Johns Hopkins 2020

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51percentcorn
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Re: Johns Hopkins 2020

Post by 51percentcorn »

I am not trying to denigrate the kid either. In general, I thought after his freshmen year, that DeSimone would struggle a bit initially because he would be the mid-fielder marked by the LSM the vast majority of the time whereas in '18 he obviously had the benefit of Tinney. I thought he would figure it out and increase his production as the year went on. The following is not meant to insult but unfortunately all true statements about the move from '18 to '19 for #3:
- Goal production decreased 75% - 16 to 4
- Shooting percentage decreased appro. 60% - 28 to 11
- Shots decreased approx. 40% - 57 to 36
- 3 fewer ground balls were scooped up - 20 down to 17
- Turnovers exactly the same - 9

Only the significant increase in assists 2 to 13 are on the positive side of the ledger.

So what happened? To the uninformed - two things happened. Hopkins personnel changed with Stanwick and Tinney departing and therefore the schemes changed where a freshman led the team in shots and all 3 attack were over 100. And he came in heavier - listed at 200 lbs. And there was the pre-season write-ups chirping about 10-15 lbs of additional "muscle". Again, to the eye test - as opposed to the Princeton and UVA games of '18 - he couldn't run by anyone. Remember Carc's superlatives during the comeback @UVA? Then he lost his confidence in his shot.

As far as his upside - hard to say. I think for Hopkins to have a successful season - make the BIG/NCAA tourneys - quarters -be competitive in that game - he has to have some very solid upside. I would have said after '18 he could be a 40+ point kid from the mid-field but nobody is getting to 40 points on 36 shots. He has to become a more integral part of the offense and recover the mojo somehow. Maybe he was hurt last year - always a possibility.
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HopFan16
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Re: Johns Hopkins 2020

Post by HopFan16 »

While what actually happened behind the scenes with DeSimone may have been a variety of things and far from simple, I think how that translated on the field to the decreased effectiveness is pretty simple:

1) He lost his burst. He was never the fastest kid on the field but he had a quick first step and an ability to accelerate around defensemen. In high school, he was a prolific dodger and scorer, at both attack and midfield, both around GLE and from the wing, in the most competitive conference on Long Island. Whether it was due to the weight gain or an injury, or both, or neither, he totally lost that first step.

2) Shooting fell off a cliff—perhaps related to the above. And then the confidence followed with that. Don't want to necessarily say it was a case of the yips but for the majority of the season the kid just couldn't buy a goal, even in the rare times he beat his man and got his hands free for a good look.

I think it has less to do with the personnel change, although of course taking Tinney out of the offense especially puts more attention on DeSimone. The good news is I think it's within the realm of possibilities that one or both of the things above are fixed. From what I have heard of the kid, he's a very hard worker, and in fact put in a lot of time last offseason on shooting, so it's bizarre that it vanished the way that it did. Makes me thing it was mostly mental. His mechanics looked fine. The ball just refused to go in the net.

In any event, 11% shooting for a D1 player of DeSimone's caliber—even if he's not what some might have thought he'd be—still strikes me as absolutely rock bottom. I'd be shocked if that doesn't improve, possibly significantly...although it will take a lot more than just that for the 2020 midfield to strike fear into the heart of opposing defenses. Only a combination of that + Zinn blooming + either one of or both of Smith/Concannon doing a bit more as a middie + 1 or 2 of the unknowns coming in and making an impact whether that's a freshman or one of that sophomore trio—maybe if all those things go right we might have a decent midfield. But it's not a great situation to be in, you never want to have that many "ifs."
51percentcorn
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Re: Johns Hopkins 2020

Post by 51percentcorn »

HopFan16 wrote: Tue Jul 09, 2019 8:46 am I think it has less to do with the personnel change, although of course taking Tinney out of the offense especially puts more attention on DeSimone.
I think it has alot to do with the personnel and schemes though maybe not as much with Tinney. The issue is how centric the Hopkins offense became with respect to the attack unit. Marr took almost exactly the same number of shots in 2019 as 2018 - couple more in '19, Williams took about 25ish fewer in 2019, but Epstein took 75 more shots as a freshman than Shack did as a Senior. Then throw in the shot clock as a significant change and I think that played a big part in the midfield's role overall and DeSimone in particular. He will be one of the more carefully watched Hopkins' players in '20 - he almost HAS to be successful for the team to realize better results.
primitiveskills
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Re: Johns Hopkins 2020

Post by primitiveskills »

HopFan16 wrote: Tue Jul 09, 2019 8:46 am While what actually happened behind the scenes with DeSimone may have been a variety of things and far from simple, I think how that translated on the field to the decreased effectiveness is pretty simple:

1) He lost his burst. He was never the fastest kid on the field but he had a quick first step and an ability to accelerate around defensemen. In high school, he was a prolific dodger and scorer, at both attack and midfield, both around GLE and from the wing, in the most competitive conference on Long Island. Whether it was due to the weight gain or an injury, or both, or neither, he totally lost that first step.

2) Shooting fell off a cliff—perhaps related to the above. And then the confidence followed with that. Don't want to necessarily say it was a case of the yips but for the majority of the season the kid just couldn't buy a goal, even in the rare times he beat his man and got his hands free for a good look.

I think it has less to do with the personnel change, although of course taking Tinney out of the offense especially puts more attention on DeSimone. The good news is I think it's within the realm of possibilities that one or both of the things above are fixed. From what I have heard of the kid, he's a very hard worker, and in fact put in a lot of time last offseason on shooting, so it's bizarre that it vanished the way that it did. Makes me thing it was mostly mental. His mechanics looked fine. The ball just refused to go in the net.

In any event, 11% shooting for a D1 player of DeSimone's caliber—even if he's not what some might have thought he'd be—still strikes me as absolutely rock bottom. I'd be shocked if that doesn't improve, possibly significantly...although it will take a lot more than just that for the 2020 midfield to strike fear into the heart of opposing defenses. Only a combination of that + Zinn blooming + either one of or both of Smith/Concannon doing a bit more as a middie + 1 or 2 of the unknowns coming in and making an impact whether that's a freshman or one of that sophomore trio—maybe if all those things go right we might have a decent midfield. But it's not a great situation to be in, you never want to have that many "ifs."
I was able to see him a couple of times in person as a Soph/Jr in high school. At least on those occasions, he operated mostly from X, had a very good first step and change-of-direction, and was a clever finisher from in close. Maybe too small a sample, but none of those would describe his game at all now.
Homer
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Re: Johns Hopkins 2020

Post by Homer »

primitiveskills wrote: Tue Jul 09, 2019 1:18 pm
I was able to see him a couple of times in person as a Soph/Jr in high school. At least on those occasions, he operated mostly from X, had a very good first step and change-of-direction, and was a clever finisher from in close. Maybe too small a sample, but none of those would describe his game at all now.
Thanks, this is a bit more like what I was going for. I'm less interested in rehashing DeSimone's drop-off from 2018 to 19 than in understanding better how one would view his best-case potential based on what he showed as a freshman.

The impression I got watching him in 2018, if I hadn't known anything about his HS reputation, was basically of a high-floor, low-ceiling type of guy who you could easily see as a solid 4-year contributor but a bit harder imagining an opponent having to game-plan around. Good overall lax IQ, decent first step to run by a shortstick but not an especially aggressive dodger who's going to get the D moving, .281 shooting neither particularly good nor particularly bad, basically a pure offensive A/M who doesn't give you much between the lines.

Reading primitiveskills' post, I wonder if he isn't (stop me if you follow Hopkins and have heard this one before) fundamentally miscast as a college midfielder, at least within Hopkins' system. Maybe it's Connor you want at attack next year and Alex and Forry stay at mid?
WOMBAT, Mod Emeritus
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Re: Johns Hopkins 2020

Post by WOMBAT, Mod Emeritus »

HS isn’t D1.

I know a lot of “senior” Hopkins fans who don’t believe recruiting hype, nor even fall ball, until recruits prove themselves against real D1 defenses.

One of my favorite lines that I’ve learned from colleagues:

“Welcome to D1”.

(Usually preceded by someone getting Ass planted.)
51percentcorn
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Re: Johns Hopkins 2020

Post by 51percentcorn »

First 2020 decommit - Blake Brookes - defensemen - IL #46 as a junior
Now Dartmouth
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HopFan16
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Re: Johns Hopkins 2020

Post by HopFan16 »

51percentcorn wrote: Wed Jul 10, 2019 2:44 pm First 2020 decommit - Blake Brookes - defensemen - IL #46 as a junior
Now Dartmouth
Not unexpected, the 2020 class is already large—if you're a fan of smaller class sizes, this isn't necessarily a bad thing. He's from Massachusetts, wanted to be closer to home and gets an Ivy league education. Understandable.

The 2020 defenseman we really need to hold onto is Scott Smith from PA. Kid is a terrific player.
Homer wrote: Tue Jul 09, 2019 11:07 pm
Reading primitiveskills' post, I wonder if he isn't (stop me if you follow Hopkins and have heard this one before) fundamentally miscast as a college midfielder, at least within Hopkins' system. Maybe it's Connor you want at attack next year and Alex and Forry stay at mid?
Maybe in an absolutely ideal world he'd be playing attack but of the three guys listed, I would say his skill set is closer to that of a midfielder than the others. On a team that needs midfield production, I don't think that's the move you make unless he comes back to campus in the fall looking like a different person to the point where you don't want him to ever leave the field. But I suppose you can make that case about many offensive players.
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HopFan16
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Re: Johns Hopkins 2020

Post by HopFan16 »

Taite Cattoni is in the transfer portal :roll:
WOMBAT, Mod Emeritus
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Re: Johns Hopkins 2020

Post by WOMBAT, Mod Emeritus »

Transfer orifice sounds better.
Justafan
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Re: Johns Hopkins 2020

Post by Justafan »

I don’t think you guys will be that disappointed in the long run to lose Cattoni.
AreaLax
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Re: Johns Hopkins 2020

Post by AreaLax »

Petro twitter
https://mobile.twitter.com/coachpetro43 ... 8096726016


Got to spend a great morning with my friend Ben Paepcke. So impressed with his attitude, his fight, and his toughness. Truly courageous. Can’t wait for him to be an honorary captain for us this upcoming season. Please keep Ben and his family in your thoughts and prayers. #family
Sagittarius A*
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Re: Johns Hopkins 2020

Post by Sagittarius A* »

HopFan16 wrote: Tue Jul 09, 2019 8:46 am While what actually happened behind the scenes with DeSimone may have been a variety of things and far from simple, I think how that translated on the field to the decreased effectiveness is pretty simple:

1) He lost his burst. He was never the fastest kid on the field but he had a quick first step and an ability to accelerate around defensemen. In high school, he was a prolific dodger and scorer, at both attack and midfield, both around GLE and from the wing, in the most competitive conference on Long Island. Whether it was due to the weight gain or an injury, or both, or neither, he totally lost that first step.

2) Shooting fell off a cliff—perhaps related to the above. And then the confidence followed with that. Don't want to necessarily say it was a case of the yips but for the majority of the season the kid just couldn't buy a goal, even in the rare times he beat his man and got his hands free for a good look.

I think it has less to do with the personnel change, although of course taking Tinney out of the offense especially puts more attention on DeSimone. The good news is I think it's within the realm of possibilities that one or both of the things above are fixed. From what I have heard of the kid, he's a very hard worker, and in fact put in a lot of time last offseason on shooting, so it's bizarre that it vanished the way that it did. Makes me thing it was mostly mental. His mechanics looked fine. The ball just refused to go in the net.

In any event, 11% shooting for a D1 player of DeSimone's caliber—even if he's not what some might have thought he'd be—still strikes me as absolutely rock bottom. I'd be shocked if that doesn't improve, possibly significantly...although it will take a lot more than just that for the 2020 midfield to strike fear into the heart of opposing defenses. Only a combination of that + Zinn blooming + either one of or both of Smith/Concannon doing a bit more as a middie + 1 or 2 of the unknowns coming in and making an impact whether that's a freshman or one of that sophomore trio—maybe if all those things go right we might have a decent midfield. But it's not a great situation to be in, you never want to have that many "ifs."
I think Zinn is the future of the Hopkin's midfields. He scored more goals than DeSimone in 2019 despite being relegated to the wings on faceoffs for most of the season. If he moves to the first midfield, he would likely draw a pole and that would open things up for Conner next year if he's poised to take advantage of it. The offensive midfields could be better overall in 2020. The faceoff group has the potential to be very good.
The Defense is still a surprising source of concern. They were a veteran group yet ended up being the teams' Achilles heel. Maybe a scheme change wouldn't hurt here.
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Re: Johns Hopkins 2020

Post by Typical Lax Dad »

Sagittarius A* wrote: Sat Jul 13, 2019 11:17 am
HopFan16 wrote: Tue Jul 09, 2019 8:46 am While what actually happened behind the scenes with DeSimone may have been a variety of things and far from simple, I think how that translated on the field to the decreased effectiveness is pretty simple:

1) He lost his burst. He was never the fastest kid on the field but he had a quick first step and an ability to accelerate around defensemen. In high school, he was a prolific dodger and scorer, at both attack and midfield, both around GLE and from the wing, in the most competitive conference on Long Island. Whether it was due to the weight gain or an injury, or both, or neither, he totally lost that first step.

2) Shooting fell off a cliff—perhaps related to the above. And then the confidence followed with that. Don't want to necessarily say it was a case of the yips but for the majority of the season the kid just couldn't buy a goal, even in the rare times he beat his man and got his hands free for a good look.

I think it has less to do with the personnel change, although of course taking Tinney out of the offense especially puts more attention on DeSimone. The good news is I think it's within the realm of possibilities that one or both of the things above are fixed. From what I have heard of the kid, he's a very hard worker, and in fact put in a lot of time last offseason on shooting, so it's bizarre that it vanished the way that it did. Makes me thing it was mostly mental. His mechanics looked fine. The ball just refused to go in the net.

In any event, 11% shooting for a D1 player of DeSimone's caliber—even if he's not what some might have thought he'd be—still strikes me as absolutely rock bottom. I'd be shocked if that doesn't improve, possibly significantly...although it will take a lot more than just that for the 2020 midfield to strike fear into the heart of opposing defenses. Only a combination of that + Zinn blooming + either one of or both of Smith/Concannon doing a bit more as a middie + 1 or 2 of the unknowns coming in and making an impact whether that's a freshman or one of that sophomore trio—maybe if all those things go right we might have a decent midfield. But it's not a great situation to be in, you never want to have that many "ifs."
I think Zinn is the future of the Hopkin's midfields. He scored more goals than DeSimone in 2019 despite being relegated to the wings on faceoffs for most of the season. If he moves to the first midfield, he would likely draw a pole and that would open things up for Conner next year if he's poised to take advantage of it. The offensive midfields could be better overall in 2020. The faceoff group has the potential to be very good.
The Defense is still a surprising source of concern. They were a veteran group yet ended up being the teams' Achilles heel. Maybe a scheme change wouldn't hurt here.
Zinn is a good player. Sometimes players have to adjust to the college game. Over the next couple of seasons, the fact that he didn’t play O middie as a freshman will be irrelevant.
“You lucky I ain’t read wretched yet!”
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HopFan16
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Re: Johns Hopkins 2020

Post by HopFan16 »

Sagittarius A* wrote: Sat Jul 13, 2019 11:17 am I think Zinn is the future of the Hopkin's midfields. He scored more goals than DeSimone in 2019 despite being relegated to the wings on faceoffs for most of the season. If he moves to the first midfield, he would likely draw a pole and that would open things up for Conner next year if he's poised to take advantage of it. The offensive midfields could be better overall in 2020. The faceoff group has the potential to be very good.
The Defense is still a surprising source of concern. They were a veteran group yet ended up being the teams' Achilles heel. Maybe a scheme change wouldn't hurt here.
Well, we pretty much need this to happen to have any hope, because it doesn't look like any transfers are coming in. Seay, the kid from Bellarmine who had 30 goals as a freshman, is going to Loyola. According to IL he also considered Stony Brook, Rutgers, and Hofstra so it doesn't sound like a school like Hopkins was ever in the discussion.
Typical Lax Dad wrote: Sat Jul 13, 2019 11:21 am Zinn is a good player. Sometimes players have to adjust to the college game. Over the next couple of seasons, the fact that he didn’t play O middie as a freshman will be irrelevant.
It might not ultimately seem important down the road but the fact remains that it was a very relevant part of the 2019 season, which was quite disappointing outside of two wins over Maryland. And that's time you can't get back.
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Re: Johns Hopkins 2020

Post by Typical Lax Dad »

HopFan16 wrote: Sat Jul 13, 2019 2:46 pm
Sagittarius A* wrote: Sat Jul 13, 2019 11:17 am I think Zinn is the future of the Hopkin's midfields. He scored more goals than DeSimone in 2019 despite being relegated to the wings on faceoffs for most of the season. If he moves to the first midfield, he would likely draw a pole and that would open things up for Conner next year if he's poised to take advantage of it. The offensive midfields could be better overall in 2020. The faceoff group has the potential to be very good.
The Defense is still a surprising source of concern. They were a veteran group yet ended up being the teams' Achilles heel. Maybe a scheme change wouldn't hurt here.
Well, we pretty much need this to happen to have any hope, because it doesn't look like any transfers are coming in. Seay, the kid from Bellarmine who had 30 goals as a freshman, is going to Loyola. According to IL he also considered Stony Brook, Rutgers, and Hofstra so it doesn't sound like a school like Hopkins was ever in the discussion.
Typical Lax Dad wrote: Sat Jul 13, 2019 11:21 am Zinn is a good player. Sometimes players have to adjust to the college game. Over the next couple of seasons, the fact that he didn’t play O middie as a freshman will be irrelevant.
It might not ultimately seem important down the road but the fact remains that it was a very relevant part of the 2019 season, which was quite disappointing outside of two wins over Maryland. And that's time you can't get back.
Yes...but 2019 will be irrelevant. Zinn’s season last year was not surprising to me. He could have played a little more or a little less. Long run, he will be fine. Last year was good for him. He earned a lot of rope for next season.
“You lucky I ain’t read wretched yet!”
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HopFan16
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Re: Johns Hopkins 2020

Post by HopFan16 »

Typical Lax Dad wrote: Sat Jul 13, 2019 2:56 pm

Yes...but 2019 will be irrelevant.
Irrelevant for you maybe :)

Will always be frustrating and emotionally exhausting for me, though—no matter what happens with him down the road. And I hope it's very good things.
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Re: Johns Hopkins 2020

Post by Typical Lax Dad »

HopFan16 wrote: Sat Jul 13, 2019 4:24 pm
Typical Lax Dad wrote: Sat Jul 13, 2019 2:56 pm

Yes...but 2019 will be irrelevant.
Irrelevant for you maybe :)

Will always be frustrating and emotionally exhausting for me, though—no matter what happens with him down the road. And I hope it's very good things.
I know what you mean!
“You lucky I ain’t read wretched yet!”
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Re: Johns Hopkins 2020

Post by WOMBAT, Mod Emeritus »

Typical Lax Dad wrote: Sat Jul 13, 2019 4:43 pm
HopFan16 wrote: Sat Jul 13, 2019 4:24 pm
Typical Lax Dad wrote: Sat Jul 13, 2019 2:56 pm

Yes...but 2019 will be irrelevant.
Irrelevant for you maybe :)

Will always be frustrating and emotionally exhausting for me, though—no matter what happens with him down the road. And I hope it's very good things.
I know what you mean!
Yep. 2019 was just another year for the Hopkins historical records, and not on irrelevant but mostly forgettable except for a three game streak. And not once during that three game streak did I think winning outcomes would be sustainable deep into the playoffs. Too many flaws, and single digit saves wasn’t going to cut it.

But enough of that. Drink beer. Don’t think about this stuff. Better things to do with your time. Hell, fishing is more productive than pondering what will happen in February.

I guarantee one thing: probably a bunch of same. SNAFU.
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HopFan16
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Re: Johns Hopkins 2020

Post by HopFan16 »

Brief recruiting check-in.

They are slowly uploading the games from the "Committed Combine" to YouTube and while we had 4 or 5 future Jays play in those games the guy this is worth sharing for is Jacob Angelus:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IuFRR-kupAs

He's #1 in white. Keep in mind this is against some of the best high school players in the country, all of them committed to D1 programs. In fact I think the team they were playing has a bunch of Maryland, OSU, and Rutgers guys.

Anyway, he scores at least 4 goals (may have been more, I fast-forwarded through it) in a variety of ways. One dodging from X, one weaving through about three guys from up top, one a righty shot on the run, one a finish inside off a nice cut. To my eye I see a kid who is very, very quick with great instincts. Could prob afford to put on 5-10 lb of muscle (as long as that doesn't slow him down) but you can say that about a lot of high school seniors.

The U19 "blue white" scrimmage replay is also on LSN: https://www.laxsportsnetwork.com/videos ... 9-fullgame

Brendan Grimes (#7 in blue) scored the first goal of the game on the EMO.

Owen Murphy (#4 in white) also played but did not score. Couldn't get a read on him one way or the other from the limited time. Had a few nice passes that his teammates failed to convert but also forced one or two he'd like to have back. From what I've heard other people say about him that makes sense, bit of a risk taker.
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