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wait for basketball season. This is too much for me. Hopefully SMU can get an NIT bid this year.

Then come over to the basketball board start talking hoops. Your wish for the NIT is a little low since we have the most talent we've had in eight years. We have a very good shot at winning the WAC and making it to the NCAA.

Originally posted by LA_Mustang:
Then come over to the basketball board start talking hoops. Your wish for the NIT is a little low since we have the most talent we've had in eight years. We have a very good shot at winning the WAC and making it to the NCAA.

We have exactly the same players we had last year, except for losing the WAC MVP.

That's exactly what I was thinking. How can we be better - at this point - minus Q, one of the best in school history.

no matter how good the talent of the team is I would be ready for a late season collapse, coupled with an early round WAC tournament exit. Although, we might see a repeat of Sasser and Davis' sophmore year in Vegas, where we almost didn't make the tournament, and then were two points shy of making the championship game.....but that seems more of an anomally now days....anyway.

See my post on the bball board. I agree, Q was one of the greatest ever at SMU but he was playing with a bunch of kids that had little or no experiece.

I guess you guys are assuming that players dont improve with experience (Castro, Isham, Simpson)??? And players dont heal (Hop)???

And I guess you're assuming that the Bulls were better the year after Jordan left because the other players had another year of experience under their belt.

Originally posted by LA_Mustang:
I guess you guys are assuming that players dont improve with experience (Castro, Isham, Simpson)??? And players dont heal (Hop)???

I dont have to assume anything, I've seen it first hand. I've learned to trust my own eyes in matters like this.

Mike D, that may be the most ridicules comparison ever.

Prof X, I know you know your stuff and I respect your opinion, but I believe this will be a better team. Castro, Isham, and Simpson were still very raw and inexperienced last season. Simpson looks stronger, Castro looks more confident, and Isham is ready to be the man. That recruiting class of 2001 will be the group that gets us to the NCAA...maybe this year.

I think this team will surprise, but I hear BHop still isn't 100% and that concerns me a LOT. How long will it take for him to be healthy for goodness sake.

Sure, and I respect yout opinion too. I just dont agree with it, based on what I've seen. To me, most of the individual players look almost exactly the same as they did when the season ended, including Bryan.
From what I saw in practice the team will be going back to the 1-4 offense using 2 high posts and sometimes a high-low set that they used for Dements first 2 seasons. You'll see the offense run through the post players more this year, and I expect Patrick Simpson to be our leading scorer. They also seem to be putting in a full court press much earlier
this year, than in the past. Everyones favorite 1-3-1 zone will also return.
I thought Castro and Simpson made real progress last year throughout the course of the season, but not really during the off-season. Perhaps this year will be similar. Right now, though, it looks to me like most of the guys are picking up about where they left off.

Devon Pearson is a strong rebounder and may back up Simpson at forward, but Patrick needs to stay on the court as much as possible, because he will be our primary scoring option. Bennett may see minutes as a backup at point. Other than that, I dont see the freshmen as making a real impact this year.

Initial game reports do not make it sound like BHop is doing well. The pub that picked SMU 2nd in the WAC tabbed BHop as the WAC player of the year as I recall.

X, was Bryan's injury more serious than was publicized? The hamstring should be fully healed after a summer off, but the foot injury from his last game at Lincoln?

So which is it that's still bothering him - the hammy or the foot?