It's that time of year, folks. Basketball season is just around the corner, and SEC Basketball Media Day has primed the pump for what will be a fantastic year for the League.
I linked below the Mark Fox interview. The two most exciting bits of information for me are that Marcus Thornton is back to form, and that Coach Fox is as high as he is on Brandon Morris. Morris will not step back and rain threes on an opposing team. But that's not what we need. We need a long defender and a person who can take it to the hoop and finish.
Other than those highlights, I'll let the video speak for itself.
Note: Fans may be interested in seeing the other SEC coaches talk about their teams (Auburn scares me). After you watch the Mark Fox interview, the interview with Auburn Coach Tony Barbee follows. Enjoy.
Fox
Showing posts with label Tony Barbee. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Tony Barbee. Show all posts
Friday, October 26, 2012
Tuesday, August 24, 2010
WWW, CAA and the NCAA
Who is this guy, Worldwide Wes, anyway? Why would William Wesley be better known for his nickname than his real name? Who else so closely related to college basketball over the last ten years has had no discernible job, no visible source of income, and no limits on his interaction with coaches, recruits, and NBA players?
More importantly for those of us who follow SEC basketball, what is the relationship between Worldwide Wes and John Calipari? And now that former Calipari assistant coach Tony Barbee is now head coach over at Auburn, what will be the impact of the ongoing ties between Wesley and Barbee?
In other words, since Coach Barbee is apparently represented by Creative Artists Agency (CAA), and Worldwide Wes is apparently a new employee of CAA, would there be any likelihood that Worldwide Wes will now steer the basketball recruits he knows to Auburn? In the words of Barbee, "There are probably some misconceptions out there about the guy, that he is involved with prospects and he funnels players to different schools."
Exactly. Why else would a current head coach at Rutgers be in regular contact with a guy who has no other job?
Come to think of it, why was Mark Fox quoted in the article? I'm pretty sure that Fox doesn't have any relationship with Worldwide Wes, nor with CAA, but I'm not sure. We haven't been in the running for any of the top recruits in the country, that is, other than Kentavious Caldwell. And I doubt that WwW's reaches extend into rural Georgia.
The thought from the article is that now that Wesley has an employment relationship with a sports agency firm, his impact on college basketball recruiting will go down.
I wonder. Will the NCAA really watch what Worldwide Wes is doing, or will he somehow, mysteriously, continue to flit in and out of clinics and coaching circles, based on some NCAA loop-hole?
John Calipari, for one, isn't expecting much of a change. "Who he knows, and the relationships he has, they'll be the same they've been for twenty years."
ha-ha. He really isn't an agent, you know-- he's my uncle.
More importantly for those of us who follow SEC basketball, what is the relationship between Worldwide Wes and John Calipari? And now that former Calipari assistant coach Tony Barbee is now head coach over at Auburn, what will be the impact of the ongoing ties between Wesley and Barbee?
In other words, since Coach Barbee is apparently represented by Creative Artists Agency (CAA), and Worldwide Wes is apparently a new employee of CAA, would there be any likelihood that Worldwide Wes will now steer the basketball recruits he knows to Auburn? In the words of Barbee, "There are probably some misconceptions out there about the guy, that he is involved with prospects and he funnels players to different schools."
Exactly. Why else would a current head coach at Rutgers be in regular contact with a guy who has no other job?
Come to think of it, why was Mark Fox quoted in the article? I'm pretty sure that Fox doesn't have any relationship with Worldwide Wes, nor with CAA, but I'm not sure. We haven't been in the running for any of the top recruits in the country, that is, other than Kentavious Caldwell. And I doubt that WwW's reaches extend into rural Georgia.
The thought from the article is that now that Wesley has an employment relationship with a sports agency firm, his impact on college basketball recruiting will go down.
I wonder. Will the NCAA really watch what Worldwide Wes is doing, or will he somehow, mysteriously, continue to flit in and out of clinics and coaching circles, based on some NCAA loop-hole?
John Calipari, for one, isn't expecting much of a change. "Who he knows, and the relationships he has, they'll be the same they've been for twenty years."
ha-ha. He really isn't an agent, you know-- he's my uncle.
Friday, August 20, 2010
Around the League: Auburn
Everything is shiny and new at Auburn. New, highly rated coach, Tony Barbee. New offense, the John Calipari-style dribble drive. New arena.
Barbee even garnered commitments from new recruits. Chris Denson, a guard that Coach Fox considered for a time. Josh Langford, a wing that was a UGA recruit. Luke Cothron, high-ranked power forward, and Shawn Kemp, Jr., a center from the metro Atlanta area.
The problem is that Cothron and Kemp have apparently failed to qualify.
My take?
The dribble drive offense may be good, but it needs players to make it work. Barbee doesn't have enough of them.
Auburn's roster was thinned considerably by graduation. Frankie Sullivan and Ty Armstrong, returning players on whom Barbee expected to rely, have both been sidelined with knee injuries, and it is doubtful that either one will return to play this year. Barbee could have done some damage with Cothron and Kemp, but without them, he'll have to convince his team to play tough defense and and hope that they shoot very well from the perimeter.
Auburn will struggle. They went 15 and 17 last year, and won just 6 games in the conference. Maintaining that same record would be a success for Barbee.
Barbee even garnered commitments from new recruits. Chris Denson, a guard that Coach Fox considered for a time. Josh Langford, a wing that was a UGA recruit. Luke Cothron, high-ranked power forward, and Shawn Kemp, Jr., a center from the metro Atlanta area.
The problem is that Cothron and Kemp have apparently failed to qualify.
My take?
The dribble drive offense may be good, but it needs players to make it work. Barbee doesn't have enough of them.
Auburn's roster was thinned considerably by graduation. Frankie Sullivan and Ty Armstrong, returning players on whom Barbee expected to rely, have both been sidelined with knee injuries, and it is doubtful that either one will return to play this year. Barbee could have done some damage with Cothron and Kemp, but without them, he'll have to convince his team to play tough defense and and hope that they shoot very well from the perimeter.
Auburn will struggle. They went 15 and 17 last year, and won just 6 games in the conference. Maintaining that same record would be a success for Barbee.
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