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A Norm Recruiting Poll: How'd We Do?

Norm Peterson

By Norm Peterson
in The Haymarket Hardwood

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If 1 is we totally screwed the pooch and 10 is we knocked it clean out of the park, rank how we did in the portal and recruiting this time around.  

52 members have voted

  1. 1. Rank the roster turnover/replacements where 1 is total disaster and 10 is we assembled a Final Four caliber roster.

    • 1. Totally. Screwed. The. Pooch. Lost our only good players to graduation and the portal. Did not find anywhere near suitable replacements. Talent level is substantially lower than last year's bad team. This looks like Hoiberg's worst roster and we'll be lucky to log 5 wins.
      0
    • 2. It's bad, man. Lost way more to the portal and graduation than we gained. We'll backslide for sure this year. Maybe 5-7 wins.
      0
    • 3. It's bleak. Not optimistic. Did not find quality players for the players we lost. Looking like an 8-10 win season.
      0
    • 4. Not terrible but nowhere near good. Lost too much to portal and graduation and the portal was unkind in return. Some of the new guys have potential, but we're overall not as talented as we were last year. Guessing 11-13 wins.
      0
    • 5. We did OK, but only OK. We have returning talent but we didn't find any real position upgrades and the big needs at Center and PG look marginal. Maybe 14-15 wins.
      3
    • 6. Not bad. Bring back some talent. Didn't lose our best players to anything but graduation. Found replacements for the important pieces who could be alright. But probably not much better than a year ago. Maybe 16 or 17 wins. Possible NIT team.
      7
    • 7. Y'know, I'm not elated but I'm satisfied. We kept our best players who didn't graduate. We added suitable replacements for the guys who did graduate. And we upgraded the overall talent. This is looking like an NIT team. 18 or 19 wins.
      18
    • 8. Yeah, we nailed it. We kept the best players who still had eligibility. We found more than suitable replacements for the guys who graduated. We've upgraded the overall talent level and added some important depth. This is looking like an NCAA-caliber roster. 20-21 wins.
      24
    • 9. Dang. It. Huge upgrades across the boards. I can't even believe it. We are LOADED. This is a team that can reach the 2nd weekend of the Big Dance. Sweet 16, baby! 22-24 wins!
      0
    • 10. Apparently, I died and went to Heaven during the off-season. Or I'm dreaming. This looks like a blueblood roster. Get your Final Four tickets now because you won't want to miss this Husker team taking on Duke for a trip to the Title Game. 25-30 wins.
      0

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hhcmatt

hhcmatt

Posted
Posted
1 hour ago, Norm Peterson said:


Additionally, that particular year, Bryce McGowens was a freshman as were CJ, Willhelm, Keon Edwards and Eduardo. Keisei was a sophomore. And Derrick Walker was a junior.

 

I’m not sure that roster compares very favorably, talent-wise, with the current group. So …

 

The highest rated incoming class in school history is the main character in the novel "Talent Doesn't Equal Team Buliding: The Matt Abdelmassih Story'

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NUdiehard

NUdiehard

Posted
Posted
12 hours ago, Norm Peterson said:


Additionally, that particular year, Bryce McGowens was a freshman as were CJ, Willhelm, Keon Edwards and Eduardo. Keisei was a sophomore. And Derrick Walker was a junior.

 

I’m not sure that roster compares very favorably, talent-wise, with the current group. So …

 

Agreed.  Talent is essential.  Experienced talent is better.

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millerhusker

millerhusker

Posted
Posted
2 hours ago, NUdiehard said:

 

Agreed.  Talent is essential.  Experienced talent is better.

Experienced talent is good. Mature talent is even better... Give me freshman Jamarques Lawrence, mature beyond his years, over almost all of the upperclassmen 4 star transfers we had in the last 4 years. Mental toughness is essential. 

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NoladrianSephier

NoladrianSephier

Posted
Posted
On 10/4/2023 at 10:32 AM, millerhusker said:

Experienced talent is good. Mature talent is even better... Give me freshman Jamarques Lawrence, mature beyond his years, over almost all of the upperclassmen 4 star transfers we had in the last 4 years. Mental toughness is essential. 

Totally agree. Curious what you would attribute his growth to? I didn't think he showed much in his limited opportunities early in the year but I was totally sold on him by the end.

 

I just glanced through some old rosters to see if anyone stuck out as taking as big of a jump as JL and Sam Hoiberg did and the only person was maybe Thor. And that could probably be attributed to system as much as development.

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hskr4life

hskr4life

Posted
Posted
2 hours ago, NoladrianSephier said:

Totally agree. Curious what you would attribute his growth to? I didn't think he showed much in his limited opportunities early in the year but I was totally sold on him by the end.

 

I just glanced through some old rosters to see if anyone stuck out as taking as big of a jump as JL and Sam Hoiberg did and the only person was maybe Thor. And that could probably be attributed to system as much as development.


Confidence goes a long ways.  JL was given an opportunity to play, partly though necessity, and he took advantage of it.  It probably helped that we were pretty thin at the time when he really started to play well and small mistakes he did make didn’t greatly affect his PT. 
 

We’ve also been in situations where guys are in a position where they’re forced to play and don’t perform and it can hurt them in the long run.  So I don’t take anything away from JL because we were thin.  He really stepped up!

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millerhusker

millerhusker

Posted
Posted
4 hours ago, NoladrianSephier said:

Totally agree. Curious what you would attribute his growth to? I didn't think he showed much in his limited opportunities early in the year but I was totally sold on him by the end.

 

I just glanced through some old rosters to see if anyone stuck out as taking as big of a jump as JL and Sam Hoiberg did and the only person was maybe Thor. And that could probably be attributed to system as much as development.

The perceived growth is probably just due to more opportunities later in the season. He had the ability and the mindset from the start, in my opinion. I think we can attribute getting a steady, mature player like him to the staff's newer recruiting philosophy of valuing the character of the player as much as the talent. I did some digging and this is what I wrote about him in the K-State postgame thread on December 18th (well before he was part of the regular rotation)... 

 

"If we're talking bare bones, basic fundamental basketball. Triple threat, dribbling, passing, shooting. Does Jamarques Lawrence not look like the most naturally fluid basketball player on the roster? His shooting mechanics are the best on the team, without question. Compact, no wasted motion. He dribbles with his hand on top of the ball, which is unheard of nowadays. Snaps crisp chest passes. He's turned the ball over 3 times in 80 minutes of gametime as a true freshman. I think he got some good coaching as a kid (and was coachable). When he's on the court and involved in the play, he just moves and looks like a guard being coached by Mark Few or Jay Wright."

 

Besides all that, maybe the most impressive thing about Jamarques last year was the game at the high major level never appeared to be too fast for him, which is pretty rare for a true freshman. He plays very fast, yet under control. And makes good, quick decisions. 

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cipsucks

cipsucks

Posted
Posted
5 hours ago, NoladrianSephier said:

 

I just glanced through some old rosters to see if anyone stuck out as taking as big of a jump as JL and Sam Hoiberg did and the only person was maybe Thor. And that could probably be attributed to system as much as development.

 

Should have gone back just a few more years.  Jack Moore from his freshman to sophomore year was pretty impressive.  😉

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