So what are realistic expectations for the Gophers this year?

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gobbles03

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If I remember correctly we had some transfer who sat last year are able to play and some nice incoming freshman. Did we lose any talented seniors from last year or is our core returning in tact? I'm trying to play catch up, so fill me in.

Thanks

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Lose:

Joey King
Kevin Dorsey
Charles Buggs
Carlos Morris

Bring In:

Reggie Lynch
Akeem Springs
Davonte Fitzgerald
Amir Coffey
Eric Curry
Michael Hurt

Return:

Nate Mason
Dupree McBrayer
Ahmad Gilbert
Jordan Murphy
Bakary Konate
Gaston Diedhiou

As far as the guys we lost, we will miss King's shooting the most. Losing Dorsey leaves us a little thin of ball handlers, but Dupree should be fine as backup PG.

We bring in plenty of talent. Springs, Lynch and Fitzgerald are the transfers. Unfortunately Fitz tore his ACL a couple weeks ago so he will be out for the season. Springs is a solid 2 guard who shot 36% from three ladt season and is a well built kid who is a great rebounder for his position. Lynch is a really good defensive center
which we probably haven't had since Mbakwe.

Coffey is a top 50 recruit and has great size and all around skill at SG/SF. Curry is a borderline top 100 recruit who should be Murph's primary backup and could also see some time at the 5.
Hurt is a good 3 point shooter and high IQ player but may need a year or two to adjust to college level athleticism.

As far as the returnees go, Mason and Murphy are the two top dogs. Both have All-B1G potential. Dupree imo, is going to be a good 6th man backing up both the PG and SG spots. Konate is an ok backup center who should see 5-10 minutes a game. Gilbert is a wildcard. Wasn't impressed with him last year, but we are thin at SF so he might get some run. Diedhiou I don't see playing much.

Once the Big Ten games start rolling around I think
our rotation will be something like this:

PG: Mason/McBrayer
SG: Springs/McBrayer
SF: Coffey/Springs
PF: Murphy/Curry
C: Lynch/Konate/Curry

Wild Cards:
SF: Ahmad Gilbert
SF: Michael Hurt

We are thin at SF, so if one of these dudes step up, they are going to get minutes.

Wont play much:
Gaston Diedhiou


That ends my quick and lazy rundown, hope it helps.
 

I think Gilbert was actually third in points tonight behind Mason and McBrayer. He got 5 points, he hit a 3, and got some rebounds. I still have hope that Gilbert evolves into a solid role player and not a "can't this guy just transfer already?" kind of guy.
 

Agree with most of the summary except for the part on Konate. I think he is going to get 15-20 minutes a game and I think he can be successful back up center. He has legit size and has always been a good on ball post defender. He isn't going to bring you much on offense but if he's playing with mason he should get some easy looks.
 

If we are relatively injury free this season we will be able to be competitive and have some fun watching this group play. A pivot point in the program, finally.
 


Cayman said:
I think Gilbert was actually third in points tonight behind Mason and McBrayer. He got 5 points, he hit a 3, and got some rebounds. I still have hope that Gilbert evolves into a solid role player and not a "can't this guy just transfer already?" kind of guy.
Click to expand...

I agree. He was good imo and will contribute as this season.
 

Cayman said:
I think Gilbert was actually third in points tonight behind Mason and McBrayer. He got 5 points, he hit a 3, and got some rebounds. I still have hope that Gilbert evolves into a solid role player and not a "can't this guy just transfer already?" kind of guy.
Click to expand...

True I liked Gilbert last year, needs to react quicker on D, but he has length and can shoot. Had some injuries last year and I think most of the bad memories of him were after the sexy tape when he was forced to play the two spot
 

bemidjigopher said:
True I liked Gilbert last year, needs to react quicker on D, but he has length and can shoot. Had some injuries last year and I think most of the bad memories of him were after the sexy tape when he was forced to play the two spot
Click to expand...

Yeah hopefully we can actually play our reserves as reserves this year instead of forcing them to play 25 minutes because our basketball team just doesn't have enough players on it.
 




Much much more watchable and will look like a big ten team.

A lot more rebounders on the floor
 


good summary

Excellent breakdown! I would add is this team could have serious outside shooting issues. We hope Mason returns to form, and a few other guys can improve in this area. Seems like we can force an up tempo game in the nonconference but suffer in the half-court big ten season. I also hope Coffey can overcome what some have suggested as a lack of assertiveness for scoring as he could be a matchup nightmare.

DeathClutch said:
Lose:

Joey King
Kevin Dorsey
Charles Buggs
Carlos Morris

Bring In:

Reggie Lynch
Akeem Springs
Davonte Fitzgerald
Amir Coffey
Eric Curry
Michael Hurt

Return:

Nate Mason
Dupree McBrayer
Ahmad Gilbert
Jordan Murphy
Bakary Konate
Gaston Diedhiou

As far as the guys we lost, we will miss King's shooting the most. Losing Dorsey leaves us a little thin of ball handlers, but Dupree should be fine as backup PG.

We bring in plenty of talent. Springs, Lynch and Fitzgerald are the transfers. Unfortunately Fitz tore his ACL a couple weeks ago so he will be out for the season. Springs is a solid 2 guard who shot 36% from three ladt season and is a well built kid who is a great rebounder for his position. Lynch is a really good defensive center
which we probably haven't had since Mbakwe.

Coffey is a top 50 recruit and has great size and all around skill at SG/SF. Curry is a borderline top 100 recruit who should be Murph's primary backup and could also see some time at the 5.
Hurt is a good 3 point shooter and high IQ player but may need a year or two to adjust to college level athleticism.

As far as the returnees go, Mason and Murphy are the two top dogs. Both have All-B1G potential. Dupree imo, is going to be a good 6th man backing up both the PG and SG spots. Konate is an ok backup center who should see 5-10 minutes a game. Gilbert is a wildcard. Wasn't impressed with him last year, but we are thin at SF so he might get some run. Diedhiou I don't see playing much.

Once the Big Ten games start rolling around I think
our rotation will be something like this:

PG: Mason/McBrayer
SG: Springs/McBrayer
SF: Coffey/Springs
PF: Murphy/Curry
C: Lynch/Konate/Curry

Wild Cards:
SF: Ahmad Gilbert
SF: Michael Hurt

We are thin at SF, so if one of these dudes step up, they are going to get minutes.

Wont play much:
Gaston Diedhiou


That ends my quick and lazy rundown, hope it helps.
Click to expand...
 

Athletic, aggressive defensively. Slightly better than last year. 14 wins
 



I think anything more than 18 wins is a good thing. I am looking for a team that makes me imagine that we are moving in the right direction. I want to see a team that plays hard on defense and looks athletic and competitive on the boards. I want to see a team that makes me believe that we are climbing in the Big Ten over the next three years and one that will likely be in the NCAAs next year.
I want to see a team that hardly ever gets blown out and that finds a way to win close games in the Barn.

While it is not beyond the realm of possibility that we make a great stride this year and get in to the tournament, I think it is pretty unlikely to go from where we were to in the tournament in one year. Last year's team looked a shade better than Clem's first year team- which was 2-16 Big Ten. It took Clem until Newbern/Burton and Coffey were Juniors to squeak in to the NCAAs. I think this Gopher team is better than Clem's second year squad but not quite at the level of the year three squad that made the run to the Sweet 16.

For the most part I am looking for what it feels and looks like versus what the final win/loss tally is this year.
 

I thin they will be between 16-21 wins on the season depending on injuries. They should go either 11-2 or 10-3 in the non-conference. In conference, anywhere from 6-12 to 9-9. Win 1 game in the tourney. They may get close to the bubble but things have to go right for them health wise.
 

KenPom preseason projection of Gophers

#71. 16-15 overall, 7-11 in B1G.
 

my only hope is that coyle doesnt make a rash move and can pitino for a .500 season - next year will be a better measuring stick of the programs direction considering he won 25, 18, and then 8 games leading up to this season
 

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