Could Georgia Get the Steg Rocking Again? Five Keys

2012/2013 could be a turn-around season for the Dawgs. A lot has to go right, of course, but Fox has enough to work with to take the Dawgs from next-to-last in the SEC to next-to-first. Here are five keys to bring the crowd and the emotion back to Stegeman Coliseum.

1) KCP has to increase his shooting percentage. He's shooting under 40 percent from the field, and below 70 percent from the line. I've talked about his shooting form a few times. If he can be consistent in doing the small things, his percentage should go up. Putting him back at his natural position should help him get out on the fast break more consistently, which will lead to easier buckets.

2) Marcus Thornton has to come back healthy. We haven't seen what Thornton can do. If he can get back to 100 percent, the Dawgs will be able to play a much more exciting brand of basketball.

3) Bigs will have to defend and rebound like crazy. We don't need a ton of points from the inside players, but we do need them to do the dirty work.

4) One of the new guys has to perform. Between Charles Mann, Kenny Gaines and Brandon Morris, Georgia has brought in real talent. In my mind, Charles Mann is the key because he will be running the point.

5) We have to avoid injuries, suspensions, and off-the-court problems.

If UGA can use this early season trip to Italy, the associated 10 extra practice sessions, and the three games against European competition to get off to a good start, maybe this year will be special.

Dawgs Exploit Home Court Advantage

Albert Jackson Recovers from Injury

Albert Jackson has had a nice international career. Jackson has recently played in a number of countries, including,

Uruguay (2010/2011), where he averaged 17 points and 11 rebounds for Club Anastasia;

Ecuador (2011), averaging 10 points and 10 boards for Club Deportivo Malvort;

Venezuela, briefly playing for Club Panteras de Miranda;

Uruguay again (2011/2012), this time for Club Atletico Olimpia, where he notched 15 points and 8 boards per contest; and

Argentina, 2012.

I have enjoyed following his career and giving occasional updates, like the article below.

Uruguay Article

Unfortunately, Jackson tore the ligaments in his knee earlier this year (end of March 2012). The Argentinian press interviewed Ajax back in April to get an update on how he was recuperating.

Interview

Good to see Jackson give the international gesture of well-being, the thumbs up, in his photo. Jackson was quoted as saying that he would have to be away from basketball for at least 3 months. Hopefully, he's well on his way to full recovery by now. More later.

Red and Black Hoops Practice Video

The Red and Black combined its coverage of the Mark Fox press conference with video of the team practicing. Pretty good stuff.

Begins at 1:37 mark

A few things that stood out to me:

Tim Dixon looks taller. Could be the camera angle, though.

Donte Williams is definitely bigger. He has put on a good bit of weight in his upper body.

Looks like KCP still lets his arm drift right on his shooting motion. When he keeps his elbow in, he's a terrific shooter.

May have to adjust my conclusions on Marcus Thornton. He is moving slowly in the first part of the video, but right at the end he participates in a drill and seems to be able to run and cut pretty well. He may be healed enough by the time the season comes around to get over the physical and mental hurdles of his injury.

Full Video from Mark Fox Press Conference

Here's the link to the video posted on Georgiadogs.com.

Italy Trip

Lots of good stuff on there, including the following:

Donte Williams apology

Update on Marcus Thornton

Progress of the freshmen

Link to player interviews with Vincent Williams and Nemanja Djurisic

Great job Georgiadogs.com!

Dawgs Bound for Italia

Great article from the Athens Banner Herald on the Dawgs' upcoming trip to Italy. The hoops squad will play the Vicenza All-Stars on Monday, Lithuanian team Atletas Kaunas on Wednesday, and All-Star Italy on Saturday.

ABH on Dawgs Trip

The most exciting tid-bit from the article was the description of how Charles Mann is doing. According to Fox, Mann has natural ability to pass the ball, and "is shooting the ball pretty well right now."

Since the assistant coaches will be running the show, I'd like them to experiment with various line-ups. Let's start pressing the ball and see if we can pick up some steals and fast breaks.

Should be a good trip for the team and the individual players who will remember this experience for the rest of their lives.

11-Alive Interview with Mark Fox

Saw this a couple of days ago. There isn't anything particularly new to be gleaned from the interview, but the conversation does give some sense of the optimism that Coach Fox has going into the season.

The main take-away for me is that Coach Fox expects Marcus Thornton to make a contribution this year. We can only hope. It's hard to come back from knee surgery, Thornton is not healthy enough to play during the Italy trip, and I realistically cannot see him doing much offensively in November and December. We'll see.

1-on-1