2012 Basketball Recruiting Thread

[dchen09]

This class also seems to have really good parity so the difference between 70 and 25 in this class isn't as great as it would be in other classes. Also, the overall class strength is also lower than others, ie 2013.

Some more interesting rankings:
Jarnell Stokes at 16: Scout has him interested in us (though haven't heard anything on this board about him). He has the same body type as Parker and seems to be a better low post scorer.
Perry Ellis at 38: He honestly seems like a better stretch 4 than Poythress as he actually likes to rebound. He doesn't have the handle that Poythress has on the perimeter but can spot up at the 3pt line. Since we have a log jam of ball handlers, I see him being a better fit honestly.
LJ Rose at 75: I remember when he was a top 10 player in the class and was leaning towards UNC. Oh how things have changed. All the schools he's interested in (UNC, UCLA, Texas) have recruited other PGs over him.

[superdave]

The new ESPN Class of 2012 rankings are out:

http://espn.go.com/mens-college-bask...iting/rankings

There's also a Shaq and a Shaquille on this list. Considering these kids were born after Shaq's NBA debut (1992 draft), you'd have to think there's a direct link. Pretty cool. I wonder if there will be any Dwyanes, LeBrons or Kobes playing high school ball in a few years.

[gumbomoop]

Oh how things have changed.

This should be points 1-10 on any recruiting thread relating to anything other than the immediately upcoming class. Granted that, given the wow-factor, there seems little chance that Randle and Parker will fall precipitously in the 2013 rankings.

Granting, further, that things will change between now and graduation day for the class of 2012, it is fun to chew over updated rankings.

• Kyle Anderson #6 - At some point, Duke "requested" to start recruiting him. Nothing came of it, I guess. Buzz is, he's a very unusual player. Very. Point forward, brilliant passer, etc. No one like him.
• Marcus Smart #12 - Listed as 6"3" 200 SF. Heel target, I think? Maybe a Rashad McWonts clone?
• Alex Poythress #18 - On the Poythress thread, I opined that he just had to be top-10. Guess not, just yet. He's multi/multi, long/long for "only" 6'7", excellent D, inside and out. Not McD-game-HS-senior-Grant Hill-level yet, but he's got 7 more months to hone dribble, court sense, and handsomeness.
• Isaiah Austin #4 - Having seen him in that Orlando AAU thing, I don't see #4, nowhere near. Got pushed around, not smooth O. Is his #4 emblematic of weaknesses of 2012? But then how to square that hypothesis with Poythress down at #18?
• J.P. Tokoto # 66 - Continues drop. Hope it means he won't hurt us in future. Hope it won't confuse Heels, what with PJ, JP, and TJ [TJ squared, if by chance they're recruiting Warren, #24].
• Justin Anderson #62 - Too low, unless his recently-rumored trash-talking has raised questions. Otherwise, Bennett has a future gem, IMO.
• Kellen Dunham #99 - Butler bandwagon rolls on.

[flyingdutchdevil]

[*]Alex Poythress #18 - On the Poythress thread, I opined that he just had to be top-10. Guess not, just yet. He's multi/multi, long/long for "only" 6'7", excellent D, inside and out. Not McD-game-HS-senior-Grant Hill-level yet, but he's got 7 more months to hone dribble, court sense, and handsomeness.[/LIST]

Whoa Whoa WHOA! Lets face it - Poythress may be very good, possibly great, but there is no way he gets to Grant Hill's handsomeness level. That is one good looking man. Tamia is one lucky woman.

[dchen09]

• Kyle Anderson #6 - At some point, Duke "requested" to start recruiting him. Nothing came of it, I guess. Buzz is, he's a very unusual player. Very. Point forward, brilliant passer, etc. No one like him.
  

Kyle Anderson is super unique. He is probably the least athletic player I have seen (At least on youtube) next to Brian Zoubek. He's not particularly quick, and he doesn't have any flashy moves. But he just get things done. He seems to have every trick in the book when it comes to getting space and has unbelievable court vision.

[dukeballboy88]

I watched Kyle A go head to head with Gilchrist and he looked slow and mythodical almost, bringing the ball up the court but he got where he wanted to go and scored at will on Gilchrist. They interviewed Bob Hurley and he said Kyle was the only player he had ever coached that could play all 5 positions. I like his game but I wonder if he would want to play PG at the college level?

[gumbomoop]

Whoa Whoa WHOA! Lets face it - Poythress may be very good, possibly great, but there is no way he gets to Grant Hill's handsomeness level. That is one good looking man. Tamia is one lucky woman.

You're right. I got carried away in my enthusiasm re Poythress.

The entirety of the male world is John C. Reilly/Steve Buscemi compared to GH. My good friends John and Steve, certainly handsome enough, have just PM-ed me that they agree, and will not sue either me or DBR for this post.

[gam7]

There's also a Shaq and a Shaquille on this list. Considering these kids were born after Shaq's NBA debut (1992 draft), you'd have to think there's a direct link. Pretty cool. I wonder if there will be any Dwyanes, LeBrons or Kobes playing high school ball in a few years.

Actually, there is a Shaq and two Shaquilles on the list. Shaq Goodwin (20), Shaquille Cleare (40) and Shaquille Johnson (94).

[FireOgilvie]

Kyle Anderson is super unique. He is probably the least athletic player I have seen (At least on youtube) next to Brian Zoubek. He's not particularly quick, and he doesn't have any flashy moves. But he just get things done. He seems to have every trick in the book when it comes to getting space and has unbelievable court vision.

I watched Kyle A go head to head with Gilchrist and he looked slow and mythodical almost, bringing the ball up the court but he got where he wanted to go and scored at will on Gilchrist. They interviewed Bob Hurley and he said Kyle was the only player he had ever coached that could play all 5 positions. I like his game but I wonder if he would want to play PG at the college level?

On the court, Kyle Anderson reminds me of Magic Johnson... now, at age 51.

[flyingdutchdevil]

This is from a new article on ESPN: http://espn.go.com/college-sports/re...0-superlatives

Coaches love consistency from their players because they can be depended on both mentally and physically. As a result, Coach K is going to love Sulaimon. He has a very dependable approach to his practice habits and game competition, which has produced extremely consistent results. He has the ability to go for 30 points, dish out a handful of assists, set a screen to free up a teammate and defend all three perimeter positions. And his steady play only enhances his value.

Replace "Sulaimon" with "Nolan Smith" and the descriptions are basically identical. I am going to love Rasheed next year.

[norra5]

Andre Drummond just cut Duke from his schools his new top 5 are Uconn, Kentucky, Georgetown, West Virginia, and Louisville.

[Newton_14]

Andre Drummond just cut Duke from his schools his new top 5 are Uconn, Kentucky, Georgetown, West Virginia, and Louisville.

Link?

[Bluedog]

Andre Drummond just cut Duke from his schools his new top 5 are Uconn, Kentucky, Georgetown, West Virginia, and Louisville.

Link?

http://www.zagsblog.com/2011/08/10/d...tches-schools/

Sounds like going pro is a possibility:

As for his future plans, Drummond remains eligible for the 2012 NBA Draft and would likely be among the top few picks should he opt to skip college.
“It’s definitely an option but far from a done deal,” Drummond told ESPN.com.

[FireOgilvie]

I'm not a fan of Drummond at all. I also get the strong impression that his old coach can't stand him.

He sounds perfect for UCONN or Kentucky.

[Starter]

When I saw Drummond back in February, everything I heard at the game seemed to indicate he was a practical lock for Connecticut. I wasn't really that broken up about that; it's not that I wouldn't take him if he expressed strong interest, but he didn't seem like an elite athlete to me. He's obviously big and has nice touch, but nothing to lose sleep over assuming Krzyzewski is able to add one or two elite bigs.

[jennja01]

Looks like Rasheed got selected to play in the elite 24 game that is played outdoors in Cali. Congrats!

[superdave]

Just saw on the twitter that Ellis cut his list down to Kansas, K State, Wichita State and Kentucky. No Duke. The tweet was from Jeff Borzello of CBS.

[roywhite]

Just saw on the twitter that Ellis cut his list down to Kansas, K State, Wichita State and Kentucky. No Duke. The tweet was from Jeff Borzello of CBS.

Alexander Julian relieved to see a competitor go elsewhere?

[NovaScotian]

Just saw on the twitter that Ellis cut his list down to Kansas, K State, Wichita State and Kentucky. No Duke. The tweet was from Jeff Borzello of CBS.

it's ok, i don't think duke was his style anyway. perhaps another school with more jumpsuits.

[licc85]

Hm . . . I guess this means we're kind of all in on Tony Parker? I'm not getting good vibes from McGary, but hopefully he warms up a bit now that Drummond and Ellis are out of the picture. All these great big men in 2012, and we're only involved with 1 or 2 of them now, I'm getting nervous.