🏀 KuBuckets Archive

2016 looks to be another big recruiting year for KU. My one real qualm about the WUG was that with Self tied up during the first half of July, we'd end up missing the best part of the summer recruiting season. Smartly, Self decided to leave his two top guys (Roberts and Townsend) behind. But with the upper limit on departures could be as high as 7 scholarship players this year, something we haven't seen since 2011, a year that proved to be rough on the recruiting trail, this year's haul is going to be all important in terms of maintaining Big 12 dominance, and keeping KU from falling further behind our blue-blood brethren.

Realistically, I don't expect there to be quite as many as 7 scholarships opened, but I think the minimum to plan for is 5 (With 3 bigs graduating, Diallo likely to OAD, and one of the wings either taking the plunge (Svi or Selden) or looking to transfer (Greene or Vick)). With all that in consideration, here's my 5 man dream recruiting class for 2016 by position:

PG) De'Aaron Fox

A consensus top 15 kid, all around, he's a great player and the exact type of PG I (and more importantly Self) like: 6'3", great length, elite athleticism, supremely quick, great ball control, good passer, sees the floor, great defender, and a real ball hound. He's a capable scorer, but unlikely to ever be the top scoring option. He is awfully scrawny for the time being, but that hasn't made him shy about taking contact on the drive, and he's a decent finisher at the rim. His J is mechanically sound, but his shooting touch is inconsistent. If all that sounds a lot like Tyshawn Taylor, I'll be the first to admit it is, but Fox is doing a better job of learning to play at more than one speed than Ty had done at the same point in his career.

Given all of that, he's likely to take 2-3 years in school before Fox is really ready to make the jump to the pros. Time to develop is exactly what KU has to offer given that we really don't need to land a PG in this class, although we should want to. If Fox picks KU he can not only build his body with Hudy, but get schooled by both Frank and Devonte, almost as good a backcourt pair as Collins and Chalmers. Of course instant gratification is a concern, and with Fox being a Texas/Nike kid, Shaka at UT, and Fox very much a "Havok™" (not "Havoc®") friendly kind of guard, we're likely 2nd banana to UT right now.

SG) Terrance Ferguson

Terrance is a true shooting guard with potential to so much more. Already blessed with a pure J and NBA range, this consensus top 15 kid has room to grow into a great defender and a 15+ ppg player, should he become an upperclassman. Ferguson is very much like a plus version of our own Brannen Greene. Whether squared up in catch and shoot situations or curling off screens, a swish seems all but guaranteed. Admittedly, his shooting stance is a little hinky, but it seems to work for him, and that's all that matters. What makes him a plus version of Greene, however, is that he's a far superior athlete, and a better all around ball handler. He's not a take you off the dribble player like Vick, though. Just a kid that you can run some more stuff for. He's a great finisher in the open floor, and has the hops and length to go and grab a lob or stick a put back that's anywhere near the rim. Most of his scoring is going to come from kick outs and set plays.

Also like Greene, Ferguson is going to have plenty of work to do to get to the L someday. He's not a great defender, although he does a better job of creating turnovers than his matriculated counterpart. Being longer should help that area of development. He just needs to put equal effort into his game on the opposite side of the court. His storking legs give him the sort of stride where, with focus and Self defensive coaching, he has potential to be Releford level lockdown. The biggest area of improvement, much like Fox above or Svi, is that he needs to add a lot of strength and with those stork legs and average shoulders, you have to wonder if he's got the frame to build on. His triple-threat game needs work too. BBIQ-wise, he's average.

All in all, there's a whole lot to like about Ferg. KU has already emerged as an early favorite in his recruitment. As long as we place a wing in the draft this year, I think we've got a great shot at sealing the deal.

SF) Josh Jackson

Jackson is one of the top wing players in the country, and it's not in the least bit difficult to see why. He's among the elite athletes in his class. @jayballer54 already did a really nice write up on Jackson. What I'll add to that is he's very much a player in the vein of Andrew Wiggins. He's already a D-1 level defender and he's nowhere near his ceiling in that regard. He's also a real scorer, but not much of a shooter. The similarities to the NBA ROY don't end there. He's got a lot of the same moves attacking the basket, including the trademark spin. There are a couple key differences, though, between Jackson and Wiggins. As an athlete, despite being at the top of his class, Jackson isn't quite on the very top level. Wigs was an elite athlete by NBA standards from the day he set foot on campus. Jackson isn't quite as long. He doesn't have the uber first step, nor the 2nd and 3rd bounce. No shame in not quite being as athletic as a once in a generation kind of player, though. The saving grace, however, is that JJ is waaaaaay more aggressive than Wigs was. While everyone adapts to D-1 speed at their own pace, I'd be really shocked to see Jackson ever defer the way Wigs sometimes would.

Again, as @jayballer54 already mentioned, KU is seen as a leader in Jackson's recruitment. But unlike Ferguson, Jackson would have little to fear in the way of upperclassmen keeping him out of a starting line up.

PF) Schnider Herard

With most of our defections coming from the bigs, the class of 2016 is going to demand at least one immediate impact player and at least one developmental/depth player for our front court. For the developmental side of the coin, my pick is Schnider Herard from Haiti. I've seen Herard ranked as high as the low 40s, although he's dropped off ESPN's most recent top 100 (still rated 4 stars). I think he's likely to finish in the top 80 - 60 range, though. He's most commonly listed as a center, but he does have a burgeoning face up game and overall good touch, so face up play is a distinct possibility, and lacking a true back to the basket game, I've listed him as a 4 for our purposes. He does know how to use his body, though, and his thighs are like tree trunks. He's also developed his upper body a ton since arriving in the states, adding about 40 lbs top to bottom from his freshman to junior seasons. His best assets right now are his size, at 6'10.5" in shoes and 260 lbs, and his athleticism. He's a good rebounder, too. As a player, he's really just a bigger Tarik Black. His game is all about power and throwing his weight around. He is among the rawest of raw players I can remember Self ever offering (unless you count Wesley, which I don't). If Herard's game is steak tartare, Big Cliff's is beef jerky.

What Herard does have, though, is NBA potential in a 4 year package. If he can learn to play D without fouling, add a drop step, a hook, and the ability to score over both shoulders, he could be a 2nd rounder by the time he moves on, a la Sausha Kaun. He'll never be a franchise player, but he's got everything you could want in a journeyman.

As for his recruitment, he appears to be wide open right now. While I can't fault Self for not making Herard a top target, he's exactly the sort of kid that will be easy to miss on not because we can't offer him the best long term opportunity, but because we can offer the least short term benefit. There are plenty of mid-tier teams that would be overjoyed to start him or, at very least, offer him significant playing time as a freshman. Cal, Purdue, ASU, Nebraska, and any number of Texas teams could all make pretty immediate use of a guy like him. If he is on the market late, I think it's an easy sell, but if he goes early, we're probably S.O.L.

C) Marques Bolden

Another player that's already shown up on another poster's wishlist (thanks @HighEliteMajor), Bolden is my top overall want in this class. HEM's post on him was must read and covers everything you need to know, but here's my 2 cents: For a player comparison, I'll go with #45 Cole Aldrich. He's not the best athlete, best shot blocker, nor best back to the basket scorer, but there are no real blind spots in his game either. He's got good shooting touch, a killer hook shot, nice size, a good set of post moves, and rebounds well too. The biggest strike he has had against him was level or effort/focus, but according to Eric Bossi, he's been dominant on the AAU circuit as of late, playing with a heretofore unknown ferocity.

What should make me happiest is that he's a self-proclaimed life long KU fan and we're seen as the front runner in his recruitment. What gives me pause, however, is that UK and Duke are coming on strong, and the way he's been playing, he's likely to be among the most coveted bigs in a class lacking quality in that respect. The longer he stays on the market, the more of a dog fight it'll become. Hopefully we get this one over with by Late Night.

@konkeyDong great info, but too soon. :-)

Great write-up. Bolden & Jackson are at the top of my list. Re: Jackson, I'd willingly trade in a percentage of Wiggins' bounce for a heightened level of aggressiveness.

@konkeyDong Never too soon for a post like this. Great to have such an asset like you on these boards. While everyone else is struggling to find pertinent topics to KU basketball (I'm looking at all the Royals fans here...), you add a great piece. Thanks, buddy.

@MoonwalkMafia hey you are not knocking us royal fans???😄

@Crimsonorblue22 No, but this is a KU site.

@konkeyDong

Great post, its never too early for the dream class discussion.

I like how you picked guys that KU is currently recruiting the hardest. You could have lumped in Giles, Smith Jr., Monk, Simmons, Adebayo other top 10 players that we may have or maybe showing some interest in but the fact is that other local schools have locked in on these guys.

At the moment Bolden & Ferguson are the must have players of those you listed. I'm sticking with them, they are the foundation for a great class and anything else we may add in the fall or spring is gravy if they both come to Lawrence.

These kids we've done our homework on and recruited for some time now. I am scared that Bolden was offered by Duke lately but hopefully all the early work we put in with him pays off. Ferguson, well there was rumors a month back that he told people in his circle he was going to commit to KU. Still waiting for that announcement and really there's no hurry especially with the grassroots season still going.

Fox: I feel a lot less confident that we can lure him out of state since Smart came to Texas. He's the perfect player for him to build his havoc style around and would mark a huge recruiting coup for him. Fox has been to UT twice now since the hire and it really seems from his actions that we will lose out to him. If a PG spot opens next year somehow with Mason or Graham then we could still be an option, I still think Fox thinks highly of KU but when it comes down to what's best for the kid, more immediate PT is probably available at Texas.

Not sure where I stand on Jackson, great talent, elite level wing that we always like to have but for some reason I think he goes to Arizona or skips college entirely. Maybe I'm wrong but he will be one of those April guys that waits til the last moment.

The thing is on Josh Jackson is he stated once again that he has no desire to play ball over sea's and that there is nothing holding him back in deciding when to commit I feel like he very possibly will commit in the EARLY period. I too feel like Fox will end up committing to Texas, 247 shows Texas with a pretty sizeable lead 69% to KU 23% and with the visits to Texas he has made, just feel Smart is sitting pretty well right now. Feel we have pretty solid chances at Ferguson & Jackson. If we can get Bolden would be a sweet class its just a wait and see but feel pretty good on those 2.

@jayballer54

I'd love to see us land Jackson early. It would be a real spark to get our recruiting year off to a good start. Great momentum.

It looks like Shaka Smart is putting the full court press on De'Aaron Fox & Marques Bolden. Fox has been to UT twice since Smart took over and there is talks of the two of them being a package deal!

Jeff Borzello ‏@jeffborzello · Jun 7
Good recruiting weekend for Texas -- five-stars De'Aaron Fox & Marques Bolden were on campus. Second time Fox visited since Shaka took over.

EJ Holland ‏@EJHolland247 · Jun 11
Are five-star #HookEm hoops recruits De'Aaron Fox and Marques Bolden planning to stick together at the next level? http://texas.247sports.com/Bolt/Bolden- ↗

I know this is not what us KU fans want to hear BUT if smart starts to land 5star recruits at UT he could give KU a run for the money! I have been secretly watching all of our KU targets and there really hasn't been a lot going on besides the summer AAU camps. I will post more about recruiting so you all will be more educated on where KU stands with our guys. At least all of us here at Buckets will sound more educated than the other guys lol.

@MoonwalkMafia It's a site for KU fans. Who are also fans of other stuff. Do like I do, if you don't like a subject, don't read it.

Chip Brown ‏@ChipBrownHD · Jun 5
It appears 2016 5-star SF Terrance Ferguson of Prime Prep Academy in Dallas has canceled his unofficial visit to #Texas (mom ill).

Smart is all over these 5star guys! Ferguson was supposed to be at UT with the other 2!

I saw Jackson play as a fresh and as a soph. It was like watching James Youmg play....he was simply faster and could out jump everyone else.....although Josh was younger.
It s really exciting to hear that we might be the leader.

@MoonwalkMafia

I think that's why they have an other topics section to post things like Royals on. No harm no foul the way I look at it.

@Statmachine

I would like to think that many of the top players will wait on Texas until they figure out what style of play Smart will implement. While his style of play (havoc, 40 minutes of hell, crazy-ass defense or whatever you call it) might be somewhat effective at the college level it is not something that will help them at the next level and the type of defense that KU plays translates better, so it is possible that top players will pass on Texas and pick a school that plays a style that will prepare them better for the NBA. IMHO, his system works better at programs with less than top athletes that can compensate the lack of talent with extra effort/energy; however, he was unable to prove that his system worked even at the smaller conferences where he could not win the conference title even once. If you think about it, his claim to fame is his one win over KU and magic run to the Final Four and besides that an NCAA appearances nothing else.

Here is a summary of his record with total and conference wins and conference finish.

VCU Rams (Colonial Athletic Association) (2009–2012)
- 2009–10 VCU 27–9 11–7 T–5th CBI Champions
- 2010–11 VCU 28–12 12–6 4th NCAA Final Four
- 2011–12 VCU 29–7 15–3 2nd NCAA Round of 32

VCU Rams (Atlantic 10 Conference) (2012–2015)
- 2012–13 VCU 27–9 12–4 2nd NCAA Round of 32
- 2013–14 VCU 26–9 12–4 2nd NCAA Round of 64
- 2014–15 VCU 26–10 12–6 T–4th NCAA Round of 64

You can see that the best conference finish is 2nd and after his one run in the NCAA he did not get past the round of 32 in the NCAA. The last two years VCU lost its initial games including a loss as #5 seed to #12 seed Stephen F. Austin.

Like I said before, the legend of Shaka Smart is much better/bigger than reality...and Scott Drew will be sure to remind prospects of this.

@JayHawkFanToo

Not sure you can correlate 1 for 1 what Smart might do at Texas. He comes into Texas with a seasoned roster and 2 top 50 recruits. His hiring really seemed to energize recruits especially in Texas to look at Texas. He's going to get kids, top level kids to go there. VCU was never going to compete for the cream of the crop but at Texas he can. If he gets high level kids to play his system there's no question how good he can make them. It's a testament to Smart that he could even get top 100 kids consistently in the past few years to go there.

Now I think his record in the A-10 and Colonial says that his style doesn't win conference championships so far, and other than his dream season beating KU, he's been out of the tourney fairly early every year. This is the big leagues, and I'm sure Self is going to be eager to put him in his place. I think the rest of the Big-12 will be eager to do the same...

If Smart lands Fox then he is likely to add other top kids from Texas. So it can be said that it's important that Self lands a Texas kid so that the momentum that has been shifting to UT isn't a sign of the times.

The thing with Smart is that he doesn't have the pedigree. If you want to land a 5star target these days you will likely wait until next March or April and I cant see Smart turning down other kids in the top 100 to wait for a 5star kid. If he misses on all the top targets he could really screw him self out of a coaching job at UT. HCBS however would be pardoned if he were have a down year in recruiting due to his success at KU.

@BeddieKU23

My point was...why would a top recruit go to Texas to play in a system that will run him ragged and will not prepare him for the NBA? Top players go to UK because they have the impression that Calipari will get them ready for the NBA; Smart has no history of doing that and his system does not lend itself to it. I will guess that recruits will wait and see if his style changes before committing.

@JayHawkFanToo Excellent point JHFT

FoX will end up at Texas

Wipe your eyes, Royals fans. It's ok. I certainly don't mind.

@JayHawkFanToo

Not disagreeing with you at all, if I was a recruit, a top 1 at that and had serious NBA potential I'm not going to play in that system. It doesn't do anything to really prepare you for the league in terms of system.

I do think that Smart will land kids regardless of the system though. Why is it that 2 months ago Fox was practically in our lap but now a strong Texas lean? Fox is a future NBA player if his development keeps forward, he's one of the best guards in the class. Smart has changed this kids mind completely.

Let me toss this in .. during Louisville's 2013 title run, the Cards ran a high-paced offense, and defensively pressured and trapped all over the court. It was very similar to VCU's approach.

Another point I'd suggest is that a lot of kids love playing the fast paced game. We hear it all the time when there are comments from recruits. I always like playing that way. I think maybe we underestimate that kids dread the slower paced, get it to the third side, feed the post stuff. That's not a comment on merit, it's just a comment on what a teenage kid would prefer.

The jury is really out on whether Smart can really coach to the higher level of play beyond one famed tourney run. But I certainly think that kids will want to play for him -- Texas is a big deal, Smart is a personable guy that players tend to like, and his style of play is attractive to many kids.

That doesn't mean he beats Kansas on the court. But he may beat us on a few recruits. No big deal.

To compete with Texas, will KU have to allow players to carry guns on campus?

Campus Carry ↗

Bill Self is way ahead of you. That's how we got the Morris twins, remember?

@ParisHawk

@ajvan good one!

@ParisHawk

As someone that worked around college students for a few years and dealt with more than a couple that had depression/ anxiety issues, I can tell you that Campus Carry is a bad idea. I hope no one is hurt when a depressed freshman becomes distraught in the middle of the night.

@justanotherfan or drink, do drugs, be immature... List goes on.

@justanotherfan Amazing how self absorbed these 18-20 year old kids can get. It's an unfortunate reflection of our me first society. I wish we could get back to the golden rule moreso...

@justanotherfan It's a bad idea for ANYONE to carry a gun. Unless you're hunting. Animals. Four legged ones.

They've tried the whole gun carrying thing before. It was called the Old West. It didn't work then either. People are too stupid to be carrying guns. They can convey their stupidity well enough by texting and driving.

@nuleafjhawk

I am not a carry proponent, but I know people who are and try to be respectful/understanding of their position. If it were up to me, I would put a lot more restrictions, but it isn't. So instead we end up with mass shootings like the one at the Jewish Community Center in KC a couple years ago, or the one at the South Carolina church the other night. Senseless stuff. I just wish we could come up with something as a society that allowed responsible people to have their guns for hunting, etc. while keeping them out of the hands of those that would do harm.

@HighEliteMajor

Kids like to play a fast paced game...on offense, defense? not so much.

@justanotherfan I know that sounded harsh, but I can't apologize. There's something wrong with a society that has to carry guns. I'm an American. I like John Wayne. I believe in freedom and all that good stuff. I just don't believe people need to be carrying around guns. In MY day (waaaaay back then) if you had a problem with someone, even your worst enemy, you got into a fight - beat the crap out of each other (with your fists) and then it was over. No guns, no knives, none of that BS. I believe in progress, but what our society has done as far as getting along in the last 50 years is the opposite of progress.

@nuleafjhawk

I am with you. I always tell my kids and grand kids...don't get into a fight, in the old day you used you fists and shook hands afterwards, now the other person might pull a knife or a gun...a different world.

@JayHawkFanToo See, I think they do. The teams I have coached, every kid generally loved pressing, trapping, and the full court style. It's really the most engaging part of the game. Meaning, playing frenetic is very contingent upon how you play defense.

For example, if you take the ball out of the hoop and go. But then sit back in a 2-1-2 zone or basic m2m, things are lurching. But if you bust out quick on offense and you press and trap all over the court, that's a totally different ballgame. The defense creates the offense and is really becomes a fun part of the game.

@nuleafjhawk There is something wrong with a society that has to carry guns. Gun ownership, of course, is a different deal. Really, this entire society would be largely void of the need to carry guns if our inner city thugs didn't have them. That is the reality. Folks want to carry guns because there are vicious animals that will kill, rob, rape, and maim for little more than a few dollars.

That's why folks carry guns. Because they could be standing in a quik shop when a thug comes in with a gun.

The mass shootings that just occurred pale in comparison to the carnage that is inflicted each night in our cities around the country. It's sad, but how many blacks have been killed in senseless inner city shootings since this mindless church shooting? The same folks that get all wound up about a cop killing a black man refuse to take the same action to protest and show anger with a drive by shooting that kills a 3 year old, like what occurred in KC last week. That sort of crap happens regularly, but folks accept it because they are too cowardly to stand up to it. It's much easier to hold up signs, loot business like the common criminals that they are, and call cops racist than protect the lives of the nice inner city folks that are terrorized by this violence daily. It's really a joke.

So that's why folks want to carry guns. To defend themselves from the thugs.

@HighEliteMajor Agree about gun ownership, but I'm not totally buying into the "defense" argument. Too many people that carry guns for self defense wind up getting shot anyway, or shooting themselves or their own loved ones. There are many people who are carrying guns on the offensive also. People who are filled with hate, who want to assert themselves physically or commit robbery.

I don't carry a gun, but I probably should. I've hit a deer or two that could've used a bullet to end their misery.

Guns cause less harm than pens in the hands of our leaders. Not every one should have the right to carry a firearm though they do have a place. It would be terrible if only our wonderful government had all the guns. Well the government and criminals...

(Unless what I read was wrong) Last year the citizens of the US bought more guns than the 21 largest armies combined.

@dylans Regarding the deer - just man up, grab the deer by the antlers and yank the poor critters neck violently until it snaps. This works. I've seen it done in " The Long Kiss Goodnight ". Lol. Sorry.

Many years ago, I heard that in the FIRST HOUR of whatever year it was, there were more gun related deaths in the United States than there were the whole prior year in Canada. Also, when I lived in Houston (some of you Houstonians will bear witness to this), now keep in mind that this was pre-1987 - it was reported that Ben Taub Hospital routinely treated over 50 gunshot wounds PER DAY.

Sorry to all for the gun rants - I'll go back to my nap now.

@nuleafjhawk I own two guns one for pheasant hunting/skeet shooting and one for target shooting. I've been hunting a handful of times and if it weren't business or family related that number would be zero. Target shooting is a blast I recomend it to any stable individual. Competitive shooting is fun I've been to one match as a youth (15) and would've won the thing had I been registered. First time shooting a rifle too!

I don't feel like I need a firearm for self defense. I don't even lock the door most of the time. Unfortunately not everyone is blessed with such a nice neighborhood to live in.

I wish there was more hoop shooting to talk about. I can't wait for Tuesday to have a bettter topic of discussion!!! @MoonwalkMafia is going to be PO'ed this thread is way off topic. :)

@dylans Yeah, I've got several guns myself. I don't strap em on and go to the mall or church with them though! Like you, I love target shooting (and am a pretty good shot, if I do say so myself) but like most things, a few warped individuals screw things up for everyone. I sure long for the good ol days. And I'm envious that you live in a neighborhood where you don't have to lock your doors. I hardly live in the ghetto, but I do lock up at night!

@HighEliteMajor

Yes, but we are talking different levels. Elite Division I players want to play offense and defense is something they have to put up with. Defense such as the one Coach Self plays is good because it resembles what the NBA plays; that frantic, full court, 40 minutes of whatever defense is seen in the NBA only in the last couple of minutes of very close games. Playing defense at that speed wears players out and forces top players to sit longer than they would like. The only two coaches that regularly use this type of defense at the higher level are Mike Anderson and Shaka Smart (or Huggy last season)...how is that working out for them? Neither has been particularly successful or attracted top shelf players.

@nuleafjhawk Now, you're talking something different. Folks that legally carry guns commit how many crimes? This is my point. Rarely. The criminals commit crimes. The criminals are the ones carrying guns illegally.

The quandary that we are in is that criminals get guns, whether it is legally or illegally.

The argument that "Too many people that carry guns for self defense wind up getting shot anyway, or shooting themselves or their own loved ones" rings hollow with me. Guns are dangerous.

When you look at numbers, this is miniscule. So some idiot shoots his wife. That's an argument for what? To prohibit me or you from having a gun to defend themselves? It's like arguing that knives should be illegal because your neighbor stabbed her husband.

There is a box that gun control advocates get in, that can't be escaped. How do you disarm the thugs? Laws would disarm law abiding citizens. The ones that don't commit crimes.

ok never mind

@JayHawkFanToo I see your point. In the post above you just referenced "kids" so I fixated on that a bit in my reply. Further above, though, you referenced "top recruits". I think I would agree with you there. Would the top guys really want that system? OADs? I doubt it too. A guy outside that range? Certainly more likely. Heck, like anything else, it would personal preference. It was a rare occasion that I would see a kid H.S. or below that didn't like that style, but for the big, immobile dudes.

@HighEliteMajor Indeed, there is something wrong with a society that has to carry guns, and of course, there are certainly "good" gun owners and "bad" gun owners much like there are "good" cops and "bad" cops, and "good" politicians and "bad" politicians, and "good" companies and "bad" companies, and "good" people and "bad" people, etc. I'd like to think we ALL want to see "good" gun ownership, "good gun safety and "good" gun controls (where possible and when necessary,) that are better for today's society, yet don't squash our constitutional rights. Can there be such a thing as "common sense" or "common good" laws or regulations that everyone can agree on? I certainly hope so, and that is the discussion that should be had . . . especially on a different site or topic thread than this.

What I do take issue with (with all due respect,) is that you chose a rebuttal based squarely on the inner city problems vs. a broader scope of violence throughout the US. The fact that you chose to hone in on the "thugs" in the inner cities, and the "cowardly" folks who do not step up to criticize inner city murders, is quite concerning. I believe you are not a racists, but you should also know that there are a vast number of people who fight to improve the lives of inner city youth, and who fight to change the "culture" and/or "mindset" of our youth today leads to violence and murder.

It's not easy living in the inner city, and God knows it's not easy being a cop these days. They are worth their weight in gold, and are there to protect and serve us all. And yes, there needs to be more accountability from everyone. However, to simply target "thugs" and praise cops is generically very sad, and shows your true colors on how you feel about this whole dilemma. It's like me basing my whole stance on gun safety on the fact that 95% of serial killers are white guys, and therefore, we must not let "whitey" get guns, or to ban guns from them altogether. That may be a factor in the decisions we make, but not the sole factor.

Still love and enjoy your BB comments and insights!

@HighEliteMajor Are the numbers available from this link" target="_blank" rel="noopener">http://www.gunviolencearchive.org/) ↗ miniscule? They might be for Rwanda but for a civilized society. Really?

@HighEliteMajor

I generally agree with all your points. I always wondered about politicians and demagogue race mongers that make a huge deal about about one persons being killed by a person of different color...or the the police and they call it racism, but don't say a word about the wholesale daily carnage that goes on the inner city of every major city...aren't all lives equally valuable?

"Legal" ownership of guns anymore requires background checks that largely (but not completely) eliminate legal ownership by people that should not be allowed to have guns. Illegal ownership, on the other hand, is easy, and in most big cities you can go to certain areas of town where you can readily get a gun; no amount of government gun control will keep guns from undesirable people. As the saying goes, when guns are outlawed, only outlaws will have guns...is that a desirable outcome? I think not.

I grew up around guns having a father in the military and I learned to use them properly and safely early on. When I had kids of my own, I made a conscious decision not to own or keep guns of any sort around my home and I do not own a gun now. and have not owned one in a long, long time. Having said that, I have no problem with someone else electing to own and keep guns as long as they do it legally and safely.

@HighEliteMajor This is like one of those arguments with my wife (where no one gets shot, because neither of us carry guns). I guess we're just not understanding each other. I'm definitely not understanding you! (I'm not being mean spirited, I just don't get what you're trying to tell me.) It seems, at times, as though you're agreeing with me and then again it seems like you just want to argue.

Don't shoot! My hands are in the air. I surrender. For a while.

Wait. My tiny little brain just had another spark. There's a guy I work with ( I will refrain from calling him an idiot (or will I?)) that carries a gun. He always wears "cargo" pants and keeps his gun (whatever it is, I've never seen it or asked) in the buttoned up pocket of his cargo pants. WHY? I told him I could come in the building and beat him to death with a baseball bat before he could even think about getting that gun out of his pocket. He didn't even respond because he knew I was right.

From what I understand, Kansas is now a old school, old west town mentality state and pretty much anybody can carry any weapon they want, anywhere, any time. I sure as hell don't want to go to a KU-KSU game with 12,000 gun toting, good ol boys losing their minds when we beat them by 20 points.

This is like one of those OAD commentaries. I'm not ever going to win. The weapons are here to stay until we all kill each other. I just don't have to like it.

@hawkmoon2020 said:

and God knows it’s not easy being a cop these days. They are worth their weight in gold, and are there to protect and serve us all

AMEN. AND AMEN. I'm not a cop, don't personally know anyone who is, but I thank God for them every day. They take an incredible amount of crap, from the public and from the media, but I guarantee that I would not want to do that job. Not for the amount of money they make, or for any amount of money actually.

@hawkmoon2020 The reason I focus in on inner city thugs is because that is the center of violence in this country. It is fact. It is reality. To deny that is simply an attempt to rationalize. I live in Johnson County. Do I have daily fear filling up my gas tank? Walking at night? Forgetting to lock my front door? Why not? Because I don't live among the thugs. It is reality. I target thugs because thugs are the problem. Thugs are the issue. Whether they are black, white, or something in between, I don't care. Folks that hurt other people, that rob, rape, kill, and maim are my enemy. And I'm not going to worry about offending the racially sensitive if that implies something that causes discomfort. I side with the good folks that battle the thugs every day -- and those good folks are black, white, and something in between as well.

I'm not sure that your comments regarding "whitey" etc. make sense. I am all for the inner city folks arming themselves to protect themselves from the thugs around them. The chance that I'll need my gun in Johnson County is slim. The chance that someone will need their gun to ward off intruders at 41st and Brooklyn in KCMO, is much higher. Certain folks in this country want to eliminate the good citizens from owning guns, and have no solution for the thugs that continue to possess guns.

It is interesting that you point out race. My position is one that "black lives matter." They matter greatly to me. That's really my point. Most of those killed in the inner city violence are black. This article ↗ is one of many discussions on that point. I value that little 3 year old's life that was killed last week in a KCMO drive by shooting as precious and irreplaceable. It sickens me that anyone has to deal with what inner city folks have to deal with. The nice lady who works hard and takes the bus every day, the kid that plays on his porch, the elderly gentleman that has lived in the same house for 50 years, or the families gathered for a July 4 celebration. They are all subjected to the same crap.

And don't interpret my statements as being 100% supportive of police. Much the opposite. I support good police officers. I don't support police officers that use their badges to unjustifiably kill and maim. I don't support the percentage of police officers who are power freaks, and who are dishonest. It's a hard job. It certainly has challenges, seeing violence every day. But if you can't handle those challenges, then one shouldn't be a police officer. Making split second decisions that are life and death many times can't be overlooked. But as a cop, you can't abuse your power.

@sfbahawk I like the link. What say you about the fact that the large majority of gun deaths and injuries are perpetrated by criminals that hold guns illegally? I still circle back to the crunch question -- how do we get guns away from the criminals that have them? Once we have that solution, I will gladly entertain laws that limit gun ownership for the law-abiding. Until then, someone who enters my house without my permission and threatens my family will not have a nice day. But I don't carry a gun. I've made the decision that carrying a gun is too risky for me personally. I don't want to live like that, and I'll take my chances in that regard. But if I feel unsafe, I like having the choice.

I do prefer basketball discussions here. So I apologize for my digression.

@dylans So what...

@HighEliteMajor I much prefer this post than the one before since it is more informative and broader regarding your position on this topic. I certainly agree with you on some of the things you mentioned here because they align with my own personal feelings and take on these matters. And while I lean Left, I am cautious not to broad-brushing folks with regards to their religion, politics, race, demographics or geography.

I too apologize for my digression. I just hope others will use caution when they proactively or without provocation, introduce their beliefs when they don't even pertain to KU Buckets topics.

@globaljaybird ?

@dylans I apologize for my brevity. So what if MWM or anyone else doen't like someone gettin off topic or the lack of pertinent hoops threads or someone talking about the Royals or their dogs or whatever.

@globaljaybird Oh, that. I really don't give a cr@p. I was just being (not so) funny.

@dylans Posted this on another thread but is too funny not to post again:
I had to laugh my butt off at this one…
Guy on twitter, @YankeeFan07, was asked if he’d caught A Rods 3000th hit (HR off Verlander) would he give him the ball & replied…
“I’d give him the finger & a dummy ball. This guys deserves a favor from no one, especially a fan.”

@HighEliteMajor Very nice post, sir. It's been so long ago now that I can't remember how this all started, although I kind of feel responsible for it. If so, I apologize for that. I too prefer basketball discussions.

Or football.

Or baseball.

Or music.

Or art.

Or gardening.

Or animals.

But that's IT !

No guns, no politics, no religion, no sex. Wait, I kind of like talking about religion sometimes.

I'm going to bed now. Where there is also no guns, no politics, no religion and......sigh............no sex.

@HighEliteMajor I don't personally own a gun nor do I have any plans to in my future. But that doesn't mean I'm any kind of opponent of the personal right to bear arms. Most of my friends are gun owners. Some of them live in small towns or in the boons, where I grew up, and have both hand guns and rifles. I also know a few lawyers with their own practices that do a lot of public defending, and they carry guns in their offices because they are frequently coming into contact with potentially dangerous people (one has been threatened by family members of defendants on multiple occasions as their kin were taken off to prison). As I mentioned, I grew up in the boons and enjoyed hunting rabbits as a kid. Like you, I live in suburban JoCo now (and believe me, it breaks my heart how good the rabbit hunting could be if I were allowed to discharge even a pellet gun in city limits), so I don't really have any use for a firearm for personal protection and, frankly, the idea of killing somebody for trying to steal my TV... it just doesn't sit well with me.

The biggest reason I don't want to have a gun in my home is because most gun deaths in this country aren't caused by street violence, but are the result of suicide attempts (64% in 2012 according to a UC Davis study, so the number of people who die by their own guns is not, in fact, minuscule). Most attempts aren't made with guns, but most successful ones are. Given that I'm in no real danger of violence in my home or workplace, I'm just more worried about losing my wife or son to an accident or a bout of depression than I am about them being hurt by a malicious person. Still, not everyone lives such a charmed life, and I'm completely supportive of people in that position owning firearms if they deem that necessary. Having said all of that and, since you did say you'd entertain any solution to the problem of criminals getting access to guns, I've got a very simple one that doesn't involve any additional restrictions or limitations on the legal purchase of guns.

One of the major sources of guns used in crimes (accounting for at least 40% and possibly as high as 80% according to the Bureau of Justice Statistics) is straw purchasing. Guns are legally purchased at a gun shop or gun show, then transferred to would be or past criminals, usually illegally. Gun dealers have also been known to circumvent background check laws by holding impromptu 'gun shows' just off the premises when someone who wouldn't otherwise pass a background check wants to make a purchase (I don't have any statistics on how often this happens, however, so consider it anecdotal, but verified). The long and short of it is, background check laws are largely toothless because they are too easily circumvented. The ATF and other law enforcement agencies have limited power to check inventories and track guns because they aren't allowed to keep any kind of database of who has weapons, and even when a registered weapon is used in a crime by a person other than the purchaser, it's very difficult to pin anything to that person unless the criminal rats them out.

Because there is no accountability, it's easy for bad people with bad intentions to get the weapons they want. But imagine if every firearm sold legally in the United States had not only a cataloged serial number, but also a ballistics sample on file attached to an owner in a central law enforcement database so that at nearly any crime scene where a weapon is discharged, you'd instantly have a significant lead in the case. Imagine that there are laws that hold legal gun purchasers and dealers accountable if guns that were registered in that database as in their possession were then used in criminal activity and if there were sever punishment for dealers whose inventory went unaccounted for or when stolen weapons weren't reported. Even if a person lied about their weapons being stolen, it would give a strong incentive to honest people to keep police as up to date as possible, and it would be easy to detect who the real source of the problem was when they 'lost' multiple guns over the course of months or years. I don't pretend that these measure represent any kind of panacea to gun violence and certainly they won't do anything about illegal weapons currently in circulation, but, as Confucious says, a journey of 1000 miles starts with a single step. If we can significantly stem the tide of legally purchased weapons that flow into the hands of criminals, it makes the task of removing other illegal arms from the streets that much easier.

Unfortunately, the major roadblock to any such a remedy is the National Rifle Association. I find this ironic because, if these minimally invasive steps could be taken, they wouldn't be combating nearly as many states and cities trying to push for tighter, more intrusive gun control laws. NRA members often implore that existing laws be followed, but this rings hollow to me for the reasons outlined above: existing laws have too many loopholes; loopholes that the NRA has lobbied for. The NRA's major concern about a central database of gun owners seems to be that such information could be used by a tyrannical government to round up and disarm gun owners in the event of a revolt. This is certainly true, but I ask you, is this the situation we're in now a worthy price to guard against a future which may never come?

Anyway, if you're done with this conversation or want to be kind to the board rats that don't want to watch another of our tangents unfold, I'm more than willing to leave it at this. But if you, or anyone else cares to chime in, I appreciate it.

Lastly, I'll just say that @nuleafjhawk, I totally agree with your basic sentiment: a society where anyone feels like they need to be armed at all times to be safe is a deeply troubled one, and not something that I'm proud of this country for having become.

@konkeyDong I'll let you have the last word here. This is a great discussion. I think the key here is that everyone chiming in just doesn't want anyone killed. We all want civility. It will never be that way totally. But intolerance .. that dirty word to some people .. is truly the only way to change it. As a society, we've become intolerant toward many things that are going out of style - smoking and littering to name a few. I wonder if "killing people" could make that list?

@konkeyDong

You do such good work on this stuff! Thanks.

I wonder if you might instantly distinguish your self nationally by adding some probability related to brand lean of these recruits.

If you tell us a player's shoe lean, then you could factor in historical averages for staying with brand versus switching. For example...

9 of 10 OADs that are Nike leans go to .a Nike program.

6-7 of 10 Adidas leans go to an Adidas program.

Adidas leans appear to have greater late switch-over to Nike than Nike has late switch over to Adidas.

Further, the Nike lean bigs appear much more likely to stay with Nike and join a Nike stack than the Nike lean backcourt players.

Or most Adidas lean bigs and smalls appear very vulnerable to being turned.

Or what have you.

Historical brand switching percentages by back court and front court player category should be pretty easy to tally in a spread sheet and build up a really reliable weighting, or probability of brand switch factor.

The result would include all your current analysis chased with "and based on historical averages there is x percent probability a Nike lean big will sign with an Adidas program like KU in an early period and an x percent chance in a late period."

You, or someone, could just track the percentages for the top 100 players each of the last two or three seaons to calculate the percentages by front and backcourt category. It would probably be less work than what you put in now on all the terrific research you do and you might instantly build national credibility for your hard work you do.

Rock Chalk!!!!!

@konkeyDong In reference to a possible list of gun legal owners. The government is supposed to fear the people not the other way around. Our government is already too powerful. I'd hate to give them more information to supress the people with. This is far and away the best country on the planet, but there's always room for improvement.

One reason we've slowly been losing rights for decades now is the burgening population and lack of good parenting teaching proper morals and values.

First, I've been a gun owner from birth. My father already had my first gun picked out for me before I arrived home from the hospital. My father and his 4 brothers were all military. When my age sprouted I took the necessary gun safety course and then began my half century enjoyment of firearms, both for sport target and for hunting and sometimes for defense.

Most of my friends are on the very far right. Most of them carry NRA cards. Most of them collect guns and ammo.

I have a very warped sense of what gun ownership is about because all of these people around me respect the capabilities of guns, so they are responsible and not the types to go into a church and mow down those in prayer. If I ran into some bad folks aimed to do me harm, I'd love to have any of my friends getting my back. It would be a very short exchange and we would be fine.

But I differ highly from most of my friends in what I believe. I do believe in the Constitution and the right to bear arms. But I draw the line when we discuss it as a "right" instead of a "privilege." Owning firearms is a privilege. But some of my friends think even a serial killer has the right to bear arms. There is no way to be safe as long as our concept is that everyone has the right to buy such vicious tools to kill other people with. Obviously, as we see on the news every night... plenty of whack jobs are using firearms to kill innocent people every day.

If the fight is about "rights" then why wouldn't driving a vehicle be a "right?" It serves a bigger utility purpose than carrying a gun in the city. But yet we are able to maintain a bit of rational thinking on automobiles so we view them as a privilege... as it should be.

My fear is that the NRA has had it their way for too long. We will reach that point at some time when something crazy happens, like 1000 kids get mowed down by a lunatic that had a careful plan... and then we will all lose ALL our firearm privileges. This country seems to like to do everything in extremes.

I look at that lunatic, disturbed kid in South Carolina and I see someone who is part of the problem and will end up one day making me lose my firearms.

I think we need to crack down on who has the privilege to own. It won't solve all the problems, but there is no one step fix for this.