Pre-season Awards
Player of the Year: Jacob Pullen, Kansas State
I
remember watching Pullen play as a freshman and sophomore, and I can
honestly say I never thought he would develop into the player he did as
a junior. Coming into last season, the guy everyone was talking about
in the K-State back court was the dynamic Denis Clemente, but after
some impressive performances in high-profile non-conference wins,
Pullen (deservedly) developed the reputation of a big-time shooter and
scorer. With Clemente gone, Pullen will be the focal point of a Kansas
State team that doesn’t have a ton of offensive options, especially in
the back court. This is still a very good team — they are big, long,
athletic, and will defend and rebound as well as anyone in the country
— but at the end of a game or the shot clock, the ball is almost
assuredly going to be in Pullen’s hands. He’s going to get plenty of
opportunity to put up points this year, and if he can improve his
ability to distribute the ball — he will command a lot of attention
defensively — I don’t see why he can’t be a 20+ ppg scorer and average
4 assists. If you put up those numbers for the conference favorite, you
deserve player of the year consideration.
And a close second goes to: LaceDarius Dunn, Baylor
Dunn
is in a similar situation to Pullen. His talented back court mate —
Tweety Carter — is gone, which means that he is going to have to carry
even more of the offensive load. It isn’t necessarily a bad thing,
either, as Dunn is one of the best shooters in the country. I think
Dunn has a chance to be conference player of the year and a first team
all-american, but Pullen got the nod because Dunn plays off the ball.
Where Pullen is more of a point guard and has the ability to create for
himself off the dribble, Dunn is more of an off-guard, a
catch-and-shoot kind of guy. I worry that a lot of his success this
season will be determined by the development of AJ Walton as a point
guard. Dunn’s placement here is with the assumption that he will not
miss an extended amount of time for the alleged assault against his
girlfriend.
Breakout Star: Marcus Morris, Kansas, and Jordan Hamilton, Texas
The
Big XII has a number of kids that I think are capable of having a
breakout year — AJ Walton, BJ Holmes, David Loubeau, Michael Dixon,
Ray Penn, Christian Standhardinger. But Morris and Hamilton are the two
kids that I think are all-but-guarantees for a big season. Morris
showed flashes of brilliance as a sophomore, starting at the four and
becoming the Jayhawks most reliable offensive option in the post. With
the amount of talent that Kansas is losing, Morris is the guy that will
be counted on to pick up the slack. After seeing how much he improved
after putting on some strength between his freshman and sophomore
campaigns, I see no reason that he isn’t first-team all-conference, and
possibly even an all-american, this year.
Hamilton is a bit of a
different story. A consensus top 10 recruit last year, he spent last
season as the Longhorns hired gun off the bench. The problem is that
Hamilton has yet to develop a sense of shot selection. As a freshman,
if he touched the ball, more than likely a shot was going up. When he
was on, he was a nightmare for opponents (ask Oklahoma State),
but when he was missing he really hurt Texas. There’s not a doubt in my
mind that this kid can be a lethal scorer in the Big XII, but only when
he develops a better sense of what is a good shot. (Although, it should
be noted that as he gets better and becomes a bigger part of the Texas
offense, the standard of what is a “good shot” for him will become more
lax.) Generally speaking, the biggest improvement tends to come between
a player’s freshman and sophomore years. I think Hamilton can make the
jump.
All-Conference First Team
- POY- Jacob Pullen, Kansas State, Sr.
- G – LaceDarius Dunn, Baylor, Sr.
- G – Cory Higgins, Colorado, Sr.
- G – Kim English, Missouri, Jr.
- F – Alec Burks, Colorado, So.
- F – Marcus Morris, Kansas, Jr.
All-Conference Second Team
- G – Tyshawn Taylor, Kansas, Jr.
- G – Jordan Hamilton, Texas, So.
- G – John Roberson, Texas Tech, Sr.
- F – Jamar Samuels, Kansas State, Jr.
- F – Quincy Acy, Baylor, Jr.
Freshman of the Year: Josh Selby, Kansas
This
is kind of awkward because Selby has yet to be cleared by the NCAA. If
he does end up getting cleared, Selby — the No. 1 recruit in the
country according to Rivals — should make an immediate impact. Selby
plays a similar brand of basketball as former Jayhawk point guard
Sherron Collins. He’s a scorer that can beat his man off the dribble,
knock down a contested 25 footer, and is capable of creating for
teammates in the lane. But where Collins was built like a running back,
Selby is built like a basketball player — 6’3″, long arms, excellent
athleticism. There is going to be quite a bit of returning talent in
the back court, but if Selby lives up to the hype, he will be the
creator for Bill Self’s club.
All-Freshman Team
- G – Phil Pressey, Missouri
- G – Cory Joseph, Texas
- F – Cameron Clark, Oklahoma
- F – Perry Jones, Baylor
- F – Tristan Thompson, Texas
What Happened?:
- Expansion: Yeah, yeah, yeah. We all know already. Nebraska left. Colorado left. We thought the world was going to end, but the world didn’t end. That enough summary? It is for me.
- Texas A&M’s rough summer: First, the Aggies lost their star recruit Tobi Oyedeji, a 6’9″ kid out of Bellaire, TX, who tragically passed away
when he crashed his car on Prom Night. Nowhere near as tragic, but
still depressing is that Derrick Roland, who snapped his leg just about
in half last season, was denied an extra year of eligibility, ending his collegiate career. - Scandals galore:
Missouri’s prize recruit, Tony Mitchell, looks like a long shot to be
on the Tiger roster this season after he wasn’t allowed to graduate
from high school. The reasons are plenty,
including unexplained absences, questionable test results, and the fact
he attended a school accredited as a home school his first three years.
Mitchell has been ruled ineligible for the first semester already.He’s
not the only star recruit that has yet to be cleared. Josh Selby, a
consensus top five recruit from Baltimore, has not been cleared by the
NCAA due to a relationship he has with Carmelo Anthony’s agent. It is not clear
whether that agent is acting as an advisor or he has an agreement with
Selby to become his agent, but one thing that is clear is basketball
players from Baltimore stick together. Its very possible that this
agent is doing nothing but help this family work through a complicated
process. But Selby was also spotted driving a white benz. So who knows.Oklahoma also had a controversy in their program. Freshman Tiny Gallon was alleged to have been given $3,000 by a financial advisor,
which likely played a role in his decision to leave Norman after one
season. Then Tommy Mason-Griffin and Willie Warren, neither of whom did
anything impressive last year, both hit the road as well. Between
transfers and graduation, Capel is left with … well … a lot of youngsters.And how can we forget about LaceDarius Dunn. The potential all-american broke his girlfriend’s jaw. His suspension hasn’t been announced just yet, but he is back in school and allowed to practice with the team.
- Jacob Pullen’s beard…: He’s keepin’ it, y’all.
- The Canadian-Texan pipeline:
Tristan Thompson and Cory Joseph are both top 25 recruits this season.
They are also both Canadian. Myck Kabongo will be joining them at Texas
next season after a two day decommitment.
There is some talent north of the border, and while it is a different
border than we are generally talking about when dealing with Texas, I
don’t think Longhorns fans will have a problem with this kind of
immigration. - Coaching changes:
Believe it or not, no head coaches were fired from Big XII schools this
off-season. There were two changes, however. Jeff Bzdelik took off for
the opening at Wake Forest when Dino Gaudio was fired, replaced by Northern Colorado’s Tad Boyle.Greg McDermott left Iowa State to head back to the MVC and coach Creighton. He was replaced by local hero, Fred Hoiberg, who will have his work cut out for him with all the players that left and the floods that hit Iowa in August.
- Royce White lands:
The troubled youngster who went to Minnesota before dropping out — he
never stepped on court after getting in trouble a couple of time for
shoplifting and possibly stealing a laptop — ended up at Iowa State.
No word on whether he will be able to suit up this season. - Nick Sidorakis is a stand-up guy: Enough with the depressing stories already. Give this piece on the Oklahoma State senior a read, who gave up his scholarship for a teammate.
What’s Next?:
- The Big X:
So Nebraska and Colorado are both leaving the conference before the
start of next season. After all that the teams in the league had to do
to keep from disintegrating, the question now becomes how long will it
last? Is this a temporary peace treaty, one that lasts until the season
is over and everyone gets to arguing about television dollars and
inequitable payouts? Will Texas A&M jump ship to the SEC? Will the
Pac-10 get the four other teams that they wanted originally? - This conference is good:
The talent level is this league is ridiculous. There are nine schools
that have a legitimate chance at making the NCAA Tournament. Depending
on how some freshman pan out and the development of some bench players,
there could be four, maybe five, teams capable of making a deep
tournament run. Would anyone be shocked to see three players — Pullen,
Dunn, and Morris — make first team all-american? This season will be a
lot of fun to follow in the Big XII.
Power Rankings
- Kansas State:
The Wildcats have a lot of talent on their roster, enough to win the
Big XII and likely spend the year in the top ten. It starts with Jacob
Pullen, who will be one of the early favorites for Big XII player of
the year and a potential first team all-american. We all know about
Pullen — a big time scorer and shotmaker — that has really developed
in his four years in Manhattan. Frank Martin’s club is also going to be
loaded up front again. With a rotation of Curtis Kelly, Jamar Samuels,
Wally Judge, Jordan Henriquez-Roberts, and Florida International
transfer Freddy Asprilla, K-State has one of the biggest, most athletic
front lines in the country. Make sure you box the Wildcats out this
year. The biggest question mark for K-State is going to be where Pullen
gets his back court help from. Denis Clemente graduated and Dominique
Sutton transferred out, leaving quite a bit of inexperience behind —
three sophomores, three freshman, and one transfer. Someone from this
group is going to need to step up and become a guy that can defend and
knock down open jumpers. Rodney McGruder is a 6’4″ sophomore off-guard
that hit 18-43 threes in limited minutes last year. Martavious Irving
and Juevol Myles are point guards that could allow Pullen to play off
the all. And keep an eye on freshman Nino Williams, a Kansas native
that was a top 100 recruit in 2011 before enrolling early. - Kansas:
The Jayhawks won’t be as loaded as they have been the past two seasons.
That’s what tends to happen when you lose players like Sherron Collins,
Cole Aldrich, and Xavier Henry. The good news for the Jayhawks? They
actually return everyone else from a team that had as much talent top
to bottom as anyone in the country. The Morris twins will be back on
the front line, and its not a stretch to think that Marcus could end up
being a first team all-american. Thomas Robinson and Jeff Withey, two
talented freshmen that didn’t see many minutes last season, should also
thrive in expanded roles. The back court will, once again, be loaded
for Kansas. Josh Selby, if he gets eligible, should be an adequate
replacement for Collins as a playmaker at the point. If he isn’t,
Tyshawn Taylor also returns and should be expected to play an expanded
role this year as well. Brady Morningstar and Tyrell Reed will be back
to play their roles, and don’t be surprised if Travis Releford or
Elijah Johnson prove to be playmakers if and when they get a chance.
While the Jayhawks lost some star power, this is still a team with a
very deep, very talented roster that will compete for a Big XII title,
maybe even a Final Four, depending on how some of their bench guys from
last season develop. - Baylor:
Scott Drew’s club is losing both Ekpe Udoh and Tweety Carter, their
best interior player and starting point guard from a year ago. Coming
back, however, is LaceDarius Dunn, a Big XII player of the year
candidate that was second in the league is scoring as a junior. The
Bears will also once again have a very big, very athletic front line
headlined by freshman phenom Perry Jones. Jones is a kid with a ton of
potential — size, mobility, perimeter skills — but he lacks some
aggressiveness and assertiveness. His partner up front is 6’7″ junior
Quincy Acy, an athletic freak that quite possibly could be the hardest dunker in the country.
Rounding out the Bears front line is Anthony Jones, a 6’10” lefty with
three point range, Cody Jefferson, a highly regarded recruit that
didn’t get many minutes as a freshman, and 6’8″ junior Fred Ellis. The
issue for Baylor is going to be their back court, specifically at the
point. AJ Walton had a promising start to his freshman season, starting
the first four games for Baylor with Carter out. Walton, who proved to
be a solid defender as well, will need to be able to fill the void left
by Carter. Nolan Dennis, another highly regarded sophomore that saw
limited minutes, will be counted on for increased production as well.
whie freshman point guard Stargell Love will see time. Baylor has a
star in Dunn and size and athleticism up front. Depending on how guys
like Jones, Acy, Dennis, and (especially) Walton develop, Baylor could
very well finish in the top three or four in the league. - Missouri:
You know what you are going to get with Mizzou. They are going to
pressure you defensively, using their 40 minutes of hell defense. While
the Tigers lose a couple of key role players — JT Tiller, Zaire “Mr.
Big Shot” Taylor, Keith Ramsey — there is still quite a bit of talent
on this roster. It starts in the back court, where leading scorer Kim
English and offensive sparkplug Marcus Denmon both return. Promising
point guard Michael Dixon also returns, and with the addition of Ricky
Kreklow and Phil (freshman) and Matt (JuCo transfer) Pressey, the sons
of Paul Pressey, Mike Anderson will be able to go six deep on the
perimeter. On the front line, Laurence Bowers and Justin Safford are
both versatile 6’8″ forwards that are athletic, can defend, and have
three point range. Junior Steve Moore, sophomore John Underwood, and
freshman Kadeem Green will also see time up front. Perhaps the biggest
knock suffered by Mizzou this offseason was the investigation into Tony
Mitchell. Mitchell is the kind of versatile, athletic forward that
thrives in Mizzou’s system. Even without him, this is a tournament team
that, possibly a top four team in the league. - Texas:
The Longhorns were quite the disappointment last season. A preseason
national title favorite that climbed to No. 1 in the country, the
‘Horns stumbled down the stretch, eventually being ousted in the first
round by Wake Forest. While the Longhorns lose a ton of talent —
Damion James, Avery Bradley, Dexter Pittman, Justin Mason — this
roster was as equipped as any to handle it. In the back court, J’Covan
Brown, Jordan Hamilton, and Jai Lucas are back, while Dogus Balbay
should be back to full strength after suffering a season ending injury
last season. The best Longhorn guard may just end up being Cory Joseph,
a top ten recruit out of Canada that could very well be the starter at
the point from day one. Don’t be surprised is Jordan Hamilton becomes a
dangerous player for Rick Barnes. He’s a gunner, but if he can learn
some shot selection, the kid can really put up points in a hurry. The
front court is a bit thinner than it was last year, with Gary Johnson,
Alexis Wangmene, and seldom-used Shawne Williams all back. Like the
guards, the best big man of the group will likely end up being Tristan
Thompson, Joseph’s high school teammate at Findlay Prep and fellow
Canadian. I don’t think the Longhorns can win a Big XII title this
season, but a top four finish and possibly a Sweet 16 run are not out
of the question. - Texas A&M:
It was a rough year to be an Aggie, between Derrick Roland’s leg, Tobi
Oyedeji’s unfortunate passing, and the loss of Brian Davis and Donald
Sloan. The cupboard is far from bare, however. BJ Holmes and Dash
Harris both looked like they could develop into good players in the Big
XII, especially with the amount of minutes opening up in the Aggie back
court. Expect sophomore Naji Hibbert to see an increased role on the
perimeter as well. Up front, A&M has a fairly solid rotation. David
Loubeau may be primed for a break out season, as he looked very
impressive last season, and with Khris Middleton, Ray Turner, and
Nathan Walkup returning and three freshman coming into the program at
6’8″ or taller, the Aggies once again look like they are going to be a
physical defensive team. Mark Turgeon’s clubs have never been flashy.
They grind you out and win games through execution and defense. This
team is loaded with offensive firepower, but if a couple of guys
develop and this group continues to play the way Turgeon wants them to,
this group should be, at the least, in the bubble conversation come
February. - Colorado:
The Buffaloes, perennially a Big XII doormat, finished eighth in the
league last year and stand to make another jump this season. Colorado,
who lost head coach Jeff Bzdelik to Wake Forest in the spring, return
essentially their entire starting line-up, including Alec Burks and
Cory Higgins. Burks and Higgins are two of the most underrated players
in the country, mainly because they play for a Colorado team that
rarely gets national exposure. They play different styles — Burks is
more of a slasher and a small forward, while Higgins is one of those
crafty scoring guards with “old-man” game — but combined, they
averaged over 35 ppg. Burks was also the team’s leading rebounder. Also
returning is Marcus Relphorde, a forward who transferred in from Indian
Hill CC, that is a solid defender and led the team in threes. Beyond
that, Colorado doesn’t have a ton of talent on their roster. Nate
Tomlinson is a decent point guard, there are a couple of capable bigs,
and new head coach Tad Boyle will have two freshman at his disposal.
This team will ride their big two, but if the Buffs can get a bench and
a couple of other role players stepping up alongside Relphorde, there
is a decent shot this team makes a run at the tournament. - Oklahoma State:
The Cowboys lost their two leading scorers in James Anderson and Obi
Muonelo, but the rest of the roster is returning for Travis Ford. And
while the 35 ppg that those two provided is a lot to replace, there are
some pieces on this roster. Keiton Page and Ray Penn are both
undersized in the back court, but make no mistake that both are
talented kids. Nick Sidorakis and Fred Gulley should both see expanded
roles in the back court as well, with freshman Markel Brown also
getting some valuable minutes. A big issue the Cowboys are going to
face losing Muonelo is that he was a good enough rebounder at 6’4″ that
he was able to play the four. It will be interesting to see how Ford
handles that change. Don’t be surprised if Marshall Moses and Matt
Pilgrim start to play more together, but there are still going to be
quite a few minutes to be earned. Last year’s crop of newcomers —
Roger Franklin, Torin Walker, Jarrid Shaw — had quite first years,
with Franklin the only one cracking the rotation. This year, four
newbies — freshmen Michael Cobbins (a top 50 recruit and Ford’s best
newcomer) and Brian Williams, Juco transfers Darrell Williams and JP
Olukemi — will have a good chance at earning playing time. The Cowboys
will be a borderline tournament team this season, but the future looks
good in Stillwater. - Texas Tech:
The Red Raiders got off to a hot start last season, but thanks to a
late losing streak fell (way) out of contention for an NCAA bid. The
good news is that Tech brings back seven of their top nine, including
leading scorers forward Mike Singletary and point guard Jon Roberson.
Singletary and Roberson form one of the better 1-2 punches in the
league. Tech is much more than just those two, however. David Tairu is
a tough kid that should start alongside Roberson in the back court.
Brad Reese, D’walyn Roberts, Theron Jenkins, and Robert Lewandowski
form a solid quartet of front court players. I like the make up of this
roster — a lot of experience (nine upperclassmen, seven seniors), a
lot of tough kids, two go-to players. The question will be whether Pat
Knight can make it all come together on the defensive end of the floor. - Nebraska:
Like Colorado, the Cornhuskers will be playing their final season in
the Big XII. But unlike the Buffaloes, Nebraska doesn’t look like they
will make much noise in the league on their way out the door. If the
Huskers are anything, they are big. With Brian Diaz returning and
Christopher Niemann (hopefully) getting healthy after back-to-back acl
tears, Nebraska will be able to boast two seven foot centers. Also
expect a big season out of 6’8″ forward Christian Standhardinger, who
averaged 8.1 ppg and 4.8 rpg in a super productive 15 mpg after missing
the first 15 games of the year with eligibility issues. Brandon
Richardson, Eshaunte Jones, and Lance Jeter give the Huskers an
adequate back court, but there is simply not enough talent on this
roster to give Nebraska a shot at competing in the league. - Oklahoma:
Jeff Capel is facing quite the rebuilding process in Norman. Many
expected the Sooners to be a top 25 team last season, but injuries and
attitude problems kept Oklahoma near the bottom of the league. And now,
with their top four scorers gone, Capel will be playing this season
with, essentially, one returning upperclassmen — senior shooting guard
Cade Davis. The cupboard isn’t completely bare. Steven Pledger and
Andrew Fitzgerald both showed flashes of promise as freshmen. Capel
also brings in seven newcomers, headlined by top 50 small forward
Cameron Clark. The biggest issue Capel is going to face this season is
a lack of size inside, as there are really only three post players on
the entire roster. It will be a while before the Sooners are competing
for the Big XII title in hoops again. - Iowa State:
Fred Hoiberg is going to have a long season in his first year back at
Iowa State. His two best players — Craig Brackins and Marqus Gilstrap
— are both pursuing professional careers. Lucca Staiger left the team
midseason for to return to Germany. Charles Boozer was kicked out.
Their home court was flooded. Its so bad in Ames that Greg McDermott
left to return to the MVC and Creighton, which may actually be the
better job. Senior Diante Garrett is a bright spot for the Cyclones,
and he may be the only one. I can honestly say that Iowa State could go
winless in the Big XII, and I wouldn’t be that surprised.
Rob Dauster is the editor of the college basketball website Ballin’ is a Habit. You can find him on twitter @ballinisahabit.
