[Cracked Sidewalks] This off-season can't end soon enough

[CrackedSidewalksSays]

This off-season can't end soon enough

Written by: noreply@blogger.com (Tim Blair)

The injury-marred close to Marquette's 2008-2009 season was sure to give way to an off-season of discontent for Warrior Nation but the past several weeks can rightly be referred to as cruel and unusual punishment.

Other than receiving positive news about the eligibility of incoming freshmen Junior Cadougan and Youssoupha Mbao, Marquette has become Floyd Patterson to reality's Muhammad Ali, held up in the turnbuckle absorbing a barrage of hits and humiliation.

How bad are things for the Golden Eagles? The best news for the program in the last month and a half was the departure of 6'9" freshman Brett Roseboro and the oh-so-convenient reinstatement of the diminutive and unproductive Maurice Acker. While the news of Roseboro's departure validated months of rumors about the possibility some media reports left the impression that the 6'9" Pennsylvanian was run out of the program, at best a 'mistake' by both parties.

Acker clearly isn't a talent upgrade but he has the added benefit of freeing up an extra scholarship for a higher ceiling player in the incoming 2010 freshman class.  At the very least this 'swap' reinforces negative stereotypes about what is really valued in college basketball.

More recently the Golden Eagles likely bid adieu to one of its top recruits for the incoming 2010 class when 6'10" Monterale Clark was charged in connection with a sexual assault on the campus of Hill College where he is a student. The details of the alleged sexual assault are gruesome, and while justice has yet to be meted out in the case it would be difficult to envision Clark ever suiting up for Marquette at this point.

Perhaps it's too bad Roseboro already completed his transfer to St. Bonaventure -- he can't take the convenient Acker U-Turn back onto the now depleted 2010 roster.

While Roseboro and Clark figured more heavily into Marquette's future plans, the upcoming campaign is already shaping up to be a long season. Capping off Marquette's 45 days of discontent, highly-touted point guard Junior Cadougan suffered a potential season-ending Achilles injury which is sure to sideline him for four to six months. Adding insult to injury sophomore transfer Darius Johnson-Odom injured his foot and will miss at least a month of action.  Good thing Acker is back!?

There are few fates worse than early season injuries for unestablished talent in Buzz Williams' program. Last year early season injuries to freshman Chris Otule and junior college transfer Joseph Fulce stunted the development of these players, marginalizing their contributions for the entire season as the coach shortened the bench during conference play.

At this point one must presume that Cadougan will be fitted for a medical redshirt soon after the national signing period concludes. There's still hope for Johnson-Odom, who figures to be the most talented newcomer to the roster this year and, presuming an on-schedule recovery, would still have time to work his way into the backcourt rotation and take the lion's share of playing time along side Dwight Buycks.

Still, MU is not out of the woods with the current roster. While Mbao was cleared academically by the NCAA, his amateur status is still under review due to his participation on an overseas team that included a few professional players some years ago. Expect Mbao to miss a pair of games this season for each game he was on the roster of that team, compromising his development which, experience shows us, could make him a non-factor this year.

On the recruiting front, 2010 target Aaron Bowen de-committed but MU gained a better prospect when Jamail Jones cast his lot with the program. Bowen's summer performances were less than stellar and with lingering concerns over the health of his shoulder Buzz Williams was right to continue to pursue more talented options.

While Jones is in the fold, Williams has recently missed out on a host of talented kids from the 2010 class including Carson Desrosiers (verbal to Wake Forsest), J.J. Moore (eliminated MU from consideration), and Cameron Clark (verbal to OU). Additional reports indicate that top target Jay Pinkston is a Villanova lean while Doron Lamb is a pipedream.

With three scholarships presumably available who will Williams target next? The tide has to turn at some point for a program that is in desperate need of back-to-back strong recruiting classes.  Wisconsin de-commit Vander Blue remains a possibility.

http://www.crackedsidewalks.com/2009/09/this-off-season-cant-end-soon-enough.html

[Blackhat]

Very nice summary on where we stand.

[copious1218]

Expect Mbao to miss a pair of games this season for each game he was on the roster of that team

How many games was Mbao on that roster?

[Hards Alumni]

I have to say that this article is the sort of whiny crap I expect on these forums, but not from Cracked Sidewalks.  I appreciate 'telling it like it is' but some of this is downright mean.  While Mo Acker isn't what we had all hoped for in our back court this year, it doesn't mean we should be berating one of OUR players in an article that is pretty well read among Marquette fans.

I find it to be embarassing and a complete lack of judgement from the editors at CS to publish something like this.

I am all for reporting the woeful facts, but the vitriol and author's extreme opinion should be reserved for places like this board, not published articles.

[MarqBB77-03]

Have to agree with HA on this one.  Why attach Acker?  He apparently resolved the issues which led to him leaving the team and has done nothing but give his utmost to support the program.  He should not be criticized for this type of character.

[MU gimp ONE]

i have to agree with HA as well.  I lost alot of respect for the editors over at cracked sidewalks with this article.  I personally am a little relieved that Acker is back on the team.  However small he is, i think he is our best option to break some of the tough Big East presses.  not to mention we need someone who has been there for the tough conference season.  unless i hear something from Buzz, Mo, or the a police blotter, who are we to attack Mo's character off of rumors.  Regardless if you think he is a BE player or a bust, no need to attack a member of OUR team. 

Here's one we should all run with... Cracked Sidewalks supports Mike Vick and his dog fighting past. 

[willie warrior]

Acker will hurt, not help. He is not BEast talent.

[muwarrior87]

Acker will hurt, not help. He is not BEast talent.

You think he'll hurt in practice as well preparing Buycks, DJO, etc for competition against BE opponents?  He's played in the BE for 2 years and has that experience to help teach our new guys how to succeed at that level.  I have a feeling he will be more of a backup by the time conference starts anyway.  You cannot, however, overlook the advantages of having a senior show the new guys the ropes, no matter how bad you think he is.

[mu_hilltopper]

(As a point of information .. CS does not have "editors."  What each guy writes is what each guy writes.

Personally, I love Mo Acker, and have a poster of him in my bedroom because he's so dreamy.)

[TomW1365]

You think he'll hurt in practice as well preparing Buycks, DJO, etc for competition against BE opponents?  He's played in the BE for 2 years and has that experience to help teach our new guys how to succeed at that level.  I have a feeling he will be more of a backup by the time conference starts anyway.  You cannot, however, overlook the advantages of having a senior show the new guys the ropes, no matter how bad you think he is.

Having each team have a true point guard in inter squad games is priceless in helping develop the young talent we have on this team.  Having Acker rejoin this team is going to be a blessing this year.

[NYWarrior]

unless i hear something from Buzz, Mo, or the a police blotter, who are we to attack Mo's character off of rumors.  Regardless if you think he is a BE player or a bust, no need to attack a member of OUR team.  

Here's one we should all run with... Cracked Sidewalks supports Mike Vick and his dog fighting past.  

MU Gimp --- There was not a single comment made about Acker's character in my most recent post on the blog.   The only negative directed towards Acker in the post was that he is an ineffective college basketball player.  If you think he's effective, that is fine.  I stand by the comment about his performance based on his play at Marquette - most notably his string of poor play last year as detailed in his game log,
http://sports.espn.go.com/ncb/player/profile?playerId=27123

As I stated in a previous post about Acker on the blog ... here is a guy who  shot 29% from the floor last year -- he's offensively bankrupt. We learned last year that as a role player he was particularly bad -- ie, 1 made 3pointer in BE play through the first 12 conference games (which included 2 DNPs!). Acker only got marginally better when he had the gift of starter minutes from James' injury but was so bad defensively that MU's entire gameplan was shot.  As a distributor of the ball he was equally inept -- just look at the nosedive in the efficiency of his more talented peers when Mo played big minutes.  Anyway, barring season ending injuries to Buycks or DJO, hopefully Acker is headed back to the spot duty role that he was so unproductive in last year.

HA -- appreciate your comments.  The post was designed to recap the major clusters of news about the program in the last 45 days for folks who read the blog but don't follow the message boards routinely.  If the tone came across as disappointed and disheartened  (or, whiny)-- well, that was part of the point.  Its been tough sledding for the good guys of late.

Thanks for reading (and to reaffirm Hilltopper's point -- we don't have an editorial structure at the blog).

[radome]

I'm glad he is back unless the rumors of the reason he was gone were true.  The players do have a moral responsibility.

Bottomline, I hope that our team is good enough that he can't break into big time minutes. 

Regardless, I have little doubt that practice is better with him than without him.

[teddycoke]

thanks for the summ TB..something has got to go our way soon.....

[dsfire]

As I stated in a previous post about Acker on the blog ... here is a guy who  shot 29% from the floor last year -- he's offensively bankrupt. We learned last year that as a role player he was particularly bad -- ie, 1 made 3pointer in BE play through the first 12 conference games (which included 2 DNPs!). Acker only got marginally better when he had the gift of starter minutes from James' injury but was so bad defensively that MU's entire gameplan was shot.  As a distributor of the ball he was equally inept -- just look at the nosedive in the efficiency of his more talented peers when Mo played big minutes.  Anyway, barring season ending injuries to Buycks or DJO, hopefully Acker is headed back to the spot duty role that he was so unproductive in last year.

I'll dispute Acker being an unproductive player.  You mention that as a distributor he was inept, but he finished the season with a respectable 2.44:1 assist/TO ratio (higher in the last several games, I believe).  He also shot poorly from 3 as a role player last year, but in the same role the year before hit 42%.  His height is clearly a handicap on defense and I think the main reason why the offense as a whole suffered by replacing DJ with Acker was the lack of a drive-and-dish threat, with Burke already being an offensive-non-factor, thereby putting even more of the load on McNeal/Matthews/Hayward.  Acker's offensive efficiency last year despite the poor shooting was right around 100, slightly below the D1 average.

I don't buy Murff's idea that Acker was just as good as (or better than?) James but I think he'll probably start at PG for us at the beginning of the year and play decent - and respectable - minutes throughout.  Especially on a team, and in a position, that needs experienced leadership.

I didn't take issue with the Acker comments in the original article (admittedly, I kind of skimmed) but how was Roseboro transferring out a positive for the program?

[Jay Bee]

I thought it was a nice little summary, but... NYWarrior obviously hates Mo Acker.  Hates.  

I don't.  Defensively, I wanted him to not get manhandled as if he were half a foot shorter than everyone he was guarding (which he was).  Defensively, it could have been much worse.  Our entire gameplan was not "shot" because of his defense.  

By the way, NYWarrior, is your repeated claim that Acker shot only 29% from the floor an intentional round down for effect?  The guy shot 30%.  

What was most important to me was whether Acker would turn the ball over against Big East defenses - and he didn't.  I've got him at 1.87 turnovers per 40 (DJ was 2.37 for the year, granted he was doing more with the ball).

If nothing else, Acker can be a calming force this year -- if he's on the bench and things are getting out of hand with the youngsters turning the ball over and playing out of control, I'm very comfortable with sending in Maurice to reset the tone.  In 2007-08 he shot 44% (including 43% from 3) playing for us - I'm glad he's back for this season.

[Blackhat]

Sometimes the truth isn't always nice.    He could have skirted around his true beliefs on Acker and made it a more "pleasant" article but Acker is a liability in the Big East both offensively and substantially on defense.    

A 22 yr old should be able to handle those statements if he comes across them especially if he plans on playing professionally in 7 months.

[77ncaachamps]

I don't see the article as any form of hate on Mo.

I see it as a summation of the views of Mo's reintroduction to the team from initial ("why did we take him back?") to the more recent ("glad we have someone experienced because of Junior's and DJO's injury").

I'm glad we have Mo back...cuz this year would be a bit more difficult without him.

And it means I get to wear my #2 shirt for one more season!

[Hards Alumni]

I guess you two see what you want to see then. 

Reread the story, and I am sure you can find some sarcastic jabs.

[JTBMU7]

Enough about the Mo Acker thing.. geez...

The intent of the article was clearly to highlight the roller coaster this last month and half has been. But, i think given the circumstances, we end up in an OK spot.

The injurys suck, but i'd rather have them early on. That way, you count those guys out for the year and work with what you have from the start. Building the team around Junior and then having him blow his ankle out a few months into the season would be worse in my mind.

Recruits are what they are. Again, i'd rather have these guys flame out or have their off the court issues early on, or even before they step on campus, than once they've been here for a year or two. How much worse would Clark's situation have been if it happened in Humphrey hall? How much worse would it be if BR had rode the pine for a year or two, eaten up a scholarship, then transfered? Same goes for Bowen, lets weed this kind of stuff out early and move on, just my opinion.

That being said, this is going to be a tough year. But it was going to be a tough year no matter what, that's the nature of rebuilding years. Gtown had one last year and now they're back towards the top of the conference.

So lets just enjoy the fact that we (hopefully) got our injuries/off the court issues out of the way early, instead of have them happen with 5 games left in the season...

[dsfire]

Enough about the Mo Acker thing.. geez...

The intent of the article was clearly to highlight the roller coaster this last month and half has been. But, i think given the circumstances, we end up in an OK spot.

The injurys suck, but i'd rather have them early on. That way, you count those guys out for the year and work with what you have from the start. Building the team around Junior and then having him blow his ankle out a few months into the season would be worse in my mind.

Recruits are what they are. Again, i'd rather have these guys flame out or have their off the court issues early on, or even before they step on campus, than once they've been here for a year or two. How much worse would Clark's situation have been if it happened in Humphrey hall? How much worse would it be if BR had rode the pine for a year or two, eaten up a scholarship, then transfered? Same goes for Bowen, lets weed this kind of stuff out early and move on, just my opinion.

That being said, this is going to be a tough year. But it was going to be a tough year no matter what, that's the nature of rebuilding years. Gtown had one last year and now they're back towards the top of the conference.

So lets just enjoy the fact that we (hopefully) got our injuries/off the court issues out of the way early, instead of have them happen with 5 games left in the season...

• On the other hand, Otule and Fulce were injured early last year and lost useful development/play time but couldn't be redshirted due to our meager depth.  I'd have to imagine that Otule breaking his foot after non-conference would've been better than before, simply from an experience standpoint.
• I'd rather have seen Roseboro stay all four years and see if he became a useful role player as expected when he was originally recruited.  Not saying that was gonna happen - he obviously made his own decision to transfer when he did - but it's not like the only possible outcomes in these situations are bad or worse.
• Unfortunately, all it really means is we started the year with injuries/issues.  There's no magical limit on these things that's gonna give us a pass on them for the rest of the year just because we got hit early.

[LA]

MU Gimp --- There was not a single comment made about Acker's character in my most recent post on the blog.

Than what was meant by this statement: "Acker clearly isn't a talent upgrade but he has the added benefit of freeing up an extra scholarship for a higher ceiling player in the incoming 2010 freshman class.  At the very least this 'swap' reinforces negative stereotypes about what is really valued in college basketball."

What would you be referring to in regards to what is really valued in college basketball, I took that as an attack on Acker and the program's character.

This off season has been a rough one but I have to agree with HA that crying about it on CS is not the best way to vent your frustrations. Save it for the board.

[LA]

apparently I am a failure at posting as only the top line was supposed to be the quote for NY.

[MR.HAYWARD]

MU Gimp --- There was not a single comment made about Acker's character in my most recent post on the blog.   The only negative directed towards Acker in the post was that he is an ineffective college basketball player.  If you think he's effective, that is fine.  I stand by the comment about his performance based on his play at Marquette - most notably his string of poor play last year as detailed in his game log,
http://sports.espn.go.com/ncb/player/profile?playerId=27123

As I stated in a previous post about Acker on the blog ... here is a guy who  shot 29% from the floor last year -- he's offensively bankrupt. We learned last year that as a role player he was particularly bad -- ie, 1 made 3pointer in BE play through the first 12 conference games (which included 2 DNPs!). Acker only got marginally better when he had the gift of starter minutes from James' injury but was so bad defensively that MU's entire gameplan was shot.  As a distributor of the ball he was equally inept -- just look at the nosedive in the efficiency of his more talented peers when Mo played big minutes.  Anyway, barring season ending injuries to Buycks or DJO, hopefully Acker is headed back to the spot duty role that he was so unproductive in last year.

HA -- appreciate your comments.  The post was designed to recap the major clusters of news about the program in the last 45 days for folks who read the blog but don't follow the message boards routinely.  If the tone came across as disappointed and disheartened  (or, whiny)-- well, that was part of the point.  Its been tough sledding for the good guys of late.

Thanks for reading (and to reaffirm Hilltopper's point -- we don't have an editorial structure at the blog).

I think the article was crap too.  I agree with the othe rposter...simply a whiny crying little tantrum.  i look forward to the season I think we will surprise people especially you, and dont worry Acker will not be our focal point.