There is no way Anosike does not start....

[Stoked]

Keon Johnson will be a lottery pick. There’s no way he’s coming off the bench.

2021 NBA Mock Draft - NBA Draft Room

He certainly could be!

Look where this mock draft has him before a single game is played. He could work his way up to be a lottery pick, him and Springer both. I like his comparison of Jaylen Brown. He is a lot smaller than JB, but his playing style is similar.

 

[Stoked]

2021 NBA Mock Draft - NBA Draft Room

He certainly could be!

Look where this mock draft has him before a single game is played. He could work his way up to be a lottery pick, him and Springer both. I like his comparison of Jaylen Brown. He is a lot smaller than JB, but his playing style is similar.

This one has both Springer and Johnson going in the lottery!

 

[VolPack22]

Our team is deep this year and Barnes is going to be able to throw out a number of different lineups. I’m sure he is probably giddy about this team and all the possibilities he has at his disposal. This is going to be huge for us, especially in a season with all the Covid protocols. If someone can’t play for a week and a half we can plug and play with almost anyone in the country. There’s not a lot of teams that can match us on that.

 

[Willy14]

That fact that we are arguing who is going to start because we have so many good players just shows you what Barnes has done to this program in the past 5 years

 

[jmva1]

I think it’s pretty clear cut Pons and Fulky will start at the 4/5 with Anosike will be the first big off the bench. It’ll be interesting whether they play him at both big positions, it seems from practice video they will, though he’s definitely an undersized 5.

It’ll go a long way for our team if Nkamhoua has improved to where he can give us decent minutes off the bench especially at the 5. There’s gonna be some game this season hes gonna need to legitimately contribute.

I think the only guard that will definitely come off the bench nearly every game is Bailey. He seems to me the perfect guard to bring in with a second unit that can provide scoring and defense off the bench.

It’ll be most interesting to me the 1-2-3 guard combinations they throw out there and which combinations are most successful. Outside of Bailey coming off the bench I could really see any combination of them starting.

 

[Thunder Good-Oil]

There’s not enough playing time to go around, but there’s enough competition to keep them all focused and out of trouble (not that ANY of this roster would seem to EVER be a discipline problem).

Imagine having:

JJJ
KJ
JS
SV
Fulk
Pons
Anosike
Bailey

on any roster AND 3 of them can’t start. Even ORN, Ticket, and Walker would start on a lot of TN teams. It wouldn’t be crazy to suggest that Uros or Pember could have started for some of them either.

 

[amavol2]

Fulky and Pons will start

 

[keenobserver]

I think there's a high likelihood that he is a valuable contributor but not a starter.

Vescovi/Bailey
Johnson/Springer
James/Springer
Pons
Fulkerson

Anosike will usually be the first big off the bench I'm assuming. Unless there's a scenario in which Plavsic has improved, he should see alot of minutes.

 

[VOLED]

Right? He fixes our number 1 weakness from last year.

He definitely addresses our biggest weakness, but not sure you can get your best 5 on the floor with him starting. You would essentially be saying that Pons is better than others playing the 3 spot. It will be interesting to see who finishes the tight games for Barnes. If we have a lead, I wouldn't be shocked to see a very guard heavy line up. Either way, this will be fun to watch.

 

[VolAmerican]

I don't think starting lineups really matter except for Pons and Fulkerson. The top 8 or 9 are going to get rotated and play a lot of minutes.

 

[ColinS]

Possible starting lineup...........

PG- Vescovi
SG- Bailey
SF- James
PF- Pons
C- Fulkerson

Then you have Johnson, Gaines, Springer, Anosike and Plavsic as your second unit with ONR and Pember possibly being redshirted.

I may be in the minority but I don't think Plavcic will see the floor very much. We just simply have better options.

 

[Vol49er]

I may be in the minority but I don't think Plavcic will see the floor very much. We just simply have better options.

Agreed. I remain positive ON is going to be a good player here but if Uros ends up a real contributor then I'll be pleasantly surprised

 

[Thunder Good-Oil]

I may be in the minority but I don't think Plavcic will see the floor very much. We just simply have better options.

I think Uros has the most minutes if we see teams with huge clodhoppers hanging out at the low post that are a challenge to defend.

 

[PulaskiVolFan]

Wouldn’t be surprised if he starts in SEC play

In who's spot?

 

[Johnnyreb#VFL]

This thread is all over the place. We have 2 nba lottery picks on our current roster you guys are funny. No one is starting over Fulk and Pons they are the heart of the team.

 

[Chemvol]

This one has both Springer and Johnson going in the lottery!

If Johnson and Springer both have the kind of year that keeps them in the first round, it bodes well for our season considering the veterans we have coming back.

 

[walkenvol]

I think Uros has the most minutes if we see teams with huge clodhoppers hanging out at the low post that are a challenge to defend.

He’ll just foul them

 

[Chris4Vols22]

This thread is all over the place. We have 2 nba lottery picks on our current roster you guys are funny. No one is starting over Fulk and Pons they are the heart of the team.

It's feasible. The potential "lottery picks" don't threaten Pons's or Fulk's minutes.

 

[therickbol]

If Johnson and Springer both have the kind of year that keeps them in the first round, it bodes well for our season considering the veterans we have coming back.

UGA had #1 overall pick and were below .500. Ouch, that must be hard to do.

 

[Johnnyreb#VFL]

It's feasible. The potential "lottery picks" don't threaten Pons's or Fulk's minutes.

I was saying anosike won’t threaten their minutes.

 

[jackaro]

I do not see how you could justify benching Pons or Fulky. They are also deep and talented at the wings, so sliding Pons to the 3 is a non-starter.

 

[Thunder Good-Oil]

I do not see how you could justify benching Pons or Fulky. They are also deep and talented at the wings, so sliding Pons to the 3 is a non-starter.

They won’t be benched. But their minutes may not be in the mid to high 30s if Keon and Jayden live up to their hype and JJJ proves to have been limited by injuries last year. Pons is athletic, but I’m not sold on his basketball skill level being off the charts. But he is a hard workerso if he added anything in the off season he could be the team MVP.

 

[BreatheUT]

I guess Fulky isn't the butt of all jokes anymore until he is. I'm sure the Fulky criticizers can't wait to jump on him. I may have even been one of those dissenters.

 

[ColinS]

I think Uros has the most minutes if we see teams with huge clodhoppers hanging out at the low post that are a challenge to defend.

These are the kind of teams we will need to run out of the gym. We are in trouble if we can't. If Uros had shown what he did last year as an 18 year old I would be more confident in a dramatic improvement from year 1 to year 2 in Barne's system but the dude is old enough to have kids in college. I expect that kind of improvement from ORN but we will see.

 

[cardvolfan]

I guess Fulky isn't the butt of all jokes anymore until he is. I'm sure the Fulky criticizers can't wait to jump on him. I may have even been one of those dissenters.

We've all seen guys make remarkable progress for a variety of reasons from one year to the next. That's why I always say to give a guy a chance before pronouncing him unusable as a player. Sometimes they persevere and achieve, and in some cases they don't. Let's let it play out on the court.