Is Gary Ervin the best we can do?

[RazrBakr]

How many turn overs, tonight alone has he been responsible for.  EVERYTIME he follows that with a  "what did I do?" look.  He simply cannot play within himself...Think Kareem Reid with ZERO control!

[GAHOG]

That free throw at the end, even though it didn't matter, was the worst free throw I've ever seen a PG attempt. Did he mean to miss it?

[Porkem]

I would have to say...

I dislike Gary Ervin more than any basketball player

that's come through our program in the last 20 years!

[RazrBakr]

wide right.  Didn't even draw iron.  Hogs win!!!

[hawgwash]

I would have to say...

I dislike Gary Ervin more than any basketball player

that's come through our program in the last 20 years!

Would you like Dontell back?  Ervin drives me up a wall, but every now and then he does something brilliant.

[Team Oklahoma]

I think Pel has got the team futher along than they have been in 4 or 5 years but what in the heck are we doing with Ervin on the floor when it is that close, I know we have to have better ball handlers than that, I hate to say it but Id rather see the ball in Hill's hands as for Ervin to have it.

[blacksuit]

I like when the announcer was surprised that GE picked up his dribble near half-court.

[RazrBakr]

I like to think that Coach P is bringing Welsh along slowly, but it just seems that in the last minutes of the game Ervin is always the ball handler.

[jeffreyw]

Let us not overlook a huge 3 he drilled with time expiring and a great drive to the middle to draw the defense, pass to Beverley, and Beverley drilled the 3.

[Team Oklahoma]

Myself, Ervin would be packing water, if he does something in a game I call it luck not skill, a good ball player or a good gaurd doesnt turn it over that much and can atleast hit the rim on free throws

[hogs25]

Not to mention that other brink he threw up there at the end but luckly we got the rebound and dunked it.  I don't know how in the world a PG can't even hit iron shooting FT's.  What a brick.  I'm tired of watching these Seniors.  Great win but GE is more of a liability and you have to hold your breath when the balls in his hands.

[jeffreyw]

Packing water for you would be glasses half empty right?

[chiefsfan]

Our fans overlook everything positive Ervin does. 

its easy hen the negatives oten outweigh the positives

Its not that he's a poor shooter or anything, he just has a poor basketball IQ.

There is no excuse for shooting a FT like that at the end of the game

[JLaws]

At first I had hard time understanding why a lot of fans quietly or not so quietly weren't big fans of Ervin's abilities as a point guard... glad that one's out of the way.

"What's cooler than being cool?"
"Shooting like Gary Ervin."

Glad Hogs won but WOW, no wonder there was speculation late in the season last year that Heath told him not to shoot. And as far as nominees to take his spot; I guess I'd have to go with Welsh. IDK who else you really have to choose from here considering isn't GE the only "true" PG on the team?

[jgphillips3]

I have been calling him the Human Turnover Machine for two years.  He almost killed us three time with turnovers, however, he did make some nice passes and plays with a fast motor.  I think I may just start calling him the Human Inconsistency Machine....hmmmm...(H.I.M.)

[ImapigUrapig]

You have to judge his good vs. bad and I keep pulling for him but good grief he's 24 yrs old and some of his decisions are so jr, high it's sad.I say let's give his PT to Britt.Enough is enough!

[Hogtropolis™]

I don't know what is with all the bashing of Ervin.  He is not great and no one ever said he was great, but this team would not be where they are without him.  Look at some of our big time players averages of points per game, turnovers per game, and assists/turnover ratio.

Charles Thomas - 10.4, 2.4, .59
Sonny Weems - 12.0, 3.6, .68
Patrick Beverley - 12.4, 2.2, 1.29
Stefan Welsh - 5.6, 2.4, 1.12
Gary Ervin - 9.1, 2.1, 1.57

Ervin is the 4th highest scorer on the team and has one of the lowest averages in turnovers per game and is leading the team with a 1.57 A/TO ratio.

Get off his back and just support the team.  If you want to gripe about someone don't gripe about Ervin.  He has helped this team out tremendously this year!

[RazrBakr]

He is a Razorback.  I do support the team.  The original question was is he "the best" we can do?  He makes me cring when he drives the lane, and makes 2 stupid decisions for every 1 great play he makes.

[hillhog]

All I can hope for at this point is that there is not some unknown rule that would allow for GE to come back for a 6th year of eligibility

[Hollywood_HOGan45]

I dont like Ervin either but i have to admit he does make big plays for us. he is better than Dontell Jefferson, i will give him that.

I wish he was a better point guard and could actually hit free shots though. Ive never seen another point guard dribble the ball off his foot as much as Ervin.

However he did make some plays for us in the first half to prevent the game from getting away.
I wouldnt go as far as to want him off the team but I am looking forward to Fortson leading the offense next year instead of Ervin.

[chiefsfan]

I agree Britt should get some minutes in the middle of each half.  Problem is can he handle well enough to allow PBev to remain at the 2 to be able to score because Britt hasn't shown he can score.
Thank you.  Finally some objectivity when it comes to Ervin.  All of our players have been inconsistent this season.  Ervin has made some big shots when we needed them.

I would sincerely hope our PG leads the team in assist to turnover rate...otherwise id be worried

he had 3 turnovers today...but that doesnt count all his dumb shots that he took...and count that missed free throw at the end and it winds up at about 8 possesions lost directly because of a play made by Gary Ervin

[Hogtropolis™]

I would sincerely hope our PG leads the team in assist to turnover rate...otherwise id be worried

he had 3 turnovers today...but that doesnt count all his dumb shots that he took...and count that missed free throw at the end and it winds up at about 8 possesions lost directly because of a play made by Gary Ervin

What about 2 missed FT by Weems and 2 missed FT by Bev.  I'm not saying that the stuff Ervin does doesn't frustrate me too, I just don't understand what is with the hatred for him.  He isn't doing anything that the rest of the players aren't doing as well.  He plays his butt off and while doing that he does make some mistakes.  So do a lot of the other players on the team and some of them do it just as often or more.

I just never see any threads bashing Weems for how many turnovers he has or for how many rebounds he misses or shots he forces or FT's he misses.  I don't get why there is so much man love for Weems, and at the same time criticizing Ervin for the same stuff.

[razorback93]

In answer to the question, yes.  Y'all better take your heart medicine, b/c I think every game is going to be like this.   I am glad they are winning these games, but they still don't know how to close games out very well.  It's like they get a six or seven point lead and then it is just hold on and pray the other team runs out of time.  When they play the better teams it will be difficult to win wiht spotty PG play and missing over half their FTs.

[hogman64]

What about 2 missed FT by Weems and 2 missed FT by Bev.  I'm not saying that the stuff Ervin does doesn't frustrate me too, I just don't understand what is with the hatred for him.  He isn't doing anything that the rest of the players aren't doing as well.  He plays his butt off and while doing that he does make some mistakes.  So do a lot of the other players on the team and some of them do it just as often or more.

I just never see any threads bashing Weems for how many turnovers he has or for how many rebounds he misses or shots he forces or FT's he misses.  I don't get why there is so much man love for Weems, and at the same time criticizing Ervin for the same stuff.

I agree with you on Weems , the only time he has the ball and it doesnt scare me to death is when he is shooting.......he is a mistake waiting to happen, when he is handling the ball......

[BigSexyHog]

Our fans overlook everything positive Ervin does. 

Man do they ever... I like Gary and think he is very good player.  Does he do everything right?  Of course not but neither does anyone else.  I can't figure why he is the evil step son on this team.  Just don't get it. 

[chiefsfan]

What about 2 missed FT by Weems and 2 missed FT by Bev.  I'm not saying that the stuff Ervin does doesn't frustrate me too, I just don't understand what is with the hatred for him.  He isn't doing anything that the rest of the players aren't doing as well.  He plays his butt off and while doing that he does make some mistakes.  So do a lot of the other players on the team and some of them do it just as often or more.

I just never see any threads bashing Weems for how many turnovers he has or for how many rebounds he misses or shots he forces or FT's he misses.  I don't get why there is so much man love for Weems, and at the same time criticizing Ervin for the same stuff.

Weems and Beverly should get admonished for their missed free throws.  But they also single handedly won the game for us

Ervin not only doesnt shoot free throws well, he costs us an average of 8 possesions a game by his mistakes alone.  Weems turns the ball over some as well.  But he doesnt take dumb shots near as often.  Doesnt look clueless when on the floor on offense, and he scores enough points to make up for his turnovers

Ervin has hit some clutch shots for us this year, and ill give him credit for that.  But maybe if he didnt turn the ball over so much, we wouldnt be in the situation to need that clutch shot to begin with

[Hogtropolis™]

Weems turns the ball over some as well.

3.6 TO/game is more than some.

Don't get me wrong, I am not trying to demean Weems or Bev in any way, I am just trying to figure out why he gets a free pass and Ervin gets to take all the heat.

My view is that if Weems, Bev, Townes, Thomas, or Ervin was not on this team we would not have the record we have right now.  All of them have been very important in getting us to where we are.

[Tripod1]

I would have to say...

I dislike Gary Ervin more than any basketball player

that's come through our program in the last 20 years!

We all have our opinions but in my opinion, Kareem Reid was just terrible.  I could not stand to watch him play.

[HawgTrough]

Man do they ever... I like Gary and think he is very good player.  Does he do everything right?  Of course not but neither does anyone else.  I can't figure why he is the evil step son on this team.  Just don't get it. 

The wrecklessness, looks of disbelief every mistake, and the inability to control a game all stand out when it's the point guard.

[Dr. Kenneth Noisewater]

Man do they ever... I like Gary and think he is very good player.  Does he do everything right?  Of course not but neither does anyone else.  I can't figure why he is the evil step son on this team.  Just don't get it. 

Because he is the 24 year old POINT GUARD that should know better by now. He keeps making same terrible decisions. And its not the amount of turnovers, its the way he turns the ball over. For every floater in the lane or shot clock beating 3 pointer there are two or three mistakes that lead to points on the other end.

[311Hog]

Because he is the 24 year old POINT GUARD that should know better by now. He keeps making same terrible decisions. And its not the amount of turnovers, its the way he turns the ball over. For every floater in the lane or shot clock beating 3 pointer there are two or three mistakes that lead to points on the other end.

i agree with this statement, Gary Ervin has so much talent and at times shows so much brilliance. But, moments after making an amazing floater or pass he will dribble directly into a trap at midcourt and turn it over and then foul.  Alot of fans myself included just cant wrap our minds around the "up and down" in GE's play.

I like the kid and hope that maybe he could just get a handle on the decision making a little bit, it could be the difference in our season.

[MinowBucket]

Our fans overlook everything positive Ervin does. 

That's because the negative far outweighs the positive. He not only turns the ball over way too much, he does it at key times in the game. We go on a run get up 6 or 7, play good D and get the ball back. Expect him to dribble it off his foot out of bounds, expect him to run down court and pass it to no one out of bounds, expect him to go one on three and get the ball knocked away from behind. He makes stupid decisions at key times in the game, then laughs when he messes up. That's what I can't stand the most. That damn grin on his face after a screw up. PLAY BRITT and WELSH alot more please!!

[ConwayHog]

I would have to say...

I dislike Gary Ervin more than any basketball player

that's come through our program in the last 20 years!

Dontell Jefferson

[ConwayHog]

What about 2 missed FT by Weems and 2 missed FT by Bev.  I'm not saying that the stuff Ervin does doesn't frustrate me too, I just don't understand what is with the hatred for him.  He isn't doing anything that the rest of the players aren't doing as well.  He plays his butt off and while doing that he does make some mistakes.  So do a lot of the other players on the team and some of them do it just as often or more.

I just never see any threads bashing Weems for how many turnovers he has or for how many rebounds he misses or shots he forces or FT's he misses.  I don't get why there is so much man love for Weems, and at the same time criticizing Ervin for the same stuff.

I don't have a lot of time for a more lengthy reply but Ervin is supposed to be the floor general.  He's not anywhere close after 4 years in this league and a redshirt year.  Period.

[DC]

What I hate is that he seems to want to be the hero and always take shots towards the end of the game. I would much rather Bev or Weems taking those shots for us. Of course that stupid grin every time he makes a mistake does get on my nerves.

[Fatty McGee]

Donewithdale is right.

[Turnberry]

We all have our opinions but in my opinion, Kareem Reid was just terrible.  I could not stand to watch him play.

Gary Ervin makes Kareem Reid look like Oscar Robertson.   Kareem Reid had his flaws (below avg shooter and poor shot selection), but he was a solid floor general.  Gary Ervin has very few good qualities you want in a point guard.  He sucks, there's no way of arguing otherwise. It's unfortunate he's the best we have at the 1, but that's the way it is.

[jgphillips3]

It is the timing of the turnovers and the fumbling nature of his mistakes that bring the heat on him.  Now, to be fair to him, he is the point guard and will have the ball in his hands more than other guys.  Also, you would expect your point guard to have more assists and a better TO to assist ration than any other player on the team.  It would be as sad as Hillis being the best receiver on the football team if he didn't have the best stat on the team in those categories. 

However, the 1.5 ish TO to assist is bad for a top program point guard and a killer when there aren't more guards to pick up the slack.  If he was in the 2 to 1 or 3 to 1 TO/Assist range, you probably wouldn't be hearing about the rest so much.  Also he appears to lose focus at critical times in games and then get it back at other critical times.  It is the inconsistency of our 24 year old point guard that drives everyone crazy.  I have no problem with the young man, but it is sad that he is the best point guard we have and a REAL indictment of Stan's recruiting in my opinion.

[parrishw]

I have beat up on Ervin a lot in the past because of his propensity for boneheaded plays, with that having been said, over the last two games I see evidence of improvement that I think comes from positive coaching.

In the past if GE got the ball on a fast break it would not matter if he was all alone, one on one or one on three he was going to the hole and if he had a marginally open look from the 3 point line he would take the shot.

In the Baylor game and last night on more than one occasion he pulled up on a fast break when the numbers were not right and allowed the rest of the team to come and set the halfcourt offense.
He also, on more than one occasion did not take a few long range shots that I felt he would have been justified in taking based on the timing and the position of the defender.

Admittedly when he does not shoot as much he might be cold when he does so his missing the entire basket on the 3 point try late in the game did not surprise me.
Missing the free throw I chalked up to maybe a called shot by Pel to keep the clock running since we had a two possession advantage at the time anyway if I remember correctly so I did not get to excited about that.

I am seeing smarter play that I think is the result of the coaching in Gary Ervin so I am off his back for the time being.

The thing about last nights game we all need to be concerned about is that we barely beat a team with 3 of their very good player sitting down. The whole team came out flat and stunk up the place from the free throw line. If they had made a decent percentage from the charity stripe we would not have had any last minute worries.

Washington grew up a little making that last free throw to make it a two possession game and that may serve us well on the next road game.

I see improvement in every player under the new coaching regime

Go Hogs

[Beaverfever]

I don't know if welsh is the answer.  If I was Pel, I would actually tell welsh to never shoot a 3 pointer again.  He is just a terrible shooter.  You wonder how he could be a decent recruit as a guard if he can't shoot.

[Turnberry]

Kareem is our all time assists leader, is top 5 in steals all time and averaged double figures in pts.  He was a good college PG playing in an up tempo system.  I remember people used to criticize him too and I didn't get it.  I get Ervin driving us nuts at times.  KR is one of the best PG's in our program's history.

Kareem is our all time assists leader, is top 5 in steals all time and averaged double figures in pts.  He was a good college PG playing in an up tempo system.  I remember people used to criticize him too and I didn't get it.  I get Ervin driving us nuts at times.  KR is one of the best PG's in our program's history.

KR wasn't respected because he was preceded by Mayberry/Beck.  Now that we've seen the dozen or so medicore point guards since KR left in 99 some people are finally realizing he was pretty good.

[chillinhoggie]

I like when the announcer was surprised that GE picked up his dribble near half-court.

This made me laugh. ^^^^^

Man do they ever... I like Gary and think he is very good player.  Does he do everything right?  Of course not but neither does anyone else.  I can't figure why he is the evil step son on this team.  Just don't get it. 

I've met him a coupla times and he really does seem like a nice kid.... I don't think anybody here really hates him....He just repeatedly makes the SAME mistakes after playing SEC ball for 5 years.... Honestly, if it wasn't my team it would be almost comical, but it is and it's frustrating. He does ocassionally hit a big shot or make a nice play which makes it even more frustrating to see him pick up his dribble again.

[BrooklynRoss]

I like when the announcer was surprised that GE picked up his dribble near half-court.

Ha, seriously, that guy makes some of the worst ball-handling mistakes I've ever seen from someone at that level. My old high school coach would BEAT ME WITH REEDS if I pulled up my dribble at half court, haha. I wouldn't want to be Ervin at practice today. I bet they're running quite a few bleachers for each missed freethrow as well.

[Hogtropolis™]

I have beat up on Ervin a lot in the past because of his propensity for boneheaded plays, with that having been said, over the last two games I see evidence of improvement that I think comes from positive coaching.

In the past if GE got the ball on a fast break it would not matter if he was all alone, one on one or one on three he was going to the hole and if he had a marginally open look from the 3 point line he would take the shot.

In the Baylor game and last night on more than one occasion he pulled up on a fast break when the numbers were not right and allowed the rest of the team to come and set the halfcourt offense.
He also, on more than one occasion did not take a few long range shots that I felt he would have been justified in taking based on the timing and the position of the defender.

Admittedly when he does not shoot as much he might be cold when he does so his missing the entire basket on the 3 point try late in the game did not surprise me.
Missing the free throw I chalked up to maybe a called shot by Pel to keep the clock running since we had a two possession advantage at the time anyway if I remember correctly so I did not get to excited about that.

I am seeing smarter play that I think is the result of the coaching in Gary Ervin so I am off his back for the time being.

The thing about last nights game we all need to be concerned about is that we barely beat a team with 3 of their very good player sitting down. The whole team came out flat and stunk up the place from the free throw line. If they had made a decent percentage from the charity stripe we would not have had any last minute worries.

Washington grew up a little making that last free throw to make it a two possession game and that may serve us well on the next road game.

I see improvement in every player under the new coaching regime

Go Hogs

Very well put.  +1

[Hogtropolis™]

I don't know if welsh is the answer.  If I was Pel, I would actually tell welsh to never shoot a 3 pointer again.  He is just a terrible shooter.  You wonder how he could be a decent recruit as a guard if he can't shoot.

Welsh is not a great shooter, but his a pretty decent shooter.  To tell him to never shoot again is just ludicrous.

[Beaverfever]

Welsh is not a great shooter, but his a pretty decent shooter.  To tell him to never shoot again is just ludicrous.

no...not shoot in general.  3 pointers.  Yeah it was pretty harsh and I probably don't mean it.  But he better be pretty fn open.

[Doggtown31LCC]

we'll get some relief next year at PG