NC State departures

[BD80]

According to "sources" NCState's Lorenzo Brown to declare for draft:

http://www.cbssports.com/collegebask...-for-nba-draft

[timmy c]

According to "sources" NCState's Lorenzo Brown to declare for draft:

http://www.cbssports.com/collegebask...-for-nba-draft

Brownout?

Does this mean they have lowered the available voltage in Raleigh?

[CDu]

Not a huge shock if true. With the weak draft class and the possibility that Brown would play more off the ball next year (with Cat Barber coming in), it sort of makes sense. Get out while you're still a potential 1st round pick.

Too bad for State though if true. Especially if that leads to Leslie leaving, too. That would leave the Pack with a very undersized and/or inexperienced frontcourt.

[Duvall]

Zagoria reporting that both Leslie and Brown are leaving, but then again, it's just Zags.

[CDu]

Zagoria reporting that both Leslie and Brown are leaving, but then again, it's just Zags.

If so, scratch State off the list of contenders for the ACC next year. They'll be less deep, less talented, and less experienced than they were this year when they underachieved to the 5th spot in the ACC.

[Ichabod Drain]

If so, scratch State off the list of contenders for the ACC next year. They'll be less deep, less talented, and less experienced than they were this year when they underachieved to the 5th spot in the ACC.

They will definitely be less experienced but they have a decent class coming in;

Anthony Barber #6 PG
Beejay Anya #8 C
Kyle Washington #22 PF

Still going to be pretty good. As talented as Leslie is, he really hurt them sometimes this year. Better chemistry and more heart could take this team a lot farther. But I don't expect they will be able to compete with Duke and UNC next year.

[dukelifer]

If so, scratch State off the list of contenders for the ACC next year. They'll be less deep, less talented, and less experienced than they were this year when they underachieved to the 5th spot in the ACC.

They will definitely struggle because of their youth- but I do like Tyler Lewis. Not a great athlete but can run the show and is sneaky good.

[juise]

They will definitely struggle because of their youth- but I do like Tyler Lewis. Not a great athlete but can run the show and is sneaky when it comes to staying up past his bedtime.

Fixed it for ya.


I wonder what kind of leaps Warren and Purvis will make. Losing Howell will be painful.

[JasonEvans]

They will definitely be less experienced but they have a decent class coming in;

Anthony Barber #6 PG
Beejay Anya #8 C
Kyle Washington #22 PF

Still going to be pretty good. As talented as Leslie is, he really hurt them sometimes this year. Better chemistry and more heart could take this team a lot farther. But I don't expect they will be able to compete with Duke and UNC next year.

It is a very good class and Barber is likely to instantly start. The lineup will likely be:

Barber - PG
Lewis - PG2
Purvis - SF
Warren - PF
Anya or Jordan Vandenberg - C

Really young and no depth. They will not compete with the top of the ACC next year, I think. You mentioned Duke and UNC but don't forget about Syracuse, Pitt, and ND. I suspect that BC is ready to move up a bit to the middle of the ACC pack - they have everyone coming back. Virginia should be up there again -- they only lose Jontell Evans. It is very hard for me to see State being in the top half of the conference.

-Jason "Purvis and Warren will really need to carry the scoring load -- I won't be shocked if Warren leads the conference in scoring" Evans
Leslie -

[davekay1971]

Fixed it for ya.


I wonder what kind of leaps Warren and Purvis will make. Losing Howell will be painful.

Howell is their biggest loss, although losing Brown hurts pretty badly. I liked what I saw of Lewis, so even if Barber isn't quite ready for primetime, they're not stuck at PG. Purvis and Warren, if they make a good freshman to sophomore jump, which isn't uncommon at all, provide State with plenty of talent. But, unless Anya is ready to play as a freshman, they've got a big gaping hole at center that could make State next year look like UNC this year minus the great outside shooting. Ewwww...

[CDu]

They will definitely be less experienced but they have a decent class coming in;

Anthony Barber #6 PG
Beejay Anya #8 C
Kyle Washington #22 PF

Still going to be pretty good. As talented as Leslie is, he really hurt them sometimes this year. Better chemistry and more heart could take this team a lot farther. But I don't expect they will be able to compete with Duke and UNC next year.

Yes, they have a decent recruiting class coming in. But, position by position, they are taking a step back:
PG: lose Brown, add Barber and improvements to Lewis (slight-to-big step down depending on how good Barber is and how good Lews gets)
Wing: Lose Wood, add improvements to Purvis and Warren (probably a wash, maybe an upgrade)
PF: lose Leslie, add Washington (very big step down)
C: lose Howell, add Anya and improvements to Vandenburg (very big step down)

They'll be okay, but they will not be as good as this year's team, and they won't be anywhere near the hunt for the ACC next year with that team. Teams like Duke, UNC, Syracuse, Pitt, UVa, and Notre Dame will all likely be better, and younger teams like FSU, Wake, and BC may sneak up on them too.

[jimsumner]

Extraordinarily unlikely that Vandenberg will come back for his 5th year.

Purvis, Barber and Lewis is a decent guard rotation, albeit a bit undersized.

LSU transfer Ralston Turner should start at the 3, with Warren at the 4.

One of the frosh starts at the 5. By default.

Not a bad team. But very young and with lots of question marks.

Unless one or both of Purvis and Warren makes a jump to 1st-team All-ACC status, this is an NIT team

[sagegrouse]

They will definitely struggle because of their youth- but I do like Tyler Lewis. Not a great athlete but can run the show and is sneaky good.

I agree that Lewis is a good player but worry, along with the Crazies, that the 9PM games will keep him up past his bedtime, with a predictable decline in efficiency.

sagegrouse

[BD80]

... As talented as Leslie is, he really hurt them sometimes this year. ...

I know I'm falling for the ol' "potentential over production" meme, but I wouldn't mind seeing the Pistons spend their 2nd round pick on CJ (assuming RKelly is gone). They are developing a good core of gym rat mentalities, and CJ might do better in that setting with the need to prove himself than as the BMOC in Raliegh.

[Jderf]

I agree that Lewis is a good player but worry, along with the Crazies, that the 9PM games will keep him up past his bedtime, with a predictable decline in efficiency.

sagegrouse

How dare you say that about Tyler's grandmother. You should be ashamed. I'm taking this to the media.

[CDu]

Extraordinarily unlikely that Vandenberg will come back for his 5th year.

Purvis, Barber and Lewis is a decent guard rotation, albeit a bit undersized.

LSU transfer Ralston Turner should start at the 3, with Warren at the 4.

One of the frosh starts at the 5. By default.

Not a bad team. But very young and with lots of question marks.

Unless one or both of Purvis and Warren makes a jump to 1st-team All-ACC status, this is an NIT team

Yeah, I had forgotten about Turner. That is a nice addition, and their PG-SF spots will be quite talented (but very young and with no proven leaders). A perimeter rotation of Barber, Purvis, Turner, and Lewis could end up being solid. But that still leaves them incredibly thin up front. Warren is a very undersized option at PF, and he's by far the best option they have (Washington is a bit of a project). And if Vandenburg leaves then Anya is the only center on the roster. And he's a freshman.

That roster is not all that different from the roster Wake put on the floor this year. Probably better at PG, but probably not as good at C. And not as experienced at the star spots (Warren and Purvis vs McKie and Harris).

[Duvall]

T.J. Warren also considering leaving?

[mr shadow 008]

I see that a lot of people are talking about Anthony Barber as a potential upgrade for State next year. I've watched Barber play in person a few times the past two years. He is very quick but tends to play out of control quite a bit of the time, nor is he a very good passer. He has a score first mentality, though he has improved upon this from last year. Also, he has to put up a lot of shots to get his points.

[CoachJ10]

I will set the over/under on minutes that Lorenzo Brown plays in the NBA next season at 5.

Lo should start learning some Russia or Italian...that's where he will be playing next season...

[tommy]

I will set the over/under on minutes that Lorenzo Brown plays in the NBA next season at 5.

Lo should start learning some Russia or Italian...that's where he will be playing next season...

If it's Italy, he'll learn this for sure: Ho bisogno di piu tocchi.