This week, FanHouse is taking a look at the top teams heading into 2008 with a BlogPoll decided on by our college hoops bloggers. To help with the team capsules, we've brought in some of the top fan bloggers around the internets to give us insights on their teams.Another school that did nothing to remove their reputation as a football school, no Oklahoma blogger contacted, even responded to our inquiries about the 2008-09 Sooner basketball team. So be it, that means the preview will be from a less interested party.
The biggest shock after the 2007-08 season ended was that freshman forward Blake Griffin was not even considering the NBA. This despite, everyone projecting him as a lottery pick. That decision immediately put the Sooners into every preseason top-25.
Oklahoma also pulled in an excellent recruiting class, and Coach Jeff Capel's name started popping up on the wish list for the annual coaching carousel. So, it was no surprise that Oklahoma moved quickly to give Capel another raise and extension after only two seasons in Norman.
The excitement over Oklahoma basketball is as high as it has been since before Kelvin Sampson's phone calls came under scrutiny. This team is expected to challenge Texas for the Big 12 title and have a good run in March.
Why they should be ranked here:
From a team that won 23 games last year, their only significant losses were center Longar Longar and guard David Godbold. The talent taking their place, though, is impressive. Willie Warren was a McDonald All-American and one of the top recruits will be playing point guard. He provides a great outside threat and someone who will be able to get the ball inside to Blake Griffin.
While no one player is taking over for Longar, they have a JUCO transfer in Orlando Allen, and several JUCO forwards to help make up for Longar's minutes and numbers. In addition they have added another forward in UCLA transfer Ryan Wright. Oklahoma may have one of the deepest frontcourts in the country.
Why they should be ranked higher:
It starts again with everyone's 1st team All-American, Blake Griffin. He's had a year to work on improving his defense and just as scary -- get stronger. This year, the Sooners also have depth. Something that was lacking the last couple years as the program was getting past the sanctions of the Kelvin Sampson era.
Even with all the new players, chemistry shouldn't be as much of a problem. Jeff Capel has shown that he can integrate new players quickly. Plus, this team has a strong number of upperclassmen including Taylor Griffin, Blake's older brother.
Why they should be ranked lower:
How are Blake Griffin's knees? They ached a lot last year and he had to miss a few games because of injuries. Despite the improved depth on the squad, the frontcourt still needs one of the many new players to step up to help keep the double teams off of Griffin. Longar provided that threat to keep defenses honest. Will any of the other forwards and centers be able to do the same?
In the backcourt, the depth at guard doesn't seem quite there. After Tony Crocker, Austin Johnson and Willie Warren, there are some real question marks. Either Cade Davis, Omar Leary or freshman Ray Willis will have to show that they can provide some additional threat on the perimeter.
