BY CHRIS LEWIS
This year’s Boise State basketball team is very good. The win total is high, there’s a player of the year candidate on the roster, and the coaching staff has gotten the team prepared. However, thanks to a couple losses against Nevada, the Mountain West regular season title looks out of reach.
So, while this team is one of the best that Coach Leon Rice has had, it isn’t a perfect squad. How could this current team be improved? That’s where my hypothetical comes in. Which former player from the Rice era would best help this Boise State team go from very good to great?
Here’s my rankings:
5. Senior Year Derrick Marks – Wait, wasn’t senior year Derrick Marks one of the best players in Boise State history? Why isn’t he higher on the list? Marks’ senior year was incredible. He was the Mountain West Player of the Year, averaging close to 20 points a game on the regular season champs. Certainly a go-to crunch time scorer who could create his own shot. The reason why he comes in at No. 5 is because this Boise State team already has a primary scorer. Chandler Hutchison has been an elite primary scorer and initiator with similar scoring numbers (fewer threes, more interior baskets). Therefore, Marks would have to play more off-ball, and the team already has PG types that are effective enough shooting off-ball where the difference between them and Marks wouldn’t be too large.
4. Sophomore Year Anthony Drmic – Secondary wing scoring is an area where the current team can be better. Alex Hobbs has that role now, but is a bit inconsistent (which is expected as an underclassman). Drmic’s sophomore year was dynamic, averaging 18 ppg, while taking a large step in being able to create his own shot. The reason I have him higher than Marks is positional value. At 6-6, Drmic is more of a true wing and can defend bigger players. Plus, Drmic is a more natural shooter, and who would pair well with Hutchison drawing in the defense.
3. Senior Year Ryan Watkins – This year’s Broncos don’t rely on the centers to do much. Zach Haney, David Wacker and Robin Jorch provide various levels of toughness, defense and rebounding. Watkins gives you all three of those traits, at an extremely high level. In fact, Watkins set the school record for double-doubles in a season. He averaged 12 ppg at 57 percent field goal shooting, which means he gave the team efficient scoring inside. That’s something that this current team lacks at times. Also, with Watkins being an elite rebounder, it affords Rice the luxury of playing smaller players elsewhere and not get killed on the boards.
2. Junior Year Jeff Elorriaga – There are shooters, then there is Elorriaga. He’s in a different category when it comes to percentage and volume. His junior year, he shot 45 percent from deep while shooting six 3s per game. That kind of gravity would do wonders for Boise State this year. The current team has a few good/streaky shooters, but no one as consistent as Elorriaga. While he isn’t known for creating his own offense, Hutchison creates so many open looks for teammates. Having someone on the team that could take advantage of those looks at the volume of Elorriaga would be a game-changer.
1. Junior Year James Webb III – At first glance, Webb and Hutchison would be redundant. They played the same position at Boise State, with Hutchison needing Webb to leave to fully flourish. My idea would be playing both of them at the same time, with Webb taking a lot of minutes at center. Basketball is trending toward having as many players on the floor who are versatile. Webb has the rebounding skills to hang at the center spot. There isn’t many Alex Kirk’s or Cameron Bairstow’s in the Mountain West who are big post scorers who would be difficult for Webb to guard. Webb has enough shooting to pull the other team’s biggest player away from the rim and open the lane for Chandler to drive. And, Boise State’s defense could switch much easier because Webb and Hutchison have the quickness to defend guards. A lineup of Lexus Williams-Hobbs-Justinian Jessup-Hutchison-Webb has the potential to be excellent on both ends. Haney and Chris Sengfelder off the bench would give Rice the chess pieces to go bigger if he had to.
Chris Lewis, the play-by-play voice of Boise State women’s basketball and Olympic Sports, co-hosts Idaho Sports Talk with Bob & Chris weekdays from 1-3 p.m. on KTIK 93.1 FM The Ticket. He can be found @ChrisLewisTweet (Twitter).
