Next Season

[sleepy]

Someone made a point earlier that 07-08 will not be the Hoyas without Jeff Green, the will be The Hoyas. They won't be playing with only 4 guys on the floor for 35 min because Jeff isn't there.

[mapei]

Losing Jeff means losing our best player in ages and the one who was capable of putting the team on his back for a remarkable run. He was a factor in virtually every key play one way or another down the stretch last year. That's a huge deal.

But the team has less rebuilding to do next year than it had when the trio left, and took something like 60% of our points with them. Everybody rags on BB, but he was our leading scorer. I think the adjustments the team has to make next season are fewer than they had to make going into last year.

[RDF]

MCI, I don't disagree with your opinion on what should've happened with Jeff when he struggled--I'm just pointing out on last year's team if Jeff struggled or was passive, they lost--be it ODU, Nova game, Pitt game, Duke, Cuse, and Ohio State game. They just didn't function well with him having off games in those losses.

Roy could get into foul trouble, this team could survive. I always want both out there--but last year's team needed Green out there and to play well offensively to win the big games. He willed the team to BE regular season title with that game in DC against Pitt. He willed them to win against ND in BET. He made the shot against Vandy. He came up with the play that woke them up against BC--a game where Roy was best player on court--but it was Green's follow up dunk that woke the team up. The kid had a knack for putting them on his shoulder and giving them a routinely great game--which he was always capable of-and finally realized--halfway through last year.

As for Roy and this year--he's got to avoid foul trouble and he's got to realize he's going to have to carry the load more--we can't have a passive game from him--just as Jeff understood this, Roy must. We can't have him passing up 8 footers like he did against ND in BET, we can't have him getting silly fouls. It's also why Macklin minutes will decide how far this team goes--there will be games he'll have to play alongside Roy to help on glass and others he'll need to step up in Roy's time off the court. Summers has to take his game up to level Green did--and I believe he possesses the ability to do so--but until he does, we've got to wait and see.

I realize stats wise you can replace anyone-but it's WHEN you make plays and Green had a knack for those special plays--be it a rebound, steal, assist, or basket. Much harder for bigs to do that because they rely on others to open things up for them and get them the ball. Just think of it this way--Roy was dominant against OSU--but we were limited by foul trouble he got into and Green didn't have his offensive game we needed--we couldn't win. If Green scores/plays like he usually does--we could survive Roy's foul trouble and win. This year will we? That is what is yet to be proven.

We could survive losing Bowman, Owens, and Cook, because none of those kids were our best player or one of the top 2 on the team. Summers is more talented then Bowman and more assertive. Ewing provided what Owens did--and in some areas more considering we didn't need the outside shooting as much, and Cook was lone player I felt was a loss being that he was outstanding the majority of his SR year. You lose one of your top players--that hurts more--and especially one who took his game up to another level and led team to championships and Final Four.

But sports are about replacing great players with other great players--and Hoyas are better off now then when III took over.

[vcjack]

Am I the only one who still thinks that great things are possible for next season? Yes we will be a lesser team, especially initially without our leader Jeff and it would have been better for him to return, but they don't give trophies to the best team, only to the ones that win. We don't have to be the best team, preaseason #1, consensus favorites, to get wins. Worst teams have won and better teams have fallen short.

I'm probably stupid and we won't be seeing a 2008 champions banner in McDonough, but as long as our season is still going on I refuse to drop the faith.

Is it November yet?

[lichoya68]

OK NOT UNDEFEATED NEXT YEAR BUT I DID SAY WANTED ROY AND JEFF TO STAY BUT MORE IMPORTANT IF ONLY ONE THAT ROY STAY LIKE BEST CENTER IN THE COUNTRY AND WE GOT A FEW 68 AND 69 FOOT GUYS SOOOOOOOOO GO HOYAS REMEMBER THE ALAMO GO GET THAT RING.. BEST OF LUCK JEFF

[MCIGuy]

rdf said:

As for Roy and this year--he's got to avoid foul trouble and he's got to realize he's going to have to carry the load more--we can't have a passive game from him--just as Jeff understood this, Roy must. We can't have him passing up 8 footers like he did against ND in BET, we can't have him getting silly fouls. It's also why Macklin minutes will decide how far this team goes--there will be games he'll have to play alongside Roy to help on glass and others he'll need to step up in Roy's time off the court. Summers has to take his game up to level Green did--and I believe he possesses the ability to do so--but until he does, we've got to wait and see.

Its gonna be hard for Roy to avoid foul trouble as long as III keeps having him switch on defense and guard 6'3 players on the perimeter. Look at Oden in that Final Four game. In the second half he's just standing in the paint on defense. He refuses to go out to the perimeter to guard anyone. Not even Jeff. Roy though is required to guard anyone on the swicth, something he won't really have to do at the next level.

[sleepy]

MCI, i disagree, while i too was very frustrated with Roy having to guard guys so far outside, i don't think thats why he was in foul trouble. He just made stupid decisions, like that three point foul at the end of Vanderbilt, he may have been out on the perimeter, but it was his own stupidity that made him foul.

[Locker]

If Roy finally gets the respect he deserves from the refs -- and I think he might, as a leading preseason POY candidate -- he'll be able to avoid foul trouble more readily.

As for our prospects next year, on the debit side of the ledger, we have the loss of Jeff. On the credit side, we have (1) the addition of Freeman and Wright, (2) a year's worth of improvement from super talented guys like Hibbert, Summers, Sapp, Macklin, Ewing, and Rivers, and (3) the NBA draft devastating the only two teams who were better than us last year (OSU and UF).

I can't believe the relative pessism I'm seeing in here today. We are 100% loaded for bear, even without Jeff.

[FLHoya]

vcjack said:

Am I the only one who still thinks that great things are possible for next season? Yes we will be a lesser team, especially initially without our leader Jeff and it would have been better for him to return, but they don't give trophies to the best team, only to the ones that win. We don't have to be the best team, preaseason #1, consensus favorites, to get wins. Worst teams have won and better teams have fallen short.

I'm probably stupid and we won't be seeing a 2008 champions banner in McDonough, but as long as our season is still going on I refuse to drop the faith.

Is it November yet?

1. As long as the team continues to improve as the season goes on, that's all you can ask for. Well, perhaps a little luck or a timely performance in the clutch in the Tournament. We made out rather nicely on both account last season. Still bringing back something like 8 of 9 top scorers from that team plus a few pretty good recruits--the depth and options are gonna be there next year to make a similar run.

2. You're not crazy--I'm not sure they've put the 2005-2006 Sweet Sixteen banner up in McDonough yet. What they DID do was put the East Regional trophy in the case, replacing the signed 2001 Sweet Sixteen ball. If you have any information as to the whereabouts of the latter item, send me a PM and/or steal it for me.

[MCIGuy]

I don't understand all the doubt myself. But its par for the course.

In 2005-2006 there were a lot here who thought III would hit a sophmore slump at GU and his team wouldn't finish any better than 8-8 in BE play as it did the previous season. One reason people gave for this prediction was that because the team had lost its final five conference games the previous season that meant opponets had figured out the Princeton system. I was part of the group who said that team would make the NCAA tourney in part because the senior would step up and not go four seasons without making the NCAA. Sure enough the team went 10-6 in BE play (even though it gave away a game to South Florida), made the NCAA tourney quite comfortably and made it to the Sweet 16.

At the beginning of the previous season I swear there were more fans who doubted the Hoyas could improve upon the Sweet 16 showing because of the loss of three seniors and the lack of experience in the backcourt. A few even wondered if the Hoyas would make the tournament! I was adamant in my stance that the '06-'07 team would be better. That team got off to a rocky start but it ended up being a far better team indeed.

Now I draw a line in the sand again. The '07-'08 team will be a better team than the Final Four bunch by the time February rolls around. I don't know if that means it wil make the Final Four, but I feel it will be a more dangerous squad. And yes you can be superior even if you don't make it as far in the post season. The '88-'89 team was better than the '06-'07 crew even though it didn't get past the Elite Eight.

I think I broke a world's record for the use of the word "better" in one post.

[strummer8526]

mciguy said:

I think I broke a world's record for the use of the word "better" in one post.

And I like it. We're going to be a dangerous squad, and a quicker one. I think this will be an exciting year.

[sleepy]

How did people feel going into the 04-05 season, especially after having our first losing season in 30+ years. I think going into that season with any hope was the sign of a true believer.

[PopeJohn2]

when jeff was on the bench last year our offense often looked lost. anyone who thinks we dont skip a beat without jeff are way off. we got 2 really talented scorers coming in this year so hope evens things out. and give us more options on offense. glad roy came back to anchor things and hope summers/macklin/ewing step up.

[hoyatimmy]

I will miss Jeff, but am still very optimistic for next year. Who in the Big East is going to be able to match up down low with Roy? With the experienced shooters we are returning on the perimeter + CW + AF, we are going to have SICK inside-outside game, and teams are going to have to pick their poison.

With Jeff, the team would have been ridiculous, but if he had come back, we may have been preseason #1 with huge egos and huge targets on our backs. At the current juncture, I am sure that III and the team fully realize that they need to put in some hard work in the offseason to make up for Jeff's production and will do that. Individually, I am also sure that it gives extra motivation for players like Jr., Macklin, Tyler, AF and CW to know that more open minutes are on the table to compete for.

The bottom line is that the Hoyas are LOADED with talent, and I can't wait until November.

[sleepy]

Pope thats not true for all times, especially in the NCAA tournament, and especially in the first halves of games. Jeff for whatever reason, hated the first half of games this year. I noticed that in UNC, Gtown actually built its first-half lead up to 8 when Jeff was on the bench, and then lost it when he came back in. Obviously not saying that we will be better without Jeff, im just saying that by the end of the year, the team wasn't as lost without Jeff as many people make them out to be.

[PopeJohn2]

thats true. i must have been recalling some of the earlier games where it was pass around the perimeter then heave.

[Locker]

In our last three games of the season, Roy's +/- numbers looked like this:

+17 (Vandy)
+18 (UNC)
+11 (OSU)

Those numbers are kind of astounding, especially considering that the same numbers for Jeff looked like this:

+1 (Vandy)
+11 (UNC)
-7 (OSU)

[sleepy]

what do those numbers mean? are they points? And what point are you making with them? Sorry im just confused...

[idhoya]

It will be about who GU matches up with in the tourney. A good draw may go a long way.

[Locker]

sleepy said:

what do those numbers mean? are they points?

Same concept as in hockey. How did Georgetown do when Roy was on the court? In the Vandy game -- that we won by a single point -- Georgetown outscored the 'Dores by 17 points when Hibbert was in the game.

You can get these numbers from Ken Pomeroy's site, in his "HD boxscores." Here's the one from the Vandy game:

kenpom.com/hdbox.php?g=032307vandgtwn