What Are Your Expectations For Howard Next Year?

[Tugg Speedman]

Howard arguably had one of the greatest Freshman seasons in MU history.  He led the NCAA in 3P% and just missed the all-time record.  He was also one of the leading FT% in college basketball.  Wojo called him a "50/50/90 guy" (2P%, 3P%, FT%)

So how much of a sophomore slump do you expect?  Would it be unfair NOT to expect a sophomore slump from Howard? 

If Howard repeated his Freshman year offensive production next season to the point that he again was flirting with all-time NCAA shooting percentages, he would be in the conversation for the greatest NCAA shooters of all-time.  On top of this, if he improved his D, would we need to make room for him in the top 5 all-time thread.

Thoughts on what you expect from Howard next year vs this past year?

[Stretchdeltsig]

All Big East first team.

[Dr. Blackheart]

Cut down the turnovers and improve the defense without following.

[Tugg Speedman]

Additional thought ...

Because Howard is very young, recently turning 18, do you view that as meaning he has more upside as he matures?  Or does it mean that handling the pressures and expectations after his Freshman year are harder because he is so young?

[JamilJaeJamailJrJuan]

One of the best PG in the country.  Over 100 3PM. Cuts down on fouls.  Plays more like 32 MPG.

I have high hopes.  Defense is always going to suffer when Markus and Rowsey are the court together, but I think the two of them are going to form quite a dynamic duo.

[DienerTime34]

Big East Player of the Year

[Windyplayer]

Big East Player of the Year

Don't temper expectations. Naismith Player of the Year.

[4everwarriors]

Final Four MVP, hey?

[tower912]

Naismith player of the year, final 4 MVP, cure cancer, fix the hole in the ozone, broker a budget deal in Illinois, kick Trevor Mbakwe's butt,  turn 19.     Junior year will be even better. 

[Marcus92]

Markus already showed a lot of savvy to step into the point position as a freshman. But we need him to play even smarter. How about one completely unrealistic expectation: grow an inch or so.

[Mods, Delete me please. 8/26/2020]

Expect a decline in scoring.   He's going to get challenged at the 3-point line a lot more and is too small to bring the ball anywhere near the rim (as we saw last season).  If he could develop a Cordell Henry mid-range floater he might be more productive in the lane.   

[JamilJaeJamailJrJuan]

Expect a decline in scoring.   He's going to get challenged at the 3-point line a lot more and is too small to bring the ball anywhere near the rim (as we saw last season).  If he could develop a Cordell Henry mid-range floater he might be more productive in the lane.   

It's a pick your poison type of deal.  If defenders want to play in Howard's pocket, they're going to get burned by Rowsey, Hauser and the many other players who can hit 3P at a respectable level. 

[brewcity77]

I expect about the following:

115 ORtg
14 ppg
3 apg
2.5 rpg
25% assist rate
20% turnover rate
50% 2PFG
40% 3PFG
55% eFG

Solid, but the decline in threes skews his overall numbers down a bit with some improvement everywhere else. I think his sophomore to junior jump will be bigger. Tough to adjust to being the main man, which he likely is this year.

[barfolomew]

Naismith player of the year, final 4 MVP, cure cancer, fix the hole in the ozone, broker a budget deal in Illinois, kick Trevor Mbakwe's butt,  turn 19.     Junior year will be even better.

Ok, now I know you must be joking.
Legit shot at the rest of it though.

[bilsu]

I expect him to score more. His shooting percentage will fall, because he is taking more shots.

[MuMark]

His shooting % will fall because nobody has ever shot it as good as he did last year for an entire career.

I'm ok with it if he proves to be the exception.

[Jay Bee]

M2N

[Loose Cannon]

  He will contribute more than last year, even though the glory stats may be the same or less than  last year. 

[tower912]

In all seriousness..... in windowless offices on the campuses of the other 9 Big East teams, there is an unpaid/underpaid low level assistant of some sort poring over every minute that Markus played, every shot that he took, how teams stopped him or failed to stop him.    They are putting his strengths and weaknesses into a database and are working with other assistants to develop a game plan to stop him.    Yes, he and Rowsey have Curry-like range.    But they are small.    So, I look for defenses to extend and contest the jumpshot, forcing him to go into the lane where his slight 5'11 frame suddenly is a detriment.   I look for defenders to stop helping off of Howard and Rowsey, betting that Hannif, Sam, Harry, Matt and the frosh can't beat their 3-4-5 one on one.    I look for zones to be extended.    In short, they will be game planning for him as the number one thing to stop.   And the other coaches aren't dummies. 
    So it is up to Markus, Rowsey and Wojo et al to broaden their games in a way that Cheatham didn't, so that he can make them pay when they run at his jump shot.      Runners, tear drops, pull ups.  Quick passes when the other team hedges or double teams the high pick-and-rolls, moving the ball around either to an open Sam in the corner or a cutting big, much like nearly every team did to MU last year.  And much like the full-court pressure that was more disruptive to MU than most teams due to the size of the guards, Howard and Rowsey are going to have to figure out how to get out of the high trap set by larger defenders.   Can they make the adjustments in their games to counteract the inevitable defensive adjustments they are going to see?

It would not surprise me to see his numbers drop when stopping him is made the top priority of opposing teams.    We ( and all of the opposing coaches) have seen it can be done.   It is easy to forget there was several games he disappeared.   I hope he is more consistent, sees the floor better, and is able to handle being the top name on the scouting report.   

[Autoengineer]

I think the best improvement to his game is if he could grow about 3 inches.      It could happen!    I know a guy who grew around 4-5" after he graduated HS.

[Dr. Blackheart]

In all seriousness..... in windowless offices on the campuses of the other 9 Big East teams, there is an unpaid/underpaid low level assistant of some sort poring over every minute that Markus played, every shot that he took, how teams stopped him or failed to stop him.    They are putting his strengths and weaknesses into a database and are working with other assistants to develop a game plan to stop him.    Yes, he and Rowsey have Curry-like range.    But they are small.    So, I look for defenses to extend and contest the jumpshot, forcing him to go into the lane where his slight 5'11 frame suddenly is a detriment.   I look for defenders to stop helping off of Howard and Rowsey, betting that Hannif, Sam, Harry, Matt and the frosh can't beat their 3-4-5 one on one.    I look for zones to be extended.    In short, they will be game planning for him as the number one thing to stop.   And the other coaches aren't dummies. 
    So it is up to Markus, Rowsey and Wojo et al to broaden their games in a way that Cheatham didn't, so that he can make them pay when they run at his jump shot.      Runners, tear drops, pull ups.  Quick passes when the other team hedges or double teams the high pick-and-rolls, moving the ball around either to an open Sam in the corner or a cutting big, much like nearly every team did to MU last year.  And much like the full-court pressure that was more disruptive to MU than most teams due to the size of the guards, Howard and Rowsey are going to have to figure out how to get out of the high trap set by larger defenders.   Can they make the adjustments in their games to counteract the inevitable defensive adjustments they are going to see?

It would not surprise me to see his numbers drop when stopping him is made the top priority of opposing teams.    We ( and all of the opposing coaches) have seen it can be done.   It is easy to forget there was several games he disappeared.   I hope he is more consistent, sees the floor better, and is able to handle being the top name on the scouting report.

Conversely, great coaches self-scout. Buzz may have been the best at this as any MU coach. His players hated him for it until later...sometimes after they transferred...sometimes after the first practice.

[Jay Bee]

Scouting isn't the concern for M2K. Luck is.

[Juan Anderson's Mixtape]

Scouting isn't the concern for M2K. Luck is.

Is M2K a forerunner to Y2K?

[Herman Cain]

Markus will improve and have another outstanding year. He will be the star of the team.

[WarriorFan]

1.  Work on his first step so he can "blow by" his defender when they are tight on him
2.  10-17' pull up jumper with 50% accuracy
3.  More assists
4.  50% from 3 and over 100 makes
5.  Glimpses of either a Steph style floater or Kyrie style at the rim finishes - which will further develop in year 3 and (if we're lucky) year 4 - and know when to use it and when to pass.

[🏀]

Naismith player of the year, final 4 MVP, cure cancer, fix the hole in the ozone, broker a budget deal in Illinois, kick Trevor Mbakwe's butt,  turn 19.     Junior year will be even better. 

Still won't be considered better then any of those 70's players though.

[Pakuni]

[bilsu]

I expect Howard to be second in scoring to Rowsey.

[HoopsterBC]

I hope this is not the case, as I have to have some size on D, South Carolina with there big guards killed the 2 pint sized guards.  Need more D on the court or
size, this is where I see Cain getting some minutes at the 2, just for size.

[real chili 83]

I hear he is barely 18. Anyone else aware of that?

[real chili 83]

1.  Work on his first step so he can "blow by" his defender when they are tight on him

Put him on a strict diet of habanero Sonoran salsa (Milwaukee's finest salsa), and he will blow by everyone next year.   Stuff is powerful.

[DUNKS45]

That Sonoran Salsa will improve anyone's shooting percentage. Especially the habanero. At least I get to read scoop this morning because it's raining hard here at the farmers market.

[real chili 83]

Is it free hugs and kisses day for the ladies in the Sonoran salsa booth today?

[DUNKS45]

Is it free hugs and kisses day for the ladies in the Sonoran salsa booth today?

Always my friend.

[Jay Bee]

Would like to see....

Usage of 25.4% grows to ~28%
eFG% was 65.8%. If he can get to 60.0%+, I'll be quite pleased.
Assist rate of 19.noine... maybe up to 23%.. but not a huge deal for me.
Turnover rate of 20.5%... let's knock it down to 17%.
FC/40 of 4.6... let's go sub-4

[real chili 83]

Always my friend.

Does the Waukesha farmers market require a special license for that? 

[Dr. Blackheart]

Is it free hugs and kisses day for the ladies in the Sonoran salsa booth today?

[real chili 83]

Dunks is waaaaaaay better looking than that. 

[HutchwasClutch]

Hopefully become much better as a PG, instead of a way too small 2.

[Tugg Speedman]

In all seriousness..... in windowless offices on the campuses of the other 9 Big East teams, there is an unpaid/underpaid low level assistant of some sort poring over every minute that Markus played, every shot that he took, how teams stopped him or failed to stop him.    They are putting his strengths and weaknesses into a database and are working with other assistants to develop a game plan to stop him.   

You're dating yourself. 

All of the above is done in less than 5 minutes via outside services and algorithms (algos).  And, this was already done for the last 18 games of last season (Big East Play)

And, yes these services will chop up the videos and analyze them and spit out examples and stats in microseconds.  Look hard and you will see coaches/players pouring recently completed plays in the game on iPads (Surfaces in the NFL) on the sideline during the game.  Waiting for the windowless room is too long, the game is over and lost.

And no Wojo does not need an underpaid assistant to do this, he can do it on his phone at a stop light on his way to the office.

If anything, they might go to the math and statistics departments to get some quants to help them modify the algos into something proprietary that can help them get an edge because no one else has it.

Finally, these same algos are run on every player and our coaching staff tells them what the algos are telling the other staffs so they know how they will play them.

Welcome to the Big Data arms race ... now taking place in everybody's company/industry ... especially college basketball.

(Tower, how about the algos big cities run to predict fires and crime?)

[MattyWarrior]

Howard has that spark, no matter his size that make him special and I think his feel for the game and what he learned last year will make him the capitan of this team

[4everwarriors]

Yankee, is dat ewe, hey?

[Herman Cain]

Yankee, is dat ewe, hey?

I am just sitting here with the old lady waiting for Ike to show up on campus.

[4everwarriors]

Luv da won yo wit, hey?

[Herman Cain]

Luv da won yo wit, hey?

At my age it's the only choice lol

[Jay Bee]

At my age it's the only choice lol

$$$ got a lot of power for us elder folk, I'm really a badger fanl?

[Herman Cain]

$$$ got a lot of power for us elder folk, I'm really a badger fanl?

Too many gold diggers out there none worth giving up half the net worth over .

[4everwarriors]

Ya could always find a rich bitch, ai na?

[Herman Cain]

Ya could always find a rich bitch, ai na?

I did that once ;wealthy gals with time on their hands are ball busters.

[TAMU, Knower of Ball]

Raw numbers up. Efficiency slightly down. If usage increases without a drop in efficiency....we could have a really special season.

The only thing I truly know will happen is that Markus will have a couple down games in a row and scoop will be clamoring for whoever the backup is to get more playing time.

[Tugg Speedman]

Raw numbers up. Efficiency slightly down. If usage increases without a drop in efficiency....we could have a really special season.

The only thing I truly know will happen is that Markus will have a couple down games possessions in a row and scoop will be clamoring for whoever the backup is to get more playing time.

Fixed above

[GB Warrior]

Raw numbers up. Efficiency slightly down. If usage increases without a drop in efficiency....we could have a really special season.

The only thing I truly know will happen is that Markus will have a couple down games in a row and scoop will be clamoring for whoever the backup is to get more playing time.

We have a backup PG?!? All kidding aside, I agree with this. We should expect volume to go up, but efficiency to go down as teams game plan for him. Until other players (Hauser) prove they can take over a game, they will stay tight on Rowsey and Howard.

As much angst as JJJ and Katin caused us, we knew they were WILLING (if not always able) to take the scoring lead when nothing would fall. Do we have someone else behind our diminutive two? Can Froling be a Luke-type guy first thing 2nd semester?

The more I think about it, this feels like a team building to 2018. That's not a knock on these guys - these feel like the right group of guys (plus Morrow plus Bailey plus Joey [hopefully]) to get the job done. I just think Wojo is content to play the long game.

[Marcus92]

Leading up to the 2016-17 season, few expected an NCAA bid.

None of our six returning players (Duane, Haanif, JaJuan, Luke, Matt and Traci) had ever played in a single NIT or NCAA tournament game. The one player on the roster with any postseason experience (Katin) was an inconsistent chucker with about as many transfers as rebounds to his name. Point guard was a huge question mark — a choice between a turnover-prone sophomore, a high-scoring transfer unproven in a major conference, and an undersized and underaged freshman. The battle for defensive rebounds was surely a hopeless cause.

Somehow, Wojo and his staff were able to motivate, develop and mold this unlikely, unbalanced team into one of college basketball's most exciting and dangerous offenses. A team that earned Marquette its first NCAA bid in four seasons.

While the job is far from over, I count that as a big accomplishment. And it gives me hope that this new team might just have a few surprises in store for us. I know Wojo isn't writing off the 2017-18 season and simply biding his time until he gets the likes of Ed Morrow, Brendan Bailey or Joey Hauser on the court.

[MuMark]

https://twitter.com/matt_velazquez/status/873273695061635081

[MuMark]

http://www.jsonline.com/story/sports/college/marquette/2017/06/10/marquettes-markus-howard-declines-u-19-national-team-invitation/386136001/

[Herman Cain]

http://www.jsonline.com/story/sports/college/marquette/2017/06/10/marquettes-markus-howard-declines-u-19-national-team-invitation/386136001/

Smart move. He has been there and done that so to speak . This summer is big for him and MU with our great recruiting class coming in.