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Kind of in vein with the yearly expectations thread. Which player are you most jazzed about getting to watch ballin out this year? A lot of names to throw around for me and I know most of you guys are gonna say JJ which is probably correct. What has me excited is that we have a lot sleepers on this roster that could surprise us. Our biases based on the players we've already seen are a big influencer too. I'll make a starting 5 list.

1. Justin James- Straight up athletic scorer, shooter, and playmaker. Really had a breakout year last year with somewhat limited minutes. If JJ soars so do the Pokes.

2. Hayden Dalton- Will the electrified man have put on more muscle? This guy is major energy, points, boards, and can drill the 3! He could really benefit from added depth in the paint this year.

3. Alan Herndon- At times a super frustrating player but he's shown some sweet flashes. He held down the paint with some blocks and seemed to progress as the year went on last season. He needed some more weight too. The mystery man..........if Big Al has his best year for UW this season things will be gravy.

4. Brodricks Jones- I have no idea what to expect from this guy but if he brings more D, points in the paint, and another solid rebounder the Pokes are gonna be fun to watch. Wyoming has always needed multiple big man units when we get to the NCAA tourney. I hope he fills that role.

5 Lou Adams- Lou has potential to really become a threat game in and game out. Can get to the rack but has to time it properly. He had some ups and downs. Seemed like he got in the doghouse too right? I liked Lou's game a lot when it was rollin.

Honorable mention/6th man- Andrew Moemeka- For me there are a ton of players I could put in this spot on this roster but I really am excited to hopefully see another level to Moemeka's game. Another athletic player with some serious potential. I'm excited to see Naughton for sure too, Redding, maybe Mack???, and maybe Maldonado??? However Moemeka has those tools that if used properly could really make this squad dangerous. One that runs and dunks on teams while having an athletic paint presence.

Hope all the others throw it all in my face for not putting them on this list!!! Hey it's just preseason hype/banter right?

Go POKES!!!

Personally I'm really exited to see if Naughton will become a complete post player and the dominating force that he has shown flashes of becoming. His inside presence will open so much for our talented guards of James, Adams and Mack.

Nice thread Cosmic.

My number 1 is predictable and that is Justin James. To me he is right there with Nance and Adams in being a player that we will all reminisce about in the future and I don't want to miss a minute of his career. He is as gifted a scorer as any player I have ever seen at UW and I really saw him take a leadership role late last season. Can he continue to grow his offensive game and make his teammates better? That is what I want to see. Well, that and so many of those sweet, sweet, mid range jumpers. Even though I am an engineer, I say analytics be damned, keep taking those jumpers JJ.


Also, really want to see Moemeka and Naughton. Edwards has made it clear that Herndon and Dalton will be the starters and main contributors at the 4/5 and it is hard to blame him as he rightly values their offensive verstality and the challenges it presents to the opposing defense. However, I still like an old school front court player that can impose his will in the paint and I am hoping to see these two guys take another step in that direction. Naughtiness has shown flashes of nasty play in the paint and Moemeka really flashed as a rebounder last year in somewhat limited time.

I am all about what newcomers will contribute:

I think we could see Anthony Mack contribute in a big way as a freshman.

Is Ny Redding the best option at PG? comes in with PAC 12 experience

Broderick Jones was a decent sized recruit out of HS, but that doesn't always translate. At 6'10 he could be a key newcomer and help a solid team take the next step

Austin Mueller redshirted last season and it will be interesting to see how he is used.

I would not be surprised if the Hunter's (Thompson and Maldondo) both red shirted given the depth that we already seem to have at forward

Honestly, our new guys. The freshmen are as intriguing a class as I've seen in my life time. They look really special. I also think Redding, Mueller, and Jones could be a good group too. Should be fun!

Obviously excited for JJ. I think he will be 1st team all conference this year.

I'm also excited to see how Lou Adams' game has progressed. Lou could be so good if he would just adjust a few things.

I've read that Herndon, JJ and Dalton have put on some good weight. I think that this will help those guys a ton.

Hopefully we can rebound a little bit better especially on the offensive end. Very excited for this season!

If any of the newcomers can crack the rotation this year then that means they are very good and that's a great sign.

All of the freshmen are exciting.

The player I'm most excited to see is likely to redshirt: Hunter Thompson. It's been years since we've signed as highly recruited player from the state of Wyoming. I can't wait to see Hunter develop.

Maldonado has potential to bring Dunk Town back, so that's pretty damn exciting.

Mack has the shooting ability to become one of the all-time great shooters in UW history.

JJ should be pushing for player of the year this year.

I think I'm most excited to see a balanced roster(not top heavy in any one class) and more athleticism across the board.

My "under the radar" guy is Lou. I think he could develop to a gamechanger with his athleticism.

wyoair wrote: ↑Wed Oct 04, 2017 8:19 am Personally I'm really exited to see if Naughton will become a complete post player and the dominating force that he has shown flashes of becoming. His inside presence will open so much for our talented guards of James, Adams and Mack.

I'm worried that Naughton is a square peg for Wyoming's round hole. With Edwards ball, the back to the basket post man is virtually non-existent. He likes his bigs to play from the three point line and in.

I hope Naughton does well, but I fear that he will struggle for minutes in an Allen Edwards system.

He's still a great defensive option for teams with big physical posts, but I don't see him playing a lot with our offense styled after Golden State.

Cowboy Junky wrote: ↑Wed Oct 04, 2017 5:20 pm

wyoair wrote: ↑Wed Oct 04, 2017 8:19 am Personally I'm really exited to see if Naughton will become a complete post player and the dominating force that he has shown flashes of becoming. His inside presence will open so much for our talented guards of James, Adams and Mack.

I'm worried that Naughton is a square peg for Wyoming's round hole. With Edwards ball, the back to the basket post man is virtually non-existent. He likes his bigs to play from the three point line and in.

I hope Naughton does well, but I fear that he will struggle for minutes in an Allen Edwards system.

He's still a great defensive option for teams with big physical posts, but I don't see him playing a lot with our offense styled after Golden State.

I think you're right with Jordan. He could definitely be a force in a traditional, slow tempo, back to the basket offense but not Edwards' offense. Otherwise I'm looking forward to seeing Mack the most and the maturation of James. How can you not be excited for a player Nova really wanted!

The great advantage for us this year is perimeter shooting with JJ posting up. He has incredible skills close to the hoop. The inside feed with outside motion for possible set shots. I would put all the bigs on the other side of the key. Not sure who is going to be the best point guard. Mack can hit from anywhere in quick jumpers. Maldenado can score and drive with pick from James, could make for interesting p/r scenarios. Gorski, while limited, can and probably will lead the team with three pointers made. With the bigs on the other side of the box we can crash weak glass.

I'm not as sold on the shorter guards for big minutes. Depends on who they are asked to guard. I just want them to not give the other team extra possessions and play with a positive +-.

Our best basketball will come when our bigs are very active away from the ball, using their size and depth to wear teams out and create fouls. Herndon and Dalton and moumeka, and Jones, need to be a swarm of pelicans... Like the finding Nemo movie.... "Mine, Mine, Mine... mine"

My most important player this year is - - ASSISTS. We have a lot of players that can shoot & drive to the hoop, so I think we will get double teamed often and that is when we need to find the open man for the assist.

Definitely Anthony Mack. He was my favorite signing, and I still think he will surprise some people. My favorite quality he has is his size. At 6-6, 218, he should be one of the stronger players on the team. The only guys heavier are Jones (220), Naughton (225) and Thompson (225). He's got almost 40 lbs on Justin James.

I think he will play A LOT as a true freshman.

Cowboy Junky wrote: ↑Wed Oct 04, 2017 5:20 pm

wyoair wrote: ↑Wed Oct 04, 2017 8:19 am Personally I'm really exited to see if Naughton will become a complete post player and the dominating force that he has shown flashes of becoming. His inside presence will open so much for our talented guards of James, Adams and Mack.

I'm worried that Naughton is a square peg for Wyoming's round hole. With Edwards ball, the back to the basket post man is virtually non-existent. He likes his bigs to play from the three point line and in.

I hope Naughton does well, but I fear that he will struggle for minutes in an Allen Edwards system.

He's still a great defensive option for teams with big physical posts, but I don't see him playing a lot with our offense styled after Golden State.

Yep, I've said the same since early last season. Pretty clear that he's not a great fit for the system, unless he changed some things.

joshvanklomp wrote: ↑Tue Oct 17, 2017 3:28 pm

Cowboy Junky wrote: ↑Wed Oct 04, 2017 5:20 pm

wyoair wrote: ↑Wed Oct 04, 2017 8:19 am Personally I'm really exited to see if Naughton will become a complete post player and the dominating force that he has shown flashes of becoming. His inside presence will open so much for our talented guards of James, Adams and Mack.

I'm worried that Naughton is a square peg for Wyoming's round hole. With Edwards ball, the back to the basket post man is virtually non-existent. He likes his bigs to play from the three point line and in.

I hope Naughton does well, but I fear that he will struggle for minutes in an Allen Edwards system.

He's still a great defensive option for teams with big physical posts, but I don't see him playing a lot with our offense styled after Golden State.

Yep, I've said the same since early last season. Pretty clear that he's not a great fit for the system, unless he changed some things.

I saw a recent twitter video with him in it and it does look like he's slimmed down a bit, not that he was fat, just strong.

He's our best natural rebounder, but Edwards ball keeps bigs away from the rim a lot.

Maldonado had a great senior season. I think he will be a great player


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Looking forward to the season in general, but probably most excited to see JJ, Mack, and Maldonado.

It's a toss up between Anthony Mack and Andrew Moemeka.

Mack played on a high school team stacked with talent. When I watched him play, he seemed to have a higher basketball iq than a lot of guys on the UW team last year. He made the offense flow with good passes instead of forcing isolation plays, played strong defense, and provided incredible range. He has the size to compete at this level and could play solid minutes as a freshman due to his intelligence. I won't be surprised if he comes in and plays at or above the level of Aka Gorski(who I expect to be solid this year).

Moemeka made a lot of plays in his short minutes last year due to incredible athleticism and hustle. If the game slows down for him, he could be the guy that lets UW finally compete with the brawlers down low that have killed the Cowboys on the glass for years. Understanding defensive responsibilities and embracing the garbage man role on offense could lead to him having a major impact this year.

DVDA wrote: ↑Wed Oct 18, 2017 11:20 pmI won't be surprised if he comes in and plays at or above the level of Aka Gorski(who I expect to be solid this year).

I think he could have a JMac impact

joshvanklomp wrote: ↑Thu Oct 19, 2017 1:22 pm

DVDA wrote: ↑Wed Oct 18, 2017 11:20 pmI won't be surprised if he comes in and plays at or above the level of Aka Gorski(who I expect to be solid this year).

I think he could have a JMac impact

That's a good comparison.