*For the sake of argument, I'm not going to include walk ons.
Today, we take a look at the recruiting under Barnes by taking a look at the hits and misses:
2007-08 Season
HS Recruits
SF Jihad Ali - HIT - Now a 4th Year Junior after taking a RS in 2009-10, Ali has seen improvement in points per game, rebounds per game and assists per game each season. He's played 85 career games and has been a solid role player.
PG D.J. Jones - MISS - After a lackluster freshman year, he was asked to leave the program and has not resurfaced in college basketball.
Division 1 Transfers
SG Dante Curry - HIT - I may get some funny looks here but his Senior Year alone makes him a hit, IMO. He came into his Junior year out of shape and essentially was lost. I was outspoken that he should not be on this roster if we were to expect the same conditioning and mental state as 2009-10. He's turned it around 180 degrees and is absolutely a key reserve and the best 3 point threat on this roster.
PG Joe Dukes - HIT - The best transfer of the bunch and arguably our best since Kevin Morris at the PG position.
PF - Trey Hampton - HIT - Very solid piece and continued to get better in his 2 years on campus.
PF - Xavier Hansbro - MISS - Possibly the most frustrating player in the Barnes Era.
SF - Bernard Rimmer - MISS - Transferred with former walk on Michael Moynihan to North Georgia and played well at the Division II level. Was definitely not a Division I player.
2008-09 Season
HS Recruits
SG James Fields - HIT - Fields has developed into a dominant defender and an above average ball handler. He's selective in his shooting and will not be a 10+ ppg scorer at this level but does all the little things well.
Division 1 Transfers
PG Marques Johnson - MISS - 3rd team in 3 seasons and Johnson has done very little. Barnes trusts him to run his offense but I do not. Career averages of 3.6 points and 2.2 assists per game. Not acceptable for a starting PG in Division 1 basketball with 37 starts and 55 career games played.
2009-10 Season
HS Recruits
C James Vincent - MISS - Truly not sure why Vincent was brought here. After gaining a tremendous amount of weight after the season in HS, Vincent had a hairline fracture in his foot and essentially lost his entire Freshman season. His Sophomore season has shown some promise but he does not fit the athletic run up and down mold. 2.1 points and 2.3 rebounds for a 6'10, 250lbs big man is not good.
JUCO Transfers
SG Mi'kyel Nero - MISS - Shockingly was redshirted after coming in from Brunswick CC. Transferred following the season. Players at the Division 1 level who do not suffer an injury should not be redshirted. Either you can play or you can't.
PF Jamar Taylor - MISS - Came in with Nero from Brunswick CC and continues to prove he's not a Division 1 player. Redshirted in 2009-10 and is taking a scholarship again for 2010-11.
2010-11 Season
HS Recruits
PG Devonta White - HIT - It's obvious he can play and he's truly one of our difference maker as a freshman. We are 4-1 with White guiding the ship and he's the best freshman PG we've had on our roster since Herman Favors.
SG - Javonte Maynor - HIT - Continues to get better and has emerged as a 10+ ppg scorer when given significant playing time. Will continue to get better and I could see him as a 14-16 ppg scorer by the time he's a Junior.
SF - Harold Doby - INC. - Has so far been hard to figure out. He has the potential to be a good role player but has seen his playing time go wildly up and down this season. Could be a candidate for a transfer if a coaching change is made as expected.
SG - Rashaad Richardson - MISS - Not sure that he belongs on this team. Has not shot well as a freshman and unless he puts major work to his body and on his game will not succeed here.
JUCO Transfers
C Eric Buckner - HIT - Impact player. Has gained significant weight and strength since arriving and has played very well. Some have called him one of the best Panthers centers ever. I believe he's top 3.
PF Brandon McGee - HIT - Is wildly inconsistent but can be a force on the boards. Still believes that he can be a 10+ point scorer and 7+ rebound player per game.
SF Josh Micheaux - HIT - Has really come into his own since being inserted into the starting lineup. Averaging 11.3 points, 7 rebounds, 4.3 assists in the last 3 games. Stat stuffer when he plays significant minutes. I believe he will continue to get better and cement his spot at the SF position.
My take: While there have been some notable misses among the Division 1 transfers, Barnes had upgraded this roster significantly in the last recruiting cycle. 6 out of the 7 newcomers have had an immediate impact at times this season. I believe Barnes deserves another year based on the talent on this roster. Will his recruiting mistakes plague him and contribute to his dismissal? Only 5 regular season games and 1 CAA Tourney game until we likely find out.
I'm not sure that the fans have the patience to hold him for another year
ReplyDeleteJihad Ali was a Perry recruit. Disagree about Vincent, still think he will be an asset. The 08-09 JUCOs, I believe, were brought in late cause we did not have any good freshman to sign and hopped they would pan - but still a MISS. Johnson has played very well at times but the times have been too far between. I was told that Richardson was not expect to impact until his Soph or Jr year. There is little doubt he is as good and his classmate guards who I think will be very good performers down the road. Agree that his recruiting has improved and deserves another year. When RB came he said it would take several years to get a recruiting established so he could get good players. Last year he said that time had arrived. Remember that determining how good a HS player is going to be is an art and not a science and when you look inside big time programs you will find some misses. The question is how many misses are too many. Good job!
ReplyDeleteRidge, I agree that Ali was a Perry recruit but he was an early signee. Barnes could have let him out.
ReplyDeleteThanks for the kinds words and patronage as always!