McDonalds All-American Roster Announced

[GOMU1104]

As expected, no Vander

http://scouthoops.scout.com/2/945732.html


However...Because of our shoe affiliation, I would expect Vander to play in the Jordan Brand Classic.

[wiscoave]

God forbid he make the Jordan roster based on merit....

[GOMU1104]

God forbid he make the Jordan roster based on merit....

Hes obviously talented enough, but...Unfortunately, those type of politics do play a role.

[DiaperDandy]

Rosters for the Mcdonalds All American game were announced and Vander Blue was not included.  Too bad.  I was hoping he would be the first MU recruit to play in the game for as long as I can remember.

[Mu2323]

How about a final four game instead?

[Aughnanure]

God forbid he make the Jordan roster based on merit....

What is the real difference between the McDonalds' All Americans and the Jordan Brand Classic? I've heard of the McDonalds' game for years but only recently started seeing the Jordan one come up. Just curious if one is considered more high-profile/prestigious. Are they rivals to each other or something?

I remember some CrackedSidewalks post, or maybe it was a poster on here, saying that only one team in the last 20 so odd years had won a National Championship without a Mcdonald's All American-Maryland.

[GOMU1104]

What is the real difference between the McDonalds' All Americans and the Jordan Brand Classic? I've heard of the McDonalds' game for years but only recently started seeing the Jordan one come up. Just curious if one is considered more high-profile/prestigious. Are they rivals to each other or something?

The Jordan Brand Classic game started earlier this decade, maybe '02 or '03...not sure if Nike did anything before that. Jamil Wilson played in it last year. Nike pretty much picks who they want...everyone in the 2009, at the time, was set to attend a "Nike School."  At that time, Xavier Henry was still committed to Memphis, but is obviously at Kansas now (Adidas School).

The McDonalds game has been going on since the '70s, has more history and is more mainstream and more identifiable. The McDonalds game follows NFHS standards, and does not allow for 5th year players...So John Wall wasnt a McDonalds All American last year.

The Jordan game is obviously a product of Nike, while Reebok sponsors the McDonalds game.

[The Pickle]

As expected, no Vander

http://scouthoops.scout.com/2/945732.html


However...Because of our shoe affiliation, I would expect Vander to play in the Jordan Brand Classic.

Because of their shoe affiliation, I would expect Harrison Barnes to play in it too.  Oh, and because he is the #1 ranked player in the country. 

[ecompt]

Is Vander really having the kind of year that would warrant a McDonald's spot?

[bma725]

Is Vander really having the kind of year that would warrant a McDonald's spot?

Maybe not, but getting named to the McDonald's team has very little to do with how you play during your senior year and a whole lot to do with the level of hype you've built up the previous three years.

[ecompt]

Just asking: Outside of Wisconsin, was the hype all that much?

[Aughnanure]

Just asking: Outside of Wisconsin, was the hype all that much?

Being a top 25-30 player in every single recruiting ranking I think would make his hype more than just limited to the state of Wisconsin. When was the last player we had that was consistently rated that high?

[bma725]

Just asking: Outside of Wisconsin, was the hype all that much?

Not really, for two reasons. 

The hype generally builds after freshman and sophomore years when people start noticing big name schools taking a look at you.  By that point it was pretty much already known that he was committed to UW, so as often happens, people stopped paying attention.  Then, his junior year when there was a chance to generate more hype, he didn't play in a whole lot of AAU tournaments where he could improve his stock.  One of the national guys on Scout even posted once asking where Vander Blue was, because he wanted to get a chance to look at his game again.

The other thing is, I think people over stated the general opinion of him thinking that everyone thought he was a 5-Star player.  That just isn't the case.   Yes most services rate him highly, in the 20-45 range.  But there are others that leave him completely out of the Top 100, and when you have that, it's hard to make a case for being an All American.

[bma725]

Being a top 25-30 player in every single recruiting ranking I think would make his hype more than just limited to the state of Wisconsin. When was the last player we had that was consistently rated that high?

Just what I was talking about.  He isn't rated that high in every service, just most.  Both PrepStars and USA Today leave him completely out of the Top 100.

[Norm]

I see Jay Wright nabbed another McDonald's All-American for Villanova. He is stockpiling quite the talent load there in Philadelphia.

[gumbyandpokey]

Has anyone seen Blue play this season?  I've heard from a few people that his level of play is pretty much what it was last year, which is still far above average, but not as great as some had hoped.

[Chili]

Has anyone seen Blue play this season?  I've heard from a few people that his level of play is pretty much what it was last year, which is still far above average, but not as great as some had hoped.

Much of that is Memorials system, not Vander.

[bma725]

Has anyone seen Blue play this season?  I've heard from a few people that his level of play is pretty much what it was last year, which is still far above average, but not as great as some had hoped.

I have.  I'd say his play right now has to do mostly with the fact that this is a vastly different Memorial team than we're used to. 

For the first time since before Wes Matthews was there, they don't have a big guy in the middle, essentially it's just Vander and then a bunch of talented but very young guards.  So the offense they've been running is different that what we would normally see, and it isn't exactly designed to use Vander's skills in the best way.  Not only that, but their point guard has been battling injuries, so it's not been running as smoothly as you would expect.  Defensively, they've played a lot of 1-3-1 with Vander at the bottom...which is about the worst place you could put him.

[GGGG]

Has anyone seen Blue play this season?  I've heard from a few people that his level of play is pretty much what it was last year, which is still far above average, but not as great as some had hoped.

Part of that is because you don't have the two time state player of the year playing next to him.

 

[hdog1017]

I have.  I'd say his play right now has to do mostly with the fact that this is a vastly different Memorial team than we're used to. 

For the first time since before Wes Matthews was there, they don't have a big guy in the middle, essentially it's just Vander and then a bunch of talented but very young guards.  So the offense they've been running is different that what we would normally see, and it isn't exactly designed to use Vander's skills in the best way.  Not only that, but their point guard has been battling injuries, so it's not been running as smoothly as you would expect. 

So he's basically running the Marquette offense in his senior year of high school...

[Aughnanure]

Just what I was talking about.  He isn't rated that high in every service, just most.  Both PrepStars and USA Today leave him completely out of the Top 100.

How does that happen? I mean when ESPN, Rivals, Scout all rank him around 20-30 and USA Today just leaves him out of their top 100? Is that due to a lack of exposure after he committed to UW or do some services just have a completely different system of talent evaluation?

[bma725]

How does that happen? I mean when ESPN, Rivals, Scout all rank him around 20-30 and USA Today just leaves him out of their top 100? Is that due to a lack of exposure after he committed to UW or do some services just have a completely different system of talent evaluation?

Some services just evaluate players differently. 

Prepstars is known for being a bit different than the other evaluators, and they often wildly disagree with the other services.  Some times they're right, often they are wrong.  Prepstars is mostly done by Brick Oettinger with input from Rob Harrington and Eric Bossi.  Harrington just happens to be the guy that does the ratings for USA Today.  So it's a good bet that if you don't make one of those lists, you aren't going to make either one.

In the case of Blue, Prepstars even admits that they have been told by many others they are wrong about their opinion, but from what they've seen of him they simply disagree with how the others rank him.

[cheebs09]

The time I saw him at the Al in December he was playing out of position due to Lomomba being out for awhile. Vander pretty much was their big guy in the bottom of the zone. Also, it didn't seem like they looked for him that much on offense. It was kind of weird watching the game since they seemed to completely ignore him on some possessions. However, there were plenty of flashes in the game that showed the type of talent he has.

[Aughnanure]

Some services just evaluate players differently. 

Prepstars is known for being a bit different than the other evaluators, and they often wildly disagree with the other services.  Some times they're right, often they are wrong.  Prepstars is mostly done by Brick Oettinger with input from Rob Harrington and Eric Bossi.  Harrington just happens to be the guy that does the ratings for USA Today.  So it's a good bet that if you don't make one of those lists, you aren't going to make either one.

In the case of Blue, Prepstars even admits that they have been told by many others they are wrong about their opinion, but from what they've seen of him they simply disagree with how the others rank him.

Thanks for the insight bma. Is there any truth to Vander Blue being that overrated? I remember a post about Jamil Jones around a week ago and how people here weren't too impressed with that one game, so I guess it depends when you see someone play and thus evaluations can vary wildly.

I would think that evaluating 14-17 year-olds playing a game like basketball has to be a more difficult scouting job then say baseball or even football. I think it would be much easier to evaluate on an individual level, as in basketball it seems you are much more dependent on your teammates and motivation level to set yourself apart.

[bma725]

I think it depends on what you're looking at.  I'm not necessarily sure that he's a 5-Star player like he's rate by Rivals, I think he's a lot closer to the rankings in the mid 30s and 40s that he gets from ESPN, HoopMasters and Bob Gibbons.