Jon Rothstein bullish on St. John’s squad

Earlier this offseason, Jon Rothstein dropped some ideas on the league finish, and he is once again bullish on St. John’s. Let’s revisit...

Rothstein marked the Johnnies as his prediction to finish fifth, calling the Red Storm’s backcourt arguably the league’s best and noting the impact additions of Justin Simon and Marvin Clark.

Of note is that the league is predicted to once again be a league with little separation, where Creighton, Butler, Marquette, and St. John’s may be battling for spots, while Villanova, Xavier, Providence and Seton Hall seem like the top four in the league.

The Johnnies landed a few other players on his lists:

• as a “Breakout Player” rising junior Tariq Owens merited mention;
• for “Impact Transfers”, Justin Simon and Marvin Clark were both called out;
• In the “10 Under the Radar Freshmen”, Kansas City guard and incoming frosh Bryan Trimble found his name on the list;
• one of the “10 impact freshmen” was Sidney Wilson, the wing from the Bronx.

Of course, the “impact freshman” left the program to enroll at UConn, and as a junior, Tariq Owens may have already had his breakout (which is to say he’s very good, but needs to stay on the floor more).

Meanwhile, Bryan Trimble has been talked up not just as a player to develop, but as a player who might have a little bit of impact as a shooter and defender.