Zag News and Updates

The countdown is almost over for Gonzaga fans, as the team will being the regular season in only 8 days. Earlier today, the Zags flew out to Colorado, where they will be scrimmaging against the Texas Longhorns all day tomorrow. With excitement building towards the start of what should be a historical season for the team, here are some updates from around the Internet, as well as updates on some of the top recruits and commits for the Bulldogs.

- ESPN The Magazine came out with their top 25, and they have Gonzaga ranked #7. If you get a chance, I recommend that you check out their preview, as they offer some interesting stats on all the top teams. According to the article, one of the key points of emphasis for the team is to improve on their 5.2 rebounding margin from last season. With the size and athleticism that this team possesses, there is no excuse for the Zags not to dominate the glass against every opponent.

One aspect of the preview that surprised me a little was having Santa Clara in "The Obstacles" section. While Santa Clara should be slightly improved from last season, the WCC has a "Big 3" of Gonzaga, St.Mary's, and San Diego that will battle for the conference championship. The rest of the conference is not in the same league as these three teams. It seems that many national publications are reluctant to jump on the USD bandwagon, despite their tremendous performance at the end of last season. I view USD as the biggest challenger to the WCC throne, and I believe that they have the experience to make a Sweet 16 run.

- At CNNSI, Ian Thomsen discussed 5 NBA draft prospects to watch this season, and Austin Daye was #1 on the list. Thomsen interviewed an NBA scout, who gave his thoughts on his top 5 potential lottery picks. The one caveat was that they had to be American. Also on his list were Blake Griffin (Oklahoma), Brandon Jennings (Lottomatica Roma), Demar DeRozan (USC), and B.J. Mullens (Ohio St.).

Here are some quotes from the scout regarding Austin:

"To me, he's a lottery pick without question. He shoots threes [41.3 percent last season], he shoots free throws [88.1 percent]. If you're asking me how he compares to a guy like Jonathan Bender, I'd say that Bender was way more athletic. I really liked Bender, but this kid doesn't jump like he did. This kid has better ball skills, however. Bender was a 4 morphing into a 3, but Daye is a 3 right now."

""I see something of Danny Manning in him. I never thought of Manning as a super-quick high flyer, and this kid isn't either. But Daye is very cerebral, he cuts without the ball, he's long, he makes shots and he has all of that skill. Plus, he plays on a Gonzaga team that is loaded with multiple players, so people will be seeing a lot of him this year."

This really demonstrates just how highly regarded Austin is by the NBA scout. It's so rare to find a player with his length and skill set. The comparison to Danny Manning should have Gonzaga fans celebrating, as it was Danny Manning who single-handily carried Kansas to the national championship in 1988. I like this comparison, because Austin is capable of taking over a close game and being the difference maker. The beauty of this team is that Pargo and Heytvelt are also capable of doing this on any given night.

- I found a very interesting tidbit in Andy Katz's blog today regarding a potential "WCC vs. WAC championship" starting in 2009.

"• The WAC has had talks with the Missouri Valley Conference about a challenge prior to the Mountain West stepping in and setting one up with the Valley. So now the WAC is looking toward the WCC to do some sort of scheduling series in 2009-10 and beyond. One proposal would have the top four teams in each conference playing each other. Gonzaga would have to go along with the idea, but the Zags should do it. Gonzaga has plenty of high-profile games/series every season but also plays regional games, so there is no reason why the Bulldogs couldn't have a game with Nevada in a given year. The WAC already plays plenty of WCC teams, but a formal agreement would help both leagues."

As Katz mentions, this series would be great for the WCC and for Gonzaga. Many fans would love to see Gonzaga and Nevada play every year, and this series would allow for both school to host these games in their home gym. This would also benefit teams like USD and St. Mary's who could play quality opponents like Boise St, Utah St, and New Mexico St. My first preference would have been to do something with the Mountain West, but this would present a great opportunity for both conferences.

- TKR also wanted to share some exciting news regarding an opportunity for us. TKR will be writing the Gonzaga season preview for AOL Fanhouse. This is a terrific opportunity to write for such a popular website, and we hope everyone can check out the GU season preview when it goes up.

Finally, with the high school and JC basketball season about to start, here are the schedules and some results for all GU commits and recruits.

- The NEDA boys have kicked off their season, and so far it has been the Mangisto Arop and Kelly Olynyk show. In early November, NEDA took on the Windsor University Lancers, and Manny set a NEDA record with 42 points in the game. Kelly Olynyk chipped in a measly 28 points. It looks like Manny is taking his game to an even higher level, and it should be fun to follow him this season.

- The College of Southern Idaho began their season last night, as they are hosting the K&T Steel Tournament. CSI coasted to a victory over Central Arizona, and Daequon Montreal had a strong performance. In only 20 minutes, Montreal scored 12 points and grabbed 13 boards in the easy victory.

-North Idaho College began their season in late October, and are undefeated at this point. While it is difficult to find exact stats from the first three games, 2010 recruit Guy-Marc Michel had an impressive 19 point and 9 rebound debut. Michel is a highly skilled post player, who I expect to sign with Gonzaga next year.

- Click on the recruits name for their respective high school season schedule.
Sam Dower
Cole Stefan
Brett Kingma

TKR will follow all GU recruits throughout their respective season, and it should be fun to see what other recruits emerge throughout the year.

A Very Anticipated Daye

Keeping the ball rolling on his rankings of the top college players in the nation, Gary Parrish broke down the top wings in the country. As maxzag, said yesterday, Parrish is about as good at it gets when it comes to evaluating talent in college basketball. Will there be some disagreements? Of course, but overall you have to respect his list of the top 10 wings in the country. Besides, he's got a Zag in there so I'm pleased with it.

Gonzaga forward Austin Daye is one of those rare talents that has come to Spokane. It would be hard to argue that a player with more raw talent has ever player at Gonzaga. Just like the Gonzaga team, Austin Daye has plenty of expectations to be a star. Parrish ranks Daye as the tenth best wing in the nation. Parrish says that:

"Daye's level of productivity hasn't yet matched his level of talent, but that should change this season. The sweet-shooting Bulldog is expected to be more of a focal point of Gonzaga's attack, and if he develops properly he'll help Mark Few win another WCC title while helping himself break into next June's lottery."

While Austin is an extremely talented player, most of his accolades must be taken with a grain of salt because we have barely scratched the surface with him. In my opinion, one of the most serious mistakes of last season was the amount of minutes that Austin had. There were games where he would play 10+ minutes in the first half and would be on the bench for the majority of the second half. For a player of his skill level to be on the bench was mind-boggling. He's a game changing type of player who, more than anyone on this team, has the ability to put up 20 points a game. Everything sets up in his favor, it's simple math really. His minutes played will probably be close to doubling (18.5 minutes a game last year). He's going to be a major focal point in our offense which means that he will get more plays geared towards his game and in turn, will get more shots. The result is that Austin, who scored 10.5 points a season ago, should be close to putting up 18 or 20 a game this season. Especially with the lack of depth in our front court, Austin is going to be heavily relied on. Everything seems to be setting up in Austin's favor to become a star in the NCAA.

The question marks with Daye are typically dwarfed by my obsession with upside but there are certainly some causes for concern. Daye suffered a tough injury this summer, an injury that we were initially told had the potential to be season ending. It turned out that this injury was merely a deep bruise and some minor ligament damage. While this is great news, many questions have to be addressed. Austin has been limited in his workouts and practice regiment up to this point. We received word that he is completely healthy but there has to be some rust there as well and more importantly, you have to wonder about his conditioning. The injury is the main question but there are certainly a few other general wonderings. I'm curious to see how he can handle being a go-to player. Luckily, we have so many threats that he is not THE go-to player but he will certainly be a player that opposing teams focus on.

For more information on Austin and why he is rated #10, check out our summer breakdown of him.

More Praise for the Zags

Preseason rankings are taking over the world!

No matter how useless these rankings are to Mark Few's team, it's still fun to hear what the nation thinks about this year's squad. If you think Gonzaga is still the cute little secret nestled in the Pacific Northwest, it's time to wake up and smell the hardwood. More than any other year, the Zags will sneak up on absolutely no one. If you don't believe me then just read what Athlon and Sporting News have to say about the Bulldogs. Two of the most well respected sources for sports news had nothing but praise for this year's Bulldogs.

Athlon: The national magazine that previews not only every college sport, but every conference has slated the Zags as an elite eight team in 2008-09. This quote should serve as a nice recap of the offseason and some concerns for the for the season.

"Pargo’s return means the Zags are loaded once again, with an experienced player — several, in some cases — at every position. Bottom line: Gonzaga is primed to continue its dominance of the West Coast Conference. “We have a good group of players coming back,” Few says. “But we lost two senior guys (David Pendergraft and Abdullahi Kuso) … and trying to replace the toughness they both brought is a real concern.”

Once you see 10 or more preseason rankings, they all start blending together. They all key on Pargo's return and the departure of Pendo and Kuso and how we can possibly deal with that difficult non-conference schedule. Gonzaga's toughness is something people have pointed to as their fatal flaw since Adam Morrison's departure. Hopefully the Zags can shut up everyone who says that they are not tough enough by showing well in the Old Spice Classic. Toughness is something that I personally am not concerned about with this year's team. It's not always shown by diving on the floor and going crazy after fouls. A huge part of toughness is being confident in your team and with the scheme you run. This team has a great bond and are very comfortable with one another. The main core also has a deep understanding of the offense now and should be confident in that aspect as well. Kuso and Pendo will be missed of course; but the talent and skill coming back to this team is scary good. Toughness should not be an issue.

Sporting News: Now we're talking! The Sporting News recently released their college basketball season preview and it has something that most previews do not have; and that is surprises. Not only has the Sporting News given Gonzaga their highest ranking to date, #4, but they have also singled out an individual on this team in the All-American race (it's not the one you were expecting). Sporting News has Austin Daye (right) as a first team All-American. Joining Daye on the prestigious list is Tyler Hansbrough, James Harden, Stephen Curry, and Blake Griffin.

Make no mistake, this is Jeremy Pargo's team but if the team wants to go to the top of the mountain, Austin Daye will have to lead them there. He is a bona fide superstar in the making. True, this is probably Gonzaga's most balanced team in terms of scoring the basketball in a long time; the Zags have guys all over the court that can score 20 points on any given night.

However, what Gonzaga lacked last year was a player that could take over the game each and every night, ala Adam Morrison. With Morrison, Gonzaga could be down 10 points with 4 minutes left and you just felt it in your heart that he was going to carry the Zags to a win. Last season we missed that. It's hard to put that much pressure on a sophomore in college but I really think that Daye can handle it. Remember, he also has a much better supporting cast than Morrison did.

The key for Daye will be the injury. Zag Nation breathed a huge sigh of relief when he didn't have surgery, but is it going to heal in time? There has been limited discussion about his condition because no one wants to deal with what the season would be like without Austin. I'm sure he will need some time to get his conditioning back and get back into playing form. The first meaningful game won't take place until November 27th when the Zags battle Oklahoma State so he has time to recover. He should be good to go in Orlando and Gonzaga will need him right away as they take on some of the best teams in the nation right off the bat.

Getting Excited for Basketball

While GU fans anxiously await the release of the men's basketball schedule (TKR has been assured that it will be sometime this week), there has been no shortage of college basketball articles being released recently.

- Luke Winn of CNNSI wrote an article that mentions Austin Daye as a potential breakout star. Winn uses as efficiency rating based on the number of minutes played and possessions used this past season. Some of the other players mentioned, all but one of which are sophomores, include Dar Tucker (Depaul), LaceDarius Dunn (Baylor), Booker Woodfox (Creighton), and Corey Chandler (Rutgers).

Here is what Winn has to say about Austin Daye:

Austin Daye
6-10 Small Forward
Gonzaga, Soph.
Pct. Minutes Played in '07-08: 45.6 Pct.
Possessions Used in '07-08: 27.3
Offensive Efficiency Rating: 108.7

The NBA knows that Daye, a stringbean of a small forward, has star potential. He's already projected as the No. 4 pick in the 2010 NBA Draft by DraftExpress. Daye had limited opportunities to star as a freshman on a deep Zags roster, ranking seventh on the team in average minutes per game (18.5). Yet he was the team's highest-usage player while he was on the floor, and he will be their most-efficient returner in the frontcourt. If a sizable chunk of the minutes vacated by the departures of forwards David Pendergraft and Abdullahi Kuso go to Daye, and he's more forceful at drawing contact and getting to the free-throw line (where he's an 88.1 percent shooter), he could have a huge sophomore year.

I found it funny how after Chad Ford declared that Austin was no longer a surefire lottery pick, that Austin is considered the 4th overall pick of the 2010 draft by this website. It really shows how different opinions can be about a certain player.

- In other college basketball news, St. Mary's will represent the WCC during the opening day "Hoops Marathon" on ESPN. November 18 will see 23 consecutive hours of college basketball being played on the ESPN family of networks. The highlight of the day will be UNC vs. Kentucky, but it should be exciting to see St. Mary's host Fresno St. The game will be shown on ESPN, and will begin at 11:00 PM. While this is a strange start time for the game, it should hopefully give St.Mary's some well-deserved national exposure.

Austin Daye and Mangisto Arop Updates

-- Please feel free to disregard the "Diagnosis of Austin Daye's Injury" post a day ago. News has now surfaced that Austin Daye's injury is not as severe as was originally reported and that the Gonzaga star forward will only have his summer slightly affected by this injury.

His original diagnosis of a partially torn ACL came with a 6-12 month window of surgery, rehab, etc. Now, it appears that Austin will just need to sit down and relax for a few weeks while the injury takes care of itself and his knee gains strength. There is still a small tear and a bone bruise but that is something that rest and relaxation can handle quite easily.

It seems that the Zags have dodged another summertime bullet. We'll keep you updated on any further developments with Austin.

-- American born Gonzaga fans had a tough choice to make earlier today as they kept a close eye on the FIBA Americas Championships. Today's U-18 game featured the United States team and Zag commit Mangisto Arop's Canadian team. The United States defeated the Canadian team handily as they won 82-66. Arop did not go quietly as had had 21 of Canada's points in this game. He also came down with nine rebounds.

The United States U18 team is one of the deepest in it's history featuring high schools stars such as Kemba Walker, the Wear twins, Malcolm Lee, and JayMychal Green.

Arop is having an outstanding tournament as he is second in scoring 17.3 points per game, third in rebounding with ten a game, and first in free throw percentage where he has shot 91.7%.

Canada's final game will take place tomorrow against Puerto Rico as they play for the bronze medal.. In a game which should be excellent, the United States will go up against Argentina for the coveted gold medal.

Diagnosing the Impact of Austin Daye's Injury

The summer appeared to be going exactly to plan.

Jeremy Pargo was back in Spokane working out with the team, Josh Heytvelt was on the road to a full recovery after getting his ankle re-set, and the freshmen were present and accounted for. The Zags were on track to being a top-10 team and a serious threat to a national title.

Things changed quite a bit two nights ago when news broke that star forward Austin Daye had suffered a serious injury. Torn ACL. When these two words combine it can make even the strongest of sports fans shudder. Countless careers have been ended because of ACL tears; many careers never even had a chance to get started. For Austin Daye, a sure-fire lottery pick, the tear is only partial; in fact it was originally diagnosed as a hamstring injury. Daye's career is by no means over and if everything goes to plan he should be back this season. However, it is going to put a major hitch in Gonzaga's early season schedule, and Zag fans know that non-conference play is where Gonzaga makes their mark. Here are some things which will certainly be affected due to Austin's untimely injury.

Would it be Gonzaga basketball without players playing out of position?
Undersized, oversized, guys that can't shoot playing shooting guard, guys that can't rebound playing down low, Gonzaga fans have seen it all. Austin Daye is not a true power forward. He optimizes his talents at the small forward but many people believe that he was going to have to play power forward. With the injury to Austin, and the questions regarding Robert Sacre and his development, more Zags may have to be forced into uncomfortable roles, i.e. Micah Downs. He's a born small forward and could pose as a shooting guard but he will be thrust into the power forward spot for sure if Sacre does not solidify himself at center. If Sacre does, Heytvelt can be at power forward and then Micah can play small forward mostly (I don't even want to talk about three guards right now). Even if Josh starts at PF, Micah will still see plenty of time at power forward. Micah can do it, he's got as much talent as any other Zag but more importantly, he has the mindset that he just wants to help his team win.

Someone has to make up for the points Austin was going to put up.
I don't care what you say (kidding), Austin was going to be one of, if not the leading scorer on this team in 2008-09. If you argue that point, then you don't watch basketball. Not one person is going to make up all those points (I'm assuming around 17 PPG). The main man under the microscope will be Micah Downs, who seems to have drawn the short stick after this injury. The finger and the wrath of the Internet fan will all be on Micah to perform at his "Burger Boy" level. Personally, I don't see that happening. Micah contributes in many other ways but he will not score 20 a game. I do know that Josh can score more, Rob can score some, Matt can score more consistently, and ditto for Pargo. My guy to really step up and score in loads is Austin's sophomore counterpart, Steven Gray. No one showed me more at the end of the year and he has the potential to pour in some big numbers night in, night out.

How many games the Zags will lose due to the loss of Daye.
I'm not a doctor and I don't pretend to be one but I'm also not a moron. ACL's are not something to toy with and they are not something which is just physical. When you are a player like Austin Daye, you rely on your confidence as much as your skill to make you the player you are. That being said, I do not believe that Daye will be back until after the Non-Conference schedule. He may play, but you can't expect the kid to be 100% mentally ready during his first game back. So, how many games do we lose without Austin? Surprisingly I don't think it will be so bad. I can't imagine us losing to Arizona, Indiana, Utah or WSU. Idaho, Montana, and Portland State should be wins. I don't know about the Old Spice Classic but I think we will win one game at least. That leaves UConn, Memphis and Tennessee. UConn is December 20th. I don't expect Austin to be back. That is too soon for an ACL. January 7th is Tennessee. In my Gonzaga-biased brain, I think Austin could be healed by January 1st but I don't think he'll be game ready but I still think the Zags can win this game. Memphis will be interesting. It's February 7th and I think Austin could be ready by then. If it was in Memphis I would give them the edge but I like our chances being that it is in Spokane. Worst case scenario we lose two out of these three, best case...win all three!

It's hard to find any room for positive thought with an injury like this. However, we are lucky and Austin is lucky that it is only a partial tear. This version of the Bulldogs is as solid as they come if all the parts work correctly. When you lay the schedule out, the true test will be the Old Spice Tournament in Orlando. Will we win it? Probably not. But that tournament has got to be a confidence booster for the Zags to let them know that they can do this without Austin and that this is a very special year. If they come out and lay an egg in the Old Spice, you can bet that will carry over into some bad losses.

Gonzaga fans know Austin plays with an edge and a "killer instinct". Many believed that he would be the one to hit the big shot against the best teams in 2008-09. The only thing I worry about is who has that killer instinct to step up and hit that big shot?

Austin Daye has torn ACL

Just when you think the summer is going exactly to plan, something always comes around and takes your breath away. That moment has occurred as news has broken that Gonzaga Universtiy forward Austin Daye has a torn ACL in his right knee.

Daye received a major scare at the LeBron James Skills Academy when he fell to the floor in noticeable pain during a workout. Originally, it was diagnosed as a hamstring strain and Daye continued to play and play quite well as a matter of fact. Upon the camps conclusion, he had the leg examined in California and the tests confirmed the ACL tear.

ACL tears are commonplace in the sports world and have ended some of the most promising careers. There is still hope that Daye will not be sidelined for the duration of the 2008-2009 season as players have come back in time. ACL's are completely subjective in nature and no tear is alike and all Gonzaga fans can do is hope and pray for a full recovery, and hopefully a speedy one.

The last thing Gonzaga needs is to rush Daye back on the court, ala Josh Heytvelt, and risk further injury. This news is painful and Daye was a player that the Zags could least afford to lose but only time will tell how serious and what impact this injury has. We wish Austin the best in his rehab and we hope he comes back better than ever.

TKR Breakdowns: Austin Daye

When the 2007 recruiting class was announced, all eyes immediately turned to Austin Daye. Daye, was arguably the most decorated recruit to ever sign with GU out of high school, and was even a 5 star recruit according to rivals. After an incredible senior year in high school, in which Daye averaged over 30 points and 10 rebounds, many people were curious to see how Daye's game would translate at the college level. To be completely honest, Daye surpassed my lofty expectations with an incredible freshman year, that firmly established him as an NBA lottery pick whenever he declares. Any GU fan will remember his unbelievable debut against Montana, when he started his career off with a double-double. His strong play continued throughout the season, and despite some inconsistency in playing time, Daye emerged as the best pure scorer on the team.

Strengths: No discussion about Austin Daye can occur without mentioning his incredible offensive game. Despite his slight frame, there is literally nothing Daye cant do with the ball in his hands. Despite playing only 18 minutes per game, he ended up 3rd on the team in scoring, averaging 10.5 points per game. What makes Daye so outstanding on the offensive end is the multiple ways he can score the basketball. Throughout the season, we were treated to a player who was as likely to shoot a 3 in the defenders eye, as he was to post up a smaller player. What makes Austin so difficult to guard is the matchup problems he causes. If you put a small forward on him, Austin is so tall and has such long arms, that he will take the defender to the post and dominate him. If you put a power forward on him, then Austin can take him off the dribble and finish at the rim, or pull up and hit a 3 in the eye of the defender. Having a father who played in the NBA has allowed Austin to develop a great understanding of the game. On the offensive end, Austin is incredible passer, and 9 times out of 10 will make the pass to the right person, or make the correct decision on whether to shoot or pass. Because of his size, Austin is a great weapon to pass the ball into the post, and play a high/low game with. This understanding of the game also helps him on the defensive end. Despite not being the most intense defender, he knows where to be on the court, and how to use his great size and wingspan to disrupt shots and grab rebounds.

Room for improvement: Despite possessing an incredible offensive game, Daye could take it to even another level with added strength. When matched up against a quick power forward, Daye often struggled, because the defender could muscle him around and take Austin out of his game. With added strength, Daye would become an even better finisher in the paint, as well as a better player in the post. It would also help him greatly on the defensive end, where often times Austin would be pushed out of position for rebounds by stronger bigs. While Austin may never possess a whole lot of muscle on his long frame, it is vital that he adds strength to become a more complete player. I also believe that Austin could add some toughness to his game. When GU went up against very physical and athletic teams, Austin often struggled and had his minutes greatly reduced(8 minutes against Memphis, and 10 against UCONN). For him to make a huge impact against teams like Memphis and UCONN, Austin needs to not allow the physicality of these teams to hurt his game. I think a lot of this had to do with being a freshman and making this difficult adjustment, but for GU to reach its potential next season, Austin needs to be on the court and productive against teams that play with great physicality.

Projected Role: Depending on the rest of the starting lineup, we will likely see Austin starting at either the small forward or power forward. For this team to be as successful offensively as some of the past GU teams, the offense must run through Austin. Not only is he the teams best pure scorer, he is also one of the best passers at his position in the nation. He doesn't necessarily need to have a huge increase in his shots from this past season, but the ball must be in Austin's hands every possession, because he will deliver the ball to his teammates at the right place and at the right time. I anticipate that we will see lots of high/low basketball between Austin and either Heytvelt or Sacre, which will put those two post players in the position to have lots of great scoring opportunities.

Summer Assignment: Austin has two very clear things to do this summer. The 1st is get in the weight room. The more strength that Austin puts on, the more dominant he can be at both ends of the court. My other assignment for Austin is to emerge as a leader for this team. If Austin has the projected role that I predict he will, he will need to gain the trust of his teammates and emerge as a leader. There is no player more talented in college basketball then Austin, and with all the things he can do on the court, he must develop the trust of both the coaches and his teammates. As Coach Few has mentioned, we will never see the best of Austin at GU, because he wont reach his true potential for another 5 years. But next season, we could be blessed with one of the great talents in the college basketball world, and along with Sacre, one of the most important pieces to the success of next season.