The Panthers did have high expectations as they are supposed to have a Senior laden team entering the first year of the new conference.  Most of the teams in the Big South will be counting on much less experienced rosters.  That would change rather quickly for the Panthers as their anticipated star George Nostrand would transfer right before the start of the year to Wyoming.  This would leave the Panthers holding the bag as even their promos for the season featured the big man challenging kids to come to the Millis Athletic Center and get in free if they were as tall as Nostrand.  His was not the only AWOL situation as a young freshman stud six foot eleven wunderkid never made it to the season due to some off the court issues.  The weird thing was that a trio of Senior post players had already moved on due to the anticipated arrival of the Kid from Down Under and Nostrand’s return.  This left the Panthers awfully thin up front and with transfer Charlie Floyd not being available until midseason after coming over from ACC power Wake Forest (boy the anticipation of this kid was huge especially in basketball crazy North Carolina).  Some last minute moves during summer have left this team nowhere near as deep (or big) as they thought they would be.  Steele would have to make due with a bunch of gamers and undersized big men to man the front line for the Panthers.  Still, the Panthers that used to Purple do have one of the best backcourt players on the East Coast ready to lead this program into the brave new world.  You could make a strong argument that senior guard Gene Littles is the only High Point player that has really got D-1 talent.  Littles might even have ACC talent as this DC kid has become a legend around these parts.  At 6’1 and 175 pounds, this DC can do a bit of everything and does it well.  A terrific scorer (he averaged 18 a game last year) this kid can also run a team quite efficiently.  Coach Steele has given him autonomy to do what is best and he has responded with terrific numbers and even better leadership.  Littles might not be the best player in the Big South but the group in front of him would not constitute a full lineup on the court. 

Let’s start at the top or in this case the best of the best!  The aforementioned Littles is a great player.  It is not often that a player form this conference will get a chance to play at the next level but Littles will after his stellar career.  Littles is both a great scorer and a terrific ball handler.  He projects to being a point guard in the NBA but was the main scoring threat for the Panthers.  Littles was Mr. Everything here.  He led the tam in scoring and assists and was one of the best defensive players in the conference.  He is very basketball savvy and truly understands how to play the game.  He is probably the best player in the league and is an incredible athlete as well.  ‘Gino’ was everything to this program and though they had a down regular season he showed how good he was in the conference tourney upset of UNC-Asheville in the first round.  He was spectacular scoring 24 points, grabbing 10 boards and passing out 8 assists in one of the best games of the year in any conference.  God only knows what High point would have been this past year without Littles to lead them. 

Coach Steele does have a bunch of senior post men who give the Panthers as good of a front line as anybody in this league.  That is if their skills translate over to the new level of play?  Seniors George Nostrand, Dale Neel and  Danny Sewell were projected as the starting front line but one of them is already gone.  Jim Picka will replace Norstrand and is not that big of a dropoff though he is nowhere near as physical.  At least not yet.  Picka is a big man (6’11 230) who is by any means not spectacular but he does come to play every day.  Something you cannot say about his brethren.   He will get every opportunity to show his ability after sitting behind Norstrand the last few years.  This Clearwater Florida product is a developing offensive player but his ability to guard the rim and rebound should help the Panthers in their transitional year.  Neel is a brut who loves to mix it up down low.  At 6’9 230 this rockman (Rockville, Maryland) really is made of bricks  and you do not want to run into one of his notorious blind side screens.  Not a big offensive weapon he could pushed for minutes by some of his compadres who are much better shooting the ball but no Panther is tougher.  Speaking of scoring, that is Sewell’s forte and he can do it inside and out but might not transition to this new level due to a lack of height.  Another Senior post player got some minutes as well and is also a pretty darn good scorer.  Lefty Kirk Stewart has got some offensive game and even has some range on his jump shot but like some Panthers is a bit small for true post play in Division One.  Junior Pete Collins became a primary force inside for the Panthers as the season progressed.  Collins is a solid post player that lacks athleticism but has basketball size (6’8 230) and skill.  This hometown kid produced solid numbers across the board and will push for a starting role this year.  He really is tough and will do whatever Steele needs him to do.  Fellow junior Pearlee Shaw will also be in the mix after leading the JV in scoring but is a bit thin for the D-1 wars though he can score.  Steele has some choices to make up front and has beat the bushes to find some more athletic kids including taking one from ACC power Wake Forest in the transfer portal.  Junior Charlie Floyd is a 6’7 215 pound combo forward from Philly who will undoubtedly be in the mix for minutes as the year progress.  And of course there will be some freshmen battling for minutes as Steele has emphasized more athletic kids up front as this program tries to keep up with the Jones’s of D-1!     

The backcourt is a little more settled with Littles and his longtime sidekick in crime, Danny Witt, coming back.  Witt is nowhere near the talent of Geno but he can play.  Primarily playing the point, Witt has shown signs of being a terrific scorer, especially in games Littles missed, which is not many.  He is content being the silent assassin and setting up his teammates but there is more in the tank for this underrated (and sometimes forgotten) 6 foot stud.  Fellow senior Barry Smith will be the sixth man, at least to start the year.  Smith is a 6’3 stud from DC who literally can play anywhere.  He might have more upside than anyone on this team due to his versatility and gives Steele the kind of diversity off the bench good teams need.  Smith can score and defend equally well and can also set up teammates.  He started many games here as the three next to Witt and Littles but moving on up he is better suited off the bench as a combo guard.  Juniors Tubby Smith and Danny Anderson will push for time but neither is near the talent of the three guys ahead of them but both know how to play the game.  Sophomores George Byers and Kenny Drummond will also be in the guard rotation this year. They will asked to primarily play point as that is the one spot that has some availability but they can play both guard positions.  Both are better scorers that distributors but really don’t have a place to play behind Littles and Witt, at least for significant minutes. Byers was on the JV all last year and Drummond is transferring from another ACC power in NC State where there is a plethora of point guards so he moved over a couple of miles.  With the two seniors leaving after this year this duo, as well as few nice recruits, are really about building for the future though I could see Drummond making some impact this year with his quickness and ability to score off the bench.   

The High Point Panthers were not a good team last year and that was in D-2.  The Panthers are completely new to Division One, even newer then most of the rest of the conference by one year.  They are, or should we say should be, more experienced than most of their new compatriots in their plan to take over the Carolinas and the Virginias.  The problem is not many of these kids have ever played at the D-1 level and the few that have were deep on the benches of some ACC teams, those same teams the Panthers hope to have on their schedule for early season games the next few years as they try to show they belong at this level.  Being new to the game the Panthers do not have one ACC school this year but the Colonial and Southern conferences were happy to bring on the Panthers for which they think will be an easy win?  Not so fast as long-time Coach Steele has recruited well though some of the seniors he was counting on to help with the transition might not be ready for the bell.  But he does have his secret weapon in Littles!  He has showed in his three years here he is ready for anything including the next level which he is more than ready to show the college basketball world (and beyond) that he belongs at their table.  Now can the rest of his High Point teammates prove they belong in Division One or are they really a NAIA school masquerading with the big boys?