The early returns on this season have not been good. Man would love to be wrong but by the time they leave c'ville I expect this board will be unreadable and the ncaa tourney will be a pipe dream. I did not expect to think that.
- JJ will be great to have next year to replace Judah bc fairly similar skillset (and flaws) but as far as this years team, thus far has not looked like he can be an effective 2. I did not realize his shooting was suspect and based on form does not look promising. Perhaps as he gets more comfortable he can create matchup problems while the beekmans of the world focus on Judah but that requires a stroke that needs to be respected. I assume he has that if he's considered a potential late first rounder but have not seen. They need a consistent shooter outside of Taylor and bell, one whose a dual threat and can play D. Maybe westry can bring that eventually.
- Judah is if course a fantastic talent but it's hard to imagine him ever being in an NBA rotation. I think he makes players better bc he's a good leader and tough competitor, but not via his style of play. His shot looks like it had higher ceiling than JJ, especially from 10-15 feet.
- I can't disagree with those that say it's sink or swim time for Benny, but I think a good season from Benny (unlikely but possible) is the only realistic scenario where this team is tourney caliber (unless westry gets healthy and fills that role as someone who can both shoot and drive and play d).
- the future looks somewhat promising with freeman and Moore (potentially plus a transfer) added to what will be a solid nucleus nexf year, but this year my hope for tourney has dropped from 65% to 30% through these first games.