Marcus - 5 things to know

[nooram]

Five things to know as Gophers men's basketball opens practice

Gophers forwards Parker Fox and Isaiah Ihnen will be two players to watch as they return from injuries.

www.startribune.com

After Gophers coach Ben Johnson introduced his 2023-24 men's basketball team to fans last week on campus, Parker Fox ended up taking over to emcee.

The 6-8 redshirt senior forward from Mahtomedi was a natural behind the microphone. He found different ways to be heard after knee injuries kept him from suiting up for the Gophers.

Fox and redshirt junior forward Isaiah Ihnen were both recently cleared for contact after missing the last two seasons. Their leadership will be key for Johnson as practice opens this week.

"Although they haven't been on the court, they've been in our program for two years," Johnson said. "They know how it's run and what it looks like. So, they're able to help the new guys and younger guys along."

With practice officially starting Monday, here are five things to know about Johnson's Gophers:

Healthy team

For the first time since he took over as head coach in 2021, Johnson will be entering practice at with a roster at full strength.

Fox and Ihnen kept the Gophers from being fully healthy after having summer knee surgeries a year ago. Aside from their absence, Gophers players missed 18 total games last season due to injury or illness.

Entering last season, former Gophers starter Jamison Battle and Braeden Carrington were also sidelined with injuries.

Battle transferred to Ohio State, but Carrington is back healthy after missing eight games. So is scoring and rebounding leader Dawson Garcia, who missed five games.

Garcia ready to lead

After transferring home from North Carolina last year, Garcia became the U's go-to guy from the opening game, but he struggled staying healthy and embracing a leadership role.

This season, the 6-11 ex-Prior Lake standout should also feel more familiar. He bounced around after high school from Marquette to North Carolina and Minnesota. This was the first time he spent a second summer in the same college program. He's much more comfortable being the face of the team.

But Garcia doesn't have to lead Johnson's team alone. He's one of seven upperclassmen, including a veteran backcourt and 6-11, 290-pound Washington State graduate transfer Jack Wilson in the paint.

Portal point guards

The Gophers struggled mightily with consistency in the backcourt last season. There were no returning point guards on the roster after Ta'Lon Cooper transferred to South Carolina, so Johnson's staff scoured the portal looking for help.

Pepperdine's Mike Mitchell Jr. and Howard's Elijah Hawkins ended up transferring to Minnesota. Hawkins and Mitchell have combined for 125 starts in their careers.

No other Big Ten team will have two guards on their roster who averaged 5.0 or more assists and shot 44% or better from three-point range last season. Hawkins and Mitchell did both at their previous spots.

Time to bring the Payne

The Big Ten can be too tough and physically demanding for most freshmen to deal with. Even for Pharrel Payne, who was bigger than most veteran posts at 6-9 and 255 pounds.

The Cottage Grove native, though, could be ready for a breakout sophomore season.

Payne went through growing pains battling some elite frontcourt players in the Big Ten, but he's entering this fall confident after gaining valuable experience. The same could be said for sophomore forward Joshua Ola-Joseph, who started 24 games.

Christie's coming

It was hard for Gophers fans to focus on the recruit that they still had instead of the one they lost when five-star 7-footer Dennis Evans III was released from his letter of intent before arriving on campus.

But freshman guard Cameron Christie has been making a strong impression ever since joining the team this summer. The 6-6, 190-pound Illinois native has the size and shooting stroke to compete for major minutes. Also, don't be surprised if 6-8 redshirt freshman Kadyn Betts pushes for playing time on the wing.

 

[Go4]

i'm cautiously optimistic. we have depth, we have leadership. let's hope we have coaching and ball handling.

 

[60's Guy]

Fox, Ihnen, Christie and Betts. Are all four significant contributors? Is one of them sensational?
Either scenario would be the difference to climbing out of the bottom four.

 

[TwistingMyMelon]

Fox, Ihnen, Christie and Betts. Are all four significant contributors? Is one of them sensational?
Either scenario would be the difference to climbing out of the bottom four.

We also brought in 2 transfer point guards who were good shooters for their former teams (including, importantly, good free throw shooters), a backup center who is big and strong if nothing else, and a freshman Lithuanian who might have something to contribute.

Here are the seasonal player efficiency ratings of players who returned from last year's team:

	PER
Garcia	19.3​
Payne	18.6​
Ola-Joseph	11.3​
Carrington	11.6​
Ramberg	12.4​

Here are the seasonal player efficiency ratings of players who departed from last year's team:

	PER
Cooper	13.6​
Battle	9.4​
Henley	7.4​
Samuels	5​
Thompson	8.5​

I know Henley improved as the season progressed but a cynic could argue that he had nowhere to go but up.

I'm confident that we'll get more efficient production from some combination of the eight newcomers to the active roster than we got from the five departees. Why? Because that's a pretty low bar.

I don't know why you think it's such a Herculian task for this team to escape last place. Pitino went from 8-23 (2-16 in conference) in 2016 to 24-10 (11-7 in conference) in 2017 with only 4 additions to the active roster. Yes, two of them (Lynch and Coffey) were immediate big impact players and the other two were solid contributors. I don't expect any of these new players to have the same impact of Lynch and Coffey but I think that collectively they give us a pretty good shot of escaping last place and might be able to get us out of the last four.

 

[howeda7]

Fox, Ihnen, Christie and Betts. Are all four significant contributors? Is one of them sensational?
Either scenario would be the difference to climbing out of the bottom four.

Expecting Ihnen or Fox to be "sensational" would be foolish. Probably Betts too. Christie maybe.

 

[Bob_Loblaw]

I think a lot of our success will come down to the number of minutes we play people either completely out of position at the wing. That killed our offense last year and really did much things up for Payne and Garcia.

I love the fact that we have two guys who appear capable of playing point. I think Payne and Garcia could be really good. It'll come down to the wings and that is still pretty scary IMO.

 

[CentralGopher]

We also brought in 2 transfer point guards who were good shooters for their former teams (including, importantly, good free throw shooters), a backup center who is big and strong if nothing else, and a freshman Lithuanian who might have something to contribute.

Here are the seasonal player efficiency ratings of players who returned from last year's team:

	PER
Garcia	19.3​
Payne	18.6​
Ola-Joseph	11.3​
Carrington	11.6​
Ramberg	12.4​

Here are the seasonal player efficiency ratings of players who departed from last year's team:

	PER
Cooper	13.6​
Battle	9.4​
Henley	7.4​
Samuels	5​
Thompson	8.5​

I know Henley improved as the season progressed but a cynic could argue that he had nowhere to go but up.

I'm confident that we'll get more efficient production from some combination of the eight newcomers to the active roster than we got from the five departees. Why? Because that's a pretty low bar.

I don't know why you think it's such a Herculian task for this team to escape last place. Pitino went from 8-23 (2-16 in conference) in 2016 to 24-10 (11-7 in conference) in 2017 with only 4 additions to the active roster. Yes, two of them (Lynch and Coffey) were immediate big impact players and the other two were solid contributors. I don't expect any of these new players to have the same impact of Lynch and Coffey but I think that collectively they give us a pretty good shot of escaping last place and might be able to get us out of the last four.

I don’t think I can share your amount of optimism for the new players but appreciate the analysis here showing we appear to be shedding some inefficient players from last year.

 

[fan of Ray Williams]

Got myself pinning hopes on the little point guard from Howard.

 

[Gopherbbdude]

We also brought in 2 transfer point guards who were good shooters for their former teams (including, importantly, good free throw shooters), a backup center who is big and strong if nothing else, and a freshman Lithuanian who might have something to contribute.

Here are the seasonal player efficiency ratings of players who returned from last year's team:

	PER
Garcia	19.3​
Payne	18.6​
Ola-Joseph	11.3​
Carrington	11.6​
Ramberg	12.4​

Here are the seasonal player efficiency ratings of players who departed from last year's team:

	PER
Cooper	13.6​
Battle	9.4​
Henley	7.4​
Samuels	5​
Thompson	8.5​

I know Henley improved as the season progressed but a cynic could argue that he had nowhere to go but up.

I'm confident that we'll get more efficient production from some combination of the eight newcomers to the active roster than we got from the five departees. Why? Because that's a pretty low bar.

I don't know why you think it's such a Herculian task for this team to escape last place. Pitino went from 8-23 (2-16 in conference) in 2016 to 24-10 (11-7 in conference) in 2017 with only 4 additions to the active roster. Yes, two of them (Lynch and Coffey) were immediate big impact players and the other two were solid contributors. I don't expect any of these new players to have the same impact of Lynch and Coffey but I think that collectively they give us a pretty good shot of escaping last place and might be able to get us out of the last four.

Great post!

 

[kg21]

Can we defend is the key. We literally could not defend last year.

 

[short ornery norwegian]

in another thread there is a video of an interview Johnson did with local media. He talked a lot about having a full roster and having depth - and in turn, being able to be more aggressive on offense and defense.

yeah, I know we've heard that before. coaches say they want to push the tempo on offense and defense - and Johnson admitted that it gets more difficult when you get to conference games. But he said that if you want to push the tempo, you have to keep working at it.

so he's saying the right things - now we just need to see if it can translate to the court.

 

[JimmyJamesMD]

Expecting Ihnen or Fox to be "sensational" would be foolish. Probably Betts too. Christie maybe.

Reminds me of NFL training camp every year. There are guys that are super talented , tearing it up in training camp, coaches and journalists talk them up.....

Then they only contribute on ST or dont even make the team at all.

 

[bga1]

Reminds me of NFL training camp every year. There are guys that are super talented , tearing it up in training camp, coaches and journalists talk them up.....

Then they only contribute on ST or dont even make the team at all.

Some guys turn out to be sensational as well............ Ivan Pace is looking pretty good from out of nowhere.

 

[howeda7]

Reminds me of NFL training camp every year. There are guys that are super talented , tearing it up in training camp, coaches and journalists talk them up.....

Then they only contribute on ST or dont even make the team at all.

"He's in the best shape of his life".

To be clear I think Ihnen and perhaps Fox can be contributors. But that's all they were ever meant to be. Not the stars of the team. That needs to be Garcia, Payne and perhaps Christie.

 

[go4itis]

@TwistingMyMelon

Thanks for posting PER tables on returning and outgoing players. Might you have one on the incoming players too? In the spirit of being a devil's advocate, a counter-argument is that none of the above PER are all that impressive. Below is a reference guide calibrated to NBA players:

Player	PER
All-time great season	35.0+
Runaway MVP candidate	30-35
Strong MVP candidate	27.5–30
Weak MVP candidate	25–27.5
Definite All-Star	22.5–25
Borderline All-Star	20–22.5
Second offensive option	18–20
Third offensive option	16.5–18
Slightly above-average player	15–16.5
Rotation player	13-15
Non-rotation player	11-13
Fringe roster player	9-11
Player who won't stick in the league	0-9

I think we agree that losing players with low-PER and replacing them with higher-PER players is likely to help existing roster players obtain an even higher PER in future games – replacing low-PER players, who generate lots of misses and turnovers, with higher-PER players likely allow existing roster players more opportunity this coming season to score baskets and in-turn make PER improvements. Unfortunately, the reference guide table above may be too conservative – NCAA players seem to have a higher-end in PER than NBA players – the highest ever for an NBA player was 32.85 (Nikola Jokić). For comparison, here's a list of all-time NCAA PER leaders between 2002-03 and 2022-23, including 40 players who beat the Jokić single season record:

Rank	Player	PER	Season	School
1.	Zion Williamson	40.84	2018-19	Duke
2.	Zach Edey	40.21	2022-23	Purdue
3.	Keegan Murray	37.75	2021-22	Iowa
4.	Brandon Clarke	37.15	2018-19	Gonzaga
5.	John Brown	36.92	2015-16	High Point
6.	Jameel Warney	36.45	2015-16	Stony Brook
7.	Kelly Olynyk	36.16	2012-13	Gonzaga
8.	John Collins	35.91	2016-17	Wake Forest
9.	Mike Muscala	35.73	2012-13	Bucknell
10.	Alan Williams	35.72	2013-14	UC Santa Barbara
11.	Luka Garza	35.57	2020-21	Iowa
12.	Anthony Davis	35.13	2011-12	Kentucky
13.	Oscar Tshiebwe	35.02	2021-22	Kentucky
14.	Nathan Knight	34.95	2019-20	William & Mary
15.	Thomas Walkup	34.87	2015-16	Stephen F. Austin
16.	Norchad Omier	34.75	2021-22	Arkansas State
17.	Kenneth Faried	34.74	2010-11	Morehead State
18.	Mike Daum	34.55	2015-16	South Dakota State
19.	Cameron Jackson	34.49	2018-19	Wofford
20.	Frank Kaminsky	34.43	2014-15	Wisconsin
21.	Luka Garza	34.36	2019-20	Iowa
22.	DeMarcus Cousins	34.18	2009-10	Kentucky
23.	Matt Rafferty	34.16	2018-19	Furman
24.	Trayce Jackson-Davis	34.16	2022-23	Indiana
25.	Vernon Carey	34.13	2019-20	Duke
26.	Damian Lillard	33.98	2011-12	Weber State
27.	Shamarkus Kennedy	33.96	2019-20	McNeese State
28.	Nathan Knight	33.84	2018-19	William & Mary
29.	Omar Samhan	33.77	2009-10	Saint Mary's (CA)
30.	Anthony Lamb	33.74	2018-19	Vermont
31.	Jock Landale	33.74	2017-18	Saint Mary's (CA)
32.	Mike Daum	33.57	2018-19	South Dakota State
33.	Javonte Green	33.45	2013-14	Radford
34.	Tari Eason	33.42	2021-22	Louisiana State
35.	Javonte Green	33.42	2014-15	Radford
36.	Jock Landale	33.31	2016-17	Saint Mary's (CA)
37.	Noah Dahlman	33.14	2010-11	Wofford
38.	Mark Williams	33.07	2021-22	Duke
39.	Brice Johnson	33.04	2015-16	North Carolina
40.	Chris Clemons	32.99	2018-19	Campbell
41.	Scottie James	32.85	2019-20	Liberty
42.	John Brown	32.84	2013-14	High Point
43.	Doug McDermott	32.84	2012-13	Creighton
44.	Javon McCrea	32.79	2010-11	Buffalo
45.	Max Mahoney	32.78	2019-20	Boston University
46.	Doug McDermott	32.77	2013-14	Creighton
47.	Derrick Williams	32.75	2010-11	Arizona
48.	Charles Bassey	32.70	2020-21	Western Kentucky
49.	Ryan Davis	32.62	2020-21	Vermont
50.	Deandre Ayton	32.61	2017-18	Arizona
51.	Johni Broome	32.58	2021-22	Morehead State
52.	Mike Daum	32.53	2016-17	South Dakota State
53.	Fred Hunter	32.51	2012-13	Nicholls State
54.	Obi Toppin	32.50	2019-20	Dayton
55.	DeQuan Hicks	32.48	2012-13	Northwestern State
56.	Gaige Prim	32.45	2020-21	Missouri State
57.	Michael Buchanan	32.40	2016-17	South Carolina Upstate
58.	C.J. McCollum	32.38	2011-12	Lehigh
59.	De'Mon Brooks	32.30	2013-14	Davidson
60.	Drew Timme	32.26	2020-21	Gonzaga
61.	Jordan Eglseder	32.21	2009-10	Northern Iowa
62.	Doug McDermott	32.19	2011-12	Creighton
63.	Jordan Washington	32.19	2016-17	Iona
64.	Kenneth Faried	32.13	2009-10	Morehead State
65.	Kofi Cockburn	32.12	2021-22	Illinois
66.	Jacob Wiley	32.07	2016-17	Eastern Washington
67.	Nate Wolters	31.98	2012-13	South Dakota State
68.	Javon McCrea	31.94	2012-13	Buffalo
69.	Ryan Davis	31.91	2021-22	Vermont
70.	Trevion Williams	31.89	2021-22	Purdue
71.	John Brown	31.78	2012-13	High Point
72.	Dwight Wilson	31.78	2022-23	Ohio
73.	Carlik Jones	31.77	2019-20	Radford
74.	D.J. Covington	31.74	2013-14	Virginia Military Institute
75.	Jameel Warney	31.73	2014-15	Stony Brook
76.	John Brown	31.64	2014-15	High Point
77.	Andrew Nicholson	31.63	2011-12	St. Bonaventure
78.	Ja Morant	31.60	2018-19	Murray State
79.	Pascal Siakam	31.58	2015-16	New Mexico State
80.	Erick Green	31.58	2012-13	Virginia Tech
81.	Mike Muscala	31.54	2011-12	Bucknell
82.	Kofi Cockburn	31.48	2020-21	Illinois
83.	Ethan Happ	31.47	2016-17	Wisconsin
84.	Jay Huff	31.45	2020-21	Virginia
85.	Walker Kessler	31.45	2021-22	Auburn
86.	Martin Breunig	31.44	2015-16	Montana
87.	Frank Hassell	31.42	2010-11	Old Dominion
88.	Charles Jenkins	31.38	2010-11	Hofstra
89.	Karl-Anthony Towns	31.38	2014-15	Kentucky
90.	Chet Holmgren	31.35	2021-22	Gonzaga
91.	T.J. Warren	31.33	2013-14	NC State
92.	Cody Zeller	31.30	2011-12	Indiana
93.	Udoka Azubuike	31.28	2019-20	Kansas
94.	Drew Pember	31.24	2021-22	UNC Asheville
95.	Malcolm Miller	31.17	2012-13	Southern
96.	DeSean Murray	31.16	2015-16	Presbyterian
97.	Arsalan Kazemi	31.15	2010-11	Rice
98.	Dexter Werner	31.15	2016-17	North Dakota State
99.	Reggie Hamilton	31.11	2011-12	Oakland
100.	Thomas Coleman	31.10	2010-11	North Carolina A&T

Anyway, I'm hoping that more efficient roster players this year boost PER for Garcia, Payne, and others into the 20's (and beyond).