Projecting your 2009-10 Washington Huskies

After a successful season, it is time to start looking forward to the 2009-2010 season for the UW basketball team. Their is some high expectations for this team, with FOX Sports recently ranking them No. 7 in their national forecast for next season.The losses of Jon Brockman and Justin Dentmon are significant, but this Husky team is loaded and will most likely compete near the top of the Pac-10 next season.

Quincy Pondexter will be the most significant returning player for the Huskies. His performances at the end of the Pac-10 regular season and during the NCAA tournament were star-worthy. He has proved to be unstoppable in the post and a threat to always penetrate and make play off the dribble.

He'll need to work on his perimeter shooting to morph into an elite NBA prospect. More importantly, Pondexter will be the only senior on the team next season. He'll have to become a more vocal leader and help a relatively young basketball team.

The second most important returning player is Isaiah Thomas. We saw glimpses of dominance throughout the season, but at times Thomas did look like a freshman. It's been amazing how he's been able to score over taller and larger defenders this past season. At times, he's scored at will.

He'll benefit tremendously with the arrival of Abdul Gaddy. Speaking of Gaddy, he will undoubtedly change the dynamic of this team. With Thomas, Overton, and Gaddy in the backcourt, the Huskies' backcourt is one of the top in the nation.

For awhile I thought Venoy Overton was a useless inconsistent player. But now I understand why Romar went out and got Overton to play for the Huskies. Venoy is one of the best perimeter defenders in the Pac-10, if not in the nation. He seems to have an immediate impact defensively every single time he steps out on the floor.

I'd like to see him make better decisions with the basketball on the offensive end. He's been careless in transition and in the half-court offense.

If the Huskies are to be a NCAA tournament contender next season, Matthew Bryan-Amaning and transfer, Charles Garcia Jr., will have to soften the blow left by Jon Brockman's abscense. Both of these players will need to improve their rebounding prowess, most notably, MBA.

We also saw MBA's performance decline toward the end of the season. He lost a lot of confidence when his play started to decline. I'm asking a lot out of MBA, but he has the potential to be a top flight forward if he works hard this offseason.

Justin Holiday was a solid defensive stopper, Romar used him in a lot of special situations during the tournament. If he improves his offensive game, he'll see increased playing time.

With the arrival of Charles Garcia Jr., there's a strong chance Darnell Gant will see decreased playing time. He wasn't exactly a beast on the boards, but his height allowed for him to be an above-average defender. He's shown the ability to hit 15 footers when left wide open, but he needs to improve his post-up game dramatically to be taken seriously by opposing defenders.

The last significant returning player will be Elston Turner. Turner hit big shot after big shot during the NCAA tournament. He was the sole 3-point specialist last season. He brings a lot to the table, and is primed to breakout in his upcoming sophomore season.

Besides Gaddy, redshirt freshman Tyreese Breshers, and incoming signees, CJ Wilcox and Clarence Trent will most likely not receive significant playing time next season. Wilcox could take on an Elston Turner type of a role, but it's hard envisioning these players having an immediate impact like their teammate Gaddy will have. This will also be a telling season for Scott Suggs who will be a sophomore next season. He saw sparse playing time, but does have the skills to make an impact next season.

Roster Breakdown:

Starters
G-Abdul Gaddy FR
G-Isaiah Thomas SO
F-Quincy Pondexter SR
F-Darnell Gant SO
F-Matthew Bryan-Amaning JR

Bench
G-Venoy Overton JR
G-Elston Turner SO
G-Scott Suggs SO
G- Tyreese Breshers FR
G- CJ Wilcox FR
F- Clarence Trent FR
F-Justin Holiday JR
F-Charles Garcia JR

And also a quick prelim look on how I think the Pac-10 teams rank right now:

1. UW
2. USC
3. UCLA
4. California
5. Oregon St.
6. WSU
7. Oregon
8. Arizona St.
9. Arizona
10. Stanford
    

Pac-10 can get another 4-5 teams in the tournament next season, but there is a LOT of time between now and then so we'll see how the offseason works out for these programs...

photo source: [daylife]