Scholarship Limits Fuels Season Intrigue
Now comes the interesting part.
Yes, the Utes have lined up four incoming recruits from far-flung parts of the country -- Kansas, Texas, Michigan and Utah -- whose development will be fascinating to track as new coach Jim Boylen's first recruiting class.
But what might be even more intriguing is finding out which of the current players is going to lose the lottery in order to allow all of the newcomers to fit onto the team.
The Utes will have to subtract one of their current underclassmen on scholarship in order to fit all four of the new players onto the team in 2008-09 and still abide by NCAA scholarship limits. And that means that several guys figure to be auditioning this season for their basketball futures, unless 7-foot-1 center Luke Nevill has such a phenomenal year that he leaves school early for the NBA Draft.
Who will it be?
Unless one of the regulars has some unforeseen conflict with the new coaching staff that inspires a transfer -- call it the Daniel Deane Effect -- my best guess is either point guard Curtis Eatmon or shooting guard Luka Drca.
Eatmon, after all, was the one player who seemed to disappoint during the team's exhibition tour of Australia over the summer. He played little, and poorly, while Drca has yet to show Boylen what he can do because of his offseason shoulder surgery kept him from participating.
Meanwhile, everybody else seems to have either solidified his role with the team or established himself as a promising enough newcomer that Boylen honored the scholarship offers made to them by former coach Ray Giacoletti -- rather than cut ties, the way the Utes did with junior-college power forward Nemanja Calasan. Calasan had committed to the Utes, but didn't fit into Boylen's vision for the program and wound up at Purdue.
Of course, a lot can happen over the course of a season.
Somebody could flunk out, or get homesick and leave. One of this season's incoming players could decide he really doesn't care for Boylen, or vice versa. Or somebody could enjoy a surprising breakout season while others unexpectedly struggle.
That's what will be so interesting to monitor.
Yes, the Utes have lined up four incoming recruits from far-flung parts of the country -- Kansas, Texas, Michigan and Utah -- whose development will be fascinating to track as new coach Jim Boylen's first recruiting class.
But what might be even more intriguing is finding out which of the current players is going to lose the lottery in order to allow all of the newcomers to fit onto the team.
The Utes will have to subtract one of their current underclassmen on scholarship in order to fit all four of the new players onto the team in 2008-09 and still abide by NCAA scholarship limits. And that means that several guys figure to be auditioning this season for their basketball futures, unless 7-foot-1 center Luke Nevill has such a phenomenal year that he leaves school early for the NBA Draft.
Who will it be?
Unless one of the regulars has some unforeseen conflict with the new coaching staff that inspires a transfer -- call it the Daniel Deane Effect -- my best guess is either point guard Curtis Eatmon or shooting guard Luka Drca.
Eatmon, after all, was the one player who seemed to disappoint during the team's exhibition tour of Australia over the summer. He played little, and poorly, while Drca has yet to show Boylen what he can do because of his offseason shoulder surgery kept him from participating.
Meanwhile, everybody else seems to have either solidified his role with the team or established himself as a promising enough newcomer that Boylen honored the scholarship offers made to them by former coach Ray Giacoletti -- rather than cut ties, the way the Utes did with junior-college power forward Nemanja Calasan. Calasan had committed to the Utes, but didn't fit into Boylen's vision for the program and wound up at Purdue.
Of course, a lot can happen over the course of a season.
Somebody could flunk out, or get homesick and leave. One of this season's incoming players could decide he really doesn't care for Boylen, or vice versa. Or somebody could enjoy a surprising breakout season while others unexpectedly struggle.
That's what will be so interesting to monitor.
posted by www.sltrib.com @ 8:34 AM |
0 Comments:
Post a Comment
<< Home