Mooring put last year’s team on his back, and carried it to their 11-14 season. Without JoJo, they might have only won 7 or 8 games. And even this season he’s hit some key shots at critical points in games that have either won games, or extended them at times when they appeared to be getting away.
Having taken all of that into consideration, and with gratitude for JoJo in assuming the unfamiliar role as point guard on last year’s squad, I’ve come to the conclusion that, at least of late, Mooring’s downside far outweighs his upside.
He continually takes ill-advised shots. His 3-point percentage is currently .333, which is not very good. But he insists on jacking them up in critical situations. His defense is okay. His one particular talent is for taking charges, which can be a valuable tactic in drawing offensive fouls. But it’s also the toughest call for referees to make. They are just as likely to call a block, as a charge. So it’s risky.
The Rebels may have needed JoJo this season, as he was the closest thing they had to an outside presence. In today’s game, the 3-point shot is a necessary component of a team’s offense. We have arguably, the best frontcourt in the Mountain West, if not in the entire nation. If McCoy and Juiston had a potent perimeter offense to complement their play down low, The Rebel s might very well be undefeated.
But Coach Menzies had to go about rebuilding this program, one brick at time. He did a spectacular job of adding some terrific bricks in McCoy and Juiston. And Johnson was the right kind of point guard, when he didn’t get too offensive-minded, to set them up to succeed.
The missing pieces were legitimate outside threats. Hopefully, next season will bring some shooters. Of course, undoubtedly the frontcourt won’t look the same. And Johnson will be lost to eligibility. So we’ll be looking at a different team.
Marvin Menzies is a big-man’s coach. He developed them at New Mexico State. I believe we can be confident that he will continue to do so here at UNLV. Now let’s see if he can come up with shooters.
Mooring wasn’t the answer. I won’t be sorry to see his eligibility run out.
Go Rebels!
Having taken all of that into consideration, and with gratitude for JoJo in assuming the unfamiliar role as point guard on last year’s squad, I’ve come to the conclusion that, at least of late, Mooring’s downside far outweighs his upside.
He continually takes ill-advised shots. His 3-point percentage is currently .333, which is not very good. But he insists on jacking them up in critical situations. His defense is okay. His one particular talent is for taking charges, which can be a valuable tactic in drawing offensive fouls. But it’s also the toughest call for referees to make. They are just as likely to call a block, as a charge. So it’s risky.
The Rebels may have needed JoJo this season, as he was the closest thing they had to an outside presence. In today’s game, the 3-point shot is a necessary component of a team’s offense. We have arguably, the best frontcourt in the Mountain West, if not in the entire nation. If McCoy and Juiston had a potent perimeter offense to complement their play down low, The Rebel s might very well be undefeated.
But Coach Menzies had to go about rebuilding this program, one brick at time. He did a spectacular job of adding some terrific bricks in McCoy and Juiston. And Johnson was the right kind of point guard, when he didn’t get too offensive-minded, to set them up to succeed.
The missing pieces were legitimate outside threats. Hopefully, next season will bring some shooters. Of course, undoubtedly the frontcourt won’t look the same. And Johnson will be lost to eligibility. So we’ll be looking at a different team.
Marvin Menzies is a big-man’s coach. He developed them at New Mexico State. I believe we can be confident that he will continue to do so here at UNLV. Now let’s see if he can come up with shooters.
Mooring wasn’t the answer. I won’t be sorry to see his eligibility run out.
Go Rebels!
