Northern Starchive- Mar 06
Finishing the Front- A look at Egi
Last month we took a look at the men of the frontcourt and how to break down their abilities. This month, let’s go a step further and look at just one frontcourter, and give a more complete analysis. We’re going to look at Dania Jai-Alai’s Egi. His strengths, weaknesses and everything in between that affects his performance as one of Jai-Alai’s All Pro’s.
Mikel Eguiguren, codename Egi, is a 29 year old from San Sebastian, Spain. At 5′11” tall and 180 pounds his body size is average for a frontcourter. A star in both the feature games at Dania and the partidos in the Basque country, Egi is recognized by most in the sport as a top ten frontman. But, what makes him one of the top stars in the world, and what traits does he exhibit that point to how he performs in difficult situations.
Physically, Egi is in prime shape, a true athlete. His mixture of strength, speed, and stamina would be admired in any professional sport. Egi also has tremendous flexibility, which is a valuable asset to a professional Jai-Alai player. His flexibility gives aid to his wonderful array of shots, which we’ll go into a bit later.
On the forehand side of the fence, Egi has great control and placement. While powerful, he doesn’t have the overwhelming strength that a guy like Arriaga has, but Egi works the side wall very well, and tends to keep the forehand throws within striking distance of the back wall. There’s a funny thing that the old pros say that still rings true today. The side wall is not there to keep the front and back walls from falling down. You must use it to your advantage.
In other words, at the professional level, power doesn’t mean very much if you don’t have any placement. Any ball that stays within 1 foot of the side wall is a tough ball to catch. Even if the opponent does catch it, the throwing motion is usually interrupted leading to a weak return. The other way to use the side wall is to cross. That means that you want the ball to hit the side wall just as it gets to your opponent. This is usually done more from the outer parts of the court, where throwing the ball down the wall is difficult.
On the backhand, or reverse, Egi once again is not the most powerful on the block, but uses his placement to keep rivals at bay. Almost always under control, he’s not going to be hitting the upper screen very often. Egi effectively keeps the pelota low on the backhand, while dropping the ball in the corner. This forces the opposing backmen to make plays they don’t want to sometimes, as the combination of slower speed and low trajectory means the ball does not come out well for rebotes.
Like most players, catching can be both and strength and a weakness for Egi. His form on the catch is impeccable. He steps into the ball, which sets him up for stronger throws, and is good at keeping the cesta out in front of him. When catching, a Jai-Alai player needs to keep the cesta in front of the body when the pelota makes initial contact. That gives them more time to stop the ball from spinning as they position the basket. Catching with the basket behind the body will lead to many drops, as the pelota’s english will carry it right out of the basket.
The rebote is Egi’s double edged sword. It can be both his most effective shot while also being a problem area because of constistency. When I spoke of flexibility earlier, this is where you see it most. Egi throws the rebote, on both sides, unlike any other player in the sport today. He takes two steps and then turns into the rebote. This technique gives him a torque on the throw that keeps opponents on their toes, because it’s an effective change of pace from all the other frontmen.
His rebote style means that Egi can make shots off the rebote that no other player can. The built up momentum his body creates during the throwing motion is used to carry the backhand rebote deep towards the back wall. This forces the challenging frontmen to play farther back on the court than they want to. This positioning prevents the rival frontcourter from capitalizing when Egi does throw a weaker rebote.
As far as shotmaking ability you have to rank Egi up there with the best in the world today. While most players tend to favor one or two kill shots in particular, Egi has a knack at throwing them all well. From the forehand, backhand, or off the rebote, he can turn any of them into a winner any time he’s in position to do so. Egi’s cortada, carom, remate, dejada, and costado are all impressive tools used to send competitors to the bench. The only selection of shots he doesn’t utilize well are the big bouncers that are so effective on the Dania court. But then again, Ochoa is about the only one on the roster that can throw those shots well.
The one glaring weakness in Egi’s game is the serve. Both on the serving and receiving ends. For comparison’s sake, let’s think of the serve as the tee shot in golf that you have to hit over the water. Nothing makes me shank that tee shot like the sight of the water hazard in front of me. Why? Because I’m thinking about how it’s going into the water the whole time, not on the job at hand. I think the same comparison could be drawn to basketball and a guy like Shaq with his free throws.
Egi’s problems on the serve don’t lie in the physical body, but in his mind. Unfortunately, once that bug crawls into your head it’s almost impossible to get out. The thought you are going to misfire always lingers just below the surface, preparing to sink you as soon as you get on a run. If Egi ever wants to claim that top rung on the ladder, he’s going to have to find a way to get over the problematic serves. It’s just too vital a portion of the game to be lacking in.
To me, Egi is the most talented frontcourter in the world today. The best overall, not quite, but the most natural ability, yes. Like my grandmother used to say, money doesn’t buy happiness, but it sure does help. So just what is it that holds Egi back if he is the most talented player on the court at any given time?
We’ve already determined that Egi has all the physical tools one can ask for, an intriguing style that keeps adversaries off pace, and a dizzying array of ways to finish off the point. We’ve noticed that he lacks a little in the consistency area, most notably on the rebote and receiving serves. And don’t forget he has a little bit of a mental lock on the serve. Our answer can be found in part in these areas, but we must go back to the basics to get a full vista.
What type of player is Egi and how does he perform in that role? If you really think about that, it’s not an easy question to answer. And that may help us get to the crux of the issue at hand. First things first, we know he’s not the power man, so that can be easily crossed off the list. That leaves the shotmaker and the volleyer. If you’ve watched him enough, then you’ve probably seen a little bit of both.
Egi the shotmaker is constantly at odds with Egi the volleyer. This is most evident on the receiving end of the serve. Look at his body posture. Half the time he looks like he’s dying to grab the ball and throw the shot, just to watch it go by. While his catching form is great, there is a little bit of tentativeness that his body exudes. He tends to reach, but then pull away. That creates those tipped balls that careen off the end of his cesta.
A dominant frontcourter must be decisive. There is no time to think about what you are going to do. You just have to do it. That moments delay while Egi decides whether to attack or volley is the difference in many points, and the biggest thing stopping him from being the most dominant in the land.
Overall, Egi the shotmaker is a more effective player. He spreads out the court and keeps opponents guessing. He’ll jump the serve and take it before it even reaches the box. He hides his weaknesses by letting his backcourt partner take a larger percentage of the catches. When he’s got the aggressive streak going, Egi relentlessly attacks the flaws of his adversaries, which he seems to know better than they do. The biggest thing, though, is he is not tentative. Egi the shotmaker presents other frontmen with a host of problems.
On the other hand, Egi the volleyer can be a very effective player who will still win a lot of matches. His overall ability is just greater than most of the frontmen he will encounter. But, Egi the volleyer leaves too many tools in the shed. He chooses one way to beat you instead using many. Egi is a very solid catcher, but it’s a lot tougher to win points that way. In quiniela Jai-Alai, you can’t really grind people down, as a new team comes onto the court at the end of each point.
What Egi is missing right now it the “It Factor”. What is it? Don’t quite know per say, but I do know it when I see it. A little confidence, some panache, a sprinkle of insanity, I think it is different for every player. But, mostly, I believe Egi lacks that killer instinct. That lust for the kill shot. The inundating desire to demoralize opponents by showing them they’re insufficient.
So, can Egi find it? Jai-Alai players tend to blossom a little later in life than those in most professional sports. While NFL, NBA, and MLB players tend to peak in their mid to late 20’s, Jai-Alai pelotaris are more likely to peak in their early 30’s. You don’t need to have been a Dania Jai-Alai fan for too long to remember one player who found the “It Factor” later in his career.
Zen, like Egi, was one of the top frontmen in the sport in his late 20’s. An almost dominant superstar who was just missing that one little thing that was keeping him from the top spot. Then, it was like someone gave it to him on his 30th birthday. The mental clarity and the ability to turn his fear of throwing the tough shot into someone else’s fear of catching that same shot. Then, like clockwork, the two Triple Crowns followed.
Overall, Egi has certainly earned his spot at the top of the sport of Jai-Alai. With his talent, he’ll be in contention for the big titles for quite a few years to come. In this Winter Season at Dania Jai-Alai, he is currently in 2nd place in both the Singles and Frontcourt Doubles Championships. With Arriaga’s sprained ankle taking him out of action for the next two or three months, it’s not a stretch to see Egi winning the Singles or Doubles Championship.
But, can Egi put the final piece of the puzzle together and make a Triple Crown run? For that one, we’ll just have to wait and see.