Welcome Greg Calixte

[mkaufman1]

Along with Otis Kier and Boyd having big nights last night let’s hear it for Greg Calixte continuing to work and showing growth every game. Last night he showed off some post moves and continued to show ability on the glass and on the defensive end.

Keep it up young fella.

 

[MASONscott]

Patriotsince81 mentioned it in another string, but last night Brad Edwards said the biggest beneficiary of Reuter being on the roster has been Calixte. Working with/against him has accelerated his learning curve.

 

[dr. gunnie]

Greg has grown from just a body to giving us some production now and then... he's holding his own which is great at this point.

I'm wondering what will happen when he goes from a starter his freshman year to coming off the bench his soph and junior seasons (presuming Reuter will be the guy)?

 

[GSII]

Greg has grown from just a body to giving us some production now and then... he's holding his own which is great at this point.

I'm wondering what will happen when he goes from a starter his freshman year to coming off the bench his soph and junior seasons (presuming Reuter will be the guy)?

Ideally we should have another big on the roster. If Greg and reuter are practicing together and showing great strides I believe they should also play together in the games next year. But since we don't have another big on the roster Greg will hopefully have no drop-off when subbing in for reuter, assuming Reuter is all that

 

[Patriot8]

I listen to games more than I watch due to my schedule, but it seems that Greg has become very deliberate when he gets the ball. A couple of times last night he was fed in the post and according to Rohland (who is a very good, descriptive PxP guy) he usually doesn't waste much time before making his move. That's an instant improvement over the other young bigs who have cycled through the program recently. He's only going to get stronger, and the game is only going to slow down for him. If he and Reuter can find something in the area of a 22/18 minute split next year, I think that sets the team up tremendously.

 

[MasonCrew]

As a life long Spurs fan, the idea of two bigs holding down the middle gets me hard.

 

[gmutom]

I don't think it has to be an either-or situation with Calixte and Reuter. Why not start both of them with Otis at PG, Grayer at the 2 and Mar at the 3 (where he should be playing)? Then you could have Kier, Douglas-Stanley, Boyd, Greene, Miller and Wilson coming off the bench.

If we want to go smaller against more guard-oriented teams, you could go with Otis, Kier, Grayer, Mar and Reuter. The luxury Dave will have next year is being able to mix and match lineups rather than having to rely on 3 freshmen coming off the bench.

 

[MASONscott]

Reuter wasn't used as a shooter at UVA, but Dave has said that Reuter has a nice jump shot and can be used away from the basket.

 

[GMUgemini]

Reuter wasn't used as a shooter at UVA, but Dave has said that Reuter has a nice jump shot and can be used away from the basket.

It is possible it will be Reuter at the 4 and Calixte at the 5. Calixte does seem like he needs to be closer to the basket to be effective. Maybe Reuter can play the high-low game with him setting up in the high post?

 

[dr. gunnie]

I don't think it has to be an either-or situation with Calixte and Reuter. Why not start both of them with Otis at PG, Grayer at the 2 and Mar at the 3 (where he should be playing)? Then you could have Kier, Douglas-Stanley, Boyd, Greene, Miller and Wilson coming off the bench.

If we want to go smaller against more guard-oriented teams, you could go with Otis, Kier, Grayer, Mar and Reuter. The luxury Dave will have next year is being able to mix and match lineups rather than having to rely on 3 freshmen coming off the bench.

I guess my point was how is a guy going to react when they started for a year, only to come off the bench the following year? With your lineup, how do you think Kier would react to coming off the bench after starting for two years? Just wondering if this will be an issue.

 

[mkaufman1]

I guess my point was how is a guy going to react when they started for a year, only to come off the bench the following year? With your lineup, how do you think Kier would react to coming off the bench after starting for two years? Just wondering if this will be an issue.

Kier doesn't strike me as someone who would sulk when coming off the bench after starting for two years. Considering that he would probably be playing significant minutes still, he'd probably take whatever role that helps the team win.

Interestingly enough I wonder if he becomes main point guard his senior year.

That said, next year the team finally has enough depth that everyone can play their true position and have a chance to contribute, with leaning more on the experienced group versus the true freshmen.

 

[gmutom]

I guess my point was how is a guy going to react when they started for a year, only to come off the bench the following year? With your lineup, how do you think Kier would react to coming off the bench after starting for two years? Just wondering if this will be an issue.

Oh, I got that point and think it's valid. Boyd seems to be handling coming off the bench pretty well, although he obviously hasn't started as many games as Kier. As long as DP keeps bringing in good kids who don't get caught up in when they play, I think it will all work itself out.

 

[Herndon]

Greg has grown from just a body to giving us some production now and then... he's holding his own which is great at this point.

I'm wondering what will happen when he goes from a starter his freshman year to coming off the bench his soph and junior seasons (presuming Reuter will be the guy)?

FWIW, over his last 5, he's averaging 7.2 points and 6.8 rebounds while shooting 53% from the floor.

That's better than "some production now and then". That's rock solid.

Those numbers would have made him a slightly above average big man in the A-10 last year.

 

[dr. gunnie]

Those numbers would have made him a slightly above average big man in the A-10 last year.

Not sure why you took "some production now and then" as a shot at him. He's averaging 26 min a game and gets us somewhere between 3 to 4 baskets during those 26 min. To me, that's giving us some production every now and then. I'm very happy with his progress... he's improved a lot.... you don't have to get so defensive!

Also, my guess is if you took the best 5 games from those same A-10 big men last year, they would be better than 7.2 points and 6.8 rebounds... a little skewed to take his best 5 and compare them with the average of everyone else.

He'll be just fine.

 

[gmutom]

It would be almost blasphemous to claim Greg Calixte is or will ever be as good as Will Thomas or Jai Lewis, but I was pleasantly surprised when I looked up the numbers from their respective freshman campaigns.

Jai Lewis (2002-03)

• Average Minutes/Game: 22.4
• Average Points/Game: 6.7
• Average Rebounds/Game: 5.6

Will Thomas (2004-05)

• Average Minutes/Game: 23
• Average Points/Game: 5.7
• Average Rebounds/Game: 5.6

Greg Calixte (last five games)

• Average Minutes/Game: 26
• Average Points/Game: 7.2
• Average Rebounds/Game: 6.8

Gunnie's point is valid that five games does not give us an apples-to-apples comparison, but it could also be argued that Greg does play in a tougher conference (A10 vs. CAA) and that he is playing without the benefit of another big man on the floor (Jai had Jesse Young; Will had Jai). It will be interesting to see how Greg fares when he and Reuter play together.

It will be fun to revisit this topic at the end of the season and over the next three years. There will never be another Will Thomas or Jai Lewis at Mason, but I will happily take a poor man's Will Thomas or Jai Lewis any day of the week.

 

[Leesburg Chankenstank III]

It would be almost blasphemous to claim Greg Calixte is or will ever be as good as Will Thomas or Jai Lewis, but I was pleasantly surprised when I looked up the numbers from their respective freshman campaigns.

Jai Lewis (2002-03)

• Average Minutes/Game: 22.4
• Average Points/Game: 6.7
• Average Rebounds/Game: 5.6

Will Thomas (2004-05)

• Average Minutes/Game: 23
• Average Points/Game: 5.7
• Average Rebounds/Game: 5.6

Greg Calixte (last five games)

• Average Minutes/Game: 26
• Average Points/Game: 7.2
• Average Rebounds/Game: 6.8

Gunnie's point is valid that five games does not give us an apples-to-apples comparison, but it could also be argued that Greg does play in a tougher conference (A10 vs. CAA) and that he is playing without the benefit of another big man on the floor (Jai had Jesse Young; Will had Jai). It will be interesting to see how Greg fares when he and Reuter play together.

It will be fun to revisit this topic at the end of the season and over the next three years. There will never be another Will Thomas or Jai Lewis at Mason, but I will happily take a poor man's Will Thomas or Jai Lewis any day of the week.

Jai was the most in shape fat guy I've ever seen.

 

[mason89]

It would be almost blasphemous to claim Greg Calixte is or will ever be as good as Will Thomas or Jai Lewis, but I was pleasantly surprised when I looked up the numbers from their respective freshman campaigns.

Jai Lewis (2002-03)

• Average Minutes/Game: 22.4
• Average Points/Game: 6.7
• Average Rebounds/Game: 5.6

Will Thomas (2004-05)

• Average Minutes/Game: 23
• Average Points/Game: 5.7
• Average Rebounds/Game: 5.6

Greg Calixte (last five games)

• Average Minutes/Game: 26
• Average Points/Game: 7.2
• Average Rebounds/Game: 6.8

Gunnie's point is valid that five games does not give us an apples-to-apples comparison, but it could also be argued that Greg does play in a tougher conference (A10 vs. CAA) and that he is playing without the benefit of another big man on the floor (Jai had Jesse Young; Will had Jai). It will be interesting to see how Greg fares when he and Reuter play together.

It will be fun to revisit this topic at the end of the season and over the next three years. There will never be another Will Thomas or Jai Lewis at Mason, but I will happily take a poor man's Will Thomas or Jai Lewis any day of the week.

Good research, Tom. Love the comparisons. Another intangible point is that each of the three had/have an unflashy, workman type attitude on the floor. None was/is very vocal or fiery as freshmen, but grew into their leadership roles as time went on.

I'm very excited to see him on the floor with Reuter next year. From what I've read, their games should complement each other quite well.

 

[dr. gunnie]

Hate to be that guy, but I’m not a fan of the comparison with those numbers.

Either compare all of Greg’s games to all of other players (Jai and Will) or compare his best 5 game stretch to the best 5 game stretches of those two. My guess is the best 5 games of those guys would be much higher - possibly double (but I’m to lazy to go through all the box scores).

I think when you start fudging the numbers like this to compare apples to oranges (which, in fairness you did mention you were doing), you start to build up unfair expectations. Then some will bash the kid later when he doesn’t meet those expectations. I’m just going to let him develop and be happy with whatever meaningful production he gives us, which is increasing week by week.

 

[gmutom]

Doc, we agree more than we don't. It's admittedly not accurate to use just five of Greg's games and assume he will maintain that level the rest of the year, although I do disagree that the five games were cherry-picked as his "best" stretch to fudge the numbers. They were just used regarding the significant minutes he's now playing to get a glimpse of what he might be able to consistently provide as a regular contributor.

My hunch is that at the end of the year Greg's points and rebounding averages will still be in the same ballpark as Will and Jai at the conclusion of their respective freshman seasons — when they both received all-freshman team honors, if I'm not mistaken. What excites me the most is wondering where Greg might be a year, two years and even three years from now. Only time will provide those answers.

 

[dr. gunnie]

He’s definitely made a lot of progress this season. I thought he looked terrific against UMass. I don’t see the skill set yet that would leave me to believe he could be in the Jai/Will ballpark (mostly what he can do with the ball in his hand), but if he works as hard as those guys did in the offseason, he can be a very solid big man in the A10.