James Snook – USA TODAY Sports
The Gonzaga Bulldogs have dominated in the early stretch of the season as they have handled their business tuning up for the 2013-14 season. There have been plenty of good things for Mark Few to build on as the Zags work to defend their WCC title as they have raced out to their 3-0 start. But one area that should give the Bulldogs some worries is the turnover issues of Przemek Karnowski early on.
In three games, Karnowski has accounted for 10 turnovers including four in each of the team’s last two games. His 3.3 turnovers per game are far and away the highest on the team which is even more alarming when you consider that Karnowski is not at a position where he’s facilitating the offense on every trip down the floor and he’s only averaged 19.0 minutes per game so far. Even in limited time with limited touches, the Zags’ big man is finding ways to turn it over at an alarmingly high rate.
For Gonzaga to improve on their run in the NCAA Tournament from last season, they need Karnowski to establish himself as a presence down on the block. That means good decision making with the basketball and high efficiency around the rim. So far, the big man has been average scoring the ball with 10.0 points per game but the turnovers have severely undercut Karnowski’s effectiveness on the floor (and led to him spending more time on the bench so far than on the floor).
Karnowski has the opportunity to be a beast on the block for Gonzaga this season. The backcourt play of the Zags is going to open up opportunities in the lane if Karnowski is up to seizing them. To do that, however, he needs to clean up the turnovers. Can the Gonzaga big man tighten his game up before the Bulldogs run into the teeth of their schedule?
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