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OSU Men's Basketball Recruiting/Projections/General Discussions

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Not litl. But you did miss Evan Ravenal a 6'8 260 lb PF/C xfer from BC who will be a JR in 2011-2012. And Nikola Kecman would be a SR on that team with Zisis.

I agree though that without Sully the C spot is hurting. I believe Zisis will never contribute here and ER didn't impact much at BC in 2 years so I don't see him as a 30 min starter as a JR. The 2011 class must produce a starting-calibre post player.

Also, I think Smith and Spoon will both potentially be contenders for the starting 3 spot. Smith is likely to move to the outside with Scott and Craft at point. Spoon wants to transition to the 3 spot, and the staff has him shooting 500 3's a day and working on his handle a lot to help that transition, so he will not likely be a PF candidate really. Thomas can also play some 3. So that spot isn't as barren as you make it seem. ER will likely back up at PF and C both some.

Do I think a top-flight 3 like Thompson could start? Yes, if he isn't injured he could jump Smith and Spoon ( I think Sibert starts at 2 regardless ). But it isn't as desparate as you make it seem and we could get by w/o another wing really. Post I wouldn't want to see it, but we are bringing in 3+ wings in this 2010 class ( Sibert(2/3), Spoon(3), Smith(2/3/1), Thomas (4/3)) so it isn't that thin really. It will be inexperienced - but adding a frosh doesn't help that. I'd prefer a talented tall wing, but we may not get one. Parker wouldn't "bother me" as more talent added either!

:osu:

S&GFAN;1745109; said:
Litl, did I touch a nerve? Deep breath..and again.

My data comes from the same place yours does and anyone else not on or attached to the staff. That said, I disagree that this topic is a non-factor based upon where this team will be after next year if Sully is 1 and done. That would leave a HUGE hole at the 5 and a bunch of unproven players everywhere else and almost zero depth. There is also a very good chance Buford leaves as well.

If Sully and Buford leave this is the current roster...

PG - Craft/Smith/Scott
SG - Sibert/Smith
SF - Sibert?
PF - Thomas/Weatherspoon
C - Big Z

Did I miss anyone?

This team lacks talent at several positions and has a HUGE depth issue. Bucks need an impact Wing and Post in the 2011 class. Obviously if Sully and Buford stick around the team will look completely different but that trend is not in the Bucks favor.
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I was composing my post and didn't see this first. I agree about the flexibility of Smith and Thomas helping out at 3. I think Buford and Sully are goners, but Thomas has stopped his "1&d" talk and I think he's been humbled by not being so sterling in the post-season all-star games he attended. I think he'll be here at least 2 years now as a result, maybe 3.

But all the reports I've heard and read are that Spoon is going to play the 3 here. Not even the outside/inside "Matta 4". He is way too short to be playing any Center/post. I know he has "mad hops" but at 6'5 or so he just cannot survive the wars inside. Thomas would play the C spot before Spoon, IMO, but neither should be tried there at all.

Ravenal and Zisis as our only C's would be very bad news, IMO. As 2nd and 3rd string C's, okay, as 1st and 2nd. NOT OKAY! Unless Sully miraculously stays, we need another option inside in this 2011 class - BAD!
:osu:

LitlBuck;1745138; said:
Yup, you sure did miss someone. There is a article on the very first page of this site about our transfer from BC Evan Ravenel.

I think you can take the "If" always from Buford and probably Sully but I would not place the bank on the latter. I also think that Smith could play 3 positions and, in a crunch, the PF. JD might also be able to swing to the 5. Take the guys that you have listed add Sam Thompson or a very similar player and I think we are fine for next year. My one worry is if Thomas decides to be a one and done. I am almost more worried about him that I am about Sullinger.

Not to get ahead of ourselves but a little comparison

PG-Craft, Scott, Smith
SG-Sibert,Smith
SF-Thomas, Sibert, newcomer
PF-Thomas, Ravenel, Weatherspoon, newcomer
C-Ravenel, Weatherspoon, Z.

all the above is off if Sullinger remains.
Quite a few interchangeable players so I am not concerned about next year. We have to play this one first.
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buckeydoptimist;1745148; said:
Ravenal and Zisis as our only C's would be very bad news, IMO. As 2nd and 3rd string C's, okay, as 1st and 2nd. NOT OKAY! Unless Sully miraculously stays, we need another option inside in this 2011 class - BAD!
:osu:
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unless they are recruiting someone that is not currently on their radar, I have no idea who they would be able to get to play the 5 position as a freshman and be better than Evan. It also will be interesting to see how Z improves this year. We can only hope or next spring there will be looking for a JUCO(Forget that JUCO we will just play zone) but I think Evan will be able to handle that position.

On another note, the reason that I did not mention Kecman is that I think is playing career at Ohio State is finished:(
 
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LitlBuck;1745161; said:
unless they are recruiting someone that is not currently on their radar, I have no idea who they would be able to get to play the 5 position as a freshman and be better than Evan. It also will be interesting to see how Z improves this year. We can only hope or next spring there will be looking for a JUCO(Forget that JUCO we will just play zone) but I think Evan will be able to handle that position.

On another note, the reason that I did not mention Kecman is that I think is playing career at Ohio State is finished:(
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There are a half a dozen combo C/F's that Matta has offered out there in this 2011 class ( including Davis who I haven't 100% given up on just yet ). Based on his BC numbers, I wouldn't count on ER being better than one of those recruits. I think he is an insurance policy but should not be counted on as a fixture. He wasn't getting but 10 mins at BC, why would he suddenly turn into a 30 min starter here? Doubt it!

I also think Nikola is through. But until they announce that, or cut him loose officially, he is still on the team and counts. I didn't think he or Zisis would ever see real playing time here even before he had his 3rd knee operation. Zisis is too slow and lumbering and had worse stats on the Greek team this summer than last. Those thinking he will magically transform ... DLaud has more chance at being an All American, I think than Zisis does of contributing much. IOW, I wouldn't bet on it.:tongue2:

:osu:
 
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BC wasn't a great team last year, but they did have some pretty solid big men. Josh Southern was a top 100 center we recruited in '07 and he started, but only played 16 min a game. I honestly don't know what to expect from Ravenal, but he was recruited by some decent schools and will be a 4th year junior who had a year off battling Sullinger and Lauderdale in practice. I'm guessing he probably is some sort of insurance policy, but its not inconceivable to think that he would be a valuable asset in another year.
 
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Buckeyes in need of bigs
Ohio State Buckeyes

Yes, Thad Matta will be able to depend on shotblocking upperclassman Dallas Lauderdale and precocious -- and potential Big Ten ROY -- Jared Sullinger in 2010. However, what we mean by this rumor is that Matta and Company is in dire need for big men for next season. Lauderdale will have exhausted his eligibility by 2011-12 and Sullinger is among the handful of freshmen who many think will be a one-and-done candidate. Sure, most Buckeye fans thought OSU could count on junior Zisis Sarikopoulos -- until Bob Baptist of the Columbus Dispatch reported the 7-footer is close to signing a contract with a pro team in Greece.

Now that Anthony Davis has verbally committed to Kentucky, OSU will have to double their efforts to land one (or a few) of the talented frontcourt prospects still left in the 2011 class. Luckily for Matta, Sam Thompson listed the Buckeyes in his final five and Chane Behanan, though he was in Lexington over the weekend, may not want the hassle of competing for PT when there should be ample amounts of minutes in Columbus.

Even more fortuitous, though, may be the recent recruiting bonanza by Michigan State. Unless a player transfers or someone decides to enter the draft early, the Spartans are out of scholarships for 2011-12. Amir Williams -- the number two ranked center in the 2011 class -- was and probably still is a recruiting target for Tom Izzo but without an empty scholarship, it could make a Williams-to-OSU choice all the more clear and simple.
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College Basketball Rumors - Rumor Central -NCAA - ESPN
 
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JAF, who is Chase? Do you mean Chane Behanan?

Boy, I wish OSU would add a couple legit big men to the '11 class. I don't know if 1 (even someone such as Amir) is enough. Now Zisis is gone, they would be left with just Evan Ravenel if Jared goes pro. I don't know if as a coach you can go out of the spring knowing you have just two guys who can play the 5 - this year, losing Zisis was unexpected & very late (i.e., too late to find a replacement for this season), so you can't really fault Matta's planning there. But I don't think he'd let the team have only two centers if it wasn't this late.

Does the early departure of Zisis mean someone like Malcolm Gilbert becomes a higher priority? I hope so - a guy like Gilbert would make some sense but it could also mean that the staff wouldn't be able to get a more highly regarded 2012 big such as AJ Hammons. What worries me some is if Jared goes pro and you don't add two big men from the '11 class, then that's the scenario we've seen before where Matta has gone after table scraps in the spring to fill the gaps, and those spring "reaches" haven't really helped the team much - I wouldn't want OSU to miss out on someone who can actually play from the '11 class just because TM was worried about nobody going pro/transferring, so I would definitely oversign by one for this '11 class.

The way I see things now, it looks like OSU will have 5 openings for the 2011 class and one for the year after that, with the possibility of an additional scholarship being available for either year if Kecman decides to not fight the injuries anymore (I believe OSU could keep him on scholarship and have it not count against the 13 if he is deemed not able to play due to injuries - as an aside, I have seen a rumor that the NCAA is considering increasing men's basketball scholarships to 14, so perhaps there will be an extra opening anyway). I think at least six schollies between 2011 and 2012 will be open, possibly seven. Ravenel's scholarship would be available for '13 but no other schollies are open for that class if Kecman's is used up in '11 or '12 (as it probably should if he opts to quit playing for medical reasons).

So my conservative estimate is they can use six scholarships between '11 and '12. Two are spoken for. That leaves four vacancies, and I think two of them have to be big men. So is it two bigs and two guards/wings of those four? Probably so. But again, I hope they oversign bc of the likely early entry/possible transfer. But then there's also the possibility that Kecman's schollie is also open to use, at which point they could add another player - would they just add the best available or bank it for the '13 class? Given the roster turnover, they probably should use whatever they have open.

At this point, Matta might as well go for a big class in '11 since he will have several open scholarships (at least four, probably five). I would hope that he can get five signees from the '11 HS crew, preferably one other guard/wing and a couple more bigs. Hard to say how things should shake out. But if Matta does wait and see on Jared and he leaves after this year, and Matta goes for a "spring reach," then at least it would be easier to recruit a high profile '12 big such as Hammons (and if it's a JC kid, then the schollie might be available again for the '13 class) - small consolations if the guy they get isn't able to contribute & is needed.
 
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DZ83CK;1748834; said:
So my conservative estimate is they can use six scholarships between '11 and '12. Two are spoken for. That leaves four vacancies, and I think two of them have to be big men. So is it two bigs and two guards/wings of those four? Probably so. But again, I hope they oversign bc of the likely early entry/possible transfer. But then there's also the possibility that Kecman's schollie is also open to use, at which point they could add another player - would they just add the best available or bank it for the '13 class? Given the roster turnover, they probably should use whatever they have open.

At this point, Matta might as well go for a big class in '11 since he will have several open scholarships (at least four, probably five). I would hope that he can get five signees from the '11 HS crew, preferably one other guard/wing and a couple more bigs. Hard to say how things should shake out. But if Matta does wait and see on Jared and he leaves after this year, and Matta goes for a "spring reach," then at least it would be easier to recruit a high profile '12 big such as Hammons (and if it's a JC kid, then the schollie might be available again for the '13 class) - small consolations if the guy they get isn't able to contribute & is needed.
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So many questions and so few answers. I am having a hard time keeping track of the number of scholarships that we are going to have available for this recruiting class but the fact that Williams and Behanan have both stated that they are not going to make a decision until next spring certainly helps... I think.

We definitely need a big man or one of the big PF's that we currently have on the board. I don't know if Matta would be willing to wait until Spring only to hear Williams say that he is going someplace else. I really don't think we can wait on him but after Matta gets a verbal from Ross (wherever that came from) I have no idea what he might be thinking. If we could get another athletic wing (like Hood) and put him with Ravenel and someone similar to that height I think we would be fine for another year. I do not want to empty out all of our scholarships this year and have none for 2012 because there are some quality guys out there who could help us both inside and out.

I have to think that Kecman will no longer be on a athletic scholarship ball when that would take effect I have no idea. The way the NCAA moves I would think that it would not be until after the first of the year before some type of decision is made.

In a way, I am glad that Behanan is waiting until spring because if Thomas should think that he is good enough for the next level Chase might be a nice replacement for him.

Fortunately, probably for us, we have no idea what Thad might be thinking or who it might have a really good shot at. I think Ross was a shock to most people and there might be guys similar to him that we have no idea about.
 
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We now have 4 open for sure ( Zisis', DLaud, DLight, JDiebler ) for the 2011 class.
2 more possible in the Spring ( WBuf, Sully ).
1 more no later than for the 2012 class ( Kecs ).

I believe we will be able to use those 7 over the next two classes of 2011 and 2012, minimum.

DeShaun Thomas is also at risk of leaving early ( some think 1&d while others think 2&d ) and either of those scenarios would open up an 8th ship.

One of the other 2010 class may also get antsy for PT and bail early by then.

One worry though is that there is no 2009 class, so the only guy giving up his scholly for the 2013 class is Evan Ravenel. With such a loaded class, you'd think that Matta would want at least 3 open ships for it. He may therefore not use all 8, so that he can have 3 open for that 2013 class.

But as DZ83CK wrote, Matta should use up most or all that he has so that an injury or defection doesn't keep leaving him so short handed. It may be smart to use 4 in 2011 and 3 in 2012, or even 5 in 2011 and 2 in 2012, as a result. Some of that decision will depend on who else wants on-board in this 2011 class.

Roster priorities:
1. C - with DLaud leaving and Sully rumored to be a 1&d there just has to be a 2011 C signed, or at least a PF/C type that could get by at C. Even if AJHammons is a 2012 lean as some have stated, we could use several over these next two classes as we are not deep here at all.
2. PF - DLight has been playing this spot and is leaving, DThomas is likely the replacement but who knows how long he stays before going pro. Ravenel can play both, but how talented can he be if he was a backup-only at BC? We really could use both a C and a C/PF in this 2011 class as both spots are thin and vulnerable - and have been for a while now.
:osu:
 
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Jeff Boals, Ohio State assistant basketball coach, is one of the best recruiters in the country | cleveland.com


College basketball coaches get all of the credit for the success of their teams, but some of the credit needs to go to those assistants who are responsible for signing some of the best high school players in the country.
Yahoo.com college basketball writer Jason King puts together a list of the top recruiters. Kentucky coach John Calipari has benefited from some of the best players in the country, thanks in part to assistant coach Orlando Antigua.
Ohio State assistant coach Jeff Boals, has been on the Buckeyes? staff for just 16 months, but Boals has been quick to make his presence felt on a staff that also includes standout recruiter Brandon Miller
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Here's a list of recruits besides Scott who could be on the invitation list for the Miami game:

2011
PF Chane Behanan, 6-7, Bowling Green, Ky.
C Amir Williams, 6-9, Detroit

2012
C A.J. Hammons, 6-10, Carmel, Ind.
SF Jeremy Hollowell, 6-7, Indianapolis
SF DeJuan Marrero, 6-5, Gary, Ind.
G DeVauntes Smith-Rivera, 6-4, Indianapolis
SF Negus Webster-Chan, 6-6, Huntington, W.Va.
(** - Gary Harris, 6-4 SG, Fishers, Ind., tweeted Hollowell that he wanted to come to the game but can't because he has a football game.)

2013
SG Darryl Baker, 6-2, Jeffersonville, Ind.
SF Devin Davis, 6-6, Indianapolis
PG Tony Farmer, 6-6, Garfield Heights, Ohio
PF Demonte Flannigan, 6-6, PF, Cleveland
SF Colin Hartman, 6-7, Indianapolis
PF Jackson Lamb, 6-7, Temperance, Mich.
SF Marc Loving, 6-7, Toledo (committed to OSU)
SF Basil Smotherman, 6-4, Indianapolis
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9/11 a big recruiting day (Hoops & Scoops: an OSU basketball blog)
 
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