Time for Bold Predictions for the Basketball team. Big Puddin say: "COME ON!!"

Is everybody feeling a bit better because we've beat an average Minnesota team on the road?   Big Ten games are hard to win on the road, and we've lost to much worse teams while we've been much better.  The game didn't show me that MSU was a great team, or even above average, but it did show me that they don't quit.   I hope Ward sticks around for one more year.  He's become many peoples favorite player no doubt.  

17 games left, we have 9 victories.  I say we need to go 9-8 plus a win in the big ten to make the dance?  Can we do it?  Your predictions below.  Home games bolded


Fri. 30 NORTHWESTERN * W (1)
Wed. 4 RUTGERS *W (2)
Sat. 7 vs. Penn State * (In Philly) W (3)
Wed. 11 MINNESOTA * W (4)
Sun. 15 at Ohio State * L
Sat. 21 at Indiana * L
Tues. 24 PURDUE * L
Sun. 29 MICHIGAN * W (5)
February
Thurs. 2 at Nebraska * W (6)
Tues. 7 at Michigan * L
Sat. 11 IOWA *  L
Tues. 14 OHIO STATE * W (7)
Sat. 18 at Purdue *  L
Thurs. 23 NEBRASKA * W (8)
Sat./Sun. 25/26 WISCONSIN *  L
March
Wed. 1 at Illinois * W (9)
Sun. 5 at Maryland * L


9 and 8 plus one in the BTT   We're Dancing.   We have zero wiggle room.   If Bridges comes back, we're much better off.

11-5 gonna surprise some of the big boys

W   Fri. 30 NORTHWESTERN *
W   Wed. 4 RUTGERS *
W   Sat. 7 vs. Penn State * (In Philly)
W   Wed. 11 MINNESOTA *
W   Sun. 15 at Ohio State *
L    Sat. 21 at Indiana *
L    Tues. 24 PURDUE *
W   Sun. 29 MICHIGAN *
February
W   Thurs. 2 at Nebraska *
W   Tues. 7 at Michigan *
W   Sat. 11 IOWA *
W   Tues. 14 OHIO STATE *
L    Sat. 18 at Purdue *
W   Thurs. 23 NEBRASKA *
L    Sat./Sun. 25/26 WISCONSIN *
March
W   Wed. 1 at Illinois *
L    Sun. 5 at Maryland *

12W'S 13-5 IN CONFERENCE PLAY.

We escaped last night. Team is going to need Bridges. Any eta on his return?

Do we really think Ward is a one-and-done? He's in no way the type of player who gets early first round consideration as an underclassman.

Clarett's Folly wrote:Do we really think Ward is a one-and-done? He's in no way the type of player who gets early first round consideration as an underclassman.

As of now, Bridges at #21. No Ward in the first two rounds. As of now.

Bridges still at 21 Ward still not in

DWags wrote:

Clarett's Folly wrote:Do we really think Ward is a one-and-done? He's in no way the type of player who gets early first round consideration as an underclassman.

As of now, Bridges at #21. No Ward in the first two rounds. As of now.

Bridges still at 21 Ward still not in

I'm all for kids making the jump when they can. Was totally behind Deyonta when he made the jump even though it fucked us.
I hope that Ward and his family are extremely cautious about any draft feedback that they receive. He is the exact type of player who falls to the second round, bounces around the d-league, gets a couple of 10 day contracts, then finds himself out of the NBA altogether.
He needs to put together a body of work, over a number of seasons, where he can't be denied as a first rounder.

Ward is not tall enough to be a one and done. I mean, if he and those around him play it smartly. He's likely a 4 year player imo.

Depends on which team shows up for the rest of the year. 1st half Spartans: we're sitting at home in March. 2nd half Spartans: We can get an 8 seed, maybe. Keep playing up and down like last night? Fuck if I know.

WhiteBoyHatcher wrote:Ward is not tall enough to be a one and done. I mean, if he and those around him play it smartly. He's likely a 4 year player imo.

He's taller than John Wall or Chris Paul.

Is big puddin taller than lonzo Ball?

Fortunately there is no demand for a traditional power forward in the NBA any more. I don't even see Swanigan in the mock drafts and he is consistently making 3s now

WhiteBoyHatcher wrote:Ward is not tall enough to be a one and done. I mean, if he and those around him play it smartly. He's likely a 4 year player imo.

Says he's 6'8". Zach was 6'9". WARD works his ass off underneath.

LooseGoose wrote:

WhiteBoyHatcher wrote:Ward is not tall enough to be a one and done. I mean, if he and those around him play it smartly. He's likely a 4 year player imo.

He's taller than John Wall or Chris Paul.

But Ward doesn't rhyme with Wall or Paul, therefore, your argument is stupid.

Ward is better in college than Zach was and Zach was way under valued in the draft at #19. Yet I dont know if he would he even get drafted at all today.

Do you guys really think WARD is 6'8"?

DWags wrote:Do you guys really think WARD is 6'8"?

IF you watch the video in this post you'll see that he's quite a bit taller than Izzo's mom.

WATCH: Michigan State coach Tom Izzo’s mother visits Spartans in locker room after win

LooseGoose wrote:

DWags wrote:Do you guys really think WARD is 6'8"?

IF you watch the video in this post you'll see that he's quite a bit taller than Izzo's mom.

WATCH: Michigan State coach Tom Izzo’s mother visits Spartans in locker room after win

Awesome.

Ward being a one and done?

Come on. Do people not understand the NBA? Post guys like him are dinosaurs.

9-7?

Wags there are 18 conference games. You mean 10-8?

I dont see it. MSU needs 11-7. And in those 11 games, MSU HAS to beat Indiana, Purdue, Wisconsin, Maryland a couple times. MSU has zero quality wins right now and with the B1G being way down this year, MSU doesnt have many opportunities for quality wins.

Playing Wisky, Maryland and IU this year only once, with two of them on road, makes MSUs chances to beat quality teams scarce.

Racking up a bunch of wins vs Rutgers and Nebraska wont get MSU in.

Herbie Green wrote:Ward is better in college than Zach was and Zach was way under valued in the draft at #19. Yet I dont know if he would he even get drafted at all today.

I was forced to make this account b/c half tRCMB insists that Ward is currently a one-and-done because he's had a few good games and "Randolph!!!!!!"

These people haven't watched the NBA in 30 years.

The_Dude wrote:9-7?

Wags there are 18 conference games. You mean 10-8?

I dont see it. MSU needs 11-7. And in those 11 games, MSU HAS to beat Indiana, Purdue, Wisconsin, Maryland a couple times. MSU has zero quality wins right now and with the B1G being way down this year, MSU doesnt have many opportunities for quality wins.

Playing Wisky, Maryland and IU this year only once, with two of them on road, makes MSUs chances to beat quality teams scarce.

Racking up a bunch of wins vs Rutgers and Nebraska wont get MSU in.

Bwahahahahaha. You love a good line of absolutes.

Banks2Mason wrote:

Herbie Green wrote:Ward is better in college than Zach was and Zach was way under valued in the draft at #19.   Yet I dont know if he would he even get drafted at all today.

I was forced to make this account b/c half tRCMB insists that Ward is currently a one-and-done because he's had a few good games and "Randolph!!!!!!"

These people haven't watched the NBA in 30 years.

Ward is good bordering on great as a college freshman and, over the next four years, could be a dominant low-post force for the Spartans. That being said he would be so overmatched in the NBA it is almost comical. He is essentially Dejuan Blair who dominated in college and currently plays for... wait for it... The Jiangsu Monkey King of the Chinese Basketball Association.
Welcome to the board, by the way, it's good to have level headed and reasonable posters here.

Clarett's Folly wrote:

Ward is good bordering on great as a college freshman and, over the next four years, could be a dominant low-post force for the Spartans. That being said he would be so overmatched in the NBA it is almost comical. He is essentially Dejuan Blair who dominated in college and currently plays for... wait for it... The Jiangsu Monkey King of the Chinese Basketball Association.
Welcome to the board, by the way, it's good to have level headed and reasonable posters here.[/quote]

Thank you and Blair comparison is a good one. A back-to-the-basket post game is nice, but it very low on assets modern teams are interested in acquiring. The fact that Ward is short for his position, not in the greatest shape, not a great ball handler, and can't play good defense in the post, not to mention on the perimeter, mean that any NBA talk is hilariously premature. He's Derrick Nix with a higher upside.

As someone here said, Swanigan (about the same size) is actually making 3s this year and hasn't even sniffed the second round of mock drafts.

The stupid in this thread is strong.

TheReal_LWS wrote:The stupid in this thread is strong.

... now.

Clarett's Folly wrote:

TheReal_LWS wrote:The stupid in this thread is strong.

... now.

I was going to post that and got busy doing actual work. Thanks for picking up my slack.

Watch Out Pylon! wrote:

Clarett's Folly wrote:

... now.

I was going to post that and got busy doing actual work. Thanks for picking up my slack.

It's a team effort.

I don’t think NBA scouts are always great judges of talent though. Just five years ago Draymond Green was not an attractive pick because he was a tweener but now he is the prototype player everyone wants.
Is it really the best style of basketball they are playing now or is it just a trend? If the next Zach Randolph or Karl Malone comes around maybe everyone will want that again.

Herbie Green wrote:I don’t think NBA scouts are always great judges of talent though. Just five years ago Draymond Green was not an attractive pick because he was a tweener but now he is the prototype player everyone wants.
Is it really the best style of basketball they are playing now or is it just a trend? If the next Zach Randolph or Karl Malone comes around maybe everyone will want that again.

No question. However, if I was advising Ward and his family, I'd point out that Green was NPOTY, had an infinitely more expansive game than Ward, and was still considered a gamble in the second round.
This isn't a referendum on the best way to win in the NBA but, rather, where Ward fits in to market demand for NBA bigs. Right now guys who measure 6'7"-6'8" and 250 lbs aren't exactly sought after.
I'm not one of those "he needs another year to work on x" assholes, I just don't think Nick Ward is the type of athlete that the NBA covets.

Clarett's Folly wrote:

Herbie Green wrote:I don’t think NBA scouts are always great judges of talent though. Just five years ago Draymond Green was not an attractive pick because he was a tweener but now he is the prototype player everyone wants.
Is it really the best style of basketball they are playing now or is it just a trend? If the next Zach Randolph or Karl Malone comes around maybe everyone will want that again.

No question. However, if I was advising Ward and his family, I'd point out that Green was NPOTY, had an infinitely more expansive game than Ward, and was still considered a gamble in the second round.
This isn't a referendum on the best way to win in the NBA but, rather, where Ward fits in to market demand for NBA bigs. Right now guys who measure 6'7"-6'8" and 250 lbs aren't exactly sought after.
I'm not one of those "he needs another year to work on x" assholes, I just don't think Nick Ward is the type of athlete that the NBA covets.

Green also had a set of skills that Ward doesn't. Ballhandling skills, top notch D, he see's plays as they're developing and is a great passer. He worked on his 3 point shot somewhere between his 2nd and 3rd year in the league. He plays the role of the enforcer, has a mid range shot and can play under the rim. I hope Ward can do that. All that said Z-Bo has had a great run in the NBA, and someone still needs to play the post in the NBA.

InTenSity wrote:

Clarett's Folly wrote:

No question. However, if I was advising Ward and his family, I'd point out that Green was NPOTY, had an infinitely more expansive game than Ward, and was still considered a gamble in the second round.
This isn't a referendum on the best way to win in the NBA but, rather, where Ward fits in to market demand for NBA bigs. Right now guys who measure 6'7"-6'8" and 250 lbs aren't exactly sought after.
I'm not one of those "he needs another year to work on x" assholes, I just don't think Nick Ward is the type of athlete that the NBA covets.

Green also had a set of skills that Ward doesn't. Ballhandling skills, top notch D, he see's plays as they're developing and is a great passer. He worked on his 3 point shot somewhere between his 2nd and 3rd year in the league. He plays the role of the enforcer, has a mid range shot and can play under the rim. I hope Ward can do that. All that said Z-Bo has had a great run in the NBA, and someone still needs to play the post in the NBA.

Sure does.

Watch Out Pylon! wrote:



Sure does.

Ducking Delvon!

Fri. 30 NORTHWESTERN W (1)
Wed. 4 RUTGERS W (2)
Sat. 7 vs. Penn State (In Philly) W (3)
Wed. 11 MINNESOTA W (4)
Sun. 15 at Ohio State W (5)
Sat. 21 at Indiana L
Tues. 24 PURDUE L
Sun. 29 MICHIGAN W (6)
February
Thurs. 2 at Nebraska L
Tues. 7 at Michigan L
Sat. 11 IOWA W (7)
Tues. 14 OHIO STATE W (8)
Sat. 18 at Purdue L
Thurs. 23 NEBRASKA W (9)
Sat./Sun. 25/26 WISCONSIN W (10)
March
Wed. 1 at Illinois W (11)
Sun. 5 at Maryland L

11-7. In as a 8-10 seed depending on the BTT and how the B1G looks throughout the year.