Way-Too-Early Predictions for 2023-2024 NSIC Season

[simple as a $3 bill]

I like the pictures of Karen Stromme and Mr. Karen Stromme(Gary Holquist) in the corners. Adds a nice touch.

[Purple Mav Man]

I like the pictures of Karen Stromme and Mr. Karen Stromme(Gary Holquist) in the corners. Adds a nice touch.

People say if you’re married long enough, you start looking alike…

[Moorhead123]

Looks like Mankato has a few d2 transfers that have been productive in the past at other schools. Mankato will likely be strong on paper. Is this a year they put it together? It’s been a little while (by their standards) since MSU has put a powerhouse team on the court.

[Moorhead123]

Well it appears Mankato and Moorhead (in my admittedly biased opinion) have had a good recruiting offseason so far. Anybody else out there excited about what their team has done so far this offseason?

[laker]

Well it appears Mankato and Moorhead (in my admittedly biased opinion) have had a good recruiting offseason so far. Anybody else out there excited about what their team has done so far this offseason?

I just found out about this now. Evidently MSU is putting up a center court scoreboard on high.

[simple as a $3 bill]

Maybe they figure that then it will be easier for the fan(yes singular) to see the game details. :)

[Stanger86]

Maybe they figure that then it will be easier for the fan(yes singular) to see the game details. :)

Laker's getting older, and I'm guessing his eyesight's not as good as it once was

[laker]

Laker's getting older, and I'm guessing his eyesight's not as good as it once was

Spot on. Picking up new glasses tomorrow in New Ulm. Close up is fine, far away- not so much.

[Moorhead123]

Spot on. Picking up new glasses tomorrow in New Ulm. Close up is fine, far away- not so much.

You may want to wait until after the season for new glasses. Watching Mankato the last few years would likely be more fun if it was harder to actually see what they were doing. :)

[laker]

You may want to wait until after the season for new glasses. Watching Mankato the last few years would likely be more fun if it was harder to actually see what they were doing. :)

Well, the women's team was fun to watch. Got knocked out by the national runnerup.

[Moorhead123]

Well, the women's team was fun to watch. Got knocked out by the national runnerup.

Fair point

[wsuguy87]

You may want to wait until after the season for new glasses. Watching Mankato the last few years would likely be more fun if it was harder to actually see what they were doing. :)

I made the joke to someone earlier this week that this may be the first season I'll be happy I'm blind (basically)in one eye. I can just pretend I'm not seeing the on-court performance I expect out of my beloved Warriors.

[Moorhead123]

I made the joke to someone earlier this week that this may be the first season I'll be happy I'm blind (basically)in one eye. I can just pretend I'm not seeing the on-court performance I expect out of my beloved Warriors.

Yea, it’s been long drought for Winona. Not sure this will be the year they break out, but you never know.

[vikingfaithful]

Yea, it’s been long drought for Winona. Not sure this will be the year they break out, but you never know.

So now that MSUM has added 5 transfers for this upcoming season, would you rank the Dragons higher then 6th in your original assessment?

[MrAugustana]

Quick thoughts:

Assuming everyone is healthy, I think the Vikings have some areas of potential weakness, but some pretty significant strengths too.

Potential weaknesses:

1) Losing on that big man transfer that committed and then decommitted this summer hurts in the frontcourt. It means our younger guys (Akoi, Hinker, Helgren, and Kirkman) will need to play grown man style this year and it leaves our post bench a little shallow. Hopefully it's been a productive offseason for those returners.

2) Our shooting guard position will be interesting this year. It's clear that Graves will be the starter at PG and I'd assume Fink will be our starting 3, but that 2 spot doesn't seem clear yet, at least in my mind. I know some of our incoming players are highly regarded, but I've thought that in the past and been reminded of my overzealous optimism, so instead I'll just hope that either Otto or one of the young guys will be ready to step in and give strong minutes at the 2.

3) Like last year, we do still have a lot of young players in general. Of the 13 players currently on the roster, 9 are either freshmen or sophomores. So...that's a young squad.

Significant strengths:

1) On the flip side, our returners have the potential to be very solid. A healthy Fink should be a 16+ ppg scorer, and I wouldn't be shocked at all if Graves is right there with him this season. Akoi had flashes of being an important piece (would love to see his rebounding numbers increase this season though), and Otto is one of those guys who always looks SO close to being a solid player and just seems to have a few too many little lapses and misjudgments that lead to negative outcomes. If he can put it together this year, our upperclassmen could carry us to a few wins even if the younger guys don't play to their full potential night in and night out.

2) If some of these freshmen and sophomores are ready and get even close to some of the expectations based on the recruiting experts' analysis over the past few years, we could have a very strong bench to supplement the starters. Guys like Rensch who really came on late last year as well as the aforementioned Hinker and Helgren will be huge, but if Bear, Laube, Kirkman, and Lewis are competent as freshmen, I like our odds in games like some of the close ones we lost last season.

3) Many of the players who will be getting key minutes have been in the system for at least one season, if not 2-4 seasons. That should give the Vikes a little more fluidity and cohesion than we seemed to lack at times last season.

As usual, we won't know until the season starts. I like this team, and I think Graves and Fink in particular are going to shine if they're healthy. I'm already getting the itch for basketball season and football hasn't even started yet. I don't know if that's a good thing, but it is what it is.