Preseason Top 25 from ESPN (factors in loss of Mal)

[RF2044]

Being ranked at the bottom of the top 25 doesn't feel "insulting" to me, not with the points we just lost to graduation / early entry. Losing an all senior backcourt is another huge loss.

There are definitely reasons to be optimistic, and if a few things break our way, then the team could end up being much better than bottom end top 25 [or unranked], but those things aren't guaranteed.

 

[jncuse]

There seems to be a lot bias towards Big Ten. It seems to me the Big Ten always under performs in the NCAA tournament while recently the ACC over performed.

Final Four Appearances:

Last 3 Years: Big Ten 3, ACC 3
Last 5 Years: Big Ten 5, ACC 4
Last 10 Years: Big Ten 8, ACC 7

They are not better than the ACC right now, but they have performed very well at the NCAA with 4 different members reaching the final 4 in the past 5 years.

 

[jncuse]

I don't see a top 25 team. We just don't have close to the offensive firepower needed to win big games consistently. Our 3-guard rotation should be solid, but do we have a go-to player? It's hard to see this team as being any better than last season's team that struggled mightily for much of the season.

I think Lydon could be the same but he will lose some efficiency.

For the first half of the year he was very afraid to take a less than perfect shot. As the season progressed, he became more confident, and didn't think before or hesitate before taking a fairly good shot I think Lydon can effectively take on 16-17 ppg usage level, if he is empowered by the coaches.

 

[RF2044]

I think Lydon could be the same but he will lose some efficiency.

For the first half of the year he was very afraid to take a less than perfect shot. As the season progressed, he became more confident, and didn't think before or hesitate before taking a fairly good shot I think Lydon can effectively take on 16-17 ppg usage level, if he is empowered by the coaches.

Not sure that it was "confidence" or him being "very afraid" as much as having the good judgement to recognize good shots from bad ones, and not forcing.

 

[Cusefan0307]

The only negative with Lydon although he is uber talented, is he never has had to carry a team and be the lead dog. In high school he shared that with his older brother. When he moved to prep they were loaded, and again he just had to fit in. The same last year with G, Cooney and Mal. The difference with him this year is he is clearly the lead dog and best player on his team, and he needs to have that mindset.

 

[pearl31]

The only negative with Lydon although he is uber talented, is he never has had to carry a team and be the lead dog. In high school he shared that with his older brother. When he moved to prep they were loaded, and again he just had to fit in. The same last year with G, Cooney and Mal. The difference with him this year is he is clearly the lead dog and best player on his team, and he needs to have that mindset.

I hear you... but it's entirely conceivable that Gillon/Battle are right there with him carrying the team

 

[jncuse]

Not sure that it was "confidence" or him being "very afraid" as much as having the good judgement to recognize good shots from bad ones, and not forcing.

I'm not sure you can label it as "judgment" when he was passing up on good shots fairly often. It was not bad shots that he was turning down. Which is why I believe confidence is more apt. At his size, skillset, mobility, ability to finish inside, he has the framework to accept a fairly high usage rate without really forcing things.

Of course if he is lead man he will need to force things a bit, but I don't think it will be excessive % of his shots.

 

[DoctorBombay]

The only negative with Lydon although he is uber talented, is he never has had to carry a team and be the lead dog. In high school he shared that with his older brother. When he moved to prep they were loaded, and again he just had to fit in. The same last year with G, Cooney and Mal. The difference with him this year is he is clearly the lead dog and best player on his team, and he needs to have that mindset.

Fair enough- but that's really just a part of the growth process...the next step, if you will.
He has the skill-set and needs to hone the ability to take over games. He'll have an entire season to work through that.

 

[RF2044]

I'm not sure you can label it as "judgment" when he was passing up on good shots fairly often. It was not bad shots that he was turning down. Which is why I believe confidence is more apt. At his size, skillset, mobility, ability to finish inside, he has the framework to accept a fairly high usage rate without really forcing things.

Of course if he is lead man he will need to force things a bit, but I don't think it will be excessive % of his shots.

Just a minor quibble: the objective isn't to necessarily shoot every time you're open--especially when you are a freshman on a team with several other established scorers. I have a difficult time criticizing a player for playing within the flow of the team offensive concept. Lydon DID take a bunch of shots, and he did show a lot of confidence taking / making shots in key situations. His PER would have been way down if he'd been a gunner. He was a lot like young CJ in that respect--play within yourself, defer to more experienced teammates, avoid forcing.

Again, I have a tough time faulting a player for playing unselfish ball, not making mistakes, and not forcing plays.

 

[Jasoncuse]

Lydon will average at least 16 and 8 next year. If that's not a go to player, what is?

Lydon's not a guard, as I was talking about a go-to player at G. Maybe it'll be Battle, if he's ready for it. Maybe Gillon can do that.

 

[Cusefan0307]

Lydon's not a guard, as I was talking about a go-to player at G. Maybe it'll be Battle, if he's ready for it. Maybe Gillon can do that.

Our go to guy's on our best teams usually aren't guards. Wes, Melo, Wallace, Owens, DC...

 

[jordoo]

I think with Gillon's experience, Lydon's growth and Battle's potential we will be fine when we have to get good shots in late game situations. It may take a little while for Lydon to develop the mindset of being a lead player and it may take Battle some time to adjust to college ball but Gillon should be ready to run the show from day one.

Add a more consistent Roberson, an improved Howard, a more productive Coleman, a big time shot blocker and Moyer to those 3 pieces and I think this team can be a pretty good one by the end of the season.