Jamal Mashburn

Jack Williams

Jack Williams

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I was listening to the Bill Simmons podcast tonight and one of the guests Ryen Rusillo used to work at ESPN. He spent some time with Kentucky Star Jamal Mashburn who was an ESPN employee too.

He said on the podcast he asked him about what it was like being recruited. Mashburn, a NYC native, apparently told Rusillo he was probably going to go to St. John’s but his mom forced him to get out of the city.

A shame.
 
[quote="Jack Williams" post=383177]I was listening to the Bill Simmons podcast tonight and one of the guests Ryen Rusillo used to work at ESPN. He spent some time with Kentucky Star Jamal Mashburn who was an ESPN employee too.

He said on the podcast he asked him about what it was like being recruited. Mashburn, a NYC native, apparently told Rusillo he was probably going to go to St. John’s but his mom forced him to get out of the city.

A shame.[/quote]

Russillo is a big SJU fan and IMO one of the best listens out there.
 
The Monster Mash went to Cardinal Hayes and was highly sort after as one of a slew of NYC Blue Chippers in the class of 90. He was Pitino's first big time recruit at Kentucky from outside the area (remember Kentucky was coming off of probation with a reduction in scholarships). Went to the final four his junior year and then went early as a lottery pick to the NBA where he averaged around close to 20 ppg in his career which was cut short by a bad knee.

I know we went hard after him. Ah, what could have been.
 
[quote="SJU85" post=383182]The Monster Mash went to Cardinal Hayes and was highly sort after as one of a slew of NYC Blue Chippers in the class of 90. He was Pitino's first big time recruit at Kentucky from outside the area (remember Kentucky was coming off of probation with a reduction in scholarships). Went to the final four his junior year and then went early as a lottery pick to the NBA where he averaged around close to 20 ppg in his career which was cut short by a bad knee.

We could field an all-star team of almosts: Jabbar, Payton, Darius Miles, Mashburn. I need a 5th "almost: to complete the starting 5.

I know we went hard after him. Ah, what could have been.[/quote]

We could field an all-star team of almosts: Jabbar, Payton, Darius Miles, Mashburn. I need a 5th "almost: to complete the starting 5.
 
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[quote="Ray Morgan" post=383189][quote="SJU85" post=383182]The Monster Mash went to Cardinal Hayes and was highly sort after as one of a slew of NYC Blue Chippers in the class of 90. He was Pitino's first big time recruit at Kentucky from outside the area (remember Kentucky was coming off of probation with a reduction in scholarships). Went to the final four his junior year and then went early as a lottery pick to the NBA where he averaged around close to 20 ppg in his career which was cut short by a bad knee.

We could field an all-star team of almosts: Jabbar, Payton, Darius Miles, Mashburn. I need a 5th "almost: to complete the starting 5.

I know we went hard after him. Ah, what could have been.[/quote][/quote]

Julius Erving
 
Yes!!! Dr. J - one of the great what-ifs of all time in SJU history.

And add Bob McKillop as the coach. If we hired him after the Jarvis fiasco he'd still be here and we'd be a perennial top 25 team.
 
Gene Wojciehowski discusses this in his fairly recent book on the 1992 UK/Duke classic "Laettner" game and the background behind that game and those programs/coaches.

Mashburn wanted to go to St. John's. His Mom was concerned about him staying too close to home. They knew Pitino as that "guy who coached the Knicks" and given the allure the Knicks have to city kids that play hoop, it helped Pitino seal the deal.


[quote="Jack Williams" post=383177]I was listening to the Bill Simmons podcast tonight and one of the guests Ryen Rusillo used to work at ESPN. He spent some time with Kentucky Star Jamal Mashburn who was an ESPN employee too.

He said on the podcast he asked him about what it was like being recruited. Mashburn, a NYC native, apparently told Rusillo he was probably going to go to St. John’s but his mom forced him to get out of the city.

A shame.[/quote]
 
[quote="Ray Morgan" post=383189][quote="SJU85" post=383182]The Monster Mash went to Cardinal Hayes and was highly sort after as one of a slew of NYC Blue Chippers in the class of 90. He was Pitino's first big time recruit at Kentucky from outside the area (remember Kentucky was coming off of probation with a reduction in scholarships). Went to the final four his junior year and then went early as a lottery pick to the NBA where he averaged around close to 20 ppg in his career which was cut short by a bad knee.

We could field an all-star team of almosts: Jabbar, Payton, Darius Miles, Mashburn. I need a 5th "almost: to complete the starting 5.

I know we went hard after him. Ah, what could have been.[/quote]

We could field an all-star team of almosts: Jabbar, Payton, Darius Miles, Mashburn. I need a 5th "almost: to complete the starting 5.[/quote]

Can't top Erving, but I'll suggest Jim McMillian and Mike Maloy
 
[quote="Las Vegan" post=383211][quote="Ray Morgan" post=383189][quote="SJU85" post=383182]The Monster Mash went to Cardinal Hayes and was highly sort after as one of a slew of NYC Blue Chippers in the class of 90. He was Pitino's first big time recruit at Kentucky from outside the area (remember Kentucky was coming off of probation with a reduction in scholarships). Went to the final four his junior year and then went early as a lottery pick to the NBA where he averaged around close to 20 ppg in his career which was cut short by a bad knee.

We could field an all-star team of almosts: Jabbar, Payton, Darius Miles, Mashburn. I need a 5th "almost: to complete the starting 5.

I know we went hard after him. Ah, what could have been.[/quote]

We could field an all-star team of almosts: Jabbar, Payton, Darius Miles, Mashburn. I need a 5th "almost: to complete the starting 5.[/quote]

Can't top Erving, but I'll suggest Jim McMillian and Mike Maloy[/quote]

Just imagine if we had Lew Alcindor and Kareem Abdul Jabbar in the same starting 5?
 
[quote="Ray Morgan" post=383189][quote="SJU85" post=383182]The Monster Mash went to Cardinal Hayes and was highly sort after as one of a slew of NYC Blue Chippers in the class of 90. He was Pitino's first big time recruit at Kentucky from outside the area (remember Kentucky was coming off of probation with a reduction in scholarships). Went to the final four his junior year and then went early as a lottery pick to the NBA where he averaged around close to 20 ppg in his career which was cut short by a bad knee.

We could field an all-star team of almosts: Jabbar, Payton, Darius Miles, Mashburn. I need a 5th "almost: to complete the starting 5.

I know we went hard after him. Ah, what could have been.[/quote]

We could field an all-star team of almosts: Jabbar, Payton, Darius Miles, Mashburn. I need a 5th "almost: to complete the starting 5.[/quote]

Payton should not be on that team as he wanted to come here badly. We just went with Evander Lewis and Marcus Broadnaux (sp?) over him. That was our call.

I would add Olajuwon to that list. That one hurt badly.
 
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[quote="Beast of the East" post=383212][quote="Las Vegan" post=383211][quote="Ray Morgan" post=383189][quote="SJU85" post=383182]The Monster Mash went to Cardinal Hayes and was highly sort after as one of a slew of NYC Blue Chippers in the class of 90. He was Pitino's first big time recruit at Kentucky from outside the area (remember Kentucky was coming off of probation with a reduction in scholarships). Went to the final four his junior year and then went early as a lottery pick to the NBA where he averaged around close to 20 ppg in his career which was cut short by a bad knee.

We could field an all-star team of almosts: Jabbar, Payton, Darius Miles, Mashburn. I need a 5th "almost: to complete the starting 5.

I know we went hard after him. Ah, what could have been.[/quote]

We could field an all-star team of almosts: Jabbar, Payton, Darius Miles, Mashburn. I need a 5th "almost: to complete the starting 5.[/quote]

Can't top Erving, but I'll suggest Jim McMillian and Mike Maloy[/quote]

Just imagine if we had Lew Alcindor and Kareem Abdul Jabbar in the same starting 5?[/quote]

and Roger Murdock
 
[quote="MainMan" post=383273]God a forward tandem of Sealy and Mashburn......[/quote]

This is such a spilled milk twist on this thread. We are a program that rarely gets their man in term of top tier talent. Maybe we got one over three or four years and sprinkled heavily with transfers - Searcy, Carter, Rencher, etc.

Just about any program can lament over guys that considered their school but chose better programs. Only a very tiny handful of coaches have come in and transformed a high D1 program. Most of those take that success and go elsewhere - Brad Stevens, Mick Cronin, etc

The stuff about Payton is 20-20 hindsight because of what he became. Our staff at the time didn't favor him. He went to Oregon State, not exactly Kentucky or Indiana at the time. No fans were crying at the time they passed on hum.

I remember reading an NBA scout's impression of Olajuwon just before the NBA draft who felt he would make a horrible pro despite what he achieved in college. The review criticized his lateral movement, and speculated that he would have great difficulty scoring in the NBA. That's AFTER his career in college. There are guys every season who breakout, and guys who flop. Our credo for a very long time was to recruit locally, because metro area kids were tough and accustomed to playing against the best. It wasn't until after the Final Four year that Looie was given a budget to recruit nationally.
 
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Others who came out of that HS class with Mashburn that were from NYC include:

Shawnelle Scott (All Hallows, St. John's), Lee Green (Chesire Ct., St. John's), Adrian Autry (Tolentine, Syracuse), Derrick Phelps (CTK, UNC), Brian Reese (Tolentine), Khalid Reeves (CTK, Arizona), Anthony Pelle (Stevenson, Nova before transferring), Robert Phelps (Nazareth?, Providence), Lawrence Pollard (Boys or Jefferson, WVa).

NYC had four McD AA's (Autry, Reese from Tolentine and D. Phelps and Reeves from CTK) and Green was the only one who went to Prep school. Things so much different now with most of the NYC starts prepping.
 
[quote="Ray Morgan" post=383189][quote="SJU85" post=383182]The Monster Mash went to Cardinal Hayes and was highly sort after as one of a slew of NYC Blue Chippers in the class of 90. He was Pitino's first big time recruit at Kentucky from outside the area (remember Kentucky was coming off of probation with a reduction in scholarships). Went to the final four his junior year and then went early as a lottery pick to the NBA where he averaged around close to 20 ppg in his career which was cut short by a bad knee.

We could field an all-star team of almosts: Jabbar, Payton, Darius Miles, Mashburn. I need a 5th "almost: to complete the starting 5.

I know we went hard after him. Ah, what could have been.[/quote]

We could field an all-star team of almosts: Jabbar, Payton, Darius Miles, Mashburn. I need a 5th "almost: to complete the starting 5.[/quote]
 
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[quote="Beast of the East" post=383275][quote="MainMan" post=383273]God a forward tandem of Sealy and Mashburn......[/quote]

This is such a spilled milk twist on this thread. We are a program that rarely gets their man in term of top tier talent. Maybe we got one over three or four years and sprinkled heavily with transfers - Searcy, Carter, Rencher, etc.

Just about any program can lament over guys that considered their school but chose better programs. Only a very tiny handful of coaches have come in and transformed a high D1 program. Most of those take that success and go elsewhere - Brad Stevens, Mick Cronin, etc

The stuff about Payton is 20-20 hindsight because of what he became. Our staff at the time didn't favor him. He went to Oregon State, not exactly Kentucky or Indiana at the time. No fans were crying at the time they passed on hum.

I remember reading an NBA scout's impression of Olajuwon just before the NBA draft who felt he would make a horrible pro despite what he achieved in college. The review criticized his lateral movement, and speculated that he would have great difficulty scoring in the NBA. That's AFTER his career in college. There are guys every season who breakout, and guys who flop. Our credo for a very long time was to recruit locally, because metro area kids were tough and accustomed to playing against the best. It wasn't until after the Final Four year that Looie was given a budget to recruit nationally.[/quote]

I think the guy who evaluated Olajuwon switched to scouting baseball for the Braves, and convinced them to waste a number 1 pick on Bo Gentry. Had great power but couldn't hit the curve.
 
Maybe Panther or someone else could chime in, but I remember that Mashburn had a reputation for not trying hard. I'm wondering if he becomes the Mashburn he did if he doesn't play for Pitino.
 
[quote="L J S A" post=383337]Maybe Panther or someone else could chime in, but I remember that Mashburn had a reputation for not trying hard. I'm wondering if he becomes the Mashburn he did if he doesn't play for Pitino.[/quote]

Didn't the chronic slacker Derrick Caracter play for Pitino? He couldn't get him to change his ways. Sometimes, teenagers just mature into young men on their own and realize there is nothing worse than wasted talent.
 
[quote="Ray Morgan" post=383349][quote="L J S A" post=383337]Maybe Panther or someone else could chime in, but I remember that Mashburn had a reputation for not trying hard. I'm wondering if he becomes the Mashburn he did if he doesn't play for Pitino.[/quote]

Didn't the chronic slacker Derrick Caracter play for Pitino? He couldn't get him to change his ways. Sometimes, teenagers just mature into young men on their own and realize there is nothing worse than wasted talent.[/quote]
Yes
 
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