I'm not upset if Parker came to Duke or not but if I were a parent my child would not attend UCLA under Howland. How in the world does he get this great class after stinking up the joint for the last few years and after the scathing SI report.
Good point. It is not a stretch that Adidas led to the Shabazz decision, and Airowe tweeted that the timing of the Pump Brothers being dropped from Adidas seems odd. Sad if true, but that is life in recruiting these days. Had it not been for the Adidas angle, Shabazz might very well have been a Blue Devil.
Everyone is entitled to their own opinions, but people close to the Duke program believe he was very interested in Duke and could have easily gone there. It wasn't a case of just keeping Duke on the list for show. It's a moot point now, but the recruitment plays out differently without the Adidas connections.
If this proves to be true, I guess he'll be Josh Smith's back-up. He might even be after the WhoWhatWhenWhy and Wear twins in the rotation.
Heck, he might be in the best position of any of the Bruins' players though if LDII has not improved his passing touch any since his glorious unc playing days,
[redacted] them and the horses they rode in on.
If we don't get Tony, let's definitely get Amile! I know it is easier said than done...
You've said something to this effect before. I bit my tongue then, but can't do it again. You don't think they'd we'd need them within the next 3-4 years? Or even next year if Kelly/Mason suffers an injury during the season (as Kelly did this year)? Save the scholarship for what? For a top 25 caliber inside player from the class of 2013 that will likely stay 3-4 years? That's what these guys are. And in an earlier post you said you'd like to see NC State beat us out for Jefferson. Why would you want a conference foe to improve at our expense? I just don't agree.
With Mason coming back, we don't have quite the desperation we might have otherwise, but I'd much rather have one or both of these guys than not, particularly for the 2013-14 team.
"I don't like them when they are eating my azaleas or rhododendrons or pansies." - Coach K
I would completely agree. There aren't a ton of game changers in the post for 2013 and we aren't involved early with any, granted Duke usually gets involved late. So we can get a guy in our system to get used to our style since K likes to have freshmen grow or hope we can get Randle over every other team in the country. And while Randle is a top prospect, he seems more like an Amile type than a banger so we'd still be thin at C.
that "scathing" report was scathing to everyone except the players and people who've been around many practices,,,,like your own jay bilas. an overblown article by a writer who was looking for something and found nothing but exaggerated melodrama puffed up by the media...oops, this WAS a media story. bad years brought about by bad recruiting didn't change the coaching,,,ask any nba scout about the ucla players going through the combines.
really, the answer was there all the time. bazz's choice was a dismissal of all that is ky/duke,,,all the wins, the championship, the run and gun, the media coverage, the acc, the prime time, cal and k, the rabid fan base,,,,and all the misery that has befallen ben the past 2 or 3 years. have i missed anything? in the end it was all the obvious things like close to home, like folks near la, like bazz going to ben's camp for YEARS, like knowing he had to shore up his D, like bazz and holmes being tight with howland, like convincing kyle to join him at ucla...you know, all that unimportant stuff. believe it's all about adidas if you want,,,,go right ahead if you refuse to comprehend why anyone would want to play in westwood if it makes you feel better, but those who know - like those close to the area have known, this was an inevitability all along. it was building way before duke or ky WAS ALLOWED into the recruiting picture by holmes.
Last edited by miltk; 04-15-2012 at 05:14 AM.
LINK:http://aol.sportingnews.com/ncaa-bas...d-classic-2012
Supposedly down to 5 schools with Memphis and Kentucky being removed. So now its Georgia, UCLA, Duke, Kansas, and OSU.
I think your impressions of Randle is inaccurate. He's 30 pounds heavier than Jefferson already, and he's noted to be extremely strong and aggressive on the post. He's very much an interior player whose weaknesses are perimeter/mid-range game. Jefferson is more a perimeter-oriented slasher whose weaknesses are strength and post-up game. They appear to be very different players, and Randle appears to be much more of the post player you're looking for.
Last night at the JBC Paul Biancardi / Dave Telep said it was looking like he'd be deciding between Duke, UCLA and Georgia. And that he'd be announcing this coming Friday.
I tend to agree, it'd be great to bring in a big this year, let him develop, then have him ready to contribute in 2013-2014. Big men typically require a year or so to develop, and ideally you'd have someone just BELOW the one-and-done level who could stick around for 3-4 years. From what I can gather, jefferson and parker seem to fit the bill. Also, saving a scholarship seems like a silly reason to pass on a guy when we'll have four seniors graduating after this season.