COLLIN: I call the meeting to order
Roster is here
http://www.gousfbulls.com/SportSelect.dbml?&DB_OEM_ID=7700&SPID=2923&SPSID=36689
JAMIE: It's a nice change to look at a USF basketball roster and be like, "Wow, there are a lot of useful pieces here."
RYAN: Initial thoughts: Shemiye McLendon has the best name ever
ANDREW: Does this team have more size than 2011-12?
JAMIE: Pour one out for Mike Dakkak AKA the guy who got in the game before anyone knew who he was because USF didn't put him on anyone's roster.
COLLIN: is Shemiye pronounced like Laverne and Shirley would during their opening song?
JAMIE: I don't think it's more size, it's more size down in the block. Fitzy was not a back-to-the-basket guy. Gus Gilchrist was only occasionally one.
MIKE: Fitz and Jawanza are gone, but Egbunu is big and for the love of god if we can get Omogbehin to just stand with his hands up for 6 minutes every half he'll be useful
COLLIN: Egbunu alone give syou more usable size
OMG is 7'3, but not exactly a productive 7/3
ANDREW:Our wings are in the 6-4+ range too
RYAN: Perry too. Plus Heath mentioned that Zach LeDay was developing into a Ron Anderson Jr. type, which is the best news ever
MIKE: I'm mostly looking forward to hoping that Musa stays healthy
GARY: I was just about to say that. I'm excited about Zach LeDay. Reportedly he's put on some serious bulk and will be a force in the paint. 
COLLIN: Musa just has all the potential in the world, just have to hope he can put it all together
JAMIE: Does it really kill USF if Musa still isn't right? They have enough usable wings now, and Brock really started putting it together at the end of last year.
GARY: I also saw Heath called Martino Brock the most improved player
COLLIN: Brock had 17 to lead all scorers in the scrimmage
MIKE: Brock was a great backup to Collins when I didn't think he would be. Having them both on the court, with Musa available as well is going to be awesome
RYAN: Plus Javontae Hawkins showed potential last season
GARY: OK, question #1: who is backup point guard? 
COLLIN: and those are minutes that Allen and Hawkins are going to be fighting for... DEPTH!!
ANDREW:Musa? For backup pg?
COLLIN: I'm guessing Allen, but of that I'm not sure
JAMIE: That's either Allen or Lil' Heath II.
RYAN: I assume Corey Allen. If he can just fill in the Blake Nash role, that'll be huge. The team was dead when AC came out last season.
GARY: I don't think we want Collins playing 36 MPG.
JAMIE: I don't think he has to anymore.
COLLIN: I doubt it's Josh Heath already, that would shock me
JAMIE: So I just made my list of players and I got down to #11 before I was like, "I hope he's not playing very many minutes."
MIKE: I am not putting anything on Heath just yet
GARY: Will there be a designated #2 PG, or will it be a by-committee thing?
ANDREW:Every game AC plays under 35 is a good thing
MIKE: #2 PG is more than likely Brock
JAMIE: Check that, #12.
COLLIN: I think it'll be matchup dependent. Collins starts every game, but minutes and rotation are a game to game thing
RYAN: Is Collins completely healthy?
MIKE: I haven't seen anything indicating otherwise
GARY: Yeah, I thought he had a sprain or something
JAMIE: I wouldn't use him until he is. USF has a nice ramp-up into the season.
RYAN: Heath was talking about how he had some injury that was taking longer than expected to heal
COLLIN: Apparently he's not healthy... and Stan saying what he did seems to imply that he's not happy with the way his rehab was handled
RYAN: Hadn't heard any more on that thoigh
JAMIE: The first game where I'm like, "Oh they could lose that one" is Oklahoma State on 11/25.
MIKE: I was just going to say I amk pretty excited for the OK State game this year
JAMIE: So if you have to hold out AC for a couple weeks to make sure he can play that game, I'm fine.
MIKE: I just hope we don't go to three OTs with BGSU again
COLLIN: I just hope we keep the lights on if we do
JAMIE: It's in Ohio.
MIKE: Just need three more Vic rudd buzzer beaters
RYAN: Think the new bigs letting Rudd play the 3 will help him out this year?
He was tough to watch at the end of last season
ANDREW:I have to chack the sched. I'd like to get to a game up here
COLLIN: absolutely, but I don't like the fact Stan didn't take him to media days
JAMIE: I think by the end of last year, Heath just gave up and let Rudd volume shoot because there was no other way to score enough to win.
COLLIN: apparently to send a message
GARY: Rudd's athleticism and scoring works much better at the 3 than the 4. Just having him play his best position will be a big help.
ANDREW:It helps him on D even more
MIKE: LeDay should provide some balance at Forward
RYAN: I will never forget the Rudd-Anderson-Gilchrist lineups. Brutal defnseively
MIKE: I'm hoping LeDay fills the Ron Anderson role
GARY: That's exactly what I was thinking
COLLIN: Ron Ron and the pips
ANDREW:I don't think he can board like Ron
RYAN: He was the only player to have an even okay game against Seton Hall in MSG
JAMIE: It sounds like they're grooming him to be just that.
MIKE: I'm hoping Chris Perry should fill the void left by Fitz
RYAN: Really stepped it up at the end of the year
JAMIE: So let's get down to ranking these guys. Should we start at the bottom?
COLLIN: so how do we want to rank these kids? #13-1?
JAMIE: I count 14 on the roster this year.
GARY: Well, who's everyone's MIP?
COLLIN: you are correct
MIKE: yeaH 14
COLLIN: I vote AC first
MIKE: Collins for me
ANDREW:Collins. We aren't good if he isn't playing
COLLIN: we go nowhere without him
JAMIE: Yeah, it's still Collins.
GARY: Sure, let's put Collins 1
JAMIE: Now it gets interesting. I have Egbunu #2.
ANDREW: Rudd was all-AAC 2nd team?
RYAN: I think you can argue Egbunu or Rudd
JAMIE: Because Egbunu controls the paint, which we didn't do at all last year.
GARY: I'm having a tough time between Egbunu and LeDay for #2.
COLLIN: Egbunu. IF eh's good and can control the paint, it makes everyone else significantly better
GARY: They both need to do well so Rudd can stay at the 3 where he belongs, and other young players don't have to be thrown into the fire
COLLIN: Rudd's a ballstopper, if he's bad we have other options
ANDREW:Im going with Leday
MIKE: the only thing that won games for us two years ago was good play down low. Egbunu is my #2
JAMIE: I think Egbunu is going to come out as #2... but I do have LeDay #3.
MIKE: Not the only thing, but the differene maker
JAMIE: (By the way, everyone send their individual ballots and I'll post those along with the chats.)
GARY: I could ride with Egbunu #2, and LeDay #3. It's close though.
COLLIN: our post play was so bad last year. if we have someone that can fix that, we're onto something
JAMIE: There was no true center on the team last year. There was barely a true power forward.
ANDREW:I'd rather underestimate Egbunu.
JAMIE: Kore White should not have been getting nearly as many minutes as he did but there was no other choice.
COLLIN: Egbunu is my Mike White Whale
MIKE: The practically no PF last year is the reason I think Perry is important
COLLIN: I'm beyond all in on him just on tape, what I'm hearing, and the midnight madness event where he just looks like an athletic freak
JAMIE: But there are other guys who can play in the block even before Perry.
GARY: Who's starting at the #2? Brock? Hawkins? 
COLLIN: Zeigler
RYAN: And LeDay, while he could be great, doesn't have that same athletic potential. I'm sold on Egbunu for 2
JAMIE: So... Collins 1, Egbunu 2... LeDay 3?
Or someone else 3?
COLLIN: Leday, Brock, or Rudd
GARY: Works for me, and I would go with Rudd at #4.
JAMIE: Yeah. I had LeDay 3, Rudd 4, and Brock 5.
COLLIN: that's the 3-4-5 in some order I think
MIKE: I like Rudd because a few hot jumpers can really change the flavor of a game, and Rudd is reliable for that
JAMIE: Is Brock the Hugh Robertson here? Does he have that kind of defensive pedigree?
GARY: Rudd's a scoring machine. If we can build a team that lets him just go score, we'll really have something.
JAMIE: If Rudd can be harnessed he is really valuable.
COLLIN: a few hot turnovers and defensive lapses can do it the other way too... and Rudd is for sure good for that too
RYAN: You can kind of see the pieces of the 2011 team here, can't you?
MIKE: I put Rudd at 3
COLLIN: I SEE YOU PIECES!! THAT'S WHY I'M BANDWAGONING!!
RYAN: Brock = Robertson. LeDay = Anderson. Obviously they've got a while to go
GARY: Is Brock as good a defender as Robertson was though?
MIKE: More important is if 2013 Collins = 2011 Collins
JAMIE: Not right now, but I think he can score better than Robertson did
RYAN: Agreed
ANDREW: AC is the only guy under 6-5. But Leday would be Pf. Does that work?
COLLIN: Probably not. Right now the best defender, though at a different position, is Hawkins
GARY: That's what I was thinking - our #2 position has a lot more scoring potential with Hawkins, Brock, and others all getting minutes.
JAMIE: Brock and Hawkins play the same position, right? Or can one of them play 3 if you go small?
MIKE: Hawk can play 3 I think
JAMIE: Oh, I just thought of a lineup with Rudd and Egbunu and Hawkins and Brock and Collins and got really excited.
COLLIN: There's not one kid in the first 10 where you go "oh God, not him." We've never had a team like that
MIKE: See: Augustus Gilchrist
JAMIE: Not since Greenberg. I think 2001 was like this, where you didn't fear putting anyone in the first 10 in the game.
Of course he wasn't nearly as resourceful as Stan.
ANDREW:Hawk and Brock are big 2s but small 3s
COLLIN: I think that's the most likely starting 5 Jamie, with Allen pushing to crack the 2 spot
ANDREW: BROCKHAWK
MIKE: BRAWKINS
JAMIE: You wouldn't start LeDay yet, Collin?
GARY: We're not in the Big East anymore - can we get away with playing smallish 3s against the Houstons of the world?
JAMIE: I was just throwing out an uptempo, athletic small lineup, maybe a crunch-time lineup.
COLLIN: If anything, I might put LeDay in over Rudd
ANDREW: Against big teams can we start Leday and Rudd?
JAMIE: How many big teams are there in this league?
COLLIN: but it just seems weird to leave a 5th year senior with insane athleticism on the bench
MIKE: Is UConn big this year?
JAMIE: Also I think Rudd would not like it if it he wasn't starting.
GARY: I'm not sure what you gain by not starting Rudd at the 3.
MIKE: We play UConn, Louisville, and Memphis all twice.Also UCF
COLLIN: I think Rudd would hate not starting, but we've got options... maybe Heath can help him focus with the carrot of playing time
you absolutely gain defense
MIKE: In all my potential lineups I always have Rudd on the court, but that's probably because I've gotten used to seeing him out there
ANDREW:If we have a lead late he might not be on the floor
MIKE: I agree
GARY: I can see going offense-defense substitution with someone else to do the defending
JAMIE: Yeah, Rudd's the most likely to make a knucklehead decision in a bad spot. If he doesn't have to be out there when USF's up 2 with 15 seconds left, he won't be.
MIKE: Late leads is when you bleed the clock and play defense, so you may want to have Collins, Brock, and your big guys on the court.
COLLIN: All this depth.... it might make Rudd, dare I say, expendable?
or maybe he's just a piece instead of a focus?
MIKE: Hawk is the only guy I've seen make long range jumpers like Rudd but he's small
JAMIE: Rudd would go nuts. This is the guy who wanted to leave for the NBA two years ago.
GARY: I think if the rest of the team is solid, Rudd will got opportunities to do what he does best.
MIKE: I don't see Rudd not being a large factor on the team
RYAN: You know how Gilchrist was still kind of a knucklehead in 2011 but he kind of blended in with the team's m.o. a bit and it helped out a lot? That's what I'd like from Rudd
ANDREW: Yeah. This is a JUST DO YOUR JOB kind of team
COLLIN: all we know about Stan is he he has a very low tolerance for bullshit
RYAN: He won't have to carry the team this season
MIKE: You mean when he would get a rebound and then throw it over the sideline or step out of bounds
JAMIE: Rudd could score 15 points a game, or he could be in the D-League by midseason.
ANDREW: We don't need anyone to be versatile
COLLIN: Gus Gilchrist failing to make a road trip at the last minute doesn't fly this year.
MIKE: That's what I like about this depth.
COLLIN: the thing I'm hearing about this team the most... the chemistry is really good
GARY: I've heard that too.
MIKE: I am a sucker for chemistry.
COLLIN: they're smarter, they get along... it's a good group
JAMIE: So does this mean they'll make a What Does The Fox say video? I'd like that.
COLLIN: SWISH SWISH SWISH SWISH SWISH
COLLIN: however... I'm over the fox videos already
GARY: So our list is 1. Collins 2. Egbunu 3. LeDay 4. Rudd. Then who?
JAMIE: Brock.
RYAN: Brock?
MIKE: I like Musa for 5 or 6 because him being a legitimate threat for cutting to the basket is something we haven't had and may prove to be a missing piece
GARY: Yes, I think keeping AC at the right number of minutes is of great importance.
JAMIE: I had Clayton 6
MIKE: But Brock is going to play a bigger role than he did last year and what he does with that responsibility makes him a definite #5
JAMIE: Clayton's can be like the Ox Gardner of this team. Damn I wish he was here.
ANDREW:Brock 5. Hawk 6
GARY: We've got three different answers for 6
COLLIN: Hawk is your shutdown defender. He guards Shabbaz and Russ Smith
MIKE: Yeah I underestimated Hawk's defending ability
ANDREW:I might even go hawk 5 because of lategame D
JAMIE: I had Hawk #7, just because it seems like there are more options at his position than there are at Clayton's.
GARY: Has anyone seen a depth chart yet? There isn't enough minutes for all these guys.
ANDREW:Hawk is definitely in for Rudd late against smaller teams
MIKE: That's a good thing
RYAN: Someone's gonna get lost at the 2. Musa?
JAMIE: So Hawk 5 or Hawk 6? Is he more important than Brock? I'd keep Brock at 5.
GARY: But that's just me
COLLIN: unless Allen or someone new can really lockdown, it'll be Hawk
ANDREW:I have to think it through more
MIKE: Brock has decent defense too. I say keep him 5
COLLIN: basketball doesn't really have a depth chart per se, they'll be playing everyone early to find a rotation
RYAN: Gotta give a lot of preference to whoever takes up the majority of the minutes behind Collins, whoever that is
GARY: We're thinking that's Brock, hence his #5 ranking
ANDREW: BASKETBALL:SOMETHING TO LOOK FORWARD TO
JAMIE: So Brock is a 1?
I thought he was the off guard at all times.
MIKE: If Collins can't be on the court for any reason I would have Brock on there
RYAN: I also didn't think we accomplished much with AC out last season. And Brock was there
GARY: They messed with Brock at the 1 at points last year
COLLIN: though I think with Allen now, that'll be his role for sure
GARY: Will Corey Allen be the new Blake Nash? Will he be OK with that role?
COLLIN: you're going to be able to capably spell AC now, and that's big because I'd love to see the splits with him on the bench and what the point differential would be
I think Allen is the backup at the 1, and a smaller guy that can be explosive at the 2 
he's got RIDIC ups
JAMIE: Did we decide Brock 5, Hawkins 6? Does that make Allen 7?
ANDREW:I think we are sending in ballots tomorrow
COLLIN: the question at that position is... if we're playing a drive/kick game with AC, who's the guy that knocks down the 3's that generates?
JAMIE: Hopefully Musa. Or Hawkins if he can shoot them.
RYAN: Shaun Norie.... oh
COLLIN: All these guys have athletic ability and skills... but can they knock it down from deep? That's a role this team will really need filled.
MIKE: Yeah I'm putting a lot of faith in Musa. Deep is Rudd.
JAMIE: I'm not that sad to see Noriega go. He could shoot but he couldn't get off his own shot ever. They have guys to replace him that can do that.
COLLIN: I like Musa's chances of filling that role over Rudd, that's for sure
MIKE: I like them both
COLLIN: but Allen, Hawkins, Brock... the guy that gets the time might be the guy that developed his shot the most in the offseason
MIKE: Hawk is a good shooter from what I remember
JAMIE: Could just be Stan playing hunches or riding the hot hand.
COLLIN: Stats from last year
https://admin.xosn.com/pdf9/1764687.pdf?DB_OEM_ID=7700&
RYAN: How much time should we expect Perry to get? He was a big recruit and there's still a hole down low
COLLIN: The only guys with decent 3pt %'s are the guys that didn't take a lot of shots
MIKE: Come back Noriega
COLLIN: I think Perry gets 10-15 min a game early, and that increases if he plays well
GARY: Let's go abstract here. Perhaps the "most important player" isn't a player but a role that needs to be filled. Behind the first 5, what we really need is 6. an outside shooting threat; 7. capable depth at C/PF; 8. depth at SG/SF. It's just not clear which players are going to fill each role.
MIKE: I can see that for sure
COLLIN: you might even need 2 deep threats against certain teams
JAMIE: That's true. We're so used to not having enough guys to put in situational subs that we just ranked them on everything.
ANDREW: Backup pg is more important than depth at sg/sf
GARY: Yes, but I thought we covered that with having Brock at #5
ANDREW: We have four solid swingmen
MIKE: Yeah I'm ok with our PG depth
GARY: The top 4 players are pretty clear, beyond that things can fill out a lot of different ways
COLLIN: we can throw bodies at people now in both the front court and the back court though.. and that's something we haven't seen in a long time
JAMIE: If Stan Heath coached the 2001-02 team, how far do they go? Sweet 16?
GARY: don't get me started
JAMIE: Because that's the last time I think USF had a roster with that kind of depth.
COLLIN: most likely. he wouldn't have Reggie Kohn as the post guy in the 1-3-1 that's for sure
ANDREW:Maybe I just have bad memories of AC on the bench last year
COLLIN: oh no, your memories are accurate, Andrew
JAMIE: Things might have been problematic if Stan Heath and USF reached the Sweet 16 and faced Stan Heath and Kent State in that round.
MIKE: Such a sad way to think of him
COLLIN: it's just now we've got multiple people to fill that role as opposed to absolutely none
so who's redshirting?
ANDREW:Multiple=Capable?
COLLIN: form what we can tell... yes, capable
but the true test comes in the next few weeks
RYAN: Heath? for redshirting?
JAMIE: Zeigler?
MIKE: Probably redshirt Heath
GARY: There's another lesson in that 2001-02 team; it took a couple seasons for some of those guys to become major contributors, like Will McDonald and Terrance Leather. It may be that way with this team, where someone like Chris Perry only plays a few minutes a game his freshman year.
MIKE: Dre Clayton maybe. This is a tough league for freshman, that's for sure
ANDREW: Haha T-Let.
COLLIN: but the depth we have allows those guys to just fill a role instead of being asked to carry a large burden
ANDREW:I told Collin and Mike but I saw T-Let when I was in Korea. T-Let was Korea foreign player MVP in 2010, but then he was kicked out of the league
GARY: I'm afraid to ask why
ANDREW:There wasn’t a reason but I’m sure it was bad
ANDREW:The game I saw he fouled out and then sat sulking at the end of the bench while the rest of the team was cheering on a comeback. It was just like every USF game he played.
JAMIE: Didn't Leather run really afoul of the law recently?
GARY: Yes, "arrested on drug, gun charges"
COLLIN: I feel so bad for that kid, he had such an incredibly rough life
but he also had every USF donor alive reaching out to him to try and help him. Apparently none of it got through
GARY: I always liked him. I hope he can get it together somehow.
ANDREW: There's a point where you attitude gets in the way of your opportunities
He had a pretty long career playing overseas
If this is published we should probably stop at the redshirt talk
MIKE: Are we still doing this most important player thing?
GARY: We didn't find much agreement on our most important players past the first 5. It's hard to tell who's going to fill what role
ANDREW: This was fun we should do these more often
GARY: Headline: “USF Basketball Has So Much Talent We Can't Agree On Ranking Of Players”
MIKE: I like it