If there’s two things to know about Baylor guard LaceDarius Dunn, it’s that he’s one of the top shooters in the country and he’s not a fan of sharing the basketball. With Curtis Jerrells and Henry Dugat, two outstanding guards for the Baylor program now gone, it’ll be up to Dunn to shoulder more of the load.
The fork in the road is this – when media heads talk about Baylor hoops, they often refer to Dunn’s style of play and beg of Scott Drew to turn the pure shooter into some kind of hybrid guard. At Pete Prose, we never want to see this happen. And for good reason.
First off, changing LaceDarius’ game is slightly more complex than breaking down the BCS algorithm, which to my knowledge has yet to be remotely solved. In sixteen Big Twelve games last season, Dunn had two assists. Let me repeat that: In sixteen games, a total of two assists. At some point you have to figure he’s going to get lucky on a fast break, but no, he never did and he never will. He averaged almost 30 minutes a game during this stretch, but his teammates either didn’t execute, didn’t finish, or mockingly wanted to keep his pathetic run alive.
Instead of trying to manipulate his style of play, use his cerebral approach to shooting the rock in a positive way. He’s not a ballhog, but he knows when to rip, which can’t be said about most premier players in the college game. Baylor still has 5′11″ senior guard Tweety Carter, who can effectively handle the ball and run an uptempo offense against a mediocre Big Twelve.
Most analysts have Baylor finishing in the 7-9 range in the Big 12, but I’m pretty sure they’ll be slightly better than anticipated. After the big three of Kansas/Texas/Oklahoma, I don’t see much of a talent disparity concerning the rest of the teams – each of them have real questions. Can Kansas State find any help to work alongside superstar Denis Clemente? How do the Aggies replace Elonu, and does Missouri not having a go to scorer put them at a disadvantage? Surely Craig Brackins is a star for the Cyclones, but there’s no help around him either.
Baylor still has a phenomenal three pronged attack in Carter/Dunn/Acy, and the addition of 6′5″ guard Nolan Dennis should help with the huge loss of Curtis Jerells. I don’t think there’s anything more entertaining than watching LaceDarius square one up, and around him there’s some real talent. Few teams are more electrifying on a national level, and if you don’t believe me, check out this video. Dunn’s quick trigger is on full display during the first minute or so.
Travis Yost is a native New Yorker and recent Arizona State University product . He is the team beat writer for the Ottawa Senators over at Hockey Buzz, and covers all sports here at The Prose. 