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Future Freshman Spotlight

George Mason Basketball: Future Freshman Spotlight

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Thursday, April 03, 2008

Future Freshman Spotlight

I have raved a lot recently about my man crush on incoming freshman Andre Cornelius but that's not to discount the rest of the class. Ryan Pearson, a 6-7 forward from NYC could be the star of the '08 class. Numerous scouting websites have been calling him a steal for the Patriots for awhile mentioning all the bigger conference teams that coveted him. Teams such as Memphis, Pittsburgh, and St. John's all had Pearson on their radar but considered him too small for the power forward position. Did I mention that Pearson is left-handed? So let's see a talented lefty forward who is shunned by the majors because he's not tall enough, can we say Will Thomas? This article on Rivals.com breaks down Pearson's game listing his strengths and weaknesses and after reading it you can find some strikingly similar features to Will Thomas' game. Pearson might get more playing time as a freshman compared to Cornelius simply due to his position. At the moment Mason is more deep at he guard position and frankly what returning forward from last season played consistently? The answer is none. Louis Birdsong is most likely going to start due his experience along with Vlad Moldoveanu or Chris Fleming, but when you consider how none these guys have a legitimate post game Pearson could have an opportunity to step in early. Don't forget big Darryl Monroe, how much will missing all of last season hurt his game, that will greatly determine the starting lineup. Unlike Vlad last season, Pearson has a game that will translate much easier from high school to Division I and Coach L's strategy. Although I do expect the abundance of experienced guards will have us seeing more 4-guard rotations next season which in no way is a bad thing as we saw the success it had at certain points during last season.

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7 Comments:

Blogger C Hirsch said...

I got you in the Big Lead.

http://thebiglead.com/?p=5265#comments

4:17 PM  
Blogger Seymour said...

I'll take a 6'7 lefty over a 6'9 righty.

6:59 PM  
Blogger B-Mac98 said...

Mason still has one more scholarship and word is they're looking for a combo guard. You may be right about the four-guard attack. Next year's post guys are shaping up to be Monroe, Fleming, Birdsong and Pearson, with Vlad flexing at the 3 & 4. The problem is that only Fleming has shown glimpses of a back-to-the-basket game--a staple of the GMU system over Larranaga's tenure (i.e. George Evans, Jessie Young, Jai Lewis, Will Thomas). So unless Fleming gets a lot better, or Birdsong or Vlad develop that kind of power game, or this Pearson kid can bring it to the table immediately (a lot to ask), next year's team is going to be completely different from Coach L's teams of the past. That doesn't mean they won't be successful, they'll just be different and likely run different patterns and sets. Should be interesting to see what they do. Let's just hope Dre Smith becomes more consistent and Cam Long can handle the point. We can't afford another Jordan Carter experience--at least my ticker can't.

3:51 PM  
Blogger Seymour said...

This comment has been removed by the author.

10:24 PM  
Blogger Brann...it's good for you. said...

Hey folks...I'm a war of words with Mason haters on Litos' blog...feel free to join the cause!! Our school is being trashed (along with Larranaga) by a bunch of haters!!

http://caahoops.wordpress.com/2008/04/04/foolish-consistency-is-the-hobgoblin-of-small-minds/#comment-2576

6:17 PM  
Blogger Unknown said...

I am excited about mike morrison too. He looks more athletic than pearson. He will need to bulk up and work on his post game. Check out his highschool all star game, he is number 22, dunk contest is kind of gay but he gets some air at 29secs and also 4:03mins. If he hits the weights he will be a good addition

11:16 PM  
Blogger Unknown said...

here is the link

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4hnE7eqolDY

11:17 PM  

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