RF2044
Living Legend
- Joined
- Aug 15, 2011
- Messages
- 31,410
- Like
- 103,793
Had the opportunity to watch the DeMatha / Gonzaga game tonight. First time I've gotten to watch Grant play. Also was curious to see BJ Anya play, given how heavily involved with him we seem to be.
Normally, you'd expect a game between teams of this magnitude [perennial powerhouse programs in the DC area] to be fairly close. And given that both teams had several D1 commits [and future prospects], that would have been a reasonable assumption. But Grant's DeMatha squad jumped all over the competition in the 2nd quarter and never looked back.
The game itself was marred by a [fairly minor] incident between two of the guards on the team, and the one from Gonzaga--a Pitt commit, shocking--got tossed for fighting. He'll fit right in at Pitt.
Onto the players we're recruiting...
Grant looked pretty good. He skill set is a bit of a tweener forward, but he showed a lot of potential. Physique wise, he is slender [surprise, surprise--he's Harvey Grant's kid], but he wasn't as skinny / scrawny as what I expected. Don't get me wrong--he's a prototypical, lithe SU forward, but he had better arm definition than what I expected. He also has broader shoulders than a Hakim / Damone, which is usually an indicator of growth potential. Also important to keep in mind that he's still a high school kid, so I don't expect him to be physically mature.
Kid runs like a deer and jumps well. Showed some solid defensive apptitude, which doesn't surprise me at all, as it's important to keep in mind that he's a professional basketball player's son, and has probably benefited from advanced coaching his whole life. But it was more high school level defense--as in he understood when to challenge, how to position himself with arms straight up so as not to draw fouls, etc. But he moved his feet well and can obviously cover ground.
Offensively, he has combo forward skills. Handled the ball a lot on the perimeter--but again, this is at the high school level. Seemed comfortable, but it is hard to gauge how it will translate to the next level. Had one play where he got his man isolated, dribbled well to go from facing up outside the three point line to driving into the paint for a score. Had a nice dunk on a fast break, too. Overall, I'd say that he looks like a pretty good prospect.
Anya was big and strong. But he was a lot lighter than what I expected. The announcers mentioned several times that he'd lost 40 pounds since last year, and that was evident in the fact that while he was a beefy, brawny kid, he didn't have a big stomach or any other signs of being obese. He didn't run great--spent a lot of the game going half-speed. But in the 2nd and 3rd quarters, he was pretty much unstoppable despite going against a big kid on the other team. His lateral mobility didn't seem great--but it was hard to tell, because as mentioned before he seemed a bit gassed most of the second half. Seems very similar to DaJuan Coleman, definitely in the same mold, but overall I'd say a little smaller [6-8, tops]. Would be a solid consolation prize if we lose out on Noel this year, but he is definitely more of an Otis Hill type than the prototypical athletic shotblocker we're used to seeing. Best case scenario: we roll Uconn this weekend, impress Noel and ultimately land him, and then land Anya the following year.
Overall, I'd say that we got a player who'll fit right in with Grant, and that Anya is probably a decent recruit who would be a good prospect in the class of 2013. But I qualify the above by pointing out that it was only one game--tough to draw any definitive conclusions from any one game.
LGO!!!
Normally, you'd expect a game between teams of this magnitude [perennial powerhouse programs in the DC area] to be fairly close. And given that both teams had several D1 commits [and future prospects], that would have been a reasonable assumption. But Grant's DeMatha squad jumped all over the competition in the 2nd quarter and never looked back.
The game itself was marred by a [fairly minor] incident between two of the guards on the team, and the one from Gonzaga--a Pitt commit, shocking--got tossed for fighting. He'll fit right in at Pitt.
Onto the players we're recruiting...
Grant looked pretty good. He skill set is a bit of a tweener forward, but he showed a lot of potential. Physique wise, he is slender [surprise, surprise--he's Harvey Grant's kid], but he wasn't as skinny / scrawny as what I expected. Don't get me wrong--he's a prototypical, lithe SU forward, but he had better arm definition than what I expected. He also has broader shoulders than a Hakim / Damone, which is usually an indicator of growth potential. Also important to keep in mind that he's still a high school kid, so I don't expect him to be physically mature.
Kid runs like a deer and jumps well. Showed some solid defensive apptitude, which doesn't surprise me at all, as it's important to keep in mind that he's a professional basketball player's son, and has probably benefited from advanced coaching his whole life. But it was more high school level defense--as in he understood when to challenge, how to position himself with arms straight up so as not to draw fouls, etc. But he moved his feet well and can obviously cover ground.
Offensively, he has combo forward skills. Handled the ball a lot on the perimeter--but again, this is at the high school level. Seemed comfortable, but it is hard to gauge how it will translate to the next level. Had one play where he got his man isolated, dribbled well to go from facing up outside the three point line to driving into the paint for a score. Had a nice dunk on a fast break, too. Overall, I'd say that he looks like a pretty good prospect.
Anya was big and strong. But he was a lot lighter than what I expected. The announcers mentioned several times that he'd lost 40 pounds since last year, and that was evident in the fact that while he was a beefy, brawny kid, he didn't have a big stomach or any other signs of being obese. He didn't run great--spent a lot of the game going half-speed. But in the 2nd and 3rd quarters, he was pretty much unstoppable despite going against a big kid on the other team. His lateral mobility didn't seem great--but it was hard to tell, because as mentioned before he seemed a bit gassed most of the second half. Seems very similar to DaJuan Coleman, definitely in the same mold, but overall I'd say a little smaller [6-8, tops]. Would be a solid consolation prize if we lose out on Noel this year, but he is definitely more of an Otis Hill type than the prototypical athletic shotblocker we're used to seeing. Best case scenario: we roll Uconn this weekend, impress Noel and ultimately land him, and then land Anya the following year.
Overall, I'd say that we got a player who'll fit right in with Grant, and that Anya is probably a decent recruit who would be a good prospect in the class of 2013. But I qualify the above by pointing out that it was only one game--tough to draw any definitive conclusions from any one game.
LGO!!!
And I agree with section 314 - Grant is definitely closer to 6'8 than 6'5 imho. Isn't he listed at 6'7 - seems about right. Although I'll give Orangeyes the benefit of the doubt as well. Can't wait until he's in a Syracuse uniform whatever his height is! Will likely not see playing time until his sophomore year. Would be great if we could redshirt him like we did Cooney this year. Although, that has not been the JB way for the majority of his career. Guess we'll see what happens.
