Jai Lucas to be a Gator

[Teton Jack]

Here's the link:

www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/sports/4802080.html

Let's see how strong his coattails are. Sorry, but you'll have to paste it in.

[phaedrus]

i don't get it. don't they already have a pg coming in who's even better (I forget his name)? Is one of them planning to move to off-guard?

[DukeBlood]

i don't get it. don't they already have a pg coming in who's even better (I forget his name)? Is one of them planning to move to off-guard?

You must be thinking of Nick Calathes. I heard he is more of a combo guard then a point guard.. But a pretty good Point guard too! So He could easily be moved to SG while Lucas is the PG. I heard Nick is like 6'5?

[Lord Ash]

Hm, I would take this as bad news re: Patrick. I would have rathered he pick a school that PP was not interested in.

[Bob Green]

I'm confident that Patrick will make his decision based on what is best for Patrick. I'm still not buying into the Lucas/Patterson package deal. PP may well announce for Florida but it will not be because of Jai Lucas. We should know in 48 hours.

Bob Green
Yokosuka, Japan

[Lord Ash]

Absolutely; maybe I should have said simply it would have been better news if Lucas had declared for a school that Patrick had no interest in.

[ScreechTDX]

Patrick Patterson (Huntington, WV): Doug, I have to pick a school by Wednesday. Which one should I pick?

Doug Gottlieb: (4:24 PM ET ) Duke.
They have a ton of young talent, it is the best education you can get and they need a big time athlete to put them over the top.
They will still lack athleticism in the backcourt, but Duke is the best spot.

[SilkyJ]

You must be thinking of Nick Calathes. I heard he is more of a combo guard then a point guard.. But a pretty good Point guard too! So He could easily be moved to SG while Lucas is the PG. I heard Nick is like 6'5?

Yea 6'5" or 6'6" and he is definitely a combo guard. He's a good passer, but does his scoring off of jump shots, and 3's primarily, so he could definitely play at the 2 guard. Very similar build to Scheyer, and not very atheltic like Scheyer, but a good passer/shooter and solid all around scorer.

Jai can penetrate better than Nick and is quicker, but other than that I think Calathes is a better college player. I don't think he's athletic enough for the pros, however, and doesn't have a sweet enough jumper yet to get looks from the L either. Jai fits the pro mold of say a TJ ford, but isn't as talented at this point.

[adam]

Patrick Patterson (Huntington, WV): Doug, I have to pick a school by Wednesday. Which one should I pick?

Doug Gottlieb: (4:24 PM ET ) Duke.
They have a ton of young talent, it is the best education you can get and they need a big time athlete to put them over the top.
They will still lack athleticism in the backcourt, but Duke is the best spot.

Gottlieb actually said something positive about Duke? I don't believe it. If so, it would be the first time ever. Haha. :)

GO DUKE!!!

[Wander]

I'm confident that Patrick will make his decision based on what is best for Patrick. I'm still not buying into the Lucas/Patterson package deal. PP may well announce for Florida but it will not be because of Jai Lucas.

How exactly do you know this?

[kydevil]

You must be thinking of Nick Calathes. I heard he is more of a combo guard then a point guard.. But a pretty good Point guard too! So He could easily be moved to SG while Lucas is the PG. I heard Nick is like 6'5?

Yea he's around 6'5, I saw him at an Orlando Magic game where his team was being honored for winning the state championship,I talked to him for a minute and he was definitely a good 6'5!
Calathes is a solid combo guard, but is definitely not a true pg. When i watched him play in the Mc'd AA game he had absolutely amazing instincts, his passes were crisp. His jumper isn't as great as you would expect, but he has incredible basketball iq!

[Bob Green]

How exactly do you know this?

Wander,

It is just my opinion. I'm not claiming to "know" anything.

Bob Green
Yokosuka, Japan

[ACCBBallFan]

Calathes is a solid combo guard, but is definitely not a true pg. When i watched him play in the Mc'd AA game he had absolutely amazing instincts, his passes were crisp. His jumper isn't as great as you would expect, but he has incredible basketball iq!

I thought the main knock on Nick Calathes was that like Paulus he often tries the pass that has to be perfect to succeed, and is therfore turnover prone. He seems capable of playing either guard spot.

Since Walter Hodge is listed at 6' even which is usually a stretch, chances are Jai's competition is Hodge with Nick at the SG, rather than two short guards starting.

UF has a strong recruiting class with or without Patterson but after losing everybody, Gators will follow the UCONN model and take at least a year to gel. Hopefully Billy D was not so intent to restock the cupboard that he resorts to pulling scholarships the next year (assuming Billy D is still there 16 months from now) like Calhoun did.

I am not sure the UF recruits are any stronger than Thabeet and the gang UCONN brought in last year, since Calhoun has a knack of finding talent regardless of their rankings.

[CMS2478]

Wander,

It is just my opinion. I'm not claiming to "know" anything.

Bob Green
Yokosuka, Japan

I agree that Patrick will decide or has already decided what's best for him, the only thing that worries me is that Lucas wasn't even really considering UF nor were they really considering him until this whole "package deal" came along. I don't think Patterson is going to follow Lucas to Florida, I think Patterson had already picked Florida and Lucas followed him. Just because he announced first, doesn't mean he decided first.

[duketaylor]

It's my humble opinion that Duke's a slight lean for PP, just from what I've read and heard lately and from consideration of his parents background (military). Fingers are crossed.

[ACCBBallFan]

The so-called package deal helped Jai Lucas ride the potential of Patrick Patterson's into a scholarship with UF. Former UF PG Green signing with an agent was equally important.

If Patterson has announced first, It would almost certainly have been a package deal. However, now that his buddy Jai has been given his entree to UF, Patterson is well positioned to decide what he and his family think is best for Patrick short term and long term.

Playing on same team as Jai Lucas is a consideration, but I would bet when the Pattersons make thier list of pros and cons, Jai Lucas is nowhere near the top, and would only come into play as a third tie breaker.