Early College Basketball Observations

Memphis will win the C-USA.

I feel Elliot Williams, Rodney Williams and Manny Harris might all be 1st round picks this year.

Underrated team? Do Not Sleep on

Minny, UConn and maybe a little love for Florida.

Syracuse is over hyped right now

Kansas should be cutting down the nets now.

They are the best team in Collgee Basketball. I don’t see anyone beating them. They have the Best Guard tandom in College Basketball.

Villanova is not beating Kansas

I’m sorry. If Kansas and Villanova played right now- I would see Kansas by 13-20

I think that these freshmen need a wider range of games to show what they can do, as do alot of teams. Most of these players and teams are just getting their feet wet right now. With that said here are my observations:

1.) Terrico White looks like a top 20 pick, at least. He should be lottery worthy, I watched him play the other night and I was impressed with his potential and his current skills. He should be a Caron Butler type.

2.) Minnesota is an Elite 8 team to me. Last year, they didn’t have alot of offensive bite to match their defensive intensity, but now they do. That Rodney Williams guy is an electric athlete too.

3.) Evan Turner is the best player in college basketball.

4.) Ed Davis is the most overrated prospect out there right now, I’m watching UNC play Gardner-Webb (the school my brother goes to) and he looks very very average on both ends. He is rebounding well, but that’s because GWU’s bigs are all 6’6” or shorter.

5.) Iman Shumpert is the most under-the-radar prospect out there. He would be a great fit in almost any offense in the NBA, as he can do it all, and he’s a great off ball defender. Lottery worthy? I think so, but probably in 2011.

6.) Al-Farouq Aminu has played great this year. I don’t think he’ll be that good in the NBA, but he’s looked great this season. Him and Ish Smith are electric in transition plays.

7.) Cal is the Ole Miss of College Bball. The team that pleasantly surprised the year before, return all their starters, and have high expectations. Only to have a mediocre and (relative to expectations) disappointing season.

8.) Cole Aldrich is a beast. He’s a presence on both ends, but he’s a FREAK on D.

9.) Is it me, or is Wesley Johnson climbing up the boards as fast as Tyrus Thomas did in 06?

10.) Michigan State will win the National Title. Bold prediction.

Cal has not looked good so far. But not having Theo Robertson hurt against Ohio St because he is one of the few guys who can mix it up inside. They just don’t have the size and interior toughness. But they have played two straight top 20 teams and lost so they will be well tested come conference play.

Tell me where im wrong here

The Pac 10 will not be good for a minute. UCLA has final for potential but 2010 is more of the P-10’s year

Arizona will get some recruits
Washington has a great class coming in
UCLA will be a title contender if all comes back.

haynes, there is nothing wrong with your assesment of the pac. This might be the worst I’ve seen the conference in the last 15 years. UCLA will bounce back soon. They have a very young team. Washington is legit both now and in the future. How the new coaches at USC and Arizona do will have a lot to determine how the pac matches up with the rest of the nation in the next few years.

UCLA sucks and will be no where near the final four next year QHAYNES. they have very little talent right now and the talent that is there malcolm lee, wants to leave this year so he will try to pad his stats to ensure a high selection. they don’t have a top 5 recruiting class for next year either. how can u even think for a second that they can contend for national title next year?

Also, syracuse is pretty damn good this year. they are physical and lengthy sort of like recent memphis teams, but they can really shoot it. they are the type of team that is amazing when they are on, and if they are on in the tournament then they will be legit title contenders.

whoa.

UCLA has alot of young talent. They need time to gel. Also- Josh Smith and Tyler Lamb help!

Syracuse is not a elite 8 team IMO

I don’t know if they can compete for a title or not next year, but the bruins currently have 9 of their top 12 as young fresh/soph’s. I have not heard anything about Lee looking to leave after this year. They aren’t losing any significant talent after this season. Gordon is getting better and hopefully J’mison Morgan can start producing next season. He was their number 2 recruit last year behind Holiday. He was a 5 star guy that people were saying would replace love immediately in the starting lineup. If he can produce next year and other young guys step up, the Bruins won’t be out of the pac 10 race and top 25 next year, I promise that.

I think UCLA will play good at the end of the season, as their young players get more camaraderie with each other, and then have a UCLA-type year next year. They aren’t quite there right now, but they obviously have the long term potential.

I’m a little concerned about Wake this year. They’re young (again) and have games against Purdue and Gonzaga coming up. Ari Stewart has played pretty well early on for a freshman, Aminu is nasty, but Ish Smith is a turnover waiting to happen. McFarland is kind of hit or miss.

From what I’ve seen I really think UNC is lacking the guard play they need to be a great team. Drew just isn’t getting it done. Zeller needs to establish a back to the basket game instead of shooting jumpers all night.

Duke can be a serious contender, especially when they get Mason Plumlee back. Scheyer has really been underrated his entire career. He can play the point, has good size, can shoot, etc. He lacks great athleticism, but he is the prototypical good college player who will end up overseas making bank and provides stability and leadership night in and night out.

I’ve really been impressed by Syracuse. They seem very organized and just seem to have great cohesiveness. Rautins is Mr. Miscellaneous. The guy just seems to capitalize on every opportunity. Johnson is a major talent and Agonye provides a great presence in the paint.

Honestly, though, I haven’t seen a team that has really blown me away. The top 10 teams seem like they could beat each other night in and night out. Kansas does have a big advantage with Aldrich, though. He’s one of the only legit centers in college basketball right now.

gatorsheels how do you feel about kentucky and its players since there schedule has also been cupcake city( ranked 273 or 279th in the country) ….maryland will be a force. not sure why they weren’t ranked when they showed they were better then cal last year and only lost one player and gained 2 big men. they are now ranked and slowly climbing..after they beat cincy they should climb a lil more

The thing with Manny Harris is, he’s not going to be able to explode past players at the NBA level. NBA defenders will sag off him and make him beat them with his shot, which he can’t do.

In addition, Harris cannot keep up with point guards by any means. 

NBA defense is at a different level than college defense. In college, guys assume defense means hustle and physicality. In the NBA, things are broken down a lot more and defense centers more around finding the best way to shut down opponents. For Harris, this means sticking an athletic shooting guard on him who will force him to shoot and body him when he drives. He’s always struggled with strong contact inside. At the NBA level, he doesn’t have the top-shelf quickness necessary to avoid that contact. It also doesn’t help his case that the NBA has gone strongly against big point guards in recent years, finding they can’t defend small, quicker opponents.

As far as George goes, I actually haven’t caught a Fresno State game so far this season. Last season, I felt as though he clearly looked like a first-rounder, if not this year than certainly by 2011. 

I agree, I’m not big on Manny Harris. He doesn’t seem to be that good a prospect to me. He’s quick and everything, but he’s not a good defender and is very mediocre as a shooter, from the college 3-point line. He gets compared to Jamal Crawford alot, but he’s not at his level at any aspect, expect he’s a slightly better natural passer.

1.Kansas Is Deep But They Still Need To Put It All Together,They Aren’t Clicking.

2.Despite All The Turnover’s John Wall Is Tha Real Deal

3.Jerome Randle And Cal Def Will Bounce Back

4.Evan Turner Is Good,BUT I Would Like To See Him Get Those Nasty Numbers Against Teams Who Matter.

5.Syracuse=Overrated

6.Wes Johnson Is Good Tho

7.Kalin Lucas And MSU Might Win The Whole Thing.

8.Paul George=Overrated

9.Terrico White Idk About Lottery Pick,Or He Might Cause It Is A Weak Draft Class.

10.Cole Aldrich Best Big Man In College Ball.

I didn’t pick UCLA as a final four team…I said they can be a potential final 4 team because thier talent.

what talent? every year UCLA gets weaker why? bcuz their seniors leave

this year they are rebuilding

they are rebuilding now.

But with Malcolm Lee learning the point for a whole season and all those long wing players coming back- Fear the Bruins in 2010

i don’t think it is a weak draft at all..

mine:
1.Wall is just #1 pick in 2010 nba draft
2.no matter of 21yrs age Turner COULD be #2 pick
3.I see nothing bad so bad from Favors,Davis,Monroe everyone steps slowly but looking to get better every game
4.Cousins is terrific around 20min 15ppg9rpg3bpg wow
5.Henry shows that no matter of Collins and Aldrich he is big time scorer from day one

this draft is real weak, why? Nobody brings nothing new to their respective positions, and if they do then they also have a laundry list of weaknesses

every draft you are looking for that dynamic HOF caliber player and this year so far there are no “sure-fire” players

John Wall has potential though the scouts are saying

i go to the ncaa.org thing..and yeah they have played cupcakes..you can try to spin it anyway you want but the teams they have played so far arent good teams..lets be honest about that

and the guys were on fire because kentucky isnt a good defense of team at this point

UConn looks alright.

they still could have had someone follow him..he was getting wide open looks..espn has been talking about kentucky’s bad defense also..but regardless there schedule has been bad..none of those teams will make the tourney and aren’t even expected to do much in there conference..uk has talent but you gotta be real and know they have a cup cake schedule so far. if it wasnt for there upcoming games against unc,ucon,louiville then there schedule would be ranked wayyy lower. coach cal made a weak early schedule on purpose though because he knew he had a young team that needed time to gel

UConn plays outstanding D…they aren’t a good shooting team but they do have the ability to attack gaps off the dribble though. Alot of quick guys on the perimeter.

are you really trying to make it seem like uk has played good teams?…im going by that and the fact that the teams they played aren’t that good. man you are really looking at there schedule through bias eyes. and im not the only one who thinks so. from espn to college basketball tonight ..i mean you cant be serious to think that there schedule isnt cupcake city. i mean how can you talk about who george has played against when the teams fresno has played against have a combined better record and higher ranking then the teams uk have played?

and strength of schedules may not be the most accurrate but they dont jump or go down by much more then 10 ranking spots

I just realized Duke lost

Eric Botang
Taylor King
Elliot Williams

damn, all of them could have contributed this year for us.

Also, I love the fact Miles Plumlee is getting his a bit.

I think he will be a contributer down the line in the next 3 years and his bro will be as well.

lol…in reality it has been bad competition..combined team records is 12-14 and they are ranked alot lower the the teams fresno st has played. so id say fresno has the decent schdule while kentucky has had the cupcakes

Also, I love the fact Miles Plumlee is getting his a bit.

I think he will be a contributer down the line in the next 3 years and his bro will be as well.

ok let me get this straight…fresno teams are ranked higher then the teams uk have played…uk teams have a worst combined record. and yet you say fresno has played a cupcake schedule and kentucky schedule has been decent?..that makes no sense when every fact points towards fresno schedule being harder. and sanfran plays in the wac..remember them with gonzaga. sam houston on the other hand plays in the…………….southland conference!!.come on man the facts speak for there selfs. on top of people in the sports world saying it. kentucky has had a cupcake schedule so far. you gotta face the facts. i think they are better then fresno but my point was you cant say george hasnt played anyone when and then say uk has a decent schedule when it proven in any category you look at that uk schedule ha been weaker so far

its cool that you think they are better then them but every thing else indicates that they arent…yeah sanfran st is kinda bad..lol..truth of the matter is both team have played cupcake teams

This draft is real weak……outside of John Wall you only have ONE straight up PG going in the first round.

Outside of Willie Warren and MAYBE Evan Turner none of the SG’s scream future NBA All-Star.

Small Forward position is weak as well Wesley Johnson is good,BUT can’t handle the ball and doesn’t make great decions so it will take him a while before he has an impact in the NBA,Al Faroq-Amini is probably the closest to NBA ready out of all the SF’s

Power Forward spot is decent but closer to being weak than strong.

Center Spot is a joke. With the exception of Cole

yeah but people said the exact same thing about this years class..”outside of blake no one else is gonna do a whole lot”,,most people thought that but now you see jenning is looking great and evans. darren collison and thortan are looking pretty good. chase looks good as well as taj gibson, johnny flyn and omar caspi and t.williams,curry, are playing well. but i do think next years class (if the freshmen declare) are overrated.