Dieng down to Marquette & Louisville

[GGGG]

Another, I don't think any of us really have good answers to your questions.  However, if Buzz is still recruiting players, he must obviously believe that they would be an upgrade OR someone is going to be leaving the program.  Given that, we should be happy to get the best recruit possible.

[MU_Iceman]

I'm going to keep posting this until I get a good answer .....

Help me with something ... why do we think any of these guys (Deing, Cothron, Noreen, Gardner) is an upgrade over what we have?  Again, I'm assuming to sign one of them we have to ask someone to leave. If Buzz knows that someone is leaving of their free will and has an open spot, then I'm all for signing any of them.

So this is not just a signing but more like a trade.  So consider what you lose versus what you gain.

Last year Ewill was rated higher than Deing.  Mbao was rated higher than Gardner.  Noreen is only slightly higher rated tha Ewill.  The only guy that is clearly higher rated than Ewill or Mbao is Cothron.

Last year many posted that Ewill would play 20 minutes a game.  Some even wondered if he would leave early for the NBA.  No one thinks that Corthron, Gardner, Deing or Noreen are that good.

Deing in from Senegal and considered a project.  Mbao is from Senegal and considered a project.  Mbao was a professional 7' 2" center from Europe.  Did everyone forget how excited we were to sign him?  We compared him to Thabeet!!!  How do you know that Deing is that much better than Mbao?

I'm struggling to see what taking these guys and booting someone off the team is really an upgrade? Is it you have all written off Ewill and Mbao and the guy you don't know, or have never seen, seems like a major upgrade?

I wrote on one of these boards a while back that there was a rumor in the Chicagoland area that Reggie Smith's grades were a concern...I'll say again that I have NO WAY of validating that information and speculation as to the academic standing of an incoming recruite is no different than speculation over who may leave by choice or get "run off"...but much like everyone else has said, IF Buzz is still actively recruiting, you'd have to think that he has some doubts over someone's situation (be it a current player or an incoming...)

I'll be honest though, I hope that Smith is okay academically because I think he could be a real asset to this team in the future...but the point is, we don't know what we don't know...so we'll all have to wait and see how this plays out

[Tugg Speedman]

84,
In Buzz, you gotta trust. None of us have seen these cats play.

I do trust Buzz.  My point is no one has made the case as to why these guys are better than what we have.  I went back and read the recruiting profiles of Ewill and Mbao versus Deing, Noreen and Gardener and I don't see much of a difference.  Cothron recruiting profile is much better than Ewill and/or Mbao.

Again if someone is leaving out of their own free will (that is not pushed out to make room for someone else), then it's a no brainier ... sign any of them.

[GOO]

Louisville has supposedly had the inside track since his visit there in February.  It makes you wonder why he came to MU at all unless his family and/or coaches wanted him to experience another place before making his choice.  My guess is that we are still a long-shot with this one.

I agree with this post 100%.  But stranger things have happened.

[NotAnAlum]

So this is not just a signing but more like a trade.  So consider what you lose versus what you gain.
I'm struggling to see what taking these guys and booting someone off the team is really an upgrade?

You're making a bunch of assumptions that lead you to believe this is a trade.
I just don't think that Buzz works like that.  Everything he has said and done indicates that he cares more about these kids as people than he does as players.  He has even talked about guys who left the team as still being his guys.  I really doubt he is force a kid off the team, knowing what that could do to the kid, because he thinks he can sign someone who might be a little better.
If it makes you feel better you should just assume that there is a scholarship open and whoever is leaving is doing so regardless of who we sign.  There, can you take down your post.

[PE8983]

Is it possible Buzz knows someone who is leaving, and it won't be announced until after school's out due to transfer rules and finishing out the semester in standing from an academic standpoint?

[MU_Iceman]

Again if someone is leaving out of their own free will (that is not pushed out to make room for someone else), then it's a no brainier ... sign any of them.

I agree with this statement 100%...

[bma725]

I do trust Buzz.  My point is no one has made the case as to why these guys are better than what we have.  I went back and read the recruiting profiles of Ewill and Mbao versus Deing, Noreen and Gardener and I don't see much of a difference.  Cothron recruiting profile is much better than Ewill and/or Mbao.

You don't see much of a difference?  EWill was a consensus Top 100 player, ranked #67 in the composite RSCI rankings.  Only Cothron fits that bill.  The others aren't consensus Top 100 players, or even marginal Top 100 players.  His evaluations are a heck of a lot closer to Cothron than they are to any of the other 4, and there are some who saw both that consider EWill to be a much better prospect.

[MerrittsMustache]

I'm going to keep posting this until I get a good answer .....

Help me with something ... why do we think any of these guys (Deing, Cothron, Noreen, Gardner) is an upgrade over what we have?  Again, I'm assuming to sign one of them we have to ask someone to leave. If Buzz knows that someone is leaving of their free will and has an open spot, then I'm all for signing any of them.

So this is not just a signing but more like a trade.  So consider what you lose versus what you gain.

Last year Ewill was rated higher than Deing.  Mbao was rated higher than Gardner.  Noreen is only slightly higher rated tha Ewill.  The only guy that is clearly higher rated than Ewill or Mbao is Cothron.

Last year many posted that Ewill would play 20 minutes a game.  Some even wondered if he would leave early for the NBA.  No one thinks that Corthron, Gardner, Deing or Noreen are that good.

Deing in from Senegal and considered a project.  Mbao is from Senegal and considered a project.  Mbao was a professional 7' 2" center from Europe.  Did everyone forget how excited we were to sign him?  We compared him to Thabeet!!!  How do you know that Deing is that much better than Mbao?

I'm struggling to see what taking these guys and booting someone off the team is really an upgrade? Is it you have all written off Ewill and Mbao and the guy you don't know, or have never seen, seems like a major upgrade?

I agree with posters who say that Buzz wouldn't be recruiting if he didn't think a spot was going to open up.

In response to Another's question...Sports fans love new, unproven players because they're the great unknown. Until they prove otherwise, fans can always claim that a back-up player (or in this case, a different recruit) is a better option and a budding superstar. If they see him play and he doesn't live up to expectations, they'll call for someone else who they've never seen before.

[TJ]

I'm going to keep posting this until I get a good answer .....

Help me with something ... why do we think any of these guys (Deing, Cothron, Noreen, Gardner) is an upgrade over what we have?  Again, I'm assuming to sign one of them we have to ask someone to leave. If Buzz knows that someone is leaving of their free will and has an open spot, then I'm all for signing any of them.

So this is not just a signing but more like a trade.  So consider what you lose versus what you gain.

Last year Ewill was rated higher than Deing.  Mbao was rated higher than Gardner.  Noreen is only slightly higher rated tha Ewill.  The only guy that is clearly higher rated than Ewill or Mbao is Cothron.

Last year many posted that Ewill would play 20 minutes a game.  Some even wondered if he would leave early for the NBA.  No one thinks that Corthron, Gardner, Deing or Noreen are that good.

Deing in from Senegal and considered a project.  Mbao is from Senegal and considered a project.  Mbao was a professional 7' 2" center from Europe.  Did everyone forget how excited we were to sign him?  We compared him to Thabeet!!!  How do you know that Deing is that much better than Mbao?

I'm struggling to see what taking these guys and booting someone off the team is really an upgrade? Is it you have all written off Ewill and Mbao and the guy you don't know, or have never seen, seems like a major upgrade?

I can't justify it or anything, but it seems to work the same in the NFL with the draft.  Anquan Boldin was traded for a 3rd and a 4th round pick - did the AZ Cardinals really think they were going to pick a guy with either of those picks that would be as good as Boldin?  The backup QB is always the most popular guy in a city with a losing team.  The potential of something new seems to outweigh a "known" quantity for most people.

[cheebs09]

Dieng Verballed to UL according to Evan Daniels' twitter.

[mu89]

Dieng Verballed to UL according to Evan Daniels' twitter.

true. well, that's over.

http://twitter.com/evandanielscout

[Tugg Speedman]

You don't see much of a difference?  EWill was a consensus Top 100 player, ranked #67 in the composite RSCI rankings.  Only Cothron fits that bill.  The others aren't consensus Top 100 players, or even marginal Top 100 players.  His evaluations are a heck of a lot closer to Cothron than they are to any of the other 4, and there are some who saw both that consider EWill to be a much better prospect.

This was my point  ... I was not trying to put a find edge in it.  Deing going to 'ville (supposedly) they are getting a player that is not as highly rated as Ewill.  He will average 2 minutes a game for them (3 minutes/game if he came to MU).  I don't see him as that big a loss.

[MuMark]

You do realize that ratings are not always accurate right?

[Ready2Fly]

This was my point  ... I was not trying to put a find edge in it.  Deing going to 'ville (supposedly) they are getting a player that is not as highly rated as Ewill.  He will average 2 minutes a game for them (3 minutes/game if he came to MU).  I don't see him as that big a loss.

Completely different players in completely different situations.  If Samuels stays in the draft, that opens up a ton of PT at the 5 for L'ville.  E-Will was fighting for minutes last year with Lazar, Butler, and Fulce.  To use rankings and say that Williams was ranked higher and only played 2 min/game at MU last year which means that Dieng will play the same amount at L'ville next year is some deeply flawed logic.

[cheebs09]

This was my point  ... I was not trying to put a find edge in it.  Deing going to 'ville (supposedly) they are getting a player that is not as highly rated as Ewill.  He will average 2 minutes a game for them (3 minutes/game if he came to MU).  I don't see him as that big a loss.

Dieng's only been in the US for about 6 months. People haven't watched him a ton but Daniels said he was for sure moving up. The Louisville board is calling him a solid 4 star. He will average more than 2 minutes at Louisville, especially if Samardo is gone, and I think he would have averaged well over 3 minutes here.

[VegasWarrior77]

Dieng Verballed to UL according to Evan Daniels' twitter.

Devante Gardner - come on down...???  We'll see!

[Dawson Rental]

I would take as many of these official visits as they would let me take if that is the type of stuff they do on the visit.

Would you settle for being a ballboy during the scrimmage?  I'd hate to lose a valuable contributor like you to injury at this juncture.

[nycwarrior]

Fair point MU84. No way of knowing for sure which 7-foot project will be better. Or whether it's worth "trading" one guy for another.

I think people are excited because we know from experience:

1) Roster attrition is a reality and it's hurt us.
We've been undermanned every year (especially in the frontcourt). Both in terms of the actual number of bodies and it terms of the number of guys who could actually check into a game and help. Would anyone be surprised to hear that we've already got another injury to deal with?

2) Buzz has given us a lot of reason to trust him as a recruiter
Incoming reputation. Back-to-back top 20 classes. DJO out of nowhere. Vander from the headlines. Jae out of nowhere. Landing Jmay after we were nowhere (despite his departure).

3) Buzz has given us a lot of evidence that he's atypically direct with players
The whole "the man has no secrets" storyline seems genuine. We've got lots of evidence to believe that he's brutally and consistently honest with players. In other words, they're told every day just how close or far they are to being a real contributor:

Examples:
>> conversations about how his relationship with Cubie evolved;
>> the changes he brought about in DJames's game;
>> Mo Acker leaving, coming back, stepping into a huge role...

Some guys get better, some guys go. That's different than making a guy believe one day and kicking him aside the next.

4) Buzz either has the best PR machine ever or he's too good a guy to eff over a 19-year-old
He values assistants like no coach I've heard. He helps homeless guys, prays with cancer victims and focuses his community efforts on what seem like efforts with kids.

Guess it's all down to enjoying the possibility of "more" while waiting and trusting in BUZZZZ

[KipsBayEagle]

I don't think I have ever seen more hype on this board for such a marginal player as I have with this guy.

[HoopsMalone]

Would you settle for being a ballboy during the scrimmage?  I'd hate to lose a valuable contributor like you to injury at this juncture.

If I could go to the NBA playoff game and the Brewers game and then not even have to break a sweat in a scrimmage, count me in.  If I was a 5-star with my mind made up, put me on the plane for some official visits to Arizona, Sothern Cal, and Florida in January too just for the fun of it. 

[DiaperDandy]

According to Yahoo news, Dieng just comitted to Louisville.  BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOo
http://www.courier-journal.com/article/20100426/SPORTS11/4260354/1028/rss0702

[MerrittsMustache]

I don't think I have ever seen more hype on this board for such a marginal player as I have with this guy.

Yes, but he's tall! That means he'd fit in perfectly with Marquette!

[Dawson Rental]

I'm going to keep posting this until I get a good answer .....

Help me with something ... why do we think any of these guys (Deing, Cothron, Noreen, Gardner) is an upgrade over what we have?  Again, I'm assuming to sign one of them we have to ask someone to leave. If Buzz knows that someone is leaving of their free will and has an open spot, then I'm all for signing any of them.

So this is not just a signing but more like a trade.  So consider what you lose versus what you gain.

Last year Ewill was rated higher than Deing.  Mbao was rated higher than Gardner.  Noreen is only slightly higher rated tha Ewill.  The only guy that is clearly higher rated than Ewill or Mbao is Cothron.

Last year many posted that Ewill would play 20 minutes a game.  Some even wondered if he would leave early for the NBA.  No one thinks that Corthron, Gardner, Deing or Noreen are that good.

Deing in from Senegal and considered a project.  Mbao is from Senegal and considered a project.  Mbao was a professional 7' 2" center from Europe.  Did everyone forget how excited we were to sign him?  We compared him to Thabeet!!!  How do you know that Deing is that much better than Mbao?

I'm struggling to see what taking these guys and booting someone off the team is really an upgrade? Is it you have all written off Ewill and Mbao and the guy you don't know, or have never seen, seems like a major upgrade?

Each year the Kentucky Derby holds a high school all-star game called the Derby Festival Classic.  This year's game included 12 players ranked in Scout's top 100.  The roster (with Scout's top 100 ranking following players who made it) was:
Black Team
Anthony Brown - Stanford - No. 41
Justin Coleman - Louisville - No. 25
Gorgui Dieng - Undecided
Ryan Harrow - N.C. State - No. 24
Tyler Lamb - UCLA - No. 60
Nate Lubick - Georgetown - No. 37
Russ Smith - Louisville
Trey Zeigler - Western (or Central) Michigan - No. 34
Elisha Justice - Kentucky's Mr. Basketball - Louisville (walk-on)

White Team
Moses Abraham - Georgetown
Trae Golden - Tennessee - No. 83
Josh Hairston - Duke - No. 42
Justin Martin - Xavier
Ray McCallum - Detroit - No. 23
Jordan McRae - Tennessee - No. 29
Victor Oladipo - Indiana
Stacey Poole Jr. - Kentucky - No. 58
Dwight Powell - Stanford - No. 45
Royce Woolridge - Kansas

At the conclusion of the game, Gorgui Sy Dieng, who was voted his team's Most Valuable Player, added 15 points, seven rebounds and eight blocks.

I think that we can put to bed the Gorgui Sy Dieng is a project talk!!!!!

[NersEllenson]

Each year the Kentucky Derby holds a high school all-star game called the Derby Festival Classic.  This year's game included 12 players ranked in Scout's top 100.  The roster (with Scout's top 100 ranking following players who made it) was:
Black Team
Anthony Brown - Stanford - No. 41
Justin Coleman - Louisville - No. 25
Gorgui Dieng - Undecided
Ryan Harrow - N.C. State - No. 24
Tyler Lamb - UCLA - No. 60
Nate Lubick - Georgetown - No. 37
Russ Smith - Louisville
Trey Zeigler - Western (or Central) Michigan - No. 34
Elisha Justice - Kentucky's Mr. Basketball - Louisville (walk-on)

White Team
Moses Abraham - Georgetown
Trae Golden - Tennessee - No. 83
Josh Hairston - Duke - No. 42
Justin Martin - Xavier
Ray McCallum - Detroit - No. 23
Jordan McRae - Tennessee - No. 29
Victor Oladipo - Indiana
Stacey Poole Jr. - Kentucky - No. 58
Dwight Powell - Stanford - No. 45
Royce Woolridge - Kansas

At the conclusion of the game, Gorgui Sy Dieng, who was voted his team's Most Valuable Player, added 15 points, seven rebounds and eight blocks.

I think that we can put to bed the Gorgui Sy Dieng is a project talk!!!!!

Agreed 100% - This kid would have been a MAJOR GET for MU.  It sucks we didn't land him, and that we keep being the runner up for some highly regarded bigs - T. Black and now Dieng.  I have all the confidence in Buzz that we will get a good one soon - 2011 class hopefully - but this one hurts losing him to Lville.