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OSU Men's Basketball Recruiting/Projections/General Discussions

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OSU_Buckguy said:
Las Vegas Saturday: Ramsey to wait, a new star arises in Akron

(emphasis mine)



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rivals profile


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AKRON HOOPS PRODIGY LIKES THE BUCKEYES. It's about a decade too early to tell, but yet another consummate basketball player may have fallen into the lap of northeast Ohio.

Chris Livingston, 14-year old, 6-foot-5 forward from Akron, is already getting LeBron James comparisons and earning the attention of the king himself.

From Pete Thamel of Yahoo! Sports:

James’ appearance at an obscure 16-Under grassroots game in the Fab 48 Tournament in a half-empty gym held a powerful symbolic meaning. James came to watch the next great player with Akron ties, 14-year-old Chris Livingston, who is considered perhaps the top eighth-grade player in the country.

That’s a position James once held, and the former Akron basketball prodigy traveling to a far-flung gym to watch the next one doubled as Livingston’s christening on the grassroots scene as the next great player from Ohio. Livingston is a 6-foot-5 wing who is a pure shooter, natural scorer and has a frame and strength that belies his age.

...

Livingston scored 15 points in the victory for his grassroots team, We All Can Go, over the Colorado Chaos. He had a dunk and showed the athleticism and fluidity that have led both Akron and UAB to already offer scholarships. (Being just 14, Livingston said he has a few other scholarship offers but couldn’t remember them.) He said he planned to visit Ohio State in August, a place he said he liked a lot because they’re “my hometown team.”

Coaching circles were buzzing about Livingston long before LeBron dropped by his game on Saturday. “He’s viewed as the next guy since LeBron in Ohio to be in that category of, maybe, a transcendent player,” said a college head coach. “It’s hard, you want to be careful to stay away from Harold Minor and Michael Jordan comparisons. But he’s got that degree of that talent at the age. You’d be hard-pressed to find a better player in his class right now.”

I'm not ready to crown this teen the next god king of Ohio just yet, but when I hear things like "prodigy" and "transcendent player" followed closely by Ohio State is "my hometown team," it's hard not to get just a bit giddy.

Although, I think the most likely scenario is that the NBA adjusts its draft eligibility rules just before Livingston leaves high school and Ohio State misses out on second generational player simply because he fell just outside of the one-and-done window.

But until that rule change, the pipe dream is still alive. He can follow a class behind Bronny James and lead the Buckeyes to their second-straight NCAA Tournament title.

Entire article: https://www.elevenwarriors.com/skul...-top-five-nfl-corner-and-mike-vrabel-fiery-in
 
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ScriptOhio said:
Although, I think the most likely scenario is that the NBA adjusts its draft eligibility rules just before Livingston leaves high school and Ohio State misses out on second generational player simply because he fell just outside of the one-and-done window.
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Read a quote from Silverman the other day stating that the one and done rule will probably be abolished in the 2021 season so it looks like Livingston might not even to make a decision regarding college. Bronny graduates the following year so I bet Lebron gets this deal done a year before his son graduates.
 
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LitlBuck said:
Read a quote from Silverman the other day stating that the one and done rule will probably be abolished in the 2021 season so it looks like Livingston might not even to make a decision regarding college. Bronny graduates the following year so I bet Lebron gets this deal done a year before his son graduates.
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How exciting to narrowly miss out on LeBron and LeBron jr!! {end sarcasm}
 
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OSU_Buckguy said:
i'd be lying if said harvey going to kansas wouldn't make me a little happy. nothing against him as a player, but liddell is my first, second, and third hope for the third and final member of the 2019 class... barring a spring addition, that is.
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Steering this to the general discussion but I agree. I’m 100% all in on wanting to wrap this up with Liddell. My #1 reason to check this forum is seeing that committment.
 
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Evans Seven: Programs riding a wave of momentum into the fall
The July evaluation periods have come to an end, and the next few weeks will lead to the majority of the Rivals150 players coming off the board. In this week’s Evans Seven, we assess the programs riding the greatest momentum into the fall, the ones that have the chance to finish the early signing period atop of the national rankings.

...

5. OHIO STATE

Chris Holtmann worked wonders in the coach’s box last winter, and he did the same on the recruiting trail in Ohio State's fight for a premier 2019 class. He began with Alonzo Gaffney, a tremendously talented forward and the best in-state prospect. The momentum of the program got ramped up another few levels when the Buckeyes defeated Michigan and Indiana for five-star guard DJ Carton. Many believed that OSU was the third horse in the race, and Carton’s commitment was a boon for Holtmann’s crew, one that gives the program the chance to place even greater attention on completing its class earlier than many others.

The Buckeyes' top target is EJ Liddell, a top-50 forward. He will visit Columbus in September, and while Ohio State will have to defeat Illinois, Missouri, Kansas State and a handful of others, Liddell could end up in Columbus. OSU also used July to gain greater in-roads with Omar Payne, Zeke Nnaji, Trayce-Jackson Davis, Isaac Johnson, Malik Hall, Brandon Newman, and Sam Williamson. Chances are the Buckeyes land at least one of those Rivals150 prospects, which would equate to a top-tier class this fall.

6. MICHIGAN

just kidding. they didn't make the list
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2019 class rundown


carton - osu verbal
gaffney - osu verbal


newman - top 4; visit expected soon
liddell - top 5; official visit set for 8/31-9/2
payne - top 7; official visit set for 9/21-23
williams - top 10
deng - top 12
wahab - top 12; unofficial visit set for 8/25


nnaji - unofficial visit set for 8/25
harvey - among favorites
miller - among favorites; no confirmed offer
quinones - nothing to report
lorca-lloyd - nothing to report
beverly - all but officially over


franklin - not in top 3
johnson - not in top 3
moore - not in top 5
hall - not in top 5
williamson - not in top 5
jackson-davis - not in top 6
girard - not in top 6
james - not in top 9
timme - not in top 10
brooks - not in top 10
stewart - not in top 10
watson -not in top 10
harris - not among official visits
hurt - offered by matta; never pursued
achiuwa - offered by matta; never pursued
mitchell - offered by matta; never pursued
ramsey - xavier verbal
gillis - purdue verbal
bacot - unc verbal
sturdivant - georgia verbal... not


8/19 edit: wahab visit
8/19 edit: hall and johnson cut
8/21 edit: sturdivant commitment
8/23 edit: payne visit
8/27 edit: williamson cut
9/2 edit: newman list
 
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Thanks for taking the time to break it down, Buckguy.

I think it is clear that EJ Liddell is Priority 1a, 1b, and 1c right now. I hope we know what his decision will be sooner than later, OSU or not, as I think the staff is going to have a hard time doing much else with these other recruits until they know.

I think Nnaji and Payne are probably next up on the priority list but we are one of many right now for Nnaji and I don't know if I see Payne leaving the South. That said, I wouldn't count this staff out if they decided to make a really strong push for either one, I just think that right now a large amount of their effort and investment is going into EJ.

I think location is a disadvantage for us with both Williams and Williamson. Very curious about what is happening with Harvey, as we were something of a leader for him shortly after the Carton commitment and now it feels like that has dissipated into thin air. Similarly with another wing, Emmanuel Miller, who was very high on us and planning on visiting but we haven't heard anything recently about him and OSU. I wonder if both cases are symptomatic of the staff trying to keep the class at 3 in the early period and wanting EJ the most and having some degree of confidence now that they will get EJ.

If we miss on EJ I am not sure a third commit happens in the early period as the staff would have to kind of scramble and make a few late pushes to get that from one of their other targets. Doesn't seem like things are going to work out for us on the Quinones and Newman fronts. I think we're just one of a dozen names on Deng's and Wahab's lists.

Lorca-Lloyd is very much a project and YET he does have great interior defense potential, which is potentially something this roster could need. I have no idea exactly how high the staff are on him but high enough to offer when we only have one scholarship spot available and he would theoretically be maxing out our roster (and thus limiting 2020 scholarship spots, too). He is a smart kid that is entertaining offers from Ivy League schools, so in the end he might want to go that route. Any push we make for him will probably be a late one, but we are one of the best athletic programs to offer him, so if he decides to prioritize that a little bit over his academics, he is theoretically someone we might have a good shot at if the push doesn't come too late.
 
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nomatta said:
Actually, I just read something I found a little surprising concerning Newman.

Nothing major, but sounds like Ohio State would still have a decent shot at him if we miss on EJ.
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i'm not a premium member anywhere, but my guess is your optimism stems from newman's probable spring decision. after carton and gaffney, we seem to be in a good position where banking the third scholarship would be okay. getting liddell or someone else this fall would be great, of course, but ho1tmann can play the long game by pursuing recruits into the spring. to be sure, getting newman would be a coup. he's an exceptional two-way player who is an outstanding shooter and solid rebounder at the 2/3. i like him more than harvey.
 
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OSU_Buckguy said:
i'm not a premium member anywhere, but my guess is your optimism stems from newman's probable spring decision.
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It's actually something else. For those with 247 VIP access, you can find it in Brian Snow's Midwest Recruiting Notebook from yesterday.

I am actually surprised I haven't seen it reported anywhere else, but since I haven't I guess I will just have to keep mum for now.

Like I said, though, nothing so major that I'd call us a leader for Newman or anything like that, and all probably moot if we get Liddell. But enough to make me think we'd still have a solid shot at Newman as a contingency plan.
 
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OSU_Buckguy said:
i'm not a premium member anywhere
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just lost mine also so somebody else is going to have to step up in this thread with some fine quotes… no need for summarization…direct cut and paste is what we need:biggrin:
nomatta said:
all probably moot if we get Liddell.
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There is a article in the NCAA Rules Changes in the Basketball Forum which I linked the other day and it said that Holtmann likes graduate students so if we have an extra scholarship come Spring that could be an option. However, I do not see us losing out on EJ. I will be shocked if we do.
 
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