Moving forward ...

Do you think Memphis is all about Dajuan Wagner? What about the rest of the team? Kelly Wise averaged a double-double last year, Scooter McFadgon is more mature, and Chris Massie and Earl Barron are terrors inside. What will the Iowa game prove if Memphis wins?
—Karlos, Burnham, Ill.

I got a number of similar questions about Memphis, all with the same fallacy: In writing that no team has ever gone deep in the NCAAs with a "one-and-done" star, I was saying that Memphis is a one-man team. I didn't think so, at least not then, but after Memphis' loss to Iowa I'm starting to wonder. Judging from his 26-point, 18-shot performance (and his teammates' general lack of a significant contributions), it seemed as if Wagner was looking out for number Juan.

I'm confused, Grant. Tennessee finally dumped Jerry Green and Maryland actually advanced past the Sweet 16. Does this mean that we're going to have to find two new teams to vie for the title of "Biggest Perennial Underachiever/NCAA Tournament Bust"? Can anyone dethrone the Terps and the Vols this year?
—David Biermann, Durham, N.C.

It's just not as easy this year, David. If I had to pick an early candidate, it would probably be UCLA. The Bruins always seem to do better when nobody thinks they're any good, and when they get hyped they often crumble. Certainly UCLA's Olé defense (and 22 turnovers!) against Ball State doesn't augur well for the future. It's one thing to get beaten. It's another to let guys have uncontested baseline drives time after time. What are they doing in those closed practices in Westwood these days anyway?

If you had to rank the top five college hoops teams in Indiana this year (among Indiana, Purdue, Butler, Notre Dame and Valparaiso) what would your order be and why?
—Doug Wesolek, Portland, Ore.

Uh, Doug, you missed a few. So I'll go ahead and rank the top six as of today:

1. Ball State. No matter what the Cards do against Duke on Wednesday, these guys are for real. Great one-on-one dribblers, dead-eye shooters, solid defenders. Then again, Dayton looked great out in Hawaii last year, too.

2. Indiana. Pulled out a nice win in Charlotte. Jared Jeffries is growing up fast, and I like the more wide-open style the Hoosiers play these days.

3. Notre Dame. No Troy Murphy, but the Irish have Ryan Humphrey, David Graves and freshman point guard Chris Thomas, the Indiana Mr. Basketball who hit for 22 and 24 points in his first two games.

4. Butler. The Bulldogs came back from a huge deficit to beat Washington last week and quietly win the Top of the World Classic in Alaska. New coach Todd Lickliter's program is on the cusp of being another Gonzaga.

5. Purdue. Gene Keady's boys may be lightly regarded, but Maynard Lewis and Willie Deane are skilled players. Winning at Valpo last week helped, and the Boilers get a chance to knock off Stanford in Indy this weekend.

6. Valparaiso. These guys were everyone's pick to win the Mid-Con, but opening losses to Purdue and (yikes) Belmont have me worried about Homer Drew's crew. Look for the Crusaders to rebound at Indiana State on Wednesday.

Others not receiving votes: IUPUI, Evansville, Indiana State.

In sum: No national title contenders, but Indiana hoops is going to be awfully good across the board this year.

I saw that you had Missouri at No. 3 one time during the preseason. What was it you saw recently that turned you off? Everyone else I hear says that a No. 8 or No. 9 poll rating in the preseason is too low.
—Ed Heiser, Vernon Hill, Ill.

Well, I didn't have the Tigers No. 3. It was Albert Lin, CNNSI.com's college hoops guru, most eligible bachelor and editor of the 'Bag. Albert is known for being a pretty controversial guy, and he's been pumping up MU for months now. There's a lot to like about the Tigers, too. Kareem Rush is a fantastic player whose learning curve has been remarkably steep; A.J. Johnson has beefed up a soft interior; and I probably give Gilbert too much heat for a guy who has saved Missouri's bacon more than once. (See the Georgia game last year.) I just think the Tigers are lacking the full package inside (getting Uche Okafor eligible would help), which is keeping them out of my top five for now.

Last year I read with interest the numerous exchanges among yourself, Seth Davis and students at Stanford and Duke about the various abilities of both Casey Jacobsen and Mike Dunleavy. I now think even more firmly that, having watched the evolution of Dunleavy's game last season, the entire discussion missed the point. Jacobsen is a jump-shooting perimeter player. Would Duke have been better off with more perimeter shooting? With Dunleavy's increased height and bulk, and his ability to play (at least in college) anywhere from the 2 to the 4, I think Coach K made a wise choice in luring Dunleavy east.
—Sandy Cash, Durham, N.C.

Great points all around, though I think the Jacobsen vs. Dunleavy debate has become less tenable just recently. Dunleavy added his bulk in the offseason, and only now is it possible for him to be a legit power forward in the college game. That wasn't the case a year ago. Based on his first two games, Dunleavy's increased strength has done nothing to harm his shooting touch or his court smarts. As for Jacobsen, I think you're underestimating him if you call him simply a "jump-shooting perimeter player." Jacobsen can put the ball on the floor better than most people give him credit for. (I'll admit that his defense could improve, though.) It's a tough call: Jacobsen is a player of the year candidate, the kind of guy you build teams around. Dunleavy isn't -- not yet, at least -- but he fits better into K's system than Jacobsen probably would have.

Will Bob Knight find any success in his first year at Texas Tech? Is the NIT a realistic goal for the General?
—Brad "The Hard Charger" Hardy, Stillwater, Okla.

Darned if 3-0 Texas Tech hasn't had one of the most impressive starts in the nation. Beating San Diego State was a bigger win than most folks realized, and SMU shows the Red Raiders can do it on the road, too. The Big 12 is a different animal, though, so I'd say Knight should aim for a .500 conference record and an NIT berth.

Maybe we should do the rankings like the men's tennis tour and have everyone start at zero. Here are six teams that have proved the most to me on the floor so far this year:

1. Arizona. Beating Maryland, Florida and Texas -- all ranked, all away from Tucson -- makes the 'Cats the team of the season so far (unless Ball State beats Duke on Wednesday). Upcoming games in Arizona against Kansas and Michigan State will show us plenty.

2. Ball State. See above.

3. Western Kentucky. Double-digit win in Lexington. Getting tired of people pointing out that the Hilltoppers are more than Chris Marcus. (Of course they are.) But Marcus is the marquee guy. Check him (and WKU) out.

4. Oklahoma State. Cowboys dispatch Cincinnati and Providence on the way to a 4-0 start.

5. Texas Tech. Distinctly better than a year ago -- might it have something to do with the coach?

6. Missouri or Iowa. Whoever wins the Guardians Classic deserves a spot here.

Morris Brown update

I'll be giving periodic reports this year on my favorite team in the country, the Morris Brown Wolverines, who were the subject of a story on Division I debutantes I wrote with George Dohrmann for Sports Illustrated's college hoops preview. The Wolverines don't have a lot going for them -- they have yet to find a conference and will play 22 road games this year -- but they're some of the nicest guys you'll ever meet. Which is why I'm wearing a purple "Morris Brown Basketball" T-shirt as I'm writing this.

Morris Brown's record: 0-3. Last week: Losses to Clemson, La Salle and Eastern Michigan kicked off the season, but look at it this way -- the Wolverines got to spend five days in the Virgin Islands. Up next: a winnable home game against provisional D-I member Lipscomb before a three-game nightmare: at Tulsa, at Ole Miss and at Boston College.

Musical interlude

Thanks for the hundreds of music suggestions everybody sent in. One in particular stood out, coming from R.K. Cook in Chicago, who even points out a basketball connection:

"The three Vulgar Boatmen CDs (You and Your Sister, Please Panic, Opposite Sex) can be tough to find, but the band is putting out a best-of disc this winter on the No Nostalgia label. Plus, lead singer, guitarist and songwriter Dale Lawrence is the author of The Hoosier Hysteria Road Book, a complete guide to Indiana high school gyms that functions not only as a travel guide, but also as a snapshot of and rumination about what Indiana basketball is like with the advent of class play."

Thanks for the tips, R.K. Also, thanks to readers for suggesting numerous weekly departments for this year's 'Bag. Nate Ewell of Alexandria, Va., wants me to do something called "Best (Blank) in (Blank)," in which I'd name the Best Bookstore in Eugene or the Best Grilled Cheese in Princeton. Colin Witt of Des Moines, Iowa, suggests "Walk-on Warriors," in which I'd interview a different walk-on from around the country each week. Cedric Snow of Clayton, Calif., wants a feature called "What Are They Studying?" in which I'd discuss the intriguing study topics of players.

Or we could just do WATN again. Vote here with your choice.

Back to our show

Pay up, big guy!!!! Where are you taking Jason Williams' mom for lunch? I remember last season you said you would treat her to a meal if her superstar son stayed in Durham. You said he was long gone even after he declared that he would stay! Shame on you!
—D.J. Coldflow, Durham, N.C.

Uhh, I think you have me confused with my telegenic colleague Seth Davis. Wasn't this the nonsense that had Duke fans wanting to charge him with "libel"? God help us all.

So how was Diego Maradona's farewell game? Who still looked as if they "had it"?
—Dane Quinn, Akron, Ohio

Well, let's just say Maradona looked like a weekend warrior trying to hoop with the Lakers. Not a pretty sight, though the Mike Tyson -like press conferences and assorted mayhem was well worth the visit. (Look for the article in Sports Illustrated in February; that's all I can say.) As for the players, the Argentine national team was playing, so Verón and Zanetti obviously looked great. Among the oldsters, Eric Cantona looked overweight, as did Hristo Stoitchkov. One of my personal highlights was seeing Rene Higuita do a scorpion kick and venture waaaay out of his box. (Too bad Roger Milla wasn't around to make him pay.)

A word of advice: Never, EVER turn down a trip to Buenos Aires.

Have a great Thanksgiving.

Click here to send your college basketball question to Grant Wahl.

 

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