MBB 2016-17

[M]

Pg: Bradford, Hammink, which ever of the other 2 is most improved
SG: Walker, Hammink
SF: Peters, Hammink, Adekoya
PF: Peters, Adekoya, Sorolla, Smits
C: Adekoya, Smits, Sorolla

I know we have more guys, but they will play garbage/injury minutes. I think Hammink or Adekoya will end up coming off the bench but playing starter minutes. I don't think it will be a very deep team, and avoiding injury will be huge.

[SanityLost17]

Took a few moments today to think about basketball for the 1st time in a long time.  I think we will basically have an 8 man rotation.  My big concern on depth is the 2/3 positions.  Tevonn and Hammink are great as starters, but who backs them up?  Jubril is not a 3 and will be needed at the 4/5, Max doesn't shoot well enough to play the 2/3, and Bradford is strictly a point guard.  That leaves Lexus, who's shot is good enough, but might be a defensive liability at times due to his size.  I think he will get the backup minutes here and play mostly the 2 guard with Tevonn migrating between the 2/3 and Hammink playing majority 3.  The 4 will be Peters and the 5 will be Smits with Jubril playing backup to both positions; probably 8ish minutes for peters and 20ish minutes for Smits.  For ease of rotation, Jubril may start the 5 and Smits come off the bench.  Really doesn't matter either way to me as both will get lots of minutes. I don't think we are going to see Hammink as a backup point this year.  We have lots of point guards on the roster and not a lot of people to play the 3.  IF Skara had stayed, this would be a different story. So our backups are probably Max at the point, Lexus at the 2/3, and Jubril at the 4/5.   After that it gets pretty dicey as far as backup talent is concerned.

What about Jaume Sorolla?

If Sorolla is a capable backup big man.  Things will be much more exciting this year as it opens up more minutes for Jubril at the 4 and Peters at the 3, and gives Hammink more opportunities to play the 1-2 instead of the 3.   However, I will remain skeptical of Sorolla until I see him play a college game.   

[covufan]

Pg: Bradford, Hammink, which ever of the other 2 is most improved
SG: Walker, Hammink
SF: Peters, Hammink, Adekoya
PF: Peters, Adekoya, Sorolla, Smits
C: Adekoya, Smits, Sorolla

I know we have more guys, but they will play garbage/injury minutes. I think Hammink or Adekoya will end up coming off the bench but playing starter minutes. I don't think it will be a very deep team, and avoiding injury will be huge.

I think sometimes that fans are more worried about what position a player can/will play - and the coaches worry about defensive/offensive matchups, and getting 2-3 players to 'click' during any given game.  Adekoya brought the ball up the floor many times last year, but I hardly think of him as a PG.  We've heard that Smits will impress from the start (if I were a betting man...).   We've also heard that Williams was quick, really quick, earlier this summer.  I think that Peters, Adekoya, Hammink, Walker, Bradford, Smits and possibly Williams get see playing time in almost every game they are available.  I think Joseph and Sorolla will see valuable minutes, but probably only about 3/4 of the games they are available.  Davidson will see more minutes this season, many of which will come when game is undecided when he enters.  Levingston will see mostly game already decided minutes. 

If Bradford and Williams are as quick as they say, would love to see some up-tempo play and a kick-out three to wear the other team out!

[vu72]

Watch this highlight tape on Sorolla and tell me he won'y be playing.  He is way more athletic then Vashil (from a scoring standpoint) and seems to have some shot blocking ability as well.

We could go very big with Alec, Derrik and Sorolla on the floor at the same time.

http://www.nbadraft.net/players/jaume-sorolla

[78crusader]

We are overlooking injuries.  Someone always seems to get hurt.  This year's team doesn't appear to have the depth we've enjoyed the last 2 years.  Not sure what the over/under would be for games played by Smits, but he seems to be injury prone and I wouldn't count on him playing every game -- or maybe even most of the games.  I'm holding my breath on him. 

Paul

[FWalum]

Watch this highlight tape on Sorolla and tell me he won'y be playing.  He is way more athletic then Vashil (from a scoring standpoint) and seems to have some shot blocking ability as well.

We could go very big with Alec, Derrik and Sorolla on the floor at the same time.

http://www.nbadraft.net/players/jaume-sorolla

I agree for the most part, but he is not always particularly fluid. He does impress me with how he is able to catch the ball and finish in the two instances where he is running the floor.  Hope that is indicative of his overall ability.

[valpopal]

Who else can we expect to see in the 28-30 mpg range on this years team?

Shane will be the man.  As the season went on he was relied on/needed more.  Against GW he played 27, against Florida State he played 26 and against St. Marys he played 32!!

I hope Shane can build upon the promise he showed this past season and become a prime contributor for the whole season this time around; however, Tevonn Walker is the player I will be watching closely when the new season starts. I want to see if he can overcome his disastrous sophomore slump and regain the shooting that we witnessed his freshman year. His dramatic downturn last year was a head-scratcher, and his performance in the next year will be crucial.


For example, Tevonn's conference stats in his freshman year vs. his sophomore year:


2014-2015  Field Goal 46.4%; 3-Point Field Goal 43.8%; Free Throws 76.4%
2015-2016  Field Goal 33.8%; 3-Point Field Goal 25.9%; Free Throws 61.5%


If Shane continues his progress and Tevonn regains his shooting touch, they will complement Alec very well.

[oklahomamick]

He is way more athletic then Vashil (from a scoring standpoint) and seems to have some shot blocking ability as well.

When you say athleticism, I think of guys that play above the rim and can go grab the ball in the air (Vashil).  Jaume reminds me more of a taller Kevin Van Wijk.  Strong and uses his body well. 

[FWalum]

Tevonn Walker is the player I will be watching closely when the new season starts. I want to see if he can overcome his disastrous sophomore slump and regain the shooting that we witnessed his freshman year. His dramatic downturn last year was a head-scratcher, and his performance in the next year will be crucial.

I don't think that Tevonn's "disastrous sophomore slump" was a head-scratcher. Talking to Rod Moore towards the end of last season Tevonn had been battling an accumulation of injuries, and injuries to an athlete like Tevonn that relies on exceptional athleticism can drastically affect performance.  His early season performance was extremely promising at 13ppg and almost 47% from 3pt range and then it fell off from there.  I just hope that he regains the confidence he showed at the beginning 1/3 of the year and doesn't let last years injuries get into his head.  I believe that he can and will be the player we all know he can be!

[a3uge]

I shudder when I see Shane mentioned as the backup point guard. He has a lot of value bringing the ball up in transition, but he's way too turnover-prone starting sets with the ball. He needs to play off ball more, use his athleticism for backdoor cuts, and drive off of kicks from decent ball movement. He has decent enough range to stretch the defense still, and would stay out of foul trouble guarding opponents 3s (which are typically weak in the Horizon).

[oklahomamick]

starting lineups, playing time and positions are uncertainties.  But what I've found to be consistent year after year is not releasing the schedule until mid-late August.   

[IndyValpo]

Albany pulls out of game against Duke on November 12 due to dispute over North Carolina's House Bill 2.

We need to call them......Albany's win total the last 5 years 19,24,19,24,24

[valpopal]

Albany pulls out of game against Duke on November 12 due to dispute over North Carolina's House Bill 2.

We need to call them......Albany's win total the last 5 years 19,24,19,24,24

Maybe we should call Duke! 

[frontrowfan]

starting lineups, playing time and positions are uncertainties.  But what I've found to be consistent year after year is not releasing the schedule until mid-late August.   

.  Frustrated by the lack of info too.  Certainly would like to travel to some the pre conference games but need more lead time to plan.  I asked for a a schedule but was told that it wasn't settled yet.  I don't need the whole schedule just what away games that have been confirmed 

[wh]

Albany pulls out of game against Duke on November 12 due to dispute over North Carolina's House Bill 2.

We need to call them......Albany's win total the last 5 years 19,24,19,24,24

Cultural Marxism: Imposing uniformity of thought and behavior on an entire society.

Less than 4 months away from a golden opportunity to stop this madness in its tracks...

[justducky]

Albany pulls out of game against Duke on November 12 due to dispute over North Carolina's House Bill 2.

We need to call them......Albany's win total the last 5 years 19,24,19,24,24

Cultural Marxism: Imposing uniformity of thought and behavior on an entire society.

Less than 4 months away from a golden opportunity to stop this madness in its tracks...

From the schedule standpoint Albany might be a decent fit and I don't care how or why they reached their decision. From the political standpoint we should move this back to General Off Topic under either Lefties Outraged at Trump or Pence is a scary dude.
Where can I get some Libertarian Johnson-Weld stickers?

[VULB#62]

Albany pulls out of game against Duke on November 12 due to dispute over North Carolina's House Bill 2.

We need to call them......Albany's win total the last 5 years 19,24,19,24,24

Cultural Marxism: Imposing uniformity of thought and behavior on an entire society.

Less than 4 months away from a golden opportunity to stop this madness in its tracks...

Damn.  Let's just set up a totally separate forum for this political sh@$! and keep the Valpofanzone  focused on Valpo sports. And, yes, let's go after Albany for the only reason that they have a good freaking DI record and a decent RPI.

[wh]

NY's a-hole socialist governor took a simple athletic contest between 2 universities and turned into a shameless political stunt. After that the last thing I'm interested in seeing the Crusaders do is play Albany or any other government funded college from that state.

If you don't want to mix discussion of athletics and politics, then complain to the governor of NY. In the meantime I'm unwilling to discuss scheduling Albany without also discussing it's ridiculous political context, regardless of whether it ruffles the feathers of the progressive group-think mindset that predominates this board.

[M]

If Albany won't play in NC why in the world would they come play in Indiana 👫👬👭

[IndyValpo]

If Albany won't play in NC why in the world would they come play in Indiana 👫👬👭

Ah you forget that our soon to be unemployed Governor backed away from the RFRA bill when literally every business in Indiana objected.  My opinion, if the NY Governor wants to help us with scheduling so be it.

[valpopal]

If Albany won't play in NC why in the world would they come play in Indiana 👫👬👭

Ah you forget that our soon to be unemployed Governor backed away from the RFRA bill when literally every business in Indiana objected.  My opinion, if the NY Governor wants to help us with scheduling so be it.

I don't think the Governor of New York would want Albany to cancel one game on account of political correctness and then schedule a game in Indiana against a team called the Crusaders! I say again, call Duke instead.

[NativeCheesehead]

Agree there is some political overlap in this case. However, since we as a society are now incapable of civil political discourse, and both sides are more interested in demonizing the other rather than working with them, I don't want any politics on this board. I'm a fairly new member and if most disagree that's fine. But this toxic political environment has invaded most of my life through work, and i would just as soon let discussions about Valpo Basketball be about Valpo Basketball.

[bbtds]

If Albany won't play in NC why in the world would they come play in Indiana 👫👬👭

Ah you forget that our soon to be unemployed Governor backed away from the RFRA bill when literally every business in Indiana objected.  My opinion, if the NY Governor wants to help us with scheduling so be it.

I don't think the Governor of New York would want Albany to cancel one game on account of political correctness and then schedule a game in Indiana against a team called the Crusaders! I say again, call Duke instead.

If Duke wanted to schedule Valpo they would have already called ML or MatLo (what do you think?).

[wh]

Agree there is some political overlap in this case. However, since we as a society are now incapable of civil political discourse, and both sides are more interested in demonizing the other rather than working with them, I don't want any politics on this board. I'm a fairly new member and if most disagree that's fine. But this toxic political environment has invaded most of my life through work, and i would just as soon let discussions about Valpo Basketball be about Valpo Basketball.

Under normal circumstances I don't ever mix Valpo basketball and politics.  In this instance, however, I was expressing an opinion as to why I hope we don't schedule Albany, given the controversial, politically-motivated decision by the Governor of NY that precipitated the sudden opening in Albany's schedule. Presumably, our administrator didn't consider it out-of-bounds; otherwise, he would have moved it or deleted it.  Hopefully, you're able to get past the stress without suffering any permanent damage.

By the way, I'm taking you at your word that you find political discussion stressful, and not just political opinions with which you disagree.

[Valpower]

However, since we as a society are now incapable of civil political discourse, and both sides are more interested in demonizing the other rather than working with them, I don't want any politics on this board.

Often the problem in having civilized discourse lies in the idea that there are two sides.