Recap: Kansas vs Arizona (Maui Classic)

Before this season started, we were all warned that we'd experience ups and downs because our team is young. I never expected to experience such a full range all in one game, so early in the season. Bust out the Rogaine because I don't know if I'll have any hair left when this is all done!

We saw what happens when a talented but EXTREMELY young team runs into a seasoned, experienced, and defensively sharp team at the beginning of the season. Arizona forced 27 turnovers ... 8 in the first few minutes. Their defensive tenacity set the tone for the whole game, and we watched our beloved Jayhawks scratch and claw their way for baskets wherever they could find them ... that is, if they held on to the ball long enough.

The fact that Kaun was our leading scorer is remarkable given that our guards couldn't hold on long enough to make an entry pass. Oh wait, it's because he got putbacks. Never mind.

But all in all, I find more positives in this game than negative. We got down early. Big. We came back and tied it. When it was 20-4, I thought the final score would be 105-70, or at least it LOOKED that way. Our boys didn't hang their heads. They decided to bear down and play defense. Boy did they play defense. They just forgot to rebound. Arizona's 28%-FG is very misleading. Give a team 27 turnover freebies, and half of the rebounds when they miss their shots, and you can basically double that percentage.

It's early, but several things stand about this team and its players:

- This is a team of playmakers. In years past, we've had maybe 1-2 playmakers and a bunch of role players. ('02 an d'03 were exceptions). But this team has kids who want to make something happen. Right now, that's causing problems, but I expect it to pay dividends when this team gels.

- Kaun really worked hard this offseason. His attitude, confidence ... everything is light years ahead of where he was last season. But it's early, and I hope this continues.

- Hey Mario, we're not in Alaska anymore. The level of competition he faced there did ill-prepare him for the likes of Arizona. I hope the crash course Mario is having right now doesn't damage his ego too much, because we need his talent desperately. Those two straight turnovers left him naked. He can either learn from it and grow, or it could have started a confidence slump.

- We need work on rebounding. With big bodies like Giles and Kaun, and a guard like Rush who really gets after the boards, we should not be so vulnerable. Maybe Self preaches defense on the shot more than positioning for the rebound?

- where's the 3-pt shooting going to come from? In today's college game, you can't be a contender unless you can shoot at least decently from behind the arc. On paper, we've got the shooters (Downs, Chalmers, Rush, Hawkins), but it's not coming to fruition in games.

So, with 2 games under our belt, one cupcake and one monster, that should about average out to a reasonable level of competition. Here's my statistical rankings for the team, beginning with a disclaimer.

My statistical analysis of the team's players. The SANZ rating measures how much and efficiently each player contributes to HIS OWN team's statistics. DO NOT COMPARE player ratings on one team to the other team ... they are ONLY valid as comparison to players on the same team. These ratings can show how balanced a team is, and who its key contributors are. Naturally, it cannot measure things not captured in a boxscore (screens, defensive, leadership, hand in face, etc.).

Regular = Plays at least 5 mpg and plays at near-average level or better
Role = Plays at least 15 mpg but plays considerably below average
Dud = Plays 5-15 mpg, but plays considerably below average
Scrub = Plays < 5 mpg

Small = Guard 6-3 or smaller
Combo = Any player between 6-4 and 6-7, or any G 6-8 or taller, anyone who meets criteria for Small and Big
Big = Any F 6-8 or taller, or any C

KANSAS (Rotation = 7 deep = 6 Regular + 1 Role)

34.99 Sasha Kaun REGULAR
14.38 Russell Robinson REGULAR
12.86 Mario Chalmers REGULAR
11.87 Matt Kleinmann Scrub
8.30 Brandon Rush REGULAR
5.59 Julian Wright REGULAR
-0.30 C.J. Giles REGULAR
-2.30 Jeff Hawkins ROLE
-7.77 Micah Downs Dud
-11.41 Christian Moody Dud
-20.09 Stephen Vinson Dud
-21.17 Jeremy Case Scrub


Analysis:

These numbers are not terribly meaningful yet, but we can start seeing some trends. Remember, this is ON PAPER, not a player's true value.

It's hard to argue that anyone has been more valuable than Kaun in our first two games. His numbers are strongest on the team in PTS, 2FG, D-Reb, T-Reb. And he hurts himself only in FT.

As much flack as some have given Robinson, his stats don't back that up. Russell leads the team in my 3FG category and is strong in AST and STL. These are crucial at his position. His turnovers are high, but since these ratings compare only to our team, they hurt him less than one might expect. Besides that, I feel that he's been a steadying presence on the team. I'm encouraged by his performance so far, but it needs to improve a great deal.

Mario's strongest categories are FT and STL. He's worst on the team in TO and BLK. But because he scores and has a decent 2FG, he's higher than most in the ratings.

Kleinmann performed well in his one minute, but you have to ignore this ... note the "scrub" rating. Not enough data.

Rush's rating may be lower, but he's probably been the best all-around performer in the stats. That is, he doesn't have one or two categories that boost him, but he also doesn't have any that are a drag. He's above average in all the shooting categories, scoring, rebounds. Basically, he's been better than average at everything. If he continues, I expect his rating to rise, because some of the other players' strong categories will start to drop back to the average.

Julian's about the same as Rush, except that he has fares worse in TO and PF. Should be interesting to see where his numbers head after a few more games.

Giles wouldn't be so low if not for his devastatingly low 2FG rating. Otherwise, he's kept his PF and TO under control and leads the team in BLK. So, expect his rating to rise rapidly once he starts shooting better. And keep in mind, 2FG is most important for the big position.

Hawkins would be a "dud" if not for the fact he plays at least 15 mpg. Jeff is the worst on the team in PTS but has a decent 3FG rating. He needs a few more STL and AST before being rated higher as a small.

Downs has only one game under his belt. And he didn't contribute much other than shooting and scoring. He needs more of the other contributing stats (RBD, STL, AST, etc) to make a move on this chart. If he could shoot some 3's without doing those other things though, he could still be a "Regular" on the rotation, IMO.

Moody doesn't rebound well, doesn't score much, worse than average in BLK. On paper, he's a terrible big. I'll leave it to others to decide whether his contributions warrant a "Regular" spot on the rotation. But these numbers argue otherwise.

That's it! Let's hope we turn it around against Arkansas!

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