:dis: I know. We might as well just cancel the basketball program. It's certainly going down the toilet. :nope: So your saying that winning isn't good enough if we don't do it with out of state players? Who gives a rats a$$ if we field an team entirely from Batswana. As long as they win, the program is a success. We are coming off a final four season and will more than likely have a top 5-10 ranking going into next season. We suck. Fire Brady now.
I just don't know what to think of these statements. :dis: Not sure you understand the landscape you're talking about. To point 1, have you been following the recruitment of Greg Monroe, top player in LA (AND the country) for 2008? I beg to differ as to whether LA can still produce good talent. Besides, in hoops you only need one or two impact players per class. I don't care if there are 15 division-1 players that come out of LA every year, and Butch and Brady only land 1 or 2 of them, if they're the right players for their system. To point 2, you seem to ignore the fact that we lost Arthur, a Dallas kid, to Kansas and Reynolds, a VA kid, to Villanova. NEITHER of whom we were even recruiting before the final four run. I'm certainly not going to hold the fact that they went to other basketball powerhouses closer to home, who had been recruiting them far before LSU, against the recruiting program. I think you are right about the need for recruiting good talented kids to go far in the tourney-that's a given. But let's just acknowledge that recruiting is not an exact science... This year our staff went after kids beyond LA who they liked--perhaps at the expense of LA players that they scouted lower than the DJ Wrights of the world--but we will never get a name outside of the state of LA until we recruit outside of LA.
Deek, what do you think of Brady pulling in Mason? While he may not have been recruited in the most usual of terms, he definently had his choice of schools to transfer to. As far as I can tell, hes from Kansas City and went to school at Marquette, so he definently doesn't seem to be a local guy at all
Greg Monroe won't come to LSU. Besides, the statement I made was "5 star talent intimately connected to the program via alumni and assistant coaches will dry up". The above is exactly the case for Davis, Thomas, and Mitchell.. not to mention 2 star Temple.... the core of our Final Four run. Reynolds was committed to Oklahoma and Villanova has tons of guards in their program. I don't think 'Nova was a major player before. I like your analysis. Just not the conclusions.
I think it's a good pickup, but I won't shout from the rafters until I see him play. They deserve credit for pulling him out of a basketball conference, for sure.
I'm not saying any of that... I just believe that the local talent who grew up together with CT II is getting ready to run out and I don't believe Brady is going to be able to replace those 5 star kids with national 5 star kids.
A buddy of mine that has Rivals is telling me that we are close to getting a 6-10 360 pound center named Desmond Hendrix. He doesn't have any stars on Rivals, and isn't even listed on Scout. I'm upset that we don't go for Randolph or Koshwal over this kid.
First, I think it's important to note that Desmond Hendrix (and he's only 260lbs) is a JUCO candidate, currently playing at Wabash Valley in IL, and that's why he's not listed. When he was a high school recruit, he was rated one of the top kids in IL in 2005 and was IL's third best center: http://www.chicagohoops.com/articles/il2005prospects.html What I'll say is that apparently the kid's getting a lot of looks from the likes of big 10 schools and big 12 schools, and we should be happy he lists LSU as his front runner. What you get is a big, mature kid, who's not actually been playing that long (like 4 years of organized ball)--perhaps Butch and Brady see some upside in the kid. Wabash Valley has actually got a decent rep for turning out some good hoops players, too. To Deek's point, this one is an interesting debate. You've got Claude Brittain, a local Southern lab high school kid at 6'10" 280lb, a 3 star guy on Rivals. Do you go stronger after him, or try to land a more mature prospect, a JUCO guy, from IL? Only time will tell... But, in any case, we've got some hoops recruits visiting this weekend (Martavius Adams and Mac Koshwal), so let's show them the love! Also, it looks like it's down to LSU, Vandy and Ole Miss for Keegan Bell the AL 6-2 PG, and based on this interview, I'm not sure we get him ... seems like new coach Kennedy, and promise of an "up tempo" game, at Ole Miss might be the difference. Keegan, I hope you don't make the mistake of going elsewhere only to thumped year in and out (see, Shane Foster). http://mississippi.scout.com/2/569712.html :geauxtige :bball: :champs: LSU IS A BASKETBALL SCHOOL. PACK THE PMAC.
Yes, I meant 260 pounds. And we made Martavius Adams's final 3. His weight and height look a lot like one of the current Tigers, eh? As for the Keegan Bell article, I have my doubts now. After the Arizona game, I felt we would get him for sure. But he said good things about Vandy and Ole Miss that entire interview.
I don't expect to get Bell either anymore. I hope Brady isn't lying to his face about pushing the ball all of the time, because he's a slow-it-down, throw-it-in-the-post guy if anyone is.
