Welcome back Julian!

Wonderful news!! We are gonna be tough this year.  I. Fairness to Champs as well, he really is a 3 and played a lot of 4/5 because we were so thin there.  The staff went out and grabbed a good bit of size and it’s something the team needed and Champs also needs to be his best self.  

On Champs end he needs to work on his slashing a bit and his perimeter D.  He’s got the shooting ability to really make shots.  He will be in a good spot this year to be our starting wing and really create trouble because now we have enough guys up front that he doesn’t have to do too much.

We also have one of the bigger overall teams I’ve seen at SJU.  Gonna be a lot of fun.
 
Billy Don Ferrell post=435965 said:
Julian wants more of a guard role and if that is the case I can see a 

Posh
Wusu/Smith/Mathis
Champagnie
Wheeler
Soriano/Nyiwe lineup…

that goes 6’0, 6’3, 6’8, 6’9, 6’11 that’s a huge lineup!! I love it!
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i think the starters will be:
Pg - posh
Sg - smith
Sf - champy
Pf - wheels
c - soriano
 
Great decision for Champ and for St John's. Now that we have more "bigs" on the roster, Julian can be used in a manner that would enable him to further develop the skills that he will need to have a legit shot at the NBA after next season

CMA and his staff have done a great job retooling the roster for next year after all of the defections. With Champ in tow, we certainly should be in the upper echelon of the Big East next year, should be in the hunt for a spot in the Top 25 polls and should be in the hunt to make some noise in The Dance.

I haven't been this excited to see a college basketball season start in a long time.



 
 
May be best sports 4th of July for me other than 1983 when Dave Righetti pitched a no-hitter against the Red Sox at Yankee Stadium when I was a kid.
 
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Reading the other players Instagram Champagnie clearly told them a while ago he was coming back. Nice leadership 
 
The return of Julian just puts a cherry on top of the SJU off season. The high school recruits appear to be better than the rating services opinions, SJU won the transfer portal battle by bringing in more talent than they lost and the scheduling of Kansas and Indiana will improve the schedule.
The combination of Anderson and Cragg is looking like the best ever and with the support of the new president SJU basketball hasn’t looked this good in a very long timei
 
Julian Champagnie is returning to St. John's for his junior season.St John’s expectations just rose significantly.Julian Champagnie, the leading scorer in the Big East last year, announced Sunday night he is taking his name out of the NBA draft and will return to school for his junior year.It’s significant news for St. John’s, which has had a busy offseason of losing and adding players. But now it has back the centerpiece to a team that should make the NCAA Tournament next season and will likely be projected to finish in the top four in the Big East.While St. John’s lost several players from last year’s team to transfers, most notably Greg Williams Jr., Marcellus Earlington and Rasheem Dunn, it arguably improved its roster by landing several key transfers. That includes Aaron Wheeler (Purdue), Joel Soriano (Fordham), Montez Mathis (Rutgers) and Stef Smith (Vermont).

 The 6-foot-7 Champagnie had three NBA workouts and took part in the NBA Draft Combine. But had he stayed in the draft, scouts believe he would’ve likely been a late second-round pick. He received a mid-to-late second-round draft grade from the NBA advisory board, according to sources. The fact Champagnie can now make money off his name, image and likeness helped ease his decision to return, a source said.Champagnie’s decision to return leaves St. John’s with one scholarship left after it landed Hofstra wing Tareq Coburn on Saturday. There remains a need for a ball handler capable of playing point guard in support of starter Posh Alexander.

https://nypost.com/2021/07/04/2021-nba-draft-julian-champagnie-returning-to-st-johns/
 
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Duke of Earlington post=435976 said:
Billy Don Ferrell post=435965 said:
Julian wants more of a guard role and if that is the case I can see a 

Posh
Wusu/Smith/Mathis
Champagnie
Wheeler
Soriano/Nyiwe lineup…

that goes 6’0, 6’3, 6’8, 6’9, 6’11 that’s a huge lineup!! I love it!
Click to expand...
i think the starters will be:
Pg - posh
Sg - smith
Sf - champy
Pf - wheels
c - soriano

It’s kinda crazy, but with the size and talent we have, we certainly can move Champs out of the 4’s and 5’s category all together, with. Soriano, Nywie, Stanley, Wheeler, Traore all  in the 6’8”-6’11” and 200+ range.  Very nice to see for a change.  


 
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What about his brother?  We still have an unused scholarship.
 
Knight post=435983 said:
What about his brother?  We still have an unused scholarship.
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Signed with non certified agent & done w college.  Coma? :)
 
Duke of Earlington post=435974 said:
Wow!!!!  What great news.  We have a legit shot at the big east crown this year.  This is a top 25 team as well.

With julian and posh i believe we will be trotting out 2 of the best players in the country every night.

This is sooooooo exciting!



You need to get a grjp.
 
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This is best team SJU has had since Elite 8 team w/o question. So deep too. Have not been this optimistic in a long time; season can't get here quickly enough. 
 
 
I give our staff a ton of credit for restraint in not trying to influence JC to return even if they felt his return was in JCs own best interest.  If he was touted as a late 1st rounder or early 2nd rounder they'd have been happy for him as he departed. 

Obviously,  this kid has more room to grow as  player and leader even if his growth in both areas has been considerable over two seasons.

Now JC can work on improving, contend for BE player of the year, dance in front of family and friends, and move up in draft position for 2022.  All well within the realm of possibility.

Welcome home Julian even if you never left.
 
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Terrific 4th of July news!!! Champs coming back, Posh, Wusu... returning plus the offseason upgrades will put us towards the top of the BE!
Exciting season ahead!
 
I think Champs was also very smart to come back.  Not all players have e a lot to gain by coming back.  A kid with amazing measurables like Bouknight with his oozing natural talent has no business coming back.
I think the player that Julian needs to become in college and that compares very well is Doug McDermott.  Same size, same average athleticism and similar games.  Doug played all 4 years and really used it to play himself into a long and successful NBA career despite not having the size nor athleticism that the NBA usually wants.  Julian needs to really work to develop moves to give him separation on offense and become automatic at multiple ranges where he can’t be guarded very easily.  He’s got the tools but definitely can improve his positioning quite a bit with work.
 
It feels like one of the few times in my sporting life I have something to be very excited about!  We have the makings of a very good team next year.  Welcome back Julian!
 
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