We were no longer recruiting Jamil Wilson...now I have no freaking idea....

[THEGYMBAR]

2002---My point is this is a year we could wait and see. No need to rush to sign anyone other than a stud. I would have, and I believe Buzz still is, waiting to hear Wilson's final decision. My gut says that if Wilson calls Buzz the offer is still on the table.


Kids and coaches are fickle. Buzz might just be playing hardball with the kid. Before anyone says we are out of scholies...there is no such thing in today's game. We will have 2-3 kids we can chase off if need be at semester or after the season.

[Big Papi]

I feel silly for having to make this arguement.

Same here as you clearly haven't coached a basketball team.

[dsfire]

The "four Wades" argument is reminiscent of the "Da Bears" guys on SNL for a variety of reasons.

[mug644]

I personally think the whole securing the state's best players is stupid.  Sure we should try to land the best players in state, but I think that the focus should be on finding the best players, period.  If we have the option of landing the best player in Wisconsin who is the 100th best player in the nation or landing the 5th best player in Texas who is the 70th best player in the nation, we should take the player from Texas every time.   

The argument about "securing the border" is awkward, to say the least, unless one considers that college basketball is more than winning games. It is about making money, too. (Or is it about making money first?) In any case, securing the border is about getting WI college b-ball fans in general, or fans of a particular player or school, to be fans of MU. The more WI players that go to MU the more attention MU gets on the ground in WI. That's not a bad thing, and probably something to aim for, as fans that live closer to the arena are more likely to fill seats, buy t-shirts, send their kids to college there, and on and on.

That said, it only works if the team is winning. A bad team is--marketing-wise--only going to be buoyed by local talent for so long.

I personally don't see the need for Wilson on either "front" as we'll have the top statewide talent Maymon and we already has his position covered. Sure, it would be nice to have another top 100 player. But we're looking good for the moment. Plus, we're out of scholarships, right?

[RawdogDX]

Same here as you clearly haven't coached a basketball team.

wow, what a comeback.  Clearly you haven't watched what happens to marquette when we go against 1's and 2's who we can't "out athletic".  People talk about getting torn up by bigs and it happens on occasion but when our 1/2 can't drive on the opposing guard we can't score.  And that's when we get blown out.  All you said was that the big three would cause turnovers.  You really think that would be enough to win a game, they would be dominated phisically every position.  4wades would put up more highlight reel dunks than our 2008 squad would manage layups.  But I guess you know all about that because clearly you've coached against wade like talent when running your girls 7th grade team.  Why did your post only cover what would happen on one half the court.  Doesn't sound like a good philosophy for someone who is such a seasoned vet of the game.

[Wareagle]

The "four Wades" argument is reminiscent of the "Da Bears" guys on SNL for a variety of reasons.

If MU were to enter a bus in da Indy 500, it would win so long as one Wade was drivin' da bus and da udder tree Wades were da pit crew.

[🏀]

Da question is: Now, did God create Marquette, and make them superior to all teams? Or is he simply a huge fan, and DWade made them superior to all other teams?

[Canned Goods n Ammo]

2002---My point is this is a year we could wait and see. No need to rush to sign anyone other than a stud. I would have, and I believe Buzz still is, waiting to hear Wilson's final decision. My gut says that if Wilson calls Buzz the offer is still on the table.


Kids and coaches are fickle. Buzz might just be playing hardball with the kid. Before anyone says we are out of scholies...there is no such thing in today's game. We will have 2-3 kids we can chase off if need be at semester or after the season.

Hmmm...

Wilson may end up being a very good player. No doubt about it.

However (and again, this is just personal speculation), it appears like Buzz was not willing to gamble on a "wait and see" game with Wilson.

(More speculation) Buzz may have felt that he had a pretty good stock of wing players, so waiting for another one might not be the smartest gamble. Signing a bigger guy who could develop might not be the glamorous play, but its probably the smart one.

I don't blame Buzz. I don't blame Wilson. It's just the situation they are both in. Wilson wanted to wait, Buzz didn't feel comfortable waiting.

You can make all of the statements you want about Wilson's talent (I will not dispute those because I have not seen him play in person).

The fact remains that had Wilson wanted to play at MU, he would have verbally committed and Buzz would have created some room for him. MU waited for a while. Wilson chose not to commit, so MU moved on.

If something changes and Wilson decides he wants to come to MU, then maybe he and Buzz can work something out. However, I would not hold my breath on that.

[Pardner]

I think it is pretty clear that Buzz is sending the message out on the trail:  "I want kids who want to be here".

[Big Papi]

wow, what a comeback.  Clearly you haven't watched what happens to marquette when we go against 1's and 2's who we can't "out athletic".  People talk about getting torn up by bigs and it happens on occasion but when our 1/2 can't drive on the opposing guard we can't score.  And that's when we get blown out.  All you said was that the big three would cause turnovers.  You really think that would be enough to win a game, they would be dominated phisically every position.  4wades would put up more highlight reel dunks than our 2008 squad would manage layups.  But I guess you know all about that because clearly you've coached against wade like talent when running your girls 7th grade team.  Why did your post only cover what would happen on one half the court.  Doesn't sound like a good philosophy for someone who is such a seasoned vet of the game.

Wow you have anger management problems dude.  Hard to win games if you dont have a very good ball handler.  Hard to win games if you don't have good perimeter shooter.  Hard to win games if you don't rebound.  Its hard to win if you don't play defense.  Wade was great but had weaknesses.  A team with 5 players with complimentary skills will beat a team with 5 players with redundant skills and weaknesses.  A good coach exploits that fairly easily.  Otherwise the team with the most talent would always win and that doesn't always happen.  Its basketball 101.  Dwades handle was very sloppy for much of his time at MU.  Same with McNeal but I would take DJ's ballhandling skills over DWade.  I would take Haywards three point shooting and rebounding over Dwades.  See they compliment each others strengths and weaknesses. 

And by the way, its easier to dominate games with exceptional talent at a younger age than as they get progressively older.  The fact that you try to make a dig at me about running a 7th grade girls team actually proves my point about your lack of basketball knowledge when it comes to coaching a team and makes you look very silly but I guess you can believe whatever you want as apparently you know it all when it comes to basketball.

[bilsu]

Some where it was posted that Wilson was going to commit in the early signing period. I think he changed it to his birthday, which by memory is November 9th. He is no longer going to wait to spring. If he was waiting to spring Buzz could continue to recruit him. I think Buzz is trying to put together a complete team. What this class lacks is a good three point shooter. Snaer would be the perfect fit. The other guards on the list are good, but not in his class. Dropping the recruiting of Wilson prevents him from committing to MU, before Snaer makes up his mind.

[jce]

The argument about "securing the border" is awkward, to say the least, unless one considers that college basketball is more than winning games. It is about making money, too. (Or is it about making money first?) In any case, securing the border is about getting WI college b-ball fans in general, or fans of a particular player or school, to be fans of MU. The more WI players that go to MU the more attention MU gets on the ground in WI. That's not a bad thing, and probably something to aim for, as fans that live closer to the arena are more likely to fill seats, buy t-shirts, send their kids to college there, and on and on.

MU will get more fans by winning period.  It is irrelevent if the team is made up of a kid from Racine Horlick or a kid from Hawaii.

[bma725]

MU will get more fans by winning period.  It is irrelevent if the team is made up of a kid from Racine Horlick or a kid from Hawaii.

In Milwaukee, or southeastern Wisconsin winning matters more than where the team is from.  But not in the rest of the state.  Having Wisconsin kids on the team is very important to a lot of people that might become MU fans in the Northern and Western parts of the state.  MU suffers from being in Milwaukee, a part of the state most people would rather forget about.  MU suffers from being an urban university, something a lot of people look down on.  MU suffers because it is seen as a school that only the rich can afford, and is viewed as being full of elitist little rich kids from out of state.  Winning won't change any of those issues.  Putting a kid on the team from Clintonville or Hayward or Chippewa Falls might.   

Look at Madison.  It's the state university, but it gets a big boost from having a lot of Wisconsin kids on the team.  Bo Ryan would not be viewed as the god many people think he is if that team had a bunch of kids from Chicago, Houston, New York, Indianapolis etc.  But fill the team with kids from Appleton, Randolph, Madison, Wisconsin Dells, Reedsburg, Blue Mound etc and suddenely he's one of the greatest coaches in the history of basketball.

I'm not saying you sacrifice winning just to put more Wisconsin kids on the team, not at all.  But you have to be willing to accept that you won't be as popular without those kind of kids on your team. 

[mu-rara]

In Milwaukee, or southeastern Wisconsin winning matters more than where the team is from.  But not in the rest of the state.  Having Wisconsin kids on the team is very important to a lot of people that might become MU fans in the Northern and Western parts of the state.  MU suffers from being in Milwaukee, a part of the state most people would rather forget about.  MU suffers from being an urban university, something a lot of people look down on.  MU suffers because it is seen as a school that only the rich can afford, and is viewed as being full of elitist little rich kids from out of state.  Winning won't change any of those issues.  Putting a kid on the team from Clintonville or Hayward or Chippewa Falls might.   

Look at Madison.  It's the state university, but it gets a big boost from having a lot of Wisconsin kids on the team.  Bo Ryan would not be viewed as the god many people think he is if that team had a bunch of kids from Chicago, Houston, New York, Indianapolis etc.  But fill the team with kids from Appleton, Randolph, Madison, Wisconsin Dells, Reedsburg, Blue Mound etc and suddenely he's one of the greatest coaches in the history of basketball.

I'm not saying you sacrifice winning just to put more Wisconsin kids on the team, not at all.  But you have to be willing to accept that you won't be as popular without those kind of kids on your team. 

And we care about being popular, why?  Face it, we will ALWAYS be ALL the things you listed to the Wisconsin faithful.
 
Let them be a good Big10 team, while we strive to win the BEast.  Let Bo continue to get his clock cleaned by lower seeds.

[THEGYMBAR]

Clearly this recruit means something to the program or there would be a million posts on him over the past months. This is a kid we all should want in this program, period. If he goes elsewhere we still had a great recruiting season. If he comes it makes the best recruiting class since Al was here.

I have my fingers crossed that he calls Buzz and says I want to play ball at MU. This signing would be a big signing, both locally and nationally. KO worked area hard and every home game had the local players at them. That is best recruiting tool possible.

[CAINMUTINY]

I always thought Milwaukee was the "big city" all those country folks were seeking.  Its a big country and we're building fans all over it.....and that's what we need to do, not merely appease the people of wisconsin.  We are building a program and much like an employer we will strive to get the best talent than we can get wherever we can get it; not settle for local talent.  Wilson has most likely reached his peak in development and while he is still a good player he doesn't fit our current needs. Best of luck to him where ever he ends up.

[bma725]

And we care about being popular, why?  Face it, we will ALWAYS be ALL the things you listed to the Wisconsin faithful.
 
Let them be a good Big10 team, while we strive to win the BEast.  Let Bo continue to get his clock cleaned by lower seeds.

Because the popularity helps in multiple areas.  It helps Buzz or any other coach go into some town in the northern part of the state and get a big time recruit like Brian Butch or Greg Steimsma or Keaton Nankivil.  Say what you want about them being big white stiffs, but MU would have won a ton more games the last few years with any of those guys on the team.

Popularity helps in merchandising, in getting people to come in from other parts of the state to catch a game, in getting people to send their kids to one of Buzz's camps etc. 

I can remember when KO was coach there were a ton of kids from outside Milwaukee that used to come to his camps because they wanted to be like Jim McIlvaine and Robb Logtermann and Craig Aamot etc.  It means something to a heck of a lot of people to have someone they can relate to on the team.

[Canned Goods n Ammo]

Because the popularity helps in multiple areas.  It helps Buzz or any other coach go into some town in the northern part of the state and get a big time recruit like Brian Butch or Greg Steimsma or Keaton Nankivil.  Say what you want about them being big white stiffs, but MU would have won a ton more games the last few years with any of those guys on the team.

Popularity helps in merchandising, in getting people to come in from other parts of the state to catch a game, in getting people to send their kids to one of Buzz's camps etc. 

I can remember when KO was coach there were a ton of kids from outside Milwaukee that used to come to his camps because they wanted to be like Jim McIlvaine and Robb Logtermann and Craig Aamot etc.  It means something to a heck of a lot of people to have someone they can relate to on the team.

Agree 100%.

Also keep in mind that recruiting in your own backyard can limit homesick transfers or a kid saying something like "MU just isn't for me".

I'm not saying it will eliminate transfers, but recruiting locally will increase the odds of a kid sticking with the program for all 4 years.
 

[jce]

In Milwaukee, or southeastern Wisconsin winning matters more than where the team is from.  But not in the rest of the state.  Having Wisconsin kids on the team is very important to a lot of people that might become MU fans in the Northern and Western parts of the state.  MU suffers from being in Milwaukee, a part of the state most people would rather forget about.  MU suffers from being an urban university, something a lot of people look down on.  MU suffers because it is seen as a school that only the rich can afford, and is viewed as being full of elitist little rich kids from out of state.  Winning won't change any of those issues.  Putting a kid on the team from Clintonville or Hayward or Chippewa Falls might.   

Look at Madison.  It's the state university, but it gets a big boost from having a lot of Wisconsin kids on the team.  Bo Ryan would not be viewed as the god many people think he is if that team had a bunch of kids from Chicago, Houston, New York, Indianapolis etc.  But fill the team with kids from Appleton, Randolph, Madison, Wisconsin Dells, Reedsburg, Blue Mound etc and suddenely he's one of the greatest coaches in the history of basketball.

I'm not saying you sacrifice winning just to put more Wisconsin kids on the team, not at all.  But you have to be willing to accept that you won't be as popular without those kind of kids on your team. 

I have lived most my life in Wisconsin outside the city of Milwaukee, and I hate to break it to you, but there is *no* interest in Marquette basketball outside of the pockets of alumni that live in these burghs.  I live in Fort Atkinson, and I guess if there was a guy from the local high school who made it to Marquette, the locals would follow...but when he graduated they'd go right back to red and white.  I caught the MU/UW game in a local bar with a bunch of friends last year, and I was the *only* one there out of a few dozen who was rooting for the beloved alma mater.  Getting Jamil Wilson on the team won't change that one bit.

[RawdogDX]

  Hard to win games if you don't rebound.  Its hard to win if you don't play defense.  Wade was great but had weaknesses. 

Wade wasn't a good defender?  Are we talking about the same person. top ten all time single season in blocks and steals?

Good job not answering the question though, How would you score?  Which has been my entire point.  Wade would out rebound you at 3 of 4 positions.  And would play better D at 4 out of 4.  And James has proven that he is useless against teams with big 1's who are athletic enough to stay with him.  You would end up relying completely on circus shots and Lazar, who i love and is really your only advantage.  I will agree that 3 wades and a true PF would be better than 4 wades but no way does lazar make up for the fact that wes, dj, and jm would be doninated.

And here, i'll put a smilie face since you apperently think that anyone who disagrees with you is angry and thinks they know everything. 

[bma725]

I have lived most my life in Wisconsin outside the city of Milwaukee, and I hate to break it to you, but there is *no* interest in Marquette basketball outside of the pockets of alumni that live in these burghs.  I live in Fort Atkinson, and I guess if there was a guy from the local high school who made it to Marquette, the locals would follow...but when he graduated they'd go right back to red and white.  I caught the MU/UW game in a local bar with a bunch of friends last year, and I was the *only* one there out of a few dozen who was rooting for the beloved alma mater.  Getting Jamil Wilson on the team won't change that one bit.

In the old days, it wasn't like that because the old MU teams had a bunch of Wisconsin kids.  They may not have been the stars, or even big time players, but they were there.  Part of that had to do with Wisconsin being terrible, but there were areas that began following the school because a hometown kid went there, and stayed with it after he left because they became fans of the school.  Antigo for example had a lot of MU fans because Terrell Schlundt was on the team 25+ years ago, and to this day many still follow MU because that's where the local hero went.  There's actually a bus load of people that come down to at least one MU game a year just to root on Terrell's old team, even though they have no connection to the University on their own.

Not saying it will happen like that everywhere, but it can.

[jce]

Well, that's nice and all, but I would rather have Buzz recruit the best players he think will help us win instead of trying to capture the vast, untapped market of Antigo.

[THEGYMBAR]

Antigo?!?!----Home of sweet shooting Terrell Schlundt

[bma725]

Well, that's nice and all, but I would rather have Buzz recruit the best players he think will help us win instead of trying to capture the vast, untapped market of Antigo.

That's what I said in a previous reply.  Winning is most important, but if you have two kids you feel are equally talented, one from Texas and one from Wisconsin, I'd take the one from Wisconsin as it helps in other areas.

[bilsu]

We will never be the State of Wisconsin's team. We do not have football and we do not have the rivalries that Wisconsin have. The average Wisconsin resident wants to beat the other Big Ten schools that have been rivals for 100+ years. They do not care about Rutgers, Seton Hall, South Florida, St. John's, Providence, DePaul and Cincinatti. They are aware of the success of Uconn, Louisville, Syracuse, Georgetwon, Pitt, Villanova,  and West Virgina, but generally do not care one way or another about them. Notre Dame is probably the only Big East opponent that the average Wisconsin resident cares about. Given that do not expect us to be Wisconsin's team. We need to recruit everywhere and recruit a balanced team. By the way Wade is a superstar. I am quite sure that Wilson will never compare to him, so the argument about how good a team would be with 4 Wade's is irrelevant.