Hometown hero Artis Gilmore had to take the A Train to the Tar Heel State but is returning home to J’Ville and is bringing quite a rep after two All-American years at Gardner-Webb Junior College.  Gilmore is huge at seven foot two and 240 pounds and is as strong as anyone playing the game and that includes the Stilt or so the rumors say.  He is a terrific shot blocker and rebounder finishing in the top five in the nation in the Juco ranks.  This poor kid from the Florida panhandle actually went to high school in Alabama but he was a much too skinny kid at six five and 140 pounds until his senior year when he grew to a full six nine. Still, he had to pay his penance at the aforementioned JC in North Carolina until Williams convinced him to come back home to Florida.  The only question anyone has about Gilmore is if he can do it consistently against the top competition of Division One?

The Dolphins are counting on Gilmore and a couple of his new buddy seven footers on this behemoth filled roster but he is not the only talented player to grace this monstrosity of a city.  Williams has some nice carryovers for the base of the program and has brought in a fine supporting cast as well.  Junior James Ray should be the perfect complement at power forward to Gilmore.  Ray was a big time find coming in from New Orleans with the chance to become a more complete player under Williams.  At six eight and a strong 215 pounds, Ray has the perfect body to play the four and has the right mentality though he does run out of air quite easily.  Ray started all but one game for the Dolphins last year but only averaged a little over 26 minutes a game and this had nothing to do with Williams constant rotating.  But with Ray he had to change him in and out often.  But when he was on he made those minutes count.  And then some!  A rugged athlete who can dunk with anyone, Ray is best at locking down another team’s best post guy with his incredible athleticism.   He can flat finish as well as some of his dunks should be made into posters.  He will block a shot as well.  His weakside or as he calls it sneakside defense is sensational.  Ray was sensational as a sophomore at times but will have to take a step back which will be hard to do as everyone wants to be the man but if he accepts his role next to Gilmore this could be the best post combo in the state!  And perhaps the South!      

The backcourt is talented as well.  Williams rotated at the starting positions last year with everyone getting a shot.  Seniors Rex Morgan might be the most talented of the group.  The MD is a gifted passer can hit the open shot and is huge (I told you Williams loves size) at six five for a guard.  He has point guard skills on offense but is nowhere near quick enough to guard waterbugs.  Still, he averaged 5 and a half assists a game and over 13 points and will run the court and either finish or make sure somebody else does on his team.  His sidekick in crime is fellow senior Roger Strickland.   Strickland’s nickname is the Rifle so you know what he brings to the table.  At six five he is a true forward who played some in the paint early on but is best suited for launching long-range bombs from just about anywhere once he gets past half court.  He is much like Morgan is being not a super athlete but he is tough and knows where his bread is buttered.  He can flat score and at one point was the number one option on this team averaging over 20 points a game but fell back as the season progressed and some of the new kids started to get more involved.  These two were just what the doctor ordered as complimentary players for this high-octane offense.  Sophomore Ronnie Murphy got almost as much time as Strickland on the wing and is another solid all-around player who can do a little of everything.  He will be the number one bench player this year as instant offense off the bench.  He might not quite be the three-point shooter Strickland is but he can flat score and has a complete game.  Junior Leon Benbow is a solid guard who can score and defend but had a back injury he needs to come back from.  Benbow started the first six games before he got the injury and opened the door for the freshman wings to get their minutes.  Benbow is a 6’4 stud who accepted his role when he came back and was better off the bench but that does not mean he liked it.  Benbow can really turn it on at times.  He is the type of player who can light it up one night and not be able to throw it in the ocean the next which obviously fits the bench better than starting.  The fact that he can play any of the three perimeter positions does not hurt either though his tricky back does.  Senior Vaughn Wedeking is another true point guard in the mix. This 5’11 Evansville Indiana product has been a mainstay since he got here but last year lost his starting role and is now basically not wanting to be taken home tonight especially since Williams has brought in two juco studs that are dynamite talents at the one.  Fellow senior Frank Barker was once a high scoring stud who carried this program to the national NAIA tourney.  Those days were long ago and Barker barely played last year as he was surpassed by more athletic wings who can flat fly up and down the court (and are much bigger of course) in William’s high-powered offense.

Another Sophomore, Dee Brown, is a tremendous athlete who has super hops.  At only six foot one, Brown can fly and he will finish.  Another home-grown talent, Brown came to the Dolphins primarily as a two guard full of potential and speed.  A great full court player who loves to run and is developing a mid-range game, Brown got some minutes at the point guard which is something he was new to.  Williams has convinced Brown that he can play at the next level but his best chance is playing the point.  This transition is hard as Brown has to improve ballhandling and passing skills.  He knows how to get to the hoop but is used to going up and finishing on his own instead of kicking it to an open teammate for a better look.   This Dee-lightful kid has a bright future who proved in his first year here that he is more than just a dunker.   

Yet another Sophomore Otis Smith, is another kid Williams will be counting on to lift up this program. Smith is a solid wing who loves to run and can score and defend very well.  He gets out and moves and can finish with pizazzz.  He can also shoot from long range and helps keep the wolves at bay. This home town kid came here as a big recruit but has had to battle a plethora of other wings to gain time.  For now, he might be coming off the bench as he did most of last year but he is too athletic and competitive not to get into the starting lineup as the year progresses no matter who is in front of him and around this area of Florida, he is already a legend.  

Williams will have a tougher time finding depth up front but has some solid choices of guys who have played but will be accepting new roles as bench players.  Junior Felton Young showed some potential last year as the first monster big man Williams brought to Jacksonville.  Young is part of the seven-foot brigade Williams is collecting up front for the Dolphins.  Another New Orleans kid, Young is raw and nowhere near the talent of Gilmore but was effective in limited minutes last year.  When you have that one thing you cannot teach (and women love) there is always a place on the roster and  perhaps more than any coach in the country not named Wooden, Williams loves size. Speaking of size, a large group of big men who had played big minutes here in the years past will be relocated to the deep end of the bench with the arrival of the A-Train.  These guys helped put this program on the map and transition to D-1 so they will not be cut but there are only so many minutes on the two post positions and these former NAIA studs are just not D-1 level.  The likes of near seven footers Rod McIntyre (six nine, 220), Dick Pruet (six nine 230) and Chuck Brendler (a broad shouldered six nine, 260) plus undersized Jim Kirkland and Gene Martineau (only 6’5) will not soon be forgotten here but might not get many minutes in their final year in Jacksonville.  Senior Ralph Tiner, who used to be the main man here with Strickland will still play and might even start but he is no longer the primary Dolphin down low.  Junior Ernie Fleming and sophomore Mike Hackett are two forwards who played increasing minutes last year as they were not passed up on the totem pole by more athletic players Williams has brought in.  By the end of the year it was these two were solid contributors and should be again. 

The Jacksonville Dolphins are a developing basketball program.  They have brought back home a superstar big man who could have went anywhere and start after a ridiculous JC run (plus a growth spurt) in North Carolina.  Coach Joe Williams beat the bushes and found a great supporting cast for his returning 7’2 hero and expectations are high in this huge city.  Because of the weak conference they are in, the Dolphins are favorites to win but Williams wants to shock the world. Hopefully by then this team will not have to put on that glass slipper at the Big Dance as they have received some national attention but who knows?  There are after all 300 D-1 programs and many have fabulous players who can flat carry a team.  None of them have the A-Train and though this kid might not be into self-promotion he could be the best center in a state known for having great big men in a city that is the largest in the country.  Funny, thing is he might not be the best seven-footer on the Dolphins!

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