With Nigel likely not coming, what are GW's options at PG next year to backup McDonald? 

Savage has a good handle and can drive but is not a point guard. 

Kromah backed up McDonald after Bynes was out and did a surprisingly credible job in that role.  Didn't turn it over much and drove and dished well.  But he's really a scorer first and looked to be the starting SG next season.  Moving him to the PG is a loss at 2 positions: moving into an unnatural position and not having him in the starting lineup at SG.

GW needs to find a PG recruit.  Any suggestions?

Charles Tucker from Montrose Christian.  GW has good ties to Montrose and has been after Tucker's teammate, SF Jordan Swopshire.

Jamal Parker from Jacksonville NC http://gwhoops.com/default.aspx?mid=20120813042842195368

I guess they could hope that some junior eligible graduating PG somewhere pulls a Pellom and decides to transfer out.  Hard fit to find.  Maybe the Juco route, but most of the good ones are gone as well.   Not alot of good options right now.

It's been posted on this board that Lonergan shouldn't reach for a player just because they have open scholarships to fill.  That's a good rule generally, but GW needs to fid a PG to help out McDonald.  Late signees in the past have included Dan Guest, Kopriva, Aaron Ware, Fitzgerald and (I think) JR Pinock.  I'm sure there were others.  Danlio obviously the best of the group.  Aaron Ware was a decent role player.  Dan Guest wasn't a great fit but this could be the type of talent we're now looking at to replace Nigel Johnson.  It's minutes and insurance policy if somebody (McDonald/Kromah) gets hurt.  

I don't like saying this but I think Lonergan needs to get the best PG he can find right now, no matter how low a talent level that is.  If he really can't play at this level, they can just recruit another PG next year and keep him on the bench. 

 Any chance of them being interested in JJ Epps?  Couldn't he play 12-15 minutes a game as a backup?

On Nigel Johnson's twitter, he actually re-tweeted link from Marcus Helton(a local recruiting guru) who was a list of unsigned seniors from the area. This is the link http://www.dmvelite.com/news/unsigned-seniors-list 

The most interesting name I saw was point guard(maybe more of a combo guard) Will Ferguson from Herndon. He's a guy who came into high school with a lot of hype at O'Connell, had some differences with the coach and actually transferred to Herndon in the middle of the basketball season. Everyone had him pegged as a high-major player when he entered high school, but the fact that he remains unsigned at this point, may indicate that he can be had by GW. I believe most recruiting services have him rated ahead of Nigel Johnson.

Unfortunately GW doesn't need a quality backup PG nearly as badly as it needs a quality starting PG. This isn't really a knock on JoeMac as a player - he just hasn't shown yet that he can play the pg position at a high enough level. He's definitely a keeper as a combo or starting 2 guard which I think is his better position.

The last regime was constantly bedeviled by insufficient ballhandlers. Recall the season that was mostly lost when Travis King got hurt. Hobbs put great efforts into getting Jon Lloyd. Dan Guest was signed VERY late in a scenario like you describe, Bobo - when he just couldn't get anybody better. Obviously great effort was put into signing Trey Davis.Hobbs definitely was looking to playing Davis and TT at the same time, much like I guess ML would have played Nigel and JoeMac together.

I don't think that we've really seen enough of Savage to tell whether he is an answer to any particular question.

javascript:void(0);/*1364774852271*/ ML is now following Justin Edwards on Twitter. Edwards led the America East in scoring last season and is transferring. It looks like he'd have to sit out a year, so that won't help us next year. http://collegebasketballtalk.nbcsports.com/2013/03/28/justin-edwards-leading-scorer-in-the-america-east-to-transfer/

Skyhigh - I don't know how relevant it was that Savage played some pg in HS. Plenty of 6'4" guys play PF or C in HS, that doesn't mean they can play that position in college.

I do know that Savage had a hard time staying on the floor last year, even when he was starting. It seemed to me that ML was often unhappy with Savage's play and was quick to replace him with Lasan. My best guess is that if Savage could handle point very well, he would have played more - especially after Bynes got hurt.

 I thought Justin Edwards might be a possibility considering the America east connection and the poor timing on the Nigel decommitment..

Justin Edwards tunred it over a ton and shot 27% from three.   He did score a lot and had nice assist numbers, but those TOs and 3 point numbers certainly seem to fit the 2013 Colonials.

Don't know if we qualify for Mr Edwards' dream destination list: 

Maine coach Woodward said, “He’s indicated he really wants to go to THE highest levels of basketball,” Woodward said. “He’s mentioned the BCS [Bowl Championship Subdivision]-level schools.  “It’s never been a secret. It’s something that he’s always discussed, even back during the recruiting process,” he added.

http://bangordailynews.com/2013/03/28/sports/umaine-star-guard-justin-edwards-to-transfer/

The transfer announcement floodgates seem to be openning.  Unfortunately no fifth year PGs or DC area hardship cases who can use the "wanted to play closer to my sick grandmother" excuse yet.

link

I wouldn't mind Purvis

Whichever spots Savage and Macdonald end up playing, they were recruited for their skills, potential, and athleticism, with the idea that they'd be solid contributors to the foundation for a GWU basketball program. It's regretably fortuitous that necessity demanded that they start as freshmen, because neither was ready to play 30plusmpg. And, its silly for us to be judging them as though being fulltime freshmen starters was the expectation.

BB, I gather, was considered the insurance policy at the point, and, for a number of late season games, he was fine.

Still, it's pathetic that this team's coaches have not recruited so as to have a solid backup at the point for this year, and, seemingly, next year either.

I like these coaches a lot, and figure they will have this situation entirely under control by October. But its the coaches, not the players, who deserve most of the criticism for GW's play at the point this season (and next, if it comes to that.) The guys who were thrown in to the breech are being judged prematurely, in my opinion.

There is interest in JJ Epps.

I like Epps.. Brings back memories of my favorite Colonial.

why didn't we get Ty Johson in the end?

The Villanova transfer. I remember some people posting here that he wanted to come but it was our coaching stuff who decided not to pursue him.

Does anyone have more info?

South Carolina

I don't see a 5"4' player like JJ Epps doing well in a "flex" offese that requires him to set screens. Nor would he be a fit for the 1-3-1 defenses Lonergan used last year.  Maybe they'd find a way to make it work but I'm looking for 6-2 and taller guards that are strong, can dribble and shoot (hopefully). 

I don't see a 5"4' player like JJ Epps doing well in a "flex" offese that requires him to set screens. Nor would he be a fit for the 1-3-1 defenses Lonergan used last year.  Maybe they'd find a way to make it work but I'm looking for 6-2 and taller guards that are strong, can dribble and shoot (hopefully). 

 Bobo,

Is he really 5'4"?  I know he isn't tall but that's really short.

ML had two player on his roster in 09-10 in Joey Accoui and Simeon Marsalis who were both short gaurds.  They were listed at 5'11" but Accoui couldn't have been any taller than 5'7".  Then again he was a knock down shooter from three point range.  Not sure if that is Epps specialty.

We had a short walk-on that ML inherited, who he kept for one season, but disappeared. Don't recall him playing at all.

Local unsigned senior list by DMVElite

Will Fergerson is a nice ball player.  Have no idea if GW has been in contact with him, but he has the ability to be a good player on a successful Division I program.

I like Will Ferguson too. I'm guessing(just my opinion, no inside info) that the O'Connell coach has said bad things about W.Ferguson to colleges and that may be contributing to him remaining unsigned at this point. I'm almost positive that W.Ferguson had a lot of high-major interest during his freshman and sophomore years at O'Connell. 

Someone posted that GW had interest in Anton Waters of Princeton Day, he's still remains unsigned. Coolidge forward David Kadiri is also an interesting name when you think about the GW connection with his coach Vaughn Jones. A few weeks ago, I posted that the i95ballerz website mentioned that GW had a coach/coaches at the Coolidge-Roosevelt D.C.City Title Game last month, maybe they were there to see D.Kadiri. 

BM, if Jerome Seagers chooses GW, there is always a chance that they could come up with a hardship case so that he could play next season. Maybe the coaches are using that as a recruiting pitch to him!! LOL J.Seagers would have more of an opportunity to shine here than he would at Georgetown or Maryland, if he were interested in playing close to home. N.C.State would probably recruit over him if he went there.

I'm pretty sure Furguson isn't college-ready at this point.  Read somewhere that he's preping next year (Massanutten?)

College transfer list with three GW entries.  Hopefully a couple of future colonials here, but no PG listed that is available to play immediately.

There's a bunch of good players on that list.  Hopefully GW can grab 1 or 2.

kadiri is going to umbc

An interesting name on the transfer list is Chris Martin from Marshall. He played at St.John's in DC for his first 3 years of high school and was an outstanding 3-point shooter.