Elijah Hawkins Commits to Gophers!

Really good point guards seem to live (and thrive) on the edge. Sometimes you have to swallow a few WTF's to get a bunch of Holy Sh*ts!
Will be very interesting to see how his game translates to the Big Ten. Odds are he won't be able to get away with some of the things he could at Howard and will have to play more under control. That said, we definitely have a need for someone that can play with quickness so hopefully he can make the adjustment and be a solid option for us.
 

and Garcia, Betts, Ihnen just to name a couple. The 6’7” Christie can as well. I suspect these major game changers plus a defense since we have depth. Good solid depth. This will be a good team that is fun to watch. They can play fast and defend hard with this depth. PT for everyone please. Perhaps they redshirt Reader but he has a big upside. The sum of this team far exceeds the individuals. We may well have 4 or 5 on the 3 All conference teams. Garcia a lock on the first team.
Where have you seen that Christie is 6'7"? I think you are way exuberantly overconfident about having 4 or 5 on the all conference teams. But yes I hope we play faster and are fun to watch.

I know Ola-Joseph and Payne have that in their games. Not sure about Garcia/Betts/Ihnen. I am excited to see what Betts and Ihnen can do though, they are major unknowns at this point.
 

I get that fast-paced, high-risk basketball is more exciting. But unless you can do that while being efficient, it is also losing basketball. If you turn it over a lot, you have to do something else to make up the difference efficiency-wise. The main ways to do this are to cause a lot of turnovers on defense that lead to easy baskets, or to excel at offensive rebounding. This is how MSU is able to overcome their typical not-good turnover percentage.

Efficiency is the only thing that matters. Tempo is irrelevant.
 

I get that fast-paced, high-risk basketball is more exciting. But unless you can do that while being efficient, it is also losing basketball. If you turn it over a lot, you have to do something else to make up the difference efficiency-wise. The main ways to do this are to cause a lot of turnovers on defense that lead to easy baskets, or to excel at offensive rebounding. This is how MSU is able to overcome their typical not-good turnover percentage.

Efficiency is the only thing that matters. Tempo is irrelevant.
I agree with you....but we have been told over and over that we are going to suck no matter what so we may as well suck in a more exciting manner. :)
 



Where have you seen that Christie is 6'7"? I think you are way exuberantly overconfident about having 4 or 5 on the all conference teams. But yes I hope we play faster and are fun to watch.

I know Ola-Joseph and Payne have that in their games. Not sure about Garcia/Betts/Ihnen. I am excited to see what Betts and Ihnen can do though, they are major unknowns at this point.
A very recent ESPN article on the Gophers said he has grown. A 3 option with 1 and 2 ball handling skills. King of exciting. Written between Pride and Hawkins.
 

Where have you seen that Christie is 6'7"? I think you are way exuberantly overconfident about having 4 or 5 on the all conference teams. But yes I hope we play faster and are fun to watch.

I know Ola-Joseph and Payne have that in their games. Not sure about Garcia/Betts/Ihnen. I am excited to see what Betts and Ihnen can do though, they are major unknowns at this point.
Rockraven is a troll. Ignore. He thinks 1/3 of the all-conference teams will be Gophers. That's all you need to know.

This year there was 16 guys on the 3 teams. If you want to add in the honorable mention which included an additional 21 guys, those numbers are in the ( ). Still--no one reached 5.

Indiana-2 (0)
Michigan-3 (0)
Iowa-1 (3)
Penn St-1 (2)
Purdue-1 (2)
Illinois-2 (0)
Northwestern-2 (0)
Nebraska-1 (1)
Rutgers-1 (3)
Michigan St-1 (2)
Maryland-1 (3)
Minnesota-0 (1)
wisconsin-0 (1)
Ohio St-0 (2)


But have no fear. The Gophers will have 4-5 on the 3 teams.
 
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I would love to see the pace-of-play pick up this year. Last year was like watching Wisconsin basketball if it somehow managed to get even slower.

I'm more than OK with more TO's if they play at a faster pace.
I'm hopeful that was more out of necessity and not what Johnson & Co really want to do.
 

Rockraven is a troll. Ignore. He thinks 1/3 of the all-conference teams will be Gophers. That's all you need to know.

This year there was 16 guys on the 3 teams. If you want to add in the honorable mention which included an additional 21 guys, those numbers are in the ( ). Still--no one reached 5.

Indiana-2 (0)
Michigan-3 (0)
Iowa-1 (3)
Penn St-1 (2)
Purdue-1 (2)
Illinois-2 (0)
Northwestern-2 (0)
Nebraska-1 (1)
Rutgers-1 (3)
Michigan St-1 (2)
Maryland-1 (3)
Minnesota-0 (1)
wisconsin-0 (1)
Ohio St-0 (2)


But have no fear. The Gophers will have 4-5 on the 3 teams.
Your math is very bad. Did you even get a GED? First team, second team,
Rockraven is a troll. Ignore. He thinks 1/3 of the all-conference teams will be Gophers. That's all you need to know.

This year there was 16 guys on the 3 teams. If you want to add in the honorable mention which included an additional 21 guys, those numbers are in the ( ). Still--no one reached 5.

Indiana-2 (0)
Michigan-3 (0)
Iowa-1 (3)
Penn St-1 (2)
Purdue-1 (2)
Illinois-2 (0)
Northwestern-2 (0)
Nebraska-1 (1)
Rutgers-1 (3)
Michigan St-1 (2)
Maryland-1 (3)
Minnesota-0 (1)
wisconsin-0 (1)
Ohio St-0 (2)


But have no fear. The Gophers will have 4-5 on the 3 teams.
For the ignorant and mathematically challenged. All B1G teams: First team, Second team, Third team, Honorable mention team, Freshman team, All Defensive team.

6 X 5 is not 15. Absolute negative dunce.
 




A very recent ESPN article on the Gophers said he has grown. A 3 option with 1 and 2 ball handling skills. King of exciting. Written between Pride and Hawkins.
I don't see it on the ESPN website, either under the Cameron Christie page or the Minnesota page. Was it just a blurb in a bigger story? Do you have a link? That would be great if true.
 

Found it via google. It was a story on potential starting line up and went through every player on the team, minus Hawkins but post Pride, individually. I thought it was the best write up I have seen this year. Minnesota only article.
 

Where have you seen that Christie is 6'7"? I think you are way exuberantly overconfident about having 4 or 5 on the all conference teams. But yes I hope we play faster and are fun to watch.

I know Ola-Joseph and Payne have that in their games. Not sure about Garcia/Betts/Ihnen. I am excited to see what Betts and Ihnen can do though, they are major unknowns at this point.
Correction. I googled it again. It was 247sports.com. You will find it in there. Best article I have seen on this teams prospects by a country mile.
 



Key to what? Where do you see Parker playing this season and how many minutes per game? I see him as a depth guy potentially spelling Garcia at the 4 and/or Payne at the 5. I'm anticipating Payne playing 30+ min/gm (depending on foul trouble). I'm also anticipating Garcia playing 30+ min/gm at the 4. I'm thinking Ihnen and JOJ can also spell Garcia at the 4. I hope for Fox's sake that he is healthy but overall I don't see him as a make or break guy for the Gophers this season. So basically I disagree that his recovery is key to the Gophers performance this upcoming season. My 2 cents.

9 players typically get 10+min/gm for most D1 teams. Here are my 9: Mitchell/Hawkins/Payne/Garcia/Carrington/JOJ/Ihnen/Betts/Christie. Fox COULD be in that mix but I doubt it. Also DO NOT want to see Wilson/Ramberg/Reader in those top 9. If they are, we will be 14th in the BIG again.
Agreed. I like Fox. He was great at Northern and a good signing at the time. But he hasn't played in 3 years and his recovery is reportedly not going great. Anyone counting on him for a significant contribution is engaging wishful thinking at this stage. Wilson is likely the back-up center. Anything we get from Fox is a bonus.
 


University of Minnesota head men's basketball coach Ben Johnson has announced the addition of Elijah Hawkins (Washington, D.C.) to the Golden Gopher program. Hawkins, who completed his sophomore year at Howard, is scheduled to join the team this summer.

"Elijah is a mature young man, who has always been a winner," Johnson said. "He's a tough, gritty competitor that plays with an edge. Elijah has an alpha mentality and really loves to work on his craft. We're excited to add another playmaking guard with NCAA tournament experience to the roster."

Hawkins, a 5-11, 152-pound guard, started in 55 of 59 games as the Bison point guard the past two seasons. In 2022-23, Hawkins led Howard to its first NCAA Tournament berth in 31 years and a Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference title (MEAC). Last year, he averaged a team-best 12.9 points, 6.0 assists, 1.7 steals and 46.6 three-point percentage. For his efforts, Hawkins was named an All-MEAC First Team selection and the National Association of Basketball Coaches (NABC) Division I All-District Team. In his sophomore campaign, Hawkins established career bests in points (20), minutes (39), three pointers made (5) and attempts (8) as well as assists (13) and rebounds (7). As a freshman in 2021-22, Hawkins was named the MEAC Rookie of the Year, an All-MEAC Second Team selection and a NABC All-District Team selection. As a rookie, Hawkins averaged 13 points, 5.6 assists and 3.9 rebounds in 28 games, including 26 starts. During his Howard tenure, Hawkins was named a conference player of the week twice in 2022-23 and a nine-time rookie of the week recipient.

A 2021 graduate of DeMatha Catholic, Hawkins saw significant time as a starter his junior and senior seasons and was a McDonald's All-America nominee. Ranked as the 13th-best player in the Maryland/DC area that year, Hawkins also played with New World AAU.
 

Agreed. I like Fox. He was great at Northern and a good signing at the time. But he hasn't played in 3 years and his recovery is reportedly not going great. Anyone counting on him for a significant contribution is engaging wishful thinking at this stage. Wilson is likely the back-up center. Anything we get from Fox is a bonus.
Why do you continue the Fox recovery disinformation?
 

I have seen knowledgeable basketball experts recents project Fox at the 3 for us this year. Doesn’t sound like a recovery failure to me. We are going to have an extremely good front court with depth. We now look very good in the backcourt even with a 3 guard lineup. Hawkins, Mitchell, Carrington, Christie. Who did I forget? Not writing off Purcell for minutes either. Is Ramberg still a guard. Much better then the ‘holers cry about
 

I have seen knowledgeable basketball experts recents project Fox at the 3 for us this year. Doesn’t sound like a recovery failure to me. We are going to have an extremely good front court with depth. We now look very good in the backcourt even with a 3 guard lineup. Hawkins, Mitchell, Carrington, Christie. Who did I forget? Not writing off Purcell for minutes either. Is Ramberg still a guard. Much better then the ‘holers cry about
A three? You are a troll. 😃
 


I have seen knowledgeable basketball experts recents project Fox at the 3 for us this year. Doesn’t sound like a recovery failure to me. We are going to have an extremely good front court with depth. We now look very good in the backcourt even with a 3 guard lineup. Hawkins, Mitchell, Carrington, Christie. Who did I forget? Not writing off Purcell for minutes either. Is Ramberg still a guard. Much better then the ‘holers cry about
Links?
 




Why do you continue the Fox recovery disinformation?
I have said what my source was on that. You spew BS from anonymous "knowledgeable experts" and claim a guy who rarely shot outside of 2 feet from the rim at his last stop is going to be a 3.
 

Your math is very bad. Did you even get a GED? First team, second team,

For the ignorant and mathematically challenged. All B1G teams: First team, Second team, Third team, Honorable mention team, Freshman team, All Defensive team.

6 X 5 is not 15. Absolute negative dunce.
Not all the teams have 5 players. Honorable mention had 21 this year. Second team had 6. But you keep telling me what I dont know. I'm sure your superior intellect can use google but here is a link to the teams. See how many are on honorable mention? AND THEY STILL DIDNT GET TO 5 on the actual all-conference teams INCLUDING THE TWENTY ONE MEMBER HONORABLE MENTION.


Do not forget all-academic though. May help your case?
 

I have said what my source was on that. You spew BS from anonymous "knowledgeable experts" and claim a guy who rarely shot outside of 2 feet from the rim at his last stop is going to be a 3.
I do my best to be tolerant of you.
 

Are
Not all the teams have 5 players. Honorable mention had 21 this year. Second team had 6. But you keep telling me what I dont know.
Are you referencing Alabama playing us with 3. Most all teams have 5 players.
 



Everyone sees that.
And yet, with all that, no one had 5 guys. So I dont think the Gophers will. I'm sorry if thats negative to you.

I also dont think anyone really considers the all-conference teams to include all-defense or all-freshman. But what do I know.
 




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