A little basketball recruiting

[Russ Smith]

The So Cal all stars won the TOC in North Carolina over the weekend and Chase Budinger won the MVP. Coincidentally he visits UCLA this weekend, James Keefe(verbally committed to UCLA) has reportedly said he'll change his official visit so he and Chase(good friends both on So Cal All stars) will visit together and he'll try to get Chase to commit to UCLA. Chase is down to UCLA, UA and USC but even Ben Hansen the UA recruiting "guru" says UCLA is now the clear leader and he thinks UA coaches have all but thrown in the towel with Budinger.

Here's a link to a video of the So Cal All stars in a game against Las Vegas all star AAU team. Keefe is the tallest white guy, Budinger the kid with the Napoleon Dynamite hair, and Taylor King is the lefty who keeps shooting as soon as he crosses halfcourt. I think I've figured out why King de committed from UCLA, why Ben Howland didn't make a big deal of it etc, it's pretty clear that after Keefe verballed to UCLA and Budinger put them at the top of his list, King got worried he wasn't going to get as much playing time at UCLA. King's a great prospect but in this clip(it's long) he takes some shots you can visibly see Keefe and budinger shaking their heads

at.http://www.hooptv.net/video/index.html

It's the feature game on the link, click on watch now and wait for the download.

 

[MaoTosiFanClub]

Russ - Honestly, is the reason you and the rest of Bruin Nation aren't so enamored with King anymore is because of his de-committment from UCLA or did everyone in SoCal just sour on his game?

 

[Russ Smith]

Russ - Honestly, is the reason you and the rest of Bruin Nation aren't so enamored with King anymore is because of his de-committment from UCLA or did everyone in SoCal just sour on his game?

Honestly this clip is the first actual footage I've seen of him play so I can't say I soured on him because all I had to go on was his national rep. But if you watch the clip you see a kid with a quick release, unreal range, but absolutely a gunner. He's not overly athletic, didn't play much defense, and this clip is maybe 10 minutes of game time and he probably takes 12 shots in those 10 minutes and maybe 2 of them are "good shots in the flow of the offense".

now if Taylor King winds up wanting to be a Bruin that's great, he's a great shooter and I am sure he'll be a good college player eventually. But based on this clip, and what happened at the TOC, I think most Bruin fans(and most national recruiting gurus) have decided Chase Budinger is now a much better overall player.

I have no issue with King de committing, he committed way too early and I never really considered it a "real" commit because of that. But based on what you hear now it's pretty likely that Howland wasn't exactly begging him to change his mind when he de-committed because Ben probably now thinks Budinger is the better prospect.

If all 3 of Budinger, Keefe and King wind up at UCLA I'll be thrilled, but it's pretty clear that if that's the case one of them is going to be very unhappy with his PT(maybe more depending on who else is there) and based on this one clip, I'd say that one is King because all he really does is shoot the ball. Keefe and Budinger are much better athletes, much better defenders, better rebounders, and much more "competitive" players, and Howland loves guys who play hungry.

Again, it's the only footage I've seen of any of them but if I didn't know anything about any of the 3 before I watched that clip I'd come away ranking them Budinger, Keefe and King in that order. There's a kid on the Vegas team that actually outplays all of them, explosive first step, great crossover, but I'm told he's not a very good shooter and has poor grades(I forget his name) so most Pac 10 schools aren't recruiting him at all.

When people first started saying maybe Ben prefers Budinger I thought it was sour grapes, but off this and the TOC performance, I'd say that's precisely what has happened.

 

[MaoTosiFanClub]

Russ I thought you'd like to hear this - Apparently Budinger was going to be in Tucson next weekend for Lute's Skills Camp which would feature guys like RJ, Bibby, Miles Simon, Damon Stoudamire, Walton, Igoudala, etc. etc. as well as top HS players. But recently he broke his hand and is now isn't going to be able to make it. Tough luck as a recruiting opportunity with that many pros would have been great for the Cats.

 

[overseascardfan]

Does anyone have any recent news on Lance Thomas, Alex Stephenson, Spencer Hawes, or Quincy Pondexter. I have be looking at Rivals and Scout.com but has anyone heard anything new on these guys or know of any other recruiting sites that are good?

 

[MaoTosiFanClub]

Budinger to Arizona?

If true, Bruin fans' worst nightmares could be coming true. Lute still getting SoCal recruits even after the Lavin Era has been forgotten should cause serious meltdowns in Westwood.

*RUMOR*http://www.bruinsnation.com/story/2005/7/6/144041/2153*RUMOR*

 

[Russ Smith]

Russ I thought you'd like to hear this - Apparently Budinger was going to be in Tucson next weekend for Lute's Skills Camp which would feature guys like RJ, Bibby, Miles Simon, Damon Stoudamire, Walton, Igoudala, etc. etc. as well as top HS players. But recently he broke his hand and is now isn't going to be able to make it. Tough luck as a recruiting opportunity with that many pros would have been great for the Cats.

Yes he broke his wrist at some camp. And King has gone off since scoring 46 in some tourney and lighting it up in another(theyr'e on the same AAU team).

I read that Arizona was going to sign some kid named Pondexter because they figured Chase was going to UCLA anyways, but that's from a UCLA fan so consider the bias.

 

[Russ Smith]

If true, Bruin fans' worst nightmares could be coming true. Lute still getting SoCal recruits even after the Lavin Era has been forgotten should cause serious meltdowns in Westwood.

*RUMOR*http://www.bruinsnation.com/story/2005/7/6/144041/2153*RUMOR*

I saw that earlier today looking at a Bruin Nation link on Bruinzone about UCLA's kids in summer league. I don't know who the guy is but he's name drops a guy who posts on 2 Bruin boards I read, and that guy is usually quite reliable so we'll see.

UCLA thought they had Chase locked up, they honestly thought he might commit when he visited with Keefe, so if Lute got him he did a hell of a job recruiting him considering UCLA's dominant mens volleyball program(chase is a top volleyball player).

It'll definitely concern some UCLA fans since we were all being told he was coming to Westwood, on the heels of King de committing. He's a very good player so if he does go to ARizona you got a good one.

 

[Russ Smith]

Does anyone have any recent news on Lance Thomas, Alex Stephenson, Spencer Hawes, or Quincy Pondexter. I have be looking at Rivals and Scout.com but has anyone heard anything new on these guys or know of any other recruiting sites that are good?

The same guy who said Budinger is a lock to Arizona says Pondexter won't qualify, and Stepheson has grade problems too. Again I have no idea who the guy is or how connected he really is.

I figure Hawes is going to UW unless Romar gets in more trouble before then, that seems to be the though although I've heard UNC might have a shot.

FYI a guy on BRO posted today that the rumor in Oregon is that Ernie Kent gave his 30 day notice to resign as head coach over the scandal I posted about earlier. Lot of rumors out there right now.

 

[MaoTosiFanClub]

Yes he broke his wrist at some camp. And King has gone off since scoring 46 in some tourney and lighting it up in another(theyr'e on the same AAU team).

I read that Arizona was going to sign some kid named Pondexter because they figured Chase was going to UCLA anyways, but that's from a UCLA fan so consider the bias.

Turns out Chase did attend Arizona's camp (although did not participate due to injury) and was introduced to all the NBA players there. If Budinger committed to Arizona as the rumors say he has, I'm sure that recruiting effort was a huge part of it.

 

[Lefty]

Lute brought Chase in last weekend and he got to see Jefferson, Walton, Bibby, Igoudala, Terry and Kerr play pickup games. Bringing in guys who are making millions of dollars and having them sell the program is a huge plus. I read Chase's dad said his son will commit to the UofA in a couple of weeks. This surprised me because I thought he was going to UCLA. Time will only tell.

 

[Mulli]

Meanwhile, in Tempe, the lack of recruiting news is more stifling than the heat. Even the crickets got bored and stopped chirping.

 

[MaoTosiFanClub]

Meanwhile, in Tempe, the lack of recruiting news is more stifling than the heat. Even the crickets got bored and stopped chirping.

Didn't you read the paper today? Evans gave out Ike's former scholarship to some dude who couldn't even get on the court at UC Davis. His picture in the top right corner of the link tells you all you need to know.

http://www.azcentral.com/arizonarepublic/sports/articles/0707asuhoop0707.html

 

[Mulli]

Didn't you read the paper today? Evans gave out Ike's former scholarship to some dude who couldn't even get on the court at UC Davis. His picture in the top right corner of the link tells you all you need to know.

http://www.azcentral.com/arizonarepublic/sports/articles/0707asuhoop0707.html

Great. Absolutely perfect. ASU didn't even recruit him. Hmmm, wonder why? Heart not in it. I am sure after a few games of getting crushed in the Pac 10 -his new found enthusiasm will be gonzo. Anyway, ASU basketball can just not field a team next year. Would anyone care or even notice?

Thanks Mao. I suppose I had it coming, but this was a particularly low blow.