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OSU Men's Basketball Recruiting/Projections/General Discussions

Can close a 5-star recruit but now can't get a lower grad transfer looking for an opportunity to even visit? I'm miffed.

Probably petty for this, but I'll be interested in how some of these guys pan out going wherever they decide to go.
Well for sure the impact of a lot of these guys is not as big as it looks like it will be. Take Anthony Lee for example. You have to be a good all-around player to earn consistent minutes at a place like OSU. Now, Woods is that type of player. But not all of these guys are.
 
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It is odd that OSU has seemingly kicked the tires on just about every grad transfer guard out there and they have gotten just one total visit - and no commits yet - from grad transfers. Oklahoma for instance gets two grad transfer guards who may play the same position to both commit while OSU has gotten a total of one visit (and no commitments) from all grad transfers.

Or take Northwestern. Somehow land top grad transfer Ryan Taylor when they're not even weak at wing, they're shakier at PG and post depth behind Pardon... and now they're in Matt Mooney's Top 5, too? I'll bite the bowl off the spoon if they get him, too.
 
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virtually no interest from taylor.
virtually no interest from cremo.
virtually no interest from mooney.
woods visited but decided to take other visits afterward.
norton's visit canceled.
coleman possibly no longer a target.

this is all very odd and, as of right now, this does not at all look good. get through the weekend without woods committing elsewhere and perhaps that's the guy. who knows.
I'm not sure if it applies to any of these guys, but I heard it mentioned last week that a player needs at least a 3.0gpa to get into a masters program at OSU as part of the grad transfer. I know Holtmann said that shrinks the pool of available players.
 
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I'm not sure if it applies to any of these guys, but I heard it mentioned last week that a player needs at least a 3.0gpa to get into a masters program at OSU as part of the grad transfer. I know Holtmann said that shrinks the pool of available players.
yeah, the non-specific program requirements are, as you stated, a 3.0 gpa as well as a degree from a 4-year accredited program. my guess is that may only apply to coleman; although, i haven't heard anything to think he may not meet the minimum requirements. the curious late drop in interest may be explained because of academics, though. i think academics are why we haven't pursued zach johnson (fgcu) more than a cursory twitter "hello." there is concern that he won't be graduating by the end of summer. otherwise, he'd absolutely be a transfer i'd want to have. i like his game a lot.

given that taylor committed to northwestern and that mooney is strongly considering them, i'd be surprised if they don't meet the minimum standards. having listened to and read about cremo, it would be surprise me if he didn't meet the minimum requirements. finally, woods has visited and norton was scheduled to visit. i doubt the program would have even set up either visit without first confirming something as simple as a gpa.
 
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strike out on woods and i wonder if the staff starts to consider the possibility of adding a 2019 pg or ballhandling wing who reclassifies during the spring/summer. i'm generally not a fan of signing a reclassed player, but...
he's not a 2019 player, but this is interesting for at least a few reasons and not too surprising:

pedon has just started following amir harris, who is a 2018 combo guard (6'5") from maryland. ranked 392nd (247 composite), he has picked up offers this week from cal and nebraska after offers from oksu and rhode island, among others. very athletic with a competent handle and really good vision. aggressive defender. wonder if the ranking is due to turnovers and lack of outside shot. can't recall the last time i saw a highlight package of a guard without a single jumper.

 
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harris, from a very small sample of 7 games during last aau season...

the good: 19 assists to 8 turnovers, 10 steals, and 7 blocks

the okay: 7.0 points per game

the bad: 22/64 overall (34%), 3/14 behind the arc (21%), and 2/7 from the line (29%)
 
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the more i learn about harris, the less i would be surprised if we pursue him seriously. i won't sugarcoat it. he's not at all a good or efficient shooter/scorer. that is a major drawback. however, he checks pretty much every other box: position, height, ballhandling, athleticism, ability to create, defensive tenacity, and grades (offer from cal, interest from penn). moreover, his timing (that is, being in the 2018 class) and playing style should mesh well with penn. if you're going to take a flyer on a project guard, harris appears to fit the mold almost perfectly.
 
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eye-popping athlete, 6'5, ballhandler and passer... um, yeah, super intriguing. that said, he'd have to improve his shot some for college or his defender would just sag off of him.

it's really difficult not to be impressed by that video you posted. at the same time, I don't think the staff really wants to take another freshman in 2018 and would rather recruit 2019 where they have two scholarship spots left on paper and are in decent position with several T100 prospects. as things progress and he remains uncommitted, maybe the staff has a better idea of where they sit with some of their 2019 guys and it might lead to them making a move on Harris. but several schools are coming strong at Harris now, I'd be surprised if he doesn't commit somewhere before OSU would even have a chance to get too heavily involved.
 
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I don't think the staff really wants to take another freshman in 2018 and would rather recruit 2019 where they have two scholarship spots left on paper and are in decent position with several T100 prospects.
i don't disagree, but this interest in harris appears to show that, at least in regard to the 2018-19 season, the staff may be starting to move from "want" to "should." the ideal situation is likely a grad transfer for next season and a guard (or a wing with ballhandling ability, a la josiah james) for 2019; however, the staff seems to be entertaining less than ideal situations.

I'd be surprised if he doesn't commit somewhere before OSU would even have a chance to get too heavily involved.
probably so. guess we'll see with the only thing that shows concrete interest: official visits.
 
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Samford grad transfer PG Christen Cunningham scheduled to visit OSU the 25th-27th (though he is first scheduled to visit a different OSU, Oregon State, the 22nd-24th).

Glad OSU has gotten involved enough for him to schedule a visit. Averaged 11.4 ppg and 6.3 apg as a junior on decent percentages. Don't think he'd be a big scorer for us but he'd be a scoring option and another ballhandler and would probably be the best facilitator on the team. Also a decent rebounder for a guard.

The thing I like about Cunningham vs. guys like Norton and Coleman is that at 6'2, Christen would be a bit easier to play at the same time with CJ.
 
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