Our break out player will be

[MB73]

Does anyone know if RL's been working out with his back to the basket? He said he was in that Fox Article. And I'd bet that RM has had some talks w/ his NZ coach about what he'd like him to work on. The guy's 6'11" and can be a very versatile big. The only thing that worries me about DE is he can get to the hoop but once there he seems to run into a lot of difficulty with much bigger players. CR would be the most pleasant surprise, although, I don't see him being much of a scorer unless it's on putbacks. He's not a Justin Johnson though. He showed us more in his FR year than JJ did in his whole career here.

Rob Lowe. I keep thinking back to IV and how much he bought to the table after he went back to Greece to play w/ their national 19 team. He came back so much more polished and stronger it was like lightning hit him and the light went off.

RL is now playing at a higher level than that and he seems to be a little more grounded than IV. IV got the NBA hype going after his JR year and kind of went in the toilet his SR year. Remember, UB benched him. RL doesn't strike me as that type. Instead, he knows he's got a ways to go. This international competition will be good for him. Expect a stronger inside game from him. And he'll be a year smarter. He's played in a second round NCAA game against one of the best teams in the country, now, he's going to play against some very high level international competition. He'll fill in quite well for BC next year, plus he brings more since he can move outside and hit the three.

I agree with what you are saying, and think that the best player for us to "break out" would be RL.

If he can play with his back to the basket and get 14-16 ppg, mostly inside (take a 3 here and there), the whole team benefits more than if any other improves IMO. He is the best equipped to do so.

Others might improve in other positions and that would be great but the replacing Conklin on "O" role is the key.

Well, of course, if somehow CE or DE do it, fine, too. I like CR for other roles but I cannot see him as a post up "O" go to guy, and JM and GG are not to be relied upon for this yet.

So RL.

[Taj79]

To me, the kery is not WHO but more likely WHAT. Four of five starters return and all could improve. Barnett has less bigger shoes to fill as Cassity's minutes declined as the conference wore on. Age and maturity should make all better. Senioritis could affect Mitchell but I doubt it. The what is that someone HAS to provide WHAT the missing fifth starter provided. An inside game. Even the threat of one.

I can't see that being Loe but it might be. A little. I can't see it being Ellis --- not his game. If Evans can gain another two inches of vertical,maybe those missed layups turn into slam dunks. Otherwise WHAT is going to have to come from Remekun, Manning or Glaze, and I don't see sophomores coming through just yet.

The threat is critical, If there is none, there is no reason for the defense to slack off and help inside. They stay as glued as they can to McCall, Mitchell, Ellis and Loe. Ellis and Loe are catch-n-shoot bigs. They will not drive andcreate their own shots as i see it. If that player emerges, we will be just as fine andeven better than last year. If not, and we need a whole lot of more motion to free folks up.

We need to find that option. That is all.

[Fansince59]

Evans. He is smart, really sharp. He rebounds very well because he is position and is a great athlete. He has a presence, tough but no bully. He continues o get better.

[moytoy12]

I agree with what you are saying, and think that the best player for us to "break out" would be RL.

If he can play with his back to the basket and get 14-16 ppg, mostly inside (take a 3 here and there), the whole team benefits more than if any other improves IMO. He is the best equipped to do so.

Others might improve in other positions and that would be great but the replacing Conklin on "O" role is the key.

Well, of course, if somehow CE or DE do it, fine, too. I like CR for other roles but I cannot see him as a post up "O" go to guy, and JM and GG are not to be relied upon for this yet.

So RL.

Trying to have a legit discussion here. What has RL shown, besides height, to become a player capable of what you are asking? To me, both CE and CR have shown more ability in the low post than RL. By his senior year, I can see RL becoming a capable inside presence, but I'm not sure about next year.

[MB73]

Trying to have a legit discussion here. What has RL shown, besides height, to become a player capable of what you are asking? To me, both CE and CR have shown more ability in the low post than RL. By his senior year, I can see RL becoming a capable inside presence, but I'm not sure about next year.

RL clearly has the tools to do the job, more than anybody we have.

He has done some limited post up work and seems to have the ability to shoot over the defender and make some nice moves around them. Not blue feet, but nimble enough, and good hands. I think he can adjust to the challenge with a tougher mindset and make the adjustment.

With Conk there, we did not need Loe in this role, but now we do.

I agree CE has shown some capability in this spot but he does not have the potential for this position that RL has, and RL has two yrs to go, CE only one; CR is an asset but I cannot see him as a force on offense, a go-to down low player.

[moytoy12]

RL clearly has the tools to do the job, more than anybody we have.

He has done some limited post up work and seems to have the ability to shoot over the defender and make some nice moves around them. Not blue feet, but nimble enough, and good hands. I think he can adjust to the challenge with a tougher mindset and make the adjustment.

With Conk there, we did not need Loe in this role, but now we do.

I agree CE has shown some capability in this spot but he does not have the potential for this position that RL has, and RL has two yrs to go, CE only one; CR is an asset but I cannot see him as a force on offense, a go-to down low player.

Fair points. I do think it will be unlikely that RL becomes an inside force, but I think he can become a decent post player. Not sure it will happen next year though.

[jbizzle09]

Actually we have several players who I think will be considerably better this year. Our class of Jett, Loe, McCall and Evans could be awesome. Everyone of these guys were coming on at the end of the year. Scary to think how good they will be when they are seniors. I just can't pick one for next year. SLU will be very good. And if Manning and Glaze come on, wow! Oh ya, and we happen to have Mitchell, Cody and Cory. No wonder RM is excited.

I have to agree here. I think that years down the road, we will look back and see this as one of the best recruiting classes in Billiken history. It is very possible that all four of these players will have achieved some type of A-10 conference recognition when it is all said and done. Two have already done so (Evans on the All-Freshman team in 2010-11 and Jett on the All-Defense team last season.)

[Cowboy]

Fair points. I do think it will be unlikely that RL becomes an inside force, but I think he can become a decent post player. Not sure it will happen next year though.

-i agree to a degree

-just because RL is 6-11 does not make him a back to the basket player

[slu72]

Interesting in the Katz article RM names GG and RL as guys w/ the ability to run the offense like BC did. No mention of his future NBA'er JM?

[MB73]

-i agree to a degree

-just because RL is 6-11 does not make him a back to the basket player

Of course being 6-11 does not make him a back to the basket player. We know that.

I am saying that

1) we NEED him to do it and

2) As stated before, I have seen flashes of him appearing to have the capability to be effective, maybe even GOOD, and going into his 3rd yr he is stronger and he is the ONE that has the most tools of any of the bigs to do it. The 6-11 part does help, he can shoot his 4'-8' jumper over most defenders, the others will have trouble doing that...

Sure, we might do it by "committee" as one poster suggested, but it means a lot more to have one go-to guy that the other team recognizes as a threat to free up the other scorers.

Will RM try to make him our go-to post up player? Can RL make the adjustment, step up to the challenge?

Is it in RL's self interest to do this? I think so... pro leagues would want to see if he can play the post; sure, if he plays in Europe they will have him pop a lot of 3's, too... but adding a skillset will help his resume.

We shall see. I think if he can, it improves our chances big time.

[kmbilliken]

Of course being 6-11 does not make him a back to the basket player. We know that.

I am saying that

1) we NEED him to do it and

2) As stated before, I have seen flashes of him appearing to have the capability to be effective, maybe even GOOD, and going into his 3rd yr he is stronger and he is the ONE that has the most tools of any of the bigs to do it. The 6-11 part does help, he can shoot his 4'-8' jumper over most defenders, the others will have trouble doing that...

Sure, we might do it by "committee" as one poster suggested, but it means a lot more to have one go-to guy that the other team recognizes as a threat to free up the other scorers.

Will RM try to make him our go-to post up player? Can RL make the adjustment, step up to the challenge?

Is it in RL's self interest to do this? I think so... pro leagues would want to see if he can play the post; sure, if he plays in Europe they will have him pop a lot of 3's, too... but adding a skillset will help his resume.

We shall see. I think if he can, it improves our chances big time.

I think will be good player for us, but he can't shoot the 4' to 8' foot jumper over defenders. He has a low release point and barely elevates. He can be blocked by much shorter(almost any) defenders. He can get the hook off with a defender on him, but not the jumper. For that he definately needs space.

[SLU_Nick]

As long as RL can still pass out of the post, play adequate D, rebound and be an outside threat, the Bills will be fine.

Our guards are legit and we should not need to rely on RL to carry us at any point this season.

[Quality Is Job 1]

Perhaps we need some clarification on Coach Majerus's supposed claim that John Manning is a future NBA player. I don't believe he made such a claim — that Manning is a sure-fire future NBA player. Rather, I believe he said that of all of the players SLU has, Manning is the one most likely to become an NBA player (primarily because of his height, I presume).

[Scoop]

I have a feeling Evans is gonna unleash this year and average a double double.

I also really hope the light bulb turns on for Cory and he gets 20 minutes a game. Can't wait to see him put some dudes on a poster.

[Quality Is Job 1]

I have a feeling Evans is gonna unleash this year and average a double double.

I also really hope the light bulb turns on for Cory and he gets 20 minutes a game. Can't wait to see him put some dudes on a poster.

I believe Dwayne will step up his game significantly, but I don't think he'll average a double-double. Very few players average double-digit rebounds anymore. He'll do great to average 8.0 rpg. But he'll put up some double-double games, I'm sure.

Regarding Remekun, I concur.

[jbizzle09]

Perhaps we need some clarification on Coach Majerus's supposed claim that John Manning is a future NBA player. I don't believe he made such a claim — that Manning is a sure-fire future NBA player. Rather, I believe he said that of all of the players SLU has, Manning is the one most likely to become an NBA player (primarily because of his height, I presume).

In one interview, he said he sees Manning as an all-league player in the future and that when people see him play this coming season they will wonder why he didn't get much playing time last season. In another interview, he did say that Manning has the best potential of the current players to play in the NBA. He didn't say he was sure-fire or even an NBA prospect, just that if there was one current player of his that he could possibly see in the NBA, it would be Manning.

Basically, in interviews since the mid-point of last season, Majerus has been very enthusiastic about Manning's ability and his future contributions to the team. You would think with the amount of consistent praise that he has given Manning that he will get an ample opportunity this coming season to prove himself. Then again, he hyped up Barnett quite a bit before and he got very little playing time last season. However, I don't think he was effusive with his praise of Barnett as he has been with Manning. Also, Manning fills a much bigger immediate need than Barnett did/does.

[slu72]

The frustrating thing about CR is he shows us the talent's in there. The way he played at the end of his FR year, then a SOPH funk, then last year a roller coaster ride; good game, bad game, good, bad, etc. It's in there he's just got to show it more consistently. If he gets over that hump then he will be a real asset and the BC of 12-13. Don't expect him to be a scoring machine as I don't think the scheme will be the same for him as it was for BC, but he'll a better defender and rebounder.

[waldo027]

Whoever gets the biggest increase in minutes. Conk was our "break out" player because he played more minutes and took more shots. He had a higher FG% as a junior than he did as a senior. His biggest improvement was on the FT line.

If Carter can come in and get significant minutes on this team with this backcourt, that is really exciting. We have the MAC freshman of the year but he couldn't get off the bench last year.

[brianstl]

The key to Loe's devolepment isn't his ability to score in the low post. The key is continued improvement in his low post defense. Loe will never be a dominant low post scorer. He can be a big time scorer, but those point totals won't be padded with dunks in traffic.

[jbizzle09]

The key to Loe's devolepment isn't his ability to score in the low post. The key is continued improvement in his low post defense. Loe will never be a dominant low post scorer. He can be a big time scorer, but those point totals won't be padded with dunks in traffic.

This makes a lot of sense. Loe spent most of the season scoring from the perimeter. However, during conference play, his low-post defense and rebounding came on a lot stronger. Against Fordham at home, he grabbed 11 rebounds in less than 20 minutes of play. He also had 4 blocks against Xavier on the road and 3 blocks against LaSalle in the confernce tourney.

While I do think he will work more in the low-post than he showed in his first two seasons, I doubt that the majority of his scoring will come from dunks, layups and short-hooks. It will most likely come from treys and some pull-up jumpers.