Ben Howland Has Added Depth and Versatility to Men’s Basketball Team

Yesterday, I published what I thought would be the starting five for Mississippi State when the Bulldogs opened the 2015-16 season. And there was only one thing consistent with the feedback I got.

Everyone has a different opinion.

Many people couldn’t believe that I left Fred Thomas off of my starting five. Others thought there was no way on God’s Green Earth I.J. Ready wouldn’t start. And some were surprised that Daniels was left off of the list I put together. The main reason there were so many different opinions was because the Bulldogs will finally have depth and versatility to their team.

The Bulldogs had many problems when Rick Ray was the head coach. One of the biggest problems that seemed to trump anything Rick Ray tried to do was simply the Bulldogs were always worn down in the final minutes of the 2nd half. There was little to no depth the first two years, and what depth was there in 2014-15 was very inexperienced.

Ben Howland is inheriting a team that lost only one player to graduation, but it is very possible that only two of the starters from last season’s team will start next year. Bringing in high quality recruits will do that. Malik Newman will be on the floor for most of the game, and Quindarry Weatherspoon likely will as well.

With the added depth, Howland can also be versatile with how he plays. Mississippi State was one dimensional under Rick Ray. The only way they could ever score was to create fast break opportunities through their defense. Things will change in 2015-16.

The Bulldogs will now be able to counter what other teams try to throw at them. Here are just some of the lineup combinations you could see in 2015-16. These are all assuming Ray Kasongo signs as expect

Going small
If Howland needs to go small to take advantage of some of the speed and quickness on the team, don’t be surprised to see this lineup.

• Ready
• Sword
• Newman
• Weatherspoon
• Ware

This combination would give up some size, but they would make up for it in quickness. I would expect some full court press from this group in the hopes of forcing the opposition into some turnovers and transition opportunities.

Going Big
The Bulldogs could also do the opposite and try to pummel teams with their size. If they needed to go big, here is who I would expect to see on the court.

• Newman
• Sword
• Kasongo
• Ware
• Ndoye

Mississippi State should control the boards with this group. They would also lock down the paint and open up the outside for Newman and Sword.

Traditional Lineup
The Bulldogs could do a more traditional lineup as well. If they wanted a standard Point Guard, Shooting Guard, Small Forward, Power Forward, and Center, Ben Howland will be able to do that to.

• Ready
• Newman
• Thomas
• Ware
• Ndoye

Shooters
If the Bulldogs need to start raining threes, they’ll need their best shooters on the court. I’d expect to see these guys on the court if that was the case.

• Newman
• Weatherspoon
• Sword
• Thomas
• Kasongo

Kasongo would only be out there to get rebounds and use his length. But this group could get the Bulldogs back in a game in a hurry.

Basketball is all about creating and exploiting matchups in favor of your team. Ben Howland has a wide array of players with different skills and abilities to counter anything that might be thrown at them. This is a welcome change. Previously, the Bulldogs were forced to just hope what the other team tried didn’t work. They didn’t have the players or the talent to try to match up. It just goes to show how much has changed in a short amount of time.