Recruiting Question

[longislandcuse]

I preface this by saying that I see the huge potential in this class coming in. Ennis was obviously our biggest target and need and we got him. However, after him alot of us have questions about each recruit.

Ron Patterson-Former Indiana recruit who is clearly a team that is now included with us in the recruiting elite. He seems to be perfectly suited for the top of the zone, in fact he could be a defensive freak up top with his 6'10 wingspan. From all accounts he can light it up from deep and will bring alot of intensity. I love his potential and the fact he will most likely be with us for a few years. However, we only have one true ballhandler if MCW leaves in Ennis and then what looks like 3 shooting guards (and 3 good ones at that) in Gbinje, Cooney and Patterson. Great pickup but not without questions.

BJ Johnson-Huge ceiling and im wondering if we got him based purely on potential? He definately seems like a redshirt candidate if im not mistaken. I wouldnt be suprised at all if he blows up this year semi-MCW style but again, there are questions involved in why we decided on him.

Chino-Don't mind him at all. Love his attitude and he has a defined role which seems to be the Keita role, 4 year backup Center to the presumed studs we bring in.

My question is did we envision the way the recruiting landscape unfolded when we offered and signed these guys? Ennis and Chino were guys who completely make sense but Patterson and BJ came with a little bit of head scratching even though we can all acknowledge their potential..

McCullough might reclassify which uses up all our schollys unless someone goes pro and we get none of Roberson/Lawrence/Jordan/Dakari and if McCullough doesnt then the same problem arises if one of those recruits commit and then we're incapable of taking anyone else unless somone goes pro. Does the staff assume someone is going pro? It certainly seems that way. Maybe we would never be able to get more than one or two of these guys anyway. Maybe the staff liked Patterson over Jordan or Jordan was never coming here..? With it getting crowded at the inn, these are just some questions that come to mind.

...or maybe we go all the way, lose a bunch of guys to the pros and get everyone we want ;-)

 

[orangejunkie]

Good assessment of where we are with recruiting. I wonder if Francis or one of the other "experts" could weigh in on the McCullough situation and the chances that this could happen next season. On the one hand I would love to see this guy next year because I think he will be a fun player to watch and will add real value to the team. On the other hand, he might mess up recruiting this year and won't make the impact he would if he waits a year. Sounds like there is "room at the Inn", so if the transcript works out, he could be here in September if he chooses to make the jump...

 

[slidingdown]

I wonder how long it will take the admins to develop a "please weigh in, Francis" button for posts on this board. Could save us all a lot of time.

 

[Gabjon]

I think BJ Johnson wowwed the staff at the SU camp he attended in August plus the fact that he is young for his class made him a no brainer so I not worried about him, and Patterson as a 2 I have no issue with but the lack of depth at the point scares me because MCW is done after this year (at less you have to recruit to that assumption) and unless Mike G can give us back-up minutes at the point I am very worried about our PG play going forward.

 

[RF2044]

I think BJ Johnson wowwed the staff at the SU camp he attended in August plus the fact that he is young for his class made him a no brainer so I not worried about him, and Patterson as a 2 I have no issue with but the lack of depth at the point scares me because MCW is done after this year (at less you have to recruit to that assumption) and unless Mike G can give us back-up minutes at the point I am very worried about our PG play going forward.

We lose Triche, too--who in my mind is more of a combo guard but who certainly can contribute as a point and help share ball handling / distribution responsibilities. Meaning that Ennis absolutely has to come in, start, and take over running our team.

Will be very curious throughout the year to see what Cooney can do; hope he has the versatility needed to contribute [maybe not as a pure backup point, but if we got by with Jason Cipolla being the backup "point," hopefully Cooney is up to the task of handling that role as well].

Like you, I'm pretty excited about BJ Johnson--really liked the kid's shooting stroke and athleticism. It is important to keep in mind that he is also 16 years old--young for his class--and that an extra year of physical maturity [especially if a redshirt is in the cards] would go a long way.

I trust the staff's judgement with Patterson. Sounds like he is a good player. And if we end up going into next year with only one true PG on the roster, then it just makes PG a focal point of the class of 2014. At least we have Ennis in the fold; I'd be a lot more concerned if we struck out with both him and Jordan, and were faced with entering next year sans MCW and Triche. And of course, if MCW comes back next year, its a moot point, and we'll be fine at PG.

 

[Gabjon]

I need to see Cooney beat someone off the dribble before I think of him as a back-up point, but I am sure the staff has a plan and I'm hearing good things about Mike G. (no saying he is pg) we will have to see how it plays out.

 

[orangefan13]

Backup PG < then having another 14 ppg kind of guy which Cooney could be next year or the year after.

We will have Gbinije and Cooney. What that lineup lacks in pg it makes up for with 2 true scorers. I think Gbinije will be a pretty good passer as well.
JB would have went with Rautins and Devendorf up front if he was missing flynn.
If Triche was a true scorer in 09-10 he would have went with Triche and Rautins some to add some more scoring firepower. Instead they said Triche playing PG.

JB went with Duany and Gmac in 02-03. Yes he was forced to, but that team was a offensive team destined to put up big points with good rebounding. Going with Gerry the whole first half of the kansas game was the best thing that could have possibly happened to us. There was a stat the orange were like 18-1 that year or something when Duany had 10 plus ppg.

You can break a fullcourt press and throw entries all you want into high post bigs, with no post up game and the inability to make shots off the dribble in the lane will get you blownout when the other team wants it. With two solid scorers in the backcourt who average 31 ppg together (thets say 14.6 ppg and 16.5), and a solid sub who can add another 10, thats 41 ppg from your backcourt looking pretty.

 

[Upstate]

JB might just mold Buss into one of the best defensive players in the country, too. 6'3" with an almost 7' wingspan

 

[MCC]

JB went with Duany and Gmac in 02-03. Yes he was forced to, but that team was a offensive team destined to put up big points with good rebounding. Going with Gerry the whole first half of the kansas game was the best thing that could have possibly happened to us. There was a stat the orange were like 18-1 that year or something when Duany had 10 plus ppg

Remember however that we had Carmelo play "point forward" fairly frequently and he even brought the ball up and set up the offense on occasion. I seem to recall that JB likes to use a forward in this manner; I seem to recall Wallace and perhaps even DC doing a bit of this from time to time.

 

[Francis03]

Good assessment of where we are with recruiting. I wonder if Francis or one of the other "experts" could weigh in on the McCullough situation and the chances that this could happen next season. On the one hand I would love to see this guy next year because I think he will be a fun player to watch and will add real value to the team. On the other hand, he might mess up recruiting this year and won't make the impact he would if he waits a year. Sounds like there is "room at the Inn", so if the transcript works out, he could be here in September if he chooses to make the jump...

If McCullough's grades are on point then he'll most likely join the 2013 class imho.

 

[orangefan13]

Give me 6 guys who are ready to score 14 ppg in 27 mpg and I would be really happy. Thats 84 ppg
Thats DC2, Cooney, Triche, CJ, Southerland, MCW's Job for the season(joking).
We will leave Christmas Baye and Grant to to average 16 more splitting the other 38 minutes to average 100 ppg. Im Rothsteing again .
:rolling:

 

[Antiprodigy]

And if we end up going into next year with only one true PG on the roster, then it just makes PG a focal point of the class of 2014. At least we have Ennis in the fold; I'd be a lot more concerned if we struck out with both him and Jordan, and were faced with entering next year sans MCW and Triche. And of course, if MCW comes back next year, its a moot point, and we'll be fine at PG.

Briscoe's decision, and when he makes it could play a huge part in whether or not SU has any chance at a decent PG in 2014. Briscoe is a 2015. He can play both guard positions. He isn't going to sit behind very many players, if any, due to his talent. If he does (I don't think so) he will be like Dion was this past year. Super Sub+
If he were to choose SU and he were to make that decision early, The only thing SU might be able to offer a player is a spot on the bench for one year, followed by a back up PG position for another year or two.

The reason I say that is, Ennis is widely considered to be a 3-4 yr player. That fills the starting PG position through at least 2015. Briscoe a 1-2 yr player. That fills the PG spot through at least 2016, and the SG position through at least 2016.

That is not a formula for finding a very high profile player. If they are lucky and everyone leaves as early as possible, they might start by their Junior season, but otherwise, they might not see a start until they are a senior.

 

[PhatOrange]

Even Bob Lichtenfels could watch 30 seconds of BJ Johnson's video and see that he is a 5 star talent.

Rivals is just flat out wrong with their rating of him.

There are no questions in my mind why we decided on him.

 

[jr4750]

Even Bob Lichtenfels could watch 30 seconds of BJ Johnson's video and see that he is a 5 star talent.

Rivals is just flat out wrong with their rating of him.

Their are no questions in my mind why we decided on him.

I agree... Kid looks to be a fantastic mid-range shooter, and with an added 15-20lbs... watch out! That says nothing to the fact he may still be growing. Could be a Mike Dunleavy situation all over again... Thought they were getting a 6'5 kid, end up with a 6'9 SF/SG! All Good!

 

[Sgt Cuse]

Even Bob Lichtenfels could watch 30 seconds of BJ Johnson's video and see that he is a 5 star talent.

Rivals is just flat out wrong with their rating of him.

Their are no questions in my mind why we decided on him.

Depends on what your ratings mean. If the services are rating how good they are right now, then maybe he wouldn't rate that high.

But if you rated recruits by extrapolating how good they will be in '14 or '15 then I think BJ's rank would increase significantly. And if you add in factors like personality (ability to accept role), fit, chemistry - I think this recruit makes a lot of sense.

 

[PhatOrange]

This vid is from last winter:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_detailpage&v=hKd2c5r7DrQ

This was posted last week:

 

[bnoro]

This vid is from last winter:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_detailpage&v=hKd2c5r7DrQ

This was posted last week:

I'm wary of empty gym youtube videos ever since I saw the Fab Melo shooting showcase from his senior year of High School...

 

[PhatOrange]

I'm wary of empty gym youtube videos ever since I saw the Fab Melo shooting showcase from his senior year of High School...

Yes he's just working out by himself but here's what the video shows, a real smooth stroke, can come off a screen catch and shoot, great athleticism, hops, coordination and a good handle. And he's only 16 years old.

Compare that workout vid to players we've seen over the years at Syracuse playing the same position ; like Southerland, Mookie Jones, Jerami Grant, CJ Fair, Wesley Johnson; Todd Burgan, Shumpert, Duany, Demetris Nichlos, Paul Harris etc.

In my opinion the potential in the video puts him above everybody else except for probably Wesley Johnson.

 

[armory]

I'm hearing chatter that we got a gem of a steal in Chinoso Obokoh. Built like BMK but his game is miles ahead, unusually high bball IQ for a player with his background, and he has that aggressive confidence that is needed to have what it takes at this level.

I don't expect anyone to care about my opinion, but I'll keep saying it - I think we will look back when all is said & done and call this one of the best recruiting classes of the decade. If you add Roberson it will be one of JB's best classes ever. Toss in Dakari, I think it will be the single best recruiting class in SU history.

 

[cusetown1]

I'm hearing chatter that we got a gem of a steal in Chinoso Obokoh. Built like BMK but his game is miles ahead, unusually high bball IQ for a player with his background, and he has that aggressive confidence that is needed to have what it takes at this level.

I don't expect anyone to care about my opinion, but I'll keep saying it - I think we will look back when all is said & done and call this one of the best recruiting classes of the decade. If you add Roberson it will be one of JB's best classes ever. Toss in Dakari, I think it will be the single best recruiting class in SU history.

That being said Chino has been playing ball for what 3 years?

 

[orangefog]

I'm hearing chatter that we got a gem of a steal in Chinoso Obokoh. Built like BMK but his game is miles ahead, unusually high bball IQ for a player with his background, and he has that aggressive confidence that is needed to have what it takes at this level.

I don't expect anyone to care about my opinion, but I'll keep saying it - I think we will look back when all is said & done and call this one of the best recruiting classes of the decade. If you add Roberson it will be one of JB's best classes ever. Toss in Dakari, I think it will be the single best recruiting class in SU history.

Until next year, just kidding, that should be a small yet high quality class. But, 2015 could be a monster as well.

 

[armory]

I'm also talking in context of their entire careers not necessarily talent today. e.g. Donte Greene vs. CJ Fair - which would you have taken out of high school? Which turned out to be the better recruit?

I think BJJ is that CJ-type recruit, I think Ennis' & Patterson's character/leadership alone will be an invaluable addition... yet Ennis has rare classic PG skills & Patterson will be pissing off the entire ACC at the top of our zone. I think Obokoh will feed off of those two players' personalities and make some big-time developmental leaps. And I know we all love Roberson and DJ.

I also have a very obscure evaluation method, putting personality, attitude, & feel for the game above all else, then how I think those players' attributes complement their teammates' (i.e. chemistry). My dream-team is to have 5 naturals feeding off each other who's goal is a college NC not an NBA contract. I throw 1v1 sportscenter highlight nonsense out the window, that crap gets a team nowhere.

 

[JarHeadJim]

I'm also talking in context of their entire careers not necessarily talent today. e.g. Donte Greene vs. CJ Fair - which would you have taken out of high school? Which turned out to be the better recruit?

Great point!

 

[Upstate]

Patterson will be pissing off the entire ACC at the top of our zone.

I think I may have mentioned this in another thread. You're 100% correct...I wouldn't be surprised if Buss is the best defensive guard JB has ever had at the top of the 2-3.

 

[cusetown1]

I think I may have mentioned this in another thread. You're 100% correct...I wouldn't be surprised if Buss is the best defensive guard JB has ever had at the top of the 2-3.

Better than Rautins?