Milan Macvan? Chukwudiebere Maduabum? Tanguy Ngombo? Ater Makok? Adam Hanga? These are the players who have a better chance in the NBA than Isaiah Thomas? I was shocked that these deep deep deep (deep) sleepers from across the Atlantic were being picked above IT. The Lakers passed on him twice in the last 5 picks right after they just got torn apart by a similar player in J.J. Barea. Needless to say, I was shocked.

I have to admit that I am looking at it through purple lenses but I’m not someone who thinks I.T. is a potential All-Star or anything. I don’t even think that he could be a starter on a playoff team. However, I think he WILL be a terrific bench player that helps solidify a team on there way to a championship.

With the 60th and final pick of the draft, the Sacramento Kings were gifted a player that will provide depth at a position that they desperately need. Thomas, along side fellow draftee Jimmer Fredette, will compete for the point guard role on a very young team that has some great promise. I’m not a Jimmer believer and I think I.T. is the kind of player who can pick apart Jimmer both on offense and defense. Keep your eye on the Kings’ camp (if there even is one this year) because I think I.T. will definitely make some immediate waves.

I fully expect teams to invite MBA and Holiday to camps and I wish them both the best.

Here are some quotes from I.T. from draft day:

On being drafted:

“I’m very excited. You know me. That’s all I wanted. All I needed was a chance…and I got it. I’m going to take full advantage of it.”

How nerve-wracking was it to have to wait so long to hear your name called:

“It was real nerve-wracking because I didn’t expect to go that late. Even my agent was a little surprised because we heard different things coming up into the draft. Other than that, it was just a blessing to get picked. I’m just glad. God has a plan for me and He chose for me to get picked by Sacramento. It’s a great organization and it’s a young team. I’m just ready to get after it.”

How did the draft process go with Sacramento and what do you know about them:

“I know a little bit. I had two of my good friends Jon Brockman and Spencer Hawes play there in previous years, so I know a little bit. I had a great workout there. It was one of my first workouts and I shot the ball well and just competed at a high level. They liked that. I talked to Coach Paul Westphal today and one of the Maloof brothers after they selected me and they were surprised that I dropped that late, but they were also excited. They told me they can’t wait to meet me and can’t wait to get things going because they the type of player I am. I’m just happy because everybody doesn’t get this opportunity.”

Will being selected as the last pick add to the chip that is already on your shoulder?:

“Yes. You know it will. I will be in the gym tomorrow. While I’m disappointed that some of the player got chosen ahead of me, at the same time, everything happens for a reason. I’m just ready to get after it and show the other 29 teams that they made a mistake.”

How did you spend the draft?:

“I was on my own. I was just waiting for my agent to call. I didn’t watch the draft. I was looking at (the TV) every few minutes, but I was just on my own playing the waiting game until my time came.”

When did you know you were going to be selected?:

“During the 58^th pick I found out that Sacramento was going to take me. My agent called me and I was just excited. I shed a little tear with my family members. I got back home (to his Seattle apartment) right as my agent called. He called me right as I was walking up to my family members. It was just a blessing. It is a moment I will cherish for my life, but at the same time I got my foot in the door and now I’m going to knock it down.”

What were you doing prior to the draft?:

“I was up at the UW all day. I was just chilling with my teammates…Scott Suggs, Darnell (Gant), Dez (Desmond Simmons). We were in the gym for like four hours. We were just chilling and talking. It was good. I had my UW shirt on when I was drafted…I’m in purple now…so you know I’m going to always stay true to my school.”

What’s your message to Husky and Kings fans?:

“Husky fans, I hope you stay rooting for me and Kings’ fans, I’m going to bring a winner’s mentality and give 110 percent every chance I get.”

Today the annual season awards came out which were voted on by the coaches. The coaches are probably the most qualified voters as they watch film on every team all through out the year, but sometimes the votes just don’t add up. They aren’t allowed to vote for their own players which in some cases can cause some sleepers to sneak into the ranks. Who else does Ben Howland vote for the first team All-Pac 10 if he can’t vote for his own players? Here’s a look at the awards and some of my thoughts along with it.

All-Pac 10 Team:

First Team:

• Matthew Bryan-Amaning – WASH – F – Sr. – 6-9 – 240
• Jeremy Green – STAN – G – Jr. – 6-4 – 198
• Jorge Gutierrez – CAL – G – Jr. – 6-3 – 195
• Tyler Honeycutt – UCLA – F – So. – 6-8 – 183
• Malcolm Lee – UCLA – G – Jr. – 6-4 – 195
• Reeves Nelson – UCLA – F – So. – 6-8 – 235
• Isaiah Thomas – WASH – G – Jr. – 5-9 – 185
• Klay Thompson – WSU – G – Jr. – 6-6 – 202
• Nikola Vucevic – USC – F – Jr. – 6-10 – 240
• Derrick Williams – ARIZ – F – So. – 6-8 – 240

Second Team:

• DeAngelo Casto – WSU – F – Jr. – 6-8 – 255
• Joevan Catron – ORE – F – Sr. – 6-6 – 237
• Jared Cunningham – OSU – G – So. – 6-4 – 182
• Harper Kamp – CAL – F – Jr. – 6-8 – 245
• Trent Lockett – ASU – G – So. – 6-4 – 211

Honorable Mention (receiving at least three votes):

• Ty Abbott (ASU, Sr., G)
• Allen Crabbe (CAL, Fr., G)
• Lamont Jones (ARIZ, So., G)
• Josh Owens (STAN, Jr., F).

What they got wrong:

First off, let me rant about the relatively new 10 person first team squad . The same people who complain about dodge ball and peanut butter being dangerous in schools are the same people who wanted to expand the first team from 5 to 10. Including everyone is boring and now I can’t argue about whether or not Reeves Nelson or MBA is better. I hate all of you, who ever you are. At least release the voting totals so we can know who were the last ones in and in what order.

Anyways, with 10 first team slots it becomes very easy for the coaches to not make any mistakes. With that said, there was one glaring mistake that the coaches made: Malcolm Lee over Joevan Catron. Catron finished 7th in scoring while Lee finished 11th. Catron was the best player on a surprising Oregon squad and scared my much more than Lee did. I’m sure the coaches voted for Lee based on his hype, but Catron got shafted on this one.

Other than that, there is one more that stand out to me. How did Lamont Jones get an honorable mention? He averaged 11.3 points, 2.5 assists, 1.8 rebounds and .8 steals. Were the coaches just looking to award another Wildcat for winning the title? For me, that spot should belong to Justin Holiday. He averaged 10.6 points, 2.4 assists, 4.6 rebounds and 1.1 blocks per game. It’s nit-picky, but Jones was a little bit better than average and Holiday had better defense for most of the year.

Pac-10 All-Freshman Team:

• Anthony Brown – STAN – G/F – 6-7 – 200
• Allen Crabbe – CAL – G – 6-4 – 165
• Maurice Jones – USC – G – 5-7 – 155
• Dwight Powell – STAN – F – 6-10 – 227
• Joshua Smith – UCLA – C – 6-10 – 305
• C.J. Wilcox – WASH – G – 6-5 – 190

Honorable Mention (receiving at least three votes):

• Jordin Mayes (ARIZ, G)
• Terrence Ross (WASH, G)

What they got wrong:

Once again, it’s hard to get something wrong when you just randomly add an extra spot to a 5 person team. I’d love to know who were the two players that tied for fifth, assuming that was why there are six spots. I think Wilcox took Ross’ spot based purely on the last 3 games, and that is probably right. This team was pretty much black and white all year.

Pac-10 All-Defensive Team:

• DeAngelo Casto – WSU – F – Jr. – 6-8 – 255
• Jared Cunningham – OSU – G – So. – 6-4 – 182
• Jorge Gutierrez – CAL – G – Jr. – 6-3 – 195
• Malcolm Lee – UCLA – G – Jr. – 6-4 – 195
• Marcus Simmons – USC – G – Sr. – 6-6 – 220

Honorable Mention (receiving at least three votes):

• Matthew Bryan-Amaning (WASH, Sr. F)
• Kyle Fogg (ARIZ, Jr., G)
• Justin Holiday (WASH, Sr., F).

What they got wrong:

The defensive team awards are always tough because it’s less stat based than some of the others. I hate to keep picking on him, but Malcolm Lee as an all-defensive first teamer? Did I miss something? MBA should have made the team over Lee, especially because there is only one forward on the list. In the Pac-10, Lee finished 52nd in rebounds per game, 38th in steals per game, and 30th in blocks with 5. I don’t remember him being any type of lock-down defender. A very interesting pick. MBA, on the other hand, finished 4th in rebounds per game, 18th in steals per game, and 2nd in blocks per game. He was a top 3 post defender and should have been on this list. I’m not trying to be a homer, but last I checked rebounds are blocks are defensive statistics.

Pac-10 Player of the Year:

Derrick Williams: Williams becomes the sixth Arizona player to earn Pac-10 Player of the Year, and !rst since 1999, joining Sean Elliott (1988, 1989), Chris Mills (1993), Damon Stoudamire (1995), Mike Bibby (1998), and Jason Terry (1999). Williams led the Wildcats in scoring (18.8 ppg/2nd in Pac-10), !eld goal percentage (.612/1st), and rebounding (8.2 rpg/5th in Pac-10).  He’s posted 20 or more points 13 times this season, and posted 10 double-doubles.  In just two seasons, the 2010 Pac-10 Freshman of the Year has scored 1,070 points, while grabbing 472 rebounds. He’s the fourth sophomore in Pac-10 history to earn Player of the Year honors, joining California’s Jason Kidd (1994), Arizona’s Mike Bibby (1998) and Arizona State’s James Harden (2009).

Notes: Nothing wrong about this one. Williams, and the Wildcats, pulled away from Isaiah Thomas and Klay Thompson down the stretch to walk across the finished line. He was the best player on the best team and I don’t think that there is a single player that you wouldn’t trade for Williams straight up. He did have his ups and downs and his defense was questionable, but he was a force all year. Good call, and an easy pick.

Pac-10 Freshman of the Year:

Allen Crabbe: CRABBE becomes the seventh California player to earn Pac-10 Freshman of the Year, and !rst since 2004, joining Dave Butler (1983), Leonard Taylor (1985), Jason Kidd (1993), Tremaine Fowlkes (1995) Shareef Abdur-Rahim (1996), and Leon Powe (2004).  Crabbe was 14th in the league in scoring (13.0 ppg), fourth in free throw percentage (.824) and sixth in three-point !eld goal percentage (.406), which led all Pac-10 freshmen. His numbers are more impressive in Pac-10 play as he posted 16.4 points per game and 5.8 rebounds per game, while leading the league in three-point !eld goal percentage (.481).

Notes: This award was wrapped up halfway through the season. Crabbe was instantly a starter and was needed for output from a Cal team that lost almost it’s entire team. Maurice Jones and Dwight Powell are nice additions to note, but Crabbe was easily the best freshman due to his opportunity that was given to him. Is he the BEST freshman in the Pac-10? That could certainly be argued heavily.

Pac-10 Defensive Player of the Year:

Marcus Simmons: Simmons has been key in leading USC’s defense, allowing a league-leading low of 62.9 points per game overall, and 63.3 ppg in Pac-10 play. He’s been frequently called upon this season to guard the opponent’s top scorer, having limited several All-Pac-10 performers below their shooting percentages – Washington State’s Klay Thompson (12-of-35/.343), Stanford’s Jeremy Green (5-of-22/.228), UCLA’s Tyler Honeycutt (6-of-16/.375), and Washington’s Isaiah Thomas (8-of-20/.400), He’s the second Trojan to earn the honor as Taj Gibson collected the award in 2009.

Notes: Whatever. I’m sure the voting was real close on this one, but I would have probably voted for Cunningham. The stats that the Pac-10 lists for holding those players below their average shooting percentages is kind of laughable as he wasn’t guarding those players the whole game. I could try to make my case for Cunningham based on stats, but it would be like shouting at a wall.

Pac-10 Most Improved Player of the Year:

Matthew Bryan-Amaning: Bryan-Amaning is among the Pac-10 leaders in scoring (16.0 ppg/6th) and rebounding (8.3 rpg/4th) and has posted 10 double-doubles this season. He has appeared in all 30 games, with 26 starts this season.  Bryan-Amaning has steadily improved his numbers each season from 4.2 points/3.2 rebounds as a freshman, to 6.0 points/4.0 rebounds as a sophomore, to 8.8 points/5.9 rebounds in 22.8 minutes of action last season.

Notes: I’m still not sure what the qualifications are for this award. Do Harper Kamp and Josh Owens qualify because they missed all of last season with injuries? Would you compare their ’08/’09 numbers to this years? Are they even eligible for the award. I’ve tried asking around and no one seems to know the answer. If they DID qualify then my vote would be for Kamp. He overcame a terrible injury and made second-team All-Pac 10. If they didn’t qualify then I think the MBA choice is a nice one. Another good candidate would be Jared Cunningham. Can we please get some clarity on this issue?

Pac-10 Coach of the Year:

Sean Miller – Arizona - Miller, 42, has guided ARIZONA to its 12th Pac-10 title, and !rst since 2005, with a 14-4 league mark, 25-6 record overall. Under Miller, the Wildcats put together an eight-game winning streak at one point this season and found themselves back in the Top 25 of both the Associated Press and ESPN/USA Today coaches’ poll for the !rst time since Dec. 31, 2007. Collecting his !rst Pac-10 Coach of the Year honor, he now has earned Coach of the Year honors in on both coasts, having been honored by the Atlantic-10 Conference in 2008. He’s the second Arizona coach to receive Pac-10 Coach of the Year honors, joining Hall of Famer Lute Olson, a seven-time recipient (1986, 1988, 1989, 1993, 1994, 1998, and 2003). Miller has a career record of 161-68 (.703), while his Arizona record stands at 41-21 (.661).

Notes: Here’s another award in which it’s qualifications are unclear. Is the coach who over-performed their expectations or is it the coach who won the most games? If it’s the latter then Sean Miller is your guy. The Wildcats were picked to finish second in the pre-season and ended up winning the league. He had the best player in the league and some average-to-good role players. In my opinion, the coach of the year was Cal’s Mike Montgomery. After winning the Pac-10 last year, Cal lost 4 of their starters and almost the entirety of their offense. Somehow the Bears finished tied for 4th place with a 10-8 record in the league. That is an impressive accomplishment and I think Montgomery got hosed.

With the Huskies not playing until Sunday, I figured this week would be best to do a mid-season report, even though they have only played 8 games total. I always enjoy the “award” debate that encompasses everyone as the year reaches it’s end. Now would be the best time to delve into the argument and try to discern who is in the league at about the halfway point. Vote in our polls to give us your opinion. Do you have a player on your list that we didn’t? Argue your case in the comments section. Also keep in mind that the statistics used are ONLY from the conference games.

All Defensive Team:

Matthew Bryan-Amaning – UW – F: 1.5 blocks per game, 9.4 rebounds per game.

DeAngelo Casto – WSU – F: 6.9 rebounds per game, 1.75 blocks per game, leads Pac-10 in blocks.

Jared Cunningham – OSU – G: 3.1 steals per game, leads Pac-10 in steals.

Maurice Jones – USC – G: 2.7 steals per game, second in steals in Pac-10.

Nikola Vucevic – USC – F: 10.7 rebounds per game, 7.6 defensive rebounds per game, 1.1 blocks per game, leads Pac-10 in rebounds.

Defensive Player of the Year:

DeAngelo Casto – WSU: I was seriously tempted to choose MBA for this award based on his high rebounding and block numbers, but I am scared that I’d be called a homer. Casto, however, is a blocking beast and everyone who enters the paint has to be aware of him. It’s a weak year for defensive players, and I hesitate to choose Cunningham as his 1-3-1 zone gives him half of his steals. Seth Tarver won the same award last year playing the point in the 1-3-1 as well. If MBA can keep up his rebounding and block totals, he could sneak into the conversation late.

Freshman All Pac-10 Team:

Allen Crabbe – Cal – G: 16.5 points per game and 5.9 rebounds per game as a starter for Cal.

Maurice Jones – USC – G: 8 points per game, 2.7 steals per game, and 2.7 assists per game as a starter for USC.

Dwight Powell – Stanford – F: 9.2 points per game, and 6 rebounds per game as a starter for Stanford.

Terrence Ross – UW – G: 10.5 points per game and 3.6 rebounds per game while only playing 15 minutes per game.

Joshua Smith – UCLA – F: 9 points per game and 6.5 rebounds per game coming off of the bench playing 19 minutes per game.

Freshman of the Year:

Allen Crabbe – Cal: He is running away with the award due to the playing time and his scoring numbers. It would be an upset for anyone else to win this award at this point.

Most Improved Player of the Year:

Jared Cunningham – OSU: He has increased his minutes from 19 to 29 per game as well as his scoring from 6.3 to 15.7. His steals have increased from 1.6 to 3.1 per game as well.

• Honorable Mention: Justin Holiday – UW: Increased points (5.8 to 12.5), Harper Kamp – Cal: Increased points (4.2 to 16.6) rebounds (3.4 to 5.3) from 08/09 to this year as he sat out all of last year.

Coach of the Year:

Ben Howland – UCLA: The Bruins are tied for second with a 5-2 record while playing with a team that, statistically, has the least experience. This is the toughest call with only 7 games played by the Bruins, but Howland has proven that they are a top 3 Pac-10 team despite the lack of upperclassmen with previous playing time.

Honorable Mention: Lorenzo Romar – UW, Ken Bone – WSU.

All-Pac-10 Team:

First Team:

• Matthew Bryan-Amaning – UW – F
• Joevon Catron – Oregon – F
• Jared Cunningham – OSU – G
• Jeremy Green – Stanford – G
• Tyler Honeycutt – UCLA – F
• Reeves Nelson – UCLA – F
• Isaiah Thomas – UW – G
• Klay Thompson – WSU – G
• Nikola Vucevic – USC – F
• Derrick Williams – Arizona – F

Second Team:

• Ty Abbott – ASU – G
• Faisal Aden – WSU – G
• Allen Crabbe – Cal – G
• Justin Holiday – UW – F
• Harper Kamp – Cal – F

Player of the Year:

Here are your candidates…

Like the defensive player award, the winner isn’t completely based on stats. As it has been proven in past years (Randle), the player of the year usually comes from the best player on the best team. Even though MBA has the scoring title on the Huskies, if you watch them play you soon realize that Isaiah Thomas is the best player on the floor. At least 50% of MBA’s points come from Thomas’ assists. If this was the NBA MVP race, my vote would be for Derrick Williams. He is the best player in the league with the best numbers. Fortunately, this is the Pac-10 Player of the Year award which means something different. The player in the league that has been the biggest story has been Thomas. Ask Sean Miller who he would vote for.

Winner: Isaiah Thomas – UW -

Courtesy of Liz Hafalia / The Chronicle

It was an infuriating night for the Huskies as they lost a tough one on the road against Stanford. Husky Nation was left blind as the terrible Pac-10 TV deal left everyone following online or listen to it on the radio. It’s hard to believe that a ranked team in 2011 is not being broadcast anywhere. While the fans were left confused, the team seemed equally off. I was unable to watch the game, like everyone outside of the arena, but it didn’t sound good. The team seemed to miss easy shots and struggled to get their offense going. You have to figure that the team’s concentration wasn’t there after a tough few days with a sexual assault case hanging over them.

It wouldn’t feel right to pretend to break down a game that I didn’t watch, so the stats and the sounds are what I have to go off. After being up 51-41 with 8:55 left, the the Cardinal went on a 12-0 run that they couldn’t seem to stop. A late three pointed from Scott Suggs was the only thing that kept UW in the game during the waning minutes. Justin Holiday went to the line, down two, with a few seconds left and couldn’t hit the first free-throw which then forced him to intentionally miss the next. Stanford got the rebound but traveled immediately to turn it over and the Huskies were five 1.2 seconds to tie it down 56-58. The desperation shot missed as it had all night. Let’s take a look at how the team performed during the loss.

Positive:

• Aziz N’diaye – He had 11 rebounds in 20 minutes against a smaller team. His offense continues to need work as he missed an easy shot late (or so I heard). Still, you can’t judge a new player off of one miss and I still feel like he needs to be on the floor to close games.
• Rebounding – It was a great night on the board. The Huskies won the board-battle 33-26 on the road. You can’t argue with that.
• Isaiah Thomas – While for him it was only an okay game, he won’t be to blame for this loss. His 14 points, and 7 assists helped create whatever offense was audible. He did have 4 turnovers to match, though.
• Justin Holiday – Take it to the bank. Holiday will always put up a respectable line. He continues to stuff the stats with 15 points, 3 rebounds, 1 assists, 1 steal, and 1 block, but it obviously wasn’t his best. His missed free throw will haunt me.

Negative:

• MBA – How does he only take 5 shots? Did Josh Owens shut him down that hard? Who was guarding him? MBA is a player that you have to watch in order to grade. He had 8 points and 7 rebounds but I wouldn’t hear his name for multiple possessions in a row. It’s just a head-scratcher.
• Venoy Overton – Now, more than ever, we need Venoy to be playing his best. It seems shocking that he only played 20 minutes, but with only 2 points shooting 1-5, maybe it was the right choice. He needs to step up like a senior and help this team win when the game is close.
• Turnovers- 11 assists to 14 turnovers. That is uncharacteristic of this Husky team. While the absence of Gaddy was unnoticeable against the Oregon schools, it sounded like they desperately needed his patience and offense-running capabilities. Who would have guessed, before the season, that the Huskies strongest position(point guard) would become it’s Achilles heel.
• Ross and Wilcox – They went, a combined, 2-11 from the field. Ross did chase down 4 rebounds, but they both continue to be hit-or-miss each game (no pun intended). What will be the answer here? Suggs continues to be the most consistent of the three, but Ross and Wilcox have the most upside. They have to find their stroke and keep it.
• Three-pointers – The team went 8-26. Another early strength, the Huskies have gone cold from deep. They are taking smart shots but they just aren’t falling. Infuriating both to watch and listen to.

Aftermath:

They have to have a short memory. They can’t let this effect their next few games and brush it off as an off night. The Cal game becomes a “must win” with Arizona waiting for them next Thursday. The point guard spot seriously worries me going forward, but the other problems seem fixable. IT continues to play well, but the lack of ball handlers on the bench is worrisome.

You have to assume that their was a lack of concentration as the police investigation is looming large over their heads. Romar has to get the team to rally around each other and use this as an opportunity to grow as a team. They can’t let it become their downfall. Let’s hope that the Huskies find their groove against a Cal team that is rebuilding. Let’s hope.

We all have our favorite line-ups. Some want to see more Wilcox and less Gant. Some want to see more Venoy and less Gaddy. Some even get more specific and never want to see Venoy and Isaiah on the court at the same time. The right answer is that there is no right answer. So much depends on the opponent, style of play, score, defense, etc. Especially on a deep team like the Huskies, you can end up hurting your team by trying too many different line ups and not letting the players gel on the court. For the sake of argument, here’s a look at the who the statistics say should be playing the most.

Qualifications:

I fall in love with kenpom.com all over again every year. It breaks down players and teams better than any other site. Using these stats, I’ll try to determine what would be the most effective line-ups and who should be sitting at the end of the bench. Keep in mind that this is based entirely off of efficiency stats and doesn’t take leadership, motivation, experience, and basically any intangibles into account. WARNING: The nerd level of this post may be too high for some readers.

Click here to get an explanation on the stats that I will be referencing. Like most stats, some people love them while others hates them.

Starters:

PG: Abdul Gaddy – His offensive rating (ORtg) is the second highest on the team at 134.3. That’s a good enough rate to be 23rd most efficient and effective scorer in basketball. If the Huskies want to score, Gaddy needs to get his looks. His assist rate (ARate) is 24.3 while his turnover rate (TORate) is 18.7. Those numbers are good enough to warrant starting point guard time on a contender.

SG: C.J. Wilcox – He is the most effective offensive player on the team so far with a ORtg of 139.6. To qualify for Kenpom.com’s national leaders list, you have to play 40% of your team’s total minutes. Wilcox is currently playing 38.3%. The highest ORtg in the nation is posted by UConn’s Kemba Walker. His rating? 139.6. If Wilcox gains 1.7% more minutes he will be tied for the highest ORtg in the nation! How is this man not starting, or at least playing more minutes! When he’s on the floor he’s taking 25.9% of the team’s shots which is highest on the team. He has the highest effective field goal percentage (eFG%) on the team as well. Can we get the man some more minutes?

SF: Justin Holiday – Posting an impressive 130.4 ORtg, which is good for 47th in the nation, he has been everyone’s MVP so far. Outside of Gaddy and Wilcox, he has the best offensive shooting numbers on the team. Not only does he rate high in shooting, but his defense and rebounding guarantee him a starting spot. his offensive and defensive rebounding % (OR% and DR%) are an impressive 10.0% and 15.9% respectively. Match that with a low TORate of 15.1 and a high steal percentage (Stl%) of 4.0 you can see why he needs to be on the floor as a great all-around player.

PF: Matthew Bryan-Amaning – The stats like him! I never would have guessed. He posts an surprisingly high ORtg of 111.8 but that’s not even the best he has to offer. I know it sounds crazy, but he posts decent numbers in OR% and DR% at 12.5% and 15.0%. BUT WAIT, THERE’s MORE! He has a block percentage (Blk%) of 4.7 and a Stl% of 2.8 which aren’t terrible either. While none of these are chart-topping, he plays an effective game in post.

C: Aziz N’Diaye – If it weren’t for Wilcox, here is your statistical MVP. Aziz posts a impressive 19.1 OR% as well as a 23.4 DR%. Like Wilcox, he plays only 38.3% total minutes, but if he could qualify nationally, he would rank 10th in OR% and 88th in DR%. He also is the team leader in Blk% at 8.3 as well as an astounding free-throw rate of 110.7. He does have his drawbacks, though. He has a high TORate of 19.8 but his fouls committed per 40 minutes (FC/40) is a rediculous 7.8, which is a team high.

Bench: (in order of effectiveness)

1. Isaiah Thomas – His ORtg is the third lowest on the team at 111.2. That’s not good. He does everything at a below average rate and nothing jumps off of the page at you. His most effective stats are his FC/40 at a team low of 1.8 and his fouls drawn per 40 minutes (FD/40) at a team high 6.8 which is good for 76th nationally. That’s about it.

2. Venoy Overton – While his ORtg is slightly better than IT’s at 111.6, his passing numbers aren’t very good either. He leads the team in ARate at 26.8 but he also leads the team in TORate at 22.1. He is sink or swim and too risky to be the starter at point for this team. Luckily, his Stl% is 4.9 which is a team high as well as 39th in the nation.

3. Scott Suggs – After Wilcox, Gaddy, and Holiday, Suggs posts the fourth highest ORtg of 126.5. He posts decent OR% and DR% of 8.0 and 6.8 respectively, but that’s about it for Scott.

4. Terrence Ross – An ORtg of 120.4 isn’t terrible, but only average. He also posts decent OR% and DR% for a guard at 6.9 and 12.2 respectively. Not much more stands out for Ross, either.

5. Darnell Gant – The man is the obvious choice for least effective player. He has a team low 102.7 ORtg with terrible OR% and DR% for a forward at 5.3 and 10.1 respectively. He’s shooting a team high .613 three-point percentage, but he’s only attempted 13 total. He’s also second worst in TORate at 21.8. I was shocked at how bad his numbers looked.

In Review:

I’m not sure what we can actually take away from this other than maybe some adjustment of minutes. Although Romar will never start this line-up, I want to see if these starting five are ever on the court together. I know that I will be keeping my eye out for it to see if it is effective at all. I think Gaddy and Wilcox need to be playing more minutes. There efficiencies are too high to not be getting more. Aziz, on the other hand, can’t stay on the court long enough to gather enough minutes. His comical 7.8 fouls per 40 minutes needs to lower if wants to play starting minutes.

I know Isaiah doesn’t play a “stat friendly” style of play, but it’s interesting to see how he compares. His ORtg has actually increased from last year from 107.7 to 111.2. I personally don’t think that IT should not start because his intangibles as a leader are so important to this team’s success. With all of the line-up talk, I figured I would make a post about it. Make your own conclusions and maybe use some of this information in your decisions.

Not much to add to this, but Percy Allen reports that I.T. received a concussion in the Georgetown game. He sat out practice Monday and Tuesday, but is clear to play tomorrow.

Zone defenses will neutralize one of the things the Huskies do best: an up-tempo attack with plenty of guard penetration, and it will force them into more outside shooting, still a question mark for the team.

The good news is that this idea of teams trying to beat the Dawgs with a zone has been apparent since training camp, and the Huskies have been preparing for it. Coach Lorenzo Romar mentioned yesterday that Quincy Pondexter quickly becomes scoring option #1 when teams drop out of man-to-man defense. Quincy’s big game last night (including the first 13 Husky points of the second half, all against a zone) was a big part of the reason San Jose State’s upset dreams never came closer to fruition.

While Quincy will continue to find success working out of the high post against the zone, Isaiah may have his difficulties at times, particularly if his jumper isn’t falling.

In my opinion, there is a lineup the Huskies can employ that’ll be set up for dismantling the zone. However, it will at times require Lorenzo Romar to shorten his bench and take a leap of faith with his three best defensive players (Overton, Holiday, and Gant) all on the bench for certain stretches.

The “Zonebuster” squad looks like this: Abdul Gaddy, with his precision passing and more controlled tempo is necessary when the Huskies find themselves playing against a defense that neutralizes their athletic advantage. Isaiah Thomas is too good not to find a way to be successful against the zone, but will need to temper his urge to drive, and look more to dish once the defense has collapsed on him. Elston Turner is the perfect wing to receive these passes. Clearly more comfortable without a defender in his face, Turner could shoot 40%-45% from deep if most of his shots were the open ones often earned against the zone. Quincy Pondexter moving freely between the high post, or making back door cuts along the baseline, gives the Huskies a zonebusting specialist. And, Tyreese Breshers, who can receive the ball and get a shot up even against double coverage, rounds out my Zonebusters lineup. Breshers is enough of a presence not to get swallowed up even when outnumbered in the post.

What do you think? What will the Huskies do to combat the zone this season? Are you concerned? Let me know below, and thanks for coming.

This week, though, had its share of fun too, and most importantly left the Huskies still unbeaten:

Yo Adrian, how rocky did you leave things at UW!?: The Huskies defeated San Jose State, 80-70, in a mostly uninspired effort on Friday night. Quincy Pondexter, though, played like a man on fire, and let us all in on some of the dirty laundry left over from when Spartan guard Adrian Oliver transferred away from UW.

Jinx whut?: Isaiah Thomas made the cover of Sports Illustrated. There were six regional covers, and I.T. and the Dawgs were the only west coast team represented, and the cover distributed (as far as I can tell) throughout all of the Pac-10 areas.

A great pleasure this week was buying my copy from a newsstand at Oakland airport, and thinking about all of the Cal fans who must be tickled to walk in and buy their issue of SI with Isaiah’s mug on the cover. Buy an 11″ x 14″ print of the cover here.

The underappreciated superstar: We did this piece about how Isaiah Thomas looks like a better ballplayer this season, despite having such a strong freshman campaign last year. Percy Allen also pointed to this marked improvement and wrote this piece for the Times.

Big Josh signs and T.J. waiting: Josh Smith signed his letter of intent to play ball at UCLA on Tuesday, after announcing his decision last week. Here’s our post, which many readers disagreed with, listing three good things about not getting Josh. And, just as news of one recruiting drama was being put to bed, Terrence Jones decided to wait until the spring period to sign, likely meaning many more months of speculating about where he’ll end up.

Pac-10 floundering: No school in the conference has played more than four games, and only four teams remain unbeaten. Without a quality win yet, and several very bad losses (cue up the Sacramento State fight song!), the Pac-10 is looking more and more to be fulfilling the “down year” label it received from mcuh of the national media.

Thanks for coming!

Ryan Petitt / UDubSports.com

The Huskies defeated Wright State tonight, 74-69, at Bank of America Arena in the opener to the 2009/2010 season.

The least you should know:

The night belonged to Isaiah Thomas, who scored 30 points, including 18 in the first half. Had he not been so single-handedly dominant early on, the crowd might’ve seen a true nail-biter tonight.

To read the rest of the game post (for free, of course), please click here to go over to UDubSports.com.

In case you were wondering, a closed scrimmage is generally an exhibition game played behind closed doors (no fans, no media), so teams can assess how they function as a full unit after playing only against themselves in practice up to this point.

Sounds to me, based on the Tweets below, like the scrimmage was hardly a cake walk for the Huskies. But, hopefully it was a learning experience. I’m not going to read too much into what the players report on Twitter, or get too concerned about anything (other than injuries) that happens so early on in the preseason. But, just for fun, here’s what the players had to say on their Twitter pages:

Tyreese Breshers:

Just landed …. watchin film wit Coach the whole flight … learned a lot of stuff … I got a lot to work on

Just got done wat our scrimmage … We figured a lot of things about ourselves and I figured out a lot about me. . .

Abdul Gaddy:

On way to airport!! Learned a lot about our team!! Time to get back n the lab and improve on weaknesses…

Isaiah Thomas:

We gotta take what we did wrong 2 heart and build on it and get better plain and simple. We good, still early I aint worried at all. Go time. . .

On the bus headed to the airport.. We played horrible the 1st 20min but after that we played like Washington basketball suppose to play!

NOV 13th 1st regular season game. We gon be ready, mark my words! We was alil rusty today playin wit each other bcuz we basically had 2 days…of practice where we had enough guys to go up and down and scrimmage alil bit. So were good we jus gotta get some chemistry! That’s all!

Matthew Bryan-Amaning:

ok so on the way bk 2 the 206…the trip as a learning curve we’ll see in practice if we leant anything!!

Thanks for coming!