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We need to have a talk, Liberty Ballers voters. Malachi Richardson captured the 14th spot on the Community Big Board this afternoon, taking 25 percent of the vote en route to victory. Henry Ellenson came in second place at 20 percent and four other players grabbed at least 10 percent of the vote, so this was an uninspiring victory to say the least.
Uninspiring is also a good way to describe Richardson's career at Syracuse. I'm all for projecting faith onto tools guys, but Richardson was flat-out not good last season. He was an average three-point shooter and bad offensively pretty much everywhere else; 36.9 percent from the field, 38.9 percent from inside the arc and 22.5 percent on two-point jumpers is, to put it lightly, horrendous. His shot selection is poor, his finishing is not good (due in large part to his frame) and his A/TO ratio barely broke even. I don't see it with him, at least not anywhere near this high.
Rantings about the electorate's decisions aside, I will throw a new name into the mix: Michigan State's Deyonta Davis. We've withheld him from the field because there are already a few bigs who have been passed over for lesser-rated wings, but it's about time to introduce him. He showed tremendous flashes as a shot-blocker and decent touch for a low-usage big under Tom Izzo.
Let's see who rises from this bunch, and let us know if you have a candidate you think deserves special consideration for the next round(s) of voting.