WSU vs Houston Game Thread.

[proshox]

AM will be fine. There is a 6’10” or taller frosh in history that looks good in the minutes he has received.

[im4wsu]

How would he stack up against any other 7' freshmen we have had (including Paul Miller if we give him heels)? I think he fits in pretty well. Probably more skilled than Orupke, but not as athletic. Not as skilled as Stutz, but significantly stronger. I think right in there with Miller. If he moves on it's of his own accord or I will drink a warm 40 of Schlitz.

Tough analysis by most in this thread on AM. Per 40 minutes, his Total Rebounds is 16 compared to Kelly and Willis at 13.2. Third in blocks at 1.3 behind Morris at 3.4 and Willis at 1.4. Has not missed a single shot in five attempts. Has fewer turnovers per 40 minutes than MM, Willis and Reaves and is tied with Shamet at 2.7 (though clearly this needs improvement because of his limited opportunities). He actually leads in steals per 40 minutes at 1.3 over Shamet and Brown at 1.2.

Granted a small sample size, but there is a base there to develop.

[Shaqness]

Tough analysis by most in this thread on AM. Per 40 minutes, his Total Rebounds is 16 compared to Kelly and Willis at 13.2. Third in blocks at 1.3 behind Morris at 3.4 and Willis at 1.4. Has not missed a single shot in five attempts. Has fewer turnovers per 40 minutes than MM, Willis and Reaves and is tied with Shamet at 2.7 (though clearly this needs improvement because of his limited opportunities). He actually leads in steals per 40 minutes at 1.3 over Shamet and Brown at 1.2.

Granted a small sample size, but there is a base there to develop.

Per 40 not good for a guy who'd only played 30 minutes this year. C'mon now! :)

[asiseeit]

If per 40 isn't enough to evaluate good performance then it shouldn't be for negative
comments either. From the limited court time I have seen him play he compares
very favorably with other big freshmen we have had. He could start next year and
play a lot of minutes and be of great value to our team.

[AZ Shocker]

He reminds me a bit of Sasha. Totally going old school I know...but I'll take that for 3.5 more years! GO AM!!!!!

[Shockm]

AM has lots of potential and will be fine. He is definitely far in front of Paul Miller as a freshman. Paul became a Valley POY and All Valley performer. I have faith in Gregg’s evaluative skills.

[Topshock]

You should have faith in GM,s evaluative skills. Glad you do!

[ShockAzs]

AM will be solid. Not sure why anybody would think he'd move on after this year...

[N Crestway]

Next year, WSU is going to, at the very least, get some positive PR by having a God Bear and a Poor Bear on the same team. Once the game slows down for AM, he is going to be a solid low post player. Just hoping his feet, knees, and lower back can stay healthy.

[Dan]

We may have to play small ball (Markis at the 4) until we get our stable of new big guys up to speed.

[asiseeit]

Agree with MM mostly as a stretch four next year as long as who ever takes over at SF plays D

[Rlh04d]

The negativity on AM is crazy. I think he already looks better than Nurger as a 22 year old sophomore.

He's got a bright future.

[Shaqness]

NM

[WheatShock]

Did you watch Nurger much before march that year? He struggled, a LOT.

[Rlh04d]

Exactly. Nurger had some good postseason performances, but he looked like crap in the early season. And, again, that was as a sophomore several years older than AM.

Nurger in March of his sophomore year is, developmentally, the equivalent of AM in the March of 2020. Do I think AM will play 17+ minutes in March of this year? Probably not, but I wouldn't have thought Nurger would that year, either. Do I think he will be in March 2020? Zero doubt.

[Shaqness]

They are OUR guys though. They were brought in by people that evaluate talent. They have talent or at least potential. Nothing I can say or post will make them a better player or person..Maybe it goes back to what my Grandma used to tell me "If you can't say something nice about someone don't say anything at all" I know its antiquated but it still holds true for me today.

http://www.verbalcommits.com/schools/wichita-state

I guess the reason I post my half-baked evaluation of our guys (like everyone else on SN) is because I am also anticipating their development as well. We used Scholarships on Mitgaard, Rodgerick Brown, and CJ, and SHJ. The website I linked above shows what kind of talent has come in our doors.

Sure, these are our guys. These were also "OUR GUYS": Corey Henderson, Ty Taylor, Daishon Smith, Ri'an Holland, and Hamilton.

I am looking at our roster and wondering if these guys are even going to play substantial minutes in a WSU uniform. That's the debate for everyone mentioned, and that includes AM. I am comparing AM to Bush Tom. Bush Tom was a 6MPG who was trust-worthy in March after his second season. He had amazing feet, good hands, and played good defense. But he couldn't play physical on both ends. AM doesn't have those attributes. AM was recruited for his hustle, his muscle, and his limited skills around the basket. Gregg Marshall certainly could have used his scholarship on a better player, and he chose to use it on AM for a reason. Coaches in CBB tend to recruit huge and unskilled bigs and see how they pan out. AM is that guy for us. I don't understand why anyone thinks he will be on a different team any time soon. He's our experiment. So far, he has the standing at the rim part down. He might get to stack up against Tacko Fall soon.

[proshox]

Shaq - You are far off the island on this one.

There aren’t enough minutes for RN. We play RN by giving up favorable matchups at the four. Also, nobody watched RN in January of his Sophomore Year and thought he would help in March. Hell he didn’t show well until it “clicked” in March.

AM should have redshirted. The only reason he didn’t was that they wanted to get him spot minutes prior to next year. Unfortunately, the Shockers failed to put teams away from November to December which eliminated opportunities for spot minutes.

Find me a single big that has looked good in spot minutes across three months and I will stand down.

[Walker]

You think Wamukota had good hands? It seemed like every time he was fed the ball in the post, he was either dropping it or it was getting stripped from him. I will say though he came through for some solid defense at times his Junior year. It seemed to fall off in his Senior year.

Every player recruited and given a scholarship comes with a risk. Even the burger boys that are recruited don't always pan out. Just look at the flagship. I think AM was well worth it. His physical attributes for somebody his age are rare. Prior to coming here, he was going against European pros and playing pretty good. Bigs take a while to develop. Especially ones transitioning to U.S. and NCAA rules and style of play. I don't think he's this shot in the dark experiment like Wamukota was. There's history for AM that shows there's a lot of potential here.

Same goes for SHJ. We see this year in and year out with JUCO guys. They struggle a bit the first semester, but it starts to click the second. I just don't understand your criticism this early on in their careers.

[ShockingButTrue]

The Chickens would take AM right now in a heart-beat. No?

[Shockm]

Of those players listed, AM was highly recruited. It was between TCU and us for him. The others were not high major recruits. Maybe CJ was.

[Shaqness]

Good point.

[wufan]

I believe Pitt and a few others were involved late.

[Topshock]

Sure, these are our guys. These were also "OUR GUYS": Corey Henderson, Ty Taylor, Daishon Smith, Ri'an Holland, and Hamilton.

But a lot of posters actually believe those players all left "on there own accord"

[Topshock]

Whatever you say.

[proshox]

These players want to play.... most guys don’t want to spend their career buried behind guys that fit better. Seem reason CF left KU.

[Topshock]

It's a chicken or egg discussion. Coach makes it clear you will more than likely not play, player decides to transfer. Did the coach make that decision or did the player?? I would say the coach made the decision.

[AndShock]

But a lot of posters actually believe those players all left "on there own accord"

It’s a lot easier to find guards to try out for a season than 7’0” Danish tanks.

[Topshock]

True, but WSU does have 3 players listed as 5's coming in next year and is actively recruiting one other. Granted, hopefully at least one of those will be able to play 4.

[WstateU]

It’s a lot easier to find guards to try out for a season than 7’0” Danish tanks.

Tank? He’s a friggin’... :)

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