Meet Anthony Dixon

(first Anthony Dixon photo courtesy of the Chicago Sun-Times)

One of the best practices in the world of business is bringing quality people together to produce a desired outcome. This process also has applicability in other areas of group achievement, such as team sports where sums can become greater than their parts.

This custom is certainly taking place with the San Jose State men's basketball team where new additions have been welcomed into the Spartan Family.

One such augmentation is 6-4 wing Anthony Dixon of Hyde Park High in Chicago.

Let's break his fan club -- that is, besides the Spartan coaching staff -- into two parts and then we'll hear from Dixon himself.

Larry Butler has coached the Illinois Warriors, a powerhouse club basketball team from the Chicago area, for seemingly forever and is well known for both the number of his players who have gone on to the National Basketball Association (NBA) and also those who have moved in college coaching. Currently, Butler's crew consists of 19 NBA-ers including Dwyane Wade, Quentin Richardson, Corey Maggette, Eddy Curry, Julian Wright and Andre Iguodala. 11 of his charges are now on college coaching staffs throughout the country.

So when he talks, people listen. Here's what he had to say of Anthony Dixon when we talked with him the other day: "Anthony is going to be an all-league guy eventually...he's very athletic, a bigtime athlete who explodes in transition...he's a great kid and is shooting very well right now...call him the most underrated in the senior class around here."

Harv and Roy Schmidt are also fixtures on the Illinois basketball scene. They've been scouting for 25 years or so and began as the Midwest correspondents for Clark Francis' HoopScoop basketball recruiting publication. In 1998, the pair branched out and started own scouting service Illinois Prep Bulls-Eye and they also cover high school and junior college basketball recruiting throughout the Land of Lincoln for the Chicago Sun Times.

We recently talked with Roy Schmidt about Dixon and here's is what he offered: "Anthony has very good hands, attacks the basket and scores well on the block... he's 6-4 but play like he is 6-7 or 6-8...he's a strong rebounder and just plays really hard...this past spring and summer he played for both the 16 & Under and the 17 Illinois Warrior teams and more coaches were on to him by the time July was over -- that's a tribute to how hard he worked."

Finally, we conversed with Dixon himself.

Asked why he selected San Jose State, Dixon said, "I came in [on his visit] with a list of questions and didn't need to ask any of them -- all the information I wanted was provided. I loved the coaching staff."

In this era where some commitments aren't worth the oxygen used to offer them, deciding on SJSU was an easy choice for Dixon. "I took only one visit, the one to San Jose State," he offered. "I really enjoyed it and how they [the coaching staff] acted. It doesn't matter to me [about taking other visits] because when I feel like this is where I want to be you don't change my mind on it."

His mother accompanied him on the trip.

Dixon grew up in Chicago but moved to Atlanta when he was eight. His family returned to The Windy City a year ago.

We asked why he ended up playing basketball, instead of football or another sport -- he responded, "When I was young, I was surrounded by a lot things related to basketball I decided that's what I wanted to do and I dedicated myself to it." Dixon also added this amusing anecdote: "I was tall even when I was born, I was told my feet were hanging out of the incubator."

Dixon described his best basketball assets as his athleticism, his versatility in being able to guard outside and also play in the paint, having a nice jumper and great hops and also leadership. Dixon realizes he's coming in as a freshman but noted, " when my time comes I'll be able to lead."

He's looking to major in business management/administration -- getting that interest from his mother and her work. As for academics, he said, "My mom always told me I'm a student-athlete and student comes first." Dixon actually removed himself from the AAU basketball circuit at one point because he felt his grades were suffering from playing too often.

He recognizes that he's grown both as a player and a person since his initial high school year. "I was wild as a freshman, sort of big-headed. It was my first year in high school and there are parties and all this freedom but I've matured. Now I surround myself with people who are goal-oriented."

Dixon had a very intriguing and insightful answer when we inquired about his best basketball moment. He said, "This year because all the seniors [on the team] have the capability of going to college. I didn't want to be the only one but now everyone is getting recruited, even those graduating next year, so we will all be going to college."

Classy people and outcomes wished for -- they go hand in hand.

Welcome aboard Anthony Dixon.

Meet Joe Henson

(Joe Henson is in the red uniform)

He's no ordinary Joe.

Woodrow Wilson, the 28th President of the United States, counseled that "all things come to him who wait." On the other hand, humorist Will Rogers offered a different take with "even if you are on the right track, you will get run over if you just sit there."

These sayings, however contradictory, provide advice applicable to college basketball recruiting as ultimately a high schooler or junior college player must make his or her decision. Some linger until the late signing period, deciding after all possible offers have been extended. Others in this most personal of determinations commit during the early timeframe. Count Pasadena High's Joe Henson in the latter category.

The 6-foot-8 Henson has cast his college lot with San Jose State of the Western Athletic Conference (WAC). Here's the why of his decision: "I want to major in business and they have a great business program. The basketball program is getting stronger. Both will serve me well," he said.

He visited the San Jose campus on homecoming weekend -- October 10th and 11th. Henson witnessed the Spartan football team romp 30-7 over Utah State besides exploring the school's academics and meeting his now-to-be teammates.

On the upswing, San Jose State is picked to finish fourth in the WAC this season. Regarding the current SJSU roster, the 'bigs' are 6-foot-9 C.J. Webster and 6-foot-10 Chris Oakes -- both are starters and will be seniors once Henson arrives next year. 6-foot-9 Oliver Caballero will be a junior with 6-foot-10 Clint Amberry (Los Alamitos High) a sophomore. The opportunity for major playing time may not be immediate but certainly available for the taking by Henson's second season.

Tim Tucker, Henson's coach at Pasadena High, is an alumni of the school having graduated in the late 70's. He sings the praises of his senior: "Joe is a high major player and a great steal for San Jose State. He has soft hands, good moves in the post but also has a 10-15-foot jumper away from the hoop. Plus, he's a great shotblocker."

Now coaches generally offer sweet talk about their players but Tucker has the bonafides to back up his evaluation. He's been at Pasadena going on 15 years and sent eight players on to the D-1 level, the latest being Keion Bell who signed with Pepperdine last year. Tucker played college ball at Wyoming before transferring to Westmont (Santa Barbara) his final two years. He has also coached in the junior college ranks and at Cal State San Bernardino.

Henson suffered a hip injury between his sophomore and junior seasons and underwent surgery. Being away from the 'circuit' for any period of time can often cause a player to disappear from the consciousness of recruiters. To some degree, that was the case with Henson.

Here's Tucker again: "Joe's hip surgery caused a lot of people to drop on him. But lately PAC-10 schools have been calling, wanting to get all over him."

However, these schools wanted to wait on offers until the April 2009 signing period and that wasn't part of the Henson plan.

Henson offered this on his temporary setback: "I felt some irritation [in the hip] but kept playing on it. Then I got hit there in a summer league game and that stopped me. It [the injury] shook me up a bit" as any injury of that magnitude would.

He went through a five month rehabilitation and recovery period but many months have passed and he's now as good as new. Henson said, "The coaching staff at San Jose State stuck with me the whole time" which is another reason he returned the loyalty.

Writer and commentator Ben Stein is credited with saying "The indispensable first step to getting the things you want out of life is this: decide what you want."

Joe Henson has decided to be a Spartan.

Spartans face South Dakota State on Friday

When Bob Dylan sang "you don't need a weatherman to know which way the wind blows..." he didn't have atmospherics in South Dakota specifically in mind but he could have. Of course, there are times in the Mount Rushmore state that wind direction simply doesn't matter because there are more pressing concerns

Like last week:

SIOUX FALLS, South Dakota (AP) -- A wintry storm dropped close to four feet of snow in places on the Northern Plains Thursday, stranding unknown numbers of motorists for a day or more and knocking out power to thousands. State officials said some people could be without power for days, but they had a simple message for anyone thinking of trying to drive in western South Dakota's blizzard: Don't. "This is a dangerous storm," Gov. Mike Rounds told reporters in a telephone conference call Thursday evening. "Western South Dakota is basically under a no-travel advisory."

Well, it's currently 25 degrees this morning in Brookings, South Dakota, home of the South Dakota State Jackrabbits.

A big 'so what?' may just now be forming in your mind so here's why we're delivering a weather report on the Upper Midwest. San Jose State plays South Dakota State this coming Friday and we are hoping he recent weather there doesn't repeat itself anytime soon.

Luckily, the forecast for Friday, November 14 in Brookings is mostly cloudy with just a 20 percent chance of light snow.

As strange as this sounds, San Jose State men's basketball will take it. Let's just hope such temperatures don't lead to cold shooting for the Spartans.

COACHING BACKGROUND

South Dakota State is coached by Scott Nagy, now entering his 13th season as head coach there. In his 12 years, Nagy has compiled a 235-121 record at the Division I and Division II levels and led his squad to North Central Conference championships in 1996, 1997, 1998 and 2002. He has been honored as the North Central Conference Coach of the Year five times -- 1996, 1997, 1998, 2002 and 2003.

HISTORY

These two teams met on December 30 last season at Walt McPherson Court with the Spartans finally coming away with a 77-71 victory. A Tim Pierce three truly at the buzzer knotted the score and San Jose State then pulled away in overtime. South Dakota State had led 57-40 with 9:03 remaining in the second half before San Jose State mounted its comeback.

The Jackrabbits committed 22 turnovers but maintained parity on the glass as each squad grabbed 38 rebounds.

Each member of SJSU's starting five scored in double figures led by DaShawn Wright's 17 points. Justin Graham followed with 16. Forward Kai Williams led South Dakota State in both scoring and rebounding with 18 points and seven boards.

ROSTER

Here are the Jackrabbit players:

Michael Palarca G 5-10 179 So. Santa Clarita, Calif.
Mackenzie Casey G 6-0 176 Sr. Wounded Knee, S.D.
Troy Wipf G 6-0 180 Sr. Yale, S.D.
Dale Moss G 6-4 197 So. Brandon, S.D.
Clint Sargent G 6-4 212 So. S. Sioux City, Neb.
Garrett Callahan G 6-1 180 Jr. Seneca, Ill.
Payton Tivis G 6-2 185 So. Bowman, N.D.
Kai Williams F 6-6 207 Jr. Regina, Sask.
Josh Cassaday F 6-6 225 RFr. Aurora, Colo.
Griffan CallahanG 6-4 200 Fr. Seneca, Ill.
Brandon DeBoer F 6-6 215 Jr. Huron, S.D.
Anthony Cordova F 6-7 245 So. Sioux Falls, S.D.
Dwight Pederson F 6-8 205 So. Volga, S.D.
Mark Engen C 6-10 217 Jr. Lamberton, Minn.
James Rader G/F 6-7 220 Fr. Littleton, Colo.
Anthony Davis F 6-10 240 Jr. Clarinda, Iowa

Team leader Kai Williams is back along with much more size inside than last season:

Williams played for the Canadian National team this summer after averaging 14 points per game and 7.8 rebounds on the season for the Jackrabbits. He's quite the athlete with his jumping ability and quickness. Newcomer Anthony Davis, a 6-10 240 transfer from the tough Iowa junior college ranks a la DeShawn Wright, scored 14.1 points a game and hauled in 6.1 rebounds so look for him to be in the middle. Junior Garrett Callaghan runs the offense and scored 15 points last season against San Jose State. Guard Clint Sargent provided 10 points and forward Anthony Cordova contributed 7 rebounds against the Spartans. Luckily, center Ben Beran has graduated and is now playing basketball in Germany. He was able to play but 13 minutes against San Jose State last season due to injuries but he compiled seven points, three boards and three assists in that short time.

As even more incentive for the Jackrabbits this year, South Dakota State is now a full-fledged member of the Summit Conference and thus eligible for D-1 post-season play. The Summit Conference consists of Centenary, IPFW, IMPUI, North Dakota State, Oakland, Oral Roberts, Southern Utah, UMKC and Western Illinois.

SO FAR THIS SEASON

The Jackrabbits fell to Southwest Minnesota State 70-65 in an exhibition game on November 3. Garrett Callahan led all players with 20 points in the loss and Kai Williams added 11 points and pitched in with a team-high eight rebounds. In what could prove to be an interesting stat for Friday's contest, South Dakota State was out-boarded 45-38. However, just eight players suited up for the Jackrabbits due to injuries so that needs to be factored into anyone's thinking. Big man Anthony Davis was among those sitting out as South Dakota State went with a two forward/three guard lineup.

An interview with Lily Pham

We have a special treat for you today -- an interview with Lily Pham, a team manager on the Spartan men's basketball team.

Here's some background: I was born and raised here in San Jose. I graduated from Silver Creek High School in 2003, ran track all four years and was the team manager for the football, wrestling, track and cross country teams. I was also Head of the Athletics Commission during my junior and senior year of high school.
I'll be graduating from SJSU with Bachelor's Degree in Kinesiology, with an emphasis in Sports Management this December 2008. This is my second year as a team manager for the SJSU Men's Basketball team.

Q - Why did you choose SJSU for college?

LP - I was accepted into Chico State, Fresno State, SJSU, and a few other schools in California. SJSU was one of the few schools that had a sports management program.

Q - What's behind your choice of majors?

LP - I have a Sports Medicine background (about 8 years of student internship work). However, I knew that it wasn't going to be a career for me. I always took on a dual role as athlete and team manager since I've participated in sports, so it was natural to pursue my degree in Sports Management.

Q - What do you see yourself doing/where do you think you'll be in 8-10 years?

LP - Happily married and having a successful career in either athletic administration or working for a professional sports team.

Q - Why did you decide to become a team manager for the men's basketball squad?

LP - I needed an internship to fulfill my emphasis requirements and found the job through a flier posted by Coach Marrion.

Q - What are the primary duties of a team manager?

LP - There's actually a total of five team managers this year, with a possibility of a sixth. The task of a team manager is essentially being an assistant to the coaches. Our job duties range from filming practices, working the scoreboard, and whatever else the coaches need us to do. My role consists of all this plus office work and writing the managers schedule.

Q ­ - What's it like working for the Men's Basketball team?

LP - I have to look up at everyone because they're so tall! It's a lot of fun and I love working for the team. Sitting behind the coaches and players and being able to travel on road games is quite an experience that I will never forget. The camaraderie between the guys is something I've never quite seen before and I feel so lucky to be working with them.

Q - What is something very few people know about you?

LP - I actually used to hate basketball, but have grown to love and appreciate the sport.

Q ­ - Any closing words?

LP - I look forward to a very successful season!!!

(Lily) Hue Pham
Kinesiology Major w/emphasis in Sports Management
Business Minor
San Jose State University

Spartans win easily

It came as no surprise. San Jose State almost reached the century mark in points scored as the Spartans won going away 95-50 in an exhibition game tonight against the Menlo College Oaks. Menlo was minus three starters and size-challenged even if the trio had been available.

So what can be taken from tonight? Maybe the best item is that there were no apparent injuries. Too many SJSU turnovers occurred but it was the first game of the season and such certainly was a factor.

DeVonte Thomas led the way with a double-double of 17 points and 11 boards in 27 minutes. C.J. Webster joined him with 13 and 10 respectively and Justin Graham made it a threesome with 10 points and an equal number of assists. Graham also garnered 7 rebounds and led the way with three blocked shots. Mac Peterson contributed six assists with zero turnovers.

The Spartans led 48-27 at the half. Three Tim Pierce treys aided the cause as did a very active Thomas. SJSU led 18-12 with 10:58 remaining and then went on a points run in the remainder of the first half to put the game on ice.

Coach George Nessman sent out this starting five: C.J. Webster, Chris Oakes, Tim Pierce, DaShawn Wright and Justin Graham.

Next Friday, the Spartans begin a road trip at South Dakota State in Brookings followed two days later in Lincoln with a matchup against Nebraska.

*** Ollie Caballero remains sidelined with back woes -- his return date is unknown.

*** The matchups in the Shamrock Office Solutions Classic tourney hosted by St. Mary's on December 27 and 28 have become available. San Jose State will face powerful St. Mary's at 7:30 on the 27th and either Morgan State or William Jessup at 5:00 on the 28th -- a hat tip to MartyS for sending this along. St. Mary's is ranked 19th in the nation per the Blue Ribbon Basketball Yearbook.

The Spartan Daily with a basketball season preview

The Spartan Daily recently ran a men's basketball preview.

(photo credit: Derek Sidjer, The Spartan Daily)

SJSU men's basketball has tournament hopes
Peter Hironaka
The Spartan Daily
11/5/08

The SJSU men's basketball team kicks off the 2008-2009 season this Thursday in an exhibition hosting Menlo College. Next week, the regular season starts at South Dakota State.

The team brings with it this year great expectations following the team's best season in seven years with a record of 13-19. Wins from the previous two seasons combined for 11.

The Spartans have teams around the Western Athletic Conference impressed, as they are picked to finish third in the coach's poll...

Go here for the remainder.

Spartan Rebounder information & benefits

With only days away from the beginning of the 2008-2009 season, we would like to send out a quick reminder about the Rebounders Club membership and the 3- Point/Dunk Pledge.

The Rebounders Club is the official booster club of the San Jose State Men’s Basketball program. As a member, you will help provide support to the student-athletes and the coaching staff. Your much-appreciated donation to Spartan Men’s Basketball will also allow you unique access to team functions, giving you an exclusive insider’s look into the program.

The Rebounders are also proud to present the 3 Point/Dunk Pledge in 2008-2009 as another exciting and fun way to become involved in Spartan Hoops. Fans agree to donate a certain amount of money for each San Jose State trey that goes up on the scoreboard and or each slam that adds two points in the Spartans' favor. At the end of the season, the total number of 3-pointers made as well as the slam-dunks will be calculated and those who have generously supported the Pledge will be notified of their total financial contribution.

A table will be set-up at each home game with running totals of both 3-point baskets in addition to slam-dunks. At that table and exclusively for Rebounder members, statistics will be available at half-time and during the post-game of each home contest. Plus, 2008-2009 schedule posters featuring Justin Graham & C.J. Webster will also be available at each home game.

Additional information on both the Rebounders Club & 3 Point/Dunk Pledge will be available at each home game or via Director of Basketball Operations, Tim Marrion, at (408) 924-1223 or tim.marrion@sjsu.edu.

We thank you for your generous support and as always, Go Spartans!

Menlo to challenge SJSU Thursday night

Menlo College comes to Walt McPherson Court Thursday at 7 p.m. for an exhibition game -- the opening contest for the 2008-2009 San Jose State Spartans.

The Oaks play in the California Pacific Conference and are an NAIA team located up the highway in Atherton. Brandon Laird is the head coach. A Sacramento native, he played college ball as a shooting guard at UC Davis from 1997 to 2001. After graduation, Laird assisted at Davis until 2003 when he moved down to Menlo College also as an assistant coach. He took over the head coaching spot for the Oaks in the summer of 2006.

Here's the returning players for Menlo -- a roster populated by a mix of high schoolers and junior college transfers:

Logan Shoffner -- W 6-0 FR Riordan High, San Francisco
Julian Harris -- W 5-10 SO American High, Fremont
Jason Logan -- W 6-0 JR Mesa Verde High, Sacramento
Chris Cobb -- PG 5-8 SR Bishop O'Dowd High, Oakland
Josh Bory -- PG 6-0 FR Foothill High, Redding
Ryan Dung -- PG/W 6-1 FR Iolani High, Honolulu
Brandon Cochran -- P 6-7 SR Cuesta College, San Luis Obispo
Ari Goldman -- W 6-1 SO Monterey Peninsula College, Monterey
Kyle Adams -- P 6-3 SR College of the Desert, Palm Springs
Nick McCullar -- P 6-5 SO Lawndale High, Los Angeles
Tim Kees -- W 6-1 JR Bishop O'Dowd High, Oakland
Mike Stone -- W 6-3 FR Cypress High, Cypress
Saiyuan Bian -- W 6-2 FR Beijing, China
Andrew Young -- P 6-6 FR Jesuit High, Sacramento
Craig Haberlein -- W/P 6-4 JR Davis High, Davis

The Oaks will sorely miss two seniors who graduated in 6-3 Bryon Wesley and 6-0 point Cody Christensen. Wesley was the conference Defensive Player of the Year besides averaging a team-leading 12.8 ppg. and 6.5 rpg. which was also tops. Christensen averaged 8.2 ppg. while shooting .447% on a team-topping 141 three-point attempts.

Brandon Cochran was also integral to the squad's success (Menlo finished with an 18-10 record including a nine-game winning streak) with his 9.8 ppg. and 6.4 rpg. The 6-7 senior will lead the Oaks' frontcourt in 2008-2009.

Diminutive senior point Chris Cobb is but 5-8 but ranked ninth in the league in assists last season with 2.4 a contest. Cobb played just over 32 minutes a game last year and here is how Laird describes him: "Cobb is a fearless leader, a great competitor and great on-ball defender who leads our team with his heart and soul."

Cobb's lack of height will pose problems for him defensively but could be a concern for SJSU when the ball is in his hands as it's hard for defenders to get down that low.

The Oaks did lose 66-44 to Cal Poly on the road last season -- the sole D-1 team Menlo played -- but also made it to the NAIA national tournament.

Menlo may be a small school but consider this:

*** Jeff Van Gundy, most recently in the NBA as the head coach for the Houston Rockets, played for the Oaks in 1981-1982.

*** Current UC Santa Barbara Coach Bob Williams coached men's basketball for Menlo from 1983-1988

*** Bud Presley, a Bay Area basketball icon, ran the program from 1971 to 1983.

*** San Josean Nate Jackson played football at Menlo and is now a tight end for the Denver Broncos.

You say to-may-to, we say to-mah-to

There are apples and oranges debates. But even an apple to apple comparison is not necessarily a kosher one. Here's what we mean and how this applies to WAC basketball.

Where did we get the idea for the following? A message board post on the Silver and Blue Nevada sports fan site did the trick. It's a long string with predictions about how the Wolf Pack will do overall this season, with some concerns and opinions interspersed about certain teams and players. The specific post that captured our attention included these numbers and comparison about San Jose State guard Justin Graham and Nevada backcourter Armon Johnson:

Justin Graham
SEASON MIN PTS REB AST TO A/T STL BLK PF FG% FT% 3P% PPS
2007- 08 32.0 10.7 2.4 2.9 4.5 .65 1.5 .4 2.1 .462 .721 .429 1.41

Armon Johnson
SEASON MIN PTS REB AST TO A/T STL BLK PF FG% FT% 3P% PPS
2007- 08 31.2 11.5 4.0 3.4 2.4 1.42 .8 .2 2.1 .482 .776 346 1.36

We're going to be a bit all over the map here with our ramblings here but bear with us.

First off, there's simply no congruent way of comparing these two players (or any players) unless an individual was also able to witness Graham and Johnson in the majority of games each played last season. Only their respective coaching staffs can claim such a viewing and even then the experience is too team/player centric to be valid -- how many games did Mark Fox and his staff view Graham and George Nessman and staff see Johnson?

Matching numbers head-to-head is an oft-used but also an oft-invalid comparison. Granted, if Johnson had scored 20 points a game and Graham but seven then there would be a much greater validity to strictly focusing on their numbers. But the season stats for the pair are fairly close, with an overall lead to Johnson.

But keep in mind that Graham missed five league games (two Fresno State games, one each against Idaho, New Mexico State and Bakersfield) due to shoulder and wrist injuries suffered in a road game in Hawaii on January 14. He never fully recovered even though he returned to action on February 7, thus skewing his seasonal numbers to an inmeasurable degree.

Plus, do remember that Johnson enjoyed played alongside much more talented teammates:

*** Marcelus Kemp - a 20 points per game scorer who earned first-team all-WAC status in 2007-2008

*** JaVale McGee - a 14.1 points a contest scorer who nabbed 7.3 rebounds each time out as well as being a second-team all-WAC pick in 2007-2008

*** Brandon Fields - a 12.4 points a game scorer who was the co-defensive player of the season for the Wolf Pack

*** Lyndale Burleson - a member of the all -WAC defensive team in 2007-2008

Of course, this talent surrounding Johnson was the proverbial sword that cut both ways. It took some degree of pressure and defensive focus off him but his points per game scoring average in 2007-2008 was also lower as a result of his talented teammates (although his assists per contest numbers were probably higher because of this factor). Johnson will certainly score more points in 2008-2009 and possibly maintain his assists totals but such will not necessarily be the appropriate measurement tools from which to make any judgment.

Graham was a redshirt freshman in 2007-2008 playing alongside a bevy of other newcomers, none on the level of Kemp or McGee. Graham was also in the position of having to generate offensive opportunities while being the sole creator on the Spartan team, thus resulting at least to a degree in a higher number of turnovers.

It's our expectation that Graham will enjoy a better season in 2008-2009 than his initial one even though his scoring average may drop and possibly even his assists per game numbers will do likewise.

You might be saying 'huh?" right about now.

The sentiment in the above paragraph is based upon the addition of Spartan newcomer Adrian Oliver. He should end up this coming season as the top shot taker and points producer on the team and will certainly be near the top in assists. But it's not that Oliver will reduce Graham's effectiveness. On the contrary, Oliver's creative ability will ease the burden that Graham carried solely last go-around.

As an aside, those who don't watch WAC basketball but still offer previews and predictions based solely on season numbers may very well have Graham as not performing as well as a sophomore as he did as a freshman come their 2009-2010 analysis. But this will be an invalid evaluation. What to watch for will be Graham's proficiency this season. The same goes for Johnson.

But it is interesting that the WAC coaches just selected Johnson as the expected Player of the Year. That undeniably says something. Teammates Brandon Fields and Luke Babbitt landed spots on the Second Team.

Graham didn't appear on either the coaches or media all-WAC squads, with teammate C.J. Webster receiving a first team nod.

So there you have it -- numbers do mean something but which numbers and just what?.

Maybe Ken Pomeroy can utilize some of his intricate mathematical formulas and determine why player A is 'better' than player B.

Or does it sometimes boil down to who has a better overall season and not necessarily is tops in individual numbers?

Oh boy, that's a whole 'nother argument.

SJSU versus Sac State in scrimmage today

San Jose State goes up against Sacramento State today in a scrimmage on Walt McPherson Court. Per NCAA rules, it is closed to both the public and the media so we'll have no report.

Former longtime Delta Junior College coach Brian Katz is the new head man at Sac State which plays in the Big Sky Conference. Look for him to have the Hornets competitive in conference play but he'll need a couple of years of his own recruits in order to do so.

As for scrimmages versus exhibitions, here's Nevada's Mark Fox: "First of all you get to play a Division I team. The thing that we have always appreciated about a scrimmage is that you are playing against a little better competition than if you were to play an exhibition. Another good thing is that we can stop and coach a little more than if we were playing an exhibition. If we need to take a little longer timeout, we can do that. If we need a little more time to get a specific point across, we can do that. If we need a little more time to work on a certain situation, we can do that. We can create situations that we have to play against later, and you can’t do that in an exhibition. So, I think there are lots of benefits."