Union Street Hoops

[FieldGoodie05]

Loved the predictions about starting lineups for next year.  Clearly, Lexus saw the handwriting on the wall regarding point guard play.  One thing overlooked was that not only is Joe Burton a highly recruited kid out of high school, he is (I'm pretty sure) the highest ranked player (ESPN) ever the play for Valpo.

It appears to be the highest player rankings on one team.

Burton 4*
Bakari 3*
Hazen 3*
Smits 3*
Bradford 2.5*

[a3uge]

Loved the predictions about starting lineups for next year.  Clearly, Lexus saw the handwriting on the wall regarding point guard play.  One thing overlooked was that not only is Joe Burton a highly recruited kid out of high school, he is (I'm pretty sure) the highest ranked player (ESPN) ever the play for Valpo.

Jay Harris would like a word.

After he's done chucking contested threes from near half court.

But seriously, Jay Harris was rated as a 93 from ESPN.

[vu72]

Loved the predictions about starting lineups for next year.  Clearly, Lexus saw the handwriting on the wall regarding point guard play.  One thing overlooked was that not only is Joe Burton a highly recruited kid out of high school, he is (I'm pretty sure) the highest ranked player (ESPN) ever the play for Valpo.

Jay Harris would like a word.

After he's done chucking contested threes from near half court.

But seriously, Jay Harris was rated as a 93 from ESPN.

OK, you got me on the ESPN ranking--BUT, although Jay was rated a 93 and Joe an 86, Jay was NOT a top 100 player and was No. 22 at his position while Joe was rated No. 59 in his class and No. 15 at his position.  I'll take Joe!   

[covufan]

Kenny Harris and a Mr Basketball from Valpo in 1994 were also nationally ranked recruits


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[vu72]

So I'm wondering whether or not Parker Hazen may be the answer at the 4. Here is a kid who is athletic and has played inside for at least his senior year.  Can rebound and make moves around the basket. He is not a 3 at this point as he can't hit the 3 consistently.  So how about Bakari at he point, Tevonn at the 2, Joe Burton at the 3, J at the 5 and Parker at the 4?   Sounds good to me!  Wonder what a guy with a lot more experience like fwalum would think?

[VU2014]

So I'm wondering whether or not Parker Hazen may be the answer at the 4. Here is a kid who is athletic and has played inside for at least his senior year.  Can rebound and make moves around the basket. He is not a 3 at this point as he can't hit the 3 consistently.  So how about Bakari at he point, Tevonn at the 2, Joe Burton at the 3, J at the 5 and Parker at the 4?   Sounds good to me!  Wonder what a guy with a lot more experience like fwalum would think?

I agree he is more of 4 at this point because of jump shot but has the mobility of a 3. His minutes will probably be determined by his ability to play solid defense as freshman. Needs to work on that mid-range/3pt jump shot so we can space him around the floor play him as a 3 & a 4. He'll only be a freshman next year so I'm not expecting him to be an instant starter or immediate contributor. Being versatile will help him get playing time a freshman.

Starting Line-Up:
1- Bakari
2-Tevonn
2/3- Markus
3- Joe
5- Jay

I think we are going be playing more small ball next year, because we don't have any experienced PF on the roster. Maybe Coach starts Parker/Mileek at the PF to begin the game but they only average 10-15 min per game as freshman. Both seem like they have quite a bit of development and are not polished freshman (not many are).

I also don't see us playing both Jay and Derrik at the same time. One thing that I like is that we are going to have more depth next season. More reliable depth on the roster. I really think Micah will be better next season. Maybe he's not the star PG some hoped he could be (even though there is a still a chance) but he can run the point but can also be a scorer eventually. He was only a freshman last year became better as the season went on. Max is solid. Kiser is a high energy guy and could take another step.

[FieldGoodie05]

Loved the predictions about starting lineups for next year.  Clearly, Lexus saw the handwriting on the wall regarding point guard play.  One thing overlooked was that not only is Joe Burton a highly recruited kid out of high school, he is (I'm pretty sure) the highest ranked player (ESPN) ever the play for Valpo.

It appears to be the highest player rankings on one team. Burton 4* Bakari 3* Hazen 3* Smits 3* Bradford 2.5*

So to take this a bit further, do these "rankings" translate to playing time for VU.  I like the projected starting lineup:

Bakari PG (3 star)
Walker SG (2 star)
Golder SF/G (2 star)
Burton SF/PF (4 star)
Sorolla C (2 star)

Starting lineups might mean heaviest minutes in this years lineup too.  So that leaves Smits (3 star), Hazen (3 star) and Bradford (2.5 star) to come off of the bench.  Who gets the most significant minutes of these guys?

Smits (~18 minutes)
Hazen (~15 minutes)
Bradford (~15 minutes)

This is of course speculation, but it lends well to a comment earlier that says we are going to be a solid deeper team this year.  But really only in talent and scholarship body count.  The %'s show we have a VERY young roster.

Freshmen experience with VU (5-7 players) - 54% of roster
Sophomore experience with VU (4 players) - 31% of roster
Junior experience with VU (0 players) - 0% of roster
Senior experience with VU (2 players) - 15% of roster

It will be a bumpy year in 2017/18, especially in non-conference.  The positives I see are the following:

1) The experience and speed at the G position is an improvement over 2016/17.  Losing lexus hurt, but we gain B1G speed and handling and I like Max Joseph getting more ball handling minutes.  Last year Max had to play "bigger" because of our limited depth at the 2-4 positions.  I don't want to overlook Max at the PG position in 2017/18.  Though he might be spelling Tevonn at times, though limited because he is our work horse for next year.

2) Center position, I am genuinely excited to see these (2) guys grow together.  We had glimpses last year of a formidable duo that I think will only improve.  Coach Gore will work his magic here.

Areas of concern:

1) PF position, not much to add here because many have already expressed concern here.

2) Defensive attitude / abilities.  I think this can only be developed, because we can't really say the carry over is going to happen this year.  We have good (G) defense out of Tevonn and Max.  But other than these (2) players, I don't know how our defense is going to look.  Sorolla needs growth defensively, but he had good flashes last year.  Smits needs his brain to catch up with his foot speed.

[a3uge]

Loved the predictions about starting lineups for next year.  Clearly, Lexus saw the handwriting on the wall regarding point guard play.  One thing overlooked was that not only is Joe Burton a highly recruited kid out of high school, he is (I'm pretty sure) the highest ranked player (ESPN) ever the play for Valpo.

It appears to be the highest player rankings on one team. Burton 4* Bakari 3* Hazen 3* Smits 3* Bradford 2.5*

So to take this a bit further, do these "rankings" translate to playing time for VU.  I like the projected starting lineup:

Bakari PG (3 star)
Walker SG (2 star)
Golder SF/G (2 star)
Burton SF/PF (4 star)
Sorolla C (2 star)

Starting lineups might mean heaviest minutes in this years lineup too.  So that leaves Smits (3 star), Hazen (3 star) and Bradford (2.5 star) to come off of the bench.  Who gets the most significant minutes of these guys?

Smits (~18 minutes)
Hazen (~15 minutes)
Bradford (~15 minutes)

This is of course speculation, but it lends well to a comment earlier that says we are going to be a solid deeper team this year.  But really only in talent and scholarship body count.  The %'s show we have a VERY young roster.

Freshmen experience with VU (5-7 players) - 54% of roster
Sophomore experience with VU (4 players) - 31% of roster
Junior experience with VU (0 players) - 0% of roster
Senior experience with VU (2 players) - 15% of roster

It will be a bumpy year in 2017/18, especially in non-conference.  The positives I see are the following:

1) The experience and speed at the G position is an improvement over 2016/17.  Losing lexus hurt, but we gain B1G speed and handling and I like Max Joseph getting more ball handling minutes.  Last year Max had to play "bigger" because of our limited depth at the 2-4 positions.  I don't want to overlook Max at the PG position in 2017/18.  Though he might be spelling Tevonn at times, though limited because he is our work horse for next year.

2) Center position, I am genuinely excited to see these (2) guys grow together.  We had glimpses last year of a formidable duo that I think will only improve.  Coach Gore will work his magic here.

Areas of concern:

1) PF position, not much to add here because many have already expressed concern here.

2) Defensive attitude / abilities.  I think this can only be developed, because we can't really say the carry over is going to happen this year.  We have good (G) defense out of Tevonn and Max.  But other than these (2) players, I don't know how our defense is going to look.  Sorolla needs growth defensively, but he had good flashes last year.  Smits needs his brain to catch up with his foot speed.

Max Joseph was 9th on the team in defensive rating. I thought the Illinois game showed how much of a liability he was when their guards would shoot right over him. He doesn't guard on the ball well either - had only .3 steals per game, which is terrible for a guard. He doesn't have the quickness like Lexus to recover from playing close on the ball.

[FieldGoodie05]

It will be a bumpy year in 2017/18, especially in non-conference.  The positives I see are the following:

1) The experience and speed at the G position is an improvement over 2016/17.  Losing lexus hurt, but we gain B1G speed and handling and I like Max Joseph getting more ball handling minutes.  Last year Max had to play "bigger" because of our limited depth at the 2-4 positions.  I don't want to overlook Max at the PG position in 2017/18.  Though he might be spelling Tevonn at times, though limited because he is our work horse for next year.

Max Joseph was 9th on the team in defensive rating. I thought the Illinois game showed how much of a liability he was when their guards would shoot right over him. He doesn't guard on the ball well either - had only .3 steals per game, which is terrible for a guard. He doesn't have the quickness like Lexus to recover from playing close on the ball.

Solid point, and in thinking from the ranking POV I guess he didn't have an efficient year.  My only concern with taking rankings from last year is that he appeared to play out of position for the majority of his minutes.  His sturdy nature had him and Kiser guarding bigger players.  But I get the speed concern if he guards PG or the SF position.

[valpo64]

My big concern for next year....... where will our scoring come from?     We are losing about 40 ppg in just 2 guys!

[VU2014]

My big concern for next year....... where will our scoring come from?     We are losing about 40 ppg in just 2 guys!

We are not going to be able to replace Alec. He's one of the all-time greats and is the once in a decade or more type player we hope to find.

Legitimate concern. We have guys that have a lot potential and we think they can be pretty good but are unproven because we haven't seen them play.

I think we are hoping Joe Burton and Bakari could be 13-15point per game guys and as well as hoping Markus Golder could sort of give us a Shane Hammink level performance his first year at Valpo (which was 8.9ppg), so possibly hoping he could give a 7-10ppg his first year. Lots of new faces playing on the court next year. You also have to think Tevonn will be a more featured part of the offense, so his point totals may tick up as well.

We're all hoping Jay/Smits/Micah can take another step in their game. Its definitely going to be a transition to a new Era for Valpo basketball. Lots of potential good pieces but we just don't know yet.   

[talksalot]

One word Kiser

[valpo64]

KISER?   BUT AS YET HE HAS SHOWN NO INDICATION THAT HE IS  A SCORER OR EVEN WANTS TO SHOOT.  HE HAS PASSED OVER MANY OPPORTUNITIES TO SHOOT WHEN HE WAS IN THE GAME.

[SanityLost17]

If Kisser is a primary option next year, we are screwed, plain and simple.  If you argue this fact you are an ignoramus.  The end of the year this year showed he had some ability to score when nobody else could.  That doesn't mean he is a D1 athlete.  Settle down everyone.     

[FWalum]

My big concern for next year....... where will our scoring come from?     We are losing about 40 ppg in just 2 guys!

I think I am more concerned about where the rebounding will come from.

[EddieCabot]

If Kisser is a primary option next year, we are screwed, plain and simple.   

[/url]

[VU2014]

My big concern for next year....... where will our scoring come from?     We are losing about 40 ppg in just 2 guys!

I think I am more concerned about where the rebounding will come from.

Good point.

Jay and Derrik need to get better at rebounding. Jay was solid last year but completely hit a wall at the end of the season. Derrik really struggled grabbing boards. NEEDS to learn to better position himself for rebounds and use the 7'2" frame. I feel like he drifted to far out of the paint sometimes and ceded position to opposing players.

Side Note: One thing I would like to see Derrik change this season is his attitude on the court after getting called for a foul. I love that he clearly cares but he needs to not complain about every foul, because the refs notice that stuff. It's ok to disagree with the call sometimes but pick your spots. Just needs to be aware of the body language he is projecting. Just a little thing. I'm not even sure if that is something the coaching staff would talk to him about or even address.

[VU2014]

http://www.nwitimes.com/digital/audio/union-street-hoops/podcast-union-street-hoops-episode/audio_f69bc398-13f6-11e7-ae3c-6760011d6f22.html

"Jubril Adekoya joins NWI Times reporter Paul Oren and Parker Gatewood on Episode 23 of Union Street Hoops. Adekoya talks about his time at Valparaiso, including the adversity-filled 2016-17 season."

https://twitter.com/NWIOren/status/846831329799032835

[covufan]

One word Kiser

Soze

[FieldGoodie05]

One word Kiser

Soze

HaHaHa, well put!

[agibson]

Jay Harris would like a word.

After he's done chucking contested threes from near half court.

But seriously, Jay Harris was rated as a 93 from ESPN.

OK, you got me on the ESPN ranking--BUT, although Jay was rated a 93 and Joe an 86, Jay was NOT a top 100 player and was No. 22 at his position while Joe was rated No. 59 in his class and No. 15 at his position.  I'll take Joe!   

And in Jay's case the gaudy ESPN ranking may not to have been supported by offers from "big time" basketball programs (interest from Ball State, New Mexico State, Virginia Tech, etc. ... offers really only from Valpo?). It seems like Joe got attention not just from ESPN, but also from college coaches (offers from Oregon, Oklahoma, Oklahoma State, etc.).

[covufan]

For those that have been following these great interviews, they have another number themed guest this week:

https://twitter.com/NWIOren/status/847836753633439744

[agibson]

For those that have been following these great interviews, they have another number themed guest this week:

Nice! I'd seen on Twitter that Mark had volunteered. I'm a little surprised by Bryce, only because initially he seemed to really cut all public ties with the university, fan base, regional media, etc.

It'll be interesting to see how candid they're willing to be. And, I suppose, how much Paul (and Parker?) probe.

[covufan]

For those that have been following these great interviews, they have another number themed guest this week:

Nice! I'd seen on Twitter that Mark had volunteered. I'm a little surprised by Bryce, only because initially he seemed to really cut all public ties with the university, fan base, regional media, etc.

It'll be interesting to see how candid they're willing to be. And, I suppose, how much Paul (and Parker?) probe.

I'm sure some of the questions, or area of questioning, were negotiated ahead of time.

[valpo64]

Perhaps an announcement of a VU vs. Vandy game?