Read another article where it mentions he has a 7 foot wingspan. Looks like he can dunk while barely having to jump.
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Not sure of the coaching hierarchy. Don’t know if Jason & Ryan will be splitting Scott’s coaching duties. Or if they’re both be promoted to Associate Head Coach which was Scott’s role.
I heard both Will and Jackson are being bumped up
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Here is a glimpse of Tadjo that impresses. Welcome Chris!!!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7CeUv9aRkGQ
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Another great add. Having a big, strong forward whose specialty is rebounding takes a little pressure off of the front court. I still hope for a large-bodied center in case Chukwudebelu isn’t ready.
At the moment, Santa Clara is going to run three veterans (Ensminger, Mahi, and Knapper) and a ton of guys who will playing significant minutes for the first time. The next most experienced player on the roster is Bukky.
The three transfers are all brimming with potential, but it’s just that for the moment. It feels much higher risk/reward than our last major transfer group with Bryan, O’Neil, Benjamin, and Bal. The first three were proven D1 players to varying degrees. Next year SCU will bring in 3 or 4 in the Bal/Podz mold.
Could be awesome or could be a bust. For now, all I can see his huge potential and hope for the absolute best.
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Another relevant issue bridging the world of the portal and NIL: the judge in Oakland approving the House Settlement said that she would not approve if the NCAA’s proposed roster rules are implemented immediately. In other words, she cannot approve the proposal that schools get up to 15 scholarships but no other roster spots because it would force some schools to cut current walk-on players. The rule could be phased in over time so as not to affect any current walk-on.
Now the likely response is to allow 15 scholarships and phase out walk-ons over a few years. But it’s at least possible that the NCAA doesn’t push through a new rule at all until next season or later, leaving scholarship limits at 13.
Anyways, potentially relevant because SCU has 12 committed players for next season and would theoretically cap out with one more commitment.
Where does Graves fit into this? I don’t know much about him, but might he potentially fill a need in the paint? I have no idea his skill set, but I recall he’s 6’9.
It can be hard to tell because he redshirted last year. From all that i’ve been able to gather he is a stretch 4 prototype. Decent inside out game with his outside game featuring a reliable spot up jumper at 15 feet thats been extended to the 3 point line. Aggressive rebounder with hood feet and moderate ball handling skills.
I believe him an Tadjo will be able to establish a front court presence. Coach Sendek notably said in the final postgame of the year how Graves was one of the most effective players on the team in practice. Only time well what these sentiments really mean.
Like Christian Hammond he has a strong basketball pedigree where most of the family plays in high major programs.
Expect a productive starter at the minimum.
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Patty- Splitting hairs a bit but Hammond has more playing experience than Bukky. Hammond played 236 mins over 19 games and even started two games including a fair amount of quality mins. Bukky played 106mins last season including a fair amount of garbage time.
This is arguably the most wide open off season in terms of predicting next year’s starters, rotations and PT. As noted, the three transfers to date all have solid pedigrees but will only be 2nd year guys with very little D1 playing experience.
Mahi is the only player who I can predict will start with a high degree of confidence. He seems somewhat locked in as the starting 3/wing.
Knapper came on strong the later part of the season is the next most likely to get a starting spot IMO but even that isn’t guaranteed as its conceivable Gavalyugov could challenge for the starting PG spot. It’s also possible to start those two together but it’d make for a short/small backcourt plus Hammond and Normand will surely be candidates for the 2 guard starting spot. And its also possible for frosh Longcor or Cochran to push for solid PT though I suspect at least one of them will redshirt.
The two starting forward spots seem most up in the air. You could make arguments for any two of Ensminger, Graves, Tadjo or Bukky. And of course there’s still a chance (or hope) that we’re pursuing Caffaro v2.0.
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He was Louisiana Gatorade Player of the Year and is bursting with talent. I expect him to be one of the real bright spots this year, along with all the other talent being added. He, Tadjo and Ensminger cover the 4 spot really well, giving you scoring, muscle, and defense, somewhat respectively. Graves is also a terrific shot blocker/defender from what I have seen , and has a high IQ (from a basketball family).
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In today’s day of age where guys leave after a year, I don’t really understand why schools redshirt if “He’s one of the best guys in practice” like we were hearing. Odds of him staying for four years are so low.
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My hunch (!) I think it was anticipated that Luke would stay and be a 5, letting Cam play 4, making the 4 spot really crowded, with Cam, Johnny and Jake solidly there. He would still have shone but now he can really get tons of PT and also has had a year learning the system. I can’t wait to see him play. He does things most 4s cannot do.
I agree that the staff couldn’t foresee Luke leaving the team. The 4 spot would’ve been pretty crowded last season so Graves was redshirted. I just wonder if he knew he was gonna sit out the season prior to signing?
Now with all that being said, I take being told a player dominating during practice with a huge grain of salt. I don’t know how many times I’ve been told so-so is the best player in practice and just you wait until he’s playing real minutes next season. Heard it with Bukky during his redshirt season.
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I couldn’t agree more. With the advent of NIL and being able to transfer without sitting out a year, you need to play freshman if they can contribute right away plus odds of a player staying 4 years at a school are diminishing.
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I heard both he and Hammond were “surprised” at the late call redshirts. They wanted to compete. They’ll get their chance now. Playing time competition should be high octane.
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If the Redshirts were in fact the coach’s decision then BroncoHoops5 is spot on…seems odd to redshirt guys in today’s environment where guys are unlikely to stick around for 4 years. I don’t like seeing guys burn a year of eligibility playing mop up minutes only when they could redshirt but it seems both Graves and Hammond could have helped at times last season…for instance when both O’Neil and Ensminger were struggling the first 1/3 of the season and Ensminger was shooting ~10% from 3, Graves may have been an option.
It made some sense for Bukky as he was/is so raw and could use the extra time to gain strength, and a lb or two and he would have been 5th on the depth chart at center in 2023/24.
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Here’s the official announcement for signing the three transfers so far.
It’s probably wrong to read too much into this, but I wonder if the timing of the announcement means that the staff expects to be outbid on Jacob Dar (Memphis is the other leading suitor and has FedEx money to throw around). Then again, I’d be pretty dismayed if they aren’t still scouring the portal for that wide-bodied center that 92 and I keep prattling on about. So I hope that they are still looking even if some of the activity has slowed.
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That’s a reasonable interpretation.
Also could be a way to signal to other still-undecided prospects that SCU should be seriously considered because it is landing power conference recruits. Kinda like gravity: more mass generates more gravity, which in turn attracts more mass.
Or, it could be just a gimmick, coat-tailing on the NFL draft.
I, too, am holding out hope for the big-bodied center. Perhaps it is too much to expect to get one from a power conference. Time to redouble efforts to scour the JCs and overlooked international players?
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Obviously it wouldn’t hurt to land a long, skilled wing like Dar but I don’t think it’s critical based on how the roster currently looks.
Mahi seems locked in at the 3/wing spot. Normand can back him up when he’s not playing the 2, and Ensminger can slide down to the 3 as needed. That’s adequate depth right there.
Plus Hammond is listed at 6-4, KJ Cochran is listed at 6-4 and Longcor III is 6-3…if needed, one of those guys can play the 3 for a few mins in a traditional 3guard lineup.
Meanwhile we only have one, stronger, wide-bodied forward in Tadjo…he can’t play 40mins and even 30mins will be a stretch given physical bigs are often a bit foul proned. That’s where you need another true, strong big for 10-15mins a game; ideally 6-9/6-10+, if not a true 7-footer as Caffaro was. And given the youth and inexperience of the current forwards I’d prefer that guy is a veteran even if he’s in his final year of eligibility. Add all that up and it fits the description of Caffaro to a T which is why I keep using him as the example.
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A Mahaney to UCSB Gauchos
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Wondering if he’s regretting leaving SMC?
He got paid by UConn though not sure how much so there’s that….but was otherwise a rough year for him and his stock has dropped.
That said, UCSB is one the most desirable programs in the Big West, typically challenging for league titles and tourney bids and has sent a couple of guys to the NBA. Also a beautiful location and top notch degree so he could do worse.
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