2011 vs. 2014

Thought this would be an interesting discussion as it was brought up in another thread. If both are at the top of their game, Who ya got?

2011:
Hardy
Horne
Kennedy
Brownlee
Burrell

Bench:
Evans
Boothe
Polee
Stith

2014:
Jordan
Harrison
Greene
Sampson
Obekpa

Bench:
Pointer
Branch
Sanchez
God's gift

I'm going 2011, mainly because they proved so much against top teams. It would take a lot for this team to replicate that, and I'm still not sure they are capable of it. We'll find out against Villanova.

Harrison IMO is very similar to Hardy in a lot of ways. And a senior Kennedy was probably a better player to have than anyone we have on this roster, including Jordan. It's really a shame he hot injured.

Would also choose 11 for now but final chapter has yet to be written for the 14 team They may very well have more upside than 11. Besides Lavin is a much better coach now than he was in 11. 

Respectfully disagree with Kennedy > Jordan. I loved Kennedy, but he was not a game changer like Jordan. I think the 2014 team, when they're playing their best, is better than the 2011 team, which just overachieved like hell to have the success they had. This year's team has barely scratched the surface. 

Very tough question. I think we saw the best of that 2011 team. We havnt seen the best of this team yet. More pure talent on this squad.

I loved the 2011 team but the talent gap is so great.  The only spot where I think that team would have an advantage over this squad is Burrell vs Obekpa (at this point) in the 5 spot.

I loved the 2011 team but the talent gap is so great.  The only spot where I think that team would have an advantage over this squad is Burrell vs Obekpa (at this point) in the 5 spot.

2011 also has the edge in the Dunlap vs Whitesell matchup

I agree this team is better from a pure talent standpoint, but we know all to well that doesn't always win games. I think the 2011 team played smarter and more under control.

good question for discussion but please wait until the entire picture is painted for 2014 and then pose it as it will be for opinions once we know how the 2014 season ends.

If the game was today I'd say 2011. Also Lavin had more gel but Keady now has the better hair. 2011 Dance team vs 2014 team is close. Both of them are pretty damn good. Both had Mancers. I might give the 2011 team the edge because they had that 1 routine which the mancer flew around that girl like a monkey. 2014 msg concessions and bathrooms much better but I liked the old msg layout with the walkway inside much better making it easier to socialize.  Also 2011 had the better air cannon that shot shirts at carnesseca that almost decapitated people each game including Lawmanfan.

2011 was a deep team. Hardy was great, but we often leave out Brownlee, who was terrific on both sides of the ball, and DJ, who in the 3rd fiddle role, was the most dangerous he's ever been. Horne and Burrell both scored and defended very well all season long. This current group has more depth inside, and in the backcourt, but I don't think anyone was as consistently good as Hardy.

outstanding topic...Both team at the top of their game with this years squad today....ill take 2011.  When our current players next year...ill take 2014-15 squad..
I think this years team definitely has more talent..but 2011 that group was on a mission of destruction after 3 years of abuse in a much deeper league. We beat 6 ranked teams and blew out uconn and duke. We won at nova and knocked off pitt. Hardy was unstoppable. And all the players executed their roles to perfection. Assuming dj was healthy..i saw us advancing to the sweet sixteen.

Next year this current roster would win at the top of their game vs 2011 team.  I really cant see us not being ranked jn the top 10 next year if the team stays intact.

2014. 

-this team team doesn't turn the ball over much at all and 2011 lived and died with turnovers.
-nobody would be able to guard Jordan out of that stupid zone.  He would make Hardy look silly.
 the talent gap is enormous.
-that team was average at best on the defensive boards and terrible on the offensive glass
-2014 would be much bigger and longer
-Jordan would make it very tough on Hardy

That Gonzaga team in 2011 would not have done that to this 2014 team  at any point in the season.

ASU, Duke, Gtown, Notre Dame, UConn, Cinnci, Marquette, Pitt and Nova all lost to us that year. We had a higher level of competition with incredible results. The absence of Dunlap from this year's team could be a bigger difference than the actual players on the floor. Regardless, I still think it's too early to call. A road win at Nova and winning out the rest of the way would be pretty damn impressive.

2014. 

-this team team doesn't turn the ball over much at all and 2011 lived and died with turnovers.
-nobody would be able to guard Jordan out of that stupid zone.  He would make Hardy look silly.
 the talent gap is enormous.
-that team was average at best on the defensive boards and terrible on the offensive glass
-2014 would be much bigger and longer
-Jordan would make it very tough on Hardy

That Gonzaga team in 2011 would not have done that to this 2014 team  at any point in the season.

I remember that team being good on the offensive glass, no? Horne, djay, brownlee all went after the boards. So did burrell.

The matchups would be cool, I think rysheed could slow down Hardy but also think that horne could slow down D lo.

2014. 

-this team team doesn't turn the ball over much at all and 2011 lived and died with turnovers.
-nobody would be able to guard Jordan out of that stupid zone.  He would make Hardy look silly.
 the talent gap is enormous.
-that team was average at best on the defensive boards and terrible on the offensive glass
-2014 would be much bigger and longer
-Jordan would make it very tough on Hardy

That Gonzaga team in 2011 would not have done that to this 2014 team  at any point in the season.

2011 team barely turned the ball over either.  That's pretty much been a staple since Lavin has been here.  I remember in 2011 we were statistically one of the best in the country.

Quote from: Marillac on February 18, 2014, 04:30:12 AM

2014. 

-this team team doesn't turn the ball over much at all and 2011 lived and died with turnovers.
-nobody would be able to guard Jordan out of that stupid zone.  He would make Hardy look silly.
 the talent gap is enormous.
-that team was average at best on the defensive boards and terrible on the offensive glass
-2014 would be much bigger and longer
-Jordan would make it very tough on Hardy

That Gonzaga team in 2011 would not have done that to this 2014 team  at any point in the season.

I remember that team being good on the offensive glass, no? Horne, djay, brownlee all went after the boards. So did burrell.

The matchups would be cool, I think rysheed could slow down Hardy but also think that horne could slow down D lo.

Quote from: Marillac on February 18, 2014, 04:30:12 AM

2014. 

-this team team doesn't turn the ball over much at all and 2011 lived and died with turnovers.
-nobody would be able to guard Jordan out of that stupid zone.  He would make Hardy look silly.
 the talent gap is enormous.
-that team was average at best on the defensive boards and terrible on the offensive glass
-2014 would be much bigger and longer
-Jordan would make it very tough on Hardy

That Gonzaga team in 2011 would not have done that to this 2014 team  at any point in the season.

I remember that team being good on the offensive glass, no? Horne, djay, brownlee all went after the boards. So did burrell.

The matchups would be cool, I think rysheed could slow down Hardy but also think that horne could slow down D lo.

No. They were tied for 214 in the country for offensive rebounding and tied for 282 for total rebounding.  I think the  reason people remember it that way is because they were pretty decent for three years under Norm. They were tied for 64 for offensive and 134 overall in 2010. For whatever reason DJ, Brownlee, Evans,  and Boothe all went down.  Brownlee had more the year before in almost half the minutes. Burrell was the only one who improved statistically.  The Gonzaga first half was brutal.  They out-rebounded us 41-18.  http://scores.espn.go.com/ncb/boxscore?gameId=310762599

That game left a lasting impact on me...they were terrible on the offensive glass.  Shot went up...bounced off the rim...and we didn't have a guy with five to ten feet almost every time.  Gonzaga, though,  only missed 11 shots in the first half and amazingly rebounded SEVEN of those misses and turned that into 17 second-chance points in the first half alone. 

2011.

To ole timers, everything from the past seems better.

It's hard to argue against results.  That's why the 2011 team stands out.  We could have made a serious run had Kennedy stayed healthy.

I don't agree that Burrell was better than Obekpa.  Burrell looked better than he played.

The jury is still out on this team.

The truest comparison would be next year really.

I will take this years group, nothing better than the present.!!