Big East Basketball Early 20-21 Outlook

[The Big East]

U Conn Tyrese Martin eligible this year . Was originally recruited by Hurley at URI.

https://www.courant.com/sports/uconn-mens-basketball/hc-sp-uconn-men-tyrese-martin-waiver-20200917-20200916-zybxlgr4n5gh7e56cdycoam6sq-story.html

[TAMU, Knower of Ball]

Martin is a player. That may push them up to the top of the non-Villanova/Creighton pile

[Johnny B]

my guess is it pushes them above the non nova crowd

[DFW HOYA]

There are three crowds in the Big East right now:

1. The "Leaders": Villanova
2. The "Challengers": Creighton, UConn, Seton Hall, Marquette, PC, Xavier, Butler
3. The "Good Old Days": St. John's, Georgetown, DePaul

[Johnny B]

nah
Leaders: Villanova
challengers: Uconn Cu
longshots: MU X S hall, butler, PC
Depaul: St johns, Depaul, G town

[brewcity77]

There are three crowds in the Big East right now:

1. The "Leaders": Villanova
2. The "Challengers": Creighton, UConn, Seton Hall, Marquette, PC, Xavier, Butler
3. The "Good Old Days": St. John's, Georgetown, DePaul

This feels pretty accurate to me. I can't believe everyone fully jumping on the Creighton train. Looking at their On/Off splits last year regarding Ty-Shon Alexander, they weren't just worse, they were downright terrible without him:

I saw the 3MW case that it isn't that big of a deal because it was mostly garbage time and he rarely came out, but they don't have any other proven offensive commodities besides Zegarowski that have anything like a go-to mindset and defensively Alexander was the only guy who gave anything resembling effort on that end.

EDIT: After Marquette's losses to end the year, Alexander was the clear BEPOY choice and would've been the clear BEPOY preseason pick and a legit NPOY candidate had he returned. How Creighton goes from top-10ish to top-15ish without someone of his caliber is baffling to me.

[WhiteTrash]

There are three crowds in the Big East right now:

1. The "Leaders": Villanova
2. The "Challengers": Creighton, UConn, Seton Hall, Marquette, PC, Xavier, Butler
3. The "Good Old Days": St. John's, Georgetown, DePaul

MU and CU in the same conversation is a joke.

[brewcity77]

MU and CU in the same conversation is a joke.

I'm not saying Creighton's that bad, but maybe you're right. Alexander is a big loss.

[The Big East]

This feels pretty accurate to me. I can't believe everyone fully jumping on the Creighton train. Looking at their On/Off splits last year regarding Ty-Shon Alexander, they weren't just worse, they were downright terrible without him:

I saw the 3MW case that it isn't that big of a deal because it was mostly garbage time and he rarely came out, but they don't have any other proven offensive commodities besides Zegarowski that have anything like a go-to mindset and defensively Alexander was the only guy who gave anything resembling effort on that end.

EDIT: After Marquette's losses to end the year, Alexander was the clear BEPOY choice and would've been the clear BEPOY preseason pick and a legit NPOY candidate had he returned. How Creighton goes from top-10ish to top-15ish without someone of his caliber is baffling to me.

It's a new season for everyone in the league . Alexander is a loss ,however Creighton is returning the rest of their lineup plus  a solid transfer is  becoming eligible.  They play good team ball so having 8 solid rotation players makes them a formidable team.  Zegarowski is an All Big East player and dynamic playmaker .

[brewcity77]

It's a new season for everyone in the league . Alexander is a loss ,however Creighton is returning the rest of their lineup plus  a solid transfer is  becoming eligible.  They play good team ball so having 8 solid rotation players makes them a formidable team.  Zegarowski is an All Big East player and dynamic playmaker .

They had pretty much all that last year and were terrible without Alexander. I'm just pointing out that there are a lot of reasons to consider selling high on Creighton early, and it really wouldn't be that surprising to see them closer to the middle-bottom of the league and on the bubble if someone can't replace Alexander, especially on the defensive end of the court where he was the only reliable stopper.

[pacearrow02]

MU and CU in the same conversation is a joke.

PG: Carton/Sy
SG: Koby/Elliot
SF: Akanno (I'm buying the hype)/Cain
PF-C: Theo/Garcia/Oso/Lewis

I understand there is a lot of unknowns here but on paper I'm so excited to see what this team can do and surprised you don't think they could challenge for the top tier of the conference. 

Not sure there will be a player who averages more then 12-13ppg but decent shot we have 7-8 averaging in the 8-12 range.  Can't wait to get things started!!

[pacearrow02]

X factors for me:

1) Koby taking a step forward in efficiency
2) Akanno: can he transfer insane summer highlight reels into BE production consistently as a frosh
3) Oso: kid looks cut up during summer workouts.  Might be the best freshman in that heralded class

Lastly as a group, who is going to step up as alpha dog and backs it up with their play on the court.  GE has the best personality for it but if he falls back to 7 or 8 in the rotation does it carry the same weight?

[The Big East]

They had pretty much all that last year and were terrible without Alexander. I'm just pointing out that there are a lot of reasons to consider selling high on Creighton early, and it really wouldn't be that surprising to see them closer to the middle-bottom of the league and on the bubble if someone can't replace Alexander, especially on the defensive end of the court where he was the only reliable stopper.

Antawn Jones is projected to be a big addition in defense.

Creighton has always been a high volume offense , every once in a while they get blown out . However they had a great year and ended up very strong.

Zegarowski is as consensus second team all Big East which makes him a leading candidate for Big East Player of the year this year since all the first teamers where seniors .

Most every other team in The Big East is losing key players as well and those teams ,with the exception of Nova, have no where near the same supporting cast as Creighton.

[brewcity77]

Most every other team in The Big East is losing key players as well and those teams ,with the exception of Nova, have no where near the same supporting cast as Creighton.

I get the high ceiling argument, I just think people are missing a potentially lower floor. Alexander was a potential NPOY & they were beyond god-awful without him last year. Crowning them as a top-15 team, which seems the consensus, feels very risky to me.

If it all hits, I can see top-15. But if it doesn't, I can see bubble team. They look very similar to a Seton Hall, Providence, UConn, or Marquette.

[TAMU, Knower of Ball]

Tough break for Butler. Their top-rated FR, Scooby Johnson, tore his ACL. He was Michigan's Mr. Basketball last season.

Random connection. I knew the name because I watched him bury a game winning three to win the state championship against my dad's old high school. Had no idea at the time he would be heading to Butler.

[Nukem2]

I get the high ceiling argument, I just think people are missing a potentially lower floor. Alexander was a potential NPOY & they were beyond god-awful without him last year. Crowning them as a top-15 team, which seems the consensus, feels very risky to me.

If it all hits, I can see top-15. But if it doesn't, I can see bubble team. They look very similar to a Seton Hall, Providence, UConn, or Marquette.

Though, the Jays now have size with the return of 6'11' Jacob Epperson along with Top 75 frosh 7'0" Ryan Kalkbrenner as well as a highly rated 6'4" international player Rati Andro........   Could have a deep team.

[The Big East]

I get the high ceiling argument, I just think people are missing a potentially lower floor. Alexander was a potential NPOY & they were beyond god-awful without him last year. Crowning them as a top-15 team, which seems the consensus, feels very risky to me.

If it all hits, I can see top-15. But if it doesn't, I can see bubble team. They look very similar to a Seton Hall, Providence, UConn, or Marquette.

Looks like Creighton has been reading your posts. Taking the attitude that they have to prove themselves and not buying into PR. 
https://omaha.com/sports/college/creighton/for-creighton-basketball-theres-no-masking-the-issues-of-practicing-in-a-pandemic/article_d406205a-aa8d-5dab-80b2-6a5656916f86.html

[dgies9156]

PG: Carton/Sy
SG: Koby/Elliot
SF: Akanno (I'm buying the hype)/Cain
PF-C: Theo/Garcia/Oso/Lewis

I understand there is a lot of unknowns here but on paper I'm so excited to see what this team can do and surprised you don't think they could challenge for the top tier of the conference. 

Not sure there will be a player who averages more then 12-13ppg but decent shot we have 7-8 averaging in the 8-12 range.  Can't wait to get things started!!

Look, I'm pretty excited for this coming year's team. Carton is a game-changer for us and with Garcia and Oso, I'm of the view we may be a contender for the league championship. The may depends on two factors -- how the freshmen develop and whether Coach Wojo "coaches up" and gets the most out of what he has.

Going into the season, this may be one of the most talented teams we've had in several years. I'm just very optimistic at this point.

[wadesworld]

We have one proven D1 stud, and a proven very good defender (Theo), and a bunch of role players or unproven players. I'm high on Dexter and the freshman, but I'm cautious that they'll be studs from day 1.

[The Big East]

https://www.providencejournal.com/sports/20200919/friars-trade-maui-for-asheville-in-headlining-nonconference-event

[Shooter McGavin]

Look, I'm pretty excited for this coming year's team. Carton is a game-changer for us and with Garcia and Oso, I'm of the view we may be a contender for the league championship. The may depends on two factors -- how the freshmen develop and whether Coach Wojo "coaches up" and gets the most out of what he has.

Going into the season, this may be one of the most talented teams we've had in several years. I'm just very optimistic at this point.

I like it dgies!

[The Big East]

Tough break for Butler. Their top-rated FR, Scooby Johnson, tore his ACL. He was Michigan's Mr. Basketball last season.

Random connection. I knew the name because I watched him bury a game winning three to win the state championship against my dad's old high school. Had no idea at the time he would be heading to Butler.

https://bustingbrackets.com/2020/09/01/butler-basketball-bulldogs-roster-outlook-losing-scooby-johnson/

[muwarrior69]

Look, I'm pretty excited for this coming year's team. Carton is a game-changer for us and with Garcia and Oso, I'm of the view we may be a contender for the league championship. The may depends on two factors -- how the freshmen develop and whether Coach Wojo "coaches up" and gets the most out of what he has.

Going into the season, this may be one of the most talented teams we've had in several years. I'm just very optimistic at this point.

I hope Wojo can learn there may be more than just one goto guy and they play as a unit. Hopefully our guards will distribute the ball and will have more even scoring with this team. Maybe will have a team that can defend as well. Akanno was recruited because he can defend.

[TAMU, Knower of Ball]

Crazy as it may sound, I think trading Markus for Carton may be close to a wash. There's a reason why Carton is projected as a first round draft pick in a few services. Theoretically, improvement from McEwen/Greg/Cain/Symir and the addition of the newbies could make up for the loss of Anim/Johnson/Bailey/Morrow. I still see this as a tournament team....though barely.

My biggest concern is the defense. We went from a solid defensive team through 25 games to a complete sieve for the last 5 and it wasn't like we were playing elite offenses (except Seton Hall). I think our Adj D on Kenpom went from 40ish to 73 during that 5 game stretch. To me, that's a coaching problem. Can't let that happen again.

Theoretically, this should be the most defensively versatile roster we've ever had under Wojo. I'll be interested to see what if anything he does with it.

[BCHoopster]

Crazy as it may sound, I think trading Markus for Carton may be close to a wash. There's a reason why Carton is projected as a first round draft pick in a few services. Theoretically, improvement from McEwen/Greg/Cain/Symir and the addition of the newbies could make up for the loss of Anim/Johnson/Bailey/Morrow. I still see this as a tournament team....though barely.

My biggest concern is the defense. We went from a solid defensive team through 25 games to a complete sieve for the last 5 and it wasn't like we were playing elite offenses (except Seton Hall). I think our Adj D on Kenpom went from 40ish to 73 during that 5 game stretch. To me, that's a coaching problem. Can't let that happen again.

Theoretically, this should be the most defensively versatile roster we've ever had under Wojo. I'll be interested to see what if anything he does with it.

Still have Theo at the center with maybe 2 good hands, so his defense might be improved slightly, but to me the big difference is having big guards for all 40 minutes,
Greg is the only weakness, but the older he gets the stronger he should play.  But if he can not, there are other players available.  Akanno should be as physical as Anim.  The 3 freshman will get there chance, hopefully 1 of them will stand out on D.  At least they are tall.  Osa seems to be getting stronger and I have seen Lewis
in person, reminds me of Jamil Wilson in build, so he has the physical tools to succeed.  Dawson has the O game, so we will see if he can play D.  I think they have a chance to be better than last year, 10 deep in talent.