JGKoblenz

USA Team:

Ben Gordon (Connecticut), Ricky Paulding (Missouri), Andre Barrett (Seton Hall), Chris Hill (Michigan State), Luke Jackson (Oregon), Brandon Mouton (Texas) e Blake Stepp (Gonzaga)
Josh Childress (Stanford), Ike Diogu (Arizona State) e Chuck Hayes (Kentucky)
Emeka Okafor (Connecticut) e Arthur Johnson (Missouri)

Since you guys follow College basketball, maybe you can tell me how good this team is or who is the player to keep an eye on. Any help is appreciate.

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JGKoblenz

No one?

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allenive21

Well it's hard to tell who is going to be playing a lot, the roster looks pretty solid right now as is. Ricky Paulding of Missouri can be the best player on the court at times but he is inconsistent plus he is in a little bit of trouble right now with the law, I don't know if he will be playing. Arthur Johnson of Missouri is a very big post player. He is only 6'9 but he has a very wide frame and is very physical. Emeka Okafor of Connecticut can be compared to Ben Wallace, he is a defensive beast and has some offensive game but limited. Chris Hill of Michigan State is an experienced player that can play the 1 or the 2 spot and he can really shoot. That's just a few I know some tidbits about.

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JGKoblenz

Thanks a lot allenive. I appreciate the info.

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TM

I'll add a little to what allenive21 said...

IMO, Okafor's the best on that team, but I wouldn't be surprised to see one of the lesser names shine... Blake Stepp is an incredible shooter. Kind of like former Zag Dan Dickau (probably isn't as good running the show, but...). I'm on the East coast, but I saw a few of his games, and he was unbelievable. Much of their success last year was because of him. He can be streaky but still fun to watch... Andre Barret does amazing things with the ball. He's a great passer/dribble and should be a good fit on this team... Ike Diogu is another big man to watch. He's a lot like Okafor. Maybe not as skilled, but he's a solid... Izzo did a fine job assembling that team. I would have liked to see SU's Hakim Warrick, but that's just my opinion.

rocketeer

well, that's some of the best college players. gordon can play pg or sg and can dominate on offense. he has a good shot and can create for himself and others. paulding is another scorer/shooter. barrett is a pg who is more of a slasher than a shooter. hill can play pg or sg and is a good option on offense. jackson is a sf who is a good shooter. mouton can play 2-3 and is a pretty good shooter but can drive too. stepp is a pg and i think can play some sg. i don't know a lot about childress. diogu is good in the post and rebounding. okafor is the preseason pick for player of the year. he is a great rebounder, now he has a good post offensive game, and can dominate with his shot blocking. arthur johnson is a beast in the middle.

pretty much, whoever gets the most minutes and most shots, is the guy to keep and eye on. okafor is the only guy who can really dominate on defense, but everyone is good on offense.

JGKoblenz

Well, it seems that this team will be hard to beat. They sure have enough talent, but lack of trainning together and the youth might hold them a little. I hope they show some bball games on TV, here in Brazil.

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rocketeer

well, they only really have one true pg on the team(barrett). stepp, gordon, and hill can all play some point but they are really combo guards. so that might be a weakness.

IAMGREAT

Ricky Paulding isn't that good, very athletic but can't dribble, OK shot. The big guys are pretty good, all of them. Chris Hill and Brandon Mouton surprise me by being on that team, they aren't good. Ben Gordon should be the best player on the team. Andre Barett should start at the point.

pharcyde

First of all, IAMGREAT is a moron. Rickey Paulding dropped 36 on Dwyane Wade and Marquette in last year's tourney (and that included 9-15 from three.... can't shoot ). His handle isn't great, but who needs to penetrate when you're 6-5 with a 40 inch vert and can just shoot over everybody? And when RP does attack the rim he tears it down.

And I'd like to point out that Rickey Paulding has NEVER been anything but a model citizen at Mizzou. Ricky Clemons got into trouble, but it had absolutely nothing at all to do with Paulding. If you don't know the facts, don't pretend that you do (only I'm allowed to do that ).

As for Arthur Johnson, he's been tearing up Okafor on offense. Okafor's the best post defender in the country (at least according to just about everyone and their mom), yet AJ reportedly has little trouble against him.

The US team will be thin in the post with only 4 true post players (I think, but could be wrong on the exact number). They also might have some trouble at the point position. They've got a lot of guys who could run the point, but only Barrett's really a true point, and he's about 5-8. Stepp, Hill and Gordon are all very good players, but they're not distributers, either, they're scorers.

Chris Hill (Notre Dame) and Jameer Nelson (St. Joes) both got cheated out of an opportunity to play for their country. Because of a stupid rule, since they declared for the draft they can't play, even though they withdrew their names and are still elligible for college play. Two of the best college point guards weren't even allowed to try out. And Felton decided to take summer school instead. I just hope Barrett's able to play well, because if not, the good wings and post players might be a little wasted on offense.

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