No. 22 Georgetown Hoyas

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Last Season: 23-11, 10-8 (t-7th Big East), lost to Ohio in NCAA Tournament first round

Head Coach: John Thompson III

Key Losses: Greg Monroe

Newcomers: Nate Lubick, Moses Ayegba, Markel Starks, Aaron Bowen

Projected Lineup:

• G: Chris Wright, Sr.
  
• G: Jason Clark, Jr.
  
• G: Austin Freeman, Sr.
  
• F: Nate Lubick, Fr.
  
• F: Julian Vaughn, Sr.
  
• Bench: Hollis Thompson, So.; Henry Sims, Jr.; Jerrelle Benimon, So.; Vee Sanford, So.; Moses Ayegba, Fr.; Markel Starks, Fr.
  

Outlook: Georgetown's 2010 team was a conundrum. On one night, they would look like the best team in the country -- a win at Pitt, a win over Villanova, a win over Duke, a win over Syracuse in the Big East Tournament. On other days, they didn't look like a team that deserved to make the tournament -- a loss to South Florida at home, a loss to Rutgers, a blowout loss to 14th seeded Ohio in the NCAA Tournament. The Hoyas were as consistently inconsistent as any team in the country.

The disappointment for Hoya fans continued into April, as their star center Greg Monroe made the decision to skip his final two years at Georgetown to enter the NBA Draft. Without him, the Hoyas will lack the type of high-post passer that JTIII has made a staple of his offense in his time in DC. That doesn't mean there aren't plenty of bodies up front. The biggest name is probably Julian Vaughn, a Florida State transfer that was once Mr. Basketball in the state of Virginia while at Oak Hill Academy. He never quite developed the way many imagined he would, but he is still a solid big man. He'll get some boards, blocks some shots, and finish at the rim. Henry Sims also returns. The Baltimore native has loads of potential, but he needs a healthy dose of strength, coordination, and, most importantly, confidence before he is a Big East caliber player.

Two freshmen join the fold that could contribute early on. Moses Ayegba is a big, strong forward that can bang in the paint, but he's still quite raw offensively. Nate Lubick is much more likely to be an impact player this season. Lubick is more of a skilled, face-up forward. He has range on his jumper and can put the ball on the floor. He's a pretty strong and pretty athletic kid, and if he can pick up the Hoya offense quickly, he could find himself playing the high post role this season for the Hoyas. The last front court player is Jerrelle Benimon. Benimon is the kind of player every coach loves -- he's a big, strong forward with some athleticism that defends hard and rebounds aggressively. He's a floor-burn kind of player, and should definitely contribute some toughness to this Hoya team.

But enough about the front line. The Hoya back court is where the talent is this season. It starts with Austin Freeman, who was recently named the Big East preseason player of the year. At 6'4", 240 lb, Freeman is built like a tight end. But the senior is quick, he's nimble, and he has a sneaky leaping ability. Last season, his offense centered around his jump shot, which has become deadly. He needs to improve on his ability to slash, handle the ball, and get to the rim this year (he didn't even take 100 free throws last season), but Freeman's skill set is only half of who he is as a player. He understands JTIII's offense. He knows when he is going to get his shots, and he knows when it is another player that is going to be open. He's unselfish, but UConn and Louisville learned the hard way that Freeman is more than willing to take over a game. He's the perfect guard to center this offense around.


Joining Freeman to form one of the top three or four back courts in the country will be Chris Wright and Jason Clark. Wright showed flashes of why he was so highly regarded coming out of high school. He's a kid that is excellent at getting to the rim, and he's strong enough to absorb contact and finish through bigger defenders. He can also create for his teammates with the bounce. He knows his role in this offense, and as he improves his perimeter stroke, he'll only get better. Clark is one of the more underrated players in the Big East. He's the best on ball defender in Georgetown's back court (which is high praise considering how good Freeman and Wright are), has become a knock down three point shooter, and is developing enough of an all-around offensive repertoire that he can take over a game for longer and longer stretches.

Off the bench, Hollis Thompson is the guy primed for the most minutes. At 6'7", he's a perimeter oriented small forward that is a knockdown shooter with his feet set. He may end up seeing time as a four if Georgetown opts to go to a smaller lineup. Sophomore Vee Sanford and freshman Markel Starks will likely be the guys that spell Wright and Clark, but only expect limited minutes out of those two. Wright, Clark, and Freeman all played over 33 mpg last season.

The way I see it, Georgetown has two major issues. For starters, they aren't incredibly deep, especially in the back court. There are bodies, but the drop off from the starters to the bench is startling. The second issue is rebounding. Georgetown has struggled the last two seasons on the glass, and it looks like that problem will continue. Can Thompson handle rebounding at the four spot? Are any of the bigs not named Vaughn ready to play significant minutes yet? Even if they are ready, are any of those bigs capable of making a difference on the glass?