Does David Blatt open or close doors for Tyrese Rice?

David Blatt recently made history when we was hired directly from the Euroleague to coach the Cavaliers with no prior NBA experience. The longtime international coach is coming off a Euroleague Championship when his club, Maccabi Tel Aviv, capped off a surprise run in May. The MVP of that team: Tyrese Rice.

Since leaving BC, Rice has bounced around Europe. He's shown flashes of his potential but never took over a team for an extended time until this year. But now that he's proven himself at the second highest level, it might make sense to come back to the U.S. and give the NBA one more try. Still a great shooter, Rice could be an instant offense guy on the right team. Blatt knows what he can do. It would seem natural to bring along his best player to add depth to the Cavs. But Rice and Blatt had issues in the beginning of the season. There's also the issue of Rice's money. At this point he's established in Europe. He will play the whole season. I have no idea if any NBA team would give him a guaranteed contract (beyond the usual 10-day for guys who have bounced around).

I always root for BC guys and still think Rice has been overlooked. Sure he is a defensive liability, but he can score. Bringing Blatt over is proof that the NBA is watching. If his old coach doesn't want to bring him, maybe another NBA team will.

Rice still hoping for NBA spot and other links

The Globe had a good article on Tyrese Rice and his second go around with NBA teams. Rice spent last season in Greece. I joked about it on Twitter, but Rice should seriously drive himself to Miami and sign with the Heat of the league minimum. They need point guards and spot shooters.

Here is an article on the Hayes brothers. All indications point towards them both playing at BC this fall.

WEEI has a round up on BC's basketball recruiting. Here is a little more on Matt Humphrey.

This transcript of the ACC-ESPN press conference goes on and on without giving away too many details or specifics. In my opinion this biggest news is that ESPN will continue the Sunday Night Hoops series but wants to play the games at earlier times.

Alumni basketball news and other links

Tyrese Rice signed with Panionios (a Greek club). It's probably not where he wanted to be, but it is a chance to make money and work his way into the NBA. If Rice needs a role model, he should look no further than Jared Dudley. Dudley has fought for every minute and is now a key piece of the Suns' plans. You can follow Dudley on Twitter.

Dickie V has BC just on the outside of the Top 25.

The football team raised $28,000 in the Lift for Life event Thursday. Congrats to them for working hard and putting on a good show. Also thanks to those who gave. Although the event has passed, you can still donate.

Rice's summer

Here are some pics of Tyrese from Vegas courtesy of reader Mark. Rice is playing well, but is still not a sure thing to make the Wizards.

Rice's summer league plans and other links

This writer thinks Tyrese Rice can build off of his summer league opportunity with the Wizards. I actually think the Wizards were a bad choice. Like the link says, their summer team is guard heavy. But more importantly, Rice needs to be on a team that has an idea of how to use him. Despite his size, I don't think his game or D translates to being an NBA point. He needs to be on a team that shoots 3s and has good floor spacing (like Orlando this past season). If JJ Reddick can get good minutes on a playoff team, there is no reason to think Rice cannot do the same. He just needs to find the right fit. I hope Washington is it, but I think they are just his first step towards Europe.

Bleacher Report thinks Reggie Jackson is ready to step up and fill Rice's void.

Even with the outdated information in this link, it looks likes you can still bet on BC for six wins this season.

Scouting report on Rice and other links

Things have been quiet on the Tyrese Rice front lately. He's worked out for various teams and most projections have him going in the second round. This writer thinks he will go undrafted. But despite that gloomy projection, he's got good things to say about Rice's upside.

Bruce Feldman wrote a post on some of the international players who are gaining attention of college recruiters. One of the focuses of the piece is Mehdi Abdesmad. The DE has interest in BC.

HD started another series, this time filling the hopes and concerns of each team. With BC she thinks Harris gives us hope and the voids on D are a cause of concern.

How will the Tyrese Rice story end?

Tyrese Rice made the ACC's second team. Congratulations to him. But what are we, the close observers, to make of it? He was first team ACC last year. Did he take a step back? Did he have to subjugate himself in order for the team to advance? Rice proclaimed that he returned for his final season at BC to go out a winner. Mission accomplished. Picked to finish 11th, BC proved the media and the league wrong and couldn't have been as good without their senior leader and leading scorer. Yet there is still an emptiness. Something about it all feels hollow and I think it's about Rice.

I've loved this season. The North Carolina and Duke games will be ones we remember for years. Watching Sanders, Jackson and Trapani all emerge and take over games has been rejuvenating. Their futures are bright and we get to witness it all for the next few seasons. Sanders sinking his shot against Georgia Tech was just the beginning. But (and indulge me for a minute) that moment showed how much Rice has been detached from this excitement, the young players' growth and the success of this season. Skinner didn't put the ball in Rice's hands. Sanders didn't look to give it back to Rice and then he, not Tyrese, made the clutch shot. Rice was just an observer. A decoy.

Tyrese Rice is a great basketball player. Rice is the best shooter on the team. He's one of the most natural scorers in college basketball. Put him on a midmajor and he'd be a media darling and averaging 30 a game. He's got a very high basketball IQ and has made smart plays from the minute he stepped on campus. And to top off the package, the strong little bull is left handed. Just one more thing to keep defenders off balance. His fearlessness provided countless highlights. Think back to the 2007 ACC Tourney...Rice kept BC in the Miami game singlehandedly. Last year he nearly went for 50 against top ranked North Carolina. Where were those moments this year? Never as emotional or gregarious as some past BC stars, Rice seemed bored and unsure of himself at times this year.

Now, with his BC career coming to an end, Rice has a chance to write the ending to his story. He is capable of leading this team deep this week in Atlanta and next week in the Big Dance. He needs to play smart. He needs to strike the right balance between making his teammates better and asserting himself. He needs to be the man and player we know he can be. Earlier this year BC basketball historian Bob Ryan hinted that Rice could be the best guard to come through the Heights. Right now, in my opinion, he's not even in the discussion. But...and it's a big but...Rice can vault up the list with his play this month. I don't know Rice. The people around him all seem nice and those around BC speak highly of him. He can be more than he's been. Let's hope for him and for BC, that we are about to see something special.

Basketball wins and other links

The basketball win had a weird feel. Rice got himself in foul trouble again (I'll get to that in a minute), but the team played well without him for most of the night. Paris ran the point and we got decent minutes from the three freshmen. But then things fell apart in the final minutes. The defense remains a huge issue. We are getting killed with drives to the basket. One of two things happens, the guys blows by our defender for any easy two or a guy drives by our defender, draws help then kicks it out to an open man for a wide open 3. We could somewhat get away with this when we had a shot blocker. Now we don't and it leads to many easy baskets. Perhaps this team needs to play more zone. As for Rice, I don't know what the problem is? He is committing really dumb fouls (reach ins, etc.). He is a smart guy which makes this all that more confusing. He really needs to get refocused over the next few weeks. He's not helping his draft stock and keeping this team from playing its best.

The Megwa story was much scarier than most of us realized. Let's hope he fully recovers.

Here is a look at the ACC Championship Game.

Matt Hasselbeck hung out with middle school kids Tuesday.

Thoughts on Purdue

For those who didn't see the game, it was another uneven effort that had you doubting the team's potential, then thinking things might go our way, only then to see it slip away. Regardless of the emotions, it is still a loss and not a good one. Rice is now in a true slump and if we can't figure out what to do when he is cold, we're done.

Likes
-- The half court defense. It was surprisingly effective. The rotations were solid. There were still some breakdowns, but that was mostly on clearouts when our defenders were in one on ones.
-- The spark from the freshmen. Jackson and Ravenel both looked good in their limited minutes. While they didn't fill the stat sheet, neither looked overwhelmed and both fought hard.
-- The late run. It wasn't enough, but the guys did pull it together to cut the lead to 6 with a minute and change left. They couldn't capitalize, but it showed effort, the ability to score quickly and get some defensive stops.


Dislikes
-- Turnovers. Sloppy effort from everyone. We cannot waste so many possessions.
-- Rice's offense. Purdue swarmed him and he was unable to get the offense set nor get his teammates open looks. Lavin brought up a good point: perhaps Rice should move to the 2 spot and Paris should run the point to free things up for Rice.
-- Lack of flow within the flex. It is frustrating watching a "system" offense not run that offense when things are breaking down. We need to get into the sets early and wait for the right shots. Skinner teams are at their best when they stop a run with an easy basket out of our base offense.
-- Transition D. If the halfcourt was decent, this was terrible. These team has enough speed, they just need to play smarter.

It is very early but I am not feeling great about this season. We need to find some answers quickly.

To end on a high note, check out BC Guy Kevin Armstrong's piece on Rice.

BREAKING NEWS: Rice suspension shortened to 1 game

Still listed under violation of team rules, but now Rice will only miss Friday's game. He will play in all the preseason NIT games.

Rice, Rice and more Rice

The ACC named Rice all first team. He was the second leading vote getter after Tyler Hansbrough. Tyrelle Blair made the all defensive team. Blair was a very good shot blocker, but I think his overall defensive ability was overrated.

Jeff Goodman -- whose weekly ACC column in the Herald is a must read -- really captured Rice's frustration with the season. Interesting that Rice points to the first VT game as a turning point. It felt like one at the time. We let that game slip away and then faced down the best teams in the ACC. We never pulled out of the funk.

Given how downbeat Rice seems, some would speculate that he will bolt after the season. Yet nbadraft.net, which includes underclassmen in their mock drafts, doesn't even have him in the second round. If his prospects are that borderline, staying in school would make more sense.

Rice's best not enough for BC

I don't think I could be any more effusive than Nessler and Dykes were on the broadcast. Rice had probably the best first half I've ever seen in college basketball. His second half was very good, but not enough to lead BC past the Tar Heels. When the game started getting away from us, I hoped that he'd have one more spurt and get to 50.

Likes: In addition to Rice's heroics, there were a couple other good takeaways.
-- The guys fed off of Rice and made some good shots (Sanders and Blair were the only ones who shot below 50%).
-- They also rebounded much better on the offensive end.

Concerns: The defense still lacks.
-- Assignments were missed allowing for too many open 3s.
-- Each of a big men has major defensive flaws. Blair doesn't rebound well. Oates has trouble with big men who can dribble. And Southern doesn't move enough.

What does this mean for next year? This is the question that keeps coming back. Rice's outburst can be a looked at a few different ways. I am sure to him and those close to him, it shows that he has done all he can at this level and is ready to move on. To BC fans, it shows what he could do if he came back for one more season. To Al...I am sure he'd love to have Rice back, but he's just saw Rice nearly break the school's single game scoring record and lose. Rice is a great talent and there are some very promising players on our roster. The key to our success in the next week and next year is getting the pieces to come together and not wasting great individual performances. Oh, and you can't just outscore everyone. You need to play defense too.

With all that said, Rice has at least three games left. I hope he goes out with a bang.