...we will have a total of 10 active scholarship players this year with a total of 10 yrs of D1 experience and only 2 players with more than 1 year of experience:

Okoroh (Sr)
Lee (RsSr)
Davis (RsSo)
Coleman (Jr)
Harris-Dyson (Fr)
Sueing (Fr)
McCulloch (Fr)
Anticevich (Fr)
McNeill (Fr)
Winston (Fr)

With Paris Austin sitting the year out, that leaves 2 scholarships left if my math is correct.

Are there any legit grad transfers left on the market? With 2 commits already for next year taking Lee and Okoroh's spots, I can't see the staff giving the remaining 2 slots to anyone who will be around longer than a year given the players they are going after for 2018 (of course this doesn't factor other openings that may occur due to transfers, etc).

Does chauca receive a basketball scholarship this year?

it doesn't count. because of the coaching change, we're allowed to let one player leave and keep the schollie without it counting.

MoragaBear;842848205 said:

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No, they're done for 2017.

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So, there's no rest for Lee & Kingsley - Quite a change for Lee from Kentucky - Lee obviously looks like he's in the best shape imaginable; but one has to wonder how he will cope (not only physically) with the demand (in the "supply and demand" sense, not the requirement sense) to play more minutes than anyone else on the team [i.e., I imagine that, if he were up to it (again mentally as well as physically), there would never be any reason to take him off the floor - although it is truly hard to imagine any human actually capable of that, without some down side to it]

Foul issues might be more a problem than stamina as shot blockers are always in peril.

mikecohen;842848246 said:

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So, there's no rest for Lee & Kingsley - Quite a change for Lee from Kentucky - Lee obviously looks like he's in the best shape imaginable; but one has to wonder how he will cope (not only physically) with the demand (in the "supply and demand" sense, not the requirement sense) to play more minutes than anyone else on the team [i.e., I imagine that, if he were up to it (again mentally as well as physically), there would never be any reason to take him off the floor - although it is truly hard to imagine any human actually capable of that, without some down side to it]

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Two words:

DON'T FOUL !!!

MoragaBear;842848258 said:

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They're not going to run Okoroh and Lee into the ground. They won't be playing a 6'10 PF and 7 ft center for 40 minutes. There's really no need to play that big, anyway. Not with their style of defense.

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That's a brave face for a short squad. :p

Maybe we can be like (hank gathers and bo kimble) LMU and run people out of the gym.

mikecohen;842848246 said:

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So, there's no rest for Lee & Kingsley - Quite a change for Lee from Kentucky - Lee obviously looks like he's in the best shape imaginable; but one has to wonder how he will cope (not only physically) with the demand (in the "supply and demand" sense, not the requirement sense) to play more minutes than anyone else on the team [i.e., I imagine that, if he were up to it (again mentally as well as physically), there would never be any reason to take him off the floor - although it is truly hard to imagine any human actually capable of that, without some down side to it]

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Our women's team has had success (including a Final Four) with some playing nearly 40 minutes a game. I don't consider that ideal but it's not unworkable.

roman and cole welle will get lots of run

concordtom;842848294 said:

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Maybe we can be like (hank gathers and bo kimble) LMU and run people out of the gym.

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In this context, considering that one of them died on the floor: Not a good thought.

MoragaBear;842848414 said:

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I don't think so. They'll get some. Doubt it will be lots, though.

The team could certainly use more depth at the 4 and 5 but college basketball has changed. You simply don't need two 6'10+ guys out there at once all the time to succeed. If Sueing, Anticevich, Davis and Welle can rebound, they'll be fine with 1 big on the floor. And McNeill, Winston and Harris-Dyson are all big guards that can rebound, too.

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Not just rebounding. Maybe even more importantly: Rim Protection, and otherwise guarding "Bigs". Draymond's showed it can be done. I haven't heard that one of the "other" new wings has that in their set.

MoragaBear;842848414 said:

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The team could certainly use more depth at the 4 and 5 but college basketball has changed. You simply don't need two 6'10+ guys out there at once all the time to succeed. If Sueing, Anticevich, Davis and Welle can rebound, they'll be fine with 1 big on the floor. And McNeill, Winston and Harris-Dyson are all big guards that can rebound, too.

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Perhaps you should forward this post to Cuonzo Martin.

I think Sueing will be the backup 4 because the other guys, well, ...

Sluggo

MoragaBear;842848438 said:

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Rim protection's much more a part of the NBA game than collegiate, IMO.

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Only because they are better at it at this point, from having been at it longer. But looking back at the videos of the past NBA Championship series' in which the general level of play was substantially lower than now, and remembering the few games under Cuonzo when the whole team actually came together and played up to its potential (e.g., the blowout of Oregon here a couple years back), in which the level of play was raised considerably beyond most college games that I recall seeing, I think that the direction is clear: When greater levels are attained, the whole basketball world is on its tail. And, in any case, K2 were awfully proficient at it -- again, I don't remember many college teams at that level; and K2 were just beginning to scratch the surface of their own potential at this skill. And one has to assume that Marcus Lee is even better at that.

MoragaBear;842848414 said:

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I don't think so. They'll get some. Doubt it will be lots, though.

The team could certainly use more depth at the 4 and 5 but college basketball has changed. You simply don't need two 6'10+ guys out there at once all the time to succeed. If Sueing, Anticevich, Davis and Welle can rebound, they'll be fine with 1 big on the floor. And McNeill, Winston and Harris-Dyson are all big guards that can rebound, too.

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This is true. It is dangerous however to only have 2 post defenders on your entire team.

mikecohen;842848464 said:

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But looking back at the videos of the past NBA Championship series' in which the general level of play was substantially lower than now

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Careful. You're sure to spawn a lengthy response, and ire, from SFCity.

MoragaBear;842848414 said:

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The team could certainly use more depth at the 4 and 5 but college basketball has changed. You simply don't need two 6'10+ guys out there at once all the time to succeed.

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Please allow me to tease, but this sounds like talking outside both sides of one's mouth.

If I accept your hedge on the statement, you are saying Lee and King will rotate at the 5, and we'll play 4 guards out. Now that's an interesting concept!

sluggo_Cal;842848443 said:

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I think Sueing will be the backup 4 because the other guys, well, ...

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Or he might be the starting 4.

concordtom;842848488 said:

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Please allow me to tease, but this sounds like talking outside both sides of one's mouth.

If I accept your hedge on the statement, you are saying Lee and King will rotate at the 5, and we'll play 4 guards out. Now that's an interesting concept!

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It is a concept that is very successful. Most teams play this way now. Open the floor up, avoid doubles in the post, give room for your penetrators to get to the rim, lots of ways to score on offense. It certainly is a style that recruits like to play.

6956bear;842848506 said:

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It is a concept that is very successful. Most teams play this way now. Open the floor up, avoid doubles in the post, give room for your penetrators to get to the rim, lots of ways to score on offense. It certainly is a style that recruits like to play.

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I'm very much in support of an up-tempo game!
Full court trapping, guard oriented, sure!

But you've got to be able to shoot really well. Do we have that?

Lmu, 40 mins of hell...
Entertaining if nothing else.

concordtom;842848511 said:

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I'm very much in support of an up-tempo game!
Full court trapping, guard oriented, sure!

But you've got to be able to shoot really well. Do we have that?

Lmu, 40 mins of hell...
Entertaining if nothing else.

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Wyking is installing his philosophy. He may not have all the pieces right now to be really good at this style of play but he is planning on selling it to recruits. Really hard to find to good big players. Especially big players that are truly ready to play. I think he can sell this style. The P12 having Oregon make the Final 4 and with 14 draftees last night show a league on the rise. I like the change. 2017 may be tough to watch at times, but it looks like Wyking and staff will be able to attract enough good players to form a good program.

6956bear;842848543 said:

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Wyking is installing his philosophy. He may not have all the pieces right now to be really good at this style of play but he is planning on selling it to recruits. Really hard to find to good big players. Especially big players that are truly ready to play. I think he can sell this style. The P12 having Oregon make the championship game and with 14 draftees last night show a league on the rise. I like the change. 2017 may be tough to watch at times, but it looks like Wyking and staff will be able to attract enough good players to form a good program.

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Wyking has been succcessful in bringing in some good talent so far which makes me vastly more optimistic than I was when the change was made. But we are still a LONG ways from having the type of talent he needs to play the Louisville way if that's indeed what he'd like to replicate (and for good reason). We need a handful of tall, rangy, athletic big guys to play in order that way. To run the defense he'd want to run with the pressing, traps and switches, he needs need a lot of disruptive bodies like this. Now that the ship has been stabilized a bit (especially at lead guard), recruiting a bunch of long, rangy athletes is probably the next priority. And we'd likely need a lot of them because I'm guessing Wyking wants to use a 10 man bench like Pitino to keep up the intensity.

MoragaBear;842848205 said:

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No, they're done for 2017.

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I don't want to get bodies just to get bodies. I'd rather spread the minutes around to the players I have, for development purposes, and save the scholarship spots for players I really want in the following year. We need to get the class balance in order going forward as part of the long-term plan for the program.

concordtom;842848241 said:

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Does chauca receive a basketball scholarship this year?

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Didn't he leave the team?

I think that's the key, MB, with Cal able to fill their roster holes at guard and wing with their signees in 2017, and their commits for 2018. That enables Wyking & Co to focus on signing two bigs for 2018, when Lee and Okoroh are departed.

MoragaBear;842848643 said:

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Like I've been saying, don't be surprised if they eventually sign 3 more for '18, with one not being a 4 or 5, but still a Top 100 guy. And if that non-big commits before the 2 bigs, watch the fretting and panicking ensue...

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Personally I wouldn't fret about small ball if the team is full of top 100 players.

MoragaBear;842848643 said:

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Like I've been saying, don't be surprised if they eventually sign 3 more for '18, with one not being a 4 or 5, but still a Top 100 guy. And if that non-big commits before the 2 bigs, watch the fretting and panicking ensue...

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For once, that'll be a good problem to fret about.

MoragaBear;842848643 said:

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Like I've been saying, don't be surprised if they eventually sign 3 more for '18, with one not being a 4 or 5, but still a Top 100 guy. And if that non-big commits before the 2 bigs, watch the fretting and panicking ensue...

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I would love another top 100 wing. 2 good bigs as well. It would put Cal over the limit and someone would have to go either by their choice or the staffs choice. Sounds like Cal may be zeroing in on another commit.

Jeff82;842848611 said:

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I don't want to get bodies just to get bodies. I'd rather spread the minutes around to the players I have, for development purposes, and save the scholarship spots for players I really want in the following year. We need to get the class balance in order going forward as part of the long-term plan for the program.

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One or two grad transfer post players would have surely helped this year's squad and I don't see how they in any way would have curtailed the other players' development as we only have two posts total and they're both Seniors. Surely having another serviceable 4 or 5 would have made practices better, and if they were grad transfers, they would in no way affect class balance.

Alas, as MB has pointed out, that is not to be.