IMO Greg McDermott is a solid coach when it comes to X's & O's and game time decisions. Outside the lines I think he makes sure the kids he brings into ISU are solid citizens and work hard at being good student athletes. The later reason is why I am willing to support GMAC and give him time to build the ISU hoops program into a Big 12 winner. He has a mulligan again this year- but I expect to see significant strides during the 09/10 season.
When GMAC was hired a number of posters were concerned about GMAC's ability to recruit Big 12 quality players and IMO those issues are the source of ISU's woes. Some posters continue to blame the roster turnover when Wayne Morgan departed & IMO those posters need to move on- that is ancient history.
Since GMAC has become coach, he has recruited 17 players to ISU- that is more than enough opportunities to create a solid program instead of a team that loses to a POOR CU team in Boulder or a less talented SDSU team at Hilton.
Let’s look back at GMAC's recruits and I'll characterize them:
2 kids left & didn't play enough to draw conclusions about their ability (I'm giving these guys the benefit of the doubt)
Should we be optimistic about the future? Here’s my evaluation of much of our current roster and I will categorize kids by how they fit into a quality Big 12 roster. IMO a quality Big 12 roster is characterized by the following:
§[FONT="] [/FONT]2 top scorers, guys who consistently get 15-20ppg, ideally one is a post player and one a guard.
§[FONT="] [/FONT]1 guy who is capable of being a top scorer, but is willing to defer offensively- a 10-12ppg player. This guy has the knack of stepping up when a top scorer has an off night. Typically, this is a frosh/soph who will develop into a top scorer by the time he’s a jr/sr.
§[FONT="] [/FONT]1 role scorer – this guy is an efficient scorer. Whether a guy who get his points on offensive rebounds or solid 3 point threat. This guy contributes 8-10ppg.
§[FONT="] [/FONT]1 role player – this guy may not score more than 5-7 ppg. But he is a lock-down defender, solid rebounder, shot blocker, top assist man or efficient 3 point scorer.
§[FONT="] [/FONT]A solid bench. A good bench will consistently score 12-15ppg and have guys who can fill roles of instant offense, shut down defender, space eater in the paint.
Here’s how I look at what is our current roster:
§[FONT="] [/FONT]Top Scorer – Brackins (Taylor & W. Johnson were these types of players, but the fact we only have 1 on our current roster is a BIG problem.)
§[FONT="] [/FONT]Potential Top Scorer – NOT on Roster
§[FONT="] [/FONT]Role Scorer – Staiger. I would hope Lucca would be more than a 4th option, but he hasn’t shown the ability to create his own shot. Is he still slowed by his knee injury or is he a designated 3 point shooter?
§[FONT="] [/FONT]Role Player – Garrett. He tries to fill the void as a top or potential scorer, but I just don’t see the ability. IMO he can be a solid role player but needs to get stronger to develop into a solid PG or lock down defender.
§[FONT="] [/FONT]Solid Bench – Petersen & Hamilton. On a good Big 12 team these guys would be 8th or 9th men. For ISU they start.
What is the potential of our current roster?
§[FONT="] [/FONT]I think Hamilton will be All Big 12 by his jr/sr season and develop into a 3rd option on offense.
§[FONT="] [/FONT]Buckley – hasn’t gotten much PT, but I haven’t seen anything to indicate more than a solid bench player or role player.
§[FONT="] [/FONT]Eikmeier has gotten more PT, I haven’t seen anything to indicate he’s more than a role player or solid bench player.
§[FONT="] [/FONT]Vanderbeken is a bench player, but maybe only a 8th or 9th option.
§[FONT="] [/FONT]Mann – He hasn’t played much to make a fair evaluation, but I see another Cory Johnson.
§[FONT="] [/FONT]Pomlee – Based on his HS days his max abilities might be that of a 4th or 5th option as a starter.
[FONT="]If GMAC is to be ISU’s coach over the long term – Gilstrap & Colvin need to be quality Big 12 starters. We don’t need more role players. I hope that GMAC’s next recruiting class has some guys who can be top or potential top scorers.[/FONT]
When GMAC was hired a number of posters were concerned about GMAC's ability to recruit Big 12 quality players and IMO those issues are the source of ISU's woes. Some posters continue to blame the roster turnover when Wayne Morgan departed & IMO those posters need to move on- that is ancient history.
Since GMAC has become coach, he has recruited 17 players to ISU- that is more than enough opportunities to create a solid program instead of a team that loses to a POOR CU team in Boulder or a less talented SDSU team at Hilton.
Let’s look back at GMAC's recruits and I'll characterize them:
2 kids left & didn't play enough to draw conclusions about their ability (I'm giving these guys the benefit of the doubt)
- Brister
- Vette
- McIntosh
- Cory Johnson
- Dodie Dunson
- Michael Taylor
- Wesley Johnson
Should we be optimistic about the future? Here’s my evaluation of much of our current roster and I will categorize kids by how they fit into a quality Big 12 roster. IMO a quality Big 12 roster is characterized by the following:
§[FONT="] [/FONT]2 top scorers, guys who consistently get 15-20ppg, ideally one is a post player and one a guard.
§[FONT="] [/FONT]1 guy who is capable of being a top scorer, but is willing to defer offensively- a 10-12ppg player. This guy has the knack of stepping up when a top scorer has an off night. Typically, this is a frosh/soph who will develop into a top scorer by the time he’s a jr/sr.
§[FONT="] [/FONT]1 role scorer – this guy is an efficient scorer. Whether a guy who get his points on offensive rebounds or solid 3 point threat. This guy contributes 8-10ppg.
§[FONT="] [/FONT]1 role player – this guy may not score more than 5-7 ppg. But he is a lock-down defender, solid rebounder, shot blocker, top assist man or efficient 3 point scorer.
§[FONT="] [/FONT]A solid bench. A good bench will consistently score 12-15ppg and have guys who can fill roles of instant offense, shut down defender, space eater in the paint.
Here’s how I look at what is our current roster:
§[FONT="] [/FONT]Top Scorer – Brackins (Taylor & W. Johnson were these types of players, but the fact we only have 1 on our current roster is a BIG problem.)
§[FONT="] [/FONT]Potential Top Scorer – NOT on Roster
§[FONT="] [/FONT]Role Scorer – Staiger. I would hope Lucca would be more than a 4th option, but he hasn’t shown the ability to create his own shot. Is he still slowed by his knee injury or is he a designated 3 point shooter?
§[FONT="] [/FONT]Role Player – Garrett. He tries to fill the void as a top or potential scorer, but I just don’t see the ability. IMO he can be a solid role player but needs to get stronger to develop into a solid PG or lock down defender.
§[FONT="] [/FONT]Solid Bench – Petersen & Hamilton. On a good Big 12 team these guys would be 8th or 9th men. For ISU they start.
What is the potential of our current roster?
§[FONT="] [/FONT]I think Hamilton will be All Big 12 by his jr/sr season and develop into a 3rd option on offense.
§[FONT="] [/FONT]Buckley – hasn’t gotten much PT, but I haven’t seen anything to indicate more than a solid bench player or role player.
§[FONT="] [/FONT]Eikmeier has gotten more PT, I haven’t seen anything to indicate he’s more than a role player or solid bench player.
§[FONT="] [/FONT]Vanderbeken is a bench player, but maybe only a 8th or 9th option.
§[FONT="] [/FONT]Mann – He hasn’t played much to make a fair evaluation, but I see another Cory Johnson.
§[FONT="] [/FONT]Pomlee – Based on his HS days his max abilities might be that of a 4th or 5th option as a starter.
[FONT="]If GMAC is to be ISU’s coach over the long term – Gilstrap & Colvin need to be quality Big 12 starters. We don’t need more role players. I hope that GMAC’s next recruiting class has some guys who can be top or potential top scorers.[/FONT]
