Mary Kline Classic Report

[iommi]

Just got back from The Mary Kline Classic. Great event. $31k raised for cancer research.

Tons of Cuse representation. Tyler Lydon and Malachi Richardson were supposed to be there but could not make it. Still, the underclassmen game featured Syracuse commits Franklin Howard and Moustapha Diagne, plus targets Tyus Battle and Jamal Murray. The upperclass game featured Chris McCullough.

Quick hitters: Howard showed no lingering issues with the knee. He played a ton of point guard and was a good distributor and floor general. He deferred a lot and just ran the offense, which was impressive in this setting.

Mous was pretty quiet but showed the ability to finish with both hands and a useful handle.

The clear star of the game was Derrick Jones, who was a human highlight film and poured in 31. The kid is going to be a star and if there winds up being room in the inn, we should welcome him with open arms.

Battle is a star and remains a must get. Enough said.

Murray is going to be a great player. He is very quick and has a great deep shot. A little flashy for my taste but he can back it up.

McCullough is every bit of 6'9". He didn't do much offensively but did drain a corner three and had a few blocks. It was your typical all star game. Big guys don't get much of a chance to shine. I left during halftime of the upperclassmen game.

Nick Resavy was there. He wound up standing right next to me. He said hi and confirmed that Diagne had committed moments before on twitter. Super nice guy. I told him he should take a few shots from the back of the gym. Later in the night, he came up to me and said , "be good." Great guy.

I then was standing right next to Frankie Howard, so I said hi and thanked him for choosing Syracuse. He was also very nice and was super pumped to start playing for SU. I asked him how his knee was and he said it's all good.

Nerlens Noel showed up and was treated like a rock star by everyone there. The dude stands out in the crowd. He was very good with people who asked for a picture or autograph. He seemed to be walking fine and didn't limp on his surgically repaired knee.

Other sightings included Mike Waters and Adam Zagoria.

I'm burying the headline. I spotted our very own tee right away and sat with him and watched the first game. Tee is good people.

Anyway, great event for a great cause. Alex Kline gave a great speech and does an amazing job putting it together.

Edit: I was repping a bright orange Syracuse shirt. Also, Seton Hall must've had about 50 fans all sitting together and rooting on their 4 incoming star players who played. Whitehead is very good but all their players looked like they will help The Hall right away.

 

[Francis03]

Just got back from The Mary Kline Classic. Great event. $31k raised for cancer research.

Tons of Cuse representation. Tyler Lydon and Machali Richardson were supposed to be there but could not make it. Still, the underclassmen game featured Syracuse commits Franklin Howard and Moustapha Diagne, plus targets Tyus Battle and Jamal Murray. The upperclass game featured Chris McCullough.

Quick hitters: Howard showed no lingering issues with the knee. He played a ton of point guard and was a good distributor and floor general. He deferred a lot and just ran the offense, which was impressive in this setting.

Mous was pretty quiet but showed the ability to finish with both hands and a useful handle.

The clear star of the game was Derrick Jones, who was a human highlight film and poured in 31. The kid is going to be a star and if there winds up being room in the inn, we should welcome him with open arms.

Battle is a star and remains a must get. Enough said.

Murray is going to be a great player. He is very quick and has a great deep shot. A little flashy for my taste but he can back it up.

McCullough is every bit of 6'9". He didn't do much offensively but did drain a corner three and had a few blocks. It was your typical all star game. Big guys don't get much of a chance to shine. I left during halftime of the upperclassmen game.

Nick Resavy was there. He wound up standing right next to me. He said hi and confirmed that Diagne had committed moments before on twitter. Super nice guy. I told him he should take a few shots from the back of the gym. Later in the night, he came up to me and said , "be good." Great guy.

I then was standing right next to Frankie Howard, so I said hi and thanked him for choosing Syracuse. He was also very nice and was super pumped to start playing for SU. I asked him how his knee was and he said it's all good.

Nerlens Noel showed up and was treated like a rock star by everyone there. The dude stands out in the crowd. He was very good with people who asked for a picture or autograph. He seemed to be walking fine and didn't limp on his surgically repaired knee.

Other sightings included Mike Waters and Adam Zagoria.

I'm burying the headline. I spotted our very own tee right away and sat with him and watched the first game. Tee is good people.

Anyway, great event for a great cause. Alex Kline gave a great speech and does an amazing job putting it together.

Great stuff and thanks for the report.

 

[tee1222]

31K is very well done. Much thanks as always iommi, and it was great hanging out. Excellent writeup.

 

[iommi]

31K is very well done. Much thanks as always iommi, and it was great hanging out. Excellent writeup.

Thanks, always great to see you.

 

[tee1222]

One more sighting.
They used Dakari Johnson as a prop in the dunk contest. Speaking of which, good contest. Abu had a thunderous jam, Derrick Jones dunked over two people, and listed 6'2, 5'11 in sneakers I'd say, Unique McLean won it over Jones. Amazing ups and creativity. But Jones dunked over 6'8 and 6'10 players at the same time.

 

[Trueblue25]

I still really want Jones

 

[Flacusian]

I watched both games and the dunk and 3 pt contests via the links which were provided by Francis. Tee answered questions I had via the forum and it was an awesome way to get an injection of college/ Syracuse basketball excitement during the dreary off season.

Iommi, great job with your write up and I have to say getting the scoop on observations made by fellow posters adds a really cool and valuable dimension to it.

As much as I love living in Florida when I see Tee and Iommi hooking up to take the Mary Kline Invitational and being able to get close up impressions on incoming recruits... I'm very envious that you have that opportunity to actively participate in the fellowship associated with being a Big Time Syracuse Basketball fan.

Whenever I get the opportunity to see the team (it's even rarer now that we are in the ACC) I make the effort to go see them here in Florida. It was great when we played Florida two times several years ago and it was always fun to see them crush USF each year they played down here. And for those of you who have never been to an away game in Florida... the Syracuse turnout is off the hook. Generally the Cuse has as many fans if not more than the Florida team and the vocal enthusiasm they exude is nothing short of amazing.

Anyhow... thanks and a tip of the hat to both Iommi and Tee for taking the time to rep the Cuse and provide us with accounts of what you saw. Oh, and if there is any way we can find a spot and land Mr. Jones. OMG! the kid was sensational yesterday.

 

[tee1222]

I watched both games and the dunk and 3 pt contests via the links which were provided by Francis. Tee answered questions I had via the forum and it was an awesome way to get an injection of college/ Syracuse basketball excitement during the dreary off season.

Iommi, great job with your write up and I have to say getting the scoop on observations made by fellow posters adds a really cool and valuable dimension to it.

As much as I love living in Florida when I see Tee and Iommi hooking up to take the Mary Kline Invitational and being able to get close up impressions on incoming recruits... I'm very envious that you have that opportunity to actively participate in the fellowship associated with being a Big Time Syracuse Basketball fan.

Whenever I get the opportunity to see the team (it's even rarer now that we are in the ACC) I make the effort to go see them here in Florida. It was great when we played Florida two times several years ago and it was always fun to see them crush USF each year they played down here. And for those of you who have never been to an away game in Florida... the Syracuse turnout is off the hook. Generally the Cuse has as many fans if not more than the Florida team and the vocal enthusiasm they exude is nothing short of amazing.

Anyhow... thanks and a tip of the hat to both Iommi and Tee for taking the time to rep the Cuse and provide us with accounts of what you saw. Oh, and if there is any way we can find a spot and land Mr. Jones. OMG! the kid was sensational yesterday.

Absolutely my pleasure and much thanks to you. Would love to see an away game down south one of these days. We get down Orlando or Miami way practically every year, so that would add to the treat!

 

[tee1222]

I still really want Jones

I completely understand.
Btw, he made this dunk and iommi and I were literally less than twenty feet away. Blew the roof off the place.

 

[PeteCalvin]

Thanks, always great to see you.

Did you share your fried bat heads with Tee?

 

[iommi]

Did you share your fried bat heads with Tee?

Wait, is this a rhetorical question? I please the 5th...

 

[sutomcat]

Nice info, really appreciate with both of you have provided.

I watched the Howard-Diagne game with Orangeyes. My impressions:

Jones was the best athlete on the court. Also showed a smooth looking jump shot. Scored a bunch of points on cherry picking layups and dunks, as defense was only a rumor at times, so just looking at the points scored, his value might be slightly overvalued, but the kid can play and will be an AA and a pro someday.

Battle was, IMHO, just as impressive. Thought he had a nice jumper, ran the offense better as a PG than anyone, showed strength and body control inside, was one of the rare players who played some defense, and he played really hard. Tough kid, a winner, and I think he is also headed for AA honors and the NBA.

Govan has nice size, played pretty well. Spent more time on the perimeter than I expected, took some outside jumpers, wasn't quite as athletic as some of the other bigs, but Gtown got a good one.

Diallo looked the most active and athletic of all the bigs. Played down low a little more than the others, has a high ceiling. Gonna be very good.

Diagne didn't play down low a whole lot either. Probably because he wouldn't get the ball at all doing that. At some point, he started getting the ball out near the top of the key. When he had a angle to penetrate, he went for it and showed excellent ball handling, agility and body control driving to the basket from near the top of the key. He didn't play as much as some of the other bigs, which hurt his numbers but he has a wealth of athletic ability and is going to play right away for Syracuse. Also, based on his agility and quickness, I think he can play some 4 (should definitely be more agile than Rick Jackson or Rak there).

Was very impressed with Murray, who is another terrific athlete. I don't think he is as developed/refined as Battle, but is already a better shooter. Nice passer, good-not-great ballhandler, will have more TOs than Battle (judgement isn't as good right now). Not nearly as good defensively as Battle right now, but that should improve. He has a really high ceiling and great potential. He would play for us if he were on our team next season.

To me, Battle projects as a one-and-done, while Murray will well ultimately achieve the same results but it will take longer to get to that level. He might need 2 or 3 years to be NBA ready.

 

[AZOrange]

Nice info, really appreciate with both of you have provided. I watched the Howard-Diagne game with Orangeyes. My impressions: Jones was the best athlete on the court. Also showed a smooth looking jump shot. Scored a bunch of points on cherry picking layups and dunks, as defense was only a rumor at times, so just looking at the points scored, his value might be slightly overvalued, but the kid can play and will be an AA and a pro someday. Battle was, IMHO, just as impressive. Thought he had a nice jumper, ran the offense better as a PG than anyone, showed strength and body control inside, was one of the rare players who played some defense, and he played really hard. Tough kid, a winner, and I think he is also headed for AA honors and the NBA. Govan has nice size, played pretty well. Spent more time on the perimeter than I expected, took some outside jumpers, wasn't quite as athletic as some of the other bigs, but Gtown got a good one. Diallo looked the most active and athletic of all the bigs. Played down low a little more than the others, has a high ceiling. Gonna be very good. Diagne didn't play down low a whole lot either. Probably because he wouldn't get the ball at all doing that. At some point, he started getting the ball out near the top of the key. When he had a angle to penetrate, he went for it and showed excellent ball handling, agility and body control driving to the basket from near the top of the key. He didn't play as much as some of the other bigs, which hurt his numbers but he has a wealth of athletic ability and is going to play right away for Syracuse. Also, based on his agility and quickness, I think he can play some 4 (should definitely be more agile than Rick Jackson or Rak there). Was very impressed with Murray, who is another terrific athlete. I don't think he is as developed/refined as Battle, but is already a better shooter. Nice passer, good-not-great ballhandler, will have more TOs than Battle (judgement isn't as good right now). Not nearly as good defensively as Battle right now, but that should improve. He has a really high ceiling and great potential. He would play for us if he were on our team next season. To me, Battle projects as a one-and-done, while Murray will well ultimately achieve the same results but it will take longer to get to that level. He might need 2 or 3 years to be NBA ready.

Good stuff here guys. Thanks to all. I do agree, moose seems to project as a 4 that can play some 5.

 

[jr4750]

Nice info, really appreciate with both of you have provided.

I watched the Howard-Diagne game with Orangeyes. My impressions:

Jones was the best athlete on the court. Also showed a smooth looking jump shot. Scored a bunch of points on cherry picking layups and dunks, as defense was only a rumor at times, so just looking at the points scored, his value might be slightly overvalued, but the kid can play and will be an AA and a pro someday.

Battle was, IMHO, just as impressive. Thought he had a nice jumper, ran the offense better as a PG than anyone, showed strength and body control inside, was one of the rare players who played some defense, and he played really hard. Tough kid, a winner, and I think he is also headed for AA honors and the NBA.

Govan has nice size, played pretty well. Spent more time on the perimeter than I expected, took some outside jumpers, wasn't quite as athletic as some of the other bigs, but Gtown got a good one.

Diallo looked the most active and athletic of all the bigs. Played down low a little more than the others, has a high ceiling. Gonna be very good.

Diagne didn't play down low a whole lot either. Probably because he wouldn't get the ball at all doing that. At some point, he started getting the ball out near the top of the key. When he had a angle to penetrate, he went for it and showed excellent ball handling, agility and body control driving to the basket from near the top of the key. He didn't play as much as some of the other bigs, which hurt his numbers but he has a wealth of athletic ability and is going to play right away for Syracuse. Also, based on his agility and quickness, I think he can play some 4 (should definitely be more agile than Rick Jackson or Rak there).

Was very impressed with Murray, who is another terrific athlete. I don't think he is as developed/refined as Battle, but is already a better shooter. Nice passer, good-not-great ballhandler, will have more TOs than Battle (judgement isn't as good right now). Not nearly as good defensively as Battle right now, but that should improve. He has a really high ceiling and great potential. He would play for us if he were on our team next season.

To me, Battle projects as a one-and-done, while Murray will well ultimately achieve the same results but it will take longer to get to that level. He might need 2 or 3 years to be NBA ready.

Thanks Tom, good stuff. Love for us to get Battle, but something is gonna have to give I think. Just will have too many guards unless someone jumps to NBA, transfers, etc. Or is my math wrong. Battle would be 2016-2017?

 

[Flacusian]

Nice info, really appreciate with both of you have provided.

I watched the Howard-Diagne game with Orangeyes. My impressions:

Jones was the best athlete on the court. Also showed a smooth looking jump shot. Scored a bunch of points on cherry picking layups and dunks, as defense was only a rumor at times, so just looking at the points scored, his value might be slightly overvalued, but the kid can play and will be an AA and a pro someday.

Battle was, IMHO, just as impressive. Thought he had a nice jumper, ran the offense better as a PG than anyone, showed strength and body control inside, was one of the rare players who played some defense, and he played really hard. Tough kid, a winner, and I think he is also headed for AA honors and the NBA.

Govan has nice size, played pretty well. Spent more time on the perimeter than I expected, took some outside jumpers, wasn't quite as athletic as some of the other bigs, but Gtown got a good one.

Diallo looked the most active and athletic of all the bigs. Played down low a little more than the others, has a high ceiling. Gonna be very good.

Diagne didn't play down low a whole lot either. Probably because he wouldn't get the ball at all doing that. At some point, he started getting the ball out near the top of the key. When he had a angle to penetrate, he went for it and showed excellent ball handling, agility and body control driving to the basket from near the top of the key. He didn't play as much as some of the other bigs, which hurt his numbers but he has a wealth of athletic ability and is going to play right away for Syracuse. Also, based on his agility and quickness, I think he can play some 4 (should definitely be more agile than Rick Jackson or Rak there).

Was very impressed with Murray, who is another terrific athlete. I don't think he is as developed/refined as Battle, but is already a better shooter. Nice passer, good-not-great ballhandler, will have more TOs than Battle (judgement isn't as good right now). Not nearly as good defensively as Battle right now, but that should improve. He has a really high ceiling and great potential. He would play for us if he were on our team next season.

To me, Battle projects as a one-and-done, while Murray will well ultimately achieve the same results but it will take longer to get to that level. He might need 2 or 3 years to be NBA ready.

Excellent and insightful analysis! Thanks, it is much appreciated.

 

[Francis03]

Thanks Tom, good stuff. Love for us to get Battle, but something is gonna have to give I think. Just will have too many guards unless someone jumps to NBA, transfers, etc. Or is my math wrong. Battle would be 2016-2017?

That would be correct.

 

[jr4750]

That would be correct.

Thanks Francis03 Do you like our chances here? Saw Duke is starting to come on strong and he's heading down there soon, end of June for their alumni weekend or something like that. That will probably be a show!

Also, I know this is probably on your blog, and I am heading their now, but do you give you take on what Diagne's ceiling is at cuse anywhere... Love to see your review of his game. Thanks!

 

[Francis03]

Thanks Francis03 Do you like our chances here? Saw Duke is starting to come on strong and he's heading down there soon, end of June for their alumni weekend or something like that. That will probably be a show!

Also, I know this is probably on your blog, and I am heading their now, but do you give you take on what Diagne's ceiling is at cuse anywhere... Love to see your review of his game. Thanks!

Earlier in the year and especially after the Duke game I loved our chances with Battle, but now not so much and I think the best bet is to offer Murray and close on him then see how things will shake out with Battle later on.

http://cusebballrecruiting.blogspot.com/2014/04/scouting-reports-on-cuse-commits-and.html
You can peep scouting reports that I did Diagne and other recruits in the link above. I'll just paste Diagne's report below.

Moustapha Diagne
Vs Blair Academy

Even though his team got spanked in the 2nd half, King Moustapha was a beast in this one scoring half of the team total points. I had him charted for 27pts, 12rbs, 2blks, 2to, 3-6 ft.

He went up against another big man that’s committed to Saint Louis for next year and flat out abused this kid in the low post. He knocked down plenty of hook shots with both hands and his footwork and spacing in the post was superb. It’s amazing to see such polish down low with somebody who has been barely playing ball for 2 years now. Defensively he held his ground and made it tough for the SLU commit to do anything on offense.

If the shot wasn’t blocked then it was altered by his length. It got so bad for the kid in the 1st half that at the end of it he almost got into a fight with Diagne, in which I’m sure that wouldn’t have ended well for him also. On the negative as some have mentioned, he does have a bad tendency at times to not hustle his butt up the court when he’s trailing a play where the numbers are at a disadvantage. It cost his team a few times because Blair was able to finish with a few put backs, where if he had hustled he could’ve either grabbed the board or get into position to block/alter the shot. That’s a big difference from what you see from Bryant, Diallo, and Silva. Those three are always in full go mode on both ends and take no plays off.

On the flip-side, none come even close to the post skills that Diagne have. It’s a big plus with the shooters that we’ll have loaded up when he steps on campus such as Cooney, Malachi, BJ, and Lydon. Where he’ll command plenty of double teams inside and the shooters will consistently be wide open for shots. I really liked his performance in this one and think his skill set will be huge to go along with the current and future players that we’re bringing in.

 

[HoustonCuse]

Francis just throwing it down! Thanks for the summary. Now I'm excited about the big fella.

 

[gmacfor3]

Love the reports by those who were at the MKC and by Francis and others who have seen these players play live (their youtube mixtapes are fun to watch but tell you nothing about the player). Keep em coming...Cuse bball season cant come soon enough!

 

[AZOrange]

Earlier in the year and especially after the Duke game I loved our chances with Battle, but now not so much and I think the best bet is to offer Murray and close on him then see how things will shake out with Battle later on.

http://cusebballrecruiting.blogspot.com/2014/04/scouting-reports-on-cuse-commits-and.html
You can peep scouting reports that I did Diagne and other recruits in the link above. I'll just paste Diagne's report below.

Moustapha Diagne
Vs Blair Academy

Even though his team got spanked in the 2nd half, King Moustapha was a beast in this one scoring half of the team total points. I had him charted for 27pts, 12rbs, 2blks, 2to, 3-6 ft.

He went up against another big man that’s committed to Saint Louis for next year and flat out abused this kid in the low post. He knocked down plenty of hook shots with both hands and his footwork and spacing in the post was superb. It’s amazing to see such polish down low with somebody who has been barely playing ball for 2 years now. Defensively he held his ground and made it tough for the SLU commit to do anything on offense.

If the shot wasn’t blocked then it was altered by his length. It got so bad for the kid in the 1st half that at the end of it he almost got into a fight with Diagne, in which I’m sure that wouldn’t have ended well for him also. On the negative as some have mentioned, he does have a bad tendency at times to not hustle his butt up the court when he’s trailing a play where the numbers are at a disadvantage. It cost his team a few times because Blair was able to finish with a few put backs, where if he had hustled he could’ve either grabbed the board or get into position to block/alter the shot. That’s a big difference from what you see from Bryant, Diallo, and Silva. Those three are always in full go mode on both ends and take no plays off.

On the flip-side, none come even close to the post skills that Diagne have. It’s a big plus with the shooters that we’ll have loaded up when he steps on campus such as Cooney, Malachi, BJ, and Lydon. Where he’ll command plenty of double teams inside and the shooters will consistently be wide open for shots. I really liked his performance in this one and think his skill set will be huge to go along with the current and future players that we’re bringing in.

God I love you...

 

[tee1222]

iommi this post's for you, "cha ching" that guy, lol
Jones, Abu and Unique were the best in my opinion.

 

[tee1222]

Notice how close takeoff is from the foul line. Jones is just nuts. And that was probably his third best dunk of the night.

 

[Francis03]

God I love you...

This kind of love? Jonny's face always crack me up lol.

 

[AZOrange]

View attachment 14277
This kind of love? Jonny's face always crack me up lol.

Who's in devos butt crack? Looks like rautins!