Chris Dortch was on Sports Talk. He had some interesting takes.
--It may be old news (I'd never heard it) and not surprising, but he said that Dalton Knecht improved his jump shot within two weeks of arriving in Knoxville. His shot was a little flat when he got here, and he corrected that after arriving on campus. Knecht has a work ethic like few he's seen.
--He said this Tennessee team has arguably upgraded across the board. At center, Felix Okpara, he wants to dunk everything at one end at block everything on the other. He's stronger, longer, and more aggressive than Aidoo. Opkara played well down the stretch last year and will get even better. He has a jump hook and Tennessee will teach him to put a little more air under that shot which will make him basically unguardable. Aidoo was chill, and that's fine, but if you're going to play the five in a power conference, you can't be chill.
--Igor Milicic is the son of a coach and plays like it. You can run offense for him and you can run offense through him. He's a great passer and a great trail jump shooter, especially from three -- his numbers are off the charts. He's a great defensive rebounder, one of the best in the county. He's a versatile player that can do all sorts of things, where Toby Awaka was still a young guy trying to come into his own.
--Darlinstone Dubar... is he better than JJJ and Vescovi? He can play the two through the five. He's another great jump shooter. He shoots off the charts from the corners. Last year he 45% from beyond the arc from the left corner and 56% from the right corner. He's a shot blocker, a rebounder, a multi-skilled guy.
--Almost every time Tennessee lost a game last year they started out slow and missed chippies around the rim. All three of these newcomers have high percentages around the rim. Okpara shot 68% around the basket.
--Sure they'll miss Knecht, but coaches will tell you they'd rather spread it around than rely on one person.
