Some Positives

paultzman

paultzman

Well-known member
2023 $upporter 2022 $upporter
Yeah, not getting an additional interior grad transfer was disappointing, but not end of the world. It would also be nice to have added some college coaching experience on the bench, but perhaps that happens. If not, so be it. Would also like to see roster turnover reduced, but just may be world of college hoops today. However, I do sense some good momentum;

1. Landing 4 star kid in Wilson late & getting what appears to be a steady player in Dixon via transfer.

2. With SJU emphasis offensively on perimeter players, pushing the ball, etc. SJU taking risk on sturdy complementary interior player with time to mature helps negate not getting Reid & probably Moses Brown in 18 class.

3. They seem to have puncher's chance with Little in 18, although Florida will be tough to beat. Staff also still seems to think Luther M is still well in play.

4. They have some very good players in 19 in reach like Precious A & Aiden I.

5. Would expect player & coaching maturation this season & at very least contending for a Dance spot.

6. Matt not perfect, but plays transfer game well; Owens, Clark, Simon, Keita, Dixon, etc. I would expect he continues that approach with success.

We will see. Glass half full for the moment. :)
 
I think the glass is more than half full, and an NCAA birth a real possibility.

There will always be recruiting miscues and misses, but I am happy (more than happy) with the talent that the staff has brought in. It has been a steady upgrade, and with the new additions this year, additional upgrades (assuming that the assessments are remotely accurate).

The 19 class by all accounts could be a monster if we get a little lucky. If we can make the tourney this year, that could be a big uplift for future recruiting.

I am hopeful that the turnover won't be as much going forward as it has been the past 2 or 3 years. I think that was merely a function of the upgrade process, and should settle.

Overall, while I too would have liked to see some size brought in for the upcoming season, I am happy with the progress and the steady improvement. I expect it to continue.
 
Well said Paultz.

Two real keys from my perspective:

1. Bouncing back from a recruiting lull to get 3 quality players in the span of ~1 month and generate some positive momentum again. Not easy and must have taken a tremendous amount of work to salvage this class late.

2. Even if Lovett, Ahmed, Mussini, and Ali are gone for 18-19, hopefully will have Ponds, Dixon, Simon, Wilson, Clark, Owens, and Keita as nucleus. Obviously a lot can happen between now and then, with Ponds staying for Junior year the likely critical swing factor, but for the first time in what seems like a long time SJU can look 2 years out and feel reasonably good about what roster should look like. That's a nice chance of pace and a step towards the stability we often discuss. Should also put staff in stronger recruiting position as well, recruiting to supplement as opposed to out of need. If suddenly a player like Luther M. or Little is additive to solid existing roster as opposed to filling massive need and being expected to produce big right away - but they do anyway - that's when you can really be in a great spot.

That said the 18 class is still critical in my view, especially getting 1-2 elite high school players. Think that's going to be something of a litmus test for this staff's recruiting ability.

Continue to be confounded by staff construction, especially seeming lack of flexibility to address what seem like obvious needs. But perhaps that changes as you suggest, and if not to this point staff as is appears to be improving program year over year and until that stops difficult to complain too much about it (even if can make argument improvement might be even greater with more balanced staff :) ).
 
While not the experienced big man I really thought we needed for this year assuming Mussini stays then the Wilson addition helped a lot for next year in the front court.

Our biggest 2 recruits for next year are Yakwe and Owens. We need Owens to keep up his trajectory ( judging by those workout videos I'm certainly not worried about effort from him ) and we need Yakwe to improve a lot over the summer
 
I think the glass is more than half full, and an NCAA birth a real possibility.

There will always be recruiting miscues and misses, but I am happy (more than happy) with the talent that the staff has brought in. It has been a steady upgrade, and with the new additions this year, additional upgrades (assuming that the assessments are remotely accurate).

The 19 class by all accounts could be a monster if we get a little lucky. If we can make the tourney this year, that could be a big uplift for future recruiting.

I am hopeful that the turnover won't be as much going forward as it has been the past 2 or 3 years. I think that was merely a function of the upgrade process, and should settle.

Overall, while I too would have liked to see some size brought in for the upcoming season, I am happy with the progress and the steady improvement. I expect it to continue.
 
I think the glass is more than half full, and an NCAA birth a real possibility.

There will always be recruiting miscues and misses, but I am happy (more than happy) with the talent that the staff has brought in. It has been a steady upgrade, and with the new additions this year, additional upgrades (assuming that the assessments are remotely accurate).

The 19 class by all accounts could be a monster if we get a little lucky. If we can make the tourney this year, that could be a big uplift for future recruiting.

I think we are over doing the size thing Talent and speed beats size We are not small we have 6-11 and 6-10 at center 6-7 68 69 at forwards 6-2 t0 6-5 at guards . WE have ample size now to be a top 25 program What we need is players knowing their roll, execution defense and rebounding we have the shooters CM just has to get them to function as a team play off the ball and pick defense experience will move us forward

I am hopeful that the turnover won't be as much going forward as it has been the past 2 or 3 years. I think that was merely a function of the upgrade process, and should settle.

Overall, while I too would have liked to see some size brought in for the upcoming season, I am happy with the progress and the steady improvement. I expect it to continue.
Click to expand...
 
Yeah, not getting an additional interior grad transfer was disappointing, but not end of the world. It would also be nice to have added some college coaching experience on the bench, but perhaps that happens. If not, so be it. Would also like to see roster turnover reduced, but just may be world of college hoops today. However, I do sense some good momentum;

1. Landing 4 star kid in Wilson late & getting what appears to be a steady player in Dixon via transfer.

2. With SJU emphasis offensively on perimeter players, pushing the ball, etc. SJU taking risk on sturdy complementary interior player with time to mature helps negate not getting Reid & probably Moses Brown in 18 class.

3. They seem to have puncher's chance with Little in 18, although Florida will be tough to beat. Staff also still seems to think Luther M is still well in play.

4. They have some very good players in 19 in reach like Precious A & Aiden I.

5. Would expect player & coaching maturation this season & at very least contending for a Dance spot.

6. Matt not perfect, but plays transfer game well; Owens, Clark, Simon, Keita, Dixon, etc. I would expect he continues that approach with success.

We will see. Glass half full for the moment. :)
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I agree with everything you mentioned. I do feel that an appearance in the NCAA Tournament is something that is not only a natural progression but would demonstrate that we are headed in the right direction and I think would make a statement and put us in better with future big name recruits. I don't know if its next year as I am still concerned with our post/interior play. We also cannot afford loses to some of the mid major programs who have given us fits either.
 
I am excited about this team. The talent upgrade over the last 2 years has been tremendous. Lavin's last year was a senior-laden team. Between early departures, transfers, and a couple of poor recruiting cycles, there was not much talent on the roster when Mullin took over. We pretty much had Ali, Christian Jones and Balamou returning. The majority of our roster now consists of players who were ranked between 50-150 coming out of high school. While I don't think we have any first-round type talent, we have good depth in our talent base.

I love our guards. Another big or two this year would have been great, but you can be a very successful college team with good guard play. We have two of the best.

Another year of maturity and playing together should help. Players like Owens, Bashir, Yakwe and Mussini should find their roles early and take a step forward.

For me, Simon and Clark are the wildcards. I don't know what to expect. I have not seen them play and transfers are difficult to evaluate. They are transferring for a reason. Especially a highly-ranked prospect like Simon, was he overrated coming out of high school or was Arizona a bad fit?

Last year we had some bad early losses, which can be expected from such a young team. But we went 7-11 in the Big East and looked really good at times. Another year will bring more consistency and efficiency. I predict 20 wins without seeing the schedule.
 
Yeah, not getting an additional interior grad transfer was disappointing, but not end of the world. It would also be nice to have added some college coaching experience on the bench, but perhaps that happens. If not, so be it. Would also like to see roster turnover reduced, but just may be world of college hoops today. However, I do sense some good momentum;

1. Landing 4 star kid in Wilson late & getting what appears to be a steady player in Dixon via transfer.

2. With SJU emphasis offensively on perimeter players, pushing the ball, etc. SJU taking risk on sturdy complementary interior player with time to mature helps negate not getting Reid & probably Moses Brown in 18 class.

3. They seem to have puncher's chance with Little in 18, although Florida will be tough to beat. Staff also still seems to think Luther M is still well in play.

4. They have some very good players in 19 in reach like Precious A & Aiden I.

5. Would expect player & coaching maturation this season & at very least contending for a Dance spot.

6. Matt not perfect, but plays transfer game well; Owens, Clark, Simon, Keita, Dixon, etc. I would expect he continues that approach with success.

We will see. Glass half full for the moment. :)
Click to expand...

Outstanding post
Outstanding insight
Outstanding poster, of course
:)
Is this a good time to follow the Red Storm
Or what :silly:
Oh and agree w you RMW - maybeglass 2/3 to 3/4 full or at least headed in that direction - in a mere 2 years!
 
I think the glass is more than half full, and an NCAA birth a real possibility.

There will always be recruiting miscues and misses, but I am happy (more than happy) with the talent that the staff has brought in. It has been a steady upgrade, and with the new additions this year, additional upgrades (assuming that the assessments are remotely accurate).

The 19 class by all accounts could be a monster if we get a little lucky. If we can make the tourney this year, that could be a big uplift for future recruiting.

I am hopeful that the turnover won't be as much going forward as it has been the past 2 or 3 years. I think that was merely a function of the upgrade process, and should settle.

Overall, while I too would have liked to see some size brought in for the upcoming season, I am happy with the progress and the steady improvement. I expect it to continue.
Click to expand...

How big was the NCAA baby...lol
 
At the very least it looks like we now have a 2-3 window to make the tourney where it had looked like this upcoming season was going to be our one best shot for the near future.
 
Well thought out and honest post Mr. Paultzman! One disappointment was not securing a Rooks level big man to compliment a fine roster. The other is relying too much on sit-out transfers as opposed to either high level prep or grad transfers. Hopefully the coaching catches up to the talent level sooner rather than later, especially in the area of our defensive sets which were absent for the most part the past two seasons.
 
I think there are a lot of positives. This late period, abdelmassih has cleaned up. Landed a 4 star freshman, 4 star sit out transfer from a Final 4 program and I suspect will grab another talented kid.

We are building things the right way, through a mix of transfers with 3-years eligibility and freshmen. Balancing out ships and making sure we aren't leaving gaping holes in the roster. A month or two ago I was unsure. Now I see how far we have come.

We will be in good shape over next few years, and will see even more success on the recruiting trail with increased court success. Improve our defense and we can be a tourney team.
 
I think there are a lot of positives. This late period, abdelmassih has cleaned up. Landed a 4 star freshman, 4 star sit out transfer from a Final 4 program and I suspect will grab another talented kid.

We are building things the right way, through a mix of transfers with 3-years eligibility and freshmen. Balancing out ships and making sure we aren't leaving gaping holes in the roster. A month or two ago I was unsure. Now I see how far we have come.

We will be in good shape over next few years, and will see even more success on the recruiting trail with increased court success. Improve our defense and we can be a tourney team.
Click to expand...

The only caveat is that we should expect the unexpected. It looks like the staff is planning for just that. By that I mean we have no idea who will look to leave. Someone posted the other day that recruiting is 24/7/365 and it is so true. Look at the number of transfers including our own. If kids don't see immediate PT they are moving on. So don't overrate those great charts showing all that balance in recruiting. It is subject to change significantly, possibly before we play our first game of next season. No one to blame it is just current reality.
 
I think what I'm most excited about in regard to the program is the state of the recruiting. Since I've been a fan starting in 2001 or so, I can't remember this level of high level recruiting going on. It seems we've got just about the best talent we've had in a very long time, and also are mentioned with many top recruits who are seriously considering us in the next few years.
 
Take this for what it is worth. Last week, I was on a charter fishing boat with friends. I was wearing a St.J hoodie. At one point, the mate walked over to me and said," mark my words, St. John's will be in the Final 4 in 3 years.". He also claims to have picked the last 2 national champions, pre-season! Included in this was winning 24k in a pool.
I hope that he is right!
 
Take this for what it is worth. Last week, I was on a charter fishing boat with friends. I was wearing a St.J hoodie. At one point, the mate walked over to me and said," mark my words, St. John's will be in the Final 4 in 3 years.". He also claims to have picked the last 2 national champions, pre-season! Included in this was winning 24k in a pool.
I hope that he is right!
Click to expand...

cool fish story B)
 
Take this for what it is worth. Last week, I was on a charter fishing boat with friends. I was wearing a St.J hoodie. At one point, the mate walked over to me and said," mark my words, St. John's will be in the Final 4 in 3 years.". He also claims to have picked the last 2 national champions, pre-season! Included in this was winning 24k in a pool.
I hope that he is right!
Click to expand...

I'm a sucker for a good fish tale!
Hope you caught a big one !

p1442955350.jpg
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Take this for what it is worth. Last week, I was on a charter fishing boat with friends. I was wearing a St.J hoodie. At one point, the mate walked over to me and said," mark my words, St. John's will be in the Final 4 in 3 years.". He also claims to have picked the last 2 national champions, pre-season! Included in this was winning 24k in a pool.
I hope that he is right!
Click to expand...
Didn't realize state psychiatric facilities chartered fishing boats. ;) :)
 
Golf Tourney today; Mussini front & center


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