[JNixonParticipant]

20- Marquette Golden Eagles

Frontcourt- The Jimmy Butler loss is a bit significant. Butler emerged as the MVP of the team last year, was a good mismatch player who could bang with PF’s, work his strength against SF’s, create for himself and others, and he defended just about every position and did so well. He was a late 1^st round pick to the Bulls. The top returning guy is Jae Crowder, a 6’5 or 6’6 PF. Crowder has one of the more interesting skill-sets in the nation for a frontline guy. He’s got the quick feet to face-up as a triple threat against PF’s, but also has the girth, toughness and compact strength (powerfully built 235 lbs) to bang inside against bigs effectively. He has a very effective spot-up jumper, good passing skills, solid rebounding ability, and the quickness to be a problem on the floor for PF’s. At his size, he’s a little more suspectible to getting his shots blocked around the rim than normal, but it wasn’t a big problem last year though. He also can be shot over by length down low. Crowder is unorthodox and not really an NBA-type physical specimen, but he is productive and intriguing enough to garner some NBA NBA consideration. A PF/C who will provide good depth is Soph. Devante Gardner. Gardner is a very big guy (6’8 290)has a little skill to him. He can score due to his size and the fact that he has very good hands, but he’s sluggish on D and foul prone. He should lose some weight, and look to play closer to 270, but who knows if that’ll happen. The starting C last year was 6’11 260 Chris Otule, by far the biggest body on a mostly small roster. Otule is a shot-blocker with length, and the girth to bang on D. He’s not a very good or polished offensive player, and he’s foul prone though. He can be ineffective against perimeter oriented matchups. Although he starts, his minutes are often limited to around 15, but he did play more down the stretch because his impact on the glass and as a rim protector were 2^nd to no one on the Golden Eagles’ roster. The spot Jimmy Butler held down will now be open for competition. The battle will likely be between Soph. Jamail Jones and Fr. Juan Anderson. The 6’6 210 Jones, who I thought would factor immediately as a true Fr. (even touted as a sleeper prospect), failed to make an impact. He’s a physically gifted SG/SF with very good athleticism, and he also has a natural jumper. He really seemed to have a slow adjustment in terms of defense, the physical nature of Big East play, and knowing he’d have to work hard on every possession to be effective. Jones needs to improve his handle and grow up, as there is no better time for him to prove his somewhat touted HS rankings. The tools are there. The 6’6 205 Anderson is a steady prospect, but not one who will jump out at you with a particular skill. He’ll likely need to touch up all of his skills and continue to get stronger, although he has a good frame. If Anderson or Jones don’t grow up quick, the Golden Eagles will probably have to play 3 guards most times. Still, Crowder will likely step up (I expect about 13 or 14 ppg, and 7 or 8 rpg from him) and Otule has size. The young guys at SF will need to grow up or get left behind by the guards.

Backcourt- The main guy in the backcourt is definitely 6’2 215 Sr. SG Darius Johnson-Odom. Johnson-Odom went from afterthought JUCO recruit to one of the more clutch shooters in the country. The southpaw has a nice shooting stroke, and although he didn’t torch the nets last year like he did as a Soph. (went from a outstanding 47% to 36% from deep) he is a definite threat to score with the jumper and can put up points in bunches. He also can pump-fake and create looks off the dribble. He’s also a decent athlete with the strength to take contact on straight line drives. He needs to work on his handle and get better as a free throw shooter (strange he’s a less than 70% FT guy over the last 2 years with his jump shot). He’s going to garner NBA looks, but he’s always going to be limited because he’s no PG. The PG spot will be manned by Jr. Junior Cadougan. He’s a strong 6’1 guard with the quickness and handle to get in the paint to get teammates looks. He isn’t a good shooter or a real scoring threat, but he’ll be looked to run the show for Marquette next year because he’s a saavy distributor and Buycks isn’t there. Another intriguing guy is Soph. Vander Blue. Blue is a 6’4 195 guard who offers willing and intense defense, athleticism and strength. He needs to work on his shot, play more under control, and gain polish, but he has the most upside of the guards. He should get around 8 or 9 ppg next year, and look for him to get closer to 45% from the field than the 39% he was as a Fr. 6’1 Soph. Reggie Smith is an athlete who needs to work on his basketball skills, on both ends. He was a nonfactor last year. Jones and Anderson can play some guard too if Marquette chooses to use their size there. Fr. Todd Mayo, the brother of OJ Mayo, and Derrick Wilson will also be in the backcourt, although both probably won’t play much, if at all. Mayo is a scorer with solid size as a combo guard (6’3 190). He’s not a great defender or decision-maker though. Derrick Wilson is a 6’1 205 guard who also played football in HS. With that background, you can guess that he’s strong, fast, and aggressive. He’s not ready to run an offense in college as a PG though. A lot of athleticism and depth/bodies in the backcourt, and their youth should be even better next year. Johnson-Odom should be even better next year and they’ll guard you tough once again on the perimeter.

Overall- I like Buzz Williams as a coach. He’s super intense and his Marquette teams take on his personality. What Marquette doesn’t have in size, they make up for with tough players who play hard on D. They have some players in the frontline who need to step up, some more than others, but they are really competitive and their guards are feisty and they can throw a bunch of different lineups at you. Look for Marquette to be a 2 and out squad.

 

[hiphopismylifeParticipant]

Nice work. I didn’t know Johnson-Odom was only 6’2 though. I think he’s primed for a great year.

[hiphopismylifeParticipant]

Nice work. I didn’t know Johnson-Odom was only 6’2 though. I think he’s primed for a great year.

[BasterdInABasketParticipant]

Nice write up. Look for jamil Wilson to get some bench minutes at the 3 to replace butler. Played against him in hs and he has good length and athleticism at the sf spot. Also Reggie smith transferred to unlv after leaving the team last year.

[BasterdInABasketParticipant]

Nice write up. Look for jamil Wilson to get some bench minutes at the 3 to replace butler. Played against him in hs and he has good length and athleticism at the sf spot. Also Reggie smith transferred to unlv after leaving the team last year.

[JNixonParticipant]

Thanks guys.

Also, thanks for the Reggie Smith info

[JNixonParticipant]

Thanks guys.

Also, thanks for the Reggie Smith info

[providencefriars1Participant]

Ya I would but Bama over Marquette but DJO and Crowder are two serious ballers. Bama is just more well rounded offensively IMO. It seems like we have very similar rankings especially for the Big East.

[providencefriars1Participant]

Ya I would but Bama over Marquette but DJO and Crowder are two serious ballers. Bama is just more well rounded offensively IMO. It seems like we have very similar rankings especially for the Big East.

[DanEboyParticipant]

I have been waiting for this one…great job Jorrye!

Jae Crowder…Jae Crowder…Jae Crowder.

Some of the best memories I have about living in Milwaukee are all of the Marquette games I went to. College basketball live is 100X better than NBA games live. The students are nuts. So is Buzz.

[DanEboyParticipant]

I have been waiting for this one…great job Jorrye!

Jae Crowder…Jae Crowder…Jae Crowder.

Some of the best memories I have about living in Milwaukee are all of the Marquette games I went to. College basketball live is 100X better than NBA games live. The students are nuts. So is Buzz.

[Author]

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