Previously we touched on roster depth. A sometimes underrated facet of the game of basketball. But there's no getting away from the fact that no stat is more important to the average hoops fan than scoring.
Put points up on the scoreboard and often it doesn't matter to most if you are not proficient in other phases of the game, especially defense. It does no good if you score 20 points if your defensive assignment counters with 25. But that's for a different discussion on another day.
For the purpose of this discussion we are only focusing on one side of the ball and only one particular statistic. Putting the rock through the hoop with efficiency not a concern. In short PPG!
For a point (no pun intended) of reference here are Seton Hall's stats for the last 5 years in that regard, From 2017 to this past season: 73.3, 79.0 73.9, 74.7, 71.3. The trend becomes more obvious when examined closely. The bookend lows coincided with the loss of the team's most dynamic offensive weapon. Isaiah Whitehead at the beginning and Myles Powell at the end. Without those two the remaining roster had more issues putting the ball into the net having to rely on other facets of the game.
Seton Hall will again face that obstacle with the graduation of star forward Sandro Mamukelashvili and his 17.5 PPG. But maybe, just maybe this current Pirate squad might be more equipped to face the challenge as it does return second leading scorer Jared Rhoden and a host of other talented offensive weapons.
Let's take a look at projected PPG doing as we did previously for MPG, eliminating star recruit Brandon Weston as his availability will not be determined until the season is about to begin.
Alphabetical order
Bryce Aiken 6.5 PPG
Myles Cale 6.5 PPG
Ryan Conway 3.0 PPG
Jamir Harris 11.0 PPG
Tray Jackson 2.0 PPG
Jahari Long 1.5 PPG
Ikey Obiagu 4.0 PPG
Tyler Powell 1.5 PPG
Kadary Richmond 10.0 PPG
Jared Rhoden 16.0 PPG
Tyrese Samuel 6.0 PPG
Brandon Weston ???
Alexis Yetna 7.5 PPG
Total 75.5 PPG
The above is a high total for the Hall. Especially with a defense minded control the tempo coach like Kevin Willard. But I think with the criticism Willard has gotten recently for his limited offensive game plan and with this roster, fortified with outside sharpshooter Jamir Harris, inside/outside presence Alex Yetna and the mercurial Kadary Richmond, points might no longer be at a premium.
This Pirate team has a nice balance of perimeter shooting and athletic up-tempo players, allowing Willard to increase the team's possessions per game. With the added bonus of Yetna who can score in the paint as well as to the arc.
The result as I see it is a more exciting brand of basketball. After all unless you put the ball in the hole it doesn't matter what else you do on the court. And this Pirate team might just do that despite the conservative nature of its head coach.
