A very early look at SEC West basketball for 2008-09

[Tomhog™]

Article

Writer sounds down on every Western team this upcoming season.

In this writer's opinion, John Pelphrey underachieved a bit with last year's Arkansas squad, but he did so with other people's recruits.  Every coach has to get the kind of players he needs to fully implement his system, and although last year's Arkansas team was very talented and loaded with seniors, it often seemed like they weren't playing the game that Pelphrey was trying to teach them.

[Pigdiana Jones]

underachieved??

I think Coach P did just fine for his first year.

[PorkRyan]

The SEC as a whole should be awful next season.

[chiefsfan]

Its underachieving when you get a basketball program farther in the NCAA basketball tournament then it had been since 1999?

[fu-man-soo]

http://www.aseaofblue.com/story/2008/5/7/74717/46518

[rude1]

I agree with the assessment of the Hawgs. Won't be an easy out for anyone but will struggle to win enough games to see post season play. The current roster lacks that one big time player that can be the difference between being a contender and being a team that struggles to stay above .500.

[jry04]

underachieved??

I think Coach P did just fine for his first year.

Based on the talent we had we did underachieve. Everyone outside the state of Arkansas thought we were extremely talented. Everyone on here thought we sucked and couldn't wait for this class to leave, but that isn't how most of the nation viewed us. I cannot tell you how many times I heard during an ESPN or CBS game that we had elite 8 potential but couldn't get our act together. We were said to be the best 9 seed in the tournament and all the UNC fans were angry because they thought we deserved to be better.

We very easily should have had 24 or 25 wins this season with no worse than a 5 seed. Instead, we choke against App. State, UGA(2), SC, Bama, Ole Miss, Providence, and UK. We were more talented than every team except for Tennessee, but we just could not get our act straight.


I agree about Bama next year. If Steele, Gee, and Hendrix return along with the class they brought in, I think they will be the best team in the SEC.

[12247]

We had the best LOOKING team in the country.  Rarely does a team have that many big men that at least look the part.  Truth is, we couldn't hit the shot, get the rebound, make the defensive stop, move the ball or work the play most of the time when the chips were down.  In the few games we did, it was a beautiful thing.  Someday, I hope we can get a guard that can take it to the basket, either finish and make the layup, make a perfect pass to the open man, or if fouled, find the free throws to be automatic.  I think Pel did fine with what he had.

[The real Hogules]

I agree with the writer that last years squad underachieved.
Considering that they underachieved every single year that they were at the UofA, what else would the writer expect?

I would like to point out that even though I believe that they didn't go as far as their combined talent should have taken them, they did win an NCAAT game for the first time in their Razorbacks careers.

All in all I feel that CJP got as much out of this group of Sr's as they were prepared to give and certainly more than Stan Heath would have gotten from them.

[Hoggy1]

I BELIEVE we will be 1-2 in the west with Bama, the Mississippi schools coming 3-4 and LSU Auburn riding in the back seat

[Biggus Piggus]

Wasn't Arkansas picked to win the West last year? I can see why the writer believes Pelphrey didn't live up to expectations.  If Stan Heath had been coaching, though, the Hogs would have been below .500 in the conference and missed the NCAAT.

[CarolinaHog1176]

Wasn't Arkansas picked to win the West last year? I can see why the writer believes Pelphrey didn't live up to expectations.  If Stan Heath had been coaching, though, the Hogs would have been below .500 in the conference and missed the NCAAT.

I agree.  But at the same time I think that we got extremely lucky to get as far as we did in the NCAAT.  We just happened to get matched up against a team (Indiana) that lost it's coach and was probably at a psychological disadvantage because of it.  Not to mention that White was walking around on one leg the whole game (and Gordon couldn't throw it in the ocean).  If we had played anybody else we might not have made it out of the first round.

[UKWildcats]

SEC is going to tuff  next season unlike what it was this season

[Tomhog™]

SEC is going to tuff  next season unlike what it was this season

I can see Florida, Kentucky, and LSU all being better next season.  It will likely be tougher next season.

[Biggus Piggus]

I agree.  But at the same time I think that we got extremely lucky to get as far as we did in the NCAAT.  We just happened to get matched up against a team (Indiana) that lost it's coach and was probably at a psychological disadvantage because of it.  Not to mention that White was walking around on one leg the whole game (and Gordon couldn't throw it in the ocean).  If we had played anybody else we might not have made it out of the first round.

Our defensive approach was great on Gordon.  You grossly exaggerate, it wasn't like we were playing a 16 seed.

[eathill5]

The SEC as a whole should be awful next season.

are you serious?  Almost every team with the exception of Tenn will be better next year than this year.  Last year was a down year and there is not a lot of talent leaving and a whole hell of a lot coming in.  6 teams are in the top 25 recruiting classes.  This isn't like football these guys will come in and make a difference.

[PorkRyan]

are you serious?  Almost every team with the exception of Tenn will be better next year than this year.  Last year was a down year and there is not a lot of talent leaving and a whole hell of a lot coming in.  6 teams are in the top 25 recruiting classes.  This isn't like football these guys will come in and make a difference.

I don't see it. 

Ole Miss- should be better
Arkansas-  not as good
MSU- about even after losing Rhodes
Auburn- non factor
LSU- losing Randolph but getting Mitchell back should help, should be better
Bama-depends on what happens with Steele and Hendrix, great class coming in but they always sign good classes there and underperform

Florida-  Losing Speights to the draft hurts but they should be better.
Tenn-  losing Lofton, Smith, Smith, and Crews.  They will be much worse
UK-  Losing their two top scorers but they have Patterson back, provided he is healthy.  About even
Vandy- best class ever coming in, but they lose their best player, should be a good team
SC- should be better
UGA- should be better.

Show me where there is one top 10 team in the SEC this year?  It looks like a league full of bubble teams.  While the freshmen will have an impact, Hopson is the only superstar coming in that can carry a team.  There isn't even a team in the West that you can point to and say that they are a clear NCAA tournament team.  If Bama gets everyone back, they would be the only one. 

[mj4president]

Pel did fine. The way NC shot against us the dream teams that Jordan was on couldn't have stayed with them.

[neahog]

Its underachieving when you get a basketball program farther in the NCAA basketball tournament then it had been since 1999?

I love Pel, and I think he'll be a great coach and get a lot of tournament wins in the future at Arkansas. Still, last season could have been much better. We had the most talented team in the West imo. We should have won more than 10 games in conf. play. Still, it wasn't a bad year, and he's improving things for sure.

[eathill5]

I don't see it. 

Ole Miss- should be better
Arkansas-  not as good
MSU- about even after losing Rhodes
Auburn- non factor
LSU- losing Randolph but getting Mitchell back should help, should be better
Bama-depends on what happens with Steele and Hendrix, great class coming in but they always sign good classes there and underperform

Florida-  Losing Speights to the draft hurts but they should be better.
Tenn-  losing Lofton, Smith, Smith, and Crews.  They will be much worse
UK-  Losing their two top scorers but they have Patterson back, provided he is healthy.  About even
Vandy- best class ever coming in, but they lose their best player, should be a good team
SC- should be better
UGA- should be better.

Show me where there is one top 10 team in the SEC this year?  It looks like a league full of bubble teams.  While the freshmen will have an impact, Hopson is the only superstar coming in that can carry a team.  There isn't even a team in the West that you can point to and say that they are a clear NCAA tournament team.  If Bama gets everyone back, they would be the only one. 

So Six teams will be better and 3 should be about the same.  And 2 teams will be worse and Auburn doesn't count. Looks like it will be better as a whole than last year.

I am by no means saying that it will be a powerhouse but it is not awful like the original post stated.  It looks right now that it will be a mediocre conf similar to this year but with more teams in the 6-10 seed range and no clearcut favorite.  It has the potential with the recruits coming in to be one of the best.  That was my point that recruits coming in will see a lot of playing time and could make it great.

[PorkRyan]

So Six teams will be better and 3 should be about the same.  And 2 teams will be worse and Auburn doesn't count. Looks like it will be better as a whole than last year.

I am by no means saying that it will be a powerhouse but it is not awful like the original post stated.  It looks right now that it will be a mediocre conf similar to this year but with more teams in the 6-10 seed range and no clearcut favorite.  It has the potential with the recruits coming in to be one of the best.  That was my point that recruits coming in will see a lot of playing time and could make it great.

But most of the teams that are going to better were terrible last season.  Florida had a lot of very good freshmen this year and they didn't even make the tournament. 

The SEC was awful last year and I don't see it being any better as a whole this year.  The bad teams are getting better and the good teams should be worse and all you end up with is a group of bad and mediocre teams. 

[PorkRyan]

Gordon says he is staying in the draft so MSU will now be a lot worse. 

Steele is coming back for Bama, but from what I have read on the NBA boards, he looked horrible in his workouts and has lost his speed.  If Hendrix stays in the draft they aren't going to be anything more than a bubble team.

Ole Miss will probably be the favorite to win the West now, but can they defend anyone? 

The West looks like a one tournament team division as of now.

 

[AFB1919]

I love Pel, and I think he'll be a great coach and get a lot of tournament wins in the future at Arkansas. Still, last season could have been much better. We had the most talented team in the West imo. We should have won more than 10 games in conf. play. Still, it wasn't a bad year, and he's improving things for sure.

Everyone knew the team had talent, nobody argues they weren't talented... that was supposed to be one of the draws for BCG. But even with the talent, you can't expect a world beater season out of a first year coach implementing a new system with guys that aren't his recruits. Coach P did the best he could to utilize the talent he had, but those aren't his guys and they're not necessarily tailored for his brand of basketball. There are some solid recruits coming in and he is building a strong foundation for the years to come. Be optimistic about this program, the team will be young next year, but they are building right.

[pitbull1]

Steele has decided to stay and not enter the draft, so Bama will be alright.

[PorkRyan]

Steele has decided to stay and not enter the draft, so Bama will be alright.

provided he is the Ronald Steele of old.

Ronald Steele, 6-2, 185, PG, Alabama, Jr.: While Steele had no visible effects from the knee and ankle injuries that have decimated his past two seasons, he lacks the burst that he showed during his sophomore year. He no longer has the burst of speed to get around the corner and really struggles with lateral speed, as Drew Neitzel went by him numerous times at will.

http://msn.foxsports.com/cbk/story/8206802/Forbes-shines-again-at-NBA-pre-draft-camp-