Player Preview: Markel Starks

This is the ninth preview of the members of the 2011-12 Georgetown Hoyas. You also can read about Aaron Bowen, Otto Porter, Jabril Trawick, Greg Whittington, Mikael Hopkins, Tyler Adams, Moses Ayegba, and John Caprio.

A team full of newcomers makes unproven returning players into sage veterans by comparison. For this year’s Georgetown squad, no one fills the role of vet-by-default more than sophomore point guard Markel Starks. For the Hoyas to succeed this year, the development of Starks will be as crucial as that of anyone.

Starks assumes the mantle of Georgetown point guard, which has been remarkably stable over the past seven seasons.  Jonathan Wallace manned the spot in whole or in part (eventually sharing with Jessie Sapp) for four seasons, then Chris Wright took over, leading the Hoya attack for three more. Starks arrived on campus last fall, somewhere between the unheralded prospect Wallace and the sterling All-American Wright. A quick guard with a terrific handle and a respectable jumper (as the video below makes clear), the Georgetown Prep prospect had attracted attention from a number of ACC schools before committing to Georgetown.

Last year, Starks didn’t make the immediate impression left by his predecessors, though he was given limited minutes behind a three-guard lineup. When he got on the court, Starks tended to defer to his seasoned back-court mates, taking barely two shots per contest and not forcing the issue on playmaking. Indeed, while he played stout defense, Starks had the lowest offensive rating of any Hoya regular. When Wright went down with a broken hand, Starks got more playing time but didn’t produce much more. Aside from a few memorable deep balls against Syracuse, he was a likeable but not particularly memorable player after one season.

This summer, Starks showed signs of development in Kenner League, putting to use an improved pull-up jumper and getting to the lane seemingly at will. Previous weaknesses remained: his three-point shot still is not quite Wallace-ian, and he tends to over-penetrate, leading to difficult finishing situations. But Starks adeptly led his summer league team, showing specific strengths that would make him valuable as the team’s starting point guard. He also contributed to the full Hoya squad in China, scoring 15 points in the opening game before taking a diminished role in the remaining outings.

This season, expect Starks to start at point guard, at least initially. He doesn’t rack up the assists, often notching fewer than a handful even high-paced games, and instead is complemented by two presumptive starting big men, Nate Lubick and Henry Sims, who are adept passers. Without a strong shoot from deep, Starks will have to make his presence felt on defense and in the mid-range. If he doesn’t do so, the nipping at his heels from freshman guard Jabril Trawick will become ever more noticeable. While last year, Starks was the new guy, content to learn behind the old hands, this year he is thrust into the veteran role, where he’ll need to thrive for the Hoyas to succeed.