Slow Time...What's our team look like next year?

[SubGod22]

I think Anacreon is starting to get D1 ball. He really improves every time on the floor. I think he will get some decent minutes by the end of the year and be a factor on next years team.

I have more faith in White and Wessel

[fuball7]

I think he is a slightly bigger and more athletic version of Graham Hatch. What is not to like about that?

Hes definitely not bigger than graham. maybe taller (which i would question) but graham was one put together kid. Might be quicker than graham was as a freshman but not as a senior. I see wessel playing a similar role but just not receiving as many minutes because of the other talent on the roster.

[Snapshot9]

Graham had a 'natural' shot, Wessel has a 'programmed' shot. Wessel puts the effort in, and I think he will be just as tough as Hatch by the time he is a senior. He will be a good player for us.

I think White has a lot of untapped potential. He's already good on defense, and we haven't begun to see his offense yet. I think he will improve every year he plays.

I think White and Wessel are both smart young players that will learn quickly, and be valuable assets to the team come February. I am stil not sold on Anacreon, until recently he hadn't done anything right on the court.

[shockmonster]

I have more faith in White and Wessel

We are looking at these players as freshmen. I think that both White and Wessell will improve their game and be nice players and compete with others before they graduate. Wessell is very good on defense already. He is deceptively quick and athletic.

[Capitol Shock II]

Any of these players on our roster would get loads of playing time for any other Valley team....maybe not so much Creighton.

[forevershockerfan]

Next Season. A time of new beginnings for sure. One thing about losing 5 and 5 Seniors by then, it sure seemed to help us have our best incoming recruiting class in the Marshall Plan most likey. Available playing time helps with incoming recruiting and who knows whether another slot or two will open up? Thus, with such a talented group of recruits incoming, and 3 solid walkons learning our System this Season, we may be okay sooner than later. Not maybe ready to win the Valley, but a top 3-4 team. Williams, Hall, and Cotton will see plenty of action this Season and others may also come on as well. However, 10 players gone in 2 Seasons is bound to leave a mark that takes time to rebuild.

[shox1989]

@shox1989:, I don't think you meant to quote me..?

No I didn't. Sorry about that. I meant to quote benishock saying he wasn't sold on Wessell.

For those who don't think Wessell is a little better version of Hatch, remember you are comparing a senior Hatch to a freshman Wessell.

I remember Hatch as a Freshman and I wasn't very impressed. I thought he should have gone to a division 2 school, I didn't think he had the tools to contribute at division 1. By the time he was a senior, I really liked Hatch a lot.

Hatch worked hard and proved he belonged, but it took some time. Wessell, IMO, has more talent and is more athletic than Hatch was as a Freshman. And slightly bigger too. Hatch was not as solidly built as a Freshman.

[Aargh]

The players who will be the ones to beat for starting spots are Hall, Williams, Armstead, and Orukpe. Seniors with experience are going to start practice at the top of the depth charts. That leaves a perimeter spot available.

Even BCS schools are using quick 6'5" type players at the 3 quite a bit. Early, at 6'8", may have a quickness disadvantage on D against that type of player. If Early is quick enough to defend against smaller guys, then I'd pencil him in s the 5th likely starter.

Then it comes down to who develops over the summer and in practice to the point that they can't be denied any minutes. Tekele is probably at the top of that list. I'd put him as the first guy off the bench. So far White is looking like Rob Kampman. After a summer of conditioning and strength drills, I'd put him in line as the first front court player off the bench.

For the 8th and 9th players, I'd go with Baker and Wessel. Sorry, Joe. I'm not sold on Wessel yet. It's way too easy to get oversold on the local guy. The comparisons to Hatch's Fr season aren't on target. Hatch had been out of basketball for two years. Wessel is shooting 35.3% from the field, 20% from 3, and 0% from the line on 2 attempts.

That 9-deep rotation is a little short on front court players, so Anacreon needs to figure it out and contribute. We're losing some height on the perimeter with the loss of Smith, Murry, and Kyles. That means we may need to stay with a taller front court and may not have the luxury of playing a player like Smith at PF.

I've left the true Fr completely out of my view of next year. It's going to be tough for FVV to crack into the rotation because of the depth at PG. Green seems to need some bulk. Uwadiae seems to need experience. If Hawkins can contribute, he might be able to take the minutes I've got penciled in for Anacreon - if he gets his academics in order.

I think the excess offer comes down to whether Hawkins is eligible and whether Anacreon can adapt to 3G's game. If Hawk is eligible, a 4-year guy will likely look preferable to a 1-year guy if that one-year guy is still lost on D after a year. If Hawk doesn't qualify, then Anacreon is needed even if he can't figure out his defensive assignments.

[another shocker]

20+ wins again.

[WSUwatcher]

Marshall and his staff have shown a knack for coming up with answers out of nowhere to what we think are likely to be questions about who will play a given position or where the depth will come from, and even with all the seniors this year, I have no reason to doubt they'll do so again. As for Wessel, let me note again that he was an outstanding football player at a skill position on both sides of the ball (as well as a leader, maybe the leader, on a 6A state champion team). He doesn't lack athletic ability.

[shocksrbest]

We are looking at these players as freshmen.

Great point...Not just freshmen, but one's who have not played much either. Toure and Matt B played a lot as frosh and were easier to assess. With more playing time comes consistency--the likes of which we have yet to see from these guys.

[wufan]

The players who will be the ones to beat for starting spots are Hall, Williams, Armstead, and Orukpe. Seniors with experience are going to start practice at the top of the depth charts. That leaves a perimeter spot available.

Even BCS schools are using quick 6'5" type players at the 3 quite a bit. Early, at 6'8", may have a quickness disadvantage on D against that type of player. If Early is quick enough to defend against smaller guys, then I'd pencil him in s the 5th likely starter.

Then it comes down to who develops over the summer and in practice to the point that they can't be denied any minutes. Tekele is probably at the top of that list. I'd put him as the first guy off the bench. So far White is looking like Rob Kampman. After a summer of conditioning and strength drills, I'd put him in line as the first front court player off the bench.

For the 8th and 9th players, I'd go with Baker and Wessel. Sorry, Joe. I'm not sold on Wessel yet. It's way too easy to get oversold on the local guy. The comparisons to Hatch's Fr season aren't on target. Hatch had been out of basketball for two years. Wessel is shooting 35.3% from the field, 20% from 3, and 0% from the line on 2 attempts.

That 9-deep rotation is a little short on front court players, so Anacreon needs to figure it out and contribute. We're losing some height on the perimeter with the loss of Smith, Murry, and Kyles. That means we may need to stay with a taller front court and may not have the luxury of playing a player like Smith at PF.

I've left the true Fr completely out of my view of next year. It's going to be tough for FVV to crack into the rotation because of the depth at PG. Green seems to need some bulk. Uwadiae seems to need experience. If Hawkins can contribute, he might be able to take the minutes I've got penciled in for Anacreon - if he gets his academics in order.

I think the excess offer comes down to whether Hawkins is eligible and whether Anacreon can adapt to 3G's game. If Hawk is eligible, a 4-year guy will likely look preferable to a 1-year guy if that one-year guy is still lost on D after a year. If Hawk doesn't qualify, then Anacreon is needed even if he can't figure out his defensive assignments.

Good assessment. Even with the loss of five seniors, we are deep enought that we only need Early to be able to step in. We will still have a "good" team even if none of the new freshman are game-ready. I expect one or two of them to be major contributors.

[Kung Wu]

The players who will be the ones to beat for starting spots are Hall, Williams, Armstead, and Orukpe. Seniors with experience are going to start practice at the top of the depth charts. That leaves a perimeter spot available.

Even BCS schools are using quick 6'5" type players at the 3 quite a bit. Early, at 6'8", may have a quickness disadvantage on D against that type of player. If Early is quick enough to defend against smaller guys, then I'd pencil him in s the 5th likely starter.

Then it comes down to who develops over the summer and in practice to the point that they can't be denied any minutes. Tekele is probably at the top of that list. I'd put him as the first guy off the bench. So far White is looking like Rob Kampman. After a summer of conditioning and strength drills, I'd put him in line as the first front court player off the bench.

For the 8th and 9th players, I'd go with Baker and Wessel. Sorry, Joe. I'm not sold on Wessel yet. It's way too easy to get oversold on the local guy. The comparisons to Hatch's Fr season aren't on target. Hatch had been out of basketball for two years. Wessel is shooting 35.3% from the field, 20% from 3, and 0% from the line on 2 attempts.

That 9-deep rotation is a little short on front court players, so Anacreon needs to figure it out and contribute. We're losing some height on the perimeter with the loss of Smith, Murry, and Kyles. That means we may need to stay with a taller front court and may not have the luxury of playing a player like Smith at PF.

I've left the true Fr completely out of my view of next year. It's going to be tough for FVV to crack into the rotation because of the depth at PG. Green seems to need some bulk. Uwadiae seems to need experience. If Hawkins can contribute, he might be able to take the minutes I've got penciled in for Anacreon - if he gets his academics in order.

I think the excess offer comes down to whether Hawkins is eligible and whether Anacreon can adapt to 3G's game. If Hawk is eligible, a 4-year guy will likely look preferable to a 1-year guy if that one-year guy is still lost on D after a year. If Hawk doesn't qualify, then Anacreon is needed even if he can't figure out his defensive assignments.

Nicely done!

I'd only add that we are super blessed to have a unique Juco transfer in Hall who has fit in immediately. I think that makes us forget how long it took JRags, Blair, Hannah, etc to make the adjustment. It's just too early to think that Anacreon won't make the adjustment soon.

[im4wsu]

No I didn't. Sorry about that. I meant to quote benishock saying he wasn't sold on Wessell.

For those who don't think Wessell is a little better version of Hatch, remember you are comparing a senior Hatch to a freshman Wessell.

I remember Hatch as a Freshman and I wasn't very impressed. I thought he should have gone to a division 2 school, I didn't think he had the tools to contribute at division 1. By the time he was a senior, I really liked Hatch a lot.

Hatch worked hard and proved he belonged, but it took some time. Wessell, IMO, has more talent and is more athletic than Hatch was as a Freshman. And slightly bigger too. Hatch was not as solidly built as a Freshman.

I'm not suggesting you, 89, but many on this board recommended that Hatch do another mission in lieu of his final three years here. Even through his junior year, the cry was "why is Hatch starting?"

Unlike several posters here, neither I nor, thankfully, 3G rely on shooting pe3rcentages alone to determine a player's value. Hatch was at the top of the plus/minus charts for his final two, if not three, seasons. While some don't put much stock in that measure, the OBJECT of the game is for the team to put up more points than the opponent, and when Hatch was playing, that usually happened.

Wessell is now leading WSU in the plus/minus per minute played stat. His Prouty is awful, as are his shooting percentages. It would be terrific if he could lead the team in both...and he can do so by making very few selected shots. It's true he hasn't played significant minutes yet, but the old saying goes, "when you get your opportunity, take advantage of it." We know 3G recognizes the value of the theory behind the plus/minus, because he said of Takele, "the score seems to go in the right direction when he is in the game."

[wufan]

@im4wsu:, interesting observation on the +/- stats and thank you for doing those!