Kai Yu, Bradley’s 7 footer is in the portal
Kai Yu, Bradley’s 7 footer is in the portal
This one is interesting to me. I believe Bradley's 7'1" center (Jonovic) just participated in senior night and is out of eligibility. They were counting on Kai Yu to step in as his replacement. This is a bigger loss for Bradley than just the season stats show as Kai is capable of putting up solid numbers with more playing time. I remember when Kai came to the states after participating in the NBA Global Academy and some west coast high majors wanted him. Kai has some great skills and obviously size that cannot be taught and he will have a nice impact somewhere.
It might be safe to assume everyone in the image on this tweet is the returners. Everyone not in this image should be looked into more closely
https://twitter.com/i/status/2036917460494926050
It might be safe to assume everyone in the image on this tweet is the returners. Everyone not in this image should be looked into more closely
I think your assumption about the players returning is clear based on coaches message.
Someone photoshop Shon into that pic please
I thought this exact thing, when I saw that picture earlier on Wednesday. I don't know the man, so it isn't speaking to his character, but it wouldn't surprise me if Jesse McClung is trying to get another job in an increased stature program, and Shon will follow him wherever he goes, due to their relationship. That AAU coach and follow drill, but at the college level. I don't see either in the picture. I have to believe that Mark Brown and Tucker T are also gone.
Shon is officially out
Not a surprise given the others saying they were staying quite quickly. I would presume anyone else not yet announcing they are in are definitely in the portal. So now the top priority is to get another big body. we used three last year though Tucker was more of a 4 body type.
Not a surprise given the others saying they were staying quite quickly. I would presume anyone else not yet announcing they are in are definitely in the portal. So now the top priority is to get another big body. we used three last year though Tucker was more of a 4 body type.
The plan is probably to use walker in that role.
I thought this exact thing, when I saw that picture earlier on Wednesday. I don't know the man, so it isn't speaking to his character, but it wouldn't surprise me if Jesse McClung is trying to get another job in an increased stature program, and Shon will follow him wherever he goes, due to their relationship. That AAU coach and follow drill, but at the college level. I don't see either in the picture. I have to believe that Mark Brown and Tucker T are also gone.
As I understand it, Jesse is still with Valpo and that is a good thing. He has been a great addition. Losing Shon may hurt but it was somewhat expected within the last 10 days. I am honestly not sure what role he can play at the higher level but he is a senior and may as well reach for as much money as possible. The staff will add another center and I think there is excitement to bring in a center who can add more to the offense. If our new 5 can stretch the floor even just a bit and score with his back to the basket (both things that Shon lacked) it opens the entire offense up especially for JT.
At this point, the other intuition is correct. The staff had guys they really wanted back and guys that the program can move forward without. That is what we have seen over the last 2 weeks and I think it is pretty obvious who was/was not in the plan. Kobe is part of the plan, he can score, and is expected to get minutes this year.
I don't fault Shon at all, with his 1 year left. If he transfers to a higher level program and gets his money, I hope that he gets some minutes, as he really needs playing time to fine tune his touch around the rim. He has pro potential as a defensive and rebound guy, but the quicker forwards/centers ate him alive at times. Very much appreciate his one year at Valpo, and hope that he can turn it into something long-term in his next opportunity.
Does a guy like Kobe Walker need to say that they are coming back? He was in that picture, which is a good sign. What about Jayden Watson? We've had him on the team for 2 seasons without any indication on if he can contribute.
@valpotx walker was in the photo that featured all the returners. The assumption is he will return
Couple of random thoughts:
1. Now that Butler has had some coaching changes, if we end up having a coaching spot open, which should go after Connor McCaffery so we can get some Caitlin Clark sightings at the ARC. Valpo is not that far from Indianapolis!
2. Love that Dylan Moles' Instagram profile pic is TJ McConnell. Let's hope he brings that same type of intensity. Also super funny because his highlights are all primarily him making midrange jumpers, so McConnell comp lives true.
3. Obviously, size is the priority right now. All the best teams focus on height and length, luckily Powell similarly values this in roster construction.… But, three-point shooting still concerns me. We always lack in this area since Bryce left. I know we did better toward the end of the season and the freshmen are seemingly finding their shooting stroke. Yet, it has always bothered me that Indiana high schools have so many great long-distance shooters and we hardly ever grab those guys. Just in general, I hope we can prioritize more shooting in the next few years. I mean, there has to be some random guy from New Castle that we can grab, right?! Everyone from that town can shoot.
I will try on touch on some points from the last few posts.
Kobe will be back (barring anything totally unforeseen). I would not expect any announcement from him.
The rest of the other guys that did not play much are gone (i.e. Watson, Tornata, Brown, etc). The goal is to improve the overall talent of the roster. Those guys were nice contributors in their own way but it is time to move on.
Getting a center is a priority. As I mentioned, one with a more polished offensive skill set is ideal and the hope. I know there are priority guys in mind and I would not be surprised if a center is wrapped up shortly after the portal opens. Bigs are the hardest to get for several reasons but if all works out, we might actually get bigger and more polished offensively. Might not be a flashy signing but in our league, the recipe of solid role playing bigs (sometimes very large bigs) seems to work well.
The last focus will be on the wing adding up to 2 players there. Shooting there is a priority along with some toughness. But we will see what we can get.
At 6' 9" 270 the expectations for Kobe Walker playing rotationally sound pretty high. Maybe he backs up Carter Hopoi at center to start the season with the expectation that his minutes will grow and Carter and Kobe might situationally occupy the floor simultaneously later in the season with Hopoi more on the perimeter? Meanwhile I am wondering if Walker can defend, and rebound, and shoot, and dribble etc, etc, etc. 