Parrish has lost respect of mine with a couple of his articles lately. To me anyone who doesn't pick USF last in this conference is nuts. This is not say that USF will be last but on paper they are dead last. They did nothing last season to deserve any better. I find that Parrish contradicts himself a lot but he does write on good topics.
14. Depaul
The good: Few outside the Big East are familiar with Dar Tucker, who posted fine freshman numbers in the Year of the Freshmen. The 6-4 wing averaged 13.6 points and 4.8 rebounds, and if he could focus a little more on defense and make a couple of more shots (Tucker shot 32.1 percent from 3-point range last season) he could develop into the go-to-guy Jerry Wainwright needs.
So we're praising Depaul for a guy who didn't have as good of a freshman year as Justin Burrell or DJ Kennedy? They also lost the only thing on their team that got them 6 conference wins in Draelon Burns. No one can score the ball for Depaul all their guys are raw hustle guys. So I don't see how this warrants them being ranked ahead.
We all know Seton Halls situation and lack of depth is a major major cause of concern and even though I don't agree with it but you could at least muster up a case for them to be ranked ahead of us.
Then Rutgers who hasn't done a thing either gets a lot of praise for Mike Rosario but no mention of Greg Echenique who might be the bigger impact player for the team.
Finally where I feel Parrish often contradicts himself
For Cincy...
The bottom line: Mick Cronin is quietly compiling the type of talent to compete in this league even if he still might be a year away from earning an NCAA tournament bid. But a 2009-10 roster featuring Vaughn, Williams, Wright, Yancy Gates and a healthy John Riek should be ready to make a push.
For St. John's....
The bottom line: St. John's was once a basketball power, but things have slipped drastically. Assuming the Red Storm finish down here, it's doubtful Roberts can hang on for another year even if he secures a commitment from New York phenom Lance Stephenson, which is too bad, yet the nature of the business.
Now if you are going to praise Mick Cronin for acquiring "Vaughn, Williams, Wright, Yancy Gates and a healthy John Riek" How do you bash Norm even if he gets Stephenson which would be in addition to our current roster plus Stith and Lawrence. I'm not saying either deserves praise but be consistent. I don't think Cronin's roster deserves praise. I really like Cronin as a coach but to say Cronin is compiling a roster a year or two away from NCAA bid and St. John's is the worst team in the Big East. Come on. Then again Parrish would pick Jeff Adrien over Dejuan Blair.
http://www.sportsline.com/collegebasketball/story/11058854