Top 20 Big Men- No Obekpa

[McGarry2]

I'm interested in where CO is rated at the end of the season not what some bozo thinks before play begins

 

[1and1sju]

He doesn't belong on this list yet.
Nash is awesome...and he does qualify for a college big man--but barely.

Sure Obekpa belongs on the list. A freshman who lead the country in blocked shots and was a solid rebounder as well. They have Embiid on there who hasn't even played a college game yet. Half the kids on this list aren't even big men. Nash certainly is not one IMO. Montrezl Harrell at 5.7/3.9 over the nation's best shotblocker? C'mon..

Harrell is a awesome. He'll be a lottery pick and he played for a team that won the national championship! Obekpa wouldn't have averaged 5 mpg for Louisville last year--if he played at all.

If a CB led the league in interceptions or even interceptions returned for touchdowns, would that make them the best CB in the league? It could mean they just take more chances.

Obekpa should not have played more than 10-15 mpg the first half of last season. He had to out of necessity. He did get much better, but he has a long way to go. He's a great shot-blocker but he is not a dominant overall defender at this point. I am hoping he can take the next step this season.

Where does it say that he is the best big in the nation?

If a CB leads the league in INTs, is he not amongst the top players at his position? He'd be a Pro Bowler and an All-Pro but not considered one of the best? That's faulty logic.

And it's exactly why the list can be loaded up with freshmen who have never set foot on the court but get qualified because of what? It can't be accomplishments because they have none.

The way some of you talk down about CO as if the kid was a bust or something. It's amazing.

I don't think anyone said that. CO was a 80ish ranked recruit who had a reputation as being extremely athletic but very raw skill-wise, and that's how he played. If anything he outperformed a lot of expectations. But that still doesn't make him one of the top 20 big men in the country.
Why can't any of our players ever be just pretty good? Just because he's not a scrub doesn't mean he's one of the best in the country.

There's a middle ground between benchwarmer and allamerican.

 

[Marillac]

He doesn't belong on this list yet.
Nash is awesome...and he does qualify for a college big man--but barely.

Sure Obekpa belongs on the list. A freshman who lead the country in blocked shots and was a solid rebounder as well. They have Embiid on there who hasn't even played a college game yet. Half the kids on this list aren't even big men. Nash certainly is not one IMO. Montrezl Harrell at 5.7/3.9 over the nation's best shotblocker? C'mon..

Harrell is a awesome. He'll be a lottery pick and he played for a team that won the national championship! Obekpa wouldn't have averaged 5 mpg for Louisville last year--if he played at all.

If a CB led the league in interceptions or even interceptions returned for touchdowns, would that make them the best CB in the league? It could mean they just take more chances.

Obekpa should not have played more than 10-15 mpg the first half of last season. He had to out of necessity. He did get much better, but he has a long way to go. He's a great shot-blocker but he is not a dominant overall defender at this point. I am hoping he can take the next step this season.

Where does it say that he is the best big in the nation?

MCNPA: "he's the most influential defensive post player in the country." Semantics.

Stevie Brown of the Giants was second in the NFL in INTs last year with eight. No pro bowl...not even close.

 

[Red.Fans]

I don't think anyone said that. CO was a 80ish ranked recruit who had a reputation as being extremely athletic but very raw skill-wise, and that's how he played. If anything he outperformed a lot of expectations. But that still doesn't make him one of the top 20 big men in the country.
Why can't any of our players ever be just pretty good? Just because he's not a scrub doesn't mean he's one of the best in the country.
There's a middle ground between benchwarmer and allamerican.

IMHO the point is that it is not either/or. As a frosh he was both raw and one of the best in the country and he will only get better. Becoming a respectable free throw shooter will in itself raise his game dramatically. His scoring numbers will go up accordingly and he becomes more of a threat on both ends. His skill will catch up to his talent. Hopefully we'll see some Whitesell influence sooner than later but either way any team that faces Obekpa has extra head scratching and practice time spent just factoring him in.

 

[austour]

I don't think anyone said that. CO was a 80ish ranked recruit who had a reputation as being extremely athletic but very raw skill-wise, and that's how he played. If anything he outperformed a lot of expectations. But that still doesn't make him one of the top 20 big men in the country.
Why can't any of our players ever be just pretty good? Just because he's not a scrub doesn't mean he's one of the best in the country.
There's a middle ground between benchwarmer and allamerican.

IMHO the point is that it is not either/or. As a frosh he was both raw and one of the best in the country and he will only get better. Becoming a respectable free throw shooter will in itself raise his game dramatically. His scoring numbers will go up accordingly and he becomes more of a threat on both ends. His skill will catch up to his talent. Hopefully we'll see some Whitesell influence sooner than later but either way any team that faces Obekpa has extra head scratching and practice time spent just factoring him in.

Don't forget, he shot 69% from the line in Feb and Mar.

 

[doodyny33]

He doesn't belong on this list yet.
Nash is awesome...and he does qualify for a college big man--but barely.

Sure Obekpa belongs on the list. A freshman who lead the country in blocked shots and was a solid rebounder as well. They have Embiid on there who hasn't even played a college game yet. Half the kids on this list aren't even big men. Nash certainly is not one IMO. Montrezl Harrell at 5.7/3.9 over the nation's best shotblocker? C'mon..

Love CO's upside, but you can't put a player averaging 3.9 ppg on that list

Sure you can, if he's the most influential defensive post player in the country. Nobody feared Dikembe Mutombo for his offense...

CO is one of the best shot blockers in college basketball, but that doesn't make him one of the most influential defensive post players in the country. There were games last year where he got pushed around down low by bigger, more experienced opponents.

I'm not criticizing the guy. I think he's only going to get better. But he's not there yet.

 

[Red.Fans]

CO is one of the best shot blockers in college basketball, but that doesn't make him one of the most influential defensive post players in the country. There were games last year where he got pushed around down low by bigger, more experienced opponents.
I'm not criticizing the guy. I think he's only going to get better. But he's not there yet.

It's OK you can say it. He is "THE" best shot blocker in college basketball. And regardless of any other limitations, how that doesn't make you one of the most influential defensive post players is beyond me. Agree he is getting better and not his best nor an ideal NBA player yet but we are talking freshman year college hoops. As a soph he should be that much better. Something else to note about this kid is that despite his tentative offense he was not the liability on offense that he could have been. He showed a lot of maturity and restraint and was a quality passer. He played smart basketball overall and didn't force his offense. He has better form on his shot from 8-12 than he does from the free throw line (also sadly a higher FG% than FT%). With his quick springs and long arms he has a tremendous upside to develop some offense around the rim especially with the improved passing and inside out game we have for this season. Seems to me that he also got stronger as the season progressed and seemed to add a little bulk. As he matures physically he'll not get pushed around as much and Whitesell has a unique opportunity to prove his genius with this kid.