So let's play a game of what if. What if Mark Smith signs with K-State? What might next years starting lineup and expectations look like by, say, December 29 when the conference season starts?
PG - Mark Smith 6'5" backup Kamau Stokes 6'0" Cartier Diarra 6'4"
SG - Barry Brown 6'3" backup Brian Patrick 6'5" Mike McGuirl 6'2"
SF - Xavier Sneed 6'5" backup Mark Smith 6'5"
PF - Dean Wade 6'10" backup Levi Stockard 6'9" Open
C - Isaiah Maurice 6'10" backup James Love III 6'11" Nigel Shadd 6'10"
I'm not sure how you could look at this roster and not get excited for next year. There is some serious offensive potential on this team. I understand that landing Kevin Smith is a big IF still but IF we landed him, I'd see potential for the following in terms of results:
- Assuming a non-conf schedule that would look like this years with the exception of getting Tennessee at home, I could easily see us going 12-1 and perhaps 13-0.
- I could see us sweeping OSU and Texas Tech minimally.
- I could see us minimally splitting with Texas, OU, TCU, ISU, and Baylor
- KU and W. Virginia will be difficult but I see us minimally going 1-3 against these two.
- That provides a MINIMUM conference record of 10-8 with upside, I'd say, to 12-6 leading to a conference finish somewhere between 3rd and 5th.
- That provides an overall record, minimum of 22-9 with upside to 25-6.
- This should give us an NCAA seed of somewhere around 5-6 playing an 11 or 12 seed with a solid shot at the Sweet 16 and, after that, who knows what happens.
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