2018-2019 is all about the 4

[MountainSpider]

I think the debate about Khwan Fore's departure misses the point. We were not going to be in the NCAA conversation starting a 6'4" player at the 4 and a 6'0" SG shooting .275 from 3 and .655 at the line. We had two problems last year -- inexperience and height. Fixing just the inexperience part while ignoring the height part just wasn't going to do it.

So our hopes this year lie in having a 6'4" SG and a quality, appropriately sized 4. Seems like it is still a very long shot at fulfilling the requirement at the 4, but we at least have 4 candidates on the roster and two open slots. Anybody think Mooney can hit the home run at this position and give us a realistic shot at the NCAAs next year?

 

[spider23]

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I am all in pulling for Mooney to get us a big and athletic 4 that can play. I think Bryce was our best shot. Losing confidence every day, but remain hopeful as I believe Mooney feels the urgency.

 

[spiderman]

I think we already have the answer at the 4. these guys don't have to be better players than Khwan to give us a better starting 5.

with Gilyard taking on an increasingly aggressive offensive role, with Buck and Nick scoring like they do, and with the best big man in the league, our 4 doesn't have to be a big offensive star right away. we've got some forwards to choose from with different skill sets.

 

[97spiderfan]

I think we already have the answer at the 4. these guys don't have to be better players than Khwan to give us a better starting 5.

with Gilyard taking on an increasingly aggressive offensive role, with Buck and Nick scoring like they do, and with the best big man in the league, our 4 doesn't have to be a big offensive star right away. we've got some forwards to choose from with different skill sets.

I completely disagree that we can just throw whomever in the starting line-up at the 4 and be a good team. We can throw whomever in our starting line-up and be a 12 win team like we were last year, but if we want to be good, you not only need a good starting 5 but a really good Top 8. We got 4 now.

Cayo was nowhere near an A-10 level starter (on a good A-10 team) at the end of the season and he is currently the Clubhouse favorite to be the starter. Maybe he gets much better in the offseason but right now I see a pretty good A-10 starter on defense but I also see a guy who has one offensive move and can't hit a jumper. And then after that we have a redshirt in Tomas who was obviously behind Cayo on the depth chart last year or a complete freshman with a very slight build in Sal.

The solution for our starting 4 is not currently on the roster if we want to be a team the competes for postseason next year.

 

[Eight Legger]

With Cayo as a starter, we are basically going with a 1, a 2, two 3s and a 5. That's fine, but we should call it what it is. Cayo is not a power forward in any sense. He will likely be our fifth starter, and everyone else would fit nicely in their positions, but he's not a true 4 who can get physical underneath with guys.

I think his offensive game showed some flashes, and I like that he is aggressive driving to the hoop, but I don't see him being a big rebounder. Maybe he makes up for that by playing lockdown defense. I don't hate that starting 5, but depth is still a huge issue, as 97 points out.

 

[spiderman]

??? he's 6'7" - 6'8" and gotten much stronger. he's totally a 4. heck, he backed up our 5.

we don't know much about our depth. doesn't mean we don't have any. means we fans don't know.

 

[nathanw19]

With Cayo as a starter, we are basically going with a 1, a 2, two 3s and a 5. That's fine, but we should call it what it is. Cayo is not a power forward in any sense. He will likely be our fifth starter, and everyone else would fit nicely in their positions, but he's not a true 4 who can get physical underneath with guys.

I think his offensive game showed some flashes, and I like that he is aggressive driving to the hoop, but I don't see him being a big rebounder. Maybe he makes up for that by playing lockdown defense. I don't hate that starting 5, but depth is still a huge issue, as 97 points out.

Agree that’ll probably be a starters, but I expect Sal to be pushing him for that spot. Admittedly, I’m very bullish on Sal.

 

[spider fan]

We will have a taller team on the floor which will improve our possibilities for improvement. Defense and rebounding upgrade to be determined.

 

[MrTbone]

I think the debate about Khwan Fore's departure misses the point. We were not going to be in the NCAA conversation starting a 6'4" player at the 4 and a 6'0" SG shooting .275 from 3 and .655 at the line. We had two problems last year -- inexperience and height. Fixing just the inexperience part while ignoring the height part just wasn't going to do it.

So our hopes this year lie in having a 6'4" SG and a quality, appropriately sized 4. Seems like it is still a very long shot at fulfilling the requirement at the 4, but we at least have 4 candidates on the roster and two open slots. Anybody think Mooney can hit the home run at this position and give us a realistic shot at the NCAAs next year?

I said the same thing a year ago. We didn’t have a 4 of decent size and we saw the result. I do think we primarily need this for D, I think we have enough scorers otherwise.

 

[ur2K]

So was 17-18, didn’t work out too good