On potential returns, there are 2 components:
1. what does the individual bring to the team?
2. what does his return mean to building the continuity we see at Cleveland and now even at UPWPUPWPU?
First and foremost, very few of us thought AD would be back next year. If he comes back, his individual talent gives us the chance to win any league game by taking us over the top when he is playing his best. In the 2nd half of this season, he has shown leadership, clutch shot making in the crunch, an ability/desire to pass more often and an improved shooting percentage. If he comes back for the reason of winning championships/NCAA tourney games, and not to chase an all-time NCAA career scoring record, then this would be a gift that is rarely received by any program -- when a school gets 4 years of an AD, it's amazing. Five would be over the top awesome.
Harvey is a good basketball player who is playing with an injury all season. If he can recover and get in great shape, he's a wonderful complementary player.
McAdoo seemed to settle into a role this season and play it well. He has learned how to play both with AD on the floor (which is most of the time) and without him on the floor. The only downside I see to his return is the fact it may slow LeGrear's development, and the development of Sonny Johnson. But at this point, winning trumps development, and 2 years of McAdoo is a plus.
Koka. Not a negative. At worst he does what he does this year - come in for a few minutes here and there. He'll still be 7-1 and maybe he'll gain a pound.
Isiani. It would make sense for him to move on, but I would love him back. He is living proof of what sticking with the plan does. If he leaves, we are going to have to find a big man who does all the little things. We will have to find that guy because without Willie out there, we are not the same team.
My big questionmark is Akec. We need him to come back. We have no one on the team who brings his combination of size, length, rebounding and inside/outside game. If he comes back, we will have a really solid foundation.
That leaves guys who need to improve, namely Waterman & Sylla. We should be strong and deep at #1, #2 and #3 next year. And that doesn't even include the injured Phillips or Shaw. I've seen Shaw's athleticism and coach likes Phillips more than Shaw, so if one of those two becomes a player next year, watch out. More than anything, we need one of them to become a lockdown defender.
Waterman needs to stay healthy and with improved conditioning the sky is the limit. His shooting percentage usually drops in the 2nd half; I think he gets tired. He missed two FTs late in the game yesterday after UPWPWPU made another mini-run. If he had made just one FT, if everything had still played out the way it did, AD would have been making that 3rd FT to tie the game, instead of having to deliberately miss it.
If Sylla works hard he could become the low post player we haven't had in years. He's the player who could really put us over the top.
With all that said....
1. This scenario, if it includes Akec, McAdoo, Harvey, Koka and AD coming back, would give us the continuity we haven't had in years. The coach's collective challenge would be to toughen the team up more, so that they always come to play, always come with a chip on their shoulder. This is something Isiani brings 95% of the time, and it needs to become our everyday culture. More than anything, this is what turns an average team into a good team, or a good team into a great team. And at U-D, it's the best way to build, and define, a Program.
2. We need a tough big dude grad transfer. The problem with bringing in grad transfer big guys is you have a good chance of bringing in a Prince Oduro - someone who has selfish motives - wants big numbers, wants to "impress" the pro scouts, wants to be a big guy playing on the wing. What we need is a PW big guy - someone who loves the dirty work. This guy could score 4 points and grab 6 rebounds a game but if he's 6-9, 240 lbs, tough as nails, loves to defend, grabs rebounds, pushes guys around and plays to win, that's who we need. Unfortunately this guy probably won't be a high schooler, because we'll need the guy right out of the box, and those bigs are few and far between right out of high school if you're U-D.
Remember, guys left last year who were part of the chemistry and helped create our 2nd half improvement. It really hurt because we had to start over again with too many fresh faces. You don't need to be a star to be missed. Kuol was a star but we missed the other departees as well. If we nip that problem in the bud, not only will we have fewer holes to fill, but we will have a returning nucleus that emits an overall positive culture. Anyone who doesn't want to be part of that culture won't fit in. They will either have to jump on board or not. They won't be able to play just because they're good players. If they don't play defense, if they don't care about their teammates, we won't have to recruit them just for their talent.
