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| Jonathan Adams |
Chat Live Wednesday, Nov. 14 with Monarch head coach Blaine Taylor and junior forward Jonathan Adams at 4 p.m.
Send in your questions for coach Taylor and Jonathan and they will be answered on the day of the chat.
Since coming to ODU, Blaine Taylor has taken the Monarch program to new heights. The last three years, the Monarchs are the winningest team in the State of Virginia with 76 wins which include NCAA berths in 2005 and 2007 and a semi-final finish in the 2006 NIT.
Jonathan Adams has been one of the Monarchs workhorses both on and off the court. Last year, th 6-6 Ringgold, GA native was named CAA Scholar Athlete of the Year. He also represented ODU at the NCAA Leadership Council.
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Moderator: Good afternoon everyone,
welcome to today's Blaine chat with Taylor and Jonathan Adams. |
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| Mark (memphis) Class of '86: Hello Coach Taylor. First, thank you for making time for ODU fans and alumni. Second, please accept my congratulations in advance of beating Va. Tech. Last year's team qualified for the NCAA tourney because of some impressive victories, even upsets (Georgetown). As you look at this year's schedule, do you see any opponents who, despite their ranking and reputation, could possible fall prey to ODU? Thanks for all you've done for the university and the program. |
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Coach Taylor: Mark thank you for the interest in the program and kind comments. As you look at a schedule from a coaches
perspective, it is always unpredictable just how the
results will unfold. For example, a year ago many people would have said they
Georgetown game would have
been our longest shot at a victory and yet we were able to get that one. The beauty of college basketball is its unpredictablity which makes it
much fun for all envolved. |
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| Errol Lifland-Chesapeake: How do you get your team to make the 3 hr adjustment in Las Vegas and not feel like they are playing a game from midnight to 2AM?
thanks |
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Coach Taylor: My answer is two fold. Having coached in the west I am of
the opinion its more approachable traveling west because you gain time, than
going east when you psychologically lose time. You
make a good point about the
game realistically being late
here. But we will by virture of
the thanksgiving holiday go to
Las Vegas on Wednesday which
will allow two nights of adjusting to the time zone. I might add we are on a red-eye saturday night to travel east and re acclimated for the
Georgetown game. |
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| Mindi (Richmond): Just wanted to wish Coach Taylor and the Monarchs good luck from an ODU alumna and former Athletic Department employee |
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Coach Taylor: Thank you very much for the thought Mindi. It is our hope that alumni, employees and the general public who have
enjoyed their association with
our institution and program will
stay connected and follow our
progress into the future. |
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| Jack, Virginia Beach: Freshman Darius James looks like a good get. He drives the basket, dishes, and handles the ball pretty well for a freshman, but his scoring leads a little to be desired. I know Coach Taylor does not, necessarily, demand a lot of scoring from the pointguard position, but it greatly increases a pointguard’s effectiveness if he can score some and especially if he is consistent from the free throw line. First, do you think Darius will develop these skills? Second, what were his scoring stats in highschool? |
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Coach Taylor: Early in a point guards career many times he defers scoring and sometimes percentages are inconsistent because of the transition to a new level and a new system. Our system
is fun and yet demanding for a point guard. An example of
where I think Darius will become more comfortable is the fact he shota great perentage from the free throw line in high school and averaged nearly 20 points per game. |
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| Tacoma, WA: Correct me if I'm wrong, but isn't JA from Tennessee, not Georgia. Aside from that...coach BT, do you see similarities in a young Darius James to a freshman Maynor? Maynor was timid his 1st year but it seems as though James has a great deal of confidence for such a young kid. |
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Coach Taylor: John Adams attended Baylor High School which is in Chattanooga, TN. His family's
residence is Ringgold,GA which
is just down the road. Which explains the confusion.
It's common place that people compare players one to the other. I'm even guilty of doing so. I try to make sure each individual can develope his own persona, but
you are not the first person to compare Darius with Eric Maynor. In some respects that is because of similar builds and kind of a slippery ability with the ball. I think it is
quite a compliment to Darius as Eric is a very respected player. |
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| Norfolk: How is Henderson doing? Will he be able to play on Friday? |
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Coach Taylor: Brian's situation caused all of us to pause for a moment.
And recognize just what an opportunity it is to go to school and play basketball.
They medical community was
cautious and thorough and cleared Brian yesterday afternoon to rejoin activitiy and schooll. He practiced today with the team and it is
our hope that he could participate in homecoming against Toledo Friday. |
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| David Newnam (Virginia Beach): Coach: This appears to be one of your youngest teams and toughest schedules. Do you think the early schedule will provide enough experience to help us win CAA games in January, February, and March? |
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Coach Taylor: We are in the midst of a process where players who we
are very accostomed to have
graduated and moved on and are being replaced by returning players and new players. Its a neer ending cycle at the college level, but
one that hits us a little harder
because of the fact we had to
rebuild rather quickly in my
first years hare and it put a number of kids concentrated in a number of classes. As we
announced three signees this afternoon we will have re-tooled our roster with a group that has a fun and exciting present set of possibilites and yet a bright future. Many people seem to be somewhat
in awe of our schedule particularly in light of a very youthful team and yet it is
our ambition to perform to the
best of our ability night after night and yet recognize much likethe run we made last year in
February may be the most rewarding thing if we can be a strong factor in the CAA race. |
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| Tom, Newport News: Coach,
I think Sam Harris looked absolutely dominant in the preseason exhibitions and again grabbed 9 boards against SC State. Can we expect him to finally break out now that some of the guys in front of him on the stat sheet are gone? Also, how bout Junior the other night!? |
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Coach Taylor: Sam has come back with improved
conditioning. mobilityand attitude. I can say he is better than he has ever been and yet it remains to be seen just what that means night after night against varied opponents. He played more minutes and more rebounds than he has ever had in his
career wihich is a good sign. It
would be great if he can continue to grow forward along
those lines. Abdi Lidonde and
Henderson have been the best of friends since they stepped on campus. Now as
fifth year seniors and co-captains who better than
Abdi to pick up the slack with
Brian in the hospital. What I was most pleased with was his
court demeanor, working hard and letting the game and shots come his way, in the right fashion. |
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| priscilla morgan Ringgold, Ga: my question to jonathan is coming from his mother, Do you think you can stop my post game...yet! |
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Jonathan Adams: Well, according to coach Taylor No. Thanks for the note. Love you. |
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| Tom (portsmouth): Jonathan what were some things
your panel discussed at the NCAA
leadership council? My family really enjoy watching you play. |
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Jonathan Adams: We discussed how to get other
students involved on campus.
How to get the community envolved with our school. We also had different ideas to implement these things on campus. It was very informative for me. Thank you for the comment. |
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| Neal (Chesapeake): What do you attribute to your improvements this season? |
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Jonathan Adams: The biggest improvement is
shooting and ball handling.
I always tray to improve my
defense and rebounding. I just worked real hard on these
areas this summer. I kind of
went back to the fundamentals. |
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| Larry (Norfolk): Jonathan,
Whats the toughest place to
play in the CAA and why? |
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Jonathan Adams: I would say Drexel. They are a
good team, it is a small gym and the fans are right on top of you. |
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| Daren: Jonathan - You've been a great Monarch on and off the court in your first 2 years. Your work in the classroom can't be overlooked. Now that you are an upper classman, how do you see your role on the team changing. Also, what was the biggest area of your game that worked on during the off-season. |
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Jonathan Adams: Thank you. Just to help mentor the younger guys and
what is expected of them and
try to lead by example. As I said before I worked very hard over the summer on my
ball handling and shooting. |
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| Andrew (Norfolk): It seems that this year's team is faster and has more ability to run the floor. Is there any chance that we could see somewhat of a transition to a high-paced offense comparable to that of VCU? |
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Jonathan Adams: I think we run the break anytime we have it. I think what makes us successfull is
running our half court offense.
Our defense keys our transition game, and we are
pretty athletic this year. |
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| phil: Jonathan,
Who influenced you the most in
your life and why? Best of luck
this season. |
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Jonathan Adams: Thanks for the comment.
My other has always been there for me. Taught me a lot
on and off the court. SHe played at NC State and is one of their all-time rebounding leaders. She has been a big
inspiration in my life both on and off the court. |
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| Karen: Jon,
What would you like to do with
your major after graduation? |
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Jonathan Adams: I am thinking about law school and maybe the FBI.
But on down the line I would like to work with kids and help
someone get the opportunity
that I have. |
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Moderator: Everyone thank you for your
questions and hope to see
you at ODU's game Friday night against Toledo. |
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