Zip JD

The 3 to close out a 20-point win over Cant in the MACC is still pretty sweet but it says a lot that about his season at Butler that to fill a 59 second highlight film they had to go to his Zips footage. As to the pro/con debate on his return.... In Groce I trust. It has been one hell of an off season. Groce has used the Transfer Portal in a couple of weeks to more success than Arth did in 2 seasons.

Agreed. Garvin always played hard and never let up on defense, but he would have been near the end of the bench if he stayed. This is a good move for him, especially if he adds a mid-range jumper in the off season. I always appreciated his hustle, and he had his best game in the home win last season against Cant. Best wishes to him.

Utah Valley seems to be the place. Too bad Mad Dog left.

He stepped up big during the end of the season just like Hunter did for us and he did it without anything close to Freeman or X on the court with him. He could make a monster jump into his sophmore season. Seeing Mr. Pinky bring in Sincere a few years ago and now this is not how I like spending the off season.

I love Freeman but how many 6’7” low post players can you name in the NBA? Danny Fortson is the last one I can remember. Freeman is a tremendous talent but his lack of NBA size makes me think that pre-draft he grades out as an undrafted free agent and returns to the Zips. Zeke was a legitimate seven footer who did not get any looks from the NBA at draft time. At 6’7” Freeman needs small forward skills to go to the show. He will be a beast oversees when his time at Akron is done. if Freeman does leave, I hope I am wrong and he makes it. However, I remember reading how several members of ZNO thought LCJ was heading to the show as well. You can’t coach speed or height.

At least Guthrie didn't ask us to please respect his decision......

100% correct. My dad taught at Akron for 40+ years and met Faust multiple times. Coach always made a point of walking over to him to shake his hand and say, "Hello Professor, good to see you".

Maybe we can schedule them over X-mas Break instead of Arkansas Pine Bluff of the Mississippi Vallet State Delta Devils?

It would be a rather boring board if everyone just stayed neutral to avoid sparking discussion or risking a difference in opinion. Nobody here (save a few) is looking for instigators or trolls, but this is a forum for the discussion of all things Zips. Hopefully RooFan you stay active on the board. If you feel strongly enough about your point of view, then post and support it. Don't take your keyboard and go home.

Spot on. In Kreed we trust.

There is no question that getting to start every game sped up the process, but I think of all the games where there was no 3rd scorer for the Zips and all the different lineups Groce used. It would have been fun to see Aziz and Freeman on the court together. I wonder if Groce would have used the high low post game at all? Oh well, best of luck to Aziz.

It's probably the all too frequent combination of unrealized "potential" and a coach who feels he alone can unlock the player's true potential. I still remember Hue Jackson raving about DeShone Kizer, Cody Kessler and RGIII and what he was going to do with them (nada). This seems like a draft Manziel in the first-round reach. Best of luck to him.

His stat line was 15 pts (4/9 field, 7/10 foul line), 12 boards, 4 blocks and 2 assists to only 1 turnover in a 6-point win over Cincy. I knew he would get better, but I had no idea he would be this good, this quick. It's amazing he's still playing two weeks after the entire MAC is done for the season. Good for him but I wish he was still in the blue and gold.

Wow, this is more in depth than my Sr. term paper. Let me know when Vol 2 is coming out. I want on the distribution list. Great work.

I would have thought this would have been done during the season when Charles decided not to renew Coach's contract. I hope they get someone in there SOON!

Nate Johnson was a red shirt and his upside is huge. Some kids aren’t ready to play right out of high school just as some transfers aren’t ready to come in and contribute (or adjust to a new team). I’m sure the fans at Trimble Jr’s or Virshon Cotton’s last stops are writing that their coaches should stop taking transfers. I don’t have all the answers or inside info so I have to trust that Groce is making the best decisions he can.

This happens every couple years where a school starts renovations as soon as the season ends and then gets an NIT bid. Kentucky went to Robert Morris just a few years ago (and took the L).

It looks like the CIT got postponed twice for COVID and then came back last year as the The Basketball Classic. The web page just lists 2022 details and nothing about 2023 so it looks like we saw X's last game which sucks. I will be interested in what the AD has to say about the decision-making process for post season play. I really wanted one more run with this crew.

No CBI for the Zips. Major disappointment from my perspective. The bracket is up at The CBI (@CBITourney). CSU and KD are in, not us.

Faith has to work on her conditioning in the off season. Reagan, Layne and Molly could all run circles around her as could opposing bigs. She wasn’t going to be on the blocks ahead of the other 3 bigs and being on the perimeter helped her get back on defense. The couple of games I was at where she got significant PT she was gassed quick. That being said she has a lot of potential and can be a real contributor next season.

Over the past 15 years or so, it is very rare for the MAC to get more than 1 team in the NIT. Two seasons ago (approximately) both Toledo and Buff got in, but I believe that was the first time since 2008. The year before no MAC school got in as the regular season and conference champ was the same team. They actually passed a rule that the regular season conference winners get an automatic bid to the NIT if they do not go to the NCAA Tournament (which in the MAC means you lost the MAC tourney). The rule was passed largely due to the 26-7 Akron team with Romeo, Dru, Wood, Dials, etc. being left out of both tourneys. The MAC carries no clout or prestige with selection committees, and the tourneys would rather have the 9th or 10th place teams from power conferenced than mid-majors. If you check the recent history, the CBI and CIT (I believe they changed the name) are the only places you will ever see multiple MAC bids.

A former member of the school's administration told me that all of the Zips MBB starters were making at least $18K a year this season. He was concerned that Freeman might bounce for a bigger payday like Ali Ali did. I have not located any specifics to confirm or refute this statement.

I hope you are right but in one year we had one player bounce to a bigger program and one head to a small school where he could start. The transfer portal and NIL $ has changed everything.

Without the ability to trade talent for future draft picks.

#ShouldHaveStayedAZip or #AlwaysStayAZip The choice is his.