Thanks for the update on Beo. I’m not anti-Beo. I just would like one of the 3 guards coming off the bench to provide the spark needed, as you say, if Haws or Emery are having a bad game. Perhaps like Seljaas last year. Almost all of BYU incoming freshmen were high school phenoms-but college ball is a big step up and some don’t handle the transition as we would like. I like Childs progression really well. He gets better every game so hopefully Beo will too. Dastrup was very highly recruited, and originally signed a letter of intent with Ohio State, so I have big hopes for him once the mission rust wears off and he gets in top shape. Anyway your posts are usually well thought out
Right on man!
It will be interesting to see if Rose is smart enough to figure out what just happened and how/why it happened. Lots of posters here will say “Haws is finally starting to get it, shake off his mission rust or benefit from all the minutes” and some will say “we finally see what the LP3 are capable of” or “this is why they were hs champs”, etc.
How many will see what the biggest difference was in making everyone better out there? You know what it is, I know what it is. I had to watch the replay because of our ward Christmas party but it was pretty clear to me, early on, why this TEAM looked their best so far this season.
I had a kid, who is serving his mission in Panama right now, that was the same kind of player. I coached him in rec. league and he could singlehandedly take over a game or make everyone else on the team better. All I had to do was tell him what I wanted and he did it. He played hs ball and it was the same thing on his freshman and JV team. Then he became a junior on the varsity team and got stuck with a dumb coach who didn’t have a clue what he was doing. End result, my kid wouldn’t play on the team as a senior and the program has basically gone into the toilet since then. The way he handled my kid is the biggest reason why good players won’t play at this school anymore.
You elaborated on the reasons everyone on the team was better, from the perspective of team basketball. I wonder how many people understood this. It is the same thing I have been saying for years and everyone gets ticked off at me for it. If this team really wants to excel at a higher level, they will keep moving in the same direction they headed last night.
It remains to be seen if that will happen.
Burton, I was clamoring for Beo because I knew he could help the team and now Rose has an example right in front of him that the feel of the game was just different last night. We may not have to worry from here on out about Beo. I absolutely agree with you on Dastrup. Dastrup needs to be put into games specifically marked for his assets. He can and will play himself into shape. He is the only legit 5 to spell Mika right now. It may make some uncomfortable, but Aytes may be the odd man out. He is hindered by his bad ankles and quickness is a concern…same as Davis but Aytes can’t score like Davis. If he hits those 8 - 10 ft jumpers he will continue to get some playing time. But, yes, Dastrup needs to get 10 minutes a game. I was just asking for Beo to get 10, but Rose gave him 21 and no player on the team is unhappy with that decision. Leifson is another one that we need to get into the right games to get confidence. My take is his shot delivery is too low and he will have a hard time getting it off on good D teams. But, giving him time against carefully chosen opponents will help him. I still think we have to use him in the final possessions of a game when BYU needs 3 pt shooters on the floor. The Valpo missed opportunity was huge.
Brilliant! 
He seemed to be preoccupied with something.
Hey, are you the guy that had the mancrush on Munn?
Right on…Just to be clear, Beo was recovering from a finger injury earlier, the reason why we did not see much of him. The scouting report on Beo was that he can shoot. Colo. had to cover him whereas they could slack off of Rose a bit, this freed up Emery and Haws. It is only one game so I would not read anything into it other than Beo, Haws and Emery hit big shots to make the difference.
Yes, there has to be a way to get Bryant into games BUT he has been sooo rusty coming back and then aggravates the knee. Knowing Rose, he will not mess with rotations that work so at this point it does not look good for Bryant to get a lot of time, not with Beo coming on strong.
If Bryant is 100% healthy, Rose will begin to rotate him into the lineup. Beo will come off the bench as a shooting guard for Emery or Haws. In offense, Beo is not a point guard. He has no driving ability to get to and finish at the rim. Bryant does.
I’m more concerned with who will give Mika rest. Aytes has gone down hill again. Shaw had one real good outing but hasn’t done much even when he’s played. Davis may be the sub this year. Dastrup isn’t ready but needs to get on the court. Kaufusi won’t be ready but could give a few minutes.
The great thing about having Haws, Beo, Emery, Bryant and Rose all healthy and getting decent playing time is the options it will give to the coaching staff. Imagine the problems presented for opposing teams. We will never be able to predict which player will be “on” for the night and the odds go way up that 3 of the 5 will be on every night. What a great problem to have!! I don’t care really, who is the best…i want all of them to maximize their potential!!
Thats a good way to be! We will see who gets minutes against Illinois -i’very learned not to predict Rose
That’s because you aren’t the coach and have a job to keep. We know Rose blew it with Neilsen. I’m sure he knows too. So, I know he wants to keep the best talent he can that has the best upside potential. That would be Mika, Haws, Emery, Childs and Bryant. All 5 of those have potential NBA careers ahead of them.
Then, Dastrup and Shaw. Why Shaw? Because of Neilsen. If Shaw puts on weight and improves, if Mika gets a big head and tries out for the NBA, we need fill ins. Dastrup is a project. If he works hard he reminds me of the kid from UCLA a few years ago. Plays in the NBA. Don’t remember his name.
Davis and Rose are an important key for this team. They are seniors and in my opinion, have improved greatly. Hope Davis knee is better Saturday. And, Rose foot.
Now, to the other guards. They all have strengths and weaknesses. Beo and Guinn have had more time in games. That means their practices are better than the others. We will see some of them transfer. So, coach has to once again choose who has the most potential. And we know he isn’t always accurate on that.
I agree that Rose blew it with Neilsen.
Regarding playing the most talented players, your 5 are right…if Bryant is healthy and playing well - which we have only seen small glimpses of. His shot has looked clunky so far.
Mika - Has moderate NBA potential. One scout compared him to Mark Madsen. We know he is a better athlete - maybe a bulkier though less athletic Taj Gibson (Bulls)?
Haws - No NBA potential. How many 6’4" 180 lb white SG’s are there? Zero is correct.
Emery - Doubtful that he’ll make the NBA. He’s a slightly better Matt Carlino. Nick is too small to play SG and isn’t a strong enough ballhandler to play PG - a bit like Jimmer. Great college player.
Childs - No NBA potential. Doesn’t shoot well enough. Is probably actually 6’7". His athleticism shines against teams like Weber State, but if he was in the ACC or Big-12, he’d be just another role player.
Bryant - No NBA potential that we have seen yet. Inconsistent shooter. When he drives, we all cringe.
I am not trying to be pessimistic - just realistic. I love our Cougars and watch every game, but let’s not strap on those blue goggles too tightly.
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Grasshopper says some pretty crazy things… You are right about nba talent on this team. Mika is the only possibility. The hopper recognizes offensive capability but that is about it. He sees so little else. Also he struggles to understand team chemistry and why that matters. There have been a couple sports columnists who have since said the same thing thawk and I were saying about the positive impact Beo had on how well the team played vs. Colorado. All the hopper can remember is that Beo missed two free throws. The whole team was better when he was on the floor. It was obvious to those who have a feel for the game…
I agree with you for the most part regarding NBA potential of our players. Just look at how many players BYU has put into the NBA in the last 10 years. I think it is a little too early to tell what the potential of Childs will be. I know he hasn’t shot FT well and hasn’t shown an outside shot yet. Childs shot 60% FT his senior year of HS and hit 42% from 3pt range on 97 attempts. We haven’t seen Childs’ full skill set yet as he is adjusting to the college level of play and just trying to play his role for now (post offense and rebounding). Eventually, we’ll get to see his full game. Bryant hasn’t shown us much but he hasn’t been healthy. It probably isn’t fair to judge his game on what we’ve seen so far. I’ll wait to see what he brings when he gets back to full strength.
Little Bro, I’m a little higher on Emery and Haws than you may be. Mika? Well, whoever your scout is, tell him he’s full of it and lazy to boot, comparing Mika to Madson for the SOLE reason that they are both white forwards…wow…
You mention that Mika is clearly more athletic than Madson…Mika’s array of post moves, open court running/jumping, and overall athleticism makes white guys who were decent pros like Luke Walton and Mark Madson “pale” in comparison, so I think any scout who compares him to those guys is just lazy. I say Mika is a BIG TIME NBA prospect.
You know who Mika reminds me of? One of my favorite Blazers of all time–Buck Williams. Mika’s a little bigger than Buck was, and jumps better that Buck did, but has a similar game. Both relentless competitors and easy to love.
More evidence… as if we needed it.
How many times does this need to happen before people will acknowledge or recognize what some of us see as obvious? Another sportswriter has chimed in with what I have been talking about ad nauseum -
Once again, it isn’t that Beo is some fantastic talent that has or will rescue this team and send them into the ncaa tourney or win the wcc. That isn’t it at all. The biggest thing the guy did was to make the team better and isn’t that all that we really want? for the team to get better? It is all about team chemistry and how the unit plays together. It isn’t about Haws losing his mission rust or Mika getting 20 and 10 every game. It isn’t about Childs making his free throws or Emery playing better defense. Yes, all of those things are important but I promise you that all of those things will take place and happen when the team finds the chemistry they need to play better as a unit, to rely on each other, to gain confidence and to want it so bad that they will do anything they have to in order to get it and that is a winning attitude.
We saw it for the first time really against Colorado and hopefully that will send the team forward with continued success. That is all we should really want is for the team to be successful and win basketball games.
It’s one game Jim and you act like you have been given a revelation. THawk has said some astute things. He is more objective than you and not given to conspiracy theories. It is not the two of you against the board. Beo has not proven anything yet but we know there is talent there to be exploited, but for all we know Rose will play Frampton instead of Beo the next game. Why don’t you make a bold prediction about the Illinois game so we can pin you down and you don’t get to waffle around like you usually do and claim your right no matter what happens:)))))))
Mika is more skilled as a sophomore than Madsen ever was. Child’s is just a Freshman and has NBA-potential -it just depends how much he wants to work to develop his skill levels. Emery and Haws can both play in Europe.
I can’t disagree more. Bryant will have a real shot. Haws is a freshman just off his mission. He will bulk up and has potential. Danny Ainge was only 6-4.
Childs will develop a shot. He’s the most talented if all of them. Mika develops a shot and will go early. Emery will be given a real shot. He does a lot more than Carlino and Jimmer.
Buck Williams? Who’s that???
You may think I’m crazy but Mika reminds me more of Bill Walton.