Roster updated on soonersports.com

[okcsooner83]

http://www.soonersports.com/sports/m-baskbl/mtt/okla-m-baskbl-mtt.html

 

[Sam]

No Kyle Hardrick

 

[DenverSooner]

Does Honore have a scholarship?

 

[campbest]

No Kyle Hardrick

About time.

 

[garyeb2]

Does anyone find it interesting that the staff has listed only Arent as a center and Cameron is now a guard insted of a guard/forward?

 

[WTSooner]

Does anyone find it interesting that the staff has listed only Arent as a center

No. He is the only guy close to being a true center on the roster.

Cameron is now a guard insted of a guard/forward?

Not really. Cam isn't strong/physical enough to play the small PF role. And with plenty of guys that CAN play that role (Osby/M'Bathe), hopefully they'll focus on Cam's game as a 3, which is where he fits best. He has a chance to be a good one.

 

[thebigabd]

If Tyler Neal is really up to 225 pounds I think he may have a breakout season. He was about 200 last year.

 

[garyeb2]

No. He is the only guy close to being a true center on the roster.



Not really. Cam isn't strong/physical enough to play the small PF role. And with plenty of guys that CAN play that role (Osby/M'Bathe), hopefully they'll focus on Cam's game as a 3, which is where he fits best. He has a chance to be a good one.

OR, It will be Grooms, Cameron, Osby, Fitz, and Arent. And yes, I would agree that Kruger has given a couple of hints that he likes Neal. And those times Arent isn't in the game, That 3 guard/2 forward look would have to do because there really isn't a backup for Arent. Kruger will probably sign another post the 1st chance he gets. T

 

[CoachTalk]

OR, It will be Grooms, Cameron, Osby, Fitz, and Arent. And yes, I would agree that Kruger has given a couple of hints that he likes Neal. And those times Arent isn't in the game, That 3 guard/2 forward look would have to do because there really isn't a backup for Arent. Kruger will probably sign another post the 1st chance he gets. T

With this lineup we would be destroyed on def. CAM isnt a 2.... With only grooms in the game, we would only have 1 ball handler and I would press the hell out of that 5 on the floor..

YOu really think Cam is a 2? He can bring the ball up and guard usually the best player/scorer on the other team.

 

[garyeb2]

With this lineup we would be destroyed on def. CAM isnt a 2.... With only grooms in the game, we would only have 1 ball handler and I would press the hell out of that 5 on the floor..

YOu really think Cam is a 2? He can bring the ball up and guard usually the best player/scorer on the other team.

Of course he can. He was easily the the best athlete on last years team as a true freshman. He defended pretty well as true freshman. He dribbled and handled the ball pretty good. The only knock on the guy was that he wasn't assetive enough on offense from time to time. Didn't you watch any of the games? He was the only guy on the floor that looked like he could be an asset to an upper division big 12 team. I'm sorry if some people don't get it, but, Arent is going to play. So is Osby. There is a fair chance that Fitz could be more effective at the 4 than he was flopping around at the post. So, there you are. Are you really going to set Cameron so that Pledger/Newell can play? He can play the 2 better than either of them.

 

[CoachTalk]

Best Athlete doesnt mean play a position he has never played before. He could handle presses like mizzou etc... I watched almost every game.
I dont think Osby will play that much 3... 6'8 238 gaurding 3's...? Lots of people think just bc you are athletic and are somewhat fast doesnt mean you can play out of position and be very effective.
Time will tell...

 

[WTSooner]

Best Athlete doesnt mean play a position he has never played before. He could handle presses like mizzou etc... I watched almost every game.
I dont think Osby will play that much 3... 6'8 238 gaurding 3's...? Lots of people think just bc you are athletic and are somewhat fast doesnt mean you can play out of position and be very effective.
Time will tell...

Yep.

I don't doubt that Cam and Osby are both athletic. But they are athletic compared to guys at the 3 (Cam) and 4 (Osby) spots. Move them down a spot, and their athleticism is negated going against smaller/quicker players.

 

[garyeb2]

Yep.

I don't doubt that Cam and Osby are both athletic. But they are athletic compared to guys at the 3 (Cam) and 4 (Osby) spots. Move them down a spot, and their athleticism is negated going against smaller/quicker players.

Nooo. Cam and Osby are athletic compared to not athletic. Either one of them could guard a smaller Pledger or Blair type just fine. But, back to my original premise. The team will have a point guard. Arent and Osby will play. Now, that is two spots left. Who will they be and how are you going to line the up?

 

[Sam]

Gary why are you so sold on Arent playing so much? I get that Kruger wants a true center, his recruiting in 2012 is sign to that, but is he going to play a 6'10 guy 25+ minutes a might solely because he's 6'10?

I really dont know what to think of Arent, I've never seen him in person yet alone watched him play. But my gut says he's a 10 minute a guy off the bench. California juco is notoriously weak. Arent seems like a guy who will come in, give good minutes at the 5 similar to Yoyo back in the day. Another thing against him, he wont be on campus till August (unless something has changed in the past couple weeks).

I think Cam is more likely to log time at the 2 then Osby at the 3. The few times I've seem Osby he screams to me a 4 that can step out and do damage on the perimeter but not a true three. Correct me if I'm wrong but didn't Derrick Williams, Michael Beasley, Kevin Durant, all play the 4 position more so than the 3 in college? Those are players that I feel that Osby's playing style is similar to and they played more of the 4 positon than a true 3.

I will say this, if Casey Arent does come in, starts at 5 and goes 25-30 minutes a night there, OU will either be a ton better than expected or worse.

 

[NickZepp]

I bet our starting lineup looks more like this:
Blair/Grooms, Pledger, Clark, Osby, Fitz

I don't see how anyone can say Pledger is on the bench he is probably our best and most experienced player right now.

 

[Capel's Mustache]

Gary why are you so sold on Arent playing so much? I get that Kruger wants a true center, his recruiting in 2012 is sign to that, but is he going to play a 6'10 guy 25+ minutes a might solely because he's 6'10?

I really dont know what to think of Arent, I've never seen him in person yet alone watched him play. But my gut says he's a 10 minute a guy off the bench. California juco is notoriously weak. Arent seems like a guy who will come in, give good minutes at the 5 similar to Yoyo back in the day. Another thing against him, he wont be on campus till August (unless something has changed in the past couple weeks).

I think Cam is more likely to log time at the 2 then Osby at the 3. The few times I've seem Osby he screams to me a 4 that can step out and do damage on the perimeter but not a true three. Correct me if I'm wrong but didn't Derrick Williams, Michael Beasley, Kevin Durant, all play the 4 position more so than the 3 in college? Those are players that I feel that Osby's playing style is similar to and they played more of the 4 positon than a true 3.

I will say this, if Casey Arent does come in, starts at 5 and goes 25-30 minutes a night there, OU will either be a ton better than expected or worse.

Totally agree on Arent. It might sound a little harsh to say but I think he is just a stop gap.

 

[campbest]

gary why are you so sold on arent playing so much? I get that kruger wants a true center, his recruiting in 2012 is sign to that, but is he going to play a 6'10 guy 25+ minutes a might solely because he's 6'10?

I really dont know what to think of arent, i've never seen him in person yet alone watched him play. But my gut says he's a 10 minute a guy off the bench. California juco is notoriously weak. Arent seems like a guy who will come in, give good minutes at the 5 similar to yoyo back in the day. Another thing against him, he wont be on campus till august (unless something has changed in the past couple weeks).

I think cam is more likely to log time at the 2 then osby at the 3. The few times i've seem osby he screams to me a 4 that can step out and do damage on the perimeter but not a true three. Correct me if i'm wrong but didn't derrick williams, michael beasley, kevin durant, all play the 4 position more so than the 3 in college? Those are players that i feel that osby's playing style is similar to and they played more of the 4 positon than a true 3.

I will say this, if casey arent does come in, starts at 5 and goes 25-30 minutes a night there, ou will either be a ton better than expected or worse.

logic alert!

 

[garyeb2]

Sam, thanks for the respectfull question and your points are well thought out out. Kruger, to some degree talks in coach speak and code and one has to sort thru that to some degree to get to what he is saying. But, until he proves otherwise I have to take him at face value. In several snippets he has said things like we are not very big and we need more height. He said right after getting here that he needed to sign a point and post. Then he did it. Arent and Grooms are his guys. He picked them. If the competition is close, his guys win. That is human nature. My second point is that from my research Kruger really likes to run sets around and thru a traditional post player and likes to use the post as sort of a role player to defend, rebound, and set screens for his scoring wings and guards. While the post is important to his offense, it is not the focal point. Now, when an oppenent throws up a zone, he will set up differently. And, I have seen no evidence whatso ever that Fitz can do the things he wants a post player to do. And thirdly, it is Arent himself. While game film is hard to find on him and yes the Cal. juco leagues have the rep of being soft. Certainly not like the place Grooms comes from. He dominated that league just like a 5 star recruit dominates in high school. Averaging 20 while being tripled teamed and shooting what, 30% from 3. Arent is no Beau Gerber. He had options. He has aspirations of playing pro ball.His stated intention was to go to a school that would help him acheive that. He had no intention of going to a school that had an established post that was going to be around for two more years and keep him on the bench. Now, he could come in here and be a total bust. But, for OU fans to think that both Kruger's and Arent's intentions were anything other than for him to come in here and start and contribute immediately, are being deaf,dumb, and blind to the current situation on campus.

 

[WTSooner]

I'm going to agree with Sam above. Just b/c Kruger wanted size, or another post, doesn't mean that player was recruited to start. I mean.....all players are recruited in hopes they are good enough to start, but you can need post depth too. I believe the scouting report I read on Arent was that he wasn't very physical, despite his size, and was almost more of a perimeter player, then a true post. I also think he'll have a big adjustment period going to D1 basketball. That puts him behind Osby, Fitz, and even Washington in some ways. Also, isn't he getting to campus later then most players? That can't help much either.

I'm optimistic Arent will be able to contribute off the bench, and might actually be pretty solid by the end of his junior year. I'm under no illusions that he'll be starter quality early in the season though.

I'm really interested to see where they end up playing Neal. He has the game of a SF/wing/3, but I'm not sure he has the quickness to guard out there for long periods of time. I have very strong opinions of where Cam and Osby will play, not so much with Neal.

 

[BoulderSooner]

Best Athlete doesnt mean play a position he has never played before. He could handle presses like mizzou etc... I watched almost every game.
I dont think Osby will play that much 3... 6'8 238 gaurding 3's...? Lots of people think just bc you are athletic and are somewhat fast doesnt mean you can play out of position and be very effective.
Time will tell...

osby can handle the ball better than any one on our team outside of grooms .. and mabye blair ..

and look at the nba lots of 6'8 super athletic guys can guard the 3 ..

at the 3 he is not "out of position" he is a 3 .. now will we go small and have him at the 4 sure ... but he is a 3 not a 4