Seton Hall Game

If Sampson came back last year, and Lavin figured out a way to play him and Pointer together (which should not have been hard, given their versatility and Sampson's desire to play on the wing as much as in the post/foul line in area), we would have been in the top 25 all season and made some noise in the tournament.  Anyone who doesn't think a guy who played minutes in the NBA last year couldn't have helped our squad is nuts. 

Ditto for Harkless back as a sophomore.  He would have given us a few extra wins, bringing us closer to a tourney team (with the D-Lo suspension, I'm not sure we would have danced even with Mo).  And he likely would have been a top 5-7 pick in that draft.

Quote from: Foad on February 24, 2016, 12:45:34 PM

Quote from: Poison on February 24, 2016, 12:07:16 PM

Quote from: Foad on February 24, 2016, 07:13:29 AM

Quote from: Poison on February 23, 2016, 11:08:13 PM

Lavin got fired. He got the blame for the team not performing better, but it's not an apples to apples comparison to say his top rated recruiting class didn't achieve anything. They didn't stick around long enough to achieve anything. A starting 5 of Harkless, Sampson, Pointer, Harrison and Jordan makes the tournament and probably a lot more.

He had three of those five last year and got no where. When Sampson left everyone but me was talking about how much he stank and was a cancer and how it was addition by subtraction and probably when Harkless left too, because it's always addition by subtraction here. Anyway, they didn't stick around and he had no plan B or C or D or F and he won one post season game in 5 years and he is what his record says he is and except for the fact that I've lost my muse everyone is better off for it.

I don't recall anyone, anywhere saying that we were better off without Harkless.

Quick search reveals this common core math

Sampson, Jordan, Sanchez, Obekpa, Lindsey, Garrett, Mason Jr leaving = addition by subtraction

Harrison suspension = addition by subtraction

Jermaine Lawrence not coming =  addition by subtraction

Branch not playing = addition by subtraction

Weird how with all those additions things have still been pretty negative.

Core Math

Quote from: Foad on February 24, 2016, 12:45:34 PM

Quote from: Poison on February 24, 2016, 12:07:16 PM

Quote from: Foad on February 24, 2016, 07:13:29 AM

Quote from: Poison on February 23, 2016, 11:08:13 PM

Lavin got fired. He got the blame for the team not performing better, but it's not an apples to apples comparison to say his top rated recruiting class didn't achieve anything. They didn't stick around long enough to achieve anything. A starting 5 of Harkless, Sampson, Pointer, Harrison and Jordan makes the tournament and probably a lot more.

He had three of those five last year and got no where. When Sampson left everyone but me was talking about how much he stank and was a cancer and how it was addition by subtraction and probably when Harkless left too, because it's always addition by subtraction here. Anyway, they didn't stick around and he had no plan B or C or D or F and he won one post season game in 5 years and he is what his record says he is and except for the fact that I've lost my muse everyone is better off for it.

I don't recall anyone, anywhere saying that we were better off without Harkless.

Quick search reveals this common core math

Sampson, Jordan, Sanchez, Obekpa, Lindsey, Garrett, Mason Jr leaving = addition by subtraction

Harrison suspension = addition by subtraction

Jermaine Lawrence not coming =  addition by subtraction

Branch not playing = addition by subtraction

Weird how with all those additions things have still been pretty negative.

Core Math

Couple more players left we could have won a national championship.

Quote from: Poison on February 24, 2016, 12:07:16 PM

Quote from: Foad on February 24, 2016, 07:13:29 AM

Quote from: Poison on February 23, 2016, 11:08:13 PM

Lavin got fired. He got the blame for the team not performing better, but it's not an apples to apples comparison to say his top rated recruiting class didn't achieve anything. They didn't stick around long enough to achieve anything. A starting 5 of Harkless, Sampson, Pointer, Harrison and Jordan makes the tournament and probably a lot more.

He had three of those five last year and got no where. When Sampson left everyone but me was talking about how much he stank and was a cancer and how it was addition by subtraction and probably when Harkless left too, because it's always addition by subtraction here. Anyway, they didn't stick around and he had no plan B or C or D or F and he won one post season game in 5 years and he is what his record says he is and except for the fact that I've lost my muse everyone is better off for it.

I don't recall anyone, anywhere saying that we were better off without Harkless.

Quick search reveals this common core math

Sampson, Jordan, Sanchez, Obekpa, Lindsey, Garrett, Mason Jr leaving = addition by subtraction

Harrison suspension = addition by subtraction

Jermaine Lawrence not coming =  addition by subtraction

Branch not playing = addition by subtraction

Weird how with all those additions things have still been pretty negative.

I think it's a defense mechanism. Year after year, the seasons do not go as we hoped they would. Some, like myself, have made an effort to be more objective, but even still, when Sept hits, it's easy to watch a YouTube video and buy into the idea that this guy, who we beat out Oregon State and Minnesota for will be the next Dwayne Wade.

Lopez should have taught all of us a good lesson, but hope springs eternal when it's all ya got.

I think it's a defense mechanism. Year after year, the seasons do not go as we hoped they would. Some, like myself, have made an effort to be more objective, but even still, when Sept hits, it's easy to watch a YouTube video and buy into the idea that this guy, who we beat out Oregon State and Minnesota for will be the next Dwayne Wade.

Lopez should have taught all of us a good lesson, but hope springs eternal when it's all ya got.

I don't have that problem. My glass is always half full, of bile.

The addition by subtraction is the mantra of the one who goes by the name of Marrilac.

The addition by subtraction is the mantra of the one who goes by the name of Marrilac.

In fairness, I think just about everyone does it sometimes.

Often times, it's the loss of a player who would have helped had he stayed, or even chosen us, but wasn't a world beater.
We could have used Elijah Ingram, but we weren't going to the tournament with him and Hill in the backcourt.

Quote from: WillieG on February 23, 2016, 07:26:59 PM

Quote from: Poison on February 23, 2016, 06:59:31 PM

Quote from: TRabinowitz on February 23, 2016, 03:57:44 PM

Quote from: Poison on February 23, 2016, 12:22:25 AM

Quote from: Amaseinyourface2 on February 22, 2016, 12:36:46 PM

The thing I dislike most about Felix is the same I thing I dislike most about Ron; they complain on every call! I can't stand to watch it.

However I could never accuse Felix of giving less then 100% and it was really nice to see him throw one down like that again before his career was up. I just wish it could have came with a W.

M'vouika is the laziest player I've ever seen in a St.John's uniform. Balamou works much harder in the paint than he does elsewhere. It's odd to see a player of size want to mix it up inside as much as he does, but he's just better there.

Ummm the guy has had 2 back surgery in the last few years, including one over the spring/summer in which he had to re-learn how to walk afterwards.  He is not physically or skill-wise at the Big East level but he is definitely not dogging it and seems to be a very solid leader.  Would certainly much rather have Mvouika leading a young group than Obekpa & Rysheed.

 it's fair to question why on earth the staff would take on two players who had no business playing basketball.

The answer to that, is of course, he only had a few months to recruit, when there were few players left on the board.  They needed a whole new roster at a time when there were very few players left.  Come on.

Your right . You haven't made that point yet.

Tony, as you can see, I was just responding to the question directly above it.  That's not OK with you ?  He asked a question; I answered it.  If you don't mind.  From now on just talk about the topic at hand in keeping with board rules.

Quote from: TONYD3 on February 23, 2016, 07:34:59 PM

Quote from: WillieG on February 23, 2016, 07:26:59 PM

Quote from: Poison on February 23, 2016, 06:59:31 PM

Quote from: TRabinowitz on February 23, 2016, 03:57:44 PM

Quote from: Poison on February 23, 2016, 12:22:25 AM

Quote from: Amaseinyourface2 on February 22, 2016, 12:36:46 PM

The thing I dislike most about Felix is the same I thing I dislike most about Ron; they complain on every call! I can't stand to watch it.

However I could never accuse Felix of giving less then 100% and it was really nice to see him throw one down like that again before his career was up. I just wish it could have came with a W.

M'vouika is the laziest player I've ever seen in a St.John's uniform. Balamou works much harder in the paint than he does elsewhere. It's odd to see a player of size want to mix it up inside as much as he does, but he's just better there.

Ummm the guy has had 2 back surgery in the last few years, including one over the spring/summer in which he had to re-learn how to walk afterwards.  He is not physically or skill-wise at the Big East level but he is definitely not dogging it and seems to be a very solid leader.  Would certainly much rather have Mvouika leading a young group than Obekpa & Rysheed.

 it's fair to question why on earth the staff would take on two players who had no business playing basketball.

The answer to that, is of course, he only had a few months to recruit, when there were few players left on the board.  They needed a whole new roster at a time when there were very few players left.  Come on.

Your right . You haven't made that point yet.

Tony, as you can see, I was just responding to the question directly above it.  That's not OK with you ?  He asked a question; I answered it.  If you don't mind.  From now on just talk about the topic at hand in keeping with board rules.

Myles Stewart and Jay Henderson could have been retained. At least one of them could have been given a scholarship. M'vouika is awful, but at least he's only one season of awful, and not potentially 3 - which we may have with Darien Williams. Williams reminds me of Obekpa after about 10 bong hits.

Quote from: WillieG on February 24, 2016, 07:16:14 PM

Quote from: TONYD3 on February 23, 2016, 07:34:59 PM

Quote from: WillieG on February 23, 2016, 07:26:59 PM

Quote from: Poison on February 23, 2016, 06:59:31 PM

Quote from: TRabinowitz on February 23, 2016, 03:57:44 PM

Quote from: Poison on February 23, 2016, 12:22:25 AM

Quote from: Amaseinyourface2 on February 22, 2016, 12:36:46 PM

The thing I dislike most about Felix is the same I thing I dislike most about Ron; they complain on every call! I can't stand to watch it.

However I could never accuse Felix of giving less then 100% and it was really nice to see him throw one down like that again before his career was up. I just wish it could have came with a W.

M'vouika is the laziest player I've ever seen in a St.John's uniform. Balamou works much harder in the paint than he does elsewhere. It's odd to see a player of size want to mix it up inside as much as he does, but he's just better there.

Ummm the guy has had 2 back surgery in the last few years, including one over the spring/summer in which he had to re-learn how to walk afterwards.  He is not physically or skill-wise at the Big East level but he is definitely not dogging it and seems to be a very solid leader.  Would certainly much rather have Mvouika leading a young group than Obekpa & Rysheed.

 it's fair to question why on earth the staff would take on two players who had no business playing basketball.

The answer to that, is of course, he only had a few months to recruit, when there were few players left on the board.  They needed a whole new roster at a time when there were very few players left.  Come on.

Your right . You haven't made that point yet.

Tony, as you can see, I was just responding to the question directly above it.  That's not OK with you ?  He asked a question; I answered it.  If you don't mind.  From now on just talk about the topic at hand in keeping with board rules.

Myles Stewart and Jay Henderson could have been retained. At least one of them could have been given a scholarship. M'vouika is awful, but at least he's only one season of awful, and not potentially 3 - which we may have with Darien Williams. Williams reminds me of Obekpa after about 10 bong hits.

No reason to keep Henderson or Stewart on scholarship. Don't want an extra player with 2 years of eligibility after this year on scholarship just to fill a roster spot in a lost year.

Quote from: Poison on February 24, 2016, 11:33:43 PM

Quote from: WillieG on February 24, 2016, 07:16:14 PM

Quote from: TONYD3 on February 23, 2016, 07:34:59 PM

Quote from: WillieG on February 23, 2016, 07:26:59 PM

Quote from: Poison on February 23, 2016, 06:59:31 PM

Quote from: TRabinowitz on February 23, 2016, 03:57:44 PM

Quote from: Poison on February 23, 2016, 12:22:25 AM

Quote from: Amaseinyourface2 on February 22, 2016, 12:36:46 PM

The thing I dislike most about Felix is the same I thing I dislike most about Ron; they complain on every call! I can't stand to watch it.

However I could never accuse Felix of giving less then 100% and it was really nice to see him throw one down like that again before his career was up. I just wish it could have came with a W.

M'vouika is the laziest player I've ever seen in a St.John's uniform. Balamou works much harder in the paint than he does elsewhere. It's odd to see a player of size want to mix it up inside as much as he does, but he's just better there.

Ummm the guy has had 2 back surgery in the last few years, including one over the spring/summer in which he had to re-learn how to walk afterwards.  He is not physically or skill-wise at the Big East level but he is definitely not dogging it and seems to be a very solid leader.  Would certainly much rather have Mvouika leading a young group than Obekpa & Rysheed.

 it's fair to question why on earth the staff would take on two players who had no business playing basketball.

The answer to that, is of course, he only had a few months to recruit, when there were few players left on the board.  They needed a whole new roster at a time when there were very few players left.  Come on.

Your right . You haven't made that point yet.

Tony, as you can see, I was just responding to the question directly above it.  That's not OK with you ?  He asked a question; I answered it.  If you don't mind.  From now on just talk about the topic at hand in keeping with board rules.

Myles Stewart and Jay Henderson could have been retained. At least one of them could have been given a scholarship. M'vouika is awful, but at least he's only one season of awful, and not potentially 3 - which we may have with Darien Williams. Williams reminds me of Obekpa after about 10 bong hits.

No reason to keep Henderson or Stewart on scholarship. Don't want an extra player with 2 years of eligibility after this year on scholarship just to fill a roster spot in a lost year.

Both of those guys can shoot. I'm not saying that I'm certain they'd both be legit BE players, but continuity counts in college basketball. Right now, we have Amar Alibegovic for next season, and he represents the only player will have been in the program for more than one season if Christian Jones heads for a conference that better suits his skill set.

That said, you make a good point. We need the ships that M'vouika and Johnson will be freeing up. W also need a rebounder and a big guard who can bring it up. I don't think that should be Malik Ellison.

I don't think ou necessarily need a big guard bringing the ball up.  I posted in a prior thread, but most of the national champions over last 10 years had won with guards not bigger than 6'1".  As for a rebounder, I don't disagree, but I think we have some real good players up front with Sima, Yakwe, Freudenberg, Ahmed, Owens that will be able to do very well in that area. We still have Ali and jones as well.  The most important things we are addressing are scoring and guards.  With 2 top 40 guards coming in I think it will change our team a ton.  Ellison ha also improving quite a bit and will have a few years to develop into that big guard.

FWIW Sammy Barnes-Thompkins is very turnover prone and isn't shooting at a particularly high clip at BC. Freeing up his scholarship was the right move to go along with giving Malik a scholarship over Samir Doughty, who is ultra talented but ineligible. BSamp and Diallo on the other hand would've benefited greatly by being in Queens this year.

http://espn.go.com/mens-college-basketball/player/_/id/3943612/sammy-barnes-thompkins

8 minutes a night for a the MVP of the McDonald's All-American game:

http://espn.go.com/mens-college-basketball/player/_/id/3919335/cheick-diallo

32% from the field, 29% from 3 for BSamp, wow:

http://espn.go.com/mens-college-basketball/player/_/id/3907385/brandon-sampson

I don't think ou necessarily need a big guard bringing the ball up.  I posted in a prior thread, but most of the national champions over last 10 years had won with guards not bigger than 6'1".  As for a rebounder, I don't disagree, but I think we have some real good players up front with Sima, Yakwe, Freudenberg, Ahmed, Owens that will be able to do very well in that area. We still have Ali and jones as well.  The most important things we are addressing are scoring and guards.  With 2 top 40 guards coming in I think it will change our team a ton.  Ellison ha also improving quite a bit and will have a few years to develop into that big guard.

When I suggested a big guard, I was thinking more in terms of variety. A Bobby Simmons type in a perfect world. And for a big man, a physical presence who could throw a guy half way across the court should that be warranted, but also a player with skill around the basket. Ty Grant.

Ty grant would be perfect for next years team. In my opinion ty grant would be perfect for any team.

Every team wants a big guy like that.  Not all that many out there to tell the truth, with the size and skill to get it done inside.  I loved Ty Grant.  Not a great athlete and not all that tall, but was automatic inside.  He had soft hands and knew how to use his body. 

Ellison is pretty big for a guard.  It all depends on his level of improvement.  He has already improved a bit, but has a long way to go.  He is a good athlete with a good handle though.  I think he projects better as a guard than a forward, and he has shown that.  There are times when we will need him to defend bigger guards etc and I think he can fill that role. 

Loved Ty Grant too. I agree that we could use one more  big ugly for next season. A guy who can rebound but also has a pretty good feel for the game offensively around the hoop. Providence has had a few of these recently in Batts, and Bentil this year.

Yes we do have enough size with the players mentioned but another enforcer down low is always a good thing to have. I believe we will have plenty of scoring options next year with Ponds, Lovett, Ahmed, etc.. I'd like to see them target one more banger. Maybe go the overseas route.