One more year?

[ZagMan in Philly]

Hard to pick one..but i remember how much i wanted NWG to come back for some unfinished business.

[MickMick]

Goss, Clarke, and Morrison.

In that order. All three can carry you to the promise land but in this tier, it is less about how much an individual can personally contribute, and more about how that individual can elevate the players around him.

[Zags11]

This is easy: NWG. He willed us to a Final Four and almost to a title. He showed better floor leadership than all but a few Zags in the Few era. I wish he'd have stayed one more year and I'm quite certain if he did we would have done better than the Sweet 16 in '18. What makes me wish this would have happened was not just how good he was but the fact that he wasn't a lottery pick and he didn't end up in the NBA that next year but did two years in Europe before landing as a deep bench reserve with the Jazz.

In that calculus he had more to gain by staying (likely a first team AA, tons of media, a great senior year) than he had to gain by leaving (an unremarkable overseas career and no NBA lottery type money and I'm sure he could have still ended up with the Jazz this past year regardless).

Ill disagree. He had a solid team. With how he shot in the tourny a couple games, the zags would of been eliminated like other great zag guards in the past. Goss was 8 for 42 in a 3 game stretch in NCAA Tourny for 19%. He was a great guard for us on a great team. However to some zag fans he gets all the kudos as he "led" us to the title game. This just isnt true. The team made the run.

[Reborn]

I loved Adam Morrison. It took me a long time to get over him leaving early for the NBA. My son, Demian, helped me see the logic in the decision. After the loss to UCLA in the NCAA and seeing him lying on the floor in agony after the game, I just didn't want it to end this way. Adam had such an impact on taking Gonzaga to another level in recruiting. Because of what he did at GU, and what he accomplished young players in high school began to want to go to Gonzaga.

He dueled it out with a player for Duke to become the highest scorer in D-1 BASKETBALL. Morrison packed every gym and arena that the Zags played in, and he was truly hated by the fans from opposing teams. Student bodies from opposing teams would try every imaginable thing to get into ADAM'S head, but as we know it only inspired him.

I also hated the fact that we didn't make it to the Final Four that year because I believed they could. And I felt if Adam returned they'd certainly make it the following year.

Thanks for all you did, Adam.

Go Zags!!!

[LTownZag]

Ill disagree. He had a solid team. With how he shot in the tourny a couple games, the zags would of been eliminated like other great zag guards in the past. Goss was 8 for 42 in a 3 game stretch in NCAA Tourny for 19%. He was a great guard for us on a great team. However to some zag fans he gets all the kudos as he "led" us to the title game. This just isnt true. The team made the run.

Facts>Stories

Who would have added more to the 2018 team, NWG returning to a frontcourt with Perkins, Norvell, and Melson? or Collins returning to the post with JW3, Rui and (sometimes injured) Tillie off the bench?

Give me Collins' impact in a heartbeat.

Perkins/Melson/Norvell/JW3/Collins starting, Sophs Rui and Tillie and freshman CK off the bench

vs

NWG/Perkins/Melson/Tillie/JW3 Starting, Soph Rui, and freshmen CK and Norvell off the bench


I think team #1 is better.

[gonzagafan62]

Ill disagree. He had a solid team. With how he shot in the tourny a couple games, the zags would of been eliminated like other great zag guards in the past. Goss was 8 for 42 in a 3 game stretch in NCAA Tourny for 19%. He was a great guard for us on a great team. However to some zag fans he gets all the kudos as he "led" us to the title game. This just isnt true. The team made the run.

Agree with most, but what Goss had was unrelenting defense which really stood alone in the WV game as well as the same game. I don’t think you’re wrong at all, however

[Zags11]

Agree with most, but what Goss had was unrelenting defense which really stood alone in the WV game as well as the same game. I don’t think you’re wrong at all, however

Yea he was solid at defense and he was a great player and seems.like a great guy. I just think he wasnt the reason we waltzed into the F4. The team was the reason.

[cjm720]

Nigel

[Zagger]

Morrison
But, he’s returned to Spokane and is heavily involved with the Zags. So, to me he did return
Go Zags!

[sonuvazag]

When I see Goss, I always think of Geoff Goss. Nigel's last name is Williams-Goss, isn't it? I'd be upset if everyone thought half of my hyphenated last name was optional.

[hockeyzag]

I agree with everyone who says Goss was a great player, and I would've loved to have seen him come back, but I really don't think the team that he would've come back to was as strong as other years. Sabonis on the 2017 team would have made that team pretty much unbeatable.

Jazz asked us to consider the composition of the team in that next season. The 2018 team was strong but nowhere near 2017, 2019, or 2020.

[GonzaGAW]

- i have said before, i believe nwg's one season at point guard was the best effort/talent ever at the guard position.

- that said, i think my answer is zach collins. think of the step up in improvement he would have given next years team. coupled with jw3, inconsistent due to injury tillie, young improving rui, that would have been a front court that could have brought us too back to back final fours.

[jazzdelmar]

Gentle reminder. The Bonus could have played 2 more years; Zbo 3 more.

[zagfan1]

This is a hard one. I think if Sabonis stayed one more year that really would have helped the 17 team in so many ways. The thing was ZC (although very talented) was a fouling machine in his only year at GU. Sabonis was just so mobile around the basket. I think he would have worked UNC’s May in the championship game. Just look at him now. The best Zag in the NBA right now. NWG was very good at defense and most importantly he didn’t turn the ball over. That win at BYU was such a statement game that year for him. If he didn’t re injure his ankle In the championship game against UNC we would have won for sure by controlling the ball. That 18 team just wasn’t going to be as good as the 17 team so it really didn’t matter if Goss had stayed that final year or not.

[hockeyzag]

This is a hard one. I think if Sabonis stayed one more year that really would have helped the 17 team in so many ways. The thing was ZC (although very talented) was a fouling machine in his only year at GU. Sabonis was just so mobile around the basket. I think he would have worked UNC’s May in the championship game. Just look at him now. The best Zag in the NBA right now. NWG was very good at defense and most importantly he didn’t turn the ball over. That win at BYU was such a statement game that year for him. If he didn’t re injure his ankle In the championship game against UNC we would have won for sure by controlling the ball. That 18 team just wasn’t going to be as good as the 17 team so it really didn’t matter if Goss had stayed that final year or not.

This.