Asbjorn Midtgaard

[Aargh]

I doubt he's going to get any quicker or more athletic. It's unlikely his BBIQ is going to make a step forward. I think he's already got decent BBIQ, but his physical limitations minimize his ability to utilize that BBIQ.

Midtgaard is the 3rd or 4th option at his position, depending on matchups. Try to find another player in all of D1 who's the 3rd or 4th option at their position who does as well as Midtgaard. I don't think you will find one.

Try to find another player in D1 who accepts his role as the 3rd or 4th option who also maintains the positive attitude Midtgaard always shows.

Try to find another team in D1 who can have their #1 and #2 post players get into foul trouble, who have a player like Midtgaard who can come off the bench, cover some minutes, and possibly be productive.

I think Midtgaard is a positive influence on the team because of his attitude, enthusiasm, and acceptance of his role on the team. Midtgaard is the post player equivalent of J. R. Simon for his effect on the team. I believe Midtgaard's contribution to the success of this team goes way beyond what we see on the court in games.

[wufan]

I’m an Asbjorn fan. He was not able to guard those water bugs driving the paint last night. They abused him. Looking forward to watching him guard some centers in the future.

[Dan]

AM serves a role against certain teams and will be the reason we win some games in the post season. He’s a good matchup against Big 10 type centers.

[Singeril]

I’’m still an AM fan..just bad matchups last night. He helped us SO MUCH last year in the last half of the season. And, he will help us again this year...and next.

[kcshocker11]

I'm still on the bus!

[KraRam]

I'm still on the bus!

With you here. He is very much an intangible versus tangible player. Right now his intangibles out weigh the other, which is something every team needs. That kid leads from the bench. What a great teammate. To many get caught up in him being this perfect player. He would start at 80-90% of other teams. But his bench presence is awesome and he is always supporting his teammates. He will get his time and opportunities.

[pie n eye]

Burton made a mistake during the Memphis game, don’t remember the specifics, and Marshall nearly met him at half court to “coach him up”. Big Mit ran out of the huddle and was there to pick up JB as soon as Marshall was done.

That kind of thing is why I’m a fan of Asbjorn. Sure, he got shredded by Lomax when he first entered the game but I do think he eventually made an adjustment.

[MikeKennedyRulZ]

Burton made a mistake during the Memphis game, don’t remember the specifics, and Marshall nearly met him at half court to “coach him up”

What does this have to do with AM?

While AM’s play last night was frustrating it was not unexpected. It wasn’t a good matchup for his skill set. He is most certainly a valuable intangible piece of this team.

[1979Shocker]

I'm going out on a limb and say that every time AM has a good game, the Shockers win.

[pie n eye]

What does this have to do with AM?

While AM’s play last night was frustrating it was not unexpected. It wasn’t a good matchup for his skill set. He is most certainly a valuable intangible piece of this team.

See the edited post. I guess SN reads an iPhone emoji as delete command for any text that follows.

[TheShocktocles]

AM serves a role against certain teams and will be the reason we win some games in the post season. He’s a good matchup against Big 10 type centers.

Totally Agree. And also against any other teams that have traditional down low types of centers.

[Bluzrover]

Thanks for this. Couldn’t agree more. The one thing that Coach has always done is find role players and guys who totally buy into his system. AM is the epitome of that type of player. What’s slowly changing however, is the level of athlete who is joining the program. AM would get far more minutes against the “competition” we faced in the Valley. And he’ll still get some minutes as the season rolls on. The one thing we’ve all learned is that 3G likes to have bigs of different sizes and skills so he can play the match up game. I’m not convinced many of us think about that during the recruiting period as we, myself included, get enamored with highlight reels and the number of stars next to their name.

[Shockm]

We mostly all agree that AM has a certain valuable skill set that doesn't fit every situation. Last night, he served a specific role, and he played sparingly for a minute or two. Fouls could have been one reason, and coaches may have seen through scouting another possible role when he came in last night. I'm not sure that the role they pictured for him paid off last night. But that's part of the coaches job is to try things they think will work and adjust if it doesn't. If more positive results would have happened, AM would have played more. Adjustments are a part of coaching, and his limited minutes show that he wasn't as effective last night.

[Woodrow]

I wonder why he abandoned his little hook shot. He was pretty effective and it was almost unblockable.

[Cdizzle]

I think Midtgaard will win us at least one of the Cincy games.