Detour: Remember the Sport with the Orange Ball?

by BracketCat on Aug 25, 2009 12:00 PM CDT in Men's Basketball Comment 13 comments

Get used to Xavier Henry's shining mug. You're gonna hear a lot about him this season... (AP Photo)

I hate to do this to you guys, what with kickoff less than two weeks away and this blog firmly enmeshed in the Kellis Crisis.

But there's a fascinating newcomer to the SB Nation, and they've sent out an early request for preseason basketball predictions. Now, I'm looking forward to football season as much as the next guy, but basketball - and specifically, Big 12 basketball - are my lifeblood on this blog. The upcoming football season, more than any before it, is really just a mildly filling appetizer compared to the main course that's going to follow.

So J-Lounge, if you're over here looking for that last, perfect link to complete your daily digest, hit the jump for some Way-Too-Early Big 12 Basketball Predictions. You know, basketball? 'Tis the sport of morons, green cards, poorly-coached teams and streaks!

Here's the letter we got from Big 12 Hoops:

Guys,

Sorry to send this out to everyone, this is just for the Big 12 guys. (Not aware of there being a Big 12 only e-mail. Please let me know if there is.)

I run the new Big12Hoops site, and I'm in the process of previewing each Big 12 men's hoops team. I know it's early, but I'd like compile an all-conference team voted on by the SB Nation Big 12 writers. I'm new here, so if this is something you guys already have planned to run later in the year, then just let me know and I will hold off. If anything though, this can be a pre-pre-season team.

If it's okay with everyone, I plan on publishing this on my site within the next week or two. Please think over the questions listed below and send back in the next week or so...(Note that multiple writers from one site can send their own list in. It's your discretion. Also, you can vote for players from the school you cover, just try to be as objective as possible.)

Projected Big XII Standings (1 thru 12)
Top incoming recruiting class (one school)
Projected NCAA Tourney teams--
Projected NIT teams--
Most Improved Team--(one school)
Big XII Player of the Year--
Big XII Newcomer of the Year (non-freshmen)--
Big XII Freshman of the Year--
Big XII Defensive POY--
Big XII First Team; Second Team; Third Team
G-
G-
F-
F-
C-
Big XII All-Newcomer Team (include freshmen)
G-
G-
F-
F-
C-

Thanks so much guys. I know it can be difficult sometime to come up with such a comprehensive list long before the start of the season. Let me know if you have any questions.

And here's my picks:

1. Kansas
2. Kansas State
3. Texas
4. Oklahoma
5. Oklahoma State
6. Baylor
7. Missouri
8. Texas A&M
9. Iowa State
10. Texas Tech
11. Nebraska
12. Colorado

I know Rivals rankings aren't everything, but my Top 6 all have Top 25 classes coming in, and the bottom half doesn't. Maybe the mainstream media will swap K-State and Texas, but we own the Chisholm Trail Rivalry. I ain't buying it.

As for the rest:

Top incoming recruiting class: Tie between Kansas State and Oklahoma State

All of the top half added great players, so to me, it's more about quantity and addressing needs. OSU added seven, plus the Kentucky transfer that just got a waiver; we added six. More importantly, OSU got guards and depth to run Ford's system, and we got actual post threats, which were all we were missing last season.

Projected NCAA Tourney teams: Kansas, Kansas State, Texas, Oklahoma, Oklahoma State, Baylor, Missouri, maybe Texas A&M on the bubble

That's right. Seven. This will be the deepest the Big 12 has even been and we will set a record for teams in the Dance.

Projected NIT teams: probably Texas A&M, Iowa State, maybe Texas Tech

Most Improved Team: I've got Baylor jumping from 9th to 6th, but I could see them as high as 4th. They really showed me something in the postseason last year, although they did lose some key players. As a corollary - and I know he didn't ask this - but the team that will take the biggest freefall has to be Mizzou. Lost 50+% of their production in all statistical categories from a team that overachieved in the first place. But I think they have enough talent left to still be in the dance - just not a first-round bye in the Big 12.

Big XII Player of the Year: Unfortunately, Cole Aldrich. Just prepare yourself for it now.

Big XII Newcomer of the Year: Curtis Kelly, dammit. Honorable mention to Jeff Withey, I guess.

Big XII Freshman of the Year: Unfortunately, Xavier Henry. Just prepare yourself for it now. But Avery Bradley and Wally Judge will make it interesting to the end...

Big XII Defensive POY: I think this is the year the coaches finally recognize Dominique Sutton's greatness. Honorable mention to J.T. Tiller, of course.

Big XII First Team (for these, I mostly just promoted everyone up the chart from my Botcies in March; it's all meaningless preseason stuff anyway)
G-Denis Clemente
G-Sherron Collins
G-Willie Warren
F-Craig Brackins
C-Cole Aldrich

Big XII Second Team
G-LaceDarius Dunn
G-J.T. Tiller
G/F-Xavier Henry
F-James Anderson
C-Dexter Pittman

Big XII Third Team
G-Avery Bradley
G-Jacob Pullen
G-Tyshawn Taylor
F-Damion James
F-Curtis Kelly

Big XII All-Newcomer Team: you guys know I hate putting transfers on these things, so I didn't
G-Avery Bradley
G-Tommy Mason-Griffin
G/F-Xavier Henry
F-Wally Judge
C-Keith Gallon

I'm sure some of you will disagree with certain picks, so let's get a back-and-forth going in the comments. If nothing else, it will help us get our minds off how bad the Eagle sucks.

P.S. If you happen to wander over to Big 12 Hoops, be sure to vote in this poll. We're getting killed, people.

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Comments

I'm not sure how I'd rank K-State and Texas

My very conservative picks would go like this:
5-1 against ISU, CU, and NU
1-1 against MU
0-2 aginst KU
4-2 against the South (I don’t know where the losses can from, but I’m guessing 2….)
10-6 Overall Conference Record probably puts us at the usual 4th.

My homer picks would go like this:
6-0 against ISU, CU, and NU
1-1 against MU
1-1 against KU (Damn it, we’re going to take one!)
5-1 against the South
13-3 Overall Conference Record to put us just below KU at the 2-spot.

I suppose if I had to put money on it today I’d go with the 10-6 record, maybe a 11-5. It’s close. It’s going to be a very competitive year.

Introducing the new 2008 Big 12 Football Champions: OU, UT*, TT*, and MU*!
Now Introducing the new 2009 Big 12 Baseball Tournament Champions: UT, KSU*, BU*, and MU*!

by mystman995 on Aug 25, 2009 2:11 PM CDT reply actions 0 recs

Don't be afraid to aim high

We’re going to be better than 10-6.

If it looks like a well-coached, deep, athletic, veteran team, and it sounds like one, too, it probably is.

by BracketCat on Aug 26, 2009 1:32 AM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

I hope so.

Maybe it’s just my non-Nebraskan demeanor telling me not to predict the best finish in the Big 12 during an “up” year.

Introducing the new 2008 Big 12 Football Champions: OU, UT*, TT*, and MU*!
Now Introducing the new 2009 Big 12 Baseball Tournament Champions: UT, KSU*, BU*, and MU*!

by mystman995 on Aug 26, 2009 8:42 AM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

Baylor and Missouri will be in the bottom 5, A&M will be better than this

Baylor always starts strong and sucks in conference.

Mizzou doesn’t have a prayer this year; They didn’t recruit well and lost a majority of their team (the good majority)

Take another look at A&M… That’s a top 25 caliber team.

Clone Chronicles

by Mark Kieffer on Aug 25, 2009 3:08 PM CDT reply actions 0 recs

Top 25 CALIBER? Yes

Top 25 DESTINED? Hardly.

Baylor, Oklahoma State and Texas A&M are all athletic. The difference is that Drew and Ford have shown me signs of coaching, and Turgeon has shown me signs of … whining.

Plus, A&M lost by far its two best players, so just copy-paste everything I said about Missouri.

It’s not like being picked to finish #8 in the deepest Big 12 slate we’ve ever seen is such a bad thing, either. It might even be good enough for an NCAA berth.

by BracketCat on Aug 26, 2009 1:34 AM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

Seriously

I’m not all sold on Turgeon, but

The difference is that Drew and Ford have shown me signs of coaching, and Turgeon has shown me signs of … whining.

compared to Scott Drew, Turgeon is freaking Dean Smith. Drew is quite possibly the worst coach in the Big 12, hands down.

I Am The 12th Man.com

by Beergut on Aug 26, 2009 7:07 AM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

I thought that too

Until the postseason last year. That turnaround required at least some coaching ability.

by BracketCat on Aug 26, 2009 7:11 PM CDT via mobile up reply actions 0 recs

Mizzou at 7th?

What happened to the Unholy Alliance? We return Jesus Tyrannosaurus (J.T. Tiller, Kimmeh (Kimmie English) , Vroom Vroom Party Starter (Laurence Bowers), Keith Ramsey, and Mr. Coffee (Zaire Taylor).

We don’t have a highly touted recruiting class because we recruit for the system. Most McDonald’s All-Americans wouldn’t fit into the Fastest Forty Minutes in Basketball™.

by solidpit on Aug 25, 2009 7:49 PM CDT reply actions 0 recs

Yeah I was thinking that one may be a little bit of a stretch but,

it just proves how deep the top 8 in the Big 12 will be. I think KU in the top spot is a safe pick. UT in the top 3 is a safe pick. Us in the top four is probably a safe pick and then the rest of the top 8 could end being who stays healthy.

Baylor, in my own opinion, probably doesn’t deserve to be ahead of MU.

Introducing the new 2008 Big 12 Football Champions: OU, UT*, TT*, and MU*!
Now Introducing the new 2009 Big 12 Baseball Tournament Champions: UT, KSU*, BU*, and MU*!

by mystman995 on Aug 25, 2009 10:22 PM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

If it makes you happy, you can just say they're tied for 6th

There’s little to no separation there for me, based on what I know right now.

But don’t sleep on Baylor’s recruiting class.

by BracketCat on Aug 26, 2009 1:40 AM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

I think it's still intact...

I was thinking about this earlier today. You have one team (Kansas) that’s probably head and shoulders better than the other teams. You have a few other teams (K-State, Oklahoma, Texas) that brought in highly ranked classes to go along with returning stars.

Then, you have a group of teams that are going to be really good, and will most likely be tournament teams, but you don’t really know what they have because of what they lost. To me, Mizzou is in that group.

I really, really like Tiller. I like Kimmeh! I think Mizzou will have a good team next year. However, it’s hard to lose that much production and great players like Carroll and Lyons. If KSU lost Clemente and Pullen last year, I’d feel the same way.

If this were my list, I’d throw MU in before Baylor, but I can easily see Baylor being in the upper half simply because they could rattle off a stretch where they shoot lights out in the middle of conference play and win five straight using Scott Drew’s patented “We’re just going to chuck shit up, and if it falls, I look like a genius” offense. If they get cold, they’re just as likely to finish 9-12.

I will say this…of all of the teams I want to watch this year, MU ranks at the very top. I want to see if Anderson’s system will produce year-to-year results, or if it was the right chemistry with the right players last year. I think it’s fair for some folks to be skeptical just because we’ll see how “system” basketball translates in the Big 12. In football, we know it works, but last year, Anderson had some really nice cogs in the machine, and I think Carroll was one of the most underrated players in the country in terms of importance to his team.

Anyway, that’s my rambling on the subject. I hope Missouri does well this year, and I think they’re definitely a tournament team. This year, the Big 12 is just so deep, and I think KSU fans are stoked because we return essentially all of our starters (+ a top 25 class). If MU didn’t lose so much production, I’d feel confident raising their spot. Otherwise, I don’t have any issues with the list. Where the teams finish will be meaningless for the most part because, like last year, I see a complete cluster from spots 2-8.

Bring on the Cats
"Without getting into specifics, my exit involves a McFlurry machine and a video tape of risque commercials from overseas." -- Jack Donaghy

by Panjandrum on Aug 25, 2009 10:27 PM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

I would like to point out that those four teams

(KU, KSU, OU and UT) have been in the Top 4 (if you count ties) the last two years, and if you omit OU, three years.

History played a role in these picks, given that I lack any factual information like, oh, ACTUAL GAME PERFORMANCES IN 2009.

by BracketCat on Aug 26, 2009 1:43 AM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

Oh, I still love you guys

But you’re sitting exactly where we did a year ago.

Everyone is predicting doom and gloom – now’s the time to step up and show them the system can weather the loss of individual players, like we did.

I think you can, but I can’t predict it officially yet. Not when Tiller, English and Taylor are the only guys I would trade you for. It takes more than three to tango.

Now, if Justin Safford blows up and has a Darren Kent-like season, then yeah, all bets are off. But seeing is believing.

I’m still less than 12 months from thinking Anderson was going to get fired. I now fully acknowledge what a good job he did last season, of course, but it takes time to get over that kind of initial prejudice.

Tell you what: Win 9 or 10 this year and I’ll chalk Mizzou into the Top 4 every year, automatically, from now on.

by BracketCat on Aug 26, 2009 1:38 AM CDT up reply actions 0 recs