[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Just curious what your top 10 college teams to win the title look like atm? We’re over a month away, do we have any early predictions???

I’ll take a stab at it here, although I’m not going by the experts, so this maybe a little unorthodox.

Alabama
UConn
Duke
UNC
Arkansas
Texas
Kansas
Creighton
Indiana
Houston

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Baylor, Texas A&M, and Iowa State were also considered.

[HitsterParticipant]

Kansas, Duke, Arkansas, Alabama, Duke, Iowa State Gonzaga, Baylor would be the sort of teams I’d expect to go deep in March Madness. UConn and Creighton I’d have a little behind them. UConn have lost 4 starters and would likely need Karaban to be challenging to be player of the year if they are to go near their last two successive titles. But Dan Hurley’s teams cannot be discounted even if it could be a bridging year

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Good points and picks, there are a lot of competitive teams this year imo. Good draft class – probably good college basketball year too!

[HitsterParticipant]

UConn were strong favourites to retain last year but this year it is much more open. A lot of good players declared this year but there is a decent returning class and we have the last year of the “super senior” so the depth will be really good.

I do wonder whether some guys who will be tempted to declare next year might be wise doing another year as once the 5th year seniors are all gone there will be a lot more playing time and the coaches cannot just rely on so many experienced guys.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

for sure there will be many prospects that don’t quite get the playing time they need to be a legit prospect this year and then the NIL money could persuade some to stay too.

[HitsterParticipant]

Will NIL money impact on who colleges recruit from HS or is it more used to keep guys in college or entice them to move. Unless a guy can get a guaranteed NBA contract they may be better taking good NILS money for up to 4 years. At worse they can showcase themselves to the better non NBA leagues.

A guy like Hunter Dickinson for example who may not be quick enough to get a regular NBA roster position but is one of the picks to be player of the year this college season would likely make good NILS money.

Another 5th year guy like Ryan Kalkbrenner who may lack a bit athletically but I can see him being drafted as he does have a decent 3 point range and will always have his size so should get 2nd round looks. But he likely got Nils money to return to the Bluejays.

Great Osobor has reputedly got a $2 million NILS deal this summer. That could almost set him up for life or give him the money to be in a comfortable position for a large number of years.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Yeah, NILs is designed for both. Athletes get paid now in college pretty good. College stars and upcoming future prospects along with big names like Bronny get the best deals too. It’s wise to stay if you’re not a shoe in first round pick if you play in college now imo.

[BothTeamsPlayedHard-Participant]

1. Kansas- Best roster bar none. I don’t see a path to them being anything but a #1 seed. You really have to go through gymnastics to find problems. They are too deep for so many of the “what ifs” to keep them from being a contender. They have three guys who averaged 16+ PPG last year, and another two who averaged double-digits, and that doesn’t include DeJuan Harris, the 5-star freshman in Flory Bidunga, the returning one-time 5-star in Elmarko Jackson, and 5th year Shakeel Moore.
2. Gonzaga- I liked their roster last year, kept 80+ percent of its minutes and points, added Michael Ajayi who in a pre-NIL era probably stays in the draft and will certainly be there next year, added 5th year Khalif Battle, added a shot blocking presence in Ismaila Diagne, gets a healthy Steele Venters, and it is possible Jun Seok Yeo takes a step forward after a year in the program. They have four guys who have shot better than 40 percent from three in a season. If they want to play 4-out with Ike, they can. If they want to go 5-out, they can. If they want to be big, they can go Diagne, Ike, Ajayi, Venters, and Battle where everyone is over 6’5″ and still have three guys who have shot better than 40 percent from three before. It is such a deep and skilled team where I don’t see where they run into a bad matchup, and have the coach who is good in-games to find the right play. They have a tough non-conference slate, but no other team in the country is as well positioned to get off to a fast start than them. They can win the Battle 4 Atlantis, beat Kentucky in Seattle, and Arizona State at home. None of those teams have continuity to click on all cylinders early on. They can probably afford to lose to Connecticut in NYC (they could also win that as well), and still be in the top 5 prior to WCC play. They are in-play for a top overall seed, and seem like a lock to go deep. It is just a matter of whether this is the team that gets over that last hump.
3. Baylor- This is the first projection on a freshman being great, but VJ Edgecombe was great in the Olympic qualifiers. He is joined by Jeremy Roach, Langston Love, Jayden Nunn, and Norchad Omier. They have a lot of skill and athleticism on the perimeter. Outside of Edgecombe, it is an old and proven group. With Edgecombe, Roach, Love, and Nunn, they have a lot of shooting. The difference between Baylor and the top two is that they aren’t big and versatile. Omier is a great college center, but is 6’6.” Behind him, Josh Ojianwuna needs to take a step up. Other than Omier and Ojianwina, it is only unproven bigs in Yanis Ndjonga and Marino Dubravcic. Ndjonga is coming off an ACL tear, and Dubravcic probably is not ready to contribute based off his overseas roles and production. It is a concern, but they might be a more offensively explosive version of the 2023 Miami team. That team went to the Final Four. Can this older and more talented team take that next step?
4. UNC- It seems a bit disrespectful of the college career of Armando Bacot to assume they can simply replace him, but I like Ven-Allen Lubin and Jalen Washington. If Jae’Lyn Withers can avoid awful shot selection, he can be useful up front as well. RJ Davis is a returning All-American 5th year point guard. Cade Tyson, Hunter’s younger brother, gives them a great shooter. They have a pair of 5-star freshmen as well as a second year who reclassified to play last year as a 5-star. Unlike Kansas and Gonzaga, it is possible that stumbles if Washington isn’t good. They don’t have a lot of depth inside. Also, if Tyson struggles to adapt to the step up in competition, they don’t have the same depth of shooters. Still, I believe in those two.
5. Duke- Just based on what NBA players have said, I can behind Cooper Flagg being good. Fine. Let’s assume they have an All-American. What is the rest of the roster? It is not a school that accepts just any transfer, but their net transfers are a negative. They lost Jeremy Roach, Mark Mitchell, Jaylen Blakes, Sean Stewart, and TJ Power while only adding Maliq Brown, Cameron Sheffield, Sion James, and Mason Gillis. That counts for something. Among the group of Sion James, Caleb Foster, Kon Knueppel, and Isaiah Evans, they need to piece together their wings. They should be fine there. Is this the year Tyrese Proctor is a reliable shooter? He can’t just be a guy who gets hot once every other week if they are to win six in a row come March. My main concern is up front. They need Khaman Maluach or Patrick Ngongba II to be good in the middle. Highly acclaimed big men tend to be the most likely to be slow to adapt to the college game. Otherwise, they are playing Maliq Brown at the 5. In most games, it should be fine. When going deep in the tournament, it is not ideal.
6. Xavier- Plant my flag on this one. Xavier just has an abundance of talent, just not NBA talent which is why I have Duke ahead of them despite them having more uncertainty. They return Dayvion McKnight on he perimeter. Added to him is Dante Maddox Jr. All-MAC from Toledo, Marcus Foster 17 PPG from Furman, Ryan Conwell 16.6 PPG from Indiana State, Cam’Ron Fletcher from Florida State, and Roddie Anderson from Boise State. Upfront, they get Zach Freemantle back after missing last year due to his foot surgery. Jerome Hunter also missed last year, but could be back after his cardiac episode and achilles injury. Those two being unavailable were a big reason they went from 27-10 to 16-18. Beyond those two, they also added John Hugley IV from Oklahoma and Lassina Traore from Long Beach State. They are old and experienced everywhere. They have shooting and shot creating on the perimeter. They have an abundance of options on the inside. It is a great roster.
7. Houston- It isn’t quite Gonzaga’s level of continuity, but it is close. They return eight of their top ten guys from a 32-5 squad, and add Milos Uzan and Mercy Miller to replace Jamal Shead and Damian Dunn. Kelvin Sampson is also as good as they come in the college ranks. I can’t argue the roster has the star power to match, but nobody is going to want to face them at any point of the season.
8. Alabama- If Jarin Stevenson doesn’t go 5-8 from three as a sub-30 three point shooter in the Elite Eight and Grant Nelson doesn’t have that career game against UNC, they probably aren’t regarded as a title team. Stevenson did have that game, but it is still a team that is having a sub-30 percent shooter spotting up at the arc all game. More often than not, it isn’t a good move. Grant Nelson did have a career night against UNC, but was erratic all year. They are banking on Clifford Omoruyi cleaning up a lot of problems on the defensive end. Rutgers was 7-13 in the Big Ten. They played slow and defensive. How is he going to handle playing fast with teammates who can’t stay in front of their man? Sears is a great college guard, but I don’t think he has enough around him to likely get a title. I have my doubts over whether Chris Youngblood and Aden Holloway are as good as Rylan Griffen and Aaron Estrada. It is fine, but not elite.
9. Connecticut- 8th feels disrespectful, but that has more to do with the coach who just won two-straight titles than it does the roster. It is a good, but far from elite roster at this point. I’ll bite on Alex Karaban being “the guy” and an All-American. Cool. Aidan Mahaney has not always had the best of times against more athletic opponents, and that is life in the Big East. Tarris Reed and Samson Johnson are not going to remind anyone of Adama Sanogo or Donovan Clingan. They have three highly touted freshmen, and return three sophomores who were mostly out of the rotation last year but held in similar esteem as recruits. In this era, needing four of those six to hit as contributors is a gamble. If any program deserves that benefit of the doubt, it is UConn. It could be the case next June we are looking at Alex Karaban, Liam McNeeley, Isaiah Abraham, and Solo Ball are NBA draft picks.
10a. Arkansas- I am a believer in Nelly Davis. I think DJ Wagner can take a step forward, but he was just a guy last year. Jonas Aidoo took a big step forward last year at Tennessee, and should be able to anchor the middle. Trevon Brazile is as impressive and NBA athlete as there is. If he stays healthy and plays up to his ability, he will be a 1st rounder. Adou Thiero is just a guy who happened to get recruited by Calipari. It is nice to have a good athlete, but doesn’t move the needle for me. Zvonimir Ivišić had one good moment against Georgia and a lot of problems keeping up with the pace of the college game. If he can’t go for more than a 4-5 minute stretch, he isn’t that valuable. It is those six and three recruits, of whom only Boogie Fland regularly is projected as a one-and-done 1st round draft prospect at this point. Calipari has opted to build a team with no margin for error. If someone gets hurt, if a freshman struggles to adapt, or if Ivišić or Wagner don’t take a step forward, then they could be a mediocre team. If Fland is good, my assessment of Davis, Brazile, and Aidoo are right, and Karter Knox can hit shots, then they have the talent to have a chance. It just stuns me that they have left themselves so wide open to needing to play walk-ons if two guys miss time.
10b. Creighton- Fedor Zugic is an interesting add for Creighton, if only because we are getting to the point where it is hard to know what makes an international prospect a pro or not. He has legitimately played four seasons of basketball against professionals. Three in Germany and once in the ABA with European competitions in every one of those years. I am aware of the history of international prospects struggling to transition to college, but would think a guy with more than 2,500 professional level minutes can step in for Baylor Scheierman. With him Pops Isaac, Jamiya Neal, Kalkbrenner, Ashworth, and Miller, they have a pretty formidable lineup. It isn’t as deep as I would prefer, but have kept most of their young players who were on the fringe of the rotation who could make a leap. Jackson McAndrew and Larry Johnson are held in relatively high regard, and might be able to step in right away.

Indiana is a possibility, but lack proven shooting. They need a leap from Mgbako and Carlisle, which is possible. The Texas frontcourt is a concern. If Shedrick plays 17-20 minutes like he has throughout his time in college, where are they going for the rest at the 5? Kaluma is not going to play the 5. Jayson Kent probably can’t. It is a similar story with Iowa State. Brandton Chatfield and Dishon Jackson have to be good. Both down-transferred from Washington State, and were far from dominant at Seattle and Charlotte. BYU is interesting. Did anyone explain Brandon Davies and the honor code to Egor Demin? Is he going to make it to March? Illinois is betting big on international newcomers. They have talent, but probably not a great shout to go deep. Auburn is too wild. They will knock off a highly ranked team, but even when they are good will always have a few stinkers in them. Rutgers would be betting on elite freshmen. It has worked before, but NIL makes college basketball older. Also, how does the western wing of the Big Ten impacts fatigue over the course of a season. It is a six hour flight to LA or Seattle from Newark. Oregon returns a nice core with Jackson Shelstad, Kwame Evans, Nate Bittle, Keeshawn Barthelemy, Bam Tracey, and Mookie Cook while adding Brandon Angel (13PPG on 57/45/81 shooting splits from Stanford), TJ Bamba (from Washington State and Villanova), and Ra’Heim Moss (15.5 points, 5.4 rebounds, 3.0 assists, 1.7 steals at Toledo). The travel concerns are even greater for Oregon than Rutgers as they will be headed to the eastern timezone more than Rutgers will head west.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Love your assessment, but don’t totally agree with all of it. Alabama to me has the team with the top talent. There bench can be a borderline top 25 team as is imo. I like Alabama even better than bar none Kansas. Little surprised some other teams didn’t make your top 10, but you got a solid list.

UConn may not have the star power of the last 2 years, but they still have a sucker punch’s chance of cutting the nets down. I agree though, they’re going to struggle to be in the top 10.

We’ll see, Imo there are 66 teams that should make the tournament atm. Of course, they all won’t make the tournament too because of the untold future of small conference, etc. yet… It’s a better field of good teams this year though and lots of talent. I like Xavier too, but to me that team’s in the 20-30 range. I like USC better and nobody’s talking about them yet. They picked up some good transfers, but they do still have to play together… Kansas State is in a similar boat – Idk, but I’m excited pretty early on a season that hasn’t even started yet.

[HitsterParticipant]

Great breakdown of the likely NCAA contenders BTPH. A lot of sites have UConn as a top 4 team but like you I just don’t see it. They lost Sanogo and Jackson from the 2023 title winning team and still won last year but they had Karaban, Hawkins, Clingan and Newton all returning and had Castle as a star recruit. Now 4 of those 5 have gone they have returning experience in Karaban and Diarra but they have lost so much quality and although their transfers in look good they aren’t of the quality of those who have left IMO.

But I really want to see what Karaban does as the focal point and whether McNeely is as good a shooter at this level as what he has been up to now.. Tarris Reed Jr won’t be Clingan but he can be their big body in the paint and build on what he did at Michigan. But only Karaban and McNeeley would be on my draft long list for next year at this moment.

I just see this being a building season for UConn. The core of the recent team were there throughout their college careers and it may need time to build a new core and then add some top recruits for next season and some good transfers. Hurley has such a great reputation as a HC that UConn will be attractive to developing guys who wish to transfer in after their first or 2nd year and will always be in the mix for top recruits.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Speaking of UConn, looks like there’s a possibility of them joining the BIG12. Conference colonialism at its finest. Idk what to think of these constant expansions. It’s both better and worse at the same time I guess. UConn, Baylor, Kansas, and Houston in the same conference… eek!

[HitsterParticipant]

Isn’t UConn looking to get into the Big 12 as there will be more money and sponsorship there? It gives colleges bigger games throughout the season and even if the games are shared and teams don’t have such a winning record as they might have it wouldn’t impact their tournament position at all as a lot of the voting is weighted towards the quality and depth of the opposition.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

It definitely does bring more money. That’s what it’s all about. Big Ten and SEC have been doing it too. The biggest flaw is that everything is surrounding adding the best teams to few conferences and adding the best players and prospects to those teams could mean leaving terrible competition outside those conferences. It will be and is getting much much harder for a smaller school to land a diamond in a rough for more than a year. Generally speaking, it’s hard to win a championship with a team that hasn’t played together much regardless of talent. So if the next South Dakota State version of Baylor Scheierman comes around, he won’t be at South Dakota State for more than a year. He’ll transfer to a school like Creighton – or yet Baylor now – because the Big East Conference won’t even be big enough any longer to likely grab a transfer like him. It’s getting tougher and tougher for that mid major college to recruit someone that’s worth a damn in the grand scheme of things for more than a year. On the other hand, it does give some good competition and ratings for the biggest conferences. Those conferences get more money and generate it too. And everything is designed for them to do so. When two big time teams go head to head, we’ll see a ton of talent on the floor all at once. But Duke vs Prairie View as an example though could be a very bad blow out game. As far as tournament positioning, no it wouldn’t hurt UConn in this situation much – maybe just a spot up or down either way. But the Big 12 could have 12 teams make the tournament.

[HitsterParticipant]

The top recruits have often gone to certain teams and some have become a one stop shop for one and done guys. But other top coaches and teams have looked to build a very good team who may go deeper in March Madness but won’t have guys who all get drafted. But if the talent is condensed then the “star” teams will have good rosters in place they can slot a one and done guy into or even use them from the bench. Reed Sheppard was only a bench guy at Kentucky last year but is favourite to be RoY and again will be a bench guy. So you could have teams like UConn last season who were loaded and able to add Castle seamlessly into their line up.

Star players at “smaller” colleges who may not be one and done guys I can see getting NIL offers from bigger colleges so the talent may end up being more concentrated within certain teams or conferences. But teams will have NILs limits and guys will need playing time but within a 16 team conference if we take a 8 man regular roster that is 128 places so there is a lot of playing time within the Big 12 alone.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

exactly, that’s why it’s going to be even harder for smaller schools to go big time.

[BothTeamsPlayedHard-Participant]

The roster construction of K-State is not great for me. The frontcourt is deep, and clearly assembled with Kansas in mind, but Hawkins was at his best when allowed to be more versatile where he could get centers out on the perimeter or take advantage of a smaller defender if they tried to guard him that way. That won’t be the case if they want to play Ugonna Onyenso and Baye Fall. Achor Achor is a mostly interior 4. David N’Guessan returns as a mostly interior 4. Irish Mobi Ikegwuruka can be listed as a guard, but if he is to see the floor next year has more of an interior game offensively. The resource gap between how they attacked the 4 and 5 as opposed to wing is quite stark. CJ Jones and Max Jones come from the 11th place team in the MVC and 10th in the Big West. It just feels a little riskier when reaching down to the bad teams of the mid-majors to fill gaps, especially when their body of work against Mountain West and up opposition is not great. Dalton Knecht came from a bad Northern Colorado team, so it is possible. Also, maybe they get more out of Brendan Hausen than Villanova. It is just an odd contrast. Dug McDaniel’s odd “suspended for 6 road games” thing probably comes with a back story. Tang has had success with small guards, so if he stays available should be good. As for USC, even if their collection of transfers, a decent number of whom are on team three or four, work out, they are going to be small by Big Ten standards. Michigan has Goldin and Wolf. Indiana has Ballo and Malik Reneau. Illinois has Zubcic, Booth, and Humrichous. Oregon has Bittle and Evans. I can go on. I think they are susceptible to getting beat up in the post and on the glass. Furthermore, if some of those journeymen players don’t like their role, how are those long trips going to work out? Musselman had issues with that last year at Arkansas, but didn’t have 5-6 hour flights mixed in.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Kansas State isn’t great on paper – but they’re good. They should be in the tournament hunt by end of season. The Big Ten is going to be an interesting conference this year for sure… This could be the new conference to beat atm. USC might not have a ton of talent up front, but the wings make up for that. And Saint Thomas is a great rebounding wing too. Sure he’ll have some size matchup problems against true bigs, but he’s no push over when his nose is after the ball. Both teams could be in that hunt.
I like Kansas’ lineup too, they’re deep and well rounded. Imo though, there’s a crapshoot of teams that have a chance to cut the nets down. Many being talented and deep teams that are well coached. While Kansas could be 1, they could also fall outside the top 10. All it takes is another good team to have the hotter game. The Big 12 is nothing to sneeze at. Kansas will be battling it out with Baylor, Iowa State, Texas and Houston from it’s own conference at the top and Kansas State and others right behind them aren’t going out easy either… I guess I’m saying Kansas is very talented and could even win the whole thing… but they might not even be the top team in the Big 12.
I’d definitely take my rankings with a grain of salt, but I’d do the same with published ones too. Everyone’s always wrong (including all of us here) and all the known rankings look too much the same.
I believe in some of these guys abilities to be good college players or perhaps prospects, but to play devil’s advocate, guys like Elmarko Jackson and Kwame Evans, Jr. are still in theory prospects. We don’t know if they’re truly great college players yet. Elmarko Jackson showed signs of improvement somewhat last year, but nothing to show he is the man yet. Kwame I’m rooting for and believe in, but too often last year he disappeared in games. On a small sample it appears by the numbers he can shoot. His form isn’t bad. But then he’s unproven still too. As much as I like the idea of Oregon itself, they’ve been talented for years, but it’s been a few since they’ve done anything with the talent they have.

[BothTeamsPlayedHard-Participant]

The season is going to play out. Players who did not have especially good years before will emerge. Some transfers that have flown under the radar will alter seasons. Some freshmen will thrive, others will underwhelm. Some of these teams that are essentially newly assembled will work out. That is life, and part of the fun. For going into the season, I like the teams with the most certainty. Other than betting on Cooper Flagg and VJ Edgecombe to be good, I am comfortable with that top 7 or so being in the mix at the end.

I think the Oregon sophomores are good candidates to take a step forward as they played quite a bit, had some good games, but had a pair of grad students in Couisnard and Dante who ran that team. It is no guarantee, but is far from a simple guess. Now, Evans will need to improve his shooting if he wants to go to the NBA, but not necessarily to be a meaningful college player. Shelstad is probably an NIL-era 4-year player unless he grows, but could be a great player at this level. Owen Freeman seems to be the big man at Iowa after finishing his freshman year well. Ohio State seems to have a lot of its frontcourt eggs in the baskets of Aaron Bradshaw, Sean Stewart, and Devin Royal. Xavier Booker has reportedly gone from 215 lbs a year ago to 242 lbs. He needed to get stronger, so that should be a good thing. In the case of Iowa, Ohio State, and Michigan State, I don’t those guys taking a step forward makes them contenders unless that leap takes those guys to All-American teams. Still, it isn’t a blind assessment when it appears as though their teams are betting on them.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

I was wondering how you would rank the order of conferences in college basketball, especially with all the realignment…
Big 12 really looks good this year. Major conferences are really becoming juggernauts. Some have 18 teams or so. Although the Big East isn’t as big, it looks solid. SEC is really tough too, while the Big Ten added some pretty good teams. ACC is good, but I’m not sold they’re great this year outside of Duke and UNC.

[HitsterParticipant]

How do people think Rutgers will go with two elite freshmen in Ace Bailey and Dylan Harper incoming this season. Could those two make them a play off team?

Also any thoughts on Daniel Jacobson who is Purdue’s size for size long term C replacement for Zach Edey. I’d say he’d be a long term prospect who will be a 4 year college player.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

I like Rutgers as a team with great talent, but don’t love Rutgers as a team overall. Too much shots for the 2 prospects who like to shoot a lot. This is in theory of course.

I agree with your assessment on Jacobson at least for now. We have to see how the season plays out of course though. Purdue might struggle without Edey.

[BothTeamsPlayedHard-Participant]

Even if one was to assume Dylan Harper and Airious Bailey are as good as billed, Rutgers still has a lot of question marks. They will need either Emmanuel Ogbole or Lathan Sommerville to be able to give them quality center minutes. If they have to play Zach Martini exclusively at the center, then they are going to give up a lot of size in the league. I have some memory of Tyson Acuff from when Emoni Bates was at EMU, and his shot selection is not great. He is wild and likes to shoot, which I am sure will endear him to people who tune in to see Harper and Bailey. Jordan Derkack is an up-transfer from Merrimack, and that is a big step up. PJ Hayes and Martini were able to shoot at their last spots, but the team otherwise lacks proven shooting and the WCC and Ivy aren’t the Big Ten. If Harper and Bailey are lottery picks, Sommerville can give them 25-30 capable minutes per night, Hayes and Martini can be steady vets who hit open shots, Acuff stays within reason, and Jeremiah Williams adds a decent jump shot, then they will be a team Draft fans love and gets the kind of hype many of those Calipari Kentucky teams did. It is a lot of ifs. It is possible things come together, but it seems like a longshot.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Dylan Harper looked really good in scrimmage, Ace Bailey has some work to do but I see the potential…

[HitsterParticipant]

Ace has been listed as possibly playing SG/SF or PF so I’ll be interested to see what ends up his long term position. Ace is listed as being 6ft 10ins on some sites and with his athletic ability he could play in any number of positions. I’d personally think he’d be more a SF in the NBA long term but it could depend where he lands.

[BothTeamsPlayedHard-Participant]

I still think they need Emmanuel Ogbole or Lathan Sommerville to be good for them to have a chance. The league is too big to be young and small.

[HitsterParticipant]

The Boozer twins both committed to Duke, Cameron Boozer gives them a ready-made replacement next season for Cooper Flagg and a blue chip centrepiece for their recruitment for next season already. Some of this year’s recruits will likely return so Duke look likely to have a stacked roster again next year.

[BothTeamsPlayedHard-Participant]

Exhibition season has started. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_yTZCfGYAxo UNC beat Memphis. I wondered how roles would shake out for UNC, but the big takeaway is that Seth Trimble might be a bigger player than expected. In his first two years. He was a great athlete and good defender, but never all that confident or effective offensively. If he makes a leap as a shooter and creator, then there is wait-your-turn potential for the Tar Heel freshmen.

Rutgers played St. John’s on BTN tonight, so there is a chance to catch an early glance at Harper and Bailey. OSU plays Cincinnati tomorrow. Xavier plays Dayton on Sunday.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

I was wondering if Trimble would ever come out of his shell…

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

I didn’t expect I’d be saying this, but Ole’Miss dominated Illinois in an exhibition.

[BothTeamsPlayedHard-Participant]

Mississippi brought back three starters (two 5th years and a 4-year), and added a senior two-year starter from Va Tech in Sean Pedulla, 5th year starter from Seton Hall Dre Davis, 5th year All-Southern team performer Mikeal Brown-Jones, 4th year All-CUSA Davon Barnes, and 3rd year All-MVC Malik Dia. Illinois is not an experienced college team. They played three 18-year olds, three 19-year olds, and Tomislav Ivisic hasn’t played in the US before.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

There’s been quite a bit of exhibitions… Duke looks really really good.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Looks like college season starts tomorrow!!! I’m ready!!!

[HitsterParticipant]

It will be fun to see how a post Edey Purdue goes tonight. Duke’s first game I’ll be looking at too but with Election I doubt the games get much coverage.

[BothTeamsPlayedHard-Participant]

The unofficial Big XII-HBCU crossover has been about as disappointing as one would expect.

The Field of 68 games and feed were surprisingly good. They assembled three good games with solid midmajor programs. The Jackrabbits of SD State are young (played four freshmen who accounted for 53 of their 80 points) but they worked a McNeese State in the 2nd half who had played 9 guys (2 juniors, 3 seniors, and 4 5th years players with transfers from Mississippi, Syracuse, Providence and Arizona State). Note that for a few months from know. McNeese might be good too.

Louisville only blew out Morehead State, but they won by 48 in a game they have lost the past two years. If Louisville and Miami bounce back, the ACC won’t take as much hate as it has the past couple years.

Missouri lost to Memphis. Texas A&M lost to UCF who might be the worst team in the Big XII (and least likeable having taken in Dior Johnson and Mikey Williams). South Carolina lost to North Florida. The always mighty Georgia struggled to get past Tennessee Tech. A whole lot of people who should have known better were claiming this was going to be the year the SEC had the best basketball conference in the country. Nope.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Baylor vs Gonzaga about to start… that one should be good at least… We’ll see.

[BothTeamsPlayedHard-Participant]

It isn’t a surprise that Gonzaga won, but that was never close. They are deep, skillful, and familiar with one another. If they get off to a good start, they might be able to all but secure a top seed with a first weekend in Seattle by the start of WCC play.

Baylor vs. Arkansas on Saturday will offer the Bears a nice chance to bounce back. I don’t think they will have that many games where they shoot it as poorly as they did.

Texas lost to Ohio State to complete the stellar opening night for the SEC, but Tre Johnson was probably the most impressive freshman draft prospect.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Baylor and a lot of the SEC teams have new rosters constructed and will need time to gel.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Demin had a game tonight on both ends of the floor. Does everything.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Darn, I missed the game, but caught a bit of highlights… Ryan Kalkbrenner went off last night though, 20/22 going for 49 points albeit against pedestrians anyway…

[HitsterParticipant]

Kalkbrenner had an amazing game we don’t see many near 50 point games in the NCAA. Alex Karaban had a real stats filler game with 20 points, 6 rebounds,, 7 assists and 7 blocks for UConn . A few of last years bench guys looked like they can step up too and a couple of their transfers in had good games. So they can possibly be in the mix again as they have a fair few shooters who can bang in the 3’s and if McNeeley really finds his range in the tournament they can go very deep again.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

What a difference a draft class makes huh? College basketball is better than last year and so are the freshmen stars…

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Cooper Flagg is playing even better than advertised in this game against Kentucky. Duke is legit this year for sure.

[HitsterParticipant]

Duke if the prospects all clicked were going to be good but they do look very solid so far. Maluach has looked very promising and is a legit starter sooner than some may have thought. Duke face some good frontcourts in the next few weeks so we’ll really see just how they match up there.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Kentucky eeked out the win, but Duke’s trajectory looks better overall imo.

[BothTeamsPlayedHard-Participant]

I disagree on the trajectory of Duke. Cooper Flagg is great, but that team is not. It does not appear as though Proctor or Foster have taken much of a step in their development. Maluach is huge but limited. I thought they were a net negative in the transfer portal, but would have guessed they would have thought they would be getting a little more out of Sion James and Maliq Brown. They also just gave Isaiah Evans a DNP. It seems like a much less impressive group than I expected even as Flagg is meeting or exceeding very high expectations.

Kentucky has six fifth-year guys with a lot of experience plus a junior in Otega Oweh. It isn’t just the talent level, but the ability and willingness of that group to allow for the game to dictate where they can pressure the defense. It is apparent that Mark Pope is a better in-game coach than Calipari by far. They are going to be able to win a lot of different ways. It isn’t on the Gonzaga level, but far closer than I expected and certainly coming together quickly.

As for the early game, I was hoping Xavier Booker would have taken a step forward. To see his size and mobility, you would think he would be able to impact the game. He just doesn’t, and has to learn nobody is guarding him at the arc for a reason. Kansas isn’t clicking yet, but still won a pair against UNC and Michigan State.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

So Duke’s bunch of freshmen that went toe to toe with grown men, some 5th year seniors on high NIL deals – you don’t think they have a high trajectory and won’t be improving??? Isaiah Evans has had little playing time this year – Tyrese Proctor and Caleb Foster are adequate college guards, but not as good as we hoped. Foster though made some good reads in the game and does other things in the game besides score. Sion James and Maliq Brown are a little redundant to Flagg and Knueppel. They’re still solid though. Maluach is raw and figuring things out while he’s improving in his game. If this were a rematch 3 months from now I’d blindly pick Duke, as both teams are kind of learning how to play together still, Duke’s talent would likely improve more over the duration of the season. Heck, if Flagg didn’t have some costly turnovers at the end, Duke probably wins the game. Imo it’s underclassmen growing pains that lost and can be ironed out.

The Michigan State/Kansas game was a good one too. Booker’s non existence in that game surprised me a bit too. But it’s a game and he’ll do better than he played for sure. Dickinson somehow dominated and Michigan State had no answer for him. Frankie Fidler played well too. Kansas is legit.

[HitsterParticipant]

It seems ironic Kentucky are now the “veteran” loaded team and Duke have a lot of top freshmen. The Wildcats with all their experience could be a legit contender especially as Mark Pope looks a very good tactical coach who will make good in game calls as BTPH said above. His game management and the team’s experience could mean they will be hard to beat in march Madness if they get a good seeding. The right calls and keeping a calm head in sudden death knock out games is key.

Plus Kentucky outscored Duke hugely on 3 point shots if UK are one of the better 3 point shooting teams in March Madness then that gives them an edge too.
I do think Duke will come on strong and if the supporting players around Flagg and the likely high pucks can step up then they too can be in the mix getting to Sweet 16, Elite 8 erc,

Duke already have the Boozer twins committed for next season so if the more experienced guys on their roster aren’t quite the right mix they do maybe need to find some good transfers next summer ideally perhaps juniors who they can get two years out of or even Soph guys who may not be potential NBA stars but can be great team players and be the building blocks for the freshmen stars to play around.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Duke might be even better next year… But yeah by the end of this year I expect Duke to be hanging around in the tournament to make at least the Sweet 16 unless there’s some flukeish injury or something. Cooper Flagg just might be the best college basketball player right now – he’s still 17! He’s definitely exceeding even high expectations and his help should improve over the course of the year. Imo Knueppel is a better prospect than Gradey Dick was for Kansas a couple years ago. He didn’t have his best game. Gradey Dick is coming around in the NBA now… And in fact, Sion James could have gotten more minutes last game to take Knueppel out of his off game. He doesn’t do much if his shot isn’t falling though…

SEC isn’t looking so bad atm. Arkansas and Troy might be a good game though, Troy’s underrated.

[BothTeamsPlayedHard-Participant]

This isn’t a blind assessment. I am going on what I saw. These were teams in stark contrast to long-held stereotypes of the programs. Duke was incredibly reliant on one-on-ones and contested shots from its stars. Flagg and Knueppel took 39 of 70 shots, and I would venture a guess maybe 8 didn’t have a man or multiple men draped on them. You have to be able to get some easy ones, and the offense they trotted out last night isn’t set up to get them. Kentucky had a better functioning offense that led to them getting many more clean looks. They exploited defensive mistakes, and found easy opportunities. Is some of that a result of them being old? Yes. Is that going to change over the course of the season? No. Honestly, given the number of clean looks they got, they didn’t shoot especially well from the perimeter. Now, I don’t think Kentucky was all that good off the dribble. Time will tell how much of that was really good on-ball defense from Duke, and how much is them not being great.

Assessing a college team is not the same same as assessing the prospects. I can both appreciate that Cooper Flagg does the hard stuff really well (and you want that size, skill, and ability in a top pick) while also feeling that having it be the full extent of the offense is not the best way to win against Kentucky, @ Arizona, Kansas, the ACC, or six straight games in March.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Arizona State’s been playing tough opponents and giving them a run for their money… You got any thoughts on the GCU vs Arizona State game tonight? That should be a good game.

I see what you’re saying about the one on ones with Duke, but when you have Freshmen that are getting playing time and playing well, they generally get better both individually and as a team. I don’t think Duke is a championship team because they don’t have enough experience. But they are that good that they will likely make a deep run. That’s what I was saying. My pick is still Alabama. The best teams currently atm though has been Auburn and Kansas so far imo. Kentucky is better coached, have more experience than Duke – but I don’t think win it either. They might be 5th in the SEC.

[OhCanada-Participant]

I didn’t even watch basketball last year so its gonna take a while before I get a read on the teams, but just early on I would say Uconn has to be top dog until they at least lose a game which maybe a while, Kansas does not look like a fun team to play against, Marquette looks fantastic Kam Jones might even win the Naismith and Gonzaga is always a problem as well.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

UConn’s tough – I’d say Alabama, Auburn and Kansas all look like they’re destined to go somewhere early on at least for now too. A team who can really challenge UConn though is Creighton.

[HitsterParticipant]

UConn I was unsure about but they do look very solid again and have the winning mentality. Also their bench is contributing well so Dan Hurley has a lot of depth there if everyone stays sound. When it comes to March Madness even if he does tighten up his rotation he might be able to use a legit 9 or 10 man rotation when other teams are 7 or 8 max. This could be a big advantage in tight games and as the season reaches a climax.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Arizona State is pretty tough. They just outdueled GCU last night and beat Santa Clara earlier… only loss is by 8 points to Gonzaga. They seemed to have improved from their blowout exhibition loss to Duke.

Alabama plays at Purdue today… That might be a good one. It’s on Peacock though, I can watch it – but it’s a weird place for watching games imo.

Another game tonight – unfortunately that overlaps is Marquette vs Maryland. Don’t know who will win that one. Derik Queen already has a 20/20 game and Kam Jones has been playing well so far too.

[HitsterParticipant]

I’ve got to make a list of the big match ups and set time aside to watch some of those games. Derik Queen I’ve not seen a lot of so I’m always a bit cautious on the hype for someone like him. He is clearly a good prospect but isn’t an elite athlete or defender or has crazy size like some other big men prospects. He doesn’t yet have a 3 point range and his game isn’t eye catching like some guys but I do like his feel for the game. He seems to be a decent basketball IQ and understands his roie plus his game whilst not outstanding in any facet doesn’t have major weaknesses. If he proves to be coachable he can have a nice NBA career.

He turns 20 soon but doesn’t have to be a one and done, he could make a bomb on NIL money and probably improve his game and declare in 26 or 27 if he doesn’t make the NBA jump next summer.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

I think Queen will end up like Kevin Love for an early comp. He doesn’t have the 3 ball quite yet, but he has his skillset. I think he might develop a 3 though and he’s just slightly better skilled overall than say Zach Randolph used to… Either way a 20/20 game as an underclassmen is pretty good.

[HitsterParticipant]

I like the Z-Bo comparison more than K-Love although Queen is a better rebounder than Z-Bo was at a similar age. I’d need to see if Queen does have a legit 3 point range for him to be considered a top 10 pick. But I’d happily put him outside the lottery but in the top 20.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

If my bb was updated today, I’d have his overall rank between 18-27… same difference

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Sears gave the game away in the Alabama/Purdue game. Jarin Stevenson was non existent and wow Purdue looked pretty good at home, especially Trey Kaufman-Renn.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Marquette escapes.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Great matchup today at 3pm ET. Particular matchup within a matchup between CMB vs Mackenzie Mgbako who has really stepped up his game so far. Indiana should win, as they are at home and have a more complete team…

Colorado State can maybe give Ole’ Miss a good game, it overlaps with the last one though. Ole’ Miss being at home I’d give a slight advantage to as well. Nique Clifford should get his though…

An underrated tough late matchup is Santa Clara vs Nevada. Santa Clara has played some tough opponents and seem to have fallen short, while Nevada has won some noteworthy teams… Imo Santa Clara will escape, but I’d stay away from a bet on this game…

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Nevada is about to finish off Santa Clara in a blowout. They look very tough, and pretty experienced all around.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

CMB just was in foul trouble the entire game. Indiana’s back court was way better and so was Mackenzie Mgbako.
Nique Clifford got his, but it wasn’t much of a game.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Anyone else having trouble posting??? I hope the forum stays up…

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

All the other forums are up, I can find old posts… but there’s no way to post a new post on the forum or look easily for old posts/recent posts… any way it can be fixed???

[HitsterParticipant]

I tried to open the topic but it then wouldn’t open and started to search the sites archive for it. I’ve managed to post this by going onto where Norrin was shown as the last poster and opening it as his most recent post.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Yeah, it’s only the main page’s last topics… Really hope this gets fixed asap! Love chatting on here with different basketball aspects and conversations. The NBA draft forum is out of commission right now… So if you can hear us out there and are able to fix this, please do!

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Gonzaga looks better than I thought they would. San Diego State, a very solid team played Gonzaga and it wasn’t even as close as the final score suggested. It could have been closer to 20 points had there not been garbage time.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Couple noteworthy games today… Hofstra/Florida State… Florida State’s an 8.5 favorite against a hot mid major team… I think Hofstra gives them a run for their money at least.

Purdue/Marquette is the other game that has the make up of a good one…

[HitsterParticipant]

Ace Bailey had a tidy debut and he and Dylan Harper aren’t dominating the shooting from the rest of their team.

Purdue vs Marquette will give a good idea where both teams are. Purdue beat a well fancied Alabama team on Saturday and a few guys are stepping up in the post Zach Edey era. Kam Jones has had his shooting boots on for Marquette so far this season so it looks a tight game IMO.

I’m watching the NCAA from two different viewpoints trying to keep up to date with Cooper, Ace and co and also trying to look out for good match up games when the stronger teams clash.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Nice, then I’ll try to continue to state the obvious good games… Hope it does something for more than just me… Alabama hasn’t been themselves – shooting whoas every game and Stevenson hasn’t lived up to expectations yet. Purdue on the other hand playing great, especially hitting their shots. Kam Jones is a handful so far, should be a good challenge for Purdue. It’s definitely a good year to keep up with… I’ve heard from a few that Demin is challenging Flagg for top spot atm. I disagree, but I can maybe see Demin 2nd if he keeps it up.

[HitsterParticipant]

I still think Ace is the one guy who could challenge Cooper for the top spot. But Ace, Cooper, VJ, Dylan and Egor are where I think the top 3 comes from at this moment with Cooper still going first and Ace in the top 3. Traore as the possible top non NCAA guy is the wildcard plus if a team really needs a big high up in the draft and Cooper has already gone does that pull Maluach, Zikarsky, Essengue into top 5 consideration?

The only other guy who I could see as a possible top 5 pick is Liam McNeeley who if he is the best 3 point shooter in this class and that is what a lot of teams seem to want most could go high in the right situation.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Interesting take. I’m not as high on McNeeley. I think he’s a great NCAA player, but a suped up version of Baylor Scheierman. In last year’s draft, Scheierman was a fringe first. McNeeley is a younger and better version in a way better draft. I think he’s mid to late first atm – but that’s just me. And either you forgot Tre Johnson or you’re sleeping on him. Check out a Texas game or highlights sometime… he’s worth it. Syracuse might be a descent test on Thursday. A guy worth monitoring to go high is Will Riley too. Riley’s teammate Jakucionis could be in the lottery and Asa Newell seems to be performing well for Georgia. Ben Saraf, a guy pretty low on this site’s big board I have a lot higher. He might go in the lottery as well.

A sneak peak at my atm top 5:
Tier 1
Cooper Flagg – F – Duke
Tier 2
Ace Bailey – F – Rutgers
Dylan Harper – G – Rutgers
Tre Johnson – SG/SF – Texas
Egor Demin – G/F – BYU

Hofstra couldn’t last til the end on Florida State – they got crushed at the end. Marquette so far leading Purdue at home in a so far close one.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Kam Jones is playing like a POY candidate… flirting with a triple double this game and not dominating by scoring.

[HitsterParticipant]

Guys like Tre, Knueppel would be in my 3rd tier with likes of McNeeley etc.

I have Cooper as first pick then Ace, VJ, Denim and Dylan Harper in my 2nd tier.

My 3rd tier would be the rest of my lottery picks with Traore and Tre as lottery locks and top 10 likely. I think the bigs and McNeeley could be top 5 wild cards to late lottery so they have a wider range. This does look such a stacked draft like some of the later 2000’s ones.

I could make a case for guys outside my top two tiers to have been the top pick in last years draft and any guy in the top two tiers to have gone 2nd after Wemby in his draft if they had been same age. Cooper Flagg would have gone first in over half of the last 10 drafts IMO too doing a quick like for like off the top of my head.

Marquette and Purdue looks pretty tight so far. Jayhawks and UConn look possibly two best teams at the moment IMO. I’d have to think how they would match up in a knockout game but might just favour UConn if they could negate Dickinson’s size and scoring.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

I agree on Kansas and UConn, I’d add Gonzaga too though for now… but by seasons’ end it’ll be different for sure. Looks like Jones just messed around and got a triple double!!!

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Btw, another interesting take… Knueppel I’m not as high on right now either. He’s about a fringe 1st round pick atm to me. Tre Johnson’s on another level than Knueppel imo. I agree though that Liam McNeeley’s slightly better than Knueppel.

[HitsterParticipant]

I haven’t seen anything convincing from Knueppel yet and have his team mate Maluach ahead of him in my head if they drafted tomorrow.

Newell, Queen, Fland are amongst the other guys I’d have as first rounders possible late lottery guys. Also Alex Karaban having been on two NCAA title winning teams and as a possible All American this year has to be in this mix too. Teams like the Spurs with multiple picks would love a guy like Alex who can be a good tole player and has an NBA ready all round game.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Illinois/Alabama has to be the matchup of the night – starts in an hour and a half. I like both teams, we’ll see how the young prospects of Illinois can do against a powerhouse…

[HitsterParticipant]

Kam Jones had first Marquette triple double since a certain D-Wade well over 20 years ago in Marquette’s win over Purdue which was Purdue’s first regular season non conference defeat in just under 4 years.

Kam I don’t see as a first rounder but he could be a 2nd round contender and be a useful bench player for a number of teams.

Alabama lost to Purdue in their last game so will want to bounce back but Illinois are looking good too and like Alabama went very deep into March Madness last season but I think this year the Crimson Tide will be more legit contenders and tried to put a strong as possible team around Mark Sears in his last year at the college.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

The weird thing is – is how bad Sears has been playing this year… he’s been way off and I’m confident he’ll turn it around at some point… And based on how bad the team has been shooting this year outside of Nelson, I think they’re still built for a good chance at the NCAA title. I’m sticking with my pick there for now and it would take a lot to change my mind on that one. UConn, Kansas, Auburn, Gonzaga – they all look good for now too – we’ll see.
This Illinois team is pretty good for a young squad and although they were playing shaky in the beginning of this game, overall they look way better than that exhibition loss to St. John’s or whoever it was. Jakucionis has good composure which he looked uncomfortable before the season started. He’s got a high IQ/good feel for the game.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Drake is doing well against Miami(FL) right now…
I think there could be other good choices of games later:

Seton Hall/VCU
Baylor/St. John’s
Syracus/Texas
Vandy/Nevada
Texas Tech/St. Joseph’s
Virginia/Tennessee
Memphis/San Francisco

I know I’ll catch Memphis/San Francisco, but not sure what I’ll watch before that other than Drake beating Miami atm.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Baylor/St.John’s has been a crazy game! Heading to 2OT now. Baylor really started bad too.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Wow, Roach with the game winner… next up Memphis/SF

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Memphis pulled off the win – every bit of a good game as hoped although the top prospects didn’t have their best performances.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Who you guys got tonight??? Duke or Arizona??? Should be a great game, they’re playing at Arizona.

[HitsterParticipant]

With all the talk about where HS prospects commit to might we see some waiting until after the transfer portal has happened and then going to the team that has the best supporting cast around them.

Krivas against Maluach might be an good match up prospect wise in Duke vs Arizona.

[HitsterParticipant]

Collin Murray-Boyles hit a couple of 3 pointers for South Carolina today. His lack of a 3 point range for a guy who might be slightly undersized for an NBA frontcourt prospect was one of the big negatives in my mind. But if he can continue to develop his shooting range this season and continue to put up good numbers then he can be a late first rounder or early 2nd rounder next year or when he declares.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Yeah, I saw that in the box scores… 2/2 from three and 2/3 on the year… if he continues to shoot, he’ll be a very solid player. I moved him down a bit on my board right before that happened… it’s so early in the season that there’s still a lot of movement on it… well anyways, don’t know whether to move him back up or not.

Krivas is a little more seasoned than Maluach, but Maluach has good raw skills and size/tools to do what he wants – should be a good matchup. Carter Bryant is a really good athlete and prospect. I think he might give the Duke wings some problems.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Duke appears to be pulling away from Arizona atm… Flagg’s been pretty outstanding.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Looks like maybe the best game of the day is an early on in the Bahamas… Marquette/Georgia

[HitsterParticipant]

Flagg looked something special and is already ahead of where I thought he’d be scoring, creative and 3 point shooting wise and those aren’t even the strongest part of his game. He looks as if he could be a 20ppg NBA player if he carries on like this.

Knueppel looks a very good shooter and whilst I don’t believe the top 5 hype around him I can see him being a top 10 pick potentially.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Flagg’s looking like a lighter version of LeBron. I saw this comp by someone and kind of laughed it off at first, but the more I see Flagg – the more I can’t unsee a lot of LeBron similarities in his game. At this stage of his youth, yes LeBron was probably a little ahead of Flagg – but it’s the closest comp I’ve seen. He’s been doing a lot of duties on offense at the 1.

Knueppel to me looks more like a Gradey Dick/Dennis Scott type player. Maybe can create slightly more space for himself, but not much. I see him all over big boards pretty high, I’m still not sold he’s a lottery pick. I don’t think it’s out of the question, but I’m really impressed with this class overall. I think there are better prospects than Knueppel at least atm. In a normal draft – yes, if this were last year – heck yeah… but Idk about lottery this year. Not sold even though most people seem to be – I do get it, shooting is a great attribute. There are just so many talented guys though this year. I like Knueppel a little more than the comps I gave him and Dennis Scott had a descent career and Gradey Dick is blossoming into a productive player this year – but that’s in a perfect world. If we play perfect world for every prospect he falls a tier below. Not sure whether or not he’s a better prospect than Carter Bryant who was also in that game. You can’t teach athleticism and he guards players too when he’s in.

Looks like Marquette is finally pulling away in that game…

[HitsterParticipant]

Flagg as a great white hope version of LBJ is a new one on me. Flagg in his first college year is the same age as LBJ in his HS senior year to try and get the best comparison. LBJ was by far the better scorer at a similar age but Flagg is way ahead on defence.

I still prefer Scottie Pippen to LBJ as a Flagg comparison I think we are now past the AK47/Shawn Marion hybrid personally. Pippen’s figures were skewed as he played with MJ so his potential scoring decreased but his assists increased. Flagg I just don’t see as an LBJ volume scorer but more as an efficient scorer with an elite game possibly Tim Duncan type numbers.

Cooper Flagg will be number one offence choice for Duke but it will depend where he lands in the NBA as regards his scoring but he’ll get baskets but is the sort of player who won’t demand shots but he’ll get them to keep him happy and as he will likely be his team’s franchise player unless he say landed alongside Wemby.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

I like the Scottie comp too… Maybe if you take a plus Franz Wagner – hybridize him with Pippen and divide that by a LeBron… the answer to the equation is Cooper Flagg. Lol! Idk, but he’s a special talent for sure.

I wish I can come up with a good comp for Ace. I haven’t seen a good one yet. Best is maybe MPJ, there’s a little similarities with the pre injured MPJ as a prospect I suppose, but even they’re different.

Edgecombe finally had an efficient shooting night. His shot isn’t there yet though. He still has a learning curve that’s pretty big imo.

Will Riley is being seriously slept on with various big boards. I mean he’s skinny, but he can grow into his body right? I actually like his NBA frame in the long term. He has been performing well too. I actually like him more than Knueppel.

Khaman Maluach is pretty legit. His defensive ability is already good and he is developing fast. I wonder if he could crack the top 7.

The best returning prospect so far is probably Jaland Lowe out of Pitt. He already has a triple double and has been doing everything at this point. He’s improved a bit. Evan Tomes from this site is on to something with that guy, I think.

[HitsterParticipant]

There will be teams who miss out on Cooper who need a legit big so Maluach is in the mix to go inside top 8 possibly even top 6.

Will Riley has good size for an SF and is having a great shooting run. His size will make him an effective defender and he looks as if he has a creative game too. He’d be on my board to be drafted but where from mid to late first to anywhere in the second I wouldn’t like to say.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Adrian Wooley from little Kennesaw State might have an NBA future of some sort. He’s under the radar and brings some defense and shooting to the table. Still though… What’s wrong with Rutgers??? Lol!
Pretty inexcusable losing to Kennesaw State even if they’re a descent mid major program. Demin hasn’t played anyone, but at least he doesn’t lose to Kennesaw State… He has to be ahead of Ace and Dylan as of now… Even though they performed well, it’s Kennesaw State!!! That’s a big “L” on the forehead. They better make up ground after that one if they want to compete with Demin for even the 2nd spot – forget Cooper Flagg. He’s the top spot. Ace and Dylan won’t catch him. They have to play outstanding now imo to catch Demin in the NBA draft horse race of big boards out there.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Tonight we get to watch a couple of heavyweights… Auburn/Iowa State

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Idk which main event I’ll be watching first, but I’m probably going back to watch the one I didn’t catch live… but 2 great games on tonight…

Houston/Alabama at Las Vegas should be a great game of pace, defense and some excitement on a prospective level. Not sure who will win this one at this point of the season. I like Alabama in the long haul more though, so I guess in a vacuum I’d take Alabama. Should be a great game.

Kansas/Duke is loaded full of talent… I think this is the one I’m pressing record on or at least rewinding to the beginning so I can catch both games… If Maluach stays out of foul trouble from the seasoned Dickinson, Duke has a good chance. Kansas is loaded and the #1 team as of now, but KenPom’s prediction is Duke. Oh yeah and this is a different arena in Las Vegas.

Another game that’ll be on late to catch is Auburn/UNC in Maui. Imo UNC has the pieces to give Auburn their first loss. Auburn barely escaped Iowa State last night in an incredible come back – don’t know how much they’ll have in the tank… but we’ll see. Auburn has looked outstanding so far.

Any predictions???

Big day in college basketball – can’t wait!

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

The Alabama/Houston game was a defensive battle as good as advertised. Grant Nelson had a sneaky good game and Mark Sears had a good second half. Labaron Philon struggled this game. He got to his spots on some drives, but held the ball too long at times and couldn’t finish anything tonight. It took Alabama overtime to outlast Houston. Foul trouble for Houston didn’t help either.

Kansas/Duke was a great second half at least that I saw… First half was close, so probably the same. And yes, Kansas is the better team, but Duke being once again a young team learning more on the fly – I’m seeing a team that’s going to be a serious tough out come tourney time. They’re still figuring out how to play together as a young unit, Knueppel who blew the game at the end and couldn’t hit a shot all game did show me something that actually made me move him up a peg on the big board – he can do more than just shoot against a good team. He might be closer to Liam than I thought.

Auburn/UNC just about to start

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Wow, I missed it, but just got back and noticed the Big East has an identity crisis on our hands… Creighton got killed by San Diego State apparently and UConn lost back to back games now – this one against Colorado. What just happened!!!???

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Looks like Auburn is a tough team to beat too. They started early on UNC and never really looked back. UNC gave Auburn a game at least a little in the second half, but never came close enough to catch em’. Johni Broome is playing like a Wooden Award candidate.

[HitsterParticipant]

Duke vs Kansas was a good game. The Jayhawks look legit contenders but Duke gave them a good run and if Cooper continues to develop they can go deep in March Madness too.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

A few good games to catch today imo are all from the Players Era Festival in Nevada…

Texas A&M vs Rutgers… Texas A&M when they are on look like a tournament team. Their good back court like to control the tempo, etc… but they will run into Dylan Harper disrupting it. If Rutgers plays like they did against Alabama – they’ll win.

San Diego State faces Houston. After being humbled with their first loss, Houston could be a sleeping giant that got disturbingly waken by Alabama earlier. San Diego State on the other hand destroyed Creighton and then came up on the short end of a tough Oregon team. I think this one will be a war.

Alabama finally in the festival’s championship will face Oregon. Oregon has looked better than they have cohesively in a few years. Meanwhile Alabama – well they’re contenders.

Overlapping the San Diego State/Houston game will be another side show that could be good if somehow that one gets lopsided…

Kent State/Kennesaw State
Caught the end of the Kennesaw State game last night… hey they’re a pretty good team. Maybe Rutgers wasn’t ready for them – Kennesaw State has 3 good freshman on their squad and the top one Wooley is a solid prospect that everyone’s glossing over. He’s a play maker and a smooth operator. Should be a good game against another underrated team in Kent State.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Rutgers might be the team that was asleep until the Kennesaw State game. They are outplaying this Texas A&M team atm, especially here in the second half. Ace is at least attempting to handle the ball more; he might actually learn that skill. It’s still a work in progress though.
Dylan Harper is having a decent but bad shooting game… Their teammates look more involved though which is key for winning. They were standing around a week ago.
This game should go down to the wire.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

San Diego State just took it to Houston in overtime. Wow, mighty Houston has lost thrice already! They were ahead for a while too. I’m on the Miles Byrd’s a decent prospect bandwagon for sure.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

What a barnburner that was!!! Grant Nelson made his layup about a half second too late… Oregon pulls off the upset! On a side note, imo Labaron Philon’s been pretty good more times than not, especially when he doesn’t have to guard Dylan Harper. Oregon might have won, but Philon made a case again that he was the best player on Alabama tonight. Mark Sears hasn’t had a good year so far. This was a good tournament full of clashing good teams.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

I got 7 potential good games on my radar tomorrow…

Cincinnati @ Villanova
Arkansas @ Miami(FL)
Notre Dame @ Georgia
BYU @ Providence
Ole’Miss @ Louisville
Florida State @ LSU
Kentucky @ Clemson

The last game on the list is the only certain one I’ll watch though… Kentucky has been more than impressive thus far gelling with new players and a new coach on the fly.
I got 8 games on my radar on DEC 4th:

Baylor @ UConn
Ohio State @ Maryland
Alabama @ UNC
Virginia @ Florida
Marquette @ Iowa State
Louisiana Tech @ Memphis
Auburn @ Duke
Texas @ NC State

Of these, I’m likely watching the Alabama @ UNC game and then Auburn @ Duke game… I wouldn’t bet on any of them though, they’re probably all close. Lots of matchups and prospects in these games… The Auburn/Duke game we might see the Wooden Award winner face off against the potential future #1 pick.

[OhCanada-Participant]

I’ll probably be watching Florida St. vs. LSU game. Both teams have been great this year and Jamir Watkins is probably this drafts biggest sleeper right now. He plays like a smaller Jimmy Butler. Very physical, seeks contact, shot comes and goes, great defender and playmaker. If FSU keeps winning which I think they will he will rise up draft boards or be the steal of the draft. FSU just keeps producing good players.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

The prospect to watch in the game though imo could be Vyctorius Miller from LSU. He’s been solid, consistent and played against decent competition so far. I haven’t seen a full game of him, but from what I’ve seen he’s good for a freshman. I’m not sure he’s going to declare this year though, lots of loaded talent in this class and he hasn’t gotten buzz quite yet.

[HitsterParticipant]

Vyctorius is a slightly older freshman having turned 20 in September and needs to improve his 3 point shooting but I agree another year in college and he can develop into a good prospect.

If Jamir could be anything like Jimmy Butler as a late first rounder or early 2nd rounder he’d be a steal.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Ahhhh! Good to know… tbh I’m not very high on either, but they’ll probably both make the league. They’re on the fringe imo. Jamir I can see stylistically like Jimmy though.

[HitsterParticipant]

Gilbert Arenas’ son Alijah is apparently reclassifying to join an NCAA team next year instead of 2026. Alijah is a top 5 recruit for 2026 college intake on ESPN and also a top 5 pick on NBA Draft Room’s early 2027 mock draft.

I admit I’ve not seen anything of this lad but given his rating and being a son of an All Star then he would seem pretty legit.and have to be a potential top 5 pick in 2026 draft. Him and Cameron Boozer and to a lesser extent Cayden Boozer means we have sons of a couple of All Stars just behind AJ Dybantsa in the big boards.

AJ and now Alijah reclassifying means the 2026 draft is getting stronger already.

[OhCanada-Participant]

Trade deadlines gonna be crazy because next years draft might actually be better than this years. I could see the Pelicans trading everyone, Markannen could get traded, maybe even Paul George who knows.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Idk why, but I keep getting this feeling Philly is going to shut their players down and they’ll end up with Ace Bailey and trade Paul George. I think they should trade Embiid and George and do another reset. Sounds crazy, but Embiid gets hurt too much for my liking. They’d get a big haul for George alone… then they could really get a haul for Embiid.

[OhCanada-Participant]

They have to shut it down. OKC gets the OKC 1st round pick this year but its top 6 protected. Actually OKC has 5 1st round picks in this draft, the Clippers pick which should be 15-20, the Heat pick which should also be in that 15-20 range then a top 10 protected Jazz pick, a top 6 protected 76ers pick and their own. Could you imagine if they get two lottery picks and three more late 1st rounders? OKC is gonna be a dynasty.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Yeah, OKC is the future of the NBA… and maybe now too.

[HitsterParticipant]

NOP have Ingram on an expiring deal and given they have over $150 million already committed on salary for 25/26 are unlikely to be able to afford to keep him. But if they did get Flagg or a top 3 pick then might they look at offers for Zion but given his durability issues getting value for him would be hard.

We all know Danny Ainge’s draft ethos and with Lauri Markkanen tied up for the next 5 years including this season then any team trading for him would get him for that guaranteed timespan.

The teams with assets though are those who might well be picking high but I fully agree those who are in rebuild or tanking mode will be looking to position themselves to have as many draft options as possible.

Lakers we need to keep an eye on as LBJ’s time in the league runs down as once he retires they will likely be looking at established players to put around AD. Also Brooklyn has the most projected cap space next summer so could be the team to take on salary as they will be in rebuild and look to accrue draft assets.

[OhCanada-Participant]

Lakers are for sure interesting because they have Knecht and Russell. That plus some picks is a decent package for a pissed off star player that asks for a trade.

I wanna see what teams like Atlanta who is on a streak and beat the Cavs back to back are going to do.

Or Houston. Last year all their players got hurt and they got better because other players got oppurtunity and played better than their usual starters. They just have so much talent. They could trade Van Vleet, some picks and some of that young talent they have just sitting on the bench. Houston could realistically make packages for at least 2 star players.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

I hope Houston keeps their current young core and moves on with FVV and Dillon Brooks. Brooks in particular was playing pretty well, haven’t seen too much NBA games lately though. Just later games on bad college matchup nights it seems like tonight. But I think Houston can get maybe some value with those guys for now… if they can I’d stay young and pile on my picks as much as possible like OKC does. On the other hand, I can see Houston pushing in a bunch of chips for a star. That would give them a shot to win now fastest.

Knecht + Russell is an interesting package. I think that would be a good sell high for the Lakers, especially Knecht

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Kentucky/Clemson in a tight one so far. Schieffelin has been playing well all over the place and Clemson’s been hitting some big shots holding the lead about at half…

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Clemson’s a pretty good team – they could be as good as last year’s team. Just beat Kentucky by 4.

[HitsterParticipant]

What are people’s thoughts on Flory Bidunga at Kansas?

IMO he is very athletic but is still a work in progress but being on the powerhouse Jayhawks team he’ll get a lot of coverage and if the team go deep into the NCAA tournament as they are favoured to do he could put himself in a position to be drafted. The flip side is he has to play behind possible All American Hunter Dickinson so his minutes will be limited. Could he be drafted on upside or does he need to do what Donovan Clingan did and return for a Soph season as a starter and look to hone his skills?

I’d lean towards him returning but as he is from DR Congo would he be eligible for NILS money like US players are?

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Good athlete, defender, good around the rim – a bit raw but on a great NCAA team. 50/50 he enters this year. I don’t think he’s eligible to get the same NIL deals US players can…
Alabama having their way so far against UNC.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Auburn lost on the road to Duke, meanwhile Alabama beat UNC on the road… Of those, Cooper Flagg – yeah he could improve his shooting and his dribbling can too – but he brings so much to the table it’s crazy. And beware of the Isaiah Evans sighting we had in that game! And before that the Alabama game, I’d say Labaron Philon looks pretty good when he’s not matched up against Dylan Harper. Alabama got UNC pretty good too.

Noticed from watching highlights and scores that Kansas lost at Creighton… Interesting. I would have thought that could happen earlier in the season, but a little surprised on that one now even though the game was at Creighton… As for Flory, from the looks of the box scores – he needs to play more. Hard to do when playing Kalkbrenner and company when you have Hunter Dickinson though…

[HitsterParticipant]

Pop Isaacs looked like he had his shooting boots on in the Creighton vs Kansas match.

Kalkbrenner played more minutes than Hunter Dickinson and Flory combined. Hunter took very few shots for the team’s go to scorer so it looks like Ryan had his number.

Who if either of Ryan and Hunter get drafted will be interesting to see.

Creighton being unranked despite having been a tournament regular for the last 4 years and still having Ryan is a bit surprising. Greg McDermott has done a great job there over the last 15 years and has stayed loyal to the Bluejays when there must have been interest from Unis who could pay a much greater salary.

Tennesse who I didn’t think would be so strong this year as Knecht is now in the NBA seem to be playing superbly. They did bring in some 5th year guys but losing a scorer like Knecht is like Purdue minus Edey. They have swept all before them so far and Rick Barnes at 70 years old is still coaching as well as ever. Can he finally take a team all the way to the Championship?

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Kalkbrenner is bigger, longer, a rim protector with a 3 – which is prototypical in the league today. Hunter Dickinson is in my top 500 prospects, but didn’t make my big board – that’s my perspective though.

[HitsterParticipant]

Sizewise I think Ryan and Hunter are very similar but I agree Ryan is a better rim protector and his 3 point shooting seemed to advance last season. Hunter’s numbers are down this year so I have to have Ryan ahead on my big board.

Boston with their late first rounder could be a good landing spot for Ryan. Al Horford turns 39 next year and Porz always has to be managed carefully so an NBA ready big like Ryan who has a good feel for the game would seem an ideal pick. Ryan would be on a powerhouse team so this would help him hugely even if he was playing limited minutes as and when he was needed.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Kalkbrenner’s got a few inches standing reach on Dickinson and a couple inches on him in wingspan, along with at least 10 pounds on him… And he passes the eye test more to me. I think Kalkbrenner is likely getting drafted and Dickinson is a summer league guy about as impactful as Timme was…

[HitsterParticipant]

Ryan has 3.5 inches on standing reach and 1.5 inches on wingspan and is a year younger so that does give him a nice advantage. Hunter is still a huge guy but as neither has declared before there must be good reasons why NBA transition might not be straightforward.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

I can see Kalkbrenner for the Celtics, but imo at that point in the draft I’d be happy with Joan Beringer atm… different kind of big though. A massive big Hansen Yang wouldn’t be bad. If Thomas Sorber fell to that range, he’d be golden though. He can play good defense and has an outside shot… decent rebounder too.

[HitsterParticipant]

Beringer would be a long term guy for any team similar to Rocco Zikarsky. I did like Rocco for Celtics too.

Yang I’ll just wait until he is allowed to declare before considering where he might be a nice fit.

[HitsterParticipant]

AJ Dybantsa the projected top pick in the 2026 has committed to BYU despite having offers from many powerhouse basketball Unis. He has made it clear the chance to play under Kevin Young who has worked with a lot of top NBA players during his career as an assistant at Philly and Phoenix was a major factor in him choosing BYU. Also he goes to HS in Utah so doesn’t have to relocate across states for a year before going to the NBA.

This is a major get for BYU and can attract other uncommitted HS prospects possibly and gives Kevin Young and his staff a good building point to put some good transfers around AJ for next season especially with some guys who are already on the roster looking good and likely to stay next season too.

With Egor Demin and possibly Kanon Catchings getting drafted high this year and now AJ signed up BYU has the potential to become one of the top landing spots whilst Kevin Young is there.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Idk, Dybantsa might have a Kobe impact though… he’s freakin’ good and at BYU he will be able to be the man from day 1 without having to cater to any transfers, etc. I bet…

[HitsterParticipant]

The team will be built around AJ whilst anyone transferring would never be as good as AJ was otherwise they would have declared.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

That’s what we would think for sure, you never know though… I know it won’t happen, but what if Demin stayed and teamed up with AJ??? Like the old days… That would be a fantastic combo.

[HitsterParticipant]

Catchings could stay and really develop or BYU get some really good seniors in to fill out the roster. Plus they can still add some good players from the recruiting class who don’t play same position as AJ.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Sneaky good game on tonight is Kennesaw State @ Santa Clara… A few others I can name, but that’s the one that catches the eye tonight… I’m wondering if the freshmen from Kennesaw State can stand a chance on the road. If they can though, that’s another sneaky win for a sneaky good team with sneaky good prospects. SNEAKY!

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Early foul trouble has made this game out of reach quick seemingly…

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

I don’t know what anyone else’s take is yet, but I’d have to say so far the Wooden Award favorites have to be Johni Broome, Kam Jones and then maybe Cooper Flagg… who are some of your favorites atm???

[HitsterParticipant]

Ryan Nembhard would spring to mind possibly too,

[BothTeamsPlayedHard-Participant]

The NCAA finally cleared Fedor Zugic to play. On one hand, it seems odd that a guy with four years of pro level experience still qualifies for college ball. On the other hand, the Ivisic brothers basically did too. Berke played a full season for Tofas. The Overtime Elite guys aren’t even a thought anymore. Guys can play in the NBA Draft Combine scrimmages without penalties, but still suspends guys who went to Portsmouth for their predraft showcase. It is ridiculous. The NCAA slow walked this one, and took a team that could have been a contender and put them on the hard side of a bubble with this one.

[HitsterParticipant]

Fedor could have declared in any draft from 2022 onwards but it will be interesting to see how he goes.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Major upset alert: Kent State (an underrated NCAA team) is going to need to go to the bitter end to defeat Heidelberg… We’ll see…

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Damn… Heidelberg had them… But Kent State looks like they take it with FTs at the end basically.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Finally some good anticipating games today – it’s been a minute since before the Christmas holiday…

First game I’ve circled Rutgers plays at home against Geronimo Rubio De La Rosa and the university of Columbia. De La Rosa is a smart and skilled crafty player leading an 11-1 team in Columbia through savvy experienced play. They notably beat Villanova very early on this season, but haven’t played anyone since. Should be a good challenge for Harper/Bailey and company.

A good matchup tonight should be in the WCC where Santa Clara heads down the coast to San Francisco to battle it out. I think SF takes the cake here at home, but both teams are designed similarly in style of play and close by on the map to each other. Elijah Mahi though might be the best player on the court, so we can’t count out Santa Clara exactly. But SF is pretty talented overall.

[OhCanada-Participant]

Gotta watch more Illinois. Theyve got all the top prospects. James and Rafeal Barlowe brought up a really good point today about the Ivisic brothers today weve kind of been sleeping on them. I saw the end of the Wisconsin game which is when I really became a believer in Kasparus but Tomislav Ivisic didn’t really stand out. He’s been playing great. I went back and watched his highlights, you gotta think he’s lottery bound if he keeps this up right? I mean just as a Raptors fan I wouldn’t mind if we ended up with him if we miss out on Harper, Flagg or Tre Johnson. I’d probably rather they picked Tomislav instead of Bailey at this point.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

I’ve actually watched a bit of Illinois this year. They are a talented team for sure. No I didn’t watch the whole game of the Kent State, just had switched from some other game I was watching and it was brought to my attention. I’m not sure if I’m the podcaster guy, but thanks…
Tomislav over Bailey!!! That’s a deep take right there! The Ivisic brothers are both pretty solid, Not sure they’re lottery bound though.

[OhCanada-Participant]

They play Oregon on Thursday so he’ll match up against senior Nate Brittle and a very good Ducks team, maybe not as talented as Illinois but defenitely more experienced team. Thats my matchup for the week.

Radd your really out here watching Kent St. vs. Heidelberg? Man I love basketball but thats some deep ties to the game right there I dont think I got it in me. You really should be finding a way to make some money out of this because its clearly your passion. You ever think of starting up a podcast of sorts or something?

[OhCanada-Participant]

Ace Bailey is Rashard Lewis.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

definitely some similarities

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Some better games on today… not sure what I’ll tune into, but plenty to choose from. 2 good games on at the same time is Arizona State @ BYU, and St. John’s @ Creighton. I think I’m going with the Arizona State game… I want to see how Egor does against a defensive menace like Jayden Quaintance who should be maybe a lottery pick next draft cycle… But there’s actually a ton of games today and quite a few have potential…

[HitsterParticipant]

Sizewise and parts of his game I can see Rashard but Rashard wasn’t the prospect or athlete Ace is and Ace’s shooting isn’t yet anything like Rashard’s became.

A guy like Rashard if he’d been 10 years younger would have likely had an even better NBA career the way the game has gone.

Loads of college games tonight and tomorrow night but nothing leaps out at me. Are the traditional Bowl games much more a college NYD feature than hoops games?

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Bowl games are college tradition but not hoops.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

That Illinois/Oregon game is on tonight… that’s definitely the game to watch within the matchups today.

[OhCanada-Participant]

Dylan Harper is out tonight against Indiana. Offense is running through Bailey right now. He’s been scoring but his creation is defenitely limited. He’s run into a few walls and had to pick up his dribble, lacks the counter. But he’s still scoring at will, absolutely lethal with that Melo mid range jab step. You guys were right with the Melo comps… Just wanna see him create for others a bit but its looking like that wont happen.

[OhCanada-Participant]

16 points in 10 minutes. Might wanna tune into this performance.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

sheesh, looked at the box score and Ace is at 36 points and filling up the stat sheet. 12 points since I tuned out. lol.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Ace just scored another 3 for his 24th point… but I’m going to switch to Illinois/Oregon now starting… Illinois matches up good on paper.

[OhCanada-Participant]

I cant find a stream for that game anywhere.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

It’s on FS-1, otherwise there’s streameast or something…

[OhCanada-Participant]

Alot of those sites have been shutdown. Im sure theres a few left either way they are cracking down and arresting people now. Methstreams is done and Crackstreams. Probably for the best anyways, Ill just start paying…next year.

[OhCanada-Participant]

Ace just scored 40 with 0 assists. Honestly his coach and teammates probably just told him dont even bother just do what you do. He’s a gunner.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Illinois is having their way with Oregon pretty much most of the game… Kasparas had a goose egg at half and now is off and on in the second.

Yeah, Ace hasn’t learned the skill of passing at least yet. But he’s been really good still. Weird – but he could be that leading scorer on a good team as his main skill. He plays good enough defense to be worth a high pick still imo. But no counter moves putting the ball on the floor to make plays for others at all. Got to score to win though. He’s a good piece for some team. If he can tighten his handle it would open doors for his overall game. He would be potentially challenging to Flagg if that were the case. He’s trying to learn it – but it looks funny still. I’d take Dylan Harper over Ace still.

[OhCanada-Participant]

Yeah what happened there. I was watxching the box score here and there but theres not much context. 0 points 0 assists at half and then he just blew them out. Ivisic 0 assists which is rare playmaking seems to be his most enticing feature.. Illinois bench had like 25 points in the first half. Brittle had a good first half as well and then just went quiet.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

All the randoms from Illinois stepped up in the first half and just sort of ran away with it. Guys like Boswell, White and Humrichous did everything. The second half Kasparas packed his stats. Oregon has trouble with the shooting team that has the inside matchup to play against Bittle. But then Oregon beat Alabama and Alabama beat Illinois this year… good stuff!

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

There’s a good game on tonight between Creighton and Marquette… but I’ll probably tune in to Michigan State/Ohio State. Jase Richardson vs John Mobley, Jr. could be interesting.

[HitsterParticipant]

Ace looks a pure scorer and a lot of great scorers played off the ball. As long as the team that drafts him has a decent ball carrier he’ll be fine in the NBA and not having to be the ball carrier possibly gives a team more options.

I’d still take Harper over him at the moment as BPA after Flagg but Ace would probably be a live option to go 3rd if I did a mock right now. He has great size for a guy who can play 2 or 3, is a good rebounder and I noticed he had 4 blocks last night so must have been doing his defensive shift too.

Talking of carrying a team I see the aptly named Solo Ball has had a couple of big games for the Huskies and is shooting over 44% from the 3 point line. He might be a bit undersized for an NBA combo guard as he doesn’t do much ball carrying. But his championship pedigree and shooting will be attractive to teams and he has a couple of years eligibility left so could be the UConn focal point next season and even the one after.

[OhCanada-Participant]

Jeremy Fears is everywhere right now. Looks alot bigger than 6’2.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Wow, lots of highly anticipated games today… hopefully better than last nights’… this has to be the most since before Christmas school break. Top 10 games imo are:

Florida @ Kentucky
Georgia @ Ole’Miss
Arkansas @ Tennessee
Baylor @ Iowa State
BYU @ Houston
VCU @ Loyola Chicago
Arizona @ Cincinnati
Oklahoma @ Alabama
San Francisco @ Washington State
Texas @ Texas A&M

I don’t know what I’ll tune into, but most likely the SEC games are choice imo for now. Florida/Kentucky is the early one so that’s a no brainer. Then probably Arkansas/Tennessee. I like the talent of Arkansas, but Tennessee’s been on fire. And I’m licking my chops about watching the Oklahoma/Alabama game. Jeremiah Fears against an Alabama squad should be very entertaining. Then I’ll hopefully catch Texas/Texas A&M. Of course this is a perfect world if I get to watch all. We’ll see… Anyways, Alabama after today will have faced Dylan Harper, Kasparas Jakucionis, and now Jeremiah Fears. Labaron Philon has been the guy generally getting the defensive assignments. He was dominated by Harper, then he actually out played Jakucionis – but now Jeremiah Fears should be interesting. I think Fears wins the battle in this one but Alabama wins the war.

[HitsterParticipant]

Jeremy Fears of Michigan is 6ft 2ins whilst the highly rated Jeremiah Fear of Oklahoma is 6ft 4ins. I’m guessing you are talking about the MIchigan Fears in your post above Oh Canada. I’m not sure where Jeremy Fears fits into the draft as he had that shotgun injury last year and missed a large chunk of his freshman year but has returned and is putting up steady numbers on a good team.

Jeremiah Fears is a likely top 10 possibly a top 5 contender currently IMO.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Michigan State beat Ohio State last night. Jeremy Fears was a big contributor during the game playing defense and dishing dimes out. Actually, he had a better game than Richardson did. It’s usually the other way around. Richardson was nonexistent though yesterday, but it didn’t matter – they still won. But Richardson looked stiffer than normal yesterday and never got it going.

Jeremiah Fears is on another level though. Jeremy Fears will probably stay in school rather than go in the 2nd round. Jeremiah Fears is lightning quick and has a ridiculous handle on the ball. His perimeter defense and his hustle are impressive. If Jeremiah Fears has a game like he did against Michigan, they stand a chance against Alabama. Should be a good game. I think Alabama takes it…

Florida vs Kentucky about to start!

[HitsterParticipant]

Jeremy Fears has potential to be a 2nd unit PG in the NBA and can make nice NILs money for a couple more years if he wants.

Jeremiah looks a pretty rounded and complete player, he has great speed but also reads the game well. A force on both offence and defence. He might not be as flashy as some of the other prospects in this years lottery but I don’t see much downside risk or weaknesses in his game.

He could fit onto a side who already have young prospects and could easily be a top running mate/2nd best player on a team if he wasn’t in the position to be the main man.

[OhCanada-Participant]

‘Jeremy’ Fears looks like your typical Tom Izzo guard. I think he’s got the highest upside on that team, I’m not too high on Jase Richardson.

Watching Baylor get smoked by Iowa St. Edgecombe can only score in transition and Iowa St. has a phenomenal defense. He probably will never see a defense like this as a pro.

Also watching some Duke its pretty much a Cooper Flagg highlight reel/ When hes making his shots he really shows how much ahead of the other prospects he is imo.

Hopefully I’ll be able to watch “Jerimiah” Fears play today agaianst Alabama. Bama is coming off a loss so that will be a good test. Then the game I really wanna watch is Texas vs Texas A&M. I’m pretty high on Tre Johnson.

Mock Draft coming tonight.

[OhCanada-Participant]

Oh I thought Alabama lost a game recently nvm there last game was a win.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

I’m eager to see your mock!!!

[OhCanada-Participant]

Hey whats going on with SEC basketball being byfar the strongest conference/ When did that start? They used to just be top heavy. This must be a result of NIT’s all these football school’s outbidding everyone.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

A couple weeks ago every team in the SEC was on Kenpom’s top 65 teams. Crazy year for the SEC.

[OhCanada-Participant]

Philon is having a statement game here. Fears is struggling making contested shots. Alabama looks like a very well rounded team.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

He really is… and has been against big matchup games besides the Dylan Harper one which is also the only one I’d say he’s lost to personally… Jeremiah Fears looked pretty bad in the first half. He’s figured it out too late now against this team.

[HitsterParticipant]

The Crimson Tide are certainly a team well in the mix to go deep into march Madness with some very experienced players and good prospects like Philon. They went to the Final Four last season and could do something similar again as Mark Sears seems to be finding his scoring form again, Philon helps him form an excellent backcourt.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Hey, I’ll gladly say again that – that’s my pick to cut the nets down this year. They have about the toughest schedule this year and have been outplaying their opponents more often than not…

[OhCanada-Participant]

I was trying to be more reserved but just off first impressions I havent seen a better team this year. Fears got shutdown and it wasnt really like he played “bad” per se. They just got to his spot before him and shutdown what he does well. Everything was contested. Good scouting, good coaching, good execution and teamwork.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

All true, but Rutgers came to play Alabama that game they played… No matter what Alabama threw at Dylan Harper, it didn’t matter. He was pretty unstoppable. Alabama still won the game, but within the matchup of Labaron Philon vs the world, Philon outplayed Kasparas in an Alabama win, outplayed Fears now in an Alabama win, and was dominated by Harper… but still in an Alabama win… so I guess the question is… how good is Philon? What is he at the next level?

[HitsterParticipant]

Philon would be the sort of player that someone like the Nets should really take with one of their first rounders as I’ve not really got a good handle on whether he is lottery or later first round. But a team looking to build would love his hustle and defence. I’d have said OKC too but they have a deep roster already so he might not get the minutes he deserves there.

I bet the Spurs have him on their draft list too he jumps out as a Pops type player.

Philon can be a good player on a strong team who can take 30 plus mpg whether as a starter or bench guy in the NBA I’d say as his upside.

[OhCanada-Participant]

He’s defenitely a lottery talent but this draft is so deep with guards it will all boil down to what teams need guards and which guards they need. I’m doing my mock draft and I find I’ve got guards I’m projecting to be lottery picks slip[ping down to the 20’s and whenever I try to adjust it another guard drops.

[OhCanada-Participant]

Just wanna point out if VJ Edgecombe was at Alabama playing next to the 5 year senior Sears he would be looking incredible right now. And I’m pretty confident if Philon was in Baylor he wouldn’t even be on my draft board.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Idk, but Baylor is weird with the way they play their guards for sure.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Also, Edgecombe doesn’t have a handle of a point yet either… not sure how that would work, but I’m sure it would.

[OhCanada-Participant]

Also watched some SDSU vs Boise St today. Was very impressed with Miles Byrd, He’s a 6’7 wing with a pure stroke and a menace defensively. He may not be the most productive prospect but he has qualities that teams are looking for even just as a role player.

[HitsterParticipant]

Teams always tend to draft on upside at the top of the draft but teams further down looking to fill a particular need now perhaps go for NBA readiness if their picks are limited. Also with the salary cap if a team can get in an NBA ready guy on a good rookie deal it can give them a few years breathing space in that position and means they can use MLE, vet maxs elsewhere.

I fully agree that Philon is in a good position with three or four 5th year seniors as starters around him who are all very good college players and can help him develop.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Tennessee @ Florida has to be the game of the night tonight. Both were undefeated last week.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

All Florida so far

[OhCanada-Participant]

Auburn vs. Texas for me. You know Tre Johnson’s gonna come out gunning after that bad performance against Texas A&M.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

I might switch to that game… Idk Tre Johnson might have his work cut out for him. Chad Baker-Mazara’s a crazy athlete. Auburn’s a tough team.

[OhCanada-Participant]

I was just gonna say Baker Mazara is slept on for sure. Hes shooting like 60% from three on the road too.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Oh, I guess both games are back to back, it wont matter…

[OhCanada-Participant]

Not just saying this because they are losing right now but I dont understand why Tennessee is ranked 1st. They haven’t beat anyone but Baylor who is also ranked too high themselves at 13 and they beat Arkansas thats a good team. Why are they ranked so high, did they do well in last years SEC tournament or NCAA tournament? Out of all the big SEC teams I think I’m the lowest on the Vols.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

They did beat Illinois too. In fact that’s probably their best win imo. They’re ranked that high because they’re undefeated. (Likely not after tonight) Tennessee I think will fall off a bit too.

[OhCanada-Participant]

You know I didn’t watch any college basketball last year and even the year before that I didn’t much. I feel like alot has changed. These super seniors that are actually being paid openly and have real money to put towards training and rehab. I think were beggining to get back to a league here where freshmen are just going to struggle.

We saw that with Jeremiah Fears against Alabama as well and I couldnt even blame him. Its getting to the point where you can’t really expect some of these guys to be able to compete when they have been training and preparing for the NBA game but these college seniors are just much more physical and the college game has way less space.

[OhCanada-Participant]

Remember when Arthur Kaluma was getting 1st round hype after Creighton’s run. He looks like a good polished player. Averaging 50% from 3 this year with a steal and a block.

[OhCanada-Participant]

Man I cant stand Johnni Broome. Cant even look at him hes so annoying…Hate that guy.

That being said he just had a tremendous defensive possession against Tre Johnson where he was able to move his feet impressively.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Arthur Kaluma has played impressive as a college player this year. I remember the 1st round hype of that guy… He had a great game too. Imo he’s done everything he can to make the league this year, but not sure if it will be enough. I wish he was more athletic. Broome for that matter too. After that performance though, Kaluma might have to go up a peg. putting up 34 on Broome even in a loss is nothing to sneeze at. Tre Johnson had a rough game – just was cold against a good defense by committee team.

Did you happen to see the highlights of the Duke game??? That Cooper Flagg dunk? Holy cow!

[OhCanada-Participant]

I like Broome’s game. He moves very well for his size and has underrated guard skills. My problem with him is he looks like the two most annoying NBA players of all time. Jared Dudley and Carlos Boozer. He even wears his headband like Jared Dudley. I cant stand it. I just know he’s gonna end up being one of those annoying instigators in the NBA. For that reason alone I left him out of my 1st round mock .

Tre Johnson has really dissapointed the past two games. He takes too many off balance jumpshots. He struggled early in the year vs. Syracuse but in that game I was impressed by the fact that he tried multiple ways of attacking the defence. In this game he missed 3 long mid range fadeaways in a row. Thats not good. But these freshmen especially in the SEC are going to struggle this year but I dont think that ruins their value or potential value. They need time to learn.

Yeah Flagg is figuring it out. He’s been getting alot of Scottie Barnes comparisons lately but as someone who has watched Barnes throughout the years I can say he is way better and much different. One thing I’ve noticed Flagg does amazing for his size would be how he turns his dribble into an explosive leap. You don’t see that from players his size. He is so coordinated. He also finishes through contact at a very high level. Barnes cannot consistently gather and explode at the rim, and he cannot finish through contact. He has to move the player physically and then finish if he gets a bump it throws him right off. I also like Flagg’s shooting mechanics and high release point which is another thing Barnes struggles with.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

You have me rollin’ right now!!! Jared Dudley + Carlose Boozer!!! 🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣

[OhCanada-Participant]

You see it right?

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

yeah I totally see it… this roundness or something of the face.

[HitsterParticipant]

Flagg is a better defensive player already than Barnes is IMO. Barnes is a better ball carrier but he is several years older but I like Cooper’s potential as a ball handler and those dunks were insane.

Johni Broome as the love child of Carlos Boozer and Jared Dudley cracked me up. Could Johni become this year’s Jake “Sloth” Stephens. I had never realised Jared was so goofy looking either.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

I think you’re right on Hitster! That has to be this years’ Sloth Stephens!!!

[OhCanada-Participant]

I generally disapprove of trashing professional athletes or just being disrespectful or lacking empathy in general because I respect the work they have put in to hone their craft and become the best in the world. Its always inspirational. But Jared Dudley might be the worst NBA player to play in 900+ games. I don’t know how he lasted so long in the NBA beong so trash. He must have been a mole for the GM’s or Coaches, tellin on the young guys and stuff like that. He averaged 3 points a game shooting 25% the year Brooklyn got sweapt by Philly. And he’s still in the league on the Mavs coaching staff!

Carlos Boozer was the original yelling after every bump in the paint guy. He was the person that normalize screaming for fouls, after fouls during fouls. Always yellintg.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Not sure what to watch tonight yet… a few good games though.
The Alabama game is tempting, but I think I’m going with Ole’Miss @ Arkansas first then TexasA&M @ Oklahoma…
Interested in a bunch for Arkansas, especially Fland and if Richmond actually plays. Oklahoma/Texas A&M should be a great backcourt matchup.

[HitsterParticipant]

Jared stuck around the league and won a title. JaVale McGee was always laughed at for his low basketball IQ but he ended up as a 3 time champion. Carlos Boozer became a double All Star and won an Olympic Gold Medal despite being a 2nd round pick but some players do have annoying habits or are wind up merchants. So having a bit of fun about them is okay.

Certain players if they play for your team’s closest opposition will always wind us up.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Wow, Boogie Fland I was hoping to move up the board… just can’t. What is he if he can’t shoot? He wasn’t defending well, and he’s vertically challenged… he had a good first half though, Idk I think he’s still a first rounder though. Arkansas’ bigs were a little underwhelming. Malik Dia outworked them all.

Oklahoma up early on Texas A&M

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

switching to Arizona State/Kansas, Wade Taylor IV isn’t even playing tonight for Texas A&M.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Wow, should have stuck to the first plan… back to the original plan now with over a minute to go and it’s a one point game…

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Wow, offensive foul to lose the game at the end… what a burner

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Idk, but for some reason I’m feeling like watching the Kennesaw State/Middle Tennessee game tonight. Should be an interesting game. I think Middle Tennessee will win but won’t cover the spread. We’ll see but 9.5 points seems high against a team with talent at least.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

This was a pretty good game. Called it pretty good too. Middle Tennessee won the game but it took them til the bitter end. Wooley was the best player on the court, but he had to tone it down the last 5 minutes because he got in foul trouble. He fouled out with seconds left in the game, but Kennesaw State had enough overall talent to stay within reach the whole time.

[HitsterParticipant]

Looking at Cooper Flagg he seems to be doing more ball handling at Duke and he leads them in assists well he leads them in pretty much every stats column. Do people see him being a main ball handler on his NBA team?

I take the view it will depend where he lands and he’s not the sort of player who has to have the ball but he’ll give his coaches a nice option to be a ball carrier/point forward when required.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

I share the same view

[OhCanada-Participant]

Its tough because you wanna put these versatile big forwards with passing skills in that Draymond Green role as a small Center and roll man. Obviously thats what everyone wants to replicate. but I don’t think Green gets enough credit for how tough you have to be to bang with the NBA Centers. When Orlando tries it with Banchero he gets hurt. Toronto tried it with Barnes and he always gets hurt.

The selfish part of me wants to see how Flagg plays with an elite playmaker where he can be a bit more on the pick and roll/pop screen setting spot up guy. Like a Chris Bosh roll. He would absolutely dominate. I would say with Cunningham or Lamelo but I feel like both of those players just have terrible ball iq.

[HitsterParticipant]

Cooper is such a good defender that I think he can play some C but whoever takes him would need a legit big man who could play C when up against the bigger bodies a bit like OKC with Chet and Hartenstein. I can honestly see Cooper being able to play anywhere from 3 to 5 so he can easily play alongside one or ecven two legit bigs.

As regards Melo and Cunningham I want to give Cade and Pistons a shout out for being above 0:500 after their recent few seasons. It may not last but has the corner began to be turned?

[OhCanada-Participant]

Yeah I think the Pistons have turned the corner. JB Bickerstaff has that team playing hard and imposing basketball and they have a real identity similar to the oldschool Piston teams with Thomas and Dumar or even the Rip Hamilton, Sheed Wallace, Billups etc. teams. Tough ugly basketball.. Players like Stewart, Holland, Thompson and Duren play very physical and mean game, you kinda have to have some of that as a young team in this league. When you’ve spent so liong tanking it creates bad habits and makes players comfortable with losing. I dont think this team is comfortable with losing anymore.

Great point with Chet thats exactly what I mean. He was playing Center at the beggining of the year while Hartenstein was out and he got injured defending the rim as the anchor when typically you would want him being a weak side defender.

[HitsterParticipant]

The 2004 title winning Detroit team was built on defence and under Larry Brown they would grind out wins. The current side have had a load of high picks but finally seem to be blending as a team since they added veterans in Hardaway and Harris. Having the experienced duo with 1,700 games and 25k plus points between them gives the younger players a couple of solid veterans who have been around the league and played with top players.

JB helped develop a young Cavs team and is doing something similar in Detroit. The city is used to the team being workman like and playing hard nosed basketball which suits a lot of the current roster whilst Cunningham can provide the flair and be the go to scorer.

If they can get everyone fit then the long term outlook is pretty good and if they end up not making the play offs there is a loaded draft coming up where they can add another good piece to the roster and have a shot at getting lucky in the draft lottery.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

My intended route of games today could be a marathon:

USC @ Illinois
UConn @ Georgetown
Florida @ Arkansas
Oklahoma @ Georgia
Baylor @ Arizona State

I hope to catch them all, probably be some overlaps.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

USC looks like they’ve got this against a Kasparas-less Illinois… On the other hand Cooper Flagg is going off by the box score. He is flirting with 40 points and some.

UConn vs Georgetown, here we go!

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Yeah, Cooper Flagg has to be the #1 pick regardless of position.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Florida vs Arkansas coming up… I’m tuning into that one as soon as it starts as UConn is destroying the Hoyas.

[OhCanada-Participant]

Damn I had to work today. Missed some great games. Yeah Cooper Flagg’s just too good.

[OhCanada-Participant]

SEC freshman guards continue to struggle in conference play today. Not sure we are going to see this theme change much. You have to think this would effect recruiting. If I’m a guard in the upcoming class looking to potentially be a one and done I might rather go to BYU and team up with Dybansta or go to the ACC to a team like SMU to get some high profile games against Duke or UNC rather than have every conference game be a war.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Alijah Martin won the battle and the war against Johnell Davis… former Final Four partners.

[HitsterParticipant]

Flagg’s performance was amazing he could be Wemby like in the NBA bar the blocking domination. He also put up 7 assists so is looking more and more the legit superstar.

[OhCanada-Participant]

Tre Johnson might be playing his best game against Tennessee. If Texas wins this the Vols are gonna drop way down the rankings.

[HitsterParticipant]

Tre has gone for 24 points so far and it looks a very tight game.

Back to Cooper Flagg I was thinking with his play making and defensive ability I’m getting some Grant Hill vibes but Cooper is a better defender and Hill was a better scorer. I am beginning to think the Pippen comparison might well be legit.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Meanwhile Georgia had a no fly zone against Oklahoma… Jeremiah Fears had a dismal shooting night, couldn’t hit anything. Georgia now has 2 big wins in a row. SEC is really beating each other up.

[OhCanada-Participant]

I wanna hear James Barlowe’s excuse this time. You can see his eyes light up when he talks about Jeremiah Fears. I’m a fan of his game too but hes clearly got some workto do.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

James’ big board’s supposed to come out Monday…

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Just got confirmation he’s dropping it tonight again!

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Edgecombe is having one of his better games. Hope he turns the corner.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

I know Northwestern’s not the best team or anything, but Jeremy Fears and Jase Richardson are taking turns whooping them.

[OhCanada-Participant]

Bailey is like Micheal Porter Jr. without the injuries. I think he can be the perfect 3rd option as he’s developing his playmaking and ballhandling skills. But once you pass him the ball you probably arent getting it back.

I think Jeremy Fears has a really bright future. I’m a big fan of his game. He gives me Kyle Lowry, Jalen Brunson vibes. One of those tough scrappy guartds that makes winning plays.

[HitsterParticipant]

I like the pre injury MJP and Ace comparison although I think Ace is needs the ball more than MJP used to. Everyone raved about MJP’s jump shot I recall.

Despite his injury issues MJP is having a nice NBA career, has a title to his name and a hefty 2nd contract. But there is still that thought if he hadn’t had the back injury he’d have been right near the top of the 2018 draft. But hindsight is a great thing as SGA who only went 11th we could say is probably the 2nd best player to come out of the draft after Doncic and could well be the first MVP from that draft year.

Ace I’d see as a main player or a top running mate on a team. I don’t think he is really a 3rd option type player unless he refines his game but it all depends where he lands as what the “pecking order” will be.

[OhCanada-Participant]

Theres no top 25 teams playing tonight so I might tune into the Minnesxota Gophers game to watch Dawson
Garcia. He seems like a player with an NBA skillset 6’11 stretch forward with very good touch and it seems he has quick feet as well and can guard a bit.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Harper and Ace are hot so far against UCLA. The rest of the team has been practically nonexistent.

[OhCanada-Participant]

Derrick Queen has been fantastic defensively. I didnt know hes so good on the defensive end.

[OhCanada-Participant]

Derrick Queen is a baller!

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

I’m high on him

[OhCanada-Participant]

Yeah I think that game changed my perception of him. That was a really good game and one of the best individual performances I’ve seen all year.

First of all Garcia will be on an NBA roster next year. He has a polished faceup game NBA teams are going to know exactly how to use him. But also the Minnesota team is very bad and it forces him to do way too much. He got in foul trouble just trying to make plays. At the next level where he will just have to play a simple role I really see it working for him. I think he will have a long NBA career.

As for Queen. Holy. That guys just a basketball player. He made plays in this game just with his presence. The first half and early in the 2nd he really stood out defensively and then as his team started to pick up the defense he got some baskets in transition and then got rolling offensively but man. Sort of like Naz Reid he is just a complete player.and has incredible instincts, or high iq whatever you want to call it. His anticipation is through the roof.

See its great to have a quick first step but imo to have great anticipation will always trump any first step. Queen has iy. He’s a special player. You just wish he had that jumpshot to go with the rest of his package and to be honest I don’t know if this is something you can rely on him developing. Despite that he’s defenitely in my top 10.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

The only big I’d consider over Queen is Asa Newell… and that’s still a tough one. If either get a better jumper they can do some damage… You see what I mean by a smaller Boogie Cousins/Alperen Sengun ceiling if Queen does develop a jumper?

[OhCanada-Participant]

He defenitely has that kind of unorthodox style to him although he also just impacts the game all around by making impact plays, and he plays an athletic brand of basketball despite not really being athletic idk maybe like an Al Horford. He’s always in the game whether he’s on or off the ball on both ends. Makes things tough and hes reading the game as well. He knew right away to attack Garcia when got his 3rd foul.

He plays Illinois on the 23rd and thats a team I’ve watched a bit so I wanna see how he plays against them. Illinois also plays more of an NBA style of basketball and has more next level athletes on their team. That will be a good game.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

I saw that the Illinois is on the schedule later, don’t know if Kasparas will play but hope he does… if not I’ll watch some other matchup.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Lots of big games on today… I have no idea which one’s I’ll watch tonight, but there are options for sure.

Villanova @ Xavier
Mississippi State @ Auburn
Ole’Miss @ Alabama
Texas A&M @ Kentucky
Illinois @ Indiana
Georgetown @ St. John’s
St. Louis @ VCU
Providence @ Creighton
Iowa @ USC
Baylor @ Arizona
Colorado State @ San Diego State

Too many overlaps!!!

[OhCanada-Participant]

Ivisic just hit a logo three pointer. I’m done listening to you guys I’m gonna mock Ivisic in the 1st round next mock I’ve seen enough.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Ole’Miss @ Alabama’s a game so far. Sears looks back to form.

[OhCanada-Participant]

Theres something wrong with this Indiana team and it sucks to watch because the Hoosiers have some of the best fans and is one of the most prestigous or nostalgic basketball programs. You like to see the blueblood teams doing well but they have no figh there. Mgbako is in another slump. Game felt like a scrimmage at times. There was one loose ball it seemed like Illinois was jogging to it and Indiana was walking.

Ivisic is incredibly underrated. He’s a real shooter. Theres lots of players in this draft that are dubbed as “if they develop a jumpshot” or “shown flashes of developing jumpshot”. Ivisic can shoot it. He’s also a very good passer, he can move his feet and is a big body that can defend in the post. NBA scouts have to be drooling over him he reminds me of an old version of Marc Gasol. Theres just not alot of 7 footers with his package.

Jakucionis is unreal. I think part of the pronlem with with projecting his potential is we haven’t really seen any players that look like him or are built like him be extremely successful in the modern NBA in the last 20 years other than maybe Manu Ginobli. Thats why people that are high on him tend to compare him to Doncic which I think is way off. Doncic is two or 3 inches taller and at least 30 pounds heavier and has a completely different game. Once again I’ll say I’d rather have him than Ace Bailey if I was picking in this draft. Doesn’t mean I would mock him aheaed of Ace Bailey but I think hes a special talent.

[OhCanada-Participant]

Also are we gonna get an explanation for why Kasparus Jakucionis is picked at #16 on this sites mock draft? Who’s doing the mock drafts around here?

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

This has to be Philon’s worst shooting performance… he can’t buy a bucket. Ole’ Miss probably going to win. Malik Dia is doing it in the paint. Everywhere on the offensive side. No answer for him tonight.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

All but over now, Ole’Miss has a good system going here with the swarming defense. The second half they played way better than the first.

[OhCanada-Participant]

Alabama is a very good team. Thats a huge win for Ole Miss. The SEC is tough this year.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Baylor @ Arizona on soon… that game has some intriguing prospects. Should be a pretty good game too.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Wow, Zona is cookin’ Baylor…

[HitsterParticipant]

BTPH – Great point about Jakucionis being a similar build to Manu as they are the same height and Manu is only a few pounds heavier.
Kasparas may not be the outstanding athlete that some of the other guys are but he has a good handle on the game and may have lower downside than some other guys.

I have him as a top 10 guy but is he a top 5 guy I just don’t know. But I agree that 16 is far too low.

Talking of the Manu comparison is Manu himself still a special advisor to the Spurs. With all their draft picks could they look to get into a position to take Kasparas.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Kansas @ Iowa State and then Texas @ Oklahoma tonight… some good talent in both games I intend to watch.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Iowa State defense is contesting shots pretty good. Curtis Jones should be getting some buzz. I think he is as solid as say Chaz Lanier…

[OhCanada-Participant]

I really hope Im able to watch the Texas Oklaholma game. That game should be a shootout between Tre Johnson and Jeremiah Fears.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

I plan on watching that one too. Iowa State’s still having their way with Kansas. Going to be hard for Kansas to come back with their main 2 bigs in foul trouble…

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

So far both prospects have shown up.

[OhCanada-Participant]

Fears is in a shooting slump. He has no confidence in the jumper right now and its telegraphed. Making it very easy for Texas to defend.

[OhCanada-Participant]

Fears needs another year in college. Right now he has no jumpshot and hes making a living breakdown defences and getting to the rim. At this level his agillity and acceleration is elite for his size but it wont be at the NBA level. He’s going to struggle. He needs to add more strength and develop his jumpshot before he goes pro or he’s going to have the same issues as Jalen Suggs. Thats my comparison for him.

Im a fan I like his game and think he has great upside but not in the top 10. Who knows though, maybe he proves me wrong in the 2nd half at hits a bunch of threes and completely changes my opinion but I just dont see it happening.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

I still think he’s a top 10 pick atm at least. He’s got that quickness you can’t teach and is very young. His upside imo outweigh the holes still in his game. Ace Bailey has obvious holes in his game. Can’t teach his frame and athletic ability and he’s young but he’s a top 5 prospect. His upside outweighs the holes in his game. Ace’s frame being elite is likely going to put him ahead of Fears. But for a top 10 guy, Fears should be in that mix. There is a bust potential too, but I think he’ll carve out a career with a team. I like the Jalen Suggs comp, mine was a plus version of Bub Carrington/Smaller John Wall. Either way what all those players have in common is they struggle shooting at least some, but they’re still effective. Shooting would put him back in the top 5 right away. And his Michigan game as a better-looking game that gives us an idea of what his good games could look like.

[OhCanada-Participant]

Is crazy to think Fears originally committed to Illinois. Not sure why he went to Oklaholma instead but he would have fit in so well on that team.

[OhCanada-Participant]

Keyshawn Hall scored 40 in a close game and a win vs Arizona St. He’s defenitely a sleeper prospect to keep an eye on.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

What do you think of PJ Haggerty? His shot is falling at a better rate this year… he’s pretty good.

[OhCanada-Participant]

Havent watched him play but just based off highlights 6’3 scoring guard maybe he could play a similar role as Malik Beasley? 6’3 is tough in the NBA if you don’t have an elite trait so being average atheltism and length he will have to be a lights out off the ball shooter to even get a chance and imo thats the toughest role in basketball but also the most sought after so he’ll get a shot. See if you have elite athletisism or length you kind of get a longer window of oppurtunity to make mistakes and grow but someone like Haggerty probably will not get those chances he’ll have to show he can ball right away so I would stay in college if I were him and hone his skillset.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

I think he handles the ball better than Beasley. He’s a scoring guard though, maybe a score first mini NAW or something, Idk… but another year wouldn’t hurt I guess. More NIL money and then test the waters… I think he’d get drafted though if he declared.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

A sneaky good game’s on tonight… VCU @ St. Joseph’s

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

My intended lineup for a big Saturday today:

Alabama @ Kentucky
Xavier @ Marquette
Texas @ Florida
Ole’Miss @ Mississippi State
UNLV @ San Diego State

Lots of good games on today, including some not mentioned. The first game should be the main event between 2 juggernauts.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Grant Nelson is on today. Philon’s shooting stats aren’t great, but he is running the show in many ways. Having a good game by playmaking. He looks more and more like a Rondo type player every game. I can’t unsee that now. Jaxson Robinson might not be hitting all of his shots this game, but his mechanics imo are as good as anyone’s.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Alabama has good pace, won the game and scored over 100 points. Sears and Holloway came through in the second half.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

This hasn’t been the best first half for Kam Jones. We’ll see if Marquette can bounce back.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Marquette almost pulled the comeback, but fell short.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Go Tre Johnson!

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Too bad Texas was crushed by Florida.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Illinois @ Michigan State should be a good game today… another main event ticket during the first games of the day. I’m eager to see these backcourts go at it…

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Sheesh, Will Riley played more assertive today, Kasparas wasn’t at his best, Michigan State eeked it out.

[OhCanada-Participant]

Looks like Jeremy Fears had another great game. He can really play. I wonder how NBA scouts are evaluating him right now.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Yeah, I hope they have good things to say about him, he’s somehow flying under the radar.

[OhCanada-Participant]

Good game here with Georgetown vs Villanova. Oldschool physical bigeast game. Fights breaking out, players ejected, refs are doing a great job managing the physicality and allowing it to be physical or setting a tone and not just calling a foul on everyone. Dixon and Sorber both are struggling from the field but thats kinda the game right now. Both have been impressive in finding ways to get points on the board.

If anyones watching the Rutgers vs Penn St. game keep an eye on Yanic
Konan Niederhauser. I think hes a year away from being a huge college hoops star.

[HitsterParticipant]

Do you see YKN as being a high level college scorer or is his value as a big strong defensive player who can dominate around the basket?

Georgetown vs Villanova looked like a good game, Eric Dixon shone again but Peavy had a great 3 point shooting game to help Hoyas edge it. I need to have a good look at Sorber as he has risen up boards recently and see how he compares to the likes of Derik Queen etc.

[OhCanada-Participant]

Its hard to really say what YKN has offensively because this is his first year in the Big 10 and he has so many responsibilities for this team defensively. But he is a good athlete, very fluid and mobile. Has good hands and touch and feel for the game. He showed a little bit of range last year for Northern Illinois but like most bigs its tough to create seperation in the Big 10 so its hard to say where hes at with that part of his game. I’ve watched him play maybe 4 times now and he always stands out as an impact player for Penn St.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Mississippi State @ Tennessee has the makings of a good game – we’ll see.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

This game got hit with an ugly stick

[OhCanada-Participant]

Clemson is very underrated right now. They arent ranked in the AP or Coaches poll but have a win vs. Kentucky and 2 of their 4 losses were in OT. The other two losses were against Louisville (ranked #25 on AP) and Boise St.

[OhCanada-Participant]

Arkansas is playing like dog water right now. Absolute dumpster fire. Its only gonna get worse from the looks of things.

Utah St. is another sleeper team. They have great guard play with Ian Martinez and Mason Falsev. This team creates alot of turnovers and pushes in transition. Falsev is one of the leaders in steals in college basketball and is a sophmore with a potential future in the NBA but he went 1-7 free throws two games ago against Boise St. in a 2 point win and then went 1-4 free throws against UNLV in a close loss so hes in a bit of a slump but he’s such a weapon defensively that even in a game where his shot isnt falling he still has 3 steals in the half and 5 assists. Im pretty high on Falsev.

[OhCanada-Participant]

Tommorow night Maryland vs Illinois. Thats gonna be a fun one.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Ivisic vs Derik Queen could get interesting. I think Illinois is just too talented though. We’ll see. The game of the day imo is the UNC Wilmington/Charleston game, but unfortunately, I doubt I’ll watch it – don’t know where to find that one.

[OhCanada-Participant]

Ill see if I can find a link for that game but idk. Links are inconsistent these days. My Nevada vs Utah one just froze up on me too.

This guy Falsev is such an odd player to watch because hes 6’3 with what looks like a 7 foot wingspan but hes white. Never really seen a white guy with a wingspan like that.

[OhCanada-Participant]

Ian Martinez just hit 4 or 5 threes in a row. I lost count because they subbed him out for like a minute. He was pissed came back in the game and hit two more immediately.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Saturday’s games are going to be crazy… I have to watch Duke @ Wake Forest… and of course Houston @ Kansas right after… I like both for the games of the week. The Michigan State @ Rutgers should be entertaining at least.

[OhCanada-Participant]

Reese is an underrated player for Maryland. They are gonna need him to play well here.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Yup, both he and Queen are doing it so far… Queen is all over the place.

[OhCanada-Participant]

Yeah this is a really bad game for Ivisic to be injured for Illinois. Reese and Queen are just bullying them in the paint. Queen is so good. He’s kind of like Kyle Anderson because he’s not athletic or quick but hes never really a step behind either.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Maryland’s perimeter defense should get some credit too. They were not making Boswell or Jakucionis’s lives easy… seems like Maryland’s got this one. Frountcourt too good and now Miguel just hit that 3…

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Maryland’s perimeter defense should get some credit too. They were not making Boswell or Jakucionis’s lives easy… seems like Maryland’s got this one. Frountcourt too good and now Miguel just hit that 3…

[OhCanada-Participant]

Good example of how much Ivisic does for them. 62 paint points for Maryland, 0 fastbreak points for Illinois. Ouch.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Yeah, no kidding – that was a beat down last night.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Eric Dixon shot his way through a tough first half, but Marquette’s just more well-rounded.

[HitsterParticipant]

I see Caleb Wilson has committed to UNC Tar Heels. That looks a good fit as the Tar Heels will have a number of roster spots with guys like Ian Jackson very likely declaring and the likes of RJ Davis out of eligibility.

Drake Powell although a possible first round pick I’d like to see him stay and become one of the go to guys on the team and form a nice backcourt with Cadeau. Post Davis the Tar Heels will likely be active in the transfer window and be looking to put some good college guys around the likes of Caleb and the other incoming freshmen.

Marquette looks a very well drilled team again and Shaka Smart looks likely to lead them to another decent run in the NCAA tournament. Whilst I’d not see them as an obvious contender they have the ability to get to Sweet 16 or Elite 8 and could prove a difficult team to break down as they are pretty solid. They have the ability to be a top 8 seed if they keep their current run going.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Yeah, haven’t seen much of Wilson, but I can tell he’s a crazy athlete. He could be a star if he puts everything together.

[OhCanada-Participant]

I watched most of the Purdue Michigan game, it was hard to watch after a while Michigan just got beat down. Braden Smith is 100% an NBA player.Hes the best PG in college basketball.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Braden Smith is a good player. I felt like Purdue is a very good team who’s been a little lucky. I didn’t see that game last night though, so they probably could have rubber stamped they’re great if I did – just not sure… Michigan has been on an awful trajectory lately. (So has Danny Wolf lately) Purdue beat Alabama… when Mark Sears was playing terrible. Sears played terrible through the first few games and it was maybe the week of the season when they did so. Purdue killed Rutgers – without Dylan Harper healthy (I’d say the best point guard or just guard in college or the draft)… but they have outplayed who’s in front of them most of the time. I know they’re good, just don’t know what level of good Purdue is. It’s not like they’re ducking good opponents, they’re beating teams they play. Another guy on Purdue that’s pretty good is Trey Kaufman-Renn. He’s a decent athlete down low. I gotta watch a Purdue game again – hopefully against a worthy opponent that’s healthy.

So many potential great matchups today… I might have to watch some replays tonight. Too many overlaps not too. It’s been a while since I’ve seen a full Cooper Flagg game though, and he’s finally playing a tough team. We’ll see what happens. Hunter Sallis has apparently been on fire.

[OhCanada-Participant]

It will be interesting to watch throughout the year.

[HitsterParticipant]

Braden Smith is a 6ft PG without great athleticism so whether he’d be a long term NBA player I don’t know. But he is having a fantastic season and has improved his assists with Zach Edey on the team which is doubly impressive. He rebounds well for a 6ft guy too. I’d guess he’ll see out his college eligibility next year and would have high NIL value. If there are college’s with top prospects who may need a good ball handler to bring out the best in them then Braden would be pretty near the top of any list.

But as he’s stayed at Purdue post Zach declaring I think he’ll likely remain loyal to the Boilermakers for next season too and they will likely have given him a decent NILs deal.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

yeah, he’s a perfect NIL guy and probably goes to PIT next year around.

[OhCanada-Participant]

I dont know people said similar things about Edey too. Said he would get torched on defense. He was projected as a late 1st early 2nd and ended up a top 10 pick and defenitely should have gone higher. I noticed Smith has really bulked up this year he looks strong. I hate throwing this comp around for every small guard but the Fred Van Vleet similarities are glaring. That being said FVV does struggle shooting over long defenders and whenever he plays Boston they torch him by forcing him to switch onto Brown or Tatum who can just shoot right overtop him. I think he’s going to be a productive pro that your gonna have to give a little bit up to get alot back and see him as a top 45 pick if he enters the draft. Is that worth forgoing his remaining college career idk.

[OhCanada-Participant]

The games are absolutely stacked today. Rutgers vs Mich St, Texas Vs Tex AM, Duke vs. Wake Forest, Kansas vs Hou, Xavier vs UConn, Tenn vs. Auburn. I’m turning off my phone unplugging my landline and ordering some chinese food.

[OhCanada-Participant]

Mich St is forcing Bailey and Harper to become passers. The Rutgers role players have been missing everything. Bailey should have 5 assists right now.

[HitsterParticipant]

I like the Smith and FVV comparison. FVV went from being an undrafted guy to a key player on an NBA Title winning team in 3 seasons so that would be a great upside for Smith. Fred continued to develop as a player post his title win and became an All Star and got some big contracts.

Edey’s weakness was always going to be his size and quickness but guy’s of his are far rarer than PG’s of Smith’s size to be fair. Edey was always going to have NBA value on the defensive end and at worst used for certain match ups,

I’d think Smith if he was only going to be picked around 45th would be better having another year in college and maxing his NIL earnings personally.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Arizona State is a better team now that Joson Sanon is back. This is a tight one against Iowa State. Lipsey, Jefferson and Gilbert have been relatively quiet. Curtis Jones has been going crazy! Jayden Quaintance in foul trouble though.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Looks like Iowa State’s taking this, Quaintance and Sanon both fouled out.

[OhCanada-Participant]

Tough game for Bailey against Michigan St. Spartans are serious contenders and maybe top 5 right now. They loaded up on Bailey double and truiple teaming him. Harper is still sick and came off the bench, he was limited. Bailey tried finding the open man but his teammates just arent able to finish. He resorted to forcing bad shots and went cold.

Tre Johnson rallied Texas back in the 2nd half vs Texas A&M which felt like a myst win for the longhorns. Ended up with 30. I didnt watch this game so I’m interested in watching the highlights later to see what worked and what didnt, and how he ended up cracking the puzzle.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

All Duke so far… Cooper Flagg is looking to shoot but at least from long range it hasn’t fallen this game. He’s doing everything though.

Michigan State is legit.

[OhCanada-Participant]

Where would you guys have Jayden Quaintance if he were eleigible for this draft?

[HitsterParticipant]

He’d be a lottery pick minimum probably top 10.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Somewhere in the top 10. I think he borders top 10 next year too. Quaintance has legit defense and he’s young and athletic and long. He’s been relevant since last year too.
Knueppel’s having a good shooting game.

[OhCanada-Participant]

Dawson Garcia scored 31 in a Gophers upset against Oregon.

Wake Forest has come back and outscored Duke 23-4 in the 2nd half. Up 6 with 10 minutes left to play. Is this Coopers first “Tom Brady” moment?

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Yeah, I didn’t think Duke would cover the spread…

JoJo Tugler is a menace for Houston. Kansas is leading at home though.

[OhCanada-Participant]

Jojo Tugler was having a huge impact on the game with his length defensively, energy and screening and Hunter Dickerson just cracked him. Hes a bit shook up.

[HitsterParticipant]

With Quaintance I did wonder whether he was a guy who had dominated his age groups on size and athleticism but he has held his own against guys in some cases more than 5 years older than him. His shooting needs some work but he already looks an elite defender and must still be maturing physically. So he has time to define his game and will still not have turned 19 by the time he likely declares.

He has gone a bit under the radar as he isn’t draft eligible but that isn’t a bad thing and he can look to step up when he will be much more in focus next season.

[OhCanada-Participant]

Sorber filled up the statsheet today. 25 points 15 rebounds made some threes, blocks steals assists. Good showing. Theres a bunch of bigs sort of fighting for position in the draft.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Yes, but the second half Providence found there ways defensively and came back in that game. I think Sorber had the first 12 points or something for the Hoyas.

Houston’s handling Kansas atm.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Dickinson is having his way for now, nobody his size quite on Houston. Kansas frontcourt is big. Bidunga finally going big.

[OhCanada-Participant]

Yep. Its tough to beat Kansas at Allen Fieldhouse. Especially when the refs let them hack and body check their opponents all game. I hope the Cougars trainers have the ice packs ready.

Fiory’s been playing great as of late. When they go Dickingson/Bidunga theres only a handful of teams that can match their size and physicality. Houston’s length is being negated. However these Houston teams never stop fighting. Completely unphased at all times. They just continue executing.

Another great game. It feels like were in March.

[OhCanada-Participant]

With a Kansas win here it will be interesting to see how the rankings are changed. Does Kansas move ahead of Houston and does Houston even drop much? Kentucky moves out of the top 10 today.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Houston came back and took that game in overtime… stole it big time.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Wow that was a fantastic shot!!! Mylik Wilson coming through though!!!

[HitsterParticipant]

I see Duke went to a zone defence and this stifled Wake Forest. Cooper had 24 points, 7rpg and 6 assists. He leads Duke’s stats in pretty much every category. Could he be a Jokic level player in the NBA in due course I wonder?

Vanderbilt had another court storming after a $250k fine for last week’s antics. I wonder if they will get the book thrown at them now.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Flagg is a superstar at the NBA level in due time imo. Even when his outside shot isn’t falling, he’s able to do everything else. Knueppel wasn’t bad today, but Flagg beat a tough Wake Forest team and it was one of those games where Maluach did nothing but get into foul trouble. Flagg literally carries that team.

[OhCanada-Participant]

Cant believe Kansas blew two leads. Thats a major concern for them. Houston is legit that was a great show of determination. The players could have been losing it arguing with the refs but they stayed poised and won.

[OhCanada-Participant]

Freshman Corey Chest has 15 rebounds for LSU in the 1st half. I havent watched them play much this year, certainly dont know how Chest is. He any good?

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

He wasn’t on my radar… I haven’t watched LSU in at least a month. I was impressed with Vyctorius Miller, don’t think he is back yet… didn’t even notice Chest before.

[HitsterParticipant]

Houston vs Jayhawks was some game. You don’t tend to see too many double OTs in collegeball.

Magic vs Pistons looked a good rumble too. J.D Bickerstaff got chucked out and Stewart looked like he was going to take on the Magic bench. Almost harks back to the Rodman era Pistons or the team of 20 years ago with Big Ben, Sheed and co who would play tough hard nosed basketball.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Wondering what we think of Milos Uzan and Dajuan Harris as prospects after that game… both showed some good pace and decision making. Bidunga might have had his best game so far. He’s nothing but a raw paint player at this point, but he’s good at that and is still very raw – can improve. Hunter Dickinson is interesting. I bet he’s and UDFA, but wondering if he will ever stick. I kind of doubt it though. Not quick enough defensively, not Danny Wolf on offence, and not a rim protector like Fleming. Seems like those are the qualities the NBA needs in bigs these days in today’s game. What he can do is set good screens and shoot though. We’ll see. JoJo Tugler I’ve heard a great comp for him imo – that’s Kenneth Faried. Not sure he ever has an impact like Faried did, but they play very similar. Kansas sure blew that one. They should have had it.

[HitsterParticipant]

Hunter Dickinson was talked about as a possible All American guy this year but he seems to have taken a slight step back if anything. His 3 point shooting is down so is his actual scoring and for a 7ft 2ins guy who had a decent 3 point range there hasn’t been talk of much draft hype in previous less deep drafts so I don’t know if he’ll get picked this year.

Flory is one of these guys who came to basketball a few years after most guys so is still raw but he has great athleticism and if he can polish his game with another year or two in college then I can see him being drafted.

[OhCanada-Participant]

They showed Fiory’s HS soccer highlights during the Houston game. I think the graphic showed he scored 7 goals in 8 games. At what point does somebody just decide “your too tall for soccer go play basketball”.

[HitsterParticipant]

There have been guys his height who have played football. I cannot use soccer as I’m in England.

[OhCanada-Participant]

Yeah I get it. I thought of saying football as wlll but as Bidunga is an american athlete so in his case the sport would be soccer instead of american foorball.

[BothTeamsPlayedHard-Participant]

If I was to go Ted Lasso as a soccer coach, I would definitely want to recruit an athletic college center with little offensive ability to be a backup goalie, who if nothing else I could bring on for penalty kicks. Skal Labissiere is in the G-League. He is reasonably nimble and has a 7’2.5″ wingspan. You can’t convince me the Haitian national team couldn’t put him in goal for PKs. John Butler Jr probably still doesn’t weigh 200 lbs, but is still 7’0″ with a 7’3″ wingspan. Sure, he might get blown away by a stiff wind, but what is the third string goalkeeper worth to the US? Send Enoch Boakye to Canada Soccer to learn after the season is over. It is a little like the sumo wrestler goalie in hockey theory, but don’t you want someone with quick reaction time, ability to jump, and length in goal?

Hunter Dickinson is not the problem at Kansas. It isn’t quite Arkansas in terms of pieces that don’t fit, but it is stunning how little they are getting out of AJ Storr. Dickinson, Adams, and Bidunga don’t really have complementary styles other than Adams and Bidunga try defensively so that they have one big on the floor that gives effort on that end. The defensive end is a big part of why I don’t think Dickinson gets drafted. I can’t make the argument that Dickinson can’t get taken when Quentin Post did, and has been legitimate minutes the past few games. I just think because scouts see Kansas all the time, and know him really well that it will be Drew TImme-ish.

[OhCanada-Participant]

Quinten Post is very underrated though. Just my opinion as a fan of both plays but Post plays an uptempo game dispite not being athletic. Post always moves from one action to another. Sets a screen than flares/pops/rolls or moves to another space on the flare. His game is smooth and seamless. Dickinson is more of a bruiser.Very rough. Doesn’t quite play spaces on the floor as much as he plays the man he is guarding.

[HitsterParticipant]

Teams have done that put on a substitute goalie for penalty shoot outs in major tournaments. One team did it to psyche the opposition out and it worked. Teams will certainly look to get penalty takers on the pitch for shoot outs.

But given England’s historic lack of success in shoot outs we don’t tend to talk about it much.

There have been outfield players in football who are 6ft 7 or 8 ins and goalkeepers who are taller so not unheard of.

As regards size lots of impact sports started looking at guys from Samoa/Fiji due to their bulk and strength. They ended up in such diverse sports as Sumo and NFL.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Hakeem Olajuwon was once a goalie before he played basketball.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Cooper Flagg just had a nasty two hand throw down again… Duke was playing like trash the first half against NC State, but it’s like they woke up now and have all the momentum.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Now he just pulls a 4 point play!

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

sheesh, Maluach just vomited on the floor… I don’t know what to think of that… gross, but is it bad because he’s out of shape and out of breath to hang so he vomited… or did he eat some bad soup or something… yuk! Anyways…

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Wow!!! Big heaver shot by Love to help send Arizona to OT against Iowa State atm… crazy game!

[OhCanada-Participant]

Sorber is having a rough game shooting after his big performance on the weekend. He has stretches where he misses alot of easy shots. I think a part of that is just how much he does for his team defensively the right way, like his positioning. He works very hard to wrestle for the right position. I think in time these stretches will go away as he develops a strronger base.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

I got South Carolina @ Georgia on. Idk how people have CMB in the lottery. I thought he could flirt with it before the season started, but not now… I don’t get it. He is solid and always is doing things, but right now it’s obvious that Asa Newell is the better player and prospect.

[OhCanada-Participant]

Edgecombe looks great right now. Defenitely my current lock for 4th overall.

Catchings has been lights out shooting the ball but you jhjust kinda wish he did more on the floor than just scoring. He only has one rebound in a game where Baylor ghas 11 offensive rebounds to BYU’s 13 defensive rebounds. Deandre Hunter for the Hawks kind of falls in that same category, theres games where if hes not scoring he isnt involved in the game.

Egor Demin just has so much talent. He had a step back three early in the game that was just picture perfect. He also had a desperate shot where he heaved the ball at the rim with two hands over his head. His playmaking and vision is something you cant teach. I doubt he slips out of the top 10 despite how bad I want to see him play with Dybansta.

Mo Thiam and Keyshawn Hall for UCF had big games against Kansas. Hall scored 34. He keeps having these big games hes gotta be pretty high on some NBA scouts boards. UCF was winning for most of the game but Kansas ended up winning. I didnt watch the game but my guess is the refs gave it to them since its in Kansas. Kansas had 29 free throws and UCF had 17.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Man… I wish I could say the same thing about the UNC/Pitt game I watched. Pitt hit some big shots at the end, but with UNC’s talent, they should be coming up with more wins. Ian Jackson’s great when he’s scoring, but he’s still on a learning curve with his other playmaking skills. Drake Powell is getting more comfortable in his growing role on the team. Trimble had a terrible game. UNC should just rotate the hot guards in. Trimble was missing everything tonight and could have easily been replaced tonight – maybe the star tomorrow, who knows? But they just go by the pecking order, and it doesn’t always work that way. UNC just doesn’t have the cohesiveness with all these smaller guards on the floor together. The hot hand should get the nod imo. Not that small guards can’t win on this level, but they’re not Villanova’s recent past of Jay Wright.

Edgecombe might be the 4th guy… he’s the favorite atm. I wouldn’t call him a lock yet though. Asa Newell looks solid and there’s still a chance we haven’t seen everything from Kasparas Jakucionis or Tre Johnson… There’s I guess still a chance Maluach can get picked that high, but after losing his dinner on the floor last night, I have concerns about his stamina and keeping up in tip top shape. I suppose Jeremiah Fears can get there too if he ever starts his engine again. I doubt he goes as high as 4th though the way he’s been terribly shooting. I didn’t watch him tonight, but I had to put him down a little due to the goose egg he managed to post tonight. 19 minutes and 0-5 shooting is absolutely atrocious. But then he has some high – highs and some great quickness. A couple of other guys trending in the right direction though are Donnie Freeman of Syracuse and Carter Bryant of Arizona. They’re both scratching the surface of figuring things out and have great frames and athleticism are elite. Notably Thomas Sorber got the best of Freeman earlier in the year, but Freeman might have more upside. Sorber does have better all around skills though for sure. The other day I think he scored Georgetown’s first 12 points or something… it was crazy.

I have to watch Egor I think in another few weeks. Every time I watch him, I’m disappointed in his handle. It looked pretty darn good in the beginning of the year against nobodies. Once he got hurt, he looked slower. I saw him play last week and his passing was there, but he was still rusty or something. I want more from him before I think he’s a lock in the top 10. He should be at full speed sooner rather than later though. I think between him and Kasparas, there are great options in the first-round range for elite passers to help a team.

Keyshawn Hall is a sleeper; I think he tests the waters and enters the transfer portal. I’ve seen some videos of him, and he has some good scoring abilities, usually can get to his spots. He’s been on a good trajectory lately besides the Houston game. Thiam, I’m not sure what he does but I wouldn’t be surprised if he did the same thing. Test the waters and go to the transfer portal. Treysen Eaglestaff of North Dakota is another guy who can get red hot at times. A while back he scored 40 points against Alabama.

Still, all in on the Adrian Wooley bandwagon though. This guy has maybe the best hesitation move in college and has amazing creation/separation… he’s just athletic enough to hang and overly skilled to be ignored. Not sure if he enters this year, but if he does – well it’s because he can’t be denied. And if I do say so myself, I believe I helped put this kid on the map in draft circles. NBA Big Boards had him as a sleeper after I raved all about him for a month on there – and now No Ceilings mentioned him in a podcast finally after a fellow Youtuber who obviously read my stuff about him and gave him a shout out while we were on a live chat the other day… Anyways, he’s either going to be a sleeper late sudden riser, or he’ll enter the transfer portal to a big-time school that’s a good fit and flirt with the first-round next year in another loaded class. The only thing is at times he tries to do too much and turns the ball over. That’s his biggest weakness imo. Otherwise, when he’s hot – he’s hot, and when he’s not – he’s still useful. And he’s pretty young too. I’d take him over the likes of say Ben Saraf, Joson Sanon, Kam Jones, and maybe even Labaron Philon. If it weren’t for Cooper Flagg, Wooley’s my favorite prospect – although it might not be for this year in his case.

Finally another guy I’ve circled is Malik Thomas out of San Francisco. I’ve seen a few SF games this year. I was mainly seeing what Tyrone Riley IV could do since he’s the freshman. Yeah, he’s a good wing defender and shooter – but probably an NIL guy. But Malik Thomas seems to do it all. He’s a senior this year and I think his ultimately an NBA player of some sort. Not sure if he’s a late 2nd round guy or an UDFA, but could be a steal. I mean I’d take him over say Mark Sears for example – another senior who I see on big boards.

[HitsterParticipant]

I think VJ Edgecombe could be put as a solid top 5 pick now and probably a consensus top 4 guy. His 3 point shooting was top draw last night and we all know what a great athlete he is.

I’ll be interested to see what a team like Charlotte did if they get a top 3 pick but miss out on F;lagg I’ve not seen the perfect fit for them yet. Washington, Toronto and Toronto have a slightly wider choice of where to go when some of them will likely be drafting very high this summer.

Denin and Dybantsa as a duo at BYU next season would be fun. If Saunders returns and they got a few proven juniors and seniors in on transfers they could be very strong .

[BothTeamsPlayedHard-Participant]

I know Baylor lost last night, but this stretch where they had to put the ball in Edgecombe’s hands has really showcased their upside. He can put anyone on skates, and is the kind of athlete who does not come along every year. They definitely need Roach and Love back as they currently are six deep, but they found something that gives them much greater potential in March. Roach and Love have played more off the ball. The offense is far better with Edgecombe terrorizing defenses with his speed and athleticism when he has the ball. As for the draft, he isn’t going to go before Flagg or Bailey. His explosive ability might put him ahead of Kasparas and Harper, though those two have better size (Kasparas likely more so).

UNC can’t shoot. They gave up on Cade Tyson too quickly. Jae’lyn Withers is inconsistent and times maddening, but has a skill their current rotation lacks. They have no upside as they play now. They can’t score in the post or score from the perimeter. They have to try to play in transition and crash the glass with an undersized lineup. None of it works.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

“I don’t practice Santeria. I ain’t got no crystal ball…” but I highly doubt Kasparas is in the same tier as Dylan Harper. Not saying it can’t happen, because VJ is super talented, but I don’t think he’ll pass up Harper either. 4 seems to be the most likely spot though, but it’s a race between those few guys I mentioned earlier. It does seem like Edgecombe is turning the corner the most right now though.

UNC can’t only not shoot consistently, but they go small too – and when you go with small lineups and are missing shots – well it’s a recipe for losing. Ian Jackson is a fine scorer, but his decision making needs to improve still altogether. I like his ability to get a bucket, but without a 1 who can table set combined with no spacing makes things difficult all around. Pitt was just a little better that game.

[OhCanada-Participant]

I might have Edgecombe ahead of Harper as well, if he continues to play this way For me Bailey is the clearcut #2.

. I think Kasparus is going to be a phenomenal pro. I feel like in the NBA Kasparus is going to be asked to play off the ball more and if you put him with a legitimate playmaker he’s gonna really shine. That being said I just don’t think he passes the eye test for these NBA scouts. Like when Doncic was dominating Europe as a teenager, people just couldnt really compare it to anything, didnt know what they were seeing. Same thing now with Kasparus.

Tre Johnson also has to be in the mix there. If he is a legitimate 6’6 with a 6’10 wingspan, thats elite for a guard. The same measurements as Jamal Crawford. If he strings together some effecient games he could put himself right in the mix there.

To be honest when draft day comes around it may just come down to which player the team selecting likes the most with these guards. Harper, Jakucionis, Edgecombe and Johnson all seem like great prospects.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

A few solid matchups on tonight. The one that sticks out the most to me is Houston @ West Virginia. I think West Virginia has a chance to win this game if Small and DeVries get hot. After that, I’m not sure what I’ll be watching – either Alabama @ Mississippi State or Texas @ Ole’Miss. Either way – should be good.

[BothTeamsPlayedHard-Participant]

DeVries hasn’t played in almost two months, and there has been talk of him redshirting.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Really? darn! I was hoping to catch both of them… well Javon Small looks good on video, I’ll be looking forward to seeing a full game of West Virginia against a tough Houston team.

Dylan Harper has been under the weather, he should be healthier in a week. Kasparas has been not as consistent lately. I think Harper will win the battle but Kasparas will win the war and the game. I will say a common opponent for both is Labaron Philon and Philon bested Kasparas in both the battle and the war. Dylan Harper lost to Alabama, but forced Philon to get in foul trouble – Harper won that battle with ease. We’ll see though.

Do you think Cedric Coward will redshirt or declare?

[BothTeamsPlayedHard-Participant]

Illinois plays Rutgers in a week. I tend to think Kasparas gets the better of Harper, but we shall see.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Well, looks like that day has come… Illinois @ Rutgers. Don’t think it’s even going to be a game with Harper iffy. We’ll see.

[BothTeamsPlayedHard-Participant]

With Cedric Coward, and possibly Tucker DeVries, there is a business aspect to coming back. Coward had surgery and is definitely out for the year, though we don’t know for certain his plans next year. DeVries has less clarity on whether he can or will return. For most college basketball players who are not 1st round picks, they will make more money in college than on a two-way contract, in the G-League on an Exhibit 10 contract, or as a first time professional abroad. In the case of these two (or the likes of Pop Isaacs, Steele Venters, and maybe Kerr Kriisa), the market for proven college basketball players with eligibility who aren’t NBA locks is most lucrative in college. Some guys also just want to be done with school and move onto pro ball, especially if they graduate. Drew Timme made that clear, and he probably left more money on the table than most in the process.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

I just read that the ACC might break up altogether or lose some teams to other conferences. There’s been conflicting reports though, but I hope not. ACC has been a great powerhouse conference at least in basketball for years.

[BothTeamsPlayedHard-Participant]

Also, the JUCO and NAIA guys have been granted an extra year because of the Diego Pavia lawsuit claiming the NCAA has no right to count non-NCAA college seasons against NCAA eligibility, which is a bit wild. This isn’t an insignificant group. Tre’von Spiller of Wake, Jason Edwards of Vandy, Melvin Council Jr. of the Fighting Woj’s, Alejandro Vasquez and Yaxel Lendeborg of UAB, Tayton Conerway of Troy, Don McHenry of WKU, Kasean Pryor of Louisville (who was already redshirting due to injury), Dejour Reaves of Iona, Buru Naivalurua of Oakland, and Quimari Peterson of East Tennessee. Those guys are going to get a nice payday because of that lawsuit.

[OhCanada-Participant]

Egor Demin played great last night.Looked like a no brainer top 10 pick. These passes he makes look nice on a highlight reel but when he’s doing them in a live game under pressure it really shows you the level he’s at with his playmaking. His handle like and his jumpshot is very mechanical. You can tell he’s drilled certain moves and sometimes they just don’t work. He doesn’t have that natural feel to it. Sometimes it looks amazing and sometimes it looks D2.

Edgecombe still has a loose handle too. But when he getrs confident he tries things and more often than not if his jumpshot is falling his first step is quick enough to get him enough of an advantage to finish. But yeah his handle needs work, his midrange game, just how he gathers into his pullup in general needs work, his floaters. But thats the thing, he has so much upside.

I’ll have to check out Adrian Wooley and Malik Thomas.

[OhCanada-Participant]

Jojo Tugler the forward with the 7’5 wingspan for Houston is having another big game against West Virginia. Coach Sampson seems to trust him a bit more, or just realized how disruptive his length is especially in college basketball.

[HitsterParticipant]

Adrian Wooley is a name I’ll have to keep an eye on. I must admit I’d not heard of KS Owls apart from their brief NCAA tournament appearance in 2023 but Adrian looks a good prospect. Surely with his scoring he’d attract interest from bigger Unis and could make nice money in the portal if he doesn’t declare.

Is there any limit on how many games a play can play before he “red shirts” and possibly gets another year. I would have thought if he has played then that year might count unless it was just one game. For example the 7ft 4ins guy who Purdue got to replace Zach Edey is out for the season after only playing 2 games.. Does he now get an extra year?

Ace and Dylan I’m rethinking which order. I’ve had Dylan ahead all season but I’m now more open minded. Ace is bigger, more athletic and if they are pretty equal talent wise that might swing it. But for now they are both top 3 picks behind Cooper Flagg.

[OhCanada-Participant]

24 points in the half for Ace. Only missed one shot… Harper not feeling well…

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Josh Hubbard from Mississippi State is playing great… he’s just so short though – if he was 6-5, he’d be a legit prospect. He and Sears are both going at it…

[OhCanada-Participant]

Tre Johnson has been yelling at his teammates all night and while I dont think its the right way to communicate, in sports or in life generally I cant say I’d do any better. To be honest his frustration is fair. That Texas team just lacks chemistry, theyve iced him out many times, He’s yelling and jumping up and down for the ball when he has a clear mismatch and they wont pass to him. He gots caught in post ups and doesnt get any help. And then youve got Pope who is just the most selfish player in the SEC.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Wow, Mississippi State just blew the game… blown layup. They had Alabama against the ropes for sure. Josh Hubbard is a very skilled player. He also didn’t help the ending cause though with a turnover off his leg. I think Alabama might be the most battle tested team in the nation. They’ve won some close games against some worthy opponents.

[BothTeamsPlayedHard-Participant]

Guys who get injured in the first half of the season and play less than 30% of the regular season are eligible for an injury redshirt, so Daniel Jacobsen getting hurt in the second game of the season will qualify.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

The intended lineup to watch today is:

Florida @ Tennessee
Auburn @ Ole’Miss
Kansas @ Baylor
UNC @ Duke
Arkansas @ Kentucky

Gotta bring out the popcorn soon…

[OhCanada-Participant]

Yep. Lots of goodgames. To add to that some games I’ll be trying to tune into are.

South Dakota St vs North Dakota

– I wanna try to catch Oscur Cluff. He’s been absolutely amazing this year. Australian big man, unathletic but highly skilled and effecient. Close to 20 ppg and 13 rebounds. Shoots 70%. Hits a three every now and again. Can hit the mid range shot, and his free throws. But overall just great hands and footwork, great touch around the rim.

Obviously Michigan vs. Rutgers to watch the prospects I also try to watch most of the Texas games because of Tre Johnson so those two games I’ll probably keep an eye on the box score and tune in if someone gets hot.

BYU vs. UCF is a must watch for me.

Texas Tech vs. Houston should be a great game but I doubt I watch it.

Then another phenomenal matchup and one that is very underrated is New Mexico vs. Utah St. The winner will take top spot in the Mountain West Conference. Donavan Dent has been amazing for New Mexico and Falsev and Ian Martinex are very underrated players for Utah St. a team that is very funn to watch. Both teams should be very difficult tournament outs come March. But this game is on thirty minutes after the Coach Cal return starts so I’m gonna probably watch it with no volume.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Gonzaga/St Mary’s too…

Also here’s a name to throw out there that’s on my next big board again…
Treysen Eaglestaff of North Dakota… you might be watching Cluff, but if Eaglestaff gets hot – he get really hot. He’s cooled off a bit lately, but he does have a 40 point outing against Alabama.

[OhCanada-Participant]

Baylor came back after trailing all game. Rob Wright has been huge for them again. He doesnt get much draft hype because of his lack of size and athletisism but hes gonna be a great college player.

Demin and Catchings both have 0 points for BYU with 4 minutes left. Richie Saunders once again has been a rock for them. He’s going to be an absolute star next year next to AJ Dybansta and is already starting to breakout this year.

BYU was sendfing bodies at Keyshawn Hall this game and forcing the rest of UCF to beat them, As a result Mo Thiam had a huge 1st half and is now at 17 points. Hall had 2 points in the 1st half but has turned it on here recentl and is at 12 points.

[OhCanada-Participant]

Im not sure if Edgecombe got injured or if its just a coaching decision but he hasnt been on the floor for this late game come back and closing for Baylor.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

landed on his ankle funny, crazy comeback though.

[HitsterParticipant]

Thiam is a guy to watch as he has been having a recent freshman year. He has immense size and looks a very good blocker plus has been developing his shooting range. Certainly a player to keep an eye on, I’d say he probably needs another year in college to really push himself up the draft boards. Players of his size who have a good shooting range are pretty rare. I’ve not seen much of him but he seems fairly mobile for such a big man and looks coachable.

[OhCanada-Participant]

Completely agree. In fact I hope this UCF team runs it back next year and adds a few more complimentary peices to Hall and Thiam. They could be very good,.

[HitsterParticipant]

If Hall and Thiam both return then I agree they can be a good team. The Uni being in Florida is a selling point but it wouldn’t have the NIL money other Unis have unless it has a local benefactor. A lot of the NIL money might go on retaining Hall and Thiam.

They would be the sort of side which would need to recruit via the transfer portal very well to get a stronger team. Where they would have been the sort of Uni which might build a team and maybe have a very good side when the players are in 3rd or 4th year. They now risk losing their better players via the portal.

[BothTeamsPlayedHard-Participant]

UCF is a massive school, close to 60000 undergrads making it one of the largest universities in the country, but it has grown massively in the 2000s. That just means there isn’t a ton of old money boosters like many of the traditionally large universities. It isn’t outside the realm of possibilities that they would be able to keep a team together in this era, but would likely need a strong enough finish to the season to get the players, boosters, and fans on board for what could be.

[HitsterParticipant]

UCF has a huge amount of students but it isn’t a basketball hotbed like other Unis and their arena doesn’t hold as much as some of the bigger schools. But I agree they can hold their own and if the team starts to build a reputation then that will attract players and NIL money.

As you say it has grown in more recent times so the sporting side is probably still playing catch up.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Big game in the Big 12 between Iowa State and Kansas…

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

So far it’s all Kansas. Outside of Keshon Gilbert, nobody from Iowa State can shoot a lick this game.

[BothTeamsPlayedHard-Participant]

https://www.si.com/college/westvirginia/basketball/wvu-forward-tucker-devries-to-undergo-season-ending-shoulder-surgery

Tucker DeVries will undergo season-ending shoulder surgery.

[OhCanada-Participant]

Kobe Sanders had another strong showing tonight for Nevada. He’s a 6’9 combo guard and a 2nd year senior. I think late in the draft 45-60 there will be a team willing to use a pick on him just to own his draft rights and see if t6hey can develop him into something.

Jeremiah Fears goes 1-8 with 5 turnovers vs/ Auburn. Thats a really tough boxscore he’s had too many of these games for me to even keep him in my mock draft.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

I agree, but I also feel the same way about Demin… both those guys are high upside but high risk at this point… Demin wasn’t quite as bad in the box score, but Arizona kept switching good last night. Most the BYU players weren’t hitting anything, but Demin was missing a ton of shots and looked – let’s say uncomfortable under pressure.

Henri Veesar looks like a mountain man playing basketball… He had a funny dunk last night with a no foul call… It just looked goofy. He played well though.

[OhCanada-Participant]

I also watched that game. Yeah Demin gets very uncomfortable underpressure to the point where his mechanics completely change, not just shooting either, dribbling and finishing at the rim. I don’t know if you can expect him to be more than a role player, he defenitely seems like more of a complimentary unique and high level role player. Still very valuable if developed correctly though. But listen weve seen crazier things happen than a guy with that much talent putting it all together. To me when I watch him play it seems like he just doesn’t have enough reps in his current role but than you think well he played for Real Madrid so you know they did everything on their end to give him all the tools he needed to develop.

For me the difference between Fears and Demin’s shooting/turnover concerns is the size. Demin has elite size for a guard/wing so he’s worth more of a gamble. If Fears can’t shoot in the NBA at 6’3 pending m,easurements he’s going to have the same issues Jalen Suggs has had so that jumpshot is mandatory for him.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

I can see him struggle slightly more than Suggs. He’s young and a just slightly behind Suggs imo at this point so far, but same stylistic player for sure… Demin I think could carve out a Lamar Odom role… I don’t see him as this point that people say he is… That’s only against no competition… You’re right though, size matters. I’d say Fears has the fluidity and quickness if he could ever figure it out though.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Rutgers is surprising Illinois so far… and Dylan Harper’s back!!! He looks pretty good again already. Ace really looks good so far.

[OhCanada-Participant]

Ivisic was having a great game before that injury. I really hope he’s okay but tjhat did not look good.

[OhCanada-Participant]

Ivisic back in the game.

[OhCanada-Participant]

Will Riley with a huge stepback three. Hes been looking phenomenal the last few games.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Will Riley is finally hitting some shots. Rutgers is giving Illinois everything they have, still not sold it will be enough. That was a scary moment for Ivisic, but looks like he’s alright. Kasparas kind of struggling at least so far. He’ll be back to redeem himself…

[OhCanada-Participant]

There were some talks about Kasparus being in the same tier as Dylan Harper. I think this game has put that to rest.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Rutgers is going to win this game. Illinois is in foul trouble. Hard to get out of this one.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Wooley’s doing very well in this Western Kentucky vs Kennesaw State game… Still wish he would cut down on his turnovers.

[OhCanada-Participant]

Ohio State came back and beat Maryland thanks to a big performance from Bruce Thornton. He banked in a three with 7 seconds left to up by three than Marland missed their three and as the ball was bouncing out of bounds the ref cuaght it which left 0.7 seconds on the clock. Maryland had another chance to tie but missed. Very good game.

Julian Reese had aanother increble game. Not sure how his Zach Randolph/David West playstyle would fit into todays NBA but he’s defenitely going to get a shot.

As for Derik Queen I’ll say this. The dude plays a much more athletic brand of basketball than he gets credit for. I’ve never seen anyone blow bye him. He’s always a problem in transition and he competes as hard as anyone.

[HitsterParticipant]

I must admit that I’ve not really thought of Julian Reese as an NBA prospect but I can see the David West/Z-Bo build and game likeness. Both these guys refined their game and each played over 15 seasons in the NBA so Reese might get a chance. But he seems to have totally stopped taking 3 point shots. He has only taken one in the last 3 seasons after hitting a respectable 30% from beyond the line in his freshman year. So might this hold his NBA chances back when teams can take 7ft guys who are better defensively and can shoot some 3’s.

Queen doesn’t look an immediately explosive player but he is almost sneakily athletic and with his size he can be very strong in the paint. He is a player that maybe doesn’t have an outstanding part of his game except for his rebounding but he doesn’t seem to have any glaring weaknesses and does a bit of everything pretty well. For teams who may need a big in the mid to later first round he’d be a very solid lower risk pick IMO.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

SF just gave St. Mary’s all they can handle… Some unsung heroes in this game. Carlton Linguard, Jr isn’t an NBA player, but he sure had a nice dunk. Marcus Williams having a good game, not an NBA player either… but that’s how they did it. Tyrone Riley IV did ok but could’ve been more assertive this game. Malik Thomas is actually did just ok too… Yet they just pulled it off!!! It was a close call that came down to the last shot though.

[OhCanada-Participant]

Tre Johnson has struggled scoring against Vanderbilt but has 5 assists and 3/6 from three. I think I’m starting to favor Johnson over Kasparus, if the two switched teams how would they perform?

Jase Richardson exploded in the 2nd half vs Oregon helping Michigan St. comeback down big in a night where Jeremy Fears did not play.

Jeremiah Fears struggles once again. Tennessee blows out Oklaholma with very little resistance and Fears finishes with 8 points, 1 assists and 3 turnovers.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

I agree, Fears has been struggling… I like the Suggs comp, but I also believe in a different light that he’s also a more passing first version of Bub Carrington. Last year that guy was up and down, his shot was too. He’s quick and athletic enough though to be effective. Fears is similar in that sense with his good start, then struggles in conference play, etc. Fears doesn’t have a great team around him imo and he’s in the SEC though, so I’d give him a slight edge over Bub’s progress from last year as a prospect… stylistically he’s somewhere between Suggs and Carrington too.

[OhCanada-Participant]

This drafts alot deeper too. Carrington probably end up competing with Fears, Traore and a handful of other guards for positioning in this years class.

[HitsterParticipant]

With other star laden drafts like 2014, 2015 and 2018 I do wonder whether some of the hyped guys who go really high might not end up being the best players to emerge from this draft year. In the most loaded drafts there is often a dud who goes very high I wonder who it will be this year.

But I do like the depth in this year’s draft could be some guys who emerge as superstars taken outside the top 10.

I agree that this year’s draft looks guard heavy, Next year’s early mocks has a lot of highly rated frontcourt guys pretty high so might some backcourters not assured of being a first round pick decide to return and try and improve their draft status.

[OhCanada-Participant]

Thats good point. Thats definitely going to happen. Theres too many guards and unless Fears or Traore start knocking down shots none of them seem to be lottery bound. I just redid my big board and I have Traore, Fears, Fland, Saraf and Pettiford all sitting between 18th and 26th. And I’m not sure they are much better than players like Labaron Philon, Ian Jackson, Walter Clayton, Donavan Dent, Jaland Lowe etc.

[OhCanada-Participant]

Ivisic is having a perfect game right now. Still think he’s the best player on this Illinois team.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Cooper Flagg’s been struggling this game.

[OhCanada-Participant]

Will Riley has really turned it around and has been dominant. This was his best game. 27 points 9 rebounds and 7 assists with 0 turnovers and while half of his points did come while the game was out of reach he did have about 14 6 and 6 while the game was still competitive. His ball handling and shot creation at his size has been very intriguing.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Looks like the I saw the top 2 teams go down today!!! Crazy stuff!

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

And… Alabama escaped the end of that last one. They’ll probably be the #1 team now with their strength of schedule.

[OhCanada-Participant]

Derrick Queen was dominant vs. Rutgers today. Reese got into foul trouble early in the game and Queen was forced to be the man for Maryland and responded in a big way. He was byfar the best player in this game and this is not the first time he has proved to be the best player in bigtime matchup. That being said Ace Bailey was sick and had a towel covering his head on the bench late in the 2nd. Its gonna be hard to deny Queen as a top 10 prospect after this performance.

[OhCanada-Participant]

Picking Maluach ahead of Queen maybe similar to the Raptors picking Poeltl ahead of Sabonis years ago. Theres no arguement that Queen is the better player but due to length and athletisism Maluach may get picked before Queen.

And thats not to say I’m not high on Maluach. I think he plays tremendous defense and has really transformed into Maliq Brown 2.0 as he plays more games. Maluach’s defense is fun to watch.

[HitsterParticipant]

Yep in 2016 draft 8 to 11 was Chriss, Poltl, Maker and Sabonis so there were a lot of bigs in the mix to get draft then. Sabonis has clearly turned out to be the best player but I could understand the Raptors taking Sabonis then.

Is Jonathan Mogbo considered a possible long term starter by the Raptors or is he more a high energy bench guy. I’d say Queen might be the safer pick but Maluach may have more upside.

[OhCanada-Participant]

Mogbo’s Scottie Barnes childhood friend so he’s not going anywhere. He’s gonna get the Raptors development treatment. He’s shown he can play the 4 and smallball C. His shot is coming along as well. I don’t think having Mogbo means Toronto won’t pick another bigman although they will likely be looking to draft someone that can create offense.

[HitsterParticipant]

I didn’t know Mogbo was besties with Scottie that possibly explains why the Raps picked him. He has looked a good role player and can give you a nice physical presence. Toronto’s draft will pretty much depend where the lottery balls fall. Ingram, Quickley, Dick and Barnes I’d feel would be the long term core with Mogbo, Walter and co as the leading bench guys. RJ and Poeltl will be around for another couple of seasons but not maybe key long term players.

But with a decent core you can draft on upside if you miss out on the obvious high pick choices. The 2026 draft looks pretty good too so a return to the lottery wouldn’t be the worst outcome next season if the team shows progress.

[HitsterParticipant]

What are people’s thoughts on Purdue this year, I’m very impressed they are as high given they lost Zach Edey to the NBA last year and his long term replacement Daniel Jacobson only played 2 games before getting a season ending injury.

Trey Kaufman-Renn has stepped up hugely and looks a very impressive college player. As he will turn 23 this year and if he uses his full eligibility he will be pushing 24 when he would have to declare. I’m not sure whether he would get drafted. He’d need a pretty good NBA offer to go this year unless he decided to cash in whilst his stock was high. But I’d figure he’ll return to Purdue next season unless he gets a huge NIL offer from elsewhere.

[OhCanada-Participant]

To me Purdue is as talented as any team in the country but theyve had a few games were they completely lacked effort and in the big tournaments every team is good and a small moment like that could get you knocked. Thats just my immediate unfiltered thoughts of Purdue though I’m actually very high on them they are probably in my top 10 teams. But I mean Braden Smith is the best PG in college and they are good.

I think Michigan St. wins the Big 10 tournament. I have Maryland as a sleeper because when they have Reese and Queen playing the high low post game and their shooters like Gillespie, Rice and Miguel all going they are incredibly tough to matchup against.

I also think Queen is starting to realize how he can takeover just about any game and I feel like he’s about to go on a run. Other than Cooper Flagg I think Queen is the most dominant player in college basketball its just a matter of assertiveness with him. When Queen really gets into his flow he is making plays all over the court on and off the ball and just has an incredible presence to him.

[OhCanada-Participant]

So I’m watching the Baylor vs. Houston game and once again JoJo Tugler just continues to impress. I cant help but think how good he will become with another year or two of development at Houston. And it brings me to that same conversation Age vs. Potential. To me it doesn’t matter when someone like Tugler finally develops his skillset. Once he does he has traits pretty much noone will be able to replicate. Same can be said for Lendeborg.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

I think Lendeborg shoots better than Tugler and I think he’s bigger… but Tugler has that crazy energy. He’s very impressive, Houston’s killing Baylor, especially defensively. Another guy that’s a sleeper is Milos Uzan.

[OhCanada-Participant]

Nice matchup with Tre Donaldson and Braden Smith going at it right now.

[HitsterParticipant]

Does Braden Smith eventually get drafted as he is only CP3 size and the game has moved on in the last 20 years?

His game has gone up a level this season and he’ll get huge NIL offers to stay in college.

Purdue seem to have really stepped up their perimeter shooting this year, if some of these guys could have shot this well with Edey as the PoY last year they might have beaten UConn in the Final.

UConn haven’t lived up to the hype of a possible 3 peat and it would have been a big ask. But Solo Ball has made huge strides this season and if he and Karaban return along with a good recruiting class they will likely be stronger again next season.

McNeeley is back playing for them which will make a difference and we need to see what his form is like as regards his draft prospects over the next month or so. If he did return too then UConn would be really stacked again next year.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

UCF is having problems with Iowa State as expected, but Mikey Williams has been back for a little while and he’s finally performing well. Keyshawn Hall is the other guys scoring.

[OhCanada-Participant]

Damn I wanted to watch McNeely in his 2nd game back and I fell asleep and he goes off. 36 so far.

[HitsterParticipant]

McNeely scored 38 out of UConn’s 70 points so really took over the game in the 2nd half and is looking very sharp again. I still have him as a late lottery or borderline top 10 guy which he was before he got injured. I don’t see him cracking the top 5 or 6 unless he goes on a super hot run but could move back inside the top 10 as there will be teams there who will want a shooter.

He could decide to stay at UConn but if he is a likely lottery pick I don’t see him risking his draft status.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Wow, good for you for sticking to your guns, I don’t know how anyone would have McNeeley a borderline top 10 pick… that is before last night… I admit, I was watching Alabama vs Texas last night instead. What a blowout that was. Arthur Kaluma exiting the game didn’t help the case… Anyways, yeah – I had to move McNeeley up a peg after last night. Unbelievable stat line. Is Creighton a bubble team?

Alabama looked great on the other hand. Labaron Philon continues to impress with his ball handling and ball movement. He doesn’t turn the ball over much. The only time I recall he did was a fluke. It was a drive where he was stripped of the ball but was clearly fouled and nobody made the call. His game looks great when his shot is falling like last night. Tre Johnson of Texas was the bright spot of Texas. He had one of his better games.

Auburn, who also won last night is the top ranked team in the country. Alabama vs Auburn 1.0 is this Saturday. Alabama being the most tested team in the country and ranked 2nd in the country along with the strong stout play of Auburn have all the makings of an instant classic.

Also, is it me – or do I need to watch a KState game… they’ve won several big games in a row. They have the talent and some big names on their roster, but it looks like KState is finally putting it all together.

[HitsterParticipant]

McNeeley I’ve always had within the late lottery to mid to late first round so 10 to 20 range. As a good shooter I’ve always guessed a team will pick him up before he fell too far. He would at worse be a good bench option for a team looking for a scoring option plus he has decent size.

I still feel he is more likely to go in 10 to 14 range. He’d be in my 3rd tier of players after the likely top 5 guys then the more likely 6 to 10 range. It would be 4th tier if we put Cooper out on in own as a pretty sure top pick.

I don’t have Liam being able to force himself into the Ace, Harper, Edgecombe and Tre group but possibly the 2nd group with Newell, Kasparas and co,

[OhCanada-Participant]

I’ve currently got McNeely 10th in my mock. Thats kind of the game I’ve been waiting for from him, showing the abillity to takeover and not just kind of fit in is huge for him. Uconn really needs him to become their go to guy as well.

[HitsterParticipant]

UConn won the title with hard work and an excellent starting 5 last season. But only Karaban of that quintet returned this season. Solo Ball has stepped up and would be a 2nd round pick for me now but without the bulk of last year’s team they did need a volume scorer.

McNeeley is one of the best shooters in the draft and seems to have a very good positional sense but whether he can get the open shots he gets now in the NBA is another question. I do feel he needs to land on the right team to make best use of his strengths but he is a definite lottery pick IMO.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Villanova just survived St. John’s… Wooga Poplar had a good shooting game. About time he starts turning things around. Eric Dixon didn’t shoot great particularly until it mattered. He also impacted the game other than scoring. I wish he was more of the archetype and a better defender. He’s not terrible, he’s actually a smart team defender. But he can’t lock guys down and I don’t think he had a stock in the game either.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Cal @ Duke coming up!!!

[OhCanada-Participant]

Maluach hit a three…I have a feeling were never gonna hear the end of this.

[OhCanada-Participant]

JT Toppin is absolutely destroying Arizona St. right now. 25 points and 8 rebounds with 10 minutes left in a close game.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Cooper Flagg just had a nice reverse dunk off a steal.

[OhCanada-Participant]

Queen has had a few phenomenal plays that wont end up on any highlight videos because they werent converted but just very good displays of his skill level. Most recently he picked up the ball off of Reese’s block started the fastbreak and dropped off a between the legs pass to Miguel the open shooter.

[HitsterParticipant]

JT Toppin ended up with 41 points and 15 rebounds in a double OT win. He was a draft combine invite last year so teams got his measurements and had a close up look at him. I’d say he is a top 20 pick who really should go first round with upside of late lottery,
He’ll be in the mix with Sorber, Wolf, Fleming, CMB for teams looking at a big. I’d have Queen and Newell a bit ahead of JT but if he carries on like last night he’ll be at the same draft level as those two soon.

JT had a great FG% last night but didn’t try to force off bad shots and hit his only 3 point shot. He has the three range but didn’t start using it wildly last night in a tight game which shows good judgement.

Derrick Queen had a 24/11 game and is just one of those guys who gets the job done. He isn’t a flashy player but is rock solid and has a lot of intangibles so I like the low risk downside of his game. He may never be as good as Al Horford but could be that sort of guy who never puts up mind blowing numbers but has a great NBa career and hangs around the league for a long time.

I wasn’t sold on Queen originally but can now call him a legit lottery contender. He will never be a franchise changer or go to man. Probably not even the 2nd best player on the team but is the solid defensive presence who can score and becomes hugely important to his team and well liked by his star team mates.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Jayden Quaintance was out with a sprained ankle last night too. Imo if he played, Arizona State wins and it doesn’t get to OT. Toppin’s stat line goes down too imo. He played great, but in context it was a shorthanded squad on defense to say the least. I think he’s close to Brandon Clarke…

I like Queen a lot. I think he’s got a good case at being a top 10 prospect.

[HitsterParticipant]

Flagg is likely going first or at worst 2nd so there will surely be teams looking for a big elsewhere in the top 10. Maluach and Newell and possibly Queen are going to be in that mix. I’m not seeing Queen as a top 6 guy yet but if he went in the 8 to 10 region and was even the 2nd big after Flagg to be picked I’d be comfortable with that.

Chicago would be a nice landing spot for Queen but if the lottery order ended up with likes of Spurs, Philly, Portland in 8 to 10 range who probably wouldn’t be obvious choices to take a big and the likes of Queen fell to late lottery I’d not be worried. The likes of Phoenix and even Warriors might have a good look at Queen if he fell to them.

I’d say Queen’s downside would be one of the Knick’s first rounders as I could see Thibs being keen on him.

[OhCanada-Participant]

That game against Arizona St. he looked like Amare Stoudemire, he was so good. He has great effeciency and advanced stats this year although the problem with JT is the Brandon Clarke, or Amare Stoudemire comparisons well those players aren’t really utilized at a high level in the league today. Lob threats and rim protectors gotta have alot of length and standing reach and while a 7’0 wingspan is not necassarily small its defenitely at best average especially for the Center position. Post up threats are usually only used in mismatches in todays league. Forwards generally need to space the floor.

I think Toppin needs to reinvent his game a bit. Prioritize developing his jumpshot and guard skills if he truly wants to maximize his potential. Those post moves were sharp though, he had his defenders swimming through the air and he tries to dunk everything. His current trajectory I would have to agreee with Norrin I see him as a late 1st rounder/lob threat floor of Clarke ceiling John Collins. It might be best for him just to stay at Texas Tech for a bit until his game fully develops. Why not if they will pay him whats the rush?

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Who you guys got tomorrow??? Auburn… or Alabama???
I think that’s got to be a close game… I’ll take Alabama.

[OhCanada-Participant]

Gut says Bama.

[OhCanada-Participant]

Kaufmen-Renn scored 30 with another big game in a bit of a shootout vs Torje who scored 32. Norrin kind of pointed out his age is working against him draft wise being 23 year old junior, but if he were to stay another year he’s probably taking home a huge NIL deal and dominating his senior year. You’d have to think he would get picked in the 2nd round if he declared.

[OhCanada-Participant]

JT Toppin going off again. He’s got 23 with 17 minutes left. This ones in a blowout so he probably doesn’t score 40 but its worth noting he did all his damage before the game was over.

It’s worth noting that Toppin is 5 months younger than Queen, 3 months older than Newell and 5 months older than Sorber so he should be viewed as the same age category despite being a sophmore.

[HitsterParticipant]

Does the age of a freshman or a soph matter much when they are 19/20 but I agree with them being viewed equally,

Jayden Quaintance doesn’t turn 18 until July so as a Soph next year will still be younger than a lot of the freshman intake.

JT ended up with 32 points and 12 rebounds. Also got his only 3 point shout again so almost as if he isn’t taking too many shots outside of the paint but proving he can hit them if needed.

[OhCanada-Participant]

Well I feel like Toppin just doesn’t take or force the shots unless they are there for him or at least thats what I’ve seen in the parts of these two games I watched and he isnt a guy repositioning for an open three so if he’s covered he passes off and works his way to another position. I think he has that corner three trailer three shot down though and this part of the game likely opens up for him in the NBA.

Auburn held off Bama all game for the road win to hold their #1 ranking. Broome got two three’s and a fadaway two early in the game to give Auburn a lead and they never gave it back. Alabama got it tied a few times but they never went ahead. A real bend but dont break game for the best team in the country. Sears fought and scrapped for his points to keep Bama in the game. Broome was extremely vaersatile and did most of his damage with the jumpshot but also had tons of defensive moments, 14 boards and 6 assists. Pettiford had 11 pointsin the 2nd half and some very cold moments against that Alabama crowd.

So Broome is 23 years old. Although I mean hes a great player, hes probably gonna at least be a high level role player in the NBA. He can do everything and can play forward and Center position and hes already developed and mature. Pick him in the 1st round you get him for 4 years on a bargain deal then extend the qualifying offer for a 5th and match any RFA offer thrown at him for at least 8 years all put together. So to have Johni Broome for 8 years has to be worth a 1st round pick right?

He’s gotta be picked just outside of the lottery at least. He’s just too good.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Broome was incredible today… I think that’s the best I’ve seen him play. He did everything and Alabama would try to give him different looks, but he kept going with the rhythm of the game. I felt Alabama’s bench could have been in the game more… Holloway and Philon both should have got more minutes than Sears and Youngblood this particular game. Reid and Dioubate could have played more too even I thought. Alabama got smacked in the beginning, and they did almost come back. The rematch will be interesting in March.

[OhCanada-Participant]

Tommorow theres another conference rematch Utah St vs. New Mexico for top spot in the Mountain West. Should be a great game.

[HitsterParticipant]

Toppin only taking open shots and not hitting bad shots is a good thing but he’ll have less time to think about shots in the NBA. I agree about his corner shot being a very useful tool to have and will appeal to NBA teams.

Great point about a guy like Broome being on a cap friendly contract for a long time which would probably cover his peak years. If he became a superstar then they pay him accordingly so its a win-win situation. Being so NBA ready for a team who has been in the play offs and is looking to contend would be a plus for Broome.

I’ll throw out Detroit as a nice landing spot for him. They have gone back to being the old hard working “blue collared” Detroit under J.B Bickerstaff and I could see Broome fitting in well there. Also the Knicks with a couple of firsts might look at him if they take a big with one of them.

I’d tag Broome as a likely first but not sure where he’d go yet.

[OhCanada-Participant]

Detroit is a really good call out but thats a team that is very likely to go on a run after the allstar break and their pick is only protected in the lottery. But I cant think of a better team for him to land on its an absolutely perfect fit and we need to make it happen.

[OhCanada-Participant]

Kasparus has been playing off the ball more since Illinois mini struggle and its hes looked great as a finisher. They usually run the offense through Ivisic or have Riley as the primary creator and Riley is really benefiting from this.

Tre Johnson’s playmaking has looked very good in his last few games and I don’t think many people are still questioniung whether he can pass the ball.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Illinois is going to be a tough out – come tournament time.

[OhCanada-Participant]

Morez Johnson is nother beast on Illinois. This has been a fun game.

[OhCanada-Participant]

I’m defenitely not upset its happening but why is Duke playing Illinois next week? My #1 matchup I wanna see this year is Maryland vs. Duke but Illinois vs Duke is not far off.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Who knew Jaxon Kohler would have the game of his life… sheesh

[HitsterParticipant]

I had to laugh at the talk of Brad Stevens being linked with the Indiana Hoosiers HC role as Mike Woodson is stepping down/retiring next month. The thought process was Brad is from Indiana.

Brad could have retaken the reigns at the Celtics when they moved Udoka on or even have stayed on as HC with his FO role when Ainge stepped down unless the Celtics owners wanted both jobs to be kept seperate.

The Hoosiers haven’t been the same since Bob Knight was removed.though.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Utah State @ New Mexico is an even matchup so far…

[OhCanada-Participant]

Donavan Dent is a killer. Very underrated player.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Ian Martinez and Drake Allen are looking pretty good too

[OhCanada-Participant]

Falsev is an interesting prospect. His arms look longer than his legs and he gets so many steals. I wonder what his wingspan is or if its all in my head.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Not sure, but I think he’d be a good transfer portal guy

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Tru Washington could be another popular portal guy.

[OhCanada-Participant]

I wonder what Dent’s plans are. You’d have to think he gets drafted if he enters. Could also make a boatload of money in college.

[HitsterParticipant]

If a guy like Dent has a year’s eligibility left, I’d be mighty tempted to use it and get a NILs payday unless he got a pretty guaranteed offer. Even being drafted doesn’t mean you automatically get signed.

He’d still be in pretty much the same draft stock situation next year. Also the portal will be open before the draft withdrawal deadline date so guys like him can see what offers they get and weigh up which way to go,

[OhCanada-Participant]

Freshman Blake Harper for Howard scored 34 today in a win. Hes a 6’5 guard and hes putting up great stats for a freshman. Actually has no blocks this year which is kinda weird. Anyone have more information on him, is he a legitimate prospect for this years draft or more likely to enter the portal next year?

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

I love this guy as a deep sleeper prospect… I wish he played better defense, but he does everything on offence consistently, even though today’s game was Maryland Eastern Shore…. I think he transfers the heck out of Howard and finds his way into a good NIL deal. I don’t see him as a likely this year guy, but someday for sure.

[OhCanada-Participant]

Damn Maliq Brown injured again. That sucks watching him and Maluach take turns locking guys up is real good basketball.

[OhCanada-Participant]

I see Maluach as a top 5 pick in this draft and think he is a great player but is it just me or does he seem to always come up short or just be a little late when contesting shots at the rim? Im not sure what to call it I dont think he has bad coordination or reaction time but he just seems to always be a little late.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

I think it is feel for his opponent. I agree though, it looks Idk funny at times and late.

[OhCanada-Participant]

All these Duke guys are gonna be great pro’s. The jury’s still out on Evans. I see Maliq Brown making a roster and sticking just as an energy guy at the end of the bench. But Sion James and Tyrese Proctor I feel have way more to their game then they are showing with this group. Both of those players fit on any NBA team.

Interesting Patrick Ngongba siting here. He hasnt gotten any minutes this year but hes a talented freshman as well. Might get some run here on out if Maliq’s shoulder is injured.

[HitsterParticipant]

Ngongba will hope that Maluach declares so he can get some minutes next year. They have Cameron Boozer and Nikolas Khamenia as PF’s coming in next season. I assume Cameron will take the PF starting role as their top recruit but Nikolas will need minutes and they have Shelton Henderson a highly rated SF to figure in too. But Patrick Ngongba should get more minutes at 5 next season provided they don’t sign a more proven college big guy via transfer portal.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Arizona @ Baylor should be a good game…

[OhCanada-Participant]

Jeremy Roah might be the most dissapointing transfer in the country. Really hasnt worked out well for him in Baylor. I wonder why he didnt just stay with Duke, maybe they didnt wanna pay him?

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

He’s never been that good to begin with… Edgecombe is finally turning it around this game.

[HitsterParticipant]

If Jeremy Roach had been a legit NBA prospect then 4 years as a major player and the bulk as a regular starter at Duke would have made him a draft target. I could actually see Duke not wanting or needing to pay him with the likes of Flagg coming in.

As regards NIL payments is it totally at the team’s discretion how they use the money or would it be more aimed at HS recruits by the powerhouse teams whilst other teams use it to sign proven guys from lesser schools.

How would it affect NIL money if say a guy the team thought would declare stays and they have already committed a lot of NIL money to HS recruits.

Edgecombe hasn’t quite fired as we would have liked but still looks a top 5 pick for me. Likely to go No 4 IMO.

Who goes 5th is the biggest quetion for me at this moment

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Atm I have Jakucionis and Maluach battling between 5 and 6.

Imo Jeremy Roach has not had any serious draft traction since his freshman year.

I’ve circled 11 games today as good or important big games… but the one I have to watch will be Illinois vs Wisconsin tonight. Too many games overlap… and – oh yeah!!! It’s bubble season!!!

[HitsterParticipant]

I’ve always had the idea that Maluach should go high and he is further along than Dereck Lively was a couple of years ago but other bigs have played better such as Queen. But Maluach has that extra size and upside and we don’t know how Cooper has affected Maluach’s stat line.

I’d have him as a top 8 guy still and in the mix to go higher along with Tre, Jakucionis, Queen, Newell, Denim and McNeeley who would be the core of my 5 to 10 guys

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Oops, I read my tiers wrong… I have Tre 5th and Jakucionis and Maluach 6 and 7… that can all change though, I’ve been toying with the big board lately…

[OhCanada-Participant]

Yeah I dont think anyone was expecting Roach to be a draft target but the expectation for a 5th year senior guard coming from the ACC to the Big 12 would be at the very least to lead his team and provide some consistancy. It seems when Roach is in the lineup Edgecombe and Wright Baylor’s two freshman guards are much more indecisive. They seem to always try to get him involved and it ruins Baylor’s flow. When he’s out of the lineup or off the floor they both just attack.

As for the draft tiers I have Tre Johnson and Maluach both at 5th/6th and then Kasparus and Queen in the next tier. Queen has in theory played better or has been more productive than Maluach because he has a much larger role but Maluach has really played his role perfectly this year. The stats dont really show how much he is doing on the floor, He guards on the perimeter forces the pass then moves into protecting the rim all game long. He’s always mixing it up on the glass or tapping loose balls out to his teammates and just having him on the floor his length covers so much space and creates kind of a danger zone that the other team doesn’t even try to enter.

I find it very hard to believe teams will pass on Maluach especially after getting him into private workout settings. If his floor is Derrick Lively I wouldn’t be surprised if he starts to get some looks at 2nd depending on how the lottery goes.

[BothTeamsPlayedHard-Participant]

I think the number of teams who are deep with small-ish guards might make the break at around the 5-10 range somewhat difficult to peg. If Washington falls out of the Top 4, they have Poole for another couple years at big money, just drafted Carrington, and claim to like AJ Johnson. How many smaller guards who play with the ball do you want? Given they have taken Coulibaly, Sarr, George, Carrington, and traded for Johnson, you know they tend towards young projects. Khaman Maluach would fit the profile of the kind of guys Michael Winger and Will Dawkins have taken. Would Noa Essengue be a crazy thought? Could they go DMV diving again (Carrington was also a Baltimore guy) with Derik Queen? It would not be an awful idea to try to pair Queen with Sarr up front. Utah has George, Sexton, and Collier. All are smallish guards, and they have huge holes just about everywhere else. They have not gotten lottery-level returns from Cody Williams or Taylor Hendricks. Sensabaugh does not look like an upgrade from Agbaji who they shipped out to get minutes for him. They can use wings, and if Collins walks a whole lot of help in the front court. It is coin flip for those two teams to fall outside the Top 4. New Orleans doesn’t need to go guard (Dejounte has a long-term deal McCollum is still good with another year on his deal, and Hawkins, and Alvarado are young), but it is a talented group outside on the whole of the center spot (and not every center is going to be a natural fit to pair with Zion). I don’t think taking Maluach after Missi makes much sense, but I also think Maluach is more raw than many (the problem with having eyes and understanding that in 2025 just because someone is willing to take a three does not mean he has range). If the Sixers stay in the muck and keep their pick (currently at #6 which is the limit of the protections), why would they go for a small guard when they just paid Maxey and just drafted McCain? If the lottery has a result of Toronto, Chicago, Brooklyn, and Portland land the top 4, then some of the smaller guards might give way to the other spots. You can argue BPA, BPA, BPA, but is that BPA good enough or versatile enough to have a chance to develop to the best of his abilities. Houston took Reed Sheppard, a small guard, a year after signing FVV, a year after drafting Amen Thompson, and two years after drafting Jalen Green. How is that working out?

[OhCanada-Participant]

Yeah I agree with that. Maluach, Queen, McNeely etc. are all in the mix with the Edgecombe, Johnson, Kasparus lot. Although when it comes to teams like Utah and Danny Ainge in particular I don’t believe there is a single player on that roster he wont draft over. Isaiah Collier is not gonna stop him from drafting the best player. Ainge is ruthless he’s dumped MVP candidates he wont feel one way or another to give up on George on Collier.

Washington’s sort of the same deal. Poole’s just there so they lose games and they can sell the fans stats. The teams probably better off without him. As soon as Washington has their guard of the future Pooles gone.

These teams arent trying to build a winner. They are gathering assets and gambling for lottery picks until they have franchise players.

[OhCanada-Participant]

Yeah theres some good games for sure. Purdue vs Michigan St is a huge game should be a close one but I wanna see what Toppin does vs TCU.

He’s averaging 31 points 13 rebounds 2 steals and 2 blocks in his last 3 games and before that he had a couple rough games that didnt go his way including getting ejected for no reason vs Houston. I think he’s got a chip on his shoulder, might see another big performance. TCU has a very small lineup also.

[HitsterParticipant]

Maluach fits a lot of teams in the top 10 possibly bar Portland who have Clingan and possibly Utah with Kessler but if Lakers make an offer for Kessler as has been touted then Ainge would happily take several picks.

With Philly it would be interesting but McNeeley might be a nice fit.Charlotte have ended up keeping Mark Williams and have various highly drafted guys but I’d not like to guess what they will do.

Washington have Sarr but anyone else I’d say isn’t indispensable.

[BothTeamsPlayedHard-Participant]

OhCanada- but if you were Danny Ainge, how likely are you to think Tre Johnson is a better prospect than Keyonte George or Collin Sexton? Drafting over is one thing, but how likely is the guy who brought those guys in will think the next guy is necessarily going to be better? The same holds for the other teams. Small guards are a bit like centers where they have limited positional flexibility. Egor Demin might be Josh Giddey, but he’ll always be 6’9″ (assuming the height checks out). Kasparas isn’t quite as big, but there is still versatility to being 6’6″ in the NBA. The smaller you go, the harder it is.

[OhCanada-Participant]

George has outperformed his draft position so generally people speak about his performance positively but he still has alot of developing to do.. I just feel like what Ainge is doing is recycling prospects until he finds very clear franchise players and Keyontae George in two years has not shown without a doubt hes that kind of talent. Could it happen? Sure. But if they think Tre Johnson is that guy they will not say “well we gotta pass on Tre because we already have Keyontae”.

Personally I’m high on Tre. Not only is Tre Johnson leading the nation in feshman PPG, he is also leading the SEC in PPG. This is a very tough conference and has been debated as the deepest conference in NCAA history. Texas is also a very disfunctional team. The NBA is gonna be a breeze for him in comparison.If you give Johnson the same green light they have given Keyontae at the very least he’s not gonna have 5 games in a month where he takes less than 10 shots.

So personally I’m about 95% sure Johnson is better than Sexton and George, right now.

[HitsterParticipant]

Danny Ainge has always liked to have draft options and has pulled off lots of trades even on draft day. He formed the original Big 3 then rebuilt the Celtics latest title winning team foundations. He has made some bad moves but far less than his good ones but I’d not like to second guess what he might do if the Jazz ended up outside of top 3 or 4.

Brooklyn with all their cap space and draft assets need to be watched. They might trade for an All Star level player as FA market looks limited this summer.

[OhCanada-Participant]

What is going on with Kansas this year?

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Yeah, not watching that game… but noticed BYU is crushing them… meanwhile I think I gotta move Kasparas down a peg if this game is his floor…

[OhCanada-Participant]

I agree. He’s had a few of these games now this one byfar the worst of the bunch. They were saying that Ivisic was sick., he was questionable and came off the bench Morez didnt even play so theres a chance Kasparus was sick as well.. Either way that was a really bad game,

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Idk what I’m watching later yet – lots of good but not great games tonight…

Vanderbilt @ Kentucky
Cincinnati @ West Virginia
St. Joseph’s @ George Washington
Northern Iowa @ Belmont
UIC @ Drake
Furman @ Samford
Bradley @ Illinois State
South Alabama @ Arkansas State
St. Thomas @ South Dakota
North Dakota State @ South Dakota State
Oregon @ Iowa
Arkansas @ Auburn
Alabama @ Mizzou
Gonzaga @ Washington State
New Mexico @ Boise State

[OhCanada-Participant]

Micah Peavy is becoming one of my favorite seniors in this draft. He’s a strong 6’6 combo guard with good athletisism and can really score. He’s got 19 so far in the 1st half against Providence right now.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Rasheer Fleming so far is struggling against Rafael Castro

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Ah!!! Fleming’s turning the corner finally now…

[OhCanada-Participant]

Rasheer Fleming is a very difficult player to watch. He defenitely does not yet understand how dominant he can be with his skillset. Tends to blend in at times and sort of takes whats given to him. Doesnt force anything. It might be something that makes him the perfect role player at the next level but at the college level you wanna see him takeover games. Still he’s a great leader and extremely vocal for that Saint Joe’s team and I have him ranked high.

[OhCanada-Participant]

Xzayvier Brown has always impressed in the games I watched Saint Joe’s.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Idk if Alabama wins this game, but they were down by a ton and now they’re within 6. Sears finally got hot…

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Mizzou is legit – they looked the part from the first minute…

[OhCanada-Participant]

Queen just dropped somebody with a spin on the fastbreak then got the assist for a three. Then a few plays later he blew a dunk on the fastbreak.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Maryland’s just too big for USC up front… Major size difference.

[OhCanada-Participant]

Yep. Maryland’s my favorite team. I’ll be routing for them here on out. I dont think they have enough depth to win it all but they are good.

[BothTeamsPlayedHard-Participant]

One of the underrated things about Maryland is that they haven’t really played a bad game. It isn’t any one guy every night. They aren’t have an Edey-dependencia thing Purdue faced in recent years. They won’t suffer from the D’Antoni-styled no Plan B to launching threes no common among some college teams. You don’t necessarily know they are going to go deep, but nobody is going to skunk them. Who has that kind of resume? Maryland, Duke, Auburn, St. John’s, Houston, and Gonzaga (though they have lost more of their close ones).

Also, they don’t go deep, but Jordan Geronimo and Deshawn Harris-Smith were starting for them last year. Tafare Gapare started at GT last year. Jay Young has played. It is not as if they would be incapable of operating should something happen to their top 5.

[HitsterParticipant]

Maryland certainly have a very good starting frontcourt in Queen and Reece who would be one of the stronger ones in the tournament. Michigan and Duke spring to mind as other teams who are that strong up front. Ja’Kobi, Miguel and Rice give them a nice 1 to 3 and can spread the play. They have a useful bench but might lack a bit of scoring there but I could see them having a good run in the NCAA tiurnament.

They may not be good enough to win it but could take a notable scalp or two and won’t be an easy game. Could well be the sort of team to make Sweet 16 at least.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Time will tell, come tournament time throw everything you think you know out the window. Brackets will get busted. Maryland hasn’t lost a bad one – they’re a team that could even get past the Sweet 16… NC State last year made the Final Four… On the other hand, Maryland might get ousted by a solid team in the opening round… Say Maryland is good enough to eek out a 6 seed in the tourney… facing an 11 seed isn’t cupcake city. That 11 seed could be Kansas at this rate… or Creighton or Arkansas… or San Diego State… you get it – a team that might not be favored but capable matches up and wins in the first round against Maryland… anything is possible. The frontcourt is very solid in Maryland but yeah, they will need some luck.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Tonight there’s three games that interest me.

Marquette @ Villanova
Dayton @ Loyola-Chicago
Michigan State @ Michigan

Who you guys got in the Michigan State/Michigan game???

Saturday there are a ton of games to watch and they overlap all day long… Ones to keep an eye on due to either a good matchup or bubble situations I see as so;

Tennessee @ Texas A&M
Oregon @ Wisconsin
Mississippi State @ Oklahoma
Iowa State @ Houston
Rhode Island @ St Louis
Ole’Miss @ Vanderbilt
Georgia @ Auburn
Clemson @ SMU
George Mason @ VCU
Kentucky @ Alabama
Boise State @ Nevada
Duke vs Illinois
Mizzou @ Arkansas
San Diego State @ Utah State
St. Mary’s @ Gonzaga
Texas @ South Carolina
BYU @ Arizona

I don’t know what I’ll end up watching tomorrow, but hope to catch Iowa State/Houston and Duke/Illinois

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Damn! Just realized Iowa State will be without Keshon Gilbert and Curtis Jones tomorrow… and I thought they could beat Houston on the road – not happening now.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Dayton @ Loyola Chicago was a good first half, but switched games…
Jase Richardson’s starting for Michigan State tonight, and so far, it has worked out wonderfully!

[OhCanada-Participant]

Nah you guys are crazy if you dont have Danny Wolf in the lottery. This dudes feel and playmaking is unreal.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

He is ballin’ out right now… The problem with Michigan is their backcourt… the front court is real though! Danny Wolf imo is as good if not better ball handler than Demin. I’m buying Wolf watching him right now…

[HitsterParticipant]

Sanny Wolf I’m going to move into my list of top 20 contenders. I don’t know if he is quite lottery level yet but he picks a lot of boxes,. He is 7ft, 250ls, a good rebounder, elite passing and playmaking skills for his size and is a decent 3 point shooter.

He will give any team that drafts him options with his playmaking as they can change things up when he is on court and have more shooters around him with the ball being carried by someone in a different position to the main playmaker.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Wow! Oregon pulled it off on the road at Wisconsin just now!!! No answer for Nate Brittle… Kwame Evans, Jr. looked better than he did before today.

[BothTeamsPlayedHard-Participant]

Big win for Oregon, and a nasty loss for Wisconsin. 7 points in the final 9 minutes of the 2nd half at home is just awful. Between them and Texas A&M, this is not the best showings for teams that are regarded as top 10 teams. Just anemic offensive performances. There are few things worse in basketball than watching a team take more than half its shots from three and going 5-30.

The Ducks are done with its eastward road trips. They had four different trips involving flights of more than 5 hours in the air. Their tournament resume won’t reflect the added burden of that travel. If they end up in that 7-10 range, they have the talent to drop a top one or two seed.

[OhCanada-Participant]

Fears had arguably his best game of the year with 27 points and 10 assists. This is his 2nd game in a row being very productive and it seems like he’s gotten over the hump for an Oklaholma team that is on the bubble and needs him to play well. I watched the first half. He seems to be learning how to attack defences. Before if his shot wasnt falling he would just pass the ball off and become invinsible on the floor or wait for oppurtunities in transition. He missed two threes in a row then the next few possessions attacked the rim. If he keeps playing like this and Oklaholma makes the tournament he could play himself back into the late lottery.

Him and Traore are defenitely battling it out for draft positioning right now.

[HitsterParticipant]

With some of these top college guys you almost wish they could try and take over a game and play “hero ball” sometimes. These guys almost seem to score more freely when they reach the NBA somehow.

Wildcats vs Crimson Tide looks a tasty game right now. Mark Sears is up to 15 points already before halftime after 35 points the other night so he is balling at the moment.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Duke’s been impressive this game… they look like a contender. Everyone’s clicking and Flagg doesn’t have to take over the game by scoring. I’m surprised, but it looks like on the other hand Illinois has hit a wall per say…

[OhCanada-Participant]

Sion James is quickly rising up my big board. He’s now close to Proctor. Its kind of hard to rank him without any clue what his real measurements are. He could be 6’4 or could be 6’6 and it kind of looks like he has smallish arms but that might be because of how strong he is his arms just look small. His transfer to Duke was a phenomenal move,

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

I don’t think Proctor declares this year. Sion James will make the league, not sure he gets drafted though….

[HitsterParticipant]

Mark Sears had a 30 point game in the end. I hope he does get drafted but lack of size will always be an issue as regards NBA. The guy playing behind him from the bench Aden Holloway had a very good shooting game too and could be a guy to watch over the next couple of college seasons. Like Sears his height could hinder his NBA chances but with Sears moving on then Aden could well get the starting birth next season and make some good NIL money as well as being the Crimson Tide’s go to scorer.

Isaiah Evans of Duke has had an excellent 3 point shooting run in last couple of games. Could well be a key difference maker in the NCAA tournament. I’ve not seen much of him but a 6ft 6ins guard who can shoot that well might be a guy to watch. I don’t know if he would get interest this year from the NBA or if he will likely return.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Idk, but I don’t think anybody would beat Duke today… they look that good. If they play like today all tournament, they have a shot.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

St. John’s is just having their way with UConn. Is UConn a bubble team? They lost to Seton Hall…

[HitsterParticipant]

St John’s are having a great season. Whatever people think about Rick Pitino’s off court antics and recruitment actions, he is still an elite level coach and has St John’s top of a loaded conference and a top 10 ranked team nationally.

Liam McNeeley I’ll have to drop down my mock list if he has many more shooting games like last night. Solo Ball is having a very nice season for UConn and could be one of the better college players next year if he can take it up another level.

With the rankings are victories against some teams ranked less as a season goes on as beating UConn early on when they were considered a possible contender would have carried more weight now the team is not in the top 25?

[OhCanada-Participant]

You know I actually didnt mind that game from McNeely too much offensively. That was a brutal game, the pace was frantic and St. John’s was so aggressive. I’m sure thats the first time McNeely has felt that amount of defensive pressure in a game. At least he got to the line and he was perfect there before missing his last two at the end of the game. I’m more worried about his defence. I think it was against Nova he had two plays in a row at the end of the game that were just blow byes.

St. John’s defenitely looked like contenders in this game and I’ll likely have them going deep in my bracket.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Johni “Bug eye” Broome!!! How’s that one guys? This years’ Sloth Stephens is pretty good… I think NBA teams are going to like him… he might play a similar role as Jonathan Isaac…

[HitsterParticipant]

Sloth Stephens is a one off but old Bugeye had another great game. Also I hadn’t realised his assist rate was so good. He has 85 in 25 games compared to Danny Wolf he is seen as the poster boy for ball carrying big men with 99 in 26 games. So Johni isn’t that far behind.

I still would have Wolf going ahead of Johni if he declares but Johni will surely go first round somewhere. Clippers, Pacers, Knicks ( two first rounders) down to Boston at 28 would seem possible landing spots for him on a play off/contending team.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Just in time for Houston @ Texas Tech

[HitsterParticipant]

Should be a good game between two top 10 teams. Could be the sort of game you’d get in Sweet 16 or Elite 8.

[OhCanada-Participant]

Another great performance by Uzan tonight. He just keeps improving. I really like Kelvin Sampson coached guards. These Houston guards like Shead, Sasser and Grimes. Grimes is a bit different as he was a top recruit, Uzan maybe the best of them all when its all said and done. I just hope he doesn’t enter the draft with the deep Houston recruiting class coming in.

Jarace Walker needed more time with Houston. Its easy to say in hindsight but his development in the NBA has been haulted as he battles for minutes with similar players like Obi Toppin. Tugler, and Uzan can be really good if they stay awhile and learn,

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Imo Milos Uzan is a very highly skilled, high IQ guy that makes Houston go. Houston proved they’re a team that can go somewhere in the tourney. I wasn’t as sold as much before last night. I’m still not as high as some still, only because I’m not as high on Texas Tech either… but I’ll give Houston some respect though… What the 2 teams have in common is that they know how to beat up lesser teams really well… Gonzaga does too for the WCC this year also. I think Houston looks like they are a Sweet 16 or maybe elite 8 team. Texas Tech might be a round of 32 though. 16 at best. Matchups will prove a factor too of course… But imo Iowa State’s the best team in the Big 12. They’re tough and when they are healthy they will be very dangerous. Iowa State just gave Houston a game without Gilbert and Jones… I don’t know how Tugler will exactly translate in today’s game, but he makes the league for sure. Uzan is really impressive and can see him as a backup point guard.

Jarace Walker is actually a very good player. I like him a little better than Toppin actually, but he’s the young guy in a logjam behind people in the pecking order. Jarace Walker and Cam Whitmore will come out of nowhere one of these near future seasons… both scenarios they’re in logjam situations and not playing only due to seniority reasons. They play well when they’re on the court with actual opportunity and not a 5-minute game without rhythm.

[HitsterParticipant]

With Jarace Walker don’t forget the Pacers traded for Siakam after they had drafted Jarace and signed Obi Toppin so that moved Toppin to the bench and reducede Jarace’s minutes too. Isn’t Turner a FA with the Pacers this summer so if he moves on that will free up playing time.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

I’m aware they have Siakam – but I’m saying sometimes coaches are dumb about seniority and Jarace and Toppin’s minutes should be flip flopped imo. Same with Whitmore and Dillon Brooks imo. Jarace Walker will get an uptick likely if Turner walks and they don’t get a rim protector in the draft or something.

[HitsterParticipant]

Plus when a team has traded for a guy like Siakam and extended him then the coach will likely play them more than rookies or 2nd year guys on rookie contracts.

Houston have a loaded roster and the big signings and those on the bigger deals are expected to see more time. Cam has to battle for his minutes and teams like OKC have the same nice “problem” – they have Topic to fit in along with whoever they draft this year.

Jarace will be okay I think as he was considered good enough to be drafted by Kevin Pritchard who always liked guys who were considered “upstanding citizens” and “good team men”. So if he passed that test he must be a level headed guy.

[OhCanada-Participant]

Illinois has to win against Iowa tonight to make the NCAA tournament. Unless of course they win the Big 10 tournament but thats asking alot. They play Iowa at home, Michigan @ Ann Arbour and then Purdue @ home. Do they have to win outright at this point?

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Yeah, I think that could be an important game for Illinois too and they have hit the wall lately… might not be easy.

[OhCanada-Participant]

Georgia is up 20 against Florida 10 minutes into the game. Newell’s been changing my opinion with his last few performances. I may consider him in play for top 10 if he continues this run.

[OhCanada-Participant]

So I’ve brought this up before but I’m gonna mention it again now that his season is ending and UCF only has a handful of games left, Where does Mo Thiam fit into this draft? He’s one of the youngest players in the draft turning 19 just a few days ago. He’s hitting threes at a better percentage than Asa Newell. Above 50% FG% and 70% FT%. Last measured at 7’2 with a 7’6 wingspan and 9’5 standing reach. Can switch onto guards.

So heres the question. If we has Thiam playing for Duke all year and Maluach playing for UCF all year would Thiam be a top 10 pick? Because I think he would. And thats not a knock on Maluach at all. I think were gonna start hearing some draft buzz on Thiam and if he enters the draft he could even go as high as the lottery.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Florida within 7…

As for Thiam, Idk about that high if he played for Duke because Maluach is huge! But I can see a top 25 pick. I think he gets some buzz, not sure he enters…

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Florida might pull this off, within 1

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Daaaamn… Georgia eeked out this one.

[OhCanada-Participant]

Yeah that last Georgia turnover where he threw away the ball at halfcourt I thought it was over at that point. But then Cain hit that three, Newell got a few rebounds and that was it. A bit anticlimatic but credit to Georgia for pulling through. That will really help their case and I actually think Florida coming back and them fending them off kinda helps their case more than if they just blew them out as well because then people wouldve just said Florida had an “off night” which clearly was not the case.

Ivisic finally looks like hes healthy again. He makes this Illinois team go.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Yeah, Florida will probably get a 1 seed and there might be 14 SEC teams that make the tournament.

[OhCanada-Participant]

Baye Ndongo is averaging 17 points 15 rebounds and 2 blocks in his last 4 games.

VJ Edgecombe finished 5-8 from three in a loss to Cincinatti. I think Baylor really needed this win.

Collin Murray Boyles is having a good game despite getting blown out by Missouri. I really don’t know how to rank him in my mock. He’s been super productive but on a team with 1 win in SEC play. I’ve seen him compared to Julius Randle, Rondae Hollis Jefferson and even Paul Millsap.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

New Mexico State @ San Diego State game is fire right now!

[HitsterParticipant]

Thomas Sorber out for the rest of the season with the Hoyas. I guess his body of work across 24 games is there. Other guys in the same draft range can of course improve or maybe regress their draft position. He was a post lottery to late first rounder in my book.

A lot will depend on how his injury looks at the combine and if there are any ongoing issues. The Hoyas had played better this season than the last couple of ones but aren’t going to make the tournament. So it would not be like Sorber would be returning to a team likely to contend but he could make good NIL money there or elsewhere if he did decide to stay.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

That sucks!!! I hope he goes back and stays at Georgetown… not enter the transfer portal or draft… That’s me though. I don’t know what to do with him on my big board… but aside from that, it’s really too bad – he’s a very solid freshman prospect.

[HitsterParticipant]

Thomas has played bulk of the games this season so teams have a good idea where he is. The Hoyas would have NIL money to dangle at him and Ed Cooley has turned them around somewhat this season with them having won the most games in about 6 years already. Peavy is out of college eligibility but Epps, Mack and Fletcher could return and if they get a good transfer or two they could get back into the tournament next season.

The Hoyas had has been built for around 50 years on the late great John Thompson Jnr with him, his long term assistant, his son and star player Patrick Ewing having been the 4 head coaches. Ed Cooley came in as a fresh face and was stuck with after a disastrous first season and seems to be progressing the team slowly.

I did like how John Thompson Jnr only spent two years playing in the NBA but won the title in both those years with Red Auerbach’s legendary Celtics. I wonder how much wisdom from the likes of Red, Bill Russell and co helped John have his own fine coaching career.

[HitsterParticipant]

CMB is a rock solid first round pick for me. He has improved his scoring, rebounding and is developing a 3 point range so he has pretty much done what we had wanted him to do this year to help justify his draft status.

[OhCanada-Participant]

Sorber enters imo. Hes a top 20 pick maybe lottery,.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Just chiming in on Michigan State @ Maryland… tied at 19.

[OhCanada-Participant]

Not a good game for Queen tonight. He’s settled for multiple longrange jumpshot and missed all of them, pretty badly. He has also been terrible in transition defense and at times didnt even run down the floor, his teammates even were calling him out on it. Whether he is managing his energy, refusing to run, or just lackidasical thats a very bad sign. If your on a rookie contract and you wont or cant run the floor you will not last long in the NBA no matter how good you are everywhere else. Its why Luka Garza cant even get on the court. Then you say well if he improves is conditioning this will improve but how often do unfit players at this level improve that. Its probably a 1 to 5 ratio.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

valid points, and this isn’t his best game. Michigan State looks like the Big Ten team to beat atm.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Wow! What a finish… Holloman with the shot!

[OhCanada-Participant]

wow

[OhCanada-Participant]

Best game of the year?

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

It was a good finish, I didn’t catch most of the first half though… I’d say that BYU @ Arizona game was better the other night, but this was a great one for sure!

[OhCanada-Participant]

Gillespie had time. He didnt need to shoot that so early…

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Texas @ Arkansas is a big game for both, even bigger for Texas imo. They just lost to South Carolina (I don’t think they’re that bad, but they are for the SEC) That’s a bad loss on their resume and they could be on the bubble. Arkansas has been playing well lately.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Texas is giving Arkansas a game atm. Tre Johnson looking solid!

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

So the question is did Tre Johnson just catch VJ? Or is he on an island right behind him? He’s been ridiculous in this game. Arkansas is about to win, but wow!

[OhCanada-Participant]

I think Tre Johnson has caught VJ. Theres gonna be teams that prefer the size/length and skill/production of Tre over the athletisism and potential of VJ. Without question though he has passed up Kasparus I dont think anybody is arguing that.

[HitsterParticipant]

Tre and VJ are pretty much the same size bar an inch in height. Tre carries about 10 more lbs but its not like a huge size difference. Tre I think is the better scorer but VJ might be the more creative player and has more man marking defensive potential.

I’ll put Tre as a rock solid 5th pick but with the chance to go 4th depending who picks there.

I’ve noticed Zvonimir Ivisic has had a couple of good games. Do teams have a good look at him, 7ft 2ins can run the floor and shoots 41% from the 3 point line. That ticks a lot of boxes for me.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Yeah, both brothers are looking good right now. Zvonimir is picking it up and Tomislav looks healthy again. I’d take a good look at them… what makes Collin Murray-Boyles better if they are both asked to play in the same painted area? Collin Murray-Boyles’ shot isn’t quite there yet but he’s a good connective passer and rebounder. A guy like Zvonimir blocks more shots and shoots better.

[HitsterParticipant]

CMB is 6 or 7 inches shorter than Zvonimir so I’d certainly want Big Z 2 as a paint guy out of those two but I feel CMB is currently more NBA ready.

[OhCanada-Participant]

Just as a Raptors fan with us currently positioned in the lottery I would say theres 6 players I would be happy with Toronto picking up out of this draft. Flagg, Harper, Bailey, Edgecombe, Johnson and Maluach. The dropoff from there isnt ridiculously steep, theres still tons of talent but those 6 to me are cant miss.

To be honest to I know that Queen would work out in Toronto just because of the culture so I wouldnt mind him playing here likely as my 7th player. Alot of people are starting to put McNeely in that group as well but I can’t get it out of my head late in a game he was defending on the perimeter and two possessions in a row got blew right bye clean.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

big time under the radar game tonight in a couple of hours… UC San Diego @ Cal State Northridge… both teams are very tough in an underrated conference. If UC San Diego can win out, they can have an at large bid without winning their tournament perhaps. Cal State Northridge has talent coupled with good defense. UC San Diego usually doesn’t turn the ball over much, but they are playing at Northridge…

[HitsterParticipant]

I pretty much agree with you Oh Canada any of those 6 guys could fit in. But with the likes of VJ, Ace, Harper, Johnson you’d have a smallball team with Barnes, Barrett, Ingram and Quickley as your likely starters if the rookie starts. Poeltl would be there as the big guy and you have Mogobo as a high energy guy to use too.

Flagg would be slightly smallball with the other 4 starters and Maluach I think would start from the bench.

If you took someone in 2 to 5 range the team in best case scenario could try to be like the Warriors at their best and not have a recognised C.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

UC San Diego’s up 7 at half. They look as good as advertised. Aniwaniwa Tait-Jones is a player to look out for. He’s definitely their most assertive player on the court.

Meanwhile, it appears Rutgers has Michigan against the ropes…

[OhCanada-Participant]

Yeah having watched the Raptors and this current organization under Masai Ujiri for over a decade now they defenitely tend to throw the rookies right into the fire and give them heavy minutes immediately. This way they can get tape on them, show them what they need to improve on the tape. send them to the g league to work on what they highlight and bring them back up to try it again

. With Siakam in his sophmore year they literally had him sit in the corner as a floor spacing big despite not being able to shoot, he shot 80 threes at 14% in his first 40 games that year and shot 60 threes at 33% his next 41 games, then went 3 for 4 in the playoffs. Even with Barnes I thought he couldve won 6th man and rookie of the year if they brought him off the bench his rookie season but they always prioritize development. As much as I would love to see Tre, VJ, Khaman etc. in the 6th man role it is much more likely tp see Quickley coming off the bench especially since he already got paid and thrived as a 6th man with the Knicks. Can’t argue with the results though they clearly have a formula that works.

[HitsterParticipant]

I quite like the idea of giving guys good minutes from day one to try and figure out what they need to work on and then send them to the G-League to work on it. The Raptors are a work in progress with a young team so they can give the guys minutes and the limited downside would be another lottery pick in 2026.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Another big Saturday of games!!!
Ones to watch;

Auburn @ Kentucky
Texas Tech @ Kansas
Oklahoma @ Ole’Miss
Alabama @ Tennessee
Utah State @ Colorado State
Creighton @ Xavier
Mizzou @ Vanderbilt
Georgia @ Texas
Texas A&M @ Florida
Arizona @ Iowa State
West Virginia @ BYU
Gonzaga @ San Francisco

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Wow!!! Did anyone just see the Alabama @ Tennessee game??? Holy crazy game of the year candidate…

[HitsterParticipant]

That was a last 8 or semi final level tournament game.

[OhCanada-Participant]

Missed it but I’m surprised Ternnessee won. Theyve proved me wrong this year.

Baye Ndongo has another phenomenal game today. 29 points, 17 rebounds, 8-11 FT, hit a three, 2 blocks. The highlights are insane he’s just dunking on everybody. He’s an athletic PF with some developing touch and a 7’3 wingspan, 9 foot standing reach. A bit turnover prone though. Hes now averaging 20 points, 16 rebounds, 2 blocks 3/8 3PT, 23/30 FT over his last 5 games. He is a bit older though 22 years old.

[OhCanada-Participant]

Georgia just killed Texas. Longhorns are done. I’m tired of watching that team anyways. One thing that made a team like Rutgers very fun to watch has been the understanding that the team is built around Harper and Bailey. This Texas team never really gave the keys to Tre Johnson despite him leading the SEC in points. Very odd thing to watch him try to get touches, it seems if he passes the ball once he rarely gets it back. I think he couldve had a historical year if he had complimentary peices around him and I’m seriously wondering if he is a better longterm prospect than Harper. Thats just what my gut says.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Iowa State is looking way better than Arizona with all their pieces in place. Kind of what I was thinking they’d be… I’m switching games once Gonzaga goes to SF though…

[OhCanada-Participant]

Memphis vs. UAB is going to be a huge game today. Memphis is ahead by 1 win for 1st place in the American conference. I dont see UAB listed as a bubble team anywhere but surely if they finish 1st in their conference they should at least be considered for an at large bid. I would like to see how Yexel performs against better athletes and more talented players, I personally dont think much would change.

[HitsterParticipant]

With the rankings for the tournament teams are the teams and conferences “weighted” each season or does historic performances count at all. Surely every Div 1 conference winner or champion should automatically go into the tournament.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

The conference tournament winners are the automatic bids. What matters is the NET or SOR or even KPI perhaps. It’s all about the results against the strength of schedule. Conferences have an RPI, but ultimately, it’s the totality of games that matter. But yes, and there are measurements for quality wins and number of points, depending on which metric you want to use. warrennolan.com considers all the metrics widely used today that I’m aware of…

[OhCanada-Participant]

Im still high on Kasparus despite not having him in the top half of my lottery. You know even when Jakacunis is struggling and he has clearly been out of sorts offensively he has still been able to mix it up in other areas of the court and play a scrappy brand of basketball. I think he played so well that people started evaluating him as a potential top 5 pick and started critiquing him and his game unfairly. As a late lottery pick he provides a ton of value if you can repurpose his game to start off as a role player. I have very little doubt he will at least be a high level role player and if he drops in this draft and a good team like San Antonio or Miami or any other team that actually wants to win he could end up being an incredible player.

[OhCanada-Participant]

Big win for Illinois. Looks like they will make it.

[OhCanada-Participant]

Memphis goes on a 13-1 run to close out the game against UAB. Haggerty was lights out they couldnt stop him.

[HitsterParticipant]

Kasparus could easily have a draft range from about 7 to 14. I’d love the Spurs to get him and his downside would be a team like the Pistons if he fell outside of the lottery.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Right now Duke looks like the only team that can challenge Auburn.

[BothTeamsPlayedHard-Participant]

Bruce Pearl’s track record in the tournament says there will be more than that.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

I hope you’re right.

[HitsterParticipant]

Auburn have a lot of depth but I’d slightly favour Duke. We have to see how the Conference tournaments go as that can shake things up too.

[OhCanada-Participant]

Theres alot of very good teams and alot of basketball to be played. As an example if Caleb Love goes on a hot streak who beats even a lower ranked team like Arizona? This year seems like its been a celebration of Tom Izzo and Michigan St. seems to be riding on that high plus they may get a “subconcious” favorable whistle. Houston is incredibly tough and the list goes on. I gotta say this has been one ofthe best years of college basketball in recent memory and I think next year will be just as good.

[BothTeamsPlayedHard-Participant]

Texas A&M missed 37 shots and got 24 offensive rebounds. For a team that loves to miss shots, it is one way to make it work.

[HitsterParticipant]

Texas Aggies getting more offensive than defensive rebounds isn’t something we see that often and it seems like both sides had an off day with their shooting. Broome was a few rebounds down on his usual numbers which didn’t help.

At this time of the season are teams looking towards their own Conference Tournaments or the main NCAA tournament?

Games will all become sudden death and we’ll probably see teams taking less risks.

The Aggies are a top 25 team and were higher before their recent skid so are a good team. Better for Auburn to lose a game now than in a knock out game. Purdue though were turned over in their conference tournament last season but then went all the way to the NCAA final vs UConn so loses do happen.

UConn aren’t likely to be a legit contender this year – slated to meet Duke in last 32 in out East but some of their likely returnees have been having some big games recently so they will be a team to track next season if they land another top recruit and maybe a transfer or two,

[BothTeamsPlayedHard-Participant]

I wouldn’t make much of the various mock bracket matchups. The volatility of the next week and a half makes it so that what you see today will not really resemble what ends up appearing. Teams will be in similar ranges, but that is about it.

Texas A&M isn’t a bad team, but is a really bad shooting team. I don’t know how they can win 4, much less 6, straight. It is just bad offense for a team that is sub-30% from three in SEC games to be taking 38% of its shots from behind the arc.

As for UConn, they aren’t a contender. Not having a point guard means they have to be so precise in its halfcourt offense. They do run some of the most impressive sets and actions to get guys open, but when their shots don’t fall are really vulnerable. If a team can get Ball, McNeeley, and Karaban to combine be in the 30 percents from the field, they’ll probably win. I don’t think there is a tournament team that will get beaten by Tarris Reed in the post, and teams will welcome Hassan Diarra to be the one to beat them as opposed their other three. Also, I think you are better off taking Hurley on a quick turnaround to come up with and have his guy execute a game plan than just about any other coach in college basketball. I don’t think Tennessee, Wisconsin, Michigan State, Texas A&M, or Florida would be happy to see them as a possible 2nd round opponent.

[HitsterParticipant]

UConn I’m assuming Ball and Reed return, McNeeley declares but Karaban is the wildcard if he returns then UConn will be stronger next season than they are now. They have 3 top 25 recruits in Mullins, Reibe and Adams incoming and will likely add a transfer or two.

I fully agree with BTPH that whilst they won’t likely win the NCAA tournament a fancied team wouldn’t want to face them first or second round.

[BothTeamsPlayedHard-Participant]

Ball probably isn’t big enough to get taken early as a 2-guard. He has length, plenty of athleticism, and can shoot. That and having been well-coaches means he probably has a good chance once he gets into the league. In this era, it is just harder than ever to know how to project whether guys who aren’t certain 1st rounders will enter (and ultimately stay in) the draft. It was only a few years ago where guys would think they have to go if they could get a two-way deal. Now, it is abundantly clear that for college eligible players, the college game will pay better for anyone who isn’t a 1st rounder. Even then, you still have guys who just want to be pros.

[OhCanada-Participant]

And its so much better for the players and the sport overall. Long overdue should have happened a decade ago.

[HitsterParticipant]

The NBA is becoming more and more positionless as guards get bigger but a lot of frontcourt players are now faster and more mobile than the traditional halfcourt big.

Solo Ball is an interesting guy as far as the draft goes he might be a bit small for an NBA SG but he has really stepped up this year after being a bit part player last season. He is shooting 43% from beyond the 3 point line which is far better than McNeely and Karaban. I believe he’ll be best suited returning to UConn for at least another season and can make very good NIL money.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Illinois maybe playing for life support to make the tournament tonight against Purdue. Colorado State @ Boise State is a huge bubble matchup.

A bunch of big games tomorrow of course…

St. John’s @ Marquette
Kentucky @ Mizzou
Mississippi State @ Arkansas
Vanderbilt @ Georgia
Alabama @ Auburn
Ohio State @ Indiana
Arizona @ Kansas
Ole’ Miss @ Florida
Houston @ Baylor
UC Irvine @ UC Santa Barbara

[HitsterParticipant]

Its been really interesting reading up on how all the different factors for Selection Sunday works. Being based in England the idea of teams from all different divisions/conferences being seeded by an outside panel and not on results has always seemed a bit strange to me. But I’ve finally got my head around it I think.

I hadn’t realised that BYU never play on a Sunday. Is that part of the reason the NCAA final now tends to be on a Monday night?

There have been some very top sports people who wouldn’t play on a Sunday for faith reasons.

Arizona vs Kansas could be a big game which could impact both team’s tournament seeding positions.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

St. John’s beating Marquette on the road in OT…. they’re very resiliant.

[OhCanada-Participant]

Yeah St. Johns looks like they could be a very good tournament team. Defenitely one of my favorites.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Alabama @ Auburn could be the game of the year… so far we’re in OT…

[OhCanada-Participant]

Johni Broome has been phenomenal. They gave him a hard time for missing a fadeaway instead of driving but you cant get mad at him for taking that shot, hes the best player in the country. You gotta live with the misses.

Double OT?

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Broome’s been great and was in that game, but Flagg’s the better player still not to mention prospect. I think Flagg’s just a little better and proved it in their earlier matchup. I’ll admit though, Flagg was on his home court, but he’s barely 18 on top of that! He has more growing in his game still and is already there.

[OhCanada-Participant]

Sears with the floater! Something tells me these two teams are gonna meet again.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Wow, Broome had a clutch 3 that almost sent this game in a different direction, Sears with a clutch jumper at the end…

[HitsterParticipant]

Broome had an awesome game and I agree these teams could easily meet in Elite 8 or even the semi finals.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

The rankings that come out Monday are going to be very interesting. I think Duke climbs to #1.

[HitsterParticipant]

I’d not worry too much about the rankings, it’s the Selection Sunday which counts. The lists that “experts” compile are just their takes. The top of the seedings doesn’t really matter too much as those teams are kept apart until the quarters and semi finals.

But I agree Duke looks like top seeds at the moment.

[HitsterParticipant]

As a lot of us have Danny Wolf as a first round pick do any of you have Vladislav Goldin in your mocks. I’d have him as a second round pick given that he is a 7ft plus guy who can shoot 3 pointers.

[BothTeamsPlayedHard-Participant]

I still have a bit of hesitance on Wolf just because I am unsure on what makes him a superior prospect to Sandro Mamukelashvili who has never garnered much interest, though he has hung around and done reasonably well when given minutes. If Wolf ends up showing to be a legit 7-footer who hits all the physical benchmarks for being a center when Chicago comes around, then it would make more sense. Just having watched games, it does not strike me as though Wolf will measure out as being as big as his listed measurements. I could be wrong. Goldin feels like a lock for a two-way, but 5th year 24 year olds have a hard time getting drafted when they are still a work-in-progress. His countryman Viktor Lakhin is another big man who is interesting as a prospect, but I have doubts about whether he would actually get drafted. His shot did come around this year, and Clemson has a decent shot of making a run in a couple weeks. They do have only two non-OT losses this year, and he is a big part of it.

[OhCanada-Participant]

I think Wolf is just much quicker than Sandro and Sandro is much more robotic or stiff. Everything is very natural with Wolf he really seems like a 7 foot guard. I’m not sure if he is going to be an allstar but even just to have him on your team as a mismatch nightmare I think he is for sure worth a gamble and a lock for the top 20. Teams will try to swing for the fences on his versatility.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Wolf passes the general eye test to me. His stats can actually be more concerning and Michigan’s inconsistencies too.

[HitsterParticipant]

Mark Few has led Gonzaga to an incredible 20th WCC Title during his tenure at the Bulldogs. Whilst this season’s team may not be as strong as some of his recent sides which have gone very close to the NCAA title. The Bulldogs will never be an easy match up and could take out a fancied team or two especially some of the less experienced ones.

[OhCanada-Participant]

Thats pretty crazy. There has been some good teams in that conference for them to never slip up in 20 years is quite the accomplishment.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

So what do we think about Walter Clayton, Jr.??? I’ve moved him up slightly. I think this guy is at least Kam Jones and the more I watch Florida at full strength the better they look and reviewing some Walter Clayton, Jr. – he’s got some good highlights to go with his game.

[HitsterParticipant]

I’ve got WC Jnr as a 2nd rounder. He looks a strong guy 195 lbs and 6ft 3 ins so will have a strength advantage against taller thinner guys. He looks more of a scoring than a creative PG but has improved his assist rate and could be used on or off the ball in the NBA.

His teammate Alex Condon is a first rounder on the latest ESPN mock draft. I like the top of their draft personally as a lot of the lottery picks make great sense :-https://www.espn.co.uk/nba/insider/story/_/id/44206848/2025-nba-mock-draft-pick-projections-march-madness-tre-johnson-derick-queen-cooper-flagg

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Did Texas just play their way into the tournament?

[OhCanada-Participant]

Absolutely. They gotta be in.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Cooper Flagg getting an ankle injury could hurt Duke’s chances though.

[HitsterParticipant]

It all depends how long Cooper is out. Duke may have to sacrifice their Conference tournament hopes if they need to get him right for the main tournament. They could probably win a round or two without him but would need him back to progress any deeper.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

This just in… PJ Haggerty’s pretty good!!!

[OhCanada-Participant]

42 points. 0 threes. 10/1- free throws. I didnt watch the game but it looks like typical Wichita St. fashion they ran him off the line and forced him to create. Eye opening performance for PJ here. Gonna have to rewatch all his tape now.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

I think if he stays another year, he could maybe be a Wooden Award contender.

[HitsterParticipant]

PJ has put up two successive 21ppg seasons so if he can build on this for next season if he doesn’t declare then he must be a Wooden contender. He’ll get great NIL offers to stay given his scoring ability as he’d be one of the go to scorers in the NCAA.

42 points with no 3 pointers is very impressive especially as he has a 40% success rate with his 3 pointers this season.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

With every game being a potential good one today, I think the best one might be Alabama vs Florida.
Many games overlap though, I’m probably watching Princeton/Yale and then switching to Loyola Chicago/VCU after that and before the Alabama/Florida game… The game to watch tonight might be UC Irvine/UC San Diego… some monumental matchups today for sure!!!

[OhCanada-Participant]

Derik Queen does not play transition defence at an NBA level and this will have to improve in order for him to stay on the court unless of course a team is trying to lose games. Its not just about effort or conditioning either, he loses players in transition and makes bad or lazy reads. He also takes alot of bad jumpshots which create transition oppurtunities for the other team.

Theres alot to clean up with his game. I still have him late lottery but I’m not sure teams will pick him over Wolf, Newell, Fleming, Sorber, Thiam and even Broome has a chance to be honest.

[OhCanada-Participant]

Michigan has more offensive rebounds than Maryland has total rebounds but it doesnt matter Maryland is still up by 3 because they have Queen and once again hes just the best player on the floor.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Fland is back! Apparently Arkansas gets Fland back tourney time…

[OhCanada-Participant]

I hope hes not rushing back, assuming he is healthy is a great decision for him. Hopefully we can see him get his draft stock back to when he was a projected late lottery pick. Somehow this site has him going 6th still.

[HitsterParticipant]

Just got home and saw stats from the Michigan and Maryland game. Incredible rebound difference for such a close game.

Derik Queen looks as if he had a very good game. I’d say he is a solid lottery pick on upside. I’d have Maluach and possibly Newell ahead of him on my bigs list if we don’t class the number 1 pick Cooper Flagg as just a frontcourter.

I’ll have to look at the highlights to see how Wolf and Queen matched up.

Kyle Neptune gone at Villanova. Do they try to tempt Jay Wright back?

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

I wish Jay Wright would get back to coaching… I’m excited about selection Sunday here!!! Few hours and the brackets will be set up!!! I have no idea who I’m picking anymore… I thought Alabama was maybe still the team – but wow they got their butt kicked today! And the top 2 teams in the SEC are going to have less rest. hmmmm… anyways…

Yeah, Idk how Fland is ranked that high, this isn’t the only place I’ve seen him really high either. Maybe we’re missing something? Seemed like he was in a slump and then broke his hand… and somehow his draft stock is rewarding him. I’d like to see Fland go to college for another year, but maybe in a different school. Arizona would be a perfect fit that comes to mind…

[HitsterParticipant]

With the likes of Fland I do wonder how good John Calipari is at developing longer term prospects than showcasing one and done guys. If Fland stays in college then staying at Arizona on a good NIl deal under a HoF coach should be a no brainer but it isn’t

Fland if he can push the Razorbacks to a few wins could shoot up the draft boards but his draft stock is all over the place according to major mock boards. I’d say he’d be a first rounder on upside and similarly sized Kentucky bench warmers went in the top ten last year but neither Shepherd or Dillingham have really seen regular rotation minutes this season so far.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Fland is kind of all over the place, but within the highly publicized consensus big boards, Fland is currently 31st. I know he’s 6th on this site, but the reality is he was slumping and broke his hand. He will have to have an amazing tournament to shoot up draft boards. With the uncertainty of Adou Thiero being available, Arkansas might get an early exit depending on who they matchup against… Fland might have to go off in the tournament to win though – so who knows? Calipari is a great coach at developing guys to grow and also to become good NBA players. But atm it’s too crowded in Arkansas at about all positions. The reason I mentioned a team like Zona is not only a great coach, but they also could use a solid guard in a fast-paced offence.

As for Dillingham and Sheppard, imo Dillingham could be a fringe starter, and Sheppard is a starter talent that is getting hosed due to sonority reasons. FVV should sit behind Sheppard, but his numbers are just good enough that the crowd might get butt hurt. They should have had those 2 split minutes from the beginning of the season. Sheppard’s numbers would be significantly better as it is when he gets minutes. Doesn’t matter now though, Sheppard’s hurt.

[OhCanada-Participant]

The fact is if he had any chance at all at going 6th overall he would not be coming back and playing. Im also not sold on the thought that he absolutely needs to leave Aekansas because Daius Acuff is coming. Weve seen Calipari play plenty of guard heavy lineups in thje past and those player went on to be successful indiviudally.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

That’s true but Arkansas has too many players for their own good. Lots of mouths to feed whether they go big or small. I have a feeling Acuff will be better though, but they could still use Fland. It’s just if I’m Fland I’m like – I’m going where I can showcase more skills. He could go back to Arkansas, just don’t think he would… I wouldn’t in his shoes…

[HitsterParticipant]

Arkansas have Acuff and Meleek Thomas incoming plus if DJ Wagner returns they would have a bit of a logjam if Fland returned. It might mean one of the incoming guys decommits even. Fland could make good NIL money and as Norrin says needs to be somewhere he can showcase and be the main ball carrier.

Cal got Shepherd and Dillingham drafted in the top 10 when neither were starters so it should not really put the guys off if they have to come from the bench.

If the core of this year’s side does return minus the ones whose eligibility has run out the Razorbacks could be a much stronger team next year. Cal will always be a good recruiter and will attract a lot of guys but he needs quality over quantity.

[OhCanada-Participant]

Hes done it plenty of times. Rose played less than 30 mpg and went 1st overall. Knight, Lamb, Liggins and Miller played together, Murray thrived with Ulis and Briscoe. Quickley, Maxey and Hagans. Theres plenty of examples of coach Cal loading the backcourt.

[OhCanada-Participant]

Anybody gonna do a bracket league?

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

I’m not in a league per say, but I have 2 going brackets… I’ll post my bracket of integrity on here before the tournament starts.

What tournament matchups are we most excited about? Who you guys got?
Who was the biggest snub from the tournament?

[HitsterParticipant]

How come Florida and St John’s are in the West Regional bracket as they are both the lowest 2nd seeds?

Gonzaga vs Georgia in the last 64 could be a very tight game. Florida vs UConn in the last 32 could be a hard game for the Gators that early in the tournament.

I’ll take Duke to win the lot with St John’s to make the final 4 if you want a fun prediction.

[NorrinRaddParticipant]

Yeah, some of these matchups are interesting to say the least of how they were seeded and where they play.

[HitsterParticipant]

I’ve followed numerous sports over the years and pretty much know how the seedings should add up. But the NCAA tournament is one of the few where the whole draw is decided by a panel and not mainly by form with some tweaking.

I’ve got to have a good look for any match ups which could include guys who are at a similar level on consensus mocks whereby it could move the needle in favour of one guy. Ace and Dylan won’t be playing but VJ if he has a few big games could look to get into the top 3 mix. Maluach if he has a big tournament and Duke go as deep as I think they might challenge to go top 5.

The sudden death games at a neutral venue are always the biggest test IMO.

[Author]

Posts