Sporting News Pre Season All Americans

[ShockdaWorld]

Agreed, i think this issue was mostly apparent during the mini shooting slump that FVV had.

But as a senior I would like to see Baker take that double team and shove it down their throat with a two handed jam.

I think being a senior All American along with what he was able to accomplish and the experience he was able to gain this summer, this will be a more common occurrence. While last year, I thought there were games where FVV was the obvious best player on the floor, regardless of who was playing well. I believe this year, at least partly because of FVV showing that along with our depth, that there will not be that obvious separation. We will have two seniors that are the two best players on the court, with very little separation between the two.

[Stickboy46]

Agreed, i think this issue was mostly apparent during the mini shooting slump that FVV had.

But as a senior I would like to see Baker take that double team and shove it down their throat with a two handed jam.

Well.. This year he might not be the best shooter on the floor anymore (Frankamp) and he will have a much improved Brown to draw attention. And that's just 2 improvements over last year. I expect several others to step up too. If teams try to focus on him this year, they will pay in other ways.

[Kung Wu]

Next up: Zach Brown.

[_kai_]

Well.. This year he might not be the best shooter on the floor anymore (Frankamp) and he will have a much improved Brown to draw attention. And that's just 2 improvements over last year. I expect several others to step up too. If teams try to focus on him this year, they will pay in other ways.

I think the most improvement this year in terms of helping the shooters and spreading the floor is the addition of Grady, the improvement of Bush, and a healthy and older Shaq. I expect Bush and Shaq to make people go Whoa! Similar to improvement in year to year Chadrack had, and adding Coleby to that lineup.

Not to mention the addition of McDuffie and his size and intangibles on a wing helping shooters. Like adding a taller Cle (POSSIBLY!) how he helped spread the floor. Landry and Taylor can hopefully provide better back up minutes from new guys than last year with Rian. And like you said, the silky smooth net snapper Conner is going to make an impact early December. A little less weight on a hustling Evan Wessel with offseason work on the 3... Oh man.

Pretty much tl;dr - I'm pumped up for this year!

[Stickboy46]

I think the most improvement this year in terms of helping the shooters and spreading the floor is the addition of Grady, the improvement of Bush, and a healthy and older Shaq. I expect Bush and Shaq to make people go Whoa! Similar to improvement in year to year Chadrack had, and adding Coleby to that lineup. Not to mention the addition of McDuffie and his size and intangibles on a wing helping shooters. Like adding a taller Cle (POSSIBLY!) how he helped spread the floor. Landry and Taylor can hopefully provide better back up minutes from new guys than last year with Rian.

Pretty much tl;dr - I'm pumped up for this year!

I agree with 100%. I'm imagining an unorthodox "smaller" lineup. FVV, Frankamp, Baker, Brown, Grady/Shaq. Shaq/Grady sets a monster screen to spring FVV free, at that point, as a defense who do you leave alone to help? You either let FVV free to the basket, leave Baker, Frankamp, or Brown free at the arc, or leave Shaq/Grady free rolling to the basket. None of those will end well for the defense.

[_kai_]

I agree with 100%. I'm imagining an unorthodox "smaller" lineup. FVV, Frankamp, Baker, Brown, Grady/Shaq. Shaq/Grady sets a monster screen to spring FVV free, at that point, as a defense who do you leave alone to help? You either let FVV free to the basket, leave Baker, Frankamp, or Brown free at the arc, or leave Shaq/Grady free rolling to the basket. None of those will end well for the defense.

I expect some shell-shocked faces from a multitude of opposing coaching staffs throughout this year. I also expect JR Simon and Zach Bush to continue to rock Koch Arena to standing ovations on this year's Mop Up Minute World Tour.

[Aargh]

I think Baker was doubled more than Carter last year. That won't work as well this year. Wessel will be a greater offensive threat at SF than he was at PF.

I'm still big on Morris. I think he's capable of an incredible breakout year. He can go to the hoop and has range out to around the free throw line. He will be a bigger scoring threat at PF than Wessel was. I think Grady will be similar to Carter, but more of a scoring threat. He appears to have more moves and a little better range.

Go ahead, double Baker. The most logical way is to pull a defender off Wessel. Then we've got Grady and the Wall of Shaq to seal off their defenders. I don't think opponents want to see an unguarded Wessel getting the ball 12' from the hoop with Grady and Morris freeing up his path to the basket.

[Rocky Mountain Shock]

Yeah I have no idea how Wayne Seldom got put on there. Maybe a lot of weight was placed on their games this summer. I think he did pretty well in that. For him to get on a list and for no one else on the team to get on one basically means no one from KU made it :)

It might have been the obligatory "we've got to put a KU guy on this list because, well, they're KU" selection. I haven't seen much from Selden that makes me think, wow, this guy is an AA.

I honestly feel bad for Perry, though. He had all the potential coming out of high school to be on this list, but he joined a program whose system favors the one-and-dones and doesn't do much to develop 4 year players.

[ShockdaWorld]

I think Baker was doubled more than Carter last year. That won't work as well this year. Wessel will be a greater offensive threat at SF than he was at PF.

I don't think opponents want to see an unguarded Wessel getting the ball 12' from the hoop with Grady and Morris freeing up his path to the basket.

After the end of last season and the way it sounds like the offseason has gone, they won't want to leave him open at the arc either.

[wufan]

And that's EXACTLY why I was laughing. It's surreal to me where our program is right now. A program I have supported on various levels for 35 years. A program where I am lucky enough to have a few people I can call friends. A program I am lucky enough to be able to follow, sometimes across the land. I'd cry tears of joy if I didn't laugh, so laughing seemed to be the right thing to do. We start not one but TWO flipping All Americans. And like @_kai_: said, they've been just as successful off the court as they've been on and they are (rightly) going to be remembered for all time as some of the greatest Shockers ever.

I want to talk about the positives of our team rather than the negatives of others, but couldn't help but notice Melo Trimble on third team behind FVV.

[ShockerPrez]

My dream is for this year to be what the 1982-1983 season could have been if we weren't on probation.

[AZ Shocker]

My dream is for this year to be what the 1982-1983 season could have been if we weren't on probation.

...and BOOM!!!
exactly...
& can we get an AMEN!!!!!!

[Ta Town Shocker]

I think Baker was doubled more than Carter last year. That won't work as well this year. Wessel will be a greater offensive threat at SF than he was at PF.

I'm still big on Morris. I think he's capable of an incredible breakout year. He can go to the hoop and has range out to around the free throw line. He will be a bigger scoring threat at PF than Wessel was. I think Grady will be similar to Carter, but more of a scoring threat. He appears to have more moves and a little better range.

Go ahead, double Baker. The most logical way is to pull a defender off Wessel. Then we've got Grady and the Wall of Shaq to seal off their defenders. I don't think opponents want to see an unguarded Wessel getting the ball 12' from the hoop with Grady and Morris freeing up his path to the basket.

I've been watching some of last years games recently and Morris can be very effective at blocking or altering shots on the defensive end. I agree he has huge upside this year. Watching Kelly dunk over Lynch in the final minutes of the game at Illinois State last year makes me believe he has huge upside as well.

[Dan]

Got a nice chuckle out of this bit from the Bob Lutz article about omitting Perry Ellis:

"The only KU player to receive recognition was junior forward Wayne Selden, last seen in a college basketball game scoring no points, handing out no assists and grabbing one rebound during a 23-minute impression of a mannequin during a 78-65 loss in the NCAA Tournament in Omaha last March"

Read more here: http://www.kansas.com/sports/spt-col...#storylink=cpy

[wuhog]

Shouldn't have read this thread. I'm getting choked up already thinking about senior night. This is some ride!!