Joey on Toby Veal after his first pickup game:

[districtballer]

So our guys had their first pickup games with everyone here and this is what Joey had to say about Toby (via twitter):

Jus so yal ram fans know.. Toby Veal is like Dennis Rodman crashing the boards.. This kids a beast!! Dead ass.. I feel bad for yal caa tms

With Larry gone, rebounding is exactly what we need. The scoring will come from a number of players and can be easily replaced. Rebounding is something we need with such a young front court. If Toby can average 7-8 boards a game, that will go a long way towards ensuring we can be successful as a team next season.

 

[rammad90]

Agreed. Its been a while since weve had a big who would get the loose ball rebounds. LS1 rebounded well but a lot of his were gimmes. Jesse was pretty good but at 6'4" not necessarily a beast. Veal at 6'7" and that body would be a welcomed addition.

 

[BaNgMyPrOgRaM]

Joey is very astute. I trust his opinions.

 

[Mistachill]

Just keep in mind, unless he's matched up with Skeen he's going up against freshmen front court players a month removed from high school.

 

[RamboRowdy]

This might just be the most dangerous fast break team we've seen in awhile if things come together. There should be lots of chances for fast break points if the rebounding is as good as its looking to be right now. Some fast break chances were loss due to rebounding last year. You can't move the ball up the court if you don't have the ball. Plus having a great rebounding team is essential in the CAA. Rebounding definitely hurt VCU in some games, especially some important games. VCU hasn't had a great rebounding team in awhile. Hopefully with all these big guys coming in plus Skeen that will be fixed. That would be sweet.

 

[L72boy]

Just keep in mind, unless he's matched up with Skeen he's going up against freshmen front court players a month removed from high school.

Michael Beasley led the country in rebounding his freshman year at Kansas St. - 12.4 rebounds per game.
And your point? Rebounding is a skill most bigs have to learn, its not a given because your big.

 

[ramathon74]

When did Joey play with Rodman?

 

[L72boy]

When did Joey play with Rodman?

That's a good one...made me laugh out loud.

 

[Wolfpack Ram]

Just keep in mind, unless he's matched up with Skeen he's going up against freshmen front court players a month removed from high school.

I was at the pickup games and Toby was matched up with Skeen. He is definitely aggressive on the boards. He's not afraid of anyone on the floor and shows it. He also likes to get the ball down low on offense and had a couple of nice moves to the basket against Skeen. Reddic also looks strong down low and McCarter is skinny, but very athletic. Regarding Haley, he has put on weight and also is going to be a huge help in the paint. We now have a front court that can bang with anyone in the CAA.

Regarding returning players, Nixon has added close to 10 pounds and it's all muscle. Daniels and Rozzell were hitting the threes and Theus is a solid backup at point guard. Don't be surprised to see both Theus and Joey on the court at the same time again this year.

Everyone played except for Houston. In addition to the current team, BA Walker, Jamal Shuler and TJ Gwynn also played. BA looks as solid as ever.

 

[Mistachill]

Actually not understanding your point.

My point was Veal is an experienced front court player who may be playing against front court players who just arrived from high school. Just suggesting that we keep that in mind when hearing reports about him being a beast in a pick up game. Not saying he wouldn't be a beast playing against experienced D-1 players too, just saying...

Now help me understand the point you were making.

Just keep in mind, unless he's matched up with Skeen he's going up against freshmen front court players a month removed from high school.

Michael Beasley led the country in rebounding his freshman year at Kansas St. - 12.4 rebounds per game.
And your point? Rebounding is a skill most bigs have to learn, its not a given because your big.

 

[Mistachill]

Wolf, I know its way too early to say, but based on what you saw who would be a red-shirt candidate? I'm assuming since you didn't mention Brandenberg he didn't stand out?

Just keep in mind, unless he's matched up with Skeen he's going up against freshmen front court players a month removed from high school.

I was at the pickup games and Toby was matched up with Skeen. He is definitely aggressive on the boards. He's not afraid of anyone on the floor and shows it. He also likes to get the ball down low on offense and had a couple of nice moves to the basket against Skeen. Reddic also looks strong down low and McCarter is skinny, but very athletic. Regarding Haley, he has put on weight and also is going to be a huge help in the paint. We now have a front court that can bang with anyone in the CAA.

Regarding returning players, Nixon has added close to 10 pounds and it's all muscle. Daniels and Rozzell were hitting the threes and Theus is a solid backup at point guard. Don't be surprised to see both Theus and Joey on the court at the same time again this year.

Everyone played except for Houston. In addition to the current team, BA Walker, Jamal Shuler and TJ Gwynn also played. BA looks as solid as ever.

 

[Wolfpack Ram]

Yes, it's way too early, but if I had to pick one player, it would be Brandenberg. With Joey and Theus at the point and Rozzell, Nixon and Daniels at the two, I just don't see Brandenberg in the mix right now. He definitely was somewhat lost in the mix yesterday compared to the other freshmen.

McCarter could stand to redshirt and have the opportunity to put on some weight, but I think he's too athletic for that to happen. He's skinny, but has a ton of game and will be hard to keep off of the court. The other unknown is Heath Houston. He is 6'8" and can help in the front court. I think Burgess is going to be pushed this year by the newcomers. This team is young and very talented.

 

[L72boy]

Actually not understanding your point.

My point was Veal is an experienced front court player who may be playing against front court players who just arrived from high school. Just suggesting that we keep that in mind when hearing reports about him being a beast in a pick up game. Not saying he wouldn't be a beast playing against experienced D-1 players too, just saying...

Now help me understand the point you were making.

Just keep in mind, unless he's matched up with Skeen he's going up against freshmen front court players a month removed from high school.

Michael Beasley led the country in rebounding his freshman year at Kansas St. - 12.4 rebounds per game.
And your point? Rebounding is a skill most bigs have to learn, its not a given because your big.

It doesn't matter if you are a freshman, just out of high school, a junior college transfer, if you can rebound you can rebound, no matter the competition. Beasley was just out of high school when he led the country in rebounding. Why is that so hard for you to understand?

 

[buckwheat]

I think Burgess is going to be pushed this year by the newcomers. This team is young and very talented.

i love hearing this. in my opinion, if there's one guy on this team who needs to be pushed, it's burgess. nixon and roz have always pushed each other, but it doesn't seem like there's really been anyone there breathing down brad's neck the last two seasons. watching him last year, i think it caused him to become somewhat complacent. i'm not by any means saying that burgess didn't give full effort. he absolutely did. but, he just didn't seem to always attack and demand the ball the way many of us thought he should.

i'm telling ya, get that kid angry. have these young guys come at him hard in a way (it seems) nobody did last year. make him realize that nothing is guaranteed. he'll be much better for it.

 

[buckwheat]

It doesn't matter if you are a freshman, just out of high school, a junior college transfer, if you can rebound you can rebound, no matter the competition. Beasley was just out of high school when he led the country in rebounding. Why is that so hard for you to understand?

that's simply not true. much of rebounding is due to strength and positioning. those things come over time. if you think that any freshman is going to come into the CAA and become a rebounding champ, think again. beasley (and even sanders) are exceptions to the rule. larry's arms were so long that he didn't need any extra strength or positioning.

as a tall skinny guy who was many times outmuscled by stronger players, take it from me, rebounders aren't always just born that way. being tall helps, but there's development involved as well.