The 2009-2010 Kansas Jayhawks are one of the best teams in the country this season because of the combination of great returning stars and new freshmen to the team. With apparent reports of G Tyshawn Taylor saying on facebook he wants to transfer, let's look at the roster of this team.
In 2008-2009, the Jayhawks went 25-7 (14-2 in Big 12) and were the regular season champs of the Big 12 conference. They were upset in the conference tournament in their first game to Baylor. In the NCAA tournament, they were a 3 seed that lost in the sweet sixteen to the 2 seed, Michigan State. All in all a pretty good season for Bill Self, considering they lost to the eventual tournament runner up.
So far in 2009-2010, the Jayhawks are 17-1 (3-0 in Big 12) with their one loss being a surprise upset at Tennessee. They still have to play Texas and Kansas State twice, but let's look at this team anyway, who is expected to go far in the NCAA tournament.
2009-2010
Starters:
G Fr. Xavier Henry
G Sr. Sherron Collins
G So Tyshawn Taylor
F So. Marcus Morris
C Jr. Cole Aldrich
Bench: (all player getting more than 5 mpg)
F So. Markieff Morris
G Jr. Brady Morningstar
G Jr. Tyrel Reed
F Fr. Thomas Robinson
G Fr. Elijah Johnson
G Fr. C.J. Henry
G Jr. Conner Teahan
Taylor may lose his starting spot to Morningstar, but that is not yet definite. So they have 12 players, including 4 freshmen averaging more than 5 minutes a game so far this season. Coach Self is splitting the minutes up to everyone pretty fairly then it seems.
Let's look back at last year's team.
2008-2009
Starters:
Brady Morningstar
Sherron Collins
Tyshawn Taylor
Marcus Morris
Cole Aldrich
Bench:
Markieff Morris
Tyrel Reed
G Jr. Mario Little
G Fr. Travis Releford
F Fr. Quintrell Thomas
Thomas transferred to UNLV. Releford and Little haven't played a minute yet this season. Morningstar has seen his minutes and role decreased, although now as the tougher part of the season approaches his minutes may rise. If it wasn't for John Wall, Xavier Henry might have been a more well-known freshmen, regardless he is still having a great season.
This team is basically the same team as last year with a few more pieces added to the puzzle. As long as Bill Self can handle all the players and their minutes this team should be going far into the tournament.
NBA Prospects
According to Chad Ford's Top 100 draft prospects and ESPN Insider rankings, 6 of the Jayhawks could be in the NBA next season.
Cole Aldrich is ranked as Ford's 7th best prospect.
Xavier Henry is ranked as Ford's 8th best prospect.
Sherron Collins is ranked as Ford's 4th best point guard (43rd overall).
Tyshawn Taylor is ranked as Ford's 11th best point guard (70th overall).
Marcus Morris is ranked as Ford's 48th best power forward (168th overall).
Thomas Robinson is ranked as Ford's 50th best power forward (172nd overall).
Collins will be graduating and is likely to get drafted and Henry and Aldrich are both likely to leave as well. Taylor could test the waters, but should stick around for another year and get some more playing time.
So, all college basketball fans, enjoy Collins leading this team for a final time and Aldrich being that great center for one last season. The expectations are high and this team can live up to the expectations.
Friday, January 22, 2010
Who is ESPN the Mag's NFL Player X?
First of all if you are a subscriber of ESPN the Magazine I hope you enjoy reading the articles by "Player X". He is a player in the NFL and has written 10 different articles for the Mag. I know not everyone is an ESPN Insider so as I'm rereading I'll highlight some of the hints as to who exactly Player X is.
Before I get into it, let me first say I really enjoy the articles so I'm not trying to "out" him or anything, this is just a fun little exercise to see if this anonymous author gave away a few too many hints.
So think of the stars on different teams and as I eliminate teams, we'll see if we can figure out which star he is.
Meet Player X:
- not Ben Roethlisberger.
Vick deserves right to play:
-he believe's Vick deserved a shot to play, does that eliminate anyone?
NFL rookie hazing has purpose:
-he likes rookie hazing and says it has a purpose, so he's not an Eagle? Any other teams?
Currency of pain:
-he's not Carson Palmer
-he's been around long enough to remember the days when it was easier for players to get painkillers.
-he's not Brett Favre
-he's not Hines Ward
-he's been injured. wait, that doesn't eliminate anyone.
Team chemistry overrated:
-he's not Chad OchoCinco
-he's not Terrell Owens
-he played in college
How to spot a contender:
-he's not on the Colts or Texans
-he's not on the Ravens or Steelers, but watches tape of them
-he's not Troy Polamalu or James Harrison
-he's not on the Saints
-"My team lost a division game this year (so now you know I'm not on the Colts or Saints)"
-he has made the playoffs (not on the Texans).
It's mailbag time:
-he's not on the Raiders
-"I know I'm better than a couple of guys at my position who are paid more than me". so he's not the highest paid at his position
-not Chad Pennington or Chad Henne. but maybe he played with them since he think they are funny. also says Ochocinoc and Brett Favre are funny too.
-He's not Donovan McNabb, but that's fine since I already eliminated the Eagles.
Tiger shoulda known:
-he's not Tom Brady
-he has endorsement contracts, doesn't eliminate much
-he's not Peyton Manning
10 NFL playoff lessons:
-he's been far in the playoffs (whatever far is we can say that means his team made it to the final 8)
-he's not Kurt Warner
-he's an old enough veteran to call out/joke with rookies (probably doesn't mean much)
Gun culture changing in NFL:
-he has bought a gun
So, basically I skipped a lot of maybe hints and just went for what seemed like definite stuff about Player X and we still don't much about who it is. Teams I eliminated: Eagles, Raiders, Ravens, Steelers, Texans, Colts, Saints. That still leaves a lot of options, hopefully we get some more hints in a few more articles from Player X. If you have any hints, tips, or opinions add them in the comments.
Before I get into it, let me first say I really enjoy the articles so I'm not trying to "out" him or anything, this is just a fun little exercise to see if this anonymous author gave away a few too many hints.
So think of the stars on different teams and as I eliminate teams, we'll see if we can figure out which star he is.
Meet Player X:
- not Ben Roethlisberger.
Vick deserves right to play:
-he believe's Vick deserved a shot to play, does that eliminate anyone?
NFL rookie hazing has purpose:
-he likes rookie hazing and says it has a purpose, so he's not an Eagle? Any other teams?
Currency of pain:
-he's not Carson Palmer
-he's been around long enough to remember the days when it was easier for players to get painkillers.
-he's not Brett Favre
-he's not Hines Ward
-he's been injured. wait, that doesn't eliminate anyone.
Team chemistry overrated:
-he's not Chad OchoCinco
-he's not Terrell Owens
-he played in college
How to spot a contender:
-he's not on the Colts or Texans
-he's not on the Ravens or Steelers, but watches tape of them
-he's not Troy Polamalu or James Harrison
-he's not on the Saints
-"My team lost a division game this year (so now you know I'm not on the Colts or Saints)"
-he has made the playoffs (not on the Texans).
It's mailbag time:
-he's not on the Raiders
-"I know I'm better than a couple of guys at my position who are paid more than me". so he's not the highest paid at his position
-not Chad Pennington or Chad Henne. but maybe he played with them since he think they are funny. also says Ochocinoc and Brett Favre are funny too.
-He's not Donovan McNabb, but that's fine since I already eliminated the Eagles.
Tiger shoulda known:
-he's not Tom Brady
-he has endorsement contracts, doesn't eliminate much
-he's not Peyton Manning
10 NFL playoff lessons:
-he's been far in the playoffs (whatever far is we can say that means his team made it to the final 8)
-he's not Kurt Warner
-he's an old enough veteran to call out/joke with rookies (probably doesn't mean much)
Gun culture changing in NFL:
-he has bought a gun
So, basically I skipped a lot of maybe hints and just went for what seemed like definite stuff about Player X and we still don't much about who it is. Teams I eliminated: Eagles, Raiders, Ravens, Steelers, Texans, Colts, Saints. That still leaves a lot of options, hopefully we get some more hints in a few more articles from Player X. If you have any hints, tips, or opinions add them in the comments.
Thursday, January 21, 2010
Phillies Pitchers in 2010 and beyond
I like my post about the entire roster of the Phillies, but this is just to keep track of the starting pitchers (taken from my post about the Roy Halladay signing). Again, mostly all thanks to Cot's Baseball Contracts.
2010: Halladay ($15.75), Cole Hamels ($6.65), Blanton ($7), J.A. Happ ($0.405), Jamie Moyer ($6.5)
2011: Halladay ($20), Hamels ($9.5), Blanton ($8.5), J.A. Happ
2012: Halladay ($20), Hamels ($9.5+arbitration), Blanton ($8.5), J.A. Happ
2013: Halladay ($20), J.A. Happ
2014: Halladay ($20)
-Halladay's 2014 option will likely vest as long as there aren't any major injuries.
-This season will do a lot determine the long term prospects of Hamels, if he performs it is likely that the Phillies will want to lock him up even longer.
-So long to Cliff Lee, Brett Myers, Pedro Martinez, and Chan Ho Park. They all did pretty well for the Phillies and they will be missed.
-Halladay, Hamels, and Blanton are locked up through 2012 together, get used to them folks.
It wouldn't be surprising nor would it be a bad idea if the Phillies went after another starting pitcher, most people aren't expecting a great year from Jamie Moyer, but crazier things have happened.
2010: Halladay ($15.75), Cole Hamels ($6.65), Blanton ($7), J.A. Happ ($0.405), Jamie Moyer ($6.5)
2011: Halladay ($20), Hamels ($9.5), Blanton ($8.5), J.A. Happ
2012: Halladay ($20), Hamels ($9.5+arbitration), Blanton ($8.5), J.A. Happ
2013: Halladay ($20), J.A. Happ
2014: Halladay ($20)
-Halladay's 2014 option will likely vest as long as there aren't any major injuries.
-This season will do a lot determine the long term prospects of Hamels, if he performs it is likely that the Phillies will want to lock him up even longer.
-So long to Cliff Lee, Brett Myers, Pedro Martinez, and Chan Ho Park. They all did pretty well for the Phillies and they will be missed.
-Halladay, Hamels, and Blanton are locked up through 2012 together, get used to them folks.
It wouldn't be surprising nor would it be a bad idea if the Phillies went after another starting pitcher, most people aren't expecting a great year from Jamie Moyer, but crazier things have happened.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)