Photo. Washington State University

Last year (Dime #28) we debuted the “Player’s Ball” college hoops preview, where we went to some of the NCAA’s best players and had them preview their own conferences. This year we did it again (Dime #37), but since we didn’t have room in the mag for some of the mid-majors, we’re dropping them on DimeMag.com along with the big boys. Today, Washington State swingman Kyle Weaver breaks down the Pac-10:

THE EXPERT: Kyle Weaver, Washington State, Sr., SF/SG
The Cougars went from Pac-10 doormat to one of the best teams in the country last year, and one of the main reasons was Weaver: the 6-6 wing was all over the court, finishing among the conference leaders in assists (4.6 apg, 3rd), steals (2.1 spg, 2nd) and rebounds (5.6 rpg, 16th), while his 11.2 points per game ranked second on the team. Among the Wisconsin native’s highlights were a triple-double against Stanford (14 pts, 13 rebs, 10 asts, 6 stls) and a 15-point, 13-board, 3-block, 3-steal showing against USC. But after copping a three-seed in the Dance and advancing to the Round of 32, WSU can’t play the underdog card. Weaver and the rest of the team won’t be sneaking up on anyone this year. Over the weekend, Weaver posted 7 points, 5 boards, 7 dimes, 3 steals and 2 blocks in the Cougars’ season-opening win over Eastern Washington.

EXPERT OPINION: “One thing I like about this conference is you always have guys coming in ready to play right away. Every team has a legitimate shot to do something. I would say the Pac-10 is kind of a sleeper conference. We don’t get a lot of talk, but after getting so many teams in the Tournament last year (six), we may have turned some heads.

“UCLA is always bringing in good athletes. They have Darren Collison (12.7 ppg, 5.7 apg, 2.2 spg) at point guard, Luc Richard Mbah a Moute (8.2 ppg, 7.4 rpg, 1.7 spg) on the wing and big Kevin Love (Fr., C/PF) coming in. They run a great offense, and with a big guy like Kevin, he can slide right into that system. O.J. Mayo (Fr., PG/SG) is definitely going to be a presence at USC. I think it’s kinda early to say they’re an instant contender with him – he’s still a freshman, regardless – but him being out there definitely changes that team. Oregon gets up and down the floor and scores in bunches. They play small and use that to their advantage. I think Bryce Taylor (SG, 14.1 ppg, 4.6 rpg) will have a good year; he’ll have to with them losing Aaron Brooks. Malik Hairston (SG/SF, 11.3 ppg, 6 rpg) will be there, and I think the little guy, Tajuan Porter (G, 14.6 ppg), will have to step up. He had some great games where he shot lights-out, but he will have to be stronger than he was last year. And I think Maarty Leunen (PF, 10.8 ppg, 8.2 rpg, 1.4 spg) is ready to have a big season for them.

“Washington lost Spencer Hawes, so I’m not sure how that will effect them, but Jon Brockman (PF, 14.2 ppg, 9.6 rpg) is always a beast. They got Tim Morris (SG), a transfer from Stanford who will be a big part of what they do. Arizona always has great athletes who can score. Their freshman, Jerryd Bayless (SG/PG), is pretty good. I like their big guy, too, Jordan Hill (PF, 4.7 ppg, 4.1 rpg). He’s gonna have a big year. DeVon Hardin (C, 10.3 ppg, 8.3 rpg, 1.9 bpg) at Cal, if he’s healthy, him and Ryan Anderson (PF, 16.4 ppg, 8.1 rpg) will be a good duo down low that can spread the defense. Hardin rebounds like a mad dog.

“Every other team knows we’re a defensive team. It’s gonna be hard for teams to score on us, and on offense we wanna get good shots every time down. From the outside looking in you could say we’re a slow-down team, but I think we’re just patient. One X-factor for us is gonna be Aron Baynes (C, 5.2 ppg). He had stretches where he dominated games last year, but that was just a tip of the iceberg. If we can get a big presence with him inside, that’s going to make it easier for our guards like Derrick Low (PG, 13.7 ppg, 1.3 spg) to do what they do, plus Robbie Cowgill (C/PF, 8.1 ppg, 5.4 rpg) will get more baskets inside. Taylor Rochestie (SG, So.) will be big this year and Daven Harmeling (SF, 8.9 ppg) is another guy who will be doing some things as well.

“We’re used to being the underdogs, but now it’ll be other teams hunting us. Other teams expect more from us. Even around here, the fans expect more and the coaches expect more. But we still see it as we gotta go get [opponents] instead of them getting us.”

Player’s Ball archive
11/12 – Atlantic 10 (Ahmad Nivins, St. Joe’s)
11/9 – Big Ten (Drew Neitzel, Michigan State)
11/9 – WAC (Jaycee Carroll, Utah State)
11/8 – SEC (Ronald Steele, Alabama)
11/7 – Missouri Valley (Daniel Ruffin & Jeremy Crouch, Bradley)
11/6 – ACC (DeMarcus Nelson, Duke)
11/5 – Mountain West (Brandon Ewing, Wyoming)
11/2 – Big 12 (A.J. Abrams, Texas)