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View Full Version : This Was Going To Be "The Year"



Phantom Warrior
09-16-2016, 12:45 AM
I remember how, in the fall of 2012/winter of 2013 I was incredibly excited about where MU was heading.

In the fall Buzz signed a monster class that included Deonte, Duane, and JJ. I had seen Deonte on t.v. quite a few times and was enthralled with his overall level of play. I had also seen Duane play and was so impressed I predicted he could end up as MU's all-time leading scorer. Plus, I had heard/read great things about JJ and had watched video of him. I viewed the three as an updated version of the Amigos. Even their rankings on RSCI were incredibly similar. I figured they would be the same type of "anchor class" that the Amigos had been.

As excited as I was in November/December of 2012 when they committed to MU, a year later, I was ecstatic after Luke decided to transfer to MU. There was the "big" that the Amigos never had as a go-to post player. I had seen Luke play a few times and viewed him as a legitimate high-major center.

I envisioned Duane at point, JJ at the 2, Deonte at the 3, and Luke at the 5, or, alternatively, Duane at point, JJ at the 3, Deonte as an undersized 4, and Luke at the 5. In the first scenario, all we needed was a decent/solid 4; in the second a 2, preferably one who could drain treys.

I said to myself, "Wait until those guys are seniors in the 2016-2017 season. That team is going to be dynamite." Well, here we are. Is this the year MU has a shot at another Final Four? It sure doesn't look that way.

First of all Duane was injured and missed his first season, which certainly set him back in terms of his development. More importantly, Duane turned out to be more of a 2 guard than a point guard, which I did not foresee. On top of that, he apparently played through an injury last year, especially as the season wound down.

And, of course, Deonte transferred at semester of his sophomore year. All he did last year at Iowa State was earn the Sixth Man Award in the Big 12/10.

As far as JJ, he was kind of a disappointment his first two years. He made strides last year, but he certainly has not yet played at a level one might expect of a Top 30 recruit - the highest recruit MU had landed since Kerry Trotter. Might JJ reach that level this year? It's possible, but I'm not holding my breath. I do anticipate continued improvement in his game, but I will be surprised if he ends up first or second team all BE.

And then there's Luke, who played through injury as a sophomore, and who apparently still had issues last year, and then had more medical problems this summer. Luke has not really been a dominant force, though he has certainly been a steady contributor. Might he become that 15-point, 7-8 rebound a game player this year? Maybe, but his rebounding to date has been pretty mediocre, and he has not yet shown any semblance of a mid-range, face-up game.

Plus, we now go into the 2016-2017 season without an experienced veteran at the 4. In fact, we don't have a single player on the roster whose natural position is the 4. We will probably be using converted 3s (Sandy, Kaitlin, Sam) at the 4 in one capacity or another.

Yet here I am, excited about the upcoming season. It almost certainly is not going to include the level of success that I had envisioned three years ago. That being said, if JJ and Luke and Duane can all step up their game one notch, let alone two, and if we find someone (maybe Sam) who can competently fill the 4 spot, just maybe we'll be in the hunt for an NCAA bid and fall on the right side of the bubble.

DCwarrior
09-16-2016, 12:56 PM
Generally speaking, when you get outside of the top-10 ranked recruits, it's typically a guess as to how good those kids will turn out (even for top 30 or 50 ranked recruits). Some end up as busts, some become solid players and others blossom into stars. That's why the Kentucky, Kansas, UNC and Dukes of the world are at such an advantage. The Marquette's of the world have to get somewhat lucky, but also have to rely more on great coaching, player improvement and having a stable program.

Alan Bykowski, "brewcity77"
09-18-2016, 08:27 AM
I thought that about 2013-14. Vander, Jamil, and Davante as seniors. Mayo, Otule, and Taylor provided experience, and a great freshman class. We really only needed one of them to contribute. Then Van left, no one could lead, and the team collapsed down the stretch. It was mediocre all year, but losing 5 of the last 7 (including two losses in double overtime) killed us.

After that, I'm kind of done with "the year". Any year could be the year and any year could fall into disaster. You just never know until they start playing the games.

Phantom Warrior
09-18-2016, 10:07 AM
I figure Vander's decision probably meant the difference of five or six wins. Think about the difference between Vander at the 2 and Jake at the 2 playing basically 30 mpg. That teams lost two overtime games in conference play plus the two double-overtime games you referred to. Instead of 9-9, those games alone would have led to a record of 13-5 in conference. They also lost to Arizona State by two points and, of course, the game in the BE Tournament against Xavier, by three. Instead of being 17 and 15 overall after the Xavier game, they could have been 23 and 9. (Actually, instead of Xavier in the first round, they would have played a much weaker opponent.)

That team, if memory serves, also could have included McKay. He would have added depth to the front court. All he did was become Big 12 Defensive Player of the Year when he finally played for Iowa State.

The difference even one player can make in a team's fortunes can be enormous.

CaribouJim
09-18-2016, 08:33 PM
Great thread. I'm looking for big things from both Luke and JJJ and more than expected from Duane and I see some good progress from Heldt - I don't see it being a big stretch to reaching Jarrod Lovette level before his career is over.

bleedbluegold03
09-19-2016, 12:38 PM
Who really knows, but one could argue Vander leaving changed the course of our program as much as any player this side of Wade.

If he stayed do we reach expectations of Conference champs and establish ourselves as "the team"? Does Buzz go? a ton of what ifs, and few of the fun kind.

CaribouJim
09-19-2016, 02:32 PM
Who really knows, but one could argue Vander leaving changed the course of our program as much as any player this side of Wade.

If he stayed do we reach expectations of Conference champs and establish ourselves as "the team"? Does Buzz go? a ton of what ifs, and few of the fun kind.

...and if Junior red shirted his freshmen year.