First off, our hearts go out to Bryce Hopkins as he recovers from his knee injury. You never want to see anybody go through a tough injury like he has, especially somebody who carries himself with such class and represents PC in such a positive manner like Mr. Hopkins does.
Bryce has NBA aspirations, and this is another hurdle he’ll have to overcome before suiting up professionally. Bryce has the backing of the entire Providence community, and I personally love nothing more than a good comeback story. This is just another chapter in The Book of Life for Mr. Hopkins, and I hope he attacks the rehab with vigor and intensity. By this point next year, I’m cautiously optimistic that we’ll be talking about Bryce as a First Team All-Big Easter in 2024-2025 as he leads the Friars in his comeback tour.
The good news is that ACL rehabs aren’t as daunting as they were historically. There is a chance Hopkins comes back as good as new by Fall 2024. The bad news for Providence is that you don’t earn any sympathy points from the rest of the Big East. Big East play marches on, and Providence and Kim English need to find some ways to try to offset the loss of Bryce Hopkins. PC is very much in the hunt for an NCAA tournament bid still, and they need to find ways to win. Getting to that magical 20 win number is important, so Providence needs to go 9-8 in Big East play the rest of the way.
I’ve put together a few line-up ideas that try to make up for the loss of Bryce’s rebounding, defense, and size. I’m curious to hear what people think is the optimal starting line-up for Providence.
Line-Up #1: The Most Realistic Starting Line-Up
PG: Pierre
SG: Carter
SF: Floyd Jr.
PF: Gaines
C: Oduro
This is the line-up I’d anticipate Kim English going with. Floyd Jr. is not the rebounder that Bryce is (not many in the nation are), but he brings an edge and toughness that Providence needs right now. He is a supremely gifted athlete and isn’t afraid to get his hands a bit dirty in the post. Providence is going to have to really lean into team rebounding with Hopkins gone, and I think Floyd Jr.’s time is now to take on a starting spot. It would do wonders for the Friars if he could somehow find his shooting stroke, as even with Hopkins they were struggling with consistent shooting. Providence really needs a role player to step up and take on added responsibility, and all eyes are on Corey Floyd Jr. to do just that.
Line-Up #2: My Preferred Line-Up
PG: Dual
SG: Carter
SF: Floyd Jr.
PF: Gaines
C: Oduro
This is where I want to see Providence turn to. The season is already somewhat in disarray, so it’s time to try and make a few moves that may short term be painful, but long term raise the ceiling for this year’s squad.
In short, it’s time to take the training wheels off Garwey and see if he sinks or swims in the deep end. Providence desperately needs to improve its rebounding efforts with Hopkins out, and Garwey’s 6’5 frame, alongside inserting Floyd, helps out on the glass more than Jayden Pierre would. Garwey is also a better defender than Pierre, and Providence’s identity now may be to turn every game into a rock-fight with the first to 65 winning.
Pierre is struggling a bit right now, and I’d rather take my chances on the measurables and raw talent that Dual possesses and see if the microwave 6th man option suits Pierre.
Starting Line-Up #3: Emphasis on Ball Movement
PG: Pierre
CG: Dual
SF: Carter
PF: Gaines
C: Oduro
With Hopkins out, English may lean into winning through crisp ball movement and finding the open look. Hopkins, for all he did well, could be a black hole on offense at times, and the ball would often stick in his hands once it found him. As I said on our podcast, I do think the ball movement is going to be better with Hopkins out of the line-up. This line-up, while exposing the team to getting potentially crushed on the boards, will try to win by having multiple ball handlers on the court and trying to find advantageous 1:1 situations. It would be a team that would try to live in transition.
Starting Line-Up #4: The Shooting Line-Up
PG: Pierre
SG: Carter
SF: Dicky Barron
PF: Gaines
C: Oduro
Do I expect to see this starting line-up? No. Could we see this rotation out on the court? Yes. Barron is going to have to grow up fast, as he’ll likely be earning 15 minutes a game moving forward. The good thing is that Barron has looked very comfortable out there whenever his number is called. He has a smooth stroke and can threaten from deep.
With Floyd Jr. struggling from the perimeter, English may lean on Barron to provide a deep threat from the 3/4 position.
I agree substantially with your lineups. I think Barron needs to be used more because he can shoot threes with alot of success. I am not too excited about Pierre because he seems to have trouble holding on to the rock and has way too many turnovers. As far as rebounding we will miss Bryce the most there. Castro has not been a factor and probably will not be one when Oduro needs a rest. The bottom line is we need every player to step up and leave everything they have on the court. It’s going to be a very bumpy ride going forward but what else is new!
Go Friars!
At this point its about getting guys experience,It sucks but Its turned into a rebuild season..They are toast..give Corey minutes..give Barran minutes…give Castro minutes, give Pierre minutes and see what they can do against Big east talent.and Give Garwey the keys or he will move on to another team that pays him more money next year, Its just a fact.I think this injury to Hopkins is going to wake a lot of student athletes up about grabbing the money when available, Rutgers is throwing money around to kids 600K to 3 so far…You don`t think its going thru Bryce`s head that maybe he he should have got more $ elsewhere…going to be a big test for the Friar NIL going forward.