DeAndre Kane vs. Darius Smith

[4thAndState]

Now that Smith has committed to UConn, the other viable option appears to be Kane. On paper they seem similar players -- 6'2" combo guards that are an outside shooting threat. We are said to be in the final 3 for Kane, along with Rhode Island and Marshall. Not stellar competition. Whereas Smith was courted by high major schools. My questions: Is Smith clearly the better player? Is Kane a worthy replacement for us? Is Kane ready for the Big East should he commit? Would he contribute his freshman year? Does he have a decent outside shot, especially from 3? Thanks for any insights.

[kmwtrucks]

From what I have read and the Little I have seen on video , I would say Kane is 2 inchs taller and 20 Lbs heavier.  I would also say at this point Kane is a better outside shooter, Smith would be a better ballhandler, defender, and passer.  I think most would agree that Smith is the better player, but when either is paired with Junior C, I think it evens out a little.  I would guess others would have a better Idea.

[madtownwarrior]

we should wait and see if we are actually pursuing Kane.   We are about 0 - 5 for the recent recruits we supposedly are pursuing.  maybe we are not actually pursuing the recruits that list us as a favorite.  or if we actually are, we are in a streak of losing ...

[Tugg Speedman]

we should wait and see if we are actually pursuing Kane.   We are about 0 - 5 for the recent recruits we supposedly are pursuing.  maybe we are not actually pursuing the recruits that list us as a favorite.  or if we actually are, we are in a streak of losing ...

Are you not paying attention?  0 for 5???  We have one of the best recruiting classes ever coming in this fall.  We already have two recruits for the following year.  Your 0 for 5 is a narrow and twisted definition of late spring stragglers and decommits that went elsewhere.  One can argue that none of them are any better than what we have.

To put it another way, I'll put you do as thinking that Crean's operating premise of taking any warm body in the spring (such as the amazing Carlton Christian) was a great idea.  Buzz should offer the last spot to anyone that can fog a mirror, correct?  If not, what exactly is your point?  Are you twisting and warping reality to find something to whine and complain about?

[DomJamesToTheBasket]

Kane is probably more valuable for us. He has better size to play the 2 and can shoot the 3.  

[4thAndState]

Kane is probably more valuable for us. He has better size to play the 2 and can shoot the 3.  He nailed over three 3's a game at over 50%. He was the most dominant player in Pittsburgh his senior year averaging 30, 8, and 8. His team won the city championship 3 out of 4 years including his senior year. Kane would be a fantastic get.

Thanks for the insights. I'm curious, though. With Kane's supposed high status, why are not other top programs pursuing him? Or are they? He once verballed Seton Hall, a lower-level BE school and now lists Rhode Island and Marshall along with MU as leaders. Did Pitt want him, since he's from there?

[bma725]

Thanks for the insights. I'm curious, though. With Kane's supposed high status, why are not other top programs pursuing him? Or are they? He once verballed Seton Hall, a lower-level BE school and now lists Rhode Island and Marshall along with MU as leaders. Did Pitt want him, since he's from there?

Pitt wanted him, twice.  Pitt is the reason he decommitted from Duquesne when he originally verballed there as a HS senior.  Pitt is the reason he ended up at Patterson Prep.  They placed him there because they have a good relationship with the staff.  Pitt was in his original final 3 with MU and Seton Hall in December as well.  He has a standing scholarship offer from Pitt should he change his mind.

He's made the decision he wants to go somewhere that he can play a lot right away, regardless of level.  It also helps Marshall that they have his good friend Hassan Whiteside a top 100 player in this class.

[madtownwarrior]

Recent recruiting misses on high profile recruits we were "mentioned with" - I should have said 0 for 4 recently...

Snaer
Riley
Wilson
Smith

What I am saying is - did we legitimately pursue / want these folks?   did these folks legitimately consider MU in their top 3 or 4?   we will never know - it seems like our recruits come without a lot of publicity and the ones that do have lots of publicity do not choose MU.

Hence, the wait and see position on Kane (or any other high profile recruit we are mentioned with). 

I do think we need some a signing or two this spring if one or all 3 of the following happen - possible transfer, possible health issue, possible incoming recruit not qualifying.  We would be hurting for bodies if 2 or 3 of the 3 happen (which have all been rumors).

[4thAndState]

Pitt wanted him, twice.  Pitt is the reason he decommitted from Duquesne when he originally verballed there as a HS senior.  Pitt is the reason he ended up at Patterson Prep.  They placed him there because they have a good relationship with the staff.  Pitt was in his original final 3 with MU and Seton Hall in December as well.  He has a standing scholarship offer from Pitt should he change his mind.

He's made the decision he wants to go somewhere that he can play a lot right away, regardless of level.  It also helps Marshall that they have his good friend Hassan Whiteside a top 100 player in this class.

Thanks, bma. You are an amazing source of knowledge. Kane does sound like he'd be a nice pick-up for MU.

[bma725]

Recent recruiting misses on high profile recruits we were "mentioned with" - I should have said 0 for 4 recently...

Snaer
Riley
Wilson
Smith

What I am saying is - did we legitimately pursue / want these folks?   did these folks legitimately consider MU in their top 3 or 4?   we will never know - it seems like our recruits come without a lot of publicity and the ones that do have lots of publicity do not choose MU.

Given that Riley made an official visit and had us in his final two, I'd say we wanted him and he considered us. 

Given that Snaer has said MU finished second to FSU in his mind, I'd say he considered us. 

Given that Buzz and Benford were both seen at Smith's high school games and MU was recruiting him despite not having a scholarship available, I'd say we wanted him. 

[madtownwarrior]

so we are 0 - 3 in recent high profile recruits?

would be nice to see us land a high profile recruit that we are connected with...

is the 0 - 3 possible due to the high profile recruits landed earlier so playing time may not be as available?

[Tom Crean's Tanning Bed]

Recent recruiting misses on high profile recruits we were "mentioned with" - I should have said 0 for 4 recently...

Snaer
Riley
Wilson
Smith

What I am saying is - did we legitimately pursue / want these folks?   did these folks legitimately consider MU in their top 3 or 4?   we will never know - it seems like our recruits come without a lot of publicity and the ones that do have lots of publicity do not choose MU.

Hence, the wait and see position on Kane (or any other high profile recruit we are mentioned with). 

I do think we need some a signing or two this spring if one or all 3 of the following happen - possible transfer, possible health issue, possible incoming recruit not qualifying.  We would be hurting for bodies if 2 or 3 of the 3 happen (which have all been rumors).

I think you're overdramatic here in your view of what happened.

Yeah, we've missed out on a few guys this winter.  But all four of them have been pretty wacky situations:

Snaer: we were competing against Kansas, Mizzou, UCLA, and FSU.  FSU swept in at the end to the surprise of everyone, being the farthest program away from home and with the most unstable coaching situation of them all (which has settled because of making the NCAAs this year).

Riley:  originally decommitted from Georgetown, a red flag right there.  Then rescheduled his MU visit several times before showing up for the UConn game.

Wilson:  we've been on the kid since his freshman year, made a million visits here under Crean, Buzz kept on him, and so forth.  Had PLENTY of opportunities to commit to MU all throughout high school.  I won't repeat the story I was told about his recruiting on a public message board, but if you knew it, you'd understand why he didn't end up here.  Hint:  it wasn't Buzz's fault.   

Smith:  CPL kids typcially are all over the board and come with baggage (read about how Derrick Rose ended up at Memphis, for example).  His list changed by the hour, so who the heck knows where exactly ANYONE stood with him.  Several programs besides ours were convinced he was heading to them too, particularly Cincinnati.

Remember too, all four of these guys were recruited too WITHOUT the promise that a scholarship would be there for them, and don't think that didn't play into these "misses". For us to get into these guys' final list without that guarentee I think says a lot about Buzz's recruiting ability and the appeal of the Marquette program to top players.

I predict that at least one scholarship will open up shortly.  I think once that happens. you'll see Buzz reel in a quality player fairly quickly.

[bma725]

Snaer: we were competing against Kansas, Mizzou, UCLA, and FSU.  FSU swept in at the end to the surprise of everyone, being the farthest program away from home and with the most unstable coaching situation of them all (which has settled because of making the NCAAs this year).

FSU didn't come in at the end, they were there before Marquette.  It also helped that their coach is an African American and a friend of Snaer's AAU coach.

[Tugg Speedman]

so we are 0 - 3 in recent high profile recruits?

would be nice to see us land a high profile recruit that we are connected with...

is the 0 - 3 possible due to the high profile recruits landed earlier so playing time may not be as available?

Again, these are not the only" high profile" recruits.  EK, Maymom, Junior and DB are all high profile recruits and they are coming to MU.  Bowen and Clark have verballed for the 2010/2011 class.

By your count we are 6 for 9 with high profile recruits.  Your complaining about things that are not true.

For what it's worth, we were fourth in Darius Smith list.  However, as was mentioned above, if you asked him again today, the order would no doubt change.

[DomJamesToTheBasket]

I posted this on the other board a couple weeks ago......

A few tidbits on Kane that I found:

-he finished his Senior season averaging 31 points, 8 reb, 8 ast

-in the city championship he had 35 points and 12 rebounds shooting 7-11 on 3's

-his Junior year his team won state with Kane averaging about 15 points. His team included Dejuan Blair and finished the season with a national rank of #12.

-his team won Pittsburgh city conference all four years he attended

-his coaches describe him on defense as tough and long-armed

-he can play the 2/3 now and the 1 when he improves his handle more

-he wants to go to a school where he can play right away