Wade Mason and JD Powell just confirmed by UGA. Mason as a regular assistant and Powell as director of operations and director of recruiting. Here's something on Powell:

https://cofcsports.com/sports/mens-basketball/roster/coaches/j-d-powell/637

UGA's release:

https://georgiadogs.com/news/2021/6/10/mens-basketball-mason-powell-join-georgia-basketball-staff.aspx

Oh really? Admittedly, I would have preferred someone with extensive GA recruiting background. But, I doubt any of us know anything about these 2 guys that's not in the press. If you know something other than speculation about these 2, let us in on the secret. My bet is you don't know anything about them. Perhaps we see how it plays out before crucifying them.

Mason has good contacts in Georgia.
Pace Academy HS Coach Sharman White on Twitter:
"Big Time Home Run Hire by Coach Crean!"

Is there anyone who says people can't express on opinion on this board? Not that I can see. I've never claimed my judgment was perfect. No one's is. I was enthusiastic about Tubby - great hire! I was right about Jirsa being a lazy, inadequate hire. I was skeptical of Harrick's hire due to his reputation and the circumstances surrounding his hire, but he proved to be a great X & O coach. No one will ever convince me that Harrick and the whole men's basketball program was not shafted over minor stuff. But the administration didn't stand up for the program and its coach. I was right that Felton would not succeed. I was wrong that Fox was a decent hire. He proved not to be. I was against the Crean hire, but he is who we have, so we might as well hope he can get the job done. He clearly knows basketball. But he's a different bird.

Can Crean succeed in Athens? All we have is his track record to go by. He kept Marquette at a high level and he dragged IU up from the dregs to being a successful program again. His successors have all failed tremendously in Bloomington. Success is not instantaneous. It takes time for almost any program to find its footing. It has taken UCLA years to bounce back from Howland being fired. Only a handful of programs can seem to get by on name only. We aren't one of those programs.

It's an opinion, as in everybody has one.... I look at their numbers. I look at their film. I like what I see. I know what we could have expected from Wheeler, Camara & KD. I suspect Crean knew what he could have expected from a team they led next season, and he didn't like what he thought it would look like. Cook will be a very solid PG; Oquendo looks like a very talented 2G; JAR has talent that didn't work in the restraint of Bennett's UVA system, so he will likely flourish under Crean's more open system; Rignal & Ingram look very good; Bridges played for McClain, so he knows what to expect from him and wouldn't have pursued him if he didn't think he could help us; Baumann has a beautiful stroke - perfect for offense off the bench; I like Wright's potential; the kid from TX can probably give us some minutes but is likely a year or 2 away from being really effective IMHO. I reserve judgment until I can actually see them on the court, but I like the potential of this team. I doubt we have the dissention that plagued last year's bunch.

SidViciousDawg said:

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So, HTC looked at last years team and he decided Wheeler, Camara, KD, Fagan & Brown needed to go so we could make room for:

Cook and his 13 minutes and 4.2 points and
this is an upgrade over Wheeler??
Oquendo averaged 13.5 in JC and at least did have
Marquette & Oregon offers but no way he's close to KD
Johnson.
JAR averaged 4 minutes and 0.9 pts
I'm picking Camara by a country mile.
Rignal and his CalPoly, ECarolina, FIU, EMich, Murray,
Southern, etc offers makes me very skeptical.
Ingram who averaged 12.4 in the CUSA with FAU is on par
with what Kier and/or Garcia brought us last year.
Bridges averaged 9.9pts & 4.8 boards at UIC in the Horizon
and started 3 games for The Flames.
Baumann played 11mpg and averaged 3.6 pts @ USC

Look at the talent on UA, AU, Ark, UT KY, MSt, LSU, etc.
We do not compare.

I live in B'ham. Kennedy has UAB stacked. 4 returning starters and 5 more D1 starters transferring in. 9 players that started in D1 last season!! If you add what the nine averaged last year at their respective schools it equals an astounding 100.9/game. Frigging amazing. UAB has
KJ Buffen ((OleMs) & Jamal Johnson (AU) coming in. There's nobody in our lineup I wouldn't trade for either.


I don't know why this is so hard to understand. Wheeler can't shoot from the outside or defend, and he turns it over too often. Cook would have been Gonzaga's starter until they signed Suggs; you don't take a lottery pick out of the line-up very often, particularly when you have Nembhardt, a former SEC freshman of the year at the same position. Cook's numbers at SIU were just fine. There's a reason the Zags got him. And look at who he practiced against every day. And Wheeler thinks he's an NBA player....

Again, have you seen Oquendo play? Didn't think so. He's as athletic as hell and has a beautiful shot. I think he will be really good for us. I don't like running down KD. I like him as a player, but he takes bad shots a lot. He lost interest in school and the team after the season ended. I have it from someone who would know that KD was a problem on and off the court. Take that for what you will. Do you continue to have that distraction on the team? No.

Camara, who I also like, had to have his hand held too much by the coaching staff. He's not a good outside shooter. He turns the ball over and doesn't handle it very well. He's too small to play inside in the SEC and not a good enough shooteer to play on the perimeter. He's another guy who's thinking about his NBA dreams and not the team.

I like Fagan. He's a solid player and a good kid, but I imagine Crean told him that he would not likely be a starter next year. He wants to start. So, he decided to leave.

Brown is no loss. He was a 4 star recruit that plays like a 2 star. He won't be missed.

You mention Ridgnal. Some coaches who have seen him play really like his game. Same for Ingram. They both can shoot from the perimeter. That's what Crean wants. They are replacing guys who could not. Baumann will be a shooter off the bench, I imagine. Look at his numbers at Long Beach St. before he got to USC. Pretty darn good. Bridges played and started for McClain. We know what to expect from him.

Yes, the SEC is talented. What else is new? I think our whole can be greater than the perceived sum of the parts. But we have to see them on the court. We don't know whether we compare or not yet.

You have brought up UAB before. I really don't give a damn what UAB is doing with its roster. Be a UAB fan if you want. I'm focused on UGA. I like Kennedy. Good luck to him.

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Here is why I think Crean improved the roster. Stats are objective. Judging athleticism is subjective sometimes. The bold names, IMHO, are an upgrade in athleticism. If you disagree maybe you haven't watched video of new players.

Wheeler and Cook are a wash. Wheeler is quicker due to how small he is. Any athletic advantage ends there compared to Cook. Also SW and KDJ were a negative pertaining to team unity. There is a reason most departures occurred before SW and KDJ declared.

And lets not forget for Crean's "system" to have better success, he needs 3 point shooters, so lets add Baumann off the bench with a 46% 3p stat as a starter. Last year's roster put up 32% from 3. This year's should be 37%+. Add in the obvious improvement in athleticism, and you have to be just a Crean hater not to see he has improved the roster.

Wheeler 3p 23% 35m/gm
Cook 3p 35% 31m/gm

Johnson 3p 38.7% 23m/gm
Oquendo 3p 40.3% 22m/gm

Fagan 3p 27% 22m/gm
Ridgnal 3p 34% 24m/gm

Horne 3p 37% 28m/gm
Ingram 3p 45% 24m/gm

Camara FG% 49% 28m/gm
Bridges FG% 60% 20m/gm

Dawg-E-Dawg said:

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Let's see if they can shoot that good in the SEC. I would of also liked to of seen a comparison in minutes...they are objective right?

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All players stats listed were when logging close to starter's minutes(now shown above). And we know most of the 20-21 roster(team=32%) couldn't shoot that well in the SEC. Incoming have better length and athleticism, so I would expect their 3pt shooting, even with tougher competition, to be good bit better than last year's. Defense also should be better, besides better athleticism, we are looking at about half the roster to be between 22-25 years old.

I'm not saying that I disagree with you, but let's hope these guys turn out to be like Gerald Robinson Jr. who transferred to the dawgs from Tennessee state a few years ago and ended up being really good. His stats definitely translated well in the SEC.

KDJ was toxic to team chemistry from insiders I spoke with. Players also were tiring of the ball in Wheeler's hands most of the time. Camara was a great athlete with lots of upside, but has a way to go. My bet is we will have personnel better fit for Crean's "system".

There is video on KO where he looks like Travis Leslie taking off at the FT line and throwing one down. Combine that athleticism with his 40%+ 3p %, and I suspect he won't be overwhelmed with SEC athleticism in the SEC. We can debate some of you posters' doom and gloom all we want, but we will just have to wait 'til 2022 to see the outcome. Here is hoping it won't be me eating crow next March, with some of you UGA hoops' "fans" gloating because you were right, and we are in another coaching search..