Is Mitch McGary overrated, underrated or properly rated? The Mitch McGary phenomenon is a weird one. For most of last season he was the talented guy not getting enough minutes for Michigan, playing very efficient basketball in only around 15 minutes per game. He had his ups and downs, of course. 12 points and 8 rebounds against Wisconsin represented his best regular season performance, but he finished the regular season with a brutal 2 point, 2 rebound performance against Indiana. But in the Big Ten tournament? He started getting more minutes (23 minutes in both games), setting up a monster NCAA Tournament.
What almost nobody remembers is that Mitch McGary didn't even make the Big Ten All-Freshman Team last season. This season he's an AP preseason All-American. So was he wildly underrated last regular season? Or is he wildly overrated now? I think the answer is somewhere in between. Certainly I felt like he was one of the five best freshmen in the Big Ten last season. Gary Harris, Sam Dekker and Yogi Ferrell are all primed to be among the best players in the nation this season, but AJ Hammons ahead of Mitch McGary? I don't think that even the biggest Purdue homer expects more out of Hammons than McGary this season.
But is McGary as good as he looked in the NCAA Tournament? Probably not. Particularly without Trey Burke drawing defenses and setting him up for easy layups and putbacks. It's just hard to imagine McGary living up to expectations this season. He's a very talent player with good NBA potential, but don't be shocked if he doesn't even make first team All-Big Ten.
Providence... Here we go again? Providence had big expectations last season in year two of the Ed Cooley era. Kris Dunn and Ricky Ledo were a pair of true blue chip recruits (Ledo was actually a McDonald's All-American), and they were joining a premier backcourt of Vincent Council and Bryce Cotton. But things don't always work out as planned. Dunn got hurt and missed the first couple months of the season, and never really looked comfortable the rest of the season. Ledo didn't even qualify academically, and ended up sitting out the season. The Friars ended up a very "meh" 17-14 overall, with a bid into the NIT.
Council has graduated and Ricky Ledo left for the NBA, but everybody else important is back. With Kadeem Batts returning, and the transfer of 7-footer Carson Desrosiers, the Friars look to be back to the Tournament bubble. But... here we go again. Dunn is injured again, and it could be really serious. Keep an eye on this one. With Council gone, Dunn was likely going to be Providence's starting point guard this season. They can't afford to lose him for too long.
Bryce Dejean-Jones injured UNLV got some tough injury news with Bryce Dejean-Jones going down in a preseason exhibition. Dejean-Jones didn't have a particularly good season for UNLV last year, so it's not like the Runnin' Rebs have lost a superstar. But Dejean-Jones is one of only three returners from last season's eight man rotation. And the top prospect among the young players who got a few minutes per game off the bench (Savon Goodman) is gone as well. UNLV has a lot of fresh talent, but nobody other than Kentucky can just throw a whole new starting lineup on the floor without batting an eye. Dejean-Jones is really needed for some continuity and experience. Even with a fully healthy lineup, UNLV looks like a bubble team.
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