Waiting for basketball season...

[Arizona_Sting]

I break the Pac12 down like this basically. Arizona is a legit title contender and top 5 team, imo. Colorado has a very talented team and they look like a lock for a the Big Dance barring a major injury to a key player or two. Then, after that Tier 3 is filled with teams that can all potentially make the tourney and it wouldn't surprise me. It's going to be a VERY competitive conference.
Tier 1
UofA
-------------
Tier 2
Colorado
--------------
Tier 3
Oregon
UCLA
Cal
ASU
Stanford
----------
Tier 4
Washington
-----------
Tier 5
The rest

 

[JahiiCarson_SqodGeneral]

I break the Pac12 down like this basically. Arizona is a legit title contender and top 5 team, imo. Colorado has a very talented team and they look like a lock for a the Big Dance barring a major injury to a key player or two. Then, after that Tier 3 is filled with teams that can all potentially make the tourney and it wouldn't surprise me. It's going to be a VERY competitive conference.
Tier 1
UofA
-------------
Tier 2
Colorado
--------------
Tier 3
Oregon
UCLA
Cal
ASU
Stanford
----------
Tier 4
Washington
-----------
Tier 5
The rest

We matched up well vs Colorado last year. Dont know about this year.

 

[JahiiCarson_SqodGeneral]

Oh and to CTPs comment earlier about Jahiis passing. If everyone on ASU last year wasnt so god damm timid (Gilling) he probably could of averaged a solid 6 assists so many times he would feed someone and they would hesitate and not shoot.

 

[JahiiCarson_SqodGeneral]

I think people are overrating Cal imo there still weak in there front court and while Bird is good he lacks experience. How will Bird play when hes going against NJ at Uofa a lock down defender. You need experience this year and a leader so many close games that will go down to the wire. I expect 3 buzzer beaters from Jahii this year.

 

[The Derski]

So. Much. Words. In. The. Comments.

a little drunk right now.

Jahii: I respect your unlimited passion for everything ASU. I really do. I personally believe you are one of the biggest if not the biggest ASU fan out there. Deep (really deep) down inside I root for ASU whenever they are not playing UA. Truth is I like to see the West Coast do well, especially the Pac 12, especially Arizona as a state. There needs to be more Sun Devil fans like you.

 

[JahiiCarson_SqodGeneral]

So. Much. Words. In. The. Comments.

a little drunk right now.

Jahii: I respect your unlimited passion for everything ASU. I really do. I personally believe you are one of the biggest if not the biggest ASU fan out there. Deep (really deep) down inside I root for ASU whenever they are not playing UA. Truth is I like to see the West Coast do well, especially the Pac 12, especially Arizona as a state. There needs to be more Sun Devil fans like you.

I was overdosed on Vivaynse today Im freaking out lol

 

[CatsTopPac]

Jahii, I think the reason why I expect so much out of Cal is because, although they lost Crabbe, it's really their only significant loss. And no frontcourt? THey have both Solomon and Kravish returning. THose guys are both studs. Cobbs (who I kept referencing as a SG for some reason, even though I know damn well he's a PG) returns, and they add Bird. Bird is touted because he's 6'6" 190. That, and his athleticism makes him the 2nd best SG coming into college next year. All he needs to do is not suck. All the other players on Cal are going to be improved. The loss of Crabbe is huge, but if you are going to replace him, you can't give yourself a much better opportunity that the 2nd best rated SG coming in. Plus, as much as I give Cal fans shit for it, you have to add in the Monty factor. The guy is an amazing coach. He is a master at player development and the Xs and Os. His recruiting is strongly hampered by him being at such a tough academic school as Cal, and Stanford before that. But basically turns a bunch of 2 and 3 star athletes into competitors. Every year his teams look kind of "eh" on paper, and then they are always in the top tier by the end. You can never really count a Monty-coached team out of it. Add to that that 4-5 starters are retuning, and they actually got a legit 4 star recruit. Seriously, Cal will be there.

As far as Washington, I see it to be almost the exact opposite situation as Cal. Romar constantly underachieves. Every year I look at their rosters and they just look so talented and athletic. And every year they come up short of doing anything meaningful, except for the year their last second shot won them the Pac Tourney Championship, and then they promptly lost in the first weekend in the dance. Or they won the Pac in its weakest year in 3 decades, and then didn't even make the tourney because they sucked so bad. Romar has gotten as far as the raw talent, which walks in the door, takes him. That same talent that is so obvious that everyone picks them to win, almost REFUSES to win on the road. This happens every year. That is horrible coaching. Romar has had about as good a talent pick UW in the last 10 years as UCLA and AZ, and yet he can't get to the dance, let alone ever get anything more than a Sweet 16. Don't get me wrong, compared to where they were before Romar, he is a king to them. But honestly, now that they have the fan base, the facilities, and the respect to get such great talent, they have outgrown the coach. He is holding them back. If they could get a coach that could actually coach them, they would be making deep runs in March and always at the top of the Pac. I just cannot believe in Romar. He's has everyone from Brandon Roy, Nate Robinson, Isiah Thomas, Jon Brockman, Spencer Hawes, Quincy Pondexter, Terrence Ross, and Tony Wroten all get drafted and play on teams with each other, and yet not even get ONE Elite 8. I bet Nigel Williams-Gross will be a draft pick also, and I highly doubt that he will ever know what a Sweet 16 feels like.

 

[CatsTopPac]

I have a very similar breakdown of the Pac, as Sting.

I see AZ as the top tier. If AZ doesn't win the Pac this year for any reason other than injury to a major player like TJ, NJ, or Zeus, I will see the year as a complete disappointment, and I have little hope of them making the Elite 8. Without injury, I see the Eiite 8 as the lowest expectation for AZ.

I think the 2nd tier consists of Colorado, Cal, and Oregon. I just think that those are the three next best coaches and teams in the Pac and should make the dance. All three are bringing back a great deal, and in the case of Oregon, which lost a lot, Altman has certainly reloaded with transfers to go with a great back court. The bottom line is that those three coaches know how to win.

I think the third tier is UCLA, ASU, and Stanford. I think those three teams are all going to fight for hopefully, another two tickets to the dance. If we could get 6 teams in, that would be great, and should effectively shut everyone up from talking shit about the Pac. Best-case scenario is that 2 of the 3 teams in this tier make the dance. I think it's fairly a long shot, but it's possible if they do well in the non-conference. Because the fact is, the Pac will beat up on itself this year. With half of the teams having a legit shot - in my opinion - of making the dance, there will be a great deal of conference cannibalism. Again, if the Pac can really do well in the non-conference, which I always hope is true, then the conference RPI goes up, and more teams make the dance despite going 11-7 (for example) in conference. I think the misnomer is that let's say that UCLA and Stanford both make it. ASU could be left out, be in the bottom half of the conference, and still be a good team. Again, I think ASU will be a good team, but I just think that the conference as a whole is so strong, that it might not be enough. I just don't know. If the players produce how they certainly have the potential to, they could very well find themselves in the dance. But I just think that UCLA and Stanford also have the same shot. I really think that at least one of the teams in this tier gets into the dance, and hopefully two. UCLA returns both Wears, Adams, Anderson, Powell, and has some decent players coming in. The key will be, how Alford does to put it all together. He's a good coach, but he's new, so you just never know. If the players buy in, they could do well enough to make it. Also, as always, their bench is really a question. Stanford returns Chasson Randle who is a stud, and hopefully Aaron Bright (who was an absolute stud before he got hurt), Huestis, and Powell. Those guys are a solid group. They also have a pretty decent bench coming back. There are many who think that they are definitely in the mix to dance. Again, it just depends on how well the bench does. All of the above is the same with ASU. Good group of starters, not sure how well the coach will help or hurt, and questions with the bench. Whichever of these teams can put it together, will make it to March, but nothing is given with them. They can all go either way. If two of these teams can put it together, then they could also be in. I just have no idea which teams will do it. It's close with all three in my opinion. I personally think heading in, that Stanford is my front-runner in this group, and UCLA/ASU will battle it out for the chance to make it a 6th Pac team dancing. But, I could be wrong.

Beyond that, I really don't think the rest is worth discussing. Washington might be a dark-horse to get the closest to the third tier, just based on athleticism, alone. But again, they have GOT to figure out how to win on the road. I think that Romar will be fast-approaching the hot seat by April. Other than that, WSU, OSU, Utah, and USC are terrible, and my only hope is that they win enough out of conference to not bring the Pac RPI down too much.

 

[JahiiCarson_SqodGeneral]

I agree Sting, I still think with the back courts in the league Bird will struggle when it comes to experience but still should perform very well and I think will win Pac 12 Freshmen of the year. I want Mussleman as our Head Coach I feel like he would be very good.

 

[JahiiCarson_SqodGeneral]

Romar had great guards, and could rebound, and actually had pretty good depth they beat us both times because we didn't match up well I don't understand why his team is not contending.

 

[Arizona_Sting]

Washington is a dark horse this year... they will be VERY good for a team projected to finish 8th or 9th in the conference

 

[The Derski]

I hate Washington.

 

[CatsTopPac]

Look, I hate UW as much as the next Cat fan - and especially their bullshit fanbase (no disrespect to Desert Glory). But those mother-fuckers talked shit for years saying that they were the next AZ, calling that they go undefeated in the Pac, etc. And when they have a bad year, all you hear are CRICKETS. Don't get me started.

Whew, sorry. All of that aside, it just stuns me that with all the talent they have had, that the Sweet 16 is the farthest they've made it. Even last year: Gaddy, Suggs, Wilcox, Simmons, Aziz as their starting five? With a very athletic bench in ASJ, AA, JJ, and Kemp. And they completely shit the bed!!! Fact is, despite all the talent, they haven't had a winning record away from Hec Ed since '05-'06. That's atrocious, especially for any hopes in March.

They are still very talented, and even though Gaddy and Suggs didn't pan out they way they had hoped, missing their senior back court, and Wilcox, is going to set them back. I like NWG, Simmons, AA, and some of the other guys they have coming back, but Romar has got to start putting it together. Pac is going to be stronger this year than at any time since '09. And I think that even improving, UW has to do a lot not to get left behind.

 

[JahiiCarson_SqodGeneral]

Look, I hate UW as much as the next Cat fan - and especially their bullshit fanbase (no disrespect to Desert Glory). But those mother-fuckers talked shit for years saying that they were the next AZ, calling that they go undefeated in the Pac, etc. And when they have a bad year, all you hear are CRICKETS. Don't get me started.

Whew, sorry. All of that aside, it just stuns me that with all the talent they have had, that the Sweet 16 is the farthest they've made it. Even last year: Gaddy, Suggs, Wilcox, Simmons, Aziz as their starting five? With a very athletic bench in ASJ, AA, JJ, and Kemp. And they completely shit the bed!!! Fact is, despite all the talent, they haven't had a winning record away from Hec Ed since '05-'06. That's atrocious, especially for any hopes in March.

They are still very talented, and even though Gaddy and Suggs didn't pan out they way they had hoped, missing their senior back court, and Wilcox, is going to set them back. I like NWG, Simmons, AA, and some of the other guys they have coming back, but Romar has got to start putting it together. Pac is going to be stronger this year than at any time since '09. And I think that even improving, UW has to do a lot not to get left behind.

There fan base is actually really educated over here, I hate the way Romar plays very chippy he coaches his players to get away with little things and its not fair. They definitely play with a swagger.

 

[CatsTopPac]

This was good to see. I know it's preseason, but it's nice to see Miller stepping up to schedule better competition - and how it coincides with our best team under his tenure. Should be some great basketball in there!

The 10 best nonconference schedules - Men's College Basketball Nation Blog - ESPN

 

[Arizona_Sting]

This was good to see. I know it's preseason, but it's nice to see Miller stepping up to schedule better competition - and how it coincides with our best team under his tenure. Should be some great basketball in there!

The 10 best nonconference schedules - Men's College Basketball Nation Blog - ESPN

yep... we'll definitely get tested before conference play.

 

[The Derski]

Arizona, Duke, Alabama, Rutgers top four seeds in NIT Season Tip-Off - ESPN

Lol at the Duke fans comments at the bottom. Brainless band wagoners.

 

[Arizona_Sting]

Duke and Kentucky fans are very arrogant and some of the biggest homers out there.

 

[Arizona_Sting]

btw, our chances of landing SJ are very high

 

[The Derski]

btw, our chances of landing SJ are very high

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