Hawk Weaknesses

With the season almost upon us many SJU fans are asking where are the Hawks weakest this season and where can we expect them to fall short. The team unfortunately lacks veteran leadership, perimeter shooting, and the ability to rebound.  

The most apparent area where St. Joe’s falls short is in veteran leadership. The team only has two returning starters for the season in Chris Wilson and DeAndre Bembry. As we all know the team thrived last season from the veteran leadership, it will be big shoes to fill with the team missing Langston, Halill, and Ron. The lack of veteran leadership might force Phil to be more vocal in the locker room. Last year not only the three captains, but all the seniors would speak their mind during half-time. DeAndre Bembry mention that Darius Quarles was vocal at half time during the University of Rhode Island game going into half-time behind. Chris Wilson is an ultimate team player and leads by example. While Chris is always doing the right thing, DeAndre is a player that will lead the team with scoring and performance. Like last year, captains are not the only ones that can make a difference. Look for Aaron Brown to be vocal player. He is another team player, which is evident by his patience after sitting out last year due to transferring and only playing a limited role at WVU. It is also likely that this team may take a few games to play together and run the court as a unit. However, the leadership on this team should bring the team together within a few games.   

Going off of that fact, there is another form of weakness that was created from losing Langston and that is in perimeter shooting. Langston provided the team with a great amount of confidence to shoot the ball from three when it was most needed. The perimeter shooting is going to have to come from Bembry, Wilson, and Miles. Bembry and Miles are the main perimeter possibilities. Wilson is not a consistent perimeter shooter, although he is successful when he is not under pressure. It is simply not likely that the team will be able to recreate last year’s perimeter shooting success. Langston Galloway is one of a kind and is even a better shooter than a majority of NBA players that play the shooting guard position. This upcoming season the Hawks will have to find new and different ways to score points to make up for the missing perimeter shooting. Another weakness the team will face is the fact that they have inexperience underneath the basket.

With the loss of both Halil and Ron, the ability to rebound may have gone out of Hawk Hill with them. This team is going to have real problems rebounding and creating points from underneath. Javon Bauman and Jai Williams will be big men that will have the responsibility of rebounding this upcoming year. This team is a very young and talented team, which has the potential to become outstanding in the near future.

-Brett and Glen 

Can Langston make it in the NBA?

                Can Langston Galloway make it in the NBA? This is the question that is on a lot of Saint Joseph’s  fans minds now the Lang has been signed by the New York Knicks. This has been a great summer for the former St. Joe’s seniors. Halil Kanacevic signed a contract overseas with Olimpija in Ljubljana, Slovenia. Ronald Roberts Jr. played extremely well with the Sixers to reportedly earn himself a contract. We talked about how Roberts is could living his dream here.  All of the 3 starting seniors from last years Atlantic 10 championship team played in the NBA Summer League. We discussed it here. Now all the attention is put on Langston Galloway, whether or not he is ready to take the next step and turn himself into a potential NBA player.  

  

                After graduating in May, Langston Galloway ended his career at SJU at the top in three impressive statistical categories. Galloway ended his career with 1,991 points as the second all-time leading scorer, past Pat Carroll to lead 334  three point field goals, and also holds the school record for starting in 132 games. Langston didn’t have the best NBA Summer League showing, which is why to many his signing is shocking. Lang averaged 5.8 points a game and 1.3 assists over 13.8 minutes. Langston through his college career showed flashes of brilliance and potential that could be turned into a role player in the NBA, however he also showed inexperience and struggles. Whether it was setting the 3-Point Record a St. Joe’s or missing the final shot that could’ve moved them to the next round of the tournament Langston played 100% and never let his emotions get the best of him. Langston Galloway is a guy that has a great amount of potential because of his pure shooting ability. During the summer league, he showed that he is a fighter and he gives his all out on the court no matter what. All St. Joe’s students know from watching him that he will never quit and now so do the Knicks fans.  A summer league game against the Hornets Galloway scored 17 points in 20 minutes. It was because of that performance and his work ethic during practice that made Phil Jackson, the president of Knicks , to have him stay with the team longer during training camp. Let’s face it, Lang will never be the best defender and he isn’t the best passer. This puts Langston in a predicament, he is too small and not strong enough to play shooting guard but he isn’t a good enough passer to play the point. Langston can make an NBA team in my opinion as a role player, a guy that comes off the bench to shoot. If I were Langston Galloway I would be in the gym 24/7 just working on my shot, because this is his one and only shot to play pro ball. Whether or not Langston will make the Knicks will come down to how he performs in training camp and practices. The hard working Langston will make himself known on the court that will be for sure. 

                Galloway can play in the NBA and we at St. Joe’s know that he can continue his success. Langston Galloway by far was the best basketball player to come out as a senior this past year. Galloway isn’t as athletic as Roberts or as uniquely gifted as Halil, but Galloway can shoot and score. There is going to be a lot of pressure on Lang, and the St. Joe’s family and community is behind Langston 100%. Hopefully Langston Galloway will be another Hawk in the NBA. THWND!