It appears that Justin Standley and Jacoby Patton will both redshirt this season, so the fact that they haven't been cleared as of Saturday shouldn't hurt the Aggies. Guard Da'Shawn Gomez was cleared and Menzies hopes B.J. West could be cleared before Friday's practice. It may be a little longer for Bandja Sy.
I spoke with Gordo Castillo for a few minutes over the weekend. Players and coaches always talk about playing together for multiple seasons. This is the second year together for this core group.
"I think it means a lot," Castillo said. "We know how each other plays and we know where that guy is going to be on the floor. We know who will get a rebound and who can make a shot. Everyone is a lot closer."
I also asked Gordo who might surprise us.
"Robert (Lumpkins) has been working hard on his game. He didn't get a whole lot of minutes last year but he is looking to get more and he might surprise some people. A lot of the new guys come in and go hard too. B.J. (West) is long, he grabs rebounds and he can also go out and shoot it."
13 comments:
Thanks for the good stuff, JG. Do keep us apprised of the clearinghouse situation, as it is always interesting here in Aggie Country.
Lumpkins didn't take advantage of the time on the court last year. I always felt like he wasn't giving 90% effort when he played.
Any word on the kid from Africa? Will he be playing preseason?
Thanks
Admittedly Lumpkins style was non-chalant under the glare of Pan Am's bright lights. Surrounded by a big crowd I think he had some butterfies. But he transferred to NMSU with a work ethic. Great attitude. Last year he bought into the 'student' part of the old student-athlete harangue. His GPA consequently benefited. I'm not surprised to hear he's worked on his game over the summer. Maybe he'll use GPA as bargaining power for PT that works better than Pope's bluff. Now Gordo ... there's another humble guy willing to work and who has bought-in. You know he's going to get to his spot on the floor. I suspect that effort is also what Gordo is seeing from RL or he would not mention it. Good to hear!
Lumpkins wasn't given a chance to take advantage of his time on the court. He barely got any PT. It's hard for a guy to go out there and do a whole lot when he hasn't played in 5-6 games straight before that. When Lump was given the chance on the road after Gillenwater was sent home early, he stepped up and delivered. Let's hope he gets his fair chance this year because he is really one of the guys that works on his game all the time.
Lump had a couple of big plays for us in Reno during the regular season.
He(Lump) did have some big plays in Reno. He's got a very nice high arching shot. Plus he's about 6'6 and can shoot over many of the WAC's smaller guards. I think he can be good when its all said and done.
Honestly, I didn't even know Lumpkins was still with the team..lol. I agree with some on here, Lumpkins didn't get enough playing time to prove anything. I think he will do very well if he's given the opportunity to play more.
JG picking up on "before Friday's practice." Any word on a Crimson and White game? I was by the Pan Am ticket office last night and sales folks have not heard. An excited fan base starts with that first day of practice, preferably a Midnight Madness like the other 80% of the country. And an enthusiastic crowd at Crimson & White pumps up the team.
It seems the early season starters are more or less set (I think we all can agree on a five of Laroche/Gibson/Young/West/Rahman), but there will be tons of competition for backup time at the 2-4 positions with Gordo, Lump, Sy, Watson and Gomez. This can only be beneficial in the long run, so long as we nail down a nice 8-9 man rotation come late February.
Anyone who's seen a practice have a comment on the above?
Has B.J West or Bandja Sy been cleared by the NCAA, and do you think West or SY will start at the PF position this season. I know people are talking about Robert Lumpkins playing the PF, but the guy is a guard/wing player. He is not a power forward. We need someone who is going to rebound. We don't need another shooter there.
Was West cleared?
As of Thursday evening, he had not been. Aboulaye Ndoye is cleared but he is maybe one or two weeks away as he recovers from knee surgery.
So no first practice at the Pan to introduce the team to the fans?
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