SB Nation User Blog: thecassino

C.J. Wilcox Will Redshirt

thecassino — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 23:40:00 -0000

C.J. Wilcox Will Redshirt

Lorenzo Romar announced today that freshman C.J. Wilcox will be sitting out this season. It's not unexpected, and something I predicted in my preview of UW's guards. There's just too much depth with Thomas, Overton, Gaddy and Turner definitely above Wilcox in the rotation, plus Scott Suggs to compete with as well.
The problem? All of those guys are likely coming back next year.

Josh Smith to UCLA

thecassino — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 04:51:31 -0000

Josh Smith to UCLA

Kind of what was expected, but it still sucks. We can debate the pros and cons all day for one and dones, but it would've been nice to see the local kid stay home. No word yet on Terrence Jones, who may or may not be announcing tonight.

2009-2010 Husky Basketball Preview: Pac-10

thecassino — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 05:38:23 -0000

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Everybody is projecting the Pac-10 to be down this year, and with good reason. There are three new coaches taking over teams that sustained heavy losses from last year (Arizona, USC and WSU), the traditional power of the conference (UCLA) lost a ton of talent and will be relying on a bunch of guys who have accomplished nothing or have yet to set foot on a college court, last year's champion lost one of the most decorated players in the history of its program (Washington), another team lost the third pick in the draft who carried them for the last two seasons (Arizona State) and a team which wasn't very good to begin with lost a huge amount of it's production (Stanford). The losses from last season aren't any bigger than they have been the previous couple of seasons for the Pac-10, but after pumping the NBA with talent for several years this is likely the year that the conference really feels it. Add to that the fact that there isn't a headlining class of freshmen coming into the conference as in years past and it may be the worst year in recent memory for the Conference of Champions. The top of the conference seems solid, but the middle and bottom are pretty much up for grabs.

Much more after the jump.

(Note: for the purposes of this column, a "starter" is a player who was in his team's top 5 in terms of minutes played)

1. Washington

'09: 26-9, 14-4, 1st. Postseason: NCAA 2nd Round

Key Losses: Jon Brockman, Justin Dentmon

Returning Starters: Quincy Pondexter, Isaiah Thomas, Venoy Overton

New Players: Abdul Gaddy, Clarence Trent, C.J. Wilcox

The Huskies come into this season with some question marks in the frontcourt, but their 1-2-3 of Gaddy/Overton-Thomas-Pondexter is as good as any in the nation. If a player (Elston Turner, I'm looking at you) can emerge as a consistent 3 point threat, or if Isaiah Thomas improves his percentage to a respectable number, this team should have no problem repeating as conference champions.

Postseason: NCAA

2. California

'09: 22-11, 11-7, 3rd. Postseason: NCAA 1st Round

Key Losses: None

Returning Starters: Jerome Randle, Patrick Christopher, Theo Robertson, Harper Kamp, Jamal Boykin

New Players: Bak Bak, Markhuri Sanders-Frison, Brandon Smith

Cal is being tabbed by most as the preseason favorite because they return everybody from a good team last year. As is the case with Washington, they have some of the best guards in the country. The difference between Cal and Washington is that Cal is much more dependent on the three pointer, and while that can make them unbeatable when they're hitting it, they also suffer from dry spells occasionally which causes them to drop games to inferior opponents (as evidenced by them being swept by Oregon State). That inconsistency will ultimately cost them the Pac-10 title.

Postseason: NCAA

3. UCLA

'09: 26-9, 13-5, 2nd. Postseason: NCAA 2nd Round

Key Losses: Darren Collison, Josh Shipp, Alfred Aboya, Jrue Holiday

Returning Starters: Nikola Dragovic

New Players: Tyler Honeycutt, Brendan Lane, Mike Moser, Reeves Neslon, Anthony Stover

UCLA seems to be the tallest midget of the Pac-10, mostly for the simple fact that nobody in their right mind would ever bet against Ben Howland. Losing their four best players from last year will test Howland's ability to run a team with a bunch of young talent. Whether or not these Baby Bruins are able to put the ball into the basket is going to be a huge question, but have no concerns about their defense. It's Howland's hallmark and will be enough alone to keep them competitive even if the offense isn't clicking. After they nearly lost their exhibition to Concordia, questions abound, but while they may struggle early on one has to believe that they'll be rounding into form come Pac-10 play.

Postseason: NCAA

4. Oregon

'09: 8-23, 2-16, 10th. Postseason: None

Key Losses: Churchill Odea

Returning Starters: Tajuan Porter, Michael Dunigan, Joevon Catron, LeKendrick Longmire, Garrett Sim

New Players: Malcolm Armstead, Jeremy Jacob, E.J. Singler, Jamil Wilson

Looking at his history, Ernie Kent puts his best seasons together when his back is against the wall. He bungles his way to the hot seat, then pulls out a tournament run which buys him a few more years to repeat the pattern. I'm going with history. Oregon brings an excellent recruiting class in for the second straight year, and doesn't sustain much loss from last year. Yes, they were terrible last year, but they have a ton of talent on their roster. If Sim and Dunigan take significant steps between their freshmen and sophomore campaigns (big "ifs" given they're coached by Ernie Kent) and support the older guys on the roster, the Ducks could do some damage in a Pac-10 full of teams whose of lesser talent.

Postseason: NCAA

5. Arizona

'09: 21-14, 9-9, 5th. Postseason: NCAA Sweet Sixteen

Key Losses: Jordan Hill, Chase Budinger

Returning Starters: Kyle Fogg, Jamelle Horne, Nic Wise

New Players: Solomon Hill, Lamont Jones, Kyryl Natyazkho, Kevin Parrom, Derrick Williams

With the Lute Olson saga in the rearview mirror, the Sean Miller era has begun in Arizona. The losses of Hill and Budinger will undoubtedly hurt, but Nic Wise returning for his senior campaign was a huge blessing for this team. Miller also gave himself help by rallying to rebuild a recruiting class which looked bleak prior to his arrival. Miller is one of the best young coaches in America, and while the talent level isn't what Arizona is used to, there are some playmakers on this team. Kyle Fogg had an excellent freshman campaign, Jamelle Horne is as good an athlete as there is, and Zane Johnson is one of the best shooters in the conference. If the freshmen play to their expectations it might be enough for Arizona to keep its NCAA streak alive.

Postseason: NCAA

6. Oregon State

'09: 18-18, 7-11, 8th. Postseason: CBI Champions

Key Losses: Ricky Claitt

Returning Starters: Calvin Haynes, Roeland Schaftenaar, Daniel Deane, Seth Tarver

New Players: Angus Brandt, Joe Burton, Jared Cunningham, Roberto Nelson, Rhys Murphy

Much is being made about OSU's improvement from 18 losses to CBI championship and the fact that they're returning just about everyone. However, most of the players coming back aren't that good. OSU was able to win some games last year because they play a style unfamiliar to the Pac-10 and some teams had trouble adjusting to it. But when OSU was faced with a much more talented opponent, such as UW and UCLA last year, OSU was lucky to come within 20 points, a feat which they accomplished exactly once, when UW beat them by just 19. The Pac-10 will be more adept at busting their halfcourt 1-3-1 press this coming year, and once you do that it's a license to pile on the points, which forces OSU to get out of it, which makes them a much worse basketball team. OSU will be better, but they're not going to be competing with the cream of the conference for at least another season or two.

Postseason: NIT

7. Washington State

'09: 17-16, 8-10. Postseason: NIT

Key Losses: Taylor Rochestie, Aron Baynes, Caleb Forrest, Daven Harmeling

Returning Starters: Klay Thompson, Nikola Koprivica

New Players: Steven Bjornstad, Anthony Brown, Reggie Moore, Brock Motum, Xavier Thames

Recruiting at Washington State has been very good the last two classes, but the couple of years before that? Not so much. Evidence: One senior and one junior (who doesn't play) on WSU's roster. It's hard to have much faith in a team built entirely of sophomores and freshmen. DeAngelo Casto is a manchild, and Klay Thompson is one of the best players in the conference, but teams will undoubtedly be keying on him and there are no proven players on the roster who have shown that they will be able to take the pressure off of him. In addition, the transition from Bennett Ball to Ken Bone might be trying with this team's limited depth. Under the Bennetts players could play long minutes due to the slow pace, but if Bone wants to pick up the tempo this team might be gassed by midseason.

Postseason: CBI

8. Arizona State

'09: 25-10, 11-7, 4th. Postseason: NCAA 2nd Round

Key Losses: James Harden, Jeff Pendergraph

Returning Starters: Derek Glasser, Rihards Kuksiks, Ty Abbott

New Players: Trent Lockett, Ruslan Pateev, Victor Rudd, Brandon Thompson, Demetrius Walker

The loss of Harden and Pendergraph is huge. It's not just that they were the best players on the team, it's that the team was completely lost without them. There is not a single player on the roster who can create his own shot consistently, just a bunch of guys who could knock down shots after Harden and Pendergraph drew the defense. A lot of people are touting Eric Boateng to be a big contributor this year, but it's hard to see him doing enough to make this team a competitor. Life after Harden is going to be tough for the Sun Devils.

Postseason: None

9. USC

'09: 22-13, 9-9, 6th. Postseason: NCAA 2nd Round

Key Losses: Taj Gibson, Daniel Hackett, DeMar DeRozan, Keith Wilkinson

Returning Starters: Dwight Lewis

New Players: Evan Smith

The mass exodus of USC's talent can only mean one thing: It's Lil' Romeo time at USC. In all seriousness though, Tim Floyd left USC in shambles. The junior class and freshman phenom DeMar DeRozan bolted, and as a sign of a sinking ship, Daniel Hackett didn't even leave for the NBA - he left to play in Italy. When Floyd resigned the recruiting class fell apart as well, and new coach Kevin O'Neil was not able to salvage it. Dwight Lewis comes back as one of few proven players, though he was one of the most overrated players in the conference last year, putting up the numbers he did simply because he shot the ball every time he touched it. Leonard Washington is a good player, but he's not a player to put the team on his back the entire season. Alex Stepheson could turn out to be an All Conference caliber player but there's not enough depth on this team to compete in the Pac-10 this year.

10. Stanford

'09: 20-14, 6-12 9th. Postseason: CBI

Key Losses: Anthony Goods, Lawrence Hill, Mitch Johnson,

Returning Starters: Landry Fields, Josh Owens

New Players: Andy Brown, Gabriel Harris, Andrew Zimmerman

Stanford lost most of their talent from last year's team, which wasn't that great to begin with. Not a great combination. The team is going to rely heavily on Landry Fields to carry the load, and he was going to be aided by Jeremy Green and Josh Owens, however Green has been suspended and Owens injured. Without Green they have just 7 players on scholarship. This is going to be a long season for coach Johnny Dawkins, and this team may be playing for moral victories.

Conference Teams:

1st Team:

Nic Wise, Arizona

Patrick Christopher, Cal

Jerome Randle, Cal

Michael Dunigan, Oregon

Roeland Schaftenaar, OSU

Landry Fields, Stanford

Dwight Lewis, USC

Isaiah Thomas, Washington

Quincy Pondexter, Washington

Klay Thompson, WSU

2nd Team:

Theo Robertson, Cal

Tajuan Porter, Oregon

Nikola Dragovic, UCLA

Malcolm Lee, UCLA

DeAngelo Casto, WSU

Freshman Team:

Solomon Hill, Arizona

Trent Lockett, ASU

Jamil Wilson, Oregon

Reeves Nelson, UCLA

Abdul Gaddy, Washington

Reggie Moore, WSU

Defensive Team:

Jorge Gutierrez, Cal

Seth Tarver, OSU

Alex Stepheson, USC

Venoy Overton, Washington

DeAngelo Casto, WSU

Player of the Year: Jerome Randle, Cal

Freshman of the Year: Abdul Gaddy, Washington

Defensive Player of the Year: Venoy Overton, Washington

Most Improved Player of the Year: Michael Dunigan, Oregon

Coach of the Year: Lorenzo Romar, Washington

What Could Have Been?

thecassino — Sun, 08 Nov 2009 18:32:18 -0000

What Could Have Been?

Coach Cameron Dollar called onetime Husky signee Charles Garcia a top NBA prospect, and he was a monster in their first game, scoring inside and out. He even hit 2 of 3 from three. If the UW big men struggle this year, the JUCO qualification process may be the real culprit.

Exhibition vs. Central: Some Observations

thecassino — Thu, 05 Nov 2009 18:48:06 -0000

Quincy Pondexter throws down an alley-oop in Washington's exhibition win over Central Washington.

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It's tough to take a lot from a game like this. The Huskies are better than the Wildcats in every single imaginable way, and it showed on the court. It goes without saying that guys like Isaiah Thomas and Quincy Pondexter dominated last night, because they're simply too good at basketball to not have their way with a D-II team, so it doesn't merit much talk. However, there are a few things of note and areas of concern.

Three point shooting was not good. 5 of 21 will not get it done against quality opponents and it's perhaps the team's biggest concern coming into the season. Central went to a 2-3 zone in this game, and it briefly stymied the UW offense. Neither Elston Turner or C.J. Wilcox made a shot. If someone doesn't step forward as a sharpshooter we're going to be looking at a lot of zone this year. Encouraging though, was that Overton and Pondexter both went 1 for 3. If Overton can hit about that percent for the season it would be a huge improvement.
Matthew Bryan-Amaning was the guy on the glass. But here we are again with him stepping up against an inferior opponent. Can he keep it up? He wasn't an effective offensive player, and looked outclassed in that area by two freshmen, Tyreese Breshers and Clarence Trent.
Free throw shooting wasn't good either. This is an area that causes everybody to tear their hair out. Free throws. Free. Make them.
Darnell Gant's added muscle has already paid dividends. He pulled down 10 boards.
Scott Suggs looks like a Pac-10 player this year. He definitely used the offseason to get bigger. He's still slim, but not like he was last season. However, he still isn't playing like a Pac-10 player.
Tyreese Breshers might be this team's best big man once he gets healthy. He simply owns the paint when he's down there, and though he's not yet 100% he was the best offensive post player on the team last night.
The defense could be scary this year. When Justin Holiday comes back, this might be the best defensive team in the conference.
Abdul Gaddy is still catching up to college defense. He played a lot of defense with his hands rather than his feet, and it got him into foul trouble. This might be the reason Overton started, and may be the reason Overton continues to start (if he does) until Abdul gets up to speed.
Abdul Gaddy gets college offense. He lead the team in assists, including a highlight reel alley-oop to Quincy Pondexter. He displayed the kind of vision at the point this program hasn't seen since Will Conroy. And he's only going to get better as he gets more experience.
The shooting as a whole wasn't good. The team shot under 40%, but it's hard for a team to get into an offensive rhythm with as much subbing as there was. Romar was bouncing players in and out, experimenting with different cominations of players and it likely affected the players' consistency.

2009-2010 Husky Basketball Preview: Forwards

thecassino — Thu, 22 Oct 2009 23:02:25 -0000

More photos » by Elaine Thompson - AP

Quincy Pondexter with teammates Isaiah Thomas and Venoy Overton at a Midnight Madness.

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The University of Washington's is entering the post-Brockman era. With Jon Brockman manning the lane, there were very few worries. He was going to grab every rebound he could get his hands on, he was going to bang on offense and get hard earned points, hustle on both ends and play his heart out for 40 minutes a night. And now that one of the most decorated players the program has ever known has moved on, he has left a big question mark in his place.

The team will have to use a by-committee approach to pick up Brockman's lost production; no one player is going to be able to do it alone. Traditionally Coach Romar has had teams that rebound the ball strongly regardless of what players he has on the floor, so there's no reason to be concerned about this approach, especially when one considers that there are guys on the roster who have shown that they can man the glass at times. The question will be whether or not they can do it consistently for the course of an entire season. The one area that will improve on Brockman's exit will be shotblocking, because as great as Jon was, he lacked the length and athleticism to block shots and all the guys playing forward on this team have that ability. The team as a whole has a chance to be very stingy defensively and while Overton is the guy that everybody notices, the big men are the key to keeping other teams away from the basket.

The players that Romar has recruited to play the post are all guys that were widely pursued in recruiting, have a bunch of talent, tons of upside, yet most of them have relatively little production to show for it. This is going to be the year that we find out how good these kids are.

#33 Tyreese Breshers: 6 feet, 7 inches. 255 pounds. Redshirt Freshman

Breshers was given a medical redshirt last year due to a shin injury, and word is that his recovery is going well. Well enough that he should be able to contribute this year. When healthy, Breshers is an incredibly gifted athlete. In spite of his height he is an accomplished shot blocker and has been known to throw down a thundering dunk if given the opportunity. He is also a big, strong kid, as the 255 pound waistband indicates, and if he puts the effort, stays healthy and keeps his weight under control Romar believes he could become a guy the program leans on in the post in the coming years.

It's hard to say exactly how much the freshman will be able to contribute because of his injury. Romar has stated that he isn't 100%, and may not be until the middle of the season. It feels like a certainty that he will get some playing time though, and he may even be the first big man off of the bench. He's got a shot of working his way into the starting lineup if his health and conditioning improve quickly enough.

#11 Matthew Bryan-Amaning: 6 feet, 9 inches. 240 pounds. Junior

MBA is being pegged by many as a guy ripe for a breakout year, and when you look at his size, athleticism and the talent that he has flashed at points, you can make a good case for that. Between his freshman year and his sophomore year he took a step forward, but it wasn't much more than a baby step. His numbers all went up, but so did his minutes so you'd expect that to happen. But for the University of Washington to be a legitimate threat this year it would be huge if MBA did in fact take a giant step forward.

MBA is hands down the team's best shot blocker, but at times he is far too aggressive going for blocks and occasionally abandons his defensive footwork, which leads to fouls, which MBA drew more often than any Husky. One thing that MBA flashed last year was his interior passing. There were a number of times when he'd draw a defender into the air and dump it to the other post player (usually Brockman) for an easy layup. A lot of that was Brockman knowing where to be and when to be there, but it's a skill that a lot of big men simply don't have and never learn.

Against inferior opponents such as Texas Southern, Portland State and Stanford, Matthew put up some big numbers, yet when the bigger opponents were on the floor he disappeared. He averaged just 1.8 points a game and 2.2 rebounds a game against Cal/UCLA/Arizona State/WSU. He put up just 2.75 ppg and 2.75 rpg in postseason play, and most of that production came against Stanford. This season MUST be different for MBA. He will be counted on to contribute regardless of what color the opponent's jersey is.

Bryan-Amaning will likely be the team's starting center, but if he cannot avoid the fouls that plagued him last year he will not be able to stay on the floor long enough to become a significant contributor. If his touch has softened around the rim he has the talent to, at times, be a monster.

#44 Darnell Gant: 6 feet, 8 inches. 225 pounds. Redshirt Sophomore

A returning starter, Coach Romar has made no guarantees that Gant will be a starter again this year. After putting on weight in the offseason and working on his midrange jumper, he is going to be more of a complete player. Last year Darnell was primarily a defensive player, using his height and length to match up against other opponents' big men and wings, block shots and pull down rebounds, but he was almost a non factor on the offensive end. He could dunk the ball, but that was about it. He frequently took a 15 foot jumper, but it was a shot that defenses were glad to let him take because it didn't fall often. If he has added that 15 footer to his repertoire as has been indicated then he will be able to keep defenses honest.

Gant's added strength will show up in the rebounding column, and the only thing stopping him from playing bigger minutes last year was his offensive ineptitude. If he can be even competent on offense this year, he'll be relied on to play a lot of minutes when MBA is on the bench due to foul trouble.

#22 Justin Holiday: 6 feet, 6 inches. 180 pounds. Junior

Listed as a forward, Holiday is really more of a perimeter player. Last year he was called on to come in and shut down the opposition's hot hand, as Holiday is one of the better defenders on the team due to his combination of length and quickness. One of his other strengths that was evident last year was his passing. When the Dentmon/Thomas/Overton trio was having trouble making entry passes because larger defenders were exposing their lack of height, Holiday was far and away the most dependable player on the team, and he almost always put the ball in a place where the post player had an excellent look at the basket. Justin's biggest weakness was his lack of offensive contributions. He was capable around the basket, but his perimeter shot left something to be desired. Word is that's exactly what he's been working on, so improvement in that area would give the team another player who can knock down 3's consistently, which is something this team desperately needs.

Look for Holiday to play virtually the same role he did last year. He'll be the 7th or 8th man off of the bench, and matched up against the opponents best wing player. The Huskies will also use him as a 4 once in a while, running a small and quick lineup with 3 guards, Holiday and Pondexter at the 5. We know what we're getting from Justin Holiday. He's the type of player coaches love: he's smart, can do a little bit of everything, is an excellent defender and isn't going to hurt the team when he's on the floor.

#20 Quincy Pondexter: 6 feet, 6 inches. 215 pounds. Senior

The lone senior on the squad, big things are expected from Pondexter this season. He has the talent to be not just one of the best players in the conference, but one of the best players in the nation. It's just a matter of him putting it together for an entire season, and with his height/strength/skill combination, there's no reason for him not to. There were times last season where he was unguardable, and as the season wore on he got better and better. In the tournament last year, Quincy was the team's best player, putting up big numbers against Mississippi State and following that performance with a double-double against Purdue. Those are the kinds of performances that will be expected and needed from Q-Pon if the Huskies are to be a contender again this year.

Word is that this year Quincy will again be experimenting with the 3 pointer. He pretty much avoided shooting them last season, as with Justin Dentmon's hot hand there wasn't much need for Pondexter to join in. But with Dentmon graduating and the team searching for its consistent deep threat, don't be surprised if Quincy puts up some threes, especially early in the season when the team is still finding its identity. If he can hit 3 pointers consistently, look out Pac-10.

#5 Brendan Sherrer: 6 feet, 9 inches. 240 pounds. Sophomore

Sherrer is a walk-on. He shouldn't factor into any important games this year, but if the Dawgs get up big on an opponent, expect the Dawg Pack to chant for Sherrer to come into the game. And hey, he's tall.

#12 Clarence Trent: 6 feet 5 inches, 225 pounds. Freshman

Trent is an extremely athletic player. He's thrown down many dunks in his career, and the Midnight Madness dunk contest that Isaiah Thomas won is said to be the first in Trent's life that he's ever lost. He uses his athleticism and hard work to make up for his lack of ideal height and is a strong rebounder. The question about Trent is his offensive game. His midrange jumper is decent, but much like Gant last year, teams probably won't show it much respect, and his interior game needs polish.

Trent went to a prep school last year, and those guys are usually more ready to come in and contribute faster than your run of the mill highschooler (see: Isaiah Thomas), but Trent may simply not be far enough along in his development and have too many talented players ahead of him to carve out minutes in the rotation. If Breshers struggles getting into playing shape, Romar may have to go to Trent for rebounding assistance and added depth, but with a healthy roster Trent figures to be the 10th or 11th man. And on a Romar coached team that usually means playing time is scarce.

ESPN's Blue Ribbon Preview of Washington

thecassino — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 21:44:50 -0000

ESPN's Blue Ribbon Preview of Washington

In ESPN's series of conference previews they've gotten to the Pac-10. It's usually an insider feature, but Washington has been given the spotlight and is a free read, so check it out.

2009-2010 Husky Basketball Preview: Guards

thecassino — Thu, 22 Oct 2009 23:42:49 -0000

More photos » by Elaine Thompson - AP

Isaiah Thomas uses Matthew Bryan-Amaning as a boost during the dunk contest at Midnight Madness.

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The University of Washington possesses one of the deepest stable of guards in the nation. Despite the loss of 1st Team All Pac-10 player Justin Dentmon, this backcourt group will likely be a stronger group than last year's. The guards will be centered around last year's Freshman of the Year Isaiah Thomas, and bolstered by the likes of Venoy Overton, Elston Turner and newcomer Abdul Gaddy. Behind those first four are the highly touted Scott Suggs as well as hot shooting freshman C.J. Wilcox.

Lorenzo Romar is going to have his hands full trying to find a way to get all of the guards on this team minutes, because he's got six players who are Pac-10 caliber contributors, and unless the Huskies go small frequently there simply isn't enough time in a game to keep them all happy.

Much more after the jump.

#10 Abdul Gaddy: 6 feet 3 inches. 190 pounds. Freshman

If you haven't yet heard about Abdul Gaddy, then get out from under the rock. After the whirlwind that was his recruitment, he spurned Arizona (twice) and decided to play hoops near home for at least the next couple of years. The Tacoma product and McDonalds All-American has been lauded as one of the top players coming into college basketball next year, and with good reason. Gaddy is a prototypical point guard; he has great size for the position, he handles the ball well, is a leader on the floor, looks to pass first, can hurt teams if they don't respect his offense and can take over a game if need be.

Abdul Gaddy will come in and contribute from day one. He will likely be the team's starting point guard and is an early favorite for Pac-10 Freshman of the Year. How he responds to the pressure of expectations will determine how quickly he reaches his potential. If he comes in and tries to do too much, then Coach Romar will have to yield to a more experienced player like Venoy Overton. Another concern about Abdul is how quickly he picks up defense at the college level. Being counted on to play a lot of minutes would be great, but if he's a defensive liability Romar will not hesitate to yank him. If Gaddy adjusts to college quickly, he could help lead this team deep into the postseason.

#1 Venoy Overton: 5 feet 11 inches. 185 pounds. Junior

Everybody's favorite pest, Venoy Overton is one of the best defenders in all of college basketball. As last year's sixth man, Overton was counted on to come in and frustrate opponent's point guards, an art he has honed as evidenced by the steals he has accumulated and the charges he has drawn, as well as the kerfuffles he has caused. At times Overton gets too aggressive on defense and gets called for too many fouls, often pushing giving UW's opponents bonus free throws, but he also creates easy baskets off of turnovers. Unfortunately for Overton, there's another side of the ball, a side that he has yet to get a grasp on. To be blunt: He doesn't shoot well. He will occaisionally penetrate, something he does well with his quickness, though too often he puts his head down and commits to shooting once he gets into the lane when passing would have been the best option.

Overton will likely be the exact same player he was last year. He'll continue to be the most hated player of our opponent's fans, provide the Huskies with a ton of energy, and frustrate many with his offensive inability. Any offense that he provides the team with will be a bonus, and as long as he yields to the more accomplished offensive players instead of forcing up shots he will have done his job.

#15 Scott Suggs: 6 feet 6 inches. 185 pounds. Sophomore

We've heard for the past year or so about how talented Scott Suggs is. He was Mr. Show Me Basketball as Missouri's top high school player his senior year and a four star recruit with tremendous length. Yet last year he couldn't get minutes and was 5th in the guard rotation, behind fellow freshmen guards Isaiah Thomas and Elston Turner. Then Romar signed Abdul Gaddy and C.J. Wilcox, two guys who are expected to come in and compete for spots in the rotation. It didn't really look like Suggs had much of a place on the team last year, and it wouldn't have been shocking had he transferred. But he decided to stick around to prove that he can play at UW and in the Pac-10.

One big reason Suggs didn't get off the bench much last year is that he was rail thin. His shoulders are too narrow for him to ever be a big guy, but he really needs to put on some pounds or else the wings in this conference are going to bully him around. With Overton/Thomas/Turner returning and Gaddy coming in, if Suggs has any chance of getting on the court he has to be able to play on the wing and guard that position, and Romar is going to have to go small a few times a game.

Unfortunately, a scenario where his minutes don't increase to a level where happy seems very possible, barring an injury to another player. I'd hate to see a player with his potential leave the program, but it looks like a distinct possibility given the state of the depth chart.

#2 Isaiah Thomas: 5 feet 8 inches. 185 pounds. Sophomore

The diminutive Isaiah Thomas is this team's heart and soul. He was the biggest difference between the team two years ago that went 16-17 and last year's Pac-10 championship team. He used his quickness and athleticism to blow past, around and through opposing defenses and in the process set UW's freshman scoring record and earned the Pac-10 Freshman of the Year honors.

We know what Thomas is capable of doing on the hardwood, but for this coming season there are some areas where some improvement is going to be necessary. Isaiah shot a ton of threes last year, but hit less than 30%. He shot the most free throws of any player on the team last year, but hit fewer than 70% of them. If Isaiah improves on anything in his game for the coming year, these two areas need to be priorities 1 and 1a. If he does improve those percentages to the 35% and 75% range or better, there's an excellent chance he'll be staring a Pac-10 Player of the Year award in the face.

#31 Elston Turner Jr.: 6 feet 4 inches. 205 pounds. Sophomore

Last year Elston Turner displayed a sweet shot, and toward the end of the season showed real flashes that he is going to become a dangerous player sometime before his eligibility runs out. He battled an ankle injury down the stretch last season, but when he was healthy he was a player that had to be accounted for by opposing defenses. Being the son of a coach, Elston was able to come in as a freshman with enough savvy and understanding of the game to earn minutes, and if his performance at Midnight Madness is any indicator (5/6 from the field and 3/4 from 3 point range) he has honed his scoring ability and is going to be pushing for more minutes.

Coming into the 09-10 season, he is the team's most accomplished three point shooter and is going to be counted on to come off of the bench and bust zone defenses. Really, he's the team's only player who has proven he can hit 3's with consistency, and if Isaiah Thomas doesn't show that he can knock down a decent percentage from deep Elston may simply be impossible to keep on the bench for key stretches.

#23 C.J. Wilcox: 6 feet 5 inches. 180 pounds. Freshman

The buzz around C.J. Wilcox is that he's the best shooter on the team and can stand toe to toe with anybody in the nation at the 3 point arc. If he can pick up Romar's defensive rotation, he might be tough to keep off the floor if his offseason shooting translates to live action.

There has been some talk of Wilcox redshirting this year, and given the depth ahead of him it's a distinct possibility. As long as the team avoids any serious injuries Wilcox will likely sit this year out, but with only 12 scholarship players it's a thin margin. If Wilcox gets a lot of minutes this year, it's a bad sign.

UW/Gonzaga Dead

thecassino — Fri, 30 Oct 2009 07:39:58 -0000

UW/Gonzaga Dead

For at least the time being, Lorenzo Romar has declared the Gonzaga series once again dead. With the history between the coaches and Mark Few's childish reaction to UW's proposed deal, don't expect these two teams to meet while the current coaches and AD's hold their positions.

Darnell Gant, Tyreese Breshers and Justin Holiday have come up with a rap about a dance called the...

thecassino — Wed, 14 Oct 2009 02:43:08 -0000

Darnell Gant, Tyreese Breshers and Justin Holiday have come up with a rap about a dance called the "Q-Walk", named in honor of Quincy Pondexter.