Granted we lost an all conference center and the NCAA leader in steals, as well as our power forward and bench guy. But we replace that center with another (I’m betting) all conference center. We add an awesome shooter which we lacked last year. And we add someone that should be able replace much of what Cayo did (plus we don’t have to watch his free throws anymore). It seems that point guard is going to be the biggest question. Hopefully our redshirt freshman will prove himself to be the next great one.
Could/Should this team be better than last year’s?
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Yes, we could. If we shoot better from 3, and it looks like we will, I think we will definitely be better than 10-8 in the A-10. Maybe a lot better. I could do without the FT comment though. Nate was so awesome, and who can forget how he finished the Iowa game for us? I just hope everytime we remember Nate, we don't have to talk about a negative.
The X factor for me is how quickly they can get comfortable. If it takes them half the season, we may be in a bit of a hole. Quinn has experience in a similar system, but we'll still be asking a lot of him, so I think he's a key question. And of course PG as you say.
Curious how the roster plays out. Adding Bigelow and Roche means we've got a ton of guys at the 2-3-4. If Roche has a big role at 3, that pushes Burton up to the 4 a bit more. Which may in turn push Grace to more backup minutes at the 5, and Walz may not be needed next year. Bigelow seems versatile, so we can plug him in wherever needed, but still a lot of guys in that SG/SF range competing for time.
Curious how the roster plays out. Adding Bigelow and Roche means we've got a ton of guys at the 2-3-4. If Roche has a big role at 3, that pushes Burton up to the 4 a bit more. Which may in turn push Grace to more backup minutes at the 5, and Walz may not be needed next year. Bigelow seems versatile, so we can plug him in wherever needed, but still a lot of guys in that SG/SF range competing for time.
All fair points. I think the PG spot is the one where Jason and Dji could be the guys. Goose can fill in too. Do you guys think for our lead guard it’s up to those two guys? It’s both their natural positions and could be a reason we didn’t look for a pg in portal.
The question is with the current roster (including Burton back from the draft, and Crab & Dji at 100%)...
Do we have any chance at less than 22 losses next regular season?
🤣 🤣
Why, yes...yes, I do believe we do...
Wouldn't you agree, Kneepad?
So we have (grouped by body type, not skill set or position) :
Quinn
Walz
Grace
Burton
Bigelow
Noyes
Crabtree
Roche
Gustavson
Bailey
Randolph
Dread
Nelson
Do we have any chance at less than 22 losses next regular season?
🤣 🤣Why, yes...yes, I do believe we do...
Wouldn't you agree, Kneepad?
So we have (grouped by body type, not skill set or position) :
Quinn
Walz
Grace
Burton
Bigelow
Noyes
Crabtree
Roche
Gustavson
Bailey
Randolph
Dread
Nelson
I think it has to be Jason and Dji at PG. No question. We should be in pretty good shape there. We had bigger needs elsewhere, so there was no reason to add one. We seem to have a solid roster right now, and dare I say it, have some really good depth in case we lose Tyler sooner rather than later.
I like your groups. It's way early, and things could obviously change, but if I separated by depth chart, I would maybe go:The question is with the current roster (including Burton back from the draft, and Crab & Dji at 100%)...
Do we have any chance at less than 22 losses next regular season?
Why, yes...yes, I do believe we do...
Wouldn't you agree, Kneepad?
So we have (grouped by body type, not skill set or position) :
Quinn
Walz
Grace
Burton
Bigelow
Noyes
Crabtree
Roche
Gustavson
Bailey
Randolph
Dread
Nelson
Quinn
Grace
Walz
1 or 2 on the floor together, but not 3. Quinn and Walz likely not on floor together.
Burton
Crabtree/Bigelow
Noyes
Would probably rarely see 3 on the floor together, but certainly could happen at times. Mostly 1 or 2.
Goose
Roche
Randolph
Dread
1 or 2 on the floor together.
Nelson
Dji
Probably just one out there most of the time. Could see some minutes with both out there though, especially late with leads to have the most ball handlers out there. Hopefully, they both knock down FTs because you need your PGs to do that when protecting leads.
Nelson, being a PG, will play. The other young guys, it's just too hard to predict right now. If Noyes, Randolph, Dread, and Walz show enough to be part of the rotation, that makes us that much better. But, if not, let's not forgot they are mostly freshman (Randolph being the lone sophomore) this year, so they have plenty of time.
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That is why I added the Parenthesis for the grouping so "Dad" wouldn't freak out, lol.
I didn't see anyone physically similar to Nelson, that is why he is alone...
I don't know that we can expect to be better, but damn. This has been a pretty exciting off-season. I am giving us an A for what we have accomplished. Filled two HUGE needs and got a third very capable player. We have some really nice pieces. No reason we should not be strongly in the mix for the double-bye.
Is my list correct on seasons left?
| Grace | 1 |
| Gustavson | 1 |
| Bigelow | 2 |
| Burton | 2 |
| Crabtree | 2 |
| Quinn | 2 |
| Bailey | 3 |
| Randolph | 3 |
| Roche | 3 |
| Dread | 4 |
| Nelson | 4 |
| Noyes | 4 |
| Walz | 4 |
Chemistry my friends. How quick do all these pieces gell. Depth could
be best ever and competition for playing time a true battle. I hope we look
at more up tempo and more pressure defense with our length.
be best ever and competition for playing time a true battle. I hope we look
at more up tempo and more pressure defense with our length.
My mistake. I noticed that, but then missed it with my Dji. comment. I edited that. Thanks.
Every year in the off-season it seems we think our floor is somewhere around the sweet 16. With the discussion around how do you get enough minutes for the 8 all conference guys on our roster since we have 2 or 3 all Americans. Then halfway through the season our ceiling seems to become 4th place in the A10.
not saying that last year wasn’t good. But it’s not an unrealistic starting point. We should be capable of legitimately contending for NCAAs every year.
not saying that last year wasn’t good. But it’s not an unrealistic starting point. We should be capable of legitimately contending for NCAAs every year.
Not often we return a potential NBA player and bring in 2 immediately eligible potential all-conference players (Quinn, Roche). There is a lot to be excited about for next season, but there are certainly a lot of unknowns as well with so many new pieces.
I personally think a big PG could be an all around benefit... any chance we bring back the match up zone defense with Dji in there? And I'm also really lookung forward to Mr Nelson become another of our great small PGs
This is really exciting. Waiting for Mooney to crown this the best offseason ever
Easily the best job that has ever been done getting transfers. I do like the multi-year of eligibility strategy because I think that suits Mooney’s coaching style the best. As others have pointed out, the next test will be the team chemistry and I am sure we will see a number the lineups in the out of conference games. The coaching staff of course is also going to look different and who knows how that will pan out. Last, the A10 is going to look different with a new team, new coaches, and of course players. Going to be fun.
Agreed. Reloaded. Kudos to the coaching staff. Looking forward to next year!
I don't see Goose at the 1 at all if Nelson and Bailey stay healthy. he's not a point. I can't remember him ever creating a shot for someone. that's not a knock. it's just not his role. he drives to score and he defends.
If all of these players just fell from the sky together tomorrow and we only knew their abilities and not their years, I think the starting lineup would be Nelson, Roche, Burton, Grace, Quinn. Goose and Dji would be first off the bench, Bigelow next and then Crabtree.
In reality, Goose will start. But I don't think Roche plays fewer than 20 mpg, not should he if he shoots like he did this year. He's the best of the three transfers.
In reality, Goose will start. But I don't think Roche plays fewer than 20 mpg, not should he if he shoots like he did this year. He's the best of the three transfers.
I understand CM loves playing his seniors and even likes to start the game with his best defensive team on the floor but you can't ignore Roche. If he's the shooter we need then he starts... period. He MAY be the best of the three transfers but I think Quinn is the most valuable...kinda like Tarrant used to say about Winiecki who he considered MVP as opposed to Most Outstanding Player.
there is now great competition for playing time all over the floor next year. not sure we saw that coming. I think we can all agree we exceeded expectations in the portal.
it's April, so if you want to say both Goose and Grace are starting today ... go for it. but come June it's fair competition and the best will play. I know those two are fan favorites but I'll be very surprised if they both start. both are ideal role players off the bench.
unless Roche can't guard my mother, how the heck is a guy hitting 110 3's at 40% not starting? we'll see how he is physically, but he should get all the minutes he can handle.
I think we know what to expect from Quinn and he's absolutely a starter. I'm personally very excited to see Bigelow. that's a high rebounding rate and while his shooting numbers were down, he's got a reputation of a pure shooter and a year under his belt at 38.8% before the injury.
and how about the FT% numbers of our team next year?! based on last year ...
Roche: 90.9%
Grace: 87.0%
Bigelow: 85.0%
Burton: 79.1%
Crabtree: 75.0%
Quinn: 70.9%
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Can't overlook Goose's defense though. I think his ability to slow down or shut down the other team's scorers makes it an easy decision to start him.
I agree probably not much need for Goose at the point if Nelson and Dji stay healthy, and we wouldn't expect him to create for others, but by filling in like SDad said, he can certainly handle the ball and bring it up the court at times. He did that plenty last year while Jacob was still on the floor. So, looking at it from a depth spot, he would clearly be 3rd in line there.
I’m now pretty confident Tyler starts at the 4 (ducks). Matt still gets 20-25 MPG at the 5/4 and we go Dji, Roche, Goose, Tyler, Quinn.
I am very excited about Roche. We needed a shooter like that, but you can't overlook defense. If Roche shows enough defensively and it makes sense to start him over Goose, great, we are that much better for it. If not, it makes sense for Goose to start and not let the other team's main scorer get too comfortable and in rhythm to start the game. I also think Goose could show more offensively this year without Jacob and the other seniors out there. He has never averaged more than 4 shots a game because he hasn't had to, so he might surprise a little offensively with more shot attempts.
Agree. Goose started this year and expect that to continue. His contributions on defense are really good and may be our steals leader next year.
he’s our most experienced returning ball handler. The never created a shot for others makes me think we r not watching the same games. I’m not saying he’s going to break the press with his dribbling. Only Gilyard could do it. Maybe Nelson can idk. But the 2 pgs r unproven. There r reasons to think they can both handle it. But yeah I expect Goose to get some backup time at the 1 too. Esp now w Roche taking some guard mins. If Roche ends up earning lot of time u got to find spot for 1 of your more valuable players like goose. That could come at expense of the “1s”. But there r lot of options & less fixed than we’ve been in a while which creates some anticipation & excitement about how it will sort itself out.
I can see lineups where Goose, Dji, Roche, Crabtree, Burton, Randolph and new addition I. Bigelow all make Moon's 2005 dream of a lineup of 6'5"-6'7" interchangeable players and nonstop switching come true. Play 5 of them and push the pace big time as a 4 minute change of pace. Shooters and cutters everywhere and all those guys should have solid handles (at least half do that we know of.) Maybe full court press and double the post immediately to mitigate the size disadvantages. I think Crabtree will shoot much better from 3 with more extended run next season and the confidence that will ensue.
The only thing I will say about that is…Jason and Dji have been PGs all their lives. PGs aren’t just thrown out there whenever you want a PG. They are made/born from an early age for that position.
I think one point rarely mentioned and trying be positive, we have more options than
we have had in a long time. This is a very good problem to have. I had rather have a bench
versus not. Again competition should be stiff and Summer workouts a key.
we have had in a long time. This is a very good problem to have. I had rather have a bench
versus not. Again competition should be stiff and Summer workouts a key.
Agreed. Burton is an NBA prospect. Goose is our best defender and a returning starter off an NCAA team. Quinn is obviously starting at the 5. Roche shot 40% from 3 and 91% from the line. Those 4 have to start, and then you need a point guard. I think it is more likely Nelson than Bailey though. Nelson fits the profile of recent Mooney PGs, was Virginia Class 2 Player of the Year and had offers from Vanderbilt and VCU. Whichever of the two it is, Mooney's lack of interest of PGs in the portal tells me he is pretty happy with what we have there.
I would expect Bailey at the 1/2, Bigelow at 3/4, and Grace at 4/5 as our primary backups. Crabtree and Randolph next men up for injuries. Hopefully Walz can redshirt.
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I agree mostly. The battle will be for the PG spot and as I have said the team benefits from this. Both have awards Dji was also a 1A Player of the year, recruited by all as a PG, was signed as a PG at Wake Forest and had multiple offers from HM/MM schools. So that doesn't really matter in the grand scheme of things imo. So I don't think Coach will automaticlly slide Jason in bc he "fits the profile" We all win when there is competition at any postiion. But we can agree on your last statement about not looking for PGs in the portal. I can say Jason and Dji have been working out together since the season ended and are pretty close...a win win 🕷️ 🏀
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Question is - how quickly do our transfers integrate into the Mooney system. And also - our best teams under Mooney have a top level PG - think Anderson, Gilyard, even the year we just missed and got 1 seed in NIT we had Kendall Anthony. So how that role is filled will be key as well.
My expectation would be we have a similar OOC and A10 record as this year, and the hope is by the 2nd half of the A10 and A10 tourney - guys are coming together and we make a run.
My expectation would be we have a similar OOC and A10 record as this year, and the hope is by the 2nd half of the A10 and A10 tourney - guys are coming together and we make a run.
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