Predict the 2019 Class
- Thread starter What Would Jesus Do?
- Start date
Agree......thought I saw a little Laettner in one of hi highlight vids.
lester doesn't have an offer just yet, but i believe nate james is keeping tabs on him
I like recruits that are on the come up. A huge, and I mean HUGE flaw in HS rankings is how early they start. Ranking middle school kids (essentially all the reputable sites do this, if only internally) is flawed. It rewards kids that are simply bigger and more athletic than their peers.
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The problem with this, is that once ranked very highly, the media/evaluators are loathe to drop them. In writeups, it is easier to talk about how a lower ranked player is playing well than to simply state reality: this previously highly ranked recruit isn't as good as we thought.
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Often, it doesn't matter. The kids who have been top 1-4 for 3+ years probably are still among the best players in the class. But too often some kid that was top 10 in years past doesn't fall much past 20-30, even though the reality is he might not be top 50. I like the kids who are putting it together at the right time, as they age.
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The problem with this, is that once ranked very highly, the media/evaluators are loathe to drop them. In writeups, it is easier to talk about how a lower ranked player is playing well than to simply state reality: this previously highly ranked recruit isn't as good as we thought.
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Often, it doesn't matter. The kids who have been top 1-4 for 3+ years probably are still among the best players in the class. But too often some kid that was top 10 in years past doesn't fall much past 20-30, even though the reality is he might not be top 50. I like the kids who are putting it together at the right time, as they age.
I remember when Seventh Woods was a top 3 player in his class and the next Steve Francis....good times.
The players I will always think of wrt this are Kyrie, Ingram, and Winslow. In that order.
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Heading into his soph year, Kyrie was barely on the national radar. He was a top 25-15 player after his junior year of HS (pre-summer). Post summer, he was seen as a top 15-10 kid, but not one of the elite players in the class. Post All-star circuit, we realized he was the best guard in the class, easily. After the pro-am, we knew he was a stud.
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Ingram was a kid ranked in the 10-20 range pre Sr year, but then showcased improved shooting, and grew, and became a top 2-3 player in the class. Winslow's rise wasn't as steep, but he went from being considered a pretty good wing player to being a near elite player from the middle of his junior season until the end of his senior season.
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You want guys trending up, not those treading water. Even guys like Carey or Cole Anthony, whose rankings are static, show steady improvement. We "missed" on a few guys whose games seem to have stagnated a little. Those can be blessings in disguise.
Really need to put the metal down on Hurt, because I think Self was implicated in the FBI trial today. Could Sway Hurt away from Kansas. https://www.aseaofblue.com/2018/10/...l-bill-self-adidas-consultant-trial-testimony
Hurt was never going to Kansas anyway..Hurt will be 19 and a half years old next fall he wants to be 1 and done. He wants 25+Mins a night. Not happening at ku they have 6 non senior frontcount players and expected to land JRE which he is a PF and a 5 star and a legacy .
The rumors here in Minnesota are that Hurt would like to play with his brother Michael, who will be a junior this season for the Gophers. Here's the caveat, though....Michael Hurt will graduate next spring and be eligible for a graduate transfer. So it's possible the school landing Matthew might be asked to take on his brother, as well.
I’ll take him and his brother in a heartbeat! The benefit of having his brother would be having veteran experience.
Duke would almost certainly have room for both Hurt brothers, should circumstances dictate.
The comparison I've heard from Duke folks is Mike Dunleavy. Hurt is very skilled, an alpha scorer, very versatile. But he has so far not been very inclined to go inside and do the dirty work. So, the Kyle Singler comparisons fall apart on that point.
The comparison I've heard from Duke folks is Mike Dunleavy. Hurt is very skilled, an alpha scorer, very versatile. But he has so far not been very inclined to go inside and do the dirty work. So, the Kyle Singler comparisons fall apart on that point.
I listened on the Devils Den Podcast them comparing Hurt to a "stronger Ryan Kelly." Hurt is also the PERFECT stretch-4 for the offense K excels in directing.
Hurt obviously has defensive questions marks, a-la the Ryan Kelly comparison. A Vernon Carey or Isaiah Stewart playing the 5-man next to him though would help alleviate some of those defensive questions.
Hurt obviously has defensive questions marks, a-la the Ryan Kelly comparison. A Vernon Carey or Isaiah Stewart playing the 5-man next to him though would help alleviate some of those defensive questions.
This raises a concern I've had about Hurt. He's an elite scorer. Only, that probably means he's an elite scorer relative to HS players, with an elite level upside potential. Translation, he'll be a pretty good scorer at the college level. Better than the average frosh, but probably much better than average frosh big man.
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On the downside, I'm afraid he's not going to be willing to defend and rebound at a high level, even relative to other frosh. Further, while Hurt has been very successful vs HS bigs, many of whom he's over a year older than, college bigs are a different caliber of defenders. He'll be facing juniors and seniors who've had years in college weight rooms and practiced/played for years vs high quality players.
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Hurt is likely to flash a lot of potential next year. That potential could make him a lottery, or near lottery, draft pick after a OAD season.
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Only I'm not sure how that helps a college team, like Duke, NEXT YEAR. If I knew that Hurt were a two year player, I'd be all over him. But I'm afraid he's a guy that has a marginal valued added quotient to a title caliber team, despite how good he'll look personally.
I think Hurt would be a massive liability on defense, but if you link him with Isaiah Stewart (who should be a better defender than Vernon Carey, obviously nowhere near the scorer that Carey is though), than Stewart can fill a lot of the holes that Hurt would provide our defense.
Hurt's offensive game is exactly what we need though.
He played about 20 minutes per game last season for Minnesota. Not sure whether his role will increase or decrease this season. He only scored about three points per game. He is a decent defender, though. As a graduate transfer I'd expect he could provide a little....maybe 10 minutes per game? I don't know. He's not as good of a shooter as Melch was when he was here. A more fair comparison might be a David McClure-type.
No. Hurt is only about 6'7" and 200 pounds. Both of those measurements might be generous.
Yes, Hurt plus Stewart would work. But I think Duke will likely be attractive to only 1 newcomer next year.
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For Hurt, his most likely competition for minutes would be Javin. I know that folks around these parts disregard such unimportant aspects as defense and rebounding when faced with offensive skill, but I'm less sanguine about those things. Next year, Javin will be a 6-10ish, 240ish lb explosive athlete whose forte is defense and rebounding. It might not be as sexy a skill set as launching 3s and driving, but what Javin does is the sort of thing that helps teams win titles.
If the Dunleavy comparisons are accurate, Hurt could easily play the 3, where there will be some available playing time.
I don't know what parts you're talking about, but most Duke fans I know value defense and the role player.
We like the "sexy" skilled guy, as long as he is willing to play d.
Someone has to be a complete moron to not see the value guys like Delaurier and White bring to the table.
I want guys that leave it all out on the court for Duke and K. I don't give a fat baby's a** where these guys get drafted.
I’m sorry but anytime I see the name Ryan Kelly I don’t hear anything after it. At that point, all I can think about the total awesomeness that was the night of his return.
I’ve been making the comparison of Hurt and Ryan Kelly for a while however I think Hurt probably has the skill of a Kyle Singler and the body of Ryan Kelly during Kelly’s JR year (after getting 2+ years of strength and conditioning at Duke but prior to his foot injuries).
