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I am going to make a statement--and I don't make this lightly--and this is from someone who has been there for UAB basketball since the first game in 1978.

I think, on paper at least, the 2021-22 Blazers will be the most talent we have ever had on a single team, from top to bottom. We are lacking a real star--there's no Oliver or Steve or Carlos (and personally I think great teams usually have a go-to star)--but we are loaded with solid, experienced talent and depth, at least 10-12 players deep. Admittedly, with the mulligan 2020-21 season, a lot of others teams also will be in same boat as us, experience wise. But we have three grad/seniors, and five fourth-year juniors on this team. And we have NINE players who were regular starters on D-I teams last year.

In fact, with all the transfers, players on our current roster averaged 101 points per game on D-I teams last year. If you go by their best scoring seasons, that number goes up to 111.7 points per game. That's not even counting the two juco transfers. I know, we will only be playing five at a time, so minutes will be shared, and we'll only have one ball, and that will have to be shared too. But we are loaded.

With good coaching, a good schedule, a summer to prepare--I am expecting really big things for next year's team. Getting UAB basketball back where it belongs.

Deepest, yes. Most talented, no. Lacking that star player makes it impossible to be the most talented in my opinion.
A question I want to see answered this year is who is taking the shot down 1 with 10 seconds to go? I also want to see if all these transfers remain happy. I find it hard to believe we are going to manage to keep everybody on the roster for an entire season.

I have less concern about the chemistry and PT than I usually would have. They had other choices where they could have been assured more minutes or chances to be "the guy." Many of them know each other and know the coaches. They are no sure-fire borderline NBA prospects among them. They are very good college players, many of whom have ties to Bham and each other, who are choosing to play together as a team to do something they have not experienced: win a championship, go to the tournament. And this is also true for key holdovers. Lovin hasn't won anything, for example.

Jemison, Johnson and Brown are local players who came home. They have known each other for years. Ertel and Jackson competed in the same conference against each other for 3 years. Walker is one of the best PGs out there but hasn't won anything. They're here to win. And they have a head coach who knows how to manage this, because being a transfer on a team with other quality transfers who came in with him is HIS story too.

I think it's got to be close to our most talented team ever.. I would think this team certainly has to be the most experienced and deep top to bottom, but maybe lacking that top-flight player like a Vaden, Delaney, AJ, etc, as others have mentioned... Who knows, maybe we have that player on the roster, and we just haven't had the chance to see them emerge yet...

It might be the deepest. The most talented is actually probably the Davis team with Sharpe (1rst round NBA pick) Vaden, Delaney, Kennard and AJ, all of whom would likely start for this years team over anyone we have now. That team had great depth as well. Jeremy Mayfield, Channing Toney, Howard Crawford, Reggie Huffman, Frank Holmes and (granted being a headcase,) Terrence Roderick, just to name a few. If Andy Kennedy had been coaching that squad we would have easily been a sweet 16 team and would have gone as far as shooting took them.

I think this will have the most quality depth we've ever had. They've all got experience and most at the D1 level. As DD said, all these transfers are coming here to win and win now. AK can put multiple player combos on the floor to meet the situation and not see a lot of drop off in talent. I also think you'll see a team much more to his style with more speed and attack mentality.

(06-16-2021 12:20 PM)DuelingDragon Wrote:  I have less concern about the chemistry and PT than I usually would have. They had other choices where they could have been assured more minutes or chances to be "the guy." Many of them know each other and know the coaches. They are no sure-fire borderline NBA prospects among them. They are very good college players, many of whom have ties to Bham and each other, who are choosing to play together as a team to do something they have not experienced: win a championship, go to the tournament. And this is also true for key holdovers. Lovin hasn't won anything, for example.

Jemison, Johnson and Brown are local players who came home. They have known each other for years. Ertel and Jackson competed in the same conference against each other for 3 years. Walker is one of the best PGs out there but hasn't won anything. They're here to win. And they have a head coach who knows how to manage this, because being a transfer on a team with other quality transfers who came in with him is HIS story too.

Dead spot on.