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Old 07-20-2021, 04:16 PM   #1
waterhead
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Bold Player Predictions

Who's going to surprise us this year? I am not going to predict any under-achievers but looking for who you think will do more than expected and why.

As much as expected IMO.

Ado
Koval
MAW
Dejulius
Lakhin
Hensley
Davenport
Ody
Banks
Newman

More than expected.

Mikey. Just too much fire in his belly and work ethic to not exceed expectations sooner than later. He wants to be great as much as anyone.

Mason. Again same...fire in the belly. Chip on shoulder (with a more heralded twin and too low recruit ranking). Hard worker. Confidence.

McGinnis. Whether it's this year or next he's going to be a needed play maker. Someone who can score at all 3 levels. It could take one more year though but we will see it coming as the year wears on.
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Old 07-20-2021, 05:07 PM   #2
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Overperform: Mikey, I think he takes the starting job from DDJ by the end of the season. I expect improved 3-point shooting and more of a controlled speed.

Hensley, lots of people don't seem to expect much from him. But he was higher rated than Tari and Wes seems to think he has the ability. He's going to have to fight for minutes, but I expect him to make the most of them.

Newman, Think he will have something to prove based on his poor previous season. Will turn out that when he is fully healthy, he is a very good player.

Banks, him getting any minutes would be considered overperforming. I think he may sneak in 5-10 minutes in some games as a SF/G who will go inside and bang.

Underperform:

Koval, not a lot of minutes to go around for big men and he's going to get pushed around on the interior. Wouldn't be surprised to see him drop down to a 10-15 minutes per game player by the end of the season.

DDJ, lots of competition at guard on this team as well. Somebody isn't going to get a lot of minutes. If DDJ can't turn the shooting around, it's going to be hard to keep him on the court with guys like McGinnis and Mason on the bench.

Ody, again, somebody if going to miss minutes. If Ado grabs the starting role at center, a more offensively talented PF may take some minutes.
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Old 07-21-2021, 09:48 AM   #3
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DDJ/Saunders: I think DDJ will be less impactful this season but more efficient, while Saunders will be more impactful but I don't see him making a big improvement in his outside shooting (still sub-30%).

Koval: I think he'll be our most critical big. Ody and Ado will be able to physically match-up with just about every big on our schedule (unlike Koval) but I'm not expecting either to offer much on offense other than put-backs and easy finishes close to the rim. Koval's ability to stretch the floor will hopefully be a game changer and allow us to put out a variety of dynamic offensive line-ups, especially those that include more players from our 2nd unit.

Newman: I also have a good feeling about him. I think his stats will more closely resemble his sophomore season at Clemson rather than his more disappointing junior season.

MAW: I think MAW creates some separation between himself and the younger guards while becoming a more assertive offensive player that shoots the deep ball at a 35% clip.

Mason/McGinnis: I'd be surprised if both of them made it to the end of the season satisfied with their role. It seems like one of them will get caught up in a minutes logjam and transfer out midseason if not at the end. I hope I am wrong.
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Old 07-21-2021, 03:27 PM   #4
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Queens_NYC View Post
DDJ/Saunders:
Mason/McGinnis: I'd be surprised if both of them made it to the end of the season satisfied with their role. It seems like one of them will get caught up in a minutes logjam and transfer out midseason if not at the end. I hope I am wrong.
Yeah, it's hard to imagine all the guards are happy with their playing time this year. It's hard to imagine somebody doesn't transfer out by the end of the season, especially considering that DDJ could come back next year.

I consider Lahkin to be a transfer candidate as well. Knee injury seems to be lingering for a long time and he may prefer to transfer down a level to get on the floor.
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Old 07-21-2021, 03:55 PM   #5
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Queens_NYC View Post
DDJ/Saunders: I think DDJ will be less impactful this season but more efficient, while Saunders will be more impactful but I don't see him making a big improvement in his outside shooting (still sub-30%).

Koval: I think he'll be our most critical big. Ody and Ado will be able to physically match-up with just about every big on our schedule (unlike Koval) but I'm not expecting either to offer much on offense other than put-backs and easy finishes close to the rim. Koval's ability to stretch the floor will hopefully be a game changer and allow us to put out a variety of dynamic offensive line-ups, especially those that include more players from our 2nd unit.

Newman: I also have a good feeling about him. I think his stats will more closely resemble his sophomore season at Clemson rather than his more disappointing junior season.

MAW: I think MAW creates some separation between himself and the younger guards while becoming a more assertive offensive player that shoots the deep ball at a 35% clip.

Mason/McGinnis: I'd be surprised if both of them made it to the end of the season satisfied with their role. It seems like one of them will get caught up in a minutes logjam and transfer out midseason if not at the end. I hope I am wrong.
I guess I should say I expect a lot out of Newman myself. So it will be hard for him to perform a lot better than his soph campaign which is my level to compare him to. I don't expect a junior year Newman type in any way since he probably has a chip on his shoulder and was an immediate target for Wes. Not to mention the injury.
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Old 07-21-2021, 03:58 PM   #6
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Queens_NYC View Post
DDJ/Saunders: I think DDJ will be less impactful this season but more efficient, while Saunders will be more impactful but I don't see him making a big improvement in his outside shooting (still sub-30%).

Koval: I think he'll be our most critical big. Ody and Ado will be able to physically match-up with just about every big on our schedule (unlike Koval) but I'm not expecting either to offer much on offense other than put-backs and easy finishes close to the rim. Koval's ability to stretch the floor will hopefully be a game changer and allow us to put out a variety of dynamic offensive line-ups, especially those that include more players from our 2nd unit.

Newman: I also have a good feeling about him. I think his stats will more closely resemble his sophomore season at Clemson rather than his more disappointing junior season.

MAW: I think MAW creates some separation between himself and the younger guards while becoming a more assertive offensive player that shoots the deep ball at a 35% clip.

Mason/McGinnis: I'd be surprised if both of them made it to the end of the season satisfied with their role. It seems like one of them will get caught up in a minutes logjam and transfer out midseason if not at the end. I hope I am wrong.
I would think McGinnis could still be happy with a lower minute supporting role (this year) since he decided to transfer and I am sure Wes didn't promise the world to him. Mason has been working his ass off and if he gets outplayed I could see him being a transfer option. But I expect a lot from him for various reasons.
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Old 07-21-2021, 04:04 PM   #7
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Quote:
Originally Posted by skyblade View Post
Overperform: Mikey, I think he takes the starting job from DDJ by the end of the season. I expect improved 3-point shooting and more of a controlled speed.

Hensley, lots of people don't seem to expect much from him. But he was higher rated than Tari and Wes seems to think he has the ability. He's going to have to fight for minutes, but I expect him to make the most of them.

Newman, Think he will have something to prove based on his poor previous season. Will turn out that when he is fully healthy, he is a very good player.

Banks, him getting any minutes would be considered overperforming. I think he may sneak in 5-10 minutes in some games as a SF/G who will go inside and bang.

Underperform:

Koval, not a lot of minutes to go around for big men and he's going to get pushed around on the interior. Wouldn't be surprised to see him drop down to a 10-15 minutes per game player by the end of the season.

DDJ, lots of competition at guard on this team as well. Somebody isn't going to get a lot of minutes. If DDJ can't turn the shooting around, it's going to be hard to keep him on the court with guys like McGinnis and Mason on the bench.

Ody, again, somebody if going to miss minutes. If Ado grabs the starting role at center, a more offensively talented PF may take some minutes.
It's a fair question of DD to question whether he has the internal makeup to keep up with a dedicated and inspired Saunders. I hope DD responds with confidence and giving it everything he has. He has the tools.
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Old 07-27-2021, 01:05 PM   #8
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New Chad Podcast after watching open gym, with all current players except Lakhin and a lot of former players and local D1 guys from other schools (Gary Clark, Jacob Evans, DeBerry, Isaiah Miller, Devin Williams, Tre Scott, Troy Caupain and others). https://soundcloud.com/chad-brendel/...il-and-trouble

Interesting notes: Now it sounds like the former players weren't going too hard. So take it with a grain of salt. But according to Chad DDJ was the best player in the gym, Chad has heard that DDJ is generally the best player in practice.

The best team on the court consisted of DDJ, Maw, Mason, Banks and Koval.

Hensley had the two best dunks in the gym, Chad thinks we will be better off with Hensley than we were with Eason. Hensley may be more athletic than Eason.

Newman was the one guy who was able to shut-down DDJ. Newman looks like the guy you put on the other teams best offensive player and tell him to shut him down.

DDJ has mostly been practicing off ball. Sounds like Saunders is probably going to start at PG. Not sure if DDJ backs him up or if someone else will.

Banks looked like he belonged on the court with the other guys.
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Old 07-28-2021, 05:52 AM   #9
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Quote:
Originally Posted by skyblade View Post
New Chad Podcast after watching open gym, with all current players except Lakhin and a lot of former players and local D1 guys from other schools (Gary Clark, Jacob Evans, DeBerry, Isaiah Miller, Devin Williams, Tre Scott, Troy Caupain and others). https://soundcloud.com/chad-brendel/...il-and-trouble

Interesting notes: Now it sounds like the former players weren't going too hard. So take it with a grain of salt. But according to Chad DDJ was the best player in the gym, Chad has heard that DDJ is generally the best player in practice.

The best team on the court consisted of DDJ, Maw, Mason, Banks and Koval.

Hensley had the two best dunks in the gym, Chad thinks we will be better off with Hensley than we were with Eason. Hensley may be more athletic than Eason.

Newman was the one guy who was able to shut-down DDJ. Newman looks like the guy you put on the other teams best offensive player and tell him to shut him down.

DDJ has mostly been practicing off ball. Sounds like Saunders is probably going to start at PG. Not sure if DDJ backs him up or if someone else will.

Banks looked like he belonged on the court with the other guys.
Thanks for the notes. That's pretty encouraging to hear.

DDJ was a top 100 player in HS and a huge playmaker. Hopefully now that he is completely settled into the program we can see the best of him on the court.

I saw a video of Hensley doing a vertical jump on Twitter and touching the 12' mark. It's starting to make more sense why Miller is so high on him.

Otherwise, I was pumped to see guys like Jacob Evans and Caupain back on campus. I hope the young guys and the new guys got to speak with these former players and learn more about Bearcat culture.
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Old 07-28-2021, 09:46 AM   #10
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Quote:
Originally Posted by skyblade View Post
New Chad Podcast after watching open gym, with all current players except Lakhin and a lot of former players and local D1 guys from other schools (Gary Clark, Jacob Evans, DeBerry, Isaiah Miller, Devin Williams, Tre Scott, Troy Caupain and others). https://soundcloud.com/chad-brendel/...il-and-trouble

Interesting notes: Now it sounds like the former players weren't going too hard. So take it with a grain of salt. But according to Chad DDJ was the best player in the gym, Chad has heard that DDJ is generally the best player in practice.

The best team on the court consisted of DDJ, Maw, Mason, Banks and Koval.

Hensley had the two best dunks in the gym, Chad thinks we will be better off with Hensley than we were with Eason. Hensley may be more athletic than Eason.

Newman was the one guy who was able to shut-down DDJ. Newman looks like the guy you put on the other teams best offensive player and tell him to shut him down.

DDJ has mostly been practicing off ball. Sounds like Saunders is probably going to start at PG. Not sure if DDJ backs him up or if someone else will.

Banks looked like he belonged on the court with the other guys.
I was wondering about DDJ's attitude towards the change since he was one of the last we confirmed to be back. I have noticed him having the biggest grins on his face in some of the media pics coming out which was a welcome sign. He seems genuinely happy! We need his play making ability. Great to hear. I hope his shot starts falling this year.
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