The Martin Twins. Mason Jones. Justin Smith. Now Ricky Council.
Not just getting guys from the portal, but finding guys and helping them blossom into pro level players where before they had been role players.
Ricky was somewhat of an afterthought among the 9 newcomers. So far, he’s arguably our best player, leading the SEC in scoring (which won’t last as we are about to become more balanced with NSJ), and on the draft boards as likely NBA draftee in the spring .
If he develops Graham into a potential pro, it may be his most remarkable transformation yet … I sure hope he can.
Wax
Graham appears to have some scoring skills down low. Good feet, post presence.
Yes, he has serious skill set on offense, it appears he needs to improve his defense to gain more playing time.
I am not a basketball expert, but it is amazing how many potential NBA players we have on this team…I would think more than any Razorback team in our history.
Martin twins are impressive player development success stories for Muss. He had them for multiple years, which is what it takes to really develop players from being off the NBA radar to get on the radar. Cody got drafted and is still in the NBA. Caleb got in undrafted and stuck around for a couple of years. That is solid player development.
What about the difference in Jimmy Whitt when here his 2nd time around vs. his first?
Muss is very good at addressing his needs in the portal and then developing the guys who want to put in the work.
He is excellent at communicating the role expectations both to new comers and existing remaining staff and players. They get reports everyday to know where they stand. They can go to mirror to see what they need to do to get playing time.
Two of my favorites were Jalen Tate and Au’dese Toney.
Can you imagine this team if Toney would have stayed! One of the best defenders we’ve ever had in my opinion.
Amen to Toney. Watched replay of the Gonzaga game last year, he and Wade had tremendous defensive games, as well as offense. Wade had a couple of three-pointers that was uncharacteristic, Toney made that critical block in the waning minutes of the game when it looked like they were going to score a layup.
Jimmy was totally different second time around, but he had already changed in his two years in between at SMU. I bet if Jimmy had not become a different player, Muss would not have recruited him.
All others mentioned are good examples of player development, but they were already pretty good when Muss got them. He recruited them because they had done well at previous stops.
But Martins were raw when Muss got them. I think JD is another impressive example of player development by Muss,
PJ, yes, Caleb was undrafted. But, he is, and has been, playing in the NBA. He and Cody both signed with and played for Charlotte 2019-2021. Cody is still with Charlotte, but injured (he had arthroscopic knee surgery) a month ago and was expected to be out 6 weeks. Caleb was traded to Miami and he’s actually starting and averaging 32 minutes a game for Miami this season.
Oh yes. I have not watched Heat this year yet, but I should have remembered watching him last year with the Heat. What was stuck in my brain is him getting waived by the Hornets last year, Great to hear that he is still in the NBA.
THIS whole thread . . . . expresses my thoughts on Muss and his program better than I ever could.
Muss’ ability to take good players and make them great players. Take great players and to get them to play together as a team. To be able to teach the team the importance of teamwork. He also understand and manages player confidence so that every player from the walk ons to the stars understand their role, somehow he manages the stars so they don’t let their stardom get out of control and the walk ons know how vital their role on the team is that they know they are an important piece. Walkons I suspect are just an extension of the coach on the floor. Every single piece is valuable and works together.
The NBA type experience when they play for him is I suspect very valuable. The comment the other day from a broadcaster about scouts needing to go ahead and buy property in NWA is probably more accurate than anyone really knows.
I think he has an uncanny ability to see how a player might fit within his system and then develop that. If he doesn’t win a natty here I will be shocked.
I will add that no one works as hard as does on all facets of his program. Teams reflect his work ethic too.
Also believe his runs in NCAA has expanded his options. Couple of misses early on and did hear him allude to not getting some.
Muss can evaluate talent! The motor of almost all of the players he has brought in by way of the portal have been solid. The lone exception was Vance Jackson. Of course the A&M transfer didn’t work either last season.
Muss finds ways to figure out what players can do and gets them in situations they can perform. I used matchups better than most coaches and he will let every player defense is a must to see the court.
I think it is Jackson, Robinson and Cella, where motor was not on par with others. I will ignore Cella because that was the first transfer in Year 1. So 2 misses out of all the transfers is very good.