Penn State Basketball: Are Nittany Lions a legitimate NCAA contender?

The Verdict

The Nittany Lions are playing well and seem to be enjoying playing together, according to Chambers.

"“The cohesiveness, the atmosphere, and the connectivity, it was so authentic. That’s when I had a feeling, or a hunch, we might have something special here. You don’t know until you start playing games. You don’t know until you see who gets the minutes.“That genuine care for one another is shining through.”"

So, are the Nittany Lions an NCAA title contender? To be truthful, it is way too early to tell as they still have a long way to go with a tough schedule remaining. And they do have some things to fix, particularly their pick-n-roll defense, offensive spacing, and offensive rebounding,” Chambers said.

I do believe that the Lions have shown that they are capable of competing with the top teams in the Big Ten and should be able to finish in the five or six of a tough conference. They are a veteran team that can score inside and from the perimeter. Stevens can score on all three levels, and while he isn’t capable of creating his offense in the traditional sense, he is super clutch. Watkins has the ability to dominate on the interior, and Myreon Jones has developed into a good shooter. Meanwhile, Curtis Jones and Dread can knock down open looks, and if they get hot from beyond the arc, the Lions offense could nearly be unstoppable.

The wildcard is Brockington, who is a slasher that can finish at the rim and is outstanding in transition. If Brockington continues his growth this year, PSU will be a factor during the tournament.