Not expecting a whole lot this year, .500 ball. Maybe slightly above. Excited to see what this Toppin kid can do - he's got hops. Matos looks like an instant contributor. Mikesell is healthy. Overall, there's a lot to be happy about on the offense. Defensively, they could struggle.
Arise and walk, come through. A world beyond that door is calling out for you. Arise and walk, come through. It's calling out for you.
BillDoran (11-07-2018)
Looking forward to the season. Grant has his guys now (or at least unloaded the malcontents). They've got a lot of nice pieces. If one or two guys could really take a step forward -- any of Toppin, Matos, Davis or Crutcher -- this team could be dangerous. I think Cunningham, Landers and Mikesell are going to be fairly steady contributors. If we could just find someone to really pop, become an all A-10 caliber player, this is a tourney team. That's a big ask, but Landers made the jump last year.Originally Posted by Ohayou
I think the party line is "Wait until next year," but I've found some of my favorite sports seasons have been when the team was supposedly a year away. Here's to hoping that's the case with the 2018-2019 Flyers. (That said, the three transfers will be a real shot in the arm next year.)
Can't take too much from an opener against North Florida, but the defense was better than expected. They did a good job of defending the 3. Obi, in particular, looked really good. Still raw, but nice to see him as active as he was. Mikesell looked sharp. Looking forward to seeing how Matos and Cohill progress through these next few games.
And only 6 turnovers!
Arise and walk, come through. A world beyond that door is calling out for you. Arise and walk, come through. It's calling out for you.
UNF wll play Wright State next week.
Bud Selig: "I'm the worst commissioner ever"
Rob Manfred: "Hold my beer"
https://redsintelligence.com/smforum/index.php
As long as Loudon Love is around, the Raiders will be probably be March Madness regulars. He has legit NBA potential.
Arise and walk, come through. A world beyond that door is calling out for you. Arise and walk, come through. It's calling out for you.
My goodness, that is a piping hot Loudon Love take. I do think the Raiders will be contenders for the Horizon crown as long as Nagy sticks around.
That should be a good barometer. I like this team. It certainly isn't without its issues, but there's a lot to be excited about.
By the time he finishes his Senior year, I think his game will be good enough to make a summer league team/play in the G league. He's by far the best prospect I can remember playing at WSU.
Arise and walk, come through. A world beyond that door is calling out for you. Arise and walk, come through. It's calling out for you.
Yeah, I was too young at the time.
Arise and walk, come through. A world beyond that door is calling out for you. Arise and walk, come through. It's calling out for you.
More than anything I wanted to post that picture.
Lookout, Coppin State Eagles! Hope Cunningham is healthy.
That is a very bad Coppin State team. I'm guessing single-digit victories. Hard to glean much from a game like that. Looking forward to ramping up the competition a little bit and learning more about this team.
Forty percent into conference play, and I think it's safe to say Grant has the program moving in the right direction. Currently, 14-7 overall, 6-2 in conference. The schedule gets a lot tougher from here on out; seven of the next eight games are against teams in the top half of the conference. We'll learn a lot about the state of the program in the next month. I don't expect it to go particularly well.
This year's team lacks depth, but this was understood going into the season. Losing Matos to injury has hurt. Dedicating four scholarships to transfers is a short-term loser. It'll undoubtedly pay off down the road though. Something about this squad seems smarter, more cohesive. They don't consistently play down to the competition. They can put teams away. Not sure if it's the veteran staff or the addition of Donnie Jones, but the teams feels composed and prepared.
I'll probably change my tune after February, but it's hard not to think Grant is the right guy for the job. I think he'll have the Flyers consistently at or near the top of the A10 for the foreseeable future. It'd be a dream if he could build a program that dominates the conference, and I don't think that's especially outlandish. As opposed to the constant flux of Ford's Bilikens, I think if Grant is about anything it's stability.
They've been a pleasant surprise, for sure. They were competitive for all 7 of those losses, too - a few of which were against top competition. You could even argue they're the best team in the A10, although this conference is definitely the weakest I can remember it being in quite some time.
6'10" big man Moulaye Sissoko will be a welcome addition next year. Already looks like an NBA player. That's what I want to see. Archie didn't have the best success in recruiting bigs aside from Steve McElvene (who was quickly turning into one of my favorite Flyers). I was surprised Kostas's athleticism didn't translate to more buckets.
Arise and walk, come through. A world beyond that door is calling out for you. Arise and walk, come through. It's calling out for you.
I like bringing in Sissoko as well. Add in Tshimanga and Johnson to go with Toppin and even Policelli, and this is a roster with some real size going forward.
In watching high-level conference play, the elite teams are typically long. Hard to say whether we'll be able to compete in other areas, but not many teams will be bigger than us going forward. I'd think we'll match up size-wise with even the better Big East teams.
Year 3 of Coach Grant is really shaping up to be when the stars align....
Flyers lose:
C Josh Cunningham
Flyers Debuting Transfers (meaning they are already enrolled, practicing with the team, and will hit the ground running):
C Jordy Tshimanga (2 years eligibility reamining)
SF Chase Johnson (2nd semester eligible, then 2 more years after that)
SG Ibi Watson (2 years remaining)
PG Rodney Chatman (2 years remaining)
Flyer Returning From Season-long Injury (again, already entrenched in the system, will hit the ground running):
SF Jhery Matos
Incoming True Freshman:
C Moulaye Sissoko
It's never easy when your 3-year team captain graduates, but if that incoming group of 6 -- fully 5 of whom are already with the team and practicing, as health allows -- can't more than make up for his on-court production, I'd be stunned. More than once, analysts have joked that Dayton probably has the best scout/practice squad in the entire country, and my confidence is high that good things will happen once they suit up already with a full year under Coach Grant. It sure did wonders for Toppin! [And institutionally, UD has had some major slam dunks in terms of transfers lately: Cunningham, Cooke, Sibert, and Sanford were all Day One Difference Makers as soon as they suited up the first time.]
Then, Crutcher, Landers, and Obi just need to pick up the slack in terms of leadership. Gotta be pre-season A-10 favorites, right?
Of course, salivating over the thought of being legitimately 10-deep also serves to remind me that the Flyers are still only 7 deep this year.... and that's a problem, given that the ship has sailed on an at-large bid (the A-10 kind of stinks this year, and only VCU has anything resembling the ability to make the Big Dance without the auto-bid), and we've already seen games where our guys -- especially Crutcher against Mason -- just don't have the legs to perform down the stretch. That makes winning the conference tourney at Barclay's seem like a long-shot at best.
Going 7 deep means the Flyers are already visibly wearing down playing twice a week. Even earning the double-bye (top 4 in regular season record), 3 games in 3 days will be one hell of a mountain to climb. Not even the "Magnificent 7" of four years ago could pull that off (they were lucky enough to have built up an at-large resume, though). Wins like our last two certainly give me the tingles, and the way we played in Atlantis (even in losses), makes it seem realistic that on a good night, we could hang with absolutely anyone in the nation. Unfortunately, losses like Tulsa and Mason show we can also lose to just about anyone, and maybe even on our own home court.
So yeah: I'll enjoy watching this team continue to compete and develop, hopefully without letting my expectations get out of hand. Next year, though? Through the roof, baby! And just in time to christen the New UD Arena with -- dare I say it? -- a bona fide Top 25 team!
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