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Olympic Fan
04-17-2010, 11:43 AM
Several threads and a lot of speculation on this board about next season -- both in the ACC and the nation. Many of us acknowledge that it's still too early to make any firm declarations. There are still issues we're waiting on. Most will be decided by May 8 -- I believe that's the day that early entry candidates have to withdraw their names if they want to return next season. There are still a few recruits out there that could really impact the national scene.

I noticed that Michigan State resolved its issues yesterday when Lucas and Summers announced they were returning. That certainly makes Michigan State one of the preseason favorites in 2010-11.

With all that in mind, here are the most important issues that I'm waiting to see resolved:

(1) Will Kyle go or stay? Best of luck either way and no hard feelings if he goes. But if Singler decides to return to Duke next season, the Blue Devils will be the prohibitive favorite in the ACC and a strong challenger to MSU for preseason No. 1 in the nation -- I would expect to see the preseason polls split with outlets picking both teams.

If Kyle enters the draft, Duke will still be strong going into next season ... still No. 1 in the ACC (although there would be challengers) and maybe No. 5-10 in the national polls.

(2) Will Malcolm Delaney stay in the draft? He's not hiring an agent and most projections I've seen have him in the second round. If he returns to Virginia Tech, it could have very much the same impact on the ACC as when Vasquez pulled his name out of the draft last year. Don't forget he's coming off a great junior season -- he was unanimous first-team All-ACC along with Jon and Vasquez. The Hokies have a strong senior core coming back with Jeff Allen, Dorenzo Hudson and JT Thompson. They add a strong post player in Chaney, the transfer from Florida, who (like Duke's Curry) worked out with his team all year.

If Delaney returns, you've got to pick Virginia Tech very near the top of the ACC -- if Delaney returns and Singler doesn't, they could push Duke for the top spot in the ACC. If he stays in the draft, I don't think they can replace his floor leadership -- they drop even more than Duke would without Singler.

(3) Will CJ Leslie pick NC State or Kentucky? A player who decommits from a school almost never recommits to the same school, but the talk in Indy was that Leslie was now leaning to State (Ryan Harrow has been working on him hard). If he picks State, they would have the best incoming class in the ACC with Harrow and Brown (assuming he qualifies). State is going to be better next season no matter what, but throw Leslie into the mix and they could make a big, BIG jump in the standings.

Nationally, Leslie's decision could have a big impact on where Kentucky falls. Calipari is replacing five early entry picks. He's added Knight and Lamb, a superb freshman backcourt, and has a great Turkish big man, Kanter (who has played at least three years of pro basketball in Turkey) in the middle, plus a nice wing in Stacy Poole. That's still not quite as much as he's losing -- Knight is no John Wall and there's not a veteran to fill Patrick Patterson's role. Still, if the 'Cats add Leslie, they could be a top 5-10 team again.

(4) Will JaJuan Johnson stay in the draft or will he pull out? Assuming Hummel comes all the way back, Purdue could be in the preseason No. 1 mix -- IF Johnson returns. If he stays in the draft, the Boilermakers have a huge hole in the middle of their lineup ... I'm not sure they're even a top 10 team.

(5) Will there be any more fallout from the ACC's three coacing changes? In the last few days we've learned that Rakim Sanders is leaving BC and that Devin Booker is staying at Clemson. Anybody else thinking of leaving? And what happens to the strong recruiting class that Dino Gaudio had assembled at Wake Forest. You can bet that all five got calls from rival coaches, trying to steal guys like McKie, Terrell and (the most important of all) Chennault. If all five stay, Bzdelik has a chance to build quickly. A couple of losses could leave the Deacons in a hole for years.

Other than that, I can't see anything on the immediate horizon that would have a huge impact on the ACC/nation next season. Yeah, UNC may lose a transfer for two, but the loss of Justin Watts or even Leslie McDonald (not saying it's going to happen ...) will have very little impact. Now, if Jon Henson leaves or turns pro, I'll get back to you. But at this point, that seems about as likely as Nolan Smith jumping into the draft.

davekay1971
04-17-2010, 12:32 PM
I sincerely hope Leslie picks State. That addition would make State very relevant in the ACC picture. I would love to see what Sidney Lowe can do with ACC caliber talent at every position. In Harrow, he's going to finally have a PG who can really run the system he wants. Javi Gonzalez has developed nicely, but is still more appropriate as a backup PG in this conference...and he will be a very, very good backup. A lineup of Harrow, Wood, Leslie, Smith, and Brown/Howell would be a monstrous upgrade, talent-wise. State would be a fun team to watch, and a tough matchup for most teams.

Jderf
04-17-2010, 12:36 PM
I sincerely hope Leslie picks State. That addition would make State very relevant in the ACC picture. I would love to see what Sidney Lowe can do with ACC caliber talent at every position.

Agree here. I just think it will be good for the ACC in general if Sydney can finally turn them into a challenger year-in-year-out. I'm tired of people saying it's a two-team conference.

airowe
04-17-2010, 12:52 PM
Agreed on Leslie. I think he'd make State a more dangerous team and that would be good for the conference as a whole. Hopefully, Sid is better prepared to handle possible chemistry problems than he was with Cedric Simmons. Tracy Smith seems like he has a better head on his shoulders than the guys that were around when Simmons stopped over for a year, but Leslie may be more of a headcase than Simmons ever was.

I think a lot of people are sleeping on Ohio State, although this may not be the thread for it since they're not in contention for anymore recruits and Turner is most certainly gone. The Big 10 should be a forceful conference next year with MSU and Purdue's success dependent on Lucas' and Hummel's recoveries from injury and OSU waiting to see how Matta integrates a very deep and talented recruiting class with a solid returning squad.

loran16
04-17-2010, 02:02 PM
I don't know guys....I just sort of see Sidney Lowe as an inferior version of Paul Hewitt....good recruiter, terrible in-game coach.

He's had the talent before and has vastly underperformed (JJ Hickson disaster anyone?). I'm happy they have some recruits only because now if they fail, they HAVE to fire him.

Anyhow, I think Leslie goes to Kentucky. Calipari's gearing up to reload, and i think that's too enticing for a player like that.

Newton_14
04-17-2010, 02:13 PM
I don't know guys....I just sort of see Sidney Lowe as an inferior version of Paul Hewitt....good recruiter, terrible in-game coach.

He's had the talent before and has vastly underperformed (JJ Hickson disaster anyone?). I'm happy they have some recruits only because now if they fail, they HAVE to fire him.

Anyhow, I think Leslie goes to Kentucky. Calipari's gearing up to reload, and i think that's too enticing for a player like that.

While I am not sold on Lowe as a Head Coach yet, I will say this. He is better than Hewitt. And while State may had have decent talent inside, the one thing they have not had in Lowe's tenure is good/great guards except for his first team that had Engin Ansur at the point. In the games that Ansur played State played good basketball and had success.

Other than that team his guards have been sub-par. And you simply cannot win in college basketball without good/great guard play no matter how much talent you have inside. Look no further than this year's heels team for a good example of that.

With Harrow coming in, combined with the other talent, we will finally see if Lowe can cut it in the ACC or not. If they get Leslie things could go very well for State this year. And the fact that Cothron pulled out, indicates to me that there is a great chance Leslie is coming to State. Otherwise Cothron likely would have come.

We will soon know I guess. I would not be shocked if Leslie goes to UK. Not at all. But I would not put him there just yet.

Hey Airowe, did you mean Hickson rather than Simmons in your post?

airowe
04-17-2010, 02:19 PM
Hey Airowe, did you mean Hickson rather than Simmons in your post?

Yes. I was hoping nobody noticed ;)

To make it up to you, I give you the collected wit and wisdom of Julius Hodge:

http://www4.ncsu.edu/~jphollow/julius.html

Newton_14
04-17-2010, 02:39 PM
Yes. I was hoping nobody noticed ;)

To make it up to you, I give you the collected wit and wisdom of Julius Hodge:

http://www4.ncsu.edu/~jphollow/julius.html

Aaahh the infamous "Jules". I loved that guy, well we had sort of had a love/hate relationship. But in the end I decided the dude was just a great guy. Thanks for the link. That was good stuff.

I believe it was the 01-02 season and Duke was playing at State. As the teams were settling into their positions for the tip-off, Jules thought it would be a good idea to talk a little smack to Jason Williams. Jason looked right at him and told Jules to "Shut the Freak Up" only freak was not the word used. I had never seen Jason do something like that before and that was funny as heck. If memory serves Dunleavy broke open a close game and went off that night to lead Duke to the win. Good times..

Julius was a classic. One of the all-time "quoters".

ACCBBallFan
04-17-2010, 04:20 PM
I sincerely hope Leslie picks State. That addition would make State very relevant in the ACC picture. I would love to see what Sidney Lowe can do with ACC caliber talent at every position. In Harrow, he's going to finally have a PG who can really run the system he wants. Javi Gonzalez has developed nicely, but is still more appropriate as a backup PG in this conference...and he will be a very, very good backup. A lineup of Harrow, Wood, Leslie, Smith, and Brown/Howell would be a monstrous upgrade, talent-wise. State would be a fun team to watch, and a tough matchup for most teams.

And if his fifth year of HS improved his grades/terst scores, Dorenzo Brown could be with the Pack next year too.

Greg_Newton
04-17-2010, 04:59 PM
Agree here. I just think it will be good for the ACC in general if Sydney can finally turn them into a challenger year-in-year-out. I'm tired of people saying it's a two-team conference.

I also concur. There is something just so charmingly retro about NC State being a competitive team. :D

Duke #33
04-19-2010, 11:20 AM
In the front page link for josh hairston, josh says that the word on the street is that kyle will be back. I dont know what street he is on, but i hope his street is dukes street. Anyway you look at this, this cant be bad news.

wilko
04-19-2010, 11:46 AM
I sincerely hope Leslie picks State. That addition would make State very relevant in the ACC picture. A lineup of Harrow, Wood, Leslie, Smith, and Brown/Howell would be a monstrous upgrade, talent-wise. State would be a fun team to watch, and a tough matchup for most teams.

uuuuhm. They beat us this past yr. So I cant say with full happiness that I want them to be ALL THAT much better. I DO want them to beat UNC and tow the line in that respect.

I'd be delighted if they switched up a bit and rolled over for US, the way they seemingly do for UNC. That would make me happy.

YourLandlord
04-19-2010, 12:46 PM
uuuuhm. They beat us this past yr. So I cant say with full happiness that I want them to be ALL THAT much better. I DO want them to beat UNC and tow the line in that respect.

I'd be delighted if they switched up a bit and rolled over for US, the way they seemingly do for UNC. That would make me happy.

good players coming to the ACC is good for everyone in the ACC.

wilko
04-19-2010, 01:00 PM
good players coming to the ACC is good for everyone in the ACC.

I agree.
I would just prefer our players be consistently BETTER, so that everyone else is competing for 2nd place.

The other conference teams being able to beat each other up will give us some pad should we have a slump or injury.

Lets be honest here.
You want "fair competition", play chess or lawn darts with your neighbors. (assuming neither of you are ranked players). As a FAN, the performance of the team, for reasons I don't quite understand, impacts my happiness, self-esteem and ego to an unhealthy degree. (yeah, I'm a freak)

So Heck yeah!!! Tormenting my friends who inexplicably like Light blue, is part of the deal and expected to some degree.

We need to BEAT not merely compete.

OldPhiKap
04-19-2010, 01:00 PM
good players coming to the ACC is good for everyone in the ACC.

I'm pulling for 11 out of 12, no doubt.

RoyalBlue08
04-19-2010, 01:44 PM
In another thread on this site, it is often stated that when a player decommits from a school, he rarely ends up signing with that school. I think this applies here as well. I would be SHOCKED if Leslie decided to go to State.