2013-14 Prospectus by My Summit League

[goon]

Re: 2013-14 Prospectus by My Summit League

NDSU will be good because of defense but their slow it down offense like western is not really IMO the best for NDSU. It takes away the play making ability of braun and slows down the xfact in wright. Its like they slow it down to get good match ups for Bjorkland down low but it really needs to be I think Braun as the first option and go from their.

Dont know enough about Denver but since they bring back a solid team I would expect them to be top 2 going into league play, but the travel in the summit is no cake walk and some schools need an adjustment period to get use to it. not sure how their current confrence compares for travel but the summit are all new schools and gyms to play in that they will have a steep learning curve.

Oakland should be good but if Bader scores like he does against IPFW they will lose if he gets 20+ they will probably win, just need to shore up its D.

SDSU has a solid core back with new roles which will take some time to learn. Bittle at point, Carlson and white at guards and Dykstra and Heemstra down low. We will go the way Dkystra goes, if he shows up as a double double machine and shoots a good 40+% we will do alright like he does at home, but if the road dykstra shows up and only a few shots agame under 10 point will probably lose more then often. Horstman should have a much more expanded role off the bench this year. I think he could be a pleastant surprise scoring, he has a great shot and athletic, just needs to figure out how he fits in and stays out of foul trouble with Heemstra. Prince no idea what to expect. And a lot of wild cards with redshirt and incoming freshman, its tought to see who will step up. my guess is it will be Donlan and severyn coming off the bench in that order After Horstman.

USD is tought to figure out, beats oakland but loses to UMKC, tough to figure that out. IPFW will probably be middle of pack and Omaha right with um. Western I think will really take a nose dive. They lose their 3 best players, CC3, Parks and Houpt, they will be good defensively but I really think they are going to be a horrible offensive team unless they have some stud coming in who can score more effectively then what they return. Iupul will porbably still be bad just not as bad as this year.

[Southeast]

Re: 2013-14 Prospectus by My Summit League

I think SDSU is bound to struggle early. The development of Bittle, Donlan, Devine, and maybe Severyn/Broman will determine whether they can claw their way up to a top-5 finish. My guess is that we end up in the 5-6 range but be a team that no one will want to play at the Tournament.

IUPUI had lots of injured players. I don't know how many of them return, but if they do I'm sure they will be better and may not be a shoe-in for last place.

One thing I learned this year is that significant improvement is not something that automatically is going to happen as a team goes through another off-season. A year ago I looked at our roster and our record and thought, "oh wow, look out next year!". I thought we would see noticeable development from many of our players and blow the doors off the conference. In reality, I'm not sure if this year's SDSU team could be last year's. Maybe by a little. NDSU and Denver both return a lot of players like we did. Both are probably expecting they'll see noticeable improvement like I did. Who knows what will happen.

[beauspencer]

Re: 2013-14 Prospectus by My Summit League

Points were brought up about both South Dakota and Omaha being higher, and I agree. However, when I started breaking down the numbers and looking at what talent will be coming in, it's a jumble in the middle. Omaha really struggled defensively, they were 346th or 347th (of 347) in scoring defense most of the season. I could see Denver winning it, and I can see SDSU finishing higher than Oakland. It's spots 5 thru 8 that will be a battle, just like it was this year (only the teams will be better).

[Kemo]

Re: 2013-14 Prospectus by My Summit League

IMO, worst case scenario for a healthy Jacks team is 4th in the league, and it could be much better pending the development of the underclass men.

We will be returning 4 seniors (2 of which will be in their 5th year) who will have participated in 2 NCAA Tournaments. There won't be many teams in the country that can boast that. There's no doubt there will be some adjustment to life without Nate and Tony, but the cupboard is far from bare.

[filbert]

Re: 2013-14 Prospectus by My Summit League

With Bittle at the perimeter and Devine in the middle as a shot-blocking presence, the Jacks could possibly be significantly better defensively overall next year, vs. this year. Devine will have to also develop as an interior offensive threat for the Jacks to be a real force again next year--to take some of the defender's heat off of Dykstra, who with White and Carlson should be the "big three" scoring-wise for the Rabbits.

Broman coming in as a true freshman is a real wild-card. Wouldn't be totally surprised to see Nagy redshirt him; wouldn't be surprised if he comes in ready to play.

From here, it looks like it could be a deeper team at all positions than this year's team, and will probably need to be after Wolters. If the young'uns develop, I agree with those who say we'll be a team a lot of people won't be especially excited to play at the end of next season.

See also the "Who's Got Next" thread.

[NoVaJack]

Re: 2013-14 Prospectus by My Summit League

Donlan is being vastly overlooked in this thread.

[Grizzled_Jack]

Re: 2013-14 Prospectus by My Summit League

IUPUI was hit with everything last year. Don't think you can write them off as a last place team. WIU loses a lot. UMKC would have been a last place guarantee, and getting them out of the conference improves the average quality a lot. USD's lack of fan interest and penchant for keying off of SDSU only could cost them a couple of places.

[MontanaRabbit]

Re: 2013-14 Prospectus by My Summit League

Donlan is being vastly overlooked in this thread.

I dont know if you can say that. He has not played one minute of college ball. If someone would have said Prince would be on the bench as much as he has been, I would have thought you were nuts.

Hope your right though and he comes ready to play next year.

[jacksfan29]

Re: 2013-14 Prospectus by My Summit League

DU's loss last night in the WAC tourney has to make me pause, re-think my pick and go with a healthy NDSU for the regular season title next season. I realize we lost to Bakersfield this year, that was a REALLY bad loss. But to lose to a mid-200s team, in March with a shot at the NCAA tournament... Not good.

[jackmd]

Re: 2013-14 Prospectus by My Summit League

Donlan is being vastly overlooked in this thread.

Skinny dude in a very physical league. Taylor Braun and Nate Wolters were skinny as freshman too. Impossible to say where he will fit in until he gets on the court.

[OldHare]

Re: 2013-14 Prospectus by My Summit League

Skinny dude in a very physical league. Taylor Braun and Nate Wolters were skinny as freshman too. Impossible to say where he will fit in until he gets on the court.

If we look at Bader, he is not exactly a buff character.(not exactly Frank Gaines) He does seem to possess a "wirey" build with a level of determination to get the ball. The rest of the OU team slams some screens to give him a head start. Nate was never considered "athletic" or physical, but he did have the moves and the tenacity to compete. I am expecting that a year of observation will make Donlan a bit wiser as well as stronger. The redshirt season did not hurt a local fellow named Brayden. I will lean toward ready to play than not ready to play if called upon.

[2002jack]

Re: 2013-14 Prospectus by My Summit League

DU's loss last night in the WAC tourney has to make me pause, re-think my pick and go with a healthy NDSU for the regular season title next season. I realize we lost to Bakersfield this year, that was a REALLY bad loss. But to lose to a mid-200s team, in March with a shot at the NCAA tournament... Not good.

I had to chuckle about the ESPN broadcast. Valvano noted that SDSU doesn't turn the ball over and doesn't make stupid fouls. That made me think of Bakersfield and I briefly got enraged. We got screwed by the refs.

[NoVaJack]

Re: 2013-14 Prospectus by My Summit League

I dont know if you can say that. He has not played one minute of college ball. If someone would have said Prince would be on the bench as much as he has been, I would have thought you were nuts.

Hope your right though and he comes ready to play next year.

I bet he starts and is one of the top scorers next year. We don't rebuild, we reload. We are losing a lot in two players, but this RS freshman class is going to be a lot of help. And I bet we have a deeper bench next year.

[SF_Rabbit_Fan]

Re: 2013-14 Prospectus by My Summit League

If we look at Bader, he is not exactly a buff character.(not exactly Frank Gaines) He does seem to possess a "wirey" build with a level of determination to get the ball. The rest of the OU team slams some screens to give him a head start. Nate was never considered "athletic" or physical, but he did have the moves and the tenacity to compete. I am expecting that a year of observation will make Donlan a bit wiser as well as stronger. The redshirt season did not hurt a local fellow named Brayden. I will lean toward ready to play than not ready to play if called upon.

I don't see how comparing a redshirt freshman to a first team all conference player and top five scorer in the country could possible be off. On top of that, I expect White, Carlson, and Dykstra to be putting in 30+ minutes a game next year. Center and Point Guard are the two starting spots that will be open, and he doesn't fit either of those positions. Exactly where is Donlan going to play?

Talking about Matt Donlan is the equivalent of talking about what job offers Nagy leaving for a better offer. None of us really has an idea. I hope it works out, but I'm not putting any stock into him until I see it with my own eyes.

With all that being said, Ruben Silva seems interesting to me, somebody is likely to play point guard to spell Bittle next year.

[OldHare]

Re: 2013-14 Prospectus by My Summit League

I don't see how comparing a redshirt freshman to a first team all conference player and top five scorer in the country could possible be off. On top of that, I expect White, Carlson, and Dykstra to be putting in 30+ minutes a game next year. Center and Point Guard are the two starting spots that will be open, and he doesn't fit either of those positions. Exactly where is Donlan going to play?

Talking about Matt Donlan is the equivalent of talking about what job offers Nagy leaving for a better offer. None of us really has an idea. I hope it works out, but I'm not putting any stock into him until I see it with my own eyes.

With all that being said, Ruben Silva seems interesting to me, somebody is likely to play point guard to spell Bittle next year.

Speaking of spelling Bittle, I do not think that Brayden will be overlooked for that job at this point(unless there is some miracle in the wings). Historically Brayden has been the first choice to backup any rests that Nate took before Bittle arrived. Additionally, I am not certain where there was comparisons of Donlan as a successor to any top 5 scorers or point guards. There was some similarity to the build of Bader and Nate in relation to strength. There was even a reference to how a redshirt year helped Brayden. There is also some chatter about the potential for a deeper bench which would certainly include the possibility that Donlan may be called upon. You are right on where the starting lineup has gaps, but the rotation(or lack of rotation) could always surprise the crowd.