I want more Tijan Jobe!
Look at that defensive position, it's perfect.
Ok, maybe not perfect. The defensive stance is actually really good -- he's got his knees bent, he's low, he's ready. Some coaches might tell you that your palms should be up, but that's really not a big deal. There is one major flaw in his defensive position. Do you know what it is? It's the eyes! He is looking at the guy's head. All it will take is one little head fake and this white boy from Bemidji State will be driving right past my main man Tijan. I don't recall for sure, but I'm guessing that's what actually happened.
Anyway, in such a miserable year, I have been highly entertained in two of TJ's last three appearances on the court. One game he had a nice blocked shot and waived his arms to get the crowd fired up. Another game, he was the point on a 1-3-1 defense and forced a turnover. Well, actually, a turnover just sort of happened somewhere near him, but he celebrated all the same. And I loved it! I want more!
So, I ask you Tom Crean, where is Tijan Jobe? Exactly how bad is he? Is he really that hopeless?
Seriously, he is 7-feet tall, has toned muscles, and is a pretty intimidating specimen just by his size and appearance. If someone like that can't even see the floor on a team where the only two guys over 6'5" that play are both 6'8" white guys that can't jump -- one of which is a true freshman and the other is a former walk-on. Really? We can't even find 3-4 minutes per game for Tijan just to see what happens?
It begs the question of exactly how bad is he? When he does get the rare minute or two, I think we can see a little bit of why he may not be getting minutes. But honestly, I haven't seen enough to understand why he's not even an option after Pritchard gets in foul trouble.
I know he is already a junior and you don't have the full 4 years to mold him. But you do still have another year out of him, so is there really no hope whatsoever? If there were any hope, you would think they would give him the opportunity to get a few minutes here and there.
Unfortunately, the only answer is that he truly is really, really, really bad. I trust in Tom Crean, so that has to be the only answer. He must really be that bad in practice. So bad that you can't even imagine it type of bad. He must be one-half step above a manager holding a broom in the air as something to shoot over. Even so, I still think he should play just for some added entertainment value for us dedicated fans. If we are getting beat by 25 or more by Purdue or anyone else left on the schedule, I want me some Tijan Jobe dammit!
All of this leads me to one of next year's recruits and that is Bawa Maniru. This has been a mysterious recruit all along. He was the last one to sign which meant IU was oversigned by one. Wait, maybe that's the other explanation. Maybe Tijan is on the way out to make room for an oversigned recruiting class. Just a conspiracy theory, don't run with that one.
Now, back to Bawa. I think he scares some IU fans because the few reports that have come out about him remind you of reports on Tijan. Raw. However, I do think a key difference is that Bawa is coming in as a freshman and will have time to develop even if he is not ready on Day 1. Also, by all reports (including the link below), he is not Tijan-raw. It sounds like he is raw on the offensive end, but does have some shot-blocking and rebounding capabilities. I think the shot-blocking element could be huge because this team has absolutely no shot-blockers right now.
Information has been very limited on Bawa, so I thought I would share this link from Inside The Hall.
Go Hoosiers!
Tuesday, February 17, 2009
Exactly How Bad is Tijan Jobe?
I want more Tijan Jobe!
Look at that defensive position, it's perfect.
Ok, maybe not perfect. The defensive stance is actually really good -- he's got his knees bent, he's low, he's ready. Some coaches might tell you that your palms should be up, but that's really not a big deal. There is one major flaw in his defensive position. Do you know what it is? It's the eyes! He is looking at the guy's head. All it will take is one little head fake and this white boy from Bemidji State will be driving right past my main man Tijan. I don't recall for sure, but I'm guessing that's what actually happened.
Anyway, in such a miserable year, I have been highly entertained in two of TJ's last three appearances on the court. One game he had a nice blocked shot and waived his arms to get the crowd fired up. Another game, he was the point on a 1-3-1 defense and forced a turnover. Well, actually, a turnover just sort of happened somewhere near him, but he celebrated all the same. And I loved it! I want more!
So, I ask you Tom Crean, where is Tijan Jobe? Exactly how bad is he? Is he really that hopeless?
Seriously, he is 7-feet tall, has toned muscles, and is a pretty intimidating specimen just by his size and appearance. If someone like that can't even see the floor on a team where the only two guys over 6'5" that play are both 6'8" white guys that can't jump -- one of which is a true freshman and the other is a former walk-on. Really? We can't even find 3-4 minutes per game for Tijan just to see what happens?
It begs the question of exactly how bad is he? When he does get the rare minute or two, I think we can see a little bit of why he may not be getting minutes. But honestly, I haven't seen enough to understand why he's not even an option after Pritchard gets in foul trouble.
I know he is already a junior and you don't have the full 4 years to mold him. But you do still have another year out of him, so is there really no hope whatsoever? If there were any hope, you would think they would give him the opportunity to get a few minutes here and there.
Unfortunately, the only answer is that he truly is really, really, really bad. I trust in Tom Crean, so that has to be the only answer. He must really be that bad in practice. So bad that you can't even imagine it type of bad. He must be one-half step above a manager holding a broom in the air as something to shoot over. Even so, I still think he should play just for some added entertainment value for us dedicated fans. If we are getting beat by 25 or more by Purdue or anyone else left on the schedule, I want me some Tijan Jobe dammit!
All of this leads me to one of next year's recruits and that is Bawa Maniru. This has been a mysterious recruit all along. He was the last one to sign which meant IU was oversigned by one. Wait, maybe that's the other explanation. Maybe Tijan is on the way out to make room for an oversigned recruiting class. Just a conspiracy theory, don't run with that one.
Now, back to Bawa. I think he scares some IU fans because the few reports that have come out about him remind you of reports on Tijan. Raw. However, I do think a key difference is that Bawa is coming in as a freshman and will have time to develop even if he is not ready on Day 1. Also, by all reports (including the link below), he is not Tijan-raw. It sounds like he is raw on the offensive end, but does have some shot-blocking and rebounding capabilities. I think the shot-blocking element could be huge because this team has absolutely no shot-blockers right now.
Information has been very limited on Bawa, so I thought I would share this link from Inside The Hall.
Go Hoosiers!
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1 comment:
cook:
bawa is certainly a mystery. if i had to guess at this time, sounds like he's atleast a little further along than jobe and he hasn't started college as opposed to having one more year left. i think he'd be a great redshirt candidate. i think he'll contribute (more so on the boards and defense) through his 4 years. i think it would be great if tijan is the one we lose to make scholarship room!
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