No one else is saying it: 7th is a damn insult to our entire roster and staff.

[Cowboy Junky]

I'll say it for them. 7th: there's no way in hell we finish 7th or below.

Let's break down what we lost and what we gain from a team that finished 7th last year.

We lost:

1. Jason McManamen had his worst shooting year last season. I thought he was a very good defender but he didn't have the quickest first step and could sometimes be exploited by quicker 2 guards or SF's. He was a great team leader since he stepped on the floor and a clutch shooter for three of the years he was here.

2. Lieberman was a decent point guard from about the middle of February to the end of March. For some reason it took him 2/3 of the season to become "decent". Before that, his only job was to NOT turn the ball over and he still managed to turn the ball over way more than a point guard lacking athleticism should. Lieberman was a defensive liability and frequently got schooled by quicker points. He was a below average shooter and a decent free throw shooter. He was like Grabau minus the free throw shooting, the three point shooting, the consistency, or the leadership.

3. Morris Marshall rarely played because of injury and was a non-factor the entire time he was here. He became a grad assistant, so I assume he made a good contribution to the locker room.

4. John Barnes was the softest 260 pounder in Wyoming history: a home schooled kid lacking toughness and confidence, with an exceptionally good attitude. He was probably our best cheerleader, but he didn't contribute on the basketball court.

What have we gained?

I'm going to assume that Hunter Thompson is red-shirting, so I'm not even going to discuss the recruit I'm most excited to see.

1. Ny Redding is a ball hawk that doesn't feel it necessary to jack up a bunch of shots from the point. I haven't seen enough of him to determine how good of a shooter he is, but he is a very good ball handler, a good defender, and he loves to get his teammates involved. This is a clear upgrade at the point and likely the reason why Lieberman left. Redding is a better point than Lieberman, and he's an experienced player. I think Redding is going to be the most important newcomer on the team.

2. Buddha Jones gives us another outside-in 4/5 that Edwards loves. I feel bad for Naughton and Moemeka, because it looks like Buddha is going to jump them for minutes. He's a legitimate shot blocking threat. In fact, he's probably the best shot blocker on the team right now. He can shoot pretty well for a 6'10" guy. We have another stretch four to add to the rotation.

3. Hunter Maldonado gives us a long slasher, similar to James. We definitely needed this last year. When you're offense is based on the three point shot, that shot is likely to go away on the road. We need more depth in slashers, to get to the rim and generate offense when the three ball stops finding the net. Last year, when James, Dalton, and Adams we're in foul trouble our only hope for offense was the deep ball. This might be the most important addition to our offense. He looks like a great player in transition and has potential to help bring "Dunk Town" back to Laramie. He allows us to have a 6'7" wing on the floor when JJ is playing point, giving us a line-up with four guys over 6'7".

4. Anthony Mack looks like a potentially great replacement for JMac. He's a good defender, that can stroke the ball from the outside, can penetrate to get shots, with an incredibly high basketball IQ and a calm demeanor that brings instant leadership to the basketball floor. He may be the best shooter on the team right now, and if he isn't, he has the potential to become the best shooter on the team.

5. Our skinny guys got less skinny.

6. We have a veteran squad with four seniors, three juniors, and an older sophomore that has sat out a lot because of transfers(Buddha).

7. We have slashers. We have shooters. We have length. We have veteran leadership. We have physical defensive options in the post. We have shot blockers. We have free throw shooting. We have rebounders. We have a lot of guys that can play multiple positions. What don't we have: maybe enough ball handlers?

8. I didn't mention Meuller because I think he'll have a hard time finding minutes this year.

I would need a native american shaman, a gypsy fortune teller, and a descendant of Nostradamus to predict our line-up this year but I'm going to give it a shot.

PG: Redding, Kelly, James, Herndon
SG: Adams, Gorski, Mack
SF: James, Maldonado, Dalton, Meuller
PF: Dalton, Moemeka, Jones, Meuller
C: Herndon, Jones, Naughton, Moemeka

7th? We're talking about 7th? You have to be f-word kidding me. I guess we should thank the media for insulting our staff and players, maybe enough to motivate them into making a dark horse run to a conference championship.

I'm saying second, no worse than 4th, with a punchers chance at hanging a banner.

What do you think Wyoming fans? Is there anyone on this board that thinks we'll finish 7th?

[joshvanklomp]

“You’ve got a lot of teams this year that it’s a fine line between,” Boise State coach Leon Rice said. “I think somebody said that Wyoming was picked seventh or eighth. Holy cow, that’s a team that has almost everybody back. They’re going to be terrific. So it’s a fine line between one and middle and bottom. It really is this year.”

http://trib.com/sports/college/wyoming/ ... 1c4e8.html

[Adv8RU12]

What do you think Wyoming fans? Is there anyone on this board that thinks we'll finish 7th?

OK. OK. You've clearly made your point. I concede. Sixth place now.

[Cowboy Junky]

What do you think Wyoming fans? Is there anyone on this board that thinks we'll finish 7th?

OK. OK. You've clearly made your point. I concede. Sixth place now.

I'm never surprised by the MW media picking us lower than we finish consistently, but it still pisses me off. It's like they don't do research at all and base their picks on a gut feeling derived from their Wyoming prejudices, last seasons results, and what they had for lunch.

The only thing worse than the MW media are the MW board of directors who decided to add SJSU to the MWC and turn us into a one bid league by giving every team in the conference 2 games per season against a team with an RPI that averages out at about 300. It doesn't take NASA to figure out that it's mathematical suicide to add SJSU, but we did.

I guess I should be thankful, because I only have to wait a half a year to say, "I told you so", but it still agitates my Irish temper.

[joshvanklomp]

I'm never surprised by the MW media picking us lower than we finish consistently, but it still pisses me off. It's like they don't do research at all and base their picks on a gut feeling derived from their Wyoming prejudices, last seasons results, and what they had for lunch.

I think you take preseason polls too seriously. They don't really mean that much.

[wyokoke]

I'm never surprised by the MW media picking us lower than we finish consistently, but it still pisses me off. It's like they don't do research at all and base their picks on a gut feeling derived from their Wyoming prejudices, last seasons results, and what they had for lunch.

I think you take preseason polls too seriously. They don't really mean that much.

And we've proven nothing besides that James is good

[DVDA]

There are a lot of guys on this roster that have major flaws. James, Dalton, and Herndon are the only players I would consider finished products on the roster.

Redding and Jones are unknowns that we'll have to wait and see. Redding will likely get solid minutes due to the point guard position being largely ignored by this staff. With what he's done in the Pac-12, I would hope he can provide a solid contribution to the team. Jones on the other hand will be fighting Moemeka and Naughton for playing time. I honestly wouldn't be surprised if he isn't much of a contributor this year due to numbers. Naughton and Moemeka both had major flaws last year that kept them off the court so this will be an interesting battle to see unfold.

Kelley is going to be a great backup point guard and maybe a slightly better version of Riley Grabau by the time he graduates due to his size/strength for defense, but he's basically a bulldog with energy who needs to improve his control of the game as a point guard to be a complete player.

Adams has an incredible first step, but he needs to learn when to use it and when to back down from trying to dunk everything. If he wants to win, he would accept the role of defensive specialist because his athleticism would be able to shut down nearly any guard in the MWC. I didn't see the necessary maturity from him last year and wouldn't be surprised if it's missing again this year. His best role is as a sixth man in my opinion. He's one of those guys with a ton of potential but may never reach it for whatever reason.

Aka Gorski was far too often a step behind two years ago and half a step behind last year. I'm hoping he figures it out defensively to no longer be that guy that's always half a step behind and giving up easy buckets. If he can get to that point, he could be a JMac type of contributor. Until then, he's still a great shooter that can struggle to get open and plays defense that isn't quite up to par.

Moemeka provided great energy and athleticism in limited minutes last year. It's clear the kid has a ton of potential, but he needs the game to slow down for him. Improved understanding of defensive positioning and rotations could make him the perfect first big off the bench. I'm very excited for Moemeka, but he's still only a redshirt sophomore.

Naughton had his ups and downs last year. He was a force against weaker competition where he could bully smaller players. He struggled against stronger players offensively and had his lack of lateral quickness exploited enough that it limited his minutes. Either he needs to improve his lateral quickness enough to not be a liability or he needs to become a monster offensively and Shaq his way onto the court. I think he'll end up being the guy plays against the 7' 250+ pounders and the lower competition that can't handle our 6'10" 250 pounder.

Onto the freshman... I think their is a 99.9% chance Thompson redshirts with the reported foot injury preventing him from getting this early season work. Hopefully he gets to 100% quickly and stays there.

Mueller is going to have a hard time finding minutes this year due to numbers. I only expect garbage minutes for him.

Maldonado reminds me of Justin James coming out of high school. He could be the best player in this recruiting class even though he's been overlooked by most of the recruiting services. I'm hoping he redshirts this year, but wouldn't be surprised if he takes minutes away from some veteran players.

Mack is the freshman I think will come in and have an impact this year. He has great size at 6'6" and 218 pounds. He is a very intelligent player who doesn't limit himself to shooting. From his high school games I watched, he is the guy who makes the pass that leads to the assist. If they used hockey stats, he would have a ton of assists. Simply put, he kept their offense flowing smoothly instead of killing the flow by holding the ball. He exerted himself on defense instead of coasting which was great to see. I expect Mack to compete directly with Aka Gorski for minutes. I won't be surprised if Mack ends up pushing Aka Gorski to the end of the bench by the end of the season.

I don't see this team as being easily above anyone in the conference with so many flawed players. Winning the conference is a possibility, but landing at 7th or 8th is also possible. Like JVK posted, the teams really aren't that far apart throughout the conference. If these guys don't improve on the flaws I listed above, we could very well see a 7th place finish.

[Cowboy Junky]

There are a lot of guys on this roster that have major flaws. James, Dalton, and Herndon are the only players I would consider finished products on the roster.

Redding and Jones are unknowns that we'll have to wait and see. Redding will likely get solid minutes due to the point guard position being largely ignored by this staff. With what he's done in the Pac-12, I would hope he can provide a solid contribution to the team. Jones on the other hand will be fighting Moemeka and Naughton for playing time. I honestly wouldn't be surprised if he isn't much of a contributor this year due to numbers. Naughton and Moemeka both had major flaws last year that kept them off the court so this will be an interesting battle to see unfold.

Kelley is going to be a great backup point guard and maybe a slightly better version of Riley Grabau by the time he graduates due to his size/strength for defense, but he's basically a bulldog with energy who needs to improve his control of the game as a point guard to be a complete player.

Adams has an incredible first step, but he needs to learn when to use it and when to back down from trying to dunk everything. If he wants to win, he would accept the role of defensive specialist because his athleticism would be able to shut down nearly any guard in the MWC. I didn't see the necessary maturity from him last year and wouldn't be surprised if it's missing again this year. His best role is as a sixth man in my opinion. He's one of those guys with a ton of potential but may never reach it for whatever reason.

Aka Gorski was far too often a step behind two years ago and half a step behind last year. I'm hoping he figures it out defensively to no longer be that guy that's always half a step behind and giving up easy buckets. If he can get to that point, he could be a JMac type of contributor. Until then, he's still a great shooter that can struggle to get open and plays defense that isn't quite up to par.

Moemeka provided great energy and athleticism in limited minutes last year. It's clear the kid has a ton of potential, but he needs the game to slow down for him. Improved understanding of defensive positioning and rotations could make him the perfect first big off the bench. I'm very excited for Moemeka, but he's still only a redshirt sophomore.

Naughton had his ups and downs last year. He was a force against weaker competition where he could bully smaller players. He struggled against stronger players offensively and had his lack of lateral quickness exploited enough that it limited his minutes. Either he needs to improve his lateral quickness enough to not be a liability or he needs to become a monster offensively and Shaq his way onto the court. I think he'll end up being the guy plays against the 7' 250+ pounders and the lower competition that can't handle our 6'10" 250 pounder.

Onto the freshman... I think their is a 99.9% chance Thompson redshirts with the reported foot injury preventing him from getting this early season work. Hopefully he gets to 100% quickly and stays there.

Mueller is going to have a hard time finding minutes this year due to numbers. I only expect garbage minutes for him.

Maldonado reminds me of Justin James coming out of high school. He could be the best player in this recruiting class even though he's been overlooked by most of the recruiting services. I'm hoping he redshirts this year, but wouldn't be surprised if he takes minutes away from some veteran players.

Mack is the freshman I think will come in and have an impact this year. He has great size at 6'6" and 218 pounds. He is a very intelligent player who doesn't limit himself to shooting. From his high school games I watched, he is the guy who makes the pass that leads to the assist. If they used hockey stats, he would have a ton of assists. Simply put, he kept their offense flowing smoothly instead of killing the flow by holding the ball. He exerted himself on defense instead of coasting which was great to see. I expect Mack to compete directly with Aka Gorski for minutes. I won't be surprised if Mack ends up pushing Aka Gorski to the end of the bench by the end of the season.

I don't see this team as being easily above anyone in the conference with so many flawed players. Winning the conference is a possibility, but landing at 7th or 8th is also possible. Like JVK posted, the teams really aren't that far apart throughout the conference. If these guys don't improve on the flaws I listed above, we could very well see a 7th place finish.

Every team in the MW has rosters loaded with "flawed" players. In fact, there isn't a perfect player on earth today.

Our results will be based off of talent and experience and our roster is loaded with a lot of both: at least as much as we've had since our last tourney appearance.

I'm thankful for the well thought out response and agree with most that you've said, especially about specific players. I just can't see any way in hell, that there are 6 teams in the MWC with more talent, coaching, or experience than Wyoming.

I guess hope springs eternal for me, and a lot of people will have to see some improvement based on real results.

I still can't believe that our team, with all the length and athleticism, is destined to finish 7th or below in this poop conference.

The only thing I can see as a possible weakness that can be exploited by the majority of teams in our league is the size of our guards, the lack of an abundance of outside shooting threats from those positions, and the ball handling ability of the guy bringing the ball up the floor for Wyoming.

[carbonpoke]

I see other teams that also have question marks.

San Diego has coaching turnover.

Csu has a coach that rebuilds chemistry every year. He has problems against strong x and os coaches.

Boise has lost a ton.

Unlv is scary.

Nevada could be scary. Again, I don't like transfer system schools.

I don't like the lack of respect, but I kinda dig the underdog role. We are deep enough to weather fouls on the regular. But can we build enough rhythm to to have consistent scoring. Our defense has fallen off since shyatt left. We have to score and run to keep our defense respectable. Also, we have to have a decent half court set that generates easy buckets. I don't want to see the 3 point barrage all the time. Get to the hoop and get the other team in foul trouble. That's when our depth will shine.

We have the roster and staff that should finish top 3.

[DVDA]

Every team in the MW has rosters loaded with "flawed" players. In fact, there isn't a perfect player on earth today.

Our results will be based off of talent and experience and our roster is loaded with a lot of both: at least as much as we've had since our last tourney appearance.

I'm thankful for the well thought out response and agree with most that you've said, especially about specific players. I just can't see any way in hell, that there are 6 teams in the MWC with more talent, coaching, or experience than Wyoming.

I guess hope springs eternal for me, and a lot of people will have to see some improvement based on real results.

I still can't believe that our team, with all the length and athleticism, is destined to finish 7th or below in this poop conference.

The only thing I can see as a possible weakness that can be exploited by the majority of teams in our league is the size of our guards, the lack of an abundance of outside shooting threats from those positions, and the ball handling ability of the guy bringing the ball up the floor for Wyoming.

I think this team should compete for a conference championship to be clear on that. James is one of, if not the best player in the MWC. Dalton and Herndon should be one of the best front courts in the league. There are a lot of question marks with coaching and players that make Wyoming an easy target for voters to put lower on their list. I prefer these kids coming into the season with a chip on their shoulder due to the lack of respect they are getting. This should be an exciting season for UW basketball. Hopefully these kids prove us right in thinking they're a top MWC team.

[LanderPoke]

I was pretty insulted. I mean UNLV and CSU in front of us? I don't care if UNLV got a 5*.That's just crazy. CSU lost two of their better players on the last 15 years and they're just going to bounce back like that? No.

James, Dalton and Herndon are going to be solid, solid players, but to me the wild card is Lou. If he can be the type of do-it-all player we need him to be we will go far this year. Lou needs to stop turning it over and become more of a distributor and not. He needs to crash the boards and be a lock down defender, too. We know he's got the athleticism.


If any freshman can actually contribute meaningful minutes on this deep team then good things await them. I hope we find that Mack and Maldonado are able to get on the floor and do some good things.

Good stuff. I really would be pleased with a top 4 finish, but I think we can be top 2-3.

[Cosmic Cowboy]

This should be the early material to get fire under this team's ass
I'd agree with your optimistic viewpoint's Junky. The board is high on our freshmen and after hearing Edwards talk about them so am I, but.......we can't rely on freshmen players until proven otherwise. The good news is freshmen can often be the best players in college bball and its be proven for decades running now. I'd also like to note that our big 3 (JJ, Dalton, and Herndon) could've very well added another level to their respective games. Can you imagine all of those guys having a better year then last? That would easily put us in the top 4 imo. These preseason polls and mags are often just garby garb predict the same as last year junk anyway. I feel like they're almost made by generic robots now.

[Wyo2dal]

Let them sleep on us all year, I'm fine with that.

[Vt poke]

Let them sleep on us all year, I'm fine with that.

Look what happened last year in football. We were picked dead last in the beginning of the year, yet finished 2nd. No love for our guys, but that's ok... This team will finish top 3!!

[poke_addict]

I honestly expect this team to compete for the conference title. Too many things going for the pokes.

[stymeman]

Use it as motivation, prove the conference wrong and for a change stop talking about it and GET IT DONE!!! should be fun I think!!

[cali2wyo]

I think we can challenge for the top 4, but 5th is a very realistic finish for this team as well. There's clearly a higher tier of teams (Nevada, SDSU, Boise, and Fresno) followed by a group of teams that may make some noise (Wyoming, UNLV, and CSU).

I don't think our system will allow us to be consistent enough to compete for the regular season title (poor rebounding, too many 3-pointers) but we have the potential to completely blow any team out on any given night, so the conference tournament could be very interesting if we happen to get hot at the right time.

[WYCowboy]

I think it will depend on how this team (from top to bottom) gels as a team. I believe we have the talent, experience, depth, and the coaching staff to compete for a championship.

['PokeForLife]

I expect Mack to compete directly with Aka Gorski for minutes. I won't be surprised if Mack ends up pushing Aka Gorski to the end of the bench by the end of the season.

I sure hope so. I'm worried that won't be the case though, because last year Edwards seemed liked everything was set in stone with the lineup and he couldn't deviate. I just hope that he will let performance determine time on the court. Aka should only be on the court if he has a hot hand. He is a liability in literally every other way. I mean, I think that former Cowgirl big Kaylie Rader had a higher vertical than he does.

[seattlecowboy]

I expect Mack to compete directly with Aka Gorski for minutes. I won't be surprised if Mack ends up pushing Aka Gorski to the end of the bench by the end of the season.

I sure hope so. I'm worried that won't be the case though, because last year Edwards seemed liked everything was set in stone with the lineup and he couldn't deviate. I just hope that he will let performance determine time on the court. Aka should only be on the court if he has a hot hand. He is a liability in literally every other way. I mean, I think that former Cowgirl big Kaylie Rader had a higher vertical than he does.

I don't see Gorski getting put at the end of the bench at all. Especially by a freshman. I saw James and Dalton in an interview and they both said that Gorski is the best 3 point shooter on the team and that includes freshman. We know Edwards loves the 3 ball so be prepared to see plenty of Gorski. Plus Gorski is a senior with lots of playing time.

I think Mack is going to be good in the future but I don't think him or Maldonado will come in and be like Fennis Dembo as a freshman. Where they just are an imediate impact. I think both will compete for some playing time but they will both need experience at the college level before either makes a major impact. I could see both doing about what Justin James did his freshman year as far as numbers maybe a little less. Not sure either will get as many minutes as James did his freshman year with so many people competing for playing time.

I do think this team can compete at the top of the conference though.