It's that time of the week again, as I attempt to provide dumb answers to your intelligent questions. If you want to have your questions answered, email jeffgreensdad@gmail.com and I promise it will, we've got no other options.
We have Monroe, but Georgetown will need an X factor to maintain any sort of staying power in the national spotlight. Do any of our current players have sisters/mothers/girlfriends that will draw some blog attention? For example, Brady Quinn's sister used to get quite a bit of airtime causing a fervent "Hot or not?" debate online and Shelden Williams and Duke warranted extra attention once he started dating the hotness that is Candace Parker. Any potential media stories like that for the Hoyas? Matt, Baltimore, MD
I had to use some of my on campus sources for this question, and let's just say that we could have a Jake Locker situation on our hands. Locker, the standout Washington quarterback, was rumored to forego the NFL Draft in part because of a girlfriend on campus. That, combined with the tutelage he is receiving for Washington head coach Steve Sarkisian, has made Locker pass up a guaranteed top 5 draft position and millions of dollars. Hypothetically, if Georgetown had a big man who was expected to go in the top 5, but he turned it down to come back to Big Man U, partly for development and partly for his girlfriend on the Lady Hoyas, is that something the blogs would be interested in?
What's the most disrespectful thing you've ever said or heard said to an opposing team's player? Cole, Philadelphia, PA
This is a tough question to answer because I don't want to defile the Georgetown University's students' reputations as class acts, and also because there are too many to count. In terms of pure bad taste, one of my friends screamed at Stephen Curry, "Hey Steph, I f*&^%d your mom last night." I'm not sure the precocious Curry heard this, but it was in the first half of the Davidson game. Ultimately, Curry f*&^%d the entire Georgetown fan base.
Last year I saw a fan get in a fight with Jonny Flynn. He yelled at the midget "Hey Jonny, how does it feel to get embarrassed on national television," after the Hoyas destroyed the Orange by 14 points at home. Flynn came back out from under the tunnel and said "What'd you say to me? Come at me." The fan responded "I don't know what that means." Awkward silence pursued as a tumbleweed rolled between them. And then Jonny Flynn was drafted #6 overall in the 2009 NBA Draft.
How much better or worse would we be with Vernon Macklin and Jeremiah Rivers this year? Marc, New York, NY
Interestingly enough, I'm not sure they would have any impact this year. With the improvement of Julian Vaughn and Jason Clark, I think both guys would have been overshadowed. I still believe that both would have been very helpful last year because neither Vaughn nor Clark were ready. Macklin could have played center and let Monroe slide to his natural 4 and DaJuan Summers to his natural 3. Rivers, while atrocious on offense, really plays solid defense and would have been a good third guard off the bench, as he was in his two years at Georgetown. More than anything, they would have both been juniors, and may have been able to shoulder some of the leadership load that Jessie Sapp and Summers had no business claiming. Would Wright and Sapp have had such issues if Rivers and his "jumper" were around to make fun of together? Would Sapp have needed to make friends with regular Georgetown students, who subsequently made him long for the life of a normal student and forget about basketball if Rivers and Macklin were around? These are all pretty stupid hypothetical questions that I ask myself.
Jeff Green's Dad, there are two things that I love: college basketball and movies. When these two loves merge, they create a perfect storm of adoration in the deepest recesses of my heart. Whether watching Quincy from "Love and Basketball" play for USC or Kyle Lee Watson from "Above the Rim" play for your beloved Georgetown Hoyas--don't even get me started on the star-studded cast from "Blue Chips"--I am in it for the full hour and a half to two hours, depending on the movie. I want your starting five by position from any college basketball movie. (Unfortunately, I am going to have to disallow using players from movies that do not feature any COLLEGE basketball; alas, Jimmy Chitwood, Jamal Wallace, and Jesus Shuttlesworth are out because they never officially declare for a college prior to the movie's end.) ICEBERG, PA
Damnit ICEBERG, PA. I thought I told you no more questions where I have to use the Google machine. Good question though, I'll give you that. Here's the starting five, feel free to argue.
PG - Butch McRae (Anfernee Hardaway), "Blue Chips". Dude was unstoppable, just like Young Penny Hardaway before his knees went to hell. I see him averaging about 24 points, 8 assists and 6 boards per game.
SG - Quincy McCall (Omar Epps), "Love and Basketball". I see him playing an Iverson-type role in this offense as the undersized, explosive shooting guard.
SF - Kenny Tyler (Marlon Wayans), "The Sixth Man". Slashing forward who would be the spiritual leader of the team because he went through so much losing his brother Antoine. And John Thompson made a cameo in the movie.
PF - St. Johns Player (Undisclosed), "Coming to America". IN DA FACE!
C - Neon (Shaquille O'Neal), "Blue Chips". What a dominating force. He and Butch would be like they were in real life, awesome and contentious. But Kenny Tyler would be such a uniting force on this team that Neon and Butch would be forced to get along. Kenny is the Nelson Mandela of fantasy college basketball teams.
Are they who we thought they were? Dennis, Phoenix, AZ
I'm not sure who you are referring to, but I'm going to take this time to evaluate our players through the first quarter of the season versus what was expected of them in the preseason.
Chris Wright
Expectations - Lead the team, don't fight another guard, cut down on Wrecking Ball drives
Grade so far vs. expectations: B. I know some people would say he's been worse, but I actually think he's done a pretty good job running the offense, and has worked his tail off on defense. He's improved his FT shooting tremendously, and seems to recognize when he's made a dumb play, which is an improvement over last year. He also hasn't fought anyone, which is always a plus.
Jason Clark
Expectations - First guard off the bench, bring some energy and instant offense, don't be Jessie Sapp
Grade so far vs. expectations: A+. Yeah, that's an A+, I said it. He's been tremendous. His ball handling has vastly improved, he is our de facto point guard, his long arms are menacing, he sets the tone for the aggressive defense we've been playing this year, and he has skyrocketed to Man Crush status for me. Let's put it this way, if I started writing for this blog two years from now, I think my name would be Jason Clark's Dad.
Expectations - Regain freshman shooting touch, ease up on the burger madness, act as if he has a pulse
Grade so far vs. expectations: A. Austin has been great this year. He lost a ton of weight, seems to have regained his explosive first step, and is attacking the basket. He's also really stepped up as a leader, which has been very surprising. All in all, I'm expecting big things from him for the rest of the year. I think he was depressed with the team's performance last year, and like many people who are depressed, ate his feelings. Added points for giving me the phrases SMH and Swag from his Twitter account.
Expectations - Grow some balls, get stronger, develop a right hand, dominate
Grade so far vs. expectations: B+. Greg has delivered solidly on all four of these goals. Against our "good competition" (Temple, Butler, Washington) he has hit a game winning shot, put up 24 and 15 in Madison Square Garden, and had the best all around game I've seen him play against Washington. His grade is deflated right now only because I expect so much from him. By the end of the year, I think it will be an A.
Julian Vaughn
Expectations - Spell the other big guys when they get in foul trouble, don't shoot threes
Grade so far vs. expectations: A+. Another A+, and well deserved. I think he's our most improved player over Jason just because there were literally no expectations or signs of this coming. He was awful last year and I assumed would just be a big body to absorb some fouls. Instead, he has developed a killer defensive instinct, some legitimate post moves, and his presence as a center allows Greg Monroe to be Greg Monroe. Weirdly, I think this could be the tip of the iceberg for him. During the Washington game it felt like he was starting to realize "Oh s&^t, I'm good as hell" as the game went on.
Expectations - Knock down some threes, blend in with the team, bother opponents with his long arm on defense, eat something
Grade so far vs. expectations: A-. Hollis has shown flashes of being an absolute assassin, especially in the Lafayette game. He still doesn't have confidence in his abilities and takes too many dumb fouls, but he seems to be a great teammate, really eager, and has great basketball instincts. Still not sure he's eaten something yet though.
Expectations - Make the sophomore leap, be the intimidating presence inside so Greg Monroe can be Greg Monroe
Grade so far vs. expectations: D. This grade would have been worse but I'm so giddy about Julian Vaughn doing what Henry was supposed to do that I don't care as much. Henry will be very important as the Big East season begins, so hopefully he starts to realize when he's in a basketball game, but for now, he's been the one disappointment in an otherwise extremely enjoyable Georgetown season.
Vee Sanford and Jerrelle Benimon
Expectations - Nothing
Grade so far vs. expectations: A. We signed both of these freshmen in the spring of last year, completely unheralded. Turns out Vee is a pretty good ball handler and shooter, does a mean robot, and used to have a flat top - all good things. Benimon played great against Butler when Sims, Vaughn and Hollis all had 4 fouls. He had the biggest points of the game on a tip-in and also rocks sweet black on black socks and shoes. Both have been great considering what was expected.
Expectations - Not to play, please don't let him play
Grade so far vs. expectations: A+. Nikita hasn't touched the court in the last two games. That's a major plus.
John Thompson III
Expectations - Restore confidence in Princeton offense, don't have players that fight, teach players how to rebound, show fans he can coach
Grade so far vs. expectations: A. We're 8-0, we're playing great defense, and the guys actually seem to like one another. The offense has gotten progressively better, and we're pounding the ball inside. Also, the rebounding has been so much better it's almost laughable. So far so good for JT III, just have to make sure we don't have a mid season swoon again.
Watch the below clip. JT III gets pretty stern with this assistant coach. Can you elaborate? Kevin Hetherington, Location Unknown
Great question. I had our IT department (i.e. Hire Esherick) spruce up the clip you sent and post it on YouTube.
I think the conversation went one of a few ways.
Option 1:
JT III: "Sit the f&^% down."
Matt Henry: "Oh okay."
Option 2:
JT III: "My anatomy is bigger than your anatomy."
Matt Henry: "Oh okay."
Option 3:
JT III: "You saw what happened to Burke, our last uppity coach, that will happen to you if you don't sit the f&^% down."
Matt Henry: "Oh, okay."
Option 4:
JT III: "You look like Carrot Top."
Matt Henry: "Oh okay."
I saw this on ESPN.com last weekend, and it made me laugh. Why all of the sudden is Jeremiah Rivers "good" at IU? He "MUST be healthy for IU to have a shot"? From what I have heard, he is still a turnover machine. I guess IU sucks that bad? Lauren, Washington, DC
Yes, one of the most bizarre things about this season is that Jeremiah Rivers has been awful, but the media continues to slobber over him. Of our two esteemed transfers, Vernon Macklin is playing well for one of the top 15 teams in the country, Jeremiah Rivers is rocking a jheri curl and turning the ball over at an alarming rate, yet he's getting much more publicity. I will say this though, the commentary on Rivers has quickly evolved from "Great leader and instrumental part of the team" to "His younger brother Austin is the actual talent in the family." I watched the Kentucky game and can confirm that IU really sucks and Jeremiah was getting his minutes stolen from Jordan Hulls, who looks like my 15-year-old cousin.
What would say Georgetown's chances are against Marshon Brooks and the Providence Friars on Feb 9th? Jenn, Providence, RI
Georgetown hasn't lost to the Friars since 2004 - 2005, when you were still in diapers, so I'd say Providence has as good a chance beating Georgetown as the Bayport-Bluepoint Phantoms do. Hope that clears it up for you. The best thing about your city is the movie "Outside Providence" and the Johnny Rockets near Brown.
What does third base feel like? Ankit, Washington, DC
No clue dude. I wear a chastity belt.