I ask this yearly on both the men's and women's forum. What game are you most excited for? Hands down Duke for me. They imo have the highest ceiling of any team so I see them as a great barometer as well as a huge potential W for the Bears

I can't wait for the first one.

And the first game in the new arena.

"your" is not the same as "you are" (you're)

I'm looking forward to Duke above all others, but also Seton Hall & Auburn (I wish they were both ranked). The tourney in Brooklyn & Michigan State are also interesting. Then there's conference play: Kansas, Texas, Houston, Iowa State, K State, & Tech.

I'm well aware. Thank you grammar police officer

You're welcome!

****** alert

Duke

--I hate Duke, always have. But, let's face it. They have been a measuring stick of success for decades now.

--Duke plays fundamentally sound basketball. Tony Bennett's teams play fundamentally sound basketball. When I saw how fundamentally unsound his team made our D look last year, I knew early on we were not gonna be as good as I had initially thought. This game will show me whether we're ready to play fundamentally sound hoops on both ends of the court.

--Duke's overall size and skill level in the front court will tell me how far Jonathan, Yves, Jalen and Josh are or how far they will have to go in order for us to be successful against any type of matchup in the conference or in the NCAAs.

--Duke has the blueblood aura that sometimes intimidates teams. How our players react to this situation will tell me a lot about the confidence makeup of this team. That was one of the main factors in the success of our Natty team. This game in particular will tell me a lot about kids like Walter, Little, Nunn and Missi.

--RayJ Dennis will have had 8 games by the point to lead the team at PG, so by this game he should be ready to shine on the biggest stage possible. If he's not ready to shine on a big stage, I will have serious concerns about how far we can go as he will be one of the main keys for us advancing far in the NCAAs. If he shines (like I think he will), I'll leave that game believing we have a strong shot to battle KU for the Big 12 title and the potential to advance deep in the NCAAs.

--I love for teams west of the Mississippi to shut up the big mouths of the Duke lovefest East Coast media. The fact it would be us makes it only that much more enjoyable.

While this is not a do or die win, our performance in that game on both ends of the court will tell me all I need to know about where we're likely to finish in the Big 12 and a good idea of what our prospects are for March.

LIB,MR BEARS said:

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April 8th. I don't know the opponent.

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I like the way you think. Do you have, like, a newsletter or something I could subscribe to?

I'm not the least bit worried about Dennis. Also we have multiple guys who can handle the rock and initiate offense (Miro, Grimes, Nunn) so our offense won't have to run exclusively through Dennis. I think offensively we will look more like our national championship season with multiple players who can play both on and off the ball (before I get roasted I'm not saying our guards are as good as our national title team....just that they have similar complementary skills sets).

I like your optimism, Craw, but until I see it I'm not believing it this year. I heard the same things last year about LJ, Key, Flag and Love being able to step in and run the offense (and play good D since they're taking one of the 5 spots ont he floor) at a level that would let us advance far in the NCAAs. It became evident early on that wasn't gonna be the case. I believe all of our guards are gonna good and can run an offense. That's not my concern. The question I need to be answered by watching them compete against top tier talent like Duke is can they perform at a level that allows us to compete with KU for the Big 12 title and advance far in the NCAAs.

Both offense and defense.

fubar said:

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LIB,MR BEARS said:

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April 8th. I don't know the opponent.

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I like the way you think. Do you have, like, a newsletter or something I could subscribe to?

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Venmo me $100/per season and I'll get it to you.

Get 10 friends to do the same using code "fubucks" and yours will be free for the following season.

Back to the pyramid, I mean grindstone.

I was in the minority, but I did NOT see last year's backcourt group as having multiple ball-handlers capable of running an offense. Flag was not a natural PG but did a decent job playing out of position. Key was a turnover machine with bad shot selection. I knew Cryer and Love were never capable of playing PG. Bonner was awful at every aspect offensively. I see this group differently. And more important, light years better defensively.

Duke, Mich St, KU


Interesting games: Auburn, Texas, Houston, K State

Dennis is the guy Im waiting to see perform at the high D1 level. Im optimistic as he was a player of the year at a lower level. Has some minor athleticism limitations from the clips I've seen but probably at least an equal athlete to Flag and better than Cryer.

Banking that his much better length (reach) than either of those guys and veteran skills will translate well. Game reminds me a little of a college Sam Cassell

Agreed, can't wait to see what he does in the green and gold. I can see the Sam Cassell comparison I also see some Jalen Brunson. On tape I love how comfortable he looks penetrating and keeping the dribble alive among the trees and never looks rushed. Can play at different speeds and has a crafty game with floaters and mid-range game. He doesn't rely on pure speed or athleticism. That kind of playing style usually translates well at higher levels of competition.

BTW I also think Miro will force the staff's hand into giving him meaningful rotation minutes. He played internationally over the summer against guys much older and did more than hold his own. Elite court vision and feel for the game. Due to his overseas experience he has a polished game and very high basketball IQ as we saw with Sochan. Who does that leave out of the rotation? Will be up to the coaches to decide by conference play how to sort it all out.

Yep they both play with that veteran pace (Dennis and Miro). Keep guys on the hip, change pace, always surveying the floor.

For our team, Dennis is essentially replacing Cryer for us this year. From the limited stuff I've seen Dennis is a much better defender and passer. Is a much better ball handler and inside finisher (outside of runners). Is a better athlete and much larger (has 6+ inches of wingspan advantage).

Cryer is obviously a much better shooter (3s and FTs). Cryer is probably a better overall scorer too. Dennis upped his %'s significantly last year. If he can hold those at a higher level of competition, the team will be very very good. He scored over 17 points in about 80% of his games last year so no slouch scoring the ball.

Duke

Kansas

Texas

I need basketball season to go well. This football season is… terrible