re: Tide Hoops | Recruiting

I've said from the beginning that Sears is not and should not be point guard. He's not quick enough in space and is left hand dominant. In Oats offense, you have to be able to penetrate the defense with the dribble to get into the lane and score or dish.

With Sears at the point, the offensive possession time is extended and he often dominates the ball causing a stagnant possession. He should have been running the 2 all along with Holloway and Philon rotating at the 1 or play all three together if able defensively.

Without Wrightsell, Oats definitely needs to move Sears over to the 2. And if he wants to save Mallette for his senior year, I'm adding Naas as a back up 6'7" guard.

Different topic, Oats has to adjust his defensive system. Their defensive positioning is awful. I understand that he wants to pressure the ball to increase the tempo and force a 2pt shot instead of a 3pt, but we cannot continue to pressure the ball so high while our off defenders are playing almost complete deny. We're setting our self up for dribble penetration and fouls like crazy. The shot clock is already short increasing the tempo. He needs his ball defender to play off some. His off ball denial would be more effective that way. I know he's not a fan, but with our athleticism and depth, I'd utilize more 3/4 and 1/2 court zone pressures to increase tempo and cause more turnovers. When you use those pressures, you cause their forwards and centers to be more involved in ball handling which increases your chances to cause turnovers. It also limits your opponent's ability to isolate a weaker defender or someone in foul trouble.