Our Recruiting is Ratcheting Higher.......

[newmexicuse]

As I said in the Selector School thread we are able to select from amongst kids ranked 20 - 100.

In three or the last four classes with Coleman, McCullough, and now Malachi we gotten Top 25 kids for the first time since Carmelo. Add Ennis who was close to a Top 25 kid, and we can see that our already strong recruiting has improved incrementally.

While I do not see us being quite up there with Kentucky or Duke, there is no reason why we shouldn't start to snag a Top Tenner at least once every few years. We are in that mix.

Great job to JB for the strategy and to the rest of the staff for the execution in attracting these kids to the Dome.

 

[QManCuse]

I think the recruiting strategy is brilliant. Don't waste your time coddling the one and doners who will likely go to UK anyway. Mix some top 25's with top 50's, one or two top 100's, add a project or two (Keita Obokoh) who will stay four years and be content to come off the bench. Great mix, very strong bench, able to deal with injuries to starters. Everything is good.

 

[HOFCeluck]

I think the recruiting strategy is brilliant. Don't waste your time coddling the one and doners who will likely go to UK anyway. Mix some top 25's with top 50's, one or two top 100's, add a project or two (Keita Obokoh) who will stay four years and be content to come off the bench. Great mix, very strong bench, able to deal with injuries to starters. Everything is good.

Chris McC is going to be one and done...

 

[AWMKY]

As I said in the Selector School thread we are able to select from amongst kids ranked 20 - 100.

In three or the last four classes with Coleman, McCullough, and now Malachi we gotten Top 25 kids for the first time since Carmelo. Add Ennis who was close to a Top 25 kid, and we can see that our already strong recruiting has improved incrementally.

While I do not see us being quite up there with Kentucky or Duke, there is no reason why we shouldn't start to snag a Top Tenner at least once every few years. We are in that mix.

Great job to JB for the strategy and to the rest of the staff for the execution in attracting these kids to the Dome.

Don't forget Ennis in that Top 25 kid pool.

 

[bornagainOrange]

The biggest thing we are getting with our type of recruiting, are the guys who know that with patience and hardwork, they can blow up by their 2nd yr and possibly be lotto picks. Chris Mac maybe an exception next year, but say he doesnt get something his first yr or struggles, he can put his trust in the staff that he can still be that elite guy by his 2nd yr. This is why im loving our strategy of the 15-75 range. Kids who may realize by the end of their HS careers, that they are not 1 and dones. Of course, we recruit especially for our style of play and zone. It truely is the golden age of SU recruiting and on court product! Our style will outlast UKs atyle of recruiting in the long run and why if we can continue this trend, our future will be a top 10 team for yrs.

 

[RF2044]

I think the recruiting strategy is brilliant. Don't waste your time coddling the one and doners who will likely go to UK anyway. Mix some top 25's with top 50's, one or two top 100's, add a project or two (Keita Obokoh) who will stay four years and be content to come off the bench. Great mix, very strong bench, able to deal with injuries to starters. Everything is good.

There's a lot of truth to that. People also need to factor in that we are more of a system recruiting program than schools like UK, KU, Duke, etc.

 

[OttoinGrotto]

There's a lot of truth to that. People also need to factor in that we are more of a system recruiting program than schools like UK, KU, Duke, etc.

Agreed. If you look at who we bring in, regardless of rating they're pretty much the prototype for our style of player. It's to the point where any time I hear that a big guard or a rangy wing is interested in us I just think "Well, of course they are."

 

[Sgt Cuse]

I think the biggest sign of the racheted recruiting is shown by the rank of recruits who are coming into situations where they will have to wait a year.

MCW, Grant, Roberson, and now Malchi, all signed up with the expectation that their minutes would/will be limited in their first year. Top 50 recruits who opted to wait their turn for the big stage as apposed to going elsewhere for immediate starting time (and they all could have gotten it).

We've had big recruits before - Pearl, DC, Owens, even Flynn, Devo, and Harris. But those big time recruits always used to come here with the expectation of immediate playing time.

 

[Dave85]

As I said in the Selector School thread we are able to select from amongst kids ranked 20 - 100.

In three or the last four classes with Coleman, McCullough, and now Malachi we gotten Top 25 kids for the first time since Carmelo. Add Ennis who was close to a Top 25 kid, and we can see that our already strong recruiting has improved incrementally.

While I do not see us being quite up there with Kentucky or Duke, there is no reason why we shouldn't start to snag a Top Tenner at least once every few years. We are in that mix.

Great job to JB for the strategy and to the rest of the staff for the execution in attracting these kids to the Dome.

I just as pleased with recruiting as you are! It's been awesome! But there is something to be said for having players who are two-and-done. Or having players who ar three-and-done. Kentucky gets nothing but one-and-done type players and they went to the NIT last year. If UK goes to the NIT this year it will make a strong argument for having players who stay more than one year.

 

[Garbs]

UKs atyle of recruiting

These next few years will be interesting for UK, with Wiltjer transferring, and now with the Harrison's falling and people saying they need to stay, but UK already has two guys lined up for next year. Then guys like Dakari and Marcus Lee, who are not getting the exposure they would get if they were BMOC at another big six school. Kids might start to go else where.

Also, OP you seem to be missing a lot of guys from your list, Xmas, MCW, Fab, Dion, Donte, Flynn, Harris, Devo...

 

[CusefanATL]

In three or the last four classes with Coleman, McCullough, and now Malachi we gotten Top 25 kids for the first time since Carmelo. Add Ennis who was close to a Top 25 kid, and we can see that our already strong recruiting has improved incrementally.
.

Not sure what you mean by this...

paul harris, fab melo, donte greene, flynn, devo, tiki mayben, dion waiters, rakeem christmas, and MCW were all top 25 recruits.

greene, melo, harris were top 10.

:noidea:

 

[orange2win]

Not sure what you mean by this...

paul harris, fab melo, donte greene, flynn, devo, tiki mayben, dion waiters, rakeem christmas, and MCW were all top 25 recruits.

greene, melo, harris were top 10.

:noidea:

Correct. Our recruiting over the last decade has consistently been good. The current spike we are seeing is ACC induced.

 

[IthacaMatt]

I just as pleased with recruiting as you are! It's been awesome! But there is something to be said for having players who are two-and-done. Or having players who ar three-and-done. Kentucky gets nothing but one-and-done type players and they went to the NIT last year. If UK goes to the NIT this year it will make a strong argument for having players who stay more than one year.

You need continuity from class to class. It makes it easier for a team to understand coaching concepts, offensive and defensive approach, responsibilities, etc. When it's a whole new group every year, like at Kentucky, the culture is almost entirely on the coaches. With us, you have program guys mixed in with borderline McD's talent, if not the very, very top guys, so you often have several building blocks for your back line back to provide a foundation on defense, like we have this year. You have years where guys like Scoop and Rick Jackson and Andy and Arinze grow into roles and provide that winning culture. That's a key ingredient in our success. And you can go back to a lot of teams where guys grow into important roles later in their careers and wind up leading very successful teams.