Conf Play Starts tonight!!!! 10 Predictions...

[GumbyDamnit!]

1. Nova wins conf again with 14 wins.
2. T. Blueitt wins POY with 3 votes with Bridges, Delgado and Brunson with 2 apiece and Rodriguez with 1 vote. Foster joins on 1st team All-league.
3. Chris Mullen wins COY
4. Spellman wins Frosh of Year
5. 5 tourney teams: X, SHU, VU, CU and SJU
6. 3 BE teams in the SW16 - X, Nova & SHU
7. Brunson and Blueitt make 1st team AA. Delgado and Bridges 2nd and 3rd teams.
8. League finish: Nova, X, SHU, CU, SJU, Butler, PC, Marq., G'town, DePaul
9. 7 BE players get drafted after season (in order): Bridges, Thomas, Spellman, Brunson, Blueitt, Martin, Foster
10. One of the BE coaches get poached after the season (prediction: Wojo bolts to take an ACC job).

[MUBoxer]

How confident are you on that wojo prediction? I’ll put a six pack of local craft beer against that if you’re willing. I mean if not it’s just predicting for predictions sake. You can say anything then.

[GumbyDamnit!]

How confident are you on that wojo prediction? I’ll put a six pack of local craft beer against that if you’re willing. I mean if not it’s just predicting for predictions sake. You can say anything then.

Just playing the odds. It seems that the BE is the first stop for large power conference programs looking to fill coaching voids. Wojo is young; a disciple of Coach K. I like Wojo and hope he stays. It was actually a toss up between him and Willard as to who may bolt if they have a solid season. I just don't see Cooley leaving PC, Mac leaving CU, Wright leaving Nova or Mack leaving X. They've all had the chance to leave before. Jordan @ Butler, Mullen @ SJU and Ewing @ G'Town are alums; they're not going anywhere. No one wants Laeto at this point. So that leaves Wojo and Willard.

Just a silly prediction that we'd lose someone. Didn't mean to insult the Golden Eagle Nation.

[MUBoxer]

How confident are you on that wojo prediction? I’ll put a six pack of local craft beer against that if you’re willing. I mean if not it’s just predicting for predictions sake. You can say anything then.

Just playing the odds. It seems that the BE is the first stop for large power conference programs looking to fill coaching voids. Wojo is young; a disciple of Coach K. I like Wojo and hope he stays. It was actually a toss up between him and Willard as to who may bolt if they have a solid season. I just don't see Cooley leaving PC, Mac leaving CU, Wright leaving Nova or Mack leaving X. They've all had the chance to leave before. Jordan @ Butler, Mullen @ SJU and Ewing @ G'Town are alums; they're not going anywhere. No one wants Laeto at this point. So that leaves Wojo and Willard.

Just a silly prediction that we'd lose someone. Didn't mean to insult the Golden Eagle Nation.

Makes sense from that perspective. Now let’s consider this:

1) from the first year he’s said he wants 18-19, 19-20 to be our big years. Look at what we return next year and have coming in (Marrow eligible, Bailey finally shows up, J Hauser who’s supposed to be better than Sam) I don’t think he leaves before seeing that through.

2) duke guys stick together. Perhaps someone can help me with this stat but I’m fairly confident that for all the people K has put into the coaching ranks none of them coach at schools in the ACC because it’s like saying a guy from Nova would coach at temple, X to Cinci, Marq to UW etc.

3) Marquette’s funding. We spend more on basketball than every school in this conference and every basketball only school in the country plus have the bucks spending for the new arena etc.

4) Polish food, between Milwaukee and the short drive to Chicago a guy as polish as wojo isn’t going to get a better Pierogi.

I don’t doubt that he’d jump for duke and but we’re talking about a guy who between playing and coaching spent 22 years at duke and his mentor was pretty much a lifer at duke as well. He doesn’t seem to have the typical coach jump around personality where you see 10 different assistant assistant stops, maybe an NAIA High School or D3 gig then back to assistant, he’s got a background suggesting he like to stay rooted.

I get playing the odds, but when you are looking for a reason for someone to do something it becomes easy to forget reasons they wouldn’t.

[cujaysfan]

mike brey coaches in the ACC

easily the most successful former K asst

but sometimes forgotten because he didn't play for him

[MarquetteRustler]

If Marquette finishes 8th in the conference, Wojo ain't getting poached and might get fired.

[MUBoxer]

mike brey coaches in the ACC

easily the most successful former K asst

but sometimes forgotten because he didn't play for him

Kind of a different situation he had 13yrs at ND before he was forced to coach in the ACC, not like he left ND when any of the jobs in the ACC became available or joined ND since they went ACC. But fair enough, let me retroactively say people leaving to coach against K in the ACC.

[cujaysfan]

correct - brey also has zero interest in leaving ND

so far - none of the K assts have really panned out that they have gotten a look from ACC schools

amaker, dawkins, and capel all flamed out

jury still out on Wojo and Collins

edit - forgot hurley - he's still on the wait and see - but looks like he's finally getting ASU figured out and probably a step above Wojo and Collins

[kayako]

Spellman is not a typical one and done candidate. If he's going pro after this season, it's not the NBA.

[GumbyDamnit!]

Spellman is not a typical one and done candidate. If he's going pro after this season, it's not the NBA.

Yeah, I thought that at first too. But the NBA draft is not about current talent, it's about projected talent. And the NBA is about creating mismatches. The big man position has changed. Plodding big men are becoming extinct. Instead you get guys like Draymond Green. Green's Sr. year he was a 16/10 guy with a 39% 3FG%. He's quicker than Omari but couldn't shoot it like Omari can at this same stage.

After returning from the Bahamas it seems like Omari has started to figure things out nicely.

First 6 games:
- 23 min / game
- 7.0 ppg
- 6.8 rpg
- 23% 3FG% (3-13)

In 6 games since then:
- 29 mpg
- 15.7 ppg
- 8.7 rpg
- 67% 3FG% (14-21)

Now obviously he is not going to shoot 67% from 3 for the year. But if his usage increases and his % continues to be a touch north of 40%, don't you think some GM is going to see a young 6'9" kid with long arms, who's finally getting in shape, who can flat out stroke it, and not be intrigued? If Nova has a great year and make a run in the tourney in which Omari plays a large part, I fear we lose him.