How good will our bigs be this season?

[IM4X]

I can't help but feel a little nauseated every time I remember that neither James nor Jalen will be on the court this coming season and every time I remember how X (with such a complete team) missed out on the prefect opportunity to get to the final four and even win a national championship. Yes, there is a lot of good coming back, but is X going to be good enough at the 4/5 for this season's team to have the same ceiling as last season's team? Anyone have new information about how some of our bigs are looking?

O'Mara stepping up at the 5 will be even more important than anyone initially anticipated. He has great size and looked very promising last year, but as we've seen this past year, he often quickly gets himself into foul trouble.

Gates has looked very impressive and he and Bluiett can help out at the 4, but we will be giving up a lot of height this year and very possibly our edge in rebounding. Does anyone know if Gaston and Ekiyor are both legit 6'9"? I have seen neither in person, but they appear a tad shorter when I see them in photos and videos. I wouldn't be surprised if we saw an increase in blocked shots against our bigs down low.

I've been hearing good things about Gaston. He did average 15.5 point a game his last season at Norfolk State. But if you dig a little deeper, you'll find that he struggled to score against better teams during that season.

Vanderbilt - 5 points
Baylor - 6 points
Georgia - 9 points
Princeton -10 points

It all leaves me feeling a little less convinced that we won't see a sizable drop off at the 4/5. Crossing my fingers that our bigs (including Ekiyor and Jones) are capable of playing at a level higher than expected. It's going to be critical to the team's success this coming season.

[XMuskieFTW]

Gaston will average 8.5/7 in 22 minutes and Sean will be at 9/6.2 in 18 minutes a game. Book it!

[xu82]

I didn't know what to expect last year with Ed, so I'll trust Mack & Co. to know what they're doing. I'm more concerned about rebounding than scoring, but obviously we need a threat in there too. There's no shortage of candidates to step forward, and I think some guys will step up and be pleasant surprises. Heck, I wasn't expecting anything from Gates last year, and look how that turned out!

[IM4X]

Gaston will average 8.5/7 in 22 minutes and Sean will be at 9/6.2 in 18 minutes a game. Book it!

I think we'd all be happy with those numbers.

[XMuskieFTW]

I think we'd all be happy with those numbers.

Yeaa. I think we'll see a step down at the 5, but not too drastic. Last year Reynolds and Farr averaged 20.3/14.3. I think 17.5/13.2 is doable at the 5. Better guard play will help us down low.

[IM4X]

I didn't know what to expect last year with Ed, so I'll trust Mack & Co. to know what they're doing. I'm more concerned about rebounding than scoring, but obviously we need a threat in there too. There's no shortage of candidates to step forward, and I think some guys will step up and be pleasant surprises. Heck, I wasn't expecting anything from Gates last year, and look how that turned out!

I too was pleasantly surprised with Gates and I look forward to seeing how he will continue to surprise this season.

No Question, Sumner is truly special. Unfortunately he was quite inconsistent too. I think working on some of his decision making skills (e.g. learning when to shoot and when not to) will help him become more consistent and a force the team can count on every game. If he plays smart every game- look out!

[smileyy]

It seems like, with players like Sumner, their body can move faster than their brain can process the response of the defense, especially as he moves up a level in competition, and again when defenses start gearing towards stopping him. Fortunately, the brain can be trained and develop like any other muscle/skill. I look forward to Ed being able to fully play at the high speed his body can.

[XU3232]

I have heard Ekiyor has looked very good, I think he is going to surprise a lot of people. Apparently he is very quick and the fact that he has already practiced with the team a lot last year is very beneficial.

[SemajParlor]

It seems like, with players like Sumner, their body can move faster than their brain can process the response of the defense, especially as he moves up a level in competition, and again when defenses start gearing towards stopping him. Fortunately, the brain can be trained and develop like any other muscle/skill. I look forward to Ed being able to fully play at the high speed his body can.

The medical term for that condition is called : "Being a Freshman"

[SemajParlor]

Relying on a transfer 4/5 to contribute big minutes has actually been the norm in recent years for us. Walker, Philmore, and Travis Taylor were all solid contributors. And of course Stainbrook. Come to think of it - Mack has excelled in this area. I have faith in our coaching staff given our past success in similar situations.

[GoMuskies]

Philmore and Taylor were awful in their first seasons, though. Hopefully Gaston can be a solid contributor in year one since he doesn't have the luxury of a second year.

[SemajParlor]

Philmore and Taylor were awful in their first seasons, though. Hopefully Gaston can be a solid contributor in year one since he doesn't have the luxury of a second year.

True - that's fair.

[markchal]

I have heard Ekiyor has looked very good, I think he is going to surprise a lot of people. Apparently he is very quick and the fact that he has already practiced with the team a lot last year is very beneficial.

I hope it's more beneficial than it was for Makinde. I do think improvements in the backcourt will offset the losses in the frontcourt.

[IM4X]

Philmore and Taylor were awful in their first seasons, though. Hopefully Gaston can be a solid contributor in year one since he doesn't have the luxury of a second year.

This and the fact that he didn't put up any big numbers against good teams when he was at Nolfolk. Though, maybe he's upped his game and will surprise us all this coming season. That'd be a pleasant surprise indeed.

[xu82]

In addition to O'Mara and Gates hopefully stepping up, we have THREE new bigs and hopefully at least one can really stand out. I like our chances.

[markchal]

This and the fact that he didn't put up any big numbers against good teams when he was at Nolfolk. Though, maybe he's upped his game and will surprise us all this coming season. That'd be a pleasant surprise indeed.

he was probably a main focus for opposing Ds. Here, he only needs to be a solid 3rd/4th option.

[bobbiemcgee]

Gaston will average 8.5/7 in 22 minutes and Sean will be at 9/6.2 in 18 minutes a game. Book it!

Gates may surpass both. Kaiser Gates will get a lot of minutes and he may be our best defender next year. I think Kaiser will be one helluva player and he is ready to shine.

[GIMMFD]

I hope it's more beneficial than it was for Makinde. I do think improvements in the backcourt will offset the losses in the frontcourt.

Makinde was a different player than Ekinyor, Makinde = stretch 4, Ekinyor more of a inside presence. Plus Makinde was a rail, while Ekinyor seems a little bigger and probably put on some more weight throughout the season. I think it was probably more beneficial for Ekinyor to go against Farr and Jalen in practice, because he could pick up some things and mirror them towards his game a little more than Makinde could.. Either that or I'm just sleep deprived and talking crazy.

[RetireFiftyTu]

Relying on a transfer 4/5 to contribute big minutes has actually been the norm in recent years for us. Walker, Philmore, and Travis Taylor were all solid contributors. And of course Stainbrook. Come to think of it - Mack has excelled in this area. I have faith in our coaching staff given our past success in similar situations.

RE: Gaston
X and transfers Last 15 years
Remy Abell
Matt Stainbrook
Isaiah Philmore
*Erik Stenger
Travis Taylor
Andre Walker
Jamel McLean
Andrew Taylor
Jordan Crawford
CJ Anderson
Drew Lavender
Brian Thornton
Anthony Myles

Bolded are the guys that transferred when Mack is head coach. Xavier has had outstanding success with transfers. Have faith in the coaching staff. I think Gaston will turn out to be a good player for Xavier.

*Stenger transferred in as a walk-on, later earned a scholarship.

[XMuskieFTW]

I think we're going to be very balanced again like last year. Maybe even more than last year. I could see Bluiett getting 16 a game, Sumner 13 a game, and 5 guys getting 8-11 a game. That along with maybe another 6-10 from the freshman and I think we will probably see our best ever team. My expectations are a bit high.

[Milhouse]

There were people questioning how we'd be without Dee Davis and Matt Stainbrook this time last year...I'd say the team adjusted just fine.

Rebounding is a skill that transcends conferences I feel like. I don't think Gaston will be a great scorer for us. But we don't need that.

We'll take a step back at the 5 sure. But you don't think players 1-4 will improve? Even minimal improvement from Sumner, Davis, Macura, & Blueitt and we're looking down the barrel at 1 seed again.

Those guys are hungry with how that season ended last year. You better believe #wewillbeback

I fully expect us to a) have more losses next year and b) be better by years end than we were in 15-16.

We all saw the potential in Gates and O'Mara was our best scorer in the post...by far. I expect sean to be real close to averaging a double-double his senior year (last two X guys that did that had pretty good senior seasons - T.Taylor & D.West) but next year he won't quite be there due to minutes.

[XUGRAD80]

It's really impossible to say just how good the bigs will be.....at this point. There is little reason to believe that new players will have the production that the experienced players on last year's team did.....at this point. But that doesn't mean that eventually during the season they might not be just as productive. We could actually see even more depth at the position by the end of the season. There is every reason to believe that O'Mera and Gates will be improved, as this has been the overall history of Xavier bigs over the years. If they, along with the new players coming into the program, will be as productive as the Farr/Reynolds duo remains to be seen. The potential is there, but who knows what will actually happen? Too many new, untested, and unknown players in the equation to call it...at this point.

[MuskieCinci]

I would be shocked if Gaston isn't really good for us next year. I don't think Mack would have given out a scholarship for two years to someone who can only play one for us if he wasn't going to be a great asset. I think like last year we will have two really good traditional bigs who both play around 20 minutes a game, only slightly down from the numbers of Jalen and Jimmy from last year.

[SemajParlor]

RE: Gaston
X and transfers Last 15 years
Remy Abell
Matt Stainbrook
Isaiah Philmore
Erik Stenger
Travis Taylor
Andre Walker
Jamel McLean
Andrew Taylor
Jordan Crawford
CJ Anderson
Drew Lavender
Brian Thornton
Anthony Myles

Bolded are the guys that transferred when Mack is head coach. Xavier has had outstanding success with transfers. Have faith in the coaching staff. I think Gaston will turn out to be a good player for Xavier.

Wow forgot that McLean was also a transfer. Underrated player at X in my opinion!

[nuts4xu]

Philmore and Taylor were awful.

Fixed it For You...

[RetireFiftyTu]

Wow forgot that McLean was also a transfer. Underrated player at X in my opinion!

Yeah he was a great dunker.

[THRILLHOUSE]

Fixed it For You...

Taylor averaged 12 points 9 rebounds a game his senior year. Sure he was inconsistent and would disappear in some games, but wouldn't say he was awful.

[ammtd34]

I'll choose to remember Travis Taylor dominating Memphis.

[THRILLHOUSE]

I'll choose to remember Travis Taylor dominating Memphis.

and the 19 point/19 rebound/6 blocks vs St Louis that started the "Tweets You Gotta Love Pt 3" thread.

[smileyy]

Yeah he was a great dunker.

It seemed like he had lost a few ups by his final year, when he packed on some extra strength. OTOH, he was setting bone-crushing picks that made the offense run. I think it was Dana And Victory that pointed out the dropoff in pick quality after McLean left.

He looked more slender in that video where he hit the game winner against some NBA team (SA?) in a preseason exhibition.

[MauriceX]

RE: Gaston
X and transfers Last 15 years
Remy Abell
Matt Stainbrook
Isaiah Philmore
Erik Stenger
Travis Taylor
Andre Walker
Jamel McLean
Andrew Taylor
Jordan Crawford
CJ Anderson
Drew Lavender
Brian Thornton
Anthony Myles

Bolded are the guys that transferred when Mack is head coach. Xavier has had outstanding success with transfers. Have faith in the coaching staff. I think Gaston will turn out to be a good player for Xavier.

I also want to point out that the least impressive name on that list (Erik Stenger) left a Division II school to come to Xavier as a walk-on. He ended up becoming a scholly player his senior year when we had a lot of unexpected vacancies, but I feel as though he deserves at least a footnote or something that he was never expected to be a high level contributor on our team.

[GIMMFD]

I also want to point out that the least impressive name on that list (Erik Stenger) left a Division II school to come to Xavier as a walk-on. He ended up becoming a scholly player his senior year when we had a lot of unexpected vacancies, but I feel as though he deserves at least a footnote or something that he was never expected to be a high level contributor on our team.

Yeah but Stenger's contributions came to not a particularly strong team. We just needed bodies at that point, I take nothing away from him, he obviously is a much better athlete than I can dream of being, but if it were this season Stenger would have stayed a walk on...

[xukeith]

[QUOTE=RetireFiftyTu;555220]RE: Gaston
X and transfers Last 15 years
Remy Abell
Matt Stainbrook
Isaiah Philmore
*Erik Stenger
Travis Taylor
Andre Walker
Jamel McLean
Andrew Taylor
Jordan Crawford
CJ Anderson
Drew Lavender
Brian Thornton
Anthony Myles

Bolded are the guys that transferred when Mack is head coach. Xavier has had outstanding success with transfers. Have faith in the coaching staff. I think Gaston will turn out to be a good player for Xavier.

*Stenger transferred in as a walk-on, later earned a scholarship.[/QUOTE

Didn't Andy Taylor come in as a walk on?

[Musketeer]

It seemed like he had lost a few ups by his final year, when he packed on some extra strength. OTOH, he was setting bone-crushing picks that made the offense run. I think it was Dana And Victory that pointed out the dropoff in pick quality after McLean left.

He looked more slender in that video where he hit the game winner against some NBA team (SA?) in a preseason exhibition.

McLean was also a very good rebounder.

[Cheesehead]

(FROM ESPN Top 25)

1. Duke Blue Devils
Lost in the #fishingrodemojigate hilarity of last week -- when Duke basketball's official Twitter account posted (and quickly deleted) a not-so-indirect reference to Kentucky coach John Calipari after top-20 prospect Marques Bolden chose the Blue Devils over UK -- was a tweet that followed shortly thereafter. It contained no confrontational overtones or subliminal shots. It was, instead, just a photo of some shoes. "Freshman kicks are in," @DukeBluePlanet wrote, showing off a stack of classic orange Nike boxes (and a few black LeBron VIIIs) atop a cart in the team's locker room. "We need a bigger cart next time."

2. Villanova Wildcats
Villanova fans, breathe deep: Josh Hart is back. Ah, who are we kidding? The Wildcats' just won the national title in insanely thrilling, cathartic fashion; we can only assume the past two months have been one extended deep breath of Sting-level tantric proportions. Still, Nova's shot at repeating as the national champs -- even without lynchpin seniors Ryan Arcidiacono and Daniel Ochefu -- improved dramatically when Hart announced his return on May 24. Despite his bright-lights performance in the NCAA tournament, the importance of Hart's contribution to the Wildcats all season long was never fully appreciated; he was not only an efficient scorer but a positionally flexible defender whose rebounding made Kris Jenkins' outside-in style work. Add up Hart's return, the roster he returned to, and the trajectory of Jay Wright's program in the past four years, and the output feels obvious: It would be naive to consider the Wildcats anything but a serious threat to repeat in 2016-17.

3. Kentucky Wildcats
Don't shed too many tears for Calipari. As crazy good as Duke's incoming class is -- and as funny as the whole Internet beef between Kentucky and Blue Devils has been -- it's worth noting, lest we forget, that ESPN's recruiting analysts still think Kentucky's class is better. (Duke ranks No. 2.) Which is incredibly and entirely unsurprising. Calipari, even without Bolden, still has four top-20 players of his own, and five five-star guys overall, arriving this summer. Forward Bam Adebayo and guards De'Aaron Fox and Malik Monk all look like immediate all-SEC-level players. The difference between Duke's consensus No. 1 spot and UK lies in the comparison between what the Blue Devils kept and what Kentucky lost: Jamal Murray and Tyler Ulis (arguably the nation's one-two backcourt), Alex Poythress and, most surprisingly, Marcus Lee, who took his name out of the draft on May 25 only to immediately announce his intentions to transfer. Fortunately, Kentucky tends to be pretty good at this whole "replacing NBA draft picks with more NBA draft picks" thing, in case you hadn't heard.

4. Kansas Jayhawks
Kansas, to almost no one's shock, landed No. 2 overall prospect Josh Jackson this spring. It is tempting to say Jackson is just what the doctor ordered, given the departures of senior stalwart Perry Ellis, junior star Wayne Selden, and even little-used freshman reserve (but high-upside prospect) Cheick Diallo to the NBA draft. Then again, KU still has that Frank Mason/Devonte' Graham backcourt, a deep stable of emerging and/or established role players, already-hyped freshmen, Bill Self on the sideline, and 12 Big 12 titles on the go. The Jayhawks landing Jackson was more like a perfectly healthy patient who already abstains from red meat and sugar informing the family physician of their new triathlon hobby. The doctor isn't ordering anything.

5. Virginia Cavaliers
If you're looking for draft-related intrigue, look elsewhere. (Other than the off-chance Malcolm Brogdon might sneak into the first round and fulfill his destiny as the San Antonio Spurs' latest personnel miracle, of course. Make it happen, R.C.!) Virginia's next roster has been more or less set since their 2015-16 season ended in March's Elite Eight heartbreak. As we wrote in April, Cavaliers coach Tony Bennett will not only rely on his customary corps of ever-improving veterans. The architect of three straight top-two seeds will also, for the first time, mix in a top-10 recruiting class exclusively stocked with top-100 talents -- plus elite Memphis transfer Austin Nichols. That sound you just heard was the rest of the ACC shuddering.

6. North Carolina Tar Heels
"Sting" is two gentle a word to describe the pain the Tar Heels and their fans suffered in April. Kris Jenkins' title-winning buzzer-beating was more of a basketball take on of those gory melee animations in the new "Doom." That does more than sting. Bad as it was, though, it has been all good news since. In late April, the NCAA (conspicuously and bafflingly) removed all mention of the men's basketball program from its investigation into decades of academic fraud. In May, forward Justin Jackson took his name out of the NBA draft. By now, not only does coach Roy Williams have another formidable Final Four contender, his team will be eligible to participate in said contending -- a state of affairs that seemed in doubt even a few weeks ago.

7. Oregon Ducks
With the possible exception of Villanova, no team had a better draft decision day than the Ducks. After weeks of rumblings that either Dillon Brooks or Tyler Dorsey (or both) would keep their names in, both instead announced their returns to Eugene within hours of each other May 25. Dana Altman already got still-blossoming forward Chris Boucher -- one of the best surprises in the sport a season ago -- another year of eligibility, and it's still possible (if not likely) that injured former Villanova transfer Dylan Ennis will be granted a sixth year of eligibility. Whatever the NCAA does with Ennis, though, Brooks and Dorsey mutually assured that Altman's team -- which swept the Pac-12 titles en route to a No. 1 seed -- will be every bit as fearsome next season.

8. Wisconsin Badgers
Despite minimal interest from the NBA and second-round-or-worse draft projections, forward Nigel Hayes was so determined to prove himself to the league he promised the Boston Celtics he'd take "5,000 shots a day" if they drafted him. (Which might be physically possible but doesn't seem physically sustainable.) Wisconsin was always insured against the possibility of Hayes' departure, though, for the simple fact that everyone else was always going to be back. With or without Hayes, guard Bronson Koenig and rising sophomore forward Ethan Happ -- who went from lost in November and crafty beyond his years in February -- would always lead a largely intact Big Ten title contender next season. Now that Hayes has dropped the whole 5,000-shots-a-day idea and announced his return, the Badgers are entirely intact. And very good.

9. Xavier Musketeers
Before Villanova could conquer the NCAA tournament, it had to get out of the Big East alive, and for a minute there it looked as if Xavier might just end the Wildcats' three-year reign atop the league. The Musketeers fell short of that lofty ambition, but they (rightly) spent the majority of the season in the top 10 anyway. Now, with most key pieces back -- including Trevon Bluiett, who returned from his NBA exploration last week -- Chris Mack's team will (rightly) be setting 2016-17's goals even higher.

10. Michigan State Spartans
How good can Eron Harris be? Will Tum Tum Nairn evolve into more of an offensive threat? Is Gavin Schilling ready for big(ger) minutes? How quickly can Tom Izzo get one of his most lauded recruiting classes -- particularly Miles Bridges and Josh Langford, the two five-star additions on the wing -- up to speed? There are many more questions than answers for the Spartans in 2016-17, not least of which is how difficult it will be to replace the all-world senior performance of guard Denzel Valentine. But the talent is there, and so is Izzo, and mixing those ingredients tends to yield a potent brew.