Pointed Excess

Mmmm... I've gotta respecfully disagree, wrv. As of now, we only have two PGs on the team: Ito and Campbell.

Raivio filled in out of necessity last year with Ito missing games and struggling upon his return, but if he plays a single minute at the point this year I would be shocked. He is much better moving off the ball and slashing than he is running the offense and creating for others. I wouldn't be surprised if he sees a lot of time at SF when he's not playing SG.

And Stohl... great shooter, but not the best ball handler in the world. He can handle the point in a pinch, but his role is to run off screens and make himself open for threes.

As for Waterford (assuming he is official... still no confirmation on that), I expect him to redshirt.

I think we have the right amount of depth at PG. Two guys who can both play the point - Ito and Campbell - along with two guys who can handle it in a pinch (Raivio and Stohl) and the PG of the future redshirting and waiting in the wings.

If all our back court players are returning, then I would also assume that Waterford would red shirt alla BJ Porter.
If say, Ito should not return then that could be another story.
I am assuming that Niedermeyer will have a shot at SF, but should he stumble then Ravio may then play that spot? The freshman from Canada at 6-5 would be another possibility, but a freshman.
Its going to be an very interesting fall I feel.

I'm inclined to believe that Ito will return since he has been participating in voluntary workouts. It will be interesting to see who plays at PG (Ito or Campbell). I think it was a good move to recruit Campbell even though Ito is such a good kid and you just want to root for him quite frankly the Pilots were lacking in that area. As mentioned before , Ravio and Stohl were out of position playing PG. Upsailor your right about Waterford redshirting.
Its nice that we have some returning frontcourt guys. Heck the young 7 footer (even though he's the same age as our soph's) may need a red shirt year especially if Jasohn has improved progresively. I just think Reveno is trying to put his style of play (Slow,deliberate, Half-Court,TOUGH,TOUGH DEFENSE) into action.Knutson,Sikma,Hannibal,Niedermeyer,Ravio were five of the team players that you did'nt see back down from anybody towards the end of the season. They all kinda had a "mean streak" in them and that's the way Rev played and learned at Stanford. He's got to recruit the guys for his system and rightly
so its his job to suceed at or else.....
I'm looking foward to seeing Ravio and Sikma play this year to see which one will be the offensive leader. Maybe both of them can have 12-17 ppg averages, who knows? It's going to be an interesting season.

Agreed, Mesa... this season is going to be interesting. We have the chance to make some noise and (finally) take a step forward, and I think we are getting some experienced players in place to do so.

I am anxious to see how Raivio advances when he doesnt need to fill in at the point... and I cant wait to see the development of Sikma, Smeulders and Knutson. We probably wont see much of Mitrovic, but he can supposedly shoot the lights out...

I need to get a countdown timer like Geezer's until the first tip off! ! !

PilotNut wrote:Agreed, Mesa... this season is going to be interesting. We have the chance to make some noise and (finally) take a step forward, and I think we are getting some experienced players in place to do so.

I am anxious to see how Raivio advances when he doesnt need to fill in at the point... and I cant wait to see the development of Sikma, Smeulders and Knutson. We probably wont see much of Mitrovic, but he can supposedly shoot the lights out...

I need to get a countdown timer like Geezer's until the first tip off! ! !

If we knew when that was, you could have one. Better yet, PM me and I'll tell you how everyone could have one that count's down while you are looking at it.

I've got to agree with Stonehouse. I don't see an excess. Raivio played the point precisely because we lacked depth there. Stohl is definitley not a PG, although like Raivio, may have played some out of necessity. Campbell and Ito are the first two, and the freshman would be a safety valve or might redshirt as Stoney indicated in the Waterford thread.

Any news on a tentative non-conference schedule?