Really...3 UNC recruits on the USA team

[jimrowe0]

Personally, I have watched both Bullock and Marshall play and neither one impressed me at all (especially not Marshall). HB of course is an obvious selection.

The USA roster includes: Harrison Barnes, Ames (Iowa); Will Barton, Brewster (N.H.) Academy; Reggie Bullock, Kinston (N.C.); Kyrie Irving, St. Patrick (Elizabeth, N.J.); Brandon Knight, Pine Crest (Fort Lauderdale, Fla.); Kendall Marshall, Bishop O'Connell (Arlington, Va.); Tobias Harris, Half Hollow Hills West (Dix Hills, N.Y.); Terrence Jones, Jefferson (Portland, Ore.); and Jared Sullinger, Northland (Columbus, Ohio).

[superdave]

Someone has to ride the pine, and maybe Marshall and Bullock are fine with that.

[rotogod00]

Personally, I have watched both Bullock and Marshall play and neither one impressed me at all (especially not Marshall). HB of course is an obvious selection.

The USA roster includes: Harrison Barnes, Ames (Iowa); Will Barton, Brewster (N.H.) Academy; Reggie Bullock, Kinston (N.C.); Kyrie Irving, St. Patrick (Elizabeth, N.J.); Brandon Knight, Pine Crest (Fort Lauderdale, Fla.); Kendall Marshall, Bishop O'Connell (Arlington, Va.); Tobias Harris, Half Hollow Hills West (Dix Hills, N.Y.); Terrence Jones, Jefferson (Portland, Ore.); and Jared Sullinger, Northland (Columbus, Ohio).

any idea what goes into the selection process? because if they wanted a 3rd PG, could have taken selby, jackson, or joseph, who are all ranked higher than marshall (according to ESPN's latest top 100 from yesterday)

[CDu]

Personally, I have watched both Bullock and Marshall play and neither one impressed me at all (especially not Marshall). HB of course is an obvious selection.

The USA roster includes: Harrison Barnes, Ames (Iowa); Will Barton, Brewster (N.H.) Academy; Reggie Bullock, Kinston (N.C.); Kyrie Irving, St. Patrick (Elizabeth, N.J.); Brandon Knight, Pine Crest (Fort Lauderdale, Fla.); Kendall Marshall, Bishop O'Connell (Arlington, Va.); Tobias Harris, Half Hollow Hills West (Dix Hills, N.Y.); Terrence Jones, Jefferson (Portland, Ore.); and Jared Sullinger, Northland (Columbus, Ohio).

Bullock is a top-10 recruit by both Scout and Rivals. I don't think his inclusion is that ridiculous. And yes, Barnes is an obvious selection. Marshall is the only questionable choice at face value, given that he's not a top-15 recruit and there are two PG ahead of him (Knight and Irving) on the roster.

However, that being said, I don't think it's that big a deal. For one, recruiting rankings aren't everything anyway. For another, maybe the team feels like Marshall provides the right skillset to go along with the rest of the team. I wouldn't be offended by the inclusion of nearly any top-30/40 recruit on a team.

[CDu]

any idea what goes into the selection process? because if they wanted a 3rd PG, could have taken selby, jackson, or joseph, who are all ranked higher than marshall (according to ESPN's latest top 100 from yesterday)

It's not an all-star team, and the rankings are rough guesses anyway. So my guess is that that those involved in the selection process either (1) felt that Marshall was better than those other PG, or (2) felt that Marshall's skill sets were a better complement to the skillsets of the other players on the team. Marshall seems to be more of a pass-first PG, where Knight and Irving appear to be more scoring PG. So maybe that had something to do with it.

[Huh?]

Where is the size on that team?

[CDu]

Where is the size on that team?

That was my big question. That list definitely seemed guard-heavy. Sullinger is a C, Harris is a PF, and Barnes has the size to play PF. There are only 9 names in that list, and the list says "includes." So I'd imagine that there are a couple more bigs on the roster.

[jimrowe0]

From the USA basketball website:

Players and coaches for the 2010 USA Junior National Select Team are selected by the USA Basketball Men's Developmental National Team Committee, chaired in a non-voting position by Sean Ford, the USA Basketball Men's National Team Director. The committee also includes AAU appointees Ron Crawford and Boo Williams, National Federation of High School appointees Eric Flannery and John Olive and athlete representative Kermit Holmes (1999 USA Pan American Games Team).

"I think these first nine players give this USA team a solid foundation, and we certainly have confidence in our accomplished coaching staff," said Ford. "The committee has an important decision to make in filling the last roster spot in the next couple of weeks, and we are fortunate to have a lot of talent to choose from in this country. We aren't looking for the 10 best athletes, we are looking for players that help us achieve balance and depth. This is a very tough game, and we are all determined to come away with a win in 2010."

[rotogod00]

That was my big question. That list definitely seemed guard-heavy. Sullinger is a C, Harris is a PF, and Barnes has the size to play PF. There are only 9 names in that list, and the list says "includes." So I'd imagine that there are a couple more bigs on the roster.

10-man team with the final spot being announced at a future date

[CDu]

10-man team with the final spot being announced at a future date

Seems like that guy will need to be a big.

[Huh?]

Boo Williams is part of this selection, that's why Kendall Marshall is on the team.

[Bob Green]

Someone has to ride the pine....

Actually this isn't true. On last summer's Gold Medal USA U19 Team, all 12 members averaged double digit minutes:

http://www.usabasketball.com/men/2009/09_mu19_stats/USA.pdf

DeAngelo Casto, who only played in four of nine games, suffered an injury, while Tyshawn Taylor missed one game. I believe he was sick but I cannot remember for sure.

[roywhite]

My quick take:

Kendall Marshall is a dubious choice
They need another big man; how about Josh Hairston?
This is a one-game deal, not a tournament that might run to 8 or 9 games, so the depth is less of an issue.

[CDu]

My quick take:

Kendall Marshall is a dubious choice
They need another big man; how about Josh Hairston?
This is a one-game deal, not a tournament that might run to 8 or 9 games, so the depth is less of an issue.

Based on most recruiting rankings, Hairston seems like an even more dubious choice than Marshall. Of course, as has been noted, rankings don't necessarily mean much.

[roywhite]

Based on most recruiting rankings, Hairston seems like an even more dubious choice than Marshall. Of course, as has been noted, rankings don't necessarily mean much.

Lots of ratings out there, but Hairston has moved into the top 20 with ESPN, and is in Bob Gibbons' top 10. He's worth considering, though they may want to round out this team with a Center or Center/PF combo.

[CDu]

Lots of ratings out there, but Hairston has moved into the top 20 with ESPN, and is in Bob Gibbons' top 10. He's worth considering, though they may want to round out this team with a Center or Center/PF combo.

I'm not saying that he's not worth considering. I'm just saying that he's sort of in the same category as Marshall (or lower) according to most recruiting rankings. Though again, the necessary caveat that it rankings can be taken with a grain of salt. I don't have any problem with Marshall's inclusion. I wouldn't have any problem with Hairston's inclusion either.

[verga]

even though Marshall was chosen it doesn't mean anything for his future at unc. I'm afraid Roy has finally misjudged some talent. If you've seen Marshall you'll know he's slow a foot and will have problems guarding perimeter players.. This team he was chosen for may be his last highlight, he is a talented passer, if you'd like to compare him to someone, how about a taller Greg Paulus, only slower. jmo

[sandinmyshoes]

I have not seen a complete game of Marshall playing, but I have seen more than just highlight clips of him playing. I'd say he's at least as quick as Jon Scheyer, and he is a great passer. I don't think he'll kill anyone with athleticism the way guys like Lawson, Felton, or more recently Ish Smith have. But with the right players surrounding him, he could be as effective as those three.

I could see where Williams might want to pair him with a quick two-guard for defensive purposes. The same way Nolan picks up the quicker back court players when he's paired with Jon. Although, to be honest, there's often so much switching on defense in college these days that doing the right thing beats doing the wrong thing quickly.