All Things Gophers Basketball Class of 2022 Recruiting Thread

[GopherPlaya]

As an AAU coach…when you have a player you think is solid, you are upset when only MIAC schools recruit them.

If you have good players with multiple offers…Wherever your players go ….90 some % of the time they expect to play. The other coaches recruiting them are telling them they’ll play. You want them to come to your school…all you have to offer is playing time and playing in the Big Ten. You haven’t won squat…like say Wisconsin, “we finish top 4 every year…trust us” so your players aren’t coming to Minnesota to sit.

Lightly recruited bigs with strength and skill deficiencies might have different expectations and conversations .

You think a kid who thinks he is all NBA is going to go to a bottom dwelling local team with the idea of sitting? Not the ones I know. Or even more unlikely have their AAU coaches fine with them sitting. The portal makes it easy to go to the other program who wanted you bad and guarantees you’ll play!

What recruit do we have that is viewed as an NBA prospect. Our freshmen next year are decent to good but this isn't a group where they are all for sure ready to play year 1. I think that is unrealistic expectations for any of the 3. Payne is the most physically ready of the 3 and can rebound at a high level but nothing about Carrington & JOJ screams they are year 1 contributors.

 

[salzie]

What recruit do we have that is viewed as an NBA prospect. Our freshmen next year are decent to good but this isn't a group where they are all for sure ready to play year 1. I think that is unrealistic expectations for any of the 3. Payne is the most physically ready of the 3 and can rebound at a high level but nothing about Carrington & JOJ screams they are year 1 contributors.

I believe Carrington will be a big contributor next year

JOJ should hopefully carve at small bench role.

 

[Gophs24]

I believe Carrington will be a big contributor next year

JOJ should hopefully carve at small bench role.

really? i would be shocked....would be curious how you see him fitting into the rotation next year

 

[Gophs24]

What recruit do we have that is viewed as an NBA prospect. Our freshmen next year are decent to good but this isn't a group where they are all for sure ready to play year 1. I think that is unrealistic expectations for any of the 3. Payne is the most physically ready of the 3 and can rebound at a high level but nothing about Carrington & JOJ screams they are year 1 contributors.

why people keep forgetting about Henley?

 

[salzie]

really? i would be shocked....would be curious how you see him fitting into the rotation next year

i don't think a major contributor, but I wouldn't be surprised if gets few minutes per game

 

[Gopherfan84]

What recruit do we have that is viewed as an NBA prospect. Our freshmen next year are decent to good but this isn't a group where they are all for sure ready to play year 1. I think that is unrealistic expectations for any of the 3. Payne is the most physically ready of the 3 and can rebound at a high level but nothing about Carrington & JOJ screams they are year 1 contributors.

I’m hoping for 10-15 mins a game from Payne initially and 5-10 from Carrington. If they continue to develop and earn more throughout the season I’m happy.

 

[Tucker32]

What recruit do we have that is viewed as an NBA prospect. Our freshmen next year are decent to good but this isn't a group where they are all for sure ready to play year 1. I think that is unrealistic expectations for any of the 3. Payne is the most physically ready of the 3 and can rebound at a high level but nothing about Carrington & JOJ screams they are year 1 contributors.

Then you haven’t really seen them play. They are each ready to contribute. Agree on Payne, and think Braeden shoots the ball well enough and guess so he’ll see the floor quite a bit. JOJ is physically ready to guard people, so he’ll see some minutes as well - of course depends how much he’ll see based on who they might bring in.

 

[Gophs24]

i don't think a major contributor, but I wouldn't be surprised if gets few minutes per game

yeah i just have a hard time seeing him getting any meaningful minutes....Battle is going to get close to his 34-35 minutes a game next year. Plus Fox & Ihnen. Plus if we bring in a a Jones &/or Garcia....

I suppose its an easier question to answer once the roster is completely set. But my guess is that JOJ gets the least amount of minutes of the 4 freshman

 

[USAF]

Ola Joseph isn't even a starter on his HS team. He's not going to be a meaningful contributor next year.

 

[bga1]

yeah i just have a hard time seeing him getting any meaningful minutes....Battle is going to get close to his 34-35 minutes a game next year. Plus Fox & Ihnen. Plus if we bring in a a Jones &/or Garcia....

I suppose its an easier question to answer once the roster is completely set. But my guess is that JOJ gets the least amount of minutes of the 4 freshman

Battle would be great at 30 minutes. I think he got tired out there a lot last year and wasn't as effective.

 

[Gophs24]

Battle would be great at 30 minutes. I think he got tired out there a lot last year and wasn't as effective.

yeah i would agree he played way too much....and i was begging for ben to sneak him out of games before media timeouts so 1 minute of game time turned into closer to 3-4 minute rest for him.

but he is still our best player and will still get into the 33/34/35 for minutes for sure. And JOJ wont be the 1st guy spelling him either

 

[sal]

Ola Joseph isn't even a starter on his HS team. He's not going to be a meaningful contributor next year.

His AZ Compass prep school is not comparable to a "normal" HS team. Check the roster.

 

[ecoperson]

"Visions" have their limitations and can be overtaken by events or the "leader's" inability to realize those "visions." If all basketball coaches were able to realize their visions, none of them would be fired.

A program can be developmental and still hit the transfer portal each year for one or two recruits. It would be foolish for a coach to stay completely out of the transfer portal based on principle.

I used "hit the transfer portal" to mean relying almost exclusively on the portal as the poster I replied to feared. THAT strategy is not the desire for Johnson who touted development.

Every coach should take advantage of the portal to fill holes in their program and Johnson will be lining up at the trough every year just like everyone else.

 

[Formerswish]

I’m hoping for 10-15 mins a game from Payne initially and 5-10 from Carrington. If they continue to develop and earn more throughout the season I’m happy.

Payne is ready to be a big contributor now, and if he can get up into the 245-250 lb range (he's about 235 now) before next season you will not see him playing 10-15 min per game, he will be in the 30 min per game region. That kind of size and athleticism won't spend too much time on the bench.

 

[short ornery norwegian]

Few players. Sorry, i should have clarified that i was talking coaches. On that note there are a few coaches that have done very well by focusing a great deal of time on the high school scene. They may not see high level talent on high level talent but they will get to know parents, teachers and friends. Thorson will be great at that.

Built, I am 100% with you on this.

HS basketball and AAU basketball are very different situations. Both have their merits. It's a lot easier to see players in person by going to a big AAU showcase where you can see a lot of players at the same time and place. HS recruiting is a lot more time- and travel-consuming.

But, if I was a college coach, I would want to see kids in both settings to compare the differences. AAU is great for showcasing individual skills and talent, but HS ball shows how a kid does operating in a more controlled team structure, which can be very instructive if you want to find out how a kid responds to coaching. yeah, a kid may not "pop" at the HS level they way they might in AAU, but at the same time, AAU may not give you a sense of the 'complete' player.

 

[USAF]

His AZ Compass prep school is not comparable to a "normal" HS team. Check the roster.

I am aware he's at a basketball factory. The point remains unchanged.

 

[Blackhammer]

I am aware he's at a basketball factory. The point remains unchanged.

No one really has any idea if he could gets some minutes or not. If he stayed at Osseo he would have put up big numbers and been on all conference and possibly all state teams.

 

[Gopherfan84]

Payne is ready to be a big contributor now, and if he can get up into the 245-250 lb range (he's about 235 now) before next season you will not see him playing 10-15 min per game, he will be in the 30 min per game region. That kind of size and athleticism won't spend too much time on the bench.

I like Payne a lot. Physically not worried about him. If he’s good enough to earn 30 then great he’s continued his amazing rise. I’m saying what I’m expecting and I think it’s fair. He’s still got things to learn on the defensive end and with offensive spacing imo

 

[howeda7]

yeah i just have a hard time seeing him getting any meaningful minutes....Battle is going to get close to his 34-35 minutes a game next year. Plus Fox & Ihnen. Plus if we bring in a a Jones &/or Garcia....

I suppose its an easier question to answer once the roster is completely set. But my guess is that JOJ gets the least amount of minutes of the 4 freshman

Don't forget TT too, if he's playing the 4.

 

[cjbfbp]

Ola Joseph isn't even a starter on his HS team. He's not going to be a meaningful contributor next year.

That's not a high school team! That's a national prep team. I watched them. That team is very good with great team speed. I have no opinion of whether or not Ola Joseph will be a significant contributor next year but there are a lot of good players who wouldn't start for Arizona Compass.

 

[Roland Brooks]

Ola-Joseph put himself in a tough spot Especially as a late addition to the AZ Compass team he was lucky they took him after getting bounced from the first prep school…

 

[bga1]

Ola-Joseph put himself in a tough spot Especially as a late addition to the AZ Compass team he was lucky they took him after getting bounced from the first prep school…

why did he get himself bounced from the first prep school?

 

[Roland Brooks]

I am not sure of the exact reason but he wasn’t there long…

 

[bga1]

That's not a high school team! That's a national prep team. I watched them. That team is very good with great team speed. I have no opinion of whether or not Ola Joseph will be a significant contributor next year but there are a lot of good players who wouldn't start for Arizona Compass.

A quick lookup of their roster shows how right you are. 9 DI players on this year's roster, 8 of them to big time power conference schools, UCLA, Arizona, Oregon, Auburn, TT among them.

 

[Gopherfan84]

why did he get himself bounced from the first prep school?

I think it was mutual/ more JOJs choice.

 

[Roland Brooks]

He was asked to leave

 

[BarnBurner]

He was asked to leave

Sounds like a culture issue

 

[bga1]

He was asked to leave

Ouch

 

[WriterGoph]

He was asked to leave

Source?

 

[Roland Brooks]

A good one