Thought folks might enjoy this breakdown of film of Walter during the Auburn FF game. Clayton knows his stuff, for sure. Long, but worth the watch.
I watched the first 20 minutes. Really fascinating deep-dive. It's a reminder how much goes into all this.
true pro level play breakdown, very helpful for WC as he makes the leap Walt really knows his stuff, but always room for improvements
I’ve watched the first 35 minutes. Walter is so incredibly intelligent. Such excellent analysis. I love how they highlight bench reactions. One thing that stands out to me is how often Walt abused Broome in that game.
Also illustrates the high value of experience. Xaivian brings a lot of experience. Fland, not so much, but a lot of pure scoring ability.
To me the biggest take away was how well the team supported each other and genuinely cared about the team. Thats not as common as some may think. Grateful that we can celebrate 3 team titles that shared that character trait. Also, on the detailed Xs and Os side of things, one could understand why an athlete like Kugel never got over the hump here given how much study and working on tendencies, technical aspects etc played into Claytons game. Everyone is an athlete at that level. The details are what separates the success stories from the rest.
Basketball is such a unique game in that it requires a detailed understanding of both sides of the ball, is a contact sport in tight spaces but requires skills, athleticism and finesse and constant movement. No breaks like football or baseball, no spacing like soccer, no gliding like in hockey. Constant running and cutting and jumping on hardwood all while requiring knowledge and tendencies of all 9 other players in never-ending motion. This video shows how many layers there are to the game, how much understanding is required - all while being an elite athlete with a nonstop motor. Yes, not just good enough to be athletic and skilled, you have to know what the hell you’re doing and where to be - at all times during a fast-paced game - or you could be sitting on the bench. This is often why it’s better to have more experienced players, regardless how good they are i wonder how many UK players in 2 decades under Calipari had this level of understanding
Remember Walter's first game at UF against UVA? He could always shoot but WOW he took a quantum leap at UF. Remarkable. Talk about making the right choice by coming home. Petino is a Hall of Fame coach but First team All American and National Champ speaks for itself.
Two of my favorite Clayton plays were against Mizzo in the SEC tourney, Play 1 - a little delay dribble at the top of the lane, broke the defenders "ankles" and took it to the rack. Jimmy Dykes (announcer) said - That's what an All American looks like. Play 2 - Fast break ally oop from Richard for a dunk, Walter went to the stratosphere to catch and dunk that one.
