Top 10 returning guards to the Valley next season

[electricmayhem]

nice list.
I don't know enough about any of the other teams players to make much an an argument either way.

But i'm gonna throw out my two cents for the heck of it.

I think Odum is the freakin man. I love his game. I think he's the best guard in the MVC.

I like watching him play. A lot.

So I got Lanky Jake Odum #1

But like a few others have posted, I've got our boy Ragland at #2.

I'm biased. But I think he's the second best guard.
Even if his 3 point shooting still sucks this year, I think he'll be the 2nd best guard in the MVC.

Contrary to what you said about Murry, Joe will be the senior leader next year despite having played here 2 less years than Toure. The 2011-2012 Shockers will be Joe's team. Along with Stutz. They are voices.

Joe's numbers may not be All-MVC numbers. Just because D-Will is one of if not the best backup PG in the MVC and he deserves his time.

Joe's change of speed, fearlessness, offensive knowledge, and superior passing ability makes him the 2nd best guard in the MVC behind Odum IMO.

I won't disagree with much of this. The reason he didn't rank higher on the list is that he hasn't started for a full season yet. He was impressive last season, but can he put it together for a full year? Personally, I'd like to see him improve defensively, continue to protect the ball and hit from deep. He could end up an All-MVC season then.

Watcher - thanks for the props on the avatar - I'm supposed to be non-biased, but who am I kidding? I'm not a huge Kansas fan... or really most other BCS schools.

[SpanglerFan316]

I agree that DK is good, but #1 is a stretch IMO. He lost his starting job late last year and didn't look good the rest of the way, save for a few bright moments. DK should be a starter, but I don't think he is consistent enough or strong in any skill other than scoring.

I expect WSU to have the top backcourt in the league next season...

Ask UConn what they thought of David Kyles.

4-8 from three, 3-4 from two, 18 points, 3 assists, 2 steals, 1 block; all in 26 minutes. http://www.goshockers.com/ViewArticl...CLID=205036028

I enjoyed this post by a fan on a UConn blog:
uconn fans are bamboozled again mike.after the majok scam, husky were led to believe we recruited big time shooters in napier and lamb.neither one can shoot.your not a big time shooter if you cant make wide open threes or foul shots.all the huskies have is kemba,oriaki whos a warrior and small guys that drive to the hoop,which will end abruptly when big east play starts.roscoe will be ok and so will olander eventually but uconn is in big trouble.freshman will make mistakes,but i would take the kid kyles over lamb and napier in a heartbeat.he was shooting threes like they were foul shots.big charles got a free usa education,and coombs cant throw the ball into the ocean.when kemba leaves uconn takes 2 steps backwards---get ready for a long year.

http://blogs.courant.com/uconn_mens_basketball/2010/11/kemba-walker-leads-uconn-past.html

The year turned out to be OK for UConn but I think UConn coach JC had to be happy to not see WSU in the NCAA tourney. Really happy.

[electricmayhem]

Early in the season, DK was excellent. I don't think you would argue, however, that he was a different player by the end of the year. He only scored more than 10 points in a game twice after January 26. He shot 34% from the floor in his last 16 games, and he lost his starting job.

He will probably end up scoring between 9-11 points per game next season IMO - I just don't see him stepping into a major scorer's role. He's a nice player that I'd like to have on my team - I just don't think he's a star.

I hope he proves me wrong. I always root for the Shox to do well -

[WuDrWu]

Early in the season, DK was excellent. I don't think you would argue, however, that he was a different player by the end of the year. He only scored more than 10 points in a game twice after January 26. He shot 34% from the floor in his last 16 games, and he lost his starting job.

He will probably end up scoring between 9-11 points per game next season IMO - I just don't see him stepping into a major scorer's role. He's a nice player that I'd like to have on my team - I just don't think he's a star.

I hope he proves me wrong. I always root for the Shox to do well -

More than fair. Not many would question David's upside or "A" game but consistency, both in games and in practice, that have kept him from being a star on any kind of a regular basis.

[SpanglerFan316]

I hope he proves me wrong. I always root for the Shox to do well -

:good:

[SubGod22]

I still don't quite get the love fest for Odum. He's good, but I don't see him being as good as so many seem to think.

[The Mad Hatter]

I still don't quite get the love fest for Odum. He's good, but I don't see him being as good as so many seem to think.

I like Odum a lot, but the concern I would have with picking him high for next year is coaches planning for him in a way that they weren't as a freshman.

This is particularly a problem for him in losing a pure shooter like Carter, because so much of his game was predicated on the kick-out off of penetration and without Carter less of those 3s may be made and/or teams may be more willing to bring help defense for Odum's penetration if they don't have to worry about leaving a guy like Carter.