WaGriz4life said:PeauxRouge said:citay said:Before we decide the roster for next year, I think we need to take a step back and ask:
Who are we? And what do we want to be?
If "Big Sky Power," congratulations! We're there! Just ask Weber, Norther Arizona or Idaho. Let's all go down to Stocks and toast ourselves with mulitiple rounds. And let's offer a toast, too, to Robin Selvig, for all the years the Lady Griz were a "Big Sky Power."
Of course, it's also true of Robin that every year we advanced to the Big Dance, we got killed by bigger, faster teams. True too that for all his accomplishments, his retirement notice drew scant mention on the national scene.
Which is why I think we should be shooting higher. To not only be a "Big Sky Power," but to win a game or two at the dance. And maybe possibly hopefully put ourselves on a Gonzaga-like trajectory.
Which brings me back to the roster.
If your aspiration is to win another Big Sky title, fine. Go with the small lineup. The short rotation. Hell, it's worked the past two years. Why not again?
But if your goal is the Sweet 16, that just ain't gonna cut it. I mean, have you been watching these games? These kids are long, lean, athletic. They play above the rim. And they can shoot!
If we're gonna compete at THAT level, these are my suggestions.
--A 9 or 10-deep rotation. Why not? We have the best talent, top to bottom, in the Big Sky. Why not exploit that talent? Why not build in an insurance policy against late-season fatigue or injury?
--Three bigs in that rotation. Sure, I'm the biggest proponent on this board of the three-point era. But watching these tourney games has given me a fresh perspective on the kind of height and athleticism we simply do not see in the Big Sky conference. And must have if we're to compete at the Power-5 level.
--Shooters!! Are you kidding me? We must have three kids at least who can put the ball in the damn hole. So many of these games have been tight. And so many come down to the kid who hits the dagger three, as Texas Tech has, or as Purdue had in duplicate.
So those would be my criteria as I evaluate our roster for next year, but with too many ifs to speculate on a roster. Can Brown play the point? Will any of the fabulous new recruits be ready for the rotation? Will Kramer be back? Or Carter? Is the new big via Towson ready to contribute? Are Tony Miller and DJ Hollinger-Carter as good as I think they are?
So to me it's a question of evaluating our talent against the criteria I've mentioned. Anything less dooms us to "Big Sky Power."
Again.
You don't think that DeCuire is trying to win NCAA games? You know that's what he's recruiting for. That's why we constantly see him aiming for big time recruits. (I'm sure you do know this, so it begs why we even need to discuss it.)
Thank you. What a stupid post by citay. All we need are long athletic wing players, three good big guys, be able to go 10 deep on our bench (why not?), and have 3 (at least!) Carson Edwards type shooters. I wonder why Travis hasn’t thought about this? Too busy just being a Big Sky Power I guess.
The smarter, more discerning members of this board will notice two things about my post:
First: Nowhere did I criticize the talent level at Montana--only its deployment. With several key players returning, our three young big maturing, and the best freshman class in eons arriving, I feel Montana has the talent it needs to compete anywhere. Kudos to DeCuire and his staff for their recruiting abilities--the best ever at Montana, as I have pointed out frequently in my posts.
Second: As to deployment of those resources, nowhere was I critical of DeCuire, because I have no idea what his intentions are for next year. My ire was directed at previous posters ON THIS BOARD who seem to think we can once again get away playing three-guard small-ball--a situation that was forced on us this year because of the injury to Akoh. If y'all think we can once again play small ball in the Big Sky, fine, go for it. But if you think we can get away with that as even a 12-seed playing a 5-seed at the Big Dance, then you are either certifiably loony, or you haven't been watching this year's tournament.