AW also missed the last month of the season with a broken hand, so he didn't have any 'extra' games. AW was also playing behind all-conference guards in Will Franklin, Jeremy Crouch, and Dan Ruffin, and sharing time with JJ Tauai and Danny Adams as a freshman. The backcourt has been nowhere near that crowded or that talented since Sam has been here.
Also, where was the shooting percentage comparison? Sam is shooting 3's at 33% clip this year, and 41% overall from the field. Last year AW shot 43% from the fied, and 41% from 3 - significantly better than Sam's 33%. As a freshman, AW shot 46% from the field, and 46% from 3. Conversely as a freshman Sam shot 41% from the field and 36% from 3. The numbers clearly speak for themselves here.
Sam will be a solid 4 year guy, and I like his as a player, but a BU great is a big, big stretch. Next year he doesn't project out to start, or even necessarily be the first guard off the bench. AW is twice the talent Sam is, and will have twice the career. If given the choice between the two, 10 of 10 MVC coaches would take AW. This comparison is silly, really.
Sorry, bb...I am normally in agreement with you about 98% of the time...but to say that Maniscalco doesn't project to start next year or even be the first guard off of the bench is baffling to me.
So, you must think that McCain and Norris are both going to somehow move ahead of Maniscalco in the rotation next year?
Well, that would be great news for us if that were the case, but I don't see it happening.
McCain has no offensive game and/or confidence right now...and his minutes are being scaled back accordingly. I like him as a player, he has good athleticism and toughness and I think he will be a good player for us, but he will not play more minutes than Maniscalco next year...unless he has a miraculous offensive improvement in the off-season.
I like Norris, too...but he is still adjusting to the speed of the D-I game and struggles far worse than Maniscalco defensively at times...I don't see how anyone could realistically project him to move ahead of Maniscalco next year, either.
You can trot out shooting percentages and qualitative assesments about how you don't think Sam can defend, that he's a step slow, and so on...but the fact of the matter is that he plays the most minutes of anyone on the team currently, takes almost all of the shots for this team in crunch time, and is trusted to have the ball in his hands at the crucial moments in games...all of this as a sophomore.
I'm not saying he is going to have his number retired when he is done playing...I just can't believe how little credit he seems to get for his game. I watched him play defense all night long last night, looking for these supposed glaring weaknesses he has, weaknesses that clearly negate everything good he does on the offensive end...and I just don't see it. He gave up an open 3 to McFarland early in the game when he was late rotating back from helping, but other than that, I watched guys try to drive on him all night long, and I never saw one of them beat him...now I fully understand that this was Missouri State, and they are not blessed with the most athletic of guards...but still, the way people talk about Sam, it makes it sound like he is so completely inept defensively that he couldn't stop me from getting to the hole...and I just haven't seen it that way this year as a whole.
I do remember last year and teams spreading the floor and beating Sam like a drum at times...and I'm sure that's where this perception was built. But honestly, I don't remember too many times this year where he has appeared to be totally overmatched on the defensive end (other than a couple games where he was hobbled with his foot injury). Maybe I'm just seeing what I want to see with him...but then again, maybe those that have labeled him as an utter defensive liabilty are just seeing what they want to see, as well. It probably goes both ways...
