All-Tournament Team (First Two Rounds)
PG - Marcus Williams, UConn. You don't normally see guys from top-seeded teams truly shine in the first rounds, but UConn was in a couple of dog fights (pun totally intended), and if it weren't for Williams, they might be the answer to a pretty rough trivia question. As it stands, Williams averaged 20.5 points, 8 assists, almost 4 boards, a block, and a steal per game, while dropping 5 threes, shooting 62% from the floor, and hitting 10-of-11 free throws.
SG - Brandon Roy, University of Washington. Not only did Roy carry UW back to the Sweet 16, not only is he going to be the best NBA shooting guard to come out of college since Dwayne Wade, Roy also averaged 24.5 points, 5 boards, 4 assists, 2 steals, and a block, while shooting 53% from the floor and 81% from the line. (Apologies to Allan Ray, who bounced back from a gruesome eye injury to score 44 points and hit nine threes in the first two games.)
SF - Joakim Noah, Florida. I know that he doesn't play small forward (an equally deserving Corey Brewer mans this post), but his play on the wing was incredible against UW-Milwaukee. Besides, I needed to get Craig Smith on this team as well. As for Noah, he has been everything I hoped for and more. He has the second highest assist total in the entire Minneapolis regional (13, one behind Mustafa Shakur) and is creating matchup nightmares for Gator opponents. Not only that, but he is a stat sheet stuffer extraordinaire. He's shooting 58% from the floor and 78% from the line (despite shooting from the wrong side of his head) while averaging 16.5 points, 7.5 rebounds, 6.5 assists, 4.5 blocks, and 2.5 steals. Those are Andrei Kirilenko numbers.
PF - Craig Smith, Boston College. He's going for 23.5 and 14.5 a game despite wearing two defenders as a second uniform. Not only that, but he made the two biggest free throws of the tournament to get BC by Pacific.
C - Sheldon Williams, Duke. I like Roy Hibbert (who my dad compared to a 6'5" third grader) and Bradley's Patrick O'Bryant as much as the next guy, but Williams' numbers speak for themselves. 25 points, 16 boards, and 5.5 blocks a game on 59% shooting from the field and 82% from the line. Wow. So what if he fouls on every play?
12 comments:
No Redick? Don't tell me your are yet another Duke hater that refuses to give JJ his props. 49 points with 9 threes is nothing to sneeze at.
Forget JJ, where is Adam Morrison? He scored 35 points against Xavier! And he's a small forward, which you lack on your team. You are just another writer with an East Coast bias.
You guys are buying into the hype. Redick put up the same stats as Allan Ray and he wasn't coming off an eye injury, so if Ray couldn't upseat Roy, neither can JJ. Plus, we're not puting two Duke guys on a team made up of players from 16 teams.
As for Morrison, he played great against Xavier, but he took a dump against Indiana. If not for JP Batista and Sean Mallon, the Zags would be home right now watching on TV. All of the guys on my team brought it both games. You want to put Morrison on over Noah? Good luck with that. Over Smith? I don't think so.
I'm not trying to say these guys are All-Americans or the national player of the year over Morrison or Redick, but they were better during the first two rounds of the tourney.
Makes sense to me. I also find it funny that one guy slams you for taking Roy over Redick (Pac-10 over ACC) and the next accuses you of having an East Coast bias. I guess you can't win.
Who would be on your All-Tourney second team? Room for Morrison there? Redick? (I'm guessing not, since Ray plays the same position.)
Second Team:
PG - Ronald Steele. He won't be on the next team, since 'Bama is out, but that doesn't mean he can't get some recognition. He scored 22 points and dished out 6 assists per game during the first two rounds, while hitting 18-of-21 free throws, shooting 50% from the floor, and knocking down 6 threes. Daniel Gibson and Rajon Rondo get all the NBA Draft hype, but I'd take Steele over either of those guys.
SG - Allan Ray. You guessed correctly.
SF - Bobby Jones. I expect this one to be unpopular. Look, Morrison can probably make a case, but again, he played great in one game and awful in the other. That doesn't cut it for me. He's 16-for-38 in this tourney (42%) and averaging 24.5 points per game, which is below his season average. You could throw Jared Dudley, Corey Brewer, Folarin Campbell, Randy Foye, and others into the mix at this position, but I'm going with D. Jones was the most dominant defensive player in the entire field, shutting down Dee Brown and allowing UW to advance to the Sweet 16.
PF - Glen Davis. Big Baby hasn't shot a fantastic percentage, but he's made big shots and put up big stats. He's going for 22.5 points, 10.5 boards, 3 blocks, and 2 steals a game. He will need all that and more against Duke.
C - Patrick O'Bryant. I'm going with the Bradley big man over Hibbert in a close call. Both improbably carried their teams and did against physical second round opponents. O'Bryant gets the tiebreaker because he hit several huge free throws down the stretch against Pitt. He also went for 28 and 7, which is pretty nice.
Bobby Jones over Morrison? Dude, you are on crack. I guess it isn't an East Coast bias, just plain stupidity. Morrison is the best player in the country and the next Larry Bird. Why don't you quit writing for shock value and start watching the games?
My man Smith, you need to read the comments. I've said it twice now: I am not putting Morrison on any all-tourney teams when he very nearly lost the game for his team in the second round. I think it might be you who is missing the games. Morrison was atrocious against Indiana, going 5-for-17 from the field and losing his composure several times. If he had made a few shots and actually contributed to the Zags win, I would certianly put him on the team.
As for Jones, he has done whatever the Huskies have asked of him. He hit three triples in round one, has hit big free throws, and he just blanketed Brown (and Augustine) in the Illinois game.
(Speaking of being on crack, Morrison the next Bird? Well, they are both tall and white with ugly staches, so I guess you are right. Oh wait, Bird was a superior passer, shooter, rebounder, defender, and leader. Whoops.)
What do you have to say now? Morrison with 24 tonight and looking good in the process. Still no room for him on your precious team?
Bobby Jones sucks. He's only scored like 20 points in two games.
1. Gonzaga lost, or maybe you didn't notice that part of the game.
2. The "All-Tournament Team (First Two Rounds)" was ... just for the first two rounds. Believe it or not. So his play tonight has no bearing on anything.
3. Bobby Jones was named for his defense. I don't care if he scored 100 points or 0. The guy is the next Bruce Bowen and a marvel to watch work on the defensive end.
4. Have a good day! (And please read before posting next time.)
smith, in the immortal words of Public Enemy "don't believe the hype". Morrison will NEVER be as good as Bird was. Bird was a much better all-around player than Morrison and carried his Indiana St team to the national championship game. Morrison had much better talent around him and didn't make it out of the sweet 16. look up Bird's stats from that season and it is clear Morrison doesn't even come close. He will probably be a very good NBA player but let's not put the guy in the HOF before he's even drafted. Remember a few years back Keith Van Horn was supposed to be the "next Bird", how's that working out for him?
Adam Morrison, the next Keith Van Horn
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