All Things Nolan Winter Recruitment Thread (Class of 2023, Gophers Offered, Son of Trevor)

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Sucks. This is the type recruiting battle that has to be a slam dunk.
 

Their MN recruiting over the last however many years is beyond embarrassing.
 


I wonder if the legacy aspect hurts more than it helps. Big Dog Robinson's kid ended up at Michigan, Luke Walton Arizona, Cole Anthony UNC, etc. I assume it works out far more often that fathers and sons who play D1 basketball do so at different schools.
 










Dave H said:
It's his shtick. Just ignore everyone does on multiple sites.
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Why, he’s right. If NW was not from MN would everyone be so upset? It’s not like he’s a program changer. And it doesn‘t take a brainiac to figure out why he crossed the border. We’ll be just fine without him. I can’t wait for the Goophers to own WI. Good luck NW.
 





GoodasGold said:
Gawd!! I guess when you look like that you just have to play for wisc.
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Never seen the guy play. Sucks he chose the evil side. Just makes me want to beat them all the more and actually enhances the rivalry is how I'll look at it but for some reason, I'm not thinking it's as bad as people think. Sucks in the fact he's the son of one of the members of my all time favorite team that made it to the final four, but... we'll just need to punish the badgers over the next 4 years so he can understand the mistake he just made.

Plus, I'm thinking he will NOT end up being a miss (what the hell do I know)! Time will tell but I'm not that disappointed.
 
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Gophers should just quit recruiting Lakeville North unless there is an elite talent. Make the coach there recruit Ben Johnson to start caring about that dongbucket school.
 

Formerswish said:
I agree that it amplifies the need for on court success, but the bigger picture is that Johnson is a guy that can recruit. I don't think he said he was going to get all of the MN kids, nor is that ever possible. In the case with Winter, it was very close, and it was unfortunate it was the Badgers. With Chatman, I don't think it would have mattered who was recruiting him from here. Sometimes circumstances stack up against you. I don't doubt that he'll be getting a lot of quality MN kids in the future, and will bring in some quality players from outside of the state as well, as it should be. Again, in a few years I think we'll all be happy about the hire.
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Close or second in recruiting means absolutely nothing. I do like the hire of Johnson On court, culture it does take time , Winter was a bad miss perhaps his confidence in his game was such he felt he needed what he perceived to be a certain type of system to be successful . Just another annoying Wisconsin guy to me now but I doubt he cares Again interesting how the media in this town covers mid level high school recruits decisions so closely . It’s a weird dynamic here
 

leib0039 said:
I have said Winter is very important because he is truly the kid Johnson was brought here to get. MN kid with DEEP MN roots, losing him to WI was what they said in the presser was not going to happen anymore. Now, is he a true impact player or not, that may be up for debate but I see no way the optics of him going to WI are anything other than bad. Im not saying he is the difference between 14th and Final Four but to say he doesnt matter its fine if he goes to WI are absurd IMO.

Now to the point of " I grew up maroon/gold how can a kid ever consider an IA/WI, i could NEVER do that". Sure thats easy to say, 99.9% of us dont have that ability/option. Look at it logically, Winter goes hey kids of my mold have gone there (both WI and IA) won, and sometimes made the next level. Furthermore, you get places and things feel different, you get all the love shown to you, its not something you can say for sure how it affects you. Its no different than money/power, well all say ohh if I had a billion dollars I would give to all these causes and be the best person. Thats easy to say, in reality when you get in that spot who knows, maybe you would be a great person, maybe you would be a total jack--s who treats people with less like trash.
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It;s not that it doesn't 'matter,' it's that there is nothing that one can do if the kid wants to go his own way and be a traitor. If he has that in him, do we really want him? I have beat this drum too many times...

Johnson can't MAKE anyone be a Gopher... whether they are from MN or not. No D-1 program gets all of the kids that they want from their home state. If top kids from the State of NC spurn Duke and UNC and top kids from Michigan tell Izzo and Howard to buzz off, who are we to suggest that ALL MN kids must choose the Gophers? Let's be realistic. Some kids just want to do something different and see the world.
 

Blackhammer said:
Close or second in recruiting means absolutely nothing. I do like the hire of Johnson On court, culture it does take time , Winter was a bad miss perhaps his confidence in his game was such he felt he needed what he perceived to be a certain type of system to be successful . Just another annoying Wisconsin guy to me now but I doubt he cares Again interesting how the media in this town covers mid level high school recruits decisions so closely . It’s a weird dynamic here
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I disagree with that take. Come close in enough recruiting battles and you eventually win one. That he is in on high level talent across the country after one year of head coaching tells me that he's got a chance to reel in a trophy soon.
 

ecoperson said:
It;s not that it doesn't 'matter,' it's that there is nothing that one can do if the kid wants to go his own way and be a traitor. If he has that in him, do we really want him? I have beat this drum too many times...

Johnson can't MAKE anyone be a Gopher... whether they are from MN or not. No D-1 program gets all of the kids that they want from their home state. If top kids from the State of NC spurn Duke and UNC and top kids from Michigan tell Izzo and Howard to buzz off, who are we to suggest that ALL MN kids must choose the Gophers? Let's be realistic. Some kids just want to do something different and see the world.
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Obviously not every kid will dream of being a gopher, but don't have a presser saying we are locking the border down and then not do it. If we land Christie Evans and win I'm totally fine nothaving him.

It's ok I'm sure you think winter is terrible, Chatman is a kid no one likes and ben didn't want either 🤣
 

Blackhammer said:
Bad loss,Probably at least an eventually rotation player, he had size and shooting ability and both parents went to the U . Are you kidding me. Seems like Minneapolis is a place kids want to leave not come to. Evans is a big maybe so we might be done until transfer time
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MN seems to be a place that some kids want to stay in and some kids want to leave. MN seems to be a place that some kids want to come to and some kids want nothing to do with.

We have 1 Californian in the fold and are currently the front runner for his best friend. If we can pull kids from CA to MN, I can't imagine that there is anywhere in the country that is off limits because it is MN.
 

In the real world...like if my sports-fan friends hear the name Trevor Winter...and if they hear about his 7-foot perimeter-player-type son going to Wisconsin...the reaction is laughter.

This is no loss.
 

Rickman55 said:
Why, he’s right. If NW was not from MN would everyone be so upset? It’s not like he’s a program changer. And it doesn‘t take a brainiac to figure out why he crossed the border. We’ll be just fine without him. I can’t wait for the Goophers to own WI. Good luck NW.
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I'm not going to fret too much over losing out on NW because I think Ben did everything he could do in our current situation. We need to start winning on the court and keep recruiting hard and smart.

That said, missing out on local recruits will always matter (IMO). It matters because we will likely be recruiting 5 players from Lakeville over the next 10 years and it would be nice to have an in-roads there. That relationship has clearly helped WI. We need to start landing our fair share of the local recruits because they will be the building block of our program going forward.
 

leib0039 said:
Obviously not every kid will dream of being a gopher, but don't have a presser saying we are locking the border down and then not do it. If we land Christie Evans and win I'm totally fine nothaving him.

It's ok I'm sure you think winter is terrible, Chatman is a kid no one likes and ben didn't want either 🤣
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Intent and action are two different things... especially since the guy just finished year 1. His first class included 3 MN kids who were well regarded.

Johnson never promised that the would win every recruiting battle for local kids- he said that he would recruit those kids that fit the program hard.

I would have loved Winter but he is obviously not a fan. I can't imagine the hurt that Trevor must feel on the inside. It was clear that he wasn't a big fan of the Gophers when he didn't commit after his visit and THEN named a top two of the hometown team and the biggest rival!
 

ecoperson said:
MN seems to be a place that some kids want to stay in and some kids want to leave. MN seems to be a place that some kids want to come to and some kids want nothing to do with.

We have 1 Californian in the fold and are currently the front runner for his best friend. If we can pull kids from CA to MN, I can't imagine that there is anywhere in the country that is off limits because it is MN.
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We seem to do better with outstate kids. I realize he's Trevor Winter's son, but he likely has had a much different life from his dad.

Going to Minneapolis was probably exciting for his dad, it's kind of nothing to a person from the cities. I love the U but going to school within 15 minutes of my parents was a strike AGAINST going to the U for me.
 

Wisconsin has lost many instate recruiting battles in the Ryan/Gard era - several to Marquette, which really sting. Wes Matthews, Jr. was an example of a “legacy”, too.

But, in the end, the replacement recruits that filled out the roster did just fine - league titles, postseason success, etc.

I suspect Minnesota will be fine, too.
 

Bob_Loblaw said:
We seem to do better with outstate kids. I realize he's Trevor Winter's son, but he likely has had a much different life from his dad.

Going to Minneapolis was probably exciting for his dad, it's kind of nothing to a person from the cities. I love the U but going to school within 15 minutes of my parents was a strike AGAINST going to the U for me.
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City, first ring suburbs and outstate are kids we tend to have more luck with. Second tier suburbs/more affluent are harder for basketball at least
 

Bob_Loblaw said:
We seem to do better with outstate kids. I realize he's Trevor Winter's son, but he likely has had a much different life from his dad.

Going to Minneapolis was probably exciting for his dad, it's kind of nothing to a person from the cities. I love the U but going to school within 15 minutes of my parents was a strike AGAINST going to the U for me.
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Maybe in general, over the years, but Ben pulled in Payne, Carrington and Ola Joseph. All local kids.
 

Rickman55 said:
Why, he’s right. If NW was not from MN would everyone be so upset? It’s not like he’s a program changer. And it doesn‘t take a brainiac to figure out why he crossed the border. We’ll be just fine without him. I can’t wait for the Goophers to own WI. Good luck NW.
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You are correct. If this kid was from Idaho, no one would even flinch on his not coming here.
 

fan of Ray Williams said:
Maybe in general, over the years, but Ben pulled in Payne, Carrington and Ola Joseph. All local kids.
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Just seeing those names makes me can't wait for the season.

Last year, there was no young talent to be excited about. This year, there is plenty.
 

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