I'm a recently retired NESCAC player and long time reader of these boards who has played against most guys in these conversations.
D3BBALL - your claim that no coach would take Cuevas over Gyimesi, Okorougo, or Vetter is pretty ridiculous. If all teams were to disband and there was a redraft, Cuevas would go first overall 99/100 times. As someone who has played against all these players and teams, Cuevas is a special talent and every coach in the league treats him as such. Also, your constant references to Hank Morgan are silly. He was the best player in the league last year and won POTY, probably by a wide margin. If anything, Morgan winning POTY last year strengthens nescac1's argument that elite production can override team success (or lack thereof). Insisting that Cuevas is undeserving because Morgan had a better season last year is a moot point. Sobel in 2023 was better than Murray in 2024, who were probably both stronger than any candidate this season. That didn't make Murray undeserving nor does it have anything to do with the current season.
At the end of the day, the POTY debate, to me, should come down to a simple question: Who was the best player in the league? Most people around the league would agree that Cuevas separated himself from the pack by this metric. I understand the team success argument, and would not disagree with Vetter, Okorougo, Gyimesi, or even Wolinski as POTY, but none of those guys are the best player in the league. Cuevas is.
The POTY usually comes from one of the top teams, and for a good reason, but as nescac1 points out there really isn't a definitive 'best player' among the top few teams. Gyimesi is clearly Tufts' best player, but Wesleyan and Trinity are really 2 (and arguably 3-4) headed snakes. For that reason, my vote would be Cuevas. Maybe you will be right, only time will tell. But the Cuevas slander is silly.
D3BBALL - your claim that no coach would take Cuevas over Gyimesi, Okorougo, or Vetter is pretty ridiculous. If all teams were to disband and there was a redraft, Cuevas would go first overall 99/100 times. As someone who has played against all these players and teams, Cuevas is a special talent and every coach in the league treats him as such. Also, your constant references to Hank Morgan are silly. He was the best player in the league last year and won POTY, probably by a wide margin. If anything, Morgan winning POTY last year strengthens nescac1's argument that elite production can override team success (or lack thereof). Insisting that Cuevas is undeserving because Morgan had a better season last year is a moot point. Sobel in 2023 was better than Murray in 2024, who were probably both stronger than any candidate this season. That didn't make Murray undeserving nor does it have anything to do with the current season.
At the end of the day, the POTY debate, to me, should come down to a simple question: Who was the best player in the league? Most people around the league would agree that Cuevas separated himself from the pack by this metric. I understand the team success argument, and would not disagree with Vetter, Okorougo, Gyimesi, or even Wolinski as POTY, but none of those guys are the best player in the league. Cuevas is.
The POTY usually comes from one of the top teams, and for a good reason, but as nescac1 points out there really isn't a definitive 'best player' among the top few teams. Gyimesi is clearly Tufts' best player, but Wesleyan and Trinity are really 2 (and arguably 3-4) headed snakes. For that reason, my vote would be Cuevas. Maybe you will be right, only time will tell. But the Cuevas slander is silly.