one 4 star, dotson, and he as a 3star on scout. and dotson didnt hardly play his Sr season because of injury, so there's probably a smaller slope on his learning curve. put dont put this team on them. if its anyone its the slow development of green and spencer and bass.
Maybe but obviously they aren't good enough, no depth also. This has to do with the former coach. Honestly, I don't have a clue. I don't keep up with Stanford basketball and never have. I haven't read much about Coach Trent Johnson's background. I think I agree with your post here for the most part but I don't think Phil Jackson, John Wooden or any other coach would have much success with this LSU team. Sooner or later the lack of depth and problems from the former coach would have to play a role. I will say that it is amazing what CTJ did last year and I look forward to better days!
I don't know a whole lot about basketball either. I hope TGer'nLHornLand sticks around to lead us as LSU basketball fans. He's done a great job getting me fired up for LSU basketball ever since we hired Trent Johnson. But as for expectations this year, this is from some college basketball writer: #1 Kentucky(Coach John Calipari has done more for the Kentucky Basketball program in 4 months than most coaches do in a year! There have been a few growing pains with Coach Cal’s previous job in Memphis, however, the Wildcats are on track to compete for the SEC and NCAA titles in the 2009-10 basketball season and are ranked in the top 10 in most pre-season polls.) #2 Tennessee (Coach Pearl brings back a lot of talent and experience for the 2009-10 NCAA basketball season. They are very capable of becoming a Top 10 team by the end of the season if Coach Pearl can get the team to work together like they were at the end of last season. The Vols will give Kentucky a run for the first place spot in the East, and should make the NCAA tournament again next season. Don’t look for Tennessee to have 13 losses again this season.) #3 Mississippi St (State has one of their strongest basketball teams in years returning this season. If all of the talented recruiting class is eligible to play next season (Renardo Sidney primarily), then the Bulldogs will remain the favorites in the SEC West and will make the NCAA tournament.) #4 Vandy (Vandy Coach Kevin Stallings returns experienced players and is bringing in shooting talent that will complement the starters nicely. Vandy is not in most pre-season basketball rankings, however it won’t take much to see the Commodores in the Top 25.) #5 South Carolina (Downey and the rest of the South Carolina backcourt is one of the best in the SEC. The Gamecocks primary problem is being consistent enough to get their win total into the mid-25’s this season to make the NCAA tournament. With the SEC being assessed at a much higher level than last season, South Carolina may have better luck making the NCAA tournament this season.) #6 LSU (LSU has one of the best coaches in the conference in coach Trent Johnson. The primary talent coming back for the Tigers is SF Tasmin Mitchell. The Tigers may just turn out being one of the dark horse teams in the SEC to watch in what is supposed to be a rebuilding year for the squad.) #7 Florida (Gator fans are looking forward to Coach Donovan getting back to the NCAA tournament after missing it the past two years. Start PG Nick Calathes has left school for the Greek Pro league, but many believe that will help the incoming freshmen perform quicker in Coach Donovan’s system. We’ll just have to wait and see how the young Gators respond to Donovan when the season begins.) #8 Ole Miss (Chris Warren is one of the best PG’s in the SEC when he’s healthy. Unfortunately, Ole Miss does not have a lot of talent in the front court and they will have to rely a lot on their guards in the 2009-10 season.) #9 Arkansas (Coach John Pelphrey has had a lot of craziness in the off-season, but he does have some talent with Forston, Clarke, and Washington. If he can flesh out the starting 5, the Hogs could rise to the middle of the conference this season.) #10 Alabama (Alabama has a number of upper classmen on the squad for the 2009-10 season. They’ll be joined by recruits Mitchell, Davis, and Hines who will be expected to contribute right away. They may be ranked a bit low, so don’t be surprised if the Tide rises up during the course of SEC play.) #11 Auburn (The Auburn Tigers were able to scratch there way to a 9-7 record last season and wrapped up SEC play as one of the hottest teams in the conference. They lost some crucial players through from that team and will do good to stay above Georgia this season.) #12 Georgia (Georgia is entering another rebuilding year. Coach Mark Fox will get them there, but it will take a few seasons to do so. Howared Thompkins is the bright spot for the Bulldogs this season, but overall will likely be a very rough one for Georgia basketball fans.) 2009-10 SEC East Predictions #1 – Kentucky #2 – Tennessee #3 – Vandy #4 – South Carolina #5 – Florida #6 – Georgia 2009-10 SEC West Predictions #1 – Mississippi State #2 – LSU #3 – Ole Miss #4 – Arkansas #5 – Alabama #6 – Auburn
According to Rivals, this is what our team was rated as recruits. And yeah, being that 7 of our 9 best guys are all underclassmen (4 sophomores, 3 freshmen), we can say that this is just a young team. But we are still losing our best player next year. 5-star Tasmin Mitchell F Sr. -- averaging 38.1 mins/game this season 3-star Bo Spencer G Jr. -- averaging 36.5 mins/game this season 3-star Storm Warren F So. -- averaging 28.0 mins/game this season 3-star Chris Bass G So. -- averaging 27.0 mins/game this season 4-star Aaron Dotson G Fr. -- averaging 22.8 mins/game this season ? Zach Kinsley G/F So. -- averaging 16.6 mins/game this season 3-star Dennis Harris F Fr. -- averaging 13.3 mins/game this season 3-star Eddie Ludwig F Fr. -- averaging 10.9 mins/game this season 3-star Garrett Green F So. -- averaging 10.5 mins/game this season
What part? That basketball writer's predictions for the SEC? And if so, what did you disagree with off the top of your head?
yes the predictions. lets assume coaching is a wash between donovan and johnson. the rosters dont compare. florida has 4 4stars in one year alone and two of them are 6'10". then this year they add a 5 star boynton and 4 star 6'10" player. (all those 6'10" guys are over 200 lbs, btw). how do you compare that to lsu with one 5star, a 4star Fr and a bunch of green projects? clearly the bottom 4 should be lsu, uga, au and ark, so lsu is at least 3 spots high as a preseason pick.
That is quite impressive that Florida has that kind of talent. So yeah, that is silly that that author put LSU at #7 and Florida at #8. But he agreed with you that the bottom 4 should include Arkansas, Georgia, and Auburn. My guess is that he was just really sold on Trent Johnson being a great basketball coach. He did write that this was a "rebuilding year" for LSU, but that "LSU has one of the best coaches in the conference in coach Trent Johnson." As for some other opinions, here is the SEC Media Preseason Poll and the Rivals.com Preseason Poll. What do you think of them? Note that the SEC Media Poll also felt that Florida and LSU were in the same boat this season (and LSU even got 1 vote saying we would be the SEC Champion, while Florida got zero). And it does agree with you that the bottom 4 should include Arkansas, Georgia, and Auburn SEC Media Poll SEC East Kentucky (23) 148 Tennessee (2) 117 Vanderbilt 90 South Carolina 77 Florida 68 Georgia 25 SEC West Mississippi State (22) 144 Ole Miss (2) 120 Alabama 84 LSU (1) 70 Arkansas 63 Auburn 44 As for the Rivals.com poll, they disagree with you that Arkansas should be in the bottom 4. And they only have Florida at #7 with LSU at #9. But, they did write that "Hopefully the Tigers enjoyed their 27-win season in 2008-09, because it might be awhile before LSU reaches those heights again." Rivals.com Poll 1. Kentucky – No team in America will be as talented as the Wildcats, who have three players (John Wall, DeMarcus Cousins and Patrick Patterson) who will likely be among the top 20 selections in the 2010 NBA draft. The question is whether new coach John Calipari can mold his youthful team into a cohesive unit in time to earn a No. 1 seed in the NCAA tournament and compete for a national championship. Wall, a point guard, will likely be the first player taken in the draft. He’ll be joined in the backcourt by standout newcomers such as combo guard Eric Bledsoe and swingmen Darnell Dodson and Darius Miller. The frontcourt of Patterson and Cousins will be as good as any in college basketball with Daniel Orton coming off the bench. Don’t be surprised if Kentucky wins a championship. 2. Tennessee – Tyler Smith’s decision to return for his senior season makes the Volunteers a top 10-caliber team. Smith averaged 17.4 points and 5.8 rebounds last season and will be the key player for a team that returns all five of its starters. Bobby Maze, J.P. Prince, Wayne Chism and Scotty Hopson all averaged more than eight points last season. The key for the Volunteers, though, will be improving defensively, as their lackluster effort caused them to underachieve in 2008-09. They lost to Oklahoma State in the first round of the NCAA tournament. 3. Mississippi State – Much of the Bulldogs’ success hinges on whether the NCAA declares freshman forward Renardo Sidney eligible. If Sidney plays, Mississippi State could blossom into a top-15 team. Jarvis Varnado is the best shot blocker in the nation. He’ll be joined in the frontcourt by 7-foot-2 newcomer John Riek, who will have to sit out the first nine games after the NCAA ruled he had accepted unspecified benefits. The Bulldogs also return their entire backcourt of Ravern Johnson, Dee Bost and Barry Stewart, all of whom averaged double figures last season. Mississippi State will be favored to win the SEC West with or without Sidney, but his presence could help Rick Stansbury’s squad take it to the next level. 4. South Carolina – Not many people are talking about the Gamecocks, who could emerge as one of the nation’s top sleeper teams. Darrin Horn’s squad won 21 games last season but missed the NCAA tournament after faltering down the stretch. That may not happen this season thanks to the return of Dominique Archie and Devan Downey – both of whom withdrew from the NBA draft. Downey, who averaged 19.8 points and 4.5 assists last season, will be one of the top guards in America in 2009-10. Don’t be surprised if aggressive wing Lakeem Jackson blossoms into one of the SEC’s top freshmen. 5. Vanderbilt – This is shaping up to be one of the most anticipated seasons in recent Commodores history thanks to the signing of John Jenkins, a consensus top-20 recruit whose outside shooting should give Vandy an immediate boost. Also back is 6-foot-11, 260-pound center A.J. Ogilvy, who averaged 17 and 15.4 points respectively the past two seasons. Guards Jermaine Beal, Jeffery Taylor and Brad Tinsley also return. All of them averaged 11 points or more in 2008-09. It should be an exciting season in Nashville. 6. Mississippi – No team in the country was hit as hard by injuries in 2008-09 as the Rebels, who lost Chris Warren, Eniel Polynice and Trevor Gaskins for the season. With those players back – as well as the return of standout guard and SEC Rookie of the Year Terrico White – Ole Miss is capable of challenging Mississippi State for the SEC West title. The strength of the Rebels’ squad will be the backcourt, which will be as deep as any in the league (except Kentucky). Warren was averaging 19.6 points per game before his injury in the 11th game of last season. 7. Florida – The Gators won the national title in 2006 and 2007 but have missed the NCAA tournament each of the past two seasons. The departure of standout guard Nick Calathes didn’t increase Florida’s chances of making the Big Dance this season, but coach Billy Donovan is confident that incoming freshman Kenny Boynton will pick up where Calathes left off on the perimeter. Florida also received a boost when second-leading scorer Alex Tyus said he was returning to Gainesville after initially announcing he planned to transfer. 8. Arkansas – The buzz in Fayetteville is that the Razorbacks could contend for the SEC West title. John Pelphrey’s squad returns all its key pieces from last year’s team. The problem is that that team won just two conference games. Still, there’s no denying it could be a special year if Arkansas has matured and improved. Forward Michael Washington and point guard Courtney Fortson are all-conference candidates while Rotnei Clarke is one of the SEC’s top long-range threats. Look for newcomer Marshawn Powell to play a major role alongside Washington in the paint. 9. Louisiana State – Hopefully the Tigers enjoyed their 27-win season in 2008-09, because it might be awhile before LSU reaches those heights again. Marcus Thornton, Terry Martin, Chris Johnson and Garrett Temple exhausted their eligibility. The good news is forward and all-conference candidate Tasmin Mitchell withdrew from the NBA draft so he could return for his final season. He’ll be the clear-cut leader of a squad that’s hoping to get a big boost from incoming freshman shooting guard Aaron Dotson. Also back is Bo Spencer, who averaged 11.4 points in a complementary role last season. 10. Auburn – Even with a 24-12 record and a 10-6 finish in the SEC, the Tigers were left out of last season’s NCAA tournament. They may not make it this season either as much of Auburn’s depth was lost to graduation. The good news is that leading scorer DeWayne Reed returns along with 3-point specialist Tay Waller. Coach Jeff Lebo is hoping freshman Ty Armstrong can do some dirty work in the paint when it comes to snaring rebounds and blocking shots. 11. Alabama – New coach Anthony Grant will try to instill the same, defensive-minded philosophy in the Crimson Tide as he did with his teams at Virginia Commonwealth. The good news for Grant is that the cupboard isn’t completely bare in Tuscaloosa. Forward JaMychal Green averaged 10.2 points as a freshman last season and will only get better. Guard Senario Hillman is also back after averaging 12.9 points for a squad that went 7-9 in SEC play. Don’t be surprised if freshman wing Tony Mitchell moves into the starting lineup sooner rather than later. 12. Georgia – The strength of the SEC East will make things tough for former Nevada coach Mark Fox during his first season in Athens. Luckily, Dennis Felton left him a few good players to build around in sophomores Howard Thompkins, who averaged 12.6 points a game as a freshman last season, and Dustin Ware (7.2). Georgia went just 3-13 in league play in 2008-09, which was the second worst record behind Arkansas (2-14).
I appreciate the vote of confidence, John, AND the depth of this thread guys. Not alot of Brady or coach bashing and just unabashed hoops talk! :hihi::thumb: But seriously, I don't know who this "writer" was but the votes on where LSU would end up were really all over the map, but primarily folks had LSU in the bottom half of the SEC West, which is where they should have been. Athlon for example had Trent going "from first to worst". Other rags had LSU with a pretty bleak outlook for sure. I myself being a little bit of an optimistic LSU fan, had this year's team finishing 4th in the SEC West with a chance to sneak into 3rd. Right now, I've got a little bit of egg on my face. :redface: But, in the context of the season so far, and some of the things that got us here, there was actually a good article today in the Advocate: 2theadvocate.com | Sports | No. 22 Rebels next for struggling LSU — Baton Rouge, LA When you talk about the year so far, a few things stand out to me. First, there is as folks have said, a lack of player depth. Just looking at other SEC schools, most of them even the likes of Auburn or Arkansas do not have FOUR walk-ons on the roster. You add to that a ton of injuries, either to or recovering from, for Dotson, Green, Harris, Farrer and Spencer, and you really have give Trent a mulligan this season with the cards he was dealt. You say, then, Trent should have recruited better. Well, we forget that in addition to the notion that it takes coaches a year or two to get their recruiting up and running (I'll say that Calipari is probably an exception to the rule here... but the circumstances are slightly different there :rolleye33: ) and the fact that Brady's last few years of recruiting were underwhelming, LSU also had a real APR problem. Trent was only going to go after "good" kids with little academic risk. You think about that, and that's why he preferred kids like Ludwig over potential kids with flightier backgrounds. That's not to say that things won't change as LSU's APR ratings improve. Second, I do believe that we have a "baseline" of some talent, but certain players I did expect (or hope) to get more out of, haven't performed up to capabilities. As we head into next year, I think folks have to remember that kids DO improve with the lumps and the beatings. You look at this team and on paper Tas, Warren, Spencer, Dotson, at a minimum, are SEC caliber players. What's killed us is Dotson's injury recovery (note he was playing well in the Auburn game before he sprained an ankle and had to come out) and Spencer's regression from a shooting standpoint. We have to remember that Warren averaged like 2 ppg last year! Think about the improvements he's made. Dotson, when healthy, will be better. I am sort of at a loss with Bo, but he's shown some inclination for "disappearing" and I really now do question his mental maturity. He's got the talent, but hopefully he'll get in line, focus on doing the right things, and improve here on out. Now the rest of the team really was a question mark, and honestly to me it still is. Perhaps Trent made the mistake of "hyping" Green. I also may have been too hopeful for him, considering he was a 2 star recruit and coming back from back surgery. I would have hoped that Bass would have spent all summer shooting jumpshots, but man, he has not shown too much improvement or more importantly, confidence. Now, I think Bass could be good, athletically he's there, but until he can hit his jumpshot, diversify his offense, and hit his free throws, we've got a deficiency there at point. Harris I think is a positive surprise, but he's playing out of position and has to get bigger. Ludwig, as well, is a 4 year player who could be playing the 3 but has to play the 4 on this team--give him time (I'll say this, the kid hits his free throws and hustles all of the time, and that's what this team needs more--more doing the little things right, like Trent says). Lastly, when you consider what LSU is getting of Kinsley, you got to tip your hats off to the coaching effort of Trent and his staff. Remember that Kinsley is a walk on and doesn't actually look too bad out there most of the time. But, the issue with him is that he's really a 3 and we're asking him to play 2 alot, and he doesn't have SEC lateral quickness to contain many of the top SEC 2 guards. Where does that leave us? Well, you piece what I've said above with what's coming in next year, and I DO get excited about LSU prospects and I hope Fans watch this season with next year in mind. Largely b/c while Trent is not a flashy recruiter, he is a smart recruiter. With Brady, often you got the feeling like he was recruiting for a resume, and not to fill the needs of his team. With Trent, his guys may not be 5 star guys, but they fit a need and can be developed. When you look at this team's deficiencies, perimeter speed and shooting, and low post bulk, 2010 is all about that--Stringer, Turner and Derenbecker all can shoot, handle and pass on the outside, Courtney is a versatile swingman who could redshirt and develop slowly, AND let's not forget about Malcolm White. Despite our losing Tas' next year, I think White being a kid that started in the SEC, with another off season of conditioning and coaching, is really going to impress. In fact, seeing this recent interview with Malcolm, gets me pumped about him and the direction of the program (i.e., see what he says about CTJ): TigerRag - Meet Malcolm White Tas' leaving will actually allow folks to play in more natural positions, shifting folks around and the improved depth at alot of positions will also make a big difference next year. It's all about constant improvement under Trent. What I'll be looking for the rest of the season is mental toughness development, Spencer getting "right", and continual PT and development for kids like Bass, Dotson, Green, Harris and Ludwig. They CAN be better and need to get better for a turnaround, and they'll still be critical parts of next year's team. I'll also be looking to see what Trent can either do with that last 2010 or 2011 schollie. That can be a pretty critical signing (preferably a versatile big man with some bulk), and he's looking at a few under the radar guys in the 2010 class, and hopefully, if that doesn't play out, we get a surprise in 2011 to go along with John Isaac. Stay out of Trees folks and focus on the Forest! We are headed in the right direction with Trent at the helm, and for that fact, we've got to bring the magic back to the PMAC!:LSU231: :bball: :geauxtige
