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September
26th, 2006
By Joel
Welser
Broadcast Basketball
Florida
State Seminoles
Overall Rank:
#45
Conference
Rank: #6 ACC
2005-06:
20-10, 9-7, 5th
2005-06
postseason: NIT
 The story always
seems to be the same for Florida State. The Seminoles will beat
some great teams and consequently lose to teams they have no
business losing to. It happened last year when FSU played
themselves onto the bubble with victories over Duke and Miami to
close out the regular season. Somehow not surprisingly, Coach
Leonard Hamilton’s squad lost in the first round of the
conference to a bad Wake Forest team and slipped down to the
NIT. A little more consistency this year, and Florida State
will get back to the NCAAs.
Who’s Out:
The
loss of Alexander Johnson after his junior season to the
professional ranks will leave Florida State’s frontcourt as the
team’s obvious weakness. The Seminoles have few options to
replace the 6-9 forwards 13.2 points and 7.4 rebounds per game.
As if that wasn’t enough of a hit to the frontcourt, Diego
Romero has run out of eligibility. Romero, the main frontcourt
option off the bench, averaged 3.9 points and 2.6 boards during
his senior campaign. Guard Todd Galloway started all 30
contests and averaged 7.5 points and a team high 3.1 assists.
Andrew Wilson was the first guy off the bench in the backcourt
and the senior averaged 6.3 points per game.
Who’s In:
Toney
Douglas, a transfer from Auburn, can play either guard spots.
Douglas averaged 16.9 points, 5.3 rebounds, 1.8 assists and 1.4
steals as a freshman for the Tigers. The 6-1 guard is expected
to step in and start right away. Incoming freshman Josue Soto
will battle for some minutes at the point. Named the 2006
Gatorade Player of the Year in the state of Florida, Soto is a
good scorer and a solid distributor and should contribute off
the bench this year. The backcourt doesn’t need much more help
during the 2006-2007 campaign, but Aaron Holmes will provide
even more depth. Holmes, a 6-5 wing, is a great athlete and has
nice range on his outside shot. The frontcourt is where the
help is needed and Ryan Reid is the only big man heading into
Tallahassee. Reid is a versatile power forward who can handle
his duties inside and outside. With a little more strength,
Reid could at least help out the depth issues.
Who to Watch:
Jason
Rich and Isaiah Swann return to form an experienced backcourt.
Rich averaged 10.0 points per game and Swann added on 8.4 points
and 2.9 assists. Now as upperclassmen, the duo is expected to
step up their game and become leaders on the floor. Ralph Mims
and Jerel Allen both saw action in all 30 games last year and
will once again be valuable options off the bench.
Final
Projection:
Al Thornton
averaged 16.1 points and 6.9 rebounds last year and will have to
anchor the frontcourt this year. Besides Reid, the only options
to join Thornton up front are sophomores Casaan Breeden and Uche
Echefu, neither who averaged over eight minutes per game as
freshmen. Breeden is more of a perimeter player, but Coach
Hamilton may opt to run four perimeter players, which isn’t too
bad of an idea since Breeden is 6-8 and can handle defending the
four spot. The frontcourt concerns are a major problem, but as
long as FSU can do a decent job on the defensive end, using a
four guard offense will keep the Seminoles in the middle of the
ACC and on the bubble.
Projected
Post-season Tournament:
NCAA
Projected
Starting Five:
Toney Douglas,
Sophomore, Guard, DNP last season
Isaiah Swann,
Junior, Guard, 8.4 points per game
Jason Rich,
Junior, Guard, 10.0 points per game
Al Thornton,
Senior, Forward, 16.1 points per game
Uche Echefu,
Sophomore, Forward, 2.3 points per game
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