Poll: Which of our 3 frosh has the highest ceiling?

[Its DJOver]

Cain has the highest ceiling, but Theo will make the biggest jump from this year to next.

[GB Warrior]

1. Cain

Best case: Mikal Bridges
More likely: Jamil Wilson

2. Elliott

Best case: Better shooting Vander Blue
More likely: Trent Lockett in Vander Blue's body

3. John

Best case: Faisal Abraham with bit more offense
More likely: Faisal Abraham

I agree with this analysis.

[Mr. Sand-Knit]

Cain easily. I think by the end of next season he will be better than Sam.

Oh jesus 😂😂

[TSmith34, Inc.]

Theo, because if you disagree he will come kick your ass.

[MU82]

Splitting hairs IMO but in order I'd go:

Jamal
Theo
Greg

Aside from the obvious measurables, Cain has a nice shooting touch and two of his KenPom statistical comps are Hollis Thompson & Caleb Martin.

Theo is next on my list for measurables, defensive instincts, intensity, and improved skill set. Also, interestingly one of his statistical comps is Harry Giles, a one & done big from Duke last year.

Greg's fram looks like the least likely to put on weight, and his shot needs the most work. Wild card is if his hand injury prevented his ball handling from being as tight as needed and that healing causes him to drastically improve in that area. That would givie us a long bouncy PG with a good feel for the game. He's a nice passer already and has good defensive instincts.

Lot of upside with these guys and they each made nice contributions right away. Jamal and Greg are young for thier class, so that gives them a higher ceiling too. Excited to see them develop over their careers.

I really like this comment, EFR - the second time in about a half-hour I have said that about one of your comments. We agree ... so you must be really smart!

Seriously, I think a few posters are under-rating how much better Theo got over the course of the season. That little hook of his became very reliable, he made a baseline jumper a few games ago, and yesterday he was the only MU player really battling on the boards. He even made 70% of his FTs from Jan. 1 on. His hands aren't the greatest yet, nor is his decision-making, but those things can improve. At the very worst, he will be a super-solid backup big for 4 years - and every team needs one of them. But I think he'll be better than that. By the second half of the BE season, he was miles ahead of most of our other recent bigs as freshmen.

Cain can be a stud. Add a little bulk, let the game slow down a little, and wow. He already is a disruptive defender, and I'm pretty sure he doesn't even know what he's doing out there. He shot 3s way better than I expected. I doubt he'll be better than a healthy Sam next season (as one of our colleagues opined), but I think he really has a high ceiling.

And I like your use of the term "wild card" with Elliott, because that's exactly what he is. What if he gets fully healthy and has a great offseason of work with all of the PGs on our staff? Maybe he actually will be able to play some PG. That would be huge even if we sign a grad transfer. Even if he's only mostly a backup 2, as he was this season, he can be a very useful player for us.

Excited about all 3 of them.

[GooooMarquette]

Theo, because if you disagree he will come kick your ass.

Marquette's very own Chuck Norris...

[Coleman]

Theo John, if you have the right guards around him.

[Benny B]

Theo will make the most improvement, but I hope I'm proven wrong when I see his ceiling being just as high as Davante's... mind you, that can still be a pretty high ceiling, but he's really going to have to work on his defense and lateral motion (i.e. propensity to foul) before I see him as anything more than the next coming of Detlef Schrempf (i.e. the greatest 6th man ever).

Jamal made some clutch baskets you want to see in tournament play; that's always a good sign from a freshman.  I love that he stepped up when the team needed him, grabbed over 100 rebounds (3rd on the team).  But Greg bested him by 2x in assists and blocks.

I'd like to see Greg at 100% health in a clutch March situation before confirming my vote, but for now, it goes to him simply on basketball IQ alone - though he has to improve his A/TO ratio (even though he was 3rd on the team behind Sam and Rowsey).  Granted, he needs to be coached more on D-I defense (they all do), but I like his vision that - along with added strength and confidence - could easily turn him into a BE 1st teamer, possibly even a POY contender.

[brewcity77]

Jamal unquestionably has the highest ceiling. He is an above the rim player who can score inside and out, has an absolute nose for the ball in rebounding, and makes a ton of correctable mistakes. While the last one may not seem like a positive, once he stops traveling and throwing errant passes, gets his timing down, and adds muscle, he could be an all-conference player.

Greg was the most polished coming in and Theo could be a legit Big East starter at the 5, but in terms strictly of ceiling, it's Cain and I don't see any way it's even debatable.

[Herman Cain]

It was close, however, I voted for Greg Elliot. He has the most upside because he can improve in three ways versus two for Cain and one for Theo. I see that as follows
Greg Elliott
1. Injury Improvement
2. Normal Freshman to Sophomore Improvement
3. Strength Improvement
Jamal Cain
1. Normal Freshman to Sophomore Improvement
2. Strength Improvement
Theo John
1. Normal Freshman to Sophomore Improvement

I was very impressed with Elliotts performance this season. If all goes well he could be another Micheal Wilson for MU.  All three freshman are going to be a positive factor for MU in the Big East for years to come. 

[Disco Hippie]

Like Herman and Benny B, I too have to go with Greg.  He's nowhere near as graceful or as good an outside shooter as Jamal and looks like a Jr. High school kid compared to Theo, but man is he fun to watch!  Easily the the most explosive player on the roster.  One of the things that frustrated me most about this past season (besides our complete lack of paint presence) was that we should have been a much better transition / fast break team than we were.   I think with a season down and a summer of prep, Greg will be THE big play guy next season.  Whether or not that translates to "highest ceiling" I can't say.

[MU82]

Theo will make the most improvement, but I hope I'm proven wrong when I see his ceiling being just as high as Davante's... mind you, that can still be a pretty high ceiling, but he's really going to have to work on his defense and lateral motion (i.e. propensity to foul) before I see him as anything more than the next coming of Detlef Schrempf (i.e. the greatest 6th man ever).

Jamal made some clutch baskets you want to see in tournament play; that's always a good sign from a freshman.  I love that he stepped up when the team needed him, grabbed over 100 rebounds (3rd on the team).  But Greg bested him by 2x in assists and blocks.

I'd like to see Greg at 100% health in a clutch March situation before confirming my vote, but for now, it goes to him simply on basketball IQ alone - though he has to improve his A/TO ratio (even though he was 3rd on the team behind Sam and Rowsey).  Granted, he needs to be coached more on D-I defense (they all do), but I like his vision that - along with added strength and confidence - could easily turn him into a BE 1st teamer, possibly even a POY contender.

Great stuff in here.

One quibble, though ...

<<Detlef Schrempf (i.e. the greatest 6th man ever)>>

Kevin McHale, Vinnie Johnson and Bobby Jones would like a word with you!

[Benny B]

Great stuff in here.

One quibble, though ...

<<Detlef Schrempf (i.e. the greatest 6th man ever)>>

Kevin McHale, Vinnie Johnson and Bobby Jones would like a word with you!

Don’t recall any of those three getting their very own holographic collector card in the ‘91-92 debut of Upper Deck’s NBA trading cards.

[D'Lo Brown]

Theo needs to improve on intimidating the referees. If he can smile at them more, maybe tell a joke or two, he will be much improved next year. I think he needs to work on his smiling.

Seriously though, I think Theo might be the player with the highest potential and probably the clearest path to minutes over his career (though as a C, his minutes will always be somewhat split). I love the other players and I think it's incredibly close, too close to call really at this point. Any one of them could be scouted/exploited better next season but I just have a hard time seeing anyone stopping such an incredible physical force like Theo once he develops some of the nuances and gains the confidence. I think he was a little in over his head this season, even though that was an ideal experience for him. He has the most to potentially gain. I think his alley-oop game as well as face-to-the-basket game can be substantially improved and that he will get better at blocking shots without fouling. Having watched a lot of Uconn games as a child, I know the value of a physical shot-blocking force down low - we will need it as our trajectory ascends and we have to deal with beating better teams.

Jamal had some incredibly flashy rebounds/dunks/3's and Greg showed an ability to grab steals/be a pesky defender/dish/play a solid all-around game. But I think that Theo really stands out as an MU player, now and in the future, he is an intimidating force and we really have not had a great record of acquiring those players in Wojo's tenure. We will need him.

But I absolutely could be wrong, so much still up in the air with these guys, and who knows what future recruits we will see.

[ATL MU Warrior]

Like Herman and Benny B, I too have to go with Greg.  He's nowhere near as graceful or as good an outside shooter as Jamal and looks like a Jr. High school kid compared to Theo, but man is he fun to watch!  Easily the the most explosive player on the roster.  One of the things that frustrated me most about this past season (besides our complete lack of paint presence) was that we should have been a much better transition / fast break team than we were.   I think with a season down and a summer of prep, Greg will be THE big play guy next season.  Whether or not that translates to "highest ceiling" I can't say.

It's hard to run a fast break when you can't stop the other team from scoring.

[KampusFoods]

Cain easily. I think by the end of next season he will be better than Sam.

[Jay Bee]

The one I might disagree with is Faisal Abraham.

In his freshman year, Faisal averaged 1.4 ppg and 1.5 rpg in the Great Midwest Conference. Granted, that was on a team with seniors Damon Key and Jim McIlvane, plus sophomore Amal McCaskill. But Theo surpassed those numbers pretty easily, averaging 3.9 ppg and 2.3 rpg in a much tougher Big East conference.

For his career, Faisal averaged 4.4 ppg and 4.6 rpg. From what I saw this season, Theo's ceiling could be significantly higher.

You’re looking at the wrong stats. Faisal is a great comp.

Hoping for #’s (not speaking on pervgsmw/Avgs) like oose barro

[TSmith34, Inc.]

You’re looking at the wrong stats. Faisal is a great comp.

Hoping for #’s (not speaking on pervgsmw/Avgs) like oose barro

You don't expect Theo to have a better offensive game than Faisal had?  I've already seen Theo do things that Faisal never developed.

[Silkk the Shaka]

I really like this comment, EFR - the second time in about a half-hour I have said that about one of your comments. We agree ... so you must be really smart!

Seriously, I think a few posters are under-rating how much better Theo got over the course of the season. That little hook of his became very reliable, he made a baseline jumper a few games ago, and yesterday he was the only MU player really battling on the boards. He even made 70% of his FTs from Jan. 1 on. His hands aren't the greatest yet, nor is his decision-making, but those things can improve. At the very worst, he will be a super-solid backup big for 4 years - and every team needs one of them. But I think he'll be better than that. By the second half of the BE season, he was miles ahead of most of our other recent bigs as freshmen.

Cain can be a stud. Add a little bulk, let the game slow down a little, and wow. He already is a disruptive defender, and I'm pretty sure he doesn't even know what he's doing out there. He shot 3s way better than I expected. I doubt he'll be better than a healthy Sam next season (as one of our colleagues opined), but I think he really has a high ceiling.

And I like your use of the term "wild card" with Elliott, because that's exactly what he is. What if he gets fully healthy and has a great offseason of work with all of the PGs on our staff? Maybe he actually will be able to play some PG. That would be huge even if we sign a grad transfer. Even if he's only mostly a backup 2, as he was this season, he can be a very useful player for us.

Excited about all 3 of them.

Ha I often find myself agreeing with you too. Saves me a lot of typing!

[jesmu84]

Unsure.

But it's not Cain. Since he's not a shooter.

[Juan Anderson's Mixtape]

Goose-

High ceilings aren't always reached.  Cain needs exponential improvement to become Mikal Bridges. But Mikal Bridges had his own meteoric rise.  He went from red shirt to probable NBA lottery pick in 4 years.

Odds are Cain lands short of that. That is why I also set a more realistic expectation. If Cain lands somewhere between Wilson and Bridges I will be very happy.

[Seashells]

No one improved more than Theo this year.  He couldn't play 10 minutes without fouling out in the first half of the year.  He showed he could be a shot blocker and he showed a surprisingly soft jump hook.  Will need to work on FTs.  If he keeps up this improvement he'll be their best post player in a long time.

Cain could improve his lateral quickness.  Penn St was able to drive by him a few times.  3 point shooting and rebounding are already positives.  I imagine his FT shooting will improve along with his propensity to travel and make bad passes.  I'd agree that he could be somewhat like Jamail Wilson, but hopefully more aggressive.

I love Elliot's ability to block jump shots and the energy he brings.  He could be a bit like Blue, but with a better attitude and better jump shot.

Both Cain and Elliot will get stronger.  On defense they weren't able to stop the offense from backing them down for easy baskets. 

What's great is they all  seem to be hard workers.

[MU82]

Don’t recall any of those three getting their very own holographic collector card in the ‘91-92 debut of Upper Deck’s NBA trading cards.

Damn! Why didn't you say that in the first place?

Case closed!!!!

[MU82]

I love Elliot's ability to block jump shots and the energy he brings.  He could be a bit like Blue, but with a better attitude

Greg is already flawlessly executing the slap of five!

#betterthanvander

[Bocephys]

Greg is already flawlessly executing the slap of five!

#betterthanvander

I heard someone called him "Smelliott" at Qdoba and Greg didn't even throw a punch.