TL;DR: Everybody has something to improve on but the future is bright.
Frustrating year for the most part with a few bright spots scattered in. Unfortunately injuries and youth hurt this team a lot. Losing 7 straight down the stretch sucked but with SY and NWB out we were really playing with 5 maybe 6 Big 12 caliber players. Tough to overcome that.
I'm a hoops fan for the most part so while I'm happy with what Campbell has done with the football team, my attention always turns to the next basketball season as soon as the season ends. I've been thinking about where I'd like to see improvements from guys for next season.
Lindell Wigginton - Great freshman year from him. He's a good one and I'm so happy he's in cardinal and gold. Ball security is a big weakness for him right now. We've been spoiled with arguably the best point guard in school history for the last 4 years so I definitely don't expect a 5:1 assist to turnover but there is lots of room for improvement. He get's a little loose with the handle from time to time and can be a bit out of control. That'll get better as he matures but the out of control part of his game will flair it's ugly head occasionally for his whole career just because he is so explosive. Would also like to see improvement at the free throw line. He's gonna get fouled a ton in his career and could make a living there. I would like to see him get that percentage up to 75% or more. There's really no reason a 40% shooter from three should shoot 65% from the line. Really excited for him the next few years.
Cam Lard - Another great freshman season. He's going to be a good one for us as well (if he doesn't leave omg I'm panicked). He could really use a left hand. Every back to the basket move he makes is with his right. Would also love to see him be able to start developing a 10-15 jump shot. His defensive positioning wasn't always great and he would end up in foul trouble because of it. Better positioning coupled with his shot blocking instincts... look out. He's so competitive and plays with a lot of emotion, I love that. But sometimes he get's visibly frustrated when things don't go well. As he gets older, that will get better but some mental toughness could do a lot for his game. He really showed a nice passing ability from the post at times the last few games. Can't wait to see what he does at Iowa State. I think he'll be a 1st All-Big 12 player before he's done.
Terrence Lewis - He really gave some solid minutes when NWB went down. His percentage doesn't reflect it but I think he's a solid shooter and he'll only get better from 3 as he catches up to the college game. I really think he will be a Matt Thomas type player as a junior and senior. He's probably not as good of a pure shooter but I think we will see that type of improvement. His defense needs a lot of work. He was out of position a lot this year. Some of it was lateral quickness but a lot of times he just looked lost. He's a long guard so I hope he can get to the point where he has the ability to drive and finish at the rim. Some time in the weight room would help a lot with that.
Jakolby Long - He has struggled to show he can play at the Big 12 level in my opinion. He appears to be a solid shooter but it was a small sample size. Good defender and gave some good minutes in that regard. He never did anything that hurt us when he was in but also never really did anything that said "See, this is why I need to get more minutes". I hope he can be a solid 3 and D guy off the bench.
Zoran Talley - I was a big fan of his this year. Very smooth. That little one handed floater from about 8-10 feet was money all year. If he could develop a consistent jump shot from outside he could be a real weapon. I would be surprised if he doesn't average double figures next year.
Nick Weiler-Babb - Injury bug got to him but he was a swiss army knife when he played. I think his knee affected his outside shot (and other areas) because he seemed better from three earlier in the year but much more hesitant as we got into conference play. I'd like to see him improve that and get more confident from outside. He also needs to be more assertive in my opinion. He seemed very passive at times. Again, the knee might have been the reason for that but I would like to see him go "get his" once in awhile. He's capable and with his athleticism could have a big senior year.
Soloman Young - Solo and Lard together on the court are a great pair. He's our best low post defender and can rebound. Hopefully he can develop a some good low post offense next year. He's got the frame to be a bull with the ball in his hands on the block, just hasn't shown it consistently. I like his jump shot from 15 feet and in. He about drove me up the wall with the three pointers this year but his stroke always looked good. I was glad to see him stop attempting them in the second half of the conference season but hopefully he keeps working on them and can become a threat from outside next year. I think I would take an Osetkowski on my team, Solo could be that guy.
I think I speak for everyone here when I say I'm really excited about what we have coming back next year. Adding Shayok and Jacobson with the freshman class we will have and things look really good on paper. November can't get here soon enough.
Shout out to the seniors for everything they did this year. Go Cyclones!
Frustrating year for the most part with a few bright spots scattered in. Unfortunately injuries and youth hurt this team a lot. Losing 7 straight down the stretch sucked but with SY and NWB out we were really playing with 5 maybe 6 Big 12 caliber players. Tough to overcome that.
I'm a hoops fan for the most part so while I'm happy with what Campbell has done with the football team, my attention always turns to the next basketball season as soon as the season ends. I've been thinking about where I'd like to see improvements from guys for next season.
Lindell Wigginton - Great freshman year from him. He's a good one and I'm so happy he's in cardinal and gold. Ball security is a big weakness for him right now. We've been spoiled with arguably the best point guard in school history for the last 4 years so I definitely don't expect a 5:1 assist to turnover but there is lots of room for improvement. He get's a little loose with the handle from time to time and can be a bit out of control. That'll get better as he matures but the out of control part of his game will flair it's ugly head occasionally for his whole career just because he is so explosive. Would also like to see improvement at the free throw line. He's gonna get fouled a ton in his career and could make a living there. I would like to see him get that percentage up to 75% or more. There's really no reason a 40% shooter from three should shoot 65% from the line. Really excited for him the next few years.
Cam Lard - Another great freshman season. He's going to be a good one for us as well (if he doesn't leave omg I'm panicked). He could really use a left hand. Every back to the basket move he makes is with his right. Would also love to see him be able to start developing a 10-15 jump shot. His defensive positioning wasn't always great and he would end up in foul trouble because of it. Better positioning coupled with his shot blocking instincts... look out. He's so competitive and plays with a lot of emotion, I love that. But sometimes he get's visibly frustrated when things don't go well. As he gets older, that will get better but some mental toughness could do a lot for his game. He really showed a nice passing ability from the post at times the last few games. Can't wait to see what he does at Iowa State. I think he'll be a 1st All-Big 12 player before he's done.
Terrence Lewis - He really gave some solid minutes when NWB went down. His percentage doesn't reflect it but I think he's a solid shooter and he'll only get better from 3 as he catches up to the college game. I really think he will be a Matt Thomas type player as a junior and senior. He's probably not as good of a pure shooter but I think we will see that type of improvement. His defense needs a lot of work. He was out of position a lot this year. Some of it was lateral quickness but a lot of times he just looked lost. He's a long guard so I hope he can get to the point where he has the ability to drive and finish at the rim. Some time in the weight room would help a lot with that.
Jakolby Long - He has struggled to show he can play at the Big 12 level in my opinion. He appears to be a solid shooter but it was a small sample size. Good defender and gave some good minutes in that regard. He never did anything that hurt us when he was in but also never really did anything that said "See, this is why I need to get more minutes". I hope he can be a solid 3 and D guy off the bench.
Zoran Talley - I was a big fan of his this year. Very smooth. That little one handed floater from about 8-10 feet was money all year. If he could develop a consistent jump shot from outside he could be a real weapon. I would be surprised if he doesn't average double figures next year.
Nick Weiler-Babb - Injury bug got to him but he was a swiss army knife when he played. I think his knee affected his outside shot (and other areas) because he seemed better from three earlier in the year but much more hesitant as we got into conference play. I'd like to see him improve that and get more confident from outside. He also needs to be more assertive in my opinion. He seemed very passive at times. Again, the knee might have been the reason for that but I would like to see him go "get his" once in awhile. He's capable and with his athleticism could have a big senior year.
Soloman Young - Solo and Lard together on the court are a great pair. He's our best low post defender and can rebound. Hopefully he can develop a some good low post offense next year. He's got the frame to be a bull with the ball in his hands on the block, just hasn't shown it consistently. I like his jump shot from 15 feet and in. He about drove me up the wall with the three pointers this year but his stroke always looked good. I was glad to see him stop attempting them in the second half of the conference season but hopefully he keeps working on them and can become a threat from outside next year. I think I would take an Osetkowski on my team, Solo could be that guy.
I think I speak for everyone here when I say I'm really excited about what we have coming back next year. Adding Shayok and Jacobson with the freshman class we will have and things look really good on paper. November can't get here soon enough.
Shout out to the seniors for everything they did this year. Go Cyclones!
