Originally Posted by
licc85
As much as I love talking about Josh McRoberts (not at all), does anyone have any interesting news on Austin's visit on campus? I'm on board with the school of thought that we really need this guy. After this year, we're basically 1 big man injury from possibly being forced to play Josh Hairston 20+ minutes a game . . . a prospect that no one is looking forward to.
I'm not sold on his size or length. From the scouting reports that I've read, he has somewhat narrow shoulders, which obviously limits his wingspan. Still, any guy who is a legitimate top 25 talent who can man the post would be more than welcome, especially if you guys are accurate about his increased bulk.
Furthermore, I'm totally confident in Marshall Plumlee. I'm not sure why everyone is so hesitant to trust in him. Sure, he was redshirted, but I think it was the smart thing to do, since we really didn't need him last year, and we could REALLY use him for the next 4. Mason, who I think we can safely say is the most talented of the 3 Plumlees averaged 15 points, 10 rebounds, and 2.5 blocks his senior year at Christ School. Marshall averaged 12, 10, and 2.5 as a senior in the same league. He's not as talented on offense, I get that, but the defense and rebounding will not drop off at all. Plus, he's still going to be just as good of a finisher at the rim as Mason ever was, AND he has the extra benefit of a redshirt year, meaning he'll be a year more mature physically as a freshman with experience in the Duke system.
Everyone seems to forget, this kid was a McDonald's All-American, he's legitimately 7 feet tall, and he's just as athletic as his brothers. Let me say that again: ATHLETIC 7-FOOTER. He is going to be a solid college center. Sure, he will have games where he gets in foul trouble and some bad games where I'm sure he will make some stupid mistakes and turn the ball over a lot, but I think his ceiling is higher than Miles' and Miles was a dang good player for us for 4 years. We're not going to rely on him to post up and score for us. All he needs to do is get rebounds and stand tall in the post on D. Relax, people, Marshall is going to be a huge asset for 4 years, same as his brothers, you'll see.