2011-12 Final grades: Adam Thoseby

Adam Thoseby - Freshman
28 games, 2 starts
 ________________________
Averages
8 minutes
1.6 points
0.4 rebounds
0.39 assists
27.1% - FG
31.3% - 3pt
37.5% - FT


I'm going to disclaim this now, but a big part of what is going to factor into the final grade for Tea-Time (fist pump for using that nickname for the first time in forever) is going to be the hype that followed Thoseby into the start of this season. Reports came out in the days leading up to the first exhibition game against UC San Diego that Thoseby was majorly turning heads, so much so that it apparently looked like a starting role could be in his very near future.

Whether or not that forecast was under the assumption that his grasp of the system was come along quickly, I have no idea. Regardless, things appear that they did not quite pan out as some had hoped for Tea-Time. Of his 225 minutes played this season, more than half of them came in the first eight games of the year. He played double-digit minutes in seven of those eight games, but only reached that mark twice in the team's 29 games from that point.

Positives: Thoseby was supposed to be a big-time threat from deep, and early on in the year, was indeed that. He was 7-for-14 through five games, with all his makes coming in back-to-back games against Texas A&M-CC and Idaho State. His 16 points on the road at Idaho State was the best offensive output from any wing player not named Medlin or Bruneel this season.

Negatives: Kent State was the last opposing team to see an Adam Thoseby 3-pointer find the bottom of the net. That was way back in 2011. His last points of the season came on Jan. 12 at New Mexico State, also his only two points since the calender turned to 2012. From the field, Thoseby was 1-for-19 in 2012, playing only sparse minutes in the rare occurrence that Preston Medlin got a break. His numbers were solid early on, but took a massive slide as the season wore on. That can usually be attributed to him being a freshman, but the discouraging thing there is that no flashes of the early scoring prowess ever resurfaced in a handful of chances throughout the rest of the year.

Summary: The potential is there with Tea-Time. He's a good enough athlete and a decent ball handler to where he could develop into a dependable backup at shooting guard, but it seemed his confidence was completely shot after a few bad games and shrinking minutes. Even with opportunities to bounce back later on in the season, he never busted the slump (nor bought into slumpbuster philosophy it would seem). Like I said at the start, his final grade will be determined largely in part because of the hype he generated early on, as well as strong showings and big minutes in the exhibition games. Things fell sharply from that early part of the season when Thoseby was good enough to command minutes over Steve Thornton and Mitch Bruneel, and they never bounced back.

Final grade: D+