Washington Returns to Up-tempo Play, Part 1 of 3!

Last year was a step in the wrong direction.

A program that had prided itself on hustle, heart, sweat and the ability to get up and down the court in a matter of moments, lost their way. They traded fast breaks for half-court offense. Played slow-grind it out basketball rather than fast, aggressive break neck defense that Lorenzo Romar basketball teams are known to do. Gone was UW's tough perimeter defense, allowing the likes of Arizona and WAZZU to shoot endless amounts of uncontested threes. And in the end, gone was UW's post-season streak at three seasons.

Fast-forward to 2007 and gone is the pre-season hype, the stiff-and-cliche midnight madness celebrations, and back is the return to defensive fundamentals and dive-on the floor grittiness that turned UW's basketball program around five years ago. Leaving the cozy confines of Hec Edmundson Pavilion, Washington pulled up stakes and moved preseason camp to Saint Martin's University in Lacey where Romar put his team through an intense series of drills to re-focus his players on the most important side of the basketball, defense.

Welcome Class of 2007, your job, if you wish to accept it, is to return Washington back into an up-tempo, defensive minded basketball team that was ranked in the top-5 in scoring in the nation at over 84 points per game from 2004 to 2006.

Washington will be propelled back into the spot light, the upper echelon of the Pac-10 not because of the returns from last year, but by the new and returning players. Venoy Overton, Matthew Bryant-Amaning, Darnell Gant, and Justin Holiday provide that intensity that Romar has wanted out of a freshman class since he came to Washington. Last year's recruiting class, which now is down to only Quincey Pondexter and Joe Wolfinger, has turned out to be a disappointment after the quick exit of both Spencer Hawes and Phil Nelson. Here is a great article out of the Seattle Times today about the focus and dedication that these freshman are showing in practice so far.

What might matter more though is the return of defensive-minded guard Joel Smith, and leadership of Tim Morris. Morris, who has never played a game for Washington because of sitting out a year after transferring from Stanford, was named as one of three captains for the 2007-08 season, along with junior Jon Brockman and senior Ryan Appleby. Both Smith and Morris figure to be part of an improved Washington back court that will feature Smith, Morris, Overton, Holiday, and returners Justin Dentmon, Adrian Oliver and Appleby. With Overton breathing down the neck of Dentmon for the starting role in Washington's back court, Dentmon has rededicated himself to being quick and the conditioning program that made him successful as a true freshman. This unit should provide more pressure on opposing guards on offense, while being able to defend the perimeter like back in the days of Will Conroy, Nate Robinson and Bobby Jones. The return of Smith is the single best thing for Washington perimeter defensive woes.

Here is how I see Washington's rotation being this season:

Initial Starting 5:
PG - Dentmon
SG - Adrian Oliver/Morris
C - B-Amaning
SF - Pondexter
PF - Jon Brockman

Second Unit
PG - Overton/Appleby
SG - Morris/Smith/Appleby - depends on what UW needs, whether it's scoring or defense
C - Joe Wolfinger/Wallace
SF - Justin Holiday/Morris
PF - Gant/Artem Wallace
(with this second unit, offense is going to be a problem. If Overton can successfully penetrate, and find open people, this unit will be ok).

If Washington is getting up and down the court with the tenacity that it did two seasons ago, who is the odd men out of the rotation? I really think Wallace, after off-season legal troubles and hamstring issues is going to continue to lose playing time while Gant learns how good he is physically under the basket, and on the perimeter. Wolfinger, I guess would also be out of the rotation because his size would slow down Washington's attempt to speed the game up, not slow it down. Then there is the traffic-jam at shooting guard, who is going to start and play as the back-up? Morris, Smith and Appleby all deserve a chance at the shooting guard spot as the back-up with Adrian Oliver's improve O, and tenacious D will land him the starting spot in the NIT opener.

If Washington does not do well in the Pre-Season NIT, look for Morris or Smith to move into the starting line-up at SG, and don't be surprised to see Overton play increased minutes if he can keep his turnovers down.

Part Two: The Big Two, Jon Brockman and Quincy Pondexter!
Part Three: How Washington Will Fare This Season?

Jones intrigues

Bob Condotta has posted some articles about Bobby Jones in the Rocky Mountain News. Here's an excerpt from last nights column. From the looks of it, Bobby is going to get a chance to play in Denver.

"He's been a very pleasant surprise," coach George Karl said.

Jones scored 13 points Thursday, bringing his average to 11.6 points in seven preseason games while shooting 52.9 percent (9-for-17) from three-point range and 54.6 percent overall. Jones, who shot 1-for-9 on three-pointers last season, credits his improvement to regularly staying after practice and to adjustments assistants have made with his shot.

I talked to my brother, who lives in Denver and is a big Nuggets fan, and he basically said that if Jones can hit open threes and guard shooting guards, he will play, as that is the only real hole in the Nuggets roster. But if Bobby can't guard 2's, he has to play small forward, which means he's going to get buried, as that position is locked up. I've always thought that Bobby could become a Bruce Bowen type player in the NBA, eventually, and Denver needs a player like that badly. The question is whether Jones can be good enough this year for solid minutes, and so far, it's looking possible. I'm glad Jones came to Denver in this summer's trade because he was never going to succeed in Philly. He'll succeed with a coach like Karl because no one will work harder. He doesn't need coaxing, he'll put in the time and leave it on the floor.

Good work Bobby!

U.S.S Olson Out Of Steam? Not yet...

Winning 20 games every year, and making the NCAA tournament year in and year out is good for some programs, but at Arizona, where Final Four appearances and National Championships are the custom, the past two seasons have been deemed failures in the Valley of the Sun.

In what has looked like a coach hanging on for too long, Coach Lute Olson has begun a resurrection in the desert with the shake up of his coaching staff. Lute created quite a stir in Tucson when he let long time assistant coach Jim Rosborough go and Olson re-hired former assistant Kevin O'Neill, who will take over as defensive guru and drill Sargent for UofA. The re-focus to the defensive side of the basketball is a common theme that has weighed heavily in many camps this off-season after the Pac-10 went offensive crazy last season.

Like USC, Arizona lost three of their starting five, but from this article out of SportingNews.com, people are thrilled that Ivan Radenovic, Mustafa Shakur and Marcus Williams have hit the road. These three were responsible with over 44% of the team's offensive production last season, but 44% of zero is still zero. It was clear to anyone who watched Arizona basketball last season that the team clearly did not have the same aggressiveness or tenacity that it had even two seasons before. The departure of these three has opened the door for younger and hungrier players to assume the roles that were haphazardly played by this underachieving trio.

With the departure of Williams, the ball and scoring responsibility is now in the hands of ex-volleyball player Chase Budinger and exciting sharp shooter and play maker Jawann McClellan. Budinger has big time talent, who averaged 15.8 ppg while pulling in 5.8 rebounds per game in his freshman season. McClellan is a super talent of his own, but injuries have been the Achilles heel of his development as a true superstar. There are times when you watch Arizona Basketball and you just have that feeling that McClellan is about to go off. This is usually right after he nails a three from two or three feet beyond the arc. These two players must carry the load if UofA has any shot at competing for a Pac-10 title (as mentioned yesterday, they will not be able to compete with UCLA this year).

Arizona also added talented point-guard Jerryd Bayless in this last freshman class. He brings pure scoring talent, along with the ability to put the ball on the floor and create his own shot. Does this sound familiar??? Yeah, he is Mustafa Shakur 2.0. Shakur was a big-time high school recruit who always played shot first pass never and that did not help him develop into the point guard that Olson was hoping that Shakur would turn into, ala Mike Bibby or Damon Stoudamire. While those last two players could create their own shots, they were also very talented passers who had success at the next level as NBA point guards. Hopefully Bayless will not be the same type of person that Shakur was, as Shakur was often disciplined and at times suspended from the Arizona Basketball team for conduct detrimental to the team.

WHERE DOES ARIZONA END UP: Chemistry must be the first problem addressed by Lute Olson and coaching staff this season. With the subtraction of locker room cancers Shakur and Williams, Budinger and co. take over a program that has underachieved the past two years. Arizona will be competitive, but is still a year away from being that dominate team that we are used to seeing in Tucson. Look for Budinger to have an All-Pac 10 First Team type of performance (and possibly First Team All-American type Performance, he was named to collegehoops.com All-American First team), and for McClellan to also have an All-Pac 10 Second Team year. This team will compete for the 2-4 spots this year in the Pac-10. Can it beat WSU, UO or even USC, that will remain to be seen. My projection, they finish 4th in the Pac-10 and again win 20 games behind UCLA, WSU and UO. A 4th place finish may keep Chase Budinger in Tucson for one more year, looking to compete for a Pac-10 title before venturing into the NBA. Budginer reminds me of a young Sean Elliot...does anyone else see that resemblance?

#4 in Pac-10...but building for the future.

Too Much Love in Westwood!

I am saying this right now, Kevin Love will kill UCLA's chance to compete for a national title.

As we know by now, UCLA is the favorite to win the Pac-10 title. Outside of WSU (yes, I say WSU...it kills me to say this, but how good were the Cougar-Bruin games last year...), there is no team that can compete with UCLA in the Pac-10. UCLA, who might have the best player in the Pac-10 in Darren Collison, might lose a game in Pac-10 play because of the strength of the Pac-10 and how hard it is to play on the road in this league. WSU, playing at Oregon, and WASHINGTON, they may not make it out (ok, sorry, I am writing this while watching UW vs. UO in football, how bad is Jason Gesser as a commentator? Just about as bad as he was in the CFL....This might be the last time he gets asked to be an announcer...and how about him having to be the commentator for a UW game...suck it Gesser!) of the Pac-10 without a loss.

Ok, back to my original statement. UCLA was so good last year attacking up the court quickly and having guys like Lorenzo Mato-Real and Luc Richard Mbah Abdul-Hamid filling the lanes and having Collison and co. feeding them. Kevin Love, who will be taking a lot of these two players' playing time, is an outlet passer. Which, in a fast break offense, seems like a good fit. But, Kevin Love will not get down the court as well as Mato or Luc Hamid and this will significantly affect the offensive chemistry that UCLA has last year.

THEY WILL BE SAVED IF: Josh Shipp steps up and becomes the player that was recruited out of Fairfax High School in Los Angeles. Shipp had "successful" left hip surgery two years ago and again this off-season on his opposite hip, but I have to ask, how excited can a 20-21 year old be with having a "successful" surgery on a part of the body we usually see deteriorated in a 60 year old man? Shipp is very talented. He was UCLA's second leading scorer last season at 13.8 ppg. He is going to have to elevate that to 16-17 points per game this year for UCLA to return to the Final Four for the 3rd consecutive year.

THEY WILL BE DOOMED IF: Kevin Love ends up being a slow as Spencer Hawes and makes their coach Ben Howland, have to change game style to try to utilize a star recruit's talent. What fouled Lorenzo Romar, might catch up with Howland. Beware of the tall-good passing white center! This is the worst-case scenario of course. Kevin Love might be as good as adversed. Like Hawes, Love is praised for his passing skills, and everyone is high on Love as they were on Hawes. Bill Simmons LOVED Hawes, and he LOVES Love. That makes me want to compare Love to Hawes even more. Spencer Hawes made Romar change his style of play, which is pressure, defense and up-and-down tempo, Kevin Love will make Howland change his game plan from being that same up-and-down team that they were the last two years...

Oh yeah, Aaron Affolo is gone...whatever that guy sucked when it mattered.

HOW WILL THEY FINISH: They win the Pac-10, they get scared and possibly beat by WSU once in Pullman, but they will not make it back to the Final Four as they get upset as the #1 seed in the West Section in the Elite Eight.

OJ Mayo Breaks into USC's Starting 5

With a sweet uppercut!

Seems like Timmy Floyd needs to spend less time recruiting 13 year olds, and more time teaching his starters how to take punches from O.J. Mayo. Apparently this happened September 28th, but he still has a jaw that's wired shut and has lost a ton of weight. Hackett started 16 games for USC last year, and averaged 21 minutes per. This qualifies him as the most experienced back court player that USC has. He played most of those minutes at point, which just so happens to be Mayo's desired position.

Sounds like a recipe for success!

USC has some blue chip recruits, but it lost a ton from last year, including 3 starters who logged half of the teams total minutes (over 80% of the PG/SG/SF minutes), and currently has little to no back court depth, and no one that can shoot the three consistently (unless Mayo can).

I predict an underwhelming performance by USC this year, and a big step back from them after last year. This team has too many questions that can only be answered by freshman and sophomore players - they only have one upperclassman who got off the bench at all last year!