So, who’s here for next season (running list):

[PSAL_Hoops]

The starting PG is already on the team: Pike is going to let Lino push the ball. We will be a running, pressing team, led by Lino.

This. I trust that the staff did their homework in this regard. General articles on NIL “value” based on position don’t tell the whole story. We were never getting a starting caliber high major PG to transfer into Rutgers for under 2M (and it may be higher than that - probably more than the cost of retaining Lino, Tariq and J Mike combined). We just don’t have enough to sell right now to land those types of players and once you start shopping PGs who were back ups on high majors or low major PGs your not even guaranteed to get better than what we already have in the backcourt.

We’ve made some progress in filling out the biggest holes on the roster. We now need some defensive stopper types to fill out the roster. That’s the one remaining hole it seems to me.

 

[Scarlet Blind_rivals]

I would take this as a pretty good sign for Kaden Powers coming back.

 

[RUDivision]

The starting PG is already on the team: Pike is going to let Lino push the ball. We will be a running, pressing team, led by Lino.

Kids not ready and are center is not a run and gun press player.

PG coming

 

[seansherm]

Kids not ready and are center is not a run and gun press player.

PG coming

He may be ready, but yeah, all indications are we are still looking for a guard.

 

[PSAL_Hoops]

Kids not ready and are center is not a run and gun press player.

PG coming

I say there’s no way a PG’s coming, but hey, the insiders like Richie keep saying it and they sure have more access to the insider scoop than I do.

I have no information whatsoever, I just can’t imagine any circumstance where a kid like Lino Mark would choose to come back with an expectation of playing behind an established PG and competing with captain J Mike for even those minutes. Beyond that, we added a lengthy wing with point forward experience who provides an option to play Tariq as the lone smaller guard. It just wouldn’t make sense.

 

[BillyC80]

With Kaden officially back, here’s where we stand:

Who’s here for next season (so far):
Francis
Davis
Powers
Mark
Buchanan
Ware
Wooten
Duarte
Smith
Gurdak
Sydnor

 

[Jerseylegends]

I say there’s no way a PG’s coming, but hey, the insiders like Richie keep saying it and they sure have more access to the insider scoop than I do.

I have no information whatsoever, I just can’t imagine any circumstance where a kid like Lino Mark would choose to come back with an expectation of playing behind an established PG and competing with captain J Mike for even those minutes. Beyond that, we added a lengthy wing with point forward experience who provides an option to play Tariq as the lone smaller guard. It just wouldn’t make sense.

If I were the coach and I was on the hot seat, I'd want a taller veteran pg to run the show. So if I think that way it makes sense, but if I think realistically for Rutgers, what you're saying is more likely...maybe it's not the same old Rutgers this year?

 

[seansherm]

I say there’s no way a PG’s coming, but hey, the insiders like Richie keep saying it and they sure have more access to the insider scoop than I do.

I have no information whatsoever, I just can’t imagine any circumstance where a kid like Lino Mark would choose to come back with an expectation of playing behind an established PG and competing with captain J Mike for even those minutes. Beyond that, we added a lengthy wing with point forward experience who provides an option to play Tariq as the lone smaller guard. It just wouldn’t make sense.

Could be why they are waiting on the portal closure before looking to fill that spot?

 

[RAC’emUp]

Kids not ready and are center is not a run and gun press player.

PG coming

We already have what, 6 guards? I don’t see the logic of spending on another. The 2 things we do have that differ in a good way from other teams is a blazing fast guard (Lino) and a unique kind of scorer (Tariq). If I’m Pike my first attempt at offense is to build it around getting down the floor to take advantage of these guys. The new center will have to get himself in shape. He doesn’t have to be a flyer.

 

[goru7]

We do not need another point guard . Lino will be starting and JMike will be backing him up. Doubt we have 1.75-2.25 million for an established point guard and likely they are going to the top 10 teams in the country. Lino will improve his distribution now that he has options in all 3 new front court players. Passing to Ogbole or Dorsch will not be the same as passing to the new guys. Plus you cannot teach speed and Lino might be the faster player in the league. He finished at the rim much much better in the last 10 games than the first 20 games which is what you want to see out of your freshmen . We can play both ways now uptempo and in the half court. . Expect his assist rate will increase sharply and his steals are underated aspect of his game . Get a backup center , rim protector for 15 minutes a night and we are good to go.

 

[BillyC80]

Based on likely positions/roles:

Likely Starters (so far) :
Mark
Francis
Smith
Sydnor
Gurdak

Bench:
Davis
Powers
Wooten
Buchanan
Ware

Duarte

 

[Degaz-RU]

Based on likely positions/roles:

Likely Starters (so far) :
Mark
Francis
Smith
Sydnor
Gurdak

Bench:
Davis
Powers
Wooten
Buchanan
Ware

Duarte

Not sure if you were putting the bench guys “in order.” I would see it this way for bench guys:

- First G off the bench - JMike
- First F off the bench - Buchanan
- Next guys off the bench - the backup portal Center; Powers as a shooting guard; Duarte as a defensive wing.
- Deep reserves - Wooten, Ware

Of course, all of this changes if and when we land a “starting caliber guard,” which is what the staff seems to be targeting in addition to the backup C.

 

[BillyC80]

Not sure if you were putting the bench guys “in order.” I would see it this way for bench guys:

- First G off the bench - JMike
- First F off the bench - Buchanan
- Next guys off the bench - the backup portal Center; Powers as a shooting guard; Duarte as a defensive wing.
- Deep reserves - Wooten, Ware

Of course, all of this changes if and when we land a “starting caliber guard,” which is what the staff seems to be targeting in addition to the backup C.

Yeah, I see it pretty much that way too. My bench order was listed by position, 1 through 5, versus who comes off the bench first.

I’m curious to see who earns more PT between Wooten and Duarte. My guess is it will be Duarte initially and then Wooten as the season progresses, but who knows. Those are the only two guys without any college playing experience.

 

[PSAL_Hoops]

We do not need another point guard . Lino will be starting and JMike will be backing him up. Doubt we have 1.75-2.25 million for an established point guard and likely they are going to the top 10 teams in the country. Lino will improve his distribution now that he has options in all 3 new front court players. Passing to Ogbole or Dorsch will not be the same as passing to the new guys. Plus you cannot teach speed and Lino might be the faster player in the league. He finished at the rim much much better in the last 10 games than the first 20 games which is what you want to see out of your freshmen . We can play both ways now uptempo and in the half court. . Expect his assist rate will increase sharply and his steals are underated aspect of his game . Get a backup center , rim protector for 15 minutes a night and we are good to go.

Yeah - there’s simply no way Lino would want to be here as a utility PG and move backwards. Just can’t see it. And Pike wouldn’t have lied to him about are plans. The fact that we brought in a wing with strong ball handling skills was the cherry on top. There’s no new PG coming in to absorb 27 starter mpg.

Not sure if you were putting the bench guys “in order.” I would see it this way for bench guys:

- First G off the bench - JMike
- First F off the bench - Buchanan
- Next guys off the bench - the backup portal Center; Powers as a shooting guard; Duarte as a defensive wing.
- Deep reserves - Wooten, Ware

Of course, all of this changes if and when we land a “starting caliber guard,” which is what the staff seems to be targeting in addition to the backup C.

is Duarte a defensive player? Didn’t get that sense from the film.

 

[Degaz-RU]

is Duarte a defensive player? Didn’t get that sense from the film.

It's more of a guess on my part, based on his height and body type. Plus, what are the odds Pike and Steve Hayn found some offensive gem in the DR who nobody else knew about?

 

[PSAL_Hoops]

It's more of a guess on my part, based on his height and body type. Plus, what are the odds Pike and Steve Hayn found some offensive gem in the DR who nobody else knew about?

Pike recruited him before he committed to NMSU. That was the connection. I hate to be negative (sure backfired on my expectations with Tariq) but I can’t recall disliking a kid’s highlight film more than Duarte’s. So many long midrange shots in that video. I get we have guys who take those but I don’t think I’ve ever seen that featured so much in highlight footage before with anyone.

 

[Bob Chaewsky_rivals]

Pike recruited him before he committed to NMSU. That was the connection. I hate to be negative (sure backfired on my expectations with Tariq) but I can’t recall disliking a kid’s highlight film more than Duarte’s. So many long midrange shots in that video. I get we have guys who take those but I don’t think I’ve ever seen that featured so much in highlight footage before with anyone.

Pretty harsh considering there is almost no film out there on him.

 

[PSAL_Hoops]

Pretty harsh considering there is almost no film out there on him.

For sure. What was posted is limited, but it features a bunch of off the dribble mid ranges and a lot of Spanish speaking media shops seemingly making a big deal about them too.

 

[BillyC80]

Well, it took a couple weeks but we can now update for the addition of Dorin “Sam” Buca:

Who’s here for next season (so far):
Francis
Davis
Powers
Mark
Buchanan
Ware
Wooten
Duarte
Smith
Gurdak
Sydnor
Buca

 

[Bob Chaewsky_rivals]

Well, it took a couple weeks but we can now update for the addition of Dorin “Sam” Buca:

Who’s here for next season (so far):
Francis
Davis
Powers
Mark
Buchanan
Ware
Wooten
Duarte
Smith
Gurdak
Sydnor
Buca

This lineup shows exactly what I fear about Pikiell. We'll still be playing 11 guys in the middle of February.

 

[rc1980]

I am counting 12! I am assuming 3 more!

 

[RAC93]

Well, it took a couple weeks but we can now update for the addition of Dorin “Sam” Buca:

Who’s here for next season (so far):
Francis
Davis
Powers
Mark
Buchanan
Ware
Wooten
Duarte
Smith
Gurdak
Sydnor
Buca

Hopefully a PG and another forward get added. We have 12 now, I see 9 for sure that will be in a rotation, not sure if Duarte makes it 10 in the rotation, don’t think we’ll see much from Ware and Wooten. But knowing Pike he’ll put Duarte and Wooten in the rotation and play 11 guys on the regular (once again that’s too many). If we add a starting PG/combo guard that puts us at 10 players right there.

 

[BillyC80]

Last year we came into the season with too many unknowns — 7 freshmen and Fall who barely played — so 8 guys with virtually no college hoops experience.

So far of the 12 guys on the roster only 3 are unproven in college — Ware, Wooten, and Duarte.

As a result, hopefully we get off to a great start and have the rotation solidified much sooner next season.

 

[PSAL_Hoops]

Last year we came into the season with too many unknowns — 7 freshmen and Fall who barely played — so 8 guys with virtually no college hoops experience.

So far of the 12 guys on the roster only 3 are unproven in college — Ware, Wooten, and Duarte.

As a result, hopefully we get off to a great start and have the rotation solidified much sooner next season.

If we still have money in the tank to round off the roster with reserve players in the portal from pretty good teams:

1) someone with Paul’s 2019-20 profile and

2) someone with Mag’s 2021-22 profile

They get an A+. At that point, you could say that at least on paper, the issues were well addressed. The grade goes down if we use our remaining budget to add a 6-1 PG from one of the Patriot league teams we played or comparable (I don’t care how many points they averaged). That’s simply not what we need.

This isn’t about money because that version of Mag was a deep reserve player who averaged on 11.7 mpg. Let’s hope our staff has been following film to add pieces who can be called on to give a defensive boost. Paul wasn’t a defense first guy but he did some good things with his length on that end and was a gritty rebounder with length - but the key was he could play 1-4. The 2019-20 version of him wouldn’t have cost that much.

 

[Scarlet Blind_rivals]

Torvik has us projected at #81 for 26-27 including Buca.

Verifying Browser...

 

[BillyC80]

With the addition of Rasheed Jones, we now have:
Francis
Davis
Powers
Mark
Buchanan
Ware
Wooten
Duarte
Smith
Gurdak
Sydnor
Buca
Jones

 

[Bob Chaewsky_rivals]

This is the way I would play it:

1 - JMike/Mark, whoever makes the players around him better.
2 - Jones/Francis
3 - Smith/Powers - I expect Powers to make a big jump.
4 - Sydnor/Buchanan - Sydnor is just better. Pike might be loyal to Buchanan early in the season.
5 - Gurdak/Buca - Don't underestimate Buca's defensive contribution, plus Gurdak can only play 25 mpg.

Duarte - Haven't seen enough of him.

 

[seels2662]

This is the way I would play it:

1 - JMike/Mark, whoever makes the players around him better.
2 - Jones/Francis
3 - Smith/Powers - I expect Powers to make a big jump.
4 - Sydnor/Buchanan - Sydnor is just better. Pike might be loyal to Buchanan early in the season.
5 - Gurdak/Buca - Don't underestimate Buca's defensive contribution, plus Gurdak can only play 25 mpg.

Duarte - Haven't seen enough of him.

I mean its certainly better than last year, but is it an NCAA team? I don't think so.

I would have taken 2 less players, ,we have Duarte and Wooten as emergency players (and Ware in the frontcourt) and used the money from 3 NIL contracts to get one monster 4/3.

 

[PSAL_Hoops]

This is the way I would play it:

1 - JMike/Mark, whoever makes the players around him better.
2 - Jones/Francis
3 - Smith/Powers - I expect Powers to make a big jump.
4 - Sydnor/Buchanan - Sydnor is just better. Pike might be loyal to Buchanan early in the season.
5 - Gurdak/Buca - Don't underestimate Buca's defensive contribution, plus Gurdak can only play 25 mpg.

Duarte - Haven't seen enough of him.

Pike will have a lot of options. Smith can handle the rock and distribute. Jones has handling skills too. So he’ll be much better positioned this year to play Tariq for stretches without a PG if/when he wants to. Rotations at the point could be match up dependent.

Development is certainly possible in the offseason for Powers but he has a lot of work to do on the defensive end IMO to prove himself to earn time at the 3 - especially at rebounding where his per minute numbers were awful for a wing / SF. Rebounds per minute is a metric that does tend to transfer reasonably well for low to high major. We need to be a better rebounding team. I’m not sure that playing a 6-4 guard who struggled on D and with rebounding is going to be the answer. I guess it will depend on his development.

 

[PSAL_Hoops]

At the end of the day we:

1) Kept 5 of our top 8 contributors (assessed strictly by minutes played) including the top 3 overall. We didn’t want to keep Grant, and Ogbole is out of eligibility. Zrno easily replacable.

2) We added 3 midmajor kids who averaged between 14.7-21 ppg and 4.6-6.8 rpg on their respective teams. All 3 of them 6-6 or bigger. Always a chance when players make the jump to high major, but there’s also a chance some of our returning players make a jump in development YoY too. So it goes both ways.

3) We didn't take a chance this time at center. Pike paid the premium to bring in 2 centers with high major experience. While neither of them have eye popping stats, the bar for improvement at the 5 was low to begin with. I’m a big believer in the rebounds per minute metric and bullish of Sydnor’s frosh numbers - think he’s going to help the frontcourt a lot. I know folks will challenge me on it, and yeah, talent level matters to an extent, but if you look at historic numbers, the math does tend to show rebounding ability generally has less correlation to opponent talent level than metrics like scoring. We look at guys like Martini not translating up, but in 30 mpg at Princeton, Zach only grabbed 3.3 rpg (Buca grabbed that many in under 13 mpg for KState). Martini rebounded at a similar rate when moving to RU (by way of example of my point).

In my opinion, the one “piece” we’re still missing is a defensive stopper type to come give a spark at that end off the bench. I would’ve liked to keep Bryce Dortch for this reason. We could really use someone versatile at everything except scoring (someone who’d be one of the best defensive players on the team with some handling skills).