Who's Your 2010 Overachiever?

[brewcity77]

Last year, quite a few Golden Eagles provided more than expected. Maurice Acker went from leaving the team to a key starter. Darius Johnson-Odom went from the guy no one had heard of to a key scoring option. Jimmy Butler went from sixth man to star player while also proving to be Mr. Clutch.

So who will it be this year? Will Erik Williams break into the lineup and show that his top 100 ranking wasn't a fluke? Will one of the incoming freshmen earn starter-type minutes and have a big impact come the start of the Big East season? Will Dwight Buycks rebound from the inconsistency of last year for a strong senior season? Will Chris Otule finally stay healthy enough to not just start, but excel?

My pick for 2010 Overachiever is Joe Fulce. According to one of the coaches I talked to at the Pro-Am, he's the best pure athlete on the team. Last season, he showed some ability to shoot the three and had a few decent games off the bench. Against Cincinnati on the road, in particular, we would have been lost without the minutes Fulce provided. At times he reminded me of Jimmy Butler the year before, great in spurts but still just a role-player.

I think this year he can emerge as more than that. While minutes will be tough to come by with Butler, Crowder, and Otule looking like the logical choices up front, I think Fulce has the ability to spell all three. Buzz usually favors seniors, which means Fulce will have every opportunity to get minutes, and I think his consistency will result in 20+ mpg and around 10 ppg and 6 rpg.

So who's your 2010-2011 Overachiever?

[NersEllenson]

I'm going to go with Buycks.  Think he will put up very solid numbers this year..perhaps in the 12-14ppg area with about 4 boards per game.  Buycks showed us flashes last year, and by all accounts his shot has gotten a lot better this off season.

[VwArrior1]

Cadougan WILL outperform everybody's expectations right now!!

[ATL MU Warrior]

What I'm really looking forward to this year is the fact that there are so many unknowns AND so many possibilities of guys stepping up.  

There are only two proven quantities where we know with some degree of certainty what we can expect (DJO and JFB).  I will not count Junior...his limited play last year is not the basis for comparison for me...he clearly wasn't himself.  I think he'll play a lot and play like a top 50 recruit.  Probably still some growing pains early but his limited minutes last year should have given him a feel for the speed of the game at this level and benefit him in that regard.  Pro-Am performance encouraging.  Also not counting freshmen.  

My top picks for overachiever in order of overachieverness:
- Fulce - Finally healthy (fingers crossed) for the first time at MU.  I think he will probably start as a senior and play major minutes.  If I remember correctly, before MU and all the injuries he was seen as the better player over JFB.  
- Buycks - Year 2...will play within himself and cut down on mistakes and bad shots.  Can get to the rim at will it seems.  First guy off the bench if not starting in a small (again) lineup
- EWill - If he can earn some minutes I think he will do well.  Going to be tough for him with Butler/Fulce/Crowder combo manning the forward positions.  He certaily looked better as the season progressed last year...hopefully the offseason was a productive one for him.
- Otule - If he can give us 5/5/5 (points/rebounds/fouls) his season will be a success.  I think the potential is there and he's pretty darn strong for such a long guy...hopefully he can give us some decent interior presence when he's on the court.

[RJax55]

Good topic...

Its difficult to chose someone because outside of Butler, DJO and to some extent Fulce, there isn't really a consensus of what the other guys expectations are.

I'll go with Blue. I know he's highly regarded, but Buzz favors veteran players. So, I think Blue breaks that mold and if he doesn't start Day 1, it will be soon after. Averages between 8-10 ppg and plays some really good defense.

[mug644]

Good topic...

Its difficult to chose someone because outside of Butler, DJO and to some extent Fulce, there isn't really a consensus of what the other guys expectations are.

I'll go with Blue. I know he's highly regarded, but Buzz favors veteran players. So, I think Blue breaks that mold and if he doesn't start Day 1, it will be soon after. Averages between 8-10 ppg and plays some really good defense.

I think if Blue puts particular emphasis on his defense (as he seemed to do in the big tournament he played in over the summer), I too think he may be the overachiever, because I have lower expectations that he'll earn big playing on offense.

My hope for overachiever of the year is Cadougan, 'cuz his play at the point could really define how well the team does overall (though the same could be said for Otule, and others).

[NYWarrior]

Fulce

He'll play very effective, efficient minutes .... 

[MUCam]

Fulce is my choice. Buycks is another solid pick.

Seniors, with their sense of finality, almost always step up to the plate. We've seen it here at Marquette many times over the years and we'll continue to see it down the line. Fulce falls into that category. Additionally, I have no doubt in my mind that Fulce feels he has something to prove to the Marquette nation. While his cohort (Jimmy Butler) has flourished, Joe suffered through injuries. Without Hayward this year, a spot opens up for Fulce to take full advantage of. I think he'll succeed there and have a dependable and solid senior year.

[NYWarrior]

Fulce is my choice. Buycks is another solid pick.

Seniors, with their sense of finality, almost always step up to the plate. We've seen it here at Marquette many times over the years and we'll continue to see it down the line. Fulce falls into that category. Additionally, I have no doubt in my mind that Fulce feels he has something to prove to the Marquette nation. While his cohort (Jimmy Butler) has flourished, Joe suffered through injuries. Without Hayward this year, a spot opens up for Fulce to take full advantage of. I think he'll succeed there and have a dependable and solid senior year.

More than anything for Fulce it's that he's already proven to be an effective player, limited only by injury and playing time. Last year in limited minutes his eFG% was a sound 52% and statistically he was the team's most efficient/effective rebounder (both offensively & defensively -- that's right, better than Butler or 'Zar in limited minutes).  That's impressive considering his PT was limited behind Butler and 'Zar, and it took him time to establish himself in the rotation (Maymon, recovering from injury).  If Fulce spends more time on the floor he's a projectable contributor in areas of traditional weakness for Marquette.  He's the x-factor this year.

I'm not so sure on Buycks -- outside of his work on the boards he was flat-out terrible last season (team-worst eFG, ORtg, & turnover rate -- all by substantial margins).  This year he'll be challenged by a host of talented newcomers to command playing time.  Unless he dramatically improved his handle and shot selection in the off-season, Buycks could be in for a disappointing senior campaign.  One good sign for Buycks was his improved play in last season's final couple of weeks, maybe he can keep that going.

[radome]

Junior!

[Skatastrophy]

Otule is going to stay healthy this year and make a lot of people ooh and ahh.  Take it to the bank.

[avid1010]

I'm hoping for Junior or Otule...both would work as well.  If Junior can play serious minutes and Otule can defend, rebound and get a few put-backs each game MU will be very competitive.

[OhioGoldenEagle]

I thought I was going to be the lone Joe Fulce voter, but it looks like he is actually the leading vote getter to this point.  Agree with all that was said about Joe.......I think with consistent minutes (and health), he will back up a bit of the hype that surrounded him when he first arrived at MU.

To change it up, however, I'm going to give Reggie Smith the overachiever award.  I think his speed and athleticism will get him on the court more than expected, but his impact will be more from a defensive standpoint.

[NersEllenson]

To change it up, however, I'm going to give Reggie Smith the overachiever award.  I think his speed and athleticism will get him on the court more than expected, but his impact will be more from a defensive standpoint.

I've been on the Reggie-train since I first saw his highlight video..you cannot coach/teach/calculate the value of his athleticism.  I've felt he would be the biggest surprise/overachiever of all the newcomers signed - so definitely agree with your point here.

[lab_warrior]

I'm going to go with Buycks, with Fulce a close second.  These guys are veteran players, and they've been in Buzz' system.  Last year it was pretty apparent how valuable senior leadership was with the 'Zar/Acker/Cubes combo. 

[mileskishnish72]

Agree NYWarrior - DB seemed like a turnover machine. But where did the stats come from?

[Henry Sugar]

Agree NYWarrior - DB seemed like a turnover machine. But where did the stats come from?

http://kenpom.com/team.php?team=Marquette

[Golden Avalanche]

My overachiever is Otule.

He's only played around 10 games in his career and had no impact in a Big East game against legit competition so admittedly the bar is low but I think he'll provide solid cover at the 5 spot off the bench this season (praying that he makes it healthy).

[willie warrior]

I agree with many of the above. I certainly hope Otule and Cadougan overachieve. I believe that Crowder will be a stud by mid year, so expectations should be high for him.

Heck, I hope the whole team overachieves so they make my prediction of 23-12 look lousy!

[Henry Sugar]

Last year Fulce had an ORtg of 111.3 and a usage of 17%.  That's more efficient than either Lazar or DJO.  Also, recall than an average player has numbers of 100 and 20%.  Not to mention Fulce had the best offensive and defensive rebounding numbers on the team.

Assume he takes a larger role on the court and still keeps/improves his efficiency.  That is an extremely solid contributor.

Fulce

[mileskishnish72]

If he improves as much this year compared to last as he did the year prior it would be Mr. JFB.

[brewcity77]

To change it up, however, I'm going to give Reggie Smith the overachiever award.  I think his speed and athleticism will get him on the court more than expected, but his impact will be more from a defensive standpoint.

I think Reggie is a great shout. He was one of the guys that most impressed me at the Pro-Am. Both Buycks and Fulce looked very good, but it was playground style, so I think it's easier to flourish offensively. What impressed about Reggie was that his speed forced the other team to adjust to him. If he has a good handle and passing vision, it would not surprise me at all if he was our biggest impact freshman this season.