Don't kill me...But....Next season...

[gmubball09]

Since some people have already started talking about next season, even though, we still have a week's left of games left, I thought it would be alright to ask people for some opinions.

In my eyes, next season has the potential to be on the 05/06 level with multiple teams doing very well OOC and then beating each other up in Conference to make next year ver competitive, again. The only team that I can forsee falling off is ODU because of who they lose. I can see our conference, as a whole, being extremely competitive next year with all of the transfer's that will be eligible to play and with all of the new classes that we have coming in.

The normal cellar dweller's very well could be in the thick of things come this time next year. It will be weird to see but it would be awesome for the CAA to see, from 1st to last place being competitive.

Thought....Discussion....Go!!



BTW, please let this thread be a thread about CAA basketball and not turn into a pi$$ fest!

[GoMasonGo]

Drexel
VCU
Mason
....?
Everyone else.


Not sure where I see ODU. Maybe 5th.

[jaspegs]

Hofstra has a lot of talent coming in next year. How they can gel will determine how far they go.

[xjohnx]

In my eyes, next season has the potential to be on the 05/06 level with multiple teams doing very well OOC and then beating each other up in Conference to make next year ver competitive, again.

I'm definitely excited about VCU's chances next year. Our OOC schedule is definitely built for to give us multiple chances at building a solid resume.

Off the top of my head, here's what it currently looks like:

Battle for Atlantis:
-Duke
-Minnesota
-Louisville
-Northern Iowa
-Stanford
-Missouri
-Memphis

Wichita State
Alabama
@Richmond

[Razor Ramon 2]

Odu will finish out of the top 4 and vcu will finish top 3.

Those are the only things I know for certain.

Yes, it pains me to say that. Fortunately, I think odu WILL be better and back in the top 4 the year after that. But no doubt, next year will be tough for odu fans.

[Washingtonian]

Towson should be able to get out of the basement...they have a good coach there now and some transfers that will be eligible.

[KA]

Mason WILL drop off, but might be decent come the end of the season.

This year we had to get used to a untested guards but had a great front court to compensate. Next year its a new "front court" with a back court that won't quite be as reliable to compensate.

Its a "tweener" year.

[Mercury]

I'm definitely excited about VCU's chances next year. Our OOC schedule is definitely built for to give us multiple chances at building a solid resume.

Off the top of my head, here's what it currently looks like:

Battle for Atlantis:
-Duke
-Minnesota
-Louisville
-Northern Iowa
-Stanford
-Missouri
-Memphis

Wichita State
Alabama
@Richmond

Don't forget WKY @ home.

[Mountainman Monarch]

I love the ODU falling off the face of the earth scenario that gets used year after year. Look at who VCU lost this year...

ODU will be about the same
GMU will get hurt losing seniors
VCU will be pretty good

Towson, W&M, & UNCW will still be terrible.

[bravesfan]

I think Drexel and VCU will be the teams to beat next year with Mason and ODU being the "could be, could not be" teams.

Drexel will be returning 4 of their top 5 scorers, including Frantz Massenat who will be in the discussions for POY next year (and even some this year, though I think Pearson will win it still) and Lee who is making a case for ROY (and most likely all-rookie). The only concern with Drexel is going to be their front court (4 of their top 5 scorers are guards, though Lee standing at 6' 6" could be a hybrid play there).

VCU will lose Burgess, who is the leader on that team, but has underwhelmed this season compared to his expected output. They are returning the potential DPOY in Weber, and will have a pretty mature back court in Theus, Daniels and Brandenburg with Graham and Weber putting in even more minutes. Reddic will be their force down low, in my opinion, but they're bringing in some good recruits like Jordan Burgess who models his brother in a SG/SF hybrid and Tuoyo who started off as a 4-star on Rivals before the dreaded "mid-major downgrade".

Mason will really have to rely on Williams, Arledge and Copes to give good minutes. Of those three, Arledge would be my biggest concern. Copes is already a force to be reckoned with on the defensive side, but is still prone to get into early foul trouble and is still raw offensively. If he can work on lowering his foul totals and improve on his touch, he could really stand out next year. He'll have ample opportunities. Williams always showed potential and hopefully the medical redshirt year has given him the ability to improve mentally. He's always had a decent little jumper, but will need to be tougher in the paint. Arledge is the guy that can step out and take a three and has shown some nice moves down low, but comes off a little soft at times. They're bringing in a 4/5 Euro guy who could be the next Vlad Moldoveanu (at Mason) or the next Vlad Moldoveanu (at American), though Gujanicic is already "meaty". Allen and Edwards will need to step it up in the back court and I think Sherrod Wright will be the best player on that team next year. I think this will be when Hewitt starts to fully transition more to his style of play and that could be even more bumpy than this year started off, though with more mature guards, it's a coin flip.

ODU loses their best two players (in my opinion) in Bazemore and Cooper. I think Donte Hill will give even better minutes next year and their young guys like Batten and Ross will improve with the extra minutes afforded to them. Though they will have to overachieve to have a chance at first next year (which they very well could, as they're a coin flip to me).