Vonwolf: I Would Like to Apologize to Seabron

It takes a big man to admit his mistakes, and I am that big man.

When Wolferetti and I had a preseason debate about this State men’s basketball team, we discussed “whom on this team will struggle this year?” Here was my answer;

Seabron: I don’t think he’ll play bad this year, but there are going to be too many “fine” games from a guy we need big minutes from. His rebounding vastly improved as the season went on, and without Fundy, he’ll be leaned on even more. But if he ends up floating around 7 pts | 7 boards a game, it’s just not going to cut it. Especially with more guys on this roster that fit into the “athletic length” category, need for him to be a solid player.

Just to be clear, I didn’t think he was going to be a dud…Just was worried that we wouldn’t get the needed production from him. Little did I know, Manny and Gantt would be donzo for the year, in addition to my mention of losing Fundy. We needed Seabron more than ever…

And thus, I was very wrong.

Double-Double Machine

If the season were to stop right now (I really shouldn’t be saying this out loud…because with everything going on in sports, wouldn’t totally put March Madness cancellation out of the realm of possibility), Seabron would be in the top-3 for ACC Player of the Year. That’s how good he’s been.

To put everything into some perspective about how hot his start has been, let’s look at TJ Warren’s ACC POY campaign. I’ll preface by saying, Seabron still has a lot of season to go. Let’s revisit quick when in the heart of ACC. But until then…

Warren: 24.9 pts | 7.1 rebs | 1.1 ast | 1.8 stl | 2.4 turnovers
Seabron: 19.8 pts | 10.7 rebs | 2.8ast | 2 stl | 2.5 turnovers

Warren: 6 double-doubles in 35 games (17%)
Seabron: 7 double-doubles in 11 games (64%)

Warren: Season High 42 points | 13 rebs versus Boston College
Seabron: Season High 39 points | 18 rebs versus Nebraska (granted, multiple OTs)

That’s pretty impressive, no? Even if Seabron only gets 5 more double-doubles in the next two dozen games, he’ll actually double up TJ’s total for his POY campaign. Neither had outstanding supporting casts. They had/have talent around them, but also plenty of youth and inexperience.

Warren took over games a bit more than Seabron. Furthermore, he willed this team to wins in the regular season, ACC Tourney and NCAAT. There have been multiple halves this year, where Seabron is non-existent. Could that be coaching? Sure. Does Seabron also just kind of get in a groove and goes? Yeah. But wins will be the truest mark of success.

The Future

Seabron’s future is bright, no doubt about it. He’ll need to improve his jumper a bit, while still staying hungry to get to the basket. Wouldn’t hurt to get teammate consistency out of Hellems, Hayes and Smith on a nightly basis too.

Would love to see him with an inside big man. Whether Bates or Phillips in the future (we’ll see if he follows Warren and goes pro), would allow for more space and less reliance…on…well…on himself.

Regardless, I was wrong about Seabron. I apologize. Keep killin’ it.