Next year's team will...

[CoKane]

he ready

Emmanuel Malou ‏@EmmanuelMalou 15 Dec 2015Modesto, CA
Emmanuel Malou Retweeted Jeff Goodman
Challenge Accepted

#CyclONEnation

Emmanuel Malou added,
Jeff Goodman @GoodmanESPNIowa State fans nuts if they think Cyclones gonna be very good next year. Probably same naive ones who thought Hoiberg would turn down Bulls





240 retweets840 likes

Malou making an early case to be the new master of the Twitterverse now that Georges is gone

 

[kingcy]

Next years team will have very good guard play. Having 2 threats from 3, and a good PG at all times on the floor can carry a team a long way. OU did it this year with one good guard and 2 average guards. As a whole ISU's guards should be better than what OU is putting on the floor this year.

 

[WastedTalent]

Next years team will have very good guard play. Having 2 threats from 3, and a good PG at all times on the floor can carry a team a long way. OU did it this year with one good guard and 2 average guards. As a whole ISU's guards should be better than what OU is putting on the floor this year.

Having both Naz and Thomas back probably won't allow for a lot of this, but I love the idea of having two point guards on the court at the same time, with Jackson and Morris.

 

[Raywswartz]

How could we be worse rebounding? We were just not as good as previous years. No Hogue, or Ejim. Have to be bigger and stronger at 4 and 5 spots. If that takes some scoring and outside shooting away, then so be it.

 

[heitclone]

Actually, at the risk of being bashed by half of this board, I'd take that right now. Middle of the big 12. Because I still believe we have not only great coaches in the Big12, but the other teams (like KU,OU, WV, Baylor, etc) have good players still back and some good recruits coming in (better than people think). Besides, am I the only one who is excited about Malou BUT ...still feels he'll need time to work his way into being a big12 starter muchlesss guard the '5' position? Still hoping for that 1 more grad transfer 'true big'. Keeping our streak going of getting into the NCAA tournament (then see what happens) would be my biggest wish. Should be an interesting offseason.

I think if Malou is guarding 5's, will be even worse on the glass and defense than this year. McKay was never a 5, he never played the 4 or 5 until he came to ISU, we saw how that worked out, I have a ton of respect for the effort that Jameel gave but he was outmatched nearly every time the other team had a legit 5. Just like McKay, Malou at the 5 can't work without a physical, defensive, rebounding presence at the 4 (think last year with Hogue). Idk if Bowie is that guy, I'm convinced Burton is not. A grad transfer would take a lot of pressure off of Malou.

 

[Cy$]

I think if Malou is guarding 5's, will be even worse on the glass and defense than this year. McKay was never a 5, he never played the 4 or 5 until he came to ISU, we saw how that worked out, I have a ton of respect for the effort that Jameel gave but he was outmatched nearly every time the other team had a legit 5. Just like McKay, Malou at the 5 can't work without a physical, defensive, rebounding presence at the 4 (think last year with Hogue). Idk if Bowie is that guy, I'm convinced Burton is not. A grad transfer would take a lot of pressure off of Malou.

This is why I think playing Bowie with Malou will be better than going with Naz and Thomas for a majority of the game. All of them will play a lot so it's not a big deal. Seems like Malou would benefit with a guy like Hogue (Bowie?) who will do the dirty work.

 

[mjhavlo76]

Not going to rule out that we will be good, but when you lose a caliber player like Georges Niang it's going to be hard to fill that void. His style of play was so unique that it created many mismatches and opportunities for others to score. Not saying that Malou can't do that, I just believe it will take time. I'm not expecting a huge downfall next year, but I wouldn't expect to be better. Monte Morris and a Naz Mitrou-Long return would be a huge game changer. I really believe Soloman Young will be a pleasant surprise. Stay tuned.

 

[State43]

This is why I think playing Bowie with Malou will be better than going with Naz and Thomas for a majority of the game. All of them will play a lot so it's not a big deal. Seems like Malou would benefit with a guy like Hogue (Bowie?) who will do the dirty work.

Starting lineup.
Morris
Naz
Thomas
Bowie
Grad Transfer/Malou

Bench: Jackson, Burton, then up in the air for whatever posts earn the minutes. People think Naz doesn't start are straight crazy.

 

[Bobber]

Will take a step backwards...While you can replace most of what we lose, you can not replace George Niang. That being said, think we'll still win our share of games and finish mid pack in the Big 12. Going to need a lot of non conference games to have a chance to make the Tourney.

Also only year 2 of Prohm system. Still going to take a while for his culture and recruits to be fully implemented(I think he's a lot like Fred, but more defense emphasis which I am looking very forward to. Last night showed what good defenses can do).

 

[cyclones500]

I suppose a positive of Fred not recruiting much during his last 1.5 years (at least in terms of "quantity"): We'll be able to assess Prohm's full approach sooner.

 

[Cy$]

Starting lineup.
Morris
Naz
Thomas
Bowie
Grad Transfer/Malou

Bench: Jackson, Burton, then up in the air for whatever posts earn the minutes. People think Naz doesn't start are straight crazy.

It doesn't matter who starts.....Whoever plays more is more important (crunch time in close games). People act like Naz is a Big 12 1st or 2nd team player in this thread. He's averaged ~10 points for his career, ~3 rebounds. He's not invincible and some people forget that. IMO I think Burton can do more than Naz can during a course of a game, with an extra offseason I think Burton will improve a ton especially defensively. Matt and Naz are similar except Matt has improved tremendously as a defender and will be asked to guard the opponents best player next year like this past year.

 

[cyclones500]

Answer to "be a better rebounding team?" .... that's a Yes. It can't get worse, can it?

 

[Doc]

Starting lineup.
Morris
Naz
Thomas
Bowie
Grad Transfer/Malou

Bench: Jackson, Burton, then up in the air for whatever posts earn the minutes. People think Naz doesn't start are straight crazy.

I agree. Naz and Matt would start and they would just have to rebound better than they ever have. They are just too good on offense. A backcourt of Naz, Matt, and Monte would be so good at taking care of the ball. I see it as a Wichita State type team, 3 good to great guards with some bigger players to mix and match (Unless Malou goes ham and they have to play him 35 minutes a game).

 

[TigerCyJM]

Anyone who thinks that Brady Ernst will be a big 12-level starter next year is a bit crazy

 

[mb7299]

totally agree on the Naz front, love what he brings to the table leadership and shooting wise but hes a 15-20 min guy on a great team and thats what we should be aiming for. We have a lot of great players that will be here next year that can shoot and play defense its going to be a very different looking team. I love that we are starting to look a little less like a pro team on defense (very little until the final few min). I do wonder with how many guards we will have if we'll press.

 

[acgclone]

My most confident prediction is that we will not suffer from lack of scoring next year. As usual defense and rebounding will be our areas for concern.

 

[iastatehunter]

My prediction is we finish better in conference standings next year than we did this year.

 

[Freebird]

Anyone who thinks that Brady Ernst will be a big 12-level starter next year is a bit crazy

Hope so but I think he is probably the most likely on the team to transfer out.

 

[awd4cy]

Anyone who thinks that Brady Ernst will be a big 12-level starter next year is a bit crazy

Exactly

 

[WastedTalent]

It doesn't matter who starts.....Whoever plays more is more important (crunch time in close games). People act like Naz is a Big 12 1st or 2nd team player in this thread. He's averaged ~10 points for his career, ~3 rebounds. He's not invincible and some people forget that. IMO I think Burton can do more than Naz can during a course of a game, with an extra offseason I think Burton will improve a ton especially defensively. Matt and Naz are similar except Matt has improved tremendously as a defender and will be asked to guard the opponents best player next year like this past year.

Complete opinion here, but I think you may be wrong about Naz. As big of an improvement as he made from his freshmen to sophomore season, I think he was ready to make a similar leap going into this season. He was so much more aggressive off the dribble, posting up on offense, and battling for rebounds. His 3 point percentage was down, but he's proven he can shoot when healthy.

Granted, all this is predicated on him being back to full strength, but I really think he can play a similar role as Kane, and possibly be first team all conference.