I admittedly didn’t watch Indiana a ton in conference play because they were my least favorite team aesthetically by a long shot and XJ probably was a big part of that, but what I saw in the BTT felt like a different guy. He was super dynamic.
From Jan 1 on, he averaged 13.3 points and 5.5 assists to 2.8 turnovers on 39/39/82 splits. He was really really horrid the first 12 games of the season before that and will probably remain inconsistent but I don’t really think any of the guys on the list have a ceiling of a 13 and 5 guy that makes 39% from behind the arc. Except Pickett but nobody will notice.
This is true but our offense for four years has been almost entirely Ron Harper and Geo Baker. I have no idea what an offense centered around Paul Mulcahy and Cam Spencer looks like because they’re such different players (and it’s not like there’s a Jacob Young wildcard in the mix). Omoruyi is a great dunker and Mulcahy can set him up, but can he do more? McConnell has mostly been below replacement level on offense but then he’ll randomly pop a great game.
My concern is it’s a lot of good complimentary players but no central piece. It’s gonna be a different looking team, or at least it’ll have to be to reach its ceiling. If this roster tries to play the way Baker and Harper did it’s gonna go poorly.
How do we feel about Maryland maybe being a tournament caliber team? I feel like there’s potential there in the starting lineup. They have 0 depth though
I appreciate how many of your takes are baked into the BTT That was definitely the best week of basketball that he’s ever played but he also turned back into himself in the NCAA Tournament.
Like I say, he’s good and he has that upside in certain moments. He’s just not really what I’d want out of a PG on a great team.
My big brained take on IU is that they would be better off if Race wasn’t back. I think they need to shift how they play.
That Wisconsin roster is looking secretly rough and unfortunately Jordan Davis doesn’t look like he has the Kris Murray second-twin potential. Tyler Wahl doesn’t strike me as the kind of guy to be the best player on a winning team. Gard went 7-11 in a bad Big Ten with junior year Ethan Happ, too, so I can’t even say eh it’s Wisconsin they always figure it out.
Wisconsin might be able to grind out wins in a bad B1G but their offense is going to be a big fat t*rd that is entirely dependent on Chucky Hepburn late clock heaves.
I think it’s more that all the guards in the league are meh, and there’s no who is both good enough and on a good enough team to pass him on awards lists. Buie is probably the best PG in the league but he’s not gonna be first team.
Maybe! Those 3 are guaranteed. So there are 2 spots and they wont be beholden to position. Kris Murray is gonna put up stats for Iowa so he’d be a strong candidate for me for one of the spots. No idea who gets the other. Maybe Illinois or MSU’s best player? Hepburn is he wills Wisconsin to decency?
Mulcahy is just a guy, IMO. Cliff has mad hops but is still limited offensively. McConnell is a fabulous defender but is seriously one of the worst offensive players in the conference. Unless he’s going to continue shooting 80% on jumpers and floaters like he did against defense-averse Notre Dame, I’m not seeing a sudden breakout in what will be his 5th season.
I can’t wait to watch a Wisconsin vs Rutgers rock fight. First to 35 points wins.
I’m really hoping that Wisconsin craters this year. They were headed in that direction before Johnny Davis somehow turned into a lottery pick. I don’t dare pick against them given their history of grinding out ugly tournament worthy seasons, but unless Chucky makes a big leap I wonder where they get points from. Same with Rutgers.
I do think Izzo will start the season with Akins on the bench but I think Sissoko will be the starter. That’s Izzo’s MO - reward the veterans as starters initially. That gives you Hall and Hauser plus keeping the freshman big on the bench for now. I do think he’ll quickly realize after benching Sissoko often that his best lineup on offense might be to roll with 3 guards and Hauser at the 5 and then mix-and-match when he rotates the other two bigs in.
Feels like a lot of rock fights incoming with all these new pieces for each team. Maybe I should just bet the under on every game all season and see how that goes.
Unlike Wisconsin who has proven they can build winning teams around different cores of players, Rutgers hasn’t proven that they can reload without Geo or RHJ.
That was definitely the best week of basketball that he’s ever played but he also turned back into himself in the NCAA Tournament.