The SEC will be easier at the top and tougher at the bottom.....fair?

#51
#51
UK101 said:
I feel kinda bad for Harrow. Sure he'll be welcome to stay next year but will no doubt play behind the Harrison twins. His best bet is to have a stand out season and go into the draft projected to be a first rounder. That's gonna take a lot of work and being 170lbs doesn't help.

We do have upperclassmen however. I dunno if you count Julius Mays seeing is how this is his first year at UK. This will be Harrows 3rd in a college atmosphere and Wiltjer returns. Not the experience we had last year but will no doubt help. Hopefully Jon Hood shows up this year
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When Wiltjer is your most experienced returning player you have to worry a little.
 
#52
#52
Read through this and saw a lot of "2nd tier" "middle of the pack" for Vandy. They lost 90%+ of their rotation minutes to graduation. The top 6 players are gone and I didn't notice a lot behind that last year. That team is gonna be awful. If they finish outside the bottom 4 of the league I'd be shocked.
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#53
#53
roswellvol said:
Read through this and saw a lot of "2nd tier" "middle of the pack" for Vandy. They lost 90%+ of their rotation minutes to graduation. The top 6 players are gone and I didn't notice a lot behind that last year. That team is gonna be awful. If they finish outside the bottom 4 of the league I'd be shocked.
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It's more a testament to how bad other teams are, than how bad vandy will be. LSU will be awful, USCjr and Mississippi State will both be bad as well. I definitely see Vandy being bad, but it's possible they could finish 5th or 6th worst simply because of how bad some of the other teams will be as well.
 
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#54
#54
The real sleeper in the SEC and maybe even nationally this year could be Ole Miss. I just don't have a complete read on them yet. Bruckner and Holloway are a very tough front court duo albeit their free throw shooting will need vast improvement.

The backcourt this year returns Williams, White & Summers. Add in 4**** Martavious Newby and you have the makings of a special backcourt.

What may vault Ole Miss into the national spotlight and a Top 15 surprise EOY ranking will be the play of Marshall Henderson. If Henderson is implemented into the system to take advantage of his talents this team could be a very special surprise and make a run in March. I'm in limbo on if it will happen however. Trying to get a feel for the team dynamic and potential leadership voids since Summers is going to be just a Sophomore. Assuming Henderson helps fill that void maybe Ole Miss becomes 1 of the most dangerous teams in March?

I say that is a real possibility...
 
#55
#55
UConnBasketball said:
The real sleeper in the SEC and maybe even nationally this year could be Ole Miss. I just don't have a complete read on them yet. Bruckner and Holloway are a very tough front court duo albeit their free throw shooting will need vast improvement.

The backcourt this year returns Williams, White & Summers. Add in 4**** Martavious Newby and you have the makings of a special backcourt.

What may vault Ole Miss into the national spotlight and a Top 15 surprise EOY ranking will be the play of Marshall Henderson. If Henderson is implemented into the system to take advantage of his talents this team could be a very special surprise and make a run in March. I'm in limbo on if it will happen however. Trying to get a feel for the team dynamic and potential leadership voids since Summers is going to be just a Sophomore. Assuming Henderson helps fill that void maybe Ole Miss becomes 1 of the most dangerous teams in March?

I say that is a real possibility...
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Kennedy is a moron and always finds a way to underachieve...he has never made a NCAA tourney...he has to disprove that rep before I pick ole miss to do anything.

He gets talented kids, but always seems its a bad combo. He takes a lot of transfers who were issues at other schools, or issues at their high schools...and his teams seem to always have chemistry issues. Couple that with the fact that he's a pretty bad coach, and I just can't bring myself to think they're gonna do much...ever.
 
#56
#56
bleedingTNorange said:
Kennedy is a moron and always finds a way to underachieve...he has never made a NCAA tourney...he has to disprove that rep before I pick ole miss to do anything.

He gets talented kids, but always seems its a bad combo. He takes a lot of transfers who were issues at other schools, or issues at their high schools...and his teams seem to always have chemistry issues. Couple that with the fact that he's a pretty bad coach, and I just can't bring myself to think they're gonna do much...ever.
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Ole Miss has never been known to be anything close to a basketball "hotbed" per se. Kennedy was SEC COY in 2007 and went to NYC twice for the NIT Final 4. Before his arrival Ole Miss I think was 26-54 in SEC play. Since coming on board he is close to 500/even in league play @ 40-43.

Coaching is a huge variable as you point out when determining a teams value. Without an NCAA Tourney bid it is safe to assume Kennedy has no big game coaching experience in the traditional sense of the phrase.

Also Kennedy may not come across as very likeable due to some of his history and media presence. Coaching is always a huge factor.

Interesting...
 
#57
#57
UConnBasketball said:
Ole Miss has never been known to be anything close to a basketball "hotbed" per se. Kennedy was SEC COY in 2007 and went to NYC twice for the NIT Final 4. Before his arrival Ole Miss I think was 26-54 in SEC play. Since coming on board he is close to 500/even in league play @ 40-43.

Coaching is a huge variable as you point out when determining a teams value. Without an NCAA Tourney bid it is safe to assume Kennedy has no big game coaching experience in the traditional sense of the phrase.

Also Kennedy may not come across as very likeable due to some of his history and media presence. Coaching is always a huge factor.

Interesting...
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He's done a good job bringing that program up, but he's hit a snag ad hasn't raised the level in years. If he misses the tourney again this year you might see a coaching change next year.
 
#58
#58
bleedingTNorange said:
He's done a good job bringing that program up, but he's hit a snag ad hasn't raised the level in years. If he misses the tourney again this year you might see a coaching change next year.
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I have always been the type of "live in the present or moment type fan". My concerns are always the unpredictable such as injuries and early entries ect ect...in relation to the college game.

Are you considering this year as a set up year for Tennessee in terms of laying the foundation for a legitimate Final 4 run next year? That takes into consideration recruiting and Stokes returning for his Junior year.

My guess is the consensus amongst Vol's fans is that you need a stronger 2 (a legit consistent shooter and self creator) to compliment Golden and that is the missing link to the highest level like a National Championship season.

This is all speculation but your opinions on Vol's hoops are interesting. Good luck!!
 
#59
#59
Alabama will probably win the SEC West this year. I think they may even compete for the overall title.

Arkansas will be a surprise team. Mike Anderson is a heck of a coach and they return a lot from last year. I think they'll make the tournament.

Auburn will be making another step up this season. It's almost criminal for Tony Barbee to have inherited the mess that he has had to deal with at Auburn. He's worked his tail off to build a roster, however. Despite three hard years of work, he finally has this team to the "bad" level. That's a compliment compared to the level they sucked on when he took over.

Florida should have another decent season. I think losing Walker will be a bigger loss for them than Beal will be. They should make the tournament, but that's it.

Georgia should be average this year. Mark Fox is a more than capable coach, but I'm not sure this roster is ready to make the tournament just yet.

Kentucky will be tough. There's really not that much to debate. The only question for this team will be the same one they face every season. Will they have enough experience?

I thought LSU would be a sleeper team this season. Then, Trent Johnson decided to jump ship. They have a decent roster, but I'm not sure that Johnny Jones is going to get the job done.

Mississippi State will probably be pretty awful this season. They won't rival Auburn's 2010-2011 team is suckiness, but I don't think they'll win many games. It's hard to tell how the new coach will do, also.

This may be Andy Kennedy's last year at Ole Miss. I've been a big Kennedy advocate over the years, but this is a program that really needs to win a big game at some point. If it doesn't happen this year, I think he'll be gone. That said, I think they have plenty of pieces to finish in the upper half of the SEC this season.

I'm not going to put much stock into Missouri. They lost a lot of players, but the big factor is coaching. Frank Haith isn't going to do anything at that job.

Frank Martin to South Carolina was a desperate move for him to leave Kansas State, but that roster is a joke. He'll do as well as you can ask for someone to do in Columbia, though.

Texas A&M will be near the bottom. Billy Kennedy isn't a bad coach, but that team isn't very talented and won't have much size.

This will be Vanderbilt's worse team in quite some time. They're not going to be above more than five teams this season.


I'm not one to give a set number for rankings, but I do think that it's reasonable for Tennessee to finish in one of those top three slots. I wouldn't be totally shocked to see them win the regular season title either.
 
#60
#60
bleedingTNorange said:
He's done a good job bringing that program up, but he's hit a snag ad hasn't raised the level in years. If he misses the tourney again this year you might see a coaching change next year.
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I agree with this and I'm a huge fan of his. This is a good roster, so I guess we'll find out a lot about the program this season.
 
#61
#61
TennesseeFan07 said:
Florida should have another decent season. I think losing Walker will be a bigger loss for them than Beal will be. They should make the tournament, but that's it.
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Disagree 100%. Walker kept us in games when we went down, but he also kept the other team in games with his questionable shot selection. He was as good on defense as a 5-7 guy can be, but that's not all that great. Beal did everything for us... Score, rebound, defend... He's a great player.

I think Wilbekin can be just as effective as Walker at the point. He'll be more like an Aaron Craft-type game manager, but he'll be effective. He's the best on-ball defender we've had in a while and he's a very efficient shooter when left open. Beal will be a bit tougher to replace because he doesn't have an obvious replacement at the wing. Rosario will be able to replace the scoring, but he's not much of a rebounder or defender. It would be great for us if Casey Prather stepped up.
 
#64
#64
UConnBasketball said:
I have always been the type of "live in the present or moment type fan". My concerns are always the unpredictable such as injuries and early entries ect ect...in relation to the college game.

Are you considering this year as a set up year for Tennessee in terms of laying the foundation for a legitimate Final 4 run next year? That takes into consideration recruiting and Stokes returning for his Junior year.

My guess is the consensus amongst Vol's fans is that you need a stronger 2 (a legit consistent shooter and self creator) to compliment Golden and that is the missing link to the highest level like a National Championship season.

This is all speculation but your opinions on Vol's hoops are interesting. Good luck!!
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Kennedy has had some insanely talented teams, and they always underachieve. I just need to see him lead this team to a good season and make the tourney before I can predict it, he's had too long and too many opportunities and still hasn't done it.

And yes, I think if stokes returns and Nichols committs, next years roster is a legitimate final four caliber roster. Hubbs is that kid of difference maker at the 2, and is the missing piece for this team IMO.
 
#67
#67
bleedingTNorange said:
Kennedy has had some insanely talented teams, and they always underachieve. I just need to see him lead this team to a good season and make the tourney before I can predict it, he's had too long and too many opportunities and still hasn't done it.

And yes, I think if stokes returns and Nichols committs, next years roster is a legitimate final four caliber roster. Hubbs is that kid of difference maker at the 2, and is the missing piece for this team IMO.
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That team he had with Warren and White should have performed much better
 
#68
#68
omghulkhands said:
That team he had with Warren and White should have performed much better
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Yup, and that's just one example. I give him credit for raising the level of the program since he got there...however, he hasnt built off that in years, eventually you've got to take that next step and he has had plenty of rosters capable of doing that.
 
#69
#69
bleedingTNorange said:
I've been a lot more down on Kentucky than most...I think they will struggle compared to past seasons under Cal.
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I think this team will be like the Final Four team with Brandon Knight. Count on a few early losses, maybe a few in conference, then peak at the end.
 
#70
#70
bleedingTNorange said:
Kennedy has had some insanely talented teams, and they always underachieve. I just need to see him lead this team to a good season and make the tourney before I can predict it, he's had too long and too many opportunities and still hasn't done it.

And yes, I think if stokes returns and Nichols committs, next years roster is a legitimate final four caliber roster. Hubbs is that kid of difference maker at the 2, and is the missing piece for this team IMO.
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Very fair points on the Vol's. I like Martin as a coach. You have a good one.

I tend to agree also on Kennedy. NIT would be a big disappointment for Ole Miss considering the talent on this roster. This really is a deep team. That is all relative of course considering 2 of their recruits were already arrested this summer.

Another team to watch and keep an eye out for.
 
#71
#71
Brian McCat said:
I think this team will be like the Final Four team with Brandon Knight. Count on a few early losses, maybe a few in conference, then peak at the end.
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Very possible, talent is there...I think Mays will be an important part if UKs going to be succesful.

I'm interested to see how they gel, react, with not near as much experience as years past.
 
#72
#72
UConnBasketball said:
Very fair points on the Vol's. I like Martin as a coach. You have a good one.

I tend to agree also on Kennedy. NIT would be a big disappointment for Ole Miss considering the talent on this roster. This really is a deep team. That is all relative of course considering 2 of their recruits were already arrested this summer.

Another team to watch and keep an eye out for.
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Exactly. Seems guys are always being arrested, dismissed, suspended etc etc.

Hard to get good chemistry or stability with those issues...and that's been a lot of their issues, talent has rarely been the question.
 
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