2016-17 Predictions and Expectations

[Ricardo del Rio]

It's just not fair to compare him (or anyone for that matter) to Baker or VanVleet. Nevertheless, it's going to be done. You don't teach what this kid has. Physically he's not ready, imho, for the beating and grind of a 40 game top level D1 experience.

But they may not be able to keep him off the court. Whether it's this year or next, opponents are going to shake their heads and swear.

He is rail thin. I suspect a redshirt.

I do look forward to seeing him play.

[Shocker1976]

Lose to Looville???

What a freaking pessimist!

Apologies for being so pessimistic regards losing to Louisville; but I am on record predicting another 30 win season for HC3G and his Shockers.

I look forward to reading your projections for the coming season.

[Shocker1976]

He is rail thin. I suspect a redshirt.

I do look forward to seeing him play.

We had similar comments regards MM being rail thin last year; IMO we will witness a similar performance by AR this year. IMO he has too much talent and comes from a family with proven BBIQ - Marshall has assembled a roster that provides him the opportunity to demonstrate his superior coaching skills.

[kcshocker11]

The annual Athlon College Basketball Preview is on the shelves now. Got mine at Dillons on E. Harry & Webb.

They pick the Shockers 1st in the Valley.

Lindys also out

[Shocker-maniac]

My prediction is that McDuffie has a break out year that gets him noticed nationally. This will set the stage for next year when he gets drafted and goes to the NBA after his junior season. I believe that he has a very high ceiling. This, of course, is based on the assumption that he will be healthy.

[Aargh]

There have been a lot of optimistic predictions. Mine isn't going to be that optimistic.

I'm looking at around 8 losses and on the NCAA bubble if we don't win in St. Louis. Past performance and reputation probably get us into the NCAA tourney, but with a double-digit seed. NIT is a real possibility.

Kelly and Brown didn't have outstanding years last year. They both look like they could do better, but they haven't consistently put that "better" on the court. Besides Frankamp, Shamet's 3 games last year are the only backcourt experience we return with time on the court in a WSU uniform.

I've run into reports on both Frnakmap and Allen that defensively, they have trouble staying between their guy and the basket. Frankamp's D on SG's last year showed positive signs, but he's likely to be guarding PG's this year, and those guys are usually a lot quicker than the SG's.

We went into a tough exempt tourney last year without VanVleet and we struggled. Our exempt tourney this year is a few games into the season, but we're going into another tough tourney without VanVleet. We're also missing Baker this year. It's difficult to expect a better result than we had in last year's tourney.

Frankamp has been in D1 ball for 3 years and in that time hasn't shown any signs of being an effective PG, even though he's had two pretty well-respected coaches try to get him to play the position.

Baker and VanVleet were both "I'm not going to let us lose this game" guys. I haven't seen one of those on the current roster. Haven't needed one with two of them on the court, so there may be one or two waiting for their turn. Let's hope Darral Willis turns out to be Carl Hall v2.0, because we really need that from him.

[WuDrWu]

That's pretty darned fair at this point.

[pie n eye]

Frankamp has been in D1 ball for 3 years and in that time hasn't shown any signs of being an effective PG, even though he's had two pretty well-respected coaches try to get him to play the position.

Never once seen him display a single sign that he can play point? Zero, zilch, nada? That's interesting.

Fred and Ron were obviously two of the best Shockers ever but we had really good teams before them and I would be surprised if we don't have some really good teams after them. They were great but there is still a lot of talent on the roster and I'm excited to see the next batch of "things will never be the same without players X, Y" develop.

[Shocker1976]

In contrast to last year's thread on predicting the Shockers season record only four (4) posters have offered predictions - two summary points from current posts

1. Predicted losses range from 3 to 8

2. NCAA seeds range from "on the bubble" to 3 seed to NIT Invitation

My reasons for offering the most optimistic prediction -

1. The coach is extremely important in NCAA basketball and the Shockers have IMO one of the best coaches currently practicing their craft.

2. HC3G exposed and assessed the Shocker roster in game conditions during a four game stretch in August; making him aware of team strengths/weaknesses

3. First five games of season will be played at Koch providing opportunity for HC3G to fine tune Shockers before playing a road game against LSU

4. ESPN's Too Early Top 25 (following) provides insight into why the Shockers compare (IMO favorably) to most of these teams.

The Way-Too-Early Top 25 rankings September12, 2016.
1. Duke Blue Devils – Quality and quantity a truly special roster bends this talent calculation into an all-you-can-eat-buffet; balancing the individual expectations of stellar freshmen with those of veterans -- Eamonn Brennan
2. Villanova Wildcats – returning a significant portion of a team that cut down the nets last April. A year ago, Villanova snuck up on people. That won't happenthis year. -- Jeff *******
3. Kentucky Wildcats – the task of getting talented freshmen to play like talented veterans, returning experience matters,UK's 2016-17 season will depend on their college performance. -- JohnGasaway
4. Kansas Jayhawks– winning another Big 12 title is likely; there will be a growth curve. It could be small or intermittent, Self has to help Jackson weather whatever storm he encounters. -- Dana O'Neil
5. Virginia Cavaliers – lost a special class of seniors. Bennett's newcomers might need some time to adjust to their roles and the burden they'll inherit once the season begins. -- Myron Medcalf
6. North Carolina Tar Heels – will again have a strong inside game but who will prevent opponents from packing it in the lane?. -- C.L. Brown
7. Oregon Ducks– a group of players that won the Pac-12 regular-season and conference titles enroute to an Elite Eight appearance. Oregon will enter 2016-17 with an NCAA tournament seemingly guaranteed.. -- Brennan
8. Wisconsin Badgers – biggest challenge will be to get the most out of the duo of Bronson Koenig and Nigel Hayes. The two need to feed off one another and play like a pair of first-team Big Ten guys. -- *******
9. Xavier Musketeers – Myles Davis was suspended indefinitely after a judge issueda protective order on behalf of the senior guard's ex-girlfriend; places in question an exceptionally strong XU backcourt. -- Gasaway
10. Michigan State Spartans – arguably the most talented recruiting class of his Hall of Fame career. Finding someone to take reins from Valentine will be the key to the Spartans' success. -- O'Neil
11. Indiana Hoosiers – Thomas Bryant is capable of evolving into one of the nation's most complete players, a great force on both sides of the floor. --Medcalf
12. Arizona Wildcats – welcoming three five-star-caliber players in addition to last year's marquee recruit, Allonzo Trier. Accepting their roles and not play outside of their capabilities will be the challenge -- Brown
13. Louisville Cardinals – This seems like the kind of thing that challenges a coach. Just a hunch. -- Brennan
14. Purdue Boilermakers – getting quality point guard play for Matt Painter will determine how far the Boilermakers go this year. The addition of Michigan grad transfer Spike Albrecht will help.--*******
15. West Virginia Mountaineers – defense worked beautifully last season, forcing league opponents to commit turnovers on 22 percent of their possessions. The challengeis to improve an offense. -- Gasaway
16. Gonzaga Bulldogs – could have more weapons than a year ago, Karnowski is the glue that can connect the pieces of Gonzaga's roster has been cleared for basketball activities, but is taking his rehab slow. -- O'Neil
17. UCLA Bruins– everyone knows Alford enters 2016-17 with an uncertain future; his recruiting class should eliminate any negative chatter if it matches the preseason hype. --Medcalf
18. Maryland Terrapins – challenge getting his star player's confidence back. The Terps will go as Trimble goes. --Brown
19. Saint Mary's Gaels – The Gaels' absence from the NCAA tournament, despite their WCC regular-season title, was an indictment of much of their league,sure, but a weak nonconference schedule did them no favors. This will be a good team, but it needs chances to prove it before January. -- Brennan
20. Creighton Bluejays – a quality point guard, Mo Watson, but the key will be whether former Kansas State scoring guard Marcus Foster back on track. If so, have a chance to remain in the Top 25 all year. -- *******
21. Rhode Island Rams – Matthews is reportedly healthy, Indiana transfer Stanford Robinson is eligible. If this group stays healthy, a great shot at getting Rhody into its first NCAA tournamentsince 1999. -- Gasaway
22. Cincinnati Bearcats – always tough, defend and rebound; don't always score. If Troy Caupain, Gary Clark and Kyle Washington can elevate the Bearcats' numbers, they will be even tougher than they already are. -- O'Neil
23. Florida State Seminoles – Dwayne Bacon and Xavier Rathan-Mayes are back. And Jonathan Isaac, a 6-10 freshman forward, is a projected lottery pick. Trent Forrest is a top-50 player, too; a team that will play fast needs to commit to defense. -- Medcalf
24. Connecticut Huskies – outside of Purvis, the Huskies have no proven scorers in the rotation; will have to find a few from five-man recruiting class that RecruitingNation ranked ninth. Freshman point guard Alterique Gilbert and VCU transfer Terry Larrier could be among the newcomers to start and bring a scoring punch to the lineup. -- Brown
25. Syracuse Orange– frontcourt will be just fine. The challenges will center on the backcourt,where departures will force huge responsibilities -- both offensively and in that trademark 2-3 zone -- on freshman Tyus Battle, Nebraska transfer Andrew White and little-used rising sophomore Franklin Howard. -- Brennan

[Cdizzle]

40 game top level D1 experience.

I thought you didn't like making predictions? :)

[asiseeit]

1. Just b/c Conner plays PG on offense does not mean he has to guard the other PG
2. I still say b/c of our personnel that we will see more zone this season
3. I truly hope he proves me wrong but I was not impressed with DS - not as good as departed TT
4. Hoping AR makes an impact at backup point otherwise I see more time for JRS
5. Willis will get plenty of PT at the 4/5 and will be our best addition
6. SM will still play less than half a game BUT RN will get better each game and Willis will provide inside help
7. Our overall defense will NOT be as good but our overall offense will be better especially 3 point %
8. If we can get a couple wins in the Bahamas and beat OSU we will have another good season
9. 6-7 losses with about a nine seed
10. MM leads team in scoring followed by CF...........team 3 point % around 37%

[pie n eye]

In contrast to last year's thread on predicting the Shockers season record only four (4) posters have offered predictions - two summary points from current posts

1. Predicted losses range from 3 to 8

2. NCAA seeds range from "on the bubble" to 3 seed to NIT Invitation

My reasons for offering the most optimistic prediction -

1. The coach is extremely important in NCAA basketball and the Shockers have IMO one of the best coaches currently practicing their craft.

2. HC3G exposed and assessed the Shocker roster in game conditions during a four game stretch in August; making him aware of team strengths/weaknesses

3. First five games of season will be played at Koch providing opportunity for HC3G to fine tune Shockers before playing a road game against LSU

4. ESPN's Too Early Top 25 (following) provides insight into why the Shockers compare (IMO favorably) to most of these teams.

The Way-Too-Early Top 25 rankings September12, 2016.
1. Duke Blue Devils – Quality and quantity a truly special roster bends this talent calculation into an all-you-can-eat-buffet; balancing the individual expectations of stellar freshmen with those of veterans -- Eamonn Brennan
2. Villanova Wildcats – returning a significant portion of a team that cut down the nets last April. A year ago, Villanova snuck up on people. That won't happenthis year. -- Jeff *******
3. Kentucky Wildcats – the task of getting talented freshmen to play like talented veterans, returning experience matters,UK's 2016-17 season will depend on their college performance. -- JohnGasaway
4. Kansas Jayhawks– winning another Big 12 title is likely; there will be a growth curve. It could be small or intermittent, Self has to help Jackson weather whatever storm he encounters. -- Dana O'Neil
5. Virginia Cavaliers – lost a special class of seniors. Bennett's newcomers might need some time to adjust to their roles and the burden they'll inherit once the season begins. -- Myron Medcalf
6. North Carolina Tar Heels – will again have a strong inside game but who will prevent opponents from packing it in the lane?. -- C.L. Brown
7. Oregon Ducks– a group of players that won the Pac-12 regular-season and conference titles enroute to an Elite Eight appearance. Oregon will enter 2016-17 with an NCAA tournament seemingly guaranteed.. -- Brennan
8. Wisconsin Badgers – biggest challenge will be to get the most out of the duo of Bronson Koenig and Nigel Hayes. The two need to feed off one another and play like a pair of first-team Big Ten guys. -- *******
9. Xavier Musketeers – Myles Davis was suspended indefinitely after a judge issueda protective order on behalf of the senior guard's ex-girlfriend; places in question an exceptionally strong XU backcourt. -- Gasaway
10. Michigan State Spartans – arguably the most talented recruiting class of his Hall of Fame career. Finding someone to take reins from Valentine will be the key to the Spartans' success. -- O'Neil
11. Indiana Hoosiers – Thomas Bryant is capable of evolving into one of the nation's most complete players, a great force on both sides of the floor. --Medcalf
12. Arizona Wildcats – welcoming three five-star-caliber players in addition to last year's marquee recruit, Allonzo Trier. Accepting their roles and not play outside of their capabilities will be the challenge -- Brown
13. Louisville Cardinals – This seems like the kind of thing that challenges a coach. Just a hunch. -- Brennan
14. Purdue Boilermakers – getting quality point guard play for Matt Painter will determine how far the Boilermakers go this year. The addition of Michigan grad transfer Spike Albrecht will help.--*******
15. West Virginia Mountaineers – defense worked beautifully last season, forcing league opponents to commit turnovers on 22 percent of their possessions. The challengeis to improve an offense. -- Gasaway
16. Gonzaga Bulldogs – could have more weapons than a year ago, Karnowski is the glue that can connect the pieces of Gonzaga's roster has been cleared for basketball activities, but is taking his rehab slow. -- O'Neil
17. UCLA Bruins– everyone knows Alford enters 2016-17 with an uncertain future; his recruiting class should eliminate any negative chatter if it matches the preseason hype. --Medcalf
18. Maryland Terrapins – challenge getting his star player's confidence back. The Terps will go as Trimble goes. --Brown
19. Saint Mary's Gaels – The Gaels' absence from the NCAA tournament, despite their WCC regular-season title, was an indictment of much of their league,sure, but a weak nonconference schedule did them no favors. This will be a good team, but it needs chances to prove it before January. -- Brennan
20. Creighton Bluejays – a quality point guard, Mo Watson, but the key will be whether former Kansas State scoring guard Marcus Foster back on track. If so, have a chance to remain in the Top 25 all year. -- *******
21. Rhode Island Rams – Matthews is reportedly healthy, Indiana transfer Stanford Robinson is eligible. If this group stays healthy, a great shot at getting Rhody into its first NCAA tournamentsince 1999. -- Gasaway
22. Cincinnati Bearcats – always tough, defend and rebound; don't always score. If Troy Caupain, Gary Clark and Kyle Washington can elevate the Bearcats' numbers, they will be even tougher than they already are. -- O'Neil
23. Florida State Seminoles – Dwayne Bacon and Xavier Rathan-Mayes are back. And Jonathan Isaac, a 6-10 freshman forward, is a projected lottery pick. Trent Forrest is a top-50 player, too; a team that will play fast needs to commit to defense. -- Medcalf
24. Connecticut Huskies – outside of Purvis, the Huskies have no proven scorers in the rotation; will have to find a few from five-man recruiting class that RecruitingNation ranked ninth. Freshman point guard Alterique Gilbert and VCU transfer Terry Larrier could be among the newcomers to start and bring a scoring punch to the lineup. -- Brown
25. Syracuse Orange– frontcourt will be just fine. The challenges will center on the backcourt,where departures will force huge responsibilities -- both offensively and in that trademark 2-3 zone -- on freshman Tyus Battle, Nebraska transfer Andrew White and little-used rising sophomore Franklin Howard. -- Brennan

If KU is the 4th best team this year WSU is going to be just fine.

[WuDrWu]

I thought you didn't like making predictions? :)

It's tough to sneak one by many of you.

[Jamar Howard 4 President]

OOC: 9-4
MVC: 14-4
Arch Madness: 3-0
Total: 26-8
NCAA: 10 seed

[LoneStar48]

This is the year that WSU is finally proven to be the program everyone has expected; no talent, Marshall has overachieved, and the MVC passes them by.
OOC: 5-8
MVC: 9-9
AM: 2-1
NIT: 0-1

-Doug Gottlieb

Just playing. I couldn't predict other than I imagine it will be another fine year in Wichita for players, coaches, and fans!