52 Comments

https://www.sports-reference.com/cbb/players/keonte-kennedy-1.html

what in here makes you think he's a shooter?

Expand full comment
author

Attempted Atleast 3 3s per game the last 3 seasons and increased his make percentage while increasing the 3PA every season? I’d say that’s shooter worthy. And shooting 38% from 3 in a season where he attempted the most 3s in his career.

Expand full comment

career 31% though and 60% from the line...from highlights seems like more of a play finisher + use length on D type of guy, not guarded like a shooter. i guess he'll at least spot up + shoot the open 3 which is an upgrade from whatever we had last season

Expand full comment

Anybody game to mock up a quick positional breakdown (as things stand).

As far as I can tell we seem to have a bunch of 2/3s a couple of 1s or 1/2s...but only one 4 (Aimaq) and one incoming 5 (Curtis). This would suggest we need another big....though I would settle for another stud guard. Just concerned that Curtis has had injury issues and will be a frosh.

If my read is correct, Aziz is the missing piece. Come on rich alums! Let's do this!

Expand full comment
author

Curtis/Aimaq/ND are all 5s. The 3s/4s in how Madsen plays you don’t need size but more shooting to space. Not many teams have two or more 6-10 guys playing the 4/5 role so we should be fine running guys like Grant/Monty/Brown as the wings

Expand full comment

That's been my concern, that we don't have enough bigs. With 2 slots left and Madsen as a PF himself, I'd think a C or PF/C will take one of them.

Expand full comment
May 3, 2023·edited May 3, 2023

Madsen clearly knows what he's doing. Bravo. Mark! On the other hand, this is nothing more that Class A Pro Basketball. Has nothing to do with the Cal most of us experienced. So be it.

Expand full comment
May 3, 2023·edited May 3, 2023

List I have so far (is there a W4C updated post with this?):

Transfers: Kennedy, Meadows, Cone, Aimaq

Returning: Celestine, Askew, Newell, Okafor, Bowser

Incoming: Brown, Curtis

11 scholarships, 2 remaining.

Expand full comment

Hopefully Jaylon Tyson and Trey Woodbury...

Don't think we can afford Aziz.

Expand full comment

Let's go get Hunter Dickinson!

Expand full comment

Blue chip programs have supposedly been contacting Aziz so it will be tough. 247 crystal ball has Tyson to Cal 100%, FWIW. That would be a VERY big pickup.

Expand full comment

Tyson would be frigging great…he and his brother seem a package deal maybe…. Jordyn Tyson, WR from CU that got Prime Timed in Boulder…hopefully the Mad Dog can close it!

Expand full comment

Not sure what our football scholarship situation is but this deal seems very worth it. I don't think Jordyn would start at WR but he's still young. Was thinking he might get time early on ST since he did track in HS but he's a jumper not a runner.

Expand full comment

Jordyn was very much wanted by the CU staff but he wanted no part of them. Rumors are he ends up at Oklahoma but if we can beat them then we have a legit star at WR. I think he starts immediately but if not he’d still get heavy rotation snaps.

Expand full comment
May 3, 2023·edited May 3, 2023

If he ends up at Oklahoma, Jaylon likely does too, unfortunately. Porter Moser has entered the discussion for Jay T.

Expand full comment
author

For what it’s worth the basketball assistants follow Jordyn and some of the football staff follows Jaylon. Along with them following their respective sport athlete.

Expand full comment

Will he actually have to go to class?

Expand full comment

Not if he hits 40% from beyond the arc.

Expand full comment
May 2, 2023Liked by Piotr Le, TD_24

Can I get some work done people? I'm paid to do something other than rabidly following Cal sports news, but today is definitely challenging. The football and basketball coaches are coordinating their good news to overwhelm our systems and get us out of old ways of thinking. Repeat after me: We can have nice things. We can have nice things. We can have nice...wait, is that the Oski balloon gif face down again? We need an Oski gif of chopping down the tree!

Expand full comment

Nice additions, but, it would be nice to get some players who have more than one year of eligibility left!!!

Expand full comment

This is the fastest way to turn a program around. Success will only help Mad Dog's recruitment efforts.

Expand full comment

Exactly. The game has changed and the old college basketball recruiting model is out the window. Gonna start seeing major turnover every single year.

Expand full comment

Baby steps. Let's get some bodies to put on the floor now, and keep working longer term through traditional routes.

Expand full comment

Well, we will soon be signing a lot of one and done type of players from HS so better get used to it now.

Expand full comment

We did not have enough credible shooters last year. This is very good news. Welcome, Keonte!

Expand full comment

Mad Dog,keep up the great work! We actually have guys that can shoot ! That’s a first in many years.

Expand full comment

Cal basketball is now as cool as Right said Fred

Expand full comment

Am I insane or does it actually seem like we might be competitive next year?

Expand full comment
author

Not pac12 title but defm should be in the mix for a top 6 finish if everything falls correctly

Expand full comment
May 3, 2023·edited May 3, 2023

If we land Tyson and Woodbury, and they're eligible, we'll work our way on to the Bubble.

Expand full comment

What more positive b-ball news, if I'm dreaming I don't want to wakeup.

Expand full comment

💪🏼💪🏼

Expand full comment
Comment removed
Expand full comment
author

just Aimaq for now

Expand full comment

Praying for Aziz Bandaogo and Trey Woodbury. I know they were in the portal...not sure if they have decided yet. Figure Aimaq might need another big stud to rotate with. Get those guys and we could be a borderline top 25 team.

Expand full comment
May 3, 2023·edited May 3, 2023

Hearing Aziz is out of our price range, but fingers remain crossed.

I would LOVE Trey Woodbury...a Tyler Kolek clone that'll make everyone better.

Expand full comment

We need another big. A stout bruiser or a 7 foot blocker to rotate with Aimaq. Could you imagine having Aimaq and Bandaogo? Front court set, we good.

Expand full comment

Aziz and Aimaq would be epic....beasts down low. And I would love it...but hearing Bandaogo is gonna command close to 7-figures, with Duke and Kansas in the mix. Not sure we have that fundage available, but it would be sweet!!

Expand full comment

We have 2 scholarships left so it's still possible.

Expand full comment

2 schollies + Tyson?

I mean, if we could pull Woodbury, Aziz and Tyson, that would be unimaginably good. I think that roster is good enough (if Madsen can coach like we think he can) to be a legit bubble team!

Expand full comment

Dream bigger. That roster with adequate coaching is competing for a Pac title.

Expand full comment

2 scholarships available for 3 guys: Tyson, Aziz and Trey Woodbury all in the mix.

Celestine, Askew, Bowser, Okafor, Newell, Rodney Brown, Devin Curtis, Fardaws, Cone, Mike Meadows, Keonte Kennedy...11 scholarships of 13 spoken for.

Expand full comment

#Hogs4Spav and #Ballers4Madsen

Expand full comment
May 2, 2023Liked by Piotr Le, SGBear, TD_24

I'm not accustomed to this much good news.

Expand full comment

Just an embarrassment of riches...

Expand full comment

I'm waiting to wake up and be depressed again......

Expand full comment
author

its okay, as Cal fans it will revert to the mean at some point

Expand full comment

sadly, reverting to the mean is a huge improvement

Expand full comment