What will we look like in 2018-2019?

[fenway617]

^ I'll add two more names to the list of guys who are candidates for departing.

KTM could look to transfer down. By the end of the season he was losing time to a late-season walk-on 6'4" big man... that certainly doesn't bode well for his chances of getting major run with this team over the next 3 years.

Unique could also look to transfer down. It's hard for me to picture him getting meaningful minutes with this team going forward.

I thought about KTM as a possibility of transferring but because he was a McCall recruit I think he'd stay. Unique would lose a year if he transferred unless he got a waiver which seems unlikely. I see Unique as a limited min player next season on this team for all the reasons others mentioned. I think we will see at least one transfer and if I had to pick a person of interest right now I'd say it is Baldwin who may go. I really hope Hines stays.
The two biggest players affected by all the new bodies arriving in terms of playing time are prob going to be Miller and Unique.

[inthescoop]

A-10 could very well be a 3 team bid league. URI vs Davidson will be an exciting final. URI has the talent but Davidson is really clicking right now.

[mlaconte459]

I think in the back and forth discussing Unique we all fall into this overall thought. If he comes back then great, he has some things to work on to get minutes but could be a good energy guy on the roster. If he doesn’t then good for him as he would probably not get many minutes and now he can find a better fit for himself. I am leaning towards him staying but I think either way makes a lot of sense for both him and the program. As others have stated, I really hope Hines is back as he really grew under McCall. Holloway probably depends on how he did academically this semester. CB is kind of a wildcard and have no idea, as he could be very helpful, but only if he and coach both see eye to eye on expectations. If they don’t then could see him leaving. But sure we will all find out over the next 2-3 weeks if anyone is not staying

[69MG]

Without getting into all of the other stuff about Unique, what he needs to do is work with one of the coaches to fix his release. It's awkward and not sustainable. He needs to work on 10 foot shots before he can work on 3 pointers. With his lift he should be able to drive, pull up and get his shot off.

Until I see the new guys (including the 2 freshmen) on the court I'll reserve judgement on playing time.

[MJatUM]

I could certainly be wrong, but I'm just not seeing it with KTM. He didn't have to spend a year away from organized basketball like Holloway & Hines, he didn't come out totally out of shape and need time to get in BBall shape like Holloway & Berry, and he didn't suffer a major season ending injury like Hines that derailed his freshman year.

I'm interested why you don't think his concussion was a major injury? He looked OK - not great before hand but he was very clearly not the same afterwards. I think he is absolutely worth giving the off season to work with this staff - we have no idea how much (or little) coaching he has received in his life to this point and how strong that coaching was. He signed late and in season isn't exactly the best time to focus on his footwork and lateral quickness, which I think are his 2 biggest weaknesses. I think his floor is better than what we ended up getting on the floor from T-Berg. I think he could make the biggest jump of any of the 5 returning scholarship players next year.

[natwam2547]

^ I'll add two more names to the list of guys who are candidates for departing.

KTM could look to transfer down. By the end of the season he was losing time to a late-season walk-on 6'4" big man... that certainly doesn't bode well for his chances of getting major run with this team over the next 3 years.

Unique could also look to transfer down. It's hard for me to picture him getting meaningful minutes with this team going forward.

I agree with your assessment of KTM. Disagree on Unique. Maybe he grad transfers in a few years, but I think he'll be on this roster for the next 2. He serves a purpose and can still contribute in 10-12 minutes. Probably even more so because his legs will be fresh and he'll be able to run the floor and guard to the highest of his ability.

[NilesGold]

I could certainly be wrong, but I'm just not seeing it with KTM. He didn't have to spend a year away from organized basketball like Holloway & Hines, he didn't come out totally out of shape and need time to get in BBall shape like Holloway & Berry, and he didn't suffer a major season ending injury like Hines that derailed his freshman year.

I'm interested why you don't think his concussion was a major injury? He looked OK - not great before hand but he was very clearly not the same afterwards. I think he is absolutely worth giving the off season to work with this staff - we have no idea how much (or little) coaching he has received in his life to this point and how strong that coaching was. He signed late and in season isn't exactly the best time to focus on his footwork and lateral quickness, which I think are his 2 biggest weaknesses. I think his floor is better than what we ended up getting on the floor from T-Berg. I think he could make the biggest jump of any of the 5 returning scholarship players next year.

He looked the same to me before and after. It was a significant injury, but it also happened about 3 weeks later in the season than Hines' injury two years ago. It's probably not that meaningful of a distinction, I think Hines not playing organized basketball the year prior to his freshman season is more significant in terms of the comparison between Hines and KTM.

I'll be happy if I'm proven wrong, and there's certainly time for KTM to greatly improve and do just that, but I'm skeptical.

[NilesGold]

^ I'll add two more names to the list of guys who are candidates for departing.

KTM could look to transfer down. By the end of the season he was losing time to a late-season walk-on 6'4" big man... that certainly doesn't bode well for his chances of getting major run with this team over the next 3 years.

Unique could also look to transfer down. It's hard for me to picture him getting meaningful minutes with this team going forward.

I agree with your assessment of KTM. Disagree on Unique. Maybe he grad transfers in a few years, but I think he'll be on this roster for the next 2. He serves a purpose and can still contribute in 10-12 minutes. Probably even more so because his legs will be fresh and he'll be able to run the floor and guard to the highest of his ability.

I'm not sure what Unique's future holds, it certainly could be here at UMass for 2-3 more years. Unique only averaged 26 minutes a game, and while he certainly averaged more than that late in the season, he probably suffered less from fatigue than most of the guys who were left on the team.

[fenway617]

I'm sure if the roster didn't have as much attrition and injuries McCall would have liked to red-shirt KTM. McCall has a system he wants to run and he recruited KTM because he sees a fit into his system.

[capezona]

^ I'll add two more names to the list of guys who are candidates for departing.

KTM could look to transfer down. By the end of the season he was losing time to a late-season walk-on 6'4" big man... that certainly doesn't bode well for his chances of getting major run with this team over the next 3 years.

Unique could also look to transfer down. It's hard for me to picture him getting meaningful minutes with this team going forward.

I thought about KTM as a possibility of transferring but because he was a McCall recruit I think he'd stay. Unique would lose a year if he transferred unless he got a waiver which seems unlikely. I see Unique as a limited min player next season on this team for all the reasons others mentioned. I think we will see at least one transfer and if I had to pick a person of interest right now I'd say it is Baldwin who may go. I really hope Hines stays.
The two biggest players affected by all the new bodies arriving in terms of playing time are prob going to be Miller and Unique.

Didn't Unique already use up his redshirt year?

[69MG]

^ Unique did redshirt last year. Unfortunately it doesn't look like much was done for him in the way of player development. Last year would have been perfect for working on his shooting and ball handling. I say him play in prep school and his shot has not changed at all. With that being said, he can bring defense and rebounding and that's OK if we have enough scorers and post defenders around him. I saw him have to guard 6'6 and 6'8 guys this year and that just wasn't fair.

[baseline47]

I like Unique's game and hope he finds continued success here. He's an incredible athlete, has great speed and quickness and great leaping ability.
At 6'1", he needs to play guard. Guards need to be able to drive to the basket, to create for themselves and their teammates. And, they need to be able to make jump shots and 3 pointers. To play consistent minutes next season, Unique needs to improve his outside shot. It can be done. Look at Pipkins!

[uz2b-len]

Unique's current skill set won't be needed on a team that has Jonathan Laurent and Samba Diallo.

[TheOFFSeason]

Unique's current skill set won't be needed on a team that has Jonathan Laurent and Samba Diallo.

Neither Laurent or Diallo will play the same position as Unique on the press, however I don’t think MM feels he has a spot for Unique...we will see. He definitely wants to press next year though

[TheOFFSeason]

I could certainly be wrong, but I'm just not seeing it with KTM. He didn't have to spend a year away from organized basketball like Holloway & Hines, he didn't come out totally out of shape and need time to get in BBall shape like Holloway & Berry, and he didn't suffer a major season ending injury like Hines that derailed his freshman year.

I'm interested why you don't think his concussion was a major injury? He looked OK - not great before hand but he was very clearly not the same afterwards. I think he is absolutely worth giving the off season to work with this staff - we have no idea how much (or little) coaching he has received in his life to this point and how strong that coaching was. He signed late and in season isn't exactly the best time to focus on his footwork and lateral quickness, which I think are his 2 biggest weaknesses. I think his floor is better than what we ended up getting on the floor from T-Berg. I think he could make the biggest jump of any of the 5 returning scholarship players next year.

The thing that kept KTM from seeing the floor more was that he was injured during both summer sessions and also the first 6-8 weeks of school...he didn’t get the chance to work with the staff like Pierre did or any of the guys that came back. Practices and workouts I saw he just stayed on the sideline and did one on none drills. He didn’t redshirt because of our thin numbers but the center position was our deepest so he didn’t get an opportunity for many minutes until RH was done but by then MM was set on a 4 guard and Hines lineup. The only reason West joined the team was KTM’s concussion and 4 games for a concussion means he was really affected by it...anything after it tells us nothing.