Charley Buggs and Wally Ellenson

The 2 fellows mentioned up above are the sum total of Tubby Smith's 2012 recruits to his (and our) Minnesota Gophers. There's been much gnashing of teeth regarding Tubby's recruiting. And, sure, he hasn't brought in the 5-star, blue chip type of recruit. But just how much gnashing should there be over the class of 2012?

Hell if I know.

But first, let's just review the roster that Buggs and Ellenson will be joining next year, 2012-2013.

Centers

Elliott Eliason 6-11 redshirt sophomore (next year). Doesn't look like a guy who will contribute right now but these big fellows are sometimes late bloomers.

Power Forwards

Mo Walker 6-10 (probably) redshirt sophomore as he is still recovering from knee surgery and may miss this year. God knows we'll need him more next year than we do this. He's listed as a forward but is surely the starting post-to-be if he gets healthy.

Oto Osenieks 6-8 redshirt soph. Slight of build yet not quick, but has a nice outside shot.

Andre Ingram 6-7 senior. Not likely to be a part of the rotation this year or next.

Chris Halvorsen 6-7 redshirt junior. Not likely to be part of the rotation.

Small Forwards

Rodney Williams 6-7 senior. Takes a lot of knocks for the lack of skills that seems to stand in the way of his great athleticism really paying off for the Gophers. But the fact is it's starting to pay off everywhere but in terms of scoring. A difference-maker for 2013, that's for sure.

Charles Buggs 6-8 freshman. This looks to be where Buggs slots in. He's described a 6-8, somewhere between 195 and 215, but slight of build, not strong, and graceful but not strong. Kinda like Rodney Williams, I guess.

Combo Guards

Andre 6-1 sophomore (next year) and 6-4 Austin (junior) Hollins. I have no idea if they're point guards or 2s.

Shooting Guards

Chip Armellin 6-3 junior. Occasional flashes of brilliance but not so much that Tubby leaves him in very long, even when he's hot.

Joe Coleman 6-4 sophomore. More of a short 3, as his scoring spots are mostly located inside he arc.

Wally Ellenson 6-4 freshman. Can hit the "j" including the 3, but also gets to the rim and dunks. Or so "they" say.

Point Guards

Julian Welch 6-3 senior.

Maverick Ahanmisi 6-2 junior.

Kendal Schell 6-foot sophomore.

So, Back to Buggs and Ellenson

They are the only 2 freshmen next year because there are only 2 seniors--Mbakwe and Sampson--this year. So of course they join a roster that is loaded with guys who've played, and most of whom will have played quite a bit. They also happen to be redundant: Buggs is a Rodney Williams type, while Ellenson is a Joe Coleman or a Chip Armellin type of player.

So not a lot is needed from them next year, unless of course they are 1st team all-Big 10 type of players. We need that. But they're not. Trust me.

Buggs, in fact, is not the player he's being said to be. It has been widely reported that he scored 18.9 ppg this past summer (versus 11.4 in his final year in high school). But his team's stats can be found on-line and if you add up his points, you get 106 in 12 games. 107/12 = 8.9. Not 18.9 but 8.9. Sorry.

And Ellenson? Right now, I have a hard time with Ellenson and Eliason. But, hey, I can handle Andre and Austin. So I can handle Ellenson and Eliason. Ellenson will be a player someday, Eliason not so much.

2013-2014

By 2014, I project the starting 5 to be Mo Walker in his junior year, Oto Osenieks in his junior year, Buggs as a sophomore or Joe Coleman in a short lineup as a junior, Andre and Austin at the guards.