Just when I think that Juice Brown has shown me everything in his repertoire, he drives into he paint and throws an impossible pass to a teammate for a score. Barring injury, he is going to have a phenomenal season.

The team is healthy (even Jordan Lauf who had some surgery on his left knee over the summer), and this group is working extremely hard during the practices.

It appears that Coach K is tinkering with the idea of using Zach Garber at power forward alongside Nathan Boothe as they were together during some of the drills.

I was pleasantly surprised to see Aubrey Williams making an effort to raise his stock with the coaches after a nothing year for him last season. I was sure that he'd get his walking papers before school was out last spring.

Right now I'd say that Stuckey Mosley is playing the best of the newcomers. I'm guessing that he might become Brown's backup at PG. He was playing the point in practice and gave a good accounting of himself. And he keeps his head up when he brings the ball up the court.

The other freshman, Kurt Hall, is definitely not 6-6. He and Mosley were standing next to each other on the court and Hall was just a shade taller than Stuckey, who is listed as 6-3.

2015 commit Taylor Adway is reported to have grown another inch and is now a legitimate 6-9.

great little report fred

i really like the 2015 class. think it could coach k's best.

we need some depth inside and this is the year barber and williams get their chance to become important rotation guys. we can't always play 3 big guards a point and boothe. unless weatherspoon becomes more of a defensive enforcer our interior d may need another big against some teams.

good to hear about mosley. i've had a hunch about him. gotta love the development potential of a player who can handle and shoot and likes to keep his head up and play smart.

(10-17-2014 04:38 AM)pono Wrote:  great little report fred

i really like the 2015 class. think it could coach k's best.

we need some depth inside and this is the year barber and williams get their chance to become important rotation guys.

I think barber is better than williams by a razor thin margin. If he shaves off a few pounds and makes better cuts he'll stay ahead. Might even play with the Clippers some day. (Sorry-couldn't resist :-))

(10-17-2014 04:38 AM)pono Wrote:  great little report fred

i really like the 2015 class. think it could coach k's best

I believe the coaching staff feels the same way that you do about this group, Pono.

And with both Boothe and Garber returning for the 2015-16 season, this would allow for Knapke to redshirt and put on some muscle while learning his position.

The early signing period begins November 12, less than a month away.

Now if I can only weasel that business trip to Virginia Beach in November.....

(10-17-2014 05:40 AM)H2Oville Rocket Wrote:  

(10-17-2014 04:38 AM)pono Wrote:  great little report fred

i really like the 2015 class. think it could coach k's best.

we need some depth inside and this is the year barber and williams get their chance to become important rotation guys.

I think barber is better than williams by a razor thin margin. If he shaves off a few pounds and makes better cuts he'll stay ahead. Might even play with the Clippers some day. (Sorry-couldn't resist :-))

trust me, my autocorrect has led to far weirder and more embarrassing typos

(10-18-2014 01:50 AM)pono Wrote:  

(10-17-2014 05:40 AM)H2Oville Rocket Wrote:  

(10-17-2014 04:38 AM)pono Wrote:  great little report fred

i really like the 2015 class. think it could coach k's best.

we need some depth inside and this is the year barber and williams get their chance to become important rotation guys.

I think barber is better than williams by a razor thin margin. If he shaves off a few pounds and makes better cuts he'll stay ahead. Might even play with the Clippers some day. (Sorry-couldn't resist :-))

trust me, my autocorrect has led to far weirder and more embarrassing typos

Got a text changed from "corn" to "porn" once. Haven't topped that one, yet.

Will Jon Jon Williams fill the open starting spot? Can Garber actually show some scoring ability this year? Will Lauf start shooting like he did in high school? Is Aparicio a player who can give us some quality minutes after 2 years of being injured?

(10-18-2014 09:52 AM)Rocket75 Wrote:  Will Jon Jon Williams fill the open starting spot? Can Garber actually show some scoring ability this year? Will Lauf start shooting like he did in high school? Is Aparicio a player who can give us some quality minutes after 2 years of being injured?

Yes, maybe, not likely, could be.

Not exactly what you're asking, but here's guess at position depth.

PG Brown, Mosely
2G JJ Williams, Lauf
WF Drummond, Aparicio, Applewhite (2nd semester)
PF Weatherspoon, Hall, A Williams
C Boothe, Garber

Nice thread - I'm ready for some basketball!

Are we looking at an 11 man rotation?

Aparacio is the wild card for me. I have no idea what he can contribute. If he gets minutes I thin we'll be ten deep. Hall and A Williams will be sitting a lot I would think. Aparacios advantage is almost two years in the program but I still know next to nothing about his skill level.

(10-18-2014 10:48 AM)DetroitRocket Wrote:  

(10-18-2014 09:52 AM)Rocket75 Wrote:  Will Jon Jon Williams fill the open starting spot? Can Garber actually show some scoring ability this year? Will Lauf start shooting like he did in high school? Is Aparicio a player who can give us some quality minutes after 2 years of being injured?

Yes, maybe, not likely, could be.

Not exactly what you're asking, but here's guess at position depth.

PG Brown, Mosely
2G JJ Williams, Lauf
WF Drummond, Aparicio, Applewhite (2nd semester)
PF Weatherspoon, Hall, A Williams
C Boothe, Garber

Here's my guess (after Applewhite is available):

Brown, Drummond and J. Williams share time at the two guard spots. (Obviously, Juice plays the point when he's in.)
SF - Applewhite
PF - Weatherspoon
C - Boothe
Lauf backs up the 3 and 4
Garber backs up the 4 and 5

That's only 8, so most likely at least one more guy will be thrown into the mix. Also, in the games before Applewhite is eligible, some guys will get a chance to show what they can do. Applewhite is a wild card to me since I haven't seen him play. Maybe Applewhite ends up coming off the bench if Lauf has improved his offensive game a bit and cuts down on the fouls.

(10-18-2014 03:58 PM)Dwight Wrote:  

(10-18-2014 10:48 AM)DetroitRocket Wrote:  

(10-18-2014 09:52 AM)Rocket75 Wrote:  Will Jon Jon Williams fill the open starting spot? Can Garber actually show some scoring ability this year? Will Lauf start shooting like he did in high school? Is Aparicio a player who can give us some quality minutes after 2 years of being injured?

Yes, maybe, not likely, could be.

Not exactly what you're asking, but here's guess at position depth.

PG Brown, Mosely
2G JJ Williams, Lauf
WF Drummond, Aparicio, Applewhite (2nd semester)
PF Weatherspoon, Hall, A Williams
C Boothe, Garber

Here's my guess (after Applewhite is available):

Brown, Drummond and J. Williams share time at the two guard spots. (Obviously, Juice plays the point when he's in.)
SF - Applewhite
PF - Weatherspoon
C - Booth
Lauf backs up the 3 and 4
Garber backs up the 4 and 5

That's only 8, so most likely at least one more guy will be thrown into the mix. Also, in the games before Applewhite is eligible, some guys will get a chance to show what they can do. Applewhite is a wild card to me since I haven't seen him play. Maybe Applewhite ends up coming off the bench if Lauf has improved his offensive game a bit and cuts down on the fouls.

basically other than pg and center all the spots are interchangeable. going with a lineup of say juice, drummond, weatherspoon, garber and booth is possible if we want to go big for a bit. a lineup of juice, jonjon, drumming, applewhite, boothe can go small. lot's of it depends on who you can guard. guys like lauf, applewhite, weatherspoon can defend multiple positions so they can play in different combinations. aparicio is a strange one. been here for years taking upo a scholarship but never seen the court. isn't much of a physical presence although he has decent height. i hope he's a great shooter as we could use more spacing. the other thing is really how well the younger guys come into their own. lauf, applewhite, j williams, garner have all shown a lot of promise. who becomes a consistent big time player?

of course, most of this season rests on the health of juice and booth. if those guys stay on the court we will be good. lose either one and we may have issues.