College Sports Madness - SJU Preview
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tom in salem
Well-known member
I think some here are seriously underestimating the loss of Sampson. I'd be stunned if we made the tournament.
This is truly the worst preview I have ever read. Do your homework...at least put in some time before you write an article. We didn't lose to Belmont in the NIT. We got embarrassed by Robert Morris. That is a twenty second google search.
Sanchez was our second best rebounder behind Sampson? Really. That proves he never watched a single game. Sanchez never once grabbed a rebound that didn't come directly to him. He never moved his feet. He also didn't stretch defenses, shooting below 30%.
Obekpa was a soph last year--not a freshman, and by February, he was both quantitively and qualitatively our best rebounder.
How any preview can not either begin with or, at the very least, mention Jordan second, I have no idea. For this guy to not even list him as a starter is just embarrassing on his part.
If we don't win 20 games, I'll never post again. That is how sure I am of it.
Here's a preview for you: last year St. John's didn't rebound or play good defense. The forwards floated on the perimeter like they were guards and, as a result, the team was the worst offensive rebounding team in the conference (maybe the country)for the first 36 minutes of every game they were losing before they adjusted out of desperation.
This year, St. John's looks to rebound much better as both Jordan and Harrison are excellent rebounders for their positions, Obekpa will play 25+ minutes in the all-important junior season where many talented big men put it together, and the Johnnies have three huge new big men that will take the novel approach of actually staying around the basket--two 7 footers and a kid that led d-1 JUCO NATIONALLY in rebounding as a freshman.
Defensively, nothing could be worse than what the front court gave last season, so there must be some improvement.
Jordan is the key here. He has the best hands I've seen in a long time and he has the size and quickness to reduce any guard in the country to a quivering mess like he did to Tyler Ennis in the second half early last season. If he can shoot 33% or higher from deep, the Johnnies will be very dangerous. He has a chance to be the best rebounding pg in the country and both he and Obekpa have the ability to breakout into stars this season.
Harrison is Harrison. He plays at a high level and could help the team by becoming a little faster and continuing his growth on defense--where he was much improved in 2013-2014.
Greene will be counted on as an outside shooter and will need to be more aggressive in that area. Jamal Branch is a very talented guard and former top 60 recruit in 2011, that makes the Johnnies dangerous when he is not being too timid. He will need to become much more aggressive this season for St. John's to even approach its potential. He is coordinated and any time he drives to the lane, it is a good thing for the Johnnies.
Dom Pointer is an enigma. The former top 40 recruit in 2011 enjoyed successful freshman and soph seasons before an awful junior campaign caused mostly by him playing a role that did not play to his strengths. He will need to be moved off the perimeter and off the ball as much as possible to be closer to the basket and give St. John's the athletic SF they sorely missed last season. He will likely be called on to give minutes at the four--a position he has played well at his entire career. If he is not up to the task, look for St. John's to run three guard looks early and often. Felix Balamou, an impossibly athletic redshirt soph G/F, is a player to watch as the season progresses.
Losing Sampson hurts most in that St. John's loses his 3-4 easy dunks a game die to the sheer freakish athletic ability Sampson possessed. However, as a team, SJU didn't get out and run or produce enough easy looks. That has to change in 2014-2015. Dunks aside, Sampson did not defend and he did not stay close to the basket. Both he and Sanchez shot jumpers with no regard to what was happening in the game and the result was making it nearly impossible to have any kind of chemistry on the court.
Overall, this team will be much better than last season. It's not often that 20 wins results in such disappointment, but you would be hard pressed to find more than a handful of St. John's fans that were happy with the results of the 2013-2014 season. Rysheed Jordan as a second year player alone virtually guarantees a better outcome. Chris Obekpa expanded his game and showed tremendous signs of growth on the court under first year assistant Jim Whitesell--not easily apparent to casual fans. Another year, and his first full summer with him, should only produce much more noticeable improvements.
Cause for concern will be outside shooting and scoring against zone defenses. This is why it is imperative for Jordan to step up as a viable deep threat. Branch also has a good looking shot that he needs to utilize far more often. Pointer will need to be moved off the perimeter against any zone.
Prediction: 23 wins and a first round NCAA Tournament victory.
Sanchez was our second best rebounder behind Sampson? Really. That proves he never watched a single game. Sanchez never once grabbed a rebound that didn't come directly to him. He never moved his feet. He also didn't stretch defenses, shooting below 30%.
Obekpa was a soph last year--not a freshman, and by February, he was both quantitively and qualitatively our best rebounder.
How any preview can not either begin with or, at the very least, mention Jordan second, I have no idea. For this guy to not even list him as a starter is just embarrassing on his part.
If we don't win 20 games, I'll never post again. That is how sure I am of it.
Here's a preview for you: last year St. John's didn't rebound or play good defense. The forwards floated on the perimeter like they were guards and, as a result, the team was the worst offensive rebounding team in the conference (maybe the country)for the first 36 minutes of every game they were losing before they adjusted out of desperation.
This year, St. John's looks to rebound much better as both Jordan and Harrison are excellent rebounders for their positions, Obekpa will play 25+ minutes in the all-important junior season where many talented big men put it together, and the Johnnies have three huge new big men that will take the novel approach of actually staying around the basket--two 7 footers and a kid that led d-1 JUCO NATIONALLY in rebounding as a freshman.
Defensively, nothing could be worse than what the front court gave last season, so there must be some improvement.
Jordan is the key here. He has the best hands I've seen in a long time and he has the size and quickness to reduce any guard in the country to a quivering mess like he did to Tyler Ennis in the second half early last season. If he can shoot 33% or higher from deep, the Johnnies will be very dangerous. He has a chance to be the best rebounding pg in the country and both he and Obekpa have the ability to breakout into stars this season.
Harrison is Harrison. He plays at a high level and could help the team by becoming a little faster and continuing his growth on defense--where he was much improved in 2013-2014.
Greene will be counted on as an outside shooter and will need to be more aggressive in that area. Jamal Branch is a very talented guard and former top 60 recruit in 2011, that makes the Johnnies dangerous when he is not being too timid. He will need to become much more aggressive this season for St. John's to even approach its potential. He is coordinated and any time he drives to the lane, it is a good thing for the Johnnies.
Dom Pointer is an enigma. The former top 40 recruit in 2011 enjoyed successful freshman and soph seasons before an awful junior campaign caused mostly by him playing a role that did not play to his strengths. He will need to be moved off the perimeter and off the ball as much as possible to be closer to the basket and give St. John's the athletic SF they sorely missed last season. He will likely be called on to give minutes at the four--a position he has played well at his entire career. If he is not up to the task, look for St. John's to run three guard looks early and often. Felix Balamou, an impossibly athletic redshirt soph G/F, is a player to watch as the season progresses.
Losing Sampson hurts most in that St. John's loses his 3-4 easy dunks a game die to the sheer freakish athletic ability Sampson possessed. However, as a team, SJU didn't get out and run or produce enough easy looks. That has to change in 2014-2015. Dunks aside, Sampson did not defend and he did not stay close to the basket. Both he and Sanchez shot jumpers with no regard to what was happening in the game and the result was making it nearly impossible to have any kind of chemistry on the court.
Overall, this team will be much better than last season. It's not often that 20 wins results in such disappointment, but you would be hard pressed to find more than a handful of St. John's fans that were happy with the results of the 2013-2014 season. Rysheed Jordan as a second year player alone virtually guarantees a better outcome. Chris Obekpa expanded his game and showed tremendous signs of growth on the court under first year assistant Jim Whitesell--not easily apparent to casual fans. Another year, and his first full summer with him, should only produce much more noticeable improvements.
Cause for concern will be outside shooting and scoring against zone defenses. This is why it is imperative for Jordan to step up as a viable deep threat. Branch also has a good looking shot that he needs to utilize far more often. Pointer will need to be moved off the perimeter against any zone.
Prediction: 23 wins and a first round NCAA Tournament victory.
"and the Johnnies have three huge new big men that will take the novel approach of actually staying around the basket--two 7 footers and a kid that led d-1 JUCO NATIONALLY in rebounding as a freshman."
Is Joey Delarosa even on scholarship? He made almost no impact at the mid-major level, to expect him to do anything of significance in the Big East is wishful thinking.
Ray Morgan
Well-known member
I will miss your posts, Marillac. I hope you reconsider.
Actually a very good write-up, Marillac. You should consider this link:
http://www.rumbleinthegarden.com/2014/8/6/5975429/rumble-looking-more-writers-opportunity
Panic at the Desco, my favorite pessimist. Perhaps you will feel embarrassed that you posted before I edited to add my "Causes for concern" paragraph? Perhaps not.
In any event, you look at the St. John's glass as half empty, while I think it just needs some Balamou.
Rysheed Jordan as a sophomore > Sampson in his 8th professional season.
Keith Thomas > Orlando Sanchez
Big Pun and Fat Joe > Achiuwa, God ['s Gift] bless you
By the power vested in my by the emergence of Jacob deGrom, I hereby pronounce Marillac's preview as the best and most accurate preview ever written on St. John's basketball. I'll save room for you on the bandwagon when St. John's hits 20 wins in February, and Jamal Branch is getting into the lane more slowly and aggressively than Otis on his way to the Syracuse game. Much like Marco Baldi in elementary school, the 2013-2014 version of SJU basketball, lacked toughness. Dom was more unsure of his role than Moose would be if thrust into a three-way with Megan Fox and Kate Upton.
What made it absolutely horrid? No Christian Jones sighting?
Yes Joey D will have a huge impact on the team in Marillac's fantasy world. I'll believe he will stop posting when Alec Baldwin leaves the country like he promised when Bush won his election. Maybe the writer had Greene starting and not Jordan because he has witnessed Lavin's 3 year love affair with Phil which will probably grow stronger in year 4. The poster who said Phil should redshirt might be on to something as I am sure Lavs would love to have him around for an extra year. Actually I hope Marillac continues to post even if we don't win 20 because if you read his posts while suspending reality you can actually feel good about SJ which is impossible to do in the real world.Keep up the good work Mar-ie baby!
Great job by marillac!
For my usual cold water on the hot argument...this wasn't a team last year and that's what killed us. It was every man for himself. Playing for the NBA scouts was the rule. Physically showing up for games was optional. Quitting on each other was de rigeur. Quitting at the end of the season made this team a bigger joke than the Pittsburgh whoremongers. All this may have stemmed from Lavin's practice of punishing players by keeping them out for reasons unknown except for him...or starting players who shouldn't even be on the team.
That's the culture that has to change. If it does...we get more than three wins in the NCAA tournament. We have good players. If it doesn't, we'll be longing for the Norm Roberts days. Personally, I don't see how that happens.
For my usual cold water on the hot argument...this wasn't a team last year and that's what killed us. It was every man for himself. Playing for the NBA scouts was the rule. Physically showing up for games was optional. Quitting on each other was de rigeur. Quitting at the end of the season made this team a bigger joke than the Pittsburgh whoremongers. All this may have stemmed from Lavin's practice of punishing players by keeping them out for reasons unknown except for him...or starting players who shouldn't even be on the team.
That's the culture that has to change. If it does...we get more than three wins in the NCAA tournament. We have good players. If it doesn't, we'll be longing for the Norm Roberts days. Personally, I don't see how that happens.
I think it's fair to say that St. John's will have one of the best back courts in the conference next year. Harrison and Jordan is a great starting combo and to be honest, Greene IV and Branch are above average backups for them. However, analysts are going to be very skeptical of this team with the current front court. Yes, Sir'Dom is going into his senior year but was an outright disaster pretty much all of 2013-'14. Outside of a 6 game stretch, Obekpa wasn't much better. Although the videos are reason for hope, Thomas and Delarosa are unproven at this level and have never played against Big East players.
I'm trying to be optimistic going into this year, but the fact is the front court is going to have to prove something before anybody gives this team any type of credit.
I'm trying to be optimistic going into this year, but the fact is the front court is going to have to prove something before anybody gives this team any type of credit.