Way too Early 2016-17 Speculations?

[jaxalum]

I'll bite. This is entirely speculative. I think we'll have a better idea at the start of fall.

1. Xavier - They're gonna be better than they were this year.
2. Villanova - They always prove us wrong. And I'm probably gonna be an idiot for not picking them first.
3. Seton Hall - Sophomore class will improve even more, and they'll only get better collectively.
4. Creighton - The best guard duo in the league in Watson and Foster. I worry about their big men play, however. Not much there.
5. Providence - Dunn and Bentil score 50.6% of Providence's points. If both are gone, Providence is gonna go into a rebuild. Maybe Lindsey and Bullock can step up?
6. Butler - Needs Kelan to step into that "alpha dog" role. Probably starting five upperclassmen next year. Should be the deepest Butler team since joining the Big East. Rosey and Dunham are huge losses.
7. DePaul - Billy Garrett Jr. and Eli Cain will make a really good guard duo...but they're still DePaul. Good chance they get abused around the basket too.
8. Georgetown - DSR is gone. I thought Peak and Copeland would be All Big East players by now. Govan's got some potential. Feel like JT3 has completely lost his grip on the program.
9. SJU - They'll be better. They still have a long way to go.
10. Marquette - Ellenson isn't coming back. I haven't seen anything outside of him to think they'll be any good next year. I'd love to be wrong.

Xavier, Nova and Seton Hall will be awesome. Creighton should dance. Providence and Butler are huge question marks. DePaul and SJU will be better. Georgetown and Marquette will be worse or the same.

Xavier will lose Reynolds, Farr, and Abel, with a possible transfer in Austin or London. They (Austin/London) both reportedly love X and their teammates, but the coach/player end of year evaluations are (utilized by all teams) brutally honest conversations where a coach may tell a player he needs to move on. London, if he transfers, would lose a year of eligibility as he has already redshirted. Oddly enough, he was considered to have the highest ceiling of the 2014 recruiting class that consisted of Blueitt, Sumner, Austin, Macura, and Omara. He was/is a 6'10 stretch 4 with the handle of a 2 guard, a dead eye 3 point shooter, with elite athleticism. Unfortunately he hasn't progressed as quickly as the staff had envisioned. Ironically enough, Kaiser Gates, who is progressing beautifully as a true freshman, is essentially doing exactly what Makinde was recruited to do. On a team, filled with some of the conferences best shooters, Mack says Gates is the second best shooter behind Davis.

Sumner and Blueitt will both be back unless they average 20/10/5 on a run to the Final 4. We have a glutton of big men but, and I never would have said this at the beginning of the year, Farr will be missed the most. He has turned himself into a do everything big man and as a rebounder, he is considered to be one of the best in Conference and the nation, and that will be the most difficult piece to replace next year above anything else. Xavier is an ELITE rebounding team and he is the main reason why. We essentially return 4 of 5 starters

1. Sumner
2. Davis
3. Macura
4. Blueitt
5.?????????????????

The 5 will be a battle between Omara, Gastin, Gates (going small), Eddie Ekiyor (4* 6'9 230 elite athlete/very raw) and Tyrique Jones (3-4* 6'8 245 elite athlete/raw offensively/probable redshirt). Gaston is a 5th year guy that will rebound and has some polished offensive moves. I'm betting its by committee (Gastin/Omara) and while they will not be Reynolds and Farr, they will be a handful. Our top 2016 recruit is Quentin Goodin (4* 6'4 combo guard/recruited to play point). Im probably looking through my blue hazed glasses, but he and Sumner in the backcourt, although just a pickup during an official, blew away the entire staff. Words like "ridiculous" and "sick" were used to describe the two of them together. I know its a highlight video, but imagine two Sumners on the floor(Sumner is his closest comparison), or he and Davis:

https://vimeo.com/155681909

If you would have told me that Jalen Reynolds, our gimme First Team Big East/ likely All American and first round draft pick, essentially remained static, and might have even regressed this year, and yet we are top 5 and looking to make a Final 4 run, I would think you loco. Thats why I think X potentially could be better. He was going to be our star. Our stars turned out to be a redshirt freshmen(Sumner) and two sophomores (Blueitt/Macura). There are rumors that Reynolds might stay (I don't believe), but if he does, thats an obscene lineup.

My quick two cents on other Big East Squads in NO PARTICULAR ORDER:

-St Johns: Will continue to improve. Mullen has a nice group coming in highlighted by Ponds. He did about as well as one could expect under the circumstances. Our NY member needs to be contenders most years. Kudos to the staff and players for playing hard throughout the season under difficult conditions.

-Seton Hall: If their core returns, they will be a brutish, physical, skilled group that can beat you with strength and finesse. A near impossible combination to counter. Definite contenders in the Big East and should be ranked.

-Marquette: I'm assuming Ellenson is gone. People focused so much on him, and rightfully so, they forget that Wojo has been a recruiting machine since he's arrived at Marquette. He's accumulated a roster of young 4* recruits with a transfer here and there. 2016 class consists of Sam Hauser and Brendan Bailey. Guess what? Two 4 *.

-Providence: This is one I don't really have a clue about. What I do know. Dunn and Bentil are gone. Correct? What I also know is Ed Cooley is one of the best coaches around hence, there is nothing to fear except fear itself.

-Creighton: Those 17,000 rabid fans will get what they deserve. An NCAA bid. Watson and Foster are of the bad ass variety. I was really into the Seton Hall/Creighton game tonight, and Cole Huff went into beast mode and took over for periods of time. If he can become more consistent, that will be huge.

-Butler: Bulldog fans know what they are losing. As an X fan we cross recruited on a few kids. K Martin has turned himself into an all league type player. And the 2016 class is strong across the board. I know X made Joey Brunk a priority. He's going to be VERY good. Already 6'10/240 with a polished offensive game. Howard Washighton is going to be a stud pg as well.

-Georgetown: No idea. Has the brand and right blood color (blue) to recruit with ANYONE in the country. And they have a roster full of highly ranked kids. Gtown fans have to be uber frustrated.

-Depaul: I thought there was some progress. Can you imagine having a top 20 ranked team in Chicago, NY City, and Washington DC? Two words. It would be "Bad" and "Ass".

-Nova: Nova has coming in exactly what they needed, which is in perfect concert with who is leaving. Spellman is a 5* stud PF/C, Paschall, the transfer from Fordham is supposedly a beast, and damn you GQ boy J Wright for grabbing Dylan Painter. We needed a skilled Center, and recruited him hard, but he's from Penn and his dream school was Nova. When Jay "Chanel for Men" Wright offered it was a no brainer for the kid. Can't fault him. Nova is numero uno until someone knocks them off their perch.

[milksteak]

I'll bite. This is entirely speculative. I think we'll have a better idea at the start of fall.

1. Xavier - They're gonna be better than they were this year.
2. Villanova - They always prove us wrong. And I'm probably gonna be an idiot for not picking them first.
3. Seton Hall - Sophomore class will improve even more, and they'll only get better collectively.
4. Creighton - The best guard duo in the league in Watson and Foster. I worry about their big men play, however. Not much there.
5. Providence - Dunn and Bentil score 50.6% of Providence's points. If both are gone, Providence is gonna go into a rebuild. Maybe Lindsey and Bullock can step up?
6. Butler - Needs Kelan to step into that "alpha dog" role. Probably starting five upperclassmen next year. Should be the deepest Butler team since joining the Big East. Rosey and Dunham are huge losses.
7. DePaul - Billy Garrett Jr. and Eli Cain will make a really good guard duo...but they're still DePaul. Good chance they get abused around the basket too.
8. Georgetown - DSR is gone. I thought Peak and Copeland would be All Big East players by now. Govan's got some potential. Feel like JT3 has completely lost his grip on the program.
9. SJU - They'll be better. They still have a long way to go.
10. Marquette - Ellenson isn't coming back. I haven't seen anything outside of him to think they'll be any good next year. I'd love to be wrong.

Xavier, Nova and Seton Hall will be awesome. Creighton should dance. Providence and Butler are huge question marks. DePaul and SJU will be better. Georgetown and Marquette will be worse or the same.

Xavier will lose Reynolds

Is this for sure? I haven't seen him on any draft boards...

[JohnW22]

I'll bite. This is entirely speculative. I think we'll have a better idea at the start of fall.

1. Xavier - They're gonna be better than they were this year.
2. Villanova - They always prove us wrong. And I'm probably gonna be an idiot for not picking them first.
3. Seton Hall - Sophomore class will improve even more, and they'll only get better collectively.
4. Creighton - The best guard duo in the league in Watson and Foster. I worry about their big men play, however. Not much there.
5. Providence - Dunn and Bentil score 50.6% of Providence's points. If both are gone, Providence is gonna go into a rebuild. Maybe Lindsey and Bullock can step up?
6. Butler - Needs Kelan to step into that "alpha dog" role. Probably starting five upperclassmen next year. Should be the deepest Butler team since joining the Big East. Rosey and Dunham are huge losses.
7. DePaul - Billy Garrett Jr. and Eli Cain will make a really good guard duo...but they're still DePaul. Good chance they get abused around the basket too.
8. Georgetown - DSR is gone. I thought Peak and Copeland would be All Big East players by now. Govan's got some potential. Feel like JT3 has completely lost his grip on the program.
9. SJU - They'll be better. They still have a long way to go.
10. Marquette - Ellenson isn't coming back. I haven't seen anything outside of him to think they'll be any good next year. I'd love to be wrong.

Xavier, Nova and Seton Hall will be awesome. Creighton should dance. Providence and Butler are huge question marks. DePaul and SJU will be better. Georgetown and Marquette will be worse or the same.

Xavier will lose Reynolds

Is this for sure? I haven't seen him on any draft boards...

If he doesn't go pro he'll leave early for Europe. He really should have graduated last year so he's pushing it age wise in college. He needs to start earning money somewhere and many NBA teams won't draft a 25 year old rookie big.

[gtmoBlue]

Will probably change with Spring commits and transfers.

1 Villanova - May fall off their 3 year pace. However, until someone beats them...
2 Creighton - lose 2, add 4 (Marcus Foster-transfer, Patton-RS, Mintz-Fr, and the Slovenian Assassin-Med RS)
3 Xavier (losing up to 4 players - incl Reynolds,Austin). Good class incoming.
4 Seton Hall - Whitehead leaves. Jr. Led team should improve.
5 Providence - Dunn/Bentil leave. good group of redshirt transfers & recruits coming in.
6 Marquette - Ellenson leaves. good class incoming
7 Butler - losing top scorers, good class incoming
8 Georgetown - hmmm?
9 St John's - may move up a couple of spots
10 DePaul

[MackNova]

As I've said many times, class rankings are irrelevant. 3 borderline top-100 guys is often worth more than 1 top-25 guy. Yet for a team like Villanova or Xavier, which returns a lot of talent, they'd rather get fewer elite players than more good players.

1. Villanova - Might take some time to get used to life without Arch, but on paper, next year's team is even more talented
2. Xavier - Return a ton from a great team. Can't put them lower than here.
3. Seton Hall - If the sophomores come back, they are a strong 3 and a clear level above the rest. This assumes they return.

4. Creighton - Watson and Foster is a dynamic backcourt
5. Marquette - Total wild card. They'll be very young again, but they'll return everyone besides Ellenson. Not sure how good Rowsey is supposed to be.
6. Georgetown - Had them lower last time I did this, but the more I think about it, the more I think they have to be better, right?
7. Butler - Kelan Martin is a freaking stud. Questions about the supporting cast.

8. Providence - I'm thinking Bentil leaves. If that's the case, there isn't much talent here.
9. St. John's - Long way to go but the incoming class is a start
10. DePaul

[jfan]

Will probably change with Spring commits and transfers.<br abp="739"><br abp="740">1 Villanova - May fall off their 3 year pace. However, until someone beats them...<br abp="741">2 Creighton - lose 2, add 4 (Marcus Foster-transfer, Patton-RS, Mintz-Fr, and the Slovenian Assassin-Med RS)<br abp="742">3 Xavier (losing up to 4 players - incl Reynolds,Austin). Good class incoming.<br abp="743">4 Seton Hall - Whitehead leaves. Jr. Led team should improve.<br abp="744">5 Providence - Dunn/Bentil leave. good group of redshirt transfers & recruits coming in.<br abp="745">6 Marquette - Ellenson leaves. good class incoming<br abp="746">7 Butler - losing top scorers, good class incoming<br abp="747">8 Georgetown - hmmm?<br abp="748">9 St John's - may move up a couple of spots<br abp="749">10 DePaul

gtmo, I'm stunned. First, you don't pick our beloved Bluejays to win it all, then you pick Villanova(Of all teams) to finish first. Are you OK? Are we seeing a new gtmo?