https://setonhall.rivals.com/
By Tyler Calvaruso
It’s starting to look more like a normal summer in South Orange with Seton Hall beginning team organized workouts involving coaches and players on Monday. In accordance with NCAA guidelines, men’s and women’s basketball programs can begin “required athletic activities” this week. Teams will be allotted eight hours of organized workouts per week with no more than four hours of on-court instruction in that time span. Seton Hall and UConn were the only Big East programs to return to the court on Monday.
Butler is scheduled to begin workouts on Tuesday, while Xavier is slated to take the floor on Wednesday.
The NCAA has announced that team-organized activities can last up to eight weeks. However, they must end by the first day of classes or Sept. 15 – whichever comes first. Seton Hall is scheduled to begin its fall semester on Aug. 24. This plan was approved by the NCAA on June 16.
Now that Kevin Willard and his coaching staff can return to the court and get to work with their guys, there are several questions that need to be answered as preparations for the 2020-21 season begin. Let’s take at 10 questions surrounding the Pirates now that organized workouts are underway.
How will everything work?
It’s going to be interesting to see how this next step in the return of college basketball goes.
Is Seton Hall going to be able to execute its workouts safely? Will players feel safe while going through workouts? What restrictions are being imposed in order to ensure player safety? The way Seton Hall and programs across the country handle things over the next couple of weeks will be telling when it comes to the 2020-21 college basketball season and the overall sports landscape.
It was encouraging to watch the TBT operate its tournament with only a few hiccups along the way. The return of AAU basketball in Midwestern states is also encouraging. However, we are not out of the COVID-19 woods just yet. Restrictions can be implemented and enforced, but there is no telling exactly how things are going to go.
Will Seton Hall be able to jump straight back into 5-on-5? Regardless of what the Pirates can and cannot do, the hope is that things go smoothly and everyone involved with the program remains healthy.
When will Sandro Mamukelashvili announce his decision?
Sandro Mamukelashvili was present for workouts on Monday, which is good news for Seton Hall as Mamukelashvili’s name remains in the NBA draft pool.
Mamukelashvili has two weeks to decide whether he will return to Seton Hall for his senior year or remain in the 2020 NBA Draft. The expectation is that Mamukelashvili plays his last season with the Pirates before turning pro, but there has yet to be an official announcement one way or the other.
It goes without saying that Mamukelashvili is key to Seton Hall’s chances of making a fifth consecutive NCAA Tournament run this upcoming season. He projects as an All-Big East player and is an integral part of Seton Hall’s roster. His presence would go a long way in the Pirates’ ability to effectively replace Romaro Gill, Quincy McKnight and Myles Powell.
Any schematic changes to fit the team's personnel?
Seton Hall is going to look a lot different on both offense and defense in 2020-21 without Romaro Gill, Quincy McKnight and Myles Powell on the floor.
Bryce Aiken is in at point guard in place of McKnight, while Takal Molson figures to slide into the shooting guard spot. Ike Obiagu is a lock to take over for Gill at center unless Seton Hall opts to run a small lineup with Mamukelashvili at center.
How exactly is Kevin Willard going to alter his offensive and defensive schemes to fit his new personnel? Seton Hall should not have much to worry about defensively this upcoming season, but it is going to have to find ways to put points on the board following Powell’s departure.
Is Willard going to go to more of an inside-out game and feature Mamukelashvili in the low post? How often will Aiken be asked to take matters into his own hands and create his own shot off the dribble? We’ll get a better idea of the answer to these questions as the off season progresses.
How quickly can Bryce Aiken pick up the offense?
Regardless of whether the college basketball season starts on time or gets pushed back to January, Bryce Aiken does not have much time to learn the ins and outs of Seton Hall’s offense.
The good news is that Aiken is a veteran and has enough experience to pick up a new offense quicker than an incoming freshman would. Still, the limited off season puts him at a disadvantage when it comes to easing his way into becoming Kevin Willard’s new floor general.
At Harvard, Aiken was mostly asked to score however he could. He will be asked to create his own shot at Seton Hall, but he will also have to distribute as well. This should not come as much of an issue since Aiken is a natural point guard, but it has been a while since he has been tasked with distributing as often as scoring.
Levels of concern regarding Aiken’s ability to lead Seton Hall’s offense are extremely low at this point in time. That’s not to say he still doesn’t have a lot of work to do when it comes to fully grasping Willard’s scheme, though. Expect Aiken and Willard to spend a lot of this eight-week period working together to sort out any confusion.
Has Ikey Obiagu improved?
Hopes surrounding Ikey Obiagu were high entering his first year of eligibility at Seton Hall, but the combination of a nagging ankle injury and the emergence of Romaro Gill relegated Obiagu to reserve duties last season.
Even when Obiagu was on the court, his play was not exactly inspiring. Other than his dominant effort to begin the season against Wagner, Obiagu either performed at an average or below-average level. He routinely fell into foul trouble and looked out of the swing of things on offense, making him essentially a non-factor.
There is a reason Obiagu was Seton Hall’s starting center to begin last season. Kevin Willard and company clearly see something in the seven-footer’s ability to block shots and impact the game defensively. However, if he cannot avoid staying out of foul trouble, he is going to find himself relegated to the bench again in 2020, which is not good news for the Pirates.
At this point, Seton Hall just has to hope Obiagu has taken some major steps forward with his game this off season. This eight-week workout period will be crucial in evaluating where he is at.
By Tyler Calvaruso
It’s starting to look more like a normal summer in South Orange with Seton Hall beginning team organized workouts involving coaches and players on Monday. In accordance with NCAA guidelines, men’s and women’s basketball programs can begin “required athletic activities” this week. Teams will be allotted eight hours of organized workouts per week with no more than four hours of on-court instruction in that time span. Seton Hall and UConn were the only Big East programs to return to the court on Monday.
Butler is scheduled to begin workouts on Tuesday, while Xavier is slated to take the floor on Wednesday.
The NCAA has announced that team-organized activities can last up to eight weeks. However, they must end by the first day of classes or Sept. 15 – whichever comes first. Seton Hall is scheduled to begin its fall semester on Aug. 24. This plan was approved by the NCAA on June 16.
Now that Kevin Willard and his coaching staff can return to the court and get to work with their guys, there are several questions that need to be answered as preparations for the 2020-21 season begin. Let’s take at 10 questions surrounding the Pirates now that organized workouts are underway.
How will everything work?
It’s going to be interesting to see how this next step in the return of college basketball goes.
Is Seton Hall going to be able to execute its workouts safely? Will players feel safe while going through workouts? What restrictions are being imposed in order to ensure player safety? The way Seton Hall and programs across the country handle things over the next couple of weeks will be telling when it comes to the 2020-21 college basketball season and the overall sports landscape.
It was encouraging to watch the TBT operate its tournament with only a few hiccups along the way. The return of AAU basketball in Midwestern states is also encouraging. However, we are not out of the COVID-19 woods just yet. Restrictions can be implemented and enforced, but there is no telling exactly how things are going to go.
Will Seton Hall be able to jump straight back into 5-on-5? Regardless of what the Pirates can and cannot do, the hope is that things go smoothly and everyone involved with the program remains healthy.
When will Sandro Mamukelashvili announce his decision?
Sandro Mamukelashvili was present for workouts on Monday, which is good news for Seton Hall as Mamukelashvili’s name remains in the NBA draft pool.
Mamukelashvili has two weeks to decide whether he will return to Seton Hall for his senior year or remain in the 2020 NBA Draft. The expectation is that Mamukelashvili plays his last season with the Pirates before turning pro, but there has yet to be an official announcement one way or the other.
It goes without saying that Mamukelashvili is key to Seton Hall’s chances of making a fifth consecutive NCAA Tournament run this upcoming season. He projects as an All-Big East player and is an integral part of Seton Hall’s roster. His presence would go a long way in the Pirates’ ability to effectively replace Romaro Gill, Quincy McKnight and Myles Powell.
Any schematic changes to fit the team's personnel?
Seton Hall is going to look a lot different on both offense and defense in 2020-21 without Romaro Gill, Quincy McKnight and Myles Powell on the floor.
Bryce Aiken is in at point guard in place of McKnight, while Takal Molson figures to slide into the shooting guard spot. Ike Obiagu is a lock to take over for Gill at center unless Seton Hall opts to run a small lineup with Mamukelashvili at center.
How exactly is Kevin Willard going to alter his offensive and defensive schemes to fit his new personnel? Seton Hall should not have much to worry about defensively this upcoming season, but it is going to have to find ways to put points on the board following Powell’s departure.
Is Willard going to go to more of an inside-out game and feature Mamukelashvili in the low post? How often will Aiken be asked to take matters into his own hands and create his own shot off the dribble? We’ll get a better idea of the answer to these questions as the off season progresses.
How quickly can Bryce Aiken pick up the offense?
Regardless of whether the college basketball season starts on time or gets pushed back to January, Bryce Aiken does not have much time to learn the ins and outs of Seton Hall’s offense.
The good news is that Aiken is a veteran and has enough experience to pick up a new offense quicker than an incoming freshman would. Still, the limited off season puts him at a disadvantage when it comes to easing his way into becoming Kevin Willard’s new floor general.
At Harvard, Aiken was mostly asked to score however he could. He will be asked to create his own shot at Seton Hall, but he will also have to distribute as well. This should not come as much of an issue since Aiken is a natural point guard, but it has been a while since he has been tasked with distributing as often as scoring.
Levels of concern regarding Aiken’s ability to lead Seton Hall’s offense are extremely low at this point in time. That’s not to say he still doesn’t have a lot of work to do when it comes to fully grasping Willard’s scheme, though. Expect Aiken and Willard to spend a lot of this eight-week period working together to sort out any confusion.
Has Ikey Obiagu improved?
Hopes surrounding Ikey Obiagu were high entering his first year of eligibility at Seton Hall, but the combination of a nagging ankle injury and the emergence of Romaro Gill relegated Obiagu to reserve duties last season.
Even when Obiagu was on the court, his play was not exactly inspiring. Other than his dominant effort to begin the season against Wagner, Obiagu either performed at an average or below-average level. He routinely fell into foul trouble and looked out of the swing of things on offense, making him essentially a non-factor.
There is a reason Obiagu was Seton Hall’s starting center to begin last season. Kevin Willard and company clearly see something in the seven-footer’s ability to block shots and impact the game defensively. However, if he cannot avoid staying out of foul trouble, he is going to find himself relegated to the bench again in 2020, which is not good news for the Pirates.
At this point, Seton Hall just has to hope Obiagu has taken some major steps forward with his game this off season. This eight-week workout period will be crucial in evaluating where he is at.
