I need a Bulls hoops expert

[HarveyGlass]

Any "expert" will do.

I normally don't hang out with that Rivals crowd, but I'm a basketball fan first, and the Villanova board always has some real good hoops talk, even in Summer.

Well, right now, they have a fantastic thread going where a fan of each school is being called on to provide a nice report of the upcoming season detailing players and expectations etc..  I think 9 teams have been accounted for, and now the conversation is starting to turn toward USF.

So somebody get over there and represent.

http://villanova.rivals.com/showmsg.asp?SID=1000&fid=1159&style=2&tid=97750885&Page=2

[Brad]

I think Velcro could provide a good player by player assessment.  He seems locked into the roster.

[JoeB]

I second the Velcro nomination for hoops.

Let me know when the Baseball discussions start and I'll be happy to talk USF baseball with the rest of the league......

[Velcro]

I'd be happy to give my thoughts on this board regarding the hoops team, but my days of going to opponents boards to banter are long, long gone.

[HarveyGlass]

Nobody's asking you to banter, Velcro.  It's just a bunch of hoop junkies who want to know more about USF.  No big deal.

[Triple B]

Nobody's asking you to banter, Velcro.  It's just a bunch of hoop junkies who want to know more about USF.  No big deal.

Maybe he'll post it here and you can do a c&p.....

[Velcro]

Roster:

Howard, Chris  G  6-3  200  So. 

Bozeman, Solomon  SG/PG  6-0  165  So. 

Jones, Dominique  SG  6-4  205  Fr. 

Curry, Dante  SG  6-4  175  RFr

Verdejo, Jesus  SG  6-4  205  Jr. 

Holmes, Aaron  SG/SF  6-5  185  RFr. 

Saaka, Adamu "Amu"  G/F  6-6  195  So. 

Chin, Orane  PF/SF  6-7  195  Fr. 

Ajayi, Mobolaji  PF  6-9  225  Jr. 

Williams, Aris  PF  6-9  235  Jr. 

Gransberry, Kentrell  C  6-9  270  Sr. 

Others (Walk-ons)

Lovett, Eddie  PG/SG  6-0  180  Sr.

Heirman, Montana  PG  5-10  180  Jr.

Torres, Bobby  PG  6-0  170  Jr.

Rubens, Jared  SG/SF  6-5  185  So.

Probably Starting Lineup (top substitutes in parenthesis):

PG Chris Howard (Bozeman)

SG Jesus Verdejo (Curry)

SF Aaron Holmes (Saaka)

PF Aris Williams (IF * big if * his knees recovered... if not, then Orane Chin and Mobolaji Ajayi split time here)

C Kentrell Gransberry (Williams, but see above)

The only entrenched starters are Chris Howard and Kentrell Gransberry.  No one on our roster is going to beat either of them out.  Howard lead the BE in assists as a freshman, despite being hobbled by 2 ACL consecutive injuries.  He should be 100% this season, so it will be interesting to see how much this baptism by fire helped him out last year, and whether he can adapt to the faster paced system that Stan Heath will run.  He is a very cerebral player, so I think this system will be to his benefit.

Gransberry, as everyone knows, is an absolute monster on the boards, and his offensive game was much better than advertised last year.  We still have very little help for KG, so should he get into foul trouble, or get winded, we will have a juco undersized PF, an undersized SF, and a hobbled PF to bridge the gap or fill in.  Could be a big trouble point.

But on that same note, we have scorers at 1, 2, and 3 position.  Aaron Holmes is the real deal.  Picture a more aggressive, and smoother, Melvin Buckley.  Pure shot, slasher, finisher. 

Dante Curry is a bit on the thin side, but he is very long, and also a good shooter.  Very similar player to Aaron Holmes, without quite as much hype.  How he recovers from his achilles rupture from his senior season in HS will be a big question mark.

Bozeman was forced to play pg quite a bit last year due to Howard's ACL injury.  He did fairly well, but he is a true SG and much better putting up the open shot than creating the open shot.  I still see him getting time at PG due to his experience over Dominique Jones, but I'm hoping Jones can contribute immediately as a backup so that Bozeman can play more of the 2, splitting time with Verdejo.

Jesus Verdejo spent quite a bit of time in coach mac's dog house, or so i appeared.  He didn't play up to his hype or potential as an offensive machine, but he did have flashes of brilliance.  Can Stan Heath's game plan get more out of JV?  I think you'll see a much less hesitant Verdejo.  When a scorer is given the green light, he feels much more comfortable than when he is told to pass the ball and get into a set offense every play.

Overall, i think this team has a decent amount of experience, despite being very young.  They are thin, other than KG, which is very concerning in a league where most every team has someone 6'11 (or multiple people that tall) or larger.

Guard play should be a strength, pace should be fast, scoring high, and if we can get anything decent out of our PF position, it will be a much better year than we had in a while.

[HarveyGlass]

Wow, very nice Velcro.

I'll put it up over there, if you don't mind.

Thanks.

[Velcro]

I don't mind... if anyone has anything to add, please feel free.  It is by no means complete... just one guys thoughts.

[USFMikeB]

Great synopsis, Velcro...