Time to get the next wave of recruiting talk going...

Who do you want your team to get?

Indiana:

1. Committed - James Blackmon Jr.

Who I want:

1. Dante Exum
2. Theo Pinson
3. Goodluck Okonoboh
4. Jaquan Lyle
5. Trevon Bluiett

Duke just picked up Grayson Allen, a 4-star 6-foot-4 combo guard out of Florida. Apparently, he was Gonzaga's number one target for 2014. Makes me smile. Sorry, Mark.

Who I want: Tyus Jones (#1 point guard), Jahlil Okafor (#1 center) and Trey Lyles (#1 power forward).

reclegend22;1433091 wrote:Duke just picked up Grayson Allen, a 4-star 6-foot-4 combo guard out of Florida. Apparently, he was Gonzaga's number one target for 2014. Makes me smile. Sorry, Mark.

Who I want: Tyus Jones (#1 point guard), Jahlil Okafor (#1 center) and Trey Lyles (#1 power forward).

That was great news for me as well, regarding Allen. Theo Pinson was a target of K and Duke, so this helps IU out in that regard a lot.

Also, Trey Lyles is a fucking headcase, as well as his dad. It sounds bitter after the break-up with IU, but I am a little shocked K is going after someone like that.

If Lyles doesn't go to UK, I'd be shocked.

I like our chances with Mudiay (#2), Lyles (#4), Johnson (#12) and Booker (#23).

I'd also venture that Karl Towns may end up being on of the top 3, possibly #1 when all is said and done. He's better than Okafor right now, but doesn't have a higher ceiling.

Laley23;1433100 wrote:That was great news for me as well, regarding Allen. Theo Pinson was a target of K and Duke, so this helps IU out in that regard a lot.

Also, Trey Lyles is a ****ing headcase, as well as his dad. It sounds bitter after the break-up with IU, but I am a little shocked K is going after someone like that.

I haven't followed the Lyles recruitment that much -- so I am not that familiar with his personality -- but with Jabari Parker gone after one season, I really want another stretch 4 to slip right in the following year. That worries me a bit, though, hearing that from you. As Az said, I very much doubt K lands him anyway.

Yeah, Lyles is a strong UK lean.

And I dont want to start rumors, but since they are already out there, I think this might be the first recruit at UK to get Cal in trouble. Since the rumors were RAMPANT when he decommited about Crean not willing to give his dad money.

He already paid Anthony Davis 200K and bought Michael Gilchrist when he was 15.

Just go to any Louisville board to see these facts

With regard to Theo Pinson, I'm not as worried about landing another small forward type player with Rodney Hood likely on campus for two years, and would love to land Rashad Vaughn to take over for the departed Andre Dawkins in '14. A 6'6" shooting guard with NBA size and an unstoppable three-point shot. God he would be great in a Duke backcourt.

I've heard he may be a Kansas lean, though. Not really sure. Not a ton of talk on him on the Duke front. Jones and Okafor are the main targets.

Azubuike24;1433117 wrote:He already paid Anthony Davis 200K and bought Michael Gilchrist when he was 15.

Just go to any Louisville board to see these facts

lol. I am not even saying Cal is the one who would do anything illegal.

But, its pretty obvious something went down between Lyles (or his dad) and Crean. I mean, Trey was openly rooting against IU in the tourney this year and has said some stuff etc. Not to mention Dan Dackich (and think what you will, he is IN TOUCH with these high school coaches and AAU guys and all that) said that agents are trying to line their pockets with Jeremy Hollowell and Trey Lyles in INDY. He was correct on Jeremy this year, and thats why he had to sit some games before he was found innocent.

I personally think it would be an outside party who will get this kid in trouble and not the actual coach. But, where there is smoke...and there is definitely smoke with this kid. Im not saying this as a bitter fan either, Id be legitimately concerned about recruiting Trey.

reclegend22;1433122 wrote:With regard to Theo Pinson, I'm not as worried about landing another small forward type player with Rodney Hood likely on campus for two years, and would love to land Rashad Vaughn to take over for the departed Andre Dawkins in '14. A 6'6" shooting guard with NBA size and an unstoppable three-point shot. God he would be great in a Duke backcourt.

I've heard he may be a Kansas lean, though. Not really sure. Not a ton of talk on him on the Duke front. Jones and Okafor are the main targets.

Yeah, not that Duke was seriously after him, but its always good when one of his "leaders" picks up a top kid at his position lol.

I think IU is in GREAT shape for 2014. James Blackmon is a stud and the other top 5 targets are all studs and I think they can land 3 of them.

North Carolina

Current 2014 Commits:

Joel Berry - PG - #14 Overall
Justin Jackson - WF - #10 Overall

Wish List: I'd like to see Carolina pick up two more wing players from the following group...

D'Angelo Russell - WG - #11 Overall
Rashad Vaughn - WG - #13 Overall
Devin Booker - WG - #23 Overall

The Heels also have offers out to two other wing players (Justise Winslow - WF - #9 Overall, Theo Pinson - WF - #18 Overall), but the three players I mentioned before have more interest in Carolina than Winslow and Pinson. It's not likely that Carolina will get 2 of those 5 wing players, but that's what I'm hoping to see.

Jahlil Okafor would be the only big man for this class, but he's not likely to end up in Chapel Hill. Other players that are on the radar are Dante Exum and Jalen Lindsay, but I don't really see them as Tar Heels at this point either.

A class of Berry, Jackson, Vaughn, and Russell/Booker would be excellent.

I'm actually surprised more players/families don't talk about that stuff. You know it's going on with everyone, to some extent.

Azubuike24;1433146 wrote:I'm actually surprised more players/families don't talk about that stuff. You know it's going on with everyone, to some extent.

You mean call out the agents publicly? Otherwise, Im not sure I understand your post.

Not so much with agents or handlers, but about coaches and "public figures" who knew about what was going on. We all know the former, especially during the AAU season, is a big problem. I really don't think direct exchanges between coaches/boosters and players is nearly as common as people think. It's way too easy to prove and get caught.

Minnesota

Current Commits: None

Who I want:
#3 Tyus Jones (Apple Valley, MN)
#6 Rashad Vaughn (New Hope, MN)
#41 Reid Travis (Minneapolis, MN)

Best in-state class possibly ever for the Gophers. Pitino has his work cut out for him, but has apparently hit the ground hard recruiting these guys. Travis is probably the most likely of the big three to come to the U, while Jones is the least likely.

Rivals: Jones' list down to seven, but won't tip hand: http://basketballrecruiting.rivals.com/content.asp?CID=1499350

GARDEN GROVE, Calif. -- Five-star point guard Tyus Jones says his list is down to seven. No favorites, no leaders, no one school ahead of or behind another; he's just down to those seven.

Yet according to Twitterverse, the rumor mill and the recruiting blogs, his list of seven is just posturing for now. Duke, they all say, is his leader.

"That's not true," Jones promised at last weekend's EYBL event in Los Angeles. "A lot of people are talking and stuff like that, but I'm not leaning anywhere."

Jones swears he's not lying. His list of Michigan State, Duke, Baylor,Ohio State, Kansas, Kentucky and Minnesota is steadfast, and nobody is standing out right now.

That doesn't mean one school can't eventually pull ahead of the others sometime soon, however.

Jones said schools finally started to have that opportunity two weekends ago, when four of his seven leaders stopped by his house to give their best pitch.

Duke came on a Friday night, Baylor came Saturday morning, Ohio State came Saturday night and Michigan State came Sunday. Jones commented on each:

On Duke: "We had a good visit with them. Talked a little about why they feel I would fit in their program and stuff like that."

On Baylor: "I also had a good visit with them. They were just pitching to myself and my family why they think I could fit in their program and the perks of going to Baylor and stuff like that."

On Michigan State: "It was another good visit."

On Ohio State: "We also had a great visit with them. We had a great time with all of the colleges. It was really all the same - myself and my family have a great relationship with all the coaches. So it was really relaxed and nothing too tense or anything like that."

Still, with all those coaches in his home, throwing out their best recruiting spiels, Jones remains reluctant to place one school over the other.

It'll be a long process for Jones to start weeding out the schools he likes from the schools he doesn't. He's not sure of official visits yet, or even unofficials for that matter, and outside of an in-home he was slated to have with Kansas sometime this week, nothing is planned on that front either.

For now, he's just trying to play well on the AAU circuit, and figure out somewhere along the line what school he'll eventually commit to next fall.

"I'm pretty equal with all seven schools," Jones said. "So the decision will be tough."

This is actually a huge time for Minnesota. Both with recruiting and opportunity in the B1G. Having the Pitino name now attached gives them a 2-3 year window to really make or break the future of that program.

[INDENT]Rashad Vaughn | @ShowtimeMr | Junior
Minneapolis (Minn.) Robbinsdale Cooper | SG | 6-6/200 | ESPN 60 Rank: No. 9

Previous BlueChipBattles rank: No. 8

Who wants him? UNC, Kentucky, Florida, Baylor, Minnesota, Kansas, Louisville, Iowa State and Georgetown.

Front-runners: Minnesota and UNC.

Dark horse: Kansas and Kentucky.

@JoelFranESPN with the buzz: After watching Vaughn tear it up at the Nike EYBL it appears he might be the most coveted scoring guard in the country come signing day. On the first night, Roy Williams and assistant coach Steve Robinson were front row to take in the talents of Vaughn, as was Minnesota, Kansas and Michigan State. Despite UNC, Kentucky and Kansas involved we are hearing Minnesota is in excellent position to land Vaughn. Apparently, he is the type of prospect who wants to be "the man," and Minnesota and their newly hired coach Richard Pitino can provide that opportunity for him.[/INDENT]

Sounds like Rashad Vaughn may transfer to Huntington Prep in WV for his Senior year. If this happens, I wouldn't be surprised if Kentucky became the favorite to land him.

Azubuike24;1434848 wrote:Sounds like Rashad Vaughn may transfer to Huntington Prep in WV for his Senior year. If this happens, I wouldn't be surprised if Kentucky became the favorite to land him.

Because of Fulford, or is there another reason?

By the way, 2014 wing prospect Jalen Lindsey is also going to Huntington Prep.

I wouldn't necessarily say because of the coach. I don't know how close their relationship is, but UK has always had a good relationship with HP. I mean, if not for Tubby Smith, who knows about O.J. Mayo. Patrick Patterson, Andrew Wiggins, now these guys. A few others recruited too. My comment was more due to proximity. It can't hurt for a guy from Minnesota moving less than 2 hours from UK's campus.

If UK gets Wiggins...I like our chances even more.

Azubuike24;1435088 wrote:I wouldn't necessarily say because of the coach. I don't know how close their relationship is, but UK has always had a good relationship with HP. I mean, if not for Tubby Smith, who knows about O.J. Mayo. Patrick Patterson, Andrew Wiggins, now these guys. A few others recruited too. My comment was more due to proximity. It can't hurt for a guy from Minnesota moving less than 2 hours from UK's campus.

If UK gets Wiggins...I like our chances even more.

Yeah, having Vaughn that close geographically certainly wouldn't hurt.

I had heard that Fulford favored Kentucky in the Wiggins recruitment, if only because it was close and he could watch him play more often. It seems to me, though, that his input may favor Kentucky in general.

I couple weeks ago Vaughn said he hadn't really thought about having a "favorite", but if he had to name one at that time, it was North Carolina. Carolina fans everywhere, me included, will be highly disappointed if he doesn't come to Chapel Hill. Roy has been recruiting him HARD for quite a while, and he may end up being a top three player in the 2014 class. Out of all the wings that Roy has offered, Vaughn is the one he covets.

Latest from Vaughn's dad is that the family is "planning on Rashad finishing his senior year as a Hawk at Cooper High School."

https://twitter.com/DarrenWolfson/statuses/329224895970021377
https://twitter.com/DarrenWolfson/statuses/329225083145035776

We'll see if that has any merit...

Azubuike24;1435088 wrote:I wouldn't necessarily say because of the coach. I don't know how close their relationship is, but UK has always had a good relationship with HP. I mean, if not for Tubby Smith, who knows about O.J. Mayo. Patrick Patterson, Andrew Wiggins, now these guys. A few others recruited too. My comment was more due to proximity. It can't hurt for a guy from Minnesota moving less than 2 hours from UK's campus.

If UK gets Wiggins...I like our chances even more.

Maybe I am misunderstanding what you are saying, but Mayo and Patterson went to Huntington High, not Huntington Prep.