Pronounced ASH-raff Yah-koo-boo, but teammates and staff call him "Asch."
Hometown: Bronx, New York
High School: Long Island Lutheran (NY)
Height: 6'4"
Weight: 210lbs.
Yacoubou played about 10.6 minutes per game last season as a freshman, but you may not have really noticed him on the court. The off-guard shot just 32.8% from the field and a paltry 26.2% from beyond the arc (on 42 attempts). His role was more to provide defense and give the starters some rest during the rough Big East slate.
Scoring just 2.2 points per game last season, Yacoubou may not get much opportunity to do more this season. The 'Cats have reloaded in the backcourt, with transfer Tony Chennault, freshman Ryan Arcidiacono and Ty Johnson all looking for minutes at the 2 to supplement whatever opportunities they might get at point. In addition, Darrun Hilliard, Mislav Brzoja, James Bell and perhaps JayVaughn Pinkston will be looking for a share of the minutes at small forward as well.
Yacoubou may still be able to get to 10.6 minutes per game again this season by being flexible and plugging in at multiple spots on the court. His defensive prowess will determine his playing time as the 'Cats will look to generate turnovers and create better scoring opportunities for a team that had mighty offensive struggles last season.
Best Case Scenario: Yacoubou becomes a defensive force, earning him an increase in playing time as the season progresses and giving him a chance to prove himself as an all-around player.
Worst Case Scenario: Yacoubou is buried on the bench as Jay Wright opts to spread those minutes out to his new faces.
The Wisdom of Crowds Returns
Ed's Wisdom of Crowds experiment is back for the 2012-2013 season. Following each of our previews we will be sampling the VUHoops community on the projected performances of the Villanova roster for the upcoming season.
Bleacher Report predicts that Ach will spend a lot of time at the end of the bench this season, scoring only 1.5 PPG and playing 5 MPG. They write: "The last man off the bench last year, Yacoubou is in line to receive very little increased playing time this upcoming year. Yacoubou can be used to give players a breather for a couple minutes per game, but he does not posses the skill set to set him apart from any other Wildcat player. Use the voting buttons below to predict the points per game you think Ach will score this year and the comment section to explain your thinking.