the rag doesn't say why...http://www.orlandosentinel.com/spor...d/os-brandon-goodwin-ucf-basketball-post.html
Brandon Goodwin leaving UCF
- Thread starter DJ Gonzo
- Start date
Clearly our basketball program has a problem....
Donnie needs to show improvement or it should be his last year in charge....if needed, I believe GOL will make that happen....
This is not good. Brandon was one of the Bright spots. Donnie is on the hot seat already (unofficially). WTF is going on. This can only be bad. Geeze, here we go. I hope this year isn't another embarrassment :-(
Probably as simple as wanting more playing time. BJ is going to get the majority of mins at PG. He did improve a ton from his freshman year though. He was a fun player to watch.
Well, in that case, maybe he should go. I don't want UCF to be like Florida's so-called "Big Three" and look the other way when it comes to criminal activity.
I wondered about that. There will be more depth and size at the guard positions this coming season, no doubt. Looking forward to seeing guys like McSpadden and Davis (the Tennessee transfer) in action. Plus, Matt Williams will be back from injury, which is another boost for us at the guard positions.
No, I mean I want our coaches to set a high standard for how to conduct yourself off the field. I'm not saying everyone who commits a crime should automatically be kicked off; as the cliche goes, "the punishment should fit the crime." But I don't want to have an embarrassing "Publix crab legs" story to happen here like the one we've heard plenty about at FSU. We've had enough trouble with the Plancher situation and the NCAA taking scholarships away. Let's not keep the wrong players around who will cause more problems.
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Except that everyone is older and you add a 6'9" small forward. There is also more depth. 2nd unit is McSpadden, Williams, Efianayi, Davis and Brown. I can see non stop trapping with that 10.
Exactly. We had no depth and played 2 true freshmen almost the whole game. We might not be ncaa caliber yet, but we should see a better level of basketball.
Sorry but Tacko, despite his height, won't play a role (if at all), until his senior year.
I'm not saying he's going to come in and light the world on fire but I completely disagree with him not playing a role until his senior year. No team would recruit a guy that wouldn't do anything for 3 years.
Geez.., if he's a thief why are we even debating this?? Goodbye!!!! Bicycles, computers, crab legs, clothes, who the heck cares. If he did steal a bicycle then he's not a quality student athlete. He's a criminal. I guess some will just pass this off as it was just a mistake or he's just a kid. Good riddens!
Sometimes you have to send a message. It may save another kid later. Sad that he effed it up.
Hopefully he gets another chance some where else. and gets his degree.
Hopefully he gets another chance some where else. and gets his degree.
He looks good when hes posting up and guardi g guys that are 6-4...but when someone is 6-8 or taller and athletic, they eat him alive...he can block shots and get rebounds, but offense wont be workable for first year at least.He looks good but High School vs College is another world
I agree Pitt. He's very skinny with no weight. He's nowhere near a shaq. I mean I could be wrong, one never knows. Maybe they can turn him around BUT!...Donnie and crew can't teach Big Man Justin McBride so what makes me think they can work some magic on Tacko.
He's not Shaq?? Setting the bar a little high aren't we? He's not rail thin like Manute Bol is either. I'd rather have him come in needing to bulk up a little than needing drop 50 lbs like McBride needs to do. McBride's issues are all his weight and conditioning, not coaching. I don't think anyone is expecting Tacko to come in and be a dominant scorer, but if he can come in and block shots and rebound and develop some kind of offensive moves he'll be a good addition. There's no way of telling right now how he'll pan out, but there's no reason to think he'll be a bust yet either.
Losing Goodwin definitely hurts. Even if he wasn't going to be a starter, I think there were plenty of minutes available for him. He's shown a lot more than Walker the last two years and there's no way of knowing what we'll get out of McSpadden until he starts playing real games. For a team that had very little experience last year, we'll losing a lot of it in losing Goodwin. Depth is what killed us last year and now this hurts our depth for this year. Puts a lot of pressure on BJ to play a lot of minutes.
You probably meant AJ Davis right? (Not Shaheed Davis?)
AJ, transfer F from Tennessee who sat out last year, certainly has potential...but it will probably take him awhile to feel comfortable...since he didn't play much at Tennessee...then didn't play at all last year (except practice).
No clue if Blair/McBride will start together...as AJ might play the 4...as Donnie has multiple options for the 3 such as Henriquez (If McSpadden comes in relief at the point and BJ moves over to the 2 or Brown, Williams or Efianayi).
Good news, UCF's front court has options (Blair, McBride, both Davis', Tacko, Brown, even Efianyi.
I know losing Brandon Goodwin is a shock and at first I was upset because he's our 3rd best player from last year. But after some thinking, he isn't as important as I first thought. Kasey Wilson will be missed just about as much. Let's compare their stats:
BG- 10.2pts, .437FG%, .262 3pt%, .607 FT%, 3.9reb, 4.2ast, 1.2stl, .1blk, 2.9TO, (247 FGA)
KW- 7.8pts, .415FG%, .329 3pt%, .677 FT%, 4.9reb, 1.0ast, 0.4stl, .6blk, 1.4TO, (188 FGA)
Brandon scored more (most likely because he created his shot or went to the rim) but he only scored more because he shot a lot more. Kasey was a better shooter from 3 and FT line. Brandon had more assist and lead the team, but that was his job. Because of his role, he also had almost twice as many turnovers as any other player on the team (88 and next was 47).
After comparing him to Kasey (who was disappointing last year) I don't feel worried about losing Brandon. He was a VERY good role player, but he wasn't a star. He was on par with Kasey's stats which is a 2nd tier UCF player from last year. We have quite a few 2nd tier players
The truth is, we had 2 players that showed star potential consistently last year (tier 1). It's fantastic that they are both freshman and we will keep improving over the next 3 years.
Perspective! Almost every school has turnover each year. I was surprised to see no transfers for so long for us. It's bound to happen. I'm thankful that we kept our 2 top players (I remember losing Marcus Jordan, that was a surprise and that hurt our team greatly).
Last year we were young: 1.1 years of experience
Relatively short- 6'5 avg height
This year we will be taller and older which both help tremendously in the game of basketball.
BG- 10.2pts, .437FG%, .262 3pt%, .607 FT%, 3.9reb, 4.2ast, 1.2stl, .1blk, 2.9TO, (247 FGA)
KW- 7.8pts, .415FG%, .329 3pt%, .677 FT%, 4.9reb, 1.0ast, 0.4stl, .6blk, 1.4TO, (188 FGA)
Brandon scored more (most likely because he created his shot or went to the rim) but he only scored more because he shot a lot more. Kasey was a better shooter from 3 and FT line. Brandon had more assist and lead the team, but that was his job. Because of his role, he also had almost twice as many turnovers as any other player on the team (88 and next was 47).
After comparing him to Kasey (who was disappointing last year) I don't feel worried about losing Brandon. He was a VERY good role player, but he wasn't a star. He was on par with Kasey's stats which is a 2nd tier UCF player from last year. We have quite a few 2nd tier players
The truth is, we had 2 players that showed star potential consistently last year (tier 1). It's fantastic that they are both freshman and we will keep improving over the next 3 years.
Perspective! Almost every school has turnover each year. I was surprised to see no transfers for so long for us. It's bound to happen. I'm thankful that we kept our 2 top players (I remember losing Marcus Jordan, that was a surprise and that hurt our team greatly).
Last year we were young: 1.1 years of experience
Relatively short- 6'5 avg height
This year we will be taller and older which both help tremendously in the game of basketball.
That's where UCF will need his help during his Freshmen year...as UCF was last in the AAC during conf games in defensive rebounding while UCF was just 7th out of 11 in offensive rebounding.
The previous year, UCF was #1 in offensive rebounding and #4 in defensive rebounding (much to the credit of Sykes).
UCF was also 7th in AAC Conf Game blocked shots...so having Tacko play 10-15 mins a game...that should easily add probably 2 more blocked shots per game...but more importantly, stop some smaller guards or even 3's or low post dishes from even taking place...just do to Tacko's presence.
Actually, Tacko (without even an off-season of weight training at college level) actually has ok upper body strength for a true freshmen...and should only grow stronger in the coming years.
Donnie and staff seemed to have done a very good job with Blair (Clanton too), and McBride, who's injury prior to the start of this freshmen year that really set him back, has showed flashes of success and certainly (especially at the time of UCF sanctions) was worth the scholarship offer/risk.
Also Donnie and basically the same staff did a GREAT job with Whiteside while at Marshall...as Whiteside blocked 182 shots in just 34 games as a true Freshmen.
Obviously Whiteside and virtually every other incoming Freshmen this season have all been playing organized basketball longer (much longer for most) than Tacko...but Tacko has improved immensely and odds are, he will only continue to imporve in the coming years.
No where near Shaq? Really? How many other college players (especially the ones UCF had a shot to sign) were anywhere near "Shaq's" talent/success?
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That's where 6'4" Point Guard McSpadden can get valuable playing time too. (Heck, Walker is serviceable back-up point guard...as he is one of the best 3 pt shooters on the team: 40% in conf play last year compared to just 27% by Goodwin, which was an improvement by Brandon vs his 22% as a Freshmen).
As another post also pointed out, UCF will be much longer at most positions...as last year, UCF had a very short backcourt (Brandon and BJ).
