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After Caruso - The Aftermath

Goose

Hoops Moderator
Club Member
Junta Member
Caruso is an Aggie. As I made it pretty clear the last few months, Caruso was my #1 target for the Buffs remaining scholarships. He was a kid who could play the 1-3 positions and would do it at a level that would have him competing to be on the All-Pac-12 teams for a majority of his time here. But it's not meant to be. And honestly, with Caruso going to A&M, I think we can mark Christian Sanders down as a Maryland Terrapin now. So a lot of people are probably down right now, and while that's justified, I don't think it's the right thing to do. Here's why I think that Tad and Co. are still set up in prime position:

1.) There's still a lot of talent out there, and they're interested in us.
I know this recruiting period has seriously raised our expectations in the team. Honestly, 2-3 years ago someone like Christian Sanders would have been the "headliner" of our class. Last year, we got two players (one now) that were top 150 players and one that quite a few people were high on and -- quite frankly -- could surprise people this year. This year? We already have one guy who is in the top 80 of all four services and another player who is a 4* prospect on Scout. And we're not done yet. 'Nik has mentioned it, but we're recruiting on a level of a team that is a perennial NCAA tournament team. Looking at Rivals' database has us with offers on six 4* guys and a few 3* guys. Now look at West Virginia's offers -- one 5*, four 4* and a few 3* guys. WV has been in the NCAA tournament for the last four years, they have one of the most famous coaches in the game and they play in the best conference in America (a conference they WON two years ago). And we're recruiting the same level of guys that they are. With the past four years having win totals of 12, 9, 15 and 24. Which brings me to point number two...

2.) Our staff knows talent.
Many have mentioned it elsewhere, but Coach Abetamarco is one of the most underrated recruiters in the game. The man literally knows everyone out there, and he hears about players that no one else knows about. Coach T was responsible for bringing us Andre Roberson, and I think we all know how that one turned out (Sidenote: in a quick google search, I stumbled across this article on Coach T that is a must read). Along with him, Boyle has proven that he can find talent and all you have to do is look at UNC last year to realize that. I spent 3 years in Greeley and even as die-hard of a basketball fan as I am, I honestly wasn't even aware there was a team up there. Everyone talks about how Boyle took a 4-win team to the verge of the tournament (and you can argue that was his team last year), but unless you saw the lack of support for basketball up there you can't really realize how big of an obstacle that was to overcome. Coach Pri is new, but has proven to be a hard worker. Anyone who follows his twitter knows that he's always out there recruiting. They're going to get it done.

3.) We have flexibility.
It's not often, but sometimes kids bond with other recruits they meet on trips and want to be a combo deal. You're hearing that with Shabazz Muhammad and Kyle Anderson (who are talking about going to UCLA together) and I honestly believe that Caruso & Sanders would have been a package deal here (or A&M had Turgeon not left for Maryland). How many teams in the nation already have one top 75 player committed and have the flexibility to offer scholarships to any duos that are out there? How many play in desirable places? How many play in major conferences? How many have great practice facilities? The reasons go on and on. I'm not saying we're going to land some AAU teammates who will turn us around, but I do want people to know that we are an option for some players because of that.

What's Next?
This weekend we have two great players coming to visit us in Xavier Johnson and Buddy Hield. Honestly, I never thought we had a chance with Johnson. I saw on ESPN while I was searching around that we had "interest" in him, but couldn't get anyone else to confirm it. I started his player page because I saw some highlights and saw a freak athlete who was a top 100 player. I figured if nothing else, it would be nice to follow him to see where he goes. Now we're hearing that he's going to be on campus. While Caruso is the better player right now, it honestly wouldn't surprise me to see Johnson surpass him over the next few years. He has NBA talent. While Caruso is the nice safe savings bond, Johnson is the riskier investment. He won't be a bust -- far from it -- but he may not reach his max potential. If he does though, look out. As for Hield, if you haven't read Shocker Hoops' post on him, you're missing out (and if you haven't repped him for it yet, you deserve the clap from 'Tini's mom). The kid is one of the top 10 shooters in this year's class. Does everyone remember how great it was having Levi hitting those threes? Hield might be a better outside shooter than Levi was. If you don't get excited about the thought of him keeping defenses honest while Josh Scott works down low, you have no pulse. While we're talking about outside shooters, Javontae Hawkins has us in his top 10. So far, all three guys that I've mentioned are 4* prospects.

Now did everyone enjoy the last 2 years watching Alex Burks? Why wouldn't you? He could play the 1 or the 2 based on his skill set as well as his savvy. He has the ability to score in the paint utilizing his arsenal of runners and floaters as well. Defensively, he uses his lengthy wing span to get numerous steals and he's a deceptive shot blocker in transition. Well, the last three sentences were lifted directly from a scouting report on Tyrone Wallace. Another 4* prospect who CU is looking at. He's already scheduled a visit out here, and is good friends with Spencer Dinwiddie (who I'm starting to wonder if he's the second most connected man in basketball behind Coach T). If you haven't seen the video of him in that thread, you need to go watch it. It is EERIE how similar to Burks he is.

Another player that CU is reportedly doing very well with is Jerome Hairston, a PG in Virginia. Now his ratings are all over the board -- ranging from 2* to 4* -- but a lot of that is due to the fact that he used to play in Wyoming and only recently moved to a prep school out east to get more exposure. Scout has said he's "a point guard with excellent floor vision, good athleticism, and the ability to make open shots is very rare in this class."

My point in all of this is that the cupboard is HARDLY bare. In the past, losing someone like Caruso would have doomed us. Now? It sucks, but we still have tons of options. I just gave a run down of some of the "top" prospects out there. YnGCoach (who, by the way, I'm thrilled is now posting here as he is helping to make this the place for Buffs fans to talk basketball) tweeted the following today:

With Caruso off the board, CU turns their attention to Wallace, Hield, Longrus, Hawkins and Hairston to fulfill their need at guard.

The only guy in his tweet I haven't mentioned yet is Richard Longrus who could have a great career in black & gold as well. He's a player who does everything well. Another name I want to put in your ear? Brendyn Taylor is a guard out of California. He's kind of under the radar, but there's one thing that he has going for him -- the main man recruiting him is Coach T.

This is all without mentioning guys like Chad Rykhoek who could provide necessary size for us or the 2013 recruiting class where I honestly expect us to land a whale -- maybe not Chris Thomas or Isaac Hamilton, but someone who is a top 25 talent. And these are just the guys we know about as well. Basketball recruiting coverage is still very hit or miss. All you need to know is the following:

1.) Coach Boyle will have us as a perennial tourney contender sooner than later.
2.) AllBuffs will be doing everything we can to cover the latest news.

TL;DR - We're about to enter the golden age of CU Basketball.
 
Thanks for the great write up. This recruiting cycle has been the best that I can remember by far. With very few exceptions we have not had the level of talent coming to visit Boulder in a year that we have coming to visit in back to back weekends. If we can land two more players that Tad feels will fit the program we will be in great shape. I don't recall ever having a top 25 recruiting class and that is possible if we can pick up a few more commitments.
 
GREAT stuff here! It really shows how far this program's come to miss out on Caruso and Sanders (probably) and have half a dozen kids lined up that could make us forget all about those two. I'd say the odds are much better now that we only see 4 sign this year and 2 schollies carry over to next year.
 
I remember being excited about the commitment from Marcus Hall, who was a rated 3* by one recruiting service.



This is the ultimate description of night and day.





oh, and ymssra, so if anybody's got any bullets left in their glebe gun......
 
My point in all of this is that the cupboard is HARDLY bare. ;DR - We're about to enter the golden age of CU Basketball.

This was a great post ... thank you. If we could land Wallace and Hield in this round to go along with our other two commitments this would be the best recruiting class (in my opinion) since I started going to Buff BB games 30 years ago. I grew up in ACC Country. I recall the time when Lefty Driesell came to a long time underachieving Maryland program and declared his intention to turn it into the "UCLA of the East" ... something that most people considered preposterous at the time. But he did make the Terps a powerhouse though recruiting great players with great attitude ... just like CU is beginning to do now. You had to be there to feel the fun and enthusiasm build for the program those early years. It was great ... and I have a feeling that I might have just lived long enough to see that happen one more time for my adopted Buffs! ... See you all at the Dome
 
Wish I could splooge all of my gleeb on him for this 24 hour period. One hell of a post.
 
Great post Goose. I agree, there is no place on the internet that provides as much discussion for basketball as here. We are definitely trying to build that up over at BuffScoop, as we were the first to report Scott taking his official visit and I got to see a lot of prospects we are in on while in Vegas. With that said, I love talking hoops over here with you guys. Good to know we have some avid fans for CU basketball.
 
Great post Goose. I agree, there is no place on the internet that provides as much discussion for basketball as here. We are definitely trying to build that up over at BuffScoop, as we were the first to report Scott taking his official visit and I got to see a lot of prospects we are in on while in Vegas. With that said, I love talking hoops over here with you guys. Good to know we have some avid fans for CU basketball.
:thumbsup: Watch out my friend, it starts with a post here, and a post there, and before you know it, its been 5000 posts and you are looking forward to work so you can post without people trying to bother you :lol:
 
**** dude, you rock! Great post and I cannot wait for my season tickets this year as I am on a list and currently waiting for the call. Rep sent!
 
I don't really understand the whole rep thing, but it won't let me rep Goose any further. Would that I could.

That being said, this is a fantastic post. I'm usually anti-recruiting discussion, but that was a hell of a diagram of the future of the program. Thanks Goose for your insight, and all that you do on the board. YOU'RE TOO GOOD!
 
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