But let's soldier on anyway, item by item, individual by individual, regarding SJSU's team prospects in 2015-16.
Not in any particular order:
* Can Jalen James, who by all accounts is a fine young man, become a plus point or a top tier 'quarterback' in the Mountain West Conference?
It's confounding (sorry to be repetitive) because an appropriate analysis of James cannot be performed because of the missing surrounding ingredients that are necessary to be in place in order to be successful (no center, no consistent shooters, everyone inexperienced). Having written the above, signing a JC point still would be helpful in case James cannot make the jump or gets injured again. Granted, a coach doesn't want to throw his first 'big' recruit, the guy who broke the ice when there was zero evidence for coming aboard, under the proverbial bus but there is also loyalty to the rest of the team to be considered. As for Darryl Gaynor II -- at least for now -- he's looking more like a two, plus his turnover rate is a concern but again, get him playing with four other actual MWC level talents on the court is necessary before issuing a full-fledged analysis.
The recent offer to post grad combo guard Juwan Anderson is evidence that the Spartan brain trust is thinking along these same lines. Not having seen him play at Suffield Academy this season -- he has supposedly come on of late -- it's impossible to determine how much of a positive factor he could play. Anderson was at Bishop O'Dowd High in Oakland last year and the consensus is his decision to take a 12 month period to work on his skills set before entering college was a justifiable one.
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Vincennes College's A.J. Patty possesses MWC athleticism but he's probably 6-foot-7 and should be positioned at the four. Plus, he's nowhere near 240. Sure he would help but by himself he's not the answer.
But can JC talents inside and at the point be lured to Washington Square is a fair question. Valid prospects with two remaining years of eligibility will be reticent to sign on afraid that the chances of the squad being successful in that short time frame are iffy.
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* Of those on the current roster, only Rashad Muhammad has displayed the potential to win his position each game and, yes, he still has a ways to go. His teammates currently come off as role players when a building block or three is necessary.
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* The three new recruits for next season are promising. But the two power forwards will each need 30 pounds of muscle before they can truly compete in the Mountain West Conference and Brandon Clarke, although an elite athlete at 6-foot-7, will make more of his mark defensively and on the boards, not with scoring.
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* What redshirt Princeton Onwas will bring to the floor is defensive effect. Granted, there is no plus defender on the roster right now so he will help in that aspect -- just don't expect a multitude of points to come from him.
Defending as a unit is another aspect that must be upgraded and not necessarily even shotblocking -- much more a five-man concerted team effort of making matters more difficult for opponents is a must. Although a portion of the team will be young next season, there will be enough experience so that expectations of a much more hard-nosed effect defensively are valid.
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* The currently used offensive plans are very limited (by necessity) and don't require difficult decision-making for opponents. There is no in-the-paint scorer to draw multiple defenders. There's no shooting consistency so defenders don't have to help in order to stop anyone. It's hard to see anyone on the Spartans with a consistent dribble-drive game as part of his offensive repertoire. All this must evolve.
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