Who do you expect to make the biggest improvement before next year?

[NH]

Im not including incoming freshman (or Jeff Reid).

If these guys develop like the current sophomores, I think we will be a force next year.

[dneuner]

I didn't vote because my opinion is skewed towards who should, and that would be Cody, Christian, and Brian. We need these three to develop, especially Brian, into almost their full potential.

It was a lot of fun watching the development this year, and next year will probably be the same.

[GOSLU68]

I didn't vote because my opinion is skewed towards who should, and that would be Cody, Christian, and Brian. We need these three to develop, especially Brian, into almost their full potential.

It was a lot of fun watching the development this year, and next year will probably be the same.

second question could be asked who has most upside: Nate has been saying Conklin has been playing hurt (ankle from before SEMO game) I expect him to get some hops back and be our rebounder) his shot has been terrible because he is so predictable and the other team can't wait

for the chance to block him. Health and the coaches should be able to fix that-the kid is the heart of the team

others: WR, Cody, KC, CS, CR, JS should all be very improved

I see less improvement for KM and JJ and hope I am wrong; I was surprised JJ made the progress he did this year. KM needs support from another guard who can pass, shoot, and mostly dribble.

I think CR and JS both could be like Braun, Larry Simmons, Sekue Barentine, .

Unless they get hungrier and more playing time in other words unrealized potential-athletic and fundamentally sound but the downside is there if they want to be practice players for 4 years

Bigger question in case we have a 2 step forward one year back deal; are everyone's grades going to be okay?

I don't see Femi playing again and I don't see PE getting many minutes if his speed is gone. These sound like career limiting injuries

[slu72]

Bigger question in case we have a 2 step forward one year back deal; are everyone's grades going to be okay?

I don't see Femi playing again and I don't see PE getting many minutes if his speed is gone. These sound like career limiting injuries

Are you just speculating about grades being an issue, or do you know something/someone's in trouble. RM seems to indicate academics is not a problem w/ this team. In fact, he goes out of his way to say how proud he is of WR for making all his tutoring sessions.

[slu72]

I didn't vote because my opinion is skewed towards who should, and that would be Cody, Christian, and Brian. We need these three to develop, especially Brian, into almost their full potential.

It was a lot of fun watching the development this year, and next year will probably be the same.

Everyone has to improve their games over this summer. The A-10 ain't gonna be no cakewalk next year as most of the teams top to bottom are relatively young.

[GoBills]

second question could be asked who has most upside: Nate has been saying Conklin has been playing hurt (ankle from before SEMO game) I expect him to get some hops back and be our rebounder) his shot has been terrible because he is so predictable and the other team can't wait

for the chance to block him. Health and the coaches should be able to fix that-the kid is the heart of the team

others: WR, Cody, KC, CS, CR, JS should all be very improved

I see less improvement for KM and JJ and hope I am wrong; I was surprised JJ made the progress he did this year. KM needs support from another guard who can pass, shoot, and mostly dribble.

I think CR and JS both could be like Braun, Larry Simmons, Sekue Barentine, .

Unless they get hungrier and more playing time in other words unrealized potential-athletic and fundamentally sound but the downside is there if they want to be practice players for 4 years

Bigger question in case we have a 2 step forward one year back deal; are everyone's grades going to be okay?

I don't see Femi playing again and I don't see PE getting many minutes if his speed is gone. These sound like career limiting injuries

I don't understand your comparison between Smith and Remekun to the likes of Simmons and Barentine. The two we have now are a lot better than those two from the past. Smith and Remekun play very hard in there. They just need to get stronger and more polish to their games.

[NH]

In terms of upside, I don't see how you can say Conklin has a high upside. He is not very athletic, he is not a good shooter, and he does not have any guard skills. What gives him a high upside, the fact that he is hurt? Jon Smith's upside is tremendous, he could be an all-league player by his Junior year if he works hard.

Cory had a great season and I expect him to make big leaps. Remember that he is about two years younger than Cody and they are in the same class. Cory should fill out before next year and he has shown good instincts as well as a nice shooting touch.

Willie could make the most improvement. I expect him to be our best player next year honestly. Willie will work hard on his free throws over the summer. Hopefully add another 20 lbs like he did last summer. And work on his post-moves.

I see less of an improvement from a guy like Christian because he was so seasoned already. He needs to become a dead-eye shooter as well as a go-to defender.

Cody needs to make tremendous strides in the weight room. His offense is great, but he hurts us with his defense and lack of rebounding. He will also need to work on his athleticism a lot. I expect big things from Cody next year.

JJ will need to work on some of the mental-aspects. He also needs to make himself into a PG. If he can take care of the ball and make open threes, that is a big asset.

I think we will see a much improved KM next year. He will be a much better defender and passer, but not as much of a scorer. His leaderhsip will also be key.

Kyle needs to get stronger. He will work on his defense (which made huge strides this year) as well as his shooting. I expect a great season from Kyle.

And lastly, I think we need a healthy Femi. We need a player who can not only lock their man down on 'd', but also attack the rim. If Femi returns to full strength, I think he may start next year. People make excuses for Conklin because he was playing hurt, but wasn't Femi in the same situation.

[cheesycow]

I voted for KC. I think he has the most room to grow. While CE does have a lot of room for improvement, he's already quite good. I think KC can really become a game changer with a little more strength and confidence.

[moytoy12]

I think JS has the most room to grow. He has all the athleticism in the world; i hope he can polish his basketball skills. If he does, he will be a freak.

He had a nice looking baseline jumper yesterday. Didn't know he had that in his arsenal.

[slufanskip]

I went with Jon Smith. I hope he shoots 1,000 shots a day. He doesn't even need to extend his range to the 3 point line, just be able to hit the 12-15 foot jump shot consistently. Remember Luke making easy buckets off the pick and roll his Sr year. I can just see Jon filling that same role, and either hitting the short jumper or going to the rim with authority. I also see him developing into a guy that can get a couple of easy putbacks per game due to offensive boards.

[Quality Is Job 1]

I don't see Femi playing again and I don't see PE getting many minutes if his speed is gone. These sound like career limiting injuries

You're mistaken on Femi John's injury. What I've been reading here is that it's not a career-limiting injury.

[b.hayes]

Cory. Mark it down.

[moytoy12]

Cory. Mark it down.

I was about even between Cory and Jon. I think Cory might be the most important guy to the team if we do not have any further recruits coming in. He can develop into the banger we need with a nice little jumper to boot.

[WVBilliken]

Femi John has had two injuries this past year. I have never reallly seen him play except for a few times on TV. So mostly from what I have heard, he is a very athletic 2 or 3. The problem I see is size. Can a guy 6'2" that apparently is not a particularly good shooter really be a key contributor on a team with as many players that SLU will have next year? Again, I have not seen the kid but who's miniutes does he take? I just don't see him getting many minutes. On next year's team someone tell me why he will be anything but the 11th, 12th or even 13th player off the bench.

[NH]

Femi John has had two injuries this past year. I have never reallly seen him play except for a few times on TV. So mostly from what I have heard, he is a very athletic 2 or 3. The problem I see is size. Can a guy 6'2" that apparently is not a particularly good shooter really be a key contributor on a team with as many players that SLU will have next year? Again, I have not seen the kid but who's miniutes does he take? I just don't see him getting many minutes. On next year's team someone tell me why he will be anything but the 11th, 12th or even 13th player off the bench.

He is more about Christian or Kyle's height. Femi is at least 6'3". Also he is a lock-down defender when healthy as well as a good rebounder. Lastly, he can drive to the basket which we are lacking on this year's team.

[SLUDrew]

He is more about Christian or Kyle's height. Femi is at least 6'3". Also he is a lock-down defender when healthy as well as a good rebounder. Lastly, he can drive to the basket which we are lacking on this year's team.

Femi is also a very well put together kid. We could have definitely used him yesterday as CS was consistently getting man-handled by the much bigger URI guards.

[JohnnyJumpUp]

The whole team needs to hit the weight room in the off season, especially Reed, Smith, Remekun and Ellis.

Jordan needs to either have his skills catch up to his quickness or slow down a little on the offensive side. He is the fastest guy on the team but at least a couple times a game he is just too out of control.

It would be nice if Conklin could develop a mid range shot, but that may be unrealistic to hope for that.

As for the best upside, I would say Cassity. I never really liked him too much last year or early on this season, he was too hesitant to shoot and made a lot of mistakes. That being said, he ended the season a different player than he started the season. Majerus stuck with him and I couldn't figure it out early on but as the season went, I began to see what type of player he could be. He became a more confident shooter, a better passer and he took the ball to the basket more and more.

With the team being young and getting so much experience early in their college careers, I am excited to see these guys play and continue to grow for the next couple years.

[JohnnyJumpUp]

I was about even between Cory and Jon. I think Cory might be the most important guy to the team if we do not have any further recruits coming in. He can develop into the banger we need with a nice little jumper to boot.

Cory definetly needs to work on becoming quicker with his jumper. He sometimes looks like he is in slow motion when taking a shot. If he and Smith can put on some muscle and develop those mid range jumpers they could be seeing a lot more playing time next season.

[b.hayes]

he was too hesitant to shoot and made a lot of mistakes.

You are 50% right there. He was too hesitant to shoot his first year and a half. However, since he stepped on the court he has been one of our most sound players, fundamentally. He plays good defense, doesn't avoid contact, our best rebounding guard, and was our #1 option for pressure ballhandling. I'm sure if you looked at his assists to turnovers you'd also note the lack of consistent mistakes.

[SLUDrew]

I would say that Jon Smith is the most raw from a basketball perspective, but also the best "athlete" on the team, so from that standpoint I would have to say he has the most room for improvement. On the other hand, I could see Willie making huge strides next year towards becoming an NBA level talent.

This sure beats debating over whether or not Dustin Maguire would ever be able to get his shot off at the D1 level.

[GOSLU68]

Are you just speculating about grades being an issue, or do you know something/someone's in trouble. RM seems to indicate academics is not a problem w/ this team. In fact, he goes out of his way to say how proud he is of WR for making all his tutoring sessions.

I don't know anything about their grades; it was a question with a question mark at the end

[GOSLU68]

In terms of upside, I don't see how you can say Conklin has a high upside. He is not very athletic, he is not a good shooter, and he does not have any guard skills. What gives him a high upside, the fact that he is hurt? Jon Smith's upside is tremendous, he could be an all-league player by his Junior year if he works hard.

Cory had a great season and I expect him to make big leaps. Remember that he is about two years younger than Cody and they are in the same class. Cory should fill out before next year and he has shown good instincts as well as a nice shooting touch.

Willie could make the most improvement. I expect him to be our best player next year honestly. Willie will work hard on his free throws over the summer. Hopefully add another 20 lbs like he did last summer. And work on his post-moves.

I see less of an improvement from a guy like Christian because he was so seasoned already. He needs to become a dead-eye shooter as well as a go-to defender.

Cody needs to make tremendous strides in the weight room. His offense is great, but he hurts us with his defense and lack of rebounding. He will also need to work on his athleticism a lot. I expect big things from Cody next year.

JJ will need to work on some of the mental-aspects. He also needs to make himself into a PG. If he can take care of the ball and make open threes, that is a big asset.

I think we will see a much improved KM next year. He will be a much better defender and passer, but not as much of a scorer. His leaderhsip will also be key.

Kyle needs to get stronger. He will work on his defense (which made huge strides this year) as well as his shooting. I expect a great season from Kyle.

And lastly, I think we need a healthy Femi. We need a player who can not only lock their man down on 'd', but also attack the rim. If Femi returns to full strength, I think he may start next year. People make excuses for Conklin because he was playing hurt, but wasn't Femi in the same situation.

Conklin had a better freshman year than this year because he played hurt those high ankle sprains limit you for a long time. If RM let him off windsprints and had him do push ups instead this was a coninuous problem.

I like Femi John because like BC he is a tough defender and will rebound and we missed him; but when a guy gets operated on and comes back and then you see he can't make cuts and eventually doesn't even dress it seems to me

that he should have redshirted unless this was his final year. I like him and hope he recovers, fully. I think having him back the way he was freshman year is better for us than PE coming back

[JohnnyJumpUp]

You are 50% right there. He was too hesitant to shoot his first year and a half. However, since he stepped on the court he has been one of our most sound players, fundamentally. He plays good defense, doesn't avoid contact, our best rebounding guard, and was our #1 option for pressure ballhandling. I'm sure if you looked at his assists to turnovers you'd also note the lack of consistent mistakes.

He definetly improved his assist to turnover ratio in the second half. Before January 1, he was nearly 1:1, after he was nearly 2:1. He showed a big improvement as the season went on. He is by far our best rebounding guard and that has come a long way from last season.

[brianstl]

If Conklin can stay healthy next year. He will have the biggest improvement.

[BACKHANDtheRICAN]

Remekun