EuroTrip Update

Virginia Basketball is about halfway through its European Tour.  The results so far:

Virginia 89, Netherlands B Team 62

Netherlands B Team 82, Virginia 73

Gembo (Antwerp, Belgium) 102, Virginia 97

Some takeways from the trip so far...

• The defense - the calling card of Virginia Basketball under Tony Bennett - is sucking.  We're bending over and taking 82 ppg from these funky, old, short, unathletic Euroteams.
• The team misses Malcolm Brogdon, who is unable to play on the trip due to continued rehab of his bombed-out foot.
• We might have found a real player in true freshman center Mike Tobey.  Tobes has scored 18, 12, and 19 points in the three games, adding an average of about 7 rebounds per game.  If he's a legit 16 & 7 guy as a freshman... wow.  He won't be that, but if he can give us 8 & 4, that's a giant, unexpected boon.
• Another player who has been impressing is UVA's "Big Fundamental" -- Akil Mitchell.  Big Fun has chipped in 8, 12, and 20 points in the three games.  (This is a nickname that I am fucking determined to make stick.  So help me make it work.)
• Or maybe these Euroteams just don't have any size and our two bigs are having a field day due to the lack of competition.  But if that's the case, what's up with Darion Atkins' 5 ppg on the trip?  Either Big Fun and Tobey are shining, or Atkins is stinking.  I choose to go with shine over stink.
• The freshmen had a good first game, but as a group struggled in the second and third games.  Erratic play, that's to be expected from youngsters.
• Evan Nolte has been starting at the 3, with Joe Harris at the 2.  Nolte gave way to Paul Jesperson, who started at small forward in the third game.  Of course, this will all change once Brog is back and starting at the 2, pushing Joe to the 3.  I've long thought Nolte would start at the 4, but now it looks like it might be Big Fun at the 4 and Tobey at the 5 once the season starts.  Interesting...
• On the bad defense so far on the EuroTrip, our starting strong safety point guard Jontel Evans had this to say: "Rome wasn't built in a day."  Ziiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiing!

We have two more games on the trip -- vs. AMW Team France on Monday and Tuesday, 1:00 PM EST both days.  It'd be nice to win both and pull this trip out of the fire, but I'm honestly okay with going over to Europe and having our teeth kicked in -- that will be a nice springboard for tough love coaching as we head into the season.  Best case scenario for the fans but worst case for the team would have been to breeze through a 5-0 record in Europe.

So chin up, Hoofans, Rome was not built in a day.

I just hope Nicholas Batum doesn't play for AMW Team France.
I buy "you gotta crawl before you can walk," but you don't want
to be crawling because you just got punched in the nuts.

Mike Scott's first summer league game...

...was a sputtering, inconsistent, shaky, up-and-down, 7-point, 6-rebound, 6-foul, 5-turnover performance in 27 minutes of action in a 102-82 win for the Hawks over the Wizards.

In the game, I learned that...

...NBA summer league games are nearly unwatchable. Really, really ugly.

...Mike Scott was really, REALLY jacked up for his first summer league game, and thus got frustrated quickly by a lack of touches.

...he's short for an interior role, and will need to move better without the ball and on defense to match up with these superior athletes.  His body looks more like a big 3 than a 4, but he's just not a wing player in terms of athletic ability.

...he seems desperate to prove his worth to his new employer. That's easy to understand.  First game, you're over-eager to impress.

...he can in fact hang with this level of competition.  It wasn't a good game, but it wasn't all bad.

...Keith Benson and John Jenkins will be playing in the NBA this season.

...for my money, John Jenkins > Bradley Beal. Jenkins isn't the athlete Beal is, but he's a better shooter and frankly a better player. Athleticism translates to the pro game, but the NBA wildly overvalues upside and potential, in my opinion. Give me Jenkins - a guy who can already do what Beal aspires to - any day.

...the Hawks have some decent young talent (Benson, Jenkins, Scott, Brad Wanamaker, Frank Hassell, and Elijah Millsap all looked good), and beyond Beal and Chris Singleton, the Wizards do not.



Knowing Mike like we do, I think it's a safe assumption that his second game will be light years better than his first game, which was a struggle due to obvious pressing.  He has a unique game, and I'm still sold on his ability as a pick and pop specialist at the NBA level.  The problem is that he'll have to make the team based on his work in the summer league, and these summer league games are every-man-for-himself free-for-alls more than they are team basketball.  Mike's game and skill set revolve around the team concept... so I'm a little bit nervous about his fate right now.  Still confident that he'll show enough, and that the Hawks need him, but this wasn't a very good start to his crusade to make their roster.

Box Score and Videos: Hawks 102, Wizards 82

Up next for Mike and the Hawks in Las Vegas: Sunday against Kawhi Leonard, Marcus Denmon, Derrick Byars, and the Spurs.

Poke it HERE for the (surprisingly good) NBA Summer League website.  Check out the "Rookie Ladder" for a really interesting, compelling way the league is presenting the relative success or failure of the rookies in summer league action.  (John Jenkins is currently ranked #7 while Bradley Beal is #9.  Just sayin'.)

Death of the 5

Here's a great little piece from ESPN's Myron Medcalf.

Era of the Postmodern Big Man

This sort of fits hand-in-hand with my prediction that the Hoos will use Mitchell/Atkins/Tobey at the 5 (barring the addition of a late-season recruit, a JUCO transfer, or an overseas player at one of the post positions) as we shift to more of a spread-the-court look with two guards and two wings in the lineup.

In any case, interesting read.

A Reason to Support Bob McDonnell

This is about as political as Wahooze is ever going to get but I just wanted to spread the Wahooze word about a great new program that the governor is bringing in 2012.

You can read the press release here but basically starting in 2012 the Richmond Coliseum will host a holiday basketball tournament featuring the basketball programs from the Virginia universities. The proposed schedule looks like this:

2012

Mason vs. Richmond

UVA vs. ODU

2013

Hampton vs. JMU

Tech vs. VCU

This is a great idea to me, especially since Virginia probably has one of the best group of collegiate basketball teams in America. I would love to see this grow into a full on yearly tournament that they play every year. I know the players probably want to go to some tropical island but I think having this grow into a intrastate tournament that rotates sites every year would be amazing. I would road trip every year to see that. Especially since UVA would probably be the favorite. CALL YOUR CONGRESSMAN!

Slicing the 200 Minute Pie, Part II

Back on April 4th (not a month after the conclusion of the 2009-10 season) I posted THIS:

Here's my guess at how the 200 minutes per game will be distributed next year. (2009-10 minutes per game average in parentheses.)


Mike Scott (27.4) -- 30 minutes per game in 2010-11
Sam Zeglinski (29.0) -- 25
Mustapha Farrakhan (21.0) -- 20
Jeff Jones (18.3) -- 20
K.T. Harrell (Fr.) -- 18
James Johnson (Fr.) -- 15
Jontel Evans (16.5) -- 15
Assane Sene (12.6) -- 13
Billy Baron (Fr.) -- 12
Joe Harris (Fr.) -- 12
Will Regan (Fr.) -- 10
Will Sherrill (15.4) -- 10
Akil Mitchell (Fr.) -- redshirt

Thoughts generated by this exercise:
-- It probably won't be this way at the beginning of the season, but the five players I expect to see starting the majority of the games are Evans / Zeglinski / Harrell / Scott / Sene.
-- I think Will Sherrill will cede minutes to Will Regan. The two are very similar players, except Regan is more athletic and has more upside.
-- James Johnson needs to be able to assert himself in the low post early and often.
-- Farrakhan and Jones coming off of the bench together could be a wonderful way to push the tempo and manufacture scoring bursts.
-- Jontel Evans vs. Billy Baron will be a very interesting battle. One of those two guys will run the point... but I fully expect to see Sammy slide into that role in crunch time until/unless Evans develops a somewhat reliable shooting stroke.
-- There will be a lot of pressure on K.T. Harrell to assume a big chunk of Sylven Landesberg's vacated scoring. It will be interesting to see how the youngster responds.
-- I think Joe Harris will play an important role on next year's team: sniper.
-- I still have high hopes for Assane Sene. He's never going to be a scoring threat, but if he can "get it" as a pack line defender, our overall team defense could be really tough. Having a shot blocker on the floor can really allow the pack-line to flourish.
-- I don't actually expect to see a 12-man rotation next season. Coach Bennett will find an 8- or 9-man rotation that works, and then will stick with that. Of the 12 players I gave minutes to above, the three most likely to be excluded from the rotation are Will Regan, Will Sherrill, and Assane Sene.
-- A three-guard look is almost a certainty. But with the makeup of this roster, we could be looking at some heavy doses of a Marquette-esque four guard look. Can Mike Scott handle the pivot in such a system? I have my doubts.
-- No matter what, next year should be fun. I love watching freshman receive their baptism by fire in the ACC, and we'll be seeing that big time next season.

 
 
Of course, Jeff Jones left the program and Sammy Zeglinski went down with an injury that will hold him out for the first four or five weeks of the regular season, but otherwise I stand by most of what I said six months ago.  I have to re-slice that pie, though.  Here goes...
 
(2009-10 minutes per game average in parentheses) [April's guess in brackets] My new guess in BOLD


Mike Scott (27.4) [30] -- 31
Sammy Zeglinski (29.0) [25] -- 0
Mustapha Farrakhan (21.0) [20] -- 27
Jeff Jones (18.3) [20] -- 0, obviously
K.T. Harrell (Fr.) [18] -- 30
James Johnson (Fr.) [15] -- 22
Jontel Evans (16.5) [15] -- 22
Assane Sene (12.6) [13] -- 15
Billy Baron (Fr.) [12] -- 16
Joe Harris (Fr.) [12] -- 10
Will Regan (Fr.) [10] -- 6
Will Sherrill (15.4) [10] -- 6
Akil Mitchell (Fr.) [redshirt] -- 15

Thoughts generated by this exercise:

• My expectations for Mustapha Farrakhan, James Johnson, Jontel Evans, Assane Sene, Billy Baron, and especially K.T. Harrell and Akil Mitchell have risen dramatically over the course of the last six months.
• I think I've nailed the frontcourt rotation here.  Scott and Johnson will combine for 50+ minutes of the 200 minute pie, while Mitchell, Sene, Sherrill, and Regan will fight over the 30 minutes worth of scraps.
• One of Billy Baron or Joe Harris MUST step up in the backcourt, or the team will struggle to survive Zeglinski's absence at the beginning of the season.
• Who will cede minutes when Sammy returns?  I think Mu gives up 4, Harrell 2, Evans 2, Baron 4, Harris 2, and Mitchell 3.  That gives Zeglinski 17 minutes... enough to tiptoe back into action but not enough to disrupt whatever rhythm has developed in the backcourt.
• I took a cowardly approach by predicting Will Sherrill and Will Regan receiving matching 6 minute burns.  I actually think it will look more like Sherrill at 10 minutes and Regan at 2, but will slowly swing the other direction as the season drags along.  Regan has more ability than Sherrill, and as he "gets it," he'll start to steadily eat into Sherrill's minutes.
• In so many ways, Akil Mitchell is the x-factor for this team.  The 15 minutes I project could be waaaaaay too many.  But I've got a gut feeling about this kid.  In fact, toward the end of the season I think the 'primary' lineup will look more like Zeglinski/Harrell/Mitchell/Scott/Johnson. If Mitchell forces his way into the regular rotation early in the season, it will be a good thing for the team because he brings unmatched athleticism into the game.
• If Jontel Evans really has developed a semi-reliable jumper, these 22 minutes I project are way too low.  But how often do you see a player go from having no shot whatsoever to being able to hit on a consistent basis?  I guess I have a subconscious doubt about Evans' ultimate viability at point guard.
• It's too bad Jeff Jones felt the need to transfer for his senior season.  We could really use him this year.
• Joe Harris has a golden opportunity to carve out a specific role on this team.  I don't think he'll play much this year, but when he's in the game my eyes will be glued on him.  If he really can be the designated sniper, it bodes extremely well for his UVA career.

This Saturday's exhibition against Roanoke College will answer many of these questions.  I'll be there, and will provide a full report on Wahooze.  I can't wait!  Basketball season is here!

GO HOOS!

Trifecta Box: Centers

If I'm betting a trifecta box on UVA's center position this basketball season, here's how I'd structure the bet...

Can a bigger, stronger, more sure-handed Assane Sene contribute
more than just blocked shots?

WIN: James Johnson, freshman
Nicknamed "The Beast," Johnson was set for a pretty big role on this team from the minute he gave Coach Bennett his commitment to play for the Hoos.  Johnson is 6-foot-9, 240 pounds worth of beef on the blocks, but it's his endless energy level that has earned him his monstrous reputation.  Like all non Blue Devil or Tarheel freshman big men, I'm sure Johnson will be saddled with plenty of bad calls from ACC refs... I'm just looking forward to seeing him make his five fouls count by playing fearlessly around the basket and by providing a physical, aggressive presence in the paint.  By all accounts, he has a very well-rounded game for a big man --- he's a great rebounder, a sound low post defender, and knows how to play offense with his back to the basket.  If he can fit well into the pack-line and contribute some points from the low post, Johnson should quickly assume starter's minutes at the 5 this season.  I especially like the fit with him and Mike Scott playing together --- it's an athletic, versatile, dangerous combo.

PLACE: Assane Sene, junior
A legit 7-footer, Sene has shown plenty of potential as a dominant shot-blocker at the college level.  The problem is, he has been a massive liability in every other facet of the game.  He's an inconsistent rebounder, struggles to play in position on D (a totally damning quality to posses as a pivot in the pack-line), and has an extreme inability to catch or handle the ball on offense.  In fact, other than a few stickbacks here and there, he's been an albatross on the offensive end of the floor.  Worse, he's been bodied up and pushed around at times in the past, because despite his imposing 7-foot frame, he had only been able to carry around 220 pounds and not much muscle.  He huddled up with strength and conditioning coach Mike Curtis this offseason and forced himself to scarf down peanut butter and jelly and Chipotle in order to add mass and strength.  In addition, he has worked with assistants and caught over 300 football lobs each day, in order to improve his hands.  Early reports are that these two efforts have paid off, and that Sene is a much better player for it.  We'll see...  But the best case scenario is that he's a more sound pack-line defender while retaining his explosive shot-blocking ability, and is no longer a complete liability on offense.  I'm looking for him to take his biggest steps forward when it comes to rebounding, just due to the added size and strength alone.  You can do much worse than having a 7-foot backup center who plays hard, blocks shots, and rebounds.

SHOW: Mike Scott, senior
He played the 5 out of necessity at times during the last two seasons.  Scott is severely undersized for that role, and he tends to wear down significantly when he has to carry major minutes at center.  That said, I can see him playing at the 5 when Coach Bennett decides to go small/fast in order to exploit matchups or keep up with teams that like to run and gun.  A three-guard look with Mitchell and Scott in the frontcourt would really be able to get up and down the court.

ALSO RAN:

• Will Regan, freshman -- Many thought he would be slotted at center from the beginning of his career, because he excels at doing the dirty work down low.  I think he's probably too small for that role, though I do like his potential to be able to pull his defender away from the basket with his effective mid- and long-range jump shot.

ANTE POST:  It's tough to say that this group will be a strength of the team without knowing what we've got in James Johnson.  But there's a reason he was a nationally relevant recruit, and there's a reason so many teams wanted him.  The kid is big, he's active, and he knows how to play.  He'll make his mistakes, but they will be mistakes of aggression, and I can always live with that when it comes to young big men.  Assane Sene will be asked to provide 15+ minutes of relief work each game, and I think he'll be up to it.  The numbers are still way too thin for my liking (I don't want to see either Mike Scott or Will Regan at the 5), but I like the two main centers on our roster, and I think both have the potential to be solid role players in support of K.T. Harrell and Mike Scott.  Good ACC teams will be able to boast more quantity and experience at the center position, but bad ACC teams and mid-majors will struggle to match these two twin towers on the UVA roster.  To me, that's the very definition of "middle of the pack."

Position Grade: C

Trifecta Box: Power Forwards

If I'm betting a trifecta box on UVA's power forward position this basketball season, here's how I'd structure the bet...

Is Mike Scott ready to be "the man" for the Hoos as a senior?

WIN: Mike Scott, senior
12.0 points and 7.2 rebounds in 27.4 minutes on the floor.  Those were Mike Scott's averages during the 2009-10 season, one in which he rode a veritable roller coaster of ups and downs.  Most of his struggles came on the defensive end, where he tended to have trouble knowing and understanding his role in the pack-line.  He also had some hiccups on the offensive end, where he tended to settle for too many jump shots and was an inconsistent finisher around the rim (the bricked breakaway dunk against Virginia Tech immediately comes to mind).  So why are so many people heaping so much hope on this guy to emerge as Virginia's star player this season?  I think the reason is pretty simple --- In his flashes of good play, he has been truly GREAT, and the talk surrounding him is that he's stepped up his game several notches, improved defensively, and has stepped up his role as a vocal leader on the team.  We're going to need his rebounding and low post scoring this season, and we're going to need those things to be reliable, game in and game out.  With a roster mostly in flux, Mike Scott is the one player with a chance to serve a stabilizing role.  When he's on, he's an above-average rebounder, an above-average scorer, and a presence on the defensive end.  I'm expecting big things from Scott this season.  15.0 points, 9.0 rebounds, and 32.0 minutes per game.  Book it.

PLACE: Will Sherrill, senior
He's a walk-on, and he is what he is --- a high-effort guy who will set hard screens and play hard on defense.  Sherrill isn't the kind of guy who can put his back to the basket and operate on the blocks, he's more of a face-up 4 man who can fade out to the perimeter and knock down the occasional jump shot.  I'm not going to spend a lot of time on him, because you all saw him play last year, and what you see is what you get.  He's a solid player who tends to get eaten alive by bigger, stronger, and more athletic forwards.  But he's a hustle guy who can provide five fouls, a handful of nice screens, and a big body in the lane, along with an occasional 3-bomb.

SHOW: Will Regan, freshman
He's described as a "glue guy," which is often a nice way of saying "an undertalented big man who will work hard."  But I think Regan is more than that.  For one, he is said to be a rebounding specialist.  That's definitely something we need on this team, especially with Jerome Meyinsse graduated.  Second, scouts claim that he has a nice ability to put the ball on the floor and attack the basket, and the requisite jumper to keep defenders honest.  He sounds a lot like Will Sherrill, but I don't think their skill sets are totally redundant.  If Regan can offer up a more athletic, better-rebounding version of Sherrill, then I think he'll be able to provide some positives and be able to make an occasional impact as a freshman.

ALSO RAN:

• James Johnson, freshman -- I have this guy penciled in at center, but there could be times when he plays the 4 with Assane Sene on the floor alongside him.  Johnson is probably our second-best post player behind Mike Scott, so expect to see him in action quite a lot this season.
• Akil Mitchell, freshman -- He's a 3/4 hybrid, but I'm personally hoping he develops into more of a true 4, because he has plus athleticism for the position.  I think he's a big x-factor for our frontcourt this season, as I can envision a world in which Mitchell establishes himself in the rotation ahead of both Sherrill and Regan.

ANTE POST: I've always been a Mike Scott fan, as I think he's got the complete package at the 4 when he's at the top of his game.  Sometimes his most important trait is the ability to knock down free throws (71.9% last year), so when he's tuned in and active, he can get opposing bigs in foul trouble and make them pay at the stripe.  I don't like weighing players down with expectations, but I'm expecting a lot from Mike Scott this season.  Behind him, I'm less enamored with Will Sherrill, and am hoping that Regan and Mitchell force their way onto the floor and start eating into his minutes.  I think at least one of those two freshman will emerge as a reliable presence at the 4.  And one thing can certainly be said for Sherrill, Regan, and Mitchell -- they won't be outworked.  I like the way our power forward rotation sets up for this season, especially if Scott can handle 30+ minutes per game.

Position Grade: B-

Trifecta Box: Small Forwards

If I'm betting a trifecta box on UVA's small forward position this basketball season, here's how I'd structure the bet...



Fair or not, I have extremely high expectations for K.T. Harrell this season.

WIN: K.T. Harrell, freshman
In the "100 Things" post from last month, I said this about Harrell:

I think K.T. Harrell will be an absolute revelation to us, and will quickly assume a primary scoring role for this team.  We have good complementary-type scorers in Mike Scott, Sam Zeglinski, and Mustapha Farrakhan, but I think it is Harrell who will emerge as the team's go-to scorer. 10, 12, maybe even 14 or 15 ppg as a freshman could be in his future. Bold, I know. ACC Freshman of the Year? Hmmmm...

I'm very high on this kid, sight unseen.  But why?  Mostly because I trust Tony Bennett's eye for talent, and I know he's extremely excited to have Harrell as the centerpiece of this seven-man freshman class.  Also, production is just as much about opportunity as it is ability, and (especially with Zeglinski out) Virginia needs someone who can score some points.  The opportunity is there, and then some.  Harrell was recruited for his basketball IQ, maturity, and ability to find or create his own shot.  He's great at cutting to the basket, and is also an above-average shooter.  Defensively, the effort is there, but I'm sure Bennett will be looking to add quite a bit of polish to Harrell's game.  He might eventually be needed more at the 2, but I think the current plan is for him to start at small forward.

PLACE: Joe Harris, freshman
He has ideal size for the small forward position, and he's potentially one of the best shooters on the team.  Bennett's mover/blocker offense works best when there is a zone-breaking shooter on the floor, and I'm certain Harris will get plenty of burn in that sniper role.  Anything he can bring to the table in terms of floor game and defense will be a big plus, and it's being said that the staff is pleasantly surprised by how well-rounded Harris' game is as a true freshman.  I'm expecting him to be a solid player.  Not a star, but a solid, steady player.

SHOW: Akil Mitchell, freshman
He was a diamond-in-the-rough recruit, and a guy who was described as a raw athlete who would probably redshirt this season.  But all Mitchell has done since he committed to the Hoos last fall is impress.  Now, not only is the idea to redshirt him off of the table, it's sounding like it will be difficult to keep Mitchell off of the floor this season.  In terms of being a bouncy athlete who can make plays with his physical talent, he provides traits that no other player on the team can approximate.  Is this athleticism something that will make him a great defender?  A great rebounder?  A great dunker and interior scorer?  Who knows?  The word on the street is that only an inconsistent jump shot is holding him back... and that the staff sees real star potential in this guy.  Trsitan Spurlock's struggles in Bennett's systems gives me some pause, but I do like what I've heard about Akil Mitchell to this point.  I can't wait to see what he can do on the court.

ALSO RAN:

• Thomas Rogers, freshman -- He's tall and can shoot, but is more guard than forward.  Sounds like a wing to me.
• Will Sherrill, senior -- I'm not sure how often we'll see him at the 3, but I think his game is versatile enough that he could handle some minutes there in a pinch.  His shooting, rebounding, and ability to set good screens will ensure that he earns consistent minutes at either the 4 or the 3 this season.

ANTE POST: I don't think you can be more confident in a position dominated by freshmen as I am in our small forward group.  I think K.T. Harrell is legit, I think Joe Harris will be a good player for us, and I think Akil Mitchell is a darkhorse star.  The experience is [obviously] light, the defense will be a work in progress, and other than Mitchell the rebounding will be suspect... but even still, I like this group quite a bit.  Maybe more than I should.

Position Grade: C+/B-

Trifecta Box: Shooting Guards

If I'm betting a trifecta box on UVA's point guard position this basketball season, here's how I'd structure the bet...

Can these two combine to give the Hoos steady production from the shooting guard position?

WIN: Sammy Zeglinski, junior
His latest injury is a major setback, and at this point in his career you have to label him fragile.  But he showed some serious flashes of brilliance last season, especially when  he was playing off the ball and was free to spot up as a wing shooter.  Zeglinski was hand-picked by Dave Leitao to succeed Sean Singletary at the point guard position, but Sammy struggles to defend the speed and quickness he encounters at the 1, and his offensive skill set is more in line with the shooting guard position.  Assuming he makes a full recovery prior to the new year, I have to think he'll start a majority of our games at the 2.  His good-and-getting-better shooting form is a big plus to his game, and he's one of the few guards on the team who can boast a lot of on-court experience.  I don't think we've seen the best Zeglinski can offer, and my gut tells me there's a clutch shooter in there, itching for the chance to get out.  I hope this is his year.

PLACE: Mustapha Farrakhan, senior
We already covered Mu in the trifecta box for the point guards, but I'd like to mention what he brings to the table as an off-guard.  For one, he's a plus defender.  Secondly, it's always nice to have two ballhandlers in the backcourt --- I could see Billy Baron and Mu forming an effective duo, especially.  Third, more than any other guard on the team, he has an established and tested willingness and ability to get to the basket.  I'm not saying that Farrakhan is the type of player who can break his man down and create offense for himself on a reliable basis, but he is capable of doing that occasionally and against lesser competition.  I think I like his game more than most UVA basketball fans, but I can't shake it; there's just something I really like about Mu.  He has a bit of fearlessness to him, and I think that's vitally important for a wing scorer.  The team really needs him to provide a little swagger and confidence as a senior, and I think he can do that.

SHOW: K.T. Harrell, freshman
Harrell is going to start (and play well) for this team during the 2010-11 season, mark my words.  It's just that I think he'll end up starting at small forward, not shooting guard.  That said, if another freshman like Akil Mitchell or Joe Harris surges to the forefront at the 3, Coach Bennett could be forced to slide Harrell over to the 2 in order to put the best team on the floor.  I don't think there's really much difference between the two wing positions in this system, anyway... but my money is currently on one of the two upperclassmen taking ownership of the starter's minutes at shooting guard, which would keep Harrell at small forward.

ALSO RAN:

• Joe Harris, freshman -- From what I've heard, he's a spot up shooter who also has a better-than-expected floor game.  It's not hard to imagine him finding a defined role at shooting guard, especially as an "instant offense" type of option off the bench.
• Billy Baron, freshman -- I think he's a combo guard, and I could see him and Jontel Evans on the floor at the same time together from time to time.
• Thomas Rogers, freshman -- This recruited walk-on from Fork Union is cut in the Joe Harris / Will Sherrill mold.  He's basically a tall guy who can shoot it.  He's limited athletically and he might only see action in mop up duty, but UVA has a fairly rich history of seeing walk-on guards take on bigger roles than anyone expected.

ANTE POST: With the Zeglinski injury, Farrakhan needed at point guard, and the uncertainty surrounding what you'll be able to get from your freshmen and where they will fit best on the floor, I'd say the shooting guard position is the most up in the air as we head into the season.  There are some good players in the mix here... but you would prefer to have someone step up and put a stranglehold on this position.  Unless K.T. Harrell does that, I suspect we'll be seeing a bit of a revolving door at the 2 this year.  Is it a strength of the team?  If Zeglinski gets healthy and either Harris or Mitchell step up at the 3 and allow Harrell to play more at the 2, I'd say yes.  But those are two pretty big "IF"s.

Position Grade: C/C+

Trifecta Box: Point Guards

Remember my "trifecta box" series prior to football season?  Yeah, I enjoyed it.  Like, a lot.  So I've decided to use the same format to preview the basketball team.  In case you didn't read the football trifecta boxes, here's the lead-in:

I'm not a degenerate gambler, but I do enjoy horseracing. I especially love horseracing terminology. Therefore, for this year's position-by-position look at the football roster and depth chart, I thought it would be fun to use the the "trifecta box" format. Some terms and their definitions, courtesy of the Horse Racing Glossary:

Trifecta - A wager picking the first three finishers in exact order. Called a 'Triactor' in Canada and a 'Triple' in some parts of the U.S. ('Tricast' in the UK.)

Win - The term used to describe a 1st place finish.

Place - A 2nd place finish, aka 'runner-up.'

Show - Third position at the finish.

Also Ran - The other horses in the race not finishing 1st, 2nd, or 3rd in the event.

Ante Post - Bets placed in advance predicting the outcome of a future event. Usually, ante posts are placed on longshot odds or for extremely specific prop bets. (In other words, "a fearless prediction.")

Now you know the format. If I'm betting a trifecta box on UVA's point guard position this basketball season, here's how I'd structure the bet...

Jontel Evans: A flawed player with some skills to get excited about.

WIN: Jontel Evans, sophomore
"Bub" is a walking contradiction.  He's a phenomenal on-ball defender (his covers usually toss around the term "bulldog" in reference to Evans) and has excelled at heating up the ball at the top of the pack-line defense, but he has struggled at times to find his spot in that defensive scheme when he's not on the ball.  He's got a plus handle and is adept at slashing through the lane and getting to the hole, but he hasn't been a good finisher once he's there.  He's been a horrible jump shooter, who is always open (mostly because defenders sag off of him, daring him to shoot).  He's been a defensive specialist on a team starved for offensive production and playmaking from its point guard position.  All of this being said, I think Jontel Evans will emerge as the starter at the 1 for the Hoos this season.  If rumors about his rapid improvement as a shooter are true, he might be starting to put it all together.  One thing is certain -- his defense is an asset to the team, as is his physicality, athletic ability, and football mentality.  He gives his team a unique sense of toughness that I don't see any of the other point guard candidates being able to come close to approximating.

PLACE: Billy Baron, freshman
He comes to Virginia amid somewhat modest expectations, sort of blending into the Six Shooters group of freshmen after being a late addition to the class.  Baron is said to be a "power point," Which I assume to mean he's strong and willing to post up other guards.  I also know that he's a good, rehearsed shooter... not at the level of his brother (former Rhode Island 3-point sniper Jimmy Baron) but still solid.  What I'm unsure about are his pure point guard skills.  He was mostly a scorer during his prep career, and so I worry about Baron really being a 2 miscast as a point guard.  He's a coach's son, and everyone who has seen him play says that he exudes intelligence in his game, so I'm excited to see what we've got with this guy when the bullets start flying.  I suspect that he's a combo guard with some nice niche skills, and I envision the love child of J.R. Reynolds and Todd Billet based on everything I've read about him.

SHOW: Mustapha Farrakhan, senior
I list Mu over Sammy Zeglinski here for three main reasons: 1) Sammy's injury, which will keep him out for 8+ weeks and necessitate a slow return to action, 2) Coach Bennett's clear determination to turn Sammy into a pure shooting guard, and 3) The fact that Mu has been pretty darn good at running the point when given the chance.  Of course, having a battle-tested senior with the ball in his hand is never a bad thing, and I suspect Farrakhan will start the season getting more minutes at the point than Billy Baron.  Like Baron, Mu is pretty much a combo guard.  He's a good defender, a streaky shooter, and is willing to take the biscuit to the basket and create offense, which is always going to be an asset for a team that will likely struggle to generate points.  He's had a tendency to disappear for long stretches and battling that inconsistency will be his challenge as a senior, because the team needs him to provide a positive presence, night in and night out.

ALSO RAN:

• Sammy Zeglinski, junior -- Once he's back from his knee injury, he'll resume his role as the part-time point guard... unless Evans and/or Baron really step up into the role, which is clearly the hope of the coaching staff.  Sammy really showed some sparks as a sweet-shooting 2 last season, and I think that's the position where Bennett would like him to lay roots.
• K.T. Harrell, freshman -- He's mostly a 2/3, but has displayed some combo guard skills during his prep career.  He'll play the point only if we experience severe attrition or ineffectiveness from the four players listed above him here.
• Joe Harris, freshman -- It's hard to imagine a 6-6 point guard, but Harris is said to have some of the requisite skills to play the position.  I have to believe that Harris being forced to play the point is an absolute worst-case scenario for the team this year.  He's a 3 all the way.

ANTE POST:  I like Jontel Evans a lot and am certainly pulling for him to succeed, but he is what he is right now -- a defensive specialist with an offensive game in adolescent stages of development.  The players behind him are all combo guards, and not true point guards.  Maybe Billy Baron will end up being a fantastic player as a freshman who was simply underevaluated by the recruiting services due to the fact that he committed so early to play for his dad at Rhode Island... or maybe he's just another nice piece in an ensemble cast.  Add it all up, and there are just too many question marks for me to consider the point guard position to be a strength of the Virginia basketball team this season.  I think we'll get below-average scoring and playmaking from the 1s, which is a problem for which these players' strong defense won't compensate completely.  We need a slick-passing playmaking point guard in the worst kind of way, and that's why it's one of the primary recruiting focuses for the 2012 class.

Position Grade: D+/C-

"Bennett Lets High School Coaches Know They Are Important"

I'd like to take a quick timeout from the Football Fight Cards to direct you guys to this article from today's RTD. It's a quick read, and just another glowing example of why we should all be so high on Tony Bennett as our new basketball coach.

Richmond Times Dispatch: "Bennett Lets High School Coaches Know They Are Important"

Two "Must-Reads"

Hey guys, here are two "must-reads" from yesterday's Washington Times.

Virginia Basketball, 1996-to-present

Tony Bennett attempts to re-establish the Virginia Basketball brand

These two short articles, working together, do a great job of framing up where we are exactly when it comes to UVA hoops. Coach Bennett has a huge job ahead of him, but at least he has a plan. That's more than we might have been able to say for Pete Gillen and Dave Leitao.