Early Guesses on 21-22 Rotation

[fryer4three]

Now that the roster seems to be set, what are our early predictions on starting 5 and rotation? Here is what I think:

Pg: Cam Shelton/quintana/anderson/Jackson/Lewis
Sg: Jalin Anderson/marble/elliot/mayoum
Sf: Dameane Douglas/alipiev/elliot/nobles
Pf: Eli Scott/merkivalde/alipiev/nobles
F: leapepe/Alex Merkivalde

Am I missing anyone? Thoughts? Seems like a lot of depth and different matchups Stan can throw out. I definitely see marble, quintana and Anderson all getting close to equal run at the 1 and 2 positions.

[slblions08]

Gary Harris is missing, so that would shake it up.

I see a little similar

Combo Guard Shelton
Wing Douglas
Wing Harris
Point Forward Eli
C Leaupepe

Off the Bench:

first wing: Marble (will battle Harris for starting role)
big man: Merkivadale (desperately need his size so he will play)
back-up PG: Anderson (best ballhandler off the bench, but needs to cut down TOs. Will look over his shoulder at the incoming freshman class)
true forward: Alipiev (almost got taken out of the rotation but came on strong last year, but who knows)
Shooting: Quintana (stretches the floor, but will see less time if he struggles on D, sees replacements coming, last of Dunlap's guys)

Seasoning on the bench: Lewis, but will get minutes if he outplays people ahead, Elliot, but he can score so maybe he ends up with minutes, Mayoum, for his athletic ability, but we havent even seen him, Nobles maybe studying the PG position from the bench.

I think Stan will make the freshman earn minutes, but Lewis has the ability to fill in for Eli has the point forward, or even take up Alipiev's minutes if he can't keep it up. If there is an injury to one of our starting scoring guards, we might also see Elliot or Noble make an impact.


anybody else: soaking up knowledge, pre-graduate assistant, getting that educumacation.

When I look at this depth chart, I think I see potential for the second best backcourt in the league + Eli's unique All-WCC quality game. We have the potential for a lot of scoring ability from the wing position. The guys coming off the bench have experience. There is a lot of roster balance in terms of their class year. We just look painfully thin and short in the front court.

[fryer4three]

Thank you! Agree.. Harris will probably start. Anderson will provide much needed scoring off the bench. I do wonder if Anderson or QUintana start though based on needing ball handlers.

[fryer4three]

Actually Harris averaged just 5 ppg at Siena. What makes you think he will start over Anderson or Marble who have better numbers?

[slblions08]

Maybe since he was already a part of the program since the winter, he might get the early nod. Also, I was thinking maybe too many cooks in the kitchen? Maybe use Marble as like a scoring 6th man (Which we really lacked) because the first team has Shelton, Eli and Douglas? But yes, I can see this going either way.

As far as Anderson, I guess it depends on how he is viewed. If he is supposed to be a true point guard, he needs to sit behind a PG. I honestly think he prematurely started many games last year due to a lack of a true ballhandler. Personally, I think his FG% was not very good to be the scoring combo guard with so many talented players to consider for next year.

[LIONS90045]

I see Quintana starting at SG. His defense is actually pretty good - he creates lots of steals.
Shelton starting PG, with Anderson as backup PG.
I agree with Douglas, Scott and Leaupepe as the other starters.
No one mentions Jackson Jr. He will get minutes with his experience (grad or SR).
Mayoum is a complete unknown right now. Hope he proves to be as good as some think he is. He was Coach Johnson's first recruit and he should know.

[lambdachi1988lion]

Will throw my guess into the ring.

1 // Cam Shelton
2 // Joe Quintana
3 // Dameane Douglas
4 // Eli Scott
5 // Keli Leaupepe

Think the 2/off ball guard has the most depth + competition for the role.

[iggysdiner]

My starting 5 as of today (with last seasons ppg averages listed next to them) would be:

Shelton - 19.2 ppg
Marble - 9.2 ppg
Douglas - 13.5 ppg
Scott - 18 ppg
Leaupepe- 10.5 ppg

That's 70.4 ppg from those starting 5 which beats our team average points per game last season at 69.5. Alex will get a lot of playing time being our only other big. I am guessing Jalin, Ivan, and Joe will see a drop in minutes based on the talent that is coming in from transfers and the three freshman.

This is the first time in seemingly forever that we have a deep roster from top to bottom. Stan is brining in a lot more talent than we have had in recent years. Really excited about this team and interested in seeing the scheme Stan will implement with the lack of size in the front court.

[ALioninWinter]

I think Iggy has it. Coach has a super strong preference for experienced players. He may like his incoming recruits but he wants to see experienced players on the court next season. I’m not expecting see much of this years incoming freshmen.

Early on last season, Coach recognized that his team would be greatly challenged on the offensive end of the court. He’s obviously trying to rectify that for next season. Every one of his transfer recruits has a proven ability to score.

I think Quintana will get his share of playing time (especially late in games) due to his defense and ability to hit FTs.

Anderson is our current back up PG and probably our PG for two years after that. He needs to understudy Sheldon this coming season and get some good in-game experience.


Our CSUN transfer will get just as much playing time as Leaupepe.

Alipiev will see a fair amount of time simply because we will need his height.

I really don’t know anything about Harris so I don’t know how he fits in.

Is Jackson still around? I’m assuming so. I don’t see him getting too much playing time. Shelton is going to see a ton of playing time. Anderson will see his time, and I expect to see Quintana in late game situations. That doesn’t leave much time for Jackson.