The start of the regular season is upon us, which means it's time to start busting out some previews on this year's team. Rather than just rehash who is who and what position they'll play, we're going to do things a little differently here at The Sagebrush Spot. Today we're going to get a little more bold with predictions of what each player is going to do this season, all the way down to predicting the numbers they'll put out.This one is especially tough with having what looks to be a deep team and only so many minutes and points to be spread around.
Then tomorrow things will get even more bold in trying to predict the first part of this season's schedule. Will these predictions be accurate? Impossible to know, but let's just have some fun with it, eh? Worst case scenario we all get to look back at these in a few months and laugh at how stupid of predictions these were.
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POINT GUARDS
Tenale Roland - Rollin Roland, as the kids are calling him, is going to be the starter at point guard. He's looked solid through the exhibition games in running the offense and as an outside shooter. Could very much be in the mix for the WAC's all-newcomer team.
Stats prediction: 5.6 points, 2.3 rebounds, 3.8 assists
Marcel Davis - Had a previous nickname of "Doc", which I can only assume comes from his initials being M.D.... Or maybe because it's like he's doing surgery on the court... Whatever it is, we'll stick with Doc for now. So far he looks like a great combo of raw talent and hustle that's going to win a ton of people over real quick. And that's all before he gets a feel for the college game.
Stats prediction: 3.5 points, 1.9 rebounds, 2.4 assists
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SHOOTING GUARDS
Preston Medlin - Call him Pre-Med, call him Chosen One, call him MVP... Whatever it is along those lines, it's fitting. He's the WAC's preseason Player of the Year after doing it all as a sophomore. He scores, he dishes, he defends and he rebounds. Just plan on domination from him.
Stats prediction: 18.1 points, 4.3 rebounds, 3.7 assists
Spencer Butterfield - This one is tough to call. On one hand, Butterfield can and should be a stud off the bench. But how many minutes will he end up with behind Medlin is the burning question. Brian Green faced somewhat of a the same question a few years back though, and we all know how well that worked out for everyone. I'd guess we'll see somewhat of a similar situation here.
Stats prediction: 4.3 points, 1.4 rebounds
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SMALL FORWARDS
Danny Berger - With fresh legs and a year of experience to work with, all indications are that Berger is ready to go fully Danimal Style on opposing teams this year. He might not be a dynamite scorer, but he does a little bit of everything and is great at being a facilitator from the wing position.
Stats prediction: 7.4 points, 4.1 rebounds, 2.7 assists
Marvin Jean - And here is your X-factor. In two exhibition games, Jean has looked like the big, tall, athletic wing that is so often dreamed about by coaches and fans. Obviously the sample size is small at this point, but it looks big enough to believe that Jean could be a game-changer in certain situations this year. If nothing else, he gives the team versatility on the wings.
Stats prediction: 4.4 points, 2.0 rebounds
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POWER FORWARDS
Kyisean Reed - Much like Berger, Reed is going to take a big step forward in year two at USU. He stepped up big as a playmaker in exhibition to back up the hype he generated over the summer. The athleticism he has helps make up for being an undersized power forward, but he still should be in for some big things this year.
Stats prediction: 11.1 points, 6.3 rebounds
Ben Clifford - Clifford is also somewhat of an undersized PF, but makes up for that with heart and hustle. He's not about to go pushing people around down low, but he can finesse his way around the paint as well as step out and shoot it from deep. Another case of quality depth behind a quality starter on this team.
Stats prediction: 4.6 points, 4.1 rebounds
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CENTERS
Jarred Shaw - Slim came out swinging in the exhibition games, establishing himself as a capable scorer in the paint and from mid-range. It's for good reason he was voted as the preseason Newcomer of the Year in the WAC, and should be a solid force down low for the Aggies this season.
Stats prediction: 11.6 points, 6.8 rebounds
Jordan Stone - Stone looks to be more than just a big body to plug in the middle. He was more active and coordinated in the paint to the point of really making things happen in exhibition. It shouldn't be a surprise either for a big man working hard under Stew Morrill. Probably not going to see Stone take over any games this year, but he looks definitely capable of making a much bigger impact.
Stats prediction: 3.1 points, 2.6 rebounds
Matt Lopez - This is one where it's especially tough to predict. He'll have the least experience practicing with USU of the three centers, and will have to battle his way into the rotation come December. Rumor has it that he plays tough and mean down low, which could make things interesting from a grit standpoint as the year goes on. I really don't know what to think yet about what he'll be bringing to the table.
Stats prediction: 1.6 points, 2.2 rebounds
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TEAM
On the whole, this team looks to be very capable offensively, all of that starting with Medlin, but also leaning heavily into the post with Shaw and Reed. Both Berger and Roland look plenty capable to score in bunches too.
Then when you get into the bench, there's also plenty of potential, but only so many minutes to go around. So while some of these guys might not be putting up monster numbers, they're still doing plenty to help this team win, and that's something I believe they'll do plenty of.
As is, these numbers would project this team to be the highest scoring team Stew Morrill has had at USU, but given the scoring ability from all over, as well as the size that can and should lead to a lot more offensive rebounds than we've seen in the past, this year's team should be able to pull that off.
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