This team is a Final Four contender. Look at this roster.
PG/SG Melvin Goins
SG/SF Scotty Hopson (HS AA)
SG/SF Cameron Tatum
PG/SG/SF/PF Tobias Harris (HS AA)
PF/C Brian Williams
And our impressive depth:
Josh Bone
Kenny Hall
Trae Golden
Renaldo Woolridge
Skylar McBee
Jordan McRae
Steven Pearl (Bruce Pearl's son)
Tyler Summit (Pat Summit's son)
1st place. Kentucky is young, and eventually going to have sanctions that haunt them for a long time, and Florida can't compete. Tobias Harris is the best player in the SEC.
Florida can't compete? They return their entire starting lineup and add a guy just as good as Harris in Patric Young.
Plus, there's not much chance their scumbag coach will be fired anytime soon, which gives them a leg up on Tennessee.
The Vols should be pretty good- I think I had them 19th in my Top 25- but I'd slow down on putting them head and shoulders above Kentucky or Florida. Third place in the SEC East won't be anything to be ashamed of.
If you have everyone back from a tournament team and you add an impact freshman, you're in pretty good shape. Tennessee has some major holes to fill. But you're right, I overstated it when I said Young is as good as Harris. I do think he'll have a major impact, however, in adding an element of physicality to Florida's frontcourt.
I'm not saying UT can't be as good as Florida. They certainly could. But to say Florida can't compete like the other guy said is just dumb.
Bruce said this team has a 12 man rotation this season. This is a Final Four caliber team, anything less should miss expectations.
Btw, Bruce Pearl is not going to get fired, that is not going to happen. Caliparri's sanction track record is way worse, and he gets no flack whatsoever.
Bruce said this team has a 12 man rotation this season. This is a Final Four caliber team, anything less should miss expectations.
Btw, Bruce Pearl is not going to get fired, that is not going to happen. Caliparri's sanction track record is way worse, and he gets no flack whatsoever.
No flack from Kentucky administration or from college basketball fans? Because Calipari gets plenty of flack from non-Kentucky fans.
And anything short of a Final Four would miss expectations? Do you not realize how damn difficult it is to make it to the Final Four? No one is going to even consider Tennessee a top 8-10 team in the preseason, yet you're saying anything less than a Final Four would miss expectations? Really?
No flack from Kentucky administration or from college basketball fans? Because Calipari gets plenty of flack from non-Kentucky fans.
And anything short of a Final Four would miss expectations? Do you not realize how damn difficult it is to make it to the Final Four? No one is going to even consider Tennessee a top 8-10 team in the preseason, yet you're saying anything less than a Final Four would miss expectations? Really?
My sentiments exactly. There are exactly two teams in college basketball, with Robbie Hummel out that will deserve to be disappointed if they miss the Final Four: Duke and Michigan State. And even they have their question marks.
Oh, and any coach who says he's going to play a 12-man rotation is full of shit, which, of course, Bruce Pearl is.
My sentiments exactly. There are exactly two teams in college basketball, with Robbie Hummel out that will deserve to be disappointed if they miss the Final Four: Duke and Michigan State. And even they have their question marks.
Oh, and any coach who says he's going to play a 12-man rotation is full of shit, which, of course, Bruce Pearl is.
Tennessee will play a 12 man rotation for maybe the first 5 or 6 non-conference games while he tries to find 8 or 9 guys to be in the regular rotation. Not only that, but you can't play a 12 man rotation for an entire season and expect to make a Fina Four run. Playing 12 men means you're not allowing many of your players to get in a rhythm and risking ever getting any kind of fluidity and chemistry with a set 7 or 8 guys.
The last few years Roy Williams has tried to please too many of his players and gone with a 10 or 11 man rotation for way too long in the season. His best teams at UNC never went more than 7 or 8 deep unless someone got in serious foul trouble. Bruce Pearl may be s cheater but I would like to think even he has the brains to know that getting a 12 man rotation to successfully work over the course of a season is nearly impossible.
Tennessee Vols Basketball 2011 Season
