Most improved on OU's squad this year

BigTime

BigTime

The Red Wig
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A lot of candidates...

Who would you pick and why
 
1a. Buddy's jump from good to really good has been great
1b. Cousins jump from shaky backup pg to a very solid starting off guard
1c. Tyler neal from most feeling like a wasted scholly to helping us win several games bc of his shooting...

*Spangler and Woodard arent eligible.
 
Till later in the year I woulda said Cam Clark. But it looks like he's back to disappearing on offense again. Such a frustrating career for him. It's between Cousins and Buddy for me.
 
Cousins. You could tell Buddy was going to be a bigtime player for OU, even though it being this quick is somewhat of a surprise. However, I was hoping cousins ceiling for his senior year would be the year he is having now.
 
From last year to this it would be Cousins, Neal, Cam and Hield in that order.

From the beginning of the season to now, Booker would get my vote.

EDIT: I forgot to add the why.

Cousins has gone from a player with serious weaknesses to being a key to our success. His improvements have been nothing short of remarkable.

Neal has been good enough at times to get starter minutes. I would never have guessed he would improve that much from one year to the next.

Cam was the most improved player on the team until he hit his slump a few games back. He is still very important to our success.

Hield biggest improvement is in his three point shooting. Otherwise, he's pretty much the same really good player as he was last season.

Booker is developing in to a good player with a bright future. The difference from the beginning of the season has been fun to watch.
 
BCSooners said:
Cousins. You could tell Buddy was going to be a bigtime player for OU, even though it being this quick is somewhat of a surprise. However, I was hoping cousins ceiling for his senior year would be the year he is having now.
Click to expand...

I think Cousins has a ceiling even higher than we have seen so far. He has the makings of a lock-down defender if he wants to be.

Buddy can further raise his ceiling by improving his ball-handling; becoming stronger with the ball. He is currently shooting best as a catch-and-shoot guy. Better handles might help him have more success in creating his own shot. Of course he is pretty good on open drives to the rim.

Tyler Neal is a Sooner that makes me (as an OU fan) PROUD. He has kept at it and has come a long, long way. Tyler is having a wonderful senior season!

Booker has not yet had a college off-season, but his in-season improvement has been impressive.

Both Woodard and Spangler may have exceeded expectations from the start of the season, so it may be more difficult for them to get much credit for their improvement during the season.

Hornbeak had a setback due to injury, but he is coming on and making winning contributions as backup guard.

D.J. Bennett has shown improvement, but he appears to have so much more to offer that is untapped at this point. If he can improve his basketball savvy and confidence in the off-season, he will have a chance to have a memorable senior season, like Tyler Neal

I am hopeful that Cam recaptures his early season form and has a very strong finish.

Considering the guys that get playing time on a regular basis, I cannot think of one that has not improved. That is a credit to the players and the coaching staff.
 
I know it's easy to sell Buddy short since he was so good last year, but he has raised his three point shooting percentage nearly 15%, while more than doubling his attempts per game. He also hasn't had many games where he has just disappeared on offense, so his consistency has been good this year.

I'm almost inclined to say Neal is the most improved.
 
SoonerTraveler said:
I think Cousins has a ceiling even higher than we have seen so far. He has the makings of a lock-down defender if he wants to be.

Buddy can further raise his ceiling by improving his ball-handling; becoming stronger with the ball. He is currently shooting best as a catch-and-shoot guy. Better handles might help him have more success in creating his own shot. Of course he is pretty good on open drives to the rim.

Tyler Neal is a Sooner that makes me (as an OU fan) PROUD. He has kept at it and has come a long, long way. Tyler is having a wonderful senior season!

Booker has not yet had a college off-season, but his in-season improvement has been impressive.

Both Woodard and Spangler may have exceeded expectations from the start of the season, so it may be more difficult for them to get much credit for their improvement during the season.

Hornbeak had a setback due to injury, but he is coming on and making winning contributions as backup guard.

D.J. Bennett has shown improvement, but he appears to have so much more to offer that is untapped at this point. If he can improve his basketball savvy and confidence in the off-season, he will have a chance to have a memorable senior season, like Tyler Neal

I am hopeful that Cam recaptures his early season form and has a very strong finish.

Considering the guys that get playing time on a regular basis, I cannot think of one that has not improved. That is a credit to the players and the coaching staff.
Click to expand...

I love that last paragraph, Traveler! While some have improved more than others, there really isn't a player on the team who is not better than last year. We have our coaches to thank for that.

That's why I believe Buford and Lattin will have an impact at some level their freshman season. Even if one or both never start, I think they will play an integral role in our success.
 
AdaSooner said:
I love that last paragraph, Traveler! While some have improved more than others, there really isn't a player on the team who is not better than last year. We have our coaches to thank for that.

That's why I believe Buford and Lattin will have an impact at some level their freshman season. Even if one or both never start, I think they will play an integral role in our success.
Click to expand...

One almost has to start...
 
CoachTalk said:
One almost has to start...
Click to expand...

True, providing Bennett doesn't improve enough between now and next fall to start alongside Spangler. That would leave Buddy to play the three spot.

I suppose we could always go with four guards. Ideally, though, Buford will work his way into a starting position, leaving Bennett and Lattin to battle it out for the first big off of the bench. That is, unless my gut feeling is right and Lattin proves to be good enough to compete for a starting spot at some point of the season. It's a good problem to have, that's for sure.
 
I would say Cousins but the best thing about this staff is that everyone has improved and you could legitimately make arguments for Cousins, Hield, Clark and Neal. Also, as Ada points out Booker has really improved. To add one other thought Woodard and Spangler are probably playing at a higher level than would have anticipated.
 
SoonerTraveler;427176[B said:
]I think Cousins has a ceiling even higher than we have seen so far. He has the makings of a lock-down defender if he wants to be. [/B]

Buddy can further raise his ceiling by improving his ball-handling; becoming stronger with the ball. He is currently shooting best as a catch-and-shoot guy. Better handles might help him have more success in creating his own shot. Of course he is pretty good on open drives to the rim.

Tyler Neal is a Sooner that makes me (as an OU fan) PROUD. He has kept at it and has come a long, long way. Tyler is having a wonderful senior season!

Booker has not yet had a college off-season, but his in-season improvement has been impressive.

Both Woodard and Spangler may have exceeded expectations from the start of the season, so it may be more difficult for them to get much credit for their improvement during the season.

Hornbeak had a setback due to injury, but he is coming on and making winning contributions as backup guard.

D.J. Bennett has shown improvement, but he appears to have so much more to offer that is untapped at this point. If he can improve his basketball savvy and confidence in the off-season, he will have a chance to have a memorable senior season, like Tyler Neal

I am hopeful that Cam recaptures his early season form and has a very strong finish.

Considering the guys that get playing time on a regular basis, I cannot think of one that has not improved. That is a credit to the players and the coaching staff.
Click to expand...

Yes I agree I was just saying he's improved as much in 1 year as I thought it would take him 3 years to do. He is obviously going to get much better with his work ethic.
 
Cousins, there were games last year where I was worried that he may pack it up and go back to NY. So glad he stuck with it and kept working hard. I really like Cousin's all around game.
 
:neal

Pretty unreal to say the most improved for a non-starter senior, but Tyler has improved so much. A close second (or tie maybe) would be Cousins.

I agree that almost every player on the team has improved. Great coaching job.
 
Cam Clark goes from 6pts a game to 14-15 and he barely gets a mention. He has stepped up. I know non conf was better than conf but he's put in a lot of time and much improved.
 
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