lol, Costner leaving early. For what? NBDL?

[Edited on February 9, 2008 at 1:14 AM. Reason : .]

2/9/2008 1:14:04 AM

I said next year if he plays like the way we've seen him play before. Like when he hung 30 points on Duke. He was on NBA scouts radar coming into this year. If he comes out next year and lights it up he could definitely be a lottery pick. He has the body for rebounding and banging down low, but also (when he's on) can light it up with his jump shooting. Also he's a lefty which you don't see much of.

2/9/2008 1:27:53 AM

It seems a lot of people are just looking at the star rankings and saying that the guys coming in next year and Wood coming in 09, aren't the kind of players we need to win championships. Especially on PP. You should see the bickering over there. It seems like some of them think that every year we should be bringing in 3 Top 50 players all with 4 and 5 star ratings. That is just ludicrous though.

According to Rivals.com Top 150 overall players
Julius Mays #146
C.J. Williams #142

Notable basketball power programs that have commitments from the 2008 class that are 3 star players:
Louisville - Jared Swopshire - #149 player
Kansas - Quintrell Thomas - #147
Marquette - Nick Williams - #145
Louisville - Melquan Bolding - #143
Florida - Ray Shipman - #137
Florida - Erving Walker - #128
Michigan State - Draymond Green - #122
Duke - Olek Czyz - #102
Marquette - Tyshawn Taylor - #101

2/9/2008 2:22:41 AM

^those are the best recruits in their class, right?

2/9/2008 2:23:43 AM

The 08 class was hampered by only having 2 scholarships available. CJ Williams was a 4* player before he got injured. The 09 class hasn't even taken shape yet, and people are already questioning Lowe's recruiting. What if Lowe lands Wall, Brown, and Favors to go along with Wood? Everyone will be singing his praises. The bottom line is that we should trust Sid and the staff. They know what they are doing. He's got what a lot of the recruiting gurus peg as a Top 10 player in CJ Leslie for the class of 2010. I hope Wood comes in and lights it up and shows why he deserved the scholarship offer. He nearly hits 50% of his 3 pointers. With that kind of shooting ability he could very well be of the caliber of Stephen Curry (3*'s), Terrence Oglesby (3*'s), A.J. Graves (2*'s), or even a Chris Lofton (3*'s). If we had a shooter that was even close to these guys' shooting ability we would be a much better team. JJ wouldn't be getting double and triple teamed in the post.

2/9/2008 2:35:44 AM

You are succumbing to the common NCSU fan affliction of unreasonable expectations.

Dude's shooting ability is questionable given that most of us don't know the context in which he collected those stats. Was he in a crappy league? Did his team set triple screen to get him open? Furthermore, those other guys you listed have other attributes that make them effective shooters. Projecting this recruit to the level of those guys is like projecting JJ Redick as a good NBA player.

He could be good, he could be mediocre. Given what we know about him and know what others think about him, it's a crap shoot.

That's why top programs recruit highly-rated players -- the probability of a getting a good player is higher. Lowe has not yet demonstrated an ability to find diamonds in the rough any better than top coaches, so it would behoove him to go after players who are more likely to be good.

If he becomes impatient or makes too many bad decisions, we end up with a team of also-rans thats lives at the bottom of the ACC. Lowe is new to the job and has already shown that he has a lot left to learn.

[Edited on February 9, 2008 at 3:28 AM. Reason : To be clear: getting role players is fine. Getting a team full of them is not.]

2/9/2008 3:27:40 AM

shooting percentage is a stat that you don't really need to know what the competition was like, etc. if you can knock down 50% of your 3's, that's impressive. one thing that would be nice to know is if he can catch and shoot it quickly, or if he takes time to get set before shooting. in one article he said he has the go ahead to shoot it from anywhere once he crosses half court if he thinks it has a reasonable chance of going in.

2/9/2008 8:07:54 AM

http://www.fannation.com/truth_and_rumors/ncaa

Well, at least someone thinks he's a top-100 or maybe a top-50 recruit. Maybe Sid does know what he's doing.

2/9/2008 12:32:17 PM

Bob Gibbons is usually pretty good at spotting talent.

2/9/2008 1:10:25 PM

According to Woods he prefers to come off of screen when shooting the 3's.

And I saw the truth and rumors thing on CNNSI about him being a potential top 50 candidate, that would be impressive if he moved up that high, and I hope he does.

2/9/2008 1:34:04 PM

Quote :

"Gibbons compares Wood to Duke guard Jon Scheyer because he's a good shooter with some athletic ability to make faces."

Fixed it.

[Edited on February 9, 2008 at 2:02 PM. Reason : Satanic post count! Sweet!]

2/9/2008 2:01:12 PM

http://www.chronicle-tribune.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080209/SPORTS/802090335/1006
Wood commits to N.C. State
Giant expects to return to lineup Friday

BY CHUCK LANDIS
clandis@chronicle-tribune.com

Scott Wood has got the best of both worlds lately.

The best part is, the Marion Giants boys' basketball standout is expected to be the same sharp-shooting scorer he's always been when he joins the North Carolina State Wolfpack beginning with the 2009-10 season.

"Indiana is known for its high school basketball," Wood said Friday afternoon, sitting on a table in the Marion High School trainers' room. "And when you think about it, Tobacco Road is known for college basketball.

"If I want the same atmosphere in college I have playing high school basketball in Indiana, then North Carolina is the place to go."

Wood made a verbal commitment Thursday evening to North Carolina State while Wolfpack assistant coach Monte Towe was in Marion. Towe, a former standout at nearby Oak Hill, now has plucked Wood and Giants senior standout Julius Mays for the Wolfpack.

Mays signed in November with the Wolfpack for the 2008-09 season. Wood can't sign a Division I letter of intent until the fall, but he settled on the Wolfpack as early as last summer.

"Coach Towe called a lot and I've heard from (head coach Sidney) Lowe," Wood said. "I took an unofficial visit there last summer and it's a beautiful campus with great atmosphere, and they had my major, civil engineering."

Wood, who carries a 3.5 grade-point average, said his choice for a major limited the number of schools he could consider. He still had numerous Division I offers, with Miami (Fla.), Virginia Tech, Pittsburgh and St. Louis among the schools showing the most interest.

Florida, reigning NCAA Division I champions, also made a late run at Wood. In the end, Wood said the chance to play for the Wolfpack in the Atlantic Coast Conference was too great to resist.

"The ACC is as good as it gets, and you get to play Duke and North Carolina twice a year," Wood said. (sounds like he's up for the challenge) "It doesn't have a network it can call its own like the Big Ten. But it has lots of networks - ESPN and ESPN2 and ESPNU - that shows its games, and there's all kinds of stuff about the ACC on the Internet."

Wood won't be the first family member to play basketball in North Carolina. His father, Scott Wood Sr., played one season for Division I Western Carolina in Cullowhee, N.C., in the mid-1980s.

Although Mays has known about Wood's interest in North Carolina State, he said Wood never informed him about the decision until Thursday afternoon.

"It put a big smile on my face, and I told him, 'Welcome to the family,'" Mays said. "It's not often that two players from the same high school go to the same college - especially a big-time college like North Carolina State. And we play well together."

Wood said Towe was instrumental in getting both him and Mays to commit to North Carolina State. After graduating from Oak Hill, Towe starred as a point guard for the Wolfpack's 1974 NCAA championship team.

"(Towe) and Julius have really formed a tight bond, and that's what I'm starting to pick up on, too," Wood said. "You want someone who can mentor you and be there for you when your family's not there."

Right now, the main concern for both Wood and Mays is to get back on the court. Wood has missed the last five games with a badly bruised left leg, and Mays sat out Thursday's victory over Huntington North following an appendectomy on Sunday morning.

Wood said he actually was warming up to play against the Vikings when his injured leg began to cramp. By the time he worked out the cramping, the Giants had a big lead and the coaching staff decided to hold him out of the game.

Marion's leading scorer said he should be ready for the Giants' next game Friday at Muncie Central.

Mays said he hopes to begin light workouts early next week and is waiting on special padding to protect his right side. Although he wants to play, Mays considers himself questionable for the Muncie Central game.

[Edited on February 9, 2008 at 2:52 PM. Reason : ]

2/9/2008 2:48:24 PM

Quote :

"Florida, reigning NCAA Division I champions, also made a late run at Wood. "

That speaks volumes about his potential.

2/9/2008 3:04:44 PM

^Yeah Donovan has a knack for getting quality white guys....Walsh, Miller, Dupay, Humphrey, etc.

2/9/2008 3:10:12 PM

http://www.charlotte.com/sports/story/485410.html

Quote :

"Indiana prep star commits to N.C. State N.C. State's basketball future is being molded in the backcourt at Marion (Ind.) High, which has provided a second recruit to coach Sidney Lowe. Scott Wood, a 6-foot-5 junior shooting guard, has committed to N.C. State, Marion director of student activities Bennett Summersett said Friday. Marion senior point guard Julius Mays has signed with the Wolfpack. All-Star Sports /recruiting analyst Bob Gibbons of Lenoir said Wood is a top-100 player in his class with the potential to be a top-50 player. Gibbons compares Wood to Duke guard Jon Scheyer because he's a good shooter with some athletic ability. "I'm sure N.C. State in their recruitment of Mays became very impressed with the shooting of Wood," Gibbons said. "He is a textbook pure shooter." Wood is N.C. State's first commitment in the class of 2009."

definitely sounds like a solid pickup that will fill a need for us. and we should have enough schollys to still take wall/brown/favors if by some miracle they all actually chose us (doubtful, but i'd be thrilled to land any of them)

2/9/2008 4:39:15 PM

i think trevor ferguson has left a bad taste in all of our mouths about recruiting a "pure shooter".

2/9/2008 5:34:18 PM

Anderson-Marion HS Game Highlights from January 19, 2007. Mays is No. 34 (you hear his name a lot in the video ) and Wood is No. 15. You get to see Wood's stroke as he knocks down a few threes.
http://youtube.com/watch?v=DcpJutr19-I&feature=related

Also an interview with their head coach Joe Luce after the game with a few highlights. He talks about Mays' abilities and says "there's no secret why he's getting an opportunity to go to North Carolina State when his high school career is over and he's only a junior." Also mentions Wood "might be as a good a shooter as any in Indiana".
http://youtube.com/watch?v=UCxHjb3HPeI&feature=related

[Edited on February 11, 2008 at 9:53 PM. Reason : ]

2/11/2008 9:53:37 PM

Mays looks a hell of a lot better than an unranked 3* point guard in that video.


^^ferg broke both wrists coming out of high school and hasn't been the same since. Plus, wood will end up being ranked a lot higher than Ferg when all is said and done. Ferg was 2star unranked.

[Edited on February 11, 2008 at 10:17 PM. Reason : ]

2/11/2008 10:16:51 PM

defense has got to improve on wood and mays looks small, but im still excited

2/11/2008 10:21:54 PM

^remember that that video was taken over a year ago when Wood was a sophomore and Mays was a junior. i'm sure they've improved and added weight/height over the year.

^^ Mays is ranked the #146 player in Rivals' Top 150 prospects in the 2008 class in case you wanted to compare where other players are ranked and what schools they are going to.

Rivals' Top 150 for 2008
http://ncstate.rivals.com/viewrank.asp?ra_key=1617

Rivals' Top 30 classes
http://basketballrecruiting.rivals.com/content.asp?CID=744502#rank
at Tubby Smith. also how do FSU and Alabama recruit so well when the same story seems to be played out each year with these two teams? be overly hyped. look good at points in the season but ultimately miss the tournament.

Rivals' Conference Breakdown
http://basketballrecruiting.rivals.com/content.asp?CID=739319

ACC (national rank in parentheses)
1. Wake Forest (1)
2. North Carolina (9)
3. Florida State (10)
4. Virginia (22)
5. Duke (26)
6. Clemson
7. Miami
8. Georgia Tech
9. Boston College
10. NC State
11. Maryland
12. Virginia Tech

Quote :

"The ACC has done something that no other conference has done in the early singing period. Each of the teams in the conference has landed a player ranked in the Rivals150. … Wake Forest comes in with the top spot in the 2008 team rankings. Three five-star big men are heading to Winston-Salem, N.C. … North Carolina landed a pair of five-star big men in Tyler Zeller and Ed Davis. … Florida State continues to recruit well, and the Seminoles' class is headlined by Alabama big man Xavier Gibson. … Virginia went to New York and secured Sylven Landesberg, one of the top prospects in the Big Apple. … Florida State was the big winner on National Signing Day when top 35 prospect Chris Singleton inked with the Seminoles."

[Edited on February 11, 2008 at 10:40 PM. Reason : ]

2/11/2008 10:26:08 PM

wtf wake

2/12/2008 2:03:06 AM

^ that class has been assembled for quite some time now.

2/12/2008 2:06:25 AM

Quote :

"shooting percentage is a stat that you don't really need to know what the competition was like, etc. if you can knock down 50% of your 3's, that's impressive."

I disagree wholeheartedly. With no one on me or with light defense I can hit 50% at the college line and I ain't close to D-III quality, let alone ACC!! I don't know anything about Indiana HS hoops other than Hoosiers, but shooting % if certainly skewed by the athleticism/talent you are playing against.

^ they were all Prosser recruits. They all decided together to honor their commitments to Wake...

[Edited on February 12, 2008 at 6:55 PM. Reason : x]

2/12/2008 6:53:50 PM

With Prosser's final class he did something that no one else had ever done based on Rivals rankings. Get three 5* players in a class. Now if you went by Scout's rankings then Duke has done this before in the 2002 and 2006 classes. Personally though I don't think Shavlik Randolph and Jon Scheyer are 5* players, so I agree with Rivals.

2/12/2008 8:02:29 PM

Quote :

"they were all Prosser recruits. They all decided together to honor their commitments to Wake..."

yes, i was aware of this.

2/12/2008 8:29:44 PM

Scotty Hopson

2/12/2008 8:30:34 PM

Quote :

"With Prosser's final class he did something that no one else had ever done based on Rivals rankings. Get three 5* players in a class."

UNC's class in 09 gonna break that record.

2/13/2008 7:36:18 AM

why twin brothers - who play the same position, and are both 5* recruits - would go to the same school and split playing time doesn't make sense to me.

2/13/2008 7:55:38 AM

Me either but you know what... if we get both of them might as well its always nice to have a backup especially when its the same person almost.

2/13/2008 7:59:14 AM

well they've got another 5* 6-10 PF to go along with their 5* 6-9 PF twins. why split time with 2 other dudes when you could go to another school and play more/be the #1 guy?

still doesn't make sense.

2/13/2008 8:01:31 AM

Quote :

"why twin brothers - who play the same position, and are both 5* recruits - would go to the same school and split playing time doesn't make sense to me."

If I were the coach I'd train one up focusing on a particular skill set, train the other up with an entirely different skill set, give them both the same number, and swap them out all the time. You'd never know how to defend "number 5"

2/13/2008 8:05:32 AM

The 5* 6'10 dude (John Henson) is a SF/PF supposedly, so are the twins. It's more like 3 of them sharing the PT between SF and PF.

2/13/2008 8:05:42 AM

^^ haha, nice plan.

^ i didn't realize that. if i had a twin and we both rocked, i'd want to go to a different school though, where i'd stand out. that's just me.

2/13/2008 8:07:53 AM

^^^ Yeah I was thinking the same thing, if each of them is completely different skill wise, imagine how much of a bitch they would be to defend. Even with different numbers it would be hard to follow the two of them if they are identical.

2/13/2008 9:11:03 AM

they are identical.

i wonder what it's like to be roy williams. you don't really have to do much to recruit, just scout out good kids and offer. you don't really do much to coach (even though it'd be useful from time to time). just sit back and sweettalk refs, really.

2/13/2008 9:13:31 AM

they both prefer the perimeter, but one of them supposedly has more "potential" in the paint, so that's probably what'll wind up happening

2/13/2008 9:14:21 AM

^^hopefully one day sidney can do that.

2/13/2008 9:25:45 AM

Maybe they went to the same school because if one of them ends up sucking they can just trade jerseys so the other one can get more play time.

2/13/2008 9:34:01 AM

i've seen "the twins" play and they're pretty incredible. they both play a lot like shane battier. they're oversized threes really...very scrappy...great defenders...solid offensively...i was really impressed with them when i saw them play.

2/13/2008 9:37:33 AM

Quote :

"The Wears combine size, skill and a great work ethic. They are kids who work hard outside of the game on their individual improvements. They have all those things going for them. They’re slightly different players – the interesting thing about them over the last couple years is every now and then you’d like one better than the other, but maybe in the last year the consensus is that David is a little better right now. While both can step out and play on the perimeter, David is more comfortable and is stronger on the perimeter – he shoots it a little more reliably from deep, whereas Travis I think long term he’s going to be the bonafide post guy of the two. Or that’ll need to be where Travis’ focus is. David is that guy who can relocate on his jump shot, has a better resumé in bigger settings when it comes to shooting the ball from the perimeter. Travis would be the guy you project middle to in and gravitating to the post more so than David. "

2/13/2008 10:49:05 AM

i think a lot of people will say that they resemble battier in their style of game, demeanor, and body build and size.

2/13/2008 10:51:32 AM

does that mean they can flop like battier too?

2/13/2008 10:55:38 AM

i thought this was a state recruiting site i did not know that this site changed into a carolina site. If i wanted to hear about carolina i would go to inside carolina.

2/13/2008 10:57:57 AM

i wouldn't, they won't let me post

straight up denied w/o ever posting there, bastards.

2/13/2008 11:01:13 AM

the thread title is State Basketball Recruiting as in NC State, not the entire state of north carolina

2/13/2008 11:26:32 AM

^ quiet.

2/13/2008 11:31:14 AM

So two years from now, UNC will have

Zeller - PF
Davis - PF
Stepheson - PF
Thompson - PF
Wear - PF
Wear - PF
Henson - PF

?

2/13/2008 11:33:58 AM

Quote :

"the thread title is State Basketball Recruiting as in NC State, not the entire state of north carolina"

Quote :

"i thought this was a state recruiting site i did not know that this site changed into a carolina site. If i wanted to hear about carolina i would go to inside carolina."

2/13/2008 11:49:53 AM

I'm excited about Mays and Wood.

2/13/2008 1:13:08 PM

i'm holding judgement on both.
cj williams as well.
also, cj leslie.

basically, i'm not sold as of yet on any of our current commitments.
this program needs john wall in the worst way.

2/13/2008 1:22:45 PM