24-25 Season

At least they managed to get the three point line right in our game -

https://x.com/dougherty_jesse/status/1774586731159011422?s=20

 

What is the NCAA's purpose?

 

I have no clue at this point. None.

 

If we use a disproportionately large amount of our NIL budget to keep Aidoo versus using it to attack the portal aggressively for scorers, I won’t be too excited for next year.

 

I have wondered many times if anyone checked the rims at neutral sites, and this really adds fuel to that fire.

 

He needs to move with more intensity, more violence at the basket. Harness his quickness to make explosive moves as soon as he gets the ball. Then step back with a short jumper as a counter. If he can get his footwork down and be explosive, he'll be a force.

 

I’m thankful for Rick Barnes. I do know that.

 

This is a total hot take and I have no inside info to back this up, but I have this gut feeling that next year may be the swan song for Barnes.

He will be 70 years old.

He loves Z and Shack to death and won’t leave them hanging in their last year. He will attack the portal hard to try to give them as many weapons to play with as possible.

But I don’t know if he has enough years left to build another team like this one.

 

I've had this thought as well. JJJ, Vescovi, Zakai, and Mashack seem like the kind of group that a coach will follow out the door. Plus, he seems like a big family guy and he's only got so much time left to spend with his kids/grandkids.

 

If that does happen, that will be a massive hire for White. Get it right and you likely cement Tennessee basketball as an consistent top 10-15 program. Screw it up and it could undo the foundation Barnes has built.

 

If White could get it Wright, I'd be pleased.

 

I don’t think Jay wants to coach again. He’s not a fan of NIL and that was a big part of what drove him to hang it up in the first place.

 

I think Wright is done coaching. Besides, he just doesn't seem like a cultural fit here either.

 

I thought that if they made the FF this year that this might be it.

 

I think White is more competent than this, but they better not go the Lady Vols route and pick one of his guys, say a Kim English. Perhaps English is the guy, but the idea you need to continue the Barnes era has rarely worked out. We should be a very attractive place for a lot in the profession.

 

The truth is we lost Vescovi functionally already. No disrespect to him. Mashack can be a JJJ, Gainey can be a Mashack. It is Knecht that has to be replaced, and then coach up the roster that sticks.

I'm not saying we are going to be just as good, but I think that isn't out of the question. We could play better even with a step down from knecht.

 

Zeigler is the real cornerstone.

 

UT will have to go Moneyball on Knecht and replace him in the aggregate. There might not be DK runs anymore, but players waiting around for DK to do something will be gone, too.

I think Carr is the new Santi (Someone will, hopefully, tell us what happened to him his senior year.). Senior Year Santi will probably be a better defender, but not the scorer Carr will be, if he puts on muscle. Mashack will be the opposite for JJJ, a better defender, not as great offensively. I do feel people underestimate the value of JJJ. He was a big guard/forward who could pick up defensively inside and out, plus get you 6-8 boards a game and create his own shot when absolutely necessary.

And so forth. The keys will be who is brought in the portal who can score, a Key or (at least) a poor man's DK, and the development of those freshmen. Cade Phillips, to me, is the sleeper there, but I'm also skeptical Dilione lives up to the hype. Next year could be fascinating.

 

My guess at a lineup is something like this:

PG - #1 zz, #2 Portal (Sounds like the Lanier kid from Ensworth via Florida), RS Boswell
SG - #1 Carr, #2 Gainey
SF - #1 Mashack, #2 Portal
PF - #1 Awaka, #2 Phillips
C- #1 Aidoo, #2 Estrella

Dilione and Jefferson gone in the portal and I wouldn't be surprised if Aidoo tests the waters. I also bet we're going to bring three portal players, one who is definitely a big. I also wouldn't be shocked to see Estrella overtake Aidoo. I really, really, really hope one or two of the portal guys can put the ball in the hole because this returning crew as is will give us a lot of dry periods of offense like 2022-23.

 

JJJ didn’t step up and create his own shot all that often, but it seemed like it was always just when we needed it. That’ll be very much missed. But we saw some aggressiveness from Mashack on offense when Zeigler went down last year, and then he basically didn’t try to develop that side this year when it was obvious he was our #7 scoring option. I don’t think it’s outside the realm of possibility that he can add enough to his game to get his own shot in a few key moments. We’ve seen that kind of leap before. And he can definitely grab some boards already, though JJJ has a couple inches on him, and that probably matters.