When the Tigers take the court in their exhibition against Christian Brothers on Nov. 12, Joe Jackson will not be wearing the No. 1 jersey, and Chris Crawford will not be spotting up for any corner 3-pointers.
The days of the Joe Jackson, Chris Crawford, Geron Johnson Tigers are in the past, and it feels like a decade has gone by with those guys in Blue and Gray.
The Austin Nichols and Shaq Goodwin era officially begins with the tip of the ball on Nov. 12, and it is a welcome era.
Tiger Nation welcomed Jackson and Crawford’s recruiting class to the University of Memphis with a ton of fanfare, but they failed to live up to the lofty expectations that accompanied their enrollment at the U of M.
The two Memphis natives made the NCAA Tournament in each of their four seasons for the Tigers, but they struggled mightily, falling short of the tournament’s second weekend all four trips.
That’s not to diminish their individual careers. Both joined the 1000-point club at the U of M. Jackson ranks seventh in all-time scoring at Memphis, and Crawford is 25th on the all-time charts.
But the simple fact is, if you come in as highly rated as those guys were out of high school, you have to get to the second weekend in at least one of those four years.
Memphis’ struggles in the postseason can be chalked up to one of two things. Either Pastner has a hard time getting players to play to their potential, or that 2010 recruiting class was not as good as advertised.
Outside of the first season, when Pastner had John Calipari’s scraps, Memphis’ lineups have predominately featured guys from the 2010 recruiting class, so these next few years will give us an answer.
To Memphis coach Josh Pastner’s credit, he accepted the brunt of the criticism and deflected away from his players. Some called for his job, and some wanted him to hire an X’s and O’s assistant coach, saying he can only recruit.
His message this preseason has been the same each time. Whenever anyone asks him about this year’s squad he says “I don’t know how good they’ll be, but I do know this team do what they’re asked.”
Now, I do not want to put words in Pastner’s mouth, but, as adamant about it as he has been, it feels like he is implying the guards last year were not doing what was asked of them.
A conversation with some of the returning players feels similar. Goodwin and Nichols each said this year’s team is a much more closely-knit bunch, and Pookie Powell said he and the seniors rarely ever spoke last season.
So it should be refreshing year for Pastner and company, but he is the first to admit he has no idea how good this team is. What he does know is that it will be very clear very early with a tough non-conference schedule, featuring Wichita State, Baylor and Oklahoma State.
I’m with Pastner; I have no clue how good this team is. But I know it will sure be fun to find out, and it all starts on Nov. 12 at FedExForum.
