Incoming transfer?

[AdaSooner]

I tend to be overly optimistic most years, so you might want to take what I say with a grain of salt. I agree that next year's team may not be as good if Buddy opts for the NBA. It will also not be easy to replace TaShawn Thomas. He had a greater impact this season, especially on offense, than some may think, albeit it inconsistent at times.

Having said all of that, I think we'll actually be better in some ways, even if Buddy leaves. Buford should benefit from his time working out with our coaches and participating in practice the last half of the season. Don't forget that he was touted as the heir apparent to Cam Clark, as a three-four in a similar role that Cam used to play. If he's as good as advertised, losing Buddy (should he not come back) may not be as bad as most of us think.

The biggest improvement I see next season will be in our depth. We'll have more able bodies to relieve our starters so they're not worn totally out by seasons end. Freshmen or not, I think Odomes and James have the potential to be better than either of the guards coming off of the bench this season. I wouldn't be at all surprised if one or both move ahead of Booker and especially Walker in the rotation.

I agree with Gary that some of you are selling Manyang's impact short. I understand the notion that it takes a first year player a while to adjust to the D-1 game and all that comes with learning the offense, etc, etc. But, we're talking about an athletic 7 footer with long arms who runs the floor well here, not a 6' 8" PF who will have to make a huge adjustment to the next level. Even if he doesn't score a lot of points, he will be a game changer on defense and in rebounding with his size and his ability to block and change shots. That's a commodity OU hasn't had in years. As good as Thomas could be at times on offense, he didn't have the ability to be a difference maker on defense and on the boards.

I'm not suggesting that next year's team is a sure bet to go to the Sweet Sixteen again if Buddy leaves. I'm also not ruling that out, because our coaches will have some pretty darned good players to work with, and more of them. If the rumor that we could add a transfer is true, the odds of that happening could improve.

 

[WTSooner]

The other thing about Thomas is that he didn't really "find his offense" until later in the season if I remember right. We won a lot of games with him struggling, or being pretty darn average.

I too am worried about post scoring next year, but if Buddy sticks around, I'm not so sure the depth that is added by picking up Odomes/James/Buford/McNeace/Manyang won't offset losing Thomas/Bennett. We won't know till they play, but that is my thought.

Now losing Buddy on top of that? Not sure we can maintain in that situation, though I could see us finishing with a similar record simply by not giving away a handful of games that we shouldn't have this year.

 

[WTSooner]

What does the rest of the Big 12 lose? Specifically, ISU and Baylor? We know KU will reload.

 

[DenverSooner]

The big losses for ISU are Dejean-Jones and Hogue. They also lose Edozie, Custer and Dorsey-Walker.

Baylor loses Cherry and Oniel.

OSU loses Nash, Hickey and Cobbins (and Soucek)

KSU is decimated losing Foster, Gipson, Williams, Thomas and Harris.

TCU loses a lot in Anderson, Zeigler and Fields (over 30 points a game).

Texas loses Holmes, Turner and Croaker (Croaker doesn't really matter)

WVU loses Staten, Browne and Noreen (Noreen doesn't really matter)

Tech's only real loss is Robert Turner but they were not very good.

I think everyone (other than KU) loses more than OU assuming Buddy stays.

Nallen34 (the ISU fan) deserves all of the credit for this.

 

[pnkranger]

Texas, TCU, OSU, and KSU will be climbing a big hill next year with what they're losing. ISU, OU, KU, Baylor, and WVU will be pretty darn good. Tech should stay about the same, if not improve slightly.

 

[pnkranger]

One other interesting note is that KU is not in on very many guards in the 2015 class. Guess Self is willing to keep running with his current crop of guards. If he could get Selden motivated every time out, they could be very good. If he struggles again next year and Mason has to carry the load, then they will not be much better.

 

[WTSooner]

One other interesting note is that KU is not in on very many guards in the 2015 class. Guess Self is willing to keep running with his current crop of guards. If he could get Selden motivated every time out, they could be very good. If he struggles again next year and Mason has to carry the load, then they will not be much better.

A lot for KU will depend on Oubre and Ellis, and whether they stay or go. I'm assuming Alexander is gone.

 

[Max Power]

A lot for KU will depend on Oubre and Ellis, and whether they stay or go. I'm assuming Alexander is gone.

I can't imagine Alexander would be eligible.

 

[vbdad]

Thomas' offensive game will be missed. He did't bring much defensively to the team. As for comparing him to Romero he wasn't nearly as tough!

Gary is correct the coaches expect Akola to start immediately. He is a giant. Raw offensively yes but they are ready to start working with him.

Khadeem will be much improved! McNease will give us at much as DJ with potential to do much more although it may not be next year.

A scholarship or two will open IMO. CJ has been given 4 years and I hear he wants to stay another year. LK doesn't take guys scholarships but CJ should give it back. He isn't a Big 12 scholarship guy. The staff has been great to him and he has worked hard but he isn't as good as a couple of walkons.

Booker's problem is he thinks he is a shooter and has the green light from past half court. We have to be better at the backup for the 3 guards.

By the way Buddy needs to stay for us to get where we want to go.

 

[dahldennsull]

Wow, their definitely is room to stay at the top of the Big 12 looking at who everyone loses. Their are some very core losses to teams on that list.

KU, even if/when Alexander and Oubre leave, have the #15 player in Carlton Bragg coming in, and are in on several other 5 stars they could add late as well.

 

[JBaker]

there is no way Cousins and Hield don't play 30+mpg.

That only leaves ~ 18 minutes total for the wings (Odomes, James, Booker, Walker, maybe Buford) to share.

I don't see that...
Cousins, for all intents and purposes, will be the backup PG again. Meaning, likely Hield, Cousins, and Woodard play about 30 mpg each, leaving 30 mpg to split amongst Booker, Walker, James, Odomes, and Buford. However, Buford will also likely get time playing at the stretch 4. And it wouldn't surprise me if one of James or Odomes redshirts.

Assuming Hield comes back, I'd expect minutes to be something along these lines (and I'm not as high on Manyang as some people, so I could be off base here):

Hield: 30 mpg
Cousins: 30 mpg
Woodard: 30 mpg
Spangler: 30 mpg
Lattin: 26 mpg
Buford: 15 mpg
Manyang: 13 mpg
Booker: 12 mpg
McNease: 4 mpg
James/Odomes/Walker: 10 mpg.


And I wouldn't be surprised if one of James or Odomes redshirts.

 

[Zimwillett]

The big losses for ISU are Dejean-Jones and Hogue. They also lose Edozie, Custer and Dorsey-Walker.

Baylor loses Cherry and Oniel.

OSU loses Nash, Hickey and Cobbins (and Soucek)

KSU is decimated losing Foster, Gipson, Williams, Thomas and Harris.

TCU loses a lot in Anderson, Zeigler and Fields (over 30 points a game).

Texas loses Holmes, Turner and Croaker (Croaker doesn't really matter)

WVU loses Staten, Browne and Noreen (Noreen doesn't really matter)

Tech's only real loss is Robert Turner but they were not very good.

I think everyone (other than KU) loses more than OU assuming Buddy stays.

Nallen34 (the ISU fan) deserves all of the credit for this.

Great post. Virtually everyone in college basketball will be dealing with the loss of important players. Assuming Buddy comes back, OU is in much better shape than most with 4 starters and the top 3 bench players coming back.

TaShawn will absolutely be missed, and OU will have to replace him with a committee of largely unproven bigs, but this isn't an impossible task. TaShawn averaged 11.6 ppg, 6.5 rpg, and was a decent, but not great, post defender. OU will miss certain aspects of TaShawn's game, but I think the new guys will add some new dimensions, especially on defense, that TaShawn lacked.

 

[Big Old Booger]

A lot for KU will depend on Oubre and Ellis, and whether they stay or go. I'm assuming Alexander is gone.

Alexander isn't coming back according to all the radio folks here in KC. Also, some talk Green may not be here next year which means Self will need to find another guard if so.

 

[AdaSooner]

Thomas' offensive game will be missed. He did't bring much defensively to the team. As for comparing him to Romero he wasn't nearly as tough!

Gary is correct the coaches expect Akola to start immediately. He is a giant. Raw offensively yes but they are ready to start working with him.

Khadeem will be much improved! McNease will give us at much as DJ with potential to do much more although it may not be next year.

A scholarship or two will open IMO. CJ has been given 4 years and I hear he wants to stay another year. LK doesn't take guys scholarships but CJ should give it back. He isn't a Big 12 scholarship guy. The staff has been great to him and he has worked hard but he isn't as good as a couple of walkons.

Booker's problem is he thinks he is a shooter and has the green light from past half court. We have to be better at the backup for the 3 guards.

By the way Buddy needs to stay for us to get where we want to go.

I agree on all of the points you made, except I think McNeace may fool a few people by giving the team some quality minutes in ways that Bennett wasn't capable of doing. From everything I have read and seen he has the potential to be a shot blocker deluxe in time. Can he do it without getting into foul trouble? The jury is still out on that one. I also like what I have seen of his shot from fifteen and in. If he puts in the time to improve over the summer and adds a jump hook to his repertoire, he could give us some points in a back up role as well.

If Booker wants to keep his job as one of the first guards off of the bench next year, I think he'll need to work hard on his game in the off season. He played well toward the end of the season, and he hustled his tail off on defense. But, he'll need to do more and be a lot more consistent from the three to keep Odomes from moving ahead of him in the rotation.

 

[okhoops918]

I guess you guys have me...

Every single player on the roster will improve, all incoming recruits will be contributors, and there will still be minutes and possessions left over for the current returning starters to get theirs!

It'll only be the first time ever in OU basketball history that this occurred but this year its going to happen for sure.

Hell even Mcneace is going to provide some quality minutes for us!

 

[vbdad]

I agree with McNeace. He does things athletically in practice that nobody else on the team can do. He has big time potential. I'm hoping he decides to work very hard on basketball this summer. He is new to the game and is still developing the love of the gym that Buddy and Isaiah have in them. My first post should have said the worse case scenario is matches DJ's production.
McNeace is a great kid and does very well in school. We should be proud he is a Sooner.

 

[BCSooners]

Woodard-30 mpg
Cousins- 30 mpg
Hield- 30 mpg
Spangler-28 mpg
Manyang- 22 mpg
Lattin- 20 mpg
Buford- 15 mpg
Booker- 12 mpg
Odomes or James- 8 mpg
McNeace- 5 mpg
Walker- Mop up duty
Odomes or James- redshirts, if one of them transfers for this then that would be very short sighted.

Unless Hield leaves I don't understand why someone would want to transfer here.

 

[AdaSooner]

I agree with McNeace. He does things athletically in practice that nobody else on the team can do. He has big time potential. I'm hoping he decides to work very hard on basketball this summer. He is new to the game and is still developing the love of the gym that Buddy and Isaiah have in them. My first post should have said the worse case scenario is matches DJ's production.
McNeace is a great kid and does very well in school. We should be proud he is a Sooner.

Looks like we're on the same page after all. I'm glad you brought up the fact that Jamuni is a relative newcomer to the game. Most people don't know or they have forgotten that he was cut from his high school team as a freshman. He grew from 5' 10" to 6' 7" before he got the attention of the basketball coach. He played football as a sophomore.

So, in reality, he only played two years of organized, competitive basketball before coming to OU. I marvel at how far he has come since then. He went from a virtual unknown his junior season to a player who was good enough to earn a scholarship to OU the following year. If he continues to progress at or near a similar rate, the sky is the limit for this kid!

 

[WTSooner]

I don't see that...
Cousins, for all intents and purposes, will be the backup PG again. Meaning, likely Hield, Cousins, and Woodard play about 30 mpg each, leaving 30 mpg to split amongst Booker, Walker, James, Odomes, and Buford. However, Buford will also likely get time playing at the stretch 4. And it wouldn't surprise me if one of James or Odomes transfers.

Only thing I really disagree with is one of James/Odomes transferring. Even if Buddy comes back, that still means a year from now we'd lose Buddy, Cousins, and Walker, and Woodard would be a senior.

Walker is the guy that should be worried. I wouldn't be surprised if the depth chart looked something like this:

Woodard/Cousins
Cousins/James
Hield/Buford/Odomes

That is still only 6 guys for 3 spots, and Buford can get some at the four. I think we could keep those guys happy for a year that way.

 

[WTSooner]

I agree with McNeace. He does things athletically in practice that nobody else on the team can do.

What does he do that Lattin can't do?