calibuck;1899713; said:
good posts, all......just a couple of dumb questions, probably trying to remake the 'new' Buckeyes into a vision of the 'old', but who's the "glue" (aka David Lighty)? Assume that person would also be the fourth option, and the trusty spot up person who always canned the 3 ball (Diebler). I know that each team will take it's own personality, and that trying to recreate is what armchair coaches (like me) do, not what Matta will achieve. Key will be to have someone like Lighty, who 'gives themselves up' for the team, to slide over on D, fill the lane on a break, take the big scorer outside, and just do the necessary things to win, that don't show up in the stat sheet.....I don't know enough about the young 'uns coming up to project that position, so...any thoughts? Thanks.
Aaron Craft is the glue guy who's going to defend the top guard on the other team, and do many of the other things you mention. It would be great for next season if they have a guy like Lighty, a versatile player that can guard PFs as well as SGs and SFs. But I doubt that they will have one player who's big, athletic, energetic and strong enough to do what Lighty did on the D end AND skilled enough to be a major contributor on O. So perhaps Matta will be forced to do what he did back in '07 with Harris and Hunter, start the better offensive 4-man (Thomas) and then bring a defensive-minded forward (Ravenal/Williams) in off the bench. JDW might have the best combination of size, strength and athleticism if you're looking to replace Lighty with just one guy, but JD's got a lot of things he has to improve on technique and skill-wise. So the "answer" to replacing Lighty might have to be using 2 guys. Jordan Sibert might be the closest to being the type of glue guy you describe when you talk about filling the lane on the break.
I don't think any of the freshmen (other than Scott) are going to make a major impact right away. Consequently, I think one of the keys to next season is how much the returning guys improve/are ready to produce. Deshaun is at the top of the list - he struggled some defensively, but has showed good potential as a scorer and rebounder - if he can get a lot better defensively, he could make a big difference. Deshaun is one of the most skilled scorers on the team, how much he grows and improves on that side of the ball could be big as well. He is kind of at a crossroads, whether he gets better on D may determine whether he is a full-time/30 minute a game guy, or a 20-minute player.
I don't know if Ravenal will earn Matta's trust enough to play a significant role, but he is a returner by virtue of sitting out and practicing with the team this year and he is one of the oldest/most experienced players on the team. If there's anybody who should be ready to play solid reserve minutes at forward, it's him. If Ravenal can come in and be a good defensive forward & do the dirty work in the paint like DLaud, that would be huge. His stats from BC show he can shoot a high % from the field, can get a lot of rebounds, and is pretty good from the FT line, but he's not really a shotblocker and commits a lot of fouls. Hard to say what will happen with Rav.
Sully is capable of doing more on O than just being a post player - he could be unstoppable next year if he gets more comfortable shooting jumpers and routinely doing more than posting up on the low block. So even though Sully was great this year, don't assume he won't be significantly better next year. And Matta has shown a willingness to let a star player be a feature player (see: Turner, Evan & West, David). Sully could be the frontrunner for NPOY next year.
I think Sibert could be a big part of the team next year - he has good size, strength, athleticism, and plays with energy, he just needs a lot of work on his shooting. The good news is a lot of guys who struggled with their shot as freshmen under TM were able to rebound and shoot a lot better in their second seasons. If Sibert (who shot 25% on 3s this year) can make a jump in his 3-point percentage like Diebler (29%-42%) and Butler (23%-41%) made between their frosh and soph seasons, he would be a really good role player for this team. If the lineup is what I think it should be, then they will need to bring a good 3-point shooter with versatility off the bench, and Sibert could be that guy.
Smith has to improve his shooting a lot. It will be tough for him to beat out all the other guards for PT, but if he improves his shooting a lot he could earn a role as a ballhandler coming off the bench.
I love Shannon Scott's game. I think he will be a difference-maker on O - I believe he will average about 10 ppg next year and still get a lot of assists. He has great quickness and could/should make a major impact. Scott is the one guy that is being added that I think can replace the offensive production of a guy like Diebler or Lighty.
Scott-Craft-Buford-Thomas-Sullinger is what I think the starting lineup should be. The first backup F/C is most likely either Ravenal or Williams, then the first backup guard/wing I think will be Sibert. I wouldn't be surprised if Matta stuck with his top 7 guys like this year, but I also wouldn't be surprised if he went with a little deeper bench either, because he doesn't have anyone quite like the versatile & skilled Lighty or the perpetual deep threat Diebler (as an aside, I think calling Diebs a 4th option is selling him short - many felt he was the #2 option on this team). I think the general talents of the team next season is roughly similar to what it was in '07.
Assuming the starting lineup is Scott-Craft-Buford-Thomas-Sullinger, Matta has a wealth of bench options. He could bring in Ravenal or Williams for post defense and rebounding - Ravenal is the more experienced & stronger of the two, but Williams has better height/length and will block more shots. He could bring in Sibert, JDW, or Thompson who bring versatility and the "glue" element to the guard/wing positions off the bench. He could bring in Ross if he needs a guy who can create his own shot/points. He could bring in Smith if he needs another ballhandler. If no one transfers, Matta will have the full complement of 13 eligible, scholarship players for the first time ever at OSU. He was had 13 guys on scholarship in 2004-05, but Lewis had to sit out so they had 12 eligible scholarship players, and two of those guys transferred early in the season so most of the season he had 10 scholarship players available.
And I can't wait to see how ESPiN makes it the Buckeyes fault that all of the #1 seeds lost....
