MBB: Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association

[Gregory Sager]

Akil McClain

6'1

Trine

Hammon Bishop Noll

Hammond

[ThatMIAAguy]

Beckman to leave Alma next season. Wants to play at a higher level.

What level is he considering?

From my understanding he wants to compete at the Division I level

[sac]

Jaylin Cooper  5-11 PG Holt will attend Olivet

[oldknight]

Beckman to leave Alma next season. Wants to play at a higher level.

What level is he considering?

From my understanding he wants to compete at the Division I level

That's a headscratcher. Beckman is a very nice D3 guard. He's not a D1 guard.

[HopeKnight]

Oldknight - How does Beckman compare to Jordan Brink - the former Calvin College (Illiana HS) guard? HK

[oldknight]

Oldknight - How does Beckman compare to Jordan Brink - the former Calvin College (Illiana HS) guard? HK

About 4 inches shorter and 20 pounds lighter.

On a serious note, Jordan was the prototypical 2 guard--at 6'3" just the right size, possessed a nice combination of outside shooting and ability to drive to the hoop, an excellent rebounder, a good enough ball-handler to play the point when called upon, an underrated defender, and the best free throw shooter I have ever seen at the D3 level. Beckman has only played one year so it's hard to make comparisons yet but at 5'11" he's a little short for the 2 spot and he just seems slightly out-of-place at the point. On the other hand, it looks like college basketball is moving (or has moved) towards point guards who shoot and score a lot so maybe he can step right in for Nikodemski next season. Beckman certainly plays with supreme confidence and seems destined (if he stays at Alma) to be a first team All-Conference player.

[HopeKnight]

Thx - Beckman is confident and his statistics are solid 11 ppg and 50% 3FG & 90% FT's but seems too small for D1. Shooters are always needed - can he guard anyone at the D1 level and is he an outstanding ball-handler? At 165 pounds he will get roughed up at D1 as well. There may be a spot as a role player - Spike Albrecht was actually an impact player for a couple years and was also undersized. Where did Spike end up this year - he was transferring from Michigan?

A Key evaluation/question for D1 scouts - can Beckman handle the ball and get where he wants on the floor against a top flight defender and can he stay in front of and defend a top flight offensive player. Many kids can shoot and score in HS and D3 but it's completely different once the competition is D1 level?

What level do you think Brink would have maxed out at - he was outstanding at D3 and ended up at Calvin partially because he broke his foot 3 times in high school. His game would have transferred to a higher level but never was sure if it would be D1? He was an average defender and average ball-handler.

 

[kzoo99]

Coach Dougal is no longer at Kalamazoo.  No announcement on the replacement.  There was a lot of turmoil under the surface.  It will be interesting to see who comes in to take his place.

[ThatMIAAguy]

Beckman is a good ball handler (not quite as good as Nikodemski) but offensively speaking his ability to create stuff for himself whether it be shooting off the dribble or making a cut to get himself open is very good. However he is a shoot first, pass second type of player. Defensively he was very good hands and is quick laterally. I can see him on a DI roster but not anywhere that has much success. Will probably play a much lesser role than he did at Alma as the sixth man.

[sac]

Press release
http://hornets.kzoo.edu/sports/mbkb/2015-16/releases/20160427sxig2i


The Eric Dougal file

2013  8-17
2014  10-15
2015  7-18
2016  3-22

Slipped by me but this years 3 wins were the fewest for Kalamazoo since 1944 when they went 2-7 in the war years.  This years Kzoo squad wasn't very good, yet were oddly very competitive against Alma twice and Hope once.   Of all the MIAA teams I've watched Kzoo the least the last 4 or 5 years by a wide margin so I have no good feel Dougal's coaching or the direction Kzoo was going other than the records above.  But I felt like Eric had made a couple recruiting breakthroughs the last couple years.

Kzoo has now had 13 consecutive losing seasons and cracked double-digit wins just once in those years while also finishing in the MIAA's top 4 just once.  At the moment the 6 programs above them are better and getting better so the next coach is going to be paddling upstream against a rising current.

I've always maintained Kzoo is really good job but a very tough one and looks even tougher now than it did 4 or 5 years ago.  I don't know all the details of Kzoo's NCAA sanctions but hiring a coach under those conditions doesn't seem ideal.

Kzoo loses only 2 off this years roster with a predominantly upper class rotation.  They should be better next year regardless of the coach but it still feels like a big gap to the 6 schools above them right now.




side note:   I got my first look at Kzoo's athletic field improvements yesterday since they finished them a couple years ago and they're really very nicely done.  First class.   (security is a bit lite though )

[kzoo99]

A little insight for what it's worth...  Dougal lost this team during the past offseason and early into the latest season.    He brought in a number transfers and signed some good players who were not academically ready for Kalamazoo.   He failed to make it clear what the plan was.  He tried to implement a higher paced offense but their defense suffered from how it was implemented.  Players talked of very long film sessions (3 hours to review 9 minutes of game time).   The "academic" scholarships to some of these players were part of the reason for the NCAA sanctions.   It wasn't well publicized but one player left the team early in the season due to a conflict with Dougal, another was removed from the team for a few games for insubordination, a few freshmen were sat down for a few games for conduct violations, the substitution patterns during the games became more and more random as the year went on and he looked to stabilize a team where a lot of the players did not want to play for him.  As a parent of one of the players (in case that wasn't obvious), I liked Dougal when I met him but it became clear at the start of this year that he did not have a vision for what the identity of the team would be and how he would get them there.

Here is an excerpt from an email from Kalamazoo

"We have determined that six teams will not be repackaged and the students and coaches have been informed of our decisions.

The following teams will NOT be repackaged:
Women's Volleyball
Women's Lacrosse
Women's Basketball
Women's Softball
Men's Football
Men's Basketball

All of the students on the non-repackaged teams will keep their current financial aid awards. The teams listed above will not be eligible for postseason play and championship consideration as long as anyone on the roster has financial aid that was awarded through a process not compliant with NCAA rules.

By the 2018/19 academic year, we anticipate Women's Basketball, Women's Softball, Men's Football and Men's Basketball will be eligible. In the fall, we will reevaluate Women's Lacrosse and Women's Volleyball's eligibility for the 2017/18 academic year. "

Press release
http://hornets.kzoo.edu/sports/mbkb/2015-16/releases/20160427sxig2i


The Eric Dougal file

2013  8-17
2014  10-15
2015  7-18
2016  3-22

Slipped by me but this years 3 wins were the fewest for Kalamazoo since 1944 when they went 2-7 in the war years.  This years Kzoo squad wasn't very good, yet were oddly very competitive against Alma twice and Hope once.   Of all the MIAA teams I've watched Kzoo the least the last 4 or 5 years by a wide margin so I have no good feel Dougal's coaching or the direction Kzoo was going other than the records above.  But I felt like Eric had made a couple recruiting breakthroughs the last couple years.

Kzoo has now had 13 consecutive losing seasons and cracked double-digit wins just once in those years while also finishing in the MIAA's top 4 just once.  At the moment the 6 programs above them are better and getting better so the next coach is going to be paddling upstream against a rising current.

I've always maintained Kzoo is really good job but a very tough one and looks even tougher now than it did 4 or 5 years ago.  I don't know all the details of Kzoo's NCAA sanctions but hiring a coach under those conditions doesn't seem ideal.

Kzoo loses only 2 off this years roster with a predominantly upper class rotation.  They should be better next year regardless of the coach but it still feels like a big gap to the 6 schools above them right now.




side note:   I got my first look at Kzoo's athletic field improvements yesterday since they finished them a couple years ago and they're really very nicely done.  First class.   (security is a bit lite though )

[oldknight]

Thx - Beckman is confident and his statistics are solid 11 ppg and 50% 3FG & 90% FT's but seems too small for D1. Shooters are always needed - can he guard anyone at the D1 level and is he an outstanding ball-handler? At 165 pounds he will get roughed up at D1 as well. There may be a spot as a role player - Spike Albrecht was actually an impact player for a couple years and was also undersized. Where did Spike end up this year - he was transferring from Michigan?

A Key evaluation/question for D1 scouts - can Beckman handle the ball and get where he wants on the floor against a top flight defender and can he stay in front of and defend a top flight offensive player. Many kids can shoot and score in HS and D3 but it's completely different once the competition is D1 level?

What level do you think Brink would have maxed out at - he was outstanding at D3 and ended up at Calvin partially because he broke his foot 3 times in high school. His game would have transferred to a higher level but never was sure if it would be D1? He was an average defender and average ball-handler.

Both Brink and Beckman were perfect for the D3 game, with neither suited for D1. Of the two players, I think Brink would have more success at the D2 level, possibly as a starter, though more likely as a quality 6th man. He could have provided almost any D2 program with a real offensive shot in the arm off the bench. Beckman needs to know that there are tons of 5'11", 165 pound guards out there who can play basketball and should stick it out at the D3 level where he can excel.

[Stinger]

A little insight for what it's worth...  Dougal lost this team during the past offseason and early into the latest season.    He brought in a number transfers and signed some good players who were not academically ready for Kalamazoo.   He failed to make it clear what the plan was.  He tried to implement a higher paced offense but their defense suffered from how it was implemented.  Players talked of very long film sessions (3 hours to review 9 minutes of game time).   The "academic" scholarships to some of these players were part of the reason for the NCAA sanctions.   It wasn't well publicized but one player left the team early in the season due to a conflict with Dougal, another was removed from the team for a few games for insubordination, a few freshmen were sat down for a few games for conduct violations, the substitution patterns during the games became more and more random as the year went on and he looked to stabilize a team where a lot of the players did not want to play for him.  As a parent of one of the players (in case that wasn't obvious), I liked Dougal when I met him but it became clear at the start of this year that he did not have a vision for what the identity of the team would be and how he would get them there.

Here is an excerpt from an email from Kalamazoo

"We have determined that six teams will not be repackaged and the students and coaches have been informed of our decisions.

The following teams will NOT be repackaged:
Women's Volleyball
Women's Lacrosse
Women's Basketball
Women's Softball
Men's Football
Men's Basketball

All of the students on the non-repackaged teams will keep their current financial aid awards. The teams listed above will not be eligible for postseason play and championship consideration as long as anyone on the roster has financial aid that was awarded through a process not compliant with NCAA rules.

By the 2018/19 academic year, we anticipate Women's Basketball, Women's Softball, Men's Football and Men's Basketball will be eligible. In the fall, we will reevaluate Women's Lacrosse and Women's Volleyball's eligibility for the 2017/18 academic year. "

I think Coach Dougal is a great guy and have always enjoyed my interactions with him.  I wish him all the best.

Kzoo99, your insight sounds like immature kids who can't take the heat.  One, admissions is the ultimate decision maker on who is academically ready for K.  Second, Coach has every right to sit kids for "insubordination" or conduct violations. It's called accountability. I don't want to get into a rant about "kids these days' , but damn.   

That said, 3 wins is unacceptable.  The lack of success since Coach Haklin is unacceptable.  Being a coach at K is a tough job.  Smokin' Joe showed you can compete and win.   It takes tenacious recruiting and it's not for everyone.  K needs classes with 1-2  very good players surrounded by a secondary group where 1-2 might emerge as productive players.  K needs to hire someone that is going to work tirelessly to find them.  I don't know if Coach Dougal did that or not.  But only bringing in 4 kids in a class won't cut it. 

I'm realistic.  I know that K isn't going to win the MIAA every year. But getting into the MIAA tournament should absolutely be a standard and every couple years, you never know..... 

[kzoo99]

Stinger,

Generically speaking you might be correct about the "kids these days" but I think you would feel differently if you met many of the young men on this team.  Bottom line is that Dougal lost several of them during the course of the year.  My son has played for a lot of coaches through high school, aau, etc.  They had a wide variety of temperaments and styles of coaching.   He has always led by example and never had any cause to do anything but be the best teammate possible.  When it became clear to him (whether it was true or not) that Dougal has lost the team and lost his respect, he didn't make a spectacle.  He simply told the coach that he wasn't going to play anymore. Basketball does not define his identity.  He met with Dougal.  He gave him specific written examples (about a page and half) of why he was leaving the team.  Dougal did what any coach would do and move on.  No issues there.  My son didn't consult me or his mother before leaving the team.  We knew he didn't like the approach that Dougal was taking but that was the extent.  He made a decision like an adult and I am proud that he did.  He is in the top 10% of the class at Kalamazoo taking one of the hardest majors (chemistry).  He volunteers at the local hospital and it is my opinion (albeit biased) that the last thing you would call him is a typical immature, self centered millennial.  Throughout the course of the year Dougal enlisted several other to try to get him back on the team.  Dougal never bothered to speak with him directly about it. His mother and I have not spoken to the coach or anyone in the athletic department at Kzoo (and we don't need to).   I don't know if he will play at Kalamazoo under whoever the new coach happens to be.  I do know it will be his decision and I hope for the rest of the team that they do well.  We will be rooting for them.

A little insight for what it's worth...  Dougal lost this team during the past offseason and early into the latest season.    He brought in a number transfers and signed some good players who were not academically ready for Kalamazoo.   He failed to make it clear what the plan was.  He tried to implement a higher paced offense but their defense suffered from how it was implemented.  Players talked of very long film sessions (3 hours to review 9 minutes of game time).   The "academic" scholarships to some of these players were part of the reason for the NCAA sanctions.   It wasn't well publicized but one player left the team early in the season due to a conflict with Dougal, another was removed from the team for a few games for insubordination, a few freshmen were sat down for a few games for conduct violations, the substitution patterns during the games became more and more random as the year went on and he looked to stabilize a team where a lot of the players did not want to play for him.  As a parent of one of the players (in case that wasn't obvious), I liked Dougal when I met him but it became clear at the start of this year that he did not have a vision for what the identity of the team would be and how he would get them there.

Here is an excerpt from an email from Kalamazoo

"We have determined that six teams will not be repackaged and the students and coaches have been informed of our decisions.

The following teams will NOT be repackaged:
Women's Volleyball
Women's Lacrosse
Women's Basketball
Women's Softball
Men's Football
Men's Basketball

All of the students on the non-repackaged teams will keep their current financial aid awards. The teams listed above will not be eligible for postseason play and championship consideration as long as anyone on the roster has financial aid that was awarded through a process not compliant with NCAA rules.

By the 2018/19 academic year, we anticipate Women's Basketball, Women's Softball, Men's Football and Men's Basketball will be eligible. In the fall, we will reevaluate Women's Lacrosse and Women's Volleyball's eligibility for the 2017/18 academic year. "

I think Coach Dougal is a great guy and have always enjoyed my interactions with him.  I wish him all the best.

Kzoo99, your insight sounds like immature kids who can't take the heat.  One, admissions is the ultimate decision maker on who is academically ready for K.  Second, Coach has every right to sit kids for "insubordination" or conduct violations. It's called accountability. I don't want to get into a rant about "kids these days' , but damn.   

That said, 3 wins is unacceptable.  The lack of success since Coach Haklin is unacceptable.  Being a coach at K is a tough job.  Smokin' Joe showed you can compete and win.   It takes tenacious recruiting and it's not for everyone.  K needs classes with 1-2  very good players surrounded by a secondary group where 1-2 might emerge as productive players.  K needs to hire someone that is going to work tirelessly to find them.  I don't know if Coach Dougal did that or not.  But only bringing in 4 kids in a class won't cut it. 

I'm realistic.  I know that K isn't going to win the MIAA every year. But getting into the MIAA tournament should absolutely be a standard and every couple years, you never know.....

[sac]

CJ Pruitt  SF  Okemos will attend Albion