Post by mhbruin on Apr 23, 2021 9:52:42 GMT -8
Next are the 8th place Utah Utes. They had a pretty poor season and long-time coach Larry Krystowiak was fired. I was a little surprised at the timing, since he seemed poised for a really good season. He returned a lot of talent from a very young team.
I always respected his coaching, and I expect he will find a job somewhere.
He has been replaced by Coach Craig Smith from Utah State. I think he is a home-run hire. He was perhaps my favorite small-school coach. His teams always seem to pass the ball REALY well.
However, I have one HUGE problem with this hire. We now have two Coach Smiths in the Pac-12. We already had Kyle Smith at WSU. I have already heard someone refer to Craig Smith as Matt Smith, who played Doctor Who and Prince Phillip. Confusion reigns.
The next thing you know the league is going to bring in a bunch of people named Jones. A plethora of Browns, Smiths, and Joneses. We are starting to sound like witness protection.
Krystowiak used to be "The other coach K." Now they have "The other Coach Smith."
GRADUATING
- None -
IN THE DRAFT
Alfonso Plummer is also in the transfer portal. I don't think he is in the draft to stay. However, he won't be back to Utah either way.
Jantunen has announced he is turning pro. It is not clear if that will be in the NBA.
TRANSFERRING OUT
Norbert Thelissen would have been a freshman last season, but was forced to sit out due to NCAA rules regarding amateur status as he played too many games for his club team.
Riley Batten and Lahat Thioune put their names into the portal and then decided to return to Utah.
The Utes are are losing 3 significant rotation players. This is a pretty big loss.
They are losing their two leading scores, including Timmy Allen who led them in points rebounds, assist, and steals. I believe that officially makes him their best player.
They also lose Ian Martinez who was a promising freshman.
RETURNING
For a team that lost so much to transfers, Utah returns a core of some experienced players.
Coach Smith is left with 6 returning scholarship players and not that much talent. Only 4 have shown that they can play at a Pac-12 level.
The best of the bunch is probably Pelle Larsson who shot 47% from the arc last season. He looks like a future star. He may need to carry a lot of the load next season.
Carlson is a solid center and a good shot-blocker. He has good footwork and has some moves around the basket.
Rylan Jones is not much of a scorer, but otherwise he is an outstanding PG. He has a great 3.6 A/TO ratio. However, he only shoots 36% from the field and 30% on threes. He is their version of Tyger Campbell.
Utah's Coach Smith needs help.
(#?? class, #?? in Pac-12)
It doesn't look like the needed help will come from the freshman class.
Coach Smith needs players. He brought in a lot of transfers at Utah State, so it isn't a surprise to see him start bringing in the the transfers. It's also not a surprise to see him go after players from the Mountain West, and from his former team.
Craig Smith must have been looking at Madsen when he was coaching at Utah State, because he jumped on him quickly. Madsen only played in 2 games for the Bearcats before opting out of the season. He has a twin brother who is also transferring out of Cincinnati (along with most of the rest of their roster).
Coach Smith was definitely familiar with Jenkins, Worster, and Anthony before he offered. He saw Jenkins play in person when his Utah State team played against UNLV. He also saw Worster and Anthony up close and personal, since they were on Smith's Utah State team.
Jenkins was a 41% 3-point shooter and was the Rebels 2nd-leading scorer.
Worster's stats weren't great, but Smith knows that he was well coached in his one season at Utah State. He led the Aggies in assists.
Marco Anthony was Utah State's third-leading scorer and second in assists. Anthony was at Virginia for two seasons before transferring to Utah State, so he has had some good coaching. He also sat out a year at Utah State so he has two years of coaching from Tony Bennett and two more from Craig Smith.
CONCLUSION
Craig Smith is an excellent basketball coach. In their five seasons in the Mountain West before he arrived, Utah State had never finished higher than 4th and they had not been to the NCAA tournament since 2011. In three seasons after Coach Smith took over, they finished 1st, 2nd, and 2nd, giving San Diego State a run for their money.
The problem is the cupboard of talent is pretty bare, and it is pretty late in the cycle to do much more about it for next season. The best he can do is try to bring a lot of his former players south from Logan.
It may take them a year or two, but I expect Utah to be very good under Coach Craig Smith. In fact I think both Coaches Smith are very good. However, in the upcoming season, he will definitely be "The Other Coach Smith" in the Pac-12.
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I always respected his coaching, and I expect he will find a job somewhere.
He has been replaced by Coach Craig Smith from Utah State. I think he is a home-run hire. He was perhaps my favorite small-school coach. His teams always seem to pass the ball REALY well.
However, I have one HUGE problem with this hire. We now have two Coach Smiths in the Pac-12. We already had Kyle Smith at WSU. I have already heard someone refer to Craig Smith as Matt Smith, who played Doctor Who and Prince Phillip. Confusion reigns.
The next thing you know the league is going to bring in a bunch of people named Jones. A plethora of Browns, Smiths, and Joneses. We are starting to sound like witness protection.
Krystowiak used to be "The other coach K." Now they have "The other Coach Smith."
GRADUATING
- None -
IN THE DRAFT
| Player | Minutes | Points | Rebounds | Assists |
| Alfonso Plummer | 28 | 14 | 2 | 1 |
| Mikael Jantunen | 28 | 9 | 5 | 1 |
Alfonso Plummer is also in the transfer portal. I don't think he is in the draft to stay. However, he won't be back to Utah either way.
Jantunen has announced he is turning pro. It is not clear if that will be in the NBA.
TRANSFERRING OUT
| Player | Minutes | Points | Rebounds | Assists | Destination |
| Timmy Allen | 35 | 17 | 6 | 4 | Texas |
| Alfonso Plummer | 28 | 14 | 2 | 1 | Illinois |
| Ian Martinez | 16 | 5 | 2 | 1 | Maryland |
| Jordan Keller | 4 | 1 | 1 | 0 | |
| Brendan Wenzel | 6 | 0 | 2 | 1 | Wyoming |
| Norbert Thelissen | Did Not Play |
Norbert Thelissen would have been a freshman last season, but was forced to sit out due to NCAA rules regarding amateur status as he played too many games for his club team.
Riley Batten and Lahat Thioune put their names into the portal and then decided to return to Utah.
The Utes are are losing 3 significant rotation players. This is a pretty big loss.
They are losing their two leading scores, including Timmy Allen who led them in points rebounds, assist, and steals. I believe that officially makes him their best player.
They also lose Ian Martinez who was a promising freshman.
RETURNING
For a team that lost so much to transfers, Utah returns a core of some experienced players.
| Player | Minutes | Points | Rebounds | Assists | Class | Recruiting Stars | Recruiting Rank |
| Branden Carlson | 23 | 9 | 5 | 1 | Jr | 4 | 102 |
| Pelle Larsson | 27 | 8 | 3 | 3 | So | 3 | 183 |
| Riley Battin | 22 | 7 | 3 | 1 | Sr | 3 | 222 |
| Rylan Jones | 25 | 4 | 2 | 4 | Jr | 4 | 112 |
| Lahat Thioune | 6 | 1 | 1 | 1 | Jr | 3 | 168 |
| Jaxon Brenchley | 7 | 1 | 1 | 1 | Jr | 3 | 376 |
Coach Smith is left with 6 returning scholarship players and not that much talent. Only 4 have shown that they can play at a Pac-12 level.
The best of the bunch is probably Pelle Larsson who shot 47% from the arc last season. He looks like a future star. He may need to carry a lot of the load next season.
Carlson is a solid center and a good shot-blocker. He has good footwork and has some moves around the basket.
Rylan Jones is not much of a scorer, but otherwise he is an outstanding PG. He has a great 3.6 A/TO ratio. However, he only shoots 36% from the field and 30% on threes. He is their version of Tyger Campbell.
Utah's Coach Smith needs help.
RECRUITS
(#?? class, #?? in Pac-12)
It doesn't look like the needed help will come from the freshman class.
| Player | Size | Position | Recruiting Stars | Recruiting Rank | Offers |
| Lazar Stefanovic | 6-5 176 | SG | Unranked | No other offers | |
Stefanovic is from Serbia. Krystowaik, who signed him, has had quite a bit of success finding unknown Euros, so he might be good.
Coach Smith got the job late, so it will be hard to find anything among the unsigned players in the class of 2021. However, there is always the transfer portal.
Coach Smith got the job late, so it will be hard to find anything among the unsigned players in the class of 2021. However, there is always the transfer portal.
TRANSFERRING IN
| Player | Size | Minutes | Points | Rebounds | Assists | From | Class | Recruiting Stars | Recruiting Rank |
| Gabe Madsen | 6-7 210 | 6 | 2 | 1 | 0 | Cincinnati | Jr | 3 | 209 |
| David Jenkins | 6-2 195 | 29 | 15 | 2 | 2 | UNLV | Sr | Unranked | |
| Rollie Worster | 6-3 200 | 28 | 9 | 4 | 4 | Utah State | So | Unranked | |
| Marco Anthony | 6-5 225 | 32 | 10 | 5 | 3 | Utah State | Sr | 3 | 244 |
Coach Smith needs players. He brought in a lot of transfers at Utah State, so it isn't a surprise to see him start bringing in the the transfers. It's also not a surprise to see him go after players from the Mountain West, and from his former team.
Craig Smith must have been looking at Madsen when he was coaching at Utah State, because he jumped on him quickly. Madsen only played in 2 games for the Bearcats before opting out of the season. He has a twin brother who is also transferring out of Cincinnati (along with most of the rest of their roster).
Coach Smith was definitely familiar with Jenkins, Worster, and Anthony before he offered. He saw Jenkins play in person when his Utah State team played against UNLV. He also saw Worster and Anthony up close and personal, since they were on Smith's Utah State team.
Jenkins was a 41% 3-point shooter and was the Rebels 2nd-leading scorer.
Worster's stats weren't great, but Smith knows that he was well coached in his one season at Utah State. He led the Aggies in assists.
Marco Anthony was Utah State's third-leading scorer and second in assists. Anthony was at Virginia for two seasons before transferring to Utah State, so he has had some good coaching. He also sat out a year at Utah State so he has two years of coaching from Tony Bennett and two more from Craig Smith.
CONCLUSION
Craig Smith is an excellent basketball coach. In their five seasons in the Mountain West before he arrived, Utah State had never finished higher than 4th and they had not been to the NCAA tournament since 2011. In three seasons after Coach Smith took over, they finished 1st, 2nd, and 2nd, giving San Diego State a run for their money.
The problem is the cupboard of talent is pretty bare, and it is pretty late in the cycle to do much more about it for next season. The best he can do is try to bring a lot of his former players south from Logan.
It may take them a year or two, but I expect Utah to be very good under Coach Craig Smith. In fact I think both Coaches Smith are very good. However, in the upcoming season, he will definitely be "The Other Coach Smith" in the Pac-12.
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