In case those of you in the greater Bismarck area missed it, on Wednesday we ran a profile piece on Wizard's rookie guard Justin Johnson. The 6-foot-2 California native has had an interesting journey to get to the D-League, beginning at UC Irvine then transferring to both Citrus Community College and Concordia-Irvine. Along the way he won a pair of GSAC Player of the Year honors and was named the 2011 NAIA National Player of the Year. For more on Justin's path to Bismarck, check out the story below.
 Even if it doesn't count in the standings, the Nate Bjorkgren Era in Bismarck began with a pair of wins. I know, I know, the title itself could use some work. But let's not lose focus on the important facts here, D-League basketball is back and the Wizards were in action. Dakota is one of a handful of teams taking part in the first ever Jamboree Kickoff being held in Carrollton, Texas. It's a round-robin even of sorts, with teams each playing two 24-minute exhibition games per day and gives coaches a chance to see their rosters in action against players in different uniforms. But on to the important information - how did the team do? In a Thursday night phone call with Nate Bjorkgren we were informed that the Wizards went 2-0 on the afternoon with victories over the Texas Legends and Austin Toros. Game one required overtime to complete, with Dakota winning 54-51 on the strength of a buzzer beater from forward Edwin Ubiles. It's only a preseason game, but there's some significance here. Just in conversations with Ubiles and watching him perform in practice, there's potential for him to be an elite player in this league, everything seems to hinge on confidence for the former Siena standout. Earlier in training camp Bjorkgren told me he challenged Ubiles to step it up before a practice and he proceeded to dominate his teammates. This game-winning shot could be the logical next step in the equation. Game two was a 48-38 win in regulation over Austin (we have final stats for this game courtesy of the D-League's official website). Anthony Goods (12) and Mike Anderson (10) both reached double figures in scoring, but the team stats in this were slightly more telling. The Wizards assisted on eight of their 15 made field goals, a solid enough mark, but seven blocked shots and nine forced turnovers in 24 minutes shows the kind of dedication to defense Bjorkgren has been preaching from day one. A few other notes from my conversation with Bjorkgren included a solid effort from Anthony Goods in game two, something you'd expect after he got a jump start on the season during Team USA tryouts. Marcus Dove sat out both games due to a lingering groin pull he suffered on Sunday and it sounds as if he'll be out for today's games as well (the Wizards face Rio Grande Valley and Tulsa). Mickell Gladness, Mike Anderson and Curtis Withers saw the bulk of the minutes rotating at the four and five spots and Bjorkgren said he was happy with the trio's performance inside. Gladness also added his pleasure with the team's performance yesterday on Twitter. Really, a couple of scrimmages aren't going to tell us a ton about this team. It's a chance to get out and run against some fresh competition while polishing some of the new offensive and defensive sets that have been installed by a new coaching staff. But hey, it's competitive basketball and another sign that the regular season is quickly approaching. 
As part of the countdown to the start of the 2011-12 D-League season we'll be breaking down each of the Dakota Wizards training camp invites. These scouting reports will include advanced statistics, visual analysis and hopefully as much commentary and analysis as we can muster from the players and coaches themselves. Today we break down second-year small forward Mike Anderson.
Next to the tremendous success of power forward Chris Johnson - who was called up to the NBA by Boston and Portland - Mike Anderson is my favorite story of the 2010-2011 Dakota Wizards season. The former VCU Ram earned an invite to training camp out of an open tryout and then made the opening night roster. That alone is impressive, but by the time the season came to an end Anderson was a full time starter and one of the most productive players on the Wizards roster. Early in the season you could tell he was timid and would try to force the issue when on the court simply because his minutes were so limited. Once he saw an increase in playing time his numbers jumped across the board, but more importantly, so to did his efficiency marks. Now that he's got a full year under his belt the bar has been set for Anderson who returns as a veteran. Let's dive further into his game. 
Baker has worn just one uniform during his D-League career.
As part of the countdown to the start of the 2011-12 D-League season we'll be breaking down each of the Dakota Wizards training camp invites. These scouting reports will include advanced statistics, visual analysis and hopefully as much commentary and analysis as we can muster from the players and coaches themselves. Today we look at longtime Wizards guard Mo Baker, back for his sixth season in Bismarck. He stands as the all-time franchise leader in points, rebounds and assists.
It just wouldn't be basketball season in Bismarck without Mo Baker in a Wizards uniform. Yes, he's older and not the explosive talent he was a few years ago, but what makes players like Maker so valuable is their ability to adapt and reinvent themselves. Statistically speaking last season was the veterans worst since his rookie year in 2006, it was also the fewest games he's ever appeared in at the D-League level. His role with this team though is no longer about finding ways to score and utilizing his savvy skill set to get to the rim and finish. The former Oklahoma State standout is a skilled passer and with the number of shooters and scorers first year head coach Nate Bjorkgren has brought into training camp this season, Baker knows his job is to facilitate the offense, not produce it. Physically we're not talking about a specimen here, due more to the aging process than anything. At 6-foot-1 he has adequate size for the point guard position at the pro level but isn't an elite level athlete. Baker is deceptively quick off the dribble, but relies more on his ability to play and recognize angles on the court - the true sign of a high basketball IQ. He's said in the past he wants to coach the game one day and his on the court coaching acumen is certainly an indication that he has the chops to do this one day. Let's take a deeper look at Baker's presence on the floor.  The big news out of Wizards camp this afternoon is the team has made its first cut, waiving forward Parrish West due to injury. West reportedly injured his wrist severely enough in practice yesterday that the team felt it was best he leave training camp for now. The Wizards do retain his rights however, should he recover in a timely fashion and they decide to give him another look. West was the Division II National Player of the Year in 2011 after leading the nation in scoring at Alaska-Fairbanks. He was considered one of the top wings coming out of Chicago as a high school senior in 2007. In other news, Wizards forward Marcus Dove tweaked an already strained groin muscle towards the end of practice this morning. He was able to walk off with only a slight limp, but it's clear he is in pain, and these types of injuries can linger. Dove is a veteran who excels at the defensive end and rebounds well, so it would be unfortunate if he was waived due to injury as well, but certainly if he is the Wizards would likely want him back when he is healthy again. Also another little programming note: guard Justin Johnson will be the subject of this week's Sports Spotlight on KFYR-TV. He has had an interesting journey to pro basketball, so tune in on Wednesday at 6 and 10 to learn his story. Earlier on in training camp I briefly mentioned that Wizards guard Anthony Goods had been among the nearly two dozen players invited to tryouts for Team USA that competed in the Pan-American Games. While he didn't make the final roster, it was a good experience for the shooting guard and unquestionably had him ready to go for the start of the D-League season. I realize that I haven't yet posted both Goods' and head coach Nate Bjorkgren's thoughts on the matter, so below you'll find a brief story that we ran last Sunday (November 6th) on this subject. On a brief programming note, we'll be back at practice tomorrow morning and don't forget, Wizards Watch is back on the air next Sunday!  Johnson was the NAIA National Player of the Year. Former Concordia standout Justin Johnson is one of the more unknown names currently on the Wizards training camp roster. Frankly, he's one of the players I've been most looking forward to sitting down and talking to as I make my preseason rounds. Why am I so interested in speaking to this 6-foot-2 guard that even the most consistent of college basketball followers wouldn't know? Simply put, it's always unique when a player shows enough ability at the NAIA level that he gets an opportunity to play pro basketball. Johnson was a two-time GSAC Player of the Year in his time at Concordia and as a senior this past winter was named the NAIA National Player of the Year after averaging nearly 15 points per game and proving to be a skilled facilitator and defender. There's always questions surrounding whether players at lower levels of the college game can handle the rigors of facing elite level competition in environments like the D-League, but consider that in his debut with Concordia in 2009, Johnson hung 21 points on UCLA and this past season 23 against UC Irvine. Ironically enough, that is where he began his college career before transferring to Concordia. So yes, there's an interesting story there and a guy who can play some basketball. Having watched him in a handful of practice settings with the Wizards, he has the quickness to hang at the pro level, but size could be a deciding factor. Either way, until I get the chance to sit and talk with Johnson myself, watch his comments on being named National Player of the Year as a senior and then check out some of his highlights from Concordia. I'll be at Wizards practice tomorrow morning and he's the first player on my list to speak with. Look for comments from him as well as a scouting report for early next week as we continue to break down the entire training camp roster.  Prior to the start of the 2010-11 D-League season, Gladness (right) was a training camp invite of the Miami Heat. As part of the countdown to the start of the 2011-12 D-League season we'll be breaking down each of the Dakota Wizards training camp invites. These scouting reports will include advanced statistics, visual analysis and hopefully as much commentary and analysis as we can muster from the players and coaches themselves. Today we examine second-year center Mickell Gladness who in his short time with the franchise last season made a major impact defensively.
Mickell Gladness arrived in Bismarck about two-thirds of the way through last season and made an immediate impact defensively - exactly what you'd expect from the NCAA's all-time single game and career shot blocking king. That's what you get with the former Alabama A&M standout, a super long, super athletic defensive specialist. This isn't a bad thing either, as that kind of a label often carries a negative connotation, but Gladness is intriguing enough to have earned a training camp invite from the Miami Heat prior to the start of last season. Physically you're talking about a guy who is tremendously long and thin. Gladness checks in at 6-foot-11 with a listed weight of 200 pounds - to put that into perspective, that's 10 inches taller but just 15 pounds heavier than guard Mo Baker. He has huge hands, a monster wingspan and is very athletic for a player his size (as you'll see in the video at the end of this post - just watch the dunk), all of which makes him a lethal interior defender. The lack of bulk and strength though has always hindered him offensively, not allowing him to consistently bang down low, making him more of a roaming power forward at the offensive end as opposed to a traditional center. Let's find out more about the Wizards shot blocking menace. 
Goods was a standout at Stanford before taking his game to the D-League.
As part of the countdown to the start of the 2011-12 D-League season we'll be breaking down each of the Dakota Wizards training camp invites. These scouting reports will include advanced statistics, visual analysis and hopefully as much commentary and analysis as we can muster from the players and coaches themselves. Today we look at second-year guard Anthony Goods who is fresh off trying out for Team USA in the Pan American Games.
Anthony Goods was a mid-season addition for the Wizards and when it was all said and done, proved to be arguably the best in-season acquisition of the season. In 38 games, the former Stanford gunner averaged over 18 points and four rebounds while shooting 38% from beyond the arc. He certainly has an affinity for the long ball, averaging just about six shot attempts from beyond the arc per game, but Goods has proven to be a scoring threat in a variety of situations. Physically speaking he's a tad undersized for a shooting guard at a listed 6-foot-3, but compensates with good quickness and agility. He doesn't have the kind of elite first step that allows him to isolate and blow by defenders at will, but rather Goods has what I like to call excellent situational quickness, meaning as he works off screens and moves off the ball he can find another gear. Let's break his game down a bit further.  Following a standout career at Michigan State, Walton took his game to Germany for a season. As part of the countdown to the start of the 2011-12 D-League season we'll be breaking down each of the Dakota Wizards training camp invites. These scouting reports will include advanced statistics, visual analysis and hopefully as much commentary and analysis as we can muster from the players and coaches themselves. Today we begin our series with one of the new faces, point guard Travis Walton, a third-round selection in this year's draft acquired from the Bakersfield Jam in a trade.
College basketball fans will know Travis Walton's name well after a standout career at Michigan State. The 6-foot-2 point guard ended his time with the Spartans as a three-year captain, the 2009 Big Ten Defensive Player of the Year and the program's all-time leader in games played (143), fourth in steals (167) and sixth in assists (555). He's no stranger to the big stage either, having playing in the 2009 National Championship Game. Most recently, Walton played in Germany for Ratiopharm Ulm where he posted averages of two points and two assists in just under 12 minutes per game. His numbers aren't eye popping, his game isn't flashy, but Walton is the steady kind of presence teams need at the point guard position. Let's break his game down a bit further. | AuthorJoey Whelan is a sports reporter/anchor for KFYR-TV. ArchivesCategoriesAll |
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