Sylven Landesberg a McD AA

S

SL Xpress

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It will be interesting to see if Anthony Jones is named one, which wouldn't surprise me given Yates' high profile nationally this year and how he's performed for them.

That would mean Texas passed on two McD AAs. Doesn't mean it was a bad decision, but it would be incredible in a way.
 
For those who don't follow high school basketball, could you tell us what J'Covan has that made him a higher priority than Landesberg or Jones?
 
There's only one JUCO guard they're considering that I know of. They haven't even offered him yet, and he's a complete badass. No Swedish players that I'm aware of, no matter how many languages they speak.

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Question about McAA's: Have they named them yet? Or just those nominated for McAA's? I noticed a kid from up here in Sherman made it.
 
I (and Barnes was there) have seen Nolan Dennis play against an absolutely TERRIBLE Westlake basketball team and he got shut down. I'm talking 11 points and he shot MAYBE once in the second half. I've heard enough about Sylvan to know that Dennis is not worth not having Landesburg...there has to be another reason. Without Augustin next year, we will need as many good players on the team to compensate for the dearth at PG. Jones and Landesburg would have helped mightily, along with J'Covan. It is unacceptable to get neither if both wanted to come here. Also, it is unlikely that either would jump after the frosh season. Yes, Sidney is the best player in the class and Hamilton is ours, but what are the chances that we get Renardo away from UCLA, USC, and tOSU (who he seems to be enamored with for some reason or another)? I know that there are a ton of other interested players in '09, (Kenny Boynton, Xavier Henry, John Wall, Isiah Armwood, and DeMarcus Cousins just to name a few of the 5 stars) but we need the help NOW is D.J. jumps like expected (and like he should).
 
We should be alright at the PG slot with Brown if he makes it here, Balbay after 11 game and if he rehabs well, Mason, AJ.
Having 4 guards will be good Brown can score , Balbay plays uptempo as well as Brown. My concern is the 3 slot when Damion moves up to the NBA. Who runs in the three slot??? Do we play again with 3 guards??

Do we run out Connor, GJohnson, another big(Dex, Alexis., Chapman) and Mason and AJ.
Not sure if GJ can guards the 3's in the Big 12.

We lose Lewis, DJ and Damion most likely thats 3 ships for 09.
We may have 2 leave but I doubt that.
Maybe 4-5 09 ships, getting 2 small forwards and a tall guard would be nice.
On Witherspoon I would not put any money on him coming to Texas, maybe 20% that he commits here.
 
I think you guys are analyzing it way too much for any sort of explanations I can provide to suffice.

I will make these points:

1) I do not believe it is in DJ's best interests to go pro this year. That's not to say he will or he won't. If I were to put money on it, it would be for him to head to the NBA, but that's not what I would advise. I think his draft stock will be higher after one more year --- mostly because there will be less competition ahead of him at his position, he'll be a better defender, and he'll be even more physically prepared for the NBA, a league that's not all that friendly to point guards of his stature, no matter how talented they are.

2) Nolan Dennis's game against Westlake was really rough. He's still the best player in the state in my opinion. The reason his name was brought up by me at all recently is because I felt like Indiana had the inside track on him, and with Kelvin Sampson's recent difficulties, I think Sampson's firing is imminent, which will put them out of the race. It had nothing to do with Sylven Landesberg, Nolan Dennis's performance at Westlake, or what the staff thinks of him. You guys are connecting Landesberg with Dennis, not me.

3) On that note, I don't think Barnes had anyone specific in mind when he passed on either Jones or Landesberg. He just decided those weren't the guys he wanted on his team. Analyzing it more than that isn't going to do anyone any good, because I don't think there was more analysis involved in the first place.

Barnes could be right or he could be wrong on those decisions, but in the end it's his team. We'll have to see how it works out.

4) Wesley Witherspoon is also a possibility for this class. In fact, he'll probably be coming in for a visit before the season is over.

I think to some degree panic is setting in for the sake of feeling panicky. The program has a great foundation with the four freshmen. None of them are early entries, and they've all shown signs of being significant contributors over the course of their career --- albeit, Dogus Balbay's evidence is in international play and not against Div I opponents. Dexter Pittman still has an excellent chance of being a low post monster, especially in two years. While Justin Mason has been more hit and miss this year than I thought he would be, I feel like he's going to continue to develop Royal Ivey style. If Matt Hill sticks around and continues to develop, that gives Texas 7 kids to build around over the next two years, which means 6 players have to come from the next two classes. There's not only more talent overall in the 2009 class, but Texas is in on better players as well when compared to 2008.

Given that, personally I think it would be wise to be very conservative in the number of players brought in for '08, in the hopes of having room for 4 players in '09, because I think those 4 will have a great chance of being better than choices 3 or 4 in '08, including Landesberg and Jones.
 
To help SL make his point, check out the schools listed for the top five players for 2009 as rated on the CSTV site:
The Link

Texas is listed by four of the top five, none of whom are from the state of Texas. Barnes is hunting big game for the class of 2009.
 
I don't think people realize how much of a dividend Kevin Durant is going to pay. Because recruiting in basketball is a multiyear process, and kids usually have their choices narrowed down --- if not completely decided --- by the summer after their junior year of high school, Durant was bound to make a bigger impact on '09 than he did '08.

The coaching staff has done a great job of travelling around the country, trying to form relationships with as many top players as possible. Any players they bring in for '08, other than Tyreke Evans, will subtract from how many players they can bring in for '09.

Of course it could backfire on them, but there's a big part of me that likes the aggressive stance.
 
Pffft.

I don't know. I'm hopeful, but I'm not counting on it. I'm assuming he's going to Memphis until proven otherwise.

I do think Texas could beat out Louisville or Villanova in his recruitment, although none of the national guys talk about Texas as much as they do those two other schools. He really liked his visit, and so did Reggie Evans, one of his older brothers.
 
Of course it could backfire on them, but there's a big part of me that likes the aggressive stance

Kids usually have 3-4 on their first tier of colleges by the end of their JR. year.
Jordan Hamilton has Texas on his , but if you take a close look the others have Texas futher down their lists of schools .

There is a lot of good players in 09, really stacked but the elite 5-10 players have Texas down the list at this point.
I would not be surprised if a kid like Terrell Vinson ends up in Texas, a very good player but not ranked in the elite. Vinson has Texas high on his list.

It is really early to call but Texas is on the horizon of a lot of very good basketball players. It is possible for us to pick up 2 impact players or more in 09 but I am not sure we get top 10 players.
NC is ahead of everyone in recruiting I believe they already have 4-5 commits,but recuiting is such an iffy thing. Texas is on kids minds but Texas has no buzz around its program as it is so low key. A deep run into the NCAA would highlight the program and Barnes. Too Early to call anything IMO.
 
UT is on both of them but if NC has a ship Wall will go there, he lives in Releigh, looks like ACC. Orton is a beast on the boards with a nice touch and he is being recruited by Kansas and I do not recall the connection but seem to remember a link bewtween Orton and Kansas.
 
UNC already has Larry Drew out of the '08 class. That doesn't mean they can't get John Wall as well, but it makes it tougher.

John Wall would be the ideal point guard for Texas, btw. Another TJ Ford type --- or Tywon Lawson type, depending on your school preference.

Texas is recruiting Orton, but I don't think they'll get him.

The OU assistant, Oronde Taliaferro, who brought in Willie Warren, is Daniel Orton's uncle. Also, Orton is the younger brother of former OSU player, Terrance Crawford.

I don't recall a tie like that to KU.

Bet on OU, but there's still a long way to go. Still, I wouldn't think much of UT's chances of landing him.
 
Thanks.

Xavier Henry is the one with KU ties. His dad played there, and his brother, CJ, committed there before opting to play professional baseball.
 
Being on a "list" means next to nothing, guys. I see very little chance of us receiving a commitment from Lance Stephenson, Xavier Henry, or DeMarcus Cousins. On the other hand, we are in great shape with Hamilton and in it with Sidney. I like just having a chance with Kenny Boynton because it seems like the coaching staff is going after him pretty hard. Aren't we in pretty good shape with Isaiah Armwood as well SL? It may end up with guys like Vinson, Dennis, and Shawn Williams...which is completely fine with me...to go along with Hamilton. That class would be top five in the country, but we would have essentially two tall 2s and two 3s (very little variety). From what I saw, Dennis has unlimited handles as a scorer and is a phenomenal passer, but I'm not sure that translates to the PG position on later down the line when guys like Balbay, Brown, and Mason are gone. A good problem to have, I suppose.
 
Yeah, I'm not really even in the hoping stage for guys like Stephenson, Henry, or Cousins.

Boynton looks like it's going to be Duke at this point, but I do think Texas is right in there. Get him in for a visit, and who knows?

Hamilton, it would take a lot for him to go somewhere else. Texas looks great with Sidney, but I worry that recruitment may get squirrelly. Maybe not, but I have my fears.

I do think Texas is in great shape with Armwood, although the local schools Georgetown and Maryland are in there strong.

I think things look great with Shawn Williams, to say the least.

If the class is Williams, Hamilton, and the two best players they can bring in, I'd be okay with that. They do have a lot of inside guys, so I don't think that's a pressing need, although it's uncertain whether any of them become difference makers.

We've all experienced what a team looks like when it has TJ Ford/DJ Augustin, and what it looks like when there isn't someone like that on the team, so wondering about point guards is understandable.

I'm pretty excited about recruiting for '09, and '08 isn't done yet.
 
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