think Wonnel willplay next year?

If the young man is close to 6-7 now, just turning 17, he may still have some growing to do ...
We could very well have another 6-8 or 6-9 player on our hands...
The coach also said on his show, that Nate Booth is 6-9 1/2, so he may be 6-10 by this time next season...

(03-05-2012 11:16 AM)Toledo Football 1st Wrote:  Gotta keep in mind that he skipped 2 grades and is only 17 years old. Could he redshirt a year? He probably has a lot to learn and needs conditioning. But, I don't know whether the current situation gives the coach the luxury of redshirting anybody.

Probably depends on Dear & Wonnell.......

(03-05-2012 11:38 AM)QWERTY Wrote:  think Wonnel willplay next year?

Think Dear will play next year?

If Willliams is redshirted, he may be working on his Doctorate during his playing days.

(03-05-2012 11:39 AM)FORT MEIGS ROCKET Wrote:  If the young man is close to 6-7 now, just turning 17, he may still have some growing to do ...
We could very well have another 6-8 or 6-9 player on our hands...
The coach also said on his show, that Nate Booth is 6-9 1/2, so he may be 6-10 by this time next season...

Saw him up close at the Eastern game. If Justin Moss is 6'6" Williams is 6'5". If Moss is 6'7" he is now 6'6". Doesn't mean he won't grow but right now I would put my money on 6'5".

I'm guessing Wonnell stays next year. He came back this year even though he thought we would have Moss. Why would he quit now when he has worked his way ahead of Dear in the rotation? By next year he may be a respectable MAC big man. I wouldn't be surprised to see Dear go.

Even better if Dear finds that extra gear to make it a go. Hate to lose him (or any player).

williams is an interesting recruit. sort of a smaller boothe, in that he's a big framed, long, not too athletic guy with some touch and skill. athleticism can be overrated in big men. if a guy is large and has skills he can be effective, even if he isn't bouncy or swatting shots into the stands.

case in point is dear. who has the athletic tools and height, but isn't physical and intuitive enough to get it done inside on d.

williams might get taller, but even if he doesn't he seems to see angles and have good hands and touch around the hoop. add in that he's an intelligent and driven kid and he could be good. just not gonna wow anyone when he hits the court.

as for the current guys. wonnell seems to be set as that defensive role player that can help inside. with some more bigs in the program he will get pushed harder in practice and open gyms and may never play any more than he has this yr, but be better.
go rockets

dear, i've always thought was played a bit out of position by coach k. really more of a rangy forward than a post guy, and they've never been able to quite mold him into that interior presence. not sure if he sticks at UT, but doesn't seem to be a problem, just can't turn the corner so far. perhaps, with more bigs around to take up space he can find his niche as a help defender, shot blocker and dunker.

i'd expect to see the staff go hard after athletic forwards and big guards in the next class, we'll need some of that.

as for next yr, eastern may be the favorite. murphy did a good job with basically ramsey's players. right now, emu has 2 legit transfers (a superb 6-8 athlete from arkansas, and a 6-6 pg from tulsa) who have been in the program this yr and will be eligible next. he also got a commit from blue chip sg ray lee, buckley's cousin from romulus, who has had some legal issues and would otherwise be a coveted big east big 10 recruit, along with a jc pf who started out in the big east. with jamel harris and riley the 7 footer. that will be one of the biggest most athetic mac teams in memory. not sure if murphy will mold them into an effective unit, but they will be very interesting to watch.

the rocket's future depends on continuing to gel as a unit, share the ball, settle into roles, and hopefully pick up the defense and defensive rebounding. also, does juice keep improving and become a dominant, not just good, ballhandler. the bright side of only having 9 guys has been they've all had to play, learn roles and take on responsibilities. we'll be a pretty mature team next yr and I'm still thinking we can push the field some more in this yrs mac tourney.

Pono what's ur analysis on the state of the program? R u excited about the things ur seeing with this team and staff? Meaning can u c us winning the MAC in the next few years some time?

its a modest program at this point. we don't have an elite talent, we're short of shooting, depth, size, and don't have any young talents redshirting or learning their way into the fold.

at the same time, coach k is competent, has a staff that seems to work pretty well together and has quickly assembled a decent little squad. i like pearson and juice. am impressed by smith's growth and dennis's story of traversing the basketball world only to finally get his shot on an undermanned toledo team at 24 is good fun.

i'm still hurting over losing moss. guys like that are difference makers. not saying moss was the next gary trent. but having a muscleman on the blocks who is athletic and can play is a big advantage at the mac level.

next year's team will be better, but probably more like a borderline nit team. i could see us going about 20-12 with a half decent schedule and getting deep into the league tourney. could we be a top 50 ncaa type team soon? possibly, but there needs to be a lot more intensity and teamwork on defense. we've got to keep improving inside. and see if the seniors each year really want it. certainly, a team of older, stronger, more confident holiday, pearson, smith as a senior core could have the competitive will to challenge for a berth. the hope is that coach k is bringing in kids who really want to get there. i don't see him bringing in enough talent to compete at a really high level, but i do see the competitiveness increasing.