What Grade Do You Give the 26-27 Roster?

It is an -

  • Total voters
    108
  • Poll closed .
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Ryan James has the Gophers pegged in the #10 spot in the BIG.
 


topos said:
I voted "A."

First off, I think Niko is an "A" coach, and the 'whole' of next year's team will be greater than the sum of its parts.

When I watched games last year, there were a few things I lamented about over and over again that I hoped Niko would address in the offseason. There were also quite a few positives I hoped we could build upon. I feel strongly that Niko "fixed the bad" and "built upon the good."

First - Shooting. We had some good shooters, but not nearly enough. Reynolds playing 35+ minutes per game killed the offense. I loved what he brought in terms of toughness, strength, and defensive prowess, but man, it hurt the offense's flow when the defense could collapse the lane. With the batch of new guards, if you cannot hit an open 3, you won't be playing (barring defensive situations, foul trouble, etc).

We have an abundance of guard options next year (yes, some unproven), and they'll get great looks just by playing in the system. Teams won't be able to defend us like they did last year, and I expect a significant jump in KenPom offensive efficiency rating.

Second - Post Size. I think we did about as well as we could have done playing small ball in a massive Big Ten last year (JCJ and Grove were a big part of that). Niko is also known to play smaller centers; he always has. But the league keeps getting bigger, and I was really happy to see Niko adjust, grab Kordel, and have a true big that'll hopefully be a force against the other notable 7-footers in conference.

Third - Injuries. I have no beef with the hurt guys last year, but I was relieved to see them walk. I don't think that was an easy decision for a coach to make, but it was a necessary one. We saw Willis play some, and it didn't look good (his foot could have been bothering him, idk).

I think trading him for Evans for one year is a massive upgrade. Both are undersized, but Evans is a proven contributor in Niko's system, can shoot the 3, and should acclimate immediately.

Fourth - The Nucleus. The guys that battled every single night and kept us in the games we had no business being in are all back. They'll be as confident as ever and have plenty of reinforcements now, so they won't all need to play 30+ minutes per game.

I really hope we leverage this returning core, play some tough non-conference games, and break the dreaded neutral-court losing streak!
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First - Shooting. We had some good shooters, but not nearly enough. Reynolds playing 35+ minutes per game killed the offense. I loved what he brought in terms of toughness, strength, and defensive prowess, but man, it hurt the offense's flow when the defense could collapse the lane. With the batch of new guards, if you cannot hit an open 3, you won't be playing (barring defensive situations, foul trouble, etc).

Reynolds didn't have an outside shot. He had everything else, and I say that we will miss him. When we had no fast break but he pushed the ball anyway and somehow made a shot, found a teammate, or went to the line. His defense was the best on the team. His physicalness and toughness at guard will be hard to replace also.

I agree with everything else.
 

march madness said:
First - Shooting. We had some good shooters, but not nearly enough. Reynolds playing 35+ minutes per game killed the offense. I loved what he brought in terms of toughness, strength, and defensive prowess, but man, it hurt the offense's flow when the defense could collapse the lane. With the batch of new guards, if you cannot hit an open 3, you won't be playing (barring defensive situations, foul trouble, etc).

Reynolds didn't have an outside shot. He had everything else, and I say that we will miss him. When we had no fast break but he pushed the ball anyway and somehow made a shot, found a teammate, or went to the line. His defense was the best on the team. His physicalness and toughness at guard will be hard to replace also.

I agree with everything else.
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In the last part of the season we had 2 guys on the floor Reynolds and Grove that can't shoot. It was an outstanding performance to win 8 games. We have size, shooting and depth- inexperienced in some spots- but we have it. I love the potential.
 

bga1 said:
In the last part of the season we had 2 guys on the floor Reynolds and Grove that can't shoot. It was an outstanding performance to win 8 games. We have size, shooting and depth- inexperienced in some spots- but we have it. I love the potential.
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Again, you like the offensive potential as better. I agree. We lost our most athletic and best defender, that is my additional observation. IF you add better shooters, but less strong, athletic players, you give up defense. This is a trade. It is the one thing Niko wasn't able to add. It was thought he wanted more shooting, more size, and more athletic. We got the first two.
 


march madness said:
Again, you like the offensive potential as better. I agree. We lost our most athletic and best defender, that is my additional observation. IF you add better shooters, but less strong, athletic players, you give up defense. This is a trade. It is the one thing Niko wasn't able to add. It was thought he wanted more shooting, more size, and more athletic. We got the first two.
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Hopefully we make up for the loss of Reynolds’ D with our post size- which is far better
 

march madness said:
Again, you like the offensive potential as better. I agree. We lost our most athletic and best defender, that is my additional observation. IF you add better shooters, but less strong, athletic players, you give up defense. This is a trade. It is the one thing Niko wasn't able to add. It was thought he wanted more shooting, more size, and more athletic. We got the first two.
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I think Palmer and Groves will be able hang defensively, Groves showed some promise on that side of the floor at Texas Tech, and Palmer at Villanova showed he could guard 1-4. Things could get interesting if Durkin, Asuma and Evans are 1-3 though, but all three at least are solid on team defense
 

Asuma, Palmer, Groves and Shin will get time based on their ability to play D and size. . I am concerned about Evans lack of size going against bigger and stronger BIG PG's. In spite of that he did play considerable minutes at PG for Niko at CSU.

Durkin's foot speed and agility will be better than last year. If Palmer is able to hold his own, he could certainly split time with Durkin.

The dynamics change every year depending on new personnel and player development
 

The Deliberate Stranger said:
I think Palmer and Groves will be able hang defensively, Groves showed some promise on that side of the floor at Texas Tech, and Palmer at Villanova showed he could guard 1-4. Things could get interesting if Durkin, Asuma and Evans are 1-3 though, but all three at least are solid on team defense
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I had forgot about Palmer! His skillset was a need, an athletic defender who can still hit from 3.
 



The Deliberate Stranger said:
Not saying it can't eventually happen in years two or three, but if Kordel was as good Liam Robbins who would have gotten more run last year, even with their stacked front court, or another program would've given more money to the o to their team and start. Liam Robbins was the top portal entree when Pitino got him from Drake. The following year him and Marcus Carr were top ten portal entries. That's a tall ask for next year
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To be fair it was more than stacked. They had three players taken early in the first round. The center and two forwards. That was an impressive group of bigs in front of kordel.
 

The Deliberate Stranger said:
I think Palmer and Groves will be able hang defensively, Groves showed some promise on that side of the floor at Texas Tech, and Palmer at Villanova showed he could guard 1-4. Things could get interesting if Durkin, Asuma and Evans are 1-3 though, but all three at least are solid on team defense
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I think Durkin will see a huge reduction in minutes (16-20), and Asuma will see a modest one (20-25). And I say that as a compliment to the guys we are bringing in.

I think Durkin is absolutely going to splash this year. He won't be as protected defensively by the zone, but I think he will be an instant offense guy off the bench, and have a huge year shooting. Niko can be more selective about his PT, run sets for him, and get him off the court when the D-matchup isn't favorable (or keep him on when they throw the zone wrinkle).

Just in general, I'm really excited to see what returning guys like Grove, Asuma, Durkin, and JCJ can do on the court in spurts, knowing they won't be needed for 38+ minutes. I think they all have the potential to be much more efficient, aggressive, and improved shooters with fresher legs.
 





A rough minutes guess:

1. Evans 32
2. Asuma 32
3. Durkin 28
4. JCJ 30
5. Kordel 24

6. G Grove 16 almost all at 5
7. N Groves 16 at 3/4
8. Palmer 12 at 1/2
9. Winters/Anderson 6 at 3/4
10. Tomes/Shinholster 4 at 1/2
 

topos said:
I think Durkin will see a huge reduction in minutes (16-20), and Asuma will see a modest one (20-25). And I say that as a compliment to the guys we are bringing in.

I think Durkin is absolutely going to splash this year. He won't be as protected defensively by the zone, but I think he will be an instant offense guy off the bench, and have a huge year shooting. Niko can be more selective about his PT, run sets for him, and get him off the court when the D-matchup isn't favorable (or keep him on when they throw the zone wrinkle).

Just in general, I'm really excited to see what returning guys like Grove, Asuma, Durkin, and JCJ can do on the court in spurts, knowing they won't be needed for 38+ minutes. I think they all have the potential to be much more efficient, aggressive, and improved shooters with fresher legs.
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If Bobby only playing 16-20 than this is a hell of a team. I think he will be a 25-28 minute a game guy, sounds like he's much leaner and more agile if you believe the new Gopher Gazette podcast .Durkin also a high IQ team defender, so I don't think is defense is as much of a liability as a lot of people think. I also think Isaac and Kyan will 28 to 30 minute types. Don't think anyone will be in the mid 30 s this year
 

howeda7 said:
A rough minutes guess:

1. Evans 32
2. Asuma 32
3. Durkin 28
4. JCJ 30
5. Kordel 24

6. G Grove 16 almost all at 5
7. N Groves 16 at 3/4
8. Palmer 12 at 1/2
9. Winters/Anderson 6 at 3/4
10. Tomes/Shinholster 4 at 1/2
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It would be disappointing if Winters only gets a few minutes. Wasn’t he a four star recruit? And he practiced everyday against championship caliber players. I expect much more from him.
 

Bobek said:
It would be disappointing if Winters only gets a few minutes. Wasn’t he a four star recruit? And he practiced everyday against championship caliber players. I expect much more from him.
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Probably a toss-up between him and N Groves for the bulk of the bench minutes. But he's already hurt so...
 

howeda7 said:
A rough minutes guess:

1. Evans 32
2. Asuma 32
3. Durkin 28
4. JCJ 30
5. Kordel 24

6. G Grove 16 almost all at 5
7. N Groves 16 at 3/4
8. Palmer 12 at 1/2
9. Winters/Anderson 6 at 3/4
10. Tomes/Shinholster 4 at 1/2
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You left out Mpoyi. He will play. Kordel is going to cost a bundle to keep next year so it will be tough to keep him. Mpoyi will be a good one and he has to be ready next year and he may be ready this year. Grove is smart, a hustler and easy to like but he's a 4 in the Big10 and he needs to develop a shot.
 

bga1 said:
You left out Mpoyi. He will play. Kordel is going to cost a bundle to keep next year so it will be tough to keep him. Mpoyi will be a good one and he has to be ready next year and he may be ready this year. Grove is smart, a hustler and easy to like but he's a 4 in the Big10 and he needs to develop a shot.
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We’ve already decided the Michigan big kid is a stud? And that the other Michigan guy not so much because he currently has an ankle injury?

Wo Nellie, let’s actually see them play a bit first!
 

Bobek said:
It would be disappointing if Winters only gets a few minutes. Wasn’t he a four star recruit? And he practiced everyday against championship caliber players. I expect much more from him.
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I'm in the minority from many of you...but I think for teams to be good you gotta have a best player.
Cade Tyson was our best player last year.
Who is it this year? To me, Winters Grady has the best chance to splash...be our wow guy. Maybe Kyan Evans gets pumped full of confidence from Niko and he picks up his CSU vibe. Maybe Nolan Groves thinks he's back in his high school mode and he's a beast. Maybe Kordel is so big and strong he becomes Kofi Cockburn. It has to be somebody. 5 guys averaging 10 isn't going to win close games in my experience.
I don't see any of our returning guys blowing up into "the guy". Langston Reynolds was an awesome closer...we need that guy to emerge in addition to a Tyson replacement to get to 8 wins again.
 

You never know until you see them play. Based on the signing hype I was convinced that Durkin would start with Tyson backing him up. When the year started it was pretty clear why those were reversed. I have hope that there are more players this year that “could” be “that guy.” Somebody is going to lead us in scoring. I like the notion of a 10 man rotation or, at least, the depth to survive a couple injuries.
 

SelectionSunday said:
We’ve already decided the Michigan big kid is a stud? And that the other Michigan guy not so much because he currently has an ankle injury?

Wo Nellie, let’s actually see them play a bit first!
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Grady hasn't been written off by me, I can't wait to see him play! My point on Kordel is that is it sounds like he is good enough where he has turned heads in practice with the other players and has a chance to be perhaps an 8 pt 8 board guy. If he does that at 7-2, he will be one of the tougher guys to keep. It is just hard to find 7 foot plus guys that describe as athletic.
 

The Deliberate Stranger said:
If Bobby only playing 16-20 than this is a hell of a team. I think he will be a 25-28 minute a game guy, sounds like he's much leaner and more agile if you believe the new Gopher Gazette podcast .Durkin also a high IQ team defender, so I don't think is defense is as much of a liability as a lot of people think. I also think Isaac and Kyan will 28 to 30 minute types. Don't think anyone will be in the mid 30 s this year
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I'm definitely being a bit hard on BD! I just see us playing WAY more man-on-man with all the healthy, able-bodied players, and those early-season games when he was on ice skates defensively against inferior competition are etched into my mind.

You can't deny he is a one-dimensional scorer, and I guess my big-picture prediction is that, with so much size and shooting coming in, BD is probably the returning player most impacted (in terms of total minutes). But 16- 20 is probably light in retrospect. That's a fair criticism on your end.

Make no mistake, I think he's a gamer, and I would be shocked if he's not in there in crunch time if we need a big shot or a sure-handed FT shooter.
 

At this time, Durkin and Asuma are my two favorites on this squad. There could likely be newbies that will earn PT at BD's expense. If so we will be a better team.
 

I really think Jaylen Crocker-Johnson will fill the role of Cade Tyson. He averaged 13.4 ppg and 6.8 rpg last season and he can score at all three levels. It sounds like he is back healthy and hopefully will stay that way. He will step it up. He is going to have a great season. Just my opinion.
Go Gophers!
 

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