Post by RBHoya on May 27, 2005 23:40:45 GMT -5
Hope this can generate some Hoya basketball-related discussion...
Our roster will get an infusion of depth next year when we add 4 capable freshman while returning (hopefully) our starting lineup and core from '04-'05. However, the potential emergence of freshman, in addition to the improvement of our other underclassmen, will likely lead to competition for playing time this season. Between the Kenner league, the preseason, and even as the season goes on, I think well see some nice battles for playing time among our players. Hopefully egos don't get in the way and the depth of our team proves to be a positive (as it does for all good programs) rather than a negative. Anyway, before the freshman have ever joined the team officially, here are some potential battles for PT to watch:
Jon Wallace, Jessie Sapp, and Josh Thornton: Competing for a starting spot next to Ashanti Cook
Ashanti is going to start, that's pretty much a given. So will Jeff, Brandon (assuming he comes back) and either Roy or DJ. Someone needs to play "the 1" though, a backcourt mate with ball handling skills whose game fits JTIII's system.
Jon's advantage is obvious. He knows the system. He's got a boatload of Big East experience after he started as a freshman. He's got a great rapport with Jeff, Roy, and the guys. Has a settling influence, does a good job leading the team and establishing the pace. Has a nice outside shot, but has been streaky at times.
Jesse is someone who I think Hoya fans are putting a lot of stock in. He was a pretty highly touted recruit out of NCA. Is listed on many recruiting sites as a SG, but seems to be a capable ball handler. Brings a slashing element to the table, something that our other guard Ashanti does not.... bringing that talent to the team may give him an edge.
Josh is supposed to be a great shooter-- just how great remains to be seen. Thornton also received acclaim from scouts, and like Jesse is generally listed as a shooting guard despite not being extremely tall. Being a good shooter is a huge plus in III's system. Remains to be seen if he can hit from outside more consistently than Jon, or if he can handle the ball well enough. Seems to be the least talked about recruit, which may lead to him surprising us.
The battle for playing time between these 3 is here to stay, in my opinion. As soon as Ashanti leaves, the highly touted Jeremiah Rivers will arrive and is likely to command serious playing time right off the bat. There may be other guard recruits coming as well. How the minutes shake out will be interesting, hopefully the competition motivates everyone to be their best.
Tyler Crawford, Marc Egerson, and Octavius Spann: Competing for backup minutes on the wing.
This battle is very interesting as well. Both Marc and Tyler seem to be "Small forwards with Shooting guard height" so its difficult to place them in a particular position. Tay on the other hand is 6'7, but Ive been told that he's "more likely to play Shooting guard than Powerforward." So I've sorta lumped them all together here as "backup wings". We've likely got Ashanti starting at Shooting guard, Brandon at forward and, fingers crossed, Owens starting at the Small Forward. Since these 3 are all seniors and will command serious PT, minutes will be tough to come by for the 3 young guys.
Tyler, like Jon, has an experience advantage over the 1st year players. He knows the system. He's seen the Big East competition, and at times, succeeded against it. A good shooter and a pretty nice rebounder for a guy his height... lacks ball handling skills, which hurts him if he's to play the guard spot. Did a nice job last year bringing some energy off the bench, so its logical he could fill the same role this year.
Eggerson is an exciting prospect, maybe the most exciting of our freshman. A great leaper capable of highlight reel plays... has more experience at SF than at guard. Ball handling is a concern and passing is unproven. A scorer... Great athleticism ought to translate to solid defense, but remains to be seen. Is older than other freshman. Very accomplished player at the high school level.
Spann is a prospect about whom we didn't hear as much this year, playing in GA where we didn’t get too many updates. Has good height and is supposed to be a very good all around player, with skills as a ball handler, outside shooter, and shot blocker. Is described as “rugged” and will likely be a rebounding force from the 3 spot.
Again, the battle for playing time will likely carry on past this season for these three. Rivers arrival likely pushes the winner of the Sapp/Wallace/Thornton battle to the starting 2 spot after Ashanti graduates; that means that Tyler, Marc, and Tay will be competing against some of those guys as well. DJ and Brandon’s graduations will free up some minutes, but more wings may be arriving as well.
Amadou Kilkenny-Diaw and Sead Dizderavic: Competing for minutes at backup PF/C
Well, this is certainly the least “sexy” of the playing time battles, but still important. Over the course of the year, we’re likely to run into teams that have a lot of height, height that we’ll need to counter. Roy and Jeff are good, but Roy is (presumably) unable to play an entire game. Additionally, Roy is at times not quick enough to stay with other teams' big men, and both Jeff and Roy have had foul trouble in the past. Not to mention, God forbid, should Jeff or Roy have an injury we’d be in trouble. We need at least one of Sead or Amadou to step in and give us some solid minutes. They don’t need to be superstars, but at least one of them needs to come in, play serviceable defense, run the offense without a hiccup, and grab some boards. Originally Cornelio would have figured into this discussion, but obviously not anymore.
Amadou has proven that he is in fact serviceable in the past. He’s not especially tall or quick for a big man, but he has a nice feel for the game and is a decent rebounder.
Sead, at least in my view, looked great running the offense against UConn. Really looked like he knew what he was doing, looked comfortable, even fluid in the Princeton. Showed off his outside shot as well. Offense is not his problem. However, Sead-Dizzy needs to show that he is at least competent on the defensive end of the floor. Doesn’t have great footspeed or quickness, which is ok if you’re Roy’s height but is more of a glaring weakness when you’re 6’8 like Sead. Also needs to show that he’s a capable rebounder.
Hopefully, 1 of these guys comes up big for us. Sead’s often viewed as merely a vocal supporter from the bench, but entering his junior year as a scholarship player, hopefully the big man comes around. Amadou has been solid and his contributions are appreciated, but I’m afraid that this year, at some point, we may need one of these two to be better than just passable.
Potential Depth Chart
Here’s a rough stab at the depth chart, assuming that a) Brandon and DJ come back and b) Everyone is eligible and there are no injuries.
PG: Sapp(18 mpg)/Wallace(17mpg)/Thornton(5 mpg)
SG: Cook (25 mpg)/Crawford (10 mpg)/Eggerson(5 mpg)
SF: Owens(22mpg)/Bowman(10 mpg)/Eggerson(3mpg)/Spann(5 mpg)
PF: Bowman(22 mpg)/Green(18mpg)
C: Green(15 mpg)/Hibbert(20mpg)/Kilkenny-Diaw(5 mpg)
Obviously this is a very premature prediction, as none of us really knows what the freshman will be able to provide, but its interesting to think about nonetheless.
Our roster will get an infusion of depth next year when we add 4 capable freshman while returning (hopefully) our starting lineup and core from '04-'05. However, the potential emergence of freshman, in addition to the improvement of our other underclassmen, will likely lead to competition for playing time this season. Between the Kenner league, the preseason, and even as the season goes on, I think well see some nice battles for playing time among our players. Hopefully egos don't get in the way and the depth of our team proves to be a positive (as it does for all good programs) rather than a negative. Anyway, before the freshman have ever joined the team officially, here are some potential battles for PT to watch:
Jon Wallace, Jessie Sapp, and Josh Thornton: Competing for a starting spot next to Ashanti Cook
Ashanti is going to start, that's pretty much a given. So will Jeff, Brandon (assuming he comes back) and either Roy or DJ. Someone needs to play "the 1" though, a backcourt mate with ball handling skills whose game fits JTIII's system.
Jon's advantage is obvious. He knows the system. He's got a boatload of Big East experience after he started as a freshman. He's got a great rapport with Jeff, Roy, and the guys. Has a settling influence, does a good job leading the team and establishing the pace. Has a nice outside shot, but has been streaky at times.
Jesse is someone who I think Hoya fans are putting a lot of stock in. He was a pretty highly touted recruit out of NCA. Is listed on many recruiting sites as a SG, but seems to be a capable ball handler. Brings a slashing element to the table, something that our other guard Ashanti does not.... bringing that talent to the team may give him an edge.
Josh is supposed to be a great shooter-- just how great remains to be seen. Thornton also received acclaim from scouts, and like Jesse is generally listed as a shooting guard despite not being extremely tall. Being a good shooter is a huge plus in III's system. Remains to be seen if he can hit from outside more consistently than Jon, or if he can handle the ball well enough. Seems to be the least talked about recruit, which may lead to him surprising us.
The battle for playing time between these 3 is here to stay, in my opinion. As soon as Ashanti leaves, the highly touted Jeremiah Rivers will arrive and is likely to command serious playing time right off the bat. There may be other guard recruits coming as well. How the minutes shake out will be interesting, hopefully the competition motivates everyone to be their best.
Tyler Crawford, Marc Egerson, and Octavius Spann: Competing for backup minutes on the wing.
This battle is very interesting as well. Both Marc and Tyler seem to be "Small forwards with Shooting guard height" so its difficult to place them in a particular position. Tay on the other hand is 6'7, but Ive been told that he's "more likely to play Shooting guard than Powerforward." So I've sorta lumped them all together here as "backup wings". We've likely got Ashanti starting at Shooting guard, Brandon at forward and, fingers crossed, Owens starting at the Small Forward. Since these 3 are all seniors and will command serious PT, minutes will be tough to come by for the 3 young guys.
Tyler, like Jon, has an experience advantage over the 1st year players. He knows the system. He's seen the Big East competition, and at times, succeeded against it. A good shooter and a pretty nice rebounder for a guy his height... lacks ball handling skills, which hurts him if he's to play the guard spot. Did a nice job last year bringing some energy off the bench, so its logical he could fill the same role this year.
Eggerson is an exciting prospect, maybe the most exciting of our freshman. A great leaper capable of highlight reel plays... has more experience at SF than at guard. Ball handling is a concern and passing is unproven. A scorer... Great athleticism ought to translate to solid defense, but remains to be seen. Is older than other freshman. Very accomplished player at the high school level.
Spann is a prospect about whom we didn't hear as much this year, playing in GA where we didn’t get too many updates. Has good height and is supposed to be a very good all around player, with skills as a ball handler, outside shooter, and shot blocker. Is described as “rugged” and will likely be a rebounding force from the 3 spot.
Again, the battle for playing time will likely carry on past this season for these three. Rivers arrival likely pushes the winner of the Sapp/Wallace/Thornton battle to the starting 2 spot after Ashanti graduates; that means that Tyler, Marc, and Tay will be competing against some of those guys as well. DJ and Brandon’s graduations will free up some minutes, but more wings may be arriving as well.
Amadou Kilkenny-Diaw and Sead Dizderavic: Competing for minutes at backup PF/C
Well, this is certainly the least “sexy” of the playing time battles, but still important. Over the course of the year, we’re likely to run into teams that have a lot of height, height that we’ll need to counter. Roy and Jeff are good, but Roy is (presumably) unable to play an entire game. Additionally, Roy is at times not quick enough to stay with other teams' big men, and both Jeff and Roy have had foul trouble in the past. Not to mention, God forbid, should Jeff or Roy have an injury we’d be in trouble. We need at least one of Sead or Amadou to step in and give us some solid minutes. They don’t need to be superstars, but at least one of them needs to come in, play serviceable defense, run the offense without a hiccup, and grab some boards. Originally Cornelio would have figured into this discussion, but obviously not anymore.
Amadou has proven that he is in fact serviceable in the past. He’s not especially tall or quick for a big man, but he has a nice feel for the game and is a decent rebounder.
Sead, at least in my view, looked great running the offense against UConn. Really looked like he knew what he was doing, looked comfortable, even fluid in the Princeton. Showed off his outside shot as well. Offense is not his problem. However, Sead-Dizzy needs to show that he is at least competent on the defensive end of the floor. Doesn’t have great footspeed or quickness, which is ok if you’re Roy’s height but is more of a glaring weakness when you’re 6’8 like Sead. Also needs to show that he’s a capable rebounder.
Hopefully, 1 of these guys comes up big for us. Sead’s often viewed as merely a vocal supporter from the bench, but entering his junior year as a scholarship player, hopefully the big man comes around. Amadou has been solid and his contributions are appreciated, but I’m afraid that this year, at some point, we may need one of these two to be better than just passable.
Potential Depth Chart
Here’s a rough stab at the depth chart, assuming that a) Brandon and DJ come back and b) Everyone is eligible and there are no injuries.
PG: Sapp(18 mpg)/Wallace(17mpg)/Thornton(5 mpg)
SG: Cook (25 mpg)/Crawford (10 mpg)/Eggerson(5 mpg)
SF: Owens(22mpg)/Bowman(10 mpg)/Eggerson(3mpg)/Spann(5 mpg)
PF: Bowman(22 mpg)/Green(18mpg)
C: Green(15 mpg)/Hibbert(20mpg)/Kilkenny-Diaw(5 mpg)
Obviously this is a very premature prediction, as none of us really knows what the freshman will be able to provide, but its interesting to think about nonetheless.
