Gottfried strikes again — lands potential starting senior point guard

11-12 Basketball Basketball Recruiting68

NC State may have evolved from 2011-2012 ‘also ran’ to NCAA Tournament material in Mark Gottfried’s one short month on the job.

Earlier this week, the new Wolfpack coaching staff pulled a surprise when they landed European power forward Thomas de Thaey over Washington and Wake Forest. (please click this link) De Thaey is 235 pounds and 6 feet 8 inches; he is expected to bring some toughness and versatility to the Wolfpack’s front court roster. We think his game will fit nicely into (what we expect to see from) the UCLA high-post offense. He averaged 18.4 points for the Belgium under-20 National Team and should be more physically and emotionally mature than most freshmen due to his age.

Today, NC State picked up a player to plug the most glaring hole on NC State’s roster — starting point guard — when Cal State Bakersfield’s starting point guard, Alex Johnson, announced his intentions to transfer to west Raleigh. Because he already has his undergraduate degree, Johnson can play immediately for NC State while he pursues a post-graduate degree.

You can click here for more on Johnson and a video.

Johnson…was the Roadrunners starting point guard last season. He averaged 13 pts and 2.4 assists while only turning the ball over an average 2 times per game (31 min. per game). Forced to take a redshirt season thanks to an unfortunate ACL injury, Johnson took care of all his required school work and received his diploma…

While only standing at 5’10 Johnson has shown the ability to make plays. He’s a heady point guard with ACC quicks and the ability to defend. Most importantly, however, is his experience. Without having to go through the growing pains of a young freshman, NC State could have the luxury of slotting in seasoned point guard who has already proven he can get it done at the college level. The only thing he’d need to get acclimated with would be his new teammates and a different system.

Johnson made a team-high 79 3-pointers and ended his career #2 on the all-time list of made three pointers (165) in school history. PackPride.com tweeted this afternoon that Scott Wood made 72 3-pointers last year (for comparison).

If Johnson can contribute as expected, NC State’s projected starting line-up for the 2011-2012 is adequate to position the Pack for a shot at an NCAA Tournament bubble bid; but inexperienced depth – particularly in the backcourt – could prove a fatal achilles heel unless one of the three freshmen can surprise and provide the roster an unexpected boost.

A starting line-up of Johnson, Lorenzo Brown, Scott Wood, CJ Leslie and Richard Howell talented, versatile and athletic. Supplementing these five with CJ Williams, DeShawn Painter and Jordan Vandenberg gives State at least eight players that have major college experience.

The following is a quick look at NC State’s current and projected roster for the coming years:

Senior Class
(1) CJ Williams (Wing)
(13) Alex Johnson (PG)

Junior Class
(2) Scott Wood (Wing)
(3) Richard Howell (PF)
(4) Jordan Vandenberg (C)
(5) DeShawn Painter (PF/C)

Sophomore Class
(6) Lorenzo Brown (PG/SG)
(7) CJ Leslie (SF/PF)

Freshman Class
(8) Tyler Harris (F)
(9) Jaquan Raymond (G)
(10) Thomas de Thaey (PF)

2012 Commits
(11) Tyler Lewis (PG)
(12) Torian Graham (SG)
(13) Departure of Alex Johnson
(1) Departure of CJ Williams

2013 Commits
(2) Departure of Scott Wood (Wing)
(3) Departure of Richard Howell (PF)
(4) Departure of Jordan Vandenberg (C)
(5) Departure of DeShawn Painter (PF/C)

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11-12 Basketball Basketball Recruiting

68 Responses to Gottfried strikes again — lands potential starting senior point guard

  1. coach13 05/23/2011 at 8:16 AM #

    I think this guy being a Senior and not taking a scholly for more than 1 year makes him a great pick up.. Gottfried also seems to be putting some emphasis on guys that can be a long range threat as well. Nice job.

  2. Rick 05/23/2011 at 8:32 AM #

    “BJD95. Sounds like you are coming around on the coaching hire. Just don’t know why so negatives on next year team. Even if we had kept Sydney, I think we would have been a NCAA team”

    Great to know Sydney (SIC) would have finally done better than 8th place. Snort

  3. Bubba 05/23/2011 at 8:38 AM #

    Huge insurance policy for a Zo injury.Hopefully, BC,Wake,Ga Tech,Virginia,Virginia Tech, and Maryland will suck so bad that we may very well sneak into the NIT this year.

    Serious question, has there ever been 6-7 ACC teams this bad in the same year?

  4. newt 05/23/2011 at 9:14 AM #

    I’m happy with everthing Gott has done, but the general assessment in these pages of Johnson’s impact on the team is extremely optimistic in my view. I do think he adds another option at either guard that should be able to limit turnovers.

  5. PackMan97 05/23/2011 at 9:33 AM #

    A few corrections to other posters….

    @TeufelWolf – He took a redshirt due to an ACL tear his junior season. This is his 5th year of eligibility.

    @travelwolf – Word on Uchebo is that academics are an issue and he’s headed to junior college. Whether he still wanted to play at State or not, there was no choice to be made.

  6. tann84 05/23/2011 at 10:00 AM #

    Nice pick up. Still wanna see games played before I get too excited. I like the coach, I’ll be behind him once we start winning. 🙂

  7. ryebread 05/23/2011 at 10:20 AM #

    Very nice pick up — super low risk in an area of great need. Even if he doesn’t play a minute, he’ll give us emergency depth. I actually think he’ll get about 1/2 the minutes at the point, but we’ll see.

    With the weakness of the ACC and our late additions, we may have enough talent to sneak into the tournament. The team will need to develop into a cohesive unit quickly and we will need to perform well in the non-conference schedule, but there’s a chance that it could happen. Three to four non-conference losses won’t cut it though. We’re going to need 2 or fewer to get a break on an 8-8 kind of year in conference. Like this past season, the league won’t be pulling any marginal teams up and off the bubble.

  8. BJD95 05/23/2011 at 10:26 AM #

    We are still very low on “bodies,” don’t have much skill (note I didn’t say “athleticism” I said “skill”) in the lowpost, and very little depth at guard. It would also be foolish to expect this disjointed, chemistry-free bunch to magically transform over one offseason.

    In short, we will likely be better than last year – but that squad was nowhere close to NCAAT caliber. Being an NIT team would represent substantial, almost dramatic improvement.

    But don’t miss the forest for the trees – laying a foundation for the future is way more important than next year’s record. That saying about breaking eggs to make an omelette, etc.

    I take a wait and see attitude on the new coaching staff. It’s not their fault how DY screwed the pooch during the search and had a pity party in the last two days of it.

  9. BJD95 05/23/2011 at 10:31 AM #

    Another factor – 8-8 will mean nothing to the selection committee. The league’s strength took a dive because of Wake’s putrid RPI. And next year, there will be two such teams (Wake again and BC, who I read will only return two scholarship players, neither of whom I’ve ever heard of). 8-8 would probably put us on the NIT bubble.

  10. VaWolf82 05/23/2011 at 11:15 AM #

    It is harder to make the NCAAT in a weak conference than in a strong one. In fact, VT has proven than 10-6 can mean nothing to the selection committee.

  11. PackMan97 05/23/2011 at 11:41 AM #

    Gottfried upgrading THIS years schedule will do nothing but help us in the very fortunate event we are on the bubble.

    Not to mention he is sending a message to the team to bust their tails this summer because he doesn’t plan on rebuilding or taking very long to be a good team. Something tells me this staff wants to win and wants to win right now.

    How successful will they be? I have no idea but I am enjoying the effort and results they are showing so far.

  12. Prowling Woofie 05/23/2011 at 11:55 AM #

    This is a staff of former head coaches – they know what happens if they lose, and I’m sure none of them is aiming for that…

    I’ve been impressed with their efforts thus far – they seem to have a game plan and are pursuing it, which is more than can be said of the previous crew. I’ve heard of/seen more recruiting activity out of this bunch than I can remember hearing about in prior years.

    Not saying they’re a lock for the NCAA’s this season, but I’m looking forward to seeing a more disciplined, fundamentally sound team on the floor than we’ve been accustomed to seeing lately.

    I am expecting that difficiencies will be worked on and minimized – if not eliminated – as the season progresses, because I think we have coaches on this staff, not just suits.

  13. PackMan97 05/23/2011 at 12:21 PM #

    Prowling, my comment was merely to say that they aren’t taking the approach that we’ll win when we get “my guys” in here, or we’ll win when folks get a year or two experience in the system. They are setting their sights high. I’m certain that they want the fans to be cautious in their expectations and the material they have to work with is extremely raw and the process could take time…that said, they aren’t letting the grass grow under the feet. They are going out and getting it done.

  14. VaWolf82 05/23/2011 at 12:43 PM #

    Gottfried upgrading THIS years schedule will do nothing but help us in the very fortunate event we are on the bubble.

    Upgrading the schedule will hopefully give State more Top-50 teams to play. But what matters is who you beat, not just who you play.

  15. PackMan97 05/23/2011 at 12:45 PM #

    VaWolf, tough to beat them, if you don’t play them.

  16. VaWolf82 05/23/2011 at 12:55 PM #

    Miss the point much?

    The schedule can’t help State in and of itself. At best, next year’s team will have a few more chances at big wins. What they do with those chances will determine what side of the bubble they land on.

    BJD and I are not known for our optimism. But what’s funny is that we differ on both of next year’s teams. He’s more optimistic about FB than I am and I appear to be a little more optimistic about BB than he is.

  17. 61Packer 05/23/2011 at 1:05 PM #

    I think an 8-8 ACC record next season WILL carry some weight to the NCAAT committee. We’ve got 3 new coaches in the league, which will benefit us, Miami and GT. Maryland, UVA and BC may lack NCAAT firepower, but they’ve got good, proven coaches and will be tough at home. UNC and Duke, along with Clemson and VT should all make the NCAAT. FSU, maybe. WF’s continuing Fowler-like mistake will help us because we play the Deacs twice.

    The ACC will be better because for the first time in a long time, we’ve got more good coaches than mediocre and bad ones. ACC wins in Miami, Atlanta and (yes) Raleigh cannot be taken for granted anymore.

    I’m beginning to believe that not only are we going to finish at least 8-8, but that we may even avoid the dreaded Thursday game in Charlotte next March. Our ship may be coming in……

  18. Rick 05/23/2011 at 1:07 PM #

    “I think an 8-8 ACC record next season WILL carry some weight to the NCAAT committee. We’ve got 3 new coaches in the league, which will benefit us, Miami and GT. Maryland, UVA and BC may lack NCAAT firepower, but they’ve got good, proven coaches and will be tough at home”

    It is all about wins. We need them and the ACC needs them. Good coaches should improve the league but the committee could care less about who the coaches are.

  19. PoppaJohn 05/23/2011 at 1:12 PM #

    Why are we so enamored of Lo playing point?
    If the reason is only, “who else is there?” then I get that, and don’t disagree. With no other options, he’s the guy. And he played some point last year and did okay.

    But we do have at least one point guard coming in next year with pretty good creds, don’t we want to start handing the reigns off to him as soon as he can handle it? And now we have a kid coming in this year with 3 years experience as a D1 PG, triple what anyone else has on our team. I think we should look to him first.

    Wouldn’t the ideal scenario be PG by committee, with AJ and maybe even Jaquan taking as much of it as possible, knowing Lo will probably still have it some? I think (just like last year) we want Lo on the floor as much as possible without wearing him out at PG.

    I think we want Lo, Scott, CJL & Richard on the court as much as possible to have a chance to be successful. And I think the best way to make that happen is to try to get AJ at the point.

    BUT … it’s all speculation until we see them on the court in the fall. But isn’t this fun?

  20. ryebread 05/23/2011 at 2:43 PM #

    BJD: I know you’re pessimistic/realistic and I think I am as well. I’ve watched NC State basketball in person every year since the early 90s. For most of those teams, I’ve been able to get a fairly accurate read on where they’d end up based on what I saw in the red and white game.

    Last year’s team was talented. They should have made the NCAAs with even an average ACC caliber coach. They were young so coaching was even more important. They had a stretch goal of a Sweet 16. My definition of a stretch goal is the actual definition of a stretch goal — one that happens if the team fully maximizes their potential and everything breaks their way. I also thought they’d be much tougher in March than they were in December and should have been a team that people feared in March.

    What we saw was an abject failure in coaching paired with some bad luck on the TS injury. Even with TS out, with as weak as the ACC was, we should have been able to pull enough wins together in league play to get on the bubble. If a great coach like K or Gary had them, then they’d have made the NCAAs even with TS’s injury. Instead we peaked at the George Mason game, were mentally fragile blowing big leads and limped home without even being eligible for ANY postseason tournament.

    I guess my point is this. We’re going to have a little less talent this year as TS + JG + RH (2 SRs one of whom was All ACC + 1 FR) > AJ + TH + RJ + TDT (3 FR + 1 SR). The rest of the team will have a year of experience though, so arguably they’ll be better. They’ll hopefully be much better conditioned. They also will hopefully be much better coached. If the ACC is as weak as it was last year — and by all appearances it will be — then there’s a chance for this team to pull it together and get on the NCAA tournament bubble.

    They key though will be the non-conference slate. They’ve got to get the wins early and we really have to hope our conference brethren can do their part. If the ACC is RPI #1 or #2 coming into conference play, then 8-8 (which should be attainable) will get us dancing. If the ACC is RPI #4 or #5, then 8-8 won’t get it done.

    It’s going to be fun to see it play out.

  21. BJD95 05/23/2011 at 3:43 PM #

    I don’t see any way for the ACC to be a “top 2” conference next year. None. Wake, BC, and GT have “avert your eyes” personnel situations, without a “miracle worker” type coach. That will drag the whole league down, even if a few teams turn out better than I expect. For example, UVA could easily take a big step forward.

    We had flaws other than coaching last year. Some players will respond to actually being coached. But some won’t. And we don’t have anywhere to turn if more than one guy isn’t on board.

    Athleticism is not the same as talent, and neither is the same as skill. That’s where my worry comes in. Also whether the roster really can mesh as a cohesive unit.

    Teams 3 and 4 of any new regime are the ones to really judge.

  22. BJD95 05/23/2011 at 3:47 PM #

    Every time I saw Brown play last year, he looked more like a PG to me. He’s confident and unselfish with the ball. And more of a “scorer” than a “shooter.”

    The best comps I see for Brown (these would be more ceiling than floor) would be Nolan Smith and/or Nate McMillan. That is, PG that can play the 2, not a 2 that can run the point.

  23. PackMan97 05/23/2011 at 4:03 PM #

    BJD95, I agree. However, I think the ACC will post a better record than last season. It was a really, really bad year OOC for the ACC. Hopefully it was an aberration.

    Duke was really the only ACC team that didn’t embarrass the conference.

    Duke — (W) K. State, Michigan State, Butler, Temple, Marquette (L) None

    Cheater Hill — (W) Kentucky (L) Illinois, Vanderbilt, Texas, Minnesota

    VaTech — (W) – Penn State, Miss State, OK State (L) – K. State, Purdue, UNLV

    FSU — (W) – Baylor (L) – Florida, Ohio State, Butler, Auburn

    Clemson — (W) – ??? (L) – Old Dominion, Michigan, South Carolina

    BC – (W) – Texas A*M, Indiana, California (L) – Yale, Wisconsin, Rhode Island, Harvard

    MD – (W) – Penn St (L) Pitt, Illinois, Temple, Villanova

    UVa – (W) Minnesota, Oregon, (L) – Stanford, Washington, Wichita St, Seattle, Iowa St

  24. packalum44 05/23/2011 at 4:49 PM #

    This team’s talent is not as bad as some make it. Hard to judge until we see Gott in action, but count me in as someone who thinks we have a slim shot at the dance.

  25. ncst8mpa 05/23/2011 at 4:54 PM #

    Uh, folks? Can we temper the excessive exuberance for just a minute. We’ll have a first year coaching staff, a completely new system, and a decent incoming class. At this point, I am looking for the one thing that has been sorely lacking for years: PROGRESS.

    I don’t expect this team to be great. Heck, I don’t expect they will be good in the beginning. I just want to see them get better as the season goes on. I expect silly mistakes early on, but I want them greatly reduced by conference time. I want this team to be competitive in every game – right up to the end of the game. When we lose, I want to see our guys’ blood and sweat on the floor.

    If our coaches and players can do this – day in and day out – the wins will come.

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