Tyler Lewis transfers to Butler

Tyler Lewis transfers to a mid-major who lost its coach last year (who pretty clearly saw the writing on the wall, talent-wise), and finished 14-17 last season. Very clearly a step down from NC State.

Link

“I love N.C. State,” Lewis said. “I committed during my junior year in high school so I feel like I’ve been there forever but I felt like it was time to move on.”

Lewis, a McDonald’s All-American out of Statesville, started 18 games and averaged 4.4 points and 3.8 assists per game this past season. His late move into the starting lineup in February helped push the Wolfpack into the NCAA tournament for a third straight season.

Lewis had seven points and eight assists in the Wolfpack’s 74-59 win over Xavier in the first round of the NCAA tournament. His potential game-winning shot at the end of regulation in a 83-80 loss to Saint Louis in the Round of 64 rimmed in and out.

Lewis started the final 14 games of the season but was in a position where he would have to share time next season with both Cat Barber and Alabama transfer Trevor Lacey.

The prospect of playing next season without star forward T.J. Warren, one of Lewis’ best friends and primary advocate for playing time with coach Mark Gottfried, also factored into his decision to transfer, Lewis said.

The chance to play in a system with more pick-and-roll plays and screens for the point guard was also an important part of the decision, Lewis said.

“I think it’s the right place for me,” Lewis said.

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13-14 Basketball

Home Forums Tyler Lewis transfers to Butler

Viewing 25 posts - 26 through 50 (of 76 total)
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  • #50695
    packalum44
    Participant

    Come on BJD 20 is not even close to being adult. He doesn’t even know what good sex is or how to enjoy a proper scotch and cigar.

    Gott might have learned discipline in front of a microphone but he certainly is a selfish pric* in many other ways. He did get fired from Alabama lest we forget. Also he has a tendency to recruit or “inherit” players that either 1) have an “inherent” quality (selfishness?) the predisposes them to transfer or 2) brings out the worst in his players (I.E., poor leadership skills).

    Lest we forget he is the GM of this team and LEADER of this team. The kids don’t respect him. Think it has something to do with the coach? Nahhh let’s pretend like Gott is taking us to the promise land. An Elite 8 is eminent int he next 10 years.

    #50696
    packalum44
    Participant

    If you polled the average basketball fan, they would tell you Butler is a better program than ours. You could argue that well wait, we used to be good in the 70s and 80s and have better facilities and pay our coaches more money, but you’d only receive sympathy in return from said basketball fan, as opposed to swaying their opinion.

    #50697
    JT
    Participant

    Butler had its day, now it’s back to normal. If Smart leaves VCU, the same. Of course fans right now would see Butler in a better light- State has gone through years of recovery (Les), mediocrity (Herb), suckdom (Lowe).
    Re. Gott, kids who don’t get their way and prima donnas rag him. Can he be a cocky prick? Yes. Does that bother me? No. Is he a good coach who has State on track? Yes.

    #50701
    PackerInRussia
    Participant

    I’m no basketball historian, but I don’t remember Butler doing anything before Brad Stevens. It sounds good to say “Butler” b/c of their recent success, but were the more than a flash in the pan with a great coach. The WBS moniker would have gone along well with Babyface Stevens.

    #50704
    Wulfpack
    Participant

    Butler has had a pretty rich basketball history since the 90s:

    Despite playing in a mid-major conference, Butler rose to national prominence in the 1990s. They ranked in most media polls for all but a few weeks from the 2006-07 season to the 2011-12 season, and competed in the post season every year since 1997, except for 2004 and 2005.

    It is hard to gauge exactly where they are now. Obviously, losing Stevens hurt. They have struggled. But being in the new Big East is a giant uphrade over the Horizon. Nova, Gtown, Marquette, Creighton, Xavier, St. John’s, Providence. Big step up there.

    We will certainly have much more success than Butler going forward, but their recent history blows ours away.

    It is a good fit for him.

    #50711
    redisgood
    Participant

    No, 44 is right. Just look at UMass. They continue to be a national power even though Calipari has long since left. Any player would kill to go to Butler. The other guys are just settling by coming to State.

    #50725
    Fastback68
    Participant

    Great. Now I have to memorize what TAFKAWBS stands for as that reference will become more and more obscure over the next 50 years. Unless of course, we meet butler 2 or 3 years down the road and white chocolate torches us with 40 pts, 16 assists and double digit rebounds.

    #50727
    choppack1
    Participant

    And with our defense that is certainly possible.

    Time will tell. Is it a signal there is problem here retaining good kids or is it simply a typical transfer for typical reasons.

    #50728
    TheCOWDOG
    Moderator

    Good kids? Or good ballplayers?

    Name me more than one proofed out, good ballplayer that packed his suitcase, and took the next bus outta Raleigh.

    #50730
    Fastback68
    Participant

    That Belgian thug had to take a plane.

    Sorry. I thought you said roofed out baller.

    #50732
    choppack1
    Participant

    Cow – I didn’t say good ballplayers, BUT gott signed purvis, da thaey and Lewis…that is 3 of 4 players whom he brought here as frosh. 4 for 4 is not encouraging. It may just be a fluke though.

    #50733
    redcanine
    Participant

    Gott signed and played Purvis. Purvis wanted to be a point guard, and even got his chance. He couldn’t make a simple entry pass into the post. Back-to-back turnovers last year just trying to feed it in to Howell/Calvin (can’t remember who we were playing). The department even petitioned the NCAA just to get him eligible. Yep, he was done wrong…

    Tyler’s telling twitter that he needs a system that includes more ball screens. You know, like the one Javi Gonzalez and Ryan Harrow stationed so well. Nah, can’t play for Gottfried. Too great a difference in philosophy from Lowe.

    #50734
    wilmwolf80
    Participant

    Our fanbase (maybe others do it too, I’m only a member of one fanbase) has a frustrating habit of harping on these kinds of things: players that transferred, coaches that left, coaches that were fired, players that were recruited, players that were not recruited, coaches that were never hired, etc…. To me, it’s not worth my mental health to worry about these things that I have no control over. If you run with the Pack, then I’m with you all the way. If you don’t, well, bye.

    #50735
    Lunatic Fringe
    Participant

    @red

    The game was at UVA when Zo turned his ankle early in the first half (~10 mins into game). Purvis had his chance and put up the quietest/most uneventful 30 mins. In spite of Purvis, we still almost won that game thanks to a 20ish (pts) – 15ish (Rebs) night by CJ (who was battling the flu).

    In looking back, it is amazing how unselfish our supposedly “most selfish player…CJ” on the team according to some talking heads was that night. Ironically, it was the same night that the real “most selfish player…Purvis” completely failed when he finally got what he wanted.

    #50736
    redisgood
    Participant

    Our fanbase (maybe others do it too, I’m only a member of one fanbase) has a frustrating habit of harping on these kinds of things: players that transferred, coaches that left, coaches that were fired, players that were recruited, players that were not recruited, coaches that were never hired, etc…. To me, it’s not worth my mental health to worry about these things that I have no control over. If you run with the Pack, then I’m with you all the way. If you don’t, well, bye.

    + 1,000%

    #50738
    Adventuroo
    Participant

    OK,
    I admit to being one who is sorry that Tyler is leaving. I think that he contributed a LOT over the two years. Cat looked to me like he was being coached by Whitt….in that he never knew when to pass. His D was great and that put in a notch or two above TL.

    Tyler was more mature this year. That was obvious. Cat made a LOT of dumb plays where he used his “I always scored in HS” brain without realizing that he was playing in the ACC and not the AAU or whatever. He was not an assist person….

    Ask TJ or Vandy WHO got them the ball. HINT, it was not a common name for a feline.

    Having said that….it WAS probably time for him to move on if he and Coach did not see eye-to-eye on his playing time and role next year.

    Twitter should have a 24 hour filter…ask some of our politicians.

    Tyler was not Corchiani or Spud….but he did bring some maturity and also some organization to our game. Coach G pulled Cat more times for “showboating” or being DUMB than I can remember. Coach G talked about pulling Calvin in his sophomore year to “show him how much he loved him and to share that love while Calvin was seated next to him on the sidelines”. Cat got the same treatment this year.

    I have a LOT of HOPE (as many did in 2008 & 2012) that Cat will CHANGE and that he will lead us next year. BUT, after watching a LOT of Good PG’s over the years, Cat does NOT show those same traits. Sidney Lowe, he will never be….and he really needs a Whitt, but seems to think that he is WHITT.

    I HOPE for the best for Tyler. Butler is an interesting choice, especially after the coaching changes. Some of the other schools would have been, IMHO, a better fit and also a place where he could excel…

    It will only take a MAJOR injury for everyone to be opining….”Gee, we SURE could use Tyler right now” and then wishing and hoping and wondering WHY Coach G “ran him off”. This happened last year and this year RIGHT HERE….but folks forget.

    Tyler’s departure was “foretold” and opined to ad nauseam due to one of his “I’m not getting enough PT” tweets…..but then he did and showed poise and we were better with him starting and Cat coming in and having a short leach.

    I predict that there will be many future posts bemoaning his leaving….

    I also predict that CAT will improve….or HE will be packing his back next year….and NOT for a shot at the SHOW….

    #50739
    Tau837
    Participant

    Cat looked to me like he was being coached by Whitt….in that he never knew when to pass…

    Cat made a LOT of dumb plays where he used his “I always scored in HS” brain without realizing that he was playing in the ACC and not the AAU or whatever. He was not an assist person….

    A lot of fans seem to significantly underestimate Cat’s improvement in this area and overestimate the gap between Cat and Tyler in this area.

    Tyler averaged 3.8 assists per game this season; Cat averaged 3.5. Tyler’s assist percentage was 32.9% this season; Cat’s was 27.5%. Not a huge gap. And consider that Tyler’s assist percentage as a freshman was 17.9%, so Cat was considerably better than Tyler was as a freshman.

    Tyler also turned the ball over more often than Cat (2.1 per game for Tyler vs. 1.7 per game for Cat; 17.5% turnover percentage for Tyler, compared to 16.1% for Cat).

    #50740
    Tau837
    Participant

    ^Misread the turnovers per game. Tyler averaged fewer per game (1.1 vs. 1.7) but averaged a higher turnover percentage as noted.

    #50747
    Anthony Grundy
    Participant

    Not sure why SFN posts and message boards need to denigrate players who transfer. Player’s need to do what’s best for them. It’s not like these players who transfer are blasting the program/coach like De Thaey.
    Tyler absolutely needs a coach who has more confidence in him.

    Whenever Tyler has no one looking over his shoulder (e.g. Xavier), he has played well. So his statements are true, whether we like them or not. And we should also accept the fact, that some players need more control/confidence in their situation than others. Tyler would admit he’s not great at being a sixth man or a starter with a short leash.

    At the end of the day Tyler played hard, and helped us get to the tourney this year. If we had two Cat Barber’s on the team this year, we likely wouldn’t have made the tourney. Tyler played great down the stretch. I just don’t understand the need to take shots at a guy who did his best for the program and definitely helped us win games.

    Articles and boards like this really make WPN look bad.

    #50750
    Whiteshoes67
    Participant

    Bigger, stronger, quicker guards bothered Lewis in man-to-man situations all year. Presses and traps similarly flustered him. The Marquette game was just one such example. Barber, on the other hand, turned it over but his turnovers by and large were quite different than Lewis’s. Barber actually beat his man off the dribble regularly, and then made boneheaded decisions with the ball–something not uncommon for extremely talented Freshmen–and he penetrated the zone with the dribble, something you rarely saw with Lewis. Barber’s decision making improved substantially this year. We’re in good shape going forward.

    #50755
    Wulfpack
    Participant

    Barber has a long way to go to being the PG we need for the future. Grossly out of control much of the year. It will be interesting to see how far he can come.

    #50757
    eas
    Participant

    ^^ Agree Wulfpack^^

    #50760
    JT
    Participant

    Cat will be top notch- he started showing flashes of all the skills and never got down when Tyler took the starting spot. He has and will continue developing. I’m a Tyler fan, but I’m irritated by the twitter crap. Regarding the transfers, his class signed with Gott but were- as Tyler said- Lowe’s recruits. If I remember, de Thaey might have been a late reach brought by Lutz. Purvis wants to be an nba baller, so he wanted to be a pg, at which he was awful. De Thaey was a bust, a really awful “skilled” big man. Tyler was the guy I liked, but it was clear that on a good acc team he needed to eventually be a good backup pg or be a good mid-major starter. He obviously couldn’t deal with the former option. I wish him well, but he is inarguably going out like a dick. Whether he has valid gripes or not, bitching thru twitter never looks good. And my perception is that his gripes are bogus.

    #50761
    infinity_hearts
    Participant

    I hate we are losing a good point guard. But I hope he gets treated better at Butler.

    #50762
    redcanine
    Participant

    I hope he plays better at Butler.

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