The analysis of info-dijon on the reasons for the failure of the JDA Dijon at the end of the season. With questions about his ‘Hoslton’ addiction’ and his obligation to have more bench…
After a perfectly mastered first part of the season, hopes were high for a Burgundy team which was gradually emerging as a formation capable of playing spoilsport in the league as well as in the Champions League.
However, over the course of the season, this feeling of lightness and ease gradually faded to lead to a premature and brutal elimination in the first round of the play-offs against JL Bourg-en-Bresse, thus bringing its share of questions for the future: the structure of the team, the difficulties encountered by the interior sector, the limitation of players coming off the bench, the ultra-centring of the game around David Holston,… We therefore suggest that you retrace the season 2022/2023 of Jeanne while highlighting certain questions which will certainly be in the minds of the Dijon leaders with a view to approaching the 2023/2024 season.
Early Season Honeymoon
The first part of the season is close to a dream for the players of the Burgundian city with strong moments in emotion through the qualification for the upper pool in the Champions League, the victory in Monaco and at the Palace against ASVEL in the previous match ,…
In short, this end of the year 2022 rhymed with a fairy tale for a Burgundy team which enchanted in the results but above all in the quality of the game offered. Coach Markovic seemed to have found the winning formula with a rough team in defense capable of intercepting an incalculable number of balls per game (The JDA is the 2nd team in the championship to intercept the most balls during this season with an average of 8, 3 per game) and quickly explode forward in attack to score on quick attack.
Beyond the game plan, each player seemed to know his role and his place perfectly in the squad. David Holston as orchestra conductor, Markis McDuffie as crazy scorer capable of scoring from any position, Gregor Hrovat as Swiss army knife and pit bull on the field, Alingue and Loum as guard Bodies in the racket, Ducoté and Simon played for their part the role of detonator coming off the bench capable of overturning a match and even the Palace thanks to their big shots, finally the trio Ware, Rousselle and Brembly bring their touch of experience. In short, the Burgundians sublimate themselves in this collective alchemy by posting a record of 10 victories for only 5 defeats in the league.
The hangover for 2023
The year 2023 will quickly be marked by several hard blows, including several successive injuries of more or less long durations: Chase Simon, David Brembly, David Holston, Jacques Alingue, etc. which will disrupt Markovic’s rotation as well as the strength collective demonstrated so far by Jeanne. In other words, as the games went on, it felt like everything was getting more complex with a team that tended to force things.
This observation is illustrated and makes sense in particular through the last quarters in tight matches where the JDA’s game plan boiled down to giving the ball to Holston, McDuffie or even Mobley (at certain times) and waiting for them to create the feat on their own. The second part of the season therefore highlighted and above all confirmed a certain “American dependence” in the sense that when Holston and McDuffie are not in the game, JDA’s chances of victory become almost nil. And that raises questions around the construction of the workforce. Added to this, the spiral of defeats suffered during the month of March (5 consecutive defeats) also brought to light problems in particular around the impact of the internal sector in the meetings with a Dijon team which was eaten in the paint on the defensive and offensive plan.
You will therefore have understood, the dynamic of 2023 is not good for Jeanne and this will be confirmed in the results with an elimination in the semi-finals of the Leaders Cup by being corrected by JL Bourg, an elimination in hen high level of BCL by finishing 3rd in their group (when qualification was highly possible), an elimination in the quarter-finals after being dominated again by Le Mans and finally a clear and flawless elimination against JL Bourg in Bresse while the Jeanne had the advantage of the field.
Moments rich in emotions
However, you can tell me that the JDA has still offered interesting things this season and that everything is not to be thrown away. Faced with this rhetoric, I can only COMPLETELY AGREE with you. Dijon finished in fourth place in the championship behind the two top names, namely ASVEL and Monaco, as well as the Mets of the Wembanyama phenomenon (future first draft choice except for a major natural disaster) with a record of 21 wins for 13 losses.
Beyond the purely accounting aspect, this Jeanne team knew how to get into the hearts of the Dijonnais by managing to bring the crowds back, evening after evening, to the Palace to cheer and applaud their warriors who won 13 of their 17 matches. home. The Burgundian players have been able to put on a show on the floor by reaching the symbolic bar of 100 points on several occasions, more generally the JDA is on this season, the 5th best attack in France with 86.6 pts registered on average per game.
But above all, what made this team endearing were the match scenarios they offered us throughout the season, including the victory in the last moments against ASVEL in a delirious Palace. , the fabulous comeback of more than 20 pts against Paris Basket (definitely these Parisians…), the victory at the end of the suspense against Péristeri to seek qualification for the high hen of BCL, .. In short, each match of the JDA could be taken and retained as best thriller of the year as this team has demonstrated throughout the season a certain inability to control a match from start to finish.
This season of the Jeanne can therefore be summed up by twists and turns with a certain pleasure that emerges when the coin falls on the right side, but also by frustration with an aftertaste of unfinished business, like a solitary breakaway on the Tour de France who holds her own against the peloton for 200km and who is caught 300m from the line. On paper, the performance is beautiful but the final disappointment is immense.
An alternative to find the American outbuilding with a bench to improve
Indeed, as we stated previously, the game of the JDA has become more and more stereotyped over the course of this season with an absolute centering around the duo of All Star: David Holston (13.5pts (54.7 % FG / 42.9% 3pts) 6 steps and 1.7 reb (5th best passer in the league)) and Markus McDuffie (17pts (59.2% FG / 35.1% 3pts) 1.4 steps and 6 reb (5th best scorer in the league)).
The question therefore arises of being able to find players around, capable of bringing danger and uncertainty to the opposing defences. Like we said in Hot Times, the JDA’s No. 1 offensive option is to give the ball to Holston and see what happens. Option number 2 boils down to the same scenario but with McDuffie.
It therefore seems strongly limited to aspire to higher ambitions next season. Indeed, as soon as Holston and/or McDuffie are off the field, Jeanne’s attack seems totally lost and harmless, this being particularly noticeable during the matches against Boulogne and Monaco at the Palace or very recently against JL Bourg en Bresse in the play-offs. So yes Gregor Hrovat, by his mischief and his vista, can get points, Gavin Ware is an excellent threat in mid-distance shots and the Mobley / Ducoté duo can bring points on their hot shots.
However, this is still too fair to be able to hope to win close matches. It would therefore seem relevant that during the offseason, the JDA thinks of recruiting a back / leader scorer out of the bench like a George Floyd at the JL capable of systematically setting fire when entering the floor. . This makes it possible to provide an offensive alternative on the back lines to the eternal David Holston (who formalized his extension at the start of the month for next season) who, despite his immense talent, is gradually beginning to feel the weight of the years spent on the wooden floors.
An interior sector to be strengthened:
I think we are attacking the central point of all Dijon’s ills during this 2022/2023 season. So yes, Jacques Alingue, Abdoulaye Loum and David Brembly are “pillars” of the workforce due to their experience and longevity within Jeanne. But the numbers don’t lie. The JDA is the team that offers its opponent the highest success percentage at 2pts with nearly 60% success. In other words, when you play against Dijon, you know that you will score easily in the racket. Added to this, the JDA is the penultimate team to rebound (including the last defensive rebound). This therefore means that the JDA is the team that gives the most second chances to any of its opponents.
This point is therefore essential to settle during the off-season with the recruitment of a real control tower in the racket. Added to this, it is interesting to note that the use of the racquet is also a key element in the Markovic system in that when the Dijonnais win, it is the team that shoots with the highest two-point percentage. .
In other words, this means that when Dijon manages to chain the points halfway and near the circle then victory is almost assured for the Dijonnais. The addition of a threat inside will also be welcome to offer an alternative to the long distance address of the Burgundians who rank as the 4th most skilful attack at 3 pts with 36.7% success.
The recruitment of a dominant interior would also allow the JDA to have a complete defense because the defensive strength of the JDA lies in its ability to cut the opposing passing lines (Dijon is the 2nd best team in the championship in terms of interception with 8.3/game). It should be noted that for the question of the interior sector, Gavin Ware was not mentioned insofar as, from his efficiency at mid-distance to his natural complicity with Holston on the floor, he represents a pillar on which to rely during of next season. Nevertheless, it is clear that his limited playing time and his “nonchalance” at times on the floor may represent a source of concern for next year and therefore confirms the need to recruit an interior to play the leading roles.
In summary, the club is therefore at a pivotal moment in its development, since the addition of two or three pieces on the back line (to offer alternation to Holston) and in the interior sector (to have a seat in the racquet on the offensive and defensive plan) can allow the JDA to change dimensions next season by being able to be a real threat for the entire season.
M.L.
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