Chat Mizzou sports with Dave Matter at 11 a.m. Tuesday
Bring your Tigers football, basketball and recruiting questions, and talk to Mizzou beat writer Dave Matter in a live chat at 11 a.m. Tuesday.
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I'm probably going to butcher this question, so please bear with me and hopefully you can connect the dots. Isn't there a rule on the books that ties graduation rates, scholarships available, and potential roster sizes?. I think Mizzou faced some sanctions regarding this a few years ago... Maybe at the end of Kim Anderson's reign?. How does this factor into the wild west of players transferring in/out of programs now? -
The Academic Progress Rate. It's calculated by a four-year running rate that's based on athletes being on pace to earn their degree. If you lose players to transfer or the NBA, you're not hurt as long as they leave in solid academic standing. The NCAA expects to relax some of those standards this year because of the influx of transfers as a result of the eligibility changes related to the pandemic. Mizzou's in good shape now with its four-year average. Braun and Smith's departures shouldn't hurt them in any way. If Pinson wants to be eligible at his next school then he'll have to leave MU in good academic standing. -
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Kobe Brown is a legit four. He can play inside. He's nothing close to a traditional center, but you can go small at times with him as your big. Not long stretches every game, but if Justin Smith can be Arkansas' lone big on the floor, Mizzou can do something similar with Brown.Otherwise, yes, MU should look for another big. I mentioned a few earlier in the chat.
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I find CM's approach to building a basketball program "interesting".
Not sure why he wouldn't solicit the return of any of the seniors? He knows what he has coming in, five freshmen with no college experience and yet he says it's time for the seniors to move on. And one of them, Mark Smith will continue to play for K-State! Smith didn't have a great past season, but he has been a good shooter and is experienced. I would think a returning Smith would be better than the unknown? I understand Tillmon leaving he has a child and needs to start making money, but has CM even checked with Dru Smith?
This approach sure seems to put much pressure and stress on the transfer market and seems odd in nature. Has CM forgotten he was hired to win basketball games? -
Dru Smith made it very clear late in the year he was done with college hoops. Remember, this is his fifth year of college. He's already had multiple injuries before he came to Mizzou - and he has a thumb/wrist injury that's going to require surgery. He wants to give the pros a shot. A sixth year on a college campus playing for free isn't the answer he's looking for. The pros covet youth and upside. Dru isn't getting any younger. He's already 23. There's no sense in putting off a pro career until he's 24. There are NBA players four and five years younger than him. Plus, he's getting married this summer.As for Mark Smith, what value would he bring this team next year? He's a shooter who this past season struggled to consistently make 3s. I'd argue Mizzou is better off going young and seeing what they have in the newcomers. Smith's return blocks their development - because he's not coming back to sit on the bench.
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I'd take Chase, but Blaine has carved out a nice lucrative career even though he never established himself as an NFL starter. He's 31 and still draws interest from NFL teams. He's a free agent this year but seems have a good thing with Bruce Arians. I wouldn't be surprised if the champs re-sign him to a one-year deal.I don't like throwing out the term bust. Had he gone to a more functional franchise out of college, maybe Gabbert has a better NFL career. But put it this way: He and his new bride won't have to take out loans for their kids' college tuition. That's the mark of success.
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To recap, Badie played at 182 last year. Got up to 197 for spring practices, then got even heavier at around 203. He told the coaches that was too heavy and he felt better in the mid 190s. Either way, he has to find the sweet spot where he's strong enough to take absorb contact in the trenches but light and quick enough so he doesn't sacrifice his true strength, being a playmaker in the open field as a receiver or outside runner. He's got so much upside as a difference-maker in this league. But he's not a 15-carry-a-game kind of back. I think that much of a workload could work against his strengths as a multipurpose weapon.
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It sure sounds like Nets assistant coach and former UT guard Royal Ivey is a strong candidate.Personally, I'd start with John Calipari. He'd bring in elite NBA talent. No doubt. I also think he's a better coach/motivator than he gets credit for. Not every player is built for his style, but he knows how to press buttons and his teams almost always improve over the course of a season. Kentucky fans are getting restless, and maybe he's lost his fastball some, but he could reset somewhat at a place like Texas that's ideal for his outsized personality.Otherwise, Chris Beard makes a ton of sense and would be a great hire.I'm a big fan of Kyle Keller at Stephen F. Austin. Another big personality. He plays a fun and exciting style. He's due for a high-major job.
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A ton? Not sure about that. In the last five recruiting classes (2017-21), the state produced 56 Power 5 signees per Rivals.com, but only seven four-star players - with five coming from one class. Of those 56, 48 signed with Iowa or Iowa State. That's 86 percent. So, most three-star kids in the state stay home - and I'd venture to guess most of them don't have a lot of appealing Power 5 offers outside of the two in-state schools.That said, Mizzou special teams coordinator is an Iowa guy and recruits the state. I just don't think it makes a lot of sense for MU to invest a lot of time and money on Iowa recruits.
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He'll end up at a Power 5 program, but there's some obvious baggage there. Whether it's fair or unfair to measure him by his blow-up back in December, the fact that it happened on live TV during a huge nonconference game and then generated a lot of attention at the nation's No. 1 fishbowl program, I understand why coaches might stay away. Plus, he's not the kind of player you plug in and get immediate results. Is he an undersized forward or a bigger wing? If he's a bigger wing then he's a wing that's not much of a perimeter shooter.
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I know this is a cynical take, but it kills me to see a guy like Kelvin Sampson in the Final Four. He's a serial offender who keeps getting opportunities. Players make mistakes in the recruiting process and get punished in draconian measure, but Sampson had to violate rules hundreds of times before he finally had to be punished (and how many "accidental" screwups did Quinn Snyder have on the recruiting trail at Mizzou?). It's getting harder and harder for me to reconcile the hypocrisy and inequality in revenue college sports.