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Big 12 basketball: UT looks like a contender; Aggies' depth takes a hit
09:31 AM CDT on Wednesday, June 17, 2009
When Texas A&M men's basketball coach Mark Turgeon's Monday began, he would've told you the Aggies had the chance to be his best team yet in the 2009-2010 season.
By the end of it, when 6-10 senior forward Chinemelu Elonu elected to keep his name in the NBA draft, Turgeon didn't feel the same shiny optimism.
"We still have expectations," Turgeon said Tuesday during the summer catchup Big 12 coaches' conference call. "It changed our depth inside. But we're still going to be good."
Seniors Donald Sloan and Bryan Davis withdrew from the draft and opted to return.
Turgeon said Elonu – who improved last season but was still inconsistent – graduated in May and was ready to move on.
"He has the potential to be an NBA player," Turgeon said. "Whether he's ready for it right now was the big question."
Lovin' Lucas: Behind loaded Kansas, Texas also looks like an early contender with its returning players and a gushed-about recruiting class.
One of the biggest additions is transfer Jai Lucas, the Houston native with basketball bloodlines who transferred from Florida and will become eligible in December.
Texas struggled in fashioning players into point guards last season.
"He does the one thing all coaches love about a point guard – he doesn't turn the ball over," coach Rick Barnes said.
Transition time: Oklahoma is moving on minus consensus national player of the year Blake Griffin. Look for the Sooners to shift their focus to the perimeter and guard Willie Warren of North Crowley.
"The makeup of our team will be different," coach Jeff Capel said. "[Willie] certainly has a tremendous opportunity."
Loud and proud: Several coaches took the chance Tuesday to tout the Big 12's successes – it went 6-0 in the first round of the NCAA Tournament, and Oklahoma and Missouri made the Elite Eight – and its stature for next season.
"Overall the league is as strong as it's ever been," Barnes said. "We've had a good league, though. The perception of this league I don't think is what it should've been."
Better Knight: Texas Tech coach Pat Knight said he feels more comfortable entering his second full season in charge. Tech needs to focus on defense, Knight said, after he overcompensated on offense last season.
"I got worried – my name is associated with the motion offense," Knight said. "I'd wake up at night having dreams where we scored 35 points."
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