The Official 2014-15 Expectations Thread

[sancho]

There's a good chance that their upcoming basketball moment with the Lone Peak pipeline may come at one of the high points of Runnin' Ute basketball.

I'll believe in the lone peak pipeline as soon as it produces anything meaningful. Tyler Haws is a fine player for the WCC. He can put up 25 a night there. But he generally struggles against good teams. Mika was ok as a freshman, but he was hardly something to worry about. Collinsworth (provo pipeline, same thing) is actually really good. So who else? Another Haws? Another one of that other guy, what's-his-name who used to watch Jimmer shoot? And a SG named Jackson who is 6'1" and is dumb enough to be considering Herb Sendek at ASU?

[LA Ute]

This will get your Ute hoops juices flowing:

https://www.facebook.com/video.php?v...type=2&theater

[SoCalPat]

I'll believe in the lone peak pipeline as soon as it produces anything meaningful. Tyler Haws is a fine player for the WCC. He can put up 25 a night there. But he generally struggles against good teams. Mika was ok as a freshman, but he was hardly something to worry about. Collinsworth (provo pipeline, same thing) is actually really good. So who else? Another Haws? Another one of that other guy, what's-his-name who used to watch Jimmer shoot? And a SG named Jackson who is 6'1" and is dumb enough to be considering Herb Sendek at ASU?

Haws averaged 22 PPG against P5 and ranked non-P5 teams last year, including two 30-plus point games against Pac-12 teams. He's a fine player in any league.

[sancho]

Haws averaged 22 PPG against P5 and ranked non-P5 teams last year, including two 30-plus point games against Pac-12 teams. He's a fine player in any league.

I agree. He's a fine little basketball player. But he lost all or most of those games, right? What was his FG% in those games vs the WCC games?

[SoCalPat]

I agree. He's a fine little basketball player. But he lost all or most of those games, right? What was his FG% in those games vs the WCC games?

That's a change-the-goalposts rebuttal. Maybe his teammates struggle more against good teams and it drags the W-L down.

As for his FG percentage, he was lights out vs. Stanford and Oregon (first meeting), putrid against Utah and WSU, about average against everyone else.

[sancho]

That's a change-the-goalposts rebuttal. Maybe his teammates struggle more against good teams and it drags the W-L down.

As for his FG percentage, he was lights out vs. Stanford and Oregon (first meeting), putrid against Utah and WSU, about average against everyone else.

I take it all back.

I would take any of those Lone Peak pukes on Utah - they are all worthy of a scholarship. But that doesn't mean they aren't pukes, and it doesn't mean they have yet to win anything meaningful in college.

[DrumNFeather]

Oregon jumps up to number 2 in the playoff rankings.

Arizona St. sits at #6.

UCLA at 11

Arizona at 14

[mpfunk]

Lunardi has the Utes projected as a 5 seed. Is it wrong of me to say that unless there are some major injuries, that anything less than an NCAA tournament appearance is a failure this year? I'm also looking at this team and saying, we really should be thinking about more than just making the tournament and winning at least 1 game in the tournament.

[LA Ute]

Lunardi has the Utes projected as a 5 seed. Is it wrong of me to say that unless there are some major injuries, that anything less than an NCAA tournament appearance is a failure this year?

I think that's a fair expectation.

I'm also looking at this team and saying, we really should be thinking about more than just making the tournament and winning at least 1 game in the tournament.

Round of 32 is a fair expectation and would be a good year. Sweet 16 would be a terrific year. Anything else would be gravy.

[Rocker Ute]

That's a change-the-goalposts rebuttal. Maybe his teammates struggle more against good teams and it drags the W-L down.

As for his FG percentage, he was lights out vs. Stanford and Oregon (first meeting), putrid against Utah and WSU, about average against everyone else.

I would take Haws on my team in a heartbeat, but last year my observation is he struggled with physical play. Teams that let him take his shots without bumping him around a bit paid for it. I wonder if he has improved that aspect of his game, but any strategy I had around Haws would involve being as physical as possible with him as I could.

[SoCalPat]

Lunardi has the Utes projected as a 5 seed. Is it wrong of me to say that unless there are some major injuries, that anything less than an NCAA tournament appearance is a failure this year? I'm also looking at this team and saying, we really should be thinking about more than just making the tournament and winning at least 1 game in the tournament.

If you play out the upcoming season 100 times, we'll make the Final Four more often than we'll miss the tournament.

[Two Utes]

I would take Haws on my team in a heartbeat, but last year my observation is he struggled with physical play. Teams that let him take his shots without bumping him around a bit paid for it. I wonder if he has improved that aspect of his game, but any strategy I had around Haws would involve being as physical as possible with him as I could.

He appears to have peaked as a player. Some kids get better and better. He appears to have hit his ceiling. It is a decently high ceiling.

[concerned]

He appears to have peaked as a player. Some kids get better and better. He appears to have hit his ceiling. It is a decently high ceiling.

Probably because he is not a kid anymore. I think he is almost 24 or so.