ESPN's Way Too Early Top 25

[CoachTalk]

One example?

I guess Dinjyl must've been in my 10%! lol

Youve been here since Jan and not many positive OU things to say...

 

[152219]

Depends on if Morris goes pro as well. I think he stays but there is a chance he leaves.

If he leaves and Long doesn't play well due to his litany of injuries, ISU will have a losing record.

 

[oudna]

Good pub!



that took long...

You cited the example I was referring to? Great sleuth work!

 

[oudna]

Youve been here since Jan and not many positive OU things to say...

I've been here since the posters left OUInsider to get away from the football crowd. 2008, or whatever. Had to reregister twice because the password reset never got emailed to me.

 

[garyeb2]

I don't much agree with all this. Take a step back from what? Sure, catching the 1st two tourney games in OKC, then offering up two solid games in a row against like competition for a final four run isn't likely no matter how good they are.

But, are you guys talking about a step back from a 12-6 3rd place Big 12 finish? Win one then get bounced out of the conference tourney type team. OU will have too many athletic skilled basketball players in the gym next season to retreat much from that if any. The likes of OSU, Tech, KSU, TCU, and much depleted ISU are not going to keep up, catch, or pass OU.

No one thinks Baylor will take a step forward this coming year. Huggins is doing a nice job at WV. But, it is home and home with them. Smart may put a competitive team on the floor. But, if they do it will be with young players just like us. Kansas, I am sure will be good again.

OU was as good as they were this season because Buddy was as good as he was. He is gone. But, the good news is that there is more than one way to be good.

 

[hoopsaustin]

I've been here since the posters left OUInsider to get away from the football crowd. 2008, or whatever. Had to reregister twice because the password reset never got emailed to me.

haha im sure that was simply an oversight......

 

[WTSooner]

I've been here since the posters left OUInsider to get away from the football crowd. 2008, or whatever. Had to reregister twice because the password reset never got emailed to me.

What were your previous handles?

 

[WTSooner]

I don't much agree with all this. Take a step back from what? Sure, catching the 1st two tourney games in OKC, then offering up two solid games in a row against like competition for a final four run isn't likely no matter how good they are.

But, are you guys talking about a step back from a 12-6 3rd place Big 12 finish? Win one then get bounced out of the conference tourney type team. OU will have too many athletic skilled basketball players in the gym next season to retreat much from that if any. The likes of OSU, Tech, KSU, TCU, and much depleted ISU are not going to keep up, catch, or pass OU.

No one thinks Baylor will take a step forward this coming year. Huggins is doing a nice job at WV. But, it is home and home with them. Smart may put a competitive team on the floor. But, if they do it will be with young players just like us. Kansas, I am sure will be good again.

OU was as good as they were this season because Buddy was as good as he was. He is gone. But, the good news is that there is more than one way to be good.

How about a step back from being one of the better teams in basketball much of the year, including a top 5-10 ranking and a projected one seed?

Next year's OU team won't do that. Could they finish third in the Big 12? Sure. Could they finish Big 12 play with a 12-6 record? Possibly. But they won't be a NC contender and FF team like this year's team. The rest we just don't/can't know yet.

 

[oudna]

Youve been here since Jan and not many positive OU things to say...

So much positivity about the starting 5 + James. My favorite OU team ever. A team that finally eclipsed my love for '92 with Patterson, Webster, Sallier, Evans, Price, Vann, and Hamilton. I've found myself in constant battles defending Cousins and Woodard (FT shooting) here!

 

[bgrch1350]

I look at it this way, generally speaking...

KU will be KU...top 5 & National Tile contender.

WVU will see a decline...Williams, Paige, and Holton were difference makers but top 15-25 based on returnees and culture.

OU will take a step back...Hield, Cousins, and Spangler were difference makers but culture and talent keep them in the top 20-30 nationally and possibly set up another special run in 2017-18.

ut should at least match this season's results...good young talent but the strength of this year's team (bigs) is gone. This is assuming Taylor returns but I see top 20-30 and quite run coming after next year.

Baylor will take a step back...they lose mainstays in Gathers, Prince, and Medford. Motley has a chance to be special. Based on past history, Drew will have them in the middle of the Big 12 and in the tourney.

Iowa State is due for decline...a lack of size and skill inside and no commitment to stopping other teams finally will catch up with them. A recruiting philosophy based on essentially other teams cast offs is not a recruiting philosophy. Morris and Burton are special but I think they miss the tournament.

Texas Tech should be better...I don't see any real difference makers on their team but I like their roster and Smith is building them the right way. I can definitely see a potential top half finish in conference and a tourney invite.

Kansas State should also improve...I really like their young core and there is a good mix of veterans. I definitely see a tourney bid for the Wildcats.

The bottom dwellers...should both be better with huge upgrades to their respective coaching staffs. However I don't see enough talent on either roster to make even one good basketball team. Possible NIT teams, maybe...

I see the Big 12 as a 6-7 NCAA bid league but with 8-9 teams playing in the postseason. Past KU, no other top teams but a deeper league is very possible.

I agree with most.

Texas is bringing in a solid recruiting class to go with a dominant PG and some young talented guards. If they land Allen, which all signs point to that, they will have a really good team.

Baylor has that Lecomte PG transfer sitting out this year that will lead their team next year. They have a 4 star big man coming in so they will most likely be about as good as they were this year.

OSU could be a tough team now that Ford is gone. The way Evans was playing last year, he could be the best PG in the conference and they will have the best shooter in the conference back as well. They are hard to judge.

 

[oudna]

What were your previous handles?

Okiethunderlion was one

 

[KBaden145]

How about a step back from being one of the better teams in basketball much of the year, including a top 5-10 ranking and a projected one seed?



Next year's OU team won't do that. Could they finish third in the Big 12? Sure. Could they finish Big 12 play with a 12-6 record? Possibly. But they won't be a NC contender and FF team like this year's team. The rest we just don't/can't know yet.

This is what I'm saying. Top 5-10 is just too much, as I look at it. Top 25 and top 3-5 of the Big 12 is pretty healthy optimism, I'd say.

 

[SoonerBounce13]

I've been here since the posters left OUInsider to get away from the football crowd. 2008, or whatever. Had to reregister twice because the password reset never got emailed to me.

nm

 

[sperry]

I don't much agree with all this. Take a step back from what? Sure, catching the 1st two tourney games in OKC, then offering up two solid games in a row against like competition for a final four run isn't likely no matter how good they are.

But, are you guys talking about a step back from a 12-6 3rd place Big 12 finish? Win one then get bounced out of the conference tourney type team. OU will have too many athletic skilled basketball players in the gym next season to retreat much from that if any. The likes of OSU, Tech, KSU, TCU, and much depleted ISU are not going to keep up, catch, or pass OU.

No one thinks Baylor will take a step forward this coming year. Huggins is doing a nice job at WV. But, it is home and home with them. Smart may put a competitive team on the floor. But, if they do it will be with young players just like us. Kansas, I am sure will be good again.

OU was as good as they were this season because Buddy was as good as he was. He is gone. But, the good news is that there is more than one way to be good.

There are going to be growing pains next year. We will be relying on a bunch of guys who need to take enormous leaps. Whether they do that over the course of one off season, throughout the season, or a period of years will determine how next season goes.

The impact of losing that kind of senior production cannot be overstated though. Look at previous champs who have missed the tourney the next season despite having top notch talent stepping in.


It really could go either way, it will be a fun season to watch.

 

[SoonerTraveler]

Regarding the original topic, notice how the "usual suspects" populate these preseason polls. The basketball people that put together these polls recognize that good coaches build good programs, and that good programs tend to sustain success from year-to-year.

After taking over a basketball program that had collapsed into the depths of depression and despair in 2010 and 2011, Lon Kruger now has a program that has earned the respect of the national basketball media. Almost every program losses good players every year, and has question-marks going into the new season, but the best programs find a way to keep going back to the NCAA tournament. The Sooners have been 4 years in a row now.

Just think of all the “power-5 teams” that have not been to the NCAA tournament for the last 4 years in a row. There are a bunch.

For another perspective, let’s look at the OU coaches since 1975.

> Dave Bliss ........... 5 Seasons at OU || 1 NCAA Tournament
> Billy Tubbs .......... 14 Seasons at OU || 9 NCAA Tournaments (4 NITs)
> Kelvin Sampson ... 12 Seasons at OU || 11 NCAA Tournaments (1 NIT)
> Jeff Capel ............ 5 Seasons at OU || 2 NCAA Tournaments
> Lon Kruger ........... 5 Seasons at OU || 4 NCAA Tournaments

Anyway, the national perspective, based on these preseason polls, seems to be that Lon will find a way to have a pretty good team. I think so too.

 

[TheMont]

As fans, I think we'll be frustrated at times next season because we became spoiled throughout this season. We're gonna lose some games we definitely wouldn't have lost this year. But we will by no means be a bad team. I expect us to be about as good as we were Cam Clark's senior/Buddy's sophomore season.

 

[oudna]

How was Sampson's '03-'04 team regarded preseason? Anyone recall?

I wasn't a Drew Lavender fan. Not a fit for a Sampson team.

 

[SoonerTraveler]

How was Sampson's '03-'04 team regarded preseason? Anyone recall?

I wasn't a Drew Lavender fan. Not a fit for a Sampson team.

That was the only season that Kelvin did not make it to the NCAAs, as that team went to the NIT. OU started out that season rated #14 in the early AP rankings.

That 2003-04 OU team finished 20-11 (8-8 in Big-12). Jason Detrick (Senior) and Drew Lavender (Frosh) were the only double-digit scorers on that team; both at about 11 ppg. The young players on that team included DeAngelo Alexander (Soph), Lawrence McKenzie (Frosh), and Kevin Bookout (Soph). Jabahri Brown was a senior on that team.

I like the prospects and upside of the current roster over that 2003-04 roster.

 

[Sooner04]

How was Sampson's '03-'04 team regarded preseason? Anyone recall?

Pretty highly. Then they won their first ten games (including a win over Michigan State in Auburn Hills) and got up to #6.

Then we played eventual national champ UConn in Storrs. Oh the humanity!

The trepidation on these polls (which matter ZIPPO) from a Sooners perspective comes from the train wreck that followed the 2009 Elite 8 team. I believe the following squad (TMG, Tiny, Willie) was ranked in the top 20 in the preseason........

 

[oudna]

I forgot they won 20. I just remember thinking the wheels fell off. Probably felt worse because I think that was OSU's good year.

Yeah, '09 was loaded with McD's guys either they never bought in or were poorly coached.