2015-16 UW Badger Basketball Discussion Thread

El Duderino · Post #761 » by **El Duderino** » Mon Mar 9, 2015 6:06 am

So long as the Badgers aren't put in the Kentucky bracket, to me i don't care all that much whether they are a one or two seed. It's really not that important as to whether the team makes it back to the Final Four.

Once the one and two seeds get past their first round cupcake games, then it's simply about stringing together good games as the competition improves. After that first round game, one/two seeds can potentially lose to anybody if they have a bad game.

It's only the chance of being put in the same bracket as Kentucky which has me concerned about getting a two seed instead of a one seed. Other than that worst case scenario, it's hard for me to care as much as many other Badgers fans do.

So many of Ryan's previous teams were so reliant on three point shots falling that it made them susceptible to losing to nearly anybody in the NCAA Tournament. With this team though, they can score in so many ways, i fear an early exit far less. I just really hope that Jackson is back fully healthy by then because the lack of bench depth is easily my biggest concern. The last thing i want to see is foul trouble hit during a tightly contested game and say Sholwater being on the court for extended minutes. It was also nice to see Dukan finally make some jumpers, even though he bricked a few others.

Kerb Hohl · Post #762 » by **Kerb Hohl** » Mon Mar 9, 2015 3:16 pm

The committee will do everything in its power to keep Duke and Kansas isolated in their own regions with cakewalks to the final 4.

UW as the 2 in Kentucky's region is convenient as UW is not a blueblood but would create a great E8 matchup...and they don't need to do Kentucky any favors.

Wichita State, Gonzaga, Butler, Xavier, etc. will all have to play each other and knock each other out in an obscure region.

Bernman · Post #763 » by **Bernman** » Wed Mar 18, 2015 10:08 pm

I think never in Badgers' bb history has there been as much riding on the commitment of one recruit as there is with Diamond Stone.

a. If Stone doesn't join the fold, at center we're rolling out Vitto Brown and Ethan Happ, I guess. Both are more power forwards, especially Happ. And Happ projects to be better, IMO.

b. If Dekker declares, and we just end up banking the schollie that was saved for Stone, we're trotting out a roster that includes 10 players who joined the program on free rides. If you count Showalter, that's 11. And any one or more of Thomas, Illikainen, and Pritzl could redshirt. That's a thin ass squad.

c. We'd have struck out on all of 3 talented big men, two from in state, we had in our cross-hairs.

d. Look at this kid:

[youtube]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LLppVdHUkkQ[/youtube]

How often do you see a behemoth draining 3's like that? That's an addition to his arsenal which formerly included scoring around the basket/in the post, rim protection, and rebounding. I think a lot of people just caught him during a bad game which he could be prone to here and there considering how big he is and given his supporting cast. Overall he's had a strong season. He's projected to go top 5 in the draft for a reason. He'd almost surely start off the bat here and be an asset.

I think Stone is on tv tomorrow at state, and there has been rumblings he's going to announce his decision after he hopefully hoists the title, so we should get a clearer picture about him soon in a couple ways.

BUCKnation · Post #764 » by **BUCKnation** » Thu Mar 19, 2015 3:07 am

Haven't watched him in awhile, but I didn't know he had some range on his shot. Very impressed with that and we know Bo loves big guys who can shoot.

trwi7 · Post #765 » by **trwi7** » Thu Mar 19, 2015 3:08 am

He kinda had to get range on his shot. The rest of Dominican is so bad that other teams would just swarm him in the post whenever he got the ball.

TroyD92 · Post #766 » by **TroyD92** » Thu Mar 19, 2015 3:08 am

Is #34 Kostas?

Bernman · Post #767 » by **Bernman** » Thu Mar 19, 2015 3:30 am

trwi7 wrote:He kinda had to get range on his shot. The rest of Dominican is so bad that other teams would just swarm him in the post whenever he got the ball.

I figured without watching that was the explanation for the game against Malik Newman and co. which supposedly proved Stone was over-hyped and would be a project in college. In this game, in spite of Stone kind of going off, their team point total was modest. And Whitefish Bay Dominican doesn't exactly seem like a basketball factory, while Newman's school has won 4 straight state titles and is highly ranked nationally, certainly not all Newman's doing. Stone was more of a true big. If you had some size, and could focus attention on him due to lack of other threats, you could greatly limit his impact on the game. For him to then go and develop a long jumper in response and in spite of his size, says quite a bit about the kid's desire and potential.

I do think with Dekker and Stone, Bucky is top 5 or even better next year again. Even without Dekker, they could easily be top 10 with a Big 3 of Koenig, Hayes, and Stone. It's 3-4 mofo pros, not to mention Happ got hype from Givony.

Kerb Hohl · Post #768 » by **Kerb Hohl** » Thu Mar 19, 2015 4:02 am

Ray Nixon and Duane Wilson are Dominican guys so it isn't that bad. Maybe not a "factory" but they pull in good players from time to time.

I wonder if Bo will actually get a grad transfer if they don't get Stone because they rarely go into seasons with nobody over 6-8 maybe 6-9. I know he doesn't like to but that may be the time.

SpursNBucks · Post #769 » by **SpursNBucks** » Thu Mar 19, 2015 5:18 am

Kerb Hohl wrote:Dominican had Ray Nixon and Duane Wilson are Dominican guys so it isn't that bad. Maybe not a "factory" but they pull in good players from time to time.

I wonder if Bo will actually get a grad transfer if they don't get Stone because they rarely go into seasons with nobody over 6-8 maybe 6-9. I know he doesn't like to but that may be the time.

"IF" Dekker comes back - no worries. "IF" Stone decides on Badgers - no worries. "IF" both are on the team - TOP 5. "IF" both are not going to be with the team next year - they could be in trouble.

Losing = Kaminiski, Gasser, Jackson, *Dekker, and Dukan. = That's a BLOW!

Koenig - 1st team ALL-Big 10 potential
Hayes - 1st team ALL-Big 10 potential
After that it gets scary -
Showalter - your starting 2G?
Brown- a starting F?

I don't follow HS BB so I don't know anything about these players except what the rating systems say - Looking at ESPN - they don't have 1 top 100 player (which really surprises me being the players going out the door). Bo also doesn't like to give a lot of burn to Frosh.

Illikainen F-the highest recruit at (80 ESPN 4 star) 6'8" 225 - did have some pretty good offers from Indiana, Iowa, Cal, Boston College, and Maryland. Say he is a good rebounder and can stretch the floor with his shot.
Pritzl 2G- (80 4 star) 6'3" 185 - MArquette, Xavier, and Crighton were the 3 other offers he had. Said he is great catch and shoot player.
C. Thomas PF - (78 3 star) 6'8" 245 -UW only offer (did he sign real early?) Said he is a strong rebounder and finisher around the basket.
Iverson 2G/SF (69 2 star) 6'4" 190

Others/frankly I don't know much about these guys:

(2014)
Happ F- (78 3 star) 6'8" 200 * Red shirt - A lot of you seem high on him, hope works out. No other big schools offered- early signing
Schlundt 2G (69) 6'4" 180 - I have never heard anything about him -know nothing except the bio they have on him

(2013)
Dearing- 2G (75) 6'5" 175 No other big school offers - Good BBIQ, quick first step,

The question is how accurate are these ratings?

Frank had a rating of (92) - and was a 4 star prospect
Dekker (97) 5 star - #17 overall
Hayes (84) 4 star - #84 overall - offer from Ohio State
Koenig (78) Offers from Duke, NC, and Virginia.

Those are the 4 most talented guys on the roster - ESPN - rated Koenig a little low I think, but all these guys were the best rated players the Badgers have brought in the last 4 years.

Bo is a great Coach. He has built on past success of Bennett- they are consistently a top 25 ranked team - you wonder if they could get better recruits how they could easily be one of the elite programs = reputation wise in the country - Kentucky, Duke, NC, Michigan State, Ohio State, Kansas, Syracuse, Indiana, Georgetown, Arizona, Louisville, Florida, Texas, and on and on - these teams consistently recruit higher rated players. LOVE the Badgers - and yes, most these guys are 4 year players, but you would think with their success (specially last 2 years) they could do a little better recruiting.

Go Bucky!

HaroldinGMinor · Post #770 » by **HaroldinGMinor** » Thu Mar 19, 2015 5:47 am

Even if Dekker leaves and Stone goes elsewhere, I bet UW finishes no worse than 4th in the B1G and ends up in the top 25. Every year some guy from the bench ends up surpassing expectations and performing. Not so much this year because they had everyone back but I could see Happ or Jordan Hill or one of the current commits like Thomas or Pritzl stepping up and playing well next season.

Bernman · Post #771 » by **Bernman** » Thu Mar 19, 2015 5:34 pm

ESPN sucks. They don't do much real research and pander to the south. Pritzl is ranked 50th overall per Scout. Although I think he needs a year of development. He's evocative of Brust, who wasn't ready right away.

Iverson was a late bloomer type who is productive in all categories and looks outstanding on film. He's got solid size for a wing, is an awesome athlete, can create, and is improving his shooting, although that still needs work. But I see him as ready to contribute immediately, at least as a 6th or 7th man.

Illikainen is a skilled and physical player. It's hard for him to stand out given how loaded his team is. I think not doing so indicates it's very unlikely he's a 1st team All B1G type, but there is a very low chance he's a bust too given all he's bringing to the table. Probably a glue guy starter or 3rd option in time. Although he's probably not ready immediately either.

There is something there already, but it's not going to be near enough to keep us in the elite most likely. We need Stone and/or Dekker and/or a big grad transfer for that.

Keeping the top 4 streak alive would be a nice consolation prize. But I'm just not satisfied with that as a competitor. We have an opportunity to not fall back into that good not great program classification, if things fall right, or we play our cards right, and I hope that happens. Things aren't all good either way under some sort of nihilistic philosophy. Winning big, matters. These last two seasons, feeling like we have a shot to win it all, even if we don't, is 10 times more fun than it was.

yoshii8 · Post #772 » by **yoshii8** » Thu Mar 19, 2015 5:45 pm

I believe Ethan Happ will be a huge addition next season. I've heard some really good things about him dominating at practice, and also enjoyed watching him play for the US last season.

Johnlac1 · Post #773 » by **Johnlac1** » Thu Mar 19, 2015 10:42 pm

yoshii8 wrote:I believe Ethan Happ will be a huge addition next season. I've heard some really good things about him dominating at practice, and also enjoyed watching him play for the US last season.

I wish he'd played this year. As we all know, as good as the frontline is, we're still a little weak. Dukan is playing better of late, thank goodness, but Brown has been spottier. It wouldn't hurt to have another good player coming off he bench. Happ would have made a nice sub.

El Duderino · Post #774 » by **El Duderino** » Thu Mar 19, 2015 10:54 pm

HaroldinGMinor wrote:Even if Dekker leaves and Stone goes elsewhere, I bet UW finishes no worse than 4th in the B1G and ends up in the top 25. Every year some guy from the bench ends up surpassing expectations and performing. Not so much this year because they had everyone back but I could see Happ or Jordan Hill or one of the current commits like Thomas or Pritzl stepping up and playing well next season.

I agree

I remember a few years ago Tom Izzo was being interviewed at a Big Ten Conference media day. The Badgers had lost some players and Izzo was asked if he thought this was the year Wisconsin misses the NCAA Tournament. Izzo just laughed and said something to the effect of Bo could grab 12 guys from the YMCA and make the tournament.

So while i think it's a near lock that Dekker goes pro and who knows what Stone will eventually decide, come the end of next season, Bo and Wisconsin will end up in the Big Dance, regardless if say they are a top 4 seed or more in that 6-10 range. Until Bo actually fails to make the tournament, betting against him doing so strikes me as a really bad bet.

xTitan · Post #775 » by **xTitan** » Thu Mar 19, 2015 11:09 pm

El Duderino wrote:
HaroldinGMinor wrote:Even if Dekker leaves and Stone goes elsewhere, I bet UW finishes no worse than 4th in the B1G and ends up in the top 25. Every year some guy from the bench ends up surpassing expectations and performing. Not so much this year because they had everyone back but I could see Happ or Jordan Hill or one of the current commits like Thomas or Pritzl stepping up and playing well next season.

I agree

I remember a few years ago Tom Izzo was being interviewed at a Big Ten Conference media day. The Badgers had lost some players and Izzo was asked if he thought this was the year Wisconsin misses the NCAA Tournament. Izzo just laughed and said something to the effect of Bo could grab 12 guys from the YMCA and make the tournament.

So while i think it's a near lock that Dekker goes pro and who knows what Stone will eventually decide, come the end of next season, Bo and Wisconsin will end up in the Big Dance, regardless if say they are a top 4 seed or more in that 6-10 range. Until Bo actually fails to make the tournament, betting against him doing so strikes me as a really bad bet.

Dekker is gone and I agree with your earlier post that Stone is a must get, BO usually gets guys to step up, but we often see guys on the horizon who look like they can play, you even saw improvement from Frank toward the end of his sophomore year where there was reason for optimism, but I don't see that with anyone outside of Hayes and Koenig, who are already stars. I don't want to hear what Happ and Hill do in practice, Showalter and Brown perform very well in practice and neither are competent Big Ten starters. The Big Ten has some quality young talent, without Stone, I could easily see this team lower in the Big Ten. It has been a long time since UW has not had a quality college big man.

Bernman · Post #776 » by **Bernman** » Thu Mar 19, 2015 11:28 pm

The most likely scenario is we have one of Stone or Dekker, and there's about an equal chance of getting 0 or 2.

You should hear what Happ and Hill do in practice, because that's the only place they can show their skills. They are redshirts after all. BTW, Happ got hype independently from Jonathan Givony of DX, not from practices. Happ will be an asset next year. You can count on that. Hill is more of an unknown.

Anyways, I haven't heard anything about Brown and Showalter in practice. The only guy I can remember who we heard some hype about from practices that didn't carry it over much to real games was George Marshall. Typically the hyped players in this program pan out. It's not exactly known for unfulfilled promise.

Plus, we'll have an atypically big class coming in of 4-5 guys, and often times the only reason freshmen don't make an impact is they're blocked by seniority. That won't be the case as much next year. They'll have to play.

New players will emerge. It'll just be a matter of if they're standouts or just serviceable rotation guys. Then we'll just have to rely more on Koenig creating and Hayes in the post. That's a good start.

One way or another, odds are minute the team will finish lower in the B1G.

Johnlac1 · Post #777 » by **Johnlac1** » Fri Mar 20, 2015 3:20 am

Bernman wrote:The most likely scenario is we have one of Stone or Dekker, and there's about an equal chance of getting 0 or 2.

You should hear what Happ and Hill do in practice, because that's the only place they can show their skills. They are redshirts after all. BTW, Happ got hype independently from Jonathan Givony of DX, not from practices. Happ will be an asset next year. You can count on that. Hill is more of an unknown.

Anyways, I haven't heard anything about Brown and Showalter in practice. The only guy I can remember who we heard some hype about from practices that didn't carry it over much to real games was George Marshall. Typically the hyped players in this program pan out. It's not exactly known for unfulfilled promise.

Plus, we'll have an atypically big class coming in of 4-5 guys, and often times the only reason freshmen don't make an impact is they're blocked by seniority. That won't be the case as much next year. They'll have to play.

New players will emerge. It'll just be a matter of if they're standouts or just serviceable rotation guys. Then we'll just have to rely more on Koenig creating and Hayes in the post. That's a good start.

One way or another, odds are minute the team will finish lower in the B1G.

I see Marshall had a good year at S.Dakota St. averaging over 13 ppg with a good three pt pct. But I doubt he'd end up starting or playing over Koenig.

Johnlac1 · Post #778 » by **Johnlac1** » Sun Mar 22, 2015 8:20 pm

Anybody watch the class one finals sat night SPASH against Germantown? That kid Sam Hauser from SPASH looked like a pretty good prospect. 6'6, athletic, and can shoot the lights out. And just a junior. SPASH handled Germantown pretty easily, and Germantown had won three state titles in a row. Hauser also had a kid brother who's a freshman who looked good.

tski1972 · Post #779 » by **tski1972** » Sun Mar 22, 2015 9:57 pm

Word is the younger Hauser is going to be better than the older Hauser. Big day for my home town with SPASH and UWSP winning it all.

Johnlac1 · Post #780 » by **Johnlac1** » Sun Mar 22, 2015 10:34 pm

tski1972 wrote:Word is the younger Hauser is going to be better than the older Hauser. Big day for my home town with SPASH and UWSP winning it all.

Who else looks like a good d1 prospect in your area? The last two in my area, western Wisconsin, were Koenig (who went to my high school) and Matt Thomas from Onalaska who went to Iowa St. and scored 11 pts. in their last game of the tournament. Nobody around here since they graduated that I know of.