Dream Class 2016
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Great write-up. Bolden & Jackson are at the top of my list. Re: Jackson, I’d willingly trade in a percentage of Wiggins’ bounce for a heightened level of aggressiveness.
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@konkeyDong Never too soon for a post like this. Great to have such an asset like you on these boards. While everyone else is struggling to find pertinent topics to KU basketball (I’m looking at all the Royals fans here…), you add a great piece. Thanks, buddy.
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@MoonwalkMafia hey you are not knocking us royal fans???
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@Crimsonorblue22 No, but this is a KU site.
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Great post, its never too early for the dream class discussion.
I like how you picked guys that KU is currently recruiting the hardest. You could have lumped in Giles, Smith Jr., Monk, Simmons, Adebayo other top 10 players that we may have or maybe showing some interest in but the fact is that other local schools have locked in on these guys.
At the moment Bolden & Ferguson are the must have players of those you listed. I’m sticking with them, they are the foundation for a great class and anything else we may add in the fall or spring is gravy if they both come to Lawrence.
These kids we’ve done our homework on and recruited for some time now. I am scared that Bolden was offered by Duke lately but hopefully all the early work we put in with him pays off. Ferguson, well there was rumors a month back that he told people in his circle he was going to commit to KU. Still waiting for that announcement and really there’s no hurry especially with the grassroots season still going.
Fox: I feel a lot less confident that we can lure him out of state since Smart came to Texas. He’s the perfect player for him to build his havoc style around and would mark a huge recruiting coup for him. Fox has been to UT twice now since the hire and it really seems from his actions that we will lose out to him. If a PG spot opens next year somehow with Mason or Graham then we could still be an option, I still think Fox thinks highly of KU but when it comes down to what’s best for the kid, more immediate PT is probably available at Texas.
Not sure where I stand on Jackson, great talent, elite level wing that we always like to have but for some reason I think he goes to Arizona or skips college entirely. Maybe I’m wrong but he will be one of those April guys that waits til the last moment.
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The thing is on Josh Jackson is he stated once again that he has no desire to play ball over sea’s and that there is nothing holding him back in deciding when to commit I feel like he very possibly will commit in the EARLY period. I too feel like Fox will end up committing to Texas, 247 shows Texas with a pretty sizeable lead 69% to KU 23% and with the visits to Texas he has made, just feel Smart is sitting pretty well right now. Feel we have pretty solid chances at Ferguson & Jackson. If we can get Bolden would be a sweet class its just a wait and see but feel pretty good on those 2.
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I’d love to see us land Jackson early. It would be a real spark to get our recruiting year off to a good start. Great momentum.
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It looks like Shaka Smart is putting the full court press on De’Aaron Fox & Marques Bolden. Fox has been to UT twice since Smart took over and there is talks of the two of them being a package deal!
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Jeff Borzello @jeffborzello · Jun 7
Good recruiting weekend for Texas – five-stars De’Aaron Fox & Marques Bolden were on campus. Second time Fox visited since Shaka took over.
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EJ Holland @EJHolland247 · Jun 11
Are five-star #HookEm hoops recruits De’Aaron Fox and Marques Bolden planning to stick together at the next level? http://texas.247sports.com/Bolt/Bolden-
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I know this is not what us KU fans want to hear BUT if smart starts to land 5star recruits at UT he could give KU a run for the money! I have been secretly watching all of our KU targets and there really hasn’t been a lot going on besides the summer AAU camps. I will post more about recruiting so you all will be more educated on where KU stands with our guys. At least all of us here at Buckets will sound more educated than the other guys lol.
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@MoonwalkMafia It’s a site for KU fans. Who are also fans of other stuff. Do like I do, if you don’t like a subject, don’t read it.
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Chip Brown @ChipBrownHD · Jun 5
It appears 2016 5-star SF Terrance Ferguson of Prime Prep Academy in Dallas has canceled his unofficial visit to #Texas (mom ill).Smart is all over these 5star guys! Ferguson was supposed to be at UT with the other 2!
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I saw Jackson play as a fresh and as a soph. It was like watching James Youmg play…he was simply faster and could out jump everyone else…although Josh was younger. It s really exciting to hear that we might be the leader.
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I think that’s why they have an other topics section to post things like Royals on. No harm no foul the way I look at it.
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I would like to think that many of the top players will wait on Texas until they figure out what style of play Smart will implement. While his style of play (havoc, 40 minutes of hell, crazy-ass defense or whatever you call it) might be somewhat effective at the college level it is not something that will help them at the next level and the type of defense that KU plays translates better, so it is possible that top players will pass on Texas and pick a school that plays a style that will prepare them better for the NBA. IMHO, his system works better at programs with less than top athletes that can compensate the lack of talent with extra effort/energy; however, he was unable to prove that his system worked even at the smaller conferences where he could not win the conference title even once. If you think about it, his claim to fame is his one win over KU and magic run to the Final Four and besides that an NCAA appearances nothing else.
Here is a summary of his record with total and conference wins and conference finish.
VCU Rams (Colonial Athletic Association) (2009–2012)
- 2009–10 VCU 27–9 11–7 T–5th CBI Champions
- 2010–11 VCU 28–12 12–6 4th NCAA Final Four
- 2011–12 VCU 29–7 15–3 2nd NCAA Round of 32
VCU Rams (Atlantic 10 Conference) (2012–2015)
- 2012–13 VCU 27–9 12–4 2nd NCAA Round of 32
- 2013–14 VCU 26–9 12–4 2nd NCAA Round of 64
- 2014–15 VCU 26–10 12–6 T–4th NCAA Round of 64
You can see that the best conference finish is 2nd and after his one run in the NCAA he did not get past the round of 32 in the NCAA. The last two years VCU lost its initial games including a loss as #5 seed to #12 seed Stephen F. Austin.
Like I said before, the legend of Shaka Smart is much better/bigger than reality…and Scott Drew will be sure to remind prospects of this.
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Not sure you can correlate 1 for 1 what Smart might do at Texas. He comes into Texas with a seasoned roster and 2 top 50 recruits. His hiring really seemed to energize recruits especially in Texas to look at Texas. He’s going to get kids, top level kids to go there. VCU was never going to compete for the cream of the crop but at Texas he can. If he gets high level kids to play his system there’s no question how good he can make them. It’s a testament to Smart that he could even get top 100 kids consistently in the past few years to go there.
Now I think his record in the A-10 and Colonial says that his style doesn’t win conference championships so far, and other than his dream season beating KU, he’s been out of the tourney fairly early every year. This is the big leagues, and I’m sure Self is going to be eager to put him in his place. I think the rest of the Big-12 will be eager to do the same…
If Smart lands Fox then he is likely to add other top kids from Texas. So it can be said that it’s important that Self lands a Texas kid so that the momentum that has been shifting to UT isn’t a sign of the times.
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The thing with Smart is that he doesn’t have the pedigree. If you want to land a 5star target these days you will likely wait until next March or April and I cant see Smart turning down other kids in the top 100 to wait for a 5star kid. If he misses on all the top targets he could really screw him self out of a coaching job at UT. HCBS however would be pardoned if he were have a down year in recruiting due to his success at KU.
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My point was…why would a top recruit go to Texas to play in a system that will run him ragged and will not prepare him for the NBA? Top players go to UK because they have the impression that Calipari will get them ready for the NBA; Smart has no history of doing that and his system does not lend itself to it. I will guess that recruits will wait and see if his style changes before committing.
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@JayHawkFanToo Excellent point JHFT
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FoX will end up at Texas
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Not disagreeing with you at all, if I was a recruit, a top 1 at that and had serious NBA potential I’m not going to play in that system. It doesn’t do anything to really prepare you for the league in terms of system.
I do think that Smart will land kids regardless of the system though. Why is it that 2 months ago Fox was practically in our lap but now a strong Texas lean? Fox is a future NBA player if his development keeps forward, he’s one of the best guards in the class. Smart has changed this kids mind completely.
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Let me toss this in … during Louisville’s 2013 title run, the Cards ran a high-paced offense, and defensively pressured and trapped all over the court. It was very similar to VCU’s approach.
Another point I’d suggest is that a lot of kids love playing the fast paced game. We hear it all the time when there are comments from recruits. I always like playing that way. I think maybe we underestimate that kids dread the slower paced, get it to the third side, feed the post stuff. That’s not a comment on merit, it’s just a comment on what a teenage kid would prefer.
The jury is really out on whether Smart can really coach to the higher level of play beyond one famed tourney run. But I certainly think that kids will want to play for him – Texas is a big deal, Smart is a personable guy that players tend to like, and his style of play is attractive to many kids.
That doesn’t mean he beats Kansas on the court. But he may beat us on a few recruits. No big deal.
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To compete with Texas, will KU have to allow players to carry guns on campus?
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Bill Self is way ahead of you. That’s how we got the Morris twins, remember?
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@ajvan good one!
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As someone that worked around college students for a few years and dealt with more than a couple that had depression/ anxiety issues, I can tell you that Campus Carry is a bad idea. I hope no one is hurt when a depressed freshman becomes distraught in the middle of the night.
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@justanotherfan or drink, do drugs, be immature… List goes on.
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@justanotherfan Amazing how self absorbed these 18-20 year old kids can get. It’s an unfortunate reflection of our me first society. I wish we could get back to the golden rule moreso…
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@justanotherfan It’s a bad idea for ANYONE to carry a gun. Unless you’re hunting. Animals. Four legged ones.
They’ve tried the whole gun carrying thing before. It was called the Old West. It didn’t work then either. People are too stupid to be carrying guns. They can convey their stupidity well enough by texting and driving.
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I am not a carry proponent, but I know people who are and try to be respectful/understanding of their position. If it were up to me, I would put a lot more restrictions, but it isn’t. So instead we end up with mass shootings like the one at the Jewish Community Center in KC a couple years ago, or the one at the South Carolina church the other night. Senseless stuff. I just wish we could come up with something as a society that allowed responsible people to have their guns for hunting, etc. while keeping them out of the hands of those that would do harm.
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Kids like to play a fast paced game…on offense, defense? not so much.
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@justanotherfan I know that sounded harsh, but I can’t apologize. There’s something wrong with a society that has to carry guns. I’m an American. I like John Wayne. I believe in freedom and all that good stuff. I just don’t believe people need to be carrying around guns. In MY day (waaaaay back then) if you had a problem with someone, even your worst enemy, you got into a fight - beat the crap out of each other (with your fists) and then it was over. No guns, no knives, none of that BS. I believe in progress, but what our society has done as far as getting along in the last 50 years is the opposite of progress.
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I am with you. I always tell my kids and grand kids…don’t get into a fight, in the old day you used you fists and shook hands afterwards, now the other person might pull a knife or a gun…a different world.
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@JayHawkFanToo See, I think they do. The teams I have coached, every kid generally loved pressing, trapping, and the full court style. It’s really the most engaging part of the game. Meaning, playing frenetic is very contingent upon how you play defense.
For example, if you take the ball out of the hoop and go. But then sit back in a 2-1-2 zone or basic m2m, things are lurching. But if you bust out quick on offense and you press and trap all over the court, that’s a totally different ballgame. The defense creates the offense and is really becomes a fun part of the game.
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@nuleafjhawk There is something wrong with a society that has to carry guns. Gun ownership, of course, is a different deal. Really, this entire society would be largely void of the need to carry guns if our inner city thugs didn’t have them. That is the reality. Folks want to carry guns because there are vicious animals that will kill, rob, rape, and maim for little more than a few dollars.
That’s why folks carry guns. Because they could be standing in a quik shop when a thug comes in with a gun.
The mass shootings that just occurred pale in comparison to the carnage that is inflicted each night in our cities around the country. It’s sad, but how many blacks have been killed in senseless inner city shootings since this mindless church shooting? The same folks that get all wound up about a cop killing a black man refuse to take the same action to protest and show anger with a drive by shooting that kills a 3 year old, like what occurred in KC last week. That sort of crap happens regularly, but folks accept it because they are too cowardly to stand up to it. It’s much easier to hold up signs, loot business like the common criminals that they are, and call cops racist than protect the lives of the nice inner city folks that are terrorized by this violence daily. It’s really a joke.
So that’s why folks want to carry guns. To defend themselves from the thugs.
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@HighEliteMajor Agree about gun ownership, but I’m not totally buying into the “defense” argument. Too many people that carry guns for self defense wind up getting shot anyway, or shooting themselves or their own loved ones. There are many people who are carrying guns on the offensive also. People who are filled with hate, who want to assert themselves physically or commit robbery.
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I don’t carry a gun, but I probably should. I’ve hit a deer or two that could’ve used a bullet to end their misery.
Guns cause less harm than pens in the hands of our leaders. Not every one should have the right to carry a firearm though they do have a place. It would be terrible if only our wonderful government had all the guns. Well the government and criminals…
(Unless what I read was wrong) Last year the citizens of the US bought more guns than the 21 largest armies combined.
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@dylans Regarding the deer - just man up, grab the deer by the antlers and yank the poor critters neck violently until it snaps. This works. I’ve seen it done in " The Long Kiss Goodnight ". Lol. Sorry.
Many years ago, I heard that in the FIRST HOUR of whatever year it was, there were more gun related deaths in the United States than there were the whole prior year in Canada. Also, when I lived in Houston (some of you Houstonians will bear witness to this), now keep in mind that this was pre-1987 - it was reported that Ben Taub Hospital routinely treated over 50 gunshot wounds PER DAY.
Sorry to all for the gun rants - I’ll go back to my nap now.
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@nuleafjhawk I own two guns one for pheasant hunting/skeet shooting and one for target shooting. I’ve been hunting a handful of times and if it weren’t business or family related that number would be zero. Target shooting is a blast I recomend it to any stable individual. Competitive shooting is fun I’ve been to one match as a youth (15) and would’ve won the thing had I been registered. First time shooting a rifle too!
I don’t feel like I need a firearm for self defense. I don’t even lock the door most of the time. Unfortunately not everyone is blessed with such a nice neighborhood to live in.
I wish there was more hoop shooting to talk about. I can’t wait for Tuesday to have a bettter topic of discussion!!! @MoonwalkMafia is going to be PO’ed this thread is way off topic.
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@dylans Yeah, I’ve got several guns myself. I don’t strap em on and go to the mall or church with them though! Like you, I love target shooting (and am a pretty good shot, if I do say so myself) but like most things, a few warped individuals screw things up for everyone. I sure long for the good ol days. And I’m envious that you live in a neighborhood where you don’t have to lock your doors. I hardly live in the ghetto, but I do lock up at night!
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Yes, but we are talking different levels. Elite Division I players want to play offense and defense is something they have to put up with. Defense such as the one Coach Self plays is good because it resembles what the NBA plays; that frantic, full court, 40 minutes of whatever defense is seen in the NBA only in the last couple of minutes of very close games. Playing defense at that speed wears players out and forces top players to sit longer than they would like. The only two coaches that regularly use this type of defense at the higher level are Mike Anderson and Shaka Smart (or Huggy last season)…how is that working out for them? Neither has been particularly successful or attracted top shelf players.
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@nuleafjhawk Now, you’re talking something different. Folks that legally carry guns commit how many crimes? This is my point. Rarely. The criminals commit crimes. The criminals are the ones carrying guns illegally.
The quandary that we are in is that criminals get guns, whether it is legally or illegally.
The argument that “Too many people that carry guns for self defense wind up getting shot anyway, or shooting themselves or their own loved ones” rings hollow with me. Guns are dangerous.
When you look at numbers, this is miniscule. So some idiot shoots his wife. That’s an argument for what? To prohibit me or you from having a gun to defend themselves? It’s like arguing that knives should be illegal because your neighbor stabbed her husband.
There is a box that gun control advocates get in, that can’t be escaped. How do you disarm the thugs? Laws would disarm law abiding citizens. The ones that don’t commit crimes.
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@JayHawkFanToo I see your point. In the post above you just referenced “kids” so I fixated on that a bit in my reply. Further above, though, you referenced “top recruits”. I think I would agree with you there. Would the top guys really want that system? OADs? I doubt it too. A guy outside that range? Certainly more likely. Heck, like anything else, it would personal preference. It was a rare occasion that I would see a kid H.S. or below that didn’t like that style, but for the big, immobile dudes.
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@HighEliteMajor Indeed, there is something wrong with a society that has to carry guns, and of course, there are certainly “good” gun owners and “bad” gun owners much like there are “good” cops and “bad” cops, and “good” politicians and “bad” politicians, and “good” companies and “bad” companies, and “good” people and “bad” people, etc. I’d like to think we ALL want to see “good” gun ownership, "good gun safety and “good” gun controls (where possible and when necessary,) that are better for today’s society, yet don’t squash our constitutional rights. Can there be such a thing as “common sense” or “common good” laws or regulations that everyone can agree on? I certainly hope so, and that is the discussion that should be had . . . especially on a different site or topic thread than this.
What I do take issue with (with all due respect,) is that you chose a rebuttal based squarely on the inner city problems vs. a broader scope of violence throughout the US. The fact that you chose to hone in on the “thugs” in the inner cities, and the “cowardly” folks who do not step up to criticize inner city murders, is quite concerning. I believe you are not a racists, but you should also know that there are a vast number of people who fight to improve the lives of inner city youth, and who fight to change the “culture” and/or “mindset” of our youth today leads to violence and murder.
It’s not easy living in the inner city, and God knows it’s not easy being a cop these days. They are worth their weight in gold, and are there to protect and serve us all. And yes, there needs to be more accountability from everyone. However, to simply target “thugs” and praise cops is generically very sad, and shows your true colors on how you feel about this whole dilemma. It’s like me basing my whole stance on gun safety on the fact that 95% of serial killers are white guys, and therefore, we must not let “whitey” get guns, or to ban guns from them altogether. That may be a factor in the decisions we make, but not the sole factor.
Still love and enjoy your BB comments and insights!
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@HighEliteMajor Are the numbers available from this link miniscule? They might be for Rwanda but for a civilized society. Really?
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I generally agree with all your points. I always wondered about politicians and demagogue race mongers that make a huge deal about about one persons being killed by a person of different color…or the the police and they call it racism, but don’t say a word about the wholesale daily carnage that goes on the inner city of every major city…aren’t all lives equally valuable?
“Legal” ownership of guns anymore requires background checks that largely (but not completely) eliminate legal ownership by people that should not be allowed to have guns. Illegal ownership, on the other hand, is easy, and in most big cities you can go to certain areas of town where you can readily get a gun; no amount of government gun control will keep guns from undesirable people. As the saying goes, when guns are outlawed, only outlaws will have guns…is that a desirable outcome? I think not.
I grew up around guns having a father in the military and I learned to use them properly and safely early on. When I had kids of my own, I made a conscious decision not to own or keep guns of any sort around my home and I do not own a gun now. and have not owned one in a long, long time. Having said that, I have no problem with someone else electing to own and keep guns as long as they do it legally and safely.
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@HighEliteMajor This is like one of those arguments with my wife (where no one gets shot, because neither of us carry guns). I guess we’re just not understanding each other. I’m definitely not understanding you! (I’m not being mean spirited, I just don’t get what you’re trying to tell me.) It seems, at times, as though you’re agreeing with me and then again it seems like you just want to argue.
Don’t shoot! My hands are in the air. I surrender. For a while.
Wait. My tiny little brain just had another spark. There’s a guy I work with ( I will refrain from calling him an idiot (or will I?)) that carries a gun. He always wears “cargo” pants and keeps his gun (whatever it is, I’ve never seen it or asked) in the buttoned up pocket of his cargo pants. WHY? I told him I could come in the building and beat him to death with a baseball bat before he could even think about getting that gun out of his pocket. He didn’t even respond because he knew I was right.
From what I understand, Kansas is now a old school, old west town mentality state and pretty much anybody can carry any weapon they want, anywhere, any time. I sure as hell don’t want to go to a KU-KSU game with 12,000 gun toting, good ol boys losing their minds when we beat them by 20 points.
This is like one of those OAD commentaries. I’m not ever going to win. The weapons are here to stay until we all kill each other. I just don’t have to like it.
