Josh Martin commits to Minny!

Donate To GopherHole
I doubt he will ever dominate the boards like Mbwake did at times but for a big man the kid can shoot, runs the floor, great addition, seems like he fits the profile perfectly.
 

If we can say Josh Martin not only got better his four years at MN (I don't mean from terrible to bad) and helped the Gophers become a top half of the B1G team than I'll be happy.
 

BigGopherFan said:
Can anyone explain to me why he plummeted so deeply in the rankings??? No one on here seems to care. Something had to happen for a kid to go from a 4 star, top 100 to a 2 star, NR.
Click to expand...

Dr.Gopher said:
I am also curious my he dropped in rankings. However, he has a Big !0 body in high school. Looks like he may have a good up side.
Click to expand...

He didn't have a standout EYBL season. Not sure how much that played into it....I think he's being recruited for his potential anyway. Not a guy that's going to come in and start anywhere in the B1G, but has a lot of potential.
 


station19 said:
Did I just spot a Boston Legal fan?
:clap:
Click to expand...

I'm not sure there's ever been a better pairing on TV than James Spader and William Shatner. I miss that show. Thankfully, we have Sons of Anarchy and The Walking Dead. :)
 


Slim Tubby said:
I'm not sure there's ever been a better pairing on TV than James Spader and William Shatner. I miss that show. Thankfully, we have Sons of Anarchy and The Walking Dead. :)
Click to expand...

They're running re-runs occasionally on TV Land. I miss that show also. Never knew what strange line Denny might come up with.
 

jovs said:
I doubt he will ever dominate the boards like Mbwake did at times but for a big man the kid can shoot, runs the floor, great addition, seems like he fits the profile perfectly.
Click to expand...

Mbakwe pre second knee injury, was an absolute beast. It's just not fair comparing Martin to Mbakwe. I think Martin looks a little quicker than Mbakwe was, but I was watching the World University Games highlights and I forgot how explosive he was prior to his second knee injury. I think Martin will develop into a nice player, but it's tough to compare him to Mbakwe.
 

Great news! Can't wait to see what he brings to the gophers!

Sent from my SGH-T999 using Tapatalk 2
 

To be honest, I liked what I saw from his highlights, but that's what they are, highlights. I've never actually seen him play so I'll just have to go off recruiting database reports from ESPN, 247, Scout and Rivals. Each have him NR with the most troubling report coming from ESPN. It's not very common for an athlete to drop from 4 to 2 stars. Something relatively significant needs to happen for that to occur. The only example I can think off the top of my head of a player dropping 2 stars is Wisconsin center Evan Anderson. He went from 5 to 3 and is nothing more than a bench-warmer for the Badgers the last three/four years. I sure hope Pitino can nab an instant impact type prospect soon. This program needs an infusion of talent. Is Dre Hollins the last 4 star guy the Gophers signed? And look at him, he's very good. For those who say not to look at stars and rankings, that's convenient. Just because the Gophers don't get 4-5 star guys doesn't mean rankings are useless. It's simply a fact that top 100 guys perform better across the board than run of the mill 3 star players. Again, stop ripping the star system just because it doesn't fit your rationalization.
 



forget the rankings. Pitino and staff could care less if he is 99,199 whatever. What they see is a guy that can play and grow with a program. He is a piece that fits what they are trying to build.I can list a hundred kids that were 2 star that became all conference in a BCS conference over the last 20 years.I do not know anyone who has scouted this kid that thinks he can not help a program. Very good get.
 

builtbadgers said:
forget the rankings. Pitino and staff could care less if he is 99,199 whatever. What they see is a guy that can play and grow with a program. He is a piece that fits what they are trying to build.I can list a hundred kids that were 2 star that became all conference in a BCS conference over the last 20 years.I do not know anyone who has scouted this kid that thinks he can not help a program. Very good get.
Click to expand...

Exactly. I'm pretty sure John Shurna was a 2 star tops,and he had quite the career.
 

Anyone can see a group of 25-50 players and know they can play . how and where to rank players from 50-150 is another matter. Telep left ESPN so they have had a serious void. He may have had 4 stars on Martin during evaluation and then most likely no one else saw him after that period. I did and like what he can be. I do not know any coaches who sit around and talk about the number of stars a kid is.
 

BigGopherFan said:
To be honest, I liked what I saw from his highlights, but that's what they are, highlights. I've never actually seen him play so I'll just have to go off recruiting database reports from ESPN, 247, Scout and Rivals. Each have him NR with the most troubling report coming from ESPN. It's not very common for an athlete to drop from 4 to 2 stars. Something relatively significant needs to happen for that to occur. The only example I can think off the top of my head of a player dropping 2 stars is Wisconsin center Evan Anderson. He went from 5 to 3 and is nothing more than a bench-warmer for the Badgers the last three/four years. I sure hope Pitino can nab an instant impact type prospect soon. This program needs an infusion of talent. Is Dre Hollins the last 4 star guy the Gophers signed? And look at him, he's very good. For those who say not to look at stars and rankings, that's convenient. Just because the Gophers don't get 4-5 star guys doesn't mean rankings are useless. It's simply a fact that top 100 guys perform better across the board than run of the mill 3 star players. Again, stop ripping the star system just because it doesn't fit your rationalization.
Click to expand...

Stars don't mean much. Look at a guy like Joe Krabbenhoft, 5-star out of high school and ended up being nothing but a bruising hustle player that was known for dirty cheap shots more than actual basketball skill.
 



BigGopherFan said:
To be honest, I liked what I saw from his highlights, but that's what they are, highlights. I've never actually seen him play so I'll just have to go off recruiting database reports from ESPN, 247, Scout and Rivals. Each have him NR with the most troubling report coming from ESPN. It's not very common for an athlete to drop from 4 to 2 stars. Something relatively significant needs to happen for that to occur. The only example I can think off the top of my head of a player dropping 2 stars is Wisconsin center Evan Anderson. He went from 5 to 3 and is nothing more than a bench-warmer for the Badgers the last three/four years. I sure hope Pitino can nab an instant impact type prospect soon. This program needs an infusion of talent. Is Dre Hollins the last 4 star guy the Gophers signed? And look at him, he's very good. For those who say not to look at stars and rankings, that's convenient. Just because the Gophers don't get 4-5 star guys doesn't mean rankings are useless. It's simply a fact that top 100 guys perform better across the board than run of the mill 3 star players. Again, stop ripping the star system just because it doesn't fit your rationalization.
Click to expand...

Yep. You don't need a roster full of 4 and 5 star players, but you need at least a couple of them. The lower ranked players have a fair chance of developing into strong rebounders, ball handlers, defenders, spot-up shooters, etc., but when it comes to the "main man" scorer types - the guys who can get their own shot with the game on the line and the other team geared to stop them - these are almost always the top-40 type players. Sure maybe 1% are the exception (Trey Burke comes to mind), but I'd rather not spend years trying to find that 1% guy.
 

Kirk Penney UW, zero stars. Kyle weaver 1 star. all Pac 10 at WSU, Joe Harris 2-3 stars, all ACC at UVA. , i could go on and on and on. Coaches know a lot more than so called recruiting Guru's. Eric Bossi is the only one they respect and he works his butt off and has been around way before the internet.
 

I love how you guys blindly follow the rankings. Seriously, if Martin would have committed 2 weeks ago every person who is ripping him for being a 2 star on ESPN would be praising his commitment because he'd still be a 4 star according to ESPN. Am I the only one that finds this absolutely ridiculous? Either you like what the kid is going to bring to the team (size, athleticism, ball handling, and shooting) or you don't.
 

builtbadgers said:
Kirk Penney UW, zero stars. Kyle weaver 1 star. all Pac 10 at WSU, Joe Harris 2-3 stars, all ACC at UVA. , i could go on and on and on. Coaches know a lot more than so called recruiting Guru's. Eric Bossi is the only one they respect and he works his butt off and has been around way before the internet.
Click to expand...

The list is a mile long. How highly recruited were Whalen and McCarville, for example? Much of it comes down to how well you evaluate talent - or how lucky you get when one of these players turns out for you.

Never any guarantees, but I like the looks of Martin. Seemingly agile and mobile with some skills.
 

One of the best things about Martin is that he looks like he has the frame to put on another 20 pounds or so of muscle. He's already pretty big and strong ... can't wait to see the effect of a college weight room. He can be strong enough and athletic enough to go head to head with the types of PF we usually see at MSU, Ohio State, Wisconsin, etc.

Martin's always struck me as an "MSU type of player." And I have to say, I am a LOT more impressed by his video than the video of Gavin Schilling I saw this spring. Hopefully I won't eat my words on that, as things can change, but as of now I'd take him over Schilling in a heartbeat.
 

WanderingGopher said:
One of the best things about Martin is that he looks like he has the frame to put on another 20 pounds or so of muscle. He's already pretty big and strong ... can't wait to see the effect of a college weight room. He can be strong enough and athletic enough to go head to head with the types of PF we usually see at MSU, Ohio State, Wisconsin, etc.

Martin's always struck me as an "MSU type of player." And I have to say, I am a LOT more impressed by his video than the video of Gavin Schilling I saw this spring. Hopefully I won't eat my words on that, as things can change, but as of now I'd take him over Schilling in a heartbeat.
Click to expand...

I thought he looked like an MSU type of player as well. Izzo loves his big guys to handle the ball and that is exactly what Martin can do for a PF.
 

BigGopherFan said:
To be honest, I liked what I saw from his highlights, but that's what they are, highlights. I've never actually seen him play so I'll just have to go off recruiting database reports from ESPN, 247, Scout and Rivals. Each have him NR with the most troubling report coming from ESPN. It's not very common for an athlete to drop from 4 to 2 stars. Something relatively significant needs to happen for that to occur. The only example I can think off the top of my head of a player dropping 2 stars is Wisconsin center Evan Anderson. He went from 5 to 3 and is nothing more than a bench-warmer for the Badgers the last three/four years. I sure hope Pitino can nab an instant impact type prospect soon. This program needs an infusion of talent. Is Dre Hollins the last 4 star guy the Gophers signed? And look at him, he's very good. For those who say not to look at stars and rankings, that's convenient. Just because the Gophers don't get 4-5 star guys doesn't mean rankings are useless. It's simply a fact that top 100 guys perform better across the board than run of the mill 3 star players. Again, stop ripping the star system just because it doesn't fit your rationalization.
Click to expand...

It's also convenient to only point out the successful high star guys. What about Ralph Sampson? He was a 4-star player.

You're right, higher rankings many times means they're going to be a better player. But if you're going to rip people for blowing off the star system, then you also shouldn't nit-pick and only bring up guys who "fit your rationalization" as well. It goes both ways.
 

MadtownGopher said:
I love how you guys blindly follow the rankings. Seriously, if Martin would have committed 2 weeks ago every person who is ripping him for being a 2 star on ESPN would be praising his commitment because he'd still be a 4 star according to ESPN. Am I the only one that finds this absolutely ridiculous? Either you like what the kid is going to bring to the team (size, athleticism, ball handling, and shooting) or you don't.
Click to expand...

I agree completely. The ranking system is completely subjective and is not always a good predictor for success at the college level (i.e Ralph Sampson, 4 star). Was ESPN's ranking from a few weeks ago when Martin was rated a 4 star wrong or is their ranking now as a 2 star wrong? We have no idea. I like his size, shooting ability, and potential. Good get for Pitino.
 

I was a 0 * in college and played below my talent level. I guess that is why the most I played was in intramurals.
 

I'm excited that we got Josh Martin, but pointing out one or two guys who didn't pan out and using that as logic for why rankings don't mean much is pretty stupid. There are going to be highly rated players who don't pan out, and there are going to be unranked players who end up really good, but rankings are right FAR more often than they are wrong.
 

His body and athleticism and size reminds me a little of Humphries. He doesnt appear to have the outside game that Humphries showed in high school as to the difference in prospects rankings and expectations. I have seen everything from 6'7" 190 to 6'9" 225 for him. Lets hope the latter.
 

Rankings are not an exact science, but I would still take a starting 5 of 5 star guys against a starting 5 of 3 star guys any day of the week.
 

GophersOnTheRise said:
I'm excited that we got Josh Martin, but pointing out one or two guys who didn't pan out and using that as logic for why rankings don't mean much is pretty stupid. There are going to be highly rated players who don't pan out, and there are going to be unranked players who end up really good, but rankings are right FAR more often than they are wrong.
Click to expand...

That is exactly my point and probably others on this board.

That is why a 2 star ranking from ESPN last week should not lead some posters on this board to completely dismiss this commitment.
 

march madness said:
Rankings are not an exact science, but I would still take a starting 5 of 5 star guys against a starting 5 of 3 star guys any day of the week.
Click to expand...

That is probably stating the obvious but we don't live in Lexington.
 

Martin's a three star guy on all the other sites, he has always been a three star guy on rivals and 247. On rivals, they compare to two PF's who are in their top 150, so that tells me they think he's in the 150-200, 247 has him at around 210, safely in the top 247. Maybe Espn was to high on him and now they're probably too low, but if you look at all the services, Martin's offer list and the fact that at the very least he's 6'7" and can stretch the floor and has good handles, we have a guy whith a high ceiling so I would say he's a good get.
 

golfing18now said:
That is exactly my point and probably others on this board.

That is why a 2 star ranking from ESPN last week should not lead some posters on this board to completely dismiss this commitment.
Click to expand...

I was just addressing the people who think rankings "don't mean much" or "don't mean anything." If that were the case, getting a 5-star would be about equally as exciting as getting a 2-star. It isn't. I do think Martin will be a solid player though. Just speaking generally.
 

GophersOnTheRise said:
I was just addressing the people who think rankings "don't mean much" or "don't mean anything." If that were the case, getting a 5-star would be about equally as exciting as getting a 2-star. It isn't. I do think Martin will be a solid player though. Just speaking generally.
Click to expand...

Amen
 

You must log in or register to reply here.



Top Bottom