Jake Thomas has Jimmer Range

[TedBaxter]

All I'm saying is that Jake Thomas is not your normal D1 walk-on and he can help this team.  He's more athletic than some give him credit for and with a year with Todd Smith, I'm sure he's increased his strength.  Much of his time will depend on how much others develop their skills over the summer and if Jake is ahead of those players next fall, Buzz won't hesitate to use him.

[Golden Avalanche]

All I'm saying is that Jake Thomas is not your normal D1 walk-on and he can help this team.  He's more athletic than some give him credit for and with a year with Todd Smith, I'm sure he's increased his strength.  Much of his time will depend on how much others develop their skills over the summer and if Jake is ahead of those players next fall, Buzz won't hesitate to use him.

Take out Thomas' name and put in Dave Singleton and this chorus has been sung before.

You can understand the skepticism, I'm sure.

[Dr. Blackheart]

Jake Thomas has yet to walk-on anywhere, earning three years of D1 scholarships already.  MU could have and will have to use him against the zone.  Not only is he a highly efficient player, he is one of the most prolific three point shooters in the land his first two years, his trey shooting % was #20 and # 194 nationally despite defenses keying on him.  He is an 83% free throw shooter.  At 6'3" he also grabbed 5 rebounds per game his sophomore year and had 2.4 assists per game. He is the only returning D1 double digit scorer on next year's roster, and his efficiency is second only to Gardner's.

Now, is he all BE?  A starter? A person who averages double digit minutes? No. Is he a defensive liability? Most likely but so are some of our current guards.  Having some height and length next season will protect MU defensively.  But, having no shooters or scorers returning is a huge hole....meaning more and more zone. Think of the Badger line-up of shooters? Would he sit there or fit in? 

He is a limited role player who will be a walk-on next year because he loves Buzz's style of play and wants to be close to home, but some of you are dismissing the specialized role the kid can play due to MU's roster make-up.  Yes, it will be situational minutes but look at all the points leaving.  With all the offense/defense substitutions Buzz makes, it won't take much for Jake to sit there and launch a three against a collapsing 2-3 zone or to be inserted to shoot free throws at the end of games.

[THEultimateWARRIOR]

Jake Thomas has yet to walk-on anywhere, earning three years of D1 scholarships already.  MU could have and will have to use him against the zone.  Not only is he a highly efficient player, he is one of the most prolific three point shooters in the land his first two years, his trey shooting % was #20 and # 194 nationally despite defenses keying on him.  He is an 83% free throw shooter.  At 6'3" he also grabbed 5 rebounds per game his sophomore year and had 2.4 assists per game. He is the only returning D1 double digit scorer on next year's roster, and his efficiency is second only to Gardner's.

Now, is he all BE?  A starter? A person who averages double digit minutes? No. Is he a defensive liability? Most likely but so are some of our current guards.  Having some height and length next season will protect MU defensively.  But, having no shooters or scorers returning is a huge hole....meaning more and more zone. Think of the Badger line-up of shooters? Would he sit there or fit in? 

He is a limited role player who will be a walk-on next year because he loves Buzz's style of play and wants to be close to home, but some of you are dismissing the specialized role the kid can play due to MU's roster make-up.  Yes, it will be situational minutes but look at all the points leaving.  With all the offense/defense substitutions Buzz makes, it won't take much for Jake to sit there and launch a three against a collapsing 2-3 zone or to be inserted to shoot free throws at the end of games.

+1000000000 Buzz will find the best way to use him through offense-defense substitutions. I've heard from Juan Anderson that he keeps up with the players on the team just fine and he drains 3s in practice against the first team D. Take it for what its worth.

[brewcity77]

Take out Thomas' name and put in Dave Singleton and this chorus has been sung before.

You can understand the skepticism, I'm sure.

Umm...no, I can't. Is there any reason Singleton couldn't have been more than your average walk-on? It's not like his departure from the program had anything to do with his ability to play basketball. He was a scholarship starter at a D1 program. Would have have been successful here, or even have contributed significantly? Who knows. But there's nothing to indicate that he couldn't have. And considering Jake had even more success in his 2 years starting, there's nothing to indicate he can't either.

Skepticism about an incoming player who hasn't yet played is fine, but there's no reason to doubt Jake Thomas any more than there is reason to doubt Steve Taylor, Deonte Burton, or Aaron Durley.

[Stretchdeltsig]

Can't wait to watch Jake play the next two years.

[Golden Avalanche]

Umm...no, I can't. Is there any reason Singleton couldn't have been more than your average walk-on? It's not like his departure from the program had anything to do with his ability to play basketball. He was a scholarship starter at a D1 program. Would have have been successful here, or even have contributed significantly? Who knows. But there's nothing to indicate that he couldn't have. And considering Jake had even more success in his 2 years starting, there's nothing to indicate he can't either.

Skepticism about an incoming player who hasn't yet played is fine, but there's no reason to doubt Jake Thomas any more than there is reason to doubt Steve Taylor, Deonte Burton, or Aaron Durley.

In the beginning, you write that you can't understand the skepticism.

At the end, you write that it's fine to have skepticism about an incoming player.

So, is it okay for people to be skeptical of Thomas or not?

[warthog-driver]

are we arguing
about the ninth or tenth man
our problems are few

[brewcity77]

In the beginning, you write that you can't understand the skepticism.

At the end, you write that it's fine to have skepticism about an incoming player.

So, is it okay for people to be skeptical of Thomas or not?

Your skepticism seems to stem from Thomas being a walk-on, considering you specifically named Singleton. Citing Singleton isn't really fair since he never played on the court and could very well have been successful. Do you have the same skepticism about what Taylor or Burton can do? I'm saying that if you're skeptical, why not be critical of everyone coming to Marquette, rather than just the guys that are paying to come here.

[Golden Avalanche]

Your skepticism seems to stem from Thomas being a walk-on, considering you specifically named Singleton. Citing Singleton isn't really fair since he never played on the court and could very well have been successful. Do you have the same skepticism about what Taylor or Burton can do? I'm saying that if you're skeptical, why not be critical of everyone coming to Marquette, rather than just the guys that are paying to come here.

It's fair to have skepticism over any player who hasn't yet played in your program. (As you no doubt agree)

It's also fair to have skepticism about any player who attempts to walk-on at a much higher level with your program than they previously played at. (As you no doubt should agree)

In the end, the game of parsing our skepticism is truly an irrelevant exercise given the other issues in the program. (As you no doubt won't agree)

[brewcity77]

My main point is that comparing Thomas to a Frozena or Sichting is simply silly, and using Singleton as an example of why Thomas won't work out is senseless because his on-court performance had nothing to do with his departure.

[Canned Goods n Ammo]

To guess at Jake's abilities, maybe we need to consider this:

Who is more likely to be effective:

An 18year old incoming top 100 recruit, or a guy who who averaged 13pts against lower level D1 comp. and is a junior (age-wise).

I don't say this as a 100% belief that Jake is going to have a huge impact, but he's played against good players and had some success. It's not insane to think that he could contribute.

I think writing him off is naive. He's got a skill that nobody else on the roster currently possesses, he can shoot. Buzz likes to mix and match line-ups, so I think he'll get a chance. He might only average 5 or 6pts, but if it's a super efficient 5-6 pts, that could be a big help.

[🏀]

To guess at Jake's abilities, maybe we need to consider this:

Who is more likely to be effective:

An 18year old incoming top 100 recruit, or a guy who who averaged 13pts against lower level D1 comp. and is a junior (age-wise).

I don't say this as a 100% belief that Jake is going to have a huge impact, but he's played against good players and had some success. It's not insane to think that he could contribute.

I think writing him off is naive. He's got a skill that nobody else on the roster currently possesses, he can shoot. Buzz likes to mix and match line-ups, so I think he'll get a chance. He might only average 5 or 6pts, but if it's a super efficient 5-6 pts, that could be a big help.

Well said. He will be a niche player and I'm happy to have him.