Hoyas4Ever
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Post by Hoyas4Ever on Jul 23, 2018 9:18:07 GMT -5
Akok Akok 6'10" PF
School: Putnam Science Academy
Class: 2019
Hometown: Putnam, Connecticut
Spring/Summer Team: Mass Rivals (Addidas)
Offer: Yes on April 23, 2018
Ultra talented 4/5 that is an elite rim protector (arguably the best in 2019 class) and high level perimeter skills with range on his jumper that extend easily beyond the arc.
The Skinny: Providence was the first HM program to offer him during his sophomore year and because of that and the Friars well developed pipeline with the Mass Rivals program (Ashton-Langford, David Duke, and A.J Reaves) the Friars are early leaders in the club house. Syracuse has made up some ground and have to be seen as contenders as well followed by Dan Hurley and the new staff at UCONN which offers Akok the opportunity to play in his home state.
Importance: Akok had mentioned in previous interviews that the Hoyas had his ear and he was planning a visit to D.C. in August or September to see the Georgetown campus and meet with Coach Ewing and his staff.
Recent News/Evaluation:
For the third time within the past four years, the Mass Rivals program made its way to the finals of the adidas Summer Championship. This weekend, it was Akok Akok who dominated the competition, following in the footsteps of predecessors such as Wenyen Gabriel, Makai Ashton-Langford. David Duke and AJ Reeves.
Despite falling short in the finals, Akok’s play has not only cemented his standing as a top-50 prospect, but better yet, as one that is deserving of a five-star rating. It would be safe to assume that he will make that jump in next month’s Rivals150 update.
Akok is more than a defensive savant. He had one contest where he had eight blocked shots alone and followed it up with seven made 3-point jumpers. He averaged over two blocks and two made 3s in California.
The four-star prospect was aided by the play of Wildens Leveque, Tyler Burton and DeMarr Langford.
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s4hoyas
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Post by s4hoyas on Jul 23, 2018 10:01:27 GMT -5
Major, major recruit...a great shotblocker out of Mass (Mass Rivals AAU)?...why wouldn't it be a priority to play for another one...a HOFer? Providence would seem to have the advantage with all their players who played for the same AAU team...and Syracuse and UConn are pushing hard...to me, he's exactly what we need in '19...a scoring PF who can step out and hit 3s and who is also a prolific shotblocker inside...will be a very tough battle...my hope is that he forms a bond with Patrick that tips the scales...(and if academics is a factor (he attends Putnam Science Academy), we win that battle as well...
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Hoyas4Ever
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A Wise Man Once Told Me Don't Argue With Fools....
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Post by Hoyas4Ever on Jul 23, 2018 17:23:05 GMT -5
Akok Akok jumps to five-star
Some kids, some coaches, and some parents like to complain about their ranking. Akok Akok and the people around him do not fit that mold. With that said, they probably should have, because the performance he put on this week made us look silly. So silly in fact that we did something we almost never do, and bumped him way up the rankings before an official rankings release. Akok was jumped 78 spots up to No. 25 and was given five-star status, that is how good he was.
In helping Mass Rivals to some big wins, Akok was incredible. He blocked everything at the rim, hit threes, created off the bounce, and showed the versatility on both ends of the floor that make him such an intriguing big man going forward.
Given his length and athleticism, combined with mobility, Akok can fit in at either the power forward or center spot, and he is a match up nightmare no matter where he is. Very few prospects have his combination of defensive ability along with his offensive game out to 22 feet.
Quite simply there was no waiting around on this one. We had to fix a wrong immediately, and after this week, Akok finds himself where he rightfully belongs, as a five-star prospect.
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Hoyas4Ever
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Post by Hoyas4Ever on Jul 25, 2018 23:15:48 GMT -5
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Jul 25, 2018 23:18:11 GMT -5
Don't think we're in play here tbh...
Hopefully the info I'm getting is wrong because he's a talent...
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Hoyas4Ever
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Post by Hoyas4Ever on Jul 25, 2018 23:24:32 GMT -5
Don't think we're in play here tbh... Hopefully the info I'm getting is wrong because he's a talent... He was quoted on July 15th in article stating he planned on visting Georgetown in August after Sumner basketball is over. Georgetown is one of the 7 programs most associated with his recruitment. I know Providence and Syracuse are out in front for his signature and services. I know things change quickly in recruiting but to be completely out the picture 10 days later jeez... |
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Jul 25, 2018 23:30:07 GMT -5
Don't think we're in play here tbh... Hopefully the info I'm getting is wrong because he's a talent... He was quoted on July 15th in article stating he planned on visting Georgetown in August after Sumner basketball is over. I know things change quickly in recruiting but jeez... Yep... Hurt his achilles beginning of Summer, didn't tell anybody, lots of schools backed off. Georgetown still pursued. Back healthy, schools are jumping back in, Gtown to the back burner basically... |
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Hoyas4Ever
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Post by Hoyas4Ever on Jul 25, 2018 23:33:37 GMT -5
He was quoted on July 15th in article stating he planned on visting Georgetown in August after Sumner basketball is over. I know things change quickly in recruiting but jeez... Yep... Hurt his achilles beginning of Summer, didn't tell anybody, lots of schools backed off. Georgetown still pursued. Back healthy, schools are jumping back in, Gtown to the back burner basically... Interesting because his list of schools to offer isn't in "Blue Blood" territory...yet? Providence, Syracuse, UCONN, Texas A&M, Virginia Tech, Maryland, & Georgetown are the programs mentioned mostly by him in his recruiting... |
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Jul 25, 2018 23:54:59 GMT -5
Yep... Hurt his achilles beginning of Summer, didn't tell anybody, lots of schools backed off. Georgetown still pursued. Back healthy, schools are jumping back in, Gtown to the back burner basically... Interesting because his list of schools to offer isn't in "Blue Blood" territory...yet? Providence, Syracuse, UCONN, Texas A&M, Virginia Tech, Maryland, & Georgetown are the programs mentioned mostly by him in his recruiting... I don't think the Blue Blood part matters. the vibe I get was it's more about who was/is treating him like a priority vs who was/isn't. |
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Hoyas4Ever
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Post by Hoyas4Ever on Jul 26, 2018 0:04:05 GMT -5
Interesting because his list of schools to offer isn't in "Blue Blood" territory...yet? Providence, Syracuse, UCONN, Texas A&M, Virginia Tech, Maryland, & Georgetown are the programs mentioned mostly by him in his recruiting... I don't think the Blue Blood part matters. the vibe I get was it's more about who was/is treating him like a priority vs who was/isn't. That doesn't make much sense based on your previous post. If programs fell off earlier this spring but Georgetown continued to pursue, wouldn't that be making him a priority? Virginia Tech and Maryland just offered within the last 2 weeks... |
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Post by Deleted on Jul 26, 2018 0:17:21 GMT -5
I don't think the Blue Blood part matters. the vibe I get was it's more about who was/is treating him like a priority vs who was/isn't. That doesn't make much sense based on your previous post. If programs fell off earlier this spring but Georgetown continued to pursue, wouldn't that be making him a priority? Virginia Tech and Maryland just offered within the last 2 weeks... It makes sense, you're trying to make it not make sense... He had his eye on certain schools. Those schools went to scout him early this Summer, he was hurt, didn't tell anybody, and played poorly. At that time those schools backed off, and Gtown jumped in. Now that he's playing better those same schools he liked before are showing him the love so Gtown, who was not one of the schools he had originally liked, has been pushed back. That's what I'm hearing, and as with anything else with recruiting, we will see.... I never said Blue bloods... I'm sure he would be interested if they came knocking, but that's not the situation here. |
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s4hoyas
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Post by s4hoyas on Jul 26, 2018 10:52:39 GMT -5
So who are these schools that he was interested in who backed off and are now again showing interest (Syracuse and Providence )? I really don't see anybody on his list that would/should have his attention more than playing for a HOF player/coach at the best academic school on his list...but I'm biased
and am not privy to his thinking or the people around him...but putting Georgetown on the back burner in this instance makes no sense to me at all...I hope this info is not accurate or that it changes, and that the kid will visit and then evaluate things...guess we'll see.
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HOYAPLAYA
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IT'S TIME FOR A RUNNNNNNN!!!!!!
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Post by HOYAPLAYA on Jul 26, 2018 11:17:10 GMT -5
So who are these schools that he was interested in who backed off and are now again showing interest (Syracuse and Providence )? I really don't see anybody on his list that would/should have his attention more than playing for a HOF player/coach at the best academic school on his list...but I'm biased and am not privy to his thinking or the people around him...but putting Georgetown on the back burner in this instance makes no sense to me at all...I hope this info is not accurate or that it changes, and that the kid will visit and then evaluate things...guess we'll see. Look, we are all biased here but Providence and UConn are exactly 45 minutes from where he plays high school ball. It could be as simple as that if those are two of the schools that are among the leaders that are back on him heavy. Both are relatively good academic schools and Providence has been in the top 4 of the Big East standings for the last 5 years. I surely hope that he has a visit and we get a good shot at him but it's not as clear cut as we want to make it out to be when you've got schools right in his back yard. Now Syracuse is a bit further away but still could be seen as close enough if that's one of his priorities. |
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Hoyas4Ever
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Post by Hoyas4Ever on Jul 26, 2018 11:38:22 GMT -5
So who are these schools that he was interested in who backed off and are now again showing interest (Syracuse and Providence )? I really don't see anybody on his list that would/should have his attention more than playing for a HOF player/coach at the best academic school on his list...but I'm biased and am not privy to his thinking or the people around him...but putting Georgetown on the back burner in this instance makes no sense to me at all...I hope this info is not accurate or that it changes, and that the kid will visit and then evaluate things...guess we'll see. Not sure who's backed off as that was my question as well. If I had to guess it might be Syracuse. Providence had been on him since day 1 and have easily made Akok and Greg Gantt their top properties in this class with Coach Cooley shadowing both throughout the spring and summer. It's quite possible that Akok just has an affinity for the hell hole in upstate N.Y. It happens! They were on him heavy in the spring right before the shoe circuits began even having up for an unofficial. Akok spoke highly of them and even retweeted things about their program which looking at his social media isn't typical for him for all other offers. Things did get quiet as the spring went on as Boeheim wasn't mentioned as often as other coaches tracking him. So my guess is that if it's true that a school fell off and then jumped back on, it might be Syracuse. |
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Hoyas4Ever
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Post by Hoyas4Ever on Jul 26, 2018 23:27:55 GMT -5
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hoyarooter
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Post by hoyarooter on Jul 27, 2018 18:32:55 GMT -5
So who are these schools that he was interested in who backed off and are now again showing interest (Syracuse and Providence )? I really don't see anybody on his list that would/should have his attention more than playing for a HOF player/coach at the best academic school on his list...but I'm biased and am not privy to his thinking or the people around him...but putting Georgetown on the back burner in this instance makes no sense to me at all...I hope this info is not accurate or that it changes, and that the kid will visit and then evaluate things...guess we'll see. Not sure who's backed off as that was my question as well. If I had to guess it might be Syracuse. Providence had been on him since day 1 and have easily made Akok and Greg Gantt their top properties in this class with Coach Cooley shadowing both throughout the spring and summer. It's quite possible that Akok just has an affinity for the hell hole in upstate N.Y. It happens! They were on him heavy in the spring right before the shoe circuits began even having up for an unofficial. Akok spoke highly of them and even retweeted things about their program which looking at his social media isn't typical for him for all other offers. Things did get quiet as the spring went on as Boeheim wasn't mentioned as often as other coaches tracking him. So my guess is that if it's true that a school fell off and then jumped back on, it might be Syracuse. I would like to give this a thumbs down. Providence or UConn, da, Syracuse, nyet (to use our future language). |
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hoyaboya
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Post by hoyaboya on Aug 1, 2018 10:56:38 GMT -5
Why did his stock rise? Akok is no stranger to the national rankings and is the only player who was ranked headed into July that will make this list because of how high he is poised to jump. If he doesn't make five-star status, he's going to be close because after a few years of teasing with potential, he made the gigantic leap to stud player. He's a shot-blocking, three-point-shooting big man with athleticism similar to Chris Boucher who starred at Oregon a few years ago only he's got more overall game. Who is involved? Maryland, UConn, Syracuse, Georgetown, UMass, Rutgers, DePaul, Providence, NC State, Rhode Island, Creighton, Texas Tech, Seton Hall and others. basketballrecruiting.rivals.com/news/bossi-s-best-july-stock-boosters |
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Hoyas4Ever
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Post by Hoyas4Ever on Aug 12, 2018 12:52:20 GMT -5
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Post by eastcoastteddy58 on Aug 12, 2018 14:54:33 GMT -5
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Hoyas4Ever
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A Wise Man Once Told Me Don't Argue With Fools....
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Post by Hoyas4Ever on Aug 13, 2018 21:11:50 GMT -5
His recruitment process with all schools has been crickets since July ended....
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