I'm ready for Tommy to close on some big names.

[DrTre11]

I'm surprised by the fact that MSU hasn't gotten a commitment from any of the big names they have been after for quite some time. It is still early, but I'm hoping the tourney run renews the excitement for some kids and we get a few kids out of it. Boy would I like to see Howell, Riley, etc. choose MSU soon so that we can gain some momentum.

[Island of misfit toys]

Originally Posted by DrTre11

I'm surprised by the fact that MSU hasn't gotten a commitment from any of the big names they have been after for quite some time. It is still early, but I'm hoping the tourney run renews the excitement for some kids and we get a few kids out of it. Boy would I like to see Howell, Riley, etc. choose MSU soon so that we can gain some momentum.

In all the universe it looks like only 5 people could do what you are asking. It is early, as you said, and it doesn't look to me that there is a talent of the level of a Delvon Roe or a Dexter Strickland. We ought to be just fine. Once it looks like there is only a spot or two left, the remaining ones may go fast.

[burnsmi4]

I dont give a **** about the rankings. Just ask Duke how their 8 McDonald's All-Americans are doing. Rankings dont win championships so whoever he wants to bring in is fine with me

[rcd3928]

Nick,

Just cause 1 person on another board says something doesn't make it gospel. Didn't he say Strickland was a lock.

Howell is the best player on one of the best teams in the country. Wait to see how many teams offer him after the AAU season and when he gets his back problems taken care of.

And we ARE recruiting Riley, like it or not.

[rcd3928]

Time will tell Nick. But to say IF we had offered, Howell would have committed on the spot is crazy. Why, becasue both Rivals and Scout say we offered. Now maybe schools have cooled on him because of his injury (including MSU), but there was an offer at some point. He might not end up at State, but it will not be because of his stock dropping.

By the way, he led his AAU team to a title in their first tournament this weekend. .

[DrTre11]

I was really really excited about a lot of 4 and 5 star guys. Now it seems like they are dropping like flies (no longer in the picture).

[The Armchair Quarterback]

Originally Posted by DrTre11

I was really really excited about a lot of 4 and 5 star guys. Now it seems like they are dropping like flies (no longer in the picture).

Which recruits?

[Pausanias]

Originally Posted by DrTre11

I was really really excited about a lot of 4 and 5 star guys. Now it seems like they are dropping like flies (no longer in the picture).

A lot of the 4 and 5 star guys we were recruiting are no longer 4 and 5 star guys.

Not sure why there's so much excitment over Howell. Didn't we just lock up Roe and Green last year?

I don't think Jersey Spartan is the slickster. Completely different writing styles.

[OPSpartan]

Originally Posted by Jersey Spartan

1.) Who is Nick?

2.) Think what you will. Justin Young of Rivals who hails from Georgia said EVERYBODY was cooling on Howell. Like it or not it is what it is. Howell wont end up a Spartan. He would have commited on the spot if he had an offer. It's not just one person. It's a lot of people who know what the hell they are talking about. When he chooses else where I bet you will be one of those people who say Izzo could not close and land Howell. In reality that wont be the reason. It will be because he did not have an MSU offer.

You're just as bad as posters like "stanton for heisman" who are too chicken **** to admit who they are. For humanity's sake you better be nick, because who the hell wants two people let alone one like nick?

You crapped the bed on the Strickland prediction, have the courage to admit it.

[TripleGreen]

Originally Posted by rcd3928

Nick,

Just cause 1 person on another board says something doesn't make it gospel. Didn't he say Strickland was a lock.

Howell is the best player on one of the best teams in the country. Wait to see how many teams offer him after the AAU season and when he gets his back problems taken care of.

And we ARE recruiting Riley, like it or not.

Thank you!

Nick lives and dies based on the rankings. I do not. I want ballers and not all ballers are highly ranked. eg. Draymond Green is a baller yet he isnt highly ranked. I feel the same way about Richard Howell. Not so much about Riley though. I'd rather Izzo looked elsewhere to fill a frontcourt position.

I want guys who are productive and intelligent. I don't need NBA prototypes. Howell and Green and Roe and Sherman are all productive high IQ'd ballers. Riley just isn't productive. He's all upside and the team just needs more sure things at the moment, especially from the 2009 class with regards to big men. They have to be ready to play from the moment they step into Breslin.

[Stats]

Originally Posted by Pausanias

I don't think Jersey Spartan is the slickster. Completely different writing styles.

Strange then that Jersey Spartan frequently creates post here that are word for word identical to what Nick posts on PrepSpotlight & GSN.

[Pausanias]

Originally Posted by StatsETC

Strange then that Jersey Spartan frequently creates post here that are word for word identical to what Nick posts on PrepSpotlight & GSN.

I'm a member at prepspotlight and I just don't see the resemblance to nick, errrr, "theschwab" or whoever.

[Hagens Curriculum]

Originally Posted by Pausanias

I'm a member at prepspotlight and I just don't see the resemblance to nick, errrr, "theschwab" or whoever.

100% it's Nick. Jersey Spartan will post something on here, then 10 minutes later the same exact post is on GSN under SAUspartan (nick). Not hard to figure out.

[Buffalo Spartan]

Originally Posted by Pausanias

A lot of the 4 and 5 star guys we were recruiting are no longer 4 and 5 star guys.

Not sure why there's so much excitment over Howell. Didn't we just lock up Roe and Green last year?

I don't think Jersey Spartan is the slickster. Completely different writing styles.

Maybe he finally got the correct combination of meds

[Pausanias]

Originally Posted by Hagen's Curriculum

100% it's Nick. Jersey Spartan will post something on here, then 10 minutes later the same exact post is on GSN under SAUspartan (nick). Not hard to figure out.

Wasn't familiar with the SAU handle. I'll be on the lookout for that.

[SCOTTS BLOATED LIVER]

Originally Posted by Jersey Spartan

1.) Who is Nick?

2.) Think what you will. Justin Young of Rivals who hails from Georgia said EVERYBODY was cooling on Howell. Like it or not it is what it is. Howell wont end up a Spartan. He would have commited on the spot if he had an offer. It's not just one person. It's a lot of people who know what the hell they are talking about. When he chooses else where I bet you will be one of those people who say Izzo could not close and land Howell. In reality that wont be the reason. It will be because he did not have an MSU offer.

Hi Nick


And to keep on topic I doubt Howell lands in G&W

[TripleGreen]

Originally Posted by Jersey Spartan

You guys will be saying Izzo missed on him and Howell went elsewhere besides MSU. Don't believe me. Time will tell as you said. When it does you will look like a fool.

Nick, who cares if he has or doesn't have an offer? The fact is that Izzo recruited Howell for a good chunk of time and whether or not he goes to MSU doesn't change the fact that some people would still like to see him suit up for State. I for one think he (like Dray Green) brings a lot of winning intangibles that aren't measured and fawned over by your favorite scouts and gurus.

Hell Izzo didn't offer CDR and in hindsight it's pretty clear that Izzo "missed" the boat on that recruitment. He should've seen the skills and realized that a skinny local kid from the D who can ball is a better bet than some skinny shooter from Montreal. I don't get paid the big bucks to make these recruiting decisions and then have them questioned and critiqued. Izzo does...and trust me, he expects it and he can handle it.

[TripleGreen]

Originally Posted by Jersey Spartan

Izzo did not miss on CDR. Izzo passed for Reasons. All the big time programs pulled their offers. I don't know why i'm even responding to someone who thinks Izzo took MoJo instead of CDR. That is the most ignorant thing I have heard in a while.

I'll trust Izzo before I trust you.

Because you have borderline obsessive compulsive disorder...but that's besides the point. Izzo wasn't even recruiting CDR so it obviously wasn't an "either or" situation. My point is that Izzo should've been recruiting CDR. Iit's not like he came out of nowhere...kid was a local top 50 recruit...his skills were well known. So when MSU's Plan A (Devendorf) backed out of his verbal, Izzo should've been able to lay the full court press on a high quality Plan B instead of a fringe top 100 kid from Canada who should've been more of a Plan D type of recruit. CDR was still undecided when Devendorf de-committed and he was still undecided when Mojo committed.

See how Carolina handled the loss of Delvon Roe. Roy didn't panic. He didn't go out and offer some PF from Saskatchewan. He just went next on the list and got a stud in Ed Davis...a kid who he had been recruiting all along as a backup option. That contingency plan served him well. If there's one thing that Izzo has struggled with in recruiting is that his contingency plans have been less that stellar a lot of the time. If he misses out on his Plan A....his Plan B's and C's have been questionable.

[IzzoisdaMan]

Originally Posted by TripleGreen

Because you have borderline obsessive compulsive disorder...but that's besides the point. Izzo wasn't even recruiting CDR so it obviously wasn't an "either or" situation. My point is that Izzo should've been recruiting CDR. Iit's not like he came out of nowhere...kid was a local top 50 recruit...his skills were well known. So when MSU's Plan A (Devendorf) backed out of his verbal, Izzo should've been able to lay the full court press on a high quality Plan B instead of a fringe top 100 kid from Canada who should've been more of a Plan D type of recruit. CDR was still undecided when Devendorf de-committed and he was still undecided when Mojo committed.

See how Carolina handled the loss of Delvon Roe. Roy didn't panic. He didn't go out and offer some PF from Saskatchewan. He just went next on the list and got a stud in Ed Davis...a kid who he had been recruiting all along as a backup option. That contingency plan served him well. If there's one thing that Izzo has struggled with in recruiting is that his contingency plans have been less that stellar a lot of the time. If he misses out on his Plan A....his Plan B's and C's have been questionable.

By the time Devendorf de-committed, CDR was getting the full-court press from schools like Arizona and Kansas. I'm pretty sure that MSU DID offer the kid a scholarship (early on)...didn't seem like he was interested in coming here (or UM, they recruited him early too). And its not really fair to compare us to UNC...not fair to compare ANYONE to UNC.


IIRC, MSU's plan B to Devendorf was Bobby Frasor. Also made a run at Marcus Willaims (Arizona) but he wasn't interested in the Big 10. There was another kid (think he is at Georgia Tech) that we scouted, but decided not to offer.

Anyway, back to Nick's point...Izzo DID "miss" on CDR, just like he "missed" on Horford. CDR didn't end up having attitude/academic issues...Horford turned out to be a better player than most thought he would be. That's part of recruiting, nobody is perfect.

[Island of misfit toys]

Originally Posted by Jersey Spartan

You should be the coach then.

Triple Green: I don't get paid the big bucks to make these recruiting decisions and then have them questioned and critiqued. Izzo does...and trust me, he expects it and he can handle it.

[TripleGreen]

Originally Posted by Jersey Spartan

You should be the coach then.

And you should be Tom Izzo's personal fluffer.

[thenatural15]

For those of you who believe Izzo missed on CDR I thought you might find this interesting, its a quote from today's Lansing State Journal, in an article by Joe Rexrode:
"
"I mean, I think that kid deserves a lot of credit," Izzo said. "He really has taken his game to another level. It wasn't that us or Michigan or anybody else missed. (Memphis) got him, but it wasn't like he was everybody's superstar. He's made himself a great player. He's made himself an All-American, and he and Calipari deserve credit for that, they really do."

This was part of the same article....

Douglas-Roberts, a former star at Detroit Cass Tech and Northwestern, was recruited but not offered a scholarship by MSU coach Tom Izzo. He was an erratic, turnover-prone player as a freshman, but has blossomed into a Naismith Award finalist as a junior - joining North Carolina's Tyler Hansbrough, Kansas State's Michael Beasley and UCLA's Kevin Love.

I completely agree that some of Izzo's plan B's or C's or D's haven't quite been where all the rest of us would like. And I think one of Izzo's main issues is he doesn't recruit outside the midwest very often, at least not nearly as vigorously as he does within the midwest. Don't take me wrong the midwest is very rich in talent but I believe with the system that we run at times we don't get the dynamic type of player like J-Rich enough...someone who can create their own shot like KL does to help break down a defense.

Whats funny though is KL reminds me a lot of what many thought Brandon Cotton would bring to MSU before transferring to U of D...I mean really U of DETROIT????

[TripleGreen]

Originally Posted by thenatural15

For those of you who believe Izzo missed on CDR I thought you might find this interesting, its a quote from today's Lansing State Journal, in an article by Joe Rexrode:
"
"I mean, I think that kid deserves a lot of credit," Izzo said. "He really has taken his game to another level. It wasn't that us or Michigan or anybody else missed. (Memphis) got him, but it wasn't like he was everybody's superstar. He's made himself a great player. He's made himself an All-American, and he and Calipari deserve credit for that, they really do."

This was part of the same article....

Douglas-Roberts, a former star at Detroit Cass Tech and Northwestern, was recruited but not offered a scholarship by MSU coach Tom Izzo. He was an erratic, turnover-prone player as a freshman, but has blossomed into a Naismith Award finalist as a junior - joining North Carolina's Tyler Hansbrough, Kansas State's Michael Beasley and UCLA's Kevin Love.

I completely agree that some of Izzo's plan B's or C's or D's haven't quite been where all the rest of us would like. And I think one of Izzo's main issues is he doesn't recruit outside the midwest very often, at least not nearly as vigorously as he does within the midwest. Don't take me wrong the midwest is very rich in talent but I believe with the system that we run at times we don't get the dynamic type of player like J-Rich enough...someone who can create their own shot like KL does to help break down a defense.

Whats funny though is KL reminds me a lot of what many thought Brandon Cotton would bring to MSU before transferring to U of D...I mean really U of DETROIT????

Nice debut post and welcome to the board. I agree with your point about Izzo's Midwest-centric recruiting and how it sometimes curtails his efforts to maintain continuity in the program if he misses on his top target or two. And things can become even harder when he doesn't recruit the PSL as hard as the talent that the PSL annually produces suggests that he should recruit it. Note: I know all about the coaches and handlers and uncles aunties brothers that you have to deal with when you recruit certain kids in the D. It can be annoying, trying and a bitch...but with Ramar Smith, Manny, Hairston, Crawford, CDR, etc...sometimes the extra effort is worth the hassel. Not always...but sometimes.

Izzo should ALWAYS be recruiting a few 6'5" to 6'8" long athletic wings who can crash the boards and slash to the hoop. IMO you can never have enough Mo Pete's, Jason Richardson's, Alan Anderson's, Raymar Morgan's and Delvon Roe's. Wings like that are so versatile that they're worth their weight in gold. If Izzo can't find those kind of players in the Midwest in any given year....he needs to start looking outside of the Midwest instead of settling for so many sub 6'5" wings.

[eglee88]

Originally Posted by Jersey Spartan

Another person spewing the myth that Izzo does not recruit the PSL hard...

Manny would have been a Spartan if Izzo offered. Sam Hosey (Da Chairman) made that statement on the Michigan Rivals Free Board before the season started.

CDR never showed interest in MSU.

Seriously where are Manny, Hairston, and Crawford at right now? Ramar Smith was coming off the bench for Tennessee. It's not like they are all all americans.

Don't think I back Izzo on everything he does. I have gone back and fourth on his decision to take Travis Walton over Dominic James but Travis Walton is clearly the better defender and if he choose to take James we probably would not have Kalin Lucas right now.

I just don't like that you say that MSU could have had CDR instead of MoJo? Where do you get this? CDR never had interest in MSU. Check out this article from when CDR was the #24 recruit in the countrt.



The following day is when he decided not to show up for his game.

He showed those coaches who had the power.