The Oklahoma State Cowboys very nearly beat Michigan last March in the first round of the NCAA Tournament. The Cowboys played a great game against a team which came one basket away from making the Elite Eight a week later. Michigan took Oregon to the final possession and missed on its last shot of the game. Oregon made the Final Four, not Michigan.
Oklahoma State played Michigan evenly. The Cowboys were terrifically talented and came together as the season went along.
This team should be in good position for the coming season, right? Wrong. As you will see, few teams had a more awful offseason than the Pokes. The details speak for themselves.
Offseason Changes
The offseason for OSU could not have gone any worse. Other offseasons for other teams, such as Louisville, might have had a more nightmarish dimension and a more chilling long-term effect on a school, but Louisville should still make the NCAA Tournament this coming season. It’s hard to see how Oklahoma State has even the slightest chance of doing that. First, elite scorer Jawun Evans moved to the NBA. He was a magical scorer because of his combination of natural shotmaking ability and a capacity to be able to create offense with his dribble-drive game. Not just a penetrator and not just a shooter, Evans could do a little of everything at a high level, and he knew how to get the defense off balance or out of position so that he could then create for his teammates. That alone gave Oklahoma State so much freedom and diversity on offense, providing lots of options for everyone on the court.
That loss is bad enough… but then Oklahoma State lost a man it had no business losing. Coach Brad Underwood left OSU after one season to go to Illinois. Underwood went to school at Kansas State, so he knew the Big 12 inside and out and was very comfortable coaching in that part of the country. He should have been given everything he wanted at Oklahoma State. Instead, athletic director Mike Holder gave him a lowball offer and would not redraw Underwood’s contract to compensate him at a competitive level. This should not be a problem for Oklahoma State with its resources, but it was, and Underwood didn’t stick around. He looked for a place which would compensate him a lot more generously.
Mike Boynton is now the head coach in Stillwater. He is an assistant from last year’s team who is left to pick up the pieces. Oklahoma State has told the outside world that it will not pay top dollar for a quality head coach. It’s a disastrous turn of events for this program, which has plainly mismanaged its money in basketball.
Will Succeed If…
Every major rotational player (10 minutes or more per game) plays better than expected. That’s it – there is nothing more this team can hope for than the simple reality of players improving. The cupboard is bare, there are no stars, and there is no excellent coach to knit the lineup together. Success will not be very abundant this year. The Cowboys are in the unenviable position of having to focus on things other than wins and losses, because there will be a lot of losses.
Won’t Succeed If…
The Cowboys don’t find someone who can score from all spots on the floor the way Evans did, and someone who can hit threes the way a number of Evans’ teammates did last season. However, it is unlikely that Oklahoma State can stave off failure here. Underwood ran great offensive sets and found ways to develop players, maximizing their abilities. Boynton is an unproven commodity. He does not have a loaded team and will have to find ways to create offense throughout the lineup. He is in a no-win situation, being set up to fail.
Roster
Brandon Averette
Kendall Smith
Zack Dawson
Thomas Dziagwa
Tavarius Shine
Cameron McGriff
Lucas N’Guessan
Lindy Waters III
Michael Weathers
Davon Dillard
Jeffrey Carroll
Trey Reeves
Yankuba Sima
Mitchell Solomon
Outlook
This is a trainwreck. Oklahoma State should not be this bad, but it will be. This is the team which clearly figures to finish dead last in the Big 12. Even eighth place would feel like major overachievement this season.
The 2018 March Madness futures are out. There has been plenty of news to keep up with in the offseason but keep an eye on the betting lines as they move around at Diamond Sportsbook! Get the latest college basketball betting lines right here.
