, given his foot speed and ability to get around people when he had the ball.

While Smith will not likely ever be the scorer that Jerome was, he also will play defense with all he has all the time. He also will not turn the ball over. And he will make his teammates better by delivering the ball to them and generally moving the ball around.

He is just entering his junior year. Jerome certainly improved a lot his last two years. Let’s see how much improvement Smith makes over last year, remembering what a tremendous improvement he made last year over his first year and also during last year from early on through the end of the season.

Yes, Smith is not flashy, but that does not make him of little value to the team.

Maybe there is a little relevance in evaluating Brandon, in remembering the story of the tortoise and the hare.

By: BearFan

BearFan — Tue, 01 Nov 2011 23:00:07 +0000

Blake…I attended 11 Cal Pac 10 games last year. I will give you that Smith improved considerably over his freshman year. But there was still a lot of ugly shots, poor decisions with the ball in traffic, poor free throw shooting for a guard, and obviously limited scoring/athletic ability. I commend Monty for getting the most out of his players’ talent. But please do not compare Smith to Chris Hernandez. That dude was All Pac 10 first team THREE times, and shot free throws at around a .900 clip, among other things! Listen, I have nothing against Smith, and I am sure Monty will maximize his talent, but IMHO, teams typically don’t win the Pac 10 with a starting PG like Smith. You need some spark at that position, think Randle.

By: Takeoffthatredshirt

Takeoffthatredshirt — Tue, 01 Nov 2011 21:05:45 +0000

Who is Hernandez?

By: Wyoming Bear

Wyoming Bear — Tue, 01 Nov 2011 19:19:24 +0000

Blakey Bear is on POINT! Pac 12 Hoops is Bear Territory. God bless Monty and his health. Go Bears!

By: BlakeStreetBear

BlakeStreetBear — Tue, 01 Nov 2011 17:49:37 +0000

@Bearfan:

You think Smith is a liability at the point? Did you watch last season at all? Did you realize that Smith was the best 3 pt shooter we had in pac-10 play, 19-for-37 after the @USC game. I don’t remember many crucial turnovers or bad decisions. Have you watched Mike Montgomery’s pgs over the years? Smith seems to be ideal for what Monty likes to do. Do you remember that bastard Chris Hernandez at lsju a few years ago? I think BSmith is better than him, certainly a better athlete. Cobbs may be good too, but I have full faith, and I am sure Monty does too, in the little guard from the East Bay. If he improves his FT% he becomes a top 5 pg in the league, despite his stature (or lack thereof) imho. That is how good of a coach Monty is, he takes a player like Smith (or Hernandez), undersized and not heavily recruited, and he turns him into a quality player essential to the team’s success. Go Bears!

By: GoldenTrailsDave

GoldenTrailsDave — Tue, 01 Nov 2011 15:11:11 +0000

Thurman/Solomon will be the difference in determining whether we’ll be good or very good (borderline great) team.

Looking forward to the game tonight!

By: Jeff Faraudo

Jeff Faraudo — Tue, 01 Nov 2011 05:51:52 +0000

Rossi’s injury is taking a long time to heal. He’s doing the work, but I’m not sure when he will be fully healthy. Montgomery described it to me a couple weeks ago as Rossi making some progress, then having minor setbacks. I casually asked Rossi about it last week and he said he’s working at it. Not sure if he’ll play Tuesday and how much.

By: milo

milo — Tue, 01 Nov 2011 05:08:40 +0000

I think Crabbe goes off this season (I hope any way). Since every team will have to double team him, it creates mismatches that a “good” Cal team will exploit and an average team will not. I think Cal can exploit it.

Curious to see how Thurman and Solomon develop as well. If they play well and contribute, it gives Cal a decent/serviceable front court, not a liability.

By: BearFan

BearFan — Tue, 01 Nov 2011 04:56:08 +0000

Crabbe should have a great year; I am looking for him to win Pac 12 POY! I’m hoping for Cobbs to take the starting point guard job from Smith very soon…otherwise, that position becomes a significant weakness if the goal is to win the conference. I expect big things from the basketball Bears this year!

By: Bears

Bears — Tue, 01 Nov 2011 04:36:59 +0000

I’ll be there tomorrow night.
Excited to get a first look at this team.
What is the news on Rossi? Will he play this year?