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'15 OH F Esa Ahmad (West Virginia signee)

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wadc45 said:
My problem with this type of recruiting is you can't recruit based on who you think might come back to beat you. If you personally think Ahmad is OSU-caliber and can help this team win right away that is your opinion. The OSU staff obviously feels differently or has kids rated higher. Do you take Ahmad and pass on Bragg? I don't think you can. You recruit based on who you think can help you win today, especially in basketball. We've been hearing the same kind of stuff when it comes to Nick Conner in football and how he could come back to haunt OSU like Luke Kuechly, Greg Jones, Chris Borland, etc. It's one thing to make a mistake and not offer a kid like Hayes. Maybe he was mis-evaluated. Maybe the staff thought he wasn't the right fit in their system. I can live with honest mistakes. But to offer a kid to guard against him coming back to haunt OSU is no way to run a program.
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Honestly, I don't feel like you're recruiting him to avoid him coming back to haunt you - instead, I feel like he's the type of player OSU is missing on this year's team. Maybe not him particularly, but someone like him. He is skilled. He can score. He may not be a high-riser, or spectacular athlete, but he can make shots and he's a basketball player. I LOVE Thad Matta's recruiting, but when in doubt he goes for the athlete rather than the basketball player. Right or wrong, I don't know.

But look at some of the guys who didn't stick around or who really haven't panned out yet as true producers. All have one thing in common, and that is they have/had a much greater athletic ability than they did basketball skills. Ahmad is the opposite, and to me it looks as though he's a guy who can help win you games, or fill an important role.
 
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Bulls-Eye said:
Honestly, I don't feel like you're recruiting him to avoid him coming back to haunt you - instead, I feel like he's the type of player OSU is missing on this year's team. Maybe not him particularly, but someone like him. He is skilled. He can score. He may not be a high-riser, or spectacular athlete, but he can make shots and he's a basketball player. I LOVE Thad Matta's recruiting, but when in doubt he goes for the athlete rather than the basketball player. Right or wrong, I don't know.

But look at some of the guys who didn't stick around or who really haven't panned out yet as true producers. All have one thing in common, and that is they have/had a much greater athletic ability than they did basketball skills. Ahmad is the opposite, and to me it looks as though he's a guy who can help win you games, or fill an important role.
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Great response...if you think he's the type of kid missing from this year's team then that makes sense why you want to see him offered. I just get tired of other people talking about how we need to offer a kid or else we're going to have to watch him tear it up for Wisconsin or Michigan State or whoever. But you are right...the Sam Thompson's of the world are great but at the end of the day you also need some guys who are just great basketball players...at least in college.

I think it's obvious the staff is staying in touch with Ahmad...they probably want to get a better feel for where they stand with Bragg and Kennard first. If that means Ahmad makes a commitment or builds a better relationship with a staff elsewhere in the meantime, then they must be prepared to suffer the consequences.
 
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wadc45 said:
Great response...if you think he's the type of kid missing from this year's team then that makes sense why you want to see him offered. I just get tired of other people talking about how we need to offer a kid or else we're going to have to watch him tear it up for Wisconsin or Michigan State or whoever. But you are right...the Sam Thompson's of the world are great but at the end of the day you also need some guys who are just great basketball players...at least in college.

I think it's obvious the staff is staying in touch with Ahmad...they probably want to get a better feel for where they stand with Bragg and Kennard first. If that means Ahmad makes a commitment or builds a better relationship with a staff elsewhere in the meantime, then they must be prepared to suffer the consequences.
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Agreed. And I'm not pretending to know more than Thad or his staff, as well as not implying I think they've forgotten about Ahmad or already missed out on him. I understand how difficult basketball recruiting is when your name is not UNC, Duke, Kentucky, or Kansas. It's a tough spot to be in when you have so many quality in-state recruits, and evaluating whether one's talent or fit with your program is more important than the other.

Matta has recruited as well, if not better in the grand scheme of things (considering who he recruits against), than anyone else nationally since he's been at Ohio State. It's just a season like this year that reminds us all recruiting is often times a crapshoot, and you need to be comfortable with everyone you sign to your program.
 
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Villa Angela-St. Joseph's Carlton Bragg heating up: Boys basketball Player of the Year watch for week of March 13, 2014 (poll, videos)

1. Esa Ahmad (1)

Shaker Heights, junior, forward.

Height: 6-foot-7. Weight: 210 pounds.

2013-14 stats: 26.2 points, 11.2 rebounds and 3.2 assists per game (as of Feb. 28).

There seems to be no stopping Ahmad right now, who is playing his best basketball of the season. The junior followed a 32-point night in the district semifinal against Bedford with 37 points against Euclid in the district final. He has the best chance of any local candidate to be named Mr. Basketball next week.
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Bk5VJ75CUAAn81y.jpg:large
 
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wadc45 said:
BN $ - Buckeyes Keep Tabs On Fast Riser Ahmad

Will play at the Real Deal on the Hill in Arkansas this weekend...OSU wants to see him play in the Nike EYBL in Sacramento...Matta and Paulus visited last Thursday and he is definitely interested in OSU...also talks about in interest in Cincinnati, Indiana and Wisconsin.
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I was wondering if Louisville might be in play because one of his former high school teammates was on the Louisville roster this past season.
 
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According to an article on 11 Warriors looks like Matta will be seeing Ahmad in person today and maybe then he will get an offer..
The Ohio State staff is quite familiar with Ahmad, but, despite the amount of time they've spent scouting him, the head coach has yet to see him in person. That will change soon, according to Ahmad's father.

"Thad said he never offers without seeing the player play in person," Ibby Ahmad told Eleven Warriors. "He's coming to see Esa in Sacramento on [April] 25."

By that point, Esa will play with his All-Ohio Red AAU squad in their third EYBL session. Perhaps an Ohio State offer will follow.
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OSU_Buckguy said:
unless matta has a feel for bragg that no one else seems to have, i don't see how ahmad isn't extended an offer.

harris
ahrens
mitchell
ahmad
giddens
(thompson)
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Mitchell I think plays the same position as Ahmad and they're in the same class, that is the biggest obstacle combined with the fact that you don't have an unlimited number of scholarships and have other, more pressing needs remaining in that class. Now add on top of that having an even more highly touted in-state prospect (Bragg) at the same position in the same class, and that's a recipe to take your time in recruiting a player at that position to see if you are going to have room for him eventually. I know Ahmad is playing well but still the numbers crunch at his position does not seem conducive to him getting an offer soon. He is a great player but we have seen Matta in the past kind of slow play guys who aren't rated as highly as his top target at a certain position and hold scholarships open to go after higher rated prospects in future years when those guys opt for other choices in the fall of their Senior year.
 
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