The Mike Jones rebuild is in full swing. As he enters his third season as head coach, Jones has Radford poised to make some noise in the conference, which is nothing short of astounding given the program he inherited. The Highlanders now boast a roster that returns over 90 percent of its minutes from last season's respectable Big South squad.
Projected starting lineup
| Pos. | Name | Year |
|---|---|---|
The program's improvement has come almost entirely on the defensive end, where the philosophies Jones learned under Shaka Smart at VCU have served Radford well. The Highlanders look to keep opposing ball handlers under constant pressure, leading to steals or, alternately, very few open 3-pointers. The ability to limit open 3s is an extremely valuable commodity in college basketball, and Jones' men possess it.
The solid defense displayed by Radford last season was even more impressive considering the youth of the roster, as only one upperclassman played meaningful minutes. Logic follows that the Highlanders will again be very solid on the defensive end, but a move into the upper half of the conference will require some meaningful gains on offense.
The good news is there's plenty of low-hanging fruit to be had on that end. Radford was atrocious offensively last season, and it was almost entirely due to horrible shooting. In Big South play, the Highlanders finished dead last in both 2- and 3-point accuracy. It's not that the roster is bereft of offensive talent: Javonte Green is a dynamic scorer, and R.J. Price is a solid combo guard. Rather, the main issue last season was one of inexperience. By necessity, a lot of possessions were consumed by true freshmen, which is almost always going to lead to poor shot selection and very little accuracy.
The best thing about freshmen is that they become sophomores, and that investment should pay off handsomely for Radford this season. Look for the Highlanders to hang around in the North division race, with still bigger things to come in 2014-15.
Projected conference finish: 2nd, North division
