The CheckerBoard

IMO, having confidence is the single most important thing that a basketball player must possess in order to be successful. Basketball is a lot more mental than many people realize. Golden seems to have lost every bit of confidence that he's ever had. It's just like when you're hot and you can't miss. You can't miss because you are confident--you know the ball is going to go in. Golden knows the ball ISN'T going to go in and he seems to feel that way every single night. Look at how hesitant he was against Kentucky to shoot, and he even passed up some wide open shots/layups. He may be battling some minor physical injury, but he's mentally injured as well. He's going to have to overcome that before we see any kind of production out of him. I really don't know if there is anything that Cuonzo can do. I think it is all on Trae to overcome this and get back to being the player that he is capable of being.

Golden's struggles remind me of the professional golfers who go from competing on the tour to not being able to break 80..like David Duval and Ian Baker Finch..