Now The Real Fun Begins: May Rotation Talk
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@BShark Nice post! Dig the comments added in from KT. I wonder if The Star or LJW has them somewhere? Ive been busy lately, life moves fast. (tangent) OK back to it.
I really liked it when Coach Self said last year that “Josh Jackson unpacked his bags.” Josh is absolutely my favorite OAD of the Self era. That kid unpacked his bags and basically went about his life like he was going to be at KU for 4 years. Josh dug in and learned all he could from Coach Self and the rest and we could see it progress as the season went on! He came to KU as a super stud with Wiggins comparisons and IMO left KU even better than Wiggins did at the same stage.
Will Preston “unpack his bags?” I’m thinking he will but I cant honestly expect him to be like Josh. I’m hoping for just really dammed good from this kid at this point.
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Several knowledgeable sports writers have projected Malik as the conference POY based on reports of his progress during his off year. I just don’t see Malik not starting.
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JayHawkFanToo said:
Several knowledgeable sports writers have projected Malik as the conference POY based on reports of his progress during his off year. I just don’t see Malik not starting.
Malik is a lock imo.
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KUSTEVE said:
I actually hope you’re right. Townsend’s comments make me believe there will be growing pains, and Self will settle for the more experienced guy.
There will definitely be growing pains.
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3 of the starting spots are locked down right now. Graham, Newman, and Azubuike will start. Vick/Svi will fight for the 3 and Whitman/Preston will fight for the 4.
I think Vick probably starts and Svi comes off the bench bench because of his versatility of being able to sub the 1-4 spots. Garrett is the 8th man early on and then Cunliffe likely supplants him in December.
I don’t see Lightfoot factoring into the rotation in any significant way and Garrett’s minutes diminishing as conference rolls around.
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You listed juts 3 bigs, Doke, Preston and Whitman as taking all the minutes for the 4 and 5 position? I am not sure that is correct, you need more than 3 players for these 2 position and this is where Lightfoot might grab minutes…unless you go back to a pure 4 and 1 with the 3 bigs you mentioned fighting for the one position.
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Here’s a sheet I’ve been keeping track of the Big-12.
The orange marks scholarships used for 2018-19 players.
West Virginia’s top 100 recruit Culver is rumored to be possibly ineligible. We’ll see what happens there.
Oklahoma got a visit from Mkyle McIntosh. Also visted Oregon. Could easily end up in either spot.
Baylor might be getting a transfer (sit-out) in Vance Jackson (former Top 60 kid) who played at Uconn as a freshman.
Iowa St might want to add another guard if possible with the McNeill transfer
Something will have to give at TCU with 14 scholarship players. Maybe the Rafus grade rumors become true and he’s the defection.
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@BeddieKU23 Rafus will probably end up at a JUCO.
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@JayHawkFanToo I think he is assuming we play 4 guards instead of playing Lightfoot. Which I would assume myself. I hope Mitch proves me wrong. But today, Svi could play in the post as well as Lightfoot.
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I’m looking at these rosters, and I’m not sure who is even good besides KU. Should be interesting!
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@BShark I think Tech is the dark horse. 5 seniors. Added a couple of play now JUCO guys. Could be experienced and deep.
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My post spring Big-12 rankings
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KU- obvious with Svi back
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West Virginia- Losing Macon and possibly their best recruit hurts them but its hard to bet against Huggins and the style of play. The development of West/Konate in the post is paramount for them. They will need Bolden/Bender and something from their other 4 recruits to be rotation pieces to hold onto this spot.
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TCU- Lots of positive momentum for this team. Picked up a useful grad transfer in Hamdy from VCU. Big body that can rebound and solidified their #3 spot for now. Dixon has made a lot of waves in a short amount of time.
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Oklahoma- Maybe a little ambitious placing them here but the addition of Trae Young plus expected improvements from their returning players makes this a potential pick in the top half. Kruger’s teams are never down for long. If they land McIntosh they will be a tough team.
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Baylor- 4 seniors still makes them a tough out. They are weak at SG and post depth. They will need Vital (redshirt) and Clark to make an impact as freshman in the post. Motley was the difference between 2nd and 5th IMO
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Texas Tech- Could start 5 seniors and have 5 more upperclassmen in the rotation. Evans & Zach Smith could be 1st team Big-12 performers this year.
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Texas- Bamba raises them from last. Getting any kind of stability from Coleman at the PG position will help them. Jones/Bamba are NBA players but what else scares anyone. I don’t trust Smart enough to make them good.
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Kansas St- 3 starters back and 2 rotation pieces for delusional Webby. No idea what they will get from the numerous unranked players they signed.
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Iowa St- Biggest fall of them all. Iowa St didn’t have a good spring. Numerous players left, they missed on targets and picked up what they could to fill out the roster. Wigginton is an absolute stud but he can only do so much as a Freshman.
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Oklahoma St- Finally Forte is gone. Evans went pro. Carroll returning gives them some hope. They could be better then Iowa St but this is a team that will rely so much on Carroll on offense.
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Yup, although the loss of Brangers (one of the top 5 JUCO’s) in the land hurt them. He was going to provide perimeter shooting which they still lack outside of Evans. They still lack post depth if Odiase isn’t healthy and I don’t see anyone on the roster to rest Zach Smith much but this is possibly the best Tech team in a long time.
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@BeddieKU23 Yea was sad to see Brangers leave. Perfect guy to bring off the bench when the team is struggling to score. Instant offense.
That Western Kentucky team could be decent this year…
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TCU had a JUCO player committed to them “opt to turn pro”. I believe that solves their scholarship situation
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TTU landed one time brief KU target and non-qualifer (that year) Deshawn Corprew as well as stud Italian PG Davide Moretti. UConn and Indiana were sniffing around Moretti. Kid can hoop. TTU might be pretty interesting this year after all.
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I saw Corphew was joining in 2018.
Moretti looks like a solid pickup and looks like he’ll be somewhere in the Top 200 players.
Going to be interesting to see how they mesh 9 new players in
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BeddieKU23 said:
I saw Corphew was joining in 2018.
Moretti looks like a solid pickup and looks like he’ll be somewhere in the Top 200 players.
Going to be interesting to see how they mesh 9 new players in
Yep, big learning curve.
I have Moretti around Svi level but obviously he is a guard/smaller. So, he should be a good multi-year contributor.
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That’s what I was thinking as well or the Italian guard that just left St Johns after 2 years as a good comp
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Bruce just kicked their possible starting center off the team. Tough times in kitten land.
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BShark said:
Bruce just kicked their possible starting center off the team. Tough times in kitten land.
couldn’t happen to a better person!
huge loss
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@BeddieKU23 Yes Dixon has made a difference already. - -I knew when TCU hired him he was gonna be a nice get for them. - -I have always liked him - -I just think it just makes this league just that much more competitive - -I think he may make some noise - -can’t wait for the season seeking another title - -ROCK CHALK ALL DAY LONG BABY
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Bruce might be looking at the bottom of the league. I know he’s a “good coach” because people keep repeating it so he might be able to avoid it. Their roster is really bad though, this will be a true test. Post defense could be a real issue. They have bodies inside, but none stand out on that end. Dean Wade is the only one we know is decent offensively, and even then, the Dean Wade that hero balls against KU is not the one that shows up in most other games. Stokes, Brown, Sneed and Wade are all okay players, but after that it kind of falls off a cliff, and that’s not even a full starting line-up.
We will know a lot more about KSU once they actually start playing games, since the four I mentioned are their only four returners that will see much pt.
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I’m happy they will suck so they can give him an extension
They still have the reincarnation of Larry Bird according to their delusional fanbase. LB Jr will take over both positions and dominate. Definite All American and top 10 pick next year. hahaha.
Oh I’m also looking forward to the annual our players are better then KU’s comparison
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Well they were right about one thing. LB JR will have a better KSU career than Bragg at KU.
And yeah…they will have to reach more than usual this year.
Stokes/Brown vs Graham/Newman
Sneed vs Svi/Vick
LB JR vs Preston
Talk about mental gymnastics to make that favour KSU.
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Baylor picked up a big transfer in Mario Kegler for 2018. A likely starter at SF or small ball 4…
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BeddieKU23 said:
Baylor picked up a big transfer in Mario Kegler for 2018. A likely starter at SF or small ball 4…
They also have a really weird situation with Makai Mason.
He’s going to play for Yale this upcoming season, and then grad transfer to Baylor.
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Definitely, I still think there a lot that will happen between now and Mason going to Baylor. With the Ivy league not allowing his type of situation he’ll either try and make the NBA after this year or as he’s saying go somewhere else for his final year.
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If he is a graduate transfer, there is nothing the Ivy League can do since he will have graduated and gone from Yale, right?
I believe he SEC used to have some restriction accepting graduate transfers but did away with them a while back.
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The Ivy league does not allow graduate transfers to play. Mason after sitting out last season with an injury is going to graduate after this year and look to transfer. It was odd in that he apparently already decided on which school even though he’s still playing for Yale.
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Tilmon arrested. Per an MUPD arrest report, Jeremiah Tilmon was arrested at 1:42 a.m. Friday for a minor in possession after a routine traffic stop.
His Missouri career is off to a resounding start!
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But he is not a graduate transfer right now, right so far? He is just an athlete with two years left of eligibility and after he graduates at the end of the season he will still have one year left. He will be a graduate transfer AFTER he graduates from Yale and at that time there is nothing Yale or the Ivy League can do, right? What part do I have wrong?
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JayHawkFanToo said:
But he is not a graduate transfer right now, right so far? He is just an athlete with two years left of eligibility and after he graduates at the end of the season he will still have one year left. He will be a graduate transfer AFTER he graduates from Yale and at that time there is nothing Yale or the Ivy League can do, right? What part do I have wrong?
Your correct he’s not a grad transfer yet. Mason has kind of jumped the gun per say in saying he’s going to be a grad transfer after next season and also by naming Baylor as the team he will transfer too. Because he can’t stay with Yale if he graduates in the spring he’d have to transfer somewhere else. I expect he’ll be one of the most sought after transfers if he sticks to what he’s saying
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@BeddieKU23 Not a big deal or a surprise. Lawrence PD is just nice enough to not mess with the BBall players unless they absolutely have to.
BG should have gotten a DUI like his first week in Lawrence if I recall correctly. Got lucky to get away with only a hit and run charge.
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This bit about who comes off the bench, Malik or LaGerald, I think Self will get a good read on this by January and that he will play it to the optimum result in terms of team unity and individual prodding. If both are healthy they are each headed for 26+ minutes, regardless. As is Svi. And they all are eventually headed to the NBA as probable first round selections, sooner or later. The Whitman/Preston debate: who knows? Gotta see these guys work, within the framework of Doke and our fine speedy guards. Two very different types of 4 men…which is a real gem for the coaching staff, by way of throwing change-ups. Bill Self moves forward incrementally as an NCAA change-up artist. He did some super stuff with Jackson last season. Josh might indeed owe some of his future millions to the program which guided him to such noteworthy versatility. Individually, there are some under radar players now vying for minutes in the Jayhawk program. IF they evolve into unified unselfish team players this squad can make some huge noise by March. And a bunch of these guys will be recognized nationally.
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I see our main competition as WVU, OU and TCU. The common thread is a great coach.
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Newman will start.
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@BShark yep. No doubt about it.
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@REHawk I think some are still caught up in “what are we going to do without Frank and Josh?”. It’s all about overall team talent and balance. There was very little balance last year after Dok went out with the injury. Even though the games haven’t started yet, I feel as though this team under Self, who has really shown a superb skill at making adjustments (as if we thought he wasn’t any good) is definitely a title contender. The Italy trip should really help team cohesion and a W over Kenstinky would be a great start to the year. As usual, West Virginia will be our main competition. Will this be the year our losing streak finally ends in Morgantown?
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and likely will be our leading scorer…
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It is a valid concern though replacing a POY and a Top 3 pick in this years draft. They were our 2 leading scorers, 2 of our leading assist leaders, and 2 of the best rebounders on the team.
There will be some adjusting and as you pointed out, Italy should help as these guys get some extra practices and games together to build team chemistry.
Self always puts together a good team and this year should be no different. But we certainly have a lot of unknowns right now, certainly a ton of talent and potentially a very good team. We can assume we won’t miss a beat but it will be exciting and frustrating I’m sure early in the season watching this unit come together
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@Beddie23
Him or Devonte probably. My comment was actually directed at @REHawk so I should have @ him before. Vick may start, but it won’t be over Newman. Graham and Newman are locked in stone starters.
Replacing two great players is difficult. Otoh Tyler Self was the 2nd guard off the bench last year and the one big Self trusted was not athletic at all. The whole one big thing definitely skews the rebounding stats. Frank was a good rebounder but in a normal situation, even just Doke being healthy, his numbers there would have been lower.
Agree though, it’s nice to have the Italy trip. Lots of new pieces to fit in.
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BShark said:
@Beddie23
Him or Devonte probably. My comment was actually directed at @REHawk so I should have @ him before. Vick may start, but it won’t be over Newman. Graham and Newman are locked in stone starters.
Replacing two great players is difficult. Otoh Tyler Self was the 2nd guard off the bench last year and the one big Self trusted was not athletic at all. The whole one big thing definitely skews the rebounding stats. Frank was a good rebounder but in a normal situation, even just Doke being healthy, his numbers there would have been lower.
Agree though, it’s nice to have the Italy trip. Lots of new pieces to fit in.
Yeah Devonte could definitely be the leading scorer as well. I’m most interested in seeing how he improves this season. He’s seen the blue-print, let’s see if he’s got what it takes.
As always we have exciting elements to the team that we haven’t seen. We expect Newman to be All-Big-12 caliber, we expect Doke to be this larger then life big man, we have guarded expectations for Preston but we know there is a world of talent inside of him. There’s the next step for Vick and Svi. Cunliffe has barely played and Whitman is taking the jump up to Big-12 ball. And so far Mitch Lightfoot seems to be doing everything he needs to do to become a positive contributor to this team. And then there’s Marcus Garrett who could be anything. It’s a great group, the ceiling for this team is high- hopefully championship worthy
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I’m going to go out on a limb and say that Marcus Garrett will get more minutes than most people expect. From all his film he just seems to have that controlled aggression that is required for freshman to play for coach Self.
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So, is Marcus tall enough or athletic enough to play a 4 spot?
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Crimsonorblue22 said:
So, is Marcus tall enough or athletic enough to play a 4 spot?
He’s pretty athletic, height would be the real problem. My guess is he is a 2/3 under Self that doesn’t make anyone nervous when he is handling the ball.
I hope the previous poster is right and he plays more than expected because that likely means he can run point at the D1 level. If he can do that it takes a stress off DG and Newman. Also we know Newman is good at creating for himself and DG is great in a secondary role but neither is a proven creator for others. If Garrett can create good looks with all the good spot up shooters on the roster, he will definitely see more time than I have been predicting.
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I would say no and we’d probably never need him in that situation but anything could happen. Josh was an extraordinary outlier where he had the size/athletic ability and talent to overcome what we generally view as a post player.
If Marcus was a few inches shorter he’d be a point guard but because he’s 6’6 his game has rounded out more to accommodate for his height. Gives him the versatility to guard all 3 perimeter spots which is good for this team. He doesn’t have elite athletic ability but he’s solid and I expect Hudy will really help him in that area. He’s similar to Vick when he came in that he’ll need to add natural weight through strength training. I wonder if the coaches will look to fine tune his shooting motion as well which would help him, right now he has a bit of a set shot (think Niang).
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Given that he projects as a multi-year player I would think they will work on his shooting motion/shot.
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There’s a video on the KU basketball Facebook page introducing the new guys and it includes their position and it had Marcus Garrett listed as a point guard. That should be a big sign of what SeIf’s intentions with Garrett are.
