Jackson Aldridge: I had pretty low expectations for Aldridge coming into this season, based on what had transpired at the 2012 CBI Tournament. He had lost his backup point guard job to walk-on Alex Barlow after a season of poor shooting and far too many turnovers for a point guard. So I was definitely surprised to see him get the minutes he did in November of this season, especially in the North Carolina game where he played a season high 21 minutes. But by mid December, Alex Barlow had not only taken his spot in the rotation, but Barlow even took a starting spot from Kellen Dunham. From the beginning of A10 play onward, he only played a total of 50 minutes, most of them garbage minutes. While his shooting was atrocious this season, I don't believe it is a large enough of a sample size to take to seriously. Still, Aldridge has a long way to go on both ends of the court before he sees major minutes in a Butler uniform again. In the summer of 2011, I remember thinking that he was going to have a bigger impact than Roosevelt Jones. While that came nowhere close to happening, I haven't yet given up hope that Aldridge can help fill the tremendous void left by Butler last two point guards, Rotnei Clarke and Ronald Nored.
Andrew Smeathers: After off-season surgery and an inconsistent freshman season, I was an advocate of redshirting Smeathers. With Kellen Dunham coming in, I knew minutes would be hard to come by at the 3. Now that the season is over, I still wish Smeathers had sat out this year. He averaged only 2.4 minutes per game in slightly more than half of Butler's contests, and like Aldridge, his shooting was also quite poor. Still, he came to Butler with a reputation as a shooter and I still think he can become a situational offensive weapon. What I mean by that is coming in for the last possession of the half and spotting up in the corner, and other circumstances where Butler needs a basket. The potential is still there, but like Aldridge, it will a long uphill battle for Smeathers to get significant playing time.
Elliot Kampen: Kampen only played 12 minutes this season, fewer than any other player. The only game he has ever gotten significant minutes in is the Milwaukee game last season where Butler was shooting so poorly they couldn't even get the ball in the Atlantic Ocean. (Yes it was that bad) While still a walk-on who will never see important time on the court, he can still become a leader and a vocal presence in the locker room. From Nick Rodgers to Alex Anglin to his older brother Emerson Kampen, Butler has a history of high character walk-ons that Elliot Kampen will try to add his name to that list.
Footnote: In my blog post about Chrishawn Hopkins way back in October, I said that Wright State was on a downward trend after being picked last in the Horizon preseason poll. I sincerely apologize for that comment. I didn't know how successful that group of team-oriented role players could be, and I will most certainly think twice before making another radical comment like that one.
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