Looking into next season - men's basketball

[spiderstudent17]

was thinking about this. I've probably never seen a Rutgers game in my life, but was just looking at a mock NBA draft that had Rutgers guys going #2 and #3. and they had other players that have since transferred to U of Washington, Georgetown and Dayton.

how did a team with 2 of the top players in the country and apparently some solid guys around them go 8-12 in the B10 and 15-17 overall?

only guess is that no matter how much talent you have, you have to be old. maybe you can't win when your best 3 players are freshmen, no matter how good they are.

Ya, I would agree that the difference between 17-18 year olds and 22-23 year olds now is big enough that the physicality, strength, and experience of the older players can make up a talent difference against most young players. Especially in a team that is well coached and play well together. Same idea with St. Joe’s who have NBA first rounder in Fleming and other NBA prospects in Reynolds and Brown and yet still finished 6th in the A10. Also with us when we had Golden, Gilly, Sherod, Cayo who were older and more experienced than Kentucky and beat them at Rupp arena.

 

[spider23]

only guess is that no matter how much talent you have, you have to be old. maybe you can't win when your best 3 players are freshmen, no matter how good they are.

I do think this is more true today than ever before. NIL is keeping a lot of the top talent (other than lottery types, or surefire first rounders) in college. I am also seeing an influx of European/Latin American/other countries semi pro players coming to American colleges. Seems like a big increase in numbers. So the HS player has be really good to have a chance in this environment, playing agains 22-26 year olds, and seasoned overseas players.

 

[Spider-Law]

Didn’t know which thread to put this and didn’t want to create one, but here’s a wonderful article on the collegian about a student’s love for spider men’s basketball. Joy to read it and glad that such wonderful memories are made and felt by students today. Made me nostalgic about my own fond memories and love for Spider basketball that I’m sure everyone here also shares that feeling. Coaching change or not, I think we can all agree that Spider basketball is not where it needs to be right now and has to do better next year. It’s too important to this University, alums, and community for it not to be the case.

OPINION: A love letter to Spider basketball

It’s hard to describe exactly how much University of Richmond basketball means to me.

www.thecollegianur.com

I really enjoyed this article. I identify with this kid. I did NOT follow college basketball when I was in high school, even though Richmond beat South Carolina in March 1998, when I was a senior in HS deciding where to go to undergrad. BUT, I was intoxicated once I went to my first game at the Robins Center in the late fall of 1998. And there have been so many moments in the 25+ years since. Warms my old man heart to see a younger generation of students finding the romance in the program as well.

(I also remember our CURRENT FBI DIRECTOR, and my UR classmate, Kash Patel, shirtless spelling out Richmond at games to pump up the crowd....)

 

[urmite]

I really enjoyed this article. I identify with this kid. I did NOT follow college basketball when I was in high school, even though Richmond beat South Carolina in March 1998, when I was a senior in HS deciding where to go to undergrad. BUT, I was intoxicated once I went to my first game at the Robins Center in the late fall of 1998. And there have been so many moments in the 25+ years since. Warms my old man heart to see a younger generation of students finding the romance in the program as well.

(I also remember our CURRENT FBI DIRECTOR, and my UR classmate, Kash Patel, shirtless spelling out Richmond at games to pump up the crowd....)

Just wait until you see him do it this season…

 

[AnnapSpider]

I can’t resist.
Do you think he has a picture of the “billboard” on his wall?

 

[SFspidur]

Nothing of note in this clip...pleased with the new guys and glad they could get there for an early summer term.

 

[97spiderfan]

Given that we are paying players, showing up for offseason workouts is probably part of their paid employment contract. Also, pretty sure Mooney said the exact same thing last year. And 39 seconds that is all we get for an update from our coach.

 

[spider23]

Yep, pleased with the new guys. Pleased with the old guys. Whoopee!

Welcome to the most interesting basketball program in the country.

 

[whampas]

Sad.

 

[spiderstudent17]

 

[urmite]

View embedded media

So 127 is 10th?

 

[GKiller]

View embedded media

I like Torvik. Pretty sure I was first one to mention & introduce him to this board. But right now he has lot of incomplete data, from rosters schedules and his own projections. '

its ok to get an early early look but I would be head sewn into the carpet surprised if the A10 didn't have any 200+ teams.

VCU lost all their main contributors & had I think 2 guys left on roster who didn't enter portal when Martelli took over. and they are top projected team in league. ho hum. we're over here running it back in year 21 with coach who says its so hard.

 

[SFspidur]

Our guy Lunardi also has VCU as the lone bid from the A-10 at an 11-seed.

 

[SFspidur]

“We kind of call it ‘streamlining,’ making it so it’s still fluid with all the moves and there’s cutting and decisions, but maybe limiting the amount of formations, or the amount of calls that we make,” Mooney said.

“I think we’ve also adjusted our summer. So the summer (routine had been) built for four- and five-year guys and was very much learn how to play, the demands of college basketball, and moving, and tons of shooting.

“Now, I think we’re approaching it like it’s preseason. Hopefully, the learning curve … we’re at a better spot on Sept. 1 and Nov. 5.”

“I think sense for the game, we’ve definitely addressed that,” Mooney said. “I think Will Johnston has an elite level basketball sense, and I think the guys in our program will take another big step.”

Newcomers have basketball “savvy,” Mooney added. “I think the scoring punch, we’ve really improved with the balance of the guys we brought in ... We’ve improved our scoring potential, and equally important, with (returners’) improvement.”

'Streamlining' is summer bounce-back buzzword for Spiders basketball

UR basketball coach Chris Mooney made adjustments to offseason routine after a 10-22 year.

richmond.com

 

[spider23]

Any mention of defense?


Asking for a friend.

 

[kneepadmckinney]

"Sense for the game." F&$k me. Just once, could we prioritize toughness and athleticism?

 

[SFspidur]

To be fair, increased athleticism was also mentioned.

 

[spider23]

To be fair, increased athleticism was also mentioned.

Well that's a start.

 

[SpiderGuy]

To be fair, increased athleticism was also mentioned.

Well that's a start.

That’s a good thing. We have had our share of players with athleticism in the past, and it can make a difference. However Mooney’s style of play and choices are limiting factors to that athleticism.

 

[Eight Legger]

Well that's a start.

Unfortunately, it was mentioned this way: "We have no plans for increased athleticism."

🤣

 

[72Spider]

Unfortunately, it was mentioned this way: "We have no plans for increased athleticism."

🤣

wouldn't be sensible

 

[AnnapSpider]

I don’t agree with most of you and I’ll tell you why.
Look at professional baseball or football players in there final year of their
contract they always have stellar years. CM is in his final year whether we
know it or not. When you have coaches that are taking their teams to the
NCAA’s in women’s basketball and men’s lacrosse, another failed year by
Mooney will send him packing.
So, look for a surprise year coming.

 

[GKiller]

I don’t agree with most of you and I’ll tell you why.
Look at professional baseball or football players in there final year of their
contract they always have stellar years. CM is in his final year whether we
know it or not. When you have coaches that are taking their teams to the
NCAA’s in women’s basketball and men’s lacrosse, another failed year by
Mooney will send him packing.
So, look for a surprise year coming.

Mooney has 3 years on contract AFTER next season. He’s like the old DC saying in politics. The only way Mooney is sent packing after next season is if he’s caught in bed with either a dead girl or a live boy.

 

[SFspidur]

 

[MrTbone]

Yep, pleased with the new guys. Pleased with the old guys. Whoopee!

Welcome to the most interesting basketball program in the country.

Welcome to the most interesting sensible basketball program in the country.

FTFY.

 

[SFspidur]

JOC piece on the GM situation and whether UR is falling behind by not having an in-house one. We do have an outside GM service that handles some of the negotiation with agents, contracts, etc., and Mooney says they will probably have an in-house GM at some point but we're not there yet.

Mooney is also insistent that things are going to swing back to players staying for 4–5 years, lessening the need for a GM role with fewer transfers involved. I fear he is misreading the situation and we will be left behind. The extra COVID year definitely juiced the transfer market for several years, but the new era of NIL is more than making up for the end of it and creating a new era of free agency for college players.

Some A-10 programs have in-house GMs. Spiders don't. Are they falling behind?

Richmond relies on a GM, but that position is not in-house.

richmond.com

 

[spiderstudent17]

Mooney thinking we can go to a model of players staying at UR for 4-5 as the rule and not the exception is completely delusional. We have 5 freshmen/redshirt freshmen coming in this year. History says at least 2 will transfer at some point and maybe more. We have 5 players who will be in their final eligibility this season. It does not make sense to then bring in 5 freshmen for the 2026-2027 season but some combination of upper and lowerclassmen.

Regardless of our roster make-up, we are going to need an in house GM or assistant GM who can help sell UR to top recruits like Woj is doing with the Bonnies or Curry with Davidson. Call Kenny Atkinson and see if he would be willing to volunteer in an assistant role or something. Maybe Gilly. Guys with NBA experience/connections.

 

[MrTbone]

Mooney thinking we can go to a model of players staying at UR for 4-5 as the rule and not the exception is completely delusional. We have 5 freshmen/redshirt freshmen coming in this year. History says at least 2 will transfer at some point and maybe more. We have 5 players who will be in their final eligibility this season. It does not make sense to then bring in 5 freshmen for the 2026-2027 season but some combination of upper and lowerclassmen.

Regardless of our roster make-up, we are going to need an in house GM or assistant GM who can help sell UR to top recruits like Woj is doing with the Bonnies or Curry with Davidson. Call Kenny Atkinson and see if he would be willing to volunteer in an assistant role or something. Maybe Gilly. Guys with NBA experience/connections.

Example 37 of CMs lethargy to adapt.

I’m willing to stipulate that no one can predict the future but the signals are all there that this is a new age of CBB. Why would you not only plan for this but actually jump right in?

As a purely practical matter, in what world would a coach not want every conceivable advantage available to him? Presuming a GM is affordable (I see no reason it wouldn’t be) then you have to adopt the strategy.

This totally feels like CM is once again reluctant to change to suit the situation.

 

[SFspidur]

This totally feels like CM is once again reluctant to change to suit the situation.

He's just being sensible.

 

[SpiderGuy]

Mooney thinking we can go to a model of players staying at UR for 4-5 as the rule and not the exception is completely delusional. We have 5 freshmen/redshirt freshmen coming in this year. History says at least 2 will transfer at some point and maybe more. We have 5 players who will be in their final eligibility this season. It does not make sense to then bring in 5 freshmen for the 2026-2027 season but some combination of upper and lowerclassmen.

Regardless of our roster make-up, we are going to need an in house GM or assistant GM who can help sell UR to top recruits like Woj is doing with the Bonnies or Curry with Davidson. Call Kenny Atkinson and see if he would be willing to volunteer in an assistant role or something. Maybe Gilly. Guys with NBA experience/connections.

Agree. Old model of players staying at a school is in the past. With portal and NIL a whole new dynamic is in force. What on earth makes Mooney think the way he does? I guess he thinks we represent an exception. Just something else to be disappointed in relative to his thinking and coaching.

 

[Eight Legger]

How could anyone -- much less a coach for life at a D1 program -- look around at the current landscape and think, "Yeah, none of this is going to last. We're definitely going to go back in time here really soon"?

Just completely inept.

 

[GKiller]

Mike Walz will be the only player who started & finished his career at Richmond - in the 4 years of 23-24' to 26-27'. We should probably look to improve on that and make our own incremental progress before we expect some shift in the landscape.

but tbf that quote from Moon was 7 months old. Not suggesting anything changed with his thinking. Only that JOC tends to do that in articles and I didn't really think it went with the rest of the GM theme.

 

[spiderman]

Mike Walz will be the only player who started & finished his career at Richmond - in the 4 years of 23-24' to 26-27'.

that's pretty crazy.

players in the last 5 years who arrived as freshmen and didn't leave (excluding current freshmen):
Dji Bailey
Mike Walz
Collin Tanner
Mikkel Tyne

others who either transferred in or out:
Neal Quinn
Isaiah Bigelow
Tyler Harris
Jordan King
Delonnie Hunt
Andre Weir
Dusan Neskovic
Jason Roche
B Artis White
Isaiah Wilson
Marcus Randolph
Jonathan Beagle
Apostolos Roumoglou
Aidan Noyes
Malcolm Dread
Jason Nelson
George Washington III
Trevor Smith
Ryan Soulis
AJ Lopez
Will Johnston
Jaden Daughtry
David Thomas

 

[urfan1]

Possible big man? I see we started following 6'11" Dylan Homenick C'25 from Perkiomen School around Philly, same school as Will Johnston. Saw mention Coaches were friends.

 

[VT4700]

that's pretty crazy.

players in the last 5 years who arrived as freshmen and didn't leave (excluding current freshmen):
Dji Bailey
Mike Walz
Collin Tanner
Mikkel Tyne

others who either transferred in or out:
Neal Quinn
Isaiah Bigelow
Tyler Harris
Jordan King
Delonnie Hunt
Andre Weir
Dusan Neskovic
Jason Roche
B Artis White
Isaiah Wilson
Marcus Randolph
Jonathan Beagle
Apostolos Roumoglou
Aidan Noyes
Malcolm Dread
Jason Nelson
George Washington III
Trevor Smith
Ryan Soulis
AJ Lopez
Will Johnston
Jaden Daughtry
David Thomas

So many misses since we got Tyler. I praised our recruiting through Tyler, but my goodness, it's been really bad since. It's crazy that our best 10+ players who came here as freshmen under Mooney were all in Tyler's class or before.

 

[spiderstudent17]

Possible big man? I see we started following 6'11" Dylan Homenick C'25 from Perkiomen School around Philly, same school as Will Johnston. Saw mention Coaches were friends.

JOC and Richmond basketball twitter are following him so he must be committing. We have 15 players with Mooney’s nephew so will be interesting what the final roster will be going into next season if/when Homenick commits.

 

[spider23]

Look what this says

Dylan Homenick - North Pole Hoops

northpolehoops.com

 

[spiderstudent17]

Look what this says

Dylan Homenick - North Pole Hoops

northpolehoops.com

He posted his commitment on instagram:

Login • Instagram

Welcome back to Instagram. Sign in to check out what your friends, family & interests have been capturing & sharing around the world.

www.instagram.com

Here are highlights:

Dylan Homenick on Hudl

Watch Dylan Homenick's videos and highlights on Hudl. More info: Perkiomen School - Perkiomen Boys National Basketball / PF, C / Class of 2025 / Pennsburg, PA

www.hudl.com

 

[97spiderfan]

Example 37 of CMs lethargy to adapt.

I’m willing to stipulate that no one can predict the future but the signals are all there that this is a new age of CBB. Why would you not only plan for this but actually jump right in?

As a purely practical matter, in what world would a coach not want every conceivable advantage available to him? Presuming a GM is affordable (I see no reason it wouldn’t be) then you have to adopt the strategy.

This totally feels like CM is once again reluctant to change to suit the situation.

Davidson has Steph Curry calling recruits selling them on Davidson, St. Bonnie has Woj, and we have Mooney calling talking about being sensible and streamlining his complex system. I wonder which of those 3 is more apt to close the deal.

 

[97spiderfan]

He posted his commitment on instagram:

Login • Instagram

Welcome back to Instagram. Sign in to check out what your friends, family & interests have been capturing & sharing around the world.

www.instagram.com

Here are highlights:

Dylan Homenick on Hudl

Watch Dylan Homenick's videos and highlights on Hudl. More info: Perkiomen School - Perkiomen Boys National Basketball / PF, C / Class of 2025 / Pennsburg, PA

www.hudl.com

Idaho State was theonly other d-1 offer that I could find. Anyone find any others. 6'11 with only other D-1 offer is kind of a red flag.