3MW’s All Conference Team:
Player of the Year: Evan Mobley, Fr., USC
Coach of the Year: Andy Enfield, USC
Newcomer of the Year: Evan Mobley, Fr., USC
Freshman of the Year: Evan Mobley, Fr., USC
Season Storylines:
‘Rebuild’? Dana Altman has no idea what means…
Down years at Oregon just aren’t a thing. Altman’s transfer vacuum sucked in a sterling crop of newcomers off the waiver wire over the last two summers. It took time to integrate the new pieces with the incumbents but with Altman, it’s never a matter of if the puzzle will come together - it’s when. True to his namesake, Eugene Omoruyi came to Eugene on a mission. Only Evan Mobley’s video game stats prevented Omoruyi from claiming POTY hardware, though I’m sure the Ducks will be content with the ultimate prize: a regular season Pac-12 title.
The rest of the accolades were swept by USC, who made a mockery of our disrespectful preseason predictions. Last year, Oneyka Okongwu was the leading man in the Andy Enfield show. This year, Evan Mobley stepped in to that stead and delivered an Oscar-worthy performance. A prodigy coming out of high school, Mobley’s dominance was expected - his physical gifts and natural coordination are divine. But, the steady and efficient play of his supporting cast was the real shocker. Drew Peterson (Rice) and Tahj Eaddy (Santa Clara) treated Pac-12 defenders like the same middle-tier conference foes they used to play against.
Arizona’s season was weird on multiple levels. The whole year was engulfed by the looming postseason ban, but the on the court product was equally as odd. Sean Miller coaching James Akinjo and a slew of international prospects? Something just felt… off? To Miller’s credit, he navigated the unfavorable circumstances to creep above .500 in the conference standings.
Wayne Tinkle has every right to be upset with my Coach of the Year choice. The Oregon State CEO masterfully puppeteered a talent-bleak roster to a top-5 seed in the Pac-12 tournament, a mighty impressive feat in the wake of his son’s graduation.
Tad Boyle falls in that same vein. The anti-sexy ‘Boyle Ball’ brand never wows anyone outside of Colorado, but the Buffs are a fixture at the top of the Pac-12 totem pole year in and year out. And if you can’t root for McKinley Wright, you just don’t have a heart.
Unrelenting injuries and untimely COVID stops smothered the Arizona State offseason hype circus. UCLA smashed head first into those same roadblocks, but Mick Cronin adapted well, somehow sneaking the Bruins into a top-4 seed.
Then there’s Washington and Cal. At least we expected Cal to be bad. As far as the Huskies’ unmitigated disaster goes, well, that one’s an eyesore for Mike Hopkins, particularly on the heels of last year’s late season skid.
To conclude, a word of caution for the rest of the Pac-12: Washington State is coming. It could be next year. It could be 2022. When it arrives, brace yourself for the ‘DataRaid’ stampede…
Tournament Preview
Tournament Predictions
(6) Stanford over (11) Cal
(7) Utah over (10) Washington
(8) Arizona St. over (9) Washington St.
(1) Oregon over (8) Arizona St.
(4) UCLA over (5) Oregon St.
(2) USC over (7) Utah
(3) Colorado over (6) Stanford
(1) Oregon over (4) UCLA
(3) Colorado over (2) USC
(1) Oregon over (3) Colorado