SluSignGuy

I think there is a difference between recruiting talent and roster construction. TF has recruited talent but not assembled a great roster. Way too many similiar players and skill sets (athletic tweeners with somewhat limited ballhandling and perimter shooting skills and basketball IQ) . I personally would like to see more size and a higher overall bball IQ.
 
Also, none of us know, but Dr. C's opinion of TF is probably very important.

Oh God it’s Davidson in purple. 

The NIT selection show is supposed to be streaming on ESPN+ as well at 8 central.

My bad. Looked the lady Taj Mahal 79 was hitting on. Gotta watch that guy. 

Coach Ford appreciated the crowd.  9,125 in attendance.  Coach had a lot of ticket requests "off the chart".  That is his indicator of how large the crowd will be.  Played 35 minutes really well, 5 to 7 minutes weren't very good.  Guys in foul trouble and Linssen getting foul trouble didn't help.  When the student section is overflowing there is 'heat in the building'.
Courtney's three - it was an omen for the game.  Crowd was paying attention and knew the situation, giving him a standing O. 
TJ's jam - VCU presses 94 feet.  You have to make quick decisions if you are patient.  Patience was what lead to TJ's jam.  VCU tries to speed you up to make quick, bad shots.  That is the same as a turnover.  Need to make good decisions while playing aggressive (up tempo).  Quality of shot is the key. 
Jimerson's 3 from Linssen assist.  Team was moving the ball quickly.  We did a good job of finding the open shooters.  Get two guys to play you and then find the open guy. Jimerson was in the groove in the first half.  Collins was putting the ball right into his shooting pattern, allowing Jimerson to go straight into the shot rather than cocking the shot.  He is doing better in getting his shot in the flow of the offense.   Jimerson can take a more difficult shot than others on the team.  
Extended the lead in the second half, with Okoro keeping the Bills run going.  Rams made a run to come back.  They play in spurts.  We needed to keep scoring and we went into a drought.  We were shooting bad shots allowing VCU back into the game.  For about 5 minutes we fed into their defensive pressure.
Collins shot - he had the guts to take it inside.  Then an unbelievable defensive stop by Thatch on Williams.  Thatch forced him into a very tough shot.   
League's unbalance schedule makes the upcoming tourney up for grabs, as some of the top teams have only played each other once.  Not a whole lot separating the top tier.
Senior Day - two emotional moments.  Courtney mentioning Ford Stuen was special.  Jones didn't have family members present, so the entire Team Blue stepped up for him.  That was special because he had only been here 7 to 8 months. 
Players got off yesterday and today.  Team needs to recharge their batteries.  Team will prepare tomorrow here and Wednesday in DC - at Georgetown.  We have to play better than we have played yet this year to win 4 games.  No idea who to pick in the StJoe / LaSalle game.  Staff will be at the game with both teams scouted.  Whoever had StJ earlier will get them again.  This will be unique is that the coach will be in the stands which they usually aren't.  "But we know everything they do and they both know us."  They might throw something new out there they have been saving, like a new inbound play.  The Wed practice will be after this game is over.  For the Bills the Fred Thatch force is 'new' for the Bills.  Ford suggests he should be Most Improved Player in A10.  Thatch never made excuses when he was ill and when he wasn't starting. 
Talked about the Tourney in Atlantic City.  Rammer liked the big ole barn in Atlantic City, Ford didn't.  Ford likes playing in NBA arenas.  Both liked the previous tourney in DC.  Hotels were right near the Arena before-you could walk, but aren't this year.  They will have to bus into the arena.
Ford has been asked a lot about the league, and is it being disrespected?  'The league didn't really do a lot in OOC.  A few good wins, but not enough.  Right now A10 has teams playing high level. 
All A10 Teams.  No question Collins is first team. "Should be Player of the Year".  Staff voted this morning on the various teams, 1st, 2nd, 3rd, Defense.  Staff used a white board and had more names than slots on the teams.  This is probably the most quality Ford has seen in the A10.  Jimerson should be All Conference since every team focuses on stopping him.  Fred has to be First Team All D.  Osunniyi likely Defensive Player of the Year.  Gilyard was only 2nd in the A10 in steals behind Baldwin in conference games.  Collins should be All D.  You cannot vote for your own players.  "The entire Dayton team could be Freshman of the Year". 
Came back to talk about Linssen on Senior Day.  Family hadn't seen him since his freshman year at Valpo. Parents flew into DC, rented a car and drove here, and now are driving back to DC for the Tourney. He had a heck of a game.  Had to get stitches in a crucial part of the game.  Coach wanted him in the lineup but he was getting stitched up.  Entire family is tall.
How did we recover from losing Perkins, what changes were made.  Season was 'there' and we didn't have much time to react.  Staff met the next day.  Goals didn't change.  Had to change course, losing 20-22 points per game.  Expected Jimerson and Collins to pick some of that up.  Focus on getting to the Line more.  Needed not to be sorry but how do you bring more.  Early tourney was a legit win against SFA. Played horrific at Memphis, but we learned a lot.  Iona was a special win.  Stumbling at UMass was tough.  We weren't locked in.
We have to put 40 min together, back to back.

Not much to complain about.😁

I thought we traded him to St. Mary’s for Collins? 

This is great news, but I didn’t think the team had a scholarship available at this time.
 

Flowers was named A10 DPOY and to third team all conference.
Ciaja was named 2nd team all conference.
This video made my day.
 

Trying to put myself in the shoes of an outsider popping in here to see our conversation and it's an argument that refs are biased against us because of our geographic location relative to our conference. It's not a great look. What would you guys think if you saw that on Tigerboard? They can make the same case based on location.
Majerus didn't like the A10 because of the travel burden. I'm not sure we've ever had a coach who worked the refs less than he did, either. I don't agree with Rammer's connection there (just like I don't agree with SLU needing to be in a Midwestern bus league).
College refs are independent contractors. They aren't league employees. They set their own schedules and become favored by leagues over time as they gain experience with one another. Power conferences pay more and are generally getting better officiating for that reason. Once a ref starts working some of a given conference's games and doing a good job, he/she gets asked to do more games for them. There are almost 360 D-I teams so it's possible that there would be 150+ games on a single day, meaning there are at least 500 or so refs active at any given time and the number is probably closer to 1,000 because not all refs work as much as others, most have other jobs, families, etc.
Point being that it's pretty much a structural impossibility to organize a conspiracy against a given program in officiating.
The simpler, more boring, and real answer is that given how many refs there are, a lot of them just aren't very good. They're human beings who can be influenced by a multitude of external factors during a game. They arrive a little over an hour before a game and they're out as soon as humanly possible after a game, often coming from or heading straight to airports. They have their own locker room and talk at halftime, leading to overcorrections in the second half. It's a mercenary job without a lot of accountability because of the independent nature of their work. I think officiating can and should be better for a lot of reasons, some of which have to do with the NCAA's basketball rulebook.
Instead of tying red strings to pushpins on a corkboard wall, we should be looking at how SLU plays, given the reality of NCAA officiating. The FT rate change from non-con to conference play is interesting. Why do our guys get called for so many charges, knowing how these refs love to call charges? Why aren't they getting more calls in general? Watching Bona's players sell calls the past couple games, it seems like something our guys don't do.
tl;dr We sound crazy, there's no conspiracy, most refs aren't very good, and SLU needs to focus on the things that can be controlled - i.e. how we play within the game as it exists.

2018-19: UA uniform & ball
2019-20: UA uniform & ball
2020-21: UA uniform & Wilson ball
2021-22: Adidas uniform & Wilson ball

And also another small sign of SLU doing both the big (new student-athlete excellence center) and little (opponent optimized practice balls) things to compete in the A10 and fit the P6 mold. Minor, but I think those things add up. I'm sure GJ, TJ, JNez, Yuri, etc... appreciate it.

The San Diego chicken and his family courtside.

Yes, it feels like too much. JMHO.

Brighton’s a troll.  One line statements always negative.  Know him for what he is.

i think yuri needs to concentrate on just being the superb point guard that has great floor vision and doesnt make mistakes. 
collins is not "the man" and imo it seems he has decided to take on that role.   not sure if we have "a man" right now.  Jimmmerson appears to be the closest thing to that but i still believe by season's end it will be nesbit who definitely has shown he wants to be and has shown his is a special athlete.  just needs to get a better handle on what he can and cannot do.   doing too much can hurt as collins is proving.   
that all said above, yuri in the last minute of the game was "the man".   the first 44 minutes last night he was not good.  Jones was better when he subbed in for yuri after the early fouls.   but i am not of the belief we get away with that again.  most likely boise wasnt prepared for jones to be effective.   

For those of you with Samsung smart TVs with Samsung TV Plus, you're good to go.
Navigate to Samsung TV Plus, then tune to Channel 1159 - Stadium. All set at 9pm ET / 8pm CT from ExtraMile Arena in Boise, ID.

It's OK if you are killing the clock.  Not OK as a staple of the offense

There aren't many NBA fans on the site so I figured I'd write something up about the Wizards and Goodwin's chances of making the NBA
Goodwin signed an exhibit 10 contract with the Washington Wizards.  
What is an Exhibit 10 Contract?  An Exhibit 10 contract is a one year non guaranteed minimum contract which gives an NBA team 2 options.  They can turn the contract into a 2 way contract, or they can release the player but designate him an affiliate player for their G league team.  The player would be then awarded a bonus up to 50k if he stays with the G League affiliate for 60 days.  So an Exhibit 10 contract allows teams to build their G League teams and entice players to stay in the G league with bonus money instead of going overseas for a higher salary.  Salary in the G League is about 26k, so a 50k bonus is pretty lucrative to a player who doesn’t want to go overseas.
What is a 2 Way Contract? Teams can have 2 players on their roster signed to 2 way contracts, and are granted extra roster spots for them, so a team can have 17 roster positions instead of 15.  Player on 2 way contracts receive 75k per year while on the G League roster and can spend up to 45 days a season with an NBA team.  While with the NBA team the player is paid the NBA minimum salary by the day, so if the player spends the max amount with an NBA team they can make around 200k per year.  While not an ideal situation for all athletes this is the next step for players on an Exhibit 10 Contract.
Wizards Roster Composition
PG Aaron Holiday
SG Brad Beal 
SF Kyle Kuzma 
PF Rui Hachimura
C Thomas Bryant
Bench
SG/SF Kentavius Caldwell Pope
SF Davis Bertans
C Montrezl Harrell
SF Deni Avidja
SG/SF Corey Kispert
SF Chandler Hutchison
PF/C Daniel Gafford
PF Anthony Gill
SG Caleb Homesly 
PF Isaiah Todd
Free Agents
Robin Lopez, C UFA
Ish Smith, PG: UFA
Raul Neto, PG: UFA
Alex Len, C UFA
Isaac Bonga, SF: RFA
Cassius Winston, PG: RFA 2 Way Player
Garrison Mathews, SG: RFA 2 Way Player
Roster Outlook
The Wizards roster is very much in flux.  Their plans obviously center around Beal.  Question remains if he will he stay with the team.  So they are trying to gain more payroll flexibility, while acquiring more tradable assets, and preparing to possibly acquire another star piece to pair with Beal or dismantle the whole team if Beal chooses to leave.  There are many trade scenarios out right now involving the Wizards, acquiring among others Pascal Siakam, Spencer Dinwiddie, or even Damian Lillard.
They have plenty of options to trade, Harrell, Pope, Bryant & Hutchison are all on expiring deals.  They have a logjam of similar players at the wing and the 4.  Bertans has a large contract and will be expendable with Avidija & now Kispert at the wings.  Kuzma could also be a trade piece as the Wizards will be hard pressed to play both he and Hachimura at the same time, even in a small ball lineup.  Hutchison’s role on the roster seems in doubt since they have drafted players at his positions in the first round the last 2 seasons.
Of their UFAs only Raul Neto & Alex Len really played well for them last year. They are somewhat thin at C so resigning Len at a minimum price might be a good idea but he has probably played his way into a multi year deal.  Neto has a ceiling as a backup PG and the Wizards have a need for depth there as well but really need a starting PG.  THeir restricted FAs only Garrison Matthews is possibility for a resign.  He’s a sharpshooting wing who the Wizards have developed as an undrafted FA the past two seasons.  Winston and Bonga were underwhelming last season and will most likely be let go.  Their other 2 way player, Caleb Homsely never made it to Wizards last year and faces a logjam of players at his position on the roster.
The Wizards glaring deficiencies are rebounding and defense.  Their roster is now filled with wings & small ball 4s and 5s.  Of their new additions I would only expect Pope to stay, because he is now their strongest perimeter defender by far.  The other will be moved to acquire a starting PG, and a rebounder who can space the floor.  So Holiday, Beal, Hachimura, Bryant, Pope, Avidja, Kispert and Gafford are now the core of the team with the remaining roster being expendable or deep bench players.
Goodwin’s Fit
While I have doubted Goodwin’s ability to make an NBA roster, his agent has made all the right moves thus far and put him in about the best position he could be in signing with the Wizards.
The Wizards have no PG depth, so Goodwin will get plenty of reps as a ballhandler in Summer League and training camp.  While the Wizards have tons of wings, they all play the same.  Good to great 3 point shooters who play little defense and can be secondary ballhandlers.  As a wing Goodwin fills an entirely different role as a defender and rebounder who never needs the ball in his hands.  Finally Goodwin’s two best assets, rebounding and defense, are what the Wizards sorely lack.  Even their bigs can’t rebound well.  Hachimura is more of a combo forward, Bryant is soft on the boards and Gafford is more of an athletic shot blocking big who gets outmuscled at the rim.  
Goodwin has a couple other huge things going for him.  Wizards GM Tommy Sheppard has shown he gives opportunities to undrafted FAs and will readily shake up his roster during the season so even if Goodwin doesn’t make the team out of training camp he may get a shot down the road.  Also it doesn’t look like any of the 2 way players will be returning so Goodwin, Isaiah Todd, Jay Huff will be competing for those spots against no returners.  You can’t discount the relationship he has with the Wizards star Brad Beal either.  New Head coach Wes Unseld Jr not only has already professed to being a defense first coach but also has a SLU connection, he is Earl Austin Jr’s cousin.
It looks like Goodwin is all in on his NBA dream and won’t consider overseas for awhile.  I predict he earns a 2 way contract with the Wizards and will make his NBA debut sometime this season on a rebuilding Wizard’s squad.  

Former Billikens Pro Updates
Dwayne Evans - Ryukyu Golden Kings - Japan B1 League
Japanese basketball was able to use the pandemic to upgrade the talent in their league.  Japan can now rival most European leagues in talent.  Evans continued his ascendance as a top world pro.  He led the Kings to the top record in the Western division, as they ended their regular season 40-17 and are now starting the playoffs.  Evans led the Kings in scoring with 18 ppg and was 2nd in rebounds with over 8 per game.  League wide he finished in the top 20 in both categories.  The B1 league has many former NBA vets like Nick Fazekas, James McAdoo & Jordan Hamilton, along with multiple high level euro vets like Rayvonte Rice, Leo Lyons, Deshaun Thomas.  Evans recorded season highs of 37 points and 15 rebounds in single games this year.
Reggie Agbeko - Agricola Villarrobledo CBV - LEB Silver
Reggie continued his 2nd season in the lower minor league in Spain.  He played last season for Albacete, this year played in the same province but for Villarrobledo.  Villarrobledo is located about 120 miles SE of Madrid.  They played a 26 game season with multiple stops and starts.  Villarrobledo finished 9th in a 14 team division with a record of 12-14.  Agbeko averaged 8 points and 6.6 rebounds in 21 games.  He led the team in rebounding and FG% at 65%.
Javon Bess - N/A
After appearing in 35 games for the Erie BayHawks in 19-20 Bess has not been on any pro rosters.  He did make an appearance in the TBT playing for Big X which played in 2 games in the tournament last year.  No word on whether he is slated to appear again this season.  
Jermaine Bishop - Phoenix Hagen - Germany ProA
After leaving Norfolk St, Bishop signed with Phoenix Hagen.  Hagen is a former Bundesliga squad that was relegated back down to ProA a few years back.  Hagen is located in Central West Germany.  The Phoenix finished their season in April, finishing 9-17 and 11th out of 14 teams.  Bishop was a consistent starter averaging 11 points, 3.5 assists, 3 rebounds, shooting 40% from the field and 36% from 3.
Brian Conklin - JSF Nanterre - France-Jeep Elite ProA
Conklin is playing in his 4th season in the French ProA league and his 2nd season for Nanterre.  Nanterre finished 6-10 in their Eurocup pool, failing to advance.  Currently they are sitting in 11th lace at 10-13 on the season in ProA play, 2.5 games out of a playoff spot with 6 games left to play in the season.  Conklin has had possibly his worst pro season.  He has been spot starting only and playing the fewest minutes of his career. He has averages of 10 points, 4 rebounds while shooting 52% from the field.
Cody Ellis - Warwick Senators - Australian State League
Ellis is back on the hardwood after the Australian State League resumed play after taking a year off.  The ASL season is only a couple weeks old and Warwick sits 3-0 atop the Western division.  Ellis has averages of 17 points, 6 boards, 3 assists, and 2 steals while shooting 23% from 3 and 65% overall.
Adonys Henriquez - Ibereolica Renovables Ourense - Spain LEB Gold
Henriquez made the move to a higher league this year after playing in Argentina his first two pro seasons.  He plays in the 2nd tier of La Liga in Spain, one rung higher than Agbeko does.  Some of the foreign leagues with all the stops and starts this year are trying different formats.  It appears Ourense is 10-14 overall and competing in a relegated section of their league.  Henriquez is their leading scorer at over 11 points a game with 3 boards, 1 assist and 1 steal a game.
Tramaine Isabell - KK Dubrava Furnir Zagreb - Croatian Premier League
Isabell was well traveled this year but put up good numbers at every stop.  He started off in Macedonia but left there after 4 games.  He next signed with a team in the Kosovo league which lasted 5 games.  He finally caught on with Furnir in Zagreb, Croatia.  Zagreb is the capital of Croatia and they have several pro teams in each district in the city.  Furnir had a record of 7-26 and finished 11th in a 12 team league.  They are currently participating in a relegation playoff to remain in the Premier league.  Isabell joined the team for the final 20 games of the regular season.  He averaged 18 points, and 6 assists, both good for 3rd overall in the league.
Rob Loe - New Zealand Breakers - Australian Basketball League
Rob played in Japan’s B league for a portion of the pandemic.  He then came back to the Breakers when the season started.  The Breakers were playing out of Tasmania to begin the season.  Loe nad his wife had their first child in December and the travel constraints caused Loe to leave the team and return to New Zealand.  Loe rejoined the Breakers last month.  The Breakers are 9-20 with 7 games remaining in the regular season and are out of playoff contention.  Loe has been getting back in playing shape since his long layoff and has been coming off the bench to average 6 points, 4 boards, while shooting 35% and 56% from the field.
Mike McCall - Cheshire Phoenix - British Basketball League
McCall started the year in Luxembourg but only lasted there for 4 games before returning for his 2nd stint in the BBL.  Mike was a starter for 22 of 33 games while averaging 13 points and 4 assists.  Cheshire lost in the first round of the BBL playoffs, getting swept 2-0 by the London Lions.
Kwamain Mitchell - KK Mladost Admiral Zemun - Serbian KLS
Kwamain continues his success abroad this time in Serbia.  His team, Mladost, finished regular season champions with a 28-2 record and will compete in the playoffs at the end of this month.  Mitchell is one of the top all around performers in the league averaging 14 points, 6 assists, 2 rebounds and 2 steals while shooting 40% from 3 and 62% overall from the field,
Zeke Moore - N/A
Zeke managed to play a half season with Pardinyes in the Spanish LEB Silver league before leaving the team in late January.  He played in the same league that Agbeko does and did square off against him one time during the season.  In 14 games Moore averaged 16 points and 4 rebounds while shooting 40% from the field and 30% from 3.  Moore has not signed wit any other teams.
Matt Neufeld - Etoile De Sohel - Tunisia ProA
First time seeing Neufeld as a pro.  Know nothing about this Tunisian league.  There are no stats available but they list Neufeld in the starting lineup.  His team is in last place in the standings at 0-10.
Willie Reed - KK Buducnost - ABA
Willie has stuck with an international team for a full season for the first time.  Buducnost plays in 3 leagues, a Montenegro league which Reed doesn’t play in, the Eurocup which they have advanced past pool play in, and the ABA which is a collection of the best leagues in the Baltic states.  Buducnost is well funded and is known as a top franchise in the Balkans.  Reed is currently playing in the ABA finals.  His team lost the first game of a best of 3 but Reed performed well with a 26/10 game going 11-15 from the field.  For the season Reed is carrying averages of 13 and 6 across the board but he appears to be playing much better lately.
Davell Roby - N/A
Roby started his 2nd season with BRNO in the Czech Republic but only stayed for 4 games.  He is not currently on a pro roster.
Ian Vougioukas - Panathinaikos - Greek A1 League, Euroleague
Ian is playing in his 13th pro season, rarefied air for anyone.  He’s only appeared in 11 games for Panathinaikos this year, averaging 3 points & 2 boards.  Panathinaikos is leading the A1 league with a 20-2 record but struggling in Euroleague play at just 11-23.
 

Travis did an interview with Frank about Ford. It is fantastic, and a good look into just how close they were. 
 

i think we should wait and see what the arrangements are and if the family sets up some sort of program/benefit we can react accordingly.   we should respect the family wishes.  

The clock stops because NCAA deals with schools that may not be able to afford a 4th official to track stoppage time. So they stop the clock at all levels.

The family asked for privacy 

Yeah.  I'm wishing everyone a Happy Friday and hoping we can get back to Recruiting 2021 chat.  I have no news though 😄