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More than one reason we will be dancing

I will say that Buck is the real deal. I think he will go down as one of the greats to put on a Spider uniform, and the best chance of getting drafted to the NBA of all the players we have. I can't see how DMB, will not take us to at least one NCAA tournament appearance during his time at UR. He's too much of a competitor to not let it happen. I'm excited about our team the next 2-3 years!
 
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It won't be long; our guys are pumped up!

The pic of Sherrod reaffirms my thought that he will be playing pro ball somewhere after UR. I continue to think he and Grant have very high upsides!
That being said (Ulla), Grant is just a freshman and should not be starting for the Spiders had we done a better job recruiting (i. e. Hans Brase et al)
 
The pic of Sherrod reaffirms my thought that he will be playing pro ball somewhere after UR. I continue to think he and Grant have very high upsides!
That being said (Ulla), Grant is just a freshman and should not be starting for the Spiders had we done a better job recruiting (i. e. Hans Brase et al)
LT, Grant is much better than you imagine. You will see very soon, barring injury, that Grant is ready.
 
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Grant's no freshman. this isn't some kid right out of high school. he's 19 or 20 and strong like bull. this is his 2nd summer and fall working with the team. he's accustomed to the workouts, the class load, the college life, and the travel. there's a different confidence level when you've been around it all for a year.

anyone want to bet on stats, Grant vs Hans? I'll take Grant.
 
So here is Grant at practice slamming it home. Imagine 6'10", 255 pounds of agility, athleticism, skill and muscle. Oh, might add that he is an outstanding student. Think he has a chance?

 
LT, Grant is much better than you imagine. You will see very soon, barring injury, that Grant is ready.
I respectfully say that you can't know what I imagine and I just stated that I have super high hopes for Grant but to compare him to a skilled 5th year senior already very familiar with the Princeton Offense (I get the impression that you think he'd have started over Hans shoukd Hans have matriculated here) well you're living in Ulla-land. It just ain't so. If Hans get major. Minutes for Iowa state then that's all you need to know.
 
I respectfully say that you can't know what I imagine and I just stated that I have super high hopes for Grant but to compare him to a skilled 5th year senior already very familiar with the Princeton Offense (I get the impression that you think he'd have started over Hans shoukd Hans have matriculated here) well you're living in Ulla-land. It just ain't so. If Hans get major. Minutes for Iowa state then that's all you need to know.
Sorry LTS, you are wrong. Hans would have been Grant's substitute.
 
I am really intrigued by our front court of Grant and Solly. Hard to lose TJ, but if Grant can be 75% of the player Ulla thinks, and Solly is 90% of what I am hoping for him - I think this is a very good team. With much improved interior play. Just need the new transfer, and/or Paul, and one of the new bigs to be ready to play 10 minutes a game and contribute when needed.
 
Brase obviously would have started for us, but I also think we would have seen him and Grant in there together a good amount. Grant has enormous potential. Frankly, IMO, he will be the key factor for us this year. As he goes, we will go.
 
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Brase obviously would have started for us, but I also think we would have seen him and Grant in there together a good amount. Grant has enormous potential. Frankly, IMO, he will be the key factor for us this year. As he goes, we will go.
Eight, the only obvious thing is that Brase would have given Grant some rest; the same role that the current transfer will play. Why would you waste giving your star recruit the experience and confidence that comes with starting? Makes no sense; not to mention that Grant is a FAR superior talent. If you get a chance, take the time to go by practice, see for yourself, and talk to coaches whose job it is to know and evaluate talent. Really, take the time and enjoy it. I know that some of us do (even driving 160 miles one way to watch practice and talk to coaches!). Make the effort, then give us your honest opinion based on not only what you observe in person, but also what you are told by our coaches. Go Spiders!
 
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Brase obviously would have started for us, but I also think we would have seen him and Grant in there together a good amount. Grant has enormous potential. Frankly, IMO, he will be the key factor for us this year. As he goes, we will go.

Eight - I get what you're saying but we have never been a big-man reliant team. We've had big guys with Mooney but they have either been skilled guys like TJ, Geroit, and Harper or rim protecting defensive guys like Alonzo and Garrett. We do not need a specific type of big to run this system. I think Grant is going to be VERY good starting this year but I think our season will depend on our ability to move the ball on offense and create open shots. If we hit our shots we will win games. Everything we do, on both sides of the ball, is predicated on our ability to hit shots. If our 1-3 position guys can make teams guard them it will open up everything else and make Grant and Solly even better than they already are. I think Grant can help us be really really good but I think our overall success depends on hitting 3's not on Grant. For what it's worth, I am extremely bullish on our Spiders starting this year. The composition of our roster makes the most sense it ever has under Mooney.
 
Brase obviously would have started for us, but I also think we would have seen him and Grant in there together a good amount. Grant has enormous potential. Frankly, IMO, he will be the key factor for us this year. As he goes, we will go.
I don't know if Brase or Grant would have started but Brase would have been a big piece of the puzzle this year, so not landing him hurts. And comparing the JMA to Brase is laughable. Those two guys are not even in the same league for what they can do in Mooney's system. Our Achillies heel is going to be front court depth and in my opinion Brase was the difference between Mooney assembling a squad that could compete for an NCAA bid versus a squad that will be good but not quite good enough for the NCAA.
 
we have never been a big-man reliant team.

I disagree. A big man who is competent on both sides of the floor is what we have been missing for years. Grant I think we'll be the answer, but we lack depth at the 5.
 
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I certainly was hoping we'd land Hans too. he looks skilled. but he's had 2 ACLs. he's played 5 games over the past 2 seasons. I wish him the best and hope he stays healthy, but I don't know if it would be a smart bet to think he'd play a lot of games for us. that's bucking the odds.

I'm fine with our backup minutes at the 5. we can't afford Grant to ever miss a game, though. we need his 25+ high quality mpg.
 
I disagree. A big man who is competent on both sides of the floor is what we have been missing for years. Grant I think we'll be the answer, but we lack depth at the 5.

Are you part of the back to the basket sky-hook crew? What kind of big man do you want? There are about 5 traditional "big-men" a year, most of them aren't interested in playing at Richmond. What team in the A-10 has a big man who you feel is competent on both sides of the floor? Honest question.
 
I'm fine with our backup minutes at the 5. we can't afford Grant to ever miss a game, though. we need his 25+ high quality mpg.

Than your not fine with our back-up minutes at the 5. This is why you need quality depth. See last year, when TJ when out of the game.
 
no really, I'm fine with the backup minutes. up to 15 mpg of high energy JMA and/or big Paul getting a shot ... I'm totally happy with that. I'm very interested to see what they bring.
I'm not comfortable with 40 minutes of that though.
 
I hope you Debbie Downers are absolutely wrong about a few of our recruits. Give them a chance before writing them off.
 
I am certainly not writing this year off by any means, but the following two seasons will be our obvious best chances to get into the NCAA. This is a good year to sit back, enjoy the game and see what we have. I am truly looking forward to seeing this young team play.

Good luck to our boys in Waco.
 
I am certainly not writing this year off by any means, but the following two seasons will be our obvious best chances to get into the NCAA. This is a good year to sit back, enjoy the game and see what we have. I am truly looking forward to seeing this young team play.

Good luck to our boys in Waco.
I agree K, we have a young team with a mix of experience and unknowns. Because of
this I feel we will be competitive and optimistic we will be fun to watch. But due to these
unknowns, I am going to enjoy and see what pieces of the puzzle fall in place to make us
a NCAA contending team at some point.
 
I am certainly not writing this year off by any means, but the following two seasons will be our obvious best chances to get into the NCAA. This is a good year to sit back, enjoy the game and see what we have. I am truly looking forward to seeing this young team play.
Good luck to our boys in Waco.

I'm looking at the upcoming season with cautious and measured optimism. I think we should make the NIT at worst and that there is a 50% chance we will perform well enough to be invited to the dance. I feel much better about the team's potential for success this year than I did at this time last year despite the loss of Shandre, Marshall, and TJ.
My prediction is based on my gut feeling that the maturity of Grant, Buck, Nick, the return and continued maturity of Kwan and JJ, and the addition of Solly, JG, and, perhaps, another freshman will provide us with as solid a defense as we had last year and a more diverse scoring potential. Though I hope that I am wrong, I am not counting on any meaningful contribution by anyone else.

I'll need to remember my predictions for the team when things don't go as planned. I was able to do that last year when before the season started I predicted the exact number of wins and losses and was able to recall my prediction when disappointed so as to avoid emotional reactions which would have appeared to unfairly berate the team or the coach.

That is not to say that I will withhold all criticism that I feel may be warranted once I am past the emotion of the inevitable disappointments along the way.
 
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I think we are one front court injury away from a disappointing season. Need to keep Grant and Solly healthy.
 
I am glad you are the one doing the prognostication, regardless of it all, I will keep my glass half-full. Let's stay healthy!!!
 
OK I am going to bite. Did I witness big Paul in several of the clips not looking bad at all?
Carolina, I was going to mention Paul with the big left handed slam followed by the shot close in. He may now be ready. Holy smoke!
 
I'm gonna need to see a lot more before I'm convinced he'll be a contributor.

A 6'10" guy throwing it down unguarded and a 4-foot push shot over a shorter defender aren't showing me a whole lot. Not saying he looked bad in those clips, but c'mon...
 
I'm gonna need to see a lot more before I'm convinced he'll be a contributor.

A 6'10" guy throwing it down unguarded and a 4-foot push shot over a shorter defender aren't showing me a whole lot. Not saying he looked bad in those clips, but c'mon...
SF but rarely would we ever see Paul showing any skills in clip before this. I am just encouraged that he is moving around some.
 
We need support at the 5, I hope Paul is it. Even if Grant can stay healthy foul trouble is always an issue with your post man.
 
Oh, I didn't realize it was a prerequisite to making the tourney that you had impact seniors. And most of those teams you list in #3 lost as many or more players than we did, including VCU, so that's laughable.

The schedule is fine. If we win the games we should, we'll be in fine position.
 
I'm gonna need to see a lot more before I'm convinced he'll be a contributor.

A 6'10" guy throwing it down unguarded and a 4-foot push shot over a shorter defender aren't showing me a whole lot. Not saying he looked bad in those clips, but c'mon...
SF, pity the fool that attempts to block a left handed dunk attempt by a 6'10" 260 pounder with a head of steam.
 
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