jordan poole is drip boy stauskas

Squid

This show is presented by UGP & The Bo Store, and if it wasn’t for Rishi and Ryan nobody would get our jokes. Our other sponsors are also key to all of this: HomeSure Lending, Peak Wealth Management, Ann Arbor Elder Law, the Residence Inn Ann Arbor Downtown, the University of Michigan Alumni Association, Michigan Law Grad,Human Element, and Lantana Hummus

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1. The Brandon Johns Game: Indiana

starts at 1:00

Hey there Brandon Johns. Do we like him better than Davis? M offense devolved to a lot of heroball when he was in. Poole showing off his 19- and 20-foot game, and the thing he did to McBob.

2. The Jordan Poole Game: Penn State

starts at 1:00

Turnover fest was always going to be Michigan’s once they could get a run, and they did it with transition and a lot more help defense. Zavier Simpson kept their efficient PG to 44(!) ORtg.

3. Seth's Ace's Hockey Podcast

starts at 1:00

It was a long goal. A very long goal.

4. Around the Big Ten with Alex Cook

starts at 1:00

State spent the week without Langford, proved they’re right with Michigan on top of the league, plausible one seed. Minnesota-Wisconsin out-Big Ten’d Michigan-Penn State. Happ taken out of the game. Wisconsin doesn’t have the role players to complement Trice and Happ. Iowa plays you up to them, still can’t play defense, won an urgent game vs. Nebraska, who was just as desperate. Illinois is terrible, but are they really Rutgers-terrible?

MUSIC

  • "Candy (Drippin' Like Water)"—Snoop Dogg et al.
  • "Squid Song"—Rathergood
  • "Fear of Heights"—Apollo Sunshine
  • “Across 110th Street”

THE USUAL LINKS

I like the fact that I'm not the guy who sounds like a cynical dick anymore

swoop! [Marc-Gregor Campredon]

1/6/2019 – Michigan 74, Indiana 63 – 15-0, 4-0 Big Ten

Midway through the Penn State game Jordan Poole poked a pass into the PSU backcourt, corralled the ball before it got out of bounds, and attacked PSU's center with a nasty step-through that drew an appreciative "aouww" from play-by-play guy Jason Benetti. Poole got fouled, giving Dan Dakich the opportunity to neatly define Poole's ineffable Poole-ness:

"I guarantee you that he played so much basketball without a coach, or without a ref, or without a scoreboard. Just playing. Where out of bounds is the grass, or out of bounds is the street … there's such a difference between guys who just play and guys who are manufactured by a trainer."

Nobody will ever accuse Jordan Poole of being manufactured. His newly-activated driving game doesn't go in straight lines. It wanders all over the neighborhood like a Family Circus comic, leaving the befuddled in his wake. Watch question marks sprout from the heads of Indiana defenders:

Watch four different Indiana defenders form an honor guard for him as he swoops to the rim:

Watch this guy's best Nick Ward impression:

In one buttoned-down Bob Knight sense that last clip is not the right play. The right play is the kickout to an open 40% three point shooter in the corner. The off the dribble semi-contested jumper is a worse shot. The laws of math say pass. The laws of coaches with slicked-back hair and anger issues say pass.

The laws of basketball demand otherwise, and Jordan Poole is ruled by those and those alone. To not complete the highlight would be the gravest sin. To not take the heat check is unthinkable, because the heat check might go down. And then! And then, well, I mean. You know. The entire arena collapses, overdosed on swag.

This, I think, is what John Beilein meant last year when he said that Poole was a strange player for him to coach. His career has been built by taking limited athletes and drilling them on the basics until they're the kind of regimented outfit that never finishes outside the top 10 in turnover rate. There's a certain mechanical aspect to what Michigan does. This is completely, obviously fine. But with limited exceptions its the system that makes the players go. These days NBA evaluations of Michigan players come with Beilein-is-too-good-at-systems disclaimers.

Poole does stuff that makes your palms itch. Then the shot goes in and you have to pretend that you were on board with the departmental reorganization all along. Yes sir, promoting a technical superstar who's worn the same silvery sweatpants for four years to management is a good idea. Yes sir, that contested NBA three with 20 seconds on the shot clock was within the bounds of the gameplan. Carry on.

You can't yell at a guy for shot selection when he's hitting 60%/47%. Half of those threes are from NBA range. In four Big Ten games Poole is 17/21(!) from two. As the season moves along here his usage is ticking upwards and his efficiency is holding steady.

The swag is approaching uncontained levels. So Poole's a weird guy to coach when you've spent your career being the best fundamentals coach in basketball. But you can't tamp down the swag and expect Poole to remain Poole. A tame unicorn is just a horse.

[After THE JUMP: Brandon Johns reporting for duty]

Special Guest: Ace Anbender returns to the Residence Inn Ann Arbor Downtown.

The Sponsors

he show is presented by UGP & The Bo Store, and if it wasn’t for Rishi and Ryan nobody would get our jokes. Our other sponsors are also key to all of this: HomeSure Lending, Peak Wealth Management, Ann Arbor Elder Law, the Residence Inn Ann Arbor Downtown, the University of Michigan Alumni Association, Michigan Law Grad,Human Element, and Lantana Hummus

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1. The Backcourt

starts at 1:00

Optimistic about the defense: The two most important defensive positions are point guard and center, and everyone else is lanky. PG: Zavier Simpson was excluded from the All-B1G team so let’s revenge tour. Z’s shooting has to get better because can’t hide him as much. More defined role for Eli Brooks. DeJulius to come on later? SG: Poole is our shot at a lethal scorer on this team—can be average defender; no more getting back-cut. Nunez has a defined role. SF: Charles Matthews is still the Kentucky transfer, i.e. the least Beilein player ever, but he goes left sometimes now. More effective as a Beta dog. Can he get more Beilein-y?

The Frontcourt

starts at 29:53

PF: Iggy Buckets is a 40%+ spot-up shooter who took a lot of bad AAU shots. Could be a 1-and-done. Livers is a glue guy, but at 12% usage last year doesn’t bode well—lose the passivity or make an impact as a rebounder. Johns needs a year—do they push him at the 4 or 5? C: Teske is significantly more 1990s big man than Mo but if he can elbow-jump a bit he’s an excellent P&R guy, especially on the re-screen. Adds huge defensive value, including steals. What is Austin Davis? Gotta foul less but MSU went at him and it didn’t work. More on Johns, and some Mr. Basketball chip-on-the-shoulder games with MSU. Castleton is Mo 2.0 with shotblocking, but expecting a redshirt unless Davis is disappointing.

The Rest of the Conference

starts at 53:20

Not great. The unanimous conference favorite from everyone but us is Michigan State, who’s starting Nick Ward and Tillman, and they’re going to be playing Goens 20% of the time, plus McQuaid in a bigger role sans Bridges. Langford’s inefficient deep two game makes you wonder what Beilein would have made that guy. Leaning on Winston, and “Mr. Basketball” Foster Loyer. Then Michigan. Then the morass: IU brings in the biggest impact freshman in the conference in Lankford but making the dance is the goal. OSU lost most everybody from last year. Want to like Iowa—they’re like a parody of MSU; why is their defense so bad? Nebraska: Roby & Palmer & Copeland and experience—should have been a 9-seed last year. UW: what was that? Trying to remember who’s on the rest.

A moment to talk with Ace about what he’s doing now. The GoFundMe might’ve saved his life.

4. Around the Big Ten with Jamie Mac

Starts at 1:25:29

Marcus Ray now believes the best team in the Big Ten is Michigan State with Rocky Lombardi at quarterback. The Iowa 14, and Frames Janklin’s timeouts, attempted timeouts, and icing his own kicker. McSorley’s degradation. Maryland averaged a first down per play vs Lovie’s Lini. Go bowling Terps. Cats for the West! Jonathan Taylor (11 carries for 46 yards) is now a fumbler, Turtle punted on 4th and 2 again and invented the fullback two-minute drill. Northwestern could win the West or not go to a bowl game, or both? David Blough and Purdue got by the MSU ghosts and MSU rain—shoulda given D.J. Knox more carries. A very on-brand IU performance, even when they were down 31-9 Jamie never lost faith that the Hoosiers could come back to tie it then lose in heartbreaking fashion. Angry Minnesota Running Back Hating God. Daniel Faaele making an impact.

MUSIC

  • "None Shall Pass"—Aesop Rock
  • "I'm Slowly Turning Into You"—The White Stripes
  • "Play It Right"—Sylvan Esso
  • “Across 110th Street”

THE USUAL LINKS

Thank you for sharing your voice and your nipples with us.

QB heavy option football against Don Brown: good luck with that!