Viewer - Live chat: John Hunt talks Oregon State men's basketball at 11 a.m.

Live chat: John Hunt talks Oregon State men's basketball at 11 a.m.

Friday January 25, 2013

11:00

The Oregonian:

Hello and welcome to The Oregonian's Beaver's men's basketball live chat with John Hunt. We're waiting to be joined by John.

Friday January 25, 2013 11:00 The Oregonian

11:00

[Comment From kidvoltagekidvoltage: ]

Does it feel like the Beavers are on the way up or the way down?

Friday January 25, 2013 11:00 kidvoltage

11:00

The Oregonian:

kidvoltage, while we wait for John, what do you think? Up or down?

Friday January 25, 2013 11:00 The Oregonian

11:01

The Oregonian:

And John is in the house.

Friday January 25, 2013 11:01 The Oregonian

11:01

John Hunt:

Hi, folks!

Friday January 25, 2013 11:01 John Hunt

11:01

[Comment From kidvoltagekidvoltage: ]

I was hoping for up but it seems like they have lost their way.

Friday January 25, 2013 11:01 kidvoltage

11:01

The Oregonian:

So, John. Beavers: On their way up or down?

Friday January 25, 2013 11:01 The Oregonian

11:03

John Hunt:

Right now? From 0-5, there's only one way to go. Overall, I'd say neither. The Brandt injury kind of re-callibrated things as far as what this team can do.

Friday January 25, 2013 11:03 John Hunt

11:03

The Oregonian:

And, these questions and observations from DW. ...

Friday January 25, 2013 11:03 The Oregonian

11:03

[Comment From DWDW: ]

John, did you see Grady Garrett's article in the Barometer on Robinson's job security? No rational person thinks CR is on the hot seat, but no doubt the trajectory isn't where anyone wants it to be. I would love to see someone push CR a bit more on his strategy to understand what he's trying to do to improve from an Xs and Os standpoint and teaching the fundamentals.

Friday January 25, 2013 11:03 DW

11:03

[Comment From DWDW: ]

This team is near the bottom the conference in all the important stats: turnovers, FG%, FG% defense, rebounding, etc.

Friday January 25, 2013 11:03 DW

11:04

John Hunt:

Yes, I was talking with Robinson at the time, with Grady. You're right - we haven't really delved too much into the X's and O's. I know there's a lot of confusion about his offense, and Robinson readily admits the defense is not where it should be.

Friday January 25, 2013 11:04 John Hunt

11:04

The Oregonian:

And this from Ben. ...

Friday January 25, 2013 11:04 The Oregonian

11:05

[Comment From BenBen: ]

I think it's difficult to say. If UW is the team lately that brings out the best in the Beavers, WSU brings out the worst. Correct me if I'm wrong, but the last three home games against them have been losses. And I'm not counting the conference tournament game.

Friday January 25, 2013 11:05 Ben

11:06

John Hunt:

Yeah - it's not quite as good a Wazzu team as in the recent past, although Brock Motum is there, and Robinson admits he's frightened of Motum. Still, their style of play would give the Beavers a little more trouble than Washington's jump-shooting style.

Friday January 25, 2013 11:06 John Hunt

11:06

[Comment From GuestGuest: ]

Sounds like the injury thing has had a big impact. Do you feel that's the main reason for the slide?

Friday January 25, 2013 11:06 Guest

11:08

John Hunt:

I think the team is subject to some emotional swings, and the Brandt thing was a big blow. But beyond that, it's a simple matter of depth. Losing Brandt and having Moreland out meant you had to rely on freshman Jarmal Reid and play Schaftenaar more than maybe you would have liked. With Brandt and Motum, you can play the young guys in spots, making them more effective plus the effectiveness of the two big guys. It's hurt, along with the high quality of competition in the first six Pac-12 games.

Friday January 25, 2013 11:08 John Hunt

11:09

[Comment From kidvoltagekidvoltage: ]

Agreed, you wonder how much of this is the coach. I'm not sure we can tie all this to the Brand injury.

Friday January 25, 2013 11:09 kidvoltage

11:09

[Comment From BenBen: ]

DW: let's not forget they miss more free throws that should be acceptable, as well.

Friday January 25, 2013 11:09 Ben

11:09

[Comment From JuneauJimJuneauJim: ]

Have you seen the schedule for 2013-2014 yet? I think we have to get past the point of lining up a bunch of easy teams in the non-conference schedule because playing Chicago St., Howard and TX Pan-American doesn't prepare the team for conference play.

Friday January 25, 2013 11:09 JuneauJim

11:09

John Hunt:

Oops, I said Motum for some reason on that last answer - I meant with Brandt and Moreland...

Friday January 25, 2013 11:09 John Hunt

11:09

The Oregonian:

Love the live chat format -- you can fix on the fly. ...

Friday January 25, 2013 11:09 The Oregonian

11:10

John Hunt:

I agree about the schedule. The Beavers were not prepared for the league season. ... Thanks, Moderatorextraordinaire..

Friday January 25, 2013 11:10 John Hunt

11:10

The Oregonian:

*P'shaw*

Friday January 25, 2013 11:10 The Oregonian

11:10

[Comment From Beaver BeliverBeaver Beliver: ]

Need to more seats filled up at Gill or we will end up in the WAC

Friday January 25, 2013 11:10 Beaver Beliver

11:10

The Oregonian:

Neither big school in Oregon seems to draw well.

Friday January 25, 2013 11:10 The Oregonian

11:11

[Comment From GuestGuest: ]

CR's offense is so hard to watch. The only pick I ever see is for the point guard at the top of the key. Maybe a down pic or a back pic would be something he should try. You know---like MOVEMENT. Also, how can CR come out of a timeout and not have an inbounds play called that works.

Friday January 25, 2013 11:11 Guest

11:11

John Hunt:

As for FTs, yes - only Starks and Nelson are reliable there....Attendance is disappointing, but then again, look at Oregon. What are they 17-2 with the Taj McBall, and they can't draw? The TV deal is hurting attendance everywhere.

Friday January 25, 2013 11:11 John Hunt

11:11

The Oregonian:

Taj McBall. Love it.

Friday January 25, 2013 11:11 The Oregonian

11:12

John Hunt:

It's funny - I watch practice and I see back screens and other screens that I just don't see in games. We get that top-of-the-key weave thing that drives people nuts.

Friday January 25, 2013 11:12 John Hunt

11:12

[Comment From JuneauJimJuneauJim: ]

The stupid turnovers and lousy free throw shooting is ok against Niagra. Plus, in all those non-conference games, they only played hard for a half and then coasted.

Friday January 25, 2013 11:12 JuneauJim

11:12

[Comment From BenBen: ]

John, looking ahead to the Bay area trip, how do you see it going? Both are winnable, as are all games, but do you think it's likely to sweep it? Stanford doesn't inspire in me the hand-wringing that Cal does. Assuming they do get the sweep, does 4-5 constitute a failure for the first half or a "below average" grade?

Friday January 25, 2013 11:12 Ben

11:14

John Hunt:

I think OSU is better than Stanford and Cal. Does that mean they can sweep the Bay trip? Probably not. ... The Beavers, I believe, play their next six games against teams with losing records. So in three weeks time, if we don't see a league record at or near .500, then it's a below-average grade.

Friday January 25, 2013 11:14 John Hunt

11:15

[Comment From GuestGuest: ]

What kind of finish to Pac 12 play is going to be needed to even think about qualifying for the NCAA without a Pac-12 tourney championship automatic bid? The OOC games wouldn't really bolstering their case.

Friday January 25, 2013 11:15 Guest

11:16

John Hunt:

Yeah, the RPI is buried. I think they have to go 10-2 or better the rest of the way to make the NCAA.

Friday January 25, 2013 11:16 John Hunt

11:16

The Oregonian:

Is Craig's job on the line this season?

Friday January 25, 2013 11:16 The Oregonian

11:17

The Oregonian:

Or does he have breathing room?

Friday January 25, 2013 11:17 The Oregonian

11:18

John Hunt:

No, I don't think it's on the line. If they end up with just two or three wins, then yeah, but the sense is that he started with such a downtrodden program that it's too early to put him on the hot seat now.

Friday January 25, 2013 11:18 John Hunt

11:18

[Comment From GuestGuest: ]

Beavers have always had trouble against Wazzu, I don't get why?

Friday January 25, 2013 11:18 Guest

11:20

[Comment From JuneauJimJuneauJim: ]

There's no way his job is on the line. Who are we going to get who is better?? If we finish at the bottom of the conference next year, with a healthy team full of his recruits...well then, maybe.

Friday January 25, 2013 11:20 JuneauJim

11:20

John Hunt:

They are and have been well-coached, solid on defense, and their motion offense has been effective. Plus, they always present some sort of matchup problem (Motum).

Friday January 25, 2013 11:20 John Hunt

11:20

[Comment From JuneauJimJuneauJim: ]

Do you think CR will be playing more zone? That's how we got back into some of the early conference games with Barton at the bottom. They ran it some against UW with Starks at the bottom on N'Diaye...man I was holding my breath then.

Friday January 25, 2013 11:20 JuneauJim

11:21

John Hunt:

Yeah, that was interesting, wasn't it? That's the factor that people don't talk about with this whole Moreland suspension thing. The return of Moreland allows the Beavers to change defenses and throw out a very disruptive 1-3-1. He helps so much.

Friday January 25, 2013 11:21 John Hunt

11:21

[Comment From MidValleyBeavMidValleyBeav: ]

Why is it that when you look on the floor it appears the Beavers are physically smaller and less athletic than the competition?

Friday January 25, 2013 11:21 MidValleyBeav

11:23

John Hunt:

Smaller? They don't have 7-footers, or even 6-10-ers now, but they have great length with Moreland and Collier and also Burton's space eating. True, they're not as athletic as some, but I don't see them far behind. Look at UCLA - that is a team that doesn't have people who move their feet particularly well, yet they've been effective.

Friday January 25, 2013 11:23 John Hunt

11:24

[Comment From BenBen: ]

I believe it would be better to win the tournament, going through and beating UA and/or UO to bolster the perception. The automatic berth is a plus, too. Speaking of perception, why do the national media really only like touting "name brands" like Arizona and UCLA as opposed to highlighting a competitive conference? It's frustrating to see ESPN types tout "history," then promptly ignore it in favor of flash and uniforms (I'm looking at you Oregon).

Friday January 25, 2013 11:24 Ben

11:25

John Hunt:

You're right, Ben. I think the Pac-12's improvement this year is more across-the-board than any greatness up top. Arizona and UCLA have definite issues. Is Oregon all that? They're very well-coached and probably the best in the league, yeah.

Friday January 25, 2013 11:25 John Hunt

11:25

[Comment From GuestGuest: ]

I watch what Leon Rice has done in less than 2 years at Boise State....taking them from the tank to pretty respectable in a decent conference, and I'm that much more disappointed in CR's lack of progress at OSU.

Friday January 25, 2013 11:25 Guest

11:26

John Hunt:

Yeah, I like Leon Rice. He's a good coach. Would he be able to recruit as well in Corvallis as Robinson? Don't know.

Friday January 25, 2013 11:26 John Hunt

11:27

The Oregonian: