Gavin Skelly, the senior

[DaCat]

I for one am expecting Skelly to be huge contributor this season as a seasoned senior. At 6-8 235 lbs he is a solid Big Ten power forward. Can he step up and fill Sanjay Lumpkin's shoes as the defensive stopper and high energy game-changer? I wouldn't mind seeing a starting lineup of McIntosh, Lindsey, Law, Skelly, and Pardon when the Big 10 season rolls around.

 

[NJCat]

I for one am expecting Skelly to be huge contributor this season as a seasoned senior. At 6-8 235 lbs he is a solid Big Ten power forward. Can he step up and fill Sanjay Lumpkin's shoes as the defensive stopper and high energy game-changer? I wouldn't mind seeing a starting lineup of McIntosh, Lindsey, Law, Skelly, and Pardon when the Big 10 season rolls around.

Add me to the list. He's been a somewhat goofy free-spirit, but in his final season I think we'll find a more serious player ready to fill a starters role. That starting line-up you cite is a real B1G team of grown men.

 

[Cat Fan in Buckeye Land]

Hard to believe that I first saw him play as a junior in High School, and he's going into his Senior year at NU! He's athletic enough, for sure, I just hope he can cut down the silly reach fouls that he tends to accumulate. If he can do that, it will be a big factor.

 

[DaCat]

I think he has to do more than just be a big body that can foul the other big men. He can stretch the floor with his athleticism and his vision, and can score in the right situations. On defense, he has to step up and be a stopper.

 

[NJCat]

I think he has to do more than just be a big body that can foul the other big men. He can stretch the floor with his athleticism and his vision, and can score in the right situations. On defense, he has to step up and be a stopper.

He is a very good passer for a Big.

 

[freewillie07]

He's not going to replace Sanjay on defense. He's just not quick enough to defend wings consistently.

NU is fortunate to have a lot of depth at the "4," if you will, alongside McIntosh, Lindsey, Law and Pardon. Skelly will match up with more traditional power forwards and slide over to center when necessary. Falzon, I believe, will start since he's a dynamic offensive player. Where Ivanauskas fits in is the big question mark. Skelly is a gifted passer but has a tendency to commit bad fouls and commit traveling turnovers. He needs to cut down on those mistakes or Rap could pass him up. That said, I do think there's a good chance he's focused as a senior and earns playing time thanks to his rapport with the other guys.

 

[spartcat]

Skelly can do most of the important glue guy things that Lumpkin could do, steals, rebounds, some good offense mid-range in, passing, and LOTS of hustle. He's probably still going to be a bit foul prone, but that's where the depth comes in. With Falzon and Rap, it's probably no more than 50/50 that Skelly even starts. Falzon was more physical as a frosh than Tap was as a senior, and can really shoot. Either way, he's a cornerstone of our front line, and I hope he has a great senior year.

 

[NUCat320]

Skelly averaged 18 mpg last season, Lumkpin 28. I hope that Skelly gets about the same, perhaps even fewer, minutes this season.

This is not because I expect Skelly to regress - but because I believe that Skelly has the lowest ceiling among the five big or big-likes that can be expected to play. I hope Skelly gets perhaps five minutes a game as the five, and perhaps ten at the four, and that he leads the conference in fist pumps and high fives - especially those that come after Rap swats and Falzon threes and Pardon tip-dunks and Benson boards.

NU made the NCAA tournament with two top 100 recruits missing the season due to injury. That's remarkable.

 

[hdhntr1]

Hard to believe that I first saw him play as a junior in High School, and he's going into his Senior year at NU! He's athletic enough, for sure, I just hope he can cut down the silly reach fouls that he tends to accumulate. If he can do that, it will be a big factor.

Part of that has had to do with his role of energy off the bench

 

[freewillie07]

Skelly can do most of the important glue guy things that Lumpkin could do, steals, rebounds, some good offense mid-range in, passing, and LOTS of hustle. He's probably still going to be a bit foul prone, but that's where the depth comes in. With Falzon and Rap, it's probably no more than 50/50 that Skelly even starts. Falzon was more physical as a frosh than Tap was as a senior, and can really shoot. Either way, he's a cornerstone of our front line, and I hope he has a great senior year.

Lumpkin guarded opposing point guards on occasion. Skelly can't. Sure, he can hustle and rebound and pass, and shoot just as well as Sanjay, and he's so fun to root for. But simply put he is a very different player and less versatile, especially on defense.

 

[DaCat]

Lumpkin guarded opposing point guards on occasion. Skelly can't. Sure, he can hustle and rebound and pass, and shoot just as well as Sanjay, and he's so fun to root for. But simply put he is a very different player and less versatile, especially on defense.

True, I don't think Skelly will be asked to guard the wings, but like spartcat said, he can do the high energy, glue guy things - stuffing the stat sheet with blocked shots, steals, rebounds, and scoring at times, while providing tough defense.