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Iowa State's schedule has been soft, but is it a legitimate NCAA tourney team?
-- Hal Ritchie, Des Moines, Iowa
If the Cyclones can stay in the top four in the Big 12, then they will be in the
tournament. Larry Eustachy did an excellent scheduling job by getting enough
wins to keep the Cyclones in the hunt for a bid while also raising their
confidence. Iowa State may not go far in the tournament, but the Cyclones
have scheduled themselves a bid.
You didn't mention Loren Woods when talking about the draft prospect of underclassmen center. Why?
Do you feel he isn't a potential lottery pick? Or even better for me, do you feel he just isn't going to leave school?
The coaches at Arizona continue to tell me that he's staying in school. That
could change, but that's why he isn't on the list. Once he does declare or
finish his eligibility, he is a potential lottery pick.
Hey Andy, who gets your vote for rookie coach of the year?
-- Jacob Rhoades, Seattle
That's a tough call. I'd probably give the nod to Notre Dame's Matt Doherty
or Marquette's Tom Crean. It's still too early for a final decision.
I just read your article concerning your projection of the NBA draft. Two questions, knowing that every draft now has at least a couple of high schoolers, where was your inclusion of Darius Miles? We all know he will probably not qualify for college and wants to go straight to the NBA anyway. Second, do you really feel that Ed Cota is a lottery pick? The way he has performed this year I am questioning if he is even a first-round pick.
-- Roy Mueller, Belleville, Ill.
Miles could go if he doesn't qualify, but I felt it was too early to speculate on his status. He'll probably be added to the list in the coming months. Cota is a potential lottery pick. Scouts love his ability to get the ball in the right place for his teammates to score and his experience. They don't feel like he'll need to go through an extensive learning process. Cota has been taking a lot of heat in e-mails for being on the lottery list, but there are teams that like him.
I was just reading your position rankings for the draft. Personally, I think it's absolutely ridiculous that Troy Murphy was not
listed as one of the top underclassmen. What are your feelings on him as a future NBA player?
Murphy, who is just a sophomore, isn't on the list because he has given no indication that he's leaving school early. The list of underclassmen is for potential draft picks who are considering bolting to the league. If Murphy goes, he'll be a lock for the
lottery.
Do you think St. Bonaventure is having a good season, meaning good
enough to get back to the NCAA Tournament? I see a very balanced scoring
attack and a stingy defense that holds opponents to a low shooting percentage. I'm also wondering why they
are not getting enough press (and a top 25 ranking)?
-- Vincent Yacono, Hauptstuhl, Germany
They're close to getting in the top 25. St. Bonaventure doesn't get the pub
because it's in Olean, N.Y. The Bonnies haven't been on television and that
hurts their national profile. They are a team that could win a game or two
in the tournament.
I greatly enjoy your weekly comments! Your knowledge and insight are impeccable! I do however have one question regarding your list of top pro prospects at the center position. You rank both Joel Przybilla and Stromile Swift as underclassmen with the ability to be drafted this spring. But what about Daniel Gadzuric of UCLA, who was considered a better center in high school than both Swift and Przybilla?
The only difference is that Gadzuric plays for UCLA, a team full of high school All-Americans and therefore is not the focus of his team -- he has to fight for his shots! Swift and Przybilla, on the other hand, are their team's main offensive and defensive threats. How do you compare these three top college centers?
-- Shefton Hazel, Leiden, The Netherlands
No one said Gadzuric is a worse player. But I have seen Dan play a few times
in person and still think he's too raw to make the jump to the NBA. He needs
more games before his game can be considered refined. Swift and Przybilla
have skills that make them closer to being ready for the NBA. Gadzuric may exceed them eventually,
but not yet.
Andy, what are the chances for the WAC getting two or three NCAA
Tournament bids? Without an automatic bid for the WAC (thanks, Mountain
West defectors), would the chances of multiple at-large bids for the WAC be
helped or hurt by not having an automatic NCAA bid?
-- Dan Freer, Winter Park, Fla.
The WAC will likely get two bids: Tulsa and either Fresno State or SMU. But
there's a chance that only Tulsa will earn a bid. An automatic bid would
have helped the WAC earn multiple bids.
I know rankings aren't everything, but would it kill pollsters to put some new blood in the rankings each week? To me, N.C. State (12-2, 3-1) is the third best team in the ACC and they are not ranked. St. Bonaventure (12-2, 4-0) knocks off a highly touted Temple team and is not ranked. Kent (12-2, 4-1) has a very high RPI and is not ranked. Meanwhile Kentucky has five losses and North Carolina and Illinois have six, yet they remain in the top 25. What gives?
-- Dave Nichols, Rensselaer, NY
You're right. St. Bonaventure, N.C. State and Kent deserve some mention. I'm all for more teams in the polls. Get North Carolina out of there. UCLA didn't deserve to be in there the previous weeks. Maryland had no business being in the poll.
Who will Steve Fisher sign at San Diego State with his two or three remaining
scholarships?
-- Don Koch, Simi Valley, Calif.
He's trying to land point guard Kenny Brunner (formerly of Georgetown and
now at College of Southern Idaho)and forward Randy Holcomb (formerly at
Fresno State and now at Los Angeles City College). The Aztecs already signed
the latest college prospect in the Walton family, Chris. He's a 6-foot-8, 215-pound forward.
My question concerns the Siena Saints. I understand that their efforts
have been underscored by their losses on the national level to such teams as
Notre Dame and Rutgers. But with a 10-4 record, how come they don't get the
respect that teams with just as good records get playing with probably a
worse strength of schedule than the Saints?
-- Brendan Houlton, Albany, N.Y.
Siena plays in the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference. That's why a 10-4 Siena team doesn't get the same due as a 10-4 ACC team. Whether it's fair or not, that's the reality. Siena didn't do itself any favors by going 0-2 in the ECAC Tournament in New York. The Saints may well win a tournament game, but they won't win any more fans during the regular season if they don't
have a gaudy record.
Andy Katz is a senior writer at ESPN.com.
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