I will predict that neither is the "best Freshman" this year.

Azubuike24;1516149 wrote:I will predict that neither is the "best Freshman" this year.

Care to predict who will?

Personally, athletically speaking, I think the most impressive kid in the class is Aaron Gordon. His overall game isn't as polished as either Wiggins or Parker, but he'll bring the highlights this season for Arizona. The sheer power of his game will be difficult to handle for opposing players without NBA bodies.

Best newcomer stats-wise will be Moreira at SMU. The guy will beast the AAC.

Best Freshman stats-wise, I'll say Julius Randle or Noah Vonleh.

Parker will be great from day 1, but I feel Duke has far too much experience at the 1-2-3 positions for him to dominate in the stats. Wiggins will have crazy highlights, but I don't see the consistent production every night to where he could be a 20-10 guys. I'll predict Randle has a DeMarcus Cousins impact and will score more. I'll say something like 18/10/4 as a line. Terrence Jones + about 20% more and Jones was 16/8.5.

Wiggins will win freshman of the year. There is no doubt in my mind. Everything I hear out of Lawrence reads, "dear god almighty.."

Depends how you grade it. Stats, he won't. However, I think he will have an impact like John Wall. John Wall didn't have absolute lights out stats, but his impact and excitement will be similar.

That's also why I'm so excited though. The 3 best Freshman, maybe the top 3 NBA prospects (depends where you rank Parker) are on possibly the top 3 teams...

I think Randle will be the top scorer of any top 10-15 team (meaning well-balanced teams with a chance to win it all). I don't know if that wins him freshman of the year, but he'll be SEC player of the year regardless, IMO.

Azubuike24;1516153 wrote:Best newcomer stats-wise will be Moreira at SMU. The guy will beast the AAC.

Best Freshman stats-wise, I'll say Julius Randle or Noah Vonleh.

As for newcomers, I think Duke redshirt sophomore Rodney Hood will be as good as any out there. Because of the depth you mention on Duke's roster this year, however, in all probability he won't have the gaudy stats like others on the list. But early reports are that Hood could lead the Blue Devils in scoring, he's that good.

Azubuike24 wrote:Parker will be great from day 1, but I feel Duke has far too much experience at the 1-2-3 positions for him to dominate in the stats. Wiggins will have crazy highlights, but I don't see the consistent production every night to where he could be a 20-10 guys. I'll predict Randle has a DeMarcus Cousins impact and will score more. I'll say something like 18/10/4 as a line. Terrence Jones + about 20% more and Jones was 16/8.5.

That's what excites me most about Duke this season; the Blue Devils will enjoy their deepest and most talented team since at least 2001. Scorers and versatile playmakers are in abundance, especially on the wing, which has always been a hallmark of K's strongest teams. Hood's versatility, both offensively and defensively, and effortless ability to score from all over while roaming the floor gives Duke that vital link at the three spot that has been missing in Durham in recent seasons. At 6-8 with a high/quick release and strong handle that gives the kid the ability to stretch the defense out to 25 feet or go to the basket, Hood is a nightmare to guard on the perimeter. He's very similar in playing style and body structure to Mike Dunleavy. Add in Jabari Parker and you have a monster one-two punch on the wing.

To illustrate Duke's depth, let's put it this way. Andre Dawkins might be the most potent shooter in the country -- a kid who dropped 26 points and six triples against Tom Izzo at the Garden in 2011 -- and he won't even start for Duke as a redshirt senior. He'll be playing the Vinnie Johnson role of providing instant offense off the bench.

I've never been especially impressed with Jabari when I've seen him play.

I think the thing with Jabari Parker is that he really doesn't wow you with jump-out-of-the-gym athleticism or crazy highlight-reel plays, so he's often not as memorable as some other guys. He's much more understated and refined than most players of his stature, almost Tim Duncan-like. Parker, to me, almost has that Rasheed Wallace flavor to his game wherein it often looks like he's coasting due the way he sort of floats around the court in an almost effortless manner.

Andrew Wiggins, on the other hand, while probably the more gifted player, really does just coast sometimes and, to his detriment, has a tendency to actually be a lazy player. Even Bill Self has stated that it's sometimes challenging to get Wiggins to "get after it." But when he does go after it, he's a beast.

And before anyone insinuates this, I am not actually comparing Jabari Parker to Tim Duncan. Just their on-court demeanors and their understated styles.

LSU vs UMass
VCU vs Virginia
Kentucky vs Michigan State
Florida vs Wisconsin
Tennessee vs Xavier
Kansas vs Duke

This is opening night. It won't take long for the season to get underway...

http://hoosiersportslive.com/2013/10/14/cbs-experts-predict-college-basketball-top-25/

Some CBS people's rankings.

Fuck Doug Gottlieb..KU, 9th?! Yeah okay, ShortsOnBackwards.

Sold my Big Blue Madness tickets for $200 each. We've won a championship every time I've gone, so I probably just screwed them.

SportsAndLady;1518559 wrote:http://hoosiersportslive.com/2013/10/14/cbs-experts-predict-college-basketball-top-25/

Some CBS people's rankings.

Fuck Doug Gottlieb..KU, 9th?! Yeah okay, ShortsOnBackwards.

Haha. He has UK at 7. I'm pretty sure he just does this to get the haters on board, as UK and KU will have by far the most haters.

Douggie is way too high on west coast hoops. Zona 4, Oregon 8, Cal 10, Gonzaga 12, New Mexico 13, UCLA 15...

Azubuike24;1518575 wrote:Haha. He has UK at 7. I'm pretty sure he just does this to get the haters on board, as UK and KU will have by far the most haters.

Douggie is way too high on west coast hoops. Zona 4, Oregon 8, Cal 10, Gonzaga 12, New Mexico 13, UCLA 15...

Man, that's like a total 180-degree turnaround from the usual claims of "coast bias". Looks like dude's more interested in getting people to talk about his poll than actually creating one that is logical.

He is terrible.

I obviously pay more attention to what IU is doing in peoples mind etc. Last year Doug had IU at 5 one point...I think it was the highest ranking all year. He then went on a tirade using the Syracuse loss to justify his year long rank.

I know I am biased, but to not have IU in your top 5 for almost all of the season last year is just ignorance/hate. That or you are blind and didnt see them play lol.

Only Arizona and UCLA do I somewhat agree with there. Oregon and Cal are good, but not top 10 good. New Mexico at 13? Wow. They aren't even the best in the MWC. Gonzaga at 13, possible.

He's got Colorado at 25, which personally, is too low. I can't believe nobody listed Florida. If they are 100%, that's crazy.

Azubuike24;1518836 wrote:Only Arizona and UCLA do I somewhat agree with there. Oregon and Cal are good, but not top 10 good. New Mexico at 13? Wow. They aren't even the best in the MWC. Gonzaga at 13, possible.

He's got Colorado at 25, which personally, is too low. I can't believe nobody listed Florida. If they are 100%, that's crazy.

I think Oregon will be better than UCLA this year.

Why is Virginia a top 20 team? Who did they add?

They add Malcolm Brogdon, a 4-star guard who redshirted last year. They also get Anthony Gill (Kendall's son) who transferred from South Carolina. Gill was pretty good as a Freshman (8 and 5) at Carolina. They return 6 of their top 9 scorers, including Mitchell and Harris, who were both All-ACC players.

Like you, I'm not at all sold on Virginia. They have limited upside and I don't expect them to be a real threat. However, I can see why they are a fringe top 25 team.

To include them over a team like Ohio State or Florida, who have some pieces to replace, but both have great coaches who continually have competitive teams, is stupid, IMO.

http://www.usatoday.com/sports/ncaab/polls/

Saw this link on a Duke site: http://www.syracuse.com/orangebasketball/index.ssf/2013/10/syracuse_sells_out_allotment_o.html

Syracuse AD Joe Giansante, on tickets for Duke at Syracuse selling out in less than 3 minutes:

"It was instant," Giansante said. "I wouldn't be surprised if there were people that loaded them into their shopping cart and weren't able to get them." He said he suspected its the fastest Syracuse has sold out the Carrier Dome for single seats in school history. "I don't see how it could be faster."

Had Syracuse officials decided to reconfigure the Carrier Dome floor and move the court to the center of the stadium, the AD estimates that more than 50,000 tickets would have sold, setting the record for the largest crowd at an on-campus basketball arena by more than 15,000 fans. This game is going to be crazy. It's February 1.

Azubuike24;1519195 wrote:They add Malcolm Brogdon, a 4-star guard who redshirted last year. They also get Anthony Gill (Kendall's son) who transferred from South Carolina. Gill was pretty good as a Freshman (8 and 5) at Carolina. They return 6 of their top 9 scorers, including Mitchell and Harris, who were both All-ACC players.

Like you, I'm not at all sold on Virginia. They have limited upside and I don't expect them to be a real threat. However, I can see why they are a fringe top 25 team.

To include them over a team like Ohio State or Florida, who have some pieces to replace, but both have great coaches who continually have competitive teams, is stupid, IMO.

Agree that Virginia is probably a bit overrated at this point, but Tony Bennett does return the entire starting five, including, as you mention, six of his top nine scorers, from a team that went 23-12 and finished 4th in the -- albeit down -- ACC. Harris is the real deal and as good a pure scorer as there is in the country. If the Cavs can improve upon last year's campaign, it wouldn't be surprising in the least to see Harris bring home player of the year honors in the conference.

Chane Behanan might not play for Louisville this year.

"He had a number of suspensions last year, so this was not one thing," Pitino told ESPN.com. "It was many different things, and the AD and I just sat down and said he's got to get his head right and his life right before he plays another basketball game."

Behanan, who averaged 9.8 points and 6.5 rebounds in 39 games last season, has been a two-year starter at power forward and was projected to start as a junior. Pitino said Behanan understands clearly why he's been punished.

"He knows this isn't something the university did to him," Pitino said. "This is something he did to himself. He's had multiple chances to do the right thing."

"Can he come back? We set up a situation for him to come back, and he already violated it."

Later Pitino said that a comeback was possible, but not probable.