Yes, it's "Bear Territory Tuesday", but "Bear Territory Thursday" will be this upcoming Thursday, so nothing is changing with the segment. I put this off until today because Cal's second exhibition game was last Thursday and I wanted to do a recap of sorts for both exhibition games. Anyways, here is a list of five things that I think we learned from Cal's two exhibition games.
1. Brandon Chauca has some issue with the NCAA
Freshman point guard Brandon Chauca has some sort of issue with the NCAA that is keeping him from playing and no, it has nothing to do with academics or benefits. Ryan Gorcey made that part clear in a tweet earlier today.
Martin "still waiting" on NCAA for clearance on Brandon Chauca. Says it's not extra benefits, or academics.
— Ryan Gorcey (@RGBearTerritory) November 11, 2014
2. Sam Singer has improved his shot
Sam Singer is one of the best players that Cuonzo Martin has coming off the bench. He showed improvements with his shot during these two exhibition games, knocking down some threes while looking much more comfortable with his shot.
3. Kingsley Okoroh is raw, but capable of making an impact this season
There is no doubt that freshman 7'1 center Kingsley Okoroh lacks offensive polish, but I liked what I saw from him on the defensive end with his shot blocking and rebounding abilities. He blocked four shots against CSU-San Marcos and he throws really nice outlet passes after he grabs a defensive rebound.
As for his offense, he needs to do a better job positioning himself in the paint and getting higher up in the post. But even there, he seems more comfortable with the ball in his hands than Kameron Rooks did at this same time last year.
4. Tyrone Wallace is much better as a point guard
Tyrone Wallace looks so much more comfortable on the floor as a point guard and it really showed during these two exhibitions. When he has the ball in his hands, he really is able to do a lot of cool things in terms of creating for others as well as slashing to the rim and finishing. It was hard for him to play shooting guard last year alongside Justin Cobbs for the vast bulk of his playing minutes. Expect him to thrive this year as the team's primary ball handler.
5. Cuonzo Martin still isn't sure who to play alongside David Kravish in the post
As of right now, Christian Behrens is the starting power forward and David Kravish is the starting center. However, Behrens didn't get a large chunk of minutes in comparison to other guys who can also play alongside Kravish. Kingsley Okoroh and Dwight Tarwater also got a fair amount of minutes. I still think Kingsley Okoroh is the best guy to start right now. He's the only true center on the team who is healthy, and David Kravish is a natural power forward.
If Christian Behrens is able to log in a lot of minutes at power forward, that would be different. But if it's going to be musical chairs in the post with Kravish as the only consistent post presence, I think Cuonzo Martin might as well start Kingsley Okoroh and really develop him over the course of the season. Plus, as I mentioned above, Kingsley is already a very solid defender and rebounder, so it isn't like he's a liability on the court.
---Ben Parker: follow me on twitter @nba_lord
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