A new attitude, a new culture, and a new commitment to defense
For those out there who poo-poo coaching changes and believe it’s all about the players you recruit, Keatts has, in one regular season game, proven you wrong. With nearly the exact same team as last year, you are watching a complete shift in culture, attitude, and discipline. A team that could be described as lazy, lacking heart and poor on defense is suddenly hungry, passionate, and obsessed with stopping their man.
Obviously, no one knows what the final win-loss count will be, but when you take pride in getting stops and sharing the basketball you become very tough to beat. Teams that used to gameplan to stop a Cat Barber, or a Dennis Smith Jr, now have to go into full-prep on their the press break, team defense, and sustaining effort levels, making the Wolfpack a tough matchup.
No single focus. Balanced scoring makes Pack dangerous
This is what you should be excited about. NC State is running an offense that isn’t built around one player, it’s about exploiting defenses and seizing opportunities. Seven guys were in double figures vs. VMI. I’m not sure the last time NC State had 7 guys in double figures, but it’s been quite a while.
Sure, this was only VMI and their defense wasn’t much to write home about, but the style of play and the unselfish nature of this team (18 assists on 37 FGs, which is 49%) is certainly something that should be celebrated.
Sam Hunt going to have a bigger role than expected
On paper, it would seem that NC State would be more dangerous with both Markell Johnson and Lavar Batts Jr on the floor, but watching the exhibition, and now the opener, makes something pretty clear; Sam Hunt is important to this team’s success.
The only early weakness of this NC State basketball team is their shooting. The guards are getting in the paint and the bigs are converting down low. The key to really make waves in the ACC is to figure out how to score it from outside.
Al Freeman will be the primary shooter, but early on he’s had a tough time getting going. He did lead the team with 18 points against VMI, but he was only 5-15 from the floor and 1-5 from 3pt range. If Freeman isn’t hitting, who do you turn to?
That is why this team is going to rely on Sam Hunt. He finished with 11 points and was 3-7 from 3pt range against the Keydets. It’s also important to note that Hunt was a good shooter at A&T. His 3pt % was only in the low 30s but it was because the scoring load was on his shoulders and he took a lot of contested shots. In this offense, Hunt will bet getting clean looks on kick-out, which he will be able to convert at a higher clip.
Yurtseven still needs to show more toughness
Don’t get me wrong. Yurtseven put up a pretty nice stat line last night, going for 13 points, 7 boards and 4 blocks in the win. However, VMI’s front line was pretty soft and very young.
Taking a second look at the video, Yurtseven still struggled with contact. He failed to finish through light fouls and body contact. This won’t become as apparent until the Pack face a stronger front line, but it will rear it’s head at some point.
We noted earlier that we would have liked to see Yurtseven stay in the states over the off-season and build up his body. He opted to play for his national team, which is fine, but it’s obvious that the euro-style isn’t helping to toughen up big men. Omer showed off a nice touch and a sweet stroke, but if he wants to cash in and score a lottery pick, he’ll have to show that he enjoys contact and can finish through it.
Obviously, Keatts is aware of this and will work with him, but if Yurtseven can start playing with a little chip on his shoulder, this Wolfpack team could potentially go from good to very good.
Lennard Freeman is doing it all
It’s amazing how much Freeman looks like senior year Richard Howell thus far. He scored a career-high 15 points (on 5-8 shooting, and 5-5 from the FT line) and grabbed 6 boards in limited minutes.
Freeman really does a ton that doesn’t show up in the box score. Look at his screen setting ability. When he was in there the offense ran great. His ball screens were strong and well-timed, with some even set in transition. He also really read the defense and made good decisions when to slip the screen, when to seal and roll and when to pop out and re-route from the top of the key.
Markell Johnson with another huge game
This kid looks amazing in this offense. Johnson had another big game, putting up 14 points, 9 assists, and 4 steals. His shot looks a lot tighter and his defense is causing havoc all over the floor. This is going to be a controversial statement, but if you ask me, Johnson is going to be a more productive point guard than Dennis Smith Jr or Cat Barber ever were. No knock on those guys, but Johnson just does more at the college level. He can score, distribute, defend and lead. He is getting his teammates involved and letting his energy level set the tone. We are expecting huge things out of Markell this season.
Next up is another young opponent
Charleston Southern is next (this Sunday at 4pm). They are another team that is going to trot out a bunch of freshmen and sophomores, meaning NC State is going to create problems for them with the press.
Actually, Davidson just slaughtered them by 50 last night. This will be another chance for Keatts to have his team work through kinks and iron out his lineups. The first true test still seems to be #3 Arizona in the Bahamas on Nov 22nd.