The Glove, Part Two?

Player of the Week

Gary Payton II – Oregon State

This could be an easy decision because Oregon State had three games this week, but Payton definitely deserves player of the week. The son of Gary Payton senior had an incredible week. Payton was four steals away from a quadruple double against Grambling State. The junior guard finished the game with 10 points, 12 rebounds, 10 assists and six steals. Payton II also played well against both DePaul and Mississippi St. scoring a combined 28 points and snatching a combined 15 rebounds. Payton II can play in the NBA. The junior is more explosive and has longer range than his father but lacks the speed and vision “the glove” had while he played for the SuperSonics. If Payton II shows better vision and becomes even more aggressive on the offensive side of the ball, a team will likely take a chance on him.

Who’s Hot

Joseph Young – Oregon

Young is finally starting to heat up from the three point line. The senior guard shot over fifty percent from three this week and posted two solid overall games against both CS Northridge and Illinois. Young does a little bit of everything for the Ducks and is really the steady force that every senior guard should be. As much as a sharpshooter Young is, he has to contribute more on the defensive side of the ball. If Young can dominate on defense, the rest of the Pac-12 better watch out for the Ducks.

Chasson Randle – Stanford

Even with Randle’s subpar game against Denver, the senior guard finally hit his stride against LMU. Randle had 31 points while getting to the free throw line 12 times, hitting 10 of them. It was refreshing to see Randle get to the free throw line, even when his shots were falling. Randle must find ways to impact the game whenever he isn’t scoring. Wether it be getting other teammates involved, impacting the game defensively or drawing fouls, Randle has to show that he can contribute to the team when his shot isn’t there. Look for the senior guard to build on this game against BYU on Saturday.

Who’s Cold

Norman Powell -UCLA

The senior shooting guard for UCLA has struggled against every good team he has played so far this year. The Bruins cannot have their senior leader go three for eleven from the field while only dishing one assist in any game, especially against number nine ranked Gonzaga. Powell may have finally developed a three point shot, but NBA teams will want to see him perform against better teams for them to take a risk on an undersized senior shooting guard.

Brandon Taylor – Utah

The junior guard may not be getting any NBA looks, but he has to play better for Utah to have a chance at stealing the Pac-12 title from Arizona. Taylor is shooting a career low from three point land and has had back to back terrible games against both BYU and Kansas. Utah is a great team, they are fun to watch and Delon Wright is going to be drafted by a NBA team, but the Utes can be so much better. If Taylor and Wright’s supporting cast step up, nobody will want to play them in the NCAA tournament.

With Christmas rapidly approaching it makes sense to have the top five list about gifts. Here are the top five gifts that some Pac-12 teams will be hoping to receive under the tree this year.

Top Five gifts Pac-12 Teams are asking for

1. Arizona to avoid any injuries

Many Wildcat fans believe that if Brandon Ashley did not get hurt last year they would have made it to the final four. With the addition of Stanley Johnson, Arizona has a legitimate shot at reaching the final four. Sean Miller must go to sleep every night hoping for none of his players to get injured. As a fan of great basketball I hope St. Nick brings injury luck to the Wildcats this Christmas.

2. Utah’s supporting cast to step up

As I went over before, Delon Wright has really carried the Utes this year. Utah has a legitimate shot to make some noise in the NCAA tournament, but at a certain point Wright can only do so much. Brandon Taylor and Jakob Poeltl will need to step up. The return of a healthy Jordan Loveridge will certainly help the Utes’ cause, they just have to get there first.

3. UCLA to play better against ranked teams

The Bruins are struggling. Not many people expected this team to start out with three loses, especially with two subpar performances against UNC and Gonzaga. A visit from number one ranked Kentucky will not help to solve this problem, but UCLA will have to improve if they want to be ranked again this year. The Bruins have tons of athletes, they should be performing better on defense. If they just communicated better on the defensive side of the ball many of their problems will be fixed.

4. Oregon to shoot 40 percent from three point land.

The Ducks run a high powered offense ranked 22nd in college basketball at 79.8 points per game, but they can be so much better. Joseph Young is only shooting 29 percent from three while the entire team is only shooting 34 percent from three point land. While this is above average, Oregon has six players that can hit a three, which is rare in college. If the Ducks hit two more threes a game their team will be even more fun to watch and could grab a couple more wins on the way.

5. Chasson Randle stays hot

Stanford came into the year with high expectations after turning heads in last years NCAA tournament. However, the Cardinals have a terrible lose against DePaul and have two tough games ahead against BYU and Texas. Randle has struggled mightily this year, shooting 39 percent from the field and a career low 30 percent from three. After a great game against LMU, the Cardinals are hoping Randle has finally hit his stride. As Randle goes so do the Cardinals, they need him to perform to make the NCAA tournament again.