Originally Posted by San Diego Flyer
For sure, no. No where did I read where Xeyrius Williams would be a head case. Ryan Mikesell had genetic defects. Kostas really did not want to be there with us. Svoboda would be almost totally underdeveloped for D1 competition. And so on.
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I do remember reading on some draft prediction website that both Kostas & Svoboda would be going pro this year.
We are a big unknown this coming year. Last year, the prognosticators & fans all expected a drop off from a 7-seed 2016-17, but only to 1-2 seed NIT territory. We were much worse than that. Do the prognosticators give us the benefit of the doubt and put us in the top-100? I doubt it.
Our offense last year was pedestrian; our defense was horrible. I don't think we've done anything to substantially alter that perception going forward. Adding a 4-star Cohill is nice and Cunningham is a beast, but those are two bright spots in an otherwise murky picture. Obi, Frankie, & Matos, despite our perceptions of them as hidden gems, were not players we stole from UK or Duke. Getting Mikesell back will help, but he wasn't an all-conference player before and there's no indication he'll be one going forward. Excising the metastasized cancer from the team will invariably help, but we are now down two bodies (four if you consider two of our acquisitions are ineligible for the 2018-19 season). We will be a lot quicker with all the SG/SFs we have, but we're going to be an undersized team with one true PG on scholarship. Grant is a solid recruiter and a well liked coach, but while he succeeded at VCU he stumbled at 'Bama, so even he's not a sure bet.
I want to believe we're going to surprise this year; I want to believe we are better than what we will be predicted to do. But I don't see the hard evidence pointing to the pleasant surprise. Are we better than Grambling? I hope and think so, but I think we'd better be ready to see our name in the next week or so on that 144 countdown...
