Props For A Fine Recruiting Class

[4everwarriors]

I'll admit I was skeptical at first, but TC and staff have done what was needed by reeling in Taylor and Otule. Dom Perignon for everyone!!!

[tower912]

So, 2 years from now, assuming that the status quo is maintained, we will have:     Guards: Taylor, Acker, Christopherson, Nick Williams, Cubes.    Forwards/Bigs:  Otule, Mbakwe, Hazel, Fulce, Hayward, Eric (?) Williams.    A very solid base.   I see room for a long range shooter and another big or two.    I think those posters who have been panicking about MU's long range future in the BE can relax.

[Mayor McCheese]

someone like Jamil Wilson would fit real nicely, or Maurice Creek.  wishful thinking

[tomcrean4pres]

jamil wilson would be a huge add but for some reason im just not getting the feeling he will come to MU... but i guess i felt that way with TT so hopefully it works out the same way!

P.S. im not completely sold on O'Tule yet either... i think people are just excited to get a 6' 10" guy but i dont see him contributing much until atleast his Jr. year... but hopefully im wrong here he just sounds like a project

[Desert_Eagle]

someone like Jamil Wilson would fit real nicely, or Maurice Creek.  wishful thinking

I don't think it's wishful thinking, I think we have a fair shot at these two.

[tomcrean4pres]

I think Jamil is either going to come to MU or leave the state... thats just my opinion... and i think odds are better of him leaving the state...hopefully im wrong once again

[Rockmic87]

Lets not celebrate too much, I mean it's cool and all to see that were finally getting ssome big men, but it's not like Crean is getting 4 or 5 star recruits or even having a top 25 recruiting class. Otule is only 2 stars and Fulce is 3 stars...Take a look at louisville and g'towns, recruiting class and we have nothing on them...

[bma725]

Lets not celebrate too much, I mean it's cool and all to see that were finally getting ssome big men, but it's not like Crean is getting 4 or 5 star recruits or even having a top 25 recruiting class. Otule is only 2 stars and Fulce is 3 stars...Take a look at louisville and g'towns, recruiting class and we have nothing on them...

HoopScoop already had the class as a top 25 class before Otule even committed.  And they have Fulce as a top 100 player, not a 3 star player.

[muarmy81]

I agree that Jamil will probably come to MU or leave the state (MSU?)  I think the recruits we're signing (Big athletic forwards) is more in line with Jamil's game whereas Wisconsin recruits more of the "traditional" post players.  Who knows though, I keep hearing different things on where he's leaning.  Guess we'll find out in about a year.

[downtown85]

Lets not celebrate too much, I mean it's cool and all to see that were finally getting ssome big men, but it's not like Crean is getting 4 or 5 star recruits or even having a top 25 recruiting class. Otule is only 2 stars and Fulce is 3 stars...Take a look at louisville and g'towns, recruiting class and we have nothing on them...

HoopScoop already had the class as a top 25 class before Otule even committed.  And they have Fulce as a top 100 player, not a 3 star player.

BMA, I hope in 2 years you prove to be right and Rockmic proves to be wrong.  That is the funny thing about recruiting classes is that you don't know how they are until they actually play.  That being said, Rock has a point.  We're not in CUSA anymore. 

[Canned Goods n Ammo]

I think this is a very nice class and we should keep in mind where we are coming from.

yea yea yea, I know we need to keep up with G-Town and UofL, UCONN, etc. etc.

But, the class that we have just landed is pretty damn good, and 5 years ago we would have been ecstatic about it.

Now I'm not saying we should always be just "satisfied" as a program, but I would consider this more of a "safety class" considering we missed on 2 of our top targets.

MU is really getting to a whole new level if this is a "safety" class that we can land.

If we can get another group similar to this next year and add Wilson to it, then you are looking at maybe a top 10 class.

If MU can land a top 25 (or so) class every year and occasionally land some guys with special talent (wade, diener, novak, james, etc.) then they will be pretty good year in and year out.

[Marquette84]

I'll admit I was skeptical at first, but TC and staff have done what was needed by reeling in Taylor and Otule. Dom Perignon for everyone!!!

I apprecieate that you are here to offer props to Crean and the staff on a fine recruiting class.  Some who ripped into Crean after losing Shumpert and BenEze are still hiding.

[augoman]

I'll admit I was skeptical at first, but TC and staff have done what was needed by reeling in Taylor and Otule. Dom Perignon for everyone!!!

I apprecieate that you are here to offer props to Crean and the staff on a fine recruiting class.  Some who ripped into Crean after losing Shumpert and BenEze are still hiding.

while I don't know who was "ripping Crean", I hasten to point out that there are about 90 players between Shumpert and Taylor, Ben-Eze and Otule.  I think coach made a decent recovery to a defensible position, but I hope he is attacking elsewhere in the recruiting wars.

[MarquetteVol]

Don't buy into the rankings too much. Taylor and Otule are flying under the radar right now, and Nick Williams probably would have been ranked much higher had he not committed so early. I'm very pleased with this class.

[dwaderoy2004]

i don;t buy that nick williams fell down the rankings because he was signed early.  tons of recruits sign early and stay highly ranked.  heck, look at the entire ohio state recruiting class for 2008 (keeping in mind nick williams committed 8/06):

http://scouthoops.scout.com/a.z?s=75&p=9&c=8&cfg=bb&toinid=412&yr=2008

furthermore, korie lucious commited to MSU around the same time NW committed.  there are tons of other examples out there.

Now, i think nick will be better than a lot of the rankings indicate, but i don;t think his ranking was altered specifically because he was an early commit...

[bma725]

furthermore, korie lucious commited to MSU around the same time NW committed. 

And Korie's ranking dropped like a brick after he signed.  Remember the hype about him?  Universally ranked in the top 15-20, some(HoopScoop) thought he was the most talented in the class, he was considered a McDonald's All American shoe-in, he was supposed to be the next great player in Wisconsin etc.  Now, he's a lower half of the top 100 guy.  Only HoopScoop even has him in the top 40, and Prepstars/Rob Harrington don't even have him in the top 100.  He's dropped down to #76 in the RSCI, and thats without them having the updated rankings from Scouts Inc where he has dropped 25 spots over the summer.

I'm not saying the sole reason he dropped is that he committed, but the commitment curse is a very real thing.  Just like the commitment bump.  If you're a fringe top 50 player and you commit to UNC or Duke or the like, suddenely your rankings start to go up.  If you commit early, you fall out of the picture because recruiting is about what is hot right now and suddenely you start to slide in the rankings.

[dwaderoy2004]

i had not realized korie's stock dropped as much as it did.  but there are plenty of examples out there besides him to show that one's ranking doesn't necessarily drop merely because of an early committment. 

merely as examples:

cuse's 2007 class
http://scouthoops.scout.com/a.z?s=75&p=9&c=8&toinid=384&yr=2007

nick calathes on florida:
http://scouthoops.scout.com/a.z?s=75&p=9&c=8&toinid=570&yr=2007

austin freeman on g-town:
http://scouthoops.scout.com/a.z?s=75&p=9&c=8&toinid=376&yr=2007

these guys committed approximately 2 years prior to getting to campus, just like nick williams, and ended up extremely high ranked.  i won't deny that some guys rise and fall based on who they end up signing with.  and i also won;t deny that some guys drop after they sign early.  but i think this is the exception, and not the rule.  regardless, not a big deal.  i think nick williams will be just fine, and do not believe that rankings are the final say in a kid's talents or potential.

[MarquetteVol]

i think nick williams will be just fine, and do not believe that rankings are the final say in a kid's talents or potential.

That's really the point I was trying to make, except I think he's going to be better than fine. I think he could be above average to excellent.

[4thAndState]

Like many here, I was seriously down after FBE and then Shumpert went elsewhere. Although Taylor and Otule may be second choices, they represent quality players with big upsides. When you factor in Trevor into this class, it has a prototypical 1 thru 5. (Taylor a 1, Nick Williams a 2, Fulce 3, TM  4 and Otule  5.) I don't know how they stack up against GT or UL or UConn's classes, but from where we were on Oct. 18 at 6:20 p.m. (Shumpert's announcement) to where we are today, I am satisfied -- not ecstatic -- but satisfied. Yes, props to TC, Buzz, and staff.

[Niv Berkowitz]

I was seriously down after FBE and then Shumpert went elsewhere. Although Taylor and Otule may be second choices, they represent quality players with big upsides.

And that explains where MU is nowadays. Not a bad thing. Still on the rise. I don't think the program is declining at all, nor has it yet plateaued. In the past, we'd all be going crazy over the signings of Taylor and Otule. Today, many of us are very pleased with the "recovery" to land what appear to be quality guys.

MU still needs to land a top 25 guy to gain the national notoriety of a place-to-be and hopefully that day will come. But if it doesn't and Crean has to continue to rely on these kinds of recruits, I don't think us MU fans can be too upset. We'll still have a solid team on the court, it's just our odds of annual regular- and post-season success are a little tougher.

But, considering how long MU's been in the Big East and considering the people that said it would be the death of the program long term...so far...it's been nothing but a blessing and a great coup on the schools part. We'll see how things go for next year and the post-Crean era (whenever that is).

It also won't hurt recruiting if James, McNeal and Matthews all continue to get better and better and make it to the pro's.

[bma725]

i had not realized korie's stock dropped as much as it did.  but there are plenty of examples out there besides him to show that one's ranking doesn't necessarily drop merely because of an early committment. 

I'm not saying it does every time, but it happens enough that there seems to be an identifiable pattern when it does.  The guy commits early, and then decides not to play in the high profile AAU events much, so he doesn't get that much exposure. Those events are key to a kids ranking because that is where most of the gurus get to seem them and that is what most of them base their rankings on.  Look at what happened to Scott Christopherson.  He committed his sophomore year, before the season even started.  At that time he was in many of the top 100 lists.  He played better his sophomore year, was named to the all state team, but he didn't play in the big AAU tournaments.  Consequently he didn't get the exposure needed to stay in the top 100.  Some dropped him just outside of it, but for the most part he fell big time.  Out of the Rivals top 150, out of HoopScoop's top 200, barely in the Scouts Inc top 150 etc.  He got better his junior year and even better his senior year when he was first team all state and Mr. Basketball in Wisconsin.  But his rankings never improved to show that.

[MUCHI814]

I know it's a guessing game and I have nothing to go on, but it's looking like Christopherson's ranking at the end of his high school career will probably be a fair assessment.

[Mayor McCheese]

why do we look at numbers like this, anyone remember where Dwyane Wade was ranked coming out of high school, I know he didn't start on his AAU team, honestly, numbers are numbers, thats all.