that’s what Keefe provides, and that’s what Howland values along with defense. Don’t get me wrong, I’d love to see DG get some more PT. But Gordon is a freshmen that’s played a dozen games in his career. Keefe has a full season under his belt and until BH feels comfortable relying on DG to play a bigger role, Keefe will continue to start. I trust Howland’s judgement with this one.

Also, DG’s being used as the backup center. Having your backup center start at PF probably isn’t the best idea.

However, if JM can get more acclimated to the college game (and become the backup center), I can see DG starting down the road.

I have been toying with this thought myself. DG has quickly become my favorite freshman on the team because of his hustle and athleticism. IF he became a starter, he would probably do well since he isn’t the type of player who needs plays run for him to be involved (which he wouldn’t get with DC, JS, JH, and AA2 on the floor).

That said, CBH is a loyal man and JK has made many sacrifices for our team. He provides solid play and does little things that help the rest of the starters. Comparing stats between JK and DG is misleading b/c JK is playing with the aforementioned starters where he isn’t a focal point of the offense and DG has had the majority of his minutes in mop up duty against inferior opponents.

Barring some terrible slump, I think the inertia of JK being the starter (it would probably hurt him psychologically to be dumped to the bunch) will keep JK as the starter for the rest of the year. However, I definitely see DG’s minutes increasing as the year goes on with JK and ND’s minutes decreasing slightly to where they play about the same amount (hopefully with ND and his “questionable” decision making being the third option).

But if he develops a consistent enough offense game and sticks to his assignments on defense he could be a dyamic option for the front court later in the year, I’m hoping he’ll learn very quickly, and I must admit He’s seeming to get more comfortable finding his role on the court, and using his god giving athletic ability to his advantage.

…not so fast sweetheart.

DG is great, don’t get me wrong. I love what he’s bringing to the table, but let’s not get too far ahead of ourselves. DG is one for down the road, perhaps late this season, but most likely the next two seasons.

Let’s not forget some of the potential that JK flashed at the end of last season. If he can get back to that level, he’ll be just fine. Guys go through slumps and for some, it takes longer to shake the rust off.

CBH knows what he’s doing. I expect he’ll find ways to get DG on the floor more often, but I think at this point, starting him over JK might be a bit premature.

Give it time.

JK does a lot more than the numbers say. If you watched today’s game you saw him be the only player who showed some toughness on the boards. He cleared some Oregon bodies out and the paint was much emptier when he was in. You also saw CBH talking to Gordon a lot because he wasn’t bumping cutters and he was late on his rotations and help assignments. DG has a bright future, but he’s still just a freshman learning the small things.

I don’t get how points per game and blocks per game factor into forwards going around him like his feet are nailed to the floor. It’s rare that power forwards in the modern college game get blocks on their own man. Blocks from that position usually come from weakside help so his man going around him doesn’t apply here and we’ve only played 2 Pac 10 games so other 4’s having high PPG averages isn’t because of his defense.

JK is not an ideal starter and in a perfect world (meaning LRMAM returned) he’d be coming off the bench for 8 minutes a game, but that’s not the case. At the moment he’s our best option at the 4 so that’s what we have to go with. The numbers won’t show it, but watch him bump cutters and help on the big to big double. He does it very well, not because he’s more talented than DG, but because he’s more experienced and recognizes situations quicker. For now, JK is our best option. You can reply any way you’d like and with whatever irrelevant stats and snap judgments you’d like. I’m done with this. Enjoy.

Let’s see. Who are we going to rely on?

An armchair fan who thinks he knows UCLA basketball?

Or, the coach who has taken this team to three straight Final Fours and who watches/drills these guys on a daily basis?

If CBH thinks JK should start and DG should come off the bench, that’s a call I’m going to defer to.