Leading Scorer: Verdell Jones
I think the Hoosiers are going to have a very balanced scoring attack. I expect Jones, Watford, Pritchard, Dumes, Rivers, and Creek could all be bunched up in that 8-12 ppg range. I'm picking Jones because of they way he finished last year and you keep hearing his name as making big off-season improvements. Reportedly, he has put on about 15 pounds of muscle. He's still skinny at just 182 pounds on a 6'5" frame, but that's a hell of a lot better than playing Big Ten basketball at 167 pounds. It also sounds like he has worked hard on and improved his 3-point shot. My runner-up in this category is Christain Watford. I think his versatility will allow him to score in a variety of ways and I hope that includes getting some easy baskets by hitting the offensive glass. The most interesting one to watch is Jeremiah Rivers. He will clearly have the ball in his hands and if the Hoosiers really play a more up-tempo game like Crean has been talking, then Rivers should have the opportunity to get his share of points.
Leading Rebounder: Christian Watford
The safer bet here is probably Tom Pritchard, but this prediction is largely predicated on me hoping that Watford really turns out to be a stud. Watford averaged 13 rpg as a senior and 14 rpg as a junior. It's always difficult to tell how high school stats will translate to the college game, but those are pretty big numbers.
Assist Leader: Jeremiah Rivers
You have to believe that this category is Jeremiah's to lose.
Dunks Leader: Tom Pritchard
Last year, it's pretty sad that I think I can remember all of the IU dunks that were not by Tom Pritchard -- Nick Williams had 2, Malik Story barely threw one down on a break-away, and Tijan Jobe had a late-season dunk that was the highlight of the year. This year, we add some guys that should throw a few down and that will include our point guard. In some footage from one of the recent scrimmages, Rivers threw one down with authority in traffic. I think Watford and Elston will get some dunks and Creek might also join that mix. We should definitely have a more athletic and exciting team this year. Last year, Pritchard showed a knack for finding open space for some two-handed jams and I think he will have even more room to operate this year.
Starting Lineup:
Rivers
Dumes
Jones
Watford
Pritchard
See the poll questions to the right to vote on your category leaders and feel free to add a comment to elaborate on your predictions.
So, why the picture of Mr. T? Every time, I see or hear or type the word "prediction", I think of this scene from Rocky 3:
Posts
11 comments:
once again very good stuff. you have been busy! i don't predict as much PAIN this year for us IU fans. i am not as big on VJ3 as most. i agree with rivers, say pritch as rebounder, watford as scorer and dunker. i don't think we'll have someone who averages a lot of points though. i think it will be spread out. totally agree on the lineup with creek, hulls, elston, and capo getting good time off the bench. gonna go try to get info. on the scrimmage going on right now...
Cool, please report back if you hear anything on the Haunted Hall of Hoops scrimmage.
capo led with 14 points 7 rebs. watford had 12. jones looked good. creek did not. dumes, roth, fink, and rivers all sat with minor injuries.
Interesting. Based on everything I have read, Capo has seem to be surprising people with how good he has been playing and it sounds like Creek has struggled so far in most of these scrimmages. You never seem to hear much about Elston. Hulls and Watford have been getting good reports. Maniru sounds extremely raw.
I know Rivers injury was an accidental elbow to the face from Maniru. With the way Jobe and Maniru hurt our own players on a regular basis in practice, you would think that could be useful against our most hated opponents.
Stats from today's scrimmage at the web address below on The Hoosier Scoop. Sounds like it was about 25 minutes of "game time".
http://blogs.heraldtimesonline.com/iusp/?p=5263
I am dying to know what the removed comment was. It is right after Cook's initial comment. Did Troy put something on there negative about IU? Hopefully someone can shed light on this. Since we are now allowed to swear, I cannot imagine that was the issue.
I still like Dumes to lead the team in scoring. He wears the number of one of the most prolific scorers in Indiana state history (#33). Most know him by only his first name. That's right....Larry. I think we all know who I am talking about. Larry Richardson. Dumes may not have the same height and athletic ability as ol' Lar, but he has the same type of will. I see Dumes having a big offensive year. With that said, he will never replace Larry Richardson. God bless you Larry Richardson, where ever you are.
On a serious note, I noticed the Bob KNight issue was not brought up. While I realize the conversation has grown tiresome over the years, I do think IU was a little premature in trying to put this together. Sean and I talked about it last week. Wouldn't you think IU would find out beforehand if Knight was going to show up before they announced it publicly. Now both side look stupid when he is not there. I think the fences will get mended over time with Crean. Why not wait until Crean has a few winning seasons under his belt before you invite Knight back. While we all know Knight is a bitter man, we also know that he has been that way for the past 30 years. I blame IU for this one. Especially with this on the heals of the whole $75K issue being leaked.
no excitement with the deleted message. i just accidentally submitted minbe twice so i deleted one. i miss the general.
Loved the Mr. T "Pain" clip. What was his name in that movie? Was it Clubber Lang? Who WOULDN'T get their ass kicked by a guy named Clubber Lang? OK, OK, OK maybe Rocky wouldn't in the rematch. But who else?
I think Watford, Jones and Dumes will all average in double figures with Watford leading the team at 14.2 PPG. Also, I cannot tolerate a basically dunk-free year like we had last year. If Watford does not have 30-40 dunks, I will be very disappointed.
Concerning Bob Knight, why the hell would IU induct him with 67 other people including Jerry Yeagly. The smart move would have been to have an induction of 1. Maybe not this year or next, but pick the "right" year. It would have fed Bob's ego and eliminated the "distraction and detracting from others" excuse.
Tom - Your fucking posts were fucking hilarious. They made me fucking laugh out fucking loud.
An actual post on basketball-overseas.com from 5 years ago:
Larry Richardson | July 21st, 2004 at 14:14 #
Hello my name is Larry Richardson. I played for Indiana University from 95-00. I have played 2 years in the Mid level divsion in Spain and Argentina. I m 6′10 and can play the 3-4-5. I m currently looking for employment anywhere. I m hungry for an oppurtunity to play. I can be reached at 407-788-8994 thank you!
I thought that was a joke. I read it too fast the first time. I thought it just said he was hungry. How the mighty have fallen.
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