By Adam Kiefaber
Everyone is picking the top three, so I’m following suit.
I was going to breakdown every team completely, but it was eating a lot of time.
I realized that the season is right around the corner (Nov. 9 - first Big Ten game) and that there will be plenty of time to evaluate the Big Ten before the start of conference play.
1) Michigan State
Why: Not much of a surprise pick here. Every media source will have Michigan State and Indiana at the top. Coach Tom Izzo’s MSU team overachieved last season. All five starters return from a team that went 23-12 last season. Plus, the team adds three top-notch true freshmen in guards Chris Allen, Kalin Lucas and small forward Durrell Summers.
Best Player: Senior guard Drew Neitzel (left) is the preseason Big Ten Player of Year. Neitzel averaged 18.1 points and 4.3 assists per game last year. Sophomore forward Raymar Morgan is the second best player on this team and could become a star this season. Last year, he averaged 11.7 points and 5.2 rebounds per game.
Best Newcomer: Kalin Lucas, who is described as a “lighting quick point guard”, scored 29 points in MSU’s Green-White scrimmage. In the contest, Lucas made 13-of-16 shots. Fellow freshman Chris Allen scored 21 points and has ability to drill the long three with consistently.
Possible Breakout Player: Junior forward Marquise Gray or senior center Drew Naymick. Gray averaged 6.8 points and 5.5 rebounds per game last season. Watching Gray play last year you could see that he possess great athletic ability. Naymick averaged only 3.7 points and 3.9 rebounds last year. Most of the time, Naymick didn’t look to score, but in the Green-White scrimmage he scored 15 points and grabbed 12 rebounds.
Starting Lineup: PG Travis Walton (Jr.), SG Drew Neitzel (Sr.), SF Raymar Morgan (So.), PF Marquise Gray (Jr.), C Drew Naymick (Sr.)
Key Bench Players: C/F Goran Suton (Jr.), F Isaiah Dahlman (So.), C Idong Ibok (Jr.) - and the three talented true freshmen.
2) Indiana
Why: A lot of recent attention on Indiana has been negative. Head coach Kelvin Sampson and his three-way calling could turn out to be a distraction for this talented team. According to The Sports Xchange, Sampson had been prohibited from three-way calling with recruits as part of the penalty imposed by the NCAA for exceeding the rule for number of phones calls to recruits while coaching at Oklahoma. Indiana had to reduce its number of scholarships by one and prevented Sampson from taking a $500,000 raise.
Best Player: Senior forward D.J. White (right), who led the U.S. in the Pan-Am Games over the summer, averaged 12.8 points, 7.3 rebounds and 2.3 blocks per game last year. White is the heart and soul of this team.
Best Newcomer: Freshman guard Eric Gordon is considered by some to be the top recruit in the nation. Last year, he was named Indiana’s Mr. Basketball. At North Central High School in Indianapolis he averaged 29 points, 6.2 rebounds and 3.3 assists. Forward Jamarcus Ellis was named the national junior college player of the year last year and will make an instant impact.
Possible Breakout Player: Sophomore guard Armon Bassett played well last year, averaging 9.7 points and 3.1 assists per game. Bassett has improved his three-point shot and will be should get more looks with 06-07 starting guards Roderick Wilmont and Earl Calloway lost to graduation.
Starting Lineup: PG Armon Bassett (So.), SG Eric Gordon (Fr.), SF Jamarcus Ellis (Fr.), PF D.J. White (Sr.), PF Lance Stemler (Sr.)
Key Bench Players: SG A.J. Ratliff (Sr. - out first eight games for academics), PF DeAndre Thomas (Fr.), G Jordan Crawford (Fr.)
3) Ohio State
Why: The Buckeyes could be a surprise team during the 07-08 season. When I say surprise that could mean good or bad. OSU loses four starters including NBA lottery picks Greg Oden and Mike Conley Jr. However, head coach Thad Matta continues to recruit the best players. This year OSU could be good, but in the near future the Buckeyes should be great.
Best Player: Senior Jamar Butler (left) moved over from point guard to shooting guard to make room for Mike Conley Jr. last year. This year he is back at the point where he averaged 10.1 points and 4.6 assists per game in 05-06. Last year, he averaged 8.5 points and 3.6 assists per game. This offseason, Butler has reportedly lost a bunch of weight and wants to be more of a slasher like Conley was last year.
Best Newcomer: 7-1 true freshman center Kosta Koufos will replace Greg Oden. Unlike Oden, Koufos can hit the three. In his senior year at Glen Oak High School he scored 25.9 points, 15.4 rebounds and 5.2 blocked shots per game. Fellow true freshman Jon Diebler could turn out to be a big scorer for the Bucks.
Possible Breakout Player: Sophomore guard/forward David Lighty was another huge recruit in that amazing recruiting class last year. He didn’t get the looks last year that he will this season. Lighty could lead this team in scoring after averaging only 3.7 points per game last season.
Starting Lineup: PG Jamar Butler (Sr.), SG David Lighty (So.), PF Othello Hunter (Sr.), PF Matt Terwilliger (Sr.), C Kosta Koufos (Fr.)
Key Bench Players: G/F Eric Turner (Fr.), G/F Eric Wallace (Fr.), G Jon Diebler (Fr.), PF Dallas Lauderdale (Fr.), PF Kyle Madsen (So.), G P.J. Hill (So.).
4) Wisconsin
The Badgers lose Alando Tucker and Kammron Taylor and who knows when Michael Flowers will play. However, somehow this team is always good.
5) Illinois
Not much is expected from this team. However, the Fighting Illini have a pair of good senior forwards in Shaun Pruitt and Brian Randle. This team could surprise and finish near the top of the Big Ten.
6) Minnesota
Tubby Smith will looking to prove that his is a good coach. All five starters return, but they return from a team that finished 9-22.
7) Michigan
Another team with a new head coach. John Beilein is a great coach and he needs to be, as Michigan returns only starter. This team is young and I expect them to play good basketball by conference play behind Beilein.
8) Purdue
The Boilermakers finally made the NCAA Tournament last year and was leading eventual champ Florida at halftime. Supposedly they got a good recruiting class this year, but their top two scorers are gone.
The Next Three
9) Penn State - 10) Northwestern - 11) Iowa
All three should struggle
- GO TO Eleven Warriors - THERE IS A NICE RECAP ON OSU’s EXHIBITION GAME -
