We continue our opening weekend coverage with predictions for the major superlatives throughout the conference from the Pac-12 microsite team.

Preseason All-Defense Team

Jordan Bachynski’s Shot-blocking Ability Makes Him A Lock For Our Preseason All-Defensive Team

• G Nick Johnson, Jr, Arizona
• G Spencer Dinwiddie, Jr, Colorado
• G Mark Lyons, So, Arizona
• F Josh Huestis, Sr, Stanford
• C Jordan Bachynski, Sr, Arizona State

Johnson, now an upperclassmen with Arizona, averaged just short of 2.0 SPG in 2012-13 and had a knack of locking down an opponent’s top threat in big games. Starting in last year’s Charleston Classic, Dinwiddie stepped up his defense and led Colorado to a win and he hasn’t faltered since. Huestis and Bachynski represent the bigs on our list. The senior from Stanford averaged 2.1 BPG last season and was a key cog in the middle, while the 7’2″ Bachynski was even more impressive with 3.4 BPG.

All-Shooting Team

• G C.J. Wilcox, Sr, Washington
• G Joseph Young, Jr, Oregon
• G Jordan Adams, So, UCLA
• G Jahii Carson, So, Arizona State
• F Jonathan Gilling, Jr, Arizona State

Wilcox Could Very Well Be The Top Shooter In The Conference (credit: Pac-12)

Wilcox averaged 16.8 PPG last year and topped two of the three ballots for the top shooter in the conference. Young comes in from Houston and adds another threat for head coach Dana Altman. He averaged 18.0 PPG and shot at a 45.8 percent clip from the field for the Cougars. Two Sun Devils, Carson and Gilling, make the list and will lead a potent ASU offense.

All-Glue Team

• G Nick Johnson, Jr, Arizona
• SF Kyle Anderson, So, UCLA
• SF Rondae Hollis-Jefferson, Fr, Arizona
• F Josh Huestis, Sr, Stanford
• F Travis Wear, Sr, UCLA

Hollis-Jefferson’s Athleticism Gives Him The Ability To Play Anywhere On The Floor (credit: John Smierciak)

Johnson is the guy that holds everything together for the Wildcats, and he will have to make the big plays for this team if they are to make a run at the Final Four. It’s not often you see a freshman make a list of top glue guys, but Johnson’s teammate Hollis-Jefferson garnered enough votes to do so. The freshman should be able to impose his will with nearly anyone he faces in the Pac-12, and his ability to play anywhere on the court has him drawing comparisons to former UNLV star Stacey Augmon.

Connor Pelton (300 Posts)

I'm from Portland. College basketball and football is life.

This entry was posted on Monday, November 11th, 2013 at 11:01 am by Connor Pelton (@ConnorPelton28) and is filed under microsites, pac 12. Tagged: arizona, arizona state, c.j. wilcox, colorado, jordan adams, jordan bachynski, joseph young, Josh Huestis, mark lyons, nick johnson, oregon, spencer dinwiddie, stanford, ucla, washington. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.