College Basketball 2025-26 season thread

[stankeylegjones]

Hubert Davis: Defensive Rebounding Issues 'Not Sustainable'

The Tar Heels have struggled to finish defensive possessions in ACC play.

www.on3.com

The Tar Heels rank third nationally in average height, according to KenPom.com, which raises one of the more peculiar questions surrounding this Carolina bunch. Why does UNC rank 67th nationally and eighth in ACC play in defensive rebounding percentage at 71.1%?

Last year they ranked 49th nationally.

 

[Heelsandeers]

Hubert Davis: Defensive Rebounding Issues 'Not Sustainable'

The Tar Heels have struggled to finish defensive possessions in ACC play.

www.on3.com

The Tar Heels rank third nationally in average height, according to KenPom.com, which raises one of the more peculiar questions surrounding this Carolina bunch. Why does UNC rank 67th nationally and eighth in ACC play in defensive rebounding percentage at 71.1%?

Last year they ranked 49th nationally.

I would say because they have been bad defensively and are allowing teams to shoot so many 3s

 

[Bigs23]

Might look that way from the box score

Michigan St came back from 17 down to take the lead in the second half

Michigan up 3 points with 4:30 to go and Elliot scored or assisted on 8 straight to secure it

He had a knack for making big plays at UNC too. His improved shooting is the biggest thing for him.

 

[mpaer]

He had a knack for making big plays at UNC too. His improved shooting is the biggest thing for him.

I don't "blame' anyone
But the fact is it sucks that it did not work out here

 

[Bigs23]

I don't "blame' anyone
But the fact is it sucks that it did not work out here

No blame to be given. Every player is a free agent at the end of every season. Most are going to the highest bidder. Massive player movement is the new norm.

 

[stankeylegjones]

Sherrell has discussed this on several occasions. Two of EC, Trimble, Capt. Jack were not going to stay. HD/staff felt like Trimble was the better option, and prioritized him.

 

[superrific]

Hubert Davis: Defensive Rebounding Issues 'Not Sustainable'

The Tar Heels have struggled to finish defensive possessions in ACC play.

www.on3.com

The Tar Heels rank third nationally in average height, according to KenPom.com, which raises one of the more peculiar questions surrounding this Carolina bunch. Why does UNC rank 67th nationally and eighth in ACC play in defensive rebounding percentage at 71.1%?

Last year they ranked 49th nationally.

Probably because rebounding isn't really about height.

Veesaar is not physically strong and Caleb is wiry. That's the problem. Caleb is probably going to be a 3 at the next level if he can develop a jumper. Veesaar is not a 5.

 

[stankeylegjones]

Probably because rebounding isn't really about height.

Veesaar is not physically strong and Caleb is wiry. That's the problem. Caleb is probably going to be a 3 at the next level if he can develop a jumper. Veesaar is not a 5.

Height definitely helps. But, whatever the reason, this team is underperforming in rebounding.

 

[superrific]

He had a knack for making big plays at UNC too. His improved shooting is the biggest thing for him.

His better shooting. I'm extremely skeptical that he has actually improved because his FT % is almost exactly where it was. I mean, exactly -- all three years his FT % has been 65, 67, 69. I mean, damn. It's really hard to be a 40% 3 point shooter with those FT %s. Not impossible, but rare. Remember: Seth shot 40%+ from 3 two years ago.

He's also playing 25 mpg, some of which is because blowouts early in the season but he only played 25 minutes in their loss and 27 minutes in their narrow escape against PSU. He's still fouling too much and the turnovers! He only had 2 against MSU but 8 (!!) against NE.

He would definitely be better than the PG we are rolling out there this season, but nobody knew that we would strike out on everyone when he decided to transfer.

 

[superrific]

Height definitely helps. But, whatever the reason, this team is underperforming in rebounding.

J Stevenson has never been much of a rebounder. Look at his stats at Alabama. I think it's fair to say that Lubin's best skill is rebounding and that late subtraction probably foiled the plan a little bit.

 

[superrific]

But the fact is it sucks that it did not work out here

Sometimes guys need to be traded to motivate them. Look at Luka Doncic. He was fat with the Mavs. Then he got traded, and got in shape. I don't think it was a coincidence.

 

[stankeylegjones]

His better shooting. I'm extremely skeptical that he has actually improved because his FT % is almost exactly where it was. I mean, exactly -- all three years his FT % has been 65, 67, 69. I mean, damn. It's really hard to be a 40% 3 point shooter with those FT %s. Not impossible, but rare. Remember: Seth shot 40%+ from 3 two years ago.

He's also playing 25 mpg, some of which is because blowouts early in the season but he only played 25 minutes in their loss and 27 minutes in their narrow escape against PSU. He's still fouling too much and the turnovers! He only had 2 against MSU but 8 (!!) against NE.

He would definitely be better than the PG we are rolling out there this season, but nobody knew that we would strike out on everyone when he decided to transfer.

For me, it’s that he’s shooting a much higher percentage on a much higher volume of shots. He’s taken 88 3s so far this year. Last year he took 86 for the entire season.

 

[superrific]

He has been STELLAR tonight. Big shots, great assists, great floor presence. Two wins over top 10 teams in 3 days. They have a loss, yes, but I still say they are the best team in the country.

EC had 8 TOs against Nebraska, and shot 2-9.

 

[stankeylegjones]

J Stevenson has never been much of a rebounder. Look at his stats at Alabama. I think it's fair to say that Lubin's best skill is rebounding and that late subtraction probably foiled the plan a little bit.

There are clearly exceptions, like those two - tall players who don’t rebound at a high rate and shorter players who do (although VAL isn’t short). There’s more to rebounding than height, for sure, but height definitely helps.

 

[stankeylegjones]

EC had 8 TOs against Nebraska, and shot 2-9.

Every player can have games in which they struggle.

 

[superrific]

For me, it’s that he’s shooting a much higher percentage on a much higher volume of shots. He’s taken 88 3s so far this year. Last year he took 86 for the entire season.

It's true he's shooting more. And his sample size is larger than soph Trimble. But it's still not very large. NBA players usually have a pretty well established shooting ability by age 24, 25, and still they fluctuate 4 or 5 points above or below that average even over 82 games.

It's also worth noting that his 2 point % is down. His overall FG% is almost exactly the same. So same FT%, same FG%. Higher 3 point percentage. To me, that's not the profile of a better shooter. That looks like an anomalous 3pt % to me.

 

[superrific]

Every player can have games in which they struggle.

Of course. It's just that EC talk always springs up here when he has a good game. Did anyone notice that he was 0-5, 6 assists, 4TOs against Washington? And four fouls in 20 minutes?

His assist rate is down from when he was at UNC (though that is probably noise or possibly tempo). His A:TO ratio is almost exactly the same. His rebounding is slightly down, but again not significantly. His FT% is the same. His FG% is the same. His steal rate is slightly down (though again I am looking at non-pace adjusted numbers -- though Michigan's high scoring suggests that U of M's tempo is actually higher). He's fouling slightly less.

All in all, he's exactly the same player with the exception of that 3 point %. It's possible he's improved his 3 point % but it sure looks to me like it's a fluke.