(04-19-2016 03:57 PM)swvabucsfan Wrote:  

(04-19-2016 11:52 AM)posterformerlyknownasthedoctor Wrote:  Ok.....so I'm going to go way out on a limb here, while I'm in this groove, and predict that *IF* we have no more departures, injuries, suspensions, etc., *even before we know who else might get added*, and say we should be in top 25 of the mid-major poll, and at some point be in the "others receiving votes" for the 'real' poll. SOOO much can happen between now and then that this is essentially meaningless, but there it is.

Like you, I am thinking that we are starting to get a fairly complete team that you can start to be comfortable is likely to do well. (with the usual caveats about not knowing much for certain at this time of year).

Ge'lawn took over a team that did not (yet) have a floor leader or a go-to-guy and simply willed us to 5 or 6 wins that we might not have had. But he wasn't the only one who could perform at the end - although he certainly demanded the role and did it best. Against UNCG and Morehead State it was Cromer. This year I believe that we will have other guys and other ways to win. At this time last year nobody could predict the offensive force and 3 point threat that Ge'lawn would become. I don't think that it was just that he wasn't asked to fill the role - his percentages, both from 3 (.309 with only 29 makes all year) and from the floor (.361 and only 4.5 points per game) were low. Usually an underutilized but offensively skilled player posts high percentages, because those offensive moves he does make come as a surprise, and are even more likely to succeed.

Others (Desonta? Devontavius?) may step up next year. Right now I don't feel bad at the prospect of having T.J., Desonta, and Devontavius being available to create and make a big shot at the end. I also expect better options in the front court than last year if opponents overplay the perimeter and they need to pass out of it. And, by the way, David Burrell shoots 42% from 3 with 55 makes! http://njcaa.org/sports/mbkb/2015-16/div...urrellwybs

In fact, although it would be nice to get a high quality JUCO pure point guard signed on the dotted line, I also wouldn't be too worried about ball handling and assists with T.J. giving us 3.1 assists, Desonta his end of year 3.5 and Devontavius his 2.8 with a 2.1 assists to t.o. ratio. Those 3 guys as lead guards in the rotation, with A.J. as a swing man and Jason Williams and Shemar off the bench should leave us in pretty good shape in the back court.

The front court in the hands of a Hanner, an improving Jurkin, Banks, Glass and now Burrell should be much better than last year.

That said - Forbes is still out there hunting. And Steve Forbes this time of year stalks nothing but big game. Two other names discussed as recruiting targets in prior weeks are Julian Walters and James Batemon. Walters is a 1st team JUCO All-American, and James Batemon, "merely" Honorable Mention. http://www.njcaa.org/sports/mbkb/2015-16...cans/index

Who knows who else is out there, and whether they might be impressed by our latest signings.

I wasn't dismissing the contributions (at all) of the other guards, very especially Cromer. I was just commenting on how big the loss of Guyn will be.
And as to what his shooting percentage was before he came here.....remember the level of competition was better - certainly perimeter defenses were tighter, at least in general. I understand your points, and would admittedly have to watch a lot of film of his senior year at Cincy to definitively say, but I still suspect 'that' was there, just waiting on the right "climate" to flourish. My opinion, for what it's worth, is that it was a situation similar to (though not exactly analogous to) Hamlin here, when he had this great talent that bartow just didn't recognize, and failed to even *try* to learn about. (And I could extend that to other players, but we all know those stories.)

Now....back to 'replacing' him.........it's possible Desonta, Payne, Cromer, and Williams/Johnson will more than fill the bill, with an increased number of scoring options, with Petey's deficit in that department being no longer a glaring obstacle. (And yes, I had immediately noticed Burrell's stats from 3-land! {But I also noticed very lackluster defense, to be kind, on that highlight reel, too.})*OR*.......Guyn's "intangibles" as I enumerated above may simply be irreplaceable. We have missed Pigram until Guyn came along (no offense to Jalen Riley, who although just as much a gamer, was more prone to bad shot selection and predictability). One is probably not wrong in thinking Forbes can get us another along those lines quicker than bartow could. [Tangent: isn't it amazing how we all gave bartow credit for recruiting prowess (for the most part), but compared to Forbes he already looks less impressive. As they say, "it's all relative."]

Further thoughts..........yes, Forbes is still out there hunting, and we haven't heard the word "Kansas" lately. Is it possible that one of our two new signees was playing games in Kansas during that time period? Maybe, but I think he was after Starr, and I haven't heard any more about him lately. (Or maybe I somehow missed it?)

I'm somewhat 'worried' that AJ will be odd man out in all this. He got injured in the prime of the season, and Forbes didn't get to fully "experience" all the (different-from-Guyn) intangibles he brings to the court. Oh well, as in another saying, "that's a good problem to have", although I still don't like thinking of it like that.