Your prediction re: St. John's Win/ loss record is

[newsman13]

virtually all the national sportswriters do what we do. they get copies of lindy's, sporting news, althon, etc and look up the 300 or so teams. then they come out with their predictions.

many fans here can tell you what jakarr sampson had for breakfast this morning.

this is why there are surprises EVERY year.

we have a friendlier schedule than last year. we have enough players for actual practices (HUGE difference compared to last year). we have an experienced core. last year's players with the exception of god's gift looked as if they improved significantly...and god's gift is pretty good in his own right. there should be less team turmoil which led to players jumping ship. i could go on, but you know all this.

so, how is 20 wins far fetched?

 

[basketballjones]

We may have sleepers in Sanchez and Christian Jones, which is why the writers may not see a 6th or 7th place finish as possible. We have to remember these new recruits have never played a Big East game. And Branch won't even play a real game with the team until the Big East schedule. However, i still think that 20 wins is a realistic and achievable goal. The team was drastically undermanned last year and played very competitive basketball. Now they're deep with BE quality players and prospects. This team can win 20 games this year and that would be a fantastic season. 

 

[bobre45]

 The best part of college basketball is that teams change dramatically every year. With that comes the annual hope that our team will catch lightning and emerge from a slumber second only to Rip Van Winkle. Most of us here have been waiting a very long frustrating time for success at SJU. We had a taste a couple of years ago but we knew it would be temporary due to the amount of seniors on the roster. Then misfortune hit with the recruiting class and the coaches' health and the train to prosperity got derailed again. Somehow though things have changed. I haven't heard that old "Saint Johns will never get back" thing and that "our campus stinks, etc" wining for quite some time. I think most of us have a much different opinion now. We've seen that top recruits now give us the respect that the writers don't. That's understandable and quite OK under the circumstances but the guys who really follow the program think they know better this time around. These websites are the perfect place to express the educated optimism we've been posting. Nothing wrong with objectivity but I have to question whether this is the time or place for such thoughts which seem more self serving than functional right now. We'd all love to be 23 again but most of us aren't and our time to be objective has definitely passed. Real SJU fans are rightfully immersed in hope at the moment and anything that gets in the way of that really isn't needed. We're all waiting for our team to make our critics eat crow. Posters preaching objectivity here do so at their own risk in this environment and even the chance to say "I told you so" seems like a small potential reward considering the audience.

 

[SJU1512]

One of the biggest things here, as others have mentioned, is that the OOC schedule should be manageable. Even with a learning curve and without Branch I don't see us heading into Big East play much worse than 9-3, and it could be better than that if things are clicking early.

With an 18 game conference schedule, even .500 play gets you to the doorstep of 20 wins. I do see us going 9-9 in conference, and could see it being a game or two better than that. Another thing working in our favor here is that the BE scheedule is substantially backloaded in terms of strength. That 1/30 mark (home against DePaul, halfway mark in conference play) is probably a key date to circle. If we can get to 5-4 or better yet 6-3 there, a young team could start to build some serious confidence and downhill momentum heading into the tougher part of the schedule. Better that than having to play Louisville/Cuse/Marquette/etc. out of the gate and having to worry about potentially getting in a hole early.

 

[johnsliva]

Ok I may be overly optomistic but I am thinking in the 22 - 25 win range. We basically have only lost one starter from last year and he is replaced by arguably an equally talented kid in Kar. We have beefed up the big man position and added depth to the squad. We will not be playing kids 36 mins a game this year. Our OOC schedule is much easier this year with no duke like team in site. We could concievably head into conference play with only one loss. I see no reason we cannot sweep depaul, Rutgers and seaton hall. Cincinati is big but lost a lot to graduation. I think we split with GT and ND. Conneticut is a shell of itself and will still be in the post callhoun adjustment period. THat leaves Cuse, Pitt, and Louisville. I yhink we will win one of those. Providence may jump up and bite us but I think they have lost a bit to recruiting violations and injury.

We will lose 1 or 2 that we should win and win one or 2 that we should have lost, always happens. Please keep in mind that I am a JEt and Met fan so I am eternally hopeful but I think top 5 in big east is within reach and we are dancing.

 

[LINY89]

 Man, I can't wait to see this board when we get into conference play. All I'm saying is that our incoming class has never played major college basketball. Never. You act as if there is no transition from high school to a MAJOR conference in D1. There obviously is. We will see what happens and like I said, I hope most of you are right. My gut just tells me not to get my hopes up.

 

[SJUalum98]

 Man, I can't wait to see this board when we get into conference play. All I'm saying is that our incoming class has never played major college basketball. Never. You act as if there is no transition from high school to a MAJOR conference in D1. There obviously is. We will see what happens and like I said, I hope most of you are right. My gut just tells me not to get my hopes up.

 

Jakarr played at one of the top prep schools in the nation, was player of the year and I believe Brewster only lost one game.

Obekpa racked up championships and MVP awards in almost every tournament he was apart of.

Everyone seems to feel that Christian Jones was under-recruited and on par with a Top 30 kid, Ricardo Gathers.

No one says wait and see with the Kyle Anderson's of the world (players who accomplished the same). They go in with expectations and rightly so.

No one said SJU will be world beaters. But the 2012 schedule is nowhere near as difficult as the 2011 schedule and we have a full squad. Why not be optimistic?

 

[lawmanfan]

 6 wins.

 

[crgreen]

 Man, I can't wait to see this board when we get into conference play. All I'm saying is that our incoming class has never played major college basketball. Never. You act as if there is no transition from high school to a MAJOR conference in D1. There obviously is. We will see what happens and like I said, I hope most of you are right. My gut just tells me not to get my hopes up.

 

Jakarr played at one of the top prep schools in the nation, was player of the year and I believe Brewster only lost one game.

Obekpa racked up championships and MVP awards in almost every tournament he was apart of.

Everyone seems to feel that Christian Jones was under-recruited and on par with a Top 30 kid, Ricardo Gathers.

No one says wait and see with the Kyle Anderson's of the world (players who accomplished the same). They go in with expectations and rightly so.

No one said SJU will be world beaters. But the 2012 schedule is nowhere near as difficult as the 2011 schedule and we have a full squad. Why not be optimistic?

 

Uh, I did.

 

[johnsliva]

 6 wins.

 



Joe3

Kentucky does it every year with first and second year players. Our second year players have more experience and PT than most 3 year players.

 

[sirvoo]

 No offense, but to compare a sports forum's expertise on a team versus ESPN New York writers and other professionals is a slap in the face to them. 9/10 times, if the writers say a team will be good, they will be. So far I haven't seen any writers who pick us finishing better than about 10 or 12 in the conference let alone dancing. I believe they hype us up when we deserve it too...2 years ago we had hype regarding our class, then Gathers, Pelle, Wood, etc. all decommitted and it kind of set us back. Please realize I'm not being negative, I'm just trying to be objective. We literally just had 1 good, not great year in 2011. Other than that, a bunch of nothing. Lavin has helped raise our national status no doubt, but there's still a ton of work to do. We have the team on paper, now we have to prove we aren't just paper tigers. I may only be 23, but I know being a fan in general that no matter how good you look on paper, great seasons are never guaranteed. I'd like to watch this team get into conference play a bit before I start drinking the kool aid and believe me...I want to drink it.

 

Most sports writers deserve a slap in the face trust me. And how is it possible that a BE writer knows more about each individual team than the staunch supporters of those teams do? You really think members of the media know anything about anything? One week the New York Giants are a major afterthought, I'm sitting on my couch Sunday looking at my gf and I tell her, wait and see how all of the sudden we are "the best team in the league." The past 3 days the media members are all over these Giants as if 4 days ago they weren't as good as they are today. All the journals are prisoners of the moment, and their preseason rankings mean absolutely nothing.

 

[1and1sju]

 No offense, but to compare a sports forum's expertise on a team versus ESPN New York writers and other professionals is a slap in the face to them. 9/10 times, if the writers say a team will be good, they will be. So far I haven't seen any writers who pick us finishing better than about 10 or 12 in the conference let alone dancing. I believe they hype us up when we deserve it too...2 years ago we had hype regarding our class, then Gathers, Pelle, Wood, etc. all decommitted and it kind of set us back. Please realize I'm not being negative, I'm just trying to be objective. We literally just had 1 good, not great year in 2011. Other than that, a bunch of nothing. Lavin has helped raise our national status no doubt, but there's still a ton of work to do. We have the team on paper, now we have to prove we aren't just paper tigers. I may only be 23, but I know being a fan in general that no matter how good you look on paper, great seasons are never guaranteed. I'd like to watch this team get into conference play a bit before I start drinking the kool aid and believe me...I want to drink it.

 

Most sports writers deserve a slap in the face trust me. And how is it possible that a BE writer knows more about each individual team than the staunch supporters of those teams do? You really think members of the media know anything about anything? One week the New York Giants are a major afterthought, I'm sitting on my couch Sunday looking at my gf and I tell her, wait and see how all of the sudden we are "the best team in the league." The past 3 days the media members are all over these Giants as if 4 days ago they weren't as good as they are today. All the journals are prisoners of the moment, and their preseason rankings mean absolutely nothing.

 

I don't think we're going to be as bad as Joe thinks apparently, but the coaches poll is out and it's very similar to the media poll. I agree with you that most of us on the board know a ton more about our team than Hoops Weiss does, let alone the writers from Cincinnati and Milwaukee. So yea, I would but any stock in the media poll.

But, I give a lot more credence to what the coaches think.
I know some coaches play games with their vote, like Pitino a few years ago when he picked us first. (In retrospect we did finish third that season).
Generally though, I think Willard, Rice, and Pitino have a better feel than any of us about what to expect. They recruited most of our players, and even if they didn't, they've at least seen them on the AAU circuit. They have as good an idea as anybody about how good Sanchez, Obekpa, and company will be in their freshmen seasons.

And, for what it's worth, the coaches picked us 10th in the league as well.
FYI: last season UCONN finished 10th, 20-14 overall, 8-10 in-conference, and a 9 seed in the NCAA Tournament.
That sounds about right to me.

 

[LINY89]

 Man, I can't wait to see this board when we get into conference play. All I'm saying is that our incoming class has never played major college basketball. Never. You act as if there is no transition from high school to a MAJOR conference in D1. There obviously is. We will see what happens and like I said, I hope most of you are right. My gut just tells me not to get my hopes up.

 

Jakarr played at one of the top prep schools in the nation, was player of the year and I believe Brewster only lost one game.

Obekpa racked up championships and MVP awards in almost every tournament he was apart of.

Everyone seems to feel that Christian Jones was under-recruited and on par with a Top 30 kid, Ricardo Gathers.

No one says wait and see with the Kyle Anderson's of the world (players who accomplished the same). They go in with expectations and rightly so.

No one said SJU will be world beaters. But the 2012 schedule is nowhere near as difficult as the 2011 schedule and we have a full squad. Why not be optimistic?

 

Um...Kyle Anderson is #1 nationally at his position and #3 OVERALL! We don't get #3 recruits, we get 50's and 60's. Let's not kid ourselves. Facts are facts. Gathers was #8 at his position nationally, and #37 overall. Jones is not ranked. Not saying Jones can't be good, but facts are facts.

 

[LINY89]

 6 wins.

 



Joe3

Kentucky does it every year with first and second year players. Our second year players have more experience and PT than most 3 year players.

 

Comparing Kentucky and SJ. Might as well compare Notre Dame and Cuse in football.

 

[L J S A]

 Man, I can't wait to see this board when we get into conference play. All I'm saying is that our incoming class has never played major college basketball. Never. You act as if there is no transition from high school to a MAJOR conference in D1. There obviously is. We will see what happens and like I said, I hope most of you are right. My gut just tells me not to get my hopes up.

 

Jakarr played at one of the top prep schools in the nation, was player of the year and I believe Brewster only lost one game.

Obekpa racked up championships and MVP awards in almost every tournament he was apart of.

Everyone seems to feel that Christian Jones was under-recruited and on par with a Top 30 kid, Ricardo Gathers.

No one says wait and see with the Kyle Anderson's of the world (players who accomplished the same). They go in with expectations and rightly so.

No one said SJU will be world beaters. But the 2012 schedule is nowhere near as difficult as the 2011 schedule and we have a full squad. Why not be optimistic?

 

Uh, I did.

 

I'm with you on this one.

 

[oldfan61]

 15-15 would be reasonable against this schedule and considering our large number of freshmen who
will be introduced to a BE type schedule. I am hoping we can go to 16-14 but more than that will be a
surprise to me with all the new student athletes and the change in the coaching team. It will take one
more year to rebuild if we can keep this great team of talent together. Less than a split as in last year
would be a disappointment.

 

[MJDinkins]

 15-15 would be reasonable against this schedule and considering our large number of freshmen who
will be introduced to a BE type schedule. I am hoping we can go to 16-14 but more than that will be a
surprise to me with all the new student athletes and the change in the coaching team. It will take one
more year to rebuild if we can keep this great team of talent together. Less than a split as in last year
would be a disappointment.

 

IMO, we can win that many games (15 or 16) with the same 6-man rotation, as last season (just place either Sampson or Sanchez in Harkless's spot). 

 

[1and1sju]

 15-15 would be reasonable against this schedule and considering our large number of freshmen who
will be introduced to a BE type schedule. I am hoping we can go to 16-14 but more than that will be a
surprise to me with all the new student athletes and the change in the coaching team. It will take one
more year to rebuild if we can keep this great team of talent together. Less than a split as in last year
would be a disappointment.

 

IMO, we can win that many games (15 or 16) with the same 6-man rotation, as last season (just place either Sampson or Sanchez in Harkless's spot). 

 

I would agree. We won 13 last season with a harder schedule and only freshmen.
You don't have to be drinking the koolaid to think this team wins 16+. 

Again, the coaches probably aren't far off. If we're around 9th or 10th in the league, with a .500 in-conference record, and 20 wins... I think that sounds about right.

 

[MCNPA]

 I have no doubt this team wins 20 games. None. I saw what I needed to see with the scrimmage. This team is going to be a ton better than last year. There are 2 teams that can match up athletically and depth-wise and they are Syracuse and Louisville. Outside of that, the rest of em are in trouble when they play us. We don't have deficiencies at guard nor in the frontcourt any more this season.

Youth is really our only obstacle, and it's not a huge one because we have a lot of experienced sophs back. Position by position, we can match most teams. Like I said, outside of Cuse and Louisville, the others are going to have a hard time keepng us a team ranked in the double digits in the league. 

 

[mjmaherjr]

 15-15 would be reasonable against this schedule and considering our large number of freshmen who
will be introduced to a BE type schedule. I am hoping we can go to 16-14 but more than that will be a
surprise to me with all the new student athletes and the change in the coaching team. It will take one
more year to rebuild if we can keep this great team of talent together. Less than a split as in last year
would be a disappointment.

 

If we win 15 games I'm going to be seriously p!ssed. But then again you were defending Norm his last year.

Thankfully I think there is a 0 possibility of that happening and I thought we would suck last year so while I'm biased I think once every 7 days I'm kind of objective.

19 wins and I reserve the right to change that every week