Devante Gardner

[willie warrior]

Do some of you really think Ox can start over Chris? Tonight he was great. I love how he doesn't let anyone stand in his way and won't back down. However, the improvement Otule put in this year I think will happen all over again. I hope DG can surprise us next year (as only a soph.!) but I still see him being the role player Chris. Hope he proves me wrong.

Yes--he can start over Otule , should, and will!! Deal with it. It is a fact.

[Mr. Nielsen]

Gardner lacks on defence in games, that is what cost him in playtime this season.

[tower912]

He looked good.   I said a couple of months ago that the best thing for this year's team was for Chris to start and DG to come off the bench, but the roles could easily be reversed next year.   I've seen nothing that changes that.    But, more importantly, for the first time this millenium, (assuming no changes) we go into a season with our 5 not being a liability.     Both guys are going to get their minutes next year. 

[ATWizJr]

He will only get better.

[NickelDimer]

I love Gardner's disposition.  He has that "no stage is too big for me" attitiude.  From his first minute at MU he's expected to score when he wants to. 

[Avenue Commons]

Davante still has a long way to go fitness-wise. Hopefully one offseason will be enough to condition him. If he can lose that 25 pounds of fat and add 15 pounds of muscle, he'll be fantastic, but that's a lot of work to do.

Otule can play the 5 and Gardner can play the 4. I agree that what is standing in his way is his fitness. He reminds me of that 4 on the George Mason team that went to the Final 4 a few years ago.

Davante has to get in shape. I don't know how he is in that poor of shape playing in a program like MU that has a strength and conditioning program.

[96warrior]

A role player is Joe Fulce, Gardner can be significantly more important even if his size may never allow him to play a ton of minutes every night even if he's being effective.

My knee jerk reaction to this was, Fulce isn't a role player...but then I thought twice about it and thought, he's the definition of a role player. Wonder what he might have been had he not suffered through all of those injuries. When he went down in that pre-season game, that could have been it - what a warrior to come back and provide valuable, meaningful minutes down the stretch.

It would be interesting to put both Otule and Gardner on the floor at the same time. They play such yin-yang games. If in the off-season they can work on their chemistry, get into a groove of playing off of each other, it could lead to a major shift in our game. Particularly for a program that has always been so guard-dominant.

When one has a good game and the other one has a not so good game, we seem to herald one and belittle the other. Otule has had major impact across the whole of the season. Against teams in the tourney, he's had a harder time staying out of foul trouble. Is that a transition thing having played so physical in the Big East? Maybe. I love Otule and what he has done, and his potential. Feel the same way about Ox. Really excited to see how we come out this fall.

[79Warrior]

Both Otule and Gardner are role players, at best. For the Warriors to contend for a championship in both the BE and national scene, a better player needs to be recruited for the post. It's a big man's game, right Zeller?

You are wrong about Gardner. A freshman role plarer will not ring up 16 against UNC. Gardner has some reall skills and will absolutely get better. I am excited to see him play next year. Chris is a serviceable backup.

[StillWarriors]

No question Davante made huge strides this year, and has a very high ceiling on the offensive end. I think he got a lot better on D as the year went on. Aside from his fitness, I still say he needs to develop some moves going to his left. He turns right almost without exception, and still managed to be effective. Some moves to the left would help give him some space rather than having to force it up through a defender and hope for a foul or make a very tough shot with his soft touch.

[alexius23]

I can recall several players who had weight issue. Alas...old fart that I am I am blanking on a name. Hank Raymond recruited this center who was so huge one reporter said he should "go condo". Dameon Key had a lot of potential & after his junior year I thought he would have a great senior year. Instead he gained weight, played soft & lost some of his speed. Gardner was in better shape than he was in high school. If he return sans flab & with better muscle mass. Well, that's all up to him....

[4everwarriors]

Old fart, you trying to recollect Lloyd Moore?

[oshkoshbgosh]

Otule and Gardner BOTH need to get in better shape. While DG's weight issue is obvious, CO looked gassed in both the BE and NCAA tourneys. It would be nice if they could stay on the floor for more than five minutes at a time.

[g0warriors1]

DG looked great, i love his attitude and body language on the floor, its like he has "get the @#$& away from me" stamped on his forehead all the time.

I dont know why everyone says he needs to lose weight, and then people say, yeah he really knows how to throw his bulk around in the post. I dont think he needs to lose weight. I say keep the weight, just turn some of it to muscle and start running on a treadmill with a ho-ho dangling in front of him to get him in shape.

Really gonna be interesting to see him and Otule compete with each other and make each other better.

[PGsHeroes32]

Here is the one thing I mention about DG a lot that I dont see many post.

HE CAN MAKE HIS FREE THROWS. Hes got a really solid stroke so you know hes not a fluke and will regress, hes actually got a real shot for a big man. A guy with his strength and footwork is going to get to the line A LOT as his PT increases and if he can knock em down at 70-75% thats an extra like 6 pts right there. He shot one terrible yesterday and was pissed at himself. Not many big men are pissed at a missed freebie.

Hes going to lose some weight and with his brute strength and footwork he will be great. Im pumped for him. Also seemed to have a good connection with Junior.

[Henry Sugar]

Our nickname for Gardner is "Force of Nature".  In two years, if not sooner, he is going to be an indestructible force of nature on the court.

[brewcity77]

My knee jerk reaction to this was, Fulce isn't a role player...but then I thought twice about it and thought, he's the definition of a role player. Wonder what he might have been had he not suffered through all of those injuries. When he went down in that pre-season game, that could have been it - what a warrior to come back and provide valuable, meaningful minutes down the stretch.

I overheard a conversation between a Marquette assistant and former player at IWB's pro-am about Fulce. They discussed how he was clearly the best athlete on the team when he was healthy. From the sound of the convo, if not for his injuries, the expectation was that Fulce and not Butler was expected to be the star when Lazar left. Oh what might have been...

[DoggyDaddy]

Another of Hank's centers was Odell Ball. He was a much slighter DG who could rebound and put back shots but did not have the soft touch. DG is very special in this regard.  If DG plays more post and CO backs him say a 55/45 ratio than what the Warriors really need is a tall, strong, athletic PF to complement them both. Does Jae, Jamil Wilson and maybe Juan Anderson together fulfill this role? Or is there someone else out there, say from the JC ranks?   

[Pakuni]

I overheard a conversation between a Marquette assistant and former player at IWB's pro-am about Fulce. They discussed how he was clearly the best athlete on the team when he was healthy. From the sound of the convo, if not for his injuries, the expectation was that Fulce and not Butler was expected to be the star when Lazar left. Oh what might have been...

That falls in line with what Rosiak and others said about Fulce after watching him play in open gyms during the summer of 2008. Rosiak, if I recall correctly, described him as a Shawn Marion-type player. Unfortunately, it seems injuries never allowed him to reach his full potential.

[nyg]

Another of Hank's centers was Odell Ball. He was a much slighter DG who could rebound and put back shots but did not have the soft touch. DG is very special in this regard.  If DG plays more post and CO backs him say a 55/45 ratio than what the Warriors really need is a tall, strong, athletic PF to complement them both. Does Jae, Jamil Wilson and maybe Juan Anderson together fulfill this role? Or is there someone else out there, say from the JC ranks?   

Just give us a Yancy Gates type PF and the team will be dangerous.  An intimidator PF who can rebound and be a presence under boards. 

[Goose]

He has a chance to be a really nice player but jumping ability will determine how far he goes. Good hands and decent feet. If he improves jumping ability by wide margin sky is the limit. If his "ups" stay down on the floor  I do not think he is top level BE center.

[avid1010]

He has a chance to be a really nice player but jumping ability will determine how far he goes. Good hands and decent feet. If he improves jumping ability by wide margin sky is the limit. If his "ups" stay down on the floor  I do not think he is top level BE center.

I'm one of those nuts that finds it nice to get to games extremely early, and before every game, after the warm-ups are about finished, they throw alley-oops to all the players.  At the beginning of the year Gardner wouldn't even try to dunk it off the catch, and by the end of the year he could usually dunk it on the fly.  One attempt he ended up on his butt, and I really thought he'd be hurt, but in the end it was only his pride that was hurt.  The way he played against NC was extremely impressive given where he started at the beginning of the year.  I really like to see the progress Otule and Gardner have made, and I think it will help MU land more big men as time goes on. 

[brewcity77]

He has a chance to be a really nice player but jumping ability will determine how far he goes. Good hands and decent feet. If he improves jumping ability by wide margin sky is the limit. If his "ups" stay down on the floor  I do not think he is top level BE center.

Dejuan Blair could never jump and he was a top-level BEast center. Gardner didn't come in as well-regarded as Blair did, but if you swap 25 pounds of fat for 15 pounds of muscle, he could be a devastating force even without high hops.

[GGGG]

The problem with having Ox and CO on the floor at the same time, is that I have no idea who guards the four.  The problem is at this point, neither one of them is really good guarding a guy out in space and away from the basket.  Now, if Ox gets more foot speed that might change, but right now he's a center and only a center.

[Badgerhater]

Umm......we have the two of them together for 2 more years.  They will both have their moments and situations were they excel.

It's been awhile since we have had experienced options at the post.  Let's enjoy it!

[WellsstreetWanderer]

He's only a freshman and scores 16 in the SWEET 16!  The guy only has an upside