We play Missouri in the first round

[Mr. Neutral]

I may have deleted it by mistake. If so, my apologies.

[tacitus]

no problem, I was just making sure I didn't say something that offended anyone...

[madness31]

I agree Jackson will play point as last resort but the start of the season could force the last resort option. I'm hoping the freshman will be ready to play but they are freshman and there is often a learning curve or adjustment period. We have enough offensive weapons returning so they mainly just need to get the ball up the court without turning it over and let Brown, BJ, and CJ do their thing. It sounds as if Holloway will be able to get in the lane to create opportunities for others or potentially score himself so hopefully my concern is unwarranted. By the end of the season I expect the team to be strong but early games against solid competition is scary when you lack experience at both guard positions.

[Mr. Neutral]

<<so they mainly just need to get the ball up the court without turning it over>>

That's my concern. If I'm the coach of a Xavier opponent and I see DJ at the point, I immediately press and double-team him, and wait for the turnovers and steals to come. Unless his ballhandling improves markedly during this offseason, I'm banking on Holloway to start, with Lyons the #2 option at the pointt.

Remember when Mike Davenport was forced to play the point against UConn after Jamal Walker hurt his ankle at the end of the Nebraska game? It wasn't pretty. We scored 50 pts., and lost by 17.

[madness31]

I agree on Jackson's ball handling which is why I expressed concern over him playing point but the question is whether his experience from last year still gives him an advantage over a better ballhandler with no experience. Common advise is to pass through a press, though from my playing days I much prefered to dribble through it. Jackson might make better decisions regarding the press than a freshman at the start of the season.

I do suspect you will be right that holloway or Lyons will get PT at point and Jackson will be a 2 but just wanted to express concern before the season so people don't get too excited and experience a let down with an early loss or two. Hopefully the league does well out of conference to take the pressure off some of these big early games.

There is also the possibility that Brown plays point forward until the guards are ready. I don't see Sean implementing that one but it is an interesting possibility. He should have a quickness advantage over most at his position and if guards press him, he can easily pass over them. I assume he has worked on his ballhandling over the summer. I suppose if this scenario played out with any success it would make it that much more likely that Brown leaves early as the NBA would have to be excited about the possibilities.

[Mr. Neutral]

I agree completely that it is very likely that X will have some early-season bumps in the road. You can't expect to lose your starting center and backcourt, and not have some growing pains.

Plus, while we've got upperclassmen options at most positions, Holloway and Lyons appear to be 1 and 1A at the point, and there's bound to be a frosh learning curve.

We may see both of them at the point so they can compete for the position and PT, and develop at the same time.

No matter what, it should be an interesting year for X.

Can Love continue to improve?

Will CJ become more the player he was (apparently) at Manhattan?

Can Raymond be more consistent, and not have his shot go south for games at a time?

It's not just the frosh who have to step up, but the overall talent appears to be there for another nice season.

[Wisexuowl]

<I will be absolutely shocked if DJ is anything but a necessity choice at PG. Last year, he showed that he is on his way to being a decent ballhandler for an SG, but he didn't show me that he is anywhere close to the level of PG that we've become accustomed to. I'm putting my money on Holloway or Lyons at the point, and then everybody else after that.>

Lets see now. After one season coming off the bench at two slots, and getting the lest number of reps in practice at PG, Jackson is declared inoperable at PG. But, two players fresh from high school are #1 and #2 at PG.

I am delighted that Sean, who knows a wee bit more basketball than any lawyer, will make that decisions.

[Mr. Neutral]

<<Lets see now. After one season coming off the bench at two slots, and getting the lest number of reps in practice at PG, Jackson is declared inoperable at PG. But, two players fresh from high school are #1 and #2 at PG.

I am delighted that Sean, who knows a wee bit more basketball than any lawyer, will make that decisions.>>

He also knows a wee bit more than guys who say they used to be SID's for some school, if I recall correctly. (Hey, did Mark Prosser get that job at Ohio U.?)

If anyone can say that, based on what they actually saw with their own eyes last year, DJ is a legit high-major Div. I PG, God love 'em.

I have no doubt that DJ will be a big part of Xavier's (hoped-for) success this season, but, based on what he actually did last season, and not what we HOPE he will do, he should not be the 1st choice at PG, unless Holloway, Lyons, and possibly someone else all go down with injuries.

[muskieman]

The thing X will miss the most is the calming effect that Drew had on the team. His teammates knew he had a clock in his head and trusted him to get the ball into the right guy at the right time. We have seen good passing teams but Drew made last years team extraordinary. Besides his passing and generalship, he could knock down one or two threes in a row to open games up and he knew just when to do it.

We shouldn't expect Drew's play from anyone on the team now and if X gets it then this team will be back in the elite eight.

[madness31]

I tend to disagree that Drew will be missed most. His absence might be most visible if the freshman/crawford are not ready at the beginning of the season but it was Duncan that carried the team for a stretch of games. Without Burrell's D against some great guards we likely wouldn't have won against several key opponents. During Drew's ankle injury we still managed to win. There is no question the offense wasn't as smooth at times but we managed to win.

Drew was a big part of the teams success but I'd argue Duncan and Burrell both had a bigger impact on total wins. If opposing guards light us up for 30 points a game this year Stan will be missed most and if the point position has a rough start Drew will be foremost on our minds. If we don't have a guy that steps up and puts the team on his back, then it is Duncan we will remember. The post should be very good this year so other then possibly lacking that go to guy, Duncan's absence could standout least. That won't change my belief that he was the difference between a good season and a great season last year. They all played a huge roll in last year's success and each had their big moments. Just as these guys and the rest of the team stepped up to replace the prior year's seniors we will likely see Brown, CJ, BJ, Love, and others step up and continue the Xavier winning tradition.