Recruits for next year?
- Thread starter johnnycomelately
- Start date
JackofVirginia
Active member
Hey recruits, did you hear Kane (Iowa State) after their victory over North Carolina." We get a chance to play in Madison Square Garden, the best gym in America."
I see your point redman north but recruiting is supposed to be this head coach and staff's specialty...as we have seen it certainly isn't X's and O's! For them to have no one lined up this year and no verbals for next year suggests they are underperforming severely in an arena that they are supposed to excel at. There are two possible reasons, they no longer are getting the job done because of a) diminished skill or b) diminished effort.
I am reserving judgment to see if Lavin has another spring rabbit to pull out of his hat. If not I don't really care why he severely underperformed, only that he did.
For what it's worth, various posters who I consider very trustworthy have suggested the staff has been lacksadaisical on the recruiting trail for a while now...72 is by no means the first to suggest it, which makes me think it must be true, at least in part.
I believe our performance this year hurt a lot when it comes to our recruiting results. Not making the tournament hurts, not "capturing the city" enough to get good crowds at The Garden hurts. In Lavin's first year when we got hot the Garden was full (Duke, Pitt ect...). Winning cures all and we fell behind this year. Let's hope we can right the ship next year.
Lavin's recruiting his first 3 cycles here (and you can even throw in getting Polee right after he was hired) was nothing short of incredible. He was initially selling next to nothing in light of where our program was and almost exclusively brought in players who, if they didn't come to SJU, were going to other major schools in power conferences. How they turned out aside (some good and bad in terms of their on court production), he was competing with the big boys and winning.
This year, while not over, has been quiet and I don't know that anyone is entirely sure why that is the case. The staff probably has their reasons, and it certainly isn't enough for me to question Lavin's ability to recruit given his previously excellent record under difficult circumstances here.
My question, though, is how much does it matter? I'm of the mind that we have significant talent on the roster. The only way we can acquire materially more talent is by consistently recruiting Top 25 and Top 50 talent - basically recruiting like Kentucky, UNC, Duke, Syracuse, and Florida. While I wouldn't completely count Lavin out from being able to accomplish that, it certainly isn't on the immediate menu and is a really high bar to clear.
Which brings us right back to recruiting at about the same level that we have been - which again, even though there are those who disagree (especially vis-a-vis "talent" v. "athletes", which is valid) I believe to be a pretty high level. And if that is the talent arena in which we are going to be operating, the question then is not "can Lavin acquire the talent", but instead is "what is Lavin able to do with it?"
Based on what I saw this year, unfortunately, not enough. 20 wins is nice but not what it used to be; 2 games over .500 in a less impressive conference; 2-7 against tournament teams from within that conference; 2-9 against tournament teams overall...only one of which is still playing this coming weekend. Perhaps more disconcerting than the end-game results is that, with the exception of a 1 month stretch from Jan. 18 - Feb. 18, the on-court play was at best representative of the mediocre results.
There is no doubt that we have an opportunity next year, with Harrison as a senior, and Jordan/Sampson/Obekpa (assuming we are able to keep that trio intact) to take a significant step. But in general, as it stands right now it seems to me that Lavin either needs to (1) recruit at such a high level (even higher than he has to date) that X/O are removed from the conversation to the greatest extent possible, or (2) coach the level of talent he currently has at a much higher level. Beyond that I think conversations about his recruiting are close to moot.
This year, while not over, has been quiet and I don't know that anyone is entirely sure why that is the case. The staff probably has their reasons, and it certainly isn't enough for me to question Lavin's ability to recruit given his previously excellent record under difficult circumstances here.
My question, though, is how much does it matter? I'm of the mind that we have significant talent on the roster. The only way we can acquire materially more talent is by consistently recruiting Top 25 and Top 50 talent - basically recruiting like Kentucky, UNC, Duke, Syracuse, and Florida. While I wouldn't completely count Lavin out from being able to accomplish that, it certainly isn't on the immediate menu and is a really high bar to clear.
Which brings us right back to recruiting at about the same level that we have been - which again, even though there are those who disagree (especially vis-a-vis "talent" v. "athletes", which is valid) I believe to be a pretty high level. And if that is the talent arena in which we are going to be operating, the question then is not "can Lavin acquire the talent", but instead is "what is Lavin able to do with it?"
Based on what I saw this year, unfortunately, not enough. 20 wins is nice but not what it used to be; 2 games over .500 in a less impressive conference; 2-7 against tournament teams from within that conference; 2-9 against tournament teams overall...only one of which is still playing this coming weekend. Perhaps more disconcerting than the end-game results is that, with the exception of a 1 month stretch from Jan. 18 - Feb. 18, the on-court play was at best representative of the mediocre results.
There is no doubt that we have an opportunity next year, with Harrison as a senior, and Jordan/Sampson/Obekpa (assuming we are able to keep that trio intact) to take a significant step. But in general, as it stands right now it seems to me that Lavin either needs to (1) recruit at such a high level (even higher than he has to date) that X/O are removed from the conversation to the greatest extent possible, or (2) coach the level of talent he currently has at a much higher level. Beyond that I think conversations about his recruiting are close to moot.
tom in salem
Well-known member
Next year will be level.,
Seniors: D’Angelo Harrison 2G
Phil Greene 2G
Jamal Branch PG
Dominic Pointer SF
Juniors: Jakarr Sampson F
Chris Obekpa C
Matt Hooper 2G
Soph: Rysheed Jordan PG
Christian Jones PF
Felix Balamou W
Frosh: Adonis DeLaRosa C
Attended a Temple game this year; very unimpressed, he's another Sampson. Skinny, weak, tall.
If we were to snag a transfer I'd prefer a guy who could shoot the ball/play great defense or a big muscular body who can bang down low.
Not another Jakarr.
I'll pass
Jakarr will be back.
Obekpa too if he doesn't transfer
Rysheed loves St. John's, and if he doesn't explode and have an excellent season he will be back.
I'd say 2/3 will be back for sure, and it's 50/50 for 3/3