So last season with one of my teams I whiffed completely in recruiting (you know the usual lost battle) and will go into this season short handed. Possibly 8 or 9 deep. I’m used to playing 10/11 deep so setting up a smaller depth chart is very new to me. Any suggestions on best rotatations to at least try and keep my guys reasonably fresh? For example I’m probably gonna have 3 guards. Can I slot my bench guy at PG and SG? I understand the risk of foul trouble. Looking for a template to go short handed for a season. Thanks.

What type of O/D? Do you have any bigs with decent BH/P that could eat some minutes at the 3?

I was in a similar situation and i ran Slow pace as the players get less tired.

Even when I have 11-12 scholarship players, I will often arrange my substitutions to get most of the bench minutes for 2-3 guys. Works really well in zone, where defensive responsibilities are more fluid anyway, but I’ve done this in press, too. Good way to get a scorer who is weak on defense lots of minutes without letting the opponent key in on a position.

This usually works out as one guard and one forward getting set to “getting tired” or even “tired”, and leaving the guy next to him at “fairly fresh”. That brings your super sub in at position b while your high stamina guy guts it out a little longer; then when your other guy is rested, Your sub switches positions. Depending on skill set, sometimes I put high stamina guy at #2 on the depth chart at the other position, if he’s the guy I’d rather move between positions.

rourke I’m running flex/man. I’m way short on bigs as well.
shoe I will try some of your strategies and see what works. Thanks for the feedback.

Don't be afraid to play an ATH-SPD #3 at Center as a third man in rotation. As to playing 8-9, I have stopped recruiting 12 spots at D1. If I have 9 or 10 that is how I rotate. That is the sad fact of whiffing every couple years.

Ok good tips I will employ them here shortly. Wvu I’ve been sitting on that idea for awhile now. I’ve been filling classes since 2006 (more or less) and it’s weird to switch to small classes but I get it.

Slowdown. Fairly Fresh. Slot every starter as a backup somewhere else. List your best walkon as an emergency backup where you are really thin (apparently bigs.) It's not good for them to play but it's a hedge against foul trouble. One of my 8-man teams had a walkon play about 100 minutes that season. That's life with no bench.

If you set your starter as fairly fresh and his sub at getting tired or tired, will sub stay in longer or is that only applicable to starters?