Andy Katz first power 36 for the 2020-2021 season
- Thread starter Chishawk1425
- Start date
Is the Big10 West a basketball division?
Historically......yep.
Illinois- basketball school, though they sucked pretty bad for about a 10-12 year stretch recently.
Iowa- Nah...we're a wrestling school.
Purdue- yup.....
Wisconsin- well, unfortunately they're "good" at both....but have a better chance of being "elite" at basketball, because they are ****suckers who actually enjoy being a third wheel/gate keeper in the Big Ten for football.
Minnesota- lol they suck at everything
Nebraska- their own fans get confused as to whether they have a basketball program.......
Northwestern- gonna be a no, but its not like the ceiling is too high for any sport for them.........but also f*** Pat Fitzgerald.
Gonzaga lost a lot. They do return Ayayi and Kispert and Timms but I think I would put them around the 5-8 range. Baylor I would put #1 and Virginia and Nova in the top 3. I would put Iowa, Wisconsin and KU in the 4-6 range. I think Illinois is being overhyped. They weren't as good as Iowa and Wisconsin last year and they lost two of their top 5 players. Also, ASU is not a top 15 team. That is a horrible take.
^ Did you forget that we ended your season with a block of Garza, finishing above you in the standings and ranked higher? If anyone is overrated out of 4-6, it’s Wisconsin (whom we also beat, in Madison). Give Iowa or Illinois UW’s schedule from last year, and we are Big Ten champs.
If anyone is overrated out of 4-6, it’s Wisconsin (whom we also beat, in Madison). Give Iowa or Illinois UW’s schedule from last year, and we are Big Ten champs.^ Did you forget that we ended your season with a block of Garza, finishing above you in the standings and ranked higher?
KP
Wisconsin: 22
Iowa: 23 and this is without Bohannon.
Illinois: 30
Strength of schedule according to KP:
Iowa 4
Wisconsin 10
Illinois 20
Illinois finished ahead of us in the standings and beat us head-to-head at the end of the season. Hard to say they weren’t every bit as good as Iowa if not better.
They lost Nichols and Felize and add two top 50 guards in Curbelo and Miller. Hate to say it but that’s probably going to be a big upgrade. Both the new guys are way better than the players they replace. I also think their transfers that sat out last year will contribute significantly. As much as I hate it, they are loaded and could very well be a final four team. They have size (the Russian and mutant Cockburn) and an unbelievably skilled guard crew (dosunmu, Frazier, Miller, Curbelo). Granted, they don’t shoot all that well but will still be a very tough team to defend for anyone.
We have the edge over every team in the conference with respect to experience. I think this will be the difference at the end.
^ One thing that will be huge for us is if someone can pick up the slack of Griffin’s 3-point contribution ... I’m optimistic that Frazier returning to form + new guards + Ayo a year older could do it, but that’ll be one of our few question marks.
Needless to say, you guys are loaded, as is the conference. Depressed such a season couldn’t be played in packed and crazy gyms, but I’m thankful it looks like it will be played at all!
Needless to say, you guys are loaded, as is the conference. Depressed such a season couldn’t be played in packed and crazy gyms, but I’m thankful it looks like it will be played at all!
Lost Griffin as well. And I wouldn’t count on their freshman being great. They are good freshman but aren’t one and some type. Miller will be the one contributing more. Curbelo good IQ but very limited on offense and not good defender and limited athletically. Their transfers are coming from really small schools. I don’t expect big production from them.
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Calling Curbelo limited on offense just shows a complete lack of knowledge of the guy. He's the type of guy that can contribute a lot on offense without scoring at all. He can score. He's an average shooter. That's his limitation. Going to be a stud, but won't be asked to do much next season.
The transfers don't need to be big producers. They need to hit 35%+ from 3 pt, and they're both capable of it. Frazier shot 30% last season. Doubt that happens again. We should be much better from behind the three point line.
Indeed same for calling him “limited athletically” lol. He’s also a very good defender. I’ve seen him play in person. Wish we had him.
“Curbelo good IQ but very limited on offense and not good defender and limited athletically.” Lol. I can’t believe a buster like that is a top 50 guard who has been playing on national teams since he was 15. Also can’t believe florida, Kansas, Oregon and Louisville offered him. Dummies.
He’s comparatively slight which could be a problem defending Big Ten guards. Also, his shot is not pretty/pure. Other than that... he’s very, very good and deserves every bit of his ranking.
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I think he will be an average defender over the course of his career. Really difficult to argue for any player being a good defender in year 1. It's a complete crapshoot. If he had a shot, he would've had a great opportunity to be a 5-star, but he's far from a perfect player. However, he has a lot of tools and the potential to be a very good player in college.
Then again... I though Tev Jones would be a good player for you guys but he washed out.
so... what the heck do I know.
so... what the heck do I know.
This is from scouting report
Not a physically imposing player and average in most all physical markers. Well above average basketball IQ and feel for the game as a playmaking distributor. Tremendous vision and passing skills. Deft ballhandler who thrives on fakes and change of pace. Knows how to manipulate the play to get what he wants. Outside shooting is currently a liability. Not a game-changer defensively or on the boards
and I’m not saying the kid won’t eventually be good. Just that he isn’t ready to be a year one major contributor.
Not a physically imposing player and average in most all physical markers. Well above average basketball IQ and feel for the game as a playmaking distributor. Tremendous vision and passing skills. Deft ballhandler who thrives on fakes and change of pace. Knows how to manipulate the play to get what he wants. Outside shooting is currently a liability. Not a game-changer defensively or on the boards
and I’m not saying the kid won’t eventually be good. Just that he isn’t ready to be a year one major contributor.
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Read: “I’m unable to defend my low information crap take.”
“This is from scouting report“. Which? When? Whose? Does it say anything that contradicts anything that Jay or I said? I’d so, post it with a link.
Two years ago:
Three weeks ago: https://writingillini.com/2020/08/28/illinois-basketball-expect-andre-curbelo-year-one/amp/
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Wow, you are going to be wrong. Curbelo will be one of the best players on the team. Kid is really good. That scouting report is a joke. He played against Sierra Canyon with two five stars, a bunch of four stars and Lebron’s kid and he was the best player on the court. 25 points, 12 assists, 20 rebounds. Dominated the game. He makes everybody on the team better. Best ballhandler and passer at Illinois since Deron Williams. He was a sure starter until Ayo returned. He could still start but will likely take Feliz’ roll off the bench to start the season. He is way more athletic than some think. He has videos at UI practices doing windmill dunks and alley oops at 6-1.
As for the transfers, they have had a year in the system and have been very good. Underwood says that Hutcherson is the best athlete and shooter on the team. He missed two years of high school with injuries (car accident was one of them) and he went D-3. His dad is an NBA exec and he worked out with NBA players who told him he needed to move to D-1. He chose Illinois over offers from Notre Dame, Marquette and Creighton. Pull up video of his sophomore year and you will see what he brings. He’s also 20 pounds heavier now and went toe to toe with Ayo all last season. 6-6 guard.
Grandison didn’t play his senior year in high school and ended up at Holy Cross. He was their leading scorer. He also played well in practice.
Illinois returns 5 starters from its most common lineup last year: Kofi, Giorgi, Williams, Ayo, Frazier. Williams, Ayo and Frazier are the best defensive guard group in the league and Kofi erases mistakes. Your guys can shoot the heck out of the ball. Let’s play.
This is what I was trying to get across. I watched him in person in a few games last year. Illinois hasn’t seen end to end speed like his since Dee Brown. Is he as fast as Dee was? No but he’s plenty quick enough to force the issue every single time he gets the ball.
As I said, compared to a lot of seasoned guards in the B1G, he’s scrawny. Doesn’t yet have a B1G/NBA body. I think that fact has (rightly) colored some of his grade outs. He’s likely to be bullied a bit by bigger bodied guards . But I’m telling you...athletically, he tends toward the right tail of the bell curve right now. He’ll be extremely effective when he adjusts to the speed and physicality of the league.
Defensively he wreaked havoc at the high school level. Very intelligent opportunist who had no trouble staying in front of anyone he faced.
He’s so fun to watch ... has that kind of electric presence where you know something cool could happen every time he touches the ball...but I hate him now that he plays for Illinois. Lol. I honestly thought this kid was going to end up in Florida.
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