The big difference for Iowa State this season has been Jameel McKay, a 6'9 215 transfer from Marquette who gives them their first legitimate rim protector in the Hoiberg era. The problem for Hoiberg is that Kansas has four guys like that - Jamari Traylor (6'8 220), Cliff Alexander (6'8 240), Landen Lucas (6'10 240) and Hunter Mickelson (6'10 235). Mickelson, a transfer from Arkansas, would start for most of the teams in the Big 12 and he barely get minutes for Self. Not many college programs can roll that type of size off their bench. Tarik Black built more of an NBA buzz after one season as a backup at Kansas than three seasons as a starter at Memphis.
…Kansas State has been competitive with their in-state rival for the last few years thanks to the efforts of Bob Huggins and Frank Martin, who brought a ton of out of state talent into Manhattan, particularly through a pipeline in DC that produced Michael Beasley, Jacob Pullen and Wally Judge. Bruce Weber took over when Martin decamped for South Carolina, a move that didn't speak well for Kansas State's commitment to the basketball program, and the fear is that Weber will oversee an unwinding similar to what happened to him when he took over from Self at Illinois.[/I]
No one is doubting Weber's ability to coach, but he never had much success bringing in elite talent to Illinois and he doesn't appear to be even trying to go after the type of guys that Martin got. Weber will have to find a lot more diamond in the rough three stars like Marcus Foster to have much of a chance to compete at the highest levels of the Big 12.
…Huggins recruiting has picked up since they made the move, but he will likely have to hit the transfer wire if he has any hope of beating Self. Going forward, he will need to find more guys like Jonathan Holton, a former top recruit who had several brushes with the law before winding up in Morgantown.
…Perhaps stung by the implosion of Capel's program, OU went in the opposite direction with Lon Kruger, a basketball lifer with no real interest in "playing the game". Kruger has turned them into a perennial Top 25 team, but he hasn't produced an NBA player, although Buddy Hield should have a chance. If he can't bring in more talent, there's a ceiling on his program, at least with Bill Self a few hundred miles up the road.
…Texas is one of the only teams in the country with the size to match up with Kentucky, as they have five different 6'9+ players with a chance to play at the next level. Myles Turner, their star freshman, will be a lottery pick whenever he declares for the draft. The problem is that none of their guards can consistently stretch the floor, which has been a recurring issue for Barnes. For whatever reasons, he has never shown much of an interest in recruiting shooting, preferring to sign waves of defensive-minded athletes and assuming he will be able to figure things out on offense.
Spoiler alert - he hasn't.
…The problem for Baylor has been Drew's steadfast belief in the 1-3-1 match-up zone, even as he watches opposing coaches in the Big 12 slice it to death on an annual basis. It works well in the first few rounds of NCAA Tournament against teams who have never seen the Bears length and athleticism, but eventually they run into a disciplined and talented team like Wisconsin who runs them off the floor. That's usually what happens when they play Kansas - eventually Self finds the cracks in the defense.
…As it stands now, Self starts each season with a huge advantage against the rest of his conference. You still have to give him his props for what he has done, but the basketball coach at Kansas is expected to beat a bunch of football schools just about every season. There are no other blue-blood programs in the Big 12. No Duke to his UNC. No Florida to his Kentucky. No UCLA to his Arizona. Texas is the sleeping giant, but as long as Barnes is there, it's hard to see them ever being able to knock off Self.
Here's the key though - just because Kansas wins the Big 12 doesn't necessarily mean they will have a deep run in March. You can forget the statistics and even their record. For as deep as the conference is, the Jayhawks are beating up on a bunch of teams they are supposed to beat.
Real GM
This post was edited on 2/5 7:53 AM by kcjcjhawk
http://basketball.realgm.com/analysis/236508/How-K
…Kansas State has been competitive with their in-state rival for the last few years thanks to the efforts of Bob Huggins and Frank Martin, who brought a ton of out of state talent into Manhattan, particularly through a pipeline in DC that produced Michael Beasley, Jacob Pullen and Wally Judge. Bruce Weber took over when Martin decamped for South Carolina, a move that didn't speak well for Kansas State's commitment to the basketball program, and the fear is that Weber will oversee an unwinding similar to what happened to him when he took over from Self at Illinois.[/I]
No one is doubting Weber's ability to coach, but he never had much success bringing in elite talent to Illinois and he doesn't appear to be even trying to go after the type of guys that Martin got. Weber will have to find a lot more diamond in the rough three stars like Marcus Foster to have much of a chance to compete at the highest levels of the Big 12.
…Huggins recruiting has picked up since they made the move, but he will likely have to hit the transfer wire if he has any hope of beating Self. Going forward, he will need to find more guys like Jonathan Holton, a former top recruit who had several brushes with the law before winding up in Morgantown.
…Perhaps stung by the implosion of Capel's program, OU went in the opposite direction with Lon Kruger, a basketball lifer with no real interest in "playing the game". Kruger has turned them into a perennial Top 25 team, but he hasn't produced an NBA player, although Buddy Hield should have a chance. If he can't bring in more talent, there's a ceiling on his program, at least with Bill Self a few hundred miles up the road.
…Texas is one of the only teams in the country with the size to match up with Kentucky, as they have five different 6'9+ players with a chance to play at the next level. Myles Turner, their star freshman, will be a lottery pick whenever he declares for the draft. The problem is that none of their guards can consistently stretch the floor, which has been a recurring issue for Barnes. For whatever reasons, he has never shown much of an interest in recruiting shooting, preferring to sign waves of defensive-minded athletes and assuming he will be able to figure things out on offense.
Spoiler alert - he hasn't.
…The problem for Baylor has been Drew's steadfast belief in the 1-3-1 match-up zone, even as he watches opposing coaches in the Big 12 slice it to death on an annual basis. It works well in the first few rounds of NCAA Tournament against teams who have never seen the Bears length and athleticism, but eventually they run into a disciplined and talented team like Wisconsin who runs them off the floor. That's usually what happens when they play Kansas - eventually Self finds the cracks in the defense.
…As it stands now, Self starts each season with a huge advantage against the rest of his conference. You still have to give him his props for what he has done, but the basketball coach at Kansas is expected to beat a bunch of football schools just about every season. There are no other blue-blood programs in the Big 12. No Duke to his UNC. No Florida to his Kentucky. No UCLA to his Arizona. Texas is the sleeping giant, but as long as Barnes is there, it's hard to see them ever being able to knock off Self.
Here's the key though - just because Kansas wins the Big 12 doesn't necessarily mean they will have a deep run in March. You can forget the statistics and even their record. For as deep as the conference is, the Jayhawks are beating up on a bunch of teams they are supposed to beat.
Real GM
This post was edited on 2/5 7:53 AM by kcjcjhawk
http://basketball.realgm.com/analysis/236508/How-K
