Freshman class better than advertised?

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Payne and Henley are what I had hoped. Waiting to see Carrington, as I think he’ll be the best shooter of the newbies. Obviously going to have to wait to see what we have in Betts. The surprise for me is Ola Joseph. Everybody was describing him as a project that might not get off the bench, but he’s been strong and so active. Best case is if Carrington and Henley can play well enough to keep Ramberg on the bench.
 

Not to be a downer but we have played the 254 and 346th ranked teams in kenpom. It's a nice start yes but I'm not sure we should be altering expectations based on these 2 games. Let's get to some P5 teams and see what we have.
 

the non-conference games are all about getting experience for the young players. important to get Carrington in there so he can be part of the process.

and then, get Battle on the court as soon as possible so that he gets to work with Garcia.

this is a work in progress. I do think the ceiling this season is higher, due to the athletic ability on the court.

you look at Henley, JOJ and Payne, and they are clearly more athletic than anyone the Gophers put on the court last season at those positions.
 

leib0039 said:
Not to be a downer but we have played the 254 and 346th ranked teams in kenpom. It's a nice start yes but I'm not sure we should be altering expectations based on these 2 games. Let's get to some P5 teams and see what we have.
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Defense will be a challenge for the freshman against the P5 teams but I don't see any reason they can't perform on the offensive side of the ball like they have been. They are athletic and skilled for freshman.
 



leib0039 said:
Not to be a downer but we have played the 254 and 346th ranked teams in kenpom. It's a nice start yes but I'm not sure we should be altering expectations based on these 2 games. Let's get to some P5 teams and see what we have.
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Totally agree.
 


short ornery norwegian said:
the non-conference games are all about getting experience for the young players. important to get Carrington in there so he can be part of the process.

and then, get Battle on the court as soon as possible so that he gets to work with Garcia.

this is a work in progress. I do think the ceiling this season is higher, due to the athletic ability on the court.

you look at Henley, JOJ and Payne, and they are clearly more athletic than anyone the Gophers put on the court last season at those positions.
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Henley has a high ceiling. He has a lot to learn, over dribbles at times but he has all the tools to be really, really good. I'd say he's a little ahead of Coffey at the same juncture. I love this class for their potential. Last year the team played a more sound brand of ball because they were old. They just didn't have the talent. This year we have the talent but not the experience. By the end of this year we will be a tough team to beat. Next year? Look out.
 

Tucker32 said:
People simply hadn’t seen JOJ play a lot. Those who had knew he could contribute due to his athletic ability. He’ll be able to guard multiple positions, and his athleticism will allow him to pick up a few points each game at the basket.
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The weird thing about JOJ is that he played on the prep team that he had a hard time getting minutes at. Nice player!
 



bga1 said:
The weird thing about JOJ is that he played on the prep team that he had a hard time getting minutes at. Nice player!
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He transferred after season started and were already full of top 100 players so playing time was limited.
 

bga1 said:
Henley has a high ceiling. He has a lot to learn, over dribbles at times but he has all the tools to be really, really good. I'd say he's a little ahead of Coffey at the same juncture. I love this class for their potential. Last year the team played a more sound brand of ball because they were old. They just didn't have the talent. This year we have the talent but not the experience. By the end of this year we will be a tough team to beat. Next year? Look out.
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At the same level of Coffey is a bit of an overstatement. He was a top 40-50 player and was every bit of that right away. A bit inconsistent but good enough as a freshman to take over a game. I don’t see Henley there yet, but is certainly over performing his recruiting ratings. Something this program needs to be successful.

I’m discouraged by the relatively poor defense and lack of discipline so far. But I also see possibilities when Battle is healthy. I’m too old to be projecting into next year.
 

Henley needs more discipline with the ball and on D. That should come with experience and practice. Anxious to see them against tougher comp and Carrington when he is ready.
 

So much more depth this year that is only going to get better. Henley shot the ball well yesterday, hope he is getting comfortable, gaining confidence, and keeps that up.
 

We will know more by mid January where these guys are at.

The competition has not been great. UST beat St. Francis out there be almost 20 with that said we are talking about freshman being very productive which is great… freshman can struggle against any level of competition at the D1 level so far so good..
 

Roland Brooks said:
We will know more by mid January where these guys are at.

The competition has not been great. UST beat St. Francis out there be almost 20 with that said we are talking about freshman being very productive which is great… freshman can struggle against any level of competition at the D1 level so far so good..
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St Thomas plays St. Francis tomorrow. Are you from the future?
 


Loved the JOJ dunk. Plays like that will fill Williams arena and improve our home court advantage. Henley is a scorer and Payne is an enforcer. I have seen Carrington and know he has game. We will need his shooting. Ben clearly recruited 4 guys who can flat out ball.
 



leib0039 said:
Not to be a downer but we have played the 254 and 346th ranked teams in kenpom. It's a nice start yes but I'm not sure we should be altering expectations based on these 2 games. Let's get to some P5 teams and see what we have.
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You're absolutely correct in your take.

However, I can think of countless instances where the highly anticipated recruit/transfer struggled/disappointed against the same level of competition and failed to improve as the season progressed.

All three freshmen add a unique element we haven't seen here in a few years. One play that stood out to me was when Henley crossed up and blew by his defender for an effortless dunk. He was fouled on the floor, and his bucket was waived off, but wow, not many 6'8" guys can do that.
 


Roland Brooks said:
We will know more by mid January where these guys are at.

The competition has not been great. UST beat St. Francis out there be almost 20 with that said we are talking about freshman being very productive which is great… freshman can struggle against any level of competition at the D1 level so far so good..
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Talent is something you can see regardless of the opposition. We now have some really, really nice young talent. Things will look ragged for a while but these kids are good. I can't wait to see Carrington.

Cool moment last night: A sweet cut to the basket and great pass by Payne to JOJ for a dunk. The excitement from Payne was just great to see! The pass and JOJ finish was as good for him as a dunk of his own.
 

Holy Man said:
At the same level of Coffey is a bit of an overstatement. He was a top 40-50 player and was every bit of that right away. A bit inconsistent but good enough as a freshman to take over a game. I don’t see Henley there yet, but is certainly over performing his recruiting ratings. Something this program needs to be successful.

I’m discouraged by the relatively poor defense and lack of discipline so far. But I also see possibilities when Battle is healthy. I’m too old to be projecting into next year.
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I hear you but Henley has a better shooting stroke than Coffey had as a frosh. Coffey had a real solid freshman year though, with a pretty solid team.

I agree on the defense- it has been really bad so far. Our guards are getting beaten consistently.
 
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You want to bring up over-dribbling, Coffey was the poster child for that (even as an upper-classman). One man fast break, 1 on 3, drives right into the lane and clanks a leaner against all 3 defenders.
 

goldenboy said:
You want to bring up over-dribbling, Coffey was the poster child for that (even as an upper-classman). One man fast break, 1 on 3, drives right into the lane and clanks a leaner against all 3 defenders.
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Yes, he was a miserable de facto point guard in his final year because of those tendencies. I was glad when he announced he was leaving before his final year. Of course, Carr had some of the same issues.
 

cjbfbp said:
Yes, he was a miserable de facto point guard in his final year because of those tendencies. I was glad when he announced he was leaving before his final year. Of course, Carr had some of the same issues.
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You were happy he left early after being one of our best players and helping getting us to the NCAA tournament twice in three years, which is a rarity for Gopher bball?
 

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