WKU basketball confirms that Charles Bassey will be returning to WKU for his sophomore season

https://twitter.com/wkubasketball/status...78912?s=21

Congrats to Charles Bassey!


... and WKU!!!


...and-yes- C-USA!!!


A league with better players and teams benefits the whole conference.

We’ll see how it goes. The guys need to be in the gym together ALL summer.

It is unquestionably good news for the conference. Getting another chance to watch Charles Bassey at the college level is well worth the ticket price. He is a special player.

Is it really good news for WKU? I kind of recall going through this same discussion last year - - where you guys again get to be everyone's preseason top pick but then have to make excuses for under-performance during the season. (I suspect that is what flash is getting at with his "ALL summer" comment.)

In any event, I'm looking forward to the Hilltoppers next visit to Norfolk.

(05-30-2019 08:21 AM)AdoptedMonarch Wrote:  It is unquestionably good news for the conference. Getting another chance to watch Charles Bassey at the college level is well worth the ticket price. He is a special player.

Is it really good news for WKU? I kind of recall going through this same discussion last year - - where you guys again get to be everyone's preseason top pick but then have to make excuses for under-performance during the season. (I suspect that is what flash is getting at with his "ALL summer" comment.)

In any event, I'm looking forward to the Hilltoppers next visit to Norfolk.

Returning a Kareem Abdul-Jabbar top 5 center in America who is still 18 years old is most certainly not good news for WKU.

I think this is the right move for Bassey and definitely great news for WKU. The obvious challenge for both Bassey and Stansbury is can he get to the level most expected from him out of high school. It’s true he was an underage freshman and still put up big numbers (especially rebounds and blocks) but the NBA experts generally see through that stuff and draft based on both skill and potential. There are obvious things he needs to improve on to reach the level he wants to be. He and Stansbury have their work in front of them.

(05-30-2019 08:35 AM)Shadow_Son Wrote:  

(05-30-2019 08:21 AM)AdoptedMonarch Wrote:  It is unquestionably good news for the conference. Getting another chance to watch Charles Bassey at the college level is well worth the ticket price. He is a special player.

Is it really good news for WKU? I kind of recall going through this same discussion last year - - where you guys again get to be everyone's preseason top pick but then have to make excuses for under-performance during the season. (I suspect that is what flash is getting at with his "ALL summer" comment.)

In any event, I'm looking forward to the Hilltoppers next visit to Norfolk.

Returning a Kareem Abdul-Jabbar top 5 center in America who is still 18 years old is most certainly not good news for WKU.

That seems like a stretch. Our centers were handling him pretty well and I don't consider any of them all that great at this time.

(05-30-2019 09:39 AM)MonarchManiac Wrote:  

(05-30-2019 08:35 AM)Shadow_Son Wrote:  

(05-30-2019 08:21 AM)AdoptedMonarch Wrote:  It is unquestionably good news for the conference. Getting another chance to watch Charles Bassey at the college level is well worth the ticket price. He is a special player.

Is it really good news for WKU? I kind of recall going through this same discussion last year - - where you guys again get to be everyone's preseason top pick but then have to make excuses for under-performance during the season. (I suspect that is what flash is getting at with his "ALL summer" comment.)

In any event, I'm looking forward to the Hilltoppers next visit to Norfolk.

Returning a Kareem Abdul-Jabbar top 5 center in America who is still 18 years old is most certainly not good news for WKU.

That seems like a stretch. Our centers were handling him pretty well and I don't consider any of them all that great at this time.

He legitimately finished in the final 5 for the award for best center in America, so it’s hardly a stretch. He was also technically a high school senior last year. He averaged 15 and 9.5 in the 3 games against ODU which I would assume is higher than any other CUSA center averaged against you last year.

http://wkusports.com/news/2019/3/8/mens-...award.aspx

(05-30-2019 08:21 AM)AdoptedMonarch Wrote:  It is unquestionably good news for the conference. Getting another chance to watch Charles Bassey at the college level is well worth the ticket price. He is a special player.

Is it really good news for WKU? I kind of recall going through this same discussion last year - - where you guys again get to be everyone's preseason top pick but then have to make excuses for under-performance during the season. (I suspect that is what flash is getting at with his "ALL summer" comment.)

In any event, I'm looking forward to the Hilltoppers next visit to Norfolk.

I just feel like a full summer of being together will really help. They can play, hang out, and most importantly get to know each other better. Trust each other.

I wouldn't say Bassey is top 5, but either way, he's a really good college player. This is great news for the conference. Stansbury should be able to lead them to another top 3 finish.

A.M. touched on this but it seems to have gone over certain WKU poster's heads:

Your team secured a top 5 center, but he wasn't able to prove he was good enough to go to the NBA. He couldn't dominate CUSA enough to show scouts that he can play at the next level. That is a long-term bad sign for WKU, if you cannot see that then your tunnel vision on the short term is on. It would have been good for WKU and CUSA if he went to the NBA, because it means that any top recruit could play in our conference or for WKU and still hit the NBA next year. No need to go to Duke, UK, etc. But that didn't happen.

Short-term, obviously him returning is good. Congrats!

On that note, it may be good for Stansbury that he came back as well. Last year he was talked about as almost a lock first rounder and some had him projected as a lottery pick. A year at WKY and he's projected as a possible 2nd round pick. If Stansbury can help develop him back into a first round pick, it could work out well for them.

But, the issue is the NBA is not in love with players like him. He's going to have to really expand his game this year.

(05-30-2019 10:49 AM)odu09 Wrote:  A.M. touched on this but it seems to have gone over certain WKU poster's heads:

Your team secured a top 5 center, but he wasn't able to prove he was good enough to go to the NBA. He couldn't dominate CUSA enough to show scouts that he can play at the next level. That is a long-term bad sign for WKU, if you cannot see that then your tunnel vision on the short term is on. It would have been good for WKU and CUSA if he went to the NBA, because it means that any top recruit could play in our conference or for WKU and still hit the NBA next year. No need to go to Duke, UK, etc. But that didn't happen.

Short-term, obviously him returning is good. Congrats!

Again I’m assuming you forgot he reclassified and was one of the 10 youngest players in the nation last year. Defensive player of the year, Freshman of the year, and first team all conference is not too shabby for someone who wasn’t “dominant enough”. His body needs another year to be NBA ready and I think most saw that early on. He arrived to us late and never got a full preseason in. I don’t know how him returning is bad for WKU in anyway, certainly not anything close to what your reasoning would suggest. To suggest that if WKU suddenly got a one and done that worked, somehow magically other one and dones would start flooding the conference instead of going to blue bloods is a weird take. As long as he eventually makes it to the NBA and has a decent career, it’s great for WKU in almost all aspects. I personally don’t care about the NBA, I care about how WKU does and his return makes us extremely good. Dangerously good.

(05-30-2019 11:25 AM)Shadow_Son Wrote:  

(05-30-2019 10:49 AM)odu09 Wrote:  A.M. touched on this but it seems to have gone over certain WKU poster's heads:

Your team secured a top 5 center, but he wasn't able to prove he was good enough to go to the NBA. He couldn't dominate CUSA enough to show scouts that he can play at the next level. That is a long-term bad sign for WKU, if you cannot see that then your tunnel vision on the short term is on. It would have been good for WKU and CUSA if he went to the NBA, because it means that any top recruit could play in our conference or for WKU and still hit the NBA next year. No need to go to Duke, UK, etc. But that didn't happen.

Short-term, obviously him returning is good. Congrats!

Again I’m assuming you forgot he reclassified and was one of the 10 youngest players in the nation last year. Defensive player of the year, Freshman of the year, and first team all conference is not too shabby for someone who wasn’t “dominant enough”. His body needs another year to be NBA ready and I think most saw that early on. He arrived to us late and never got a full preseason in. I don’t know how him returning is bad for WKU in anyway, certainly not anything close to what your reasoning would suggest. To suggest that if WKU suddenly got a one and done that worked, somehow magically other one and dones would start flooding the conference instead of going to blue bloods is a weird take. As long as he eventually makes it to the NBA and has a decent career, it’s great for WKU in almost all aspects. I personally don’t care about the NBA, I care about how WKU does and his return makes us extremely good. Dangerously good.

Yes, I knew he reclassified and yes I knew he was young. I was very happy WKU landed a player of this caliber last year. I'm glad you are very excited for this guy, I would be too. It is apparent that his stats, awards, etc are still not good enough. You are free to disagree with my opinion, but I never suggested one and done's would be "flooding the conference." That indeed would be a weird take. It is obvious his return is good for WKU next year, I never suggested otherwise, but him going to the NBA this year would have been good for WKU's future too, regardless how much you care about the NBA.

(05-30-2019 12:00 PM)odu09 Wrote:  

(05-30-2019 11:25 AM)Shadow_Son Wrote:  

(05-30-2019 10:49 AM)odu09 Wrote:  A.M. touched on this but it seems to have gone over certain WKU poster's heads:

Your team secured a top 5 center, but he wasn't able to prove he was good enough to go to the NBA. He couldn't dominate CUSA enough to show scouts that he can play at the next level. That is a long-term bad sign for WKU, if you cannot see that then your tunnel vision on the short term is on. It would have been good for WKU and CUSA if he went to the NBA, because it means that any top recruit could play in our conference or for WKU and still hit the NBA next year. No need to go to Duke, UK, etc. But that didn't happen.

Short-term, obviously him returning is good. Congrats!

Again I’m assuming you forgot he reclassified and was one of the 10 youngest players in the nation last year. Defensive player of the year, Freshman of the year, and first team all conference is not too shabby for someone who wasn’t “dominant enough”. His body needs another year to be NBA ready and I think most saw that early on. He arrived to us late and never got a full preseason in. I don’t know how him returning is bad for WKU in anyway, certainly not anything close to what your reasoning would suggest. To suggest that if WKU suddenly got a one and done that worked, somehow magically other one and dones would start flooding the conference instead of going to blue bloods is a weird take. As long as he eventually makes it to the NBA and has a decent career, it’s great for WKU in almost all aspects. I personally don’t care about the NBA, I care about how WKU does and his return makes us extremely good. Dangerously good.

Yes, I knew he reclassified and yes I knew he was young. I was very happy WKU landed a player of this caliber last year. I'm glad you are very excited for this guy, I would be too. It is apparent that his stats, awards, etc are still not good enough. You are free to disagree with my opinion, but I never suggested one and done's would be "flooding the conference." That indeed would be a weird take. It is obvious his return is good for WKU next year, I never suggested otherwise, but him going to the NBA this year would have been good for WKU's future too, regardless how much you care about the NBA.

When he goes to NBA, he needs to be a first round pick. That’s what’s good for everyone and this conference. He’s only 18 and has only been playing since 12..He’s very smart and I am sure received a ton of feedback from the NBA he can use to his advantage. Usually players improve the most from their freshmen to sophomore years....Hopefully this offseason he gets the benefit of a full off season to get stronger and quicker which he didn’t have this past offseason..

(05-30-2019 08:21 AM)AdoptedMonarch Wrote:  It is unquestionably good news for the conference. Getting another chance to watch Charles Bassey at the college level is well worth the ticket price. He is a special player.

Is it really good news for WKU? I kind of recall going through this same discussion last year - - where you guys again get to be everyone's preseason top pick but then have to make excuses for under-performance during the season. (I suspect that is what flash is getting at with his "ALL summer" comment.)

In any event, I'm looking forward to the Hilltoppers next visit to Norfolk.

Didn’t WKU play at Norfolk this past season?

There is no downside at all to this no matter how deep some of the ODU fans dig and dream up downsides.

I thoroughly enjoyed every game I got to watch him in this season. I didn’t expect him to be back but am very thrilled to have him back. We had problems getting him the ball and sometimes that was on him but most often on our guards. If the Lipscomb transfer isn’t eligible I expect poor results on getting him the ball again.

But, he was the most dominant post player I remember at Western since Chris Marcus played here. He seemed to be a good kid and he single handedly won some games for us with defensive plays or rebounds at the very end of games.

Kid almost doesn’t miss down low. Gets fouled a lot. Hits free throws at a good rate. Is a good shot blocker. Maybe one of the best defensive rebounders I’ve seen at Western. Turned it over a bunch. Freshmen do that. Sometimes had ball pulled out of his hands. Those are the only 2 negatives I can come up with.

(05-30-2019 09:58 PM)wkuhilltopperfan Wrote:  

(05-30-2019 08:21 AM)AdoptedMonarch Wrote:  It is unquestionably good news for the conference. Getting another chance to watch Charles Bassey at the college level is well worth the ticket price. He is a special player.

Is it really good news for WKU? I kind of recall going through this same discussion last year - - where you guys again get to be everyone's preseason top pick but then have to make excuses for under-performance during the season. (I suspect that is what flash is getting at with his "ALL summer" comment.)

In any event, I'm looking forward to the Hilltoppers next visit to Norfolk.

Didn’t WKU play at Norfolk this past season?

They did. I was referring to pool play - - when the 3rd-place conference team comes to Norfolk to play the first-place team.

(Not actually. But this in the internet, where the rules say that you can never admit your own error.)

(05-31-2019 05:36 AM)AdoptedMonarch Wrote:  

(05-30-2019 09:58 PM)wkuhilltopperfan Wrote:  

(05-30-2019 08:21 AM)AdoptedMonarch Wrote:  It is unquestionably good news for the conference. Getting another chance to watch Charles Bassey at the college level is well worth the ticket price. He is a special player.

Is it really good news for WKU? I kind of recall going through this same discussion last year - - where you guys again get to be everyone's preseason top pick but then have to make excuses for under-performance during the season. (I suspect that is what flash is getting at with his "ALL summer" comment.)

In any event, I'm looking forward to the Hilltoppers next visit to Norfolk.

Didn’t WKU play at Norfolk this past season?

They did. I was referring to pool play - - when the 3rd-place conference team comes to Norfolk to play the first-place team.

(Not actually. But this in the internet, where the rules say that you can never admit your own error.)

Knowing how this conference is run, we will probably be scheduled to play @ODU again anyway.

(05-31-2019 07:50 AM)freshtop Wrote:  

(05-31-2019 05:36 AM)AdoptedMonarch Wrote:  

(05-30-2019 09:58 PM)wkuhilltopperfan Wrote:  

(05-30-2019 08:21 AM)AdoptedMonarch Wrote:  It is unquestionably good news for the conference. Getting another chance to watch Charles Bassey at the college level is well worth the ticket price. He is a special player.

Is it really good news for WKU? I kind of recall going through this same discussion last year - - where you guys again get to be everyone's preseason top pick but then have to make excuses for under-performance during the season. (I suspect that is what flash is getting at with his "ALL summer" comment.)

In any event, I'm looking forward to the Hilltoppers next visit to Norfolk.

Didn’t WKU play at Norfolk this past season?

They did. I was referring to pool play - - when the 3rd-place conference team comes to Norfolk to play the first-place team.

(Not actually. But this in the internet, where the rules say that you can never admit your own error.)

Knowing how this conference is run, we will probably be scheduled to play @ODU again anyway.

I am sure all of our conference games will be on ESPN + and we will play at ODU and at UTSA twice this upcoming season...