Wahoo in review - Jamil Tucker
Monday, April 20 2009 by Ben
Each week we'll be taking a look at one player on the Virginia basketball roster: how they did, where they were good, and where they were bad. Today's featured player is... Jamil Tucker.
In my mind, no one typifies the enigmatic Leitao era quite like Jamil Tucker: surprising start, inconsistent results.
Prior to last season, I theorized that the arrival of twin towers Assane Sene and John Brandenburg would relegate the junior to the bench. I was right and I was wrong. Tucker played more minutes than I'd expected, it just wasn't enough for him to make a difference on a consistent basis.
On offense, the Gary, IN native is a quirky, streaky player. Listed at 6'9" tall (no way that's right) and a beefy 241, Tucker possesses a body to bang inside. Yet, Tucker prefers to troll the three point arc in hopes of a kick-out. That's not a criticism, either. In college basketball, there's a paltry few guys that can stroke it (40% on three) and, make no mistake about it, Tucker can fill it up.
I won't bring up that Arizona game where, as a super soph, he banged in something like 100 threes. (Whoops!) Even last season, we saw flashes of super-Tucker. This fellow scored 21 points in 12 minutes in the first game against Maryland. He had as many FGAs as minutes in that game. Onions!
He's part of the reason why I say that the Wahoos have poorly utilized offensive talent. How is a guy like that, on a team that can't score, only getting 5.9 FGA per game?
Given Tucker's seniority and the fact that he isn't the most fleet of foot, he figures to gain the most out of Bennett's methodical offensive style. I foresee him still coming off the bench, but as a guy who can stretch an opponent's defense.
The knock on Tucker - and it's a fair, but still not totally fitting knock (as much as knocks can fit) - is that his defense is lacking. Look, he plays on the interior because of his size, but doesn't have the ups to change any shots. If the guards do their job containing dribble penetration and with Sene patrolling the paint, he doesn't have to anymore.
He's just got to move his feet to prevent getting beaten.
At times, his footwork is disappointing. He can be a step slow on the pick and roll or keeping his man from getting good post position. These mistakes often incurred Leitao's wrath and, all of a sudden, Tucker would be riding the pine.
It's harder to score from there. Though, clearly it's not impossible.
All that negative jive being said, the dude was still a pretty darn effective defensive rebounder. So, let's not completely destroy him on the defensive end.
In all, I think Tucker can be a solid contributor as a change of pace from the low post play of Mike Scott and Assane Sene. I think he just has to be utilized for what his skills are: square peg, round hole and all that mess.
Past Wahoos in Review
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Each week we'll be taking a look at one player on the Virginia basketball roster: how they did, where they were good, and where they were bad. Today's featured player is... Jeff Jones . Coming out of high school, I'm sure Jeff Jones expected to be the
I think tucker will be very effective in this offense. The type of offense that Bennett runs is very productive for big men that can shoot. I look for scott and him both to have a terrific year. Both are big and physical (when they want to be) and can stroke it from outside. Yes scott can shoot. I saw him bang one in from the second row bleachers during warm up. He has a nice mid range game. Hopefully the two of them will grow, mature, and play like legit big men.