American HoosierX

Maybe, although I'm guessing neither were mocked in the 1st round. Purely my opinion, but I think the biggest obstacle to TJD coming back is a sense of failure that comes from not making the pros in a given time frame. I don't think he thought he'd be in college 3 years let alone 4. But moves like Bacot and Tshiebwe lessen the importance of that IMO, and also I'm hoping gets boosters motivated once the number for Tshiebwe comes out.

Dear lord, the dude must be pulling in a boatload of NIL money. How can you improve your stock after winning NPOY? On the flip side, while I don’t like seeing UK improve, I think moves like this and Bacot make it easier for TJD to return.

I was three rows up for that game, and our team was gassed with about 8 minutes to go. TJD was especially gassed - at one point Kopp was screaming at him to come over to the huddle and he could barely muster more than a slow jog. I don't know whether Duncomb should have played, but conditioning was absolutely a factor.

I don't think their win / loss record over that time backs that up. Duren was only out a few games and they won each one. They also lost to Georgia, Ole Miss, and Tulane early in the season while they had both Duren and Williams (and Bates). Gelling over time/getting healthier probably also played a role, but while I didn't watch all their games, I think it's pretty likely they were better without Bates. In some of the early games I did watch him play, he had very little discipline in terms of shot selection and ball control. His Assist/TO ratio for the season was damn near 1/2.

I don't for a second think that Penny is a great coach. However, he was the coach before and after Bates' injury. The thing that changed was Bates' playing time. Obviously there could be 12 other factors playing into their improved play, but Occam's Razor. I think that once these kids get really hyped up, it's hard for people to let go of it. If Lander would have transferred at the end of year 1, people would have been up in arms. But after two full years, people finally realized that he has deficiencies that are hard to overcome in the college game. I'm not trying to comp Bates to Lander as obviously Bates has incredible physical tools, but if Bates was a 4 star coming out of high school, I don't think we'd be having this conversation.

Memphis was not very good with him playing. At different points they lost 4 in a row including a loss to Georgia, 3 in a row including a loss to East Carolina, and another loss to Tulane. They then won 10 out of their last 12 games (non-NCAA tourney) with him being out with an injury, with one of those losses being to Houston in the American tourney championship game. His shot selection was awful, and I imagine there's a pretty large ego attached. Just not sure how the benefits would outweigh the risks here.

Agreed, hard pass. Memphis was much better once he was out of the lineup.

I agree with you but to me this isn't the right argument. The right argument is that there is really no reason to offer him an extension. He's at his alma mater, in his 60s and very unlikely to move on. Feel free to tack a year or two onto the back-end as we go, but there is no reason to sign him to a long extension.

He likes the unis Reneau is wearing in the commitment tweet and thinks we should wear them for a real game.

Are you forgetting Galloway or don't think he'll play?

I’m willing to bet the convo was we don’t know if he’s coming back, but if he does you’ll be going against the best in practice every day.

So you think his development will slow going against TJD every day in practice? Or is it lack of exposure? I'm not really sure how lack of exposure in his first year would affect him in his sophomore or junior campaigns.

Hmmm I’m not understanding the Georgia comment. He decomitted after mike white left.

How in the world is it?

Is that really true though? How confident are we JG is coming back?

I don't agree and here's why. Stewart was a mainstay in the starting lineup and yet I think he was still told he wouldn't have the same role, or maybe any role, if he came back. Kopp is good buddies with TJD so I think maybe they've taken a different approach with him, but I'm not sure him starting last year means a whole lot moving forward.

No, you don't get a free grad transfer year. He's played 5 years now, with the fifth only being possible due to the Covid year. He's out of eligibility.

In the end though, if he's going to make the rotation he needs to bring something to the table. He shot 35% overall from the field last year and only 30% from 3. 5.5 rebounds per game isn't bad but it's also not overly impressive. Unless he's a defensive POY candidate, then count me in the group of not understanding why this would be a fit.

Yeah hard pass.

I would say it indicates that they don't know for sure that both are coming back. Otherwise, they are just doing their diligence for all potential situations, as they should.

I could see it happening, I don't even think a mid-major would touch him for a HC position at this point. But the main question would be, where would he park his giant ego?

Going pro and hiring an agent so I'd say the chances are slim...

At the same time though, I was at that game and TJD was clearly gassed. A little surprising Duncomb didn't get in at least for a couple minutes.

I mean Juwan Howard is the OG slapper, but I'll take some inspiration from Will.

I’d like to be the guy that slaps opposing coaches when they step out of line.