Welcome back to this special two-part finale to The Most Important Player For USF Basketball Series. When we last left you, Victor Rudd came in at number 3 as he looks to become the Bulls primary scoring option on the wing.
I really had to do these two together, as the suspense to find out who would be TMIPFUSFB would be over after you found out who number 2 was. So here is what we know of our remaining players. One is entering his 4th season at USF while the other his first. One was the leading scorer on USF last season and the other played JUCO ball in North Dakota. One seems like the obvious answer to be #1, and the other is the answer to be #1. Your 2nd Most Important Player For USF is Augustus Gilchrist, while THE Most Important Player For USF Basketball is Blake Nash!
First up let's get to Gus, and you guys might understand my reasoning. Augustus is back for his Senior year after averaging a team high 13.4 PTS/6.0 REB a game last year. Gus can shoot it pretty much from anywhere with accuracy, and will be the primary focus of our opponents. He does a great job creating contact and getting to the line, and he is extremely efficient from the charity stripe.
We do know of his downsides though. Gus has a hard time reading double teams and finding the open man, he strays too far from the paint at times and his shot selection suffers from it. He isn't as aggressive on the boards as he could be. He is sometimes passive on defense. While each of these are correctable, most of them stem from one problem. He isn't being put in a situation that suits him best on the court and that's where Nash steps in.
The 6' Nash was a JUCO All-American as Williston State last year, averaging 22.3 PTS/5.6 REB/4.5 AST/2.6 STL a night. Nash can create off the dribble, as his distribution is excellent after defenses collapse on him when he drives to the lane. He finishes well and his court vision is off the charts. While Blake won't be the 1st scoring option when he's on the court, Nash is the most valuable player because of his ability to create quality chances for his teammates.
After getting through the first couple of entries, I quickly realized that I should have merged the three point guards together into one super point guard whose name would have been something like LaBlanthony Canasity. We suffered through a year of Anthony Crater and the poor choices he made time after time down the court. Crater wasted dozens of possessions with his poor decision making, his inability to break through the press, and his shambolic entry passes to our posts.
You can tell Heath is paying attention to this as well. The first thing out of his mouth last Saturday's game against Tampa was that Nash and LaVonte Dority had zero turnovers on the night. Its absolutely necessary that Nash, Dority, and Anthony Collins distribute the ball efficiently and that the three of them chip in a combined 12-15 points a night.
If they can do that we have a chance to do well in the Big East this season. If not, it'll be a repeat of last season. No pressure guys.