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The Red Wig
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I am not sure if it is premium of not, but it was posted in full on the other site, so here it goes:
Insider knows you're hot for hoops during the summer, so we bring you a closer look at five programs on the rise, five on the way down and five at a crossroads. The series concludes with one more team at a crossroads, whose season could go in either direction: Oklahoma.
Oklahoma Sooners
30-6, Elite Eight
Experts' Take
Jay Bilas
Oklahoma has had a terrific basketball program for many years now, but I believe it is headed into one of its strongest periods ever, mostly because of the talent and potential of head coach Jeff Capel. I have known Jeff for 15 years, and he is one of the rising (or already risen) stars of the coaching profession. Capel has put together a sustainable winner in Norman, with and without Blake Griffin. Capel has brought in talent to make up for the loss of Griffin, and his sophomore guard Willie Warren is about to take off on his own star path. Read More
Doug Gottlieb
Jeff Capel had the No. 1 overall pick in the NBA draft after convincing Blake Griffin to return for his sophomore season, and has convinced young star Willie Warren with a similar argument this offseason. While loading up on stud recruits, Capel might actually miss Blake's older brother, Taylor, more due to Taylor's work ethic and leadership the past two seasons. Read More
Jay Bilas | Close
Oklahoma has had a terrific basketball program for many years now, but I believe it is headed into one of its strongest periods ever, mostly because of the talent and potential of head coach Jeff Capel. I have known Jeff for 15 years, and he is one of the rising (or already risen) stars of the coaching profession. Capel has put together a sustainable winner in Norman, with and without Blake Griffin. Capel has brought in talent to make up for the loss of Griffin, and his sophomore guard Willie Warren is about to take off on his own star path.
The key to any offense is balance and multiple options. Capel runs a lot of break options, and with Tommy Mason-Griffin running the show, Capel can be confident that the ball will be taken care of. Mason-Griffin may be small, but he is really quick and I really like him on the defensive end. He can stay in front of you, but he also anticipates things well and is disruptive, which is really important for smaller guards.
"Tiny" Gallon is not the Superman athlete that Griffin is, but he is very effective using his body and his size. Gallon will be an immediate help. If he is willing to anchor himself in the post and beat up on people, he will be very effective. If he wants to step out and prove he can play on the perimeter, he'll be wasting his time.
The Big 12 is stacked, but when is it not? When you play in a league with great depth of talent and entrenched power, you cannot wait for the leaders to come back to the pack. You have to go out and get them. Oklahoma has raised its level of play and competitiveness, and the Sooners have set a high standard in the Big 12.
Gottlieb
Doug Gottlieb | Close
Jeff Capel had the No. 1 overall pick in the NBA draft after convincing Blake Griffin to return for his sophomore season, and has convinced young star Willie Warren with a similar argument this offseason. While loading up on stud recruits, Capel might actually miss Blake's older brother, Taylor, more, due to Taylor's work ethic and leadership the past two seasons.
Capel has proven to be much more pliable than any other former Dukie in that he is not tied to any system or style he played in Durham. So with a different team comes a different offense, and Capel seems capable of incorporating motion and sets as well as multiple defenses into his team.
Tiny Gallon is lithe on his feet for his size, but in truth his game might be more skilled on the perimeter than Griffin's. Tiny has a tendency to float and shoot jumpers instead of playing the role of the hardcore, back-to-the-basket animal that Griffin showed himself to be.
In comparison to Kansas and Texas, Oklahoma does appear to be a notch below in terms of its returning talent outside Warren. Had Juan Pattillo not been kicked off the team, Oklahoma might be in the running for another deep run in the NCAA tournament, but without him, there is going to be a ton of dependence on very young and inexperienced players.
While much of the focus is rightfully on Willie Warren and his ability to average more than 20 points a game this season, keep an eye on Tony Crocker. Crocker had a middle of the season that was phenomenal in terms of his 3-point shooting and then virtually disappeared late in conference play. With Steven Pledger demanding minutes and Cade Davis viable as a shooter, Crocker must produce in order for the Sooners to compete for a Big 12 title.
Bilas
Blake Griffin. Blake Griffin. Blake Griffin. There. Now that that's out of the way, the Sooners can get back to normal. The departed National Player of the Year put up robust numbers (22.7 ppg, 14.4 rpg) and deservedly dominated the playbook because of it. But pre-BG, head coach Jeff Capel had been a 4-out, 1-in motion coach for most of his career. And with two returning starters and the No. 6 recruiting class in the country, Capel can be again.
"I know one thing," says sophomore guard Willie Warren. "You're going to see a lot more ball-screening, times when we run three or four guards at a time. We're going to be a fast team." With the return of Warren -- the top scorer (14.4 ppg) among Big 12 frosh last year -- and one of the league's best on-ball defenders in senior guard Tony Crocker, the Sooners have a solid enough core to prevent too much of a post-Griffin slide.
Only this year, a backtracking might not be theirs to control. The Big 12 boasts two Final Four maybes in Kansas and Texas, both of whom Oklahoma lost to last season without Griffin on the floor. Now that those two rivals are firmly out of rebuilding mode they'll try to impose order at the top of the conference. It remains to be seen whether the young Sooners can push back.
To see how a new face could make Warren's scoring job easier, read about the Sooners' summer initiation ritual and get analysis from Jay Bilas and Doug Gottlieb, you must be an ESPN Insider. Insider
Welcome to campus
Tommy Mason-Griffin, 5-foot-11, PG (No. 24 ESPNU 100)
Coming off an upper back injury that kept him on the sideline for two months this summer, the bulldozing point didn't exactly look like the burger All-American teammates were expecting. "He was the only player I ever saw try to sub himself out of open gym," Warren says with a laugh, remembering Mason-Griffin's out-of-shape debut in Norman. The freshman quickly made up for it once he was full strength. "Crocker tried to press him the length of the court and he just kept beating it. I never had any doubts about him or his ball-handling after that," Warren said.
Keith "Tiny" Gallon, 6-9, F (No. 11 ESPNU 100)
It's tough to stuff a 300-pound guy anywhere, but Capel will try to cram Gallon back into the post initially. With his dainty jumper and ability to exploit mismatches on the wing, Gallon will still sneak out to the perimeter on occasion. The Oak Hill (Va.) alum dropped 60 pounds since his sophomore season there, all the better to keep pace with the guards. "He has days when he looks like a top-five draft pick. He can be a 16-[point] and 10-[rebound] guy," Warren says.
Andrew Fitzgerald, 6-8, PF (No. 68 ESPNU 100)
A recruiting target of both Pitt and Louisville, Fitzgerald is a more traditional post than Gallon. The Baltimore native can get into position underneath the hoop and has the soft mitts to reel in no-looks and convert them into points.
Hole to fill: boards
There's a 6-11, All-American-sized hole to fill on the Sooners' front line and only a few candidates to step into it. A certain NBA-bound forward helped Oklahoma to a plus-5.6 rebounding margin last season (25th in the country) and the team brings back a roster on which no player hauled in more than 3.2 rebounds per game. Gallon and Fitzgerald could help collect caroms immediately, but the more likely option is that rebounding will become a team-wide task with the guards helping to crash the boards too. There, Capel's squad should have an advantage, since Mason-Griffin is the only backcourt member under 6-4 who figures to get major minutes. Big-bodied upperclassmen like Crocker (6-6), Cade Davis (6-5) and Ray Willis (6-6) can position themselves to help out.
[+] EnlargeWillie Warren
Joe Murphy/Getty ImagesWarren will be the Sooners' go-to guy.
New role: Warren
Yes, Warren was the team's only other double-digit scorer last year (14.6 ppg) but he reached that figure on almost 100 fewer shot attempts than Griffin. The mantle of being "the man" is a new role for Warren in Norman, but having a big man who can step out on the pick-and-roll (Gallon) and a couple of options who can handle point guard duties (Mason-Griffin, Willis) should make it easier for Warren to get his (added) shots. On the court last season Warren showed he could be a playmaker, shooting 40.4 percent from 3-point range over his past 26 games, including six 3s to keep it close in that loss to Texas. Off the court, Warren's outsized confidence in the team's future marks him a player to follow. "I feel like we're not being respected," Warren says. "Somebody had us [preseason] ranked at 21, another cat didn't even have us in the top-25. A lot of people are sleeping on us."
Summer school
Back in Norman, the freshmen were initiated into the team's traditional (OK, so it's only been two years) Pilates routine. The youngsters spent most of July on campus while Warren lit up the beginning of the month at the LeBron James Skills Academy. "He looks like he can be the scorer he was in high school," one scout remarked about Warren's performance. That's good news considering he posted nearly 25 ppg as a senior for North Crowley (Texas) High School.
Team Twitter
Top Sooner Twitterer? That'd be Coach Capel. He made use of some downtime while recruiting at the AAU Nationals in Orlando to spill the secret on getting four McDonald's All-Americans (Griffin, Warren, Mason-Griffin and Gallon) in three years:
jeffcapel: "Here watching games with my boy Grant Hill. Last time he came and watched games with me we saw Blake Griffin! Hope his mojo works again!!!!" 8:16 PM Jul 27th from UberTwitter [sic]
Insider knows you're hot for hoops during the summer, so we bring you a closer look at five programs on the rise, five on the way down and five at a crossroads. The series concludes with one more team at a crossroads, whose season could go in either direction: Oklahoma.
Oklahoma Sooners
30-6, Elite Eight
Experts' Take
Jay Bilas
Oklahoma has had a terrific basketball program for many years now, but I believe it is headed into one of its strongest periods ever, mostly because of the talent and potential of head coach Jeff Capel. I have known Jeff for 15 years, and he is one of the rising (or already risen) stars of the coaching profession. Capel has put together a sustainable winner in Norman, with and without Blake Griffin. Capel has brought in talent to make up for the loss of Griffin, and his sophomore guard Willie Warren is about to take off on his own star path. Read More
Doug Gottlieb
Jeff Capel had the No. 1 overall pick in the NBA draft after convincing Blake Griffin to return for his sophomore season, and has convinced young star Willie Warren with a similar argument this offseason. While loading up on stud recruits, Capel might actually miss Blake's older brother, Taylor, more due to Taylor's work ethic and leadership the past two seasons. Read More
Jay Bilas | Close
Oklahoma has had a terrific basketball program for many years now, but I believe it is headed into one of its strongest periods ever, mostly because of the talent and potential of head coach Jeff Capel. I have known Jeff for 15 years, and he is one of the rising (or already risen) stars of the coaching profession. Capel has put together a sustainable winner in Norman, with and without Blake Griffin. Capel has brought in talent to make up for the loss of Griffin, and his sophomore guard Willie Warren is about to take off on his own star path.
The key to any offense is balance and multiple options. Capel runs a lot of break options, and with Tommy Mason-Griffin running the show, Capel can be confident that the ball will be taken care of. Mason-Griffin may be small, but he is really quick and I really like him on the defensive end. He can stay in front of you, but he also anticipates things well and is disruptive, which is really important for smaller guards.
"Tiny" Gallon is not the Superman athlete that Griffin is, but he is very effective using his body and his size. Gallon will be an immediate help. If he is willing to anchor himself in the post and beat up on people, he will be very effective. If he wants to step out and prove he can play on the perimeter, he'll be wasting his time.
The Big 12 is stacked, but when is it not? When you play in a league with great depth of talent and entrenched power, you cannot wait for the leaders to come back to the pack. You have to go out and get them. Oklahoma has raised its level of play and competitiveness, and the Sooners have set a high standard in the Big 12.
Gottlieb
Doug Gottlieb | Close
Jeff Capel had the No. 1 overall pick in the NBA draft after convincing Blake Griffin to return for his sophomore season, and has convinced young star Willie Warren with a similar argument this offseason. While loading up on stud recruits, Capel might actually miss Blake's older brother, Taylor, more, due to Taylor's work ethic and leadership the past two seasons.
Capel has proven to be much more pliable than any other former Dukie in that he is not tied to any system or style he played in Durham. So with a different team comes a different offense, and Capel seems capable of incorporating motion and sets as well as multiple defenses into his team.
Tiny Gallon is lithe on his feet for his size, but in truth his game might be more skilled on the perimeter than Griffin's. Tiny has a tendency to float and shoot jumpers instead of playing the role of the hardcore, back-to-the-basket animal that Griffin showed himself to be.
In comparison to Kansas and Texas, Oklahoma does appear to be a notch below in terms of its returning talent outside Warren. Had Juan Pattillo not been kicked off the team, Oklahoma might be in the running for another deep run in the NCAA tournament, but without him, there is going to be a ton of dependence on very young and inexperienced players.
While much of the focus is rightfully on Willie Warren and his ability to average more than 20 points a game this season, keep an eye on Tony Crocker. Crocker had a middle of the season that was phenomenal in terms of his 3-point shooting and then virtually disappeared late in conference play. With Steven Pledger demanding minutes and Cade Davis viable as a shooter, Crocker must produce in order for the Sooners to compete for a Big 12 title.
Bilas
Blake Griffin. Blake Griffin. Blake Griffin. There. Now that that's out of the way, the Sooners can get back to normal. The departed National Player of the Year put up robust numbers (22.7 ppg, 14.4 rpg) and deservedly dominated the playbook because of it. But pre-BG, head coach Jeff Capel had been a 4-out, 1-in motion coach for most of his career. And with two returning starters and the No. 6 recruiting class in the country, Capel can be again.
"I know one thing," says sophomore guard Willie Warren. "You're going to see a lot more ball-screening, times when we run three or four guards at a time. We're going to be a fast team." With the return of Warren -- the top scorer (14.4 ppg) among Big 12 frosh last year -- and one of the league's best on-ball defenders in senior guard Tony Crocker, the Sooners have a solid enough core to prevent too much of a post-Griffin slide.
Only this year, a backtracking might not be theirs to control. The Big 12 boasts two Final Four maybes in Kansas and Texas, both of whom Oklahoma lost to last season without Griffin on the floor. Now that those two rivals are firmly out of rebuilding mode they'll try to impose order at the top of the conference. It remains to be seen whether the young Sooners can push back.
To see how a new face could make Warren's scoring job easier, read about the Sooners' summer initiation ritual and get analysis from Jay Bilas and Doug Gottlieb, you must be an ESPN Insider. Insider
Welcome to campus
Tommy Mason-Griffin, 5-foot-11, PG (No. 24 ESPNU 100)
Coming off an upper back injury that kept him on the sideline for two months this summer, the bulldozing point didn't exactly look like the burger All-American teammates were expecting. "He was the only player I ever saw try to sub himself out of open gym," Warren says with a laugh, remembering Mason-Griffin's out-of-shape debut in Norman. The freshman quickly made up for it once he was full strength. "Crocker tried to press him the length of the court and he just kept beating it. I never had any doubts about him or his ball-handling after that," Warren said.
Keith "Tiny" Gallon, 6-9, F (No. 11 ESPNU 100)
It's tough to stuff a 300-pound guy anywhere, but Capel will try to cram Gallon back into the post initially. With his dainty jumper and ability to exploit mismatches on the wing, Gallon will still sneak out to the perimeter on occasion. The Oak Hill (Va.) alum dropped 60 pounds since his sophomore season there, all the better to keep pace with the guards. "He has days when he looks like a top-five draft pick. He can be a 16-[point] and 10-[rebound] guy," Warren says.
Andrew Fitzgerald, 6-8, PF (No. 68 ESPNU 100)
A recruiting target of both Pitt and Louisville, Fitzgerald is a more traditional post than Gallon. The Baltimore native can get into position underneath the hoop and has the soft mitts to reel in no-looks and convert them into points.
Hole to fill: boards
There's a 6-11, All-American-sized hole to fill on the Sooners' front line and only a few candidates to step into it. A certain NBA-bound forward helped Oklahoma to a plus-5.6 rebounding margin last season (25th in the country) and the team brings back a roster on which no player hauled in more than 3.2 rebounds per game. Gallon and Fitzgerald could help collect caroms immediately, but the more likely option is that rebounding will become a team-wide task with the guards helping to crash the boards too. There, Capel's squad should have an advantage, since Mason-Griffin is the only backcourt member under 6-4 who figures to get major minutes. Big-bodied upperclassmen like Crocker (6-6), Cade Davis (6-5) and Ray Willis (6-6) can position themselves to help out.
[+] EnlargeWillie Warren
Joe Murphy/Getty ImagesWarren will be the Sooners' go-to guy.
New role: Warren
Yes, Warren was the team's only other double-digit scorer last year (14.6 ppg) but he reached that figure on almost 100 fewer shot attempts than Griffin. The mantle of being "the man" is a new role for Warren in Norman, but having a big man who can step out on the pick-and-roll (Gallon) and a couple of options who can handle point guard duties (Mason-Griffin, Willis) should make it easier for Warren to get his (added) shots. On the court last season Warren showed he could be a playmaker, shooting 40.4 percent from 3-point range over his past 26 games, including six 3s to keep it close in that loss to Texas. Off the court, Warren's outsized confidence in the team's future marks him a player to follow. "I feel like we're not being respected," Warren says. "Somebody had us [preseason] ranked at 21, another cat didn't even have us in the top-25. A lot of people are sleeping on us."
Summer school
Back in Norman, the freshmen were initiated into the team's traditional (OK, so it's only been two years) Pilates routine. The youngsters spent most of July on campus while Warren lit up the beginning of the month at the LeBron James Skills Academy. "He looks like he can be the scorer he was in high school," one scout remarked about Warren's performance. That's good news considering he posted nearly 25 ppg as a senior for North Crowley (Texas) High School.
Team Twitter
Top Sooner Twitterer? That'd be Coach Capel. He made use of some downtime while recruiting at the AAU Nationals in Orlando to spill the secret on getting four McDonald's All-Americans (Griffin, Warren, Mason-Griffin and Gallon) in three years:
jeffcapel: "Here watching games with my boy Grant Hill. Last time he came and watched games with me we saw Blake Griffin! Hope his mojo works again!!!!" 8:16 PM Jul 27th from UberTwitter [sic]
