Returning Players
- Thread starter Knight
- Start date
FWIW, my opinion is that we will be better next year than we would have been had Lavin stayed with CO and Sheed. I feel Lavin would have surrounded them with sub-par talent and also let them run amok.
Conversely, next year, we will certainly suffer with freshman ball handlers. However, I think we will apply a higher IQ and shoot the ball much better.
Ray Morgan
Well-known member
A lot of posters seemed concerned about next season. Coach Mullin wasn't hired because we needed a coach to get us over the top for the coming year. He was hired to rebuild shattered relationships with local programs, with the hope of reliving the seasons we had under Mullin and Berry, if not better. This is a work in progress. I can sit through a long season, if it means positioning the 2015 recruits to be ready for a big 2016 season, which should have some nice additions.
stjohnschris
Active member
Agreed. I truly don't see where the doom and gloom comes from. We rid ourselves of drama 101 and drama 102 and to some posters, we're immediately relegated to last place? We have some excellent players coming in, and we will likely add one or two more. I'm a bit shocked that someone is foregoing season tickets next year. What is it? Is it the positive energy?...the fresh start?...NBA All Star/Local sports legend coming home to coach at his Alma Mater?...exciting players who are buying into a demanding system?...do you already miss the babysitting? Jordan and Obekpa are gone because in order to play, they needed to be accountable on the court, in the classroom and on the street. My "glass half full" outlook saw this as a great opportunity to start clean and make a commitment to working toward the next level. They couldn't do it, and thankfully they came to that conclusion now, and not in January when they would get suspended and waste a scholarship.
Come on, if you can't get excited about next year and the prospects of the years to come you need a white jumpsuit and a padded room at Bellvue.
boo haarvey
Active member
Agreed. Losing obekpa and Jordan is addition by subtraction. Christian Jones, Felix Balamou, and Amar Alobegovic are a strong returning nucleus. And if Sima doesn't qualify, we'll just play small ball. I'm not worried about Lovett qualifying either. This squad has real depth and experience. I'm thinking we can really turn some heads this year.
we are sju
Active member
Would have been nice to get the Mullin era off to a nice start. Not the end of the world obviously but being really bad is not the ideal way to start off. Going 10-18 or whatever is tough on everyone but especially the coach.
JackofVirginia
Active member
Huh?
RedSlyFox
Member
Since there have been numerous Fred Hoiberg and Chris Mullins comparisons in regards to never having coached, star alum coming home, etc. etc., let's go a little further.
When it was announced that Fred Hoiberg would become the Iowa State coach, ESPN wrote the following, "Hoiberg will inherit a depleted roster without star Craig Brackins, who declared for the NBA draft. Fellow standout Marquis Gilstrap had his appeal for an extra season of eligibility denied by the NCAA and three others, including starting center Justin Hamilton, have announced plans to transfer."
Sounds familiar?
In 2010 (Hoiberg's first season) Iowa State finished 16 - 16, with only 3 conference wins. In 2011 - Round of 32, 2012 - Round of 32, 2013 - Sweet 16, 2014 - Round of 64.
Me personally, I've been overly optimistic going into every season for a while now. This year, however, I'm going into the upcoming season knowing that we will be very young, play in a disciplined fashion, but will be feasted upon and most likely finish in the basement of the Big East. New Coach + New Players = A Whole Lotta of Growing Pains.
If we can somehow, some way replicate the program building that Hoiberg did and be in the position to not only make the tournament year after year, but make a run every couple of years, I’ll continue to re-up my season tickets and root hard for our boys this year as we get shellacked. The way I see it, this year, we’re playing with the house’s money.
When it was announced that Fred Hoiberg would become the Iowa State coach, ESPN wrote the following, "Hoiberg will inherit a depleted roster without star Craig Brackins, who declared for the NBA draft. Fellow standout Marquis Gilstrap had his appeal for an extra season of eligibility denied by the NCAA and three others, including starting center Justin Hamilton, have announced plans to transfer."
Sounds familiar?
In 2010 (Hoiberg's first season) Iowa State finished 16 - 16, with only 3 conference wins. In 2011 - Round of 32, 2012 - Round of 32, 2013 - Sweet 16, 2014 - Round of 64.
Me personally, I've been overly optimistic going into every season for a while now. This year, however, I'm going into the upcoming season knowing that we will be very young, play in a disciplined fashion, but will be feasted upon and most likely finish in the basement of the Big East. New Coach + New Players = A Whole Lotta of Growing Pains.
If we can somehow, some way replicate the program building that Hoiberg did and be in the position to not only make the tournament year after year, but make a run every couple of years, I’ll continue to re-up my season tickets and root hard for our boys this year as we get shellacked. The way I see it, this year, we’re playing with the house’s money.
I think Lovett will be ready from day one and will be better than Jordan ever was as a POINT GUARD. I also think Ellison will be ready to go very early and is better than most believe. I'm not usually one to expect much from freshmen, but those two kids are ready.
I think Johson will be one of the ten best players in the conference and that Williams will be a double-digit scorer that gives teams fits. I am hopeful that Amar can step up to be a solid 15-20 mpg backup at the four and five.
Losing CO hurts a lot. This never looked like a good defensive team before we lost our best two defenders. CO would have corrected a lot of lapses and mismatches on the defensive end. We really only have two plus defenders on the roster now (Balamou and Johnson) and two more that can get there in time (Lovett and Ellison). I felt we still had a good shot at the dance after losing Jordan, but I think that is very unlikely now after losing CO.
I think Johson will be one of the ten best players in the conference and that Williams will be a double-digit scorer that gives teams fits. I am hopeful that Amar can step up to be a solid 15-20 mpg backup at the four and five.
Losing CO hurts a lot. This never looked like a good defensive team before we lost our best two defenders. CO would have corrected a lot of lapses and mismatches on the defensive end. We really only have two plus defenders on the roster now (Balamou and Johnson) and two more that can get there in time (Lovett and Ellison). I felt we still had a good shot at the dance after losing Jordan, but I think that is very unlikely now after losing CO.