It's been a big past few days for Gonzaga's big men of the past. First Ronny Turiaf wins his first NBA Championship with the Heat last Thursday, and today the team that drafted Turiaf decided to pull another Zag big man up to the NBA. Robert Sacre, who played with as big a personality as Turiaf, was selected by the Los Angeles Lakers with the final pick of the 2012 NBA Draft.
So, congratulations, Big Rob!
Sacre's draftability, if that is a thing, has been on a roller coaster ride over the past year. From peaks like Hawaii coach Gib Arnold's remarks after seeing Sacre dominate his Warriors squad back in November, 2011, "He’s a first-round draft pick, you’ll see him on TNT
next year because he plays the game right." to being left off mock draft boards and being ranked well below 60th (there are only 60 draft picks) on prospect lists.
Tonight though, the happy and hard working big man's toils have paid off. I'm in no position to determine how well Sacre will fit into the Lakers rotation, as I pay only fleeting attention the the NBA until mid-way thru the playoffs, but I do see this as a good place for him to land. I mentioned Ronny Turiaf being drafted by the Lakers earlier.
Based on Turiaf's time with L.A., which began as the 37th pick of the 2005 draft and promptly developed into a case of Turiaf's career possibly ending before beginning. A routine physical conducted by Lakers' staff doctors found an enlarged aortic root in Turiaf's heart, which forced the team to void his 2 year, $1 million contract. However, the Lakers also paid all costs relating to his open heart surgery and retained the rights to him, which they would use only half a year later to re-sign the fully recovered big man.
Sacre has no, known, health problems like Ronny Turiaf did upon his being drafted by the Lakers, but similar to Turiaf, Sacre will need some work done before a successful NBA career can be a reality. Sacre has the potential to easily become a solid back-up center, or more but that's a ways away, thanks to his great personality, hard nosed defense, work ethic, and rare trait for a big man in shooting well from the free throw line. However he's not at the physical/athletic level of NBA centers at this point. If the Lakers are serious, which they've proven to be with former Zags, heck they let Adam Morrison ride the pine to two NBA championships, Sacre should be on the path to a long and good NBA career much like his Zag and Laker predecessor (who need I remind you just won a championship) Ronny Turiaf.
Once again, congratulations and best of luck Mr. Sacre! I'm hoping this one draft pick will push me to care about the NBA more than I have before. Go Zags, go Lakers, go Rob!
Thursday, June 28, 2012
Tuesday, June 26, 2012
The West Coast Goes Midwest
If you've read the banner at the top of the page you'll know that I am a former Spokanite (and Portlander, though it doesn't say that) who currently lives in Chicago. I've been here since last September and that has prevented me from seeing any West Coast Conference action in person. The Zags visited Illinois last December, but I was unemployed at the time. Fortunately for me the upcoming season brings WCC teams my way once again. I'm writing this mostly so that I am constantly reminded of these games, that way I make going to them a reality. Also, just in case there are any midwest WCC fans who read this blog.
The game I want to see most also happens to be the one closest to Chicago. January 19th Gonzaga will play Butler. Indianapolis is just over three hours away by car. However, if Butler is anything like Gonzaga, getting a ticket could be impossible, especially considering this is a match-up of arguably the two biggest mid-majors in the country.
On December 22nd two WCC squads will be playing in my current neck of the woods. Saint Mary's at Northern Iowa and Loyola Marymount at Saint Louis. Ideally I would see both but that is impossible considering they are on the same day. If I had to decide now I would rather go to Cedar Falls to watch the Gaels and Panthers. Saint Mary's will certainly be better than Loyola Marymount next season. Even though I have become quite fond of the Lions over the past year due to their surprise success and great online radio station (a lifeline for a mid-major fan half way across the country from the game).
Santa Clara will play Saint Louis on November 14th. That works out nice since, assuming I am able to go to all of these, I would be missing the other WCC vs. Billikens game to see the Gales and Panthers.
In a game that will surely go to the non-WCC team but will showcase the best talent of any of these games, Portland will play at reigning national champion Kentucky on December 18th. I hope the Pilots at least try to enjoy those 40 minutes. On November 10th the Pilots will face off against the Ohio Bobcats, one of last years darlings of the big dance.
So, if you're reading this and you're a season ticket holder at Butler, Northern Iowa, or Saint Louis, or you just happen to know how a layman like myself could snag a ticket, help me out. I'll be all kinds of civil despite being a fan of your foes.
Also worth noting, these are just the non-conference games that have been announced. Full schedules haven't been finalized and more games will be lined up. So, if you're reading this and part of the staff at a WCC school, why not set up a game in the midwest? I'll be all kinds of thankful.
The game I want to see most also happens to be the one closest to Chicago. January 19th Gonzaga will play Butler. Indianapolis is just over three hours away by car. However, if Butler is anything like Gonzaga, getting a ticket could be impossible, especially considering this is a match-up of arguably the two biggest mid-majors in the country.
On December 22nd two WCC squads will be playing in my current neck of the woods. Saint Mary's at Northern Iowa and Loyola Marymount at Saint Louis. Ideally I would see both but that is impossible considering they are on the same day. If I had to decide now I would rather go to Cedar Falls to watch the Gaels and Panthers. Saint Mary's will certainly be better than Loyola Marymount next season. Even though I have become quite fond of the Lions over the past year due to their surprise success and great online radio station (a lifeline for a mid-major fan half way across the country from the game).
Santa Clara will play Saint Louis on November 14th. That works out nice since, assuming I am able to go to all of these, I would be missing the other WCC vs. Billikens game to see the Gales and Panthers.
In a game that will surely go to the non-WCC team but will showcase the best talent of any of these games, Portland will play at reigning national champion Kentucky on December 18th. I hope the Pilots at least try to enjoy those 40 minutes. On November 10th the Pilots will face off against the Ohio Bobcats, one of last years darlings of the big dance.
So, if you're reading this and you're a season ticket holder at Butler, Northern Iowa, or Saint Louis, or you just happen to know how a layman like myself could snag a ticket, help me out. I'll be all kinds of civil despite being a fan of your foes.
Also worth noting, these are just the non-conference games that have been announced. Full schedules haven't been finalized and more games will be lined up. So, if you're reading this and part of the staff at a WCC school, why not set up a game in the midwest? I'll be all kinds of thankful.
Sunday, June 24, 2012
The WCC and the NBA Finals
When the Miami Heat won the 2012 NBA championship this past Thursday
most of the talk was about LeBron James getting his first ring. For a
fan of West Coast Conference basketball though the focus was on the
supporting cast. Two former WCC stand outs helped the Heat win the
franchise's second NBA title. Forward Ronny Turiaf (Gonzaga, 2001-2005)
and head coach Erik Spoelstra (Portland, 1988-1992) are the latest in a
long line of WCC alumni to win an NBA championship. While Adam Morrison
is the holder of two rings of his own, unfortunately, he wasn't much a
part of why the Lakers won those two titles in 2009 and 2010. So this
marks the first time since Gonzaga's rise to national prominence and the
rise of the rest of the conference behind the Zags that a WCC product
(though Spoelstra was in the WCC nearly a decade before the Zags elite
eight run, when the conference was much weaker than today) of this era
has been a part of winning an NBA title.
The West Coast Conference is coming off what was possibly the best year in it's history, only the years San Francisco won the national championship back in the 1950's could possibly compare, and has been steadily improving for the past decade plus. Despite that, Morrison and now Turiaf are the only products of the conference during that time to win an NBA championship. In the previous paragraph I used the words "long line" to describe the club that Turiaf and Spoelstra have joined as WCC players with NBA rings. But if during the era of the conference's greatest success only two players have gone on to win a title, where did this long line come from? Well most of them came from San Francisco and won with the Boston Celtics. Of the WCC alumni's total of NBA rings, 27 came from San Francisco, of those 21 came while former Dons played for the Celtics. San Francisco was a key part in the development of the mid 20th century Boston Celtics dynasty.
The club that Spoelstra and Turiaf joined with their finals victory holds 40 (including their own) NBA championship rings. They join Gonzaga's Adam Morrison (2 rings), San Francisco's Bill Russell (11 rings), K.C. Jones (10 rings), Bill Cartwright (3 rings), Joe McNamee (1 ring), Phil Smith (1 ring) and Eric Fernsten (1 ring), Pepperdine's Dennis Johnson (3 rings), Santa Clara's Kurt Rambis (4 rings), and Brigham Young's Danny Ainge (2 rings), though BYU was not a WCC school during Ainge's time in Provo.
It's worth noting that two of the WCC's best players turned superstars NBA level, Steve Nash and John Stockton, are not on that list.
Congratulations to the Miami Heat, Eric Spoelstra, and Ronny Turiaf on winning the 2012 NBA championship. Now, I'm not too fond of their style of play, at the very least. But with those two WCC connections I wouldn't so much mind if LeBron James belief that the number of championships the Heat will win will be not one, not two, not three, and so on comes true. Even better though would be if another WCC alumni can get a ring, and there are a good number of them floating around the NBA.
The West Coast Conference is coming off what was possibly the best year in it's history, only the years San Francisco won the national championship back in the 1950's could possibly compare, and has been steadily improving for the past decade plus. Despite that, Morrison and now Turiaf are the only products of the conference during that time to win an NBA championship. In the previous paragraph I used the words "long line" to describe the club that Turiaf and Spoelstra have joined as WCC players with NBA rings. But if during the era of the conference's greatest success only two players have gone on to win a title, where did this long line come from? Well most of them came from San Francisco and won with the Boston Celtics. Of the WCC alumni's total of NBA rings, 27 came from San Francisco, of those 21 came while former Dons played for the Celtics. San Francisco was a key part in the development of the mid 20th century Boston Celtics dynasty.
The club that Spoelstra and Turiaf joined with their finals victory holds 40 (including their own) NBA championship rings. They join Gonzaga's Adam Morrison (2 rings), San Francisco's Bill Russell (11 rings), K.C. Jones (10 rings), Bill Cartwright (3 rings), Joe McNamee (1 ring), Phil Smith (1 ring) and Eric Fernsten (1 ring), Pepperdine's Dennis Johnson (3 rings), Santa Clara's Kurt Rambis (4 rings), and Brigham Young's Danny Ainge (2 rings), though BYU was not a WCC school during Ainge's time in Provo.
It's worth noting that two of the WCC's best players turned superstars NBA level, Steve Nash and John Stockton, are not on that list.
Congratulations to the Miami Heat, Eric Spoelstra, and Ronny Turiaf on winning the 2012 NBA championship. Now, I'm not too fond of their style of play, at the very least. But with those two WCC connections I wouldn't so much mind if LeBron James belief that the number of championships the Heat will win will be not one, not two, not three, and so on comes true. Even better though would be if another WCC alumni can get a ring, and there are a good number of them floating around the NBA.
Saturday, June 16, 2012
Bye Bye Double Bye
With the addition of the University of The Pacific for the 2013/2014 season the West Coast Conference will sit at 10 members. The addition of Brigham Young in 2011 necessitated a change in the conference tournament set up. The change wasn't much, just the addition of what was essentially a play-in game contested between the 8 and 9 seed. Now though, the WCC is making some more serious changes.
In a league, like the WCC of the recent past, where only one team (Gonzaga) played at a nationally competitive level, it was of the utmost importance for the league to make it as easy as possible for that team to win the automatic bid to the NCAA tournament. If Gonzaga were to get upset in say, a first round game against the 8 seed (the tournament was held on a WCC campus until the 2009 edition when it moved to the Orleans Arena in Las Vegas, so an 8 seed, at home, upsetting the Zags isn't too farfetched.) then their chances of an at large bid to the big dance would take a serious hit, regardless of how well they had played up to that point. Remember when Murray State lost it's first game of the season this past year and people began to wonder if another loss, possibly an early exit in the Ohio Valley Conference tournament, could or should exclude them from the big dance? Well, if the Zags lose early, miss out on an at large berth, and the WCC sends another team dancing, even the second best that year (remember, I'm talking about the WCC circa 2003 when the double bye was implemented and the second best team was pretty far from deserving of being called "best"), the level of interest in the WCC is seriously diminished from where it would be if Gonzaga was dancing.
To help prevent this from happening, the WCC adopted a double-bye for the top two seeds in 2003. This meant that for Gonzaga to win the WCC and get an automatic bid to the big dance, they needed only to win two tournament games. Even a loss, which happened twice, both times to San Diego in San Diego (see my point on upsets above), wouldn't look so bad as it could come no sooner than the tournament semis (Those two losses were in the finals, and the Zags received an at large bid both years so, kudos WCC administrators.)
Then, starting in 2005, Saint Mary's became nationally relevant, and the double bye became not just something that helped Gonzaga, but also helped the Gaels build their program. These two teams have met in six of the past nine WCC Tournament Championship games and including the past four straight. Now, while this helps them build programs, it also helps the league build it's brand. Because of the double-bye, the Gonzaga vs. Saint Mary's rivalry has become very big very fast.
But now, with 10 teams, the addition of another nationally relevant program in Brigham Young last season, and a steady improvement in the rest of the league, the WCC feels it no longer needs to protect the two best teams to ensure multiple bids to the big dance. So it's bye bye to the double bye and hello to a standard 10 team tournament format. That means it will take three wins to cut down the nets. The changes won't be implemented until the 2014 Tournament, so enjoy the double bye, or play in game, whichever you prefer, for one more season.
It's also worth noting that the last year of the double bye format is also the last year on the current contract with Orleans Arena. The WCC is currently exploring the option of moving to another venue and will announce if they're staying or going sometime later this summer.
In a league, like the WCC of the recent past, where only one team (Gonzaga) played at a nationally competitive level, it was of the utmost importance for the league to make it as easy as possible for that team to win the automatic bid to the NCAA tournament. If Gonzaga were to get upset in say, a first round game against the 8 seed (the tournament was held on a WCC campus until the 2009 edition when it moved to the Orleans Arena in Las Vegas, so an 8 seed, at home, upsetting the Zags isn't too farfetched.) then their chances of an at large bid to the big dance would take a serious hit, regardless of how well they had played up to that point. Remember when Murray State lost it's first game of the season this past year and people began to wonder if another loss, possibly an early exit in the Ohio Valley Conference tournament, could or should exclude them from the big dance? Well, if the Zags lose early, miss out on an at large berth, and the WCC sends another team dancing, even the second best that year (remember, I'm talking about the WCC circa 2003 when the double bye was implemented and the second best team was pretty far from deserving of being called "best"), the level of interest in the WCC is seriously diminished from where it would be if Gonzaga was dancing.
To help prevent this from happening, the WCC adopted a double-bye for the top two seeds in 2003. This meant that for Gonzaga to win the WCC and get an automatic bid to the big dance, they needed only to win two tournament games. Even a loss, which happened twice, both times to San Diego in San Diego (see my point on upsets above), wouldn't look so bad as it could come no sooner than the tournament semis (Those two losses were in the finals, and the Zags received an at large bid both years so, kudos WCC administrators.)
Then, starting in 2005, Saint Mary's became nationally relevant, and the double bye became not just something that helped Gonzaga, but also helped the Gaels build their program. These two teams have met in six of the past nine WCC Tournament Championship games and including the past four straight. Now, while this helps them build programs, it also helps the league build it's brand. Because of the double-bye, the Gonzaga vs. Saint Mary's rivalry has become very big very fast.
But now, with 10 teams, the addition of another nationally relevant program in Brigham Young last season, and a steady improvement in the rest of the league, the WCC feels it no longer needs to protect the two best teams to ensure multiple bids to the big dance. So it's bye bye to the double bye and hello to a standard 10 team tournament format. That means it will take three wins to cut down the nets. The changes won't be implemented until the 2014 Tournament, so enjoy the double bye, or play in game, whichever you prefer, for one more season.
It's also worth noting that the last year of the double bye format is also the last year on the current contract with Orleans Arena. The WCC is currently exploring the option of moving to another venue and will announce if they're staying or going sometime later this summer.
Wednesday, May 2, 2012
Saint Mary's Basketball Producing NFL Talent?
If someone asked me which former Gael would be getting offers from an NFL team my guess would be the loudmouth tough guy Omar Samhan, but he's playing basketball in the Philippines and not the right answer. The answer is Rob Jones, and it makes some sense when you think about it.
The Minnesota Vikings, who are in desperate need of a tight end, offered Jones the chance to join their rookie mini-camp to compete for a spot at that position. Jones is a 6'6'' 237lbs beast, and he absolutely dominated the WCC with his size and physicality over the past couple seasons. Jones had 20 double-doubles over the course of his senior season, thanks in large part to his ability to out muscle opponents for rebounds.
Jimmy Graham, Antonio Gates, and Tony Gonzalez are three very successful tight ends who played college basketball before making the switch to the gridiron. Graham, like Jones, played only basketball while at college. He then went on to become Drew Brees' favorite target last season, during which Brees set the NFL single season record for passing yards. The athleticism that made Jones so dominant this past season(leaping ability, quickness, strength, catching and maneuvering the ball) are the traits that make him (and those other three players) such a good fit for the tight end position.
The Minnesota Vikings, who are in desperate need of a tight end, offered Jones the chance to join their rookie mini-camp to compete for a spot at that position. Jones is a 6'6'' 237lbs beast, and he absolutely dominated the WCC with his size and physicality over the past couple seasons. Jones had 20 double-doubles over the course of his senior season, thanks in large part to his ability to out muscle opponents for rebounds.
Jimmy Graham, Antonio Gates, and Tony Gonzalez are three very successful tight ends who played college basketball before making the switch to the gridiron. Graham, like Jones, played only basketball while at college. He then went on to become Drew Brees' favorite target last season, during which Brees set the NFL single season record for passing yards. The athleticism that made Jones so dominant this past season(leaping ability, quickness, strength, catching and maneuvering the ball) are the traits that make him (and those other three players) such a good fit for the tight end position.
Quality Over Quantity: Przemek Karnowski is a Zag!
Gonzaga has finally secured a recruit, a very big and big time one, for the 2012 season. Przemek Karnowski is a 7'1'' 250lbs Polish center who just committed to Gonzaga. Karnowski was recruited the hardest by Gonzaga but also received considerable interest from Califorina, which he visited after visiting Gonzaga in mid-April. Marquette, Kansas, and Duke also courted the big man but he spurned their offers and turned down the chance to visit.
Up until Karnowski committed to Gonzaga, the Zags had lost every single recruiting battle they were engaged in for 2012 talent. What's interesting about that is the Zags had lost out to schools that were on Gonzaga's level or had the added help of being in a BCS conference. Anrio Adams, a shooting guard from Seattle, chose Kansas over Gonzaga. Demarquise Johnson, a shooting guard from Phoenix, engaged in a Evergreen State three way but chose Washington State over UW or Gonzaga. Another shooting guard, Tyrone Wallace of Bakersfield, chose to stay in state and play for Cal. Chris Reyes, another product of the Golden State, went to Saint Mary's. Most recently there was Amadeo Della Valle, an Italian shooting guard who chose Ohio State.
Karnowski was recruited exclusively by schools who made the NCAA tournament in 2012. He passed up the Big East's Marquette, the 2010 national champion and all time great program (with Polish speaking Coach K) in Duke, defending national runner up Kansas, and then the scenic California to play his college basketball with Gonzaga. I was worried by this year's recruiting losses until Karnowski committed. Gonzaga is able to recruit with and beat out the big dogs for top prospects, they just can't win most of the battles, yet.
Read more about Karnowski after the jump.
Up until Karnowski committed to Gonzaga, the Zags had lost every single recruiting battle they were engaged in for 2012 talent. What's interesting about that is the Zags had lost out to schools that were on Gonzaga's level or had the added help of being in a BCS conference. Anrio Adams, a shooting guard from Seattle, chose Kansas over Gonzaga. Demarquise Johnson, a shooting guard from Phoenix, engaged in a Evergreen State three way but chose Washington State over UW or Gonzaga. Another shooting guard, Tyrone Wallace of Bakersfield, chose to stay in state and play for Cal. Chris Reyes, another product of the Golden State, went to Saint Mary's. Most recently there was Amadeo Della Valle, an Italian shooting guard who chose Ohio State.
Karnowski was recruited exclusively by schools who made the NCAA tournament in 2012. He passed up the Big East's Marquette, the 2010 national champion and all time great program (with Polish speaking Coach K) in Duke, defending national runner up Kansas, and then the scenic California to play his college basketball with Gonzaga. I was worried by this year's recruiting losses until Karnowski committed. Gonzaga is able to recruit with and beat out the big dogs for top prospects, they just can't win most of the battles, yet.
Read more about Karnowski after the jump.
Sunday, April 29, 2012
Gonzaga Recruiting: 2012 - 0, 2013 - 1
Update: In the 3 days since I have written this Gonzaga has not only added a 2012 recruit, but handed out several offers for the 2013 class and beyond.
I've recently written on the stacked 2012 recruiting classes of the WCC's two up and coming teams, Loyola Marymount and San Francisco. LMU looks to continue their ascent in the conference standings next season with their incoming freshmen while USF is trying to battle a serious case of the transfer bug and maintain their place in the standings with their class. Of the conference's "Big Three" only BYU has a full class at this point, with 5 incoming players. Saint Mary's, as of now, will be adding two new players next season. Gonzaga, the king of the conference, will be losing four players in the offseason, two to graduation and two to transfers. To fill that hole for next season they currently have nothing. No signed letters of intent and no verbal commitments.
A national powerhouse program, like Gonzaga, doesn't recruit simply for the next season's roster. Powerhouses are able to sustain success over the long term. That said, thanks to Gonzaga's recent recruiting classes I am confident the Zags could win the WCC next year without adding a single player to the roster. I hope they don't have to, and am equally confident that is not why the Zags are already looking forward to their 2013 class.
I've recently written on the stacked 2012 recruiting classes of the WCC's two up and coming teams, Loyola Marymount and San Francisco. LMU looks to continue their ascent in the conference standings next season with their incoming freshmen while USF is trying to battle a serious case of the transfer bug and maintain their place in the standings with their class. Of the conference's "Big Three" only BYU has a full class at this point, with 5 incoming players. Saint Mary's, as of now, will be adding two new players next season. Gonzaga, the king of the conference, will be losing four players in the offseason, two to graduation and two to transfers. To fill that hole for next season they currently have nothing. No signed letters of intent and no verbal commitments.
A national powerhouse program, like Gonzaga, doesn't recruit simply for the next season's roster. Powerhouses are able to sustain success over the long term. That said, thanks to Gonzaga's recent recruiting classes I am confident the Zags could win the WCC next year without adding a single player to the roster. I hope they don't have to, and am equally confident that is not why the Zags are already looking forward to their 2013 class.
Saturday, April 21, 2012
Loyola Marymount: From Surprising to Sustaining
Last season LMU was the biggest surprise in the WCC. That's because the year before the Lions finished with 2 wins in league play, and only 11 total. Despite suffering thru more injuries than most teams could imagine dealing with, only one Lion played in all 34 games last season (Anthony Ireland), Loyola Marymount added ten wins to their previous season's total. This incredible turn around against all odds earned Max Good the WCC coach of the year award and his team a post season berth in the CIT.
Next season looks to be even better for the Lions, despite losing four seniors. The most important of those is Drew Viney, the Lions second leading scorer (15.2), rebounder (5.5), and ball stealer (1.2). Joining Viney in the alumni ranks are LaRon Armistead, Tim Diederichs, and Kelsey Chine. Other than Viney, Armistead is the only serious loss for the team, as he averaged 8 points per game.
It's hard to replace a player like Viney, who is a big reason for the turnaround of the LMU program. The Lions aren't in any trouble though. Just like San Francisco, Loyola Marymount has assembled a recruiting class of steals and under the radar players. Unlike San Francisco, Loyola Marymount isn't replacing nine players this off season. What does that mean? I'm willing to wager that if it's not the Zags who win the WCC this year, it will be the Lions (though my money is on Gonzaga).
Last season's injuries brought playing time to the Lions bench, which should prove invaluable in November and December as the departing players are replaced and the freshmen acclimate to the D-1 game.
Next season looks to be even better for the Lions, despite losing four seniors. The most important of those is Drew Viney, the Lions second leading scorer (15.2), rebounder (5.5), and ball stealer (1.2). Joining Viney in the alumni ranks are LaRon Armistead, Tim Diederichs, and Kelsey Chine. Other than Viney, Armistead is the only serious loss for the team, as he averaged 8 points per game.
It's hard to replace a player like Viney, who is a big reason for the turnaround of the LMU program. The Lions aren't in any trouble though. Just like San Francisco, Loyola Marymount has assembled a recruiting class of steals and under the radar players. Unlike San Francisco, Loyola Marymount isn't replacing nine players this off season. What does that mean? I'm willing to wager that if it's not the Zags who win the WCC this year, it will be the Lions (though my money is on Gonzaga).
Last season's injuries brought playing time to the Lions bench, which should prove invaluable in November and December as the departing players are replaced and the freshmen acclimate to the D-1 game.
Monday, April 16, 2012
Kayla Standish and Katelan Redmon Head to the WNBA
The number of Zags in the WNBA has just doubled. Before today Courtney Vandersloot and Vivian Frieson were the only Zags to be drafted. Now that the 2012 WNBA draft has happened, the number of Zags is up to four. Kayla Standish and Katelan Redmon go from former teammates to future adversaries.
Kayla Standish, who was invited to the event, went as the 7th pick in the second round. Her new team, the Minnesota Lynx, is coming off winning the WNBA championship last season. Katelan Redmon heads across the country to play in the big apple for the New York Liberty. While neither of them landed with Vandersloot's Chicago Sky as I was hoping, they will get reunions soon enough. By May 22nd their three teams will have all have played each other. Vandersloot will get to see both Redmon and Standish in preseason games while Redmon and Standish will face off in New York in a regular season game. While they will be reunited very soon, but I won't get to see either of them play in Chicago until July.
This is great news for these players, obviously, but also for the Gonzaga basketball program. Having players drafted in three straight years, on top of selling out home games, making the sweet sixteen on the regular, and almost always being ranked in the top 25... what more does a recruit want?
Best of luck to Katelan Redmon and Kayla Standish in the WNBA. They are already two of the all time great Zags, now they have a chance to earn that honor on their professional teams. I can't wait until the Sky host the Lynx and Liberty. I'll be rocking my Zags gear at the game because it's not often that two former Zags will be playing professional basketball in the same building.
Kayla Standish, who was invited to the event, went as the 7th pick in the second round. Her new team, the Minnesota Lynx, is coming off winning the WNBA championship last season. Katelan Redmon heads across the country to play in the big apple for the New York Liberty. While neither of them landed with Vandersloot's Chicago Sky as I was hoping, they will get reunions soon enough. By May 22nd their three teams will have all have played each other. Vandersloot will get to see both Redmon and Standish in preseason games while Redmon and Standish will face off in New York in a regular season game. While they will be reunited very soon, but I won't get to see either of them play in Chicago until July.
This is great news for these players, obviously, but also for the Gonzaga basketball program. Having players drafted in three straight years, on top of selling out home games, making the sweet sixteen on the regular, and almost always being ranked in the top 25... what more does a recruit want?
Best of luck to Katelan Redmon and Kayla Standish in the WNBA. They are already two of the all time great Zags, now they have a chance to earn that honor on their professional teams. I can't wait until the Sky host the Lynx and Liberty. I'll be rocking my Zags gear at the game because it's not often that two former Zags will be playing professional basketball in the same building.
Saturday, April 14, 2012
Surging San Francisco Transfers out of the Fast Lane, Part 2
This is the second part of a two part series on San Francisco's already tumultuous yet promising off-season. If you haven't read part one yet please do so and then come back for part two.
As I explained in part one, San Francisco is having a personnel problem. They've lost the bulk of their roster in terms of stats, minutes, and simply, players. They haven't lost them all, and that is important, at the very least as a starting point to build on for next season.
Most important among those returning players is starting point guard Cody Doolin, who will be a junior next season. Doolin has started for both of his seasons as a Don making him by far the most experienced player on the roster. Comparing his stats from his Freshman and Sophomore years you can see they remained mostly stagnant except for the noticeable jump in scoring. Doolin attempted and made more field goals this past season than his first, leaving him at 9.3ppg compared to 7.7.
Doolin is a streaky player. Three times last season he shot 0% from the field and 11 times below 30%. The flip side of that is that when he's hot, he's very good. It's not just that he can have very solid games that's important for the Dons, it's when he has those games. From the Dons' 1 point loss to BYU on February 16th, the third to last regular season game, until the end of the season Doolin was straight up ballin. In the WCC quarterfinals against Loyola Marymount he poured in 16 points and pulled down 7 rebounds along with dishing out 4 assists. Then in the semifinal against #21 Saint Mary's Doolin played out of his mind. In 39 minutes he scored a career high 28 points on 10 of 16 shooting and 4 of 7 from long range. He also managed to dish out 5 assists and pull down 5 boards, all while committing only 1 turnover in the high stakes game.
Most important among those returning players is starting point guard Cody Doolin, who will be a junior next season. Doolin has started for both of his seasons as a Don making him by far the most experienced player on the roster. Comparing his stats from his Freshman and Sophomore years you can see they remained mostly stagnant except for the noticeable jump in scoring. Doolin attempted and made more field goals this past season than his first, leaving him at 9.3ppg compared to 7.7.
Doolin is a streaky player. Three times last season he shot 0% from the field and 11 times below 30%. The flip side of that is that when he's hot, he's very good. It's not just that he can have very solid games that's important for the Dons, it's when he has those games. From the Dons' 1 point loss to BYU on February 16th, the third to last regular season game, until the end of the season Doolin was straight up ballin. In the WCC quarterfinals against Loyola Marymount he poured in 16 points and pulled down 7 rebounds along with dishing out 4 assists. Then in the semifinal against #21 Saint Mary's Doolin played out of his mind. In 39 minutes he scored a career high 28 points on 10 of 16 shooting and 4 of 7 from long range. He also managed to dish out 5 assists and pull down 5 boards, all while committing only 1 turnover in the high stakes game.
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