KU needs to start freshmen or stop recruiting 5 star guys



  • http://bleacherreport.com/articles/2582819-5-star-recruits-dish-on-the-irresistible-pull-of-duke-and-kentucky

    Its pretty simple to grasp in my mind BUT obviously Coach Self seams to hold out hope he can recruit 5 star players and offer them the bench. Here it is mid November and we still haven’t landed anyone in the top 100. I believe with HCBS’s track record as of late we are done for the year and no 5 star guys are going to sign with KU. That leaves us scraps, leaves us looking for guys that don’t fit the system, leaves us with more headaches!



  • Our recruiting difficulties are puzzling … my thoughts from a couple of years ago. Just Say No To OADs At Kansas.

    You have an even broader approach, eliminating the five star guys.

    Given our recruiting issues, a great discussion.



  • @Statmachine The quote from Bolden didn’t sound that good for us.



  • @HighEliteMajor The big thing for me is that as of late its like he only recruits 5 star guys and then when we fail to use all of our scholarships he scrambles and ends up with transfers and under recruited guys. That’s what I like to call flying by the seat of your pants and unorganized. Come on get a game plan together that works or hire someone who can. Play your stars like Alexander and Bragg from day one or don’t expect to land any future 5 star guys at a rate like UK or Duke. He is going to have to go after 4 star guys if he continues to dish out minutes to inferior talent. When a 5 star guy goes undrafted it doesn’t help out with recruiting big names either. Then we have a problem with 4 star guys leaving because Coach Self recruits over them so its like STOP recruiting 5 star guys OR start playing them from day one. I don’t think there is a happy medium in todays game with coaches whoring out minutes to freshmen over at UK and Duke? I think he should make 4 star guys that fit our system a priority from day one and lock them up. That’s how he has to do it or KU will continue to fly by the seat of our pants on the recruiting field and add more early tournament exits.



  • @HighEliteMajor you know actually I wouldn’t have a huge problem with recruiting 5 star players and the one and done. We have had pretty good success before them, how many of the 2008 championship team was 5 star and or considered one and done? Not 5 star but they were very solid, take the player that’s gonna be here 3-4 years and develop you know what I’m saying?



  • Its a crime against KU nation to start Lucas & Traylor over Bragg and even Mickelson. HCBS needs to go.



  • @Statmachine

    We will get 2 OAD/TAD types as usual; because that appears to be tendency for a top adidas school.

    The trouble is that is not enough to compete with schools getting short and long stacks.

    A short stack is 3-5 per year.

    A long stack is 6-10 per year.

    There is no substitute for numbers talent over the long haul.

    There are anomalous teams each year where less talent goes deep, or even wins a ring.

    But the tendency is that you have to have a lot of talent consistently to frequently go deep.

    2 OAD/TADs won’t get it done.

    It offers no margin for error; i.e., for injury, late neural net grow in, or personality conflicts.

    You have to break in to the short stack, or long stack numbers, or settle for being an anomaly every once in a while.

    No one likes to say it, but KU was an anomaly in 2012, like UConn was an anomaly two years ago. KU '12 fell a little short, because it didn’t get the break it needed (no one could upset UK), but that’s what KU’12 was.

    Another thing no one likes to say is that the only consistent go deep teams consistently have the horses.

    You can get a two year run out of a couple of projects that greatly exceed expectations, or out of a couple TADs and some good complementary players, but to tend to go deep and intermittently get upset, you’ve got to consistently have the horses.

    KU is now a team that has to be an anomaly to go deep.

    Its is not going to be a consistent go deep team with intermittent early outs with 2 OAD/TADs per season recruited and the rest of the roster filled with guys that back out of Towson State, that leave UArk, or are otherwise projects.

    With the kind of talent Self is now able to recruit, he is building to be a Madness anomaly once in awhile, and win the conference title as often as he can.

    And if he were to give up on the 2OAD/TAD per season stream and the 5-stars he can land, then he would be relegating KU to mid major status.

    KU and he have the adidas contract, so there appears no reason for them not to take the 2 OAD/TADs that appear to come with that contract. They appear kind of givens.

    And he might as well recruit the 5-stars, because he has the time and recruiting budget to do so, and because it gets him access to the occasional outlier that connects with him.

    He can pick up the <5 stars whenever.

    THE PROBLEM IS THAT THE STACKING IS ASYMMETRICALLY DISTRIBUTING THE TOP TALENT NEEDED TO CONSISTENTLY GO DEEP AND KU IS NOT ONE OF THOSE SCHOOLS BENEFITING.

    KU NEEDS TO BECOME ONE OF THOSE SCHOOLS.

    HOW IT IS TO BE DONE HAS YET TO BE DETERMINED.

    BUT THE GOAL IS CLEAR ENOUGH.



  • If you played young guys this year it would be the ones with the highest ceilings and have the most talent other than Mason and Ellis.

    If Diallo could play, then the other 3 guys with the most talent are Bragg, Svi (who just turned 18 …) and Vick.


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