2006 Oklahoma Sooners Basketball Preview

2006 Oklahoma Sooners Basketball Predictions

The Oklahoma Sooners have seen major changes, including the loss of three important on court contributors and the hasty exit of coach Kelvin Sampson. Coach Jeff Capel (79- 41 in four years) enters his first season with the Sooners, lacking incoming talent, bench depth and experienced players. It could be a losing season for this team that was 20- 9 overall and 11- 5 in the Big 12.

Guard Terrell Everett and his 12.7 PPG, 6.9 APG and winning ways are gone. But there’s good news in the backcourt, namely that shooting guard Michael Neal (12.4PPG, 2.6 RPG, 2.0 APG, 39.7 FG%, 84.8 FT%), now a senior, has returned after a breakout season. Neal can score, and he can also draw a crowd and dish off quickly to the open man. Point guard will be sophomore Austin Johnson (3.0 PPG, 2.0 RPG, 1.8 APG, 26.0 FG%, 57.9 FT%), who had difficulty in his first NCAA season. The Sooners certainly hope that he can live up to his reputation as a dynamic player.

In front, look for junior Longar Longar (2.1 PPG, 1.9 RPG, 0.1 APG, 58.8 FG%, 40.0 FT%) to be asked to accumulate a slew of quality minutes. Longar, who can block shots, must try to hit pay dirt more often. Sophomore Taylor Griffin did well in his first year. Nate Carter (6.0 PPG, 3.4 RPG, 0.6 APG, 47.1 FG%, 80.4 FT%) offers versatility up top. He’s another player that Oklahoma expects to see blossom.

Capel wants this team to succeed quickly. Oklahoma has a tradition of post-season play which includes 25 consecutive tournament appearances, including 20 NCAA and 5 NIT. That’s the longest streak in NCAA Division I history! Capel will determine the lineup entirely by how each player executes on the court.

This club lacks everything but a future. The 2006- 07 season may be the year that the Sooners’ post-season streak is broken. The NCAA seems unlikely, while the NIT is certainly a possibility. Whatever happens, nothing will come easy this season. There are a lot of tough lessons to be learned by this team.

If you want more info on the 2006 Oklahoma Sooners College basketball team check out the NCAA's official basketball team page of the program or check out some rival previews from Maddux Sports of schools like the Kansas State Wildcats and Baylor Bears.