Now we know why Bruce Weber is still crying about Eric Gordon.Holy crap. He is really, really good. I try not to ever get too excited about recruits, especially while this year's team has a good season going, but it's impossible not to get excited about Gordon in an IU uniform after watching tonight's game.
43 points on 17-25 from the field, 5-9 from the arc, and 4-4 from the line. And he made it look easy. It's not like he is a ball-hog or that the team even looks for him every time down the court. He shoots such a high percentage that he doesn't need a ton of shots to get his points.
He has incredible range on his jumper and does a really nice job of squaring up to the basket. But the thing that impressed me most was his exploviseness. He puts it in another gear and can cover a lot of ground in very few dribbles. One time he received a pass in stride at half-court, he took two dribbles to get all the way to the rim and convert a 3-point play. Another time, he got a defensive rebound and went coast-to-coast in 4 dribbles and finished with an acrobatic layup over one of Jordan's sons (who play like their mother, by the way). It was really impressive how he could get to the basket and finish.
And to top it all off, he had a steal and a big-time reverse dunk before exiting the game with his team up 30-some points.
Just an unbelievable offensive player. I believe he is now averaging over 34 points per game and he is shooting an amazing 60 percent from the field.
On the defensive end, it looked like he pretty much stood in the corner of a 2-3 zone. He showed a couple signs of being able to get after it on defense, but I don't think they ask him to play a lot of defense. I have full confidence that Sampson will whip him into shape on the defensive end. And that may even lead into even more production on offense.
I'm trying not to let myself get too excited about this, but it's scary how good he is. I'm pretty sure he will be one-and-done at IU, but he will definitely be an impact player immediately.
I do have to chuckle when I think about the Illinois fans that watched that game tonight. They will be crying themselves to sleep tonight. As Jack Handy once said, "it takes a big man to cry, but it takes an even bigger man to laugh at that man."
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4 comments:
He definitely lives up to the hype. If Gordon is the #2 ranked player in the nation, I would like to see the #1. While I'm not ready to think about next season yet (a lot of good things still await us for this year), it is exciting to think about the team with the Gordon, the new recruits and the remaining IU team, especially if DJ stays one more year...Hoosier Hysteria!!
Oh ya, they should call IU's student section, the Hoosier Hystericals!! I need to trademark that.
Eli Holman just missed a triple-double in his return to action.
27 points, 12 rebs, & 9 blocks.
I like the Hoosier Hystericals. Better patent that before Dickie V gets a hold of it.
Gordon is the real deal. Hope DJ sticks around to play with him.
Sampson should have stuck DJ in the car and driven him to Indy to see first hand what he's missing if he doesn't come back next year. Those two would be quite the one-two punch!
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