http://ballislife.com/steve-taylor-senior-season-mixtape-chicago-simeon-3-peat-state-champs/
Six years ago, he goes to Illinois or Xavier. How things have changed for the better!
That mixtape gets me excited. Really underrated given the presence of Parker on that team.
Watching Todd Smith turn his great instincts inside into a banger down low is going to be a fun process.
: )
According to one article, he's put on 45lbs. since committing. W O W!!! With his instincts inside and what seemed to be baby soft hands, he could be a force over the next 4 years.
I'm glad that Steve will be filling the Lazar Hayward headband void we've had the last few years.
This guy is going to be a beast...and the perfect fit for Buzz's system.
I could see him being a force for 2 years... then NBA.
Love his body control in the lane. Not a single left handed shot on the tape. Stay tuned.
Quote from: TomW1365 on June 06, 2012, 12:19:55 PM
I could see him being a force for 2 years... then NBA.
You could be right. He looks really good.
This may seem like hyperbole, but his game looks just like Lebron. Huge ceiling for this guy.
Quote from: LittleMurs on June 05, 2012, 10:47:41 PM
Six years ago, he goes to Illinois or Xavier. How things have changed for the better!
Xavier & U of I's 06 recruiting classes were stacked with Chicago talent
http://rivals.yahoo.com/xavier/basketball/recruiting/commitments/2006 (http://rivals.yahoo.com/xavier/basketball/recruiting/commitments/2006)
http://rivals.yahoo.com/xavier/basketball/recruiting/commitments/2006/illinois-26 (http://rivals.yahoo.com/xavier/basketball/recruiting/commitments/2006/illinois-26)
Quote from: TomW1365 on June 06, 2012, 12:19:55 PM
I could see him being a force for 2 years... then NBA.
I could also see him not playing and transferring. People were raving about juan anderson and last year and james jones the year before Seeing a Senior mix tape and saying he'll be in the NBA is ridic.
That said, he looks like a beast. If his game translates he could be a Clark type player that was with Louisville a few year back.
Quote from: Jam Chowder on June 06, 2012, 12:30:55 PM
This may seem like hyperbole, but his game looks just like Lebron. Huge ceiling for this guy.
I'm not a Lebron fan at all but nobody's game looks like his especially Taylor's. I'd compare it more to a poor man's Garnett then Lebron.
Quote from: QuetteHoops on June 06, 2012, 02:00:38 PM
I'm not a Lebron fan at all but nobody's game looks like his especially Taylor's. I'd compare it more to a poor man's Garnett then Lebron.
Let them have their fun. These flights of fancy are best taken before a recruit starts a season. They are too hard to get off the ground after that.
Quote from: Blue Horseshoe on June 06, 2012, 12:42:31 PM
Xavier & U of I's 06 recruiting classes were stacked with Chicago talent
http://rivals.yahoo.com/xavier/basketball/recruiting/commitments/2006 (http://rivals.yahoo.com/xavier/basketball/recruiting/commitments/2006)
http://rivals.yahoo.com/xavier/basketball/recruiting/commitments/2006/illinois-26 (http://rivals.yahoo.com/xavier/basketball/recruiting/commitments/2006/illinois-26)
Okay, let's look at who MU got in 2006.
http://rivals.yahoo.com/xavier/basketball/recruiting/commitments/2006/marquette-653 (http://rivals.yahoo.com/xavier/basketball/recruiting/commitments/2006/marquette-653)
So,
if Steve Taylor was available in 2006, would he have been more likely to have gone with MU or Illinois or Xavier which both got higher recruited big men then MU could?
If you are predicting correctly that Steve Taylor will be the second coming of Trend Blackledge, then I stand corrected. BTW, Trend was a guy that Crean settled for when the guy who Crean went to Trend's JUCO to recruit decided to go to Indiana, instead.
My point is both Illinois and Xavier got big men that MU would gladly have taken in 2006, but couldn't get. So, If Steve Taylor were around during those dark days it is almost certain that he would have had Illinois and Xavier ranked ahead of MU in his choices.
Easy, Murs. This isn't 2006, so I don't understand where your original comment came from. Also, 2006 was the year that started MU's current run of consecutive NCAA Tournament appearances. "Dark days" is a bit exaggerated.
Quote from: Blue Horseshoe on June 06, 2012, 04:44:31 PM
Easy, Murs. This isn't 2006, so I don't understand where your original comment came from. Also, 2006 was the year that started MU's current run of consecutive NCAA Tournament appearances. "Dark days" is a bit exaggerated.
Maybe we can say; "Dark days" of big man recruiting.
I think Steve Taylor ends up being Buzz's best recruit to date.
I think he's already the most effortless dunker on the team.
Is he really 6ft 9in? I thought he was 6ft 7in. If so, nice growth spurt.
Quote from: strotty on June 06, 2012, 06:26:28 PM
I think Steve Taylor ends up being Buzz's best recruit to date.
I'm guessing BEPOY Jae Crowder may end up having to say something about that.
Quote from: Bocephys on June 06, 2012, 06:43:27 PM
I think he's already the most effortless dunker on the team.
That title easily belongs to Jamil.
Quote from: wadesworld on June 06, 2012, 06:50:38 PM
I'm guessing BEPOY Jae Crowder may end up having to say something about that.
I know. And I think Taylor can be just as good, if not better.
Quote from: strotty on June 06, 2012, 07:03:40 PM
I know. And I think Taylor can be just as good, if not better.
If I had to bet a healthy chunk of money on it, I'd say his career will look more like Lazar's. Solid contributions in ~15mpg as a frosh, a nice leap as a soph, then one of the major pieces of the puzzle as an upperclassman. And that would be an EXCELLENT career. The biggest difference is he won't have to carry the team at any point like Hayward did senior year. Buzz has the pipeline loaded.
However, to reach Crowder's heights he'd have to be an insane defender as well as a great scorer & rebounder. Not saying he
can't do it, just saying the odds are stacked pretty well against him, through no fault of his own. Crowder had the second best season of any MU player in 25+ years last year, and one of the top 10 Value Add seasons in the entire NCAA over the 6 year span of bama's database. That's rarefied air.
That said, I obviously hope you're right and I'm wrong.
Quote from: strotty on June 06, 2012, 07:03:40 PM
I know. And I think Taylor can be just as good, if not better.
Buzz has already said that Steve is "really, really good" - high praise for a guy without even a college practice under his belt. Still a long road to being Jae Crowder good, though.
I'm thinking that Steve will somewhat follow the mold of Aaron Williams at Xavier, except with a stronger supporting cast and more NCAA success. Hopefully, he's even better.
Williams, a member of the Xavier 1,000 Point Club, scored 1,073 points at XU (tied for 42nd in XU history), grabbed 713 rebounds (16th on XU's all-time list) and blocked 197 shots (second only to David West in XU history).
Williams, a First Team All-MCC selection, was a part of three NCAA Tournament teams and three Midwestern Collegiate Conference Championships during his four-year career. XU reached the Sweet 16 for the first time in school history in his freshman season of 1989-90 with Williams playing the role of one of the late-game heroes of that second round win over Georgetown. XU reached the second round in 1991 and 1993.
Williams, a 14-year NBA veteran, was undrafted after a college career at Xavier University, and played for the NBA's Utah Jazz, Milwaukee Bucks, Denver Nuggets, Vancouver Grizzlies, Seattle SuperSonics, Washington Wizards, New Jersey Nets, Toronto Raptors, New Orleans/Oklahoma City Hornets and Los Angeles Clippers. He also had brief stints in the CBA, Italy and Greece.
In 2000-01, as a member of the New Jersey Nets, Williams posted his best numbers as a pro, playing all 82 games while averaging 10.1 points and 7.2 rebounds per game.
My thoughts (guesses) on Taylor are really just based off of what Buzz and Benford think of him, and his size and weight. I think Taylor's description (legit 6'8", tough rebounder, outside shooter, long defender) is exactly what Buzz means when he says "switchable." That's really why I think he is going to light up the Big East for as long as he is here. Not because of any breakdown of his game.
Taylor has an opportunity to be great. His ceiling is higher than players like Crowder and Lazar due to his athleticism and greater size. The question will be whether he has the heart and fire of those two guys. If he does, he likely could be gone in two years. If not I still think he can have a career similar to Lazar just due to his athleticism/size.
Quote from: LittleMurs on June 06, 2012, 05:26:57 PM
Maybe we can say; "Dark days" of big man recruiting.
Otule has been here so long i feel like he was on that 2006 team
Quote from: LittleMurs on June 06, 2012, 09:27:51 PM
I'm thinking that Steve will somewhat follow the mold of Aaron Williams at Xavier, except with a stronger supporting cast and more NCAA success. Hopefully, he's even better.
Williams, a member of the Xavier 1,000 Point Club, scored 1,073 points at XU (tied for 42nd in XU history), grabbed 713 rebounds (16th on XU's all-time list) and blocked 197 shots (second only to David West in XU history).
Williams, a First Team All-MCC selection, was a part of three NCAA Tournament teams and three Midwestern Collegiate Conference Championships during his four-year career. XU reached the Sweet 16 for the first time in school history in his freshman season of 1989-90 with Williams playing the role of one of the late-game heroes of that second round win over Georgetown. XU reached the second round in 1991 and 1993.
Williams, a 14-year NBA veteran, was undrafted after a college career at Xavier University, and played for the NBA's Utah Jazz, Milwaukee Bucks, Denver Nuggets, Vancouver Grizzlies, Seattle SuperSonics, Washington Wizards, New Jersey Nets, Toronto Raptors, New Orleans/Oklahoma City Hornets and Los Angeles Clippers. He also had brief stints in the CBA, Italy and Greece.
In 2000-01, as a member of the New Jersey Nets, Williams posted his best numbers as a pro, playing all 82 games while averaging 10.1 points and 7.2 rebounds per game.
Taylor has a better outside game than Williams ever did. Williams was pretty explosive; Taylor should get there with training.
he passes the eye test, i wonder if his girlfriend is hot... then we'll know for sure