Biggest disappointment in the game last night and the play over the last couple weeks is that we are not seeing the typical maturation of the team as we have seen under Coach Kodiak the last few years. It seems that Coach Tinkle is actually out-doing Coach K in elevating his team during the season. I had been holding out hope the Utes could finish strong and make some noise in the Pac-12 tournament. It could still happen, but it is looking more-and-more like the team does not have “it”, team confidence and a go-to guy who can make his own shot when the chips are down as Thompson managed to do for the Beavs.
I had hoped that Kuzma could be the guy, he showed flashes of brilliance through the season and even, at times, vs OSU. Maybe he is a year away from true greatness. At least these sort of end-of-game performances make it very unlikely he will skip to the NBA. We lose Bonam and Bealer, so maturation of Daniels is needed and the Utes will have a solid core for 2017-18. Jayce J, to some extent, PVD and Rawson have been disappointing so either they need to really step up or step aside for some other new blood coming in.
Regarding coaching, the situation is oddly parallel to football, in my opinion. Head coach is doing OK, but has some deficiencies he needs to lean on coaching staff more for, and or seek out new staff that can complement his skills. I am thinking end-of-game situational planning and out-of-bounds plays.
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