CAAZONE.COM RELEASES PRESEASON ALL-CAA SELECTIONS [Archive]

Halftime Hero

10-26-2004, 08:49 AM

A couple comments...

I'm disappointed that only 15 people responded, it gives the poll a lack of credibility b/c it could be weighed heavily toward the schools with the most representation.

Chaz Crawford will be on the All-Defensive team this year.

Naturally I'm biased, but I think Drexel's got the toughest OOC schedule, the teams ahead of us play in Tournaments in which they might face better competition but they also may not. Syracuse is a Final Four favorite, Seton Hall is the darkhorse of the Big East, Monmouth is the NEC favorite and SJU & UPenn are always tough city match-ups. Plus Monmouth is the only home game out of those listed. I just think there are a lot of "if"s involved in the teams ranked ahead of us having tougher schedules.

Still, I applaud Toni for trying to put this together, no one knows the CAA better than the people who post on this board.

JoeyBagODonuts

10-26-2004, 08:54 AM

Where was this poll? I'm on here every day and never saw it.

Even without Adeleke, I think Hofstra will stay out of the play-in game.
and Loren Stokes, who will be relied on even more with Adeleke's absence, will be 1st team.

ZoneAdmin

10-26-2004, 10:08 AM

Ramball

10-26-2004, 10:59 AM

Toni did a great job of pulling all of this together.

I would like to second that. :D

P8triotfan4life

10-26-2004, 11:06 AM

Toni did a great job of pulling all of this together.

The poll was originally only for admins to vote in, but the Reaper decided to ask 3 fans from each school to participate. Out of those 30...half responded with full ballots.

After all the private messaging you send to me Ram Reaper, you didn't ask me what my predictions we're? How could you :roll:

DrexPhanatic

10-26-2004, 11:14 AM

Seems to be a very thorough analysis. Looks good to me. Great job!

Halftime Hero

10-26-2004, 11:34 AM

Only thing is i don't think freshmen or newcomers can be accurately polled by the majority of us. How many of us have seen our own team's newcomers let alone the rest of the league's?

TJ Reaper

10-26-2004, 12:04 PM

Thank you all.

P8, it was not my decision for most schools with administrators. They chose who the voting panel was for their school.

I'm disappointed that only 15 people responded, it gives the poll a lack of credibility b/c it could be weighed heavily toward the schools with the most representation.

When I did my analysis, I made sure that most schools were represented evenly. The guys that voted had VERY objective picks and pretty consistent with others. There were a few outlier votes (2 voters were pretty biased).

All in all, I successful poll. I want to do another one (similar to this with the same questions) going into 2005 after most teams have completed their OOC schedules.

And as ZA said, I gave each school the opportunity to be represented by 3 (and only 3) members. Only half responded.

ZoneAdmin

10-26-2004, 12:18 PM

Sorry P8... seniority rules. Our voters were Gobo, myself and Dr. Gunnie. You were next on the list though. :wink:

TJ Reaper

10-26-2004, 12:19 PM

Chaz Crawford will be on the All-Defensive team this year.

Naturally I'm biased, but I think Drexel's got the toughest OOC schedule, the teams ahead of us play in Tournaments in which they might face better competition but they also may not. Syracuse is a Final Four favorite, Seton Hall is the darkhorse of the Big East, Monmouth is the NEC favorite and SJU & UPenn are always tough city match-ups. Plus Monmouth is the only home game out of those listed. I just think there are a lot of "if"s involved in the teams ranked ahead of us having tougher schedules.

I believe the reason Mason won that question by such a large margin is because they play in two very respected tournaments. They were SELECTED for them, which says something about their program (mostly the BB&T).

I personally think that Drexel does have a pretty tough schedule; the best I have seen from the Dragons. IMO, when you know that you may have a championship year, you SCHEDULE LIKE CHAMPIONS (lead by example). I wish ODU would have scheduled a little tougher (still solid).

Most of the teams on Drexel's schedule finished top 200 in the RPI last year including 2 top 50's. VCU is playing 2 200+ teams, but also could play 3 top 50's (including #1 Wake) and a top 100. Mason plays 3 200+ teams but could play 3 top 50 caliber teams.

I think that VCU's schedule is the most balanced and best schedule. Not only are they playing 4 top 100's OOC, but they are hosting 2 of them. Drexel's schedule is very balanced with two big names; similar to Mason's schedule with a few big names. In Mason's case, I think the McNeese, Morehead, Duquesne (they are slowly coming up though), and St. Bonnie's games are holding their SOS back just a little.

BUT THESE THREE TEAMS HAVE THE BEST SCHEDULES IN THE LEAGUE, IMO. ODU's schedule is EVERYWHERE, but it's very solid (games with Kent, DePaul, TCU, ETSU, home vs. St. Joe's).

P8triotfan4life

10-26-2004, 12:32 PM

Sorry P8... seniority rules. Our voters were Gobo, myself and Dr. Gunnie. You were next on the list though. :wink:

What can I say, I'm crushed. I've been next in line my entire life, when am I ever gonna get a chance??? I think I may just go jump off the ede of a cliff now :wink:

Coach

10-26-2004, 12:35 PM

I think ODU would have liked to have a little tougher schedule, but they really got screwed waiting for the "exempt games" ruling. If they would have had an early ruling in their favor, I think the Norfolk Knockout would have been a BIG addition to the schedule. But, because of the wait, ODU pretty much had to fill the schedule with the remaining teams out there that would fit in it.

TJ Reaper

10-26-2004, 12:36 PM

Yeah, and that's understandable. Still a solid schedule that they were able to put together; especially the add of DePaul. Next year, the Va. Tech series will kick off.

masonfan

10-26-2004, 12:41 PM

ODU put a weak schedule together, so taylor could save his job.

ramathon74

10-26-2004, 12:51 PM

Question 7: Who is the CAA's best coach?

5 - BRUISER FLINT (DREXEL)
5 - JIM LARRANAGA (GEORGE MASON)
2 - JEFF CAPEL, III (VA COMMONWEALTH)
1 - TONY SHAVER (WILLIAM & MARY)
1 - DAVID HENDERSON (DELAWARE)
1 - BRAD BROWNELL (UNC WILMINGTON)

What, absolutely no votes as best coach for THE AMAZING BLAINIAC :!:

How can this be :?:

dukaholic

10-26-2004, 01:07 PM

I think Crawford should be all-defensive as well, but I don't make all the picks ;)

And I think we can just as easily guess rookies as the preseason pubs that predict a rookie of the year...it's all just speculation.

As is the returning players. You never know who may not play up to expectations, or who may blow up.

While I was filling out my ballot - it's tough. It's just not easy. You rank the players and all, but you're never really sure if it's right. We have lots of good players, and for that, I'm thankful. Better than those league's where everyone knows who the POY is going to be before the season even starts.

DarthDave

10-26-2004, 02:25 PM

Dukaholic,

It was tough to rank the players. I tried to come up with a formaula based off of last years stats and I think it came out pretty good. I had the usual suspects but some guys who some people might not feel as "top" players due to low scoring averages.

I also like to think that my poll was pretty objective. Was hoping all 30 would have responded..would be interesting to see what changes would happen to the rankings.

dukaholic

10-26-2004, 04:59 PM

mat1992

10-26-2004, 05:32 PM

What Towson guy, Dukaholic? As far as I know, I'm the only guy that voted unless Brent emailed Toni his picks. I have no clue who would have voted for Petkunas and I think Hamm or Green are legit third-team All-CAA preseason picks (based on potential not stats), but I'm not dumb enough to choose both of them on the team. Maybe Petkunas has a fan club down South or something.

dukaholic

10-26-2004, 07:09 PM

Oh okay. I knew it wouldn't be you Mat - just didn't know who else Toni would have asked. And I sure don't know who else around the league thinks so highly of Petkunas.

And yes, I do think Hamm and Green are legit picks for third team - but not both of them at once. I suppose I'd put Green as a better "prospect" since he's younger and seems to have more potential.

DarthDave

10-26-2004, 07:26 PM

It appears that some Towson guy really didn't take it seriously. I can see voting for Green for All-CAA (third team or so), and heck, I can even see Hamm sneaking a few votes (but not both Green and Hamm). But whoever got Dixon and PETKUNAS?! on there ... wow. I do agree with Dixon being a good defensive player though. But Petkunas? Who in any kind of objectivity could put him as All-CAA?

I was surprised that Nana and Stokes didn't come out higher.

I think UD's schedule is the worst - because it's weak AND they're supposed to be good. I think JMU's schedule may very well be weaker (it probably is) - but our team is supposed to stink too, so you can schedule accordingly. UD's supposed to be pretty decent - there's no reason to schedule like Georgetown.

Dukaholic,

I dont think our schedule is weak but its not strong. San Fran and St Marys are mids which I like to see on a schedule, anywhere between 75-125 on rpi. Ohio St is a big ten team, not a good one , but still big 10. We will play 3 at San Juan with one against a decent valpo team and another against a poor Auburn team but still SEC. Our home schedule sucks the big one..this is why I give our schedule a c-...and to compare is to Gtown :evil: ...I dotn see St leos on our schedule :wink:

ZoneAdmin

10-26-2004, 08:00 PM

I dunno Darth... that is pretty weak. Are any of those OOC teams in the top 100???

DarthDave

10-26-2004, 08:44 PM

Last years RPI for OOC teams. Of course, teams change and either get better or worse.

Auburn 79
St Marys 109
San Fran 119
Valp 139
Ohio St 147
American 159
Rider 175
Mt St Marys 261
UMBC 299
Loyola 322

I never said it was a good schedule.

Looking at this OOC, if you replaced Loyola with a sub 100 team, it would be a decent schedule..having 3 teams that had +250 rpi is bad.

ODUblue

10-26-2004, 10:04 PM

ODU's OOC schedule with last years RPI's....

St. Joe's 3
Depaul 37
E. Tenn St. 61
Kent St. 76
TCU 120
East Carolina 151
Liberty 165
TX a&m CC 185
South Alabama 191
VMI 312
Longwood n/r
Shawnee st n/r

So with 3 extra game we have some cupcakes, but over all not too bad :wink:

TJ Reaper

10-26-2004, 10:51 PM

Again, solid. Also consider that 3 of 4 of those top 100's lost most of their starters ;) ETSU will be just as good if not better than last year. They should finally get past the 1st RD of the tourney.

As for Delaware, you all will be pleasantly surprised by Saint Mary's (CA) this year and also USF has some potential to be pretty decent this year. The Gaels should be a top 100 team, right behind Gonzaga in the West Coast Conference.

I PERSONALLY think that looking at schedules, Mason, VCU, Drexel, ODU all have solid schedules. I am disappointed in Hofstra's schedule; Delaware's schedule is better than last year's; not yet great, but solid. UNCW's schedule is never great, but it's solid enough--could be better (but coming off a .500 year, it's solid).

I'll do a schedule analysis thread again sometime soon.

ODU True Blue

10-27-2004, 06:15 AM

Again, solid. Also consider that 3 of 4 of those top 100's lost most of their starters ;)

TONI, please recheck your info. This is the second time you've posted that comment. And according to the Blue ribbon write-ups you are wrong. Mathmatically speaking, losing most starters would be 3 or more out of 5 starters.

St. Joes lost 2 starters return 3
DePaul lost 2 starters return 3
ETSU lost 2 starters return 3
Kent St lost 3 starters return 2

That is only 1 out of 4 not MOST. Also Kent St. returns a medical redshirt who started the year before so to an extent they lost 3 but return 3. So you could say NONE of those lost more starters.

Also, you've been touting how VCU won't be missing their 2 non-returning starters as much as people might think. What makes VCU different then from DePaul or ETSU or St. Joes?

While St Joes lost a fabulous backcourt, their backups last year could start for most, if not all, CAA teams. The drop off will not be as huge as you think. Sound familar? You've been preaching that about VCU all summer.

Of guaranteed games, those 4 are as good as anyone's else's in the league. Granted if VCU gets by American and plays the preseason #1 Wake Forest that will put them over that. Or if the potential matchups in tournaments GMU is in materialize that too will make their's tougher. But in both cases those opponents are not guaranteed to be played.

Halftime Hero

10-27-2004, 07:41 AM

While St Joes lost a fabulous backcourt, their backups last year could start for most, if not all, CAA teams. The drop off will not be as huge as you think. Sound familar? You've been preaching that about VCU all summer.

This, you are wrong about. SJU returns NOTHING. If we don't beat them this year then we shouldn't be allowed to play Big 5 teams anymore. Sure they only lost 2 starters but when you consider only 3 of their starters were actually good basketball players that's pretty huge. Their big men do nothing but take up space and Pat Carroll will be rendered pretty much useless w/o Nelson & West to create shots for him (those two created ALL the offense last year). Plus they lost the 6th man, Tyrone Barley, who some might have argued was their most valuable player last season. Their RPI was 3 last year, they'd be extremely lucky to crack the top 50 this year, I wouldn't be surprised if they ended up 100+.

Speaking of Nelson & West, Nelson is averaging well over 10 ppg in Orlando so far, West is under 5 ppg for the Celtics though. I still think West is too small to play 2-3 in the NBA, staying in college would've made him a better player but probably dropped his draft stock since SJU will suck this year.

TJ Reaper

10-27-2004, 08:00 AM

Oh, my bad ODUTB. How about 3 of those 4 teams lost a good % of their offense from the previous year. So, those 2-3 players lost by those 3-4 teams (which are the best on ODU's schedule) have lost players who averaged really solid numbers.

As for VCU, I NEVER try to make it seem that we won't miss Troy, Dom. Instead, I try to get it through people's head that IT IS POSSIBLE TO RELOAD. Don't be surprised if VCU turns out to be the team to beat later in the season....they look really good.

But look up what I said in the 1st paragraph. My memory tells me I am right, but I may be wrong about that. I think I did just a little bit of research on that a few months back, so I don't remember that much. You should find the post where I wrote a summary of what each team returns (on ODU's schedule).

UDPat

10-27-2004, 09:11 AM

Toni,

You are right, teams can reload. You make it sound like VCU though is the only team that has that possibility.

UDPat

Mr. Jablomi

10-27-2004, 09:19 AM

It's tough to say, at this point, which schedule is the best. Bottom line, the better teams in the league seem to have scheduled fairly well.
As for SJU sucking this year, they will still have a team that would compete very well in the CAA. They have some good kids coming in, plus a RS big man from the previous year that ODU really wanted (Robert Ferguson), who is supposed to be challenging for a starting spot this year up front.
Carrol, Stechaitis, Jones...all guys that would be good CAA players.

Halftime Hero

10-27-2004, 09:34 AM

Agreed they have CAA level players Jablomi, but Carroll & Stachitis are role players at best. It can't be over-emphasized how important Nelson & West were to that team. Carroll & Stachitis are spot shooters, nothing more. Lee is untested at point and doesn't shoot nearly as well as Nelson did. Jones & Bryant are big, they're capable rebounders and Jones is a pretty good defender but they're both completely lost on the offensive end. I just don't know how this team is going to score points. Carroll is their only option and he's going to have to work his ass off to get shots.

Coach

10-27-2004, 09:35 AM

Don't be surprised if VCU turns out to be the team to beat later in the season....they look really good.

Come on, Toni, every team looks really good to its fans when they are practicing against each other. Every time VCU has an intrasquad scrimmage, I bet they win. :roll:

Mr. Jablomi

10-27-2004, 10:29 AM

HH, don't get me wrong, I basically agree with you. Nelson and West made that team what it was.
That said, the guys we mentioned would still be good CAA players. Pat Carrol would start for any team in the CAA, and Jones would start for just about any team in the CAA.
Ferguson, the RS freshman, had a ton of high major offers, and I pushing to put Bryant on the bench in the frontcourt.
Do I think SJU will be a great team, even close to last year? No. Do I think they'd be an above average CAA team? Yes.

Halftime Hero

10-27-2004, 11:04 AM

I think we're mostly in agreement here but arguing two different points. Sure they'd be good in the CAA this year but both DU & ODU should beat them (especially ODU at home).

Mr. Jablomi

10-27-2004, 11:14 AM

One other point, to some of the guys questioning the selections for this poll, it's not that easy.
I voted Doles first team, even though he was not an ALL CAA pick a year ago. Why? Because I think he's likely to lead that team, put up good numbers, and he's a heck of a player.
I had Stokes 2nd team, but he could easily put up numbers that justify 1st team status.