Speculation is somewhat pointless right now. You wont hear much more until the fall.
Ozzie, your paradigm of optimism!
Go To Hell carolina, Go To Hell!
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Is Josh Smith the 6foot 9 center out of Washington scheduled for a visit soon? Watzone any word on this kid?
Does that national championship thing only count for team sports? Or for individual sports too?
So glad to welcome you to the best BB family on the planet! You've made the best decision of your life! We can't to embrace you into Cameron and beyond.
saw headline on Rivals.... Duke going hard after 2010 Center, Josh Smith. Does anybody know if the interest is mutual at this point. JS is listed at 6-9, 265... that is incredible size for a sophomore in high school. With the little I know, it appears 2010 is shaping up to be a very talented and highly rated class.
With all due respect, they are evaluating him for sure. I think "hard" was the authors term. Unless of course one might consider that they are going after six or seven guys hard in the class of 2010 with just one standing out for sure having an offer in hand. The picture will become clearer in the next two weeks with K, CC and Wojo out on the road all this week. K's taking in the Reebok event today.
Smith is indeed a paint eater and could rise to the top.
So Watzone do you see an offer coming for Josh Smith anytime soon?
I don't feel comfortable answering that question in a public forum. Duke has offered Hairston and has Dawkins in the fold. Smith is one of six, maybe seven 2010 guys being seriously considered. I do expect a new offer in the coming week but must refer back to my first sentence with concerns to who it will likely be.
Rivals has an article posted, which contains this quote on Josh Smith:
Josh Smith simply had a block party during his two games with Seattle Rotary Select. Easily in double figures for blocks over the course of the two games, Smith was quick off his feet to go along with impeccable timing. Best of all is that he corrals most of his blocks in his big time hands.
And in Kevin Love fashion, Smith hooked up a number of streaking guards with length of the court outlet passes. Whereas Love typically utilizes a monster chest pass, Smith's specialty is a one handed baseball pass.
Read the whole article here. Jody Demling has a picture and some impressive words about Smith on his blog. Scroll down to the second article.
Last edited by Bob Green; 07-08-2008 at 06:31 AM. Reason: Add second link
Bob Green
Actually, I suspect he'll be a stud in the h.s. class of 2009.
Thank you all for reading the Ryan Kelly article early. My school out of Charlotte plays both Christ School (Mason Plumlee) and Ravenscroft (Ryan Kelly) in basketball each year. Let's go a year ahead and talk about the 2010 class. We already have one commitment (Andre Dawkins) under our belt but what about the other five recruits Brandon Knight (PG), Harrison Barnes (SF), Josh Smith (C), Joshua Hairston (PF) and Tyler Thornton (PG). Starting out with Brandon Knight, Duke will land him if only if Kenny Boynton commits to Duke but his two leaders are Florida and UConn. Next, Harrison Barnes is a emerging prospect who is one of the best in the country for his position. His leaders are Duke, Iowa State, and Kansas. Josh Smith, the huge center from Seattle favorite is UCLA then Duke. If UCLA gets Jeremy Tyler then he will be a Dukie Probably Next is Joshua Hairston. Joshua is a very talented forward from Virginia and is very good friends with Andre Dawkins and sources say he will commit to Duke in last August hopefully! And last but not least is Tyler Thornton. Tyler was surprised by the Blue Devils offer but he is very skilled. Tyler just got offered six more offers yesterday. Again, what are you opinions on where these players will go!
I think that Brandon likes Duke as a school and would consider us no matter the circumstances, but adding Kenny for 2009 would definitely sweeten the deal. I also think that his interest has wained on Connecticut, but I have no insider info and am just following my instinct.
Harrison would be perfect for the Duke system. It will be difficult getting him away from the midwest, but he is open to playing far from home. It will be difficult to pry him away from Iowa State as his mother works there and it is a comfortable, stable enviroment for him. But he is also very concerned about getting a great education and Duke would fit the bill in that regard. I think he would rather play for a National Title contender than be the man, and Duke and Kansas are much closer to the first option than Iowa State is. This could also play a role in his decision.
As you said, Josh S. is a huge UCLA fan and at this point, I think that LA is where he will end up. I don't think that Howland is stupid enough to mess too much with Tyler when he already has a great player like Josh almost in the bag. If UCLA does make a push for Tyler though, Josh and his parents like Duke and would certainly consider playing for the Blue Devils. But as I said before, I think he will ulitmately choose UCLA.
Josh H. on the other hand, I feel is our's to lose. His final five are Duke, Georgetown, Ohio State, Virginia, and Virginia Tech. Of those five, Ohio State is our main competition, but as Josh wants his parents to be able to watch his games, Ohio State is probably out as it is too far away. I think that Virginia and VT are only on the list as the courtesy "state" bump. Georgetown is the dark horse in the race in my opinion as he is very comfortable with what the team has to offer. But they have been bringing in a lot of good forwards and there could be a traffic jam at the position for the Hoyas. This might affect Josh's decision. But I truly feel, especially with his friendship with Andre that Josh will end up a Blue Devil.
Tyler is a great prospect, and I feel that he is our's to lose. He loves Duke and what the program has to offer. If Josh H. chooses Duke, I think our chances double. He is a teammate and good friend of Josh's. Tyler is perfect for the Duke system. I truly hope he becomes a Blue Devil. I think that his commitment is even more important than Brandon's at this point as Tyler would be our point for three to four years as opposed to just one to two.
None of this is insider info. It is mostly my personal opinions on each situation with a few facts (such as teammates) thrown in.
With regards to KB and BK playing together: they have both said repeatedly that it would be cool, but not a determining factor.
I think I remember reading somewhere that Barnes wanted to go to a school where he would be in the national spotlight. Bodes well for Duke.
Josh Smith is a long shot, but you can be sure we have a backup plan (Lubick?).
Tyler likes Duke, but won't decide for a year or so.
Rumor is Hairston will commit any day now. But that's been the rumor for about a month, so take it for what it's worth. Probably a Duke lean though.
If we did pull of a miracle and land all six of these guys that would be the best recruiting class since....JWil's year?...Battier's year?....ever?