Iran

[Tim Hensley]

Went to basketball practice at The Rec again this morning. Not much new to report -- the ooooohs and ahhhhhhs have turned into the mundane expected.

One thing I did notice is this: Iran went straight up under the basket for a routine rebound and had an easy put back. Jannson and Ante -- no slouches themselves -- went after the same ball and bounced off of him like bowling pins! And it's almost a sin that a guy that big can be so quick on his feet.

People, this man will not be moved. I don't think anybody in college basketball will be able to out- physical him. As a result, I look for our rebound ratio -- an area where we repeatedly got beat last year -- to be much improved.

 

[TwolfHerdfan]

Went to basketball practice at The Rec again this morning. Not much new to report -- the ooooohs and ahhhhhhs have turned into the mundane expected.

One thing I did notice is this: Iran went straight up under the basket for a routine rebound and had an easy put back. Jannson and Ante -- no slouches themselves -- went after the same ball and bounced off of him like bowling pins! And it's almost a sin that a guy that big can be so quick on his feet.

People, this man will not be moved. I don't think anybody in college basketball will be able to out- physical him. As a result, I look for our rebound ratio -- an area where we repeatedly got beat last year -- to be much improved.

My concern is the refs are gonna be all over him once someone bounces off him, they'll call a foul on Iran. Seen it happen too many times. He'll just have to adjust to it.

 

[herdfan2413]

I think some of our rebound deficit is because we spread the floor to open lanes to the basket and don’t camp near the basket. Tim what is his shooting range and how is his shooting skills?

 

[Sean Hammond]

I think some of our rebound deficit is because we spread the floor to open lanes to the basket and don’t camp near the basket. Tim what is his shooting range and how is his shooting skills?

Agree. A lot of things go into rebounding. The old school way of just looking at rebounding totals is a bit misleading. I don't say that as defending our rebounding in previous years, because our rebounding % has been terrible too. A lot of that had to do with having a 6'5 guy playing the 4 (Ryan Taylor) and a 6'4 guy playing the 3 (Austin Loop). We became a much better rebounding team late in the year last year when we had some of our young length on the court. Bennett will help, but rebounding is a team effort/trait.

 

[herdalicious]

I hope he turns out to be a good player, but until he plays in a live game he'll be a big question mark for me. I realize he looks good in practice on a team where 6'4 200lbs lands you at the 4, but he's had issues with his weight and with injuries, not to mention he still had to prop after a year of post-grad prep school....if that doesn't scream "cautious optimism" I don't know what does.

 

[Tim Hensley]

You guys just keep on doubting -- that way, you'll be thrilled when you actually see him in person. TwoIf, I hear you and we're sure to see some of what you say, but what I saw this morning was just straight up with no body english or hip bounce -- hard to call a foul on that. His weight is really no longer an issue (sure, he could and will loose another 20 lbs.for endurance) and he looks pretty damn healthy to me; can't believe how quick he is for his size. Bennett can hit 30-footers; has a soft, high-arching shot. After CJ and Rondale are gone, no more 6' 5" forwards in the future; they're an average of 6'9" or better now: George, 6'7"; Williams 6'9"; Sustic, 6'10"; Beyers, 6'11" ; newcomers Cam and Taveon about 6' 6"/6'7" and can already jump above the others -- wait till you see them catch an alley oop, do a 360 (Taveon can do a 540) and slam one backwards!.

 

[jrod64]

I hope he turns out to be a good player, but until he plays in a live game he'll be a big question mark for me. I realize he looks good in practice on a team where 6'4 200lbs lands you at the 4, but he's had issues with his weight and with injuries, not to mention he still had to prop after a year of post-grad prep school....if that doesn't scream "cautious optimism" I don't know what does.

you are wrong here. He was not a prop and he did not attend a post grad prep school. He lost credit for a few classes that he took at a small hs as a sophomore. Get your facts straight before insulting this young mans intelligence.

 

[Chris McLaughlin]

you are wrong here. He was not a prop and he did not attend a post grad prep school. He lost credit for a few classes that he took at a small hs as a sophomore. Get your facts straight before insulting this young mans intelligence.

Bennett was a partial qualifier and did do a year of prep school at FUMA.

 

[jrod64]

Bennett was a partial qualifier and did do a year of prep school at FUMA.

He qualified with his ACT score but he had a couple of classes as a sophomore that were not counted as credit. He is a very bright kid

 

[Chris McLaughlin]

He qualified with his ACT score but he had a couple of classes as a sophomore that were not counted as credit. He is a very bright kid

I’ve heard he is very bright, too.

 

[herd2believe]

I didn’t read the comment as he was insulting the big man’s intelligence? I read it as more of a cautionary message that he is afraid of putting too many eggs in that basket until IB actually produces. Could be wrong but that was my take.

 

[A Cousin From Richmond]

I hope he turns out to be a good player, but until he plays in a live game he'll be a big question mark for me. I realize he looks good in practice on a team where 6'4 200lbs lands you at the 4, but he's had issues with his weight and with injuries, not to mention he still had to prop after a year of post-grad prep school....if that doesn't scream "cautious optimism" I don't know what does.

I'm just worried that he wont acknowledge Dan D'Antoni or Marshall at the 2045 NBA Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony.

 

[Herdmeister]

My concern is the refs are gonna be all over him once someone bounces off him, they'll call a foul on Iran. Seen it happen too many times. He'll just have to adjust to it.

That concerns me as well. I remember well when Shaq was at LSU. In fact he left there early because the SEC officials wouldn't let him play.

 

[Herdmeister]

Tim what is his shooting range and how is his shooting skills?

He has improved his outside shot immensely since he came here last year. He is very comfortable shooting the 3 like everyone MUST do on this team.

 

[W-S HerdFan]

Seriously - how lucky are we to be curling under this huge men’s B.B. wave? T-minus 3 days until they jet down to the islands for some work....& perhaps a little sun and sand as well! Are we triple sure no video will come out of these exhibitions?

 

[Sean Hammond]

He has improved his outside shot immensely since he came here last year. He is very comfortable shooting the 3 like everyone MUST do on this team.

From what I’ve seen/heard, he’ll be able to knock them down if left wide open, but the 3 wont be something he looks for right now.

This topic has flown well below the radar because if he isn’t able to space the floor, it clogs the lane for a lot of the other action we run.

 

[Herdmeister]

Are we triple sure no video will come out of these exhibitions?

I was told no, sometime ago. I will ask Neal again this morning at practice

 

[herdalicious]

Not being eligible for the NCAA isn't necessarily a reflection of intelligence. Sometimes it can be an indicator of an undiagnosed learning disability, but most often its simply the result of a player not doing the requisite classwork. Many times these players grow up with coaches and teachers who will fudge the academic side to keep them eligible and focused on their sport, so the responsibility for this can be shared.

Honestly though, my concern isn't so much about his grades - if Marshall can get you eligible, they can usually keep you that way - but rather with his health. He's big, but some might say overweight for his frame, and I'm wondering how that's going to play out. I just think people need to take a deep breath and wait and see how he does against live opposition over the course of a season. The good news is you'll have up to three years after that to feed me crow.

 

[herdinatl]

Outside of the videos of the games, there better NOT be any other videos surfacing either, lol. Jannson has already been given the "Bad Decisions" speech.....again. ESPECIALLY since he will be celebrating his birthday down there !!!

 

[Dreh_Nagi_HC_IM]

Dissapointed. Thought this thread was going to be about the mullahs, and I was prepared to type out Wrong Board.

 

[Tim Hensley]

Some of you guys sound like a herd of goats: Naaaaaaa, naaaaaaa, naaaaaaaa !!!

 

[cottrell75]

Dissapointed. Thought this thread was going to be about the mullahs, and I was prepared to type out Wrong Board.

C-USA is set to impose sanctions on him now.

 

[sistersville]

I hope the big guy takes shots underneath far more than shooting threes

 

[GK4Herd]

Not being eligible for the NCAA isn't necessarily a reflection of intelligence. Sometimes it can be an indicator of an undiagnosed learning disability, but most often its simply the result of a player not doing the requisite classwork. Many times these players grow up with coaches and teachers who will fudge the academic side to keep them eligible and focused on their sport, so the responsibility for this can be shared.

Honestly though, my concern isn't so much about his grades - if Marshall can get you eligible, they can usually keep you that way - but rather with his health. He's big, but some might say overweight for his frame, and I'm wondering how that's going to play out. I just think people need to take a deep breath and wait and see how he does against live opposition over the course of a season. The good news is you'll have up to three years after that to feed me crow.

I don't think you totally understand what happened. His eligibility has nothing to do with a "learning disability," or completing "requisite classwork." Iran attended a school his sophomore year that turned out to be a basketball mill that folded and none of his credits transferred. His classrooms performance was never an issue and is the reason his eligibility was appealed. This kid was a good student with the requisite test scores that simply had his sophomore year vacated when the school folded.

His only culpability was chasing schools to improve his competition and exposure similar to what we see from kids attending Huntington Prep

 

[herdalicious]

Okay, that's a unique situation I haven't seen before, and I did not know that because it wasn't reported in the press and I am not employed as a reporter on Marshall athletics. I'm a little confused though - according to the internet (again, I'm not a reporter and have no inside contacts and just have to go on what's in the public record), his sophomore year he went to Bull City Prep Academy in Durham, NC, which is still in operation as of this morning.

 

[herdalicious]

Update: I found this slug from an old article in the H-D:

"He was a dean's list student last year at Hargrave Military Academy in Chatham, Va., posted a satisfactory ACT score and reportedly made good grades this summer at Marshall. His eligibility concerns stemmed from some classes he took previously at another prep school, Bull City Prep Academy in Durham, N.C.:"

Cut me some slack, man, that's all I had to go on.

And I've been searching on this Google thing for like ten minutes, but I can't find any articles related to issues with Bull City Prep. If they had some big scandal, they managed to keep it out of the public view I guess.

 

[GK4Herd]

Update: I found this slug from an old article in the H-D:

"He was a dean's list student last year at Hargrave Military Academy in Chatham, Va., posted a satisfactory ACT score and reportedly made good grades this summer at Marshall. His eligibility concerns stemmed from some classes he took previously at another prep school, Bull City Prep Academy in Durham, N.C.:"

Cut me some slack, man, that's all I had to go on.

And I've been searching on this Google thing for like ten minutes, but I can't find any articles related to issues with Bull City Prep. If they had some big scandal, they managed to keep it out of the public view I guess.

Hopefully I didn't come across as condescending. It wasn't my intention if I did. What I posted was what was related to me by someone who is close to the program. Maybe @Herdmeister can verify what I posted and clarify the situation.

 

[pdbailey]

Update: I found this slug from an old article in the H-D:

"He was a dean's list student last year at Hargrave Military Academy in Chatham, Va., posted a satisfactory ACT score and reportedly made good grades this summer at Marshall. His eligibility concerns stemmed from some classes he took previously at another prep school, Bull City Prep Academy in Durham, N.C.:"

Cut me some slack, man, that's all I had to go on.

And I've been searching on this Google thing for like ten minutes, but I can't find any articles related to issues with Bull City Prep. If they had some big scandal, they managed to keep it out of the public view I guess.

The name of that school is the first red flag.

 

[GreenDuke]

Bull City Prep. Good lord.

 

[jocktalker]

Bull City Prep. Good lord.

Well, I guess it's better than Bullshit City Prep.

 

[GreenDuke]

Well, I guess it's better than Bullshit City Prep.

It would be more appropriate.