Regarding Diallo - has anyone actually seen someone reputable say that there is an "issue" regarding his eligibility? I recall some comments from Self that came when he was talking about when players would be on campus where he said something like Cheick had to "take care of some paperwork" or something like that. He said it a few times over the course of a couple of weeks and that wasn't that long ago. Maybe Cheick didn't get his stuff submitted in a timely manner and that's why he hasn't been cleared yet. I'm sure the process takes some time considering how many new NCAA athletes there are each year.
RockkChalkk
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When it comes to quality of apparel, I think Adidas is the best. No clue regarding shoes though since I get a new pair once every three years or so.
From what I understand, the visit was a 10 "so far." Meaning the question was asked mid visit and not afterwards. It could have ended lower than a 10 but who knows. The more interesting comment to me came when he was asked when he would declare where he is going to college, his answer was "Its up to my mother and my coach when I make my decision." So, does this mean that he already knows where he is going but is waiting for the green light from coach and mom to announce it? Thought it was an unusual comment. And if he knew he was going to KU, what benefit does the visit to Alabama provide? My gut still tells me he will be an elephant, hope I'm wrong.
@jayballer54 The ACT and SAT are what most of the student population care about because its the measuring stick most colleges use to determine if they want to accept you into their university or not. Whatever Diallo got as far as grades or test scores has been determined sufficient for KU to accept him to their university. Granted, athletes typically have a lower mark to meet than a typical student would for acceptance by admissions but if he does not get cleared by the NCAA, he can still attend KU next year and take classes, etc. Its because he is a prospective athlete that the additional criteria are being looked at and need to be found acceptable to allow him to participate in NCAA regulated sports.
@blackmild33 Saw a note on KU Sports that said TF is scheduled late night at KU as well.
Good stuff. However, to be fair he also retweeted several Alabama things, also a UNC and Texas tweet too. It definitely seems like its mostly Alabama and KU stuff on his radar.
This sounds like a nightmare. No Diallo would be absolutely crushing. I've heard of high school courses being able to count towards college credits but not really the other way around. Can that work? Hoping this gets resolved soon.
@BeddieKU23 Bah, I misread the article. He actually had a lot of positive things to say about Zona. Then the next paragraph he started talking about schools in general, saying that he wouldn't want to go to a school that has never had a one and done because the odds of them having one (if he went there) would be much less than a blueblood school who has had a lot of them over the years.
@BeddieKU23 I just don't have a good feeling about T-Ferg. Hearing that an announcement may come very soon then he schedules a visit to Bama? Not good. Sure he may be scheduled to come to late night but that isn't until October. His twitter feed, meaning stuff he has tweeted, retweeted, and people he has followed, indicate a Bama lean in my opinion. Hope I'm wrong but my gut is picking up a bad vibe, maybe its just that chinese food I ate last night..
Fox made some other interesting comments. He said he will choose a school that has been at least a top 4 seed the previous 3 years. Basically, he wants to be at a powerhouse school. You won't see him picking a weaker program school like a Cal, LSU, MSt that these guys did this year. But does his comment mean that a team like Texas is out too? Texas surely hasn't met that criteria and neither has VCU so you can't twist it that way either. If the comment is true to the word, that would also rule out Kentucky with their first round exit from the NIT three years ago. He also made comments about Arizona saying that they haven't had a single one and done ever and seems to turn him off to them a little bit. My take on Fox is that he wants to come to KU but is going to wait to see if Mason returns first. If Mason goes to the NBA, I feel pretty confident that Fox will come to KU. If Mason stays for his senior year, then I doubt Fox comes to KU but you never know. He would basically be eliminating his one and done chances but giving himself a year to learn from one of the best in the country.
@Statmachine said:
Jerry Meyer retweeted Lance T
Wouldn't be surprised if Avery Johnson did it. Right there w Kansas for Terrance Ferguson http://247sports.com/Player/Terrance-Ferguson-31759 ↗ …
Thanks for the great updates Statmachine! Ones like the tweet above are the ones that scare me. Meyer usually has a good feel for things. Really hoping KU locks it up soon!
@Statmachine Interesting! And we can always count on you as our social media guru to keep us informed. I must have been looking at the wrong twitter handle because I did not see the KU banter on it. Going to go look again..
@BeddieKU23 Why are you so sure that TF is KU bound? I guess what has he done or said recently that makes you say that? I would love to hear some evidence that supports this because I think he would be a great catch for KU.
I'm not directing this at you specifically but it seems that sometimes people just echo what they hear somewhere and this gossip expands all the way until it becomes something that is taken as fact. Personally, I like to see the hard evidence behind this stuff so I tend to dig around and do my own research on these guys and form my own conclusions. Unfortunately, when I look at TF's twitter feed, all the recent activity is tied to Alabama. Even further, the only KU player he follows is Oubre Jr. If he was such a strong KU lean, I would expect it things to look a little differently.
Would be very happy to see TF commit to KU. Really love the loyal kids that know KU and know its where they want to be and don't waste all of the coaches time dragging things out. If TF commits, the KU coaches can focus their efforts on the other recruits and building a better team for next year. You never know but it could be the difference in landing a recruit or two. Or perhaps more importantly, landing the right recruit or two for KU.
@KUSTEVE Best player in the class IMO and is a perfect fit for this year's KU team. I'm putting my money on them this year!
@jaybate-1.0 To some degree, I think one could easily argue that Svi and Bragg should be considered TAD players. That would put KU at 4.
@HighEliteMajor So you don't think Vick will factor into the equation at all this year? I really like BG a lot and I agree with your breakdown of him vs Svi but think it could possibly bump BG to 6th in the rotation. Vick looked really good at times in the WUG. I have a suspicion that there may be a medical redshirt coming BG this year, it might be a wise move.
Germany lost to Estonia by 30 pts in match play?!? Yikes, didn't realize that.
CONGRATS TUSA!!!!
OMFG, I hope there is a replay of this game on TV soon so I can watch it. Sounded pretty grim before the Selden 3 then things turned around in a hurry
Who scored the last bucket? Who's shooting FT?
So who is in? Bulldog, Wayne, Perry, and who else?
@BeddieKU23 Agreed!
what what what??? lol help me see
Score check for us fans that can't watch. Is there a gamecast or anything like that somewhere that we can follow along too?
@REHawk Your take on Diallo is exactly the same as mine. I have done my research on this one and feel confident about it. Obviously there is no such thing as a sure thing but in my opinion, this guy is pretty much the perfect fit for this year's team.
I do think there is a chance he stays for 2 years only to develop some offensive skills. But, its just a small chance.
The WUG has given us an early indication for how the team will shape up this year. There are a lot of things I have seen that I really like a lot. The biggest thing is the pace. The shot clock has forced the team to play fast, to push the bull up the floor, to run. I've been saying for years that KU has slowed down way too much. Having the best athletes on the floor you should be trying to play as fast as possible. The team in '08 would beat the other team down the court for a layup after they have just given up a basket. I want to see that style of play return. Hoping the shorter shot clock (30sec) and practicing/playing with an even shorter shot clock (24sec) at the WUG convinces the players and coaches that this is the style best suited for them. They've even sprinkled in some press which is great too. Play fast, play loose, be aggressive.
I'm sticking to my prediction weeks ago that the starting lineup will be Mason, Graham, Selden, Ellis, and Diallo. I expect Svi and Vick will be first guards off the bench with Greene getting spot duty but mostly out of the rotation. Mickelson has played great and is the clear cut best big off the bench. He may even start the first few games before Diallo "earns" the starting spot but that's TBD. As great as Mick has been, Diallo is going to be far better. Bragg should be the other big to get minutes and think we will see him improve a lot this year. I expect Traylor to get spot minutes but mostly against zone or when the team needs an "energy boost." Lucas' implosion at halftime of the Serbia game was bad. Showed immaturity and as a fan, is not what I want to see out there representing KU and I'm betting Self feels the same way. At this point, I think he is the prime candidate for a first class seat in the cryo deep freeze chamber.
The biggest question for me right now is with Svi and Greene. Will Svi be much improved as many have speculated that he will be? Will Greene be able to recover from his surgery early enough to not be completely buried behind everyone else? Is there a chance that Greene takes a medical redshirt?
@jaybate-1.0 I agree that Vick looks pretty good so far but predicting him as a TAD seems like a stretch to me. I'm thinking he will be in Lawrence for at least 3 years, most likely 4.
Sonova B. Same problem here too. Hope it gets fixed soon.
@KUSTEVE Completely agree, that's the starting lineup I was predicting too. But that was before the DG injury. It will all depend on how his healing progresses but prior to the injury I was pretty confident he would be starting alongside Mason.
@konkeyDong Your analysis assumes that nobody in the pic has grown since 2013. I don't know if anyone has but then again I also don't know that they haven't..
Its awesome when a recruit is unwavering towards KU. Its even better when they commit early too. It seems I become bigger fans of guys that visit and know this is where they want to be. Then cancel the rest of their visits and sign on the line. Oubre and Embiid are a few that did it that I can recall.
@Crimsonorblue22 That's exactly who I was thinking too. :smile:
Graham partially tore his quad yesterday, out three weeks and out for the WUG. Hopefully he can bounce back from it and be ready for the season. Any thoughts on who Self will find to replace him?????
http://www2.kusports.com/news/2015/jun/18/devonte-graham-injures-quad-will-miss-world-univer/?mens_basketball ↗ ↗
Guy is going to be a beast this year. I don't think people realize the big impact he will have on this team.
While its true that if Svi lives up to his current 2016 NBA draft projection it will be huge... I still don't think he is the biggest key to title for this year's team. After a lot of thought, I've come to the conclusion that the key is.... (drumroll please...)... Carlton Bragg.
My guess is that the starters will be Mason, Graham, Selden, Ellis, and Diallo. The starting lineup is solid. One can reasonably assume that each returning player will have gotten slightly better than the previous year. It doesn't always work that way but for simple analysis, the likelihood is that there will be at most one player that does not improve, gets injured, or regresses from last year. IMO, the key to being a championship contender is having someone (or more than one) take a big leap forward in comparison to last year. That's what would make this team dangerous. Many think it will be Svi. But if its not, and someone else does instead, this team will be equally as dangerous. With the depth of the backcourt, the need for it to be a backcourt player isn't critical. In addition, there are many alternatives to Svi taking the leap forward. It could be Mason (early reports saying he looks outstanding), could be Graham (made 7 threes in the scrimmage the other day), could be Selden (he's due for it, he has all the tools, just needs to put them together), could even consider Greene or Vick as longshots as well. That's 6 guys in our backcourt with the chance to be the difference maker which makes the need for it to be Svi not as great. There are other options.
The frontcourt is a different story though, the depth is not as great. Perry has been KU's workhorse and I'm assuming Diallo will be a solid compliment to Perry in the lineup (not a guarantee though). Off the bench we have Traylor, Lucas, Mick, and Bragg which at first glance appears mostly to just be stop-gap or specialty players. Traylor plays well at the top of the key where he can drive to the hoop or dish it but has a weak outside shot. Lucas is strong on the boards and has some success close to the hoop but no outside shot either. Mick hasn't been able to crack the lineup over Traylor or Lucas and I'm assuming is a long shot at being the key next year. Bragg as a frosh is expected to be a serviceable backup with upside. What concerns me most about next year's team is the dropoff when Perry or Diallo gets in foul trouble or heaven forbid, gets injured. It seems that over the course of history, players who make big jumps in their skillset in a year tend to do it in one of their first three years. Can't think of too many seniors (or 4th year players) that come out of nowhere and end up playing way above their projection. If this non-scientific trend is true and continues for this year's frontcourt, that leaves Bragg as the only candidate to be that guy. The lack of skilled depth in the frontcourt is why I think Bragg is the biggest key on next year's team.
Bragg has a nice jump shot, short clips from practice have shown he has some good ball skills too. I think the cards are in his favor on this one. He's a five star athlete has the tools to be the guy. I'm calling it now, if KU makes a run to the title game next year, Bragg will be a big part of it. He is the key.
@HighEliteMajor Oh mercy, I sure hope you are wrong. I could see it happening but part of me thinks Self is starting to learn a little bit that he needs to get his best horses out there sooner and let them take their lumps early in the season. If he could find a way to speed up that learning curve for his studs he would in theory be able to get more out of them when it matters most at the end of the season.
It just seemed odd last year that when the newspapers and espn articles started writing a lot about Oubre's lack of playing time that suddenly the "light" came on for him and his minutes went way up. It felt like more than a coincidence. The big time recruits will hesitate to come to KU if they think they will be buried on the bench for half the year. Actually, Diallo made it clear that he would choose a school with his biggest deciding factor being pt. The comments made me think he was st. john's bound. At that time the recruiting class was looking dire and its possible Self gave him some sort of an informal guarantee because Diallo still chose KU knowing what the historical trend has been for others similarly ranked to him (Embiid, Cliff, Oubre).
I give it a 9. If we get Chukwu its a 10. I view Diallo as the best player in the class and getting him was huge not only for his defensive skills and overall energy which the team needs but should also help open up Ellis to have a big year too. Beyond Diallo, we didn't necessarily get the best players persay, but we can't do much better for a class specifically selected for Kansas. KU needs multi-year guys, especially with 3 seniors this year. Bragg is one of the best multi-year prospects in the class. Vick seems to be blossoming and Colby fits the mold for a solid KU big man and we should have each for several years.
The reason I say its a 10 if we get Chukwu is because not only is he a multi-year guy, and 7'-2" tall which are both great things for KU, but we'd be adding him to the class without a scholarship. That's incredible. If Self pulls that off, its a 10 in my book.
@Statmachine YES! I saw the same thing. He has nice ball skills. And he also looks taller than I thought he would be compared to the other big men (Traylor, Ellis) but is only listed as 1" taller.
I was certainly surprised to see that Coleby signed up over the weekend before Chukwu's visit. As an outsider it always felt that Chukwu would be the primary target but maybe he wasn't. Like everyone else, I'm trying to figure out how we could still add Chukwu. KU could certainly use the depth when he would be eligible with the departures of Ellis, Mickelson, Mari, and possibly Diallo. The only possibilities I can think of are:
- Vick does not reclassify to 2015. I happen to think he will but we'll find out for sure today.
- Someone may be transferring/leaving. Best guess would be Mickelson as a graduate transfer, nobody else sticks out as a possibility.
- Very unlikely, but is it possible someone would vacate their scholarship and pay their own way? Don't know enough about the players financial situations but something similar did happen when Langford helped pay for Wesley to open up a scholarship. Or maybe someone is doing well enough in school to get an academic scholarship and not chew up an athletic one. Ellis? I'm know I'm really stretching it here.
- Most likely scenario - KU is done this year and won't cancel the Chukwu visit until Vick's announcement is made.
@ajvan De'Aaron Fox is a PG
Yesterday, Jerry Meyer (director of basketball scouting for 247 sports) picked Kansas as the destination for De'Aaron Fox. I think we should definitely have him on the list here too. Most of the "experts" have it as a two horse race between KU and Texas. Would be a great pickup for KU if he came here.
@drgnslayr said:
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I would kill for another guy who could bring the energy like Kevin Young!
All indications are that Diallo is that guy. I hope you don't end up in jail...
OMG, this would a huge catch for KU. I could see this kid becoming a beast for the team one day.
Haha yeah I know it has virtually a zero chance of happening, was just having fun with my imagination i guess.
That would be amazing. I really like that guy.
For some reason the first name that popped in my head when I read the opening post was Ron Baker too. Interested to see who it ends up being. If we sign one of the three guards we've been recruiting i doubt Bill will need to bring someone from another team anymore.
@Statmachine Can you post the article on rivals that you gave us the link for? I don't have a membership to that site.
BG is way better than AW3 imo. I agree with Self that BG has pro talent potential. To me, AW3 usually looked a big step behind everyone else from a talent/coordination aspect. However, player development is sometimes tough to predict. I remember freshmen TREL was not very good at all, his shot was terrible with a capital "T". Fast forward 4 years and he became a fantastic all around player and a critical piece to the team.
Its official, Donovan to the NBA
Let me just start by saying that I'm a very competitive person and played sports my whole life. Winning was everything. It still is. Its engraved in my DNA. There was none of this "everybody wins" bs in the school systems when I grew up. You either won or you lost. Anytime I experienced a loss it would effect my mood at least the rest of the day, sometimes much longer. It proved to be a valuable tool that helped me excel through school, career, and everyday life. I always assumed this was how most competitive athletes are. Especially the elite ones, because its that desire to win that normally separate the good players from the great ones. However, this year's trends are making me question whether that is actually true or not anymore.
Lets look at the top 10 recruits per ESPN. Three of the final four teams from last year (UK, Duke, and MSU) each landed a recruit. Makes sense, success typically breeds more success. Perennial 1 or 2 seed and top contender Kansas who also has a top returning class landed one. Makes sense. Maryland, a team on the rise coming off of a good year, 4-seed in the tournament, lands one. Can understand that. LSU, a 9-seed last year lands the #1 overall. Definitely unusual but not crazy. Now lets assume Brown chooses Michigan which is where most "experts" are predicting. That will mean that 4 of the top 10 recruits (that's 40% for anyone reaching for their calculators) have chosen a school that didn't make the tournament last year (Cal, Marquette, Miss St., Michigan). Even more interesting is that none of those four teams even made the NIT tournament last year!
There is no way that these kids are going into next season actually thinking that their team is going to win the NC. Therefore, the conclusion must be that they do not care about that. At least not enough in relation to other things. Is going to a crappy team the wave of the future? Is the thought to go to a crappy team and shoot as many shots as possible, put up the best stats possible, and count on that boosting their draft stock higher? Maybe that is viewed as the "safe" route. Its possible that after seeing the biggest collection of young talent ever assembled fail to make it to the championship game last year that the recruits are making other things a priority. We may be seeing the beginning of a shift in thought process. Whatever it is, I hope the steady stream to Lawrence doesn't dry up anytime soon.
This might mean some of Florida's recruits will be back on the market. Anyone worth pursuing??