I aint seen nuffin bout nobody from New York fore this! I have seen RoPoTho and he is going to murder all the unbelievers when he gets down here!!!
Whoa! That cross-over dribble and shoulder fake that RP used to spring himself loose for a layup... GOOD STUFF!! (1:17 in on the video.)
Excited to see Polite in a Mason uniform. Looks like a point guard who can create, has good length, and can get to the rim. He also can shoot. Him and XJ should be a great tandem for the next 3 years. Yes please.
I also like how he can go to his left and finish with his left hand. Athletic and fundamentally sound with both hands. I could see him at the 2 as well as the point.
He can finish with his left hand huh...lol Jokes aside, I definitely agree. He is that combo guard that Paulsen likes, but he has the A10 length that Mason hasn’t had. Hartwell will probably still be primary for a while, but with the depth and hopefully everyone staying healthy, nobody will need to play 35 minutes a game. I’ve been saying that line about depth for 2 years now but hopefully at some point it comes true?
Can we please not sleep on Hartwell, who was our best PG against Dayton? I love that we have three guys over the next two years who can handle the rock. If XJ can really work on his perimeter shooting in the offseason, it will give our coaching staff the ability to move all three of them around between the 1 and 2. That's a luxury we haven't had at Mason in years if ever.
I basically edited my post to address this point in so many words, haha. I definitely agree with you. Hartwell is certainly a key piece going forward and the key is that nobody needs to play 37-38 minutes a game with the depth (assuming health etc etc etc)
If XJ can improve on his mid range and 3 shots he has the potential to be a beast. He gets to the rim now. Could end up being a special player.
Completely agree. He definitely has that "it" factor. I actually wish XJ would be more aggressive. because he does have that innate Marquise-like ability to penetrate and finish. He is typically a slow first-half player, so the key for him as it is with all freshmen is playing consistently the entire game. Considering how well he has played at times this season, the sky really is the limit for this kid.
Help? I would assume so. But I am always hesitant to put too much stock in HS honors. I remember signing Louis Birdsong and everyone getting super stoked when he was most outstanding player of Baltimore Catholic league. One of our best players ever was Will Thomas and he had just won that honor a couple of years prior. Nothing against Birdsong at all, but he never ended u being the player I expected. That's one little example, but think how many times one of our highly regarded recruits didn't quite pan out and one of our very under-recruited guys was a stud. Hancock and the entire starting 5 (or 6) on the Final 4 squad come to mind, while perhaps the highest ranked recruit on that team was Konate
What’s even more impressive: Polite had never even been honorable mention all-Met, but our staff found him and secured a commitment before he blew up into a first-teamer as a senior. That’s known as great recruiting, folks.
By the way, I didn't intend for my last post to be negative toward Polite, though I think it reads that way. Jim is correct, this type of recruit is what we loved about the Jim L regime. Under tbe radar, we saw something in him, and he blew up