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Post by Semp12 on Jun 5, 2018 9:40:18 GMT -5
Outside of for Phil, I don't see them splitting this season.
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Post by digdugg on Jun 5, 2018 12:39:11 GMT -5
I don't think Taylor should be focused on Theo or Chase, both are just a means to an end. The guy he should be looking at is Phil. Taylor is already better than Nick and that gap is only going to increase. Nick is steady, but thats about it and Taylor needs to show Phil how much better he is and that means contending on the FIVB. I dont see Jake as being good enough for that, so its probably Theo unless Chase proves something very quickly. If I were Taylor, I would think about playing with Theo now, but keeping an eye on Chase. Then if Chase keeps improving look for him next year, but Phil should be the ultimate goal. I wholly agree that Taylor > Nick right now but I just don't see Phil dumping Nick short of a massive falloff over the next year. Would it be the best US men's pairing? Heck yes but I will be surprised if Phil dumps Nick again short of something serious. Not sure I agree Taylor is better than Nick right now. Taylor certainly has the potential to be better but I have been impressed with Nick's play the last couple years - he was lights out in Austin. And before the smackdown begins lest you forget Nick won AVP Huntington in a fairly stacked tournament and an FIVB bronze with a less polished Theo. Taylor has underperformed with an elite domestic blocker Jake in my opinion. Maybe there chemistry is off. The argument may be that if Taylor was with Phil, they would win more - maybe, maybe not. I think Nick's persona helps Phil immensely. I think Nick's experience right now still edges Taylor's talent. Taylor has a higher ceiling for sure...
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Post by JB Southpaw on Jun 5, 2018 12:46:47 GMT -5
I wholly agree that Taylor > Nick right now but I just don't see Phil dumping Nick short of a massive falloff over the next year. Would it be the best US men's pairing? Heck yes but I will be surprised if Phil dumps Nick again short of something serious. Not sure I agree Taylor is better than Nick right now. Taylor certainly has the potential to be better but I have been impressed with Nick's play the last couple years - he was lights out in Austin. And before the smackdown begins lest you forget Nick won AVP Huntington in a fairly stacked tournament and an FIVB bronze with a less polished Theo. Taylor has underperformed with an elite domestic blocker Jake in my opinion. Maybe there chemistry is off. The argument may be that if Taylor was with Phil, they would win more - maybe, maybe not. I think Nick's persona helps Phil immensely. I think Nick's experience right now still edges Taylor's talent. Taylor has a higher ceiling for sure... I'll also back you in saying, "not so fast my friend" to Taylor being better than Nick. In 2020, maybe but right now Nick is siding out to win events. Last year, Taylor and Jake lost to in either the SF or Finals on the AVP last year: Allen/Slick Ryan Doherty / John Hyden Theo Brunner / Casey Patterson You'd think Jake and Taylor are better than those teams
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Post by bigfan on Jun 5, 2018 13:03:57 GMT -5
NO
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Post by tamz on Jun 5, 2018 13:08:04 GMT -5
I’m team Dalcena for 2020. Don’t split the boys up!
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wisco
Sophomore
Posts: 247
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Post by wisco on Jun 5, 2018 14:05:20 GMT -5
Also if you remember Phil talked about be ready to retire had the right coaching job opened up after Rio Olympics. I think him getting to play with one of his best friends is probably one of the few things keeping him going. Can't forget how big a role team chemistry plays. If you watch all those FIVB clips when they are interviewed together it's clear how strong the relationship is between Nick/Phil.
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Post by tamz on Jun 5, 2018 14:39:18 GMT -5
Also if you remember Phil talked about be ready to retire had the right coaching job opened up after Rio Olympics. I think him getting to play with one of his best friends is probably one of the few things keeping him going. Can't forget how big a role team chemistry plays. If you watch all those FIVB clips when they are interviewed together it's clear how strong the relationship is between Nick/Phil. They bicker, but they get the job done. And that’s why I love watching them play. They don’t show much emotions but when necessary they’re fired up! Anticipating to watch them play this weekend in NYC 🤩
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Post by tamz on Jun 5, 2018 14:40:29 GMT -5
I saw a headline that Jake Gibb was making a run for 2020.
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Post by guest2 on Jun 5, 2018 17:22:48 GMT -5
Also if you remember Phil talked about be ready to retire had the right coaching job opened up after Rio Olympics. I think him getting to play with one of his best friends is probably one of the few things keeping him going. Can't forget how big a role team chemistry plays. If you watch all those FIVB clips when they are interviewed together it's clear how strong the relationship is between Nick/Phil. They bicker, but they get the job done. And that’s why I love watching them play. They don’t show much emotions but when necessary they’re fired up! Anticipating to watch them play this weekend in NYC 🤩 I think this is a popular narrative, i.e. that Nick somehow keeps Phil on track mentally and that, as you say, "when necessary they're fired up." Kevin Barnett, for one was prattling on about how consistent this team is, but the perception about them is just wrong. This team is wildly inconsistent and often loses based on mental breakdowns, usually lack of effort/focus. For example in Huntington they were barely competitive with two teams they should beat pretty easily and in Qatar they simply phoned it in. This is something they do a lot, for example last year when they got smacked by Pedro/Guto 10 and 17, or when they lost to the Germans in Poland where all they had to do to win that event was just show up for the final few matches because everyone good was out, and in Vienna where they were destroyed by Russia. I think thats more Phil than Nick and it fits what he did with Sean. His results with Sean are actually very consistent with how he and Nick do, although I think the Sean/Phil team was more hampered by injuries. Taylor/Jake have definitely underperformed but unfortunately I think thats on Jake at this point. His mental game and technique have made up for his limited physical skills for so long, and unfortunately that no longer works. Will definitely be interesting to keep an eye on Taylor this year.
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bumpy
Sophomore
Posts: 149
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Post by bumpy on Jun 5, 2018 17:42:15 GMT -5
They bicker, but they get the job done. And that’s why I love watching them play. They don’t show much emotions but when necessary they’re fired up! Anticipating to watch them play this weekend in NYC 🤩 I think this is a popular narrative, i.e. that Nick somehow keeps Phil on track mentally and that, as you say, "when necessary they're fired up." Kevin Barnett, for one was prattling on about how consistent this team is, but the perception about them is just wrong. This team is wildly inconsistent and often loses based on mental breakdowns, usually lack of effort/focus. For example in Huntington they were barely competitive with two teams they should beat pretty easily and in Qatar they simply phoned it in. This is something they do a lot, for example last year when they got smacked by Pedro/Guto 10 and 17, or when they lost to the Germans in Poland where all they had to do to win that event was just show up for the final few matches because everyone good was out, and in Vienna where they were destroyed by Russia. I think thats more Phil than Nick and it fits what he did with Sean. His results with Sean are actually very consistent with how he and Nick do, although I think the Sean/Phil team was more hampered by injuries. Taylor/Jake have definitely underperformed but unfortunately I think thats on Jake at this point. His mental game and technique have made up for his limited physical skills for so long, and unfortunately that no longer works. Will definitely be interesting to keep an eye on Taylor this year. It is hard rooting for a team that believes they can turn it on when needed (FL) and coast the rest of the time. They lower their expectations and effort level to take mental breaks when they are the one team that could dominate. No way Karch/Kent, Misty/Kerri, Todd/Phil split block at an AVP because they’re too big-time to care. As for Nick vs Taylor. I think Nick is still stronger. Though it’s tougher to judge Taylor’s side out game with Gibb getting so many serves. Gibb/Taylor haven’t performed internationally, and at home never beat a top AVP team all last season (Phil/Nick, Hyden/Ryan, Theo/Casey). Taylor is great and fun to watch but hard to imagine Phil jumping ship before Tokyo.
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Post by ajm on Jun 5, 2018 23:37:49 GMT -5
They bicker, but they get the job done. And that’s why I love watching them play. They don’t show much emotions but when necessary they’re fired up! Anticipating to watch them play this weekend in NYC 🤩 I think this is a popular narrative, i.e. that Nick somehow keeps Phil on track mentally and that, as you say, "when necessary they're fired up." Kevin Barnett, for one was prattling on about how consistent this team is, but the perception about them is just wrong. This team is wildly inconsistent and often loses based on mental breakdowns, usually lack of effort/focus. For example in Huntington they were barely competitive with two teams they should beat pretty easily and in Qatar they simply phoned it in. This is something they do a lot, for example last year when they got smacked by Pedro/Guto 10 and 17, or when they lost to the Germans in Poland where all they had to do to win that event was just show up for the final few matches because everyone good was out, and in Vienna where they were destroyed by Russia. I think thats more Phil than Nick and it fits what he did with Sean. His results with Sean are actually very consistent with how he and Nick do, although I think the Sean/Phil team was more hampered by injuries. Taylor/Jake have definitely underperformed but unfortunately I think thats on Jake at this point. His mental game and technique have made up for his limited physical skills for so long, and unfortunately that no longer works. Will definitely be interesting to keep an eye on Taylor this year. Every top team has its ups and downs and sometimes loses to teams they should beat, especially on the FIVB where there is so much depth. I’m not sure I’ve seen any evidence that Phil and Nick are more inconsistent than other teams. I’m not sure I would automatically ascribe their losses to mental breakdowns either, although sometimes their laid back demeanors can be perceived as lack of effort.
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Post by Semp12 on Jun 6, 2018 12:36:14 GMT -5
The Nick vs. Taylor argument has them on opposite sides the last few weeks. Nick doing great with possibly the most dominant player of all time, Taylor scooping up "up and comers" and over-performing/lifting their level (Chase, Bomgren). The mentalities of these two situations are so different as well. I'd imagine playing with Phil gives you the mentality you need to be winning (although Nick is too good for that pressure) vs. screw it, let's ball when you are not playing with your regular partner who is hurt.
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Post by swift on Jun 8, 2018 1:35:49 GMT -5
I think Taylor and Phil would be a stronger team than Phil and Nick. They both play great defense but Nick has had a lot of problems siding out on the fivb tour lately. I could show you at least a dozen games where Nick only got a handful of clean sideouts per set. It also shows in the fact that Nick is trying to make Phil go on 2 whenever possible these days, something that he didn't do as much a couple of years ago. Honestly to me it's amazing that Phil is still able to win tournaments with Nick internationally.
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Post by tafit on Jun 8, 2018 4:54:00 GMT -5
Both Taylor and Phil prefer to play on the left side, do you think it somehow matters? Probably Phil would remain on the left side in order to keep hitting on two, so Taylor had to switch.
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Post by ts89yahoo on Jun 8, 2018 7:51:38 GMT -5
Taylor was dropping bombs from the right in Austin. I think it’s a non issue.
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