Reason for guarded optimism: Olah finished season strong!

In the second to last game he scored 10 points on 4-5 shooting from 2P.  He upped that in his last game stuffing the stat sheet with 12 points/7 rebounds/3 blocks/1 steal on 3-5 from 2P and 6-7 from FT.  His late season improvement is a real reason for optimism for continued improvement for him personally and the team next season! 

And just look at the game highlights here! He's just not used around the arc anymore!  Even we can agree with the fire carmody folks that the high screen and roll to the tin for a flush was a refreshing part of this offense!  Check out the highlight at the 0:15 mark and try wiping that smile off your face!

Oh wait.  That was the end to last season.

Before one starts to put word into our mouths...... yes!!! We agree that Alex's play improved this year!  Yes!!! we think CCC et al played a part in that growth!   YES!!! We think Alex will continue to grow in future season thanks to this staff and his hard work!  We're not trying to say otherwise.

But the oft-repeated narrative that CBC couldn't do squat with big men beside parking them beyond the arc and let their skills diminish is a little much.  We just couldn't help ourselves to interject some facts into the prevailing "wisdom". 

The facts that have been conveniently swept under the rug are 1) CBC did use Olah for offense besides passing around the arc and 2) Olah did improve last year which was a promising sign for this year.  That Olah flush was just one of several down the stretch and was a clear sign 1) CBC adjusted his offense to fit Olah's developing skill set and 2) that Olah was getting more comfortable playing at a big ten level toward the end of last year. 

We view this year as one of Alex's continued progression that began toward the end of last season.  But that won't stop those from continuing to develop the narrative of "thank the lord CBC was fired because Olah would've been squandered."  That judgment is based in large part from projecting onto Olah the history of previous centers at NU under CBC who either did not have the potential or the devotion to become solid big ten players. 

Because they are all the same right?????  B.S.!!!!!