I know it's early but......

[Getreal]

Lyons will get more minutes. Dante's minutes actually went down last year compared to his soph. year. You know what you're going to get from him. Lyons has much more upside and with Crawford gone the minutes for Lyons to pick up are much easier.

[madness31]

Lyons does have more upside but I would prefer he doesn't get extended minutes until he realizes some of that potential. Maybe that has already happened in the offseason and he will be ready to take care of the ball and play smart D when the season starts and maybe not. I hope he is ready because he does have the potential to take a lot of the scoring load missing from last year's team.

I'm not sure which guard will step-up to join Holloway but someone will have to. If Redford has a bad hip it is unlikely we will see him putting the ball on the floor so that would leave Lyons, Martin, and Canty. It might be too much to expect a freshman to step in and play at a high level so if Redford has a bad hip X will need Lyons to play smarter. Jackson will pick-up some of the scoring but I agree that he will likely not dominate.

Frease has the potential to more than replace Love's scoring as he has more offensive upside. I doubt he will replace Love's D and rebounding but he should be dramatically better than last year in those two categories. McLean should improve too and might try to make a run at the draft. He has the athleticism but has bad hands. If he can catch the ball cleanly and shows the ability to hit shots then he just might get a shot at the NBA. He will be undersized at PF but has good ups and a strong body so it could happen.
There is plenty of potential on this team for X to make another run but it wouldn't be shocking if it is a down year.

[delynn10]

"McLean should improve too and might try to make a run at the draft. He has the athleticism but has bad hands. If he can catch the ball cleanly and shows the ability to hit shots then he just might get a shot at the NBA. He will be undersized at PF but has good ups and a strong body so it could happen."

I like McLean, but that is NOT going to happen. He will earn a salary playing basketball, but it won't be in the NBA.

I also don't think he is anywhere close to 6'8".

[Mr. Neutral]

McLean's a "college" 6'8", which means he's likely 6'6".

And his b-ball skills would have to improve a ton before he was NBA material. He'd have to go from having a 4-foot jumper to a 20-foot jumper, and he'd have to become a much better ballhandler.

[madness31]

If McLean is too short to play PF he has no shot at the NBA. I can't imagine him creating the handles or long range stroke needed to play SF and also suspect he is to slow for that position. Brown stated McLean was the most athletic on the team and he rebounds well at the college level. He would have to show a 15 foot shot and be able to rebound in the NBA to have a shot.

There have been short PF in the NBA in the past but McLean would definitely have to put up strong numbers this year on the glass and offensively. The NBA loves athletes and typically takes them over polished players. 13 and 10 with a developed jump shot could get McLean a chance.