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  • Your team next year

    A good topic for us working out of home, those who are bored (again me) or just interested in chiming in about their favorite PacWest, CCAA, or GNAC team and what it will look like for the 2020-21 season. I'm not sure who will win the league, who is good, or whatever. I do think the conference boasts arguably the best D2 player in America returning in Alaska's Shadeed Shabazz, which makes the conference interesting. I'm basing things off the current roster, which obviously will change greatly in the next few months. My main goal is to have a hoop season to watch, I think the football season has sailed into the sunset.

    Anyway, here we go ...

    Western Oregon

    Best returning player: Darius Lubom, a senior to be point guard. He's been very good for a long time, the Wolves are better when he's on the court.
    Other key returnees: I think Emanuel Gant is a future star and had a fine junior season, great at rebounding, defense and plays bigger than his height. Cameron Cranston and post John Morrill-Keeler are solid returning starters.
    Concerns: Most of the returning depth is up front (which can be a good thing), guard play might be questionable. Losing sharp-shooting guards Dalven Brushier and Jaylyn Richardson is a killer.
    Unknowns: Will redshirt (and former starter) Etan Collins return? How good is soph-to-be point guard Antonio Salinas?
    Outlook: I like that 3 starters return and key 6th man Gant is back. I think the Wolves will battle for a top 4 spot in the league and if things go well, maybe higher. I like coach Pifer, think he's really good.
    Last edited by tsull; 04-02-2020, 11:47 AM.

  • #2
    My GNAC team was Humboldt State and I'm still bummed that they dropped football. I wonder how long GNAC football can survive with only four teams?
    Last edited by crixus; 04-02-2020, 05:33 AM.

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    • #3
      Originally posted by crixus View Post
      My GNAC team was Humboldt State and I'm still bummed that they dropped football. I wonder how long GNAC football can survive with only four teams?
      Well, you can still post Humboldt's prospectives in CCAA basketball ... but yeah, I wish HSU still was playing football, they had the best stadium/game-day venue on the west coast, if not west of the Mississippi.

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      • #4
        Last edited by Anchorage; 04-05-2020, 06:38 PM.

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        • #5
          Awesome breakdown, Anchorage, that's what I was looking for!

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          • #6
            Originally posted by tsull View Post

            Well, you can still post Humboldt's prospectives in CCAA basketball ... but yeah, I wish HSU still was playing football, they had the best stadium/game-day venue on the west coast, if not west of the Mississippi.
            Oops! I guess I'm always thinking football first. I'm getting old and have noticed my brain farts are increasing. My apologies. Grandpa needs a nap.
            Last edited by crixus; 04-02-2020, 05:12 PM.

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            • #7
              Originally posted by crixus View Post

              Oops! I guess I'm always thinking football first. I'm getting old and have noticed my brain farts are increasing. My apologies. Grandpa needs a nap.
              No problem, and IMO, a bring-back-Humboldt football topic can land on any board!

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              • #8
                Northern, where are you? Probably really busy ... if you have the time, chime in, you have the top player in the country returning, that's gonna be fun.

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                • #9
                  I wrote a season preview on my Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/notes/cwu-c...4623228318480/

                  Comment


                  • #10
                    UAF: UAF graduates four players in Hatch, McCullough, Daugharty, and Sweet. Sweet was a threat for scoring and his points and toughness will be missed. McCullough had some mighty energy that proved crucial in a few wins over the season. Daugharty was a season-long starter, but rarely looked for a shot and mostly seemed to be a reliable defender and passer. Hatch, along with McCullough were Durham's last recruits to move through the school and Hatch brought some fundamental skills and energy in a few key moments this year too.

                    Returning for UAF:
                    • PG: Huerta, a junior, becoming senior, at 5'9" is a teeny PG, but he was a fairly reliable shooter and got better through the season and taking to the lane and he also used his small size to play a more surprising role on defense. Lee, a true freshman had a few quality moments, but in his rush to get playing time, he often overlooked his main job in setting up the offense and being the PG on the floor. With maturity and more patience, he looks to have some potential.
                    • Shooting Guard: Howard, a junior, becoming senior came off the bench for a few explosive minutes this season. I don't know much about Kelly, who is a JUCO who redshirted this last season.
                    • Small Forward: Banks came off the bench and exploded a few times this season for points. He has a great pull up jumper, has a great touch right underneath the basket off the drive, but seemed to lack confidence to make that magic consistently. I look forward to seeing him develop that next year. Sommerfield, at 6'7" is the only real size the team has outside of Kachjaani, and while a great spot-up shooter and decent rebounder, lacks a more well rounded skill set. He clearly does not desire to bang down low and his defense in the post leaves something to be desired too, although he did improve tremendously there this season. I don't know anything about local SF, Scarboro who redshirted this season.
                    • Forward/Center: Kachjaani was a true freshman this year and that was the consistent thing; he was still trying to untangle his legs and arms and be competitive at the same time. He had some shining moments and matched up well on occasion, but he needs a lot of foot and hand work still. Lots of potential there, but he needs to put in a tremendous amount of time with his skills to be more consistent.
                    • Shabazz: Clearly took the conference by storm this year. His defense was marvelous and the passing on par as well. I like how he chooses to score. There's not much to pick at with his production, but I will say that it won't be so easy to turn in the same kinds of numbers next year, nor will it be easy to deal with the pressure of preseason awards and expectations. And I don't really doubt that he can mentally deal with that, because the team could be much better with more depth and balance. He doesn't really need me to slather on more than this, nor is it beneficial to pick at the few things he could do much better. Staying humble and adjusting to what the team will most need from him will be key to his and the team's success next season. I look forward to seeing him settle into that role, whatever it will look like.
                    It was a real joy to watch this team this year. They found a good rhythm together and although they lacked many things, they stuck together and more often than not surprised teams all season long. They bring back 7 players who had court time this year, if they all return. Each brings something and each has a lot of off-season work to do.

                    What UAF needs:
                    • At least 2 players who can rebound, body up, score inside and defend the post at this level of play. To do that in this league, you need to be 6'6" at minimum. Those players are rare and hard to find, just by nature of their rare size and then add the developed talent already, and they are even rarer. Playing at this level is a big step up from high school ball and a pretty big step from JC ball too, so it'll take some real recruiting to find this.
                    • Some depth at the guard positions.
                    The need that doesn't appear on paper is the need to develop and sustain the team energy they had this year. UAF is most likely going to remain a dark horse, underdog sort of team just by nature of its existence in Fairbanks, so more than flashy players, they really need the team atmosphere that along with Shabazz won them many games that they otherwise would not have won this year. A focus on defense wouldn't hurt either. I'll be excited to see what the recruiting season yields for the coming year.

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                    • #11
                      Awesome reports Nation and Northern, very thorough.

                      Comment


                      • #12
                        Stump, Billy Bronco, you out there? :smile-big:

                        Comment


                        • #13
                          Originally posted by northernGNAChoopfan View Post
                          UAF: UAF graduates four players in Hatch, McCullough, Daugharty, and Sweet. Sweet was a threat for scoring and his points and toughness will be missed. McCullough had some mighty energy that proved crucial in a few wins over the season. Daugharty was a season-long starter, but rarely looked for a shot and mostly seemed to be a reliable defender and passer. Hatch, along with McCullough were Durham's last recruits to move through the school and Hatch brought some fundamental skills and energy in a few key moments this year too.

                          Returning for UAF:
                          • PG: Huerta, a junior, becoming senior, at 5'9" is a teeny PG, but he was a fairly reliable shooter and got better through the season and taking to the lane and he also used his small size to play a more surprising role on defense. Lee, a true freshman had a few quality moments, but in his rush to get playing time, he often overlooked his main job in setting up the offense and being the PG on the floor. With maturity and more patience, he looks to have some potential.
                          • Shooting Guard: Howard, a junior, becoming senior came off the bench for a few explosive minutes this season. I don't know much about Kelly, who is a JUCO who redshirted this last season.
                          • Small Forward: Banks came off the bench and exploded a few times this season for points. He has a great pull up jumper, has a great touch right underneath the basket off the drive, but seemed to lack confidence to make that magic consistently. I look forward to seeing him develop that next year. Sommerfield, at 6'7" is the only real size the team has outside of Kachjaani, and while a great spot-up shooter and decent rebounder, lacks a more well rounded skill set. He clearly does not desire to bang down low and his defense in the post leaves something to be desired too, although he did improve tremendously there this season. I don't know anything about local SF, Scarboro who redshirted this season.
                          • Forward/Center: Kachjaani was a true freshman this year and that was the consistent thing; he was still trying to untangle his legs and arms and be competitive at the same time. He had some shining moments and matched up well on occasion, but he needs a lot of foot and hand work still. Lots of potential there, but he needs to put in a tremendous amount of time with his skills to be more consistent.
                          • Shabazz: Clearly took the conference by storm this year. His defense was marvelous and the passing on par as well. I like how he chooses to score. There's not much to pick at with his production, but I will say that it won't be so easy to turn in the same kinds of numbers next year, nor will it be easy to deal with the pressure of preseason awards and expectations. And I don't really doubt that he can mentally deal with that, because the team could be much better with more depth and balance. He doesn't really need me to slather on more than this, nor is it beneficial to pick at the few things he could do much better. Staying humble and adjusting to what the team will most need from him will be key to his and the team's success next season. I look forward to seeing him settle into that role, whatever it will look like.
                          It was a real joy to watch this team this year. They found a good rhythm together and although they lacked many things, they stuck together and more often than not surprised teams all season long. They bring back 7 players who had court time this year, if they all return. Each brings something and each has a lot of off-season work to do.

                          What UAF needs:
                          • At least 2 players who can rebound, body up, score inside and defend the post at this level of play. To do that in this league, you need to be 6'6" at minimum. Those players are rare and hard to find, just by nature of their rare size and then add the developed talent already, and they are even rarer. Playing at this level is a big step up from high school ball and a pretty big step from JC ball too, so it'll take some real recruiting to find this.
                          • Some depth at the guard positions.
                          The need that doesn't appear on paper is the need to develop and sustain the team energy they had this year. UAF is most likely going to remain a dark horse, underdog sort of team just by nature of its existence in Fairbanks, so more than flashy players, they really need the team atmosphere that along with Shabazz won them many games that they otherwise would not have won this year. A focus on defense wouldn't hurt either. I'll be excited to see what the recruiting season yields for the coming year.

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                          • #14
                            CWU's Kevin Baker is heading to the islands to play for HPU http://www.verbalcommits.com/players/kevin-baker-wa

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                            • #15
                              I just heard a Doctor with the World Health Organization say that he doubts they'll be a vaccine for Covid 19 until the next 12-18 months. So there's a possibility that there won't be a 2020-2021 basketball season. But I'm an optimist and will be hoping for the best.
                              Last edited by crixus; 04-08-2020, 05:41 AM.

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