Perhaps it’s just in the school’s DNA to be regarded as both defensive stalwarts and also offensive neanderthals in all sports. But where the football program finally figured out how to start moving the ball effectively, beginning with the 2009 season at least, Alabama’s 2011-2012 basketball team almost looked like a study in the four-corners offense.
That's is a great analogy Jess!
However, I think a lot of that is having a group of Freshman on the court. We certainly were a different team with TM and JG on the court during the first half of the season. I'll tell you that in Basketball it translates to every level with underclassmen in implementation of Offense and "wrinkles" that you put in the game.
1. Player development, conditioning, implementation of base offense, base defense, Press, secondary Offense/Defense, Quick hitters, in-bounds (Press break, half-court, under the basket) are things you do in the off-season.
2. Practicing for Basketball is totally different than football. You are limited during the season for practice time due to your 2 - 3 game a week schedule. Implementing "new stuff" is something that you can't really do during that time. The "learning curve" for players is just too challenging, and non-existent with Froshs!
CAG reminded me of myself this year. I took over a team in the middle of the season that had 1 senior and the rest were JV. Constantly, I was telling my players on the court to "pass, cut", get on the ball, and calling sets from the sideline because everything was new for them and the "basketball sense" was not there yet. Finally, towards the end of the season I could release my Senior to tell the underclassmen where they need to be.
If you notice before the "infamous timeout" in the Creighton game CAG is is "instructing" players where they need to be on the "quick hitter". Evidently, the suspensions in the middle of the season sent us into a tailspin offensively. He didn't have time to "work" the refs because he was busy instructing his players.