Post by mhbruin on Jun 24, 2022 9:53:28 GMT -8
CHANGES
Devon Clayton transferring from Hartfold
===================
Next are the 10th place California Golden Bears. Going into the season, everyone predicted they would finish in last place. Oregon State rescued them.
Cal returned almost everyone from a bad team, but lost their best player.
They still managed to improve from 3 conference wins to 5. Losing their best player to the portal worked so well for them, they apparently decided to have their best player transfer out again . It's a strange strategy, but most things are strange in Berkeley.
Certainly the Bears need lots of help. Cal has had five consecutive losing seasons -- unprecedented in program history -- and have lost 20 games or more four of the past five.
Coach Fox may have exceeded expectations last season, but if he has another crappy season, we may read some sad Fox news. It might be fair and balanced.
GRADUATING
These are their #1 and #3 scorers? Who's #2? Why it's ...
TRANSFERRING OUT
Their #2 scorer is Andre Kelly. So the Bears are losing their top 3 scorers. Also, Kelly and Anticevich are their top 2 rebounders.
After putting his name into the draft, Kelly chose to come back to school. However, it will not be back to Cal.
Going from UC to UCSB seems like a strange choice. It wasn't as if Kelly was going to be struggling to find PT at Cal. However, maybe he got tired of playing for a LOOOSING TEAM. Or maybe he graduated and is going to graduate school in Santa Barbara.
RETURNING
California returns a lot of experience, but not a lot of production. And there are real questions about this roster.
Who's on first? Or who plays the 1? Joel Brown has an OK A/TO ratio of 1.7, but his shooting is questionable. Jarred Hyder has a better 2.0 ratio, but he can't shoot at all.
Perhaps it will be incoming transfer Devin Askew.
What about center? Lars Thiemann is 7'1", and is a serviceable backup center. However, he needs to be that starter, because is no one for him to back up, and there is no one to back him up.
They could go without a real center, but they will need to match up with guys like Oumar Ballo, N'Faly Dante, and Adem Bona (or Mac Etienne).
They have a bunch of wings, but the only one who shoots well is Sam Alajiki. Maybe he can take all their shots.
Then there is Obinna Anyanwu, who is notable for my thinking of him as Obinna AnyWayYouWantIt (from the old Dave Clark Five song). He also played in 24 games and had an amazing ZERO assists. He played 118 minutes (3 full games) and did not have an assist. Combine that with 5 turnovers, and that is not going to make Coach Fox feel glad all over.
These are not bad players, but I find it hard to identify anyone on this roster who would start at any of the better teams in the Pac-12. If anyone is going to have a breakout season, my money (and damned little of it) is on Jalen Celestine.
RECRUITS
Okafor may be a decent player, based on his list of offers. There isn't much to get excited about in this class.
Devin Askew was recruited by everyone out of Mater Dei. He chose to go the Johnny Juzang route and graduate early to go to Kentucky. He started 20 games as a freshman there, but wasn't exactly lighting it up. When they recruited over him, he decided to try his luck in Austin, TX. Apparently Coach Beard wasn't that impressed, so he is moving on again.
At Cal he won't get recruited over. He should get lots of PT. Maybe he can get his NBA dreams on track in Berkeley. I hope he enjoys playing for a LOOOSING TEAM. (Actually, he had some experience of that at Kentucky.)
That is, assuming he gets to play. With this being his second transfer, he will need a waiver from the NCAA, or he will have to sit out a year. If he plays, he might be their answer at PG.
When I saw Askew play for Mater Dei, I was very impressed. However, his college career hasn't lived up to anyone's expectations. I think he still has the potential to be an elite college player, if and when he ever plays for California.
Having him on the roster means Cal avoids joining Oregon State as the only team with no 4-star or 5-star players.
Dejuan Clayton has had quite the career. He played for 5 years at Coppin State, but only played 6 games his second season. With a red-shirt year and an extra COVID year he headed to Hartford.
However, he only played 2 games there last season, due to a shoulder injury. So apparently, he is eligible to play a SEVENTH season of college basketball. Will he be eligible or have to sit out a season? I have no idea.
As a senior in 2020-21 Clayton was a first-team all-MEAC selection after averaging 14.9 points and 5.1 assists while hitting 28.2% of his three-pointers. He started all 16 games in which he played that season.
CONCLUSION
Devon Clayton transferring from Hartfold
===================
Next are the 10th place California Golden Bears. Going into the season, everyone predicted they would finish in last place. Oregon State rescued them.
Cal returned almost everyone from a bad team, but lost their best player.
They still managed to improve from 3 conference wins to 5. Losing their best player to the portal worked so well for them, they apparently decided to have their best player transfer out again . It's a strange strategy, but most things are strange in Berkeley.
Certainly the Bears need lots of help. Cal has had five consecutive losing seasons -- unprecedented in program history -- and have lost 20 games or more four of the past five.
Coach Fox may have exceeded expectations last season, but if he has another crappy season, we may read some sad Fox news. It might be fair and balanced.
GRADUATING
| Player | Games | Starts | Minutes | Points | Rebounds | Assists |
| Jordan Shepherd | 32 | 32 | 33 | 15 | 3 | 2 |
| Grant Anticevich | 32 | 29 | 32 | 10 | 7 | 1 |
| Makale Foreman | 31 | 4 | 13 | 4 | 1 | 1 |
These are their #1 and #3 scorers? Who's #2? Why it's ...
TRANSFERRING OUT
Their #2 scorer is Andre Kelly. So the Bears are losing their top 3 scorers. Also, Kelly and Anticevich are their top 2 rebounders.
| Player | Games | Starts | Minutes | Points | Rebounds | Assists | Destination |
| Andre Kelly | 21 | 21 | 30 | 13 | 8 | 1 | UC Santa Barbara |
After putting his name into the draft, Kelly chose to come back to school. However, it will not be back to Cal.
Going from UC to UCSB seems like a strange choice. It wasn't as if Kelly was going to be struggling to find PT at Cal. However, maybe he got tired of playing for a LOOOSING TEAM. Or maybe he graduated and is going to graduate school in Santa Barbara.
RETURNING
| Player | Games | Starts | Minutes | Points | Rebounds | Assists | FG% | 3Pt% | A/TO | Class | Recruiting Stars | Recruiting Rank |
| Joel Brown | 30 | 24 | 27 | 5 | 4 | 3 | 41% | 23% | 1.7 | Jr 4 | 3 | 191 |
| Lars Thiemann | 32 | 11 | 14 | 5 | 3 | 1 | 52% | 0.5 | Jr 4 | Unranked | ||
| Jalen Celestine | 31 | 16 | 25 | 7 | 3 | 1 | 42% | 34% | 0.9 | So 3 | 3 | 402 |
| Kuany Kuany | 30 | 16 | 17 | 5 | 2 | 1 | 42% | 32% | 0.6 | Jr 4 | 3 | 354 |
| Sam Alajiki | 30 | 4 | 13 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 47% | 50% | 0.6 | So | Unranked | |
| Obinna Anyanwu | 24 | 0 | 5 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 39% | 0% | 0.0 | So | 3 | 192 |
| Marsalis Roberson | 17 | 0 | 6 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 32% | 0% | 1.1 | So | 3 | 156 |
| Jarred Hyder | 22 | 2 | 9 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 24% | 19% | 2.0 | Jr 4 | Unranked |
California returns a lot of experience, but not a lot of production. And there are real questions about this roster.
Who's on first? Or who plays the 1? Joel Brown has an OK A/TO ratio of 1.7, but his shooting is questionable. Jarred Hyder has a better 2.0 ratio, but he can't shoot at all.
Perhaps it will be incoming transfer Devin Askew.
What about center? Lars Thiemann is 7'1", and is a serviceable backup center. However, he needs to be that starter, because is no one for him to back up, and there is no one to back him up.
They could go without a real center, but they will need to match up with guys like Oumar Ballo, N'Faly Dante, and Adem Bona (or Mac Etienne).
They have a bunch of wings, but the only one who shoots well is Sam Alajiki. Maybe he can take all their shots.
Then there is Obinna Anyanwu, who is notable for my thinking of him as Obinna AnyWayYouWantIt (from the old Dave Clark Five song). He also played in 24 games and had an amazing ZERO assists. He played 118 minutes (3 full games) and did not have an assist. Combine that with 5 turnovers, and that is not going to make Coach Fox feel glad all over.
These are not bad players, but I find it hard to identify anyone on this roster who would start at any of the better teams in the Pac-12. If anyone is going to have a breakout season, my money (and damned little of it) is on Jalen Celestine.
RECRUITS
(#87 class, #11 in Pac-12)
| Player | Size | Position | Recruiting Stars | Recruiting Rank | Offers |
| ND Okafor | 6-9 210 | PF | 3 | 187 | Arizona, Baylor, Georgia, Creighton |
| Grant Newell | 6-5 200 | SF | 3 | 299 | DePaul |
Okafor may be a decent player, based on his list of offers. There isn't much to get excited about in this class.
TRANSFERRING IN
| Player | Size | Games | Starts | Minutes | Points | Rebounds | Assists | FG % | 3-Pt % | A/TO | From | Class | Recruiting Stars | Recruiting Rank |
| Devin Askew | 6-3 195 | 34 | 3 | 15 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 40% | 32% | 1.7 | Texas | So 3 | 4 | 32 |
| Dejuan Clayton | 6-2 185 | 2 | 2 | 34 | 8 | 3 | 3 | 36% | 0% | 1.0 | Hartford | Sr 5 | Unranked |
Devin Askew was recruited by everyone out of Mater Dei. He chose to go the Johnny Juzang route and graduate early to go to Kentucky. He started 20 games as a freshman there, but wasn't exactly lighting it up. When they recruited over him, he decided to try his luck in Austin, TX. Apparently Coach Beard wasn't that impressed, so he is moving on again.
At Cal he won't get recruited over. He should get lots of PT. Maybe he can get his NBA dreams on track in Berkeley. I hope he enjoys playing for a LOOOSING TEAM. (Actually, he had some experience of that at Kentucky.)
That is, assuming he gets to play. With this being his second transfer, he will need a waiver from the NCAA, or he will have to sit out a year. If he plays, he might be their answer at PG.
When I saw Askew play for Mater Dei, I was very impressed. However, his college career hasn't lived up to anyone's expectations. I think he still has the potential to be an elite college player, if and when he ever plays for California.
Having him on the roster means Cal avoids joining Oregon State as the only team with no 4-star or 5-star players.
Dejuan Clayton has had quite the career. He played for 5 years at Coppin State, but only played 6 games his second season. With a red-shirt year and an extra COVID year he headed to Hartford.
However, he only played 2 games there last season, due to a shoulder injury. So apparently, he is eligible to play a SEVENTH season of college basketball. Will he be eligible or have to sit out a season? I have no idea.
As a senior in 2020-21 Clayton was a first-team all-MEAC selection after averaging 14.9 points and 5.1 assists while hitting 28.2% of his three-pointers. He started all 16 games in which he played that season.
CONCLUSION
There should be a lot of excitement in Berkeley about this team. Not because they will be a good team. The real suspense is whether they can stay our of last place and whether this is Mark Fox's last season.
Like most of the bad teams, they have a serious question about who will score for them.
Then again, they could shock the world and finish 10th again. Actually most of the world wouldn't be shocked. They wouldn't notice. It's been a while since anyone noticed that Cal has a basketball team. The coming season won't change that.
Wilner writes:
11. Cal (11): Two months ago, we suggested the Bears could claim the cellar if big man Andre Kelly moved on. Well, Kelly took his 13 points and eight rebounds per game and transferred to UC Santa Barbara, but we haven’t moved the Bears from the No. 11 position. As depleted as the roster might be, Cal should have enough production to avoid last place. (It’s a low bar, folks.) Texas transfer Devin Askew will help immensely if eligible. The former four-star recruit has already changed schools once.
Like most of the bad teams, they have a serious question about who will score for them.
Then again, they could shock the world and finish 10th again. Actually most of the world wouldn't be shocked. They wouldn't notice. It's been a while since anyone noticed that Cal has a basketball team. The coming season won't change that.
Wilner writes:
11. Cal (11): Two months ago, we suggested the Bears could claim the cellar if big man Andre Kelly moved on. Well, Kelly took his 13 points and eight rebounds per game and transferred to UC Santa Barbara, but we haven’t moved the Bears from the No. 11 position. As depleted as the roster might be, Cal should have enough production to avoid last place. (It’s a low bar, folks.) Texas transfer Devin Askew will help immensely if eligible. The former four-star recruit has already changed schools once.