Pure Speculation: Washington Already Unhappy?

LM21

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Prefacing this thread with the disclaimer that the only evidence that I have of this is my own observation. Outside of that all of the below is pure speculation (but that's what a message board is for, right?) With that in mind, a few things:

1. I was at the game last night, Washington seemed really unhappy with his lack of minutes. There was a point in the 2nd half that he got pulled after being on the court for a few minutes, he very slowly walked off the court shaking his head. Felt to me like he was sulking the rest of the game, even when he got back in late in the game.

2. There were a few times when we went on our big run in the 2nd half where the bench was really excited. Standing up, cheering, waving towels etc. Isaiah stayed sitting, quietly clapping.

3. Isaiah has said he "didn't come here to do anything but start." Pretty big difference between that and the glorified mop up duty that he got last night.

4. I coach H.S. girls and one of my players told me this morning that she had a friend at the game last night and IW gave him one of his shoes as he walked off the court after the game (seems weird, not like they have an unlimited supply of shoes for the players).

All this to say, it all made me nervous about how Isaiah is feeling about his decision to come here. Hoping that I'm reading into things that aren't actually there (and would concede that I probably am). Mainly bringing this up to see if anyone else was feeling a similar vibe from Isaiah last night, and get thoughts about how concerning this should all be. Would hate to have another Josh Martin scenario with someone who is seemingly a much better player than Josh was.
 

He was in foul trouble and the foul that benched him was as soft as they come.

Don’t start this **** in game 3.
 

If he would have gone to any other P5 school with a top 25 team, he would get the same treatment for playing terrible D. He seemed to have no effort on the defensive side of the ball last night. That is not going to cut it if this team is going to be successful. He needs to be given a talking to on what it takes to get minutes.
 

I hope this staff doesn't walk on egg shells for him. There are players better and more established than him on the roster. This team is built for a great season, and it certainly would be a big loss if he becomes disengaged, but he will need to conform to the program more than the program needs to conform to him. He's got a great chance to be a part of something special, I hope he and everyone else on the roster realizes the potential of this team.

Go Gophers!!
 

To be clear: I'm not suggesting that he deserves more minutes. IMO he should have an understanding that when you're coming onto a team that has an all B1G, senior PG, you're not going to be the big man on campus right away.

I have the same thoughts as Bleed, that he should see the high tide rising all ships as far as team success goes. Hoping that Mason, or another leader on the team, is able to help him see that if he doesn't already.
 


Would definitely say it is way too early to read too much into anything and I was not able to watch the game so can't confirm or deny anything related to attitude and body language so just general thoughts on my part.

I am sure he is frustrated right now because he clearly has a healthy ego and he is trying to make that transition from god status in high school to one of the guys status in college. In high school he was significantly better then pretty much everyone else on the court, that won't be the case in college and some guys have a tougher time adjusting to that then others.

Just have to give him time to adjust, he will hopefully figure things out over the course of the season and become a mainstay in the rotation. Now is the time for Pitino to take a hard line with him and get his attitude in line with where they need it to be going forward.

Winning has a way of easing things like this as well, as long as the team keeps doing well it will be really hard for him to justify being upset about his roll.

I wouldn't fret too much about the shoe thing, probably a worn out pair that was going to be replaced anyway or something like that.
 

He looked plenty happy in that locker room video after the Providence game.
 

I hope this staff doesn't walk on egg shells for him. There are players better and more established than him on the roster. This team is built for a great season, and it certainly would be a big loss if he becomes disengaged, but he will need to conform to the program more than the program needs to conform to him. He's got a great chance to be a part of something special, I hope he and everyone else on the roster realizes the potential of this team.

Go Gophers!!

Absolutely perfectly stated, Bleed.

Team before me, always. Jelly definitely was pouting a bit last night, not all that unusual for a freshman used to being "The Man". Doubt he's ever been asked to play a lot of defense, or defer to teammates. Niagara got back into the game with that 14-0 run when we had 2 freshman guards on the floor. Changed right back when Pitino put Mason & McBrayer back in the game.

Observing body language is always a big thing for me, and Jelly's wasn't good last night. Something to keep an eye on moving forward, but I'm not real concerned this early.
 

He was in foul trouble and the foul that benched him was as soft as they come.

Don’t start this **** in game 3.

Yup I think he got 2 fouls in the first half and got his third pretty early in the second, which probably leads to a bit of frustration. I'm not concerned.
 



This is a teenager who getting a taste of Big Ten BB. It is attitude that will get him places.

He is figuring out how to play team sports on a bigger stage than HS. Jordan Murphy and other team members will snap him in place.
 

One thing I'll add, I completely understand why Gopher fans will pay close attention to Jelly's body language throughout the season, but at the end of the day, he doesn't seem like the type of kid that will want to sit out an entire season due to transfer.

That being said, I'm not worried at all right now, and am going to enjoy this season no matter how his or anyone else's body language is.

This is our time.

Go Gophers!!
 

A good player is always going to be a little unhappy when he is either not performing at his best or not on the floor as much as he hopes. He is being given plenty of playing time and even got the second half start in the Providence game. I don't think we have anything to worry about. He is pressing a bit right now and missing shots he should make, missing free throws and not understanding the value of the defensive end- all of those are common to frosh, even stars. He'll work it out. What are his options? Leave, sit out the year and half of next when he has the starting job sitting on the platter here next year and he is 6th man on a potential championship team this year?

Murphy, McBrayer, Mason and even Coffey, all of them had stretches of bad body language earlier in the careers and got through it.
 

Thanks for talking me back off the ledge, everyone :)
 




He did look unhappy and he was definitely pouting which helps nobody...but consider the fact that this was probably the worst game IW has played since what? Maybe his freshman year of high school? I'd be concerned if he wasn't upset with his own performance. I just hope that he takes this game as motivation to improve, not go into a pouting shell.
 


We literally don't have another PG on the roster for next season, so he could be in line for 30 MPG and the floor leader for a top 25 team as a sophomore. He'd be foolish to give up on that possibility so early.
 

Kids young.

Going through college adjustment.

First few games of playing now.
Probably just realizing he's not the #1 guy anymore.
 

Winning solves a lot of issues. Even Coffey was relegated to the bench in the second half. I think Washington will be fine as long as we keep winning. When we stop winning, that's when players will be like... "I am better than anyone out there, why am I not in there?"
 

If he was unhappy, he turned it around the right way. When he came back out on the floor late in the game, his effort on defense was markedly better, and he had that sequence where he got two offensive rebounds during one possession, showing good hustle.
 

This is close to worthy of "The Bold and the Gopherhole."
 

I can confirm that the body language was not good, but I'm not too worried about it yet. If he's still consistently doing that halfway through the year then I might be a little worried, but right now I'll just chalk it up to him being a freshman. He's gotta learn that this is D1 basketball, and pretty much everyone he'll play against was a star in HS even if most don't have as many instagram followers as he does.
 

Oh boy...he's 18. first time he been guarded by a college guard. he will figure it out.

To good not to!
 

He is playing pretty well for a true freshmen through 3 games I think.
 

He was in foul trouble and the foul that benched him was as soft as they come.

It wasn't the 3rd foul that got him sent back to the bench, it was after that and the little bald guy he was guarding was on fire... Dupree got called to check in after he lost his man and got scored on again.

I did see the semi-poor body language on the bench... but it wasn't Zack Lofton bad, he was clapping, just not jumping around or doing the Kevin Payton towel wave.

_______________

Amir Coffey has had some pretty serious sulking on the court this season (tip-off too), he gets so flustered if he thinks he's fouled and it's not called... let it go.
 

Now that LM21 is off the ledge, I do have a diagnosis for what he was suffering from temporarily: MPS - Minnesota Paranoia Syndrome.

MPS is the psychological syndrome prevalent in Minnesota, that when a good thing happens, i.e. a star player or top coach comes to the U, it is only a matter of time before he or she leaves.
 

Washington looked awfully happy and cheerful when he was on the bench when we made that big second half run in the Providence game.

Maybe he was more sulking and pouting about the fouls that got called on him rather than Pitino's hesitance to play him.
 

Now that LM21 is off the ledge, I do have a diagnosis for what he was suffering from temporarily: MPS - Minnesota Paranoia Syndrome.

MPS is the psychological syndrome prevalent in Minnesota, that when a good thing happens, i.e. a star player or top coach comes to the U, it is only a matter of time before he or she leaves.

:clap::clap::clap: so so very true! Being a lifelong Minnesota sports fan will do that to someone, as I'm sure many on this board can attest to.

The key is early diagnosis and I will be seeking the help I need to combat this horrible disease.
 

I mean... he's shooting 33% FG, 57% from the line and 18% from 3 thus far. It's only natural to get discouraged at this stage, and hopefully as a consequence he's motivated to get better. He doesn't seem to me to be the type of person that gets caught up in his own ego and goes to the dark side. I hope the older guys are encouraging him and reminding him it's going to take time for him to get comfortable / acclimated, and things will get back to normal once he finds his rhythm.
 





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