Article on Jamil?

[Markusquette]

Hey, not sure if it's okay for people to summarize this but-  if anyone has an account at scout I am interested in this article on our number 1 recruit for 2009, Jamil Wilson.  http://illinois.scout.com/a.z?s=169&p=2&c=745468&ssf=1&RequestedURL=http%3a%2f%2fillinois.scout.com%2f2%2f745468.html

[LastWarrior]

I can't see the article but I think I can guarantee that he won't be going to Illinois.  I highly doubt he's "very interested" in Illinois... I think it's just fluff by the author.

[Tugg Speedman]

I hope Jamil doesn't become the next Joe Wolf for MU.

[Markusquette]

Just think how great our future could be it Jamil attended MU.

[mviale]

dont get the Joe Wolf reference?

[Markusquette]

nor do i

[PuertoRicanNightmare]

Joe Wolf was a highly sought after recruit who seemed to be going to Marquette. I believe it was almost a done deal. At the last minute, he changed his mind and ended up at North Carolina.

I believe it was the thing that made Majerus decide he was through with recruiting and he signed as an assistant with the Bucks.

EDIT: And Wolf was from Wisconsin -- I can't remember where.

[Tugg Speedman]

dont get the Joe Wolf reference?

Joe Wolf was from Kohler in the early-1980s.  He was 6' 10" and a McDoanlds All-American.  Some had him has the #1 player in the country that year.  Jamil might be the highest rated Wisconsin player since Wolf.

Wolf's final two choices were MU and North Carolina.  He says it was a 50/50 decision that he literally went back and forth on until the minutes before he chose UNC (he said he sat in his room 15 minutes before the presser and told his parents he still hadn't decided.)

Had he picked MU, Majerus career might have been very different, much more positive.  The Majerus of Utah might have started that day at MU.  Instead, Majerus struggled a few more years and he was replaced by Dukiet.  The entire debacle of the late 1980s/early 1990s MIGHT not have happened had Joe Wolf picked MU.

Likewise with Jamil.  When all is said and done, I fear that defining sucess or failure of Buzz at MU will come down to signing Jamil.  If Buzz does not sign him, we could be headed down the Joe Wolf path again.  If he sign's him, he could take MU to a higher level than Crean.

Add:

He is a JS article about the greatest Wisconsin Basketball Players EVER.  Wolf is rated #1

http://www.jsonline.com/story/index.aspx?id=304795

[mviale]

I dont think Fat Rick's fate fell on that signee.  He just couldnt get it done at MU and Copa was just as good as Wolf coming out of HS.

[Tugg Speedman]

I dont think Fat Rick's fate fell on that signee.  He just couldnt get it done at MU and Copa was just as good as Wolf coming out of HS.

Not even remotely close.  If Wolf played today, given his reputation coming out of HS, he would have gone straight to the NBA.  Copa wasn't even the best player in Minnesota that year, let alone #1 in the country.

Losing Wolf, a Wisconsin player, meant he could not recruit his own state.  It was the beginning of the end.

[mviale]

wolf was slightly better.  Copa just needed motivation and a better HC

[4everwarriors]

 Losing Wolf was Majerus' defining moment in Rick's MU coaching career. Had he come, others of like ability would have followed. Because he didn't, Rick could never get over the hump, coupled with his inexperience, this sealed his faith.

As far as Copa vs. Wolf is concerned, sorry mviale, Joe was head and shoulders over Tom. Not even talking about players on the same page. Just check the record, Joe was a first round draft choice and played several productive seasons in the Association. Tom, on the other hand, sat one season on the Spurs bench after playing in the CBA.

[Tugg Speedman]

wolf was slightly better.  Copa just needed motivation and a better HC

You're showing a complete lack of knowledge and hurting your reputation by defending this position.

[mviale]

I dont buy it - not getting wolf didnt cost Majerus his job.  It was so many other things. Including losing to UNC x 2 pts in which Copa and Boone held up pretty good against a formidable front court of Popson, Daugherty and Wolf. 

Rick could not live up to the post Al era expectations - too much pressure.  The question will be the same for Buzz and not whether he gets some big fish in a little pond like Jamil.

[Tugg Speedman]

I dont buy it - not getting wolf didnt cost Majerus his job.  It was so many other things. Including losing to UNC x 2 pts in which Copa and Boone held up pretty good against a formidable front court of Popson, Daugherty and Wolf. 

Rick could not live up to the post Al era expectations - too much pressure.  The question will be the same for Buzz and not whether he gets some big fish in a little pond like Jamil.

You're making my point, take Wolf off UNC and put him on MU and they win that game.  MU wins a lot of other games, which attracts better recruits because of Wolf.

D1 bball is all about recruiting.  When a UNC comes to Wisconsin and "takes away" a Joe Wolf, MU's reputation takes a hit.  Losing Jamil could do the same thing.

If Buzz keeps TT, Erik Williams and signs Jamil, he doesn't need to coach.  Add to this if Trevor stays. 

If Buzz lands Jamil, then he also shows he SHOULD BE recruiting all-americans.  The quality of recruits coming to MU will be upgraded after that.

Jamil is key to Buzz's future.  He's this generation's Joe Wolf.  Let's hope it turns out better.

[avid1010]

Wolf vs. Copa...you're kidding.  I moved to Kohler less than a year ago, and I still hear of Wolf often.  The two weren't even closely ranked coming out of high school or college....never on the same level.  Maybe we should read more into the "Fat Rick" statement as you seem to have some ill feelings towards Rick.  He's a hard guy to like

[Pardner]

Let's remember that Joe's older brother Jeff went to UNC (played in the 1977 NCAA game).  Landing Joe would have been a huge recruiting upset.  Rick didn't land Walter Downing at the first crack when he was the lead recruiter under Hank--a kid he knew from a young age like Doc, for various reasons.  I think that set him back more on the recruiting buzz as he headed into his term as HC (the final closure of MU "owning" the Chicago pipeline)

Rick needed to go elsewhere to make his mistakes...he alienated his team and a lot of alumni along the way.  He is a HOF coach, is loved by a lot folks at MU, but he had/has his weaknesses.   Not landing Wolf wasn't the straw...

[MUPig]

No disrespect to Rick, but is he really a HOF coach?

[Pardner]

No disrespect to Rick, but is he really a HOF coach?

Compare to Knight and decide if he has a chance (looks good to me considering BK's stint at TT)...btw, more wins than Al and better relative numbers than Ray Meyer.  Took the unusual jobs where he didn't have to be the cheerleader which hurts him on the NCAA #"s. 

http://statsheet.com/mcb/coaches/compare?c1=bob-knight&c2=ray-meyer&c3=rick-majerus&remove=ray-meyer