@justanotherfan Great post! Perfectly described the shifting paradigm of today's game, it's happening in the NBA, and its now happening in college.
Size can matter, but only if it comes with mobile, happy feet. Look at Embiid. He may be 7ft, 270lbs, but he is a ridiculous athlete, he can pop threes, he can drive by you (now). If there's any hope for a 5man, they have to have the mobility/agility/in-out-versatility mold.
Agree 100%.
@jaybate-1.0 Perhaps the recruiting times have changed since the early 2000s, and even the mid-2000s--maybe that has impacted Self some. Also, BRush, RussRob, Chalmers, Shady...all those guys were recruited at the tail end of KU-Nike era. Maybe the shoe thing helped us, sort of, then. Self has also had bad luck with some recruits, like #1 PG Selby, who arrived snake bit by fate, & then didnt help his cause with his own decision making. Same for Cliff Alexander. Burns Illini with the hat-fake, then burns KU with the "yeah, I'm eligible" fake.
Self also maybe made a few mistakes with 5star recruits, such as EJ. The whole Brady-vs-EJ debates raged. Ever since then, Self seems very eager to play his frosh, even low-ranked frosh, to develop them quicker. See Mason and Devonte.
Also, cannot deny that the level of skill in highschoolers has improved, and again I'll point to Mason and Devonte. As frosh, they were playable, whereas 10-12 yrs ago a kid in the 60s-70s would have best redshirted and developed for a year or two. Tyshawn also was play-able, out of necessity, so he's an imperfect frosh example, but he arrived in 2009.
Tyshawn, Mason, Buddy Hield are great examples of 4yr players. Certain players do better with certain types of coaches.
I do think Self has evolved for the better compared to his much more rigid pre-2014 version. In everything. Maybe this is all good, as it keeps the professional challenge for him from going stale.
@BeddieKU23 Agreed on location. For a lot of kids, it matters "WTH is kansas?", while to others it doesnt, and they do look at facilities, tradition, coaching, etc. Playing time right away seems to be a major theme, and that hasnt changed. Or maybe, everybody is promising lots of mpg, so that then goes out of the equation, and the other parameters factor in.
The alternative theory is that the Venezuelan dictator decided to rebel against the currency-backed world economy and paid the price, as some past dictators tried to do, & shortly thereafter met their hastened fates. Chavez supposedly visited the US, and within 3 mos was dead of a rare form of aggressive cancer. Now Putin has expressed interest in offerring an economy based on something other...& thus put himself in severe peril.
@Texas-Hawk-10 Do you think we can beat TX again? And what about TxTech & Baylor & TCU? Im assuming you are counting IowaSt as a KU win.
Roy (UNC) just won NC with no superstar, and a more blue collar team able to win a grinder, than any team he's ever had. So much for the Nike revolving door, or call it an 'outlier'. Also, didnt Louisville win a NC just a few yrs ago? (Adidas school).
That all being said, Nike/AirJordan would get us more top20 kids, if thats what you want.
Finally, the difference between Nike's outfitting KU's major sports only, vs Adidas outfitting all KU sports teams, is very negligible, compared to the entire KU Athl.Dept budget. That couldnt have been the only reason for the switch. There's more to the adidas decision than the public reason given.
Bluebloods: KU, KY, UCLA, UNC, Duke.
Far more entertaining coaches to talk about: Frank Martin. Never hated or disliked him, ever. But of course some of those purple fans didnt like him either. Brad Underwood and Lon Kruger too smart to go back to coach purple.
John Calipari is also far more entertaining than Weber.
KSU needs to leave Weber alone, and get deadly serious about trying to replace Snyder.
Weber not a bad coach, and he's beat Self more than once. But he has flaws in his personality, and in his recruiting...proven over time.
The thing to hate at KSU isnt Weber, or their players, who just want to play...but their fans. Look, Weber beat Self, they rush the court, Weber tied for Big12 title once, and just won a Tourney game...but those fans still want him gone.
Not only are the players on a growth curve, but Beaty has been also. Learning to not micromanage so much, putting a proper coaching team in place, and playcalling for the AirRaid getting more reliable and productive as the stability of same-system, and overall depth and confidence of the players grows...
It is building...and Purple could be scared. Maybe not this year, as Coach Bill Snyder returns a young, largely intact roster, now with experience, but certainly on the horizon.
Regarding KU fan attendance: Beaty following the old edict: Build it, and they will come...
Hold on to your seat cushions, dentures, and wigs/toupees, when you see Newman play this coming season...His natural position is slashing-2, but has added improved 3pt shooting. McDonaldsAllAmerican alert, and a pent-up one, to boot...
Frank Mason will impress them (all) like only Frank Mason can...
Shaka watch continues...
Losing Frank to graduation still hitting me hard, even slightly more than losing in the Elite8. Yes KU ball will soldier on. But without one of the best warriors to ever put on the Crimson&Blue.
KU bball gets a yearly decent chance at a Final Four. But finds like Frank, regardless of ranking, just dont come along every year. Devonte has some SHOES to fill.
Yeah, Olynyk...Definitely had it coming, his track record of being a big body with little NBA-level skill other than garbaaj and intimidation. Didnt like his stupid hair-do in college either. That 80s look died with spandex pop metal. Kelly Oubre, you go, man, knock him on his ass again, if he does it again. Or learn better tricks to punish him in other ways. 6'7 wings like Oubre come naturally equipped with better speed and sharper elbows.
Newman Mickey-D avg 13ppg as a freshman at MissState, playing out of position as PG instead of SG. Kind of like EJ forced to do. But 13ppg alone as a Div1 freshman, even in the Bill Self structure would be called a starter. But, Newman gets to learn system, get stronger by Hudy, and comes in at his comfortable position, and now with that chip on his shoulder, something to prove. All good for '17-18...
United we stand. Divided we fall. Ringside seats for all. Just watch. History repeats.
@Kcmatt7 You summed it perfectly: Venezuela would be a rich nation if it was ran correctly. Too much corruption and mistrust. Still brandishing about their "rebel" rhetoric, while their people starve. Some revolution. But no, we cant let big biz run business, especially since that is what they're good at. No, keep the controlling hand TIGHT, as you choke off your own people, and kill off, literally any hope your own people had with that colorful rebel rhetoric. How many times in history are we going to see this sad story play out yet again. Act 232444543, and counting...
Next micro-brained rebel...please...
What purple cat system will never have: farm boy Oline (yes) but coupled with SEC caliber WRs, as KU does now (Quiv from aTm and the Alabama transfer).
We just added Nebr farmboy, 3star, grown man.
Coaching and playcalling and schemes likely have grown and evolved with experience also.
Cozart: mental decision-making as a junior. Not a starter. Bring in somebody better. Done. Bye.
Willis not dual threat enough.
We should be good. We have SEC WRs (Gonzalez from aTm, and now this kid from Alabama). But as stated above by many, O-line play and QB play will determine sustaining drives & scoring. Look at KC as an example of marginal O-line play, the QB doesnt have any time for downfield plays, and ground game suffers also. Look what kind of pocket time Tom Brady gets.
@drgnslayr Too cynical about Danny's leaving, while not giving enough credit to Self's concepts and teaching. Wake Forrest doesnt even look like an ACC-caliber team. Could it be that various kids simply havent panned out, for very different reasons? Lucas no hops, no hands, no fast twitch, not an alpha. Bragg showed promise Yr 1, even in the WUG, then flops in all areas despite KU-level coaching. Watch that Udoka kid. Find some faith.
@Blown Already can see he has more offense then Moody or Lucas. Must also consider quality of opposition seen in video also. If he's eligible to play this coming season, he'll help right away. Predictions would say a "piece", not a superstar.
I think Self doing what he always does. Recruiting from wherever. He has an eye for it.
@DCHawker Not really remarkable as Calipari does what he does. If he doesnt get at least 3-4 playable top10-top15 guys each year, his system will tank that year.