I honestly think we will surprise some people. Not having talent is one thing, not being able to use them correctly is another. I believe Fox was in the second camp

2018-'19 SEC Men's Basketball Roster Talent (composite avg. stars/scholarship player):

1. Kentucky (4.75)
2. Mississippi State (3.646)
3. Auburn (3.481)
4. Florida (3.423)
5. Alabama (3.40)
6. UGA (3.25)
7. Texas A&M (3.188)
8. LSU (3.182)
9. Vanderbilt (3.067)
10. Ole Miss (2.963)
11. Tennessee (2.958)
12. Missouri (2.926)
13. Arkansas (2.773)
14. South Carolina (2.375)

If we are picked to finish last then I most definitely think we will surprise a lot of people. That should also help those guys come together with a chip on their shoulder.

I'm with you, Klesko. I don't think we will get to the top of the conference, but middle of the pack probably. I think we will play better by the end of the season as we get used to playing our new offense. I just don't think we have enough guns yet. Still, this new system will spread the offensive load around, and I always think back to our Final Four run, when we played without Wilkins. Yes, that team had a lot of talent, but it took awhile for them to get used to playing without Dominique. This team doesn't have near the talent the '82-'83 team did. I do look forward to seeing what Crean can do with this group.

The talent rating that AFD posted above just shows how ignorant Patelis is. He must have been in the "Fox is a great coach" camp last Spring around his firing. If Crean is loosening things up on offense it shouldn't be that hard to pick up. I say we win 20+ in Crean's 1st year.

I hope you're right, BMD. We have a pretty challenging pre-conference schedule, and the SEC is loaded with good coaches and teams. It's a tall order to reach 20.

I figure we will finish the regular season as a 6th or 7th seed in SEC Tourney at worst.

2017 4* SG Brandon Rachal has opted to transfer from LSU (thus the Tigers will take a talent hit):

http://www.lsusports.net/ViewArticle.dbml?DB_OEM_ID=5200&ATCLID=211565184