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.
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.