With the 2015-16 just about to kick off, NC State still has a lot of unanswered questions. The questions aren’t necessarily about the talent, this team is stacked with raw talent. The questions are about roles. Some players are taking on new roles, others are growing into larger versions of the roles they had last year.
Two players that we’re going to be keeping a close eye on in the opener are Cody and Caleb Martin. The twins were always looked at as prototypical Gottfried guys. They’re big, athletic, have great motors and can play multiple positions. Last year however, both had trouble finding their long term niche. They earned their minutes by hustling, staying in the passing lanes and getting tons of deflections on defense, but they both had trouble finding a true position.
Their main problem was their offensive consistency. They both showed glimpses at times, but like any freshman they could be unreliable shooting from 3 or finishing through contact. This year, that should change.
A year in the ACC has the Martin’s ready. Caleb is looking at a starting role and will be relied upon for his ability to attack the rim off the bounce as well as becoming more accurate from the perimeter. Cody is more of an interesting case. With the Pack’s talented but thin front court, he’ll be asked to fill in at the 4 at times. Cody will also be asked to fill in, at times, for Cat Barber at the point. On paper this may not make sense, but it’s a Gottfried experiment that could very way pay dividends.
One of NC State’s biggest questions is ‘Who steps in for Barber when he’s gassed, in foul trouble, or (God forbid) injured?’ A year ago, the answer of Cody Martin may haven’t made much sense. But with his size, speed, handles, and an offseason of training, it might just be genius. Cody has already shown that he can guard other point guards on defense, so if he can take care of the basketball, he could create massive mismatches and carve out quite an unsuspecting role for himself.
This confirms everything I’d been hearing about the return of Burns. Burns was the key to the Wolfpack offense running effectively this past year. He averaged 12.5 points and 4.8 rebounds per game in 2022-23, but he elevated his game in ACC play, averaging 16.1 points and 5.6 rebounds in conference games.
Burns is celebrating his return to run with the Wolfpack by dropping his own Big 30 merch. Go over and snag something.
Miranda (7’1″/225) joined the Wolfpack back in December, deciding to forgo the remainder of his prep season. Miranda didn’t see the court for NC State, resulting in a redshirt season.
ON3 ranked Miranda as the #16 overall player in the 2023 recruiting class.
It makes perfect sense for a player like Miranda, with his height and athleticism, to go through the draft process to be evaluated on what he needs to continue to work on. As an early entrant, Miranda has the ability to pull his name out of the draft and remain a collegiate athlete.
I don’t expect Miranda to keep his name in the hat when the time comes. From what I hear his game has tons of potential, but he still needs to fine tune his craft. Also, Miranda shared this on social media, implying he will be back in the Red and White next year.
NC State picked up their 5th transfer today. Mohamed Diarra (6’10″/215) committed to run with the Wolfpack today while in Raleigh on an Official Visit.
Diarra originally spent his first two seasons at Garden City Community College, averaging 17.8 points and 12.6 rebounds per game in his second season. He landed at Missouri last year, after being rated as the #1 JUCO prospect in the 2022 class according to JucoRecruiting.com.
In his only season at Missouri, Diarra averaged 11.7 minutes per game in 25 games played (6 starts), averaging 3.3 points and 3.2 rebounds. Because of the extra year due to Covid, Diarra has 2 years of eligibility remaining.
With news breaking today that Dusan Mahorcic entered the Transfer Portal, the Wolfpack found his replacement. NC State’s frontcourt in 2023-24 currently will be made up of D.J. Burns, Ben Middlebrooks, Mohamed Diarra and Ernest Ross.
Check out these highlights of Diarra.
🇫🇷 6-10 F Mohamed Diarra has committed to NC State
There is a lot to like in Diarra’s game. He is athletic, can hit a jump shot, put the ball on the floor, can play defense on the perimeter, block shots, and is an aggressive rebounder.
Missouri Transfer Mohamed Diarra (6’10″/215) is on an Official Visit to NC State today. Diarra originally spent his first two seasons at Garden City Community College, averaging 17.8 points and 12.6 rebounds per game in his second season. He landed at Missouri last year, after being rated as the #1 JUCO prospect in the 2022 class according to JucoRecruiting.com.
In his only season at Missouri, Diarra averaged 11.7 minutes per game in 25 games played (6 starts), averaging 3.3 points and 3.2 rebounds. Because of the extra year due to Covid, Diarra has 2 years of eligibility remaining.
Going to be a long long season. I knew this team would suck and it shows unless W&M is a top ten team, Not.