LaQuinton Ross to declare for draft per ESPN
Ohio State's LaQuinton Ross will declare for NBA Draft, sources told ESPN.
— Jeff Goodman (@GoodmanESPN) March 24, 2014
Means they will have lost Craft, Ross, Smith, and Della Valle. Talented class coming in, but freshmen are freshmen.
They will still be good but LaQuinton was the only scorer they had who could create on his own (for the most part).
Next year's B1G will be a two team race between Wisconsin and Michigan, IMO. Wisconsin returns everyone except for Brust assuming Dekker and Kaminsky stay, which is kind of crazy. Michigan hopefully will return at least 1 of GRIII and McGary with Stauskas presumed gone.
Obviously MSU will have a much higher chance to contend if Harris returns, but I'd be shocked if that happens. Dawson is undecided on leaving, too, and I think they'll be very mediocre if he declares, barring unforeseen contributions from younger guys or an amazing coach job.
I would enjoy seeing a Trice-Ellis-Valentine-Kaminski-Schilling starting lineup.
This is assuming our studs don't leave early.
way Dawson goes.
I would say hes probably coming back, but he has had a solid tournament so far and he may go the THJ route of "this is who I am might as well try and get paid"
We have no idea who UM returns. Nik is gone 95% IMO but GR3 and Mitch are complete wildcards. If they both go UM will have a difficult time challenging for the title, even with our magic staff. Caris becomes the center of the universe and every opponent's focus, Irvin will need to become Caris of 2014, Horford will need to become Morgan, Walton needs to become Burke lite, and Chatman needs to be Stauskas lite. The bench is then Donnal and Spike.... and question marks.
Our coaches have done amazing but losing 5 NBA players early in 2 years is tough for anyone not named Kentucky to bounce back from.
Also dont sleep on Maryland. They are not great this year but they will look like Tennessee next year - all seniors and juniors starting; maybe not a lot of NBA talent but one of those teams that you dont want to face in a tourney due to a lot of guys with a lot of experience and decent if not great talent.
MSU will lose Harris, but Dawson is coming back, Valentine is taking steps and will be their main creator, Trice has improved a lot the last 15 games, and I expect Costello to take a step next year so that's a decent 4. Kaminsky right now is like Irvin - 1 dimensional but should come back next year better. And they have a good coach.
RIght now because Wiscy doesnt lose players early much i.e. Kaminsky and brings back a lot they will be a favorite. Dekker is projected as a 1st rounder in 2015, good talent there. Who is co-favorite, if any, will depend on GR3 and Mitch.
pretty confident both McGary and GRIII will be back. Mitch has too many question marks with scouts to very high. And GRIII has a lot of improvement to make - plus he's close with McGary. But the overriding things with GRIII is I doubt he'll go in the first round at this point. We'll see. If both MM and GRIII come back, Michigan has to be the favorite in the conference next season.
McGary is also older for his class. He very well may feel that his best bet is to declare, trust in his ability to shine at the NBA pre-draft combine and point to his success during last year's tournament to highlight what he can do. The absolute worst thing for him would be if he comes back and has another injury.
As for GRIII, I feel like most players who consider going pro one year and don't, end up leaving the next year, even if the subsequent year raises more questions than answers.
I think believing that either player is better than 50-50 to return is looking through maize and blue colored glasses.
are going to want to see that back hold up. I don't think Mitch sniffs the first round coming off a year long back injury. I think NBA teams are going to be really iffy about taking him without seeing him return to action for an extended period.
The back is always going to be an issue and he's not getting any younger. I think if he's healthy enough to go full during pre-draft workouts, etc., he probably goes. Someone will give him a shot in the NBA and he gets to start putting in his time towards a free agent contract. If he comes back, he has to stay healthy or he might not even get a shot, and even if he does, he's still a year behind in terms of getting a big contract.
But IF he is able to stay healthy next year, he's much more likely to be a 1st-rounder than he currently is.
But with the rookie pay-scale, getting into the first round isn't as big of a deal any more. It's much more important to be in the NBA for that 5th year contract (and if you can continue to play at a high level, the next free agent contract is what makes a huge difference in overall earnings). Someone will take a shot with him and if he can stay healthy he can start a nice career immediately. If he can't, coming back wouldn't have done him any good anyway, and at least he will have gotten some money out of it.
March 25th, 2014 at 12:43 AM ^
And what happens if his back doesn't hold up and he misses serious action next year? His stock will drop even further and he will be in the same boat that he is in now- wondering what would have been had he declared. I really feel for the kid as he has a pretty difficult decision to make.
You do realize that Payne is 15 months older than McGary. I state this because Payne will be the "older" dude in this draft and as far as I can tell that is certainly NOT hurting his draft position. Payne was born in February 1991. Heck he is 23 already!!!
Yes, if McGary comes back, he will just turn 23 at the draft next year. But in the end, if he is healthy and returns to his potential, he is a lock for a lottery pick. Especially given the notion that next years draft is a "downer"......
Which makes McGary 9 months older than Payne for their respective classes, no? And, FWIW, I have seen Payne's age listed as a negative. For some reason, the longer you're in college the less upside you're seen as having.
Glenn's game has picked up significantly the past three weeks, which I presume makes it more likely that he leaves...
McGary while old, with a solid year that I think he is capable of playing, could easily go top 4 overall. If he comes out this year? I read that he'd be in the early 2nd, however I don't believe it, for I'd think he'd go at the end of the first.
Stauskas seems like the only near sure thing to leave... I'd put it at 95%
Robinson Id put it at 60%
McGary Id put at 33%
This is all my baseless speculation.
I am not so sure Tom Izzo will be back next year. I am guessing that Sparty alum Tom Gores makes him a very nice offer, especially since, despite his lack of integrity, he has done a great job of coaching his team this year.
Izzo knows that the talent level in EL is going to drop severely this year. I can't imagine him having the patience to come back, now that he knows he has to recruit against a very strong Michigan program instead of having his pick of anyone in the state or region. Now is the perfect time for him to leave with his "legacy" intact.
know if I am ready to throw out the "great" label on Izzo's coaching this year. Nobody wants to have to play super-weird guys, but home against Nebraska, v. Georgetown, routed by NC at home with everybody healthy. I don't know. He could make it great but I don't think this has been Izzo's trademark year by any stretch.
Michigan State really has never been a regular season juggarnaut, and this regular season still ranks as one of his best from a W/L perspective. Izzo's trademark is out playing his seeding in the NCAA tournament, and we'll find out soon enough if they'll accomplish that.
Wishful thinking.
Does anyone seriously and rationally think that Izzo is leaving after next year? I know we all want MSU to be a dumpster fire and it'd start with Izzo bolting, but get real - it isn't happening. And let's stop acting like there's only room for one healthly basketball program in the state. Izzo may be a grandstanding drama queen but he's not an idiot, which is what you would have to be to leave a situation where you're royalty in order to coach the flailing, tap-dancing monkey-brained shitshow that is the Pistons.
Next year will be Izzo's 20th year. He'll be 60 years old. I'm not predicting he'll leave, but I could see him decide to walk away. The last couple of years seem to have taken a lot out of him. In any event, I think Beilein will outlast him, despite being two years older.
Maybe I am in the minority but I am fine with Izzo staying. It removes the excuse of "but but but you are only beating us because our top coach in history of our school left. You didnt do anything when he was here" Granted that has been replaced with "injuries" but bigger picture let's keep beating MSU with Izzo - it is fun. Can you imagine how sucky it is to go 3-6 against your only rival with the most worshiped coach in their history? Lets get that to 3-8...stay Tom.
Izzo would be a horrid NBA coach because he cares about winning more than most players, and he would be Doug Collins 2.0. Burnt out in 3 years. Its a players league, not a coaches league
Izzo is 7-6 vs. Beilein....not sure where the 3-8 comes from.
I'm guessing he meant 3-6 in the last 9, and if we won both games next year it'd be 3-8 in the last 11. But you're right, Izzo is 7-6 against Beilein overall.
Ah, the ole MSU football logic where arbitrary dates are used as a measuring stick of progress....I am quite familiar with that :)
Yes I meant once Beilein got established and both programs were on go ...
Obviously arbitrary but Beilein taking Amaker's mess against a top of its game MSU program was like bringing a sword to a gun fight. Of course you can pick another time frame but again UM is doing this against MSU when its program is top flight with a top 5 coach in the nation... they are not beating up on MSU's basketball version of JLS so it has to be a major bugger to have that happen to you. Izzo is 7-6 overall vs Beilein yes.
Beilein's first Michigan squad was a complete trainwreck. Yes, that game counts toward the overall record between the two coaches but it showed nothing with respect to JB's coaching ability.
I'll take Johnny B every day of the week and twice on Tuesdays.
Exactly, we can count those first few seasons when MSU had far more talent than UM if we want to be fair. But by the time the talent was comparable that each coach was coaching, one has done much better than the other.
I think there is a very decent chance, because the recruiting life gets old, I would imagine.... needs a new challenge.... if he wins NCAA title, he will leave.... I thought he was gonna leave anyway when they stunk without Payne and Dawson.... now Im not sure.
you underestimate izzo's ego. he's the guy who seriously wanted to be considered to coach the football team. the team will be in free fall next year. the question is whether izzo wants to rebuild that team for a run in 2-3 years or bolt for the cash in the nba.
They will be a very Calipari-esque team next year.
Who?
Or Whom?
No seriously, which one is it?
It's not being used in a sentence so you can't tell which case the pronoun should take. It is indeterminant.
know what any of that means. Are you calling me indeterminant?
Are you going to take that?
It's no big deal they make pills for that.
except the school. Watching him this year I felt he had an NBA game. Strong finisher at the basket, pure shooting stroke, and there really wasn't anything to be gained by staying.
DraftExpress has him projected in the middle of the 2nd round, which... I mean, that's 10 spots below GRIII, and I'd definitely draft LQR over GR3, but what do I know? (insert joe dumars joke here)