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Topic: The Rotation
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FearLeon
1/5/2026 3:48 PM
Bobcat Love's Sense of Shame wrote:expand_more
7 is tight even for Boals.

He'd rather sell his parents into slavery than play 9, but 7... reeks of the lack of confidence in his team.
It could be 6 with Elliott out.

I think I'd actually like to see Connors get those minutes, so long as Boals pulls him quickly (after a game or two) if he doesn't improve.

A lot of shooters are rhythm shooters and Connors has the highest upside of anybody who could fill those minutes. He's only half a season removed from shooting 40% from three in a better conference than the MAC on a high volume of takes. See if you can get him back on track, and if not, who the hell knows.
I wish I had the same faith in Conners, but I don't. He's had enough time to find his shot and he's not even close. I'd rather have Burris/Fisher take all of Conners minutes and see what we have here in those two moving forward.
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GoCats105
1/5/2026 6:39 PM
Bobcat Love's Sense of Shame wrote:expand_more
7 is tight even for Boals.

He'd rather sell his parents into slavery than play 9, but 7... reeks of the lack of confidence in his team.
It could be 6 with Elliott out.

I think I'd actually like to see Connors get those minutes, so long as Boals pulls him quickly (after a game or two) if he doesn't improve.

A lot of shooters are rhythm shooters and Connors has the highest upside of anybody who could fill those minutes. He's only half a season removed from shooting 40% from three in a better conference than the MAC on a high volume of takes. See if you can get him back on track, and if not, who the hell knows.
Well...Appalachian State does have a dedicated basketball practice facility. Maybe he's just not getting the amount of practice shots he needed to get in rhythm. I'm half joking with this response, but...
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Bobcat Love's Sense of Shame
1/5/2026 6:53 PM
GoCats105 wrote:expand_more
7 is tight even for Boals.

He'd rather sell his parents into slavery than play 9, but 7... reeks of the lack of confidence in his team.
It could be 6 with Elliott out.

I think I'd actually like to see Connors get those minutes, so long as Boals pulls him quickly (after a game or two) if he doesn't improve.

A lot of shooters are rhythm shooters and Connors has the highest upside of anybody who could fill those minutes. He's only half a season removed from shooting 40% from three in a better conference than the MAC on a high volume of takes. See if you can get him back on track, and if not, who the hell knows.
Well...Appalachian State does have a dedicated basketball practice facility. Maybe he's just not getting the amount of practice shots he needed to get in rhythm. I'm half joking with this response, but...
Or maybe their coach runs actual sets to create open looks for guys where they're most efficient.
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MonroeClassmate
1/5/2026 8:51 PM
Does anyone know if the assistant coaches on the bench make suggestions to Boals or does Boals sub people when he thinks of it? I ask because it seemed like Kuany in two recent games looked pretty good and then once subbed out never saw the court again and an assistant should have pleaded the case for the Aussie to see the floor again.

As posted earlier by one of the board's savants, I too would tell Conners that he is getting all the minutes caused by the injury. Let him know he won't be yanked after a few misses and perhaps for the remainder of the season we will see some 40% nights.

If after three games he is Sheldon like than sit him at the very end of the bench.
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FJC31
1/6/2026 11:20 AM
Bobcat Love's Sense of Shame wrote:expand_more
7 is tight even for Boals.

He'd rather sell his parents into slavery than play 9, but 7... reeks of the lack of confidence in his team.
It could be 6 with Elliott out.

I think I'd actually like to see Connors get those minutes, so long as Boals pulls him quickly (after a game or two) if he doesn't improve.

A lot of shooters are rhythm shooters and Connors has the highest upside of anybody who could fill those minutes. He's only half a season removed from shooting 40% from three in a better conference than the MAC on a high volume of takes. See if you can get him back on track, and if not, who the hell knows.
Well...Appalachian State does have a dedicated basketball practice facility. Maybe he's just not getting the amount of practice shots he needed to get in rhythm. I'm half joking with this response, but...
Or maybe their coach runs actual sets to create open looks for guys where they're most efficient.
I looked at Conners' shot chart. Without paying a subscription, I can't view his from last year.

He's shooting 11% from the corners and 28% from above the break this season. The irony in the latter, is he's shooting better than Hadaway with nearly half as many shots.

Taking a look at splits, Conners has shot 39% as a starter in comparison to 25% in a reserve role. Sheldon has shot 35% in reserve and only 31% as a starter for his career.

This is Conners first year in reserve and Sheldon's first as a starter. Given how the year has gone, 12 games to me is enough to consider the swap to see if the uptick in minutes makes a difference for Conners and even Sheldon's effectiveness for that matter.

Basically, I echo your thoughts that I don't think this team coached to where its most efficient.
Last Edited: 1/6/2026 11:22:33 AM by FJC31
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Bobcat Love's Sense of Shame
1/6/2026 11:53 AM
FJC31 wrote:expand_more
7 is tight even for Boals.

He'd rather sell his parents into slavery than play 9, but 7... reeks of the lack of confidence in his team.
It could be 6 with Elliott out.

I think I'd actually like to see Connors get those minutes, so long as Boals pulls him quickly (after a game or two) if he doesn't improve.

A lot of shooters are rhythm shooters and Connors has the highest upside of anybody who could fill those minutes. He's only half a season removed from shooting 40% from three in a better conference than the MAC on a high volume of takes. See if you can get him back on track, and if not, who the hell knows.
Well...Appalachian State does have a dedicated basketball practice facility. Maybe he's just not getting the amount of practice shots he needed to get in rhythm. I'm half joking with this response, but...
Or maybe their coach runs actual sets to create open looks for guys where they're most efficient.
I looked at Conners' shot chart. Without paying a subscription, I can't view his from last year.

He's shooting 11% from the corners and 28% from above the break this season. The irony in the latter, is he's shooting better than Hadaway with nearly half as many shots.

Taking a look at splits, Conners has shot 39% as a starter in comparison to 25% in a reserve role. Sheldon has shot 35% in reserve and only 31% as a starter for his career.

This is Conners first year in reserve and Sheldon's first as a starter. Given how the year has gone, 12 games to me is enough to consider the swap to see if the uptick in minutes makes a difference for Conners and even Sheldon's effectiveness for that matter.

Basically, I echo your thoughts that I don't think this team coached to where its most efficient.
Last year Connors shot 50% from the corners and those shots accounted for about 38% of his takes. Me was much better than than from above the break.

This year he only has 9 takes from the corner -- about 20% of his takes.

Corner threes are typically harder to create. They're basically the best shot in basketball (aside from a shot at the rim, or free throws) and App State's system definitely seems like it created more of them than ours does, at least for Connors.

Generally, I don't think we do a great job of creating looks for our best players. Only Pavs and Simmons can really create their own offense well, and I don't think supporting guys consistently get good looks in the flow of the offense.
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FJC31
1/6/2026 6:58 PM
Bobcat Love's Sense of Shame wrote:expand_more
7 is tight even for Boals.

He'd rather sell his parents into slavery than play 9, but 7... reeks of the lack of confidence in his team.
It could be 6 with Elliott out.

I think I'd actually like to see Connors get those minutes, so long as Boals pulls him quickly (after a game or two) if he doesn't improve.

A lot of shooters are rhythm shooters and Connors has the highest upside of anybody who could fill those minutes. He's only half a season removed from shooting 40% from three in a better conference than the MAC on a high volume of takes. See if you can get him back on track, and if not, who the hell knows.
Well...Appalachian State does have a dedicated basketball practice facility. Maybe he's just not getting the amount of practice shots he needed to get in rhythm. I'm half joking with this response, but...
Or maybe their coach runs actual sets to create open looks for guys where they're most efficient.
I looked at Conners' shot chart. Without paying a subscription, I can't view his from last year.

He's shooting 11% from the corners and 28% from above the break this season. The irony in the latter, is he's shooting better than Hadaway with nearly half as many shots.

Taking a look at splits, Conners has shot 39% as a starter in comparison to 25% in a reserve role. Sheldon has shot 35% in reserve and only 31% as a starter for his career.

This is Conners first year in reserve and Sheldon's first as a starter. Given how the year has gone, 12 games to me is enough to consider the swap to see if the uptick in minutes makes a difference for Conners and even Sheldon's effectiveness for that matter.

Basically, I echo your thoughts that I don't think this team coached to where its most efficient.
Last year Connors shot 50% from the corners and those shots accounted for about 38% of his takes. Me was much better than than from above the break.

This year he only has 9 takes from the corner -- about 20% of his takes.

Corner threes are typically harder to create. They're basically the best shot in basketball (aside from a shot at the rim, or free throws) and App State's system definitely seems like it created more of them than ours does, at least for Connors.

Generally, I don't think we do a great job of creating looks for our best players. Only Pavs and Simmons can really create their own offense well, and I don't think supporting guys consistently get good looks in the flow of the offense.
Thanks for pulling last year. Not what I expected. Yea, it sort of feels like since Conners doesn’t have the set plays, he’s just taking any 3PT shot he can get in the time blocks he’s being given. The result — far less efficient.

Sometimes I wonder if our staff looks at any of the statistical resources that exist. If they do, they certainly seem to disregard the numbers.
Last Edited: 1/6/2026 6:58:36 PM by FJC31
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exhooper
1/7/2026 1:42 AM
They only give him rushed shots, at app state they ran plays that were designed for him to shoot the ball and if the shot wasn't there he would make his own because hes really a point guard before a shooter, look up his high school highlights. You can't put a player in, not run any plays for him and expect him to shoot 40 percent from 3 when he's really only passed the ball if a play doesn't work out or on a skip pass. They really need to put him at the pg, hes a pass first pg that can score if he needs to. Shel is really a off the dribble scorer not a pg but he should come in for Conners and Pav whenever they need breaks, Conners could easily avg 10 pts and 5 ast if they gave him 20 min at the pg. My nephew played with him in aau hes best when hes handling the ball and getting others open.
Last Edited: 1/7/2026 1:43:26 AM by exhooper
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exhooper
1/7/2026 1:44 AM
bingo
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Andrew Ruck
1/7/2026 7:39 AM
I consider App State a pretty comparable program, as evidenced by them lighting us up in the Convo last year as Conners played 37 minute as a Freshman. He has to be unhappy and surprised by how small of a role he is playing. It may look suspicious that I post this AFTER he had a good game, but I suspect the 40% he did last year is closer to his norm than what we've seen, and calls to just dismiss him to the scrap pile already are foolish. I think his ball skills and sound shooting form are evident. Some of the struggles may be system related but I suspect it is mostly just a small sample size and limited opportunities. I for one hope he understands the opportunity in front of him the next 2 years with Pavs & Sheldon heading out and he sticks around, I think he could be in the range of an all-MAC honorable mention type player.
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OUs LONG Driver
1/7/2026 8:37 AM
Andrew Ruck wrote:expand_more
I consider App State a pretty comparable program, as evidenced by them lighting us up in the Convo last year as Conners played 37 minute as a Freshman. He has to be unhappy and surprised by how small of a role he is playing. It may look suspicious that I post this AFTER he had a good game, but I suspect the 40% he did last year is closer to his norm than what we've seen, and calls to just dismiss him to the scrap pile already are foolish. I think his ball skills and sound shooting form are evident. Some of the struggles may be system related but I suspect it is mostly just a small sample size and limited opportunities. I for one hope he understands the opportunity in front of him the next 2 years with Pavs & Sheldon heading out and he sticks around, I think he could be in the range of an all-MAC honorable mention type player.
Connors is a Senior
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Andrew Ruck
1/7/2026 8:41 AM
Didn't get back in time to edit...I forgot he was a JUCO guy and last year was his first D1 year but his Junior year.

Well forget what I said about him sticking around. I still think he could end up hitting a lot of crucial shots for us down the stretch this year.
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FJC31
1/7/2026 9:01 AM
OUs LONG Driver wrote:expand_more
I consider App State a pretty comparable program, as evidenced by them lighting us up in the Convo last year as Conners played 37 minute as a Freshman. He has to be unhappy and surprised by how small of a role he is playing. It may look suspicious that I post this AFTER he had a good game, but I suspect the 40% he did last year is closer to his norm than what we've seen, and calls to just dismiss him to the scrap pile already are foolish. I think his ball skills and sound shooting form are evident. Some of the struggles may be system related but I suspect it is mostly just a small sample size and limited opportunities. I for one hope he understands the opportunity in front of him the next 2 years with Pavs & Sheldon heading out and he sticks around, I think he could be in the range of an all-MAC honorable mention type player.
Connors is a Senior
I was going to say, I didn't think he had more eligibility. Even if that was the case, what opportunity would be in front of him? Coming in, he was a more accomplished starter than Sheldon and is playing nearly 20 less mpg. He'd probably be one and done here. Especially with Kelly, Elliot, and now Burris (Boals' guys) in the mix.

I continue to amazed at how underutilized both Conners and Breath are this season. Both were coming off strong seasons against better competition. Especially in favor of Sheldon and now Hadaway -- who has really become more of a volume shooter and less efficient.

You'll never convince me that more of Conners and Breath eating to the minutes of Sheldon and Hadaway this season would be a bad thing down the stretch.
Last Edited: 1/7/2026 9:02:24 AM by FJC31
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greencat
1/7/2026 9:02 AM
If Conners played juco ball, can he not have more D-1 years per the Pavia ruling?
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spongeBOB CATpants
1/7/2026 12:31 PM
exhooper wrote:expand_more
They only give him rushed shots, at app state they ran plays that were designed for him to shoot the ball and if the shot wasn't there he would make his own because hes really a point guard before a shooter, look up his high school highlights. You can't put a player in, not run any plays for him and expect him to shoot 40 percent from 3 when he's really only passed the ball if a play doesn't work out or on a skip pass. They really need to put him at the pg, hes a pass first pg that can score if he needs to. Shel is really a off the dribble scorer not a pg but he should come in for Conners and Pav whenever they need breaks, Conners could easily avg 10 pts and 5 ast if they gave him 20 min at the pg. My nephew played with him in aau hes best when hes handling the ball and getting others open.
Pretty tough to make a case that he should be playing the point when we have an all-MAC first team caliber PG that plays almost the entire game. Conners had plenty of opportunity to prove himself and unfortunately it just didn't work out in his favor. His defensive net rating is also last on the team by a wide margin for qualified players based on EvanMiya.
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Andrew Ruck
1/7/2026 12:56 PM
greencat wrote:expand_more
If Conners played juco ball, can he not have more D-1 years per the Pavia ruling?
This is a real possibility. My understanding is for the moment, the Pavia ruling is still technically a specific case for a specific student athlete, but the precedent has been set. I think the NCAA granted a one year exemption for the 25-26 year, but only for players whose eligibility expired in the 24-25 year...I believe they did this as they hoped to shore up a permanent policy as ongoing legal battles get resolved? So there is no explicit declaration allowing someone like Conners another year, but it seems that could change at any moment and/or he could bring his own unique case to them.
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Ted Thompson
1/7/2026 5:34 PM
Andrew Ruck wrote:expand_more
If Conners played juco ball, can he not have more D-1 years per the Pavia ruling?
This is a real possibility. My understanding is for the moment, the Pavia ruling is still technically a specific case for a specific student athlete, but the precedent has been set. I think the NCAA granted a one year exemption for the 25-26 year, but only for players whose eligibility expired in the 24-25 year...I believe they did this as they hoped to shore up a permanent policy as ongoing legal battles get resolved? So there is no explicit declaration allowing someone like Conners another year, but it seems that could change at any moment and/or he could bring his own unique case to them.
I think you are correct. But JUCO coaches are absolutely recruiting kids telling them their years at JUCO won't count towards eligibility.
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M.D.W.S.T
1/8/2026 9:22 AM
Ted Thompson wrote:expand_more
If Conners played juco ball, can he not have more D-1 years per the Pavia ruling?
This is a real possibility. My understanding is for the moment, the Pavia ruling is still technically a specific case for a specific student athlete, but the precedent has been set. I think the NCAA granted a one year exemption for the 25-26 year, but only for players whose eligibility expired in the 24-25 year...I believe they did this as they hoped to shore up a permanent policy as ongoing legal battles get resolved? So there is no explicit declaration allowing someone like Conners another year, but it seems that could change at any moment and/or he could bring his own unique case to them.
I think you are correct. But JUCO coaches are absolutely recruiting kids telling them their years at JUCO won't count towards eligibility.
It's a hustle at every level.

I just asked the question about Mundy in a football thread. Pretty sure he's a RS Senior... but he played two years at Hutch in that Kansas JUCO league from Netflix...

The case by case just allows them to keep leverage over people. Piava is a commodity so he gets through. Mundy is a 2nd string DB at Ohio University so who cares!
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GoCats105
1/8/2026 5:46 PM
M.D.W.S.T wrote:expand_more
If Conners played juco ball, can he not have more D-1 years per the Pavia ruling?
This is a real possibility. My understanding is for the moment, the Pavia ruling is still technically a specific case for a specific student athlete, but the precedent has been set. I think the NCAA granted a one year exemption for the 25-26 year, but only for players whose eligibility expired in the 24-25 year...I believe they did this as they hoped to shore up a permanent policy as ongoing legal battles get resolved? So there is no explicit declaration allowing someone like Conners another year, but it seems that could change at any moment and/or he could bring his own unique case to them.
I think you are correct. But JUCO coaches are absolutely recruiting kids telling them their years at JUCO won't count towards eligibility.
It's a hustle at every level.

I just asked the question about Mundy in a football thread. Pretty sure he's a RS Senior... but he played two years at Hutch in that Kansas JUCO league from Netflix...

The case by case just allows them to keep leverage over people. Piava is a commodity so he gets through. Mundy is a 2nd string DB at Ohio University so who cares!
You have to remember that a lot of these guys (especially in football) aren't going to have a professional opportunity. They're gonna milk that NIL and rev share money for as long as they possibly can.
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MonroeClassmate
1/8/2026 6:46 PM
greencat wrote:expand_more
If Conners played juco ball, can he not have more D-1 years per the Pavia ruling?
Folks, see how GreenCat spelled the name of the subject being talked about in this thread currently?

Don't be LAZY. The spelling for Dior is ConnErs..he does not use two O's as the Irish spell it.
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Andrew Ruck
1/9/2026 10:28 AM
MonroeClassmate wrote:expand_more
If Conners played juco ball, can he not have more D-1 years per the Pavia ruling?
Folks, see how GreenCat spelled the name of the subject being talked about in this thread currently?

Don't be LAZY. The spelling for Dior is ConnErs..he does not use two O's as the Irish spell it.
Now this is just gonna make us want to spell it wrong just to irritate you. That is standard male behavior.
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exhooper
1/9/2026 3:47 PM
Last Edited: 1/13/2026 8:50:25 PM by exhooper
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spongeBOB CATpants
1/9/2026 4:27 PM
exhooper wrote:expand_more
Pav is a scoring shooting guard not a PG, the only reason he was put at the PG is because Sheldon avg 2 ast and 7 pts playing while avg 29 minutes a game. Dior at the PG would only open more opportunities up for Pav because Dior is a pass first guard before anything, he is honestly the best ball handler/passer on the team but when you put a 6’1 PG at SF simply to shoot the ball when someone else doesn’t have a shot, you obviously won’t see that ball handling ability, which is why I advised you to look at his hs or even juco highlights. The problem with this team is the coaches don't know their players true abilities so their im the wrong spots, the lineup should be Conners, Pav, Kelly, Hadaway, Simmons. Pass first PG, scoring SG, defensive/athletic SF, all around PF, and Dominant C. Dior is a good shooter when plays are ran for him but he's not the type of shooter you can just throw in the game whenever to hit a rushed 3 shots that get us back in the game and thats what they’ve been playing him as. And for defense like I said above, hes a 6’1 PG being put at the SF, you can’t talk about his defense when he is constantly put up against opponents that are 6’4+ it makes no sense at all hes clearly out of position.
Newsflash, our entire team is undersized. And your solution is to put Pav at the 2? Pav is the best PG in the league and he does it all, pass, shoot, create, control tempo, literally everything you could want in a PG in the MAC.

I couldn't possibly care less about high school or juco tape at this point. This is the big leagues none of that matters now.
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FearLeon
1/11/2026 10:37 AM
spongeBOB CATpants wrote:expand_more
Pav is a scoring shooting guard not a PG, the only reason he was put at the PG is because Sheldon avg 2 ast and 7 pts playing while avg 29 minutes a game. Dior at the PG would only open more opportunities up for Pav because Dior is a pass first guard before anything, he is honestly the best ball handler/passer on the team but when you put a 6’1 PG at SF simply to shoot the ball when someone else doesn’t have a shot, you obviously won’t see that ball handling ability, which is why I advised you to look at his hs or even juco highlights. The problem with this team is the coaches don't know their players true abilities so their im the wrong spots, the lineup should be Conners, Pav, Kelly, Hadaway, Simmons. Pass first PG, scoring SG, defensive/athletic SF, all around PF, and Dominant C. Dior is a good shooter when plays are ran for him but he's not the type of shooter you can just throw in the game whenever to hit a rushed 3 shots that get us back in the game and thats what they’ve been playing him as. And for defense like I said above, hes a 6’1 PG being put at the SF, you can’t talk about his defense when he is constantly put up against opponents that are 6’4+ it makes no sense at all hes clearly out of position.
Newsflash, our entire team is undersized. And your solution is to put Pav at the 2? Pav is the best PG in the league and he does it all, pass, shoot, create, control tempo, literally everything you could want in a PG in the MAC.

I couldn't possibly care less about high school or juco tape at this point. This is the big leagues none of that matters now.
PAV is #CaptainClutch
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Bobcat Love's Sense of Shame
1/29/2026 2:08 PM
There's been a lot of chatter about the rotation -- and in particular -- Sheldon's role in it.

Most people seem to fall into one of two camps:

(1) Sheldon's been awful and giving a healthy portion of his minutes to other guys (Conners, Elliott, Burris, Fisher) has nothing but upside.

(2) Sheldon's been awful, but there aren't options and we're stuck with him. And meanwhile, at least he tries hard on defense.

Noticed in our lineup data that if you look at linups that have had 30+ offensive & defensive possessions together, we now have a new best lineup based on observed efficiency (which corrects for quality of opponent on the floor):

Pavs/Conners/Kelly/Hadaway/Simmons

It's actually almost 3x as efficient as the next best lineup.

Some other interesting advanced stat tidbits:

-- Kuany is now leading the team in TS% at .629%
-- Defensive Box Plus Minus numbers like Sheldon, which probably explain why Boals plays him so much.
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