The fact that both put up monstrous numbers in their DI basketball careers is impressive. In a perfect world, Holston could easily be compared to Allen Iverson or Jameer Nelson. But those guys didn’t come from little known schools like Chicago State and Eastern Michigan and certainly didn’t get the notoriety or lack thereof, either.

Both players are under 5′10. That I am certain of. I’ve seen Earl listed at 5′5 virtually everywhere and have seen David Holston listed at 5′8. From having watched both on TV (never have seen either in person), Holston definitely has a few inches on Earl.

Having never watched Boykins play in his college days and going by a small sample of Holston youtube highlights and a couple game segments when I actually knew who Holston was, please take this whole comparison thing with a grain of salt. I trust that all 4 of you will.

Holston, by a fairly considerable margin, is a better 3 point shooter than Earl. And it’s safe to say Holston also uses his handles to create separation from the defender when attempting 3’s more than Boykins ever did (thanks Youtube). Holston could definitely be labeled as a bit more showy.

Earl’s only season of eclipsing the 40% mark on 3’s was his senior year (98′). In each of David’s first 3 seasons he has amassed the 40% mark, albeit just slightly. So far this season Holston is shooting a career best 41.6% from deep. Holston usually heaves a double digit amount of treys per game while Boykins shot more around 4 to 5 per game.

The assist and turnover stat is a little troublesome for Holston’s cause. So far his career totals reveal he’s averaging only .8 more assists than turnovers. Boykins took care of the ball better and also had a solid career average of 5.1 assists per game.

Free throw percentage is very similar for these two. Boykins spent more time at the free throw line than did Holston however. This is most likely because of Earl’s willingness to shoot running jumpers in the lane and drive to the basket more so than Holston is accustomed to doing. From watching Earl dozens of times in the NBA there seems to be reason to assume Earl got it done by playing smart and taking tons of chances on both sides of the court. He only toped out as a 34.9% 3 point shooter during his 10 seasons in the NBA, so in no way was the 3 just a minor part of his repertoire, but there was a definite mid range game mixed in with creativity and elite quickness that lured so many different NBA clubs (8) to sign him. Earl’s stop and go quicks really earned him substantial minutes with the Denver Nuggets.

Holston could make an impact in the pros as a lethal 3 point specialist, but he will have to show he can take care of the ball and be a decent defender. The lack of Chicago State’s success will no doubt harm Holston’s chances. Although Boykins was not drafted, the EMU Eagles made 2 NCAA tournament appearances while he donned the uniform. Never overrate the big stage.

If it all works out, Holston will likely follow Boykins’ path in to the NBA because of excellent pre-draft camp showings and being in the right place at the right time. The NBA is a scorers league filled with offensive specialists on every team, a perfect situation for a guy like Holston to make a dent.

5 foot 8 of explosion

Stats derived from basketball-reference.com and rivals.yahoo.com.

Post from: EveryJoe

The David Holston-Earl Boykins Comparison

From Yours Truly:

Summit League 08/09

Predicted Order of Finish:

North Dakota State Bison (19-10, 13-5)
Oral Roberts Golden Eagles (20-10, 13-5)
Oakland Golden Grizzlies (18-13, 12-6)
IPFW Mastodons (16-13, 11-7)
IUPUI Jaguars (16-15, 9-9)
UMKC Kangaroos (14-17, 8-10)
Centenary College Gentlemen (11-19, 8-10)
South Dakota State Jackrabbits (13-18, 7-11)
Western Illinois Fighting Leathernecks (9-20, 6-12)
Southern Utah Thunderbirds (6-23, 3-15)

What you need to know.

22 out of 31- Conference RPI ranking for the Summit League in each of the last two seasons.

Oregon, Marquette, Oklahoma St., Kansas, Texas Tech, Utah- Casualties at the hands of Summit league teams throughout the past 2 seasons. Does beating Seton Hall count? What about Louisiana Tech, twice? Not bad, not bad. The Summit is not quite knocking on the door of the Missouri Valley in stature as of yet, but at least they’re in the neighborhood. Some will never be in the continent.

Guardplay- Guards rule this conference in more than one way. They not only light up the scoreboard from downtown, but they also grab more than their share of rebounds. Lots. Last season 6′5 Derick Nelson led the Oakland Grizzlies with 7.4, 6′6 Brett Winkelman led the North Dakota State Bison with 8.3, and 6′2 George Hill led IUPUI with 6.8. The big men you will find, and there are some actually, are your rudimentary mid-level giants who usually possess the muscle tone of Kevin Durant and the post-up game of Muggsy Bogues. Besides that, Summit league big men are studs.

Predicted Champion. North Dakota State (#14 NCAA). Coincidentally this happens to be the very first season in which the Bison are postseason-eligible. But the Bison seem to be the consensus these days. And for good reason. The three-headed monster returning for the Bison all redshirted their freshman year so that they would be able to have an opportunity like this. The littlest of the fifth year senior trio, Ben Woodside, scored over 20 ppg last season while also dishing out over 5 feeds. At 5′10, Woodside is a very creative attacker and gauging from the few times I have seen him play in person, he will hoist from anywhere, anytime. The giant of the group is Brett Winkelman, all 6′6 of him. While you already know he’s a terror on the glass, he’s also quite the assassin on the perimeter, hitting 43.8% of his threes last year. Winkleman is an efficient player and one not to shy away from the dirty work. He’d be in any team’s rotation. 6′4 Mike Nelson is the third head of this Bison monster. Often overlooked because of the other two, Nelson just goes about his business, you know, the usual 46.1% from downtown, 13.8 ppg, and 32 mpg. Not a shabby third option. All numbers aside, this Bison squad is downright hungry. They’re ready for the limelight, ready for the Summit league tourney.

Others considered. Oral Roberts, the Summit League representative in the tourney the previous three years, will always be in the discussion for the title. Oral Roberts consistently plays defense year in and year out the way it should be played: stay between your man and the basket. Alright, that may not be their textbook philosophy on defense, but a casual fan watching this team would probably not argue against it actually being THE PHILOSOPHY. Offensively speaking, combo guard Robert Jarvis and forward Marcus Lewis are the only returning players that averaged north of 5 ppg last season. Jarvis is a star though. He’s without a doubt the most streaky player in the conference (16.1 ppg in 29 mpg…off the bench). I’m not real sure Oral Roberts can survive the shoot first mentality of Jarvis as their point guard, but it sure looks like that will be their only chance to make it 4 straight tourney appearances.

Oakland finished third in the conference in 2008. They have one heck of an opening stretch of road games to begin the year. If they can come out of it with an upset or three, it might just be all the confidence this team needs to make a run. Scoring the ball is not a concern for head coach Greg Kampe. Guards Johnathon Jones, Erik Kangas and Derick Nelson all averaged over 14 ppg last season. Nelson has a tendency to try to do too much, but when he plays within himself, he can hurt you in a variety of ways, whether it’s on the offensive glass, in transition, or with an occasional trey. Defense and rebounding seem to be the problem for this team, especially up front. They can usually get away with lackluster defensive lapses against the weaker teams, but losing four out of five to last year’s strongholds IUPUI and Oral Roberts should be an indication of what Oakland must drastically improve on to legitimately be considered a threat . A pair of highly touted freshman (as opposed to lowly touted), 6′9 Jay Thames and 7′0 Ilija Milutinovic, hope to give this lacking front line a boost. Ilija, says coach Kampe, might be just what the doctor ordered: “There is a lot of hype with him and we have never had this much hype about a recruit before. He turned down six figures to play professionally in Serbia because he wants to go to the NBA.” Kampe later referred to Ilija as “very comparable” to Darko Milicic. I’m still not sure what to make of that.

—-

For more, visit Rush the Court.

They have everything covered.

Post from: EveryJoe

Summit League Preview

Key Player- Wayne Ellington. Sure, he can stroke it from just about any area code, but he is lacking elsewhere. You know that when Tyler Hansbrough is a more accomplished ball handler, something has got to change.

Finish- Gotta go out on a limb and say the Final Four. Anything less will be considered an utter failure.

Duke- Recently this team reminds a lot of people of a really good book, a phenomenal book, one they can’t put down for hours and hours. Yet when they do put it down, they feel physically and mentally ill because the ending was so anti-climatic, so wretched, that it reminds them of the Dukie players migration to the pros over the past several years (I am not one of those ‘a lot of people’). The colossal failures of J.J. Redick, Josh McRoberts and Shelden Williams at the NBA level, despite the notion these top of the line studs were supposed to ‘tear it up’, is fantastically ironic.

Am I on the Duke blacklist yet?

Key Player- Brian Zoubek. If the kid can twist free his fist out of his ear and show some intensity, we’ll at least know he’s alive. That would be a decent start.

Finish- Probably a bitch slap from Siena or VCU early on. Keeping my fingers crossed.

Newscom

Post from: EveryJoe

A word on UNC and Duke

-Osama bin Laden is found in a posh cave somewhere (then promptly shot in the face).

-An African American is inaugurated in as President of the United States for the first time ever.

-It’s the economy, stupid.

-Providence College makes the NCAA tourney for the first time since, like… the Croshere-Shammgod days.

This dude the other shammgod, the hack from Talk Practice, would love nothing more than to see Providence dancing in March. Screw terrorism, liberalism, and the economy, the other shammgod wants some Friar magic this year.

Total Homer.

the other shammgod is our guest crack addict today, but more than anything, he’s our out of touch Homer of the moment. Your Welcome.

———

“This is the year.

Let us begin with that phrase. This is the year.

This is the year Providence Friar fans have been waiting for since 2005. That’s when a really good high school quarterback (and forward) from New York chose Providence College over Duke and Boston College. That’s when an undersized point guard from Georgia chose Providence over Texas A&M and Clemson. That’s when the amazing local kid from St. Andrews high school chose to actually stay in state unlike his predecessors Tony Robertson and Demetris Nichols. That’s also when a kid with a crazy name and crazy hops chose Providence even though he was a McDonalds All American nominee (and those guys always avoid us).

2005 was the year we signed Geoff McDermott, Sharaud Curry, Jonathan Kale, and Weyinmi Efejuku.

McDermott, Kale, and Efejuku are now seniors. Curry was injured last year and redshirted, so he is currently a junior. Providence also has another senior, a guy named Randall Hanke who has been playing at Providence for seemingly 12 years. He’s still here because he also redshirted a year.

No Providence fan can understand the lack of respect this team has gotten coming into this year. The best player on the team (Sharaud Curry) was injured last year. So a team without its best player went 15-16 and won 6 Big East games, including two victories over No. 17 UCONN. Not bad.

Another reason to think the Friars can outperform their non-existent expectations? The team lost one senior from last year, and it was their WORST player: Charlie Burch, a player so bad I don’t even think he played on senior night.

The Friars have a new coach, coach of the year Keno Davis who took Drake to the NCAAs.

Still not enough for you? This may be biased, but the Friars are a classic example of an underachieving team. They have suffered countless close losses in recent years. Most recent example: missing approximately 26 layups en route to a 58-53 loss in the Big East Tournament to a West Virginia team that looked horrible against them, but made the sweet sixteen and beat Duke.

Three years ago, as we watched an extremely young overmatched team get pushed around but never give up, we all had the same thought- wait ’til these guys are seniors, that’ll be our year. Well, this year is that year.

With Efejuku perhaps finally achieving his near limitless potential (we call him “air juku” for a reason), Curry leading the team, McDermott averaging 15-8-8 like we know he can, and Kale and Hanke dominating down low, I see no reason why this team can’t win 20 games. Throw in transfer Jeff Xavier and a few younger guys, including Clark Kellogg’s son Alex, and you have a tournament team, seriously.

Sharaud Curry is probably the team’s best player, almost certainly a top 20 Big East player if his past injuries don’t bother him. People wondered why the Friars didn’t go after local “Street-cred Jason Kidd who had to wear a tie everyday to school” Joe Mazzula. They didn’t need another inconsistent lifetime backup point guard. They had Sharaud Curry. And Brian McKenzie. And (at the time) Jamal Barney. Barney is gone now, but McKenzie is a serviceable backup and Curry may be a top 3 point guard in the Big East. Curry’s like Becky Hammon of the San Antonio Silverstars. He runs the team, racks up assists, and hits tons of open shots (that ref was for you Ryan).

It’s up to Sharaud...

Both McDermott and Efejuku could give Curry a run for title of “best player on the team”. If McDermott could ever get his turnovers under control, while still keeping his amazing passing skills (especially for a big man), he’s a potential NBA draft camp invitee. There’s a reason Duke wanted him.

As for Efejuku, it’s easy to pick out any player and say this is the guy that will determine how far this team goes, or something shortsighted like that, but Weyinmi Efejuku is immensely important to this team. He is the wild card. He could score 20 a game. He could average under 10. He averaged 14 two years ago, but only 11 last year. I rarely compare anyone to the definitive best ball handler to ever touch a basketball, but Efejuku is a lot like former Providence point guard God Shammgod. Shammgod could get to any point on the court that he wanted to, but inability to finish and overall laziness did him in. I can’t tell you how many times Efejuku effortlessly goes by his man, soars to the hoop, and then throws an ill-advised pass away or bricks a lay-up that he could have just dunked.

This team has some tough games. People always say the ACC is the toughest conference, and that may be true, but no conference tests your will quite like the Big East. In the Big East, officials let you hack and grab and push down low. It gets intense. This is why Big East teams look bad in the regular season, but then during tourney time they occasionally beat those soft ACC/Big Ten teams. Playing all fifteen other Big East teams at least once (while playing three twice) is not an easy task. For this reason, I’m willing to argue that if PC can get through its schedule and make it to the tourney, it is very dangerous. VERY.
Face it people. Their entire team is back. They can, and will, make a tournament run. This is the year.

(unless they go under .500 again. Then next year will be the year.)”

———-

Nicely done shammgod, good luck in the NIT.

At least you will always have the memories of God to cherish.

Post from: EveryJoe

Providence Friar Homer

They return four out of the top five scorers. The team is senior laden and coached by one of the most underrated coaches in college basketball, Mike Brey.

Notre Dame Basketball is a big deal.

A few reasons why they are not on UNC’s level, or even Oklahoma’s…

Very little new blood will be infused to this team this year, as no freshmen or new transfers of any kind are on the roster. Consequently the team is not what you would call deep, but the firepower to score and score often is more than there. Losing Rob Kurz’s 12.5 ppg and 7.1 reb is significant especially considering that production in the lineup isn’t necessarily guaranteed to be filled. Redshirt sophomore Carleton Scott seems like the logical replacement, not in terms of position, but in terms of minute distribution. Starting position wise, 6’10 senior Luke Zeller will compete with fellow senior, 6’9 Zach Hillesland, for the second front court position alongside reigning Big East player of the year Luke Harangody.

6’7 Ryan Ayers, yet another battle tested senior, will be hard pressed to improve his stellar 45% downtown clip, but all the while will be a big part of the outside barrage and should be a likely double digit scorer for this squad (it will be interesting to see if the three point line change will adversely affect the Irish).

Tyrone Nash could be the sleeper choice out of the remaining bit players. Just a small premonition.

Guards Kyle McAlarney and Tory Jackson complement each other as well as any duo in the country. Kyle is a lethal shooter (44.1% 3pt fg) and Tory is the ringleader, the caddie, the shutdown corner.

Tory must improve his outside shooting efficiency (38.6% fg in 07) to be considered a true all around player. His gaudy 1.8 steals/gm and 5.9 assists/gm make him a consistent jumper away from being NBA material.

I’ll tell you this, the Fighting Irish may not have a lot of depth beyond the seventh guy, but it’s a solid and hungry group that can score in a variety of ways and know the roles in which they must carry out.

Next year transfers Ben Hansbrough and Scott Martin will be eligible to play, but with so many seniors departing, not to mention Harangody’s somewhat expected leap, the only chance to make serious noise is now.

Style over substance could be the theme that derails Notre Dame, but who doesn’t like scoring?

*Thanks to crackedsidewalks.com for having the Big East Prospectus easily available.

Post from: EveryJoe

Fighting Irish at #5

In front of him stand two very accomplished upper classmen guards who, while not gaudy or brass, do their jobs well within the system. And it’s a rather lengthy backcourt as well. Junior Austin Johnson, 6’3, and senior Tony Crocker, 6’6, both play within themselves and are fundamentally sound. Both are expected to play 30 plus minutes a game, but don’t necessarily need to put up scoring numbers excessively better than last year. Quality, not quantity, should be Tony and Austin’s aim. Though 4.6 assists/gm between the two could afford to improve.

Besides the anticipation of Warren, there are four other newcomers to the program, three of which are JC transfers. Head Coach Jeff Capel likes each one, but is really impressed with 6′6 forward/athlete Juan Pattillo

“Juan is a great athlete,” stressed Capel. “He plays hard, has a tremendous body, can play above the rim. He’s guy who you don’t give a position. He’s just a basketball player. He can affect the game in different ways with his ability to slash and his mid-range shot. He should be a really good offensive rebounder and he has a chance to be a really good defender who can match up at multiple positions.”

Another prime time Juco athlete, 6’8 Kyle Cannon, can really shoot the ball, but Capel is still cautious as to which position Kyle is best suited for.

“Kyle is a 6-8 skilled player. I wouldn’t label him as a post guy, necessarily. Like Juan, he’s just a basketball player. When healthy, he’s a good athlete. He just has a good feel for the game. He’s another guy who will give us flexibility. We could play him, Taylor and Blake together; him, Taylor and Ryan together. We’ll be able to do different things because of Kyle’s ability to step away from the basket and shoot, and because of his ability to pass.”

source

I’m not so sure OU fans are keen on Capel’s avoidance of issuing positions to these great athletes. It could be a ploy, one in which gives the opposition some hope that said newcomers aren’t bona fide skilled players, just hyper athletes who could eventually develop. I’ve heard plenty of times how a player has the ability to shoot the ball, yet can’t be fitted for a position. Usually there’s an underlying falsity about the player’s “strengths”, and while the potential is there, no concrete authentication should probably come about from a position less athlete. But on paper the Sooners garner much enthusiasm because of the depth, height and overall seasoning they seemingly exude.

I find the Sooners to be in a position very similar to the Tar Heels. A one year window of opportunity (of course UNC’s window has been agape a lot recently) to win the big one is certainly attainable, just based on the top five players alone.

It was close. If normalcy had persisted, neither team would even be in the discussion this year.

Post from: EveryJoe

Sooners at #4

Losing Drew Neitzel won’t be as catastrophic for the Spartans as it would be for quite a few other quality teams in the country. Izzo had some depth to work with last year and that allowed fellow guard Kalin Lucas, now a sophomore, to really gain a wealth of experience. As one of the fastest players in the country, Kalin often does not need anyone to accompany him on a fast break. He’s an up tempo player of the A grade variety. He can also shoot a little too (36% 3pt). Crafty defensive veteran Travis Walton also returns, as does sharp shooter Chris Allen and athletic do it all wing Durrell Summers. All of those guys finish in transition and bring intangibles to the table that every really good team must have.

Wing/forward Raymar Morgan is the most polished player on the team. He will certainly be asked to add to his 14ppg total of last year. If he can be a legitimate threat from downtown (just 33 attempts last season), there’s not much Raymar can’t do on offense. He’s solid. He needs to be more spectacular.

The obvious strength of the Spartans is the backcourt and wing position. It might be under the radar, but it’s budding for sure.

But what about the front court?

Don’t count on Tom Herzog or Idong Ibok to sufficiently replace departed senior Drew Naymick. Let’s not over blow Drew’s importance. Firstly, it took the once offensively challenged Naymick about 7 years to contribute and while it’s important to give credit where credit is due (Drew came a long way in that time and really played like a competent Big Ten big man his last two seasons), the Spartans will miss his defensive presence, but not much else. They can do better. But the question remains, can Gray, Ibok, and Herzog actually do it?

The upside on Herzog seems high still, but similar expectations were put on Marquise Gray, a 5 star recruit four years ago.

Gray has been a bust to say the least.

Gray has all the athletic attributes a player needs, but he doesn’t seem to yet be able to grasp Izzo’s concepts. He’ll have his shining moments for sure, although Izzo will likely remember the head scratching-hair pulling moments he’s endured because of Gray the most.

Izzo only a minute away from taking large, thick chunks of hair out his skull while pleading with Marquise Gray on why he fouled the other team 60 feet from the hoop

Herzog, if he has gained any more weight, should be good for more than 13 games at 5 minutes a pop. He has the reputation of being somewhat competent on the block, whereas Gray and Ibok do not, but Herzog does not possess the strength to stay on the block at this level yet. It’s apparent, just look at the numbers, Ibok played in 13 more games and gives you nothing on offense. The future sure looks shaky for Herzog.

Video from a couple of years ago-

As far as Ibok is concerned, heck, he’s on the books for just one more year. Ibok has shown an inconsistent work ethic and furthermore has instilled little to no confidence into Izzo. Ibok is not what you call a basketball player yet. He’s a project still in the developmental stage. But better yet, he already has his degree, so, he has something a lot of college basketball players will never obtain.

It’s imperative for the bench bigs to overachieve, if you will, since it’s a foregone conclusion that Goran Suton will look like Bill Walton one play and then an immobile Christian Laettner the next six.

Put Suton down for 10 and 8 and be done with it. Throw it aside. He is what he is. Serviceable.

Delvon Roe, while a stud in my view, may come along slower than expected because of his injury difficulties. But soon enough he should be starting along with Morgan and Suton up front. Those 3 complement each other very nicely. You got some flash and sizzle in there, some inside-outside flavor and some quality post action to count on as well.

Overall the team, on a national level, mind you, might not be considered top 5 caliber, but I see them as a formidable top 5 team. The pieces are in place to become elite, but when push comes to shove, the impressing play they will exude in the regular season will come to a sudden halt somewhere in the 2nd or 3rd round of the tourney.

Unless freshman Draymond Green or junior Isaiah Dahlman, two, as of now, unlikely rotational players, have something in store to add to this team, like something significant, then the Spartans will be about one impact player short of a final four caliber team.

Thinking back a little, I’m tempted to proclaim that this might be the year the Spartans get back to that elite level. It would be the perfect year to do so.

Actually, kidding aside, it would be perfect this year.

The Final Four is in Michigan– Ford Field.

Think the Spartans wouldn’t be the favorites?

Ha.

I’d take em.

Post from: EveryJoe

MSU Spartans #3

They won’t be so jump shot laden and an important reason why will be the added role of Damion James. Damion will take and make his share of 3’s, but he can pile up the buckets in a variety of ways. He hits the offensive glass with a vengeance and his athleticism allows him to finish at the basket quicker than his usually slower opponents. His mid-range game is very polished, yet was often forgotten because of the volume of shots D.J. and A.J. heaved. If Damion can be that special inside force, then the perimeter will be free for the likes of Abrams and Atchley to do their thing. More touches for Mason will mean more quality opportunities for the gunners.

Dogus Balbay, a Turkish point guard, will have a heavy say in how fast this team gels. He’s feisty, and that’s a positive trait, but the knock on him is his less than desirable shooting stroke. However as far as the 08/09 Longhorn team is concerned, all Balbay needs to do is facilitate the offense, and if he can do that, the offensive weapons on this roster should be strong enough to give any team a run for their money.

ESPN college basketball guru Andy Katz

Texas
Despite losing point guard D.J. Augustin to the NBA draft, the remaining Longhorns make Texas a solid threat to advance to the NCAA tournament for the 11th straight season. A.J. Abrams returns after backing out of the draft and could play either guard position, depending on the development of Turkish point guard Dogus Balbay, who missed last season with a knee injury. Underrated guard Justin Mason is back, along with starting interior players Damion James and Connor Atchley from last season’s 31-7 team that advanced to the Elite Eight. With such a deep returning backcourt, incoming freshman guards Varez Ward and J’Covan Brown won’t get much initial playing time.

source

Many folks would rather see about a dozen or so different teams ranked higher than the Longhorns, but for the sake of the experience factor in college basketball, the Longhorns deserve to be ranked pretty high. They return 4 starters from an Elite 8 squad.

The national media might fall asleep on Texas just because Augustin is gone, but reason tells me Texas will benefit from the expanded roles many of the players will be forced into.

Post from: EveryJoe

Texas at #2

#1

Without the unparalleled presence of Tyler Hansbrough, this year’s UNC squad might just have fallen into the trap of entitlement.

Newscom

The players could easily look around and see that every one of the starters is back… plus the sixth man, notice that turnover machine Quentin Thomas graduated, feel comfort in Roy Williams’s oversight of each drill, meeting and walk through and really, habitually, know there’s a couple mindboggling good recruits fattening the depth even more in the interior and perimeter; so it’s all good.

Then the complacency sets in and ‘flip the switch’ therapy and psychology is circulated and digested from every fan and analyst alike.

Hopefully, if Tyler had left the program, his credence would have rubbed off on his teammates and nothing would have been taken for granted.

At least we know the answer now.

The top position is awarded to them simply by way of natural order. As many as 8 players on the current roster could lace them up in the NBA. Even if all of them end up playing like Brian Skinner, no one would have second guessed the tease.

Even if I didn’t think UNC was going all the way, I’d still have to put them in the #1 slot.

Did you not put the Celtics as the #1 team going in?

Post from: EveryJoe

Pre-Season Top 10

In no particular order and in no particular feeling of confidence either:

**** Scoff at it, just get mad at it UofA fans. Your team will lay an egg this year but totally get hot and win the NIT.

^ Addition by subtraction in Texas—ludicrous to say maybe, but D.J. and A.J. were beguiling wonders on the court that irrevocably held back the Longhorns from placing more impactful punches against stronger fighters.

$ The Spartans will further cement themselves as the college version of the 21st century Detroit Pistons. Each has won one championship, yet both fan bases are becoming impatient with the standstill success. So much talent yet so little to show for it.

#!#@ Calling Conference USA a power conference was a little wishful. That statement, although made while sober, still feels dirty, but it could end up alright. Just hoping Vaden or some other power conference guy can make a run at the scoring title.

? Calling Northwestern a NIT team was an undemonstrative springboard to tomfoolery, as this season I will probably be glued to all news NW basketball, akin to the energy I gave them during the Jitim Young and Tavaras Hardy days.

(Preview of Big Ten season)—Probably the most accurate prediction of the Big Ten season as you will find, minus the Michigan placement. No Big Ten quality pg will be available to suit up for the Wolvies until the second semester.—-

% Hasheem Thabeet is ready for a monster year and a long run into the tourney. It would not be surprising to see the Huskies stay in the top 5 for the entire season, especially if Thabeet can average 14.5ppg, 9 reb and more than 4 blk. Just think about the terror an offensively skilled Thabeet would be.

高人 Speaking of impact big men, one should keep an eye out for UNC-Asheville’s Kenny George. When fresh, he’s really not much different than your rudimentary 7 foot center, except for the fact George can regularly hit free throws and, while this might not seem feasible, still surprises many guards with his length. After awhile you’d think they would find new ways to attack a 7’7 dude, but often they make the same mistake over and over. However the time to attack George is when he’s sucking major air. Not exactly an original idea, yet, for huge guy, the opportunities present themselves much more frequently.

It’s almost as of George has decent enough foot speed to move laterally and react, but it’s the body that often takes awhile to catch up. If the coach can really substitute him frequently and wisely, UNC-Asheville will be the best in the Big South.

The next two are direct matchup predictions.

$$$ The Big Ten will once again fall to the superior ACC and it will, as it has always been, be because of the significant back of the conference weakness’s of the Big Ten. Need I go further?

\&/ The Fighting Irish will beat the Tar Heels in the finals of the Maui Invitational.

So with that out of the way,

#1

My pick to win the whole enchilada.

Discuss.

photo credit: Newscom

Post from: EveryJoe

Ahhh Finally