early guesses for 2011

[krukster201]

RB ... The impression I get from Dawson is that he really likes GU .. It's his Mom (Not a good thing) that wants him to stay home from what I understand. I still have faith that we have a chance esp. if he gets to campus with his mom.

Also .. I agree with your guesses RB (Roc , Ty and Katenda) .. and I was hoping to add the Henry kid .. but he chose Illinois today(we made his final 3 FWIW). So maybe throwing Jordan in there to redshirt could be an option .. you think? I think O'Bryant will stay home and Cook will end up in the ACC. Chol really likes the Hoyas from what I've heard around the net , but I feel he'll end up @ U-Dub.

From NBE.com today(nothing new): (Purdue will be tough to beat - we all know that)

While UK commit Marquis Teague gets most of the attention out of the state of Indiana in the class of 2011, the Louisville Courier-Journal reminds readers that Branden Dawson is Indiana’s Other Top Junior. The 6-foot-6, 205-pound forward out of Lew Wallace HS in Gary (IN) lists Purdue, Michigan State, Indiana, Marquette, UCLA and Georgetown as schools on his list, with all currently equal. <----

[HoyaSinceBirth]

I think Cook is a legitimate possibility because he seems tight with christmas who we're recruiting heavily and seems to be good friends with Austin they were playing pick up yesterday. But either him or ty would be great and I like to think we get one of them, with ty being more likely right now.

I think Dawson is a possibility because he continues to mention us.

I think Roc is ours to lose right now. That's probably not accurate, but that's how I've built it up in my mind.

Obviously all the big names we're after are possibilities and i'm confident we'll get our fair share.

[idhoya]

The Davis kid intrigues me. Also, Chandler is mentioning Hoyas now. I agree tho, Katenda and Jordan O seem like legitimate commits. I've said all along that GU will take 2 bigs, a wing and a combo/pg. Should be a fun summer as the pins drop.

[RDF]

Chandler will be going to Kentucky when it's all done.

I don't understand the Jordan O stuff--I mean he's a nice project and now he's blown an ACL and he's a huge kid--this is seriously going to limit his development further and defensively whether we like it or not--think of how III uses his bigs on the outside---and how they have to scramble back--this would be layups/dunks for days--and we see that now with more mobile big men--although no great shot blockers. What Georgetown needs to get are skilled bigs who are mobile and don't have to be told to rebound--go get the ball types--O'Bryant and Dawson are that type of mindset and a legit shot blocker--Christmas.

I'm not saying you wait for those guys--but it's the type of players they should target if they continue to do things as we've seen. A big guy like Jordan O is a project. You take away his SR season with an ACL injury and talk of RedShirting a big--well if they weren't going to Redshirt Sims and didn't with Hibbert--why do it with this guy?

Get 4 contributors with idea they can all come in and play ASAP. The key position at Georgetown that has determined whether they'll be a contender--SF. When Hoyas have a tall/long team--they win championships/contend for National Titles---when they are small and lack talent there--they come up short. Whether it was having Martin, Williams, Wingate, or Summers and PE JR, you see how important that position is--the wildcard guy who can contribute in vast ways and make plays due their talent and give you an advantage with size/athleticism on both ends.

I'd recruit with idea that you are trying to make Hollis Thompson a 2G as he progresses but that's just my opinion.

[SFHoya99]

According to Hoya Ron, Jordan has not blown an ACL.

From watching Jordan, he's more athletic than Roy, and Roy got back 99% of the time. Roy shouldn't have been better at getting back than Monroe, but he was.

I wouldn't want to redshirt him, but I'd be willing to bet he ends up a much better shot blocker than Christmas, for example, entirely on height. I'm not saying you take him over Christmas -- I certainly am no scout and I haven't seen them enough. And most people say no way.

But a 7' guy with some athleticism? That's a huge defensive presence and very few 6'9" can ever duplicate that. We've seen that with Greg. Roy simply didn't even have to jump to alter shots, and that's a gigantic benefit in basketball. You don't have to go for pump fakes. When a shot goes up, you're in better rebounding position, etc.

Christmas is likely to be a better overall player, but very few 6'9" guys had a defensive impact like Hibbert (Alonzo, Okafor, Varnado). If you think Jordan can be that kind of defensive player, you have to look at him.

[tonyparker]

That is good to hear if Jordan didn't blow the ACL. Just a rumor I heard.

Will be interesting to see how the class plays out. Seems like a lot of the really big stars we are after (Dawson, O'Bryant, Cook, Miller, Chandler) are in no rush to commit in the fall and will wait until the spring. I'd like to see the staff lock up Christmas, Katenda, and Daniels and then swing for the fences to close out 2011.

[RDF]

Jordan O isn't a defensive presence--he's a big body. Who said he's a great shot blocker? Have you seen him play at all? The guy is a major project and you are comparing him to a highly skilled guy in Roy Hibbert--who was highly thought of and suffered several foot injuries in HS that hampered his running/conditioning--but offensively was always a talent. Tire of the story or should I say lie that goes around that Hibbert was some stiff that Georgetown had to teach to play--Roy could play and offensively was highly advanced--he just needed to condition.

Jordan O is mechanical and moves nice for a giant kid--and he's getting comparisons to guys who are proven to be presence in his peer group. Christmas blocked 8 shots in First Half of a game this past weekend and I'm not sure if Jordan O could block 8 in a game. Great shot blocking is a skill no matter how tall you are--and you take that anytime you can get it--you don't guess that a guy will due to being big.

[chep3]

May 11, 2010 13:54:08 GMT -5 RDF said:

Great shot blocking is a skill no matter how tall you are--and you take that anytime you can get it--you don't guess that a guy will due to being big.

I agree with this. Would I take Jordan O as a shotblocker over the average 6'9 guy? Yes, without watching either, because Jordan O is a 7 footer. But would I take him over Christmas who is supposedly the best shotblocker in the class? No. Hell, I'd like them both, one as a right away starter, the other as a project we could develop. I just am wary of us projecting Roy onto Jordan O just because they're both local 7 footers who may (or may not accd to RDF) have been projects.

I do buy RDF's argument that Roy wasn't as much of a stiff as everyone thinks. He couldn't run, but there's no way he developed that soft a touch in just 1 year of college.

[jerseyhoya34]

I would go after the Bhullar dude ahead of Jordan O. O's reputation has kind of taken on a life of its own with a 7 footer dynamic. I am happy enough if we monitor him, but there's no way he's on my A list right now ahead of Christmas, O'Bryant, Chol, et al. I'd rather play with two 6'9" point forwards on the floor and a long wing than running O out there.

If we have a developmental scholarship in the spring, fine. No complaints.

My sense is that our staff has a pretty good idea of who we (or they) want right now - seems like we have Johnson/Cook, Quincy Miller, O'Bryant, and Christmas high on our list with Katenda and a few others working around the edges.

[SFHoya99]

May 11, 2010 13:54:08 GMT -5 RDF said:

Jordan O isn't a defensive presence--he's a big body. Who said he's a great shot blocker? Have you seen him play at all? The guy is a major project and you are comparing him to a highly skilled guy in Roy Hibbert--who was highly thought of and suffered several foot injuries in HS that hampered his running/conditioning--but offensively was always a talent. Tire of the story or should I say lie that goes around that Hibbert was some stiff that Georgetown had to teach to play--Roy could play and offensively was highly advanced--he just needed to condition.

Jordan O is mechanical and moves nice for a giant kid--and he's getting comparisons to guys who are proven to be presence in his peer group. Christmas blocked 8 shots in First Half of a game this past weekend and I'm not sure if Jordan O could block 8 in a game. Great shot blocking is a skill no matter how tall you are--and you take that anytime you can get it--you don't guess that a guy will due to being big.

I admit I haven't seen enough of these guys to evaluate them individually, and I too don't like the constant comparisons to Roy. I don't think Jordan's anywhere near Roy offensively.

That said, I think he's pretty athletic for a guy his size -- more athletic than Roy. So I think there's real potential there, especially defensively, where skill is less important relative to desire than on offense.

I'm sure Christmas is an excellent shotblocker. Would you say he's in Zo's or Varnado's class? How about Okafor? Shotblocking is a skill, but it also struggles to translate from high school to college. You lose a lot of easy blocks unless you are 7'2" or whatever.

If Christmas is in that class, then he can be a defensive dominator at that level. There's no doubt those guys I listed were. But height is HUGE on defense, and we like to play small. A 7' guy who can move as well as Hibbert could be an incredible defensive asset.

It's nothing to sneeze at, and it weirds me out when people immediately write off these big guys who may take some time on offense.

Everyone seems pretty sure Christmas is going to be better, and I'm okay with that. Got really nothing to say.

But I think Jordan O has a chance to be a player that contributes more on defense than almost anyone, and I like players like that.

[mfrekko]

I just checked the new rivals rankings and Some Random Dude was just upgraded to 4 stars.

[HoyaSinceBirth]

I hear SRD is a freakish athlete, has tremendous length and massive upside

[mfrekko]

SRD has bounce, a smooth stroke, and a tight bottom. .

[jkhoya12]

May 11, 2010 18:16:04 GMT -5 @mfrekko said:

I just checked the new rivals rankings and Some Random Dude was just upgraded to 4 stars.

Hahahahaha....Calipari is already well on that.

[HometownHoya]

I'm agreeing with the "random". Doesn't mean that they are going to be under the radar, just not who we were expecting.

Although I've been thinking 2 bigs, a wing, and a guard, some new developments have me changing. Since we will be graduating 2 guards that year and left with 3 guards, 3/2 wings, and 3/4 bigmen (depending on how you classify Jerrelle), we have a lot of room for recruiting all positions (partially why coach has such a wide recruiting net). I wouldn't mind picking up Daniels as a replacement for AF, we are going to need a guard with that versatility of their game, being able to pull up for a jump shot or be at the rim dunking the next second. Especially since we will be PG heavy at that time, Daniels can be primarily a scorer.

I really would like to see:
TJ, Daniels, Katenda, Rak

I wouldn't mind if we picked up Jordon O as a 5th project, if we have anymore early defections, as long as he knew he wouldn't be getting minutes and maybe if we were to redshirt him depending on his recovery process (from w/e the injury is)

That would give us:
Jason Clark (Sr.) (SG)
Vee Stanford (Jr.) (PG)
Markel Starks (So.) (PG)
Tyrone Johnson (Fr.) (PG/SG)
Bishop Daniels (Fr.) (PG/SG)
we wouldn't have any trouble handling the ball for sure, maybe a little point heavy

Hollis Thompson (Jr.) (SF)
Aaron Bowen (So.) (SF)

Jerelle Benimon (Jr.) (SF/PF)
Erik Katenda (Fr.) (SF/PF)

Moses Abraham (So.) (C)
Nate Lubick (So.) (PF)
Henry Sims (Sr.) (C)
Rakeem Christmas (Fr.) (PF)

I think that if we have anyone who could possible transfer before this point it would have to be Henry (highly unlikely) or Jerelle (I could see that happen if he looses his minutes this year, much like Nikita last year). So not including new recruits, we would have: 3 guards, 3 wings, 3 big men. We would have just graduated two of our best all time guards in Austin and Chris and will be losing our transfer Vaughn. If we get Rak, I think we should stick with just 1 bigman for '11 (unless we get a transfer), 2 guards (i think Daniels and Ty would replace Austin and Chris very well), and maybe a wing. Fortunately Katenda has the length to play some PF as well

It depends if Jerelle stays, how he develops (as a SF or PF?). Whichever one he becomes more of, we should recruit the other, or maybe just recruit another SF/PF combo (but more on the PF side). Katenda definitely fits this profile at a 6'9" SF and the next year we have Goodman already coming in as a 6'9" PF.

Guards win National Championships
Jason, Vee, Markel, Tyrone, and Bishop...you know you want to be Hoya Champions

[idhoya]

Hoyas need to get more athletic across the board. It really doesn't matter who it is. I have preferences, but ultimately I want the best players that fit.

[RDF]

May 12, 2010 13:24:41 GMT -5 idhoya said:

Hoyas need to get more athletic across the board. It really doesn't matter who it is. I have preferences, but ultimately I want the best players that fit.

If you like athleticism--check out Sam Thompson of Whitney Young HS in Chicago! Sign that young man up imo. WOW!

Excited to see he's moved Hoyas into his top 5.

Want an athletic/mobile team across the board and 4-5 kids in '11 class should fill that need and add to the guys already on team who will be there when they join up.

[mfrekko]

Not sure what to make of the huge net we are casting.

On the one hand, it is terrific that we are mentioned by so many Top 100 players from the Class of 2011. It means we are active, involved, top of mind, and at least for now being legitimately considered by legitimate top talent.

On the other, does the wide net being cast mean that we don't feel confident in A #1 targets?

Speaking of which, given the list of recuits we are working, it is extremely difficult to determine which of these guys have the A #1 standing offers that trump all others.

I think Rakeem and J'OB are probably the only definites - if either of them commit, we don't blink. And I don't think we accept a schollie at these positions before we know Rak or JO'B are going somewhere else.

The others are much more interchangeable.

If Ty commits, I think we roll comfortably without Cook. Or vice versa.

If Thompson commits, I think we move on without Miller or Dawson quite comfortably. Or vice versa, vice versa.

Tough to figure this all out.

I just can't wait to see when Sum Rahndim Dood will sign.

[EasyEd]

Inside information: I hear Mr. Dood is very good.

[tonyparker]

Did this awhile ago, thought I'd update it. Seems like we are now looking at far more guards, maybe due to Tyrone Johnson's choice not too commit early.

PG: Quinn Cook (Tyrone Johnson, Chasson Randle)
SG: Bishop Daniels (Ky Madden, Jabari Brown, Jerome Seagears, Nick Faust, Myles Davis)
SF: Sam Thompson (Branden Dawson, Eric Katenda)
PF: Johnny O'Bryant (Desmond Hubert, Darion Atkins)
C: Rakeem Christmas (Angelo Chol, Jordon Omegbehin, Michael Chandler, Greg Lewis)

My gut says at guard we get Bishop Daniels. I think we are in too late on Chasson Randle, and just have a feeling that Quinn Cook and Tyrone Johnson are more enamored with other programs. Think Daniels would be a great get, regardless, and get the impression he really wants to come here (which is nice). I do hope we put the full court press on Ky Madden as well.

I think on the wing we get Sam Thompson and Eric Katenda. Would love Dawson but think he stays in the midwest. Would love O'Bryant but think he goes to Kentucky. Think if Thompson goes elsewhere the next most realistic option is Nick Faust.

With the fourth scholly, I think we get Rakeem Christmas. Hopefully, losing Coach Cox won't affect his recruitment too much, as prior to his departure it appeared we were in the driver's seat. Seem to be well-positioned with Chol as well, who would be a tremendous get as well. Removed Hopkins as his interest in Hoyas seems to have waned.