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porkchop
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 Posted: Wed May 28, 2008 3:07 pm Post subject: BAMA Basketball Signees and 2009 |
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"Anything you can do I can do better. I can anything better than you".
Only weeks after Alabama's Nick Saban signed (by most accounts) the top football class in the country, BAMA basketball coach Mark Gottfried displayed his recruiting prowess by landing three of the nation's top high school basketball players, and a top-15 class of his own. While an incoming class of that calibre is a big deal any time it is a huge deal for the Crimson Tide this year given what has been an uncertain offseason.
The one surety as of now is that BAMA will be looking to replace a point guard. At least A point guard, and possibly two. Unhappy and feeling as though he'd been misled by the coaching staff, freshman guard Rico Pickett elected to take his toys and go home, to junior college. While the facts surrounding Pickett's departure are unclear it appears that the young freshmen felt that he was going to take over the point once Ronald Steele left. That plan fell apart when Steele redshirted this past season, securing him one more year at the Capstone. Pickett also didn't do himself any favors with his erratic play, and frequently found himself giving way to more experienced players as the season wore on.
Steele's situation is a little different and likely wont be resolved until the NBA draft concludes on June 26th. While there is still a chance Steele could leave, the indications at this point would appear to have him returning to Tuscaloosa for one more year. Steele, often considered one of the top point guards in the country when healthy, has been battling nagging injuries for the better part of two seasons now. And while some observers might note that a 75% Ronald Steele is better than most other college point guards at 100%, NBA teams don't normally like gambling on a guard with bad wheels. Expect Ronald to wear crimson next season, but brace for the worst, however unlikely it seems.
For all of the grief that coach Mark Gottfried has received recently regarding his foresight and planning, you have to give him his due here. Expecting the worst, Gottfried went out and signed junior college point man Anthony Brock to fill the void that could be left by two potential departures. Brock comes in as the least-heralded member of this year's class. Partly due to his JUCO status and partly because of his diminutive stature. Brock doesn't come close to 6 feet, which could really handicap his shooting in a conference like the SEC, but Gottfried doesn't appear to be overly concerned. It appears that the staff is looking to Brock as a manager of the offense and not a primary scoring option.
With Brock running the point would there really be enough firepower next season for the team to compete? Maybe, but chances are it wont come to that, and to be fair we're speaking of Brock like he's never shot a jump shot in his life. Bottom line is that Steele looks to be returning and that means it's his ballgame at point. Along with Steele, forward Alonzo Gee is set to return for his senior season after withdrawing his name from draft consideration. BAMA's last remaining question mark is junior forward Richard Hendrix, and with his stock dropping it looks probably that he'll be making a return to Tuscaloosa for next season as well.
As a junior Gee contributed 14 points per game while Hendrix averaged a double-double over the season. A healthy Ronald Steele is good for between 15 and 20 points per contest as well. All Gottfried has to do now is fill in the missing pieces.
Maybe the most anticipated member of the incoming class is also the guy that could end up being the real key to next season. JaMychal Green (6-8 power forward) comes to Tuscaloosa after a stellar senior campaign that saw him average an eye-popping 26 points, 17 boards, and 7 blocks for St. Jude's High School. Both Scout and Rivals recruiting services list Green as one of the top 10 power forwards coming out of high school this season.
Figuring out how Green fits in might be almost as important as having Steele back. Can Green live up to the hype and develop quickly enough to come out and get significant, meaningful minutes next season? And where does Green fit in? Can he be the inside compliment to Hendrix that sophomore Demetrius Jemison was never able to fulfill?
Depending on how quickly Green develops goes a long way next season in determining just how succesful the Tide can be. If Green can come in and get meaningful minutes it allows Gottfried to move Jemison (who looks to be over-matched and playing out of position) to the bench with sophomore Yamene Coleman and soon-to-be sophomore Justin Knox. Doing this would keep Hendrix, the team's only true inside threat, fresher and out of foul trouble as the season goes on.
Another high-profile newcomer expected to make an impact is Swainsboro, Georgia swingman Tony Mitchell (6-6, 185). Like Green, Mitchell comes to Tuscaloosa with an impressive list of accolades. Generally regarded as one of the top small forward prospects in the country, Mitchell is an aggressive scorer who posessesgreat size for the position. The only real knock on Mitchell is his outside shot. With Gee's decision to return to campus chances are Tide fans may have to wait an additional year to see Mitchell get much action. The coaching staff will have to make the decision to either let Mitchell develop further or get him on the court as a freshman, and this leads to the problem of where and when he plays. Small forward Mykal Riley is gone, but there is still Gee to contend with. Out of necessity Gee saw a good deal of action in the backcourt this year with the absence of Steele, but he has the game and the physical makeup of a small forward.
Last but certainly not least in the recruiting class is another Steele. Andrew Steele (6-3 combo guard) and younger brother of....you guessed it. Unlike his older brother, Andrew will eventually find a home at shooting guard for the Tide. While Steele is highly-touted there's no guarantee that he'll come in and make an immediate impact. In fact, it's this writer's opinion that Andrew will indeed redshirt. At this point the numbers game works against Steele and a year off to develop may serve him, and the team more in the long haul. Even with Pickett gone the team looks to be getting Ronald Steele back, a new JUCO point guard, holdovers Justin Tubbs, Brandon Hollinger, Mikhail Torrance and Senario Hillman. While Hollinger and Torrance have the most experience, Hillman is by far the most explosive of the group and the most likely candidate to see big-time minutes this next season.
If Mark Gottfried and BAMA basketball ever needed a huge recruiting class this was the year. Losing small forward and second-leading scorer Mykal Riley to graduation hurt, but the potential of losing the team's top 3 scorers and emotional leader (Steele) would have been catastrophic to the program. So love him or hate him, Gottfried did not disappoint. He delivered a class that has the star power and potential to be the cornerstone for tourney runs in the years to come. Add some of these young kids into the mix with Steele, Hendrix, Gee and a developing Senario Hillman and you could see something very special next season.
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psychojoe
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| Posted: Fri May 30, 2008 12:01 pm Post subject: |
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With the roster as it is shaping up, we will be a pretty deep team. All nine of the returning players have seen meaningful playing time during their time at Bama,and all four newcomers have the capability of contributing in the new season.
I know that CMG does not really like to use a lot of full court pressure (which is one way to take advantage of the apparent depth we will have next season) but another good way would be at least to push the ball on offense and exert a lot of half court defensive pressure to speed up the game. There would not be a need to play Steele or Hendrix the high number of minutes they have seen in the past. Just full speed ahead and when you get tired come out for a fresh player.
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porkchop
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| Posted: Fri May 30, 2008 12:33 pm Post subject: |
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There's new talk surfacing that points towards Hendrix in fact leaving. Not sure he is, but even in his quotes regarding the university he speaks in the past tense, like he's already decided he's gone.
Stay tuned to developments.
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psychojoe
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| Posted: Fri May 30, 2008 1:15 pm Post subject: |
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There are varying quotes out there. Early on he said he wouldn't come back if he were guaranteed being taken in the first round. While he has done RH kinds of things in the camp, I don't think he has raised his stock in the draft. At this point he seems like a Ben Wallace type player, which means that he isn't a fit for everyone. I saw that he is going to work out for the Celtics, and he might be a good fit there, as a bench player relieving Kendrick Perkins and KG. To me RH returning is not as important as RS returning for next year's team. We'll still have Jemison, Knox and Coleman plus our stud recruit Green.
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TerryP
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| Posted: Fri May 30, 2008 1:24 pm Post subject: |
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| psychojoe wrote: | | There are varying quotes out there. Early on he said he wouldn't come back if he were guaranteed being taken in the first round. While he has done RH kinds of things in the camp, I don't think he has raised his stock in the draft. At this point he seems like a Ben Wallace type player, which means that he isn't a fit for everyone. I saw that he is going to work out for the Celtics, and he might be a good fit there, as a bench player relieving Kendrick Perkins and KG. To me RH returning is not as important as RS returning for next year's team. We'll still have Jemison, Knox and Coleman plus our stud recruit Green. |
I haven't kept close track on how these two guys are doing but I have noticed a few comment that reports out of this camp point to RS still being a little gimpy on his knee.
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psychojoe
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| Posted: Fri May 30, 2008 1:35 pm Post subject: |
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| TerryP wrote: | | psychojoe wrote: | | There are varying quotes out there. Early on he said he wouldn't come back if he were guaranteed being taken in the first round. While he has done RH kinds of things in the camp, I don't think he has raised his stock in the draft. At this point he seems like a Ben Wallace type player, which means that he isn't a fit for everyone. I saw that he is going to work out for the Celtics, and he might be a good fit there, as a bench player relieving Kendrick Perkins and KG. To me RH returning is not as important as RS returning for next year's team. We'll still have Jemison, Knox and Coleman plus our stud recruit Green. |
I haven't kept close track on how these two guys are doing but I have noticed a few comment that reports out of this camp point to RS still being a little gimpy on his knee. |
I've seen some of those as well. I know there is bad information floating around out there (a couple of writers talked about his "reconstructed" knee) none of which helps Ron's standing in the draft. He has not shot well, nor has he shot much. 1-7 from the field in two games. He does have 12 assists and 1 turnover so far. Can you imagine what that type of PG play would have done for last year's team? Considering his knees, Ron needed an eye popping performance to make it into the draft, and it is safe to say he has not done that
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Bama Bo
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| Posted: Wed Jun 04, 2008 11:12 am Post subject: |
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Commenting on the returning players:
With the defense he plays and the way he can drive to the basket, can you imagine what Hillman could do for this team if he developed any kind of outside shot?
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psychojoe
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| Posted: Wed Jun 04, 2008 11:46 am Post subject: |
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| Bama Bo wrote: | Commenting on the returning players:
With the defense he plays and the way he can drive to the basket, can you imagine what Hillman could do for this team if he developed any kind of outside shot? |
I hope he is working on his shot all off season. With the respect a defender will have to show for his speed, he will almost always get a good look at the basket. Improved foul shooting is important for him as well, as he will be able to get to the foul line a lot.
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psychojoe
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| Posted: Wed Jun 18, 2008 6:18 am Post subject: |
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Payne joins Reger Dowell as our commitments so far for the class enrolling in 2009. Assuming no attrition other than graduation we can give four scholarships.
We really suffered in the last two seasons in Ron Steele's absence, plagued by turn overs and not getting into our offense because of poor point guard play. It looks like CMG does not plan to get caught without a true PG again. He signed the juco kid, Brock, to come in for the upcoming season, and now he has verbals from two HS point guards noted more as ball handlers and distributors than as great scorers. We have been recruiting yet another PG here in the B'ham area, Eric Bledsoe, though I expect that Payne's commitment means that we will back off on him.
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