Jamal Abu-Shamala on the Deep Rotation

Club Tubby: This year Tubby has been playing many different players and throwing various lineups at opponents, often going 9-10 players deep.  Some are critics of this saying it doesn't allow the players to develop a solid chemistry and prevents players from "getting into a groove" in games because they only play for small spurts at a time.  As an experienced Gopher basketball player, do you believe playing many players in smaller spurts prevents them from getting into a groove?  Obviously it allows players to remain more rested and fresh, but is it easier to play with 7-8 and develop a good court chemistry compared to 9-10?  Or does it not effect much because you all practice together so much?

Jamal:  As a player, you would want to play the whole game if you could but that is unrealistic.  I feel like our team works better by having the rotation we have because it allows the players to go all out while on the court and not save themselves because they know someone is going to be coming in to bring fresh legs out there.  It is a great strategy because it is hard for the other teams to keep up with the personnel which causes problems.  But Coach Smith does a great job of understanding when someone is playing well and will adjust to reward them.

Thanks for the comment Jamal.