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Looking at stats from last year--yeah, I'm on vacation--I see that Carrier had a higher field goal percentage than Viggiano, Maxwell, or Bowers. Also, he had a higher 3 pt percentage than anyone except Anderson. In other words, he could be considered our best returning 3 pt shooter. He didn't pull down a heck of a lot of rebounds, but, then again, he only averaged 13 minutes a game. If he had doubled his minutes and doubled his rebounds, he would have had more than Lasme and been second on the team to Freeman. So, by the stats, this is a guy with a lot of potential, who could earn a lot more playing time, and maybe even end up ahead of Maxwell, Bowers, and Vigg in the rotation.

Caveat: I have never seen Carrier play..., all I know is what I've read and what the Members of the Board have posted about him.

I'd say his chances rest primarily on the condition he is in when he comes to camp. Will he run back on defense, sideways cross court to set picks and help out on defense? Will he bust his butt to fit into Coach Ford's system? If the answer is yes to both, I look for Carrier to see significant minutes, particularly with Salovski gone. My hunch is that the playing minutes are there for him to lose.

IMHO- On many occasions last year while Carrier was on the floor, he looked like the most naturally talented player that was wearing Maroon & White. IF he could be that player for 30 minutes a game, I'd personally say that he should start ahead of lasme at Pf. Unfortunatly, on MOST occasions last year, his defense sucked and he couldn't run up & down the court for more than 5 minutes at a time. The talent is there, no doubt, and I feel that he will be an all-conference 1st teamer for the 2007-2008 Minutemen. (Assuming a starting 5 of Bonner,Carrier,Brower,Mayben,Lowe) - But for now, I think he is best suited as our first (only?) big man off the bench

rjl99 wrote:IMHO- On many occasions last year while Carrier was on the floor, he looked like the most naturally talented player that was wearing Maroon & White.

I don't think he ever looked more "naturally talented" than Maxwell.

To answer the question posed by this thread--

He was a victim of poor coaching like most of the other players on the squad. His defensive footwork was poor and he had no concept of what an over-the-back foul was. He also seemed to suffer from a lack of concentration. 9 assists in 348 minutes is not very good, either. And of course, he shot 25% from the line.

The good news is, THOSE THINGS CAN BE CORRECTED THROUGH INSTRUCTION! Hooray!

He has a good outside shot and with proper conditioning he could be a tough matchup at either forward position.

I recently talked w/Lawrence and he said that he is almost 100% to his playing weight which is around 220 and that his ability to "soar" is coming back...look for him to post double digit points as UMass's 6th man and contribute 4-5 rebounds a game (1-2 offensive)...while I think he can reach these numbers, if he doesn't and comes close, remember he's only a sophomore and that he is going to be an absolute stud by the time he leaves UMass.

I wish I was as certain as you that that Carrier is going to be an absolute stud.
He has a opportuntity and a chance but its not a sure thing.
I agree Carrier has a great deal of talent and being only a sophomore gives him plenty of time to develop it. With good coaching, a good attitude, which I think Carrier has, and a strong work ethic Carrier has a chance to be special. I hope you are right and Carrier make the most of his talent and opportunities.
GO UMASS.

He could be a key component after next years deep class leaves. With Mayben on the perimeter and Bonner inside, a healthy, in shape and committed Carrier on the wing could make a deadly, well rounded inside outside trio in 07-08.

If CArrier is ever completely over his injuries he will be a stud, IMHO. All the talk about his weight and conditioning will disappear if he's healed.

Judging by the posting history on this board, if most of us had to recover from his type of injuries we'd be fat as porkers and whining about it 24/7.

What were his injuries?

Used to be VOR wrote:What were his injuries?

Shoulder. I think he dislocated a shoulder and took his sr. year of HS off to let it heal.

CRR_ wrote:

Used to be VOR wrote:What were his injuries?

Shoulder. I think he dislocated a shoulder and took his sr. year of HS off to let it heal.

I thought maybe that was it...but then I thought that was Gabe Lee...then I got confused.

Anyway, you would think a shoulder injury would not dramatically effect his overall conditioning. I say that as a guy who has had six shoulder surgeries due to pitching. But I can understand how it could effect his strength and some basketball specific conditioning. When I was recovering from surgey I was always in my best cardio shape because it was all I could do.

That was Gabe Lee with the shoulder thing. Carrier was not hurt last year.....he did sit one game due to hamstring issues.....but he was not injuried last year. He averaged 11 and 7 over the last 3 games of the year for shit's sake. I think his problem was just the conditioning part of things.

As I recall, Lawrence had some injury in high school which caused his recruit ranking to plumment...and that is why the evil coach was able to get him to come to UMass.

This is from an old post:

"Carrier is just getting back on the court after tearing his lateral meniscus and having surgery in March. He started playing about a month ago."

I have no idea what a lateral meniscus is and I think the surgery was done in March of 2003.

I hope we get a good contribution from Carrier, though in all honesty, I'm not expecting a lot. Hope he surprises me.