Quickzips

I find this all quite intriguing. I'm not completely sold yet that mes isn't just jerking everyone around. I have no idea who he is, or what connections, if any he has to the basketball program and the athletic department. If what he says is true we are looking at a substantially different team next year. We are almost certainly looking at losing more than just the two contributing players (C.McKnight and Conyers) that we thought we were going to be losing. If we are in for a backcourt exodus then it has to come from Humpty, McClanahan, Steward and Sullivan. It makes zero sense for McNees and Roberts to leave at this point because they only have one year of eligibility left. Unless they planned on transfering out of IA, they won't be able to sit out the mandatory year and still have any eligibility left. I also have a hard time seeing Steward walking away after the coaching staff has stuck with him this long and was still able to carve out some playing time for him this year as he tries to work back from all these injuries. I have thought from the beginning that Sullivan is the most likely candidate for a transfer. He simply got lost in the numbers game with our backcourt. I already addressed Humpty and McClanahan a little while ago and was promptly asked for the winning lottery numbers, won't make that mistake again. Edit: Just thinking this over, I wonder if mes isn't trying to get us all worked up over a minor move. He hasn't told us that the three alleged transfers are all scholarship players. I wonder if Kyle Peterson might be one of the alleged three.

I'm planning on playing the Mega Milllions lottery today. Since your such a clairvoyant, maybe you could pick my #'s for me! Wow, thats a little harsh. All I was trying to do was point out some scenario's under which this offseason might be pretty interesting. Most of which have been brought up by others on here already. I don't think I took that much of a leap of faith to say that we don't seem to have much use for Swiech on our roster right now, or that Humpty and KD's personalities have had a tendency to clash the last couple years, or that there appeared to be a rift between Nik and KD at the end of the year.

I think at this point anyone who doesn't expect a very "interesting" offseason is kidding themselves. Adjustments are going to need to be made, that is clear. KD see's it and the people on this board see it. The coaching staff has to sit down and take a long look at their personnel and determine who fits in where for next season and exactly what adjustments need to be made. Add to that the continuing debate over what to do with our 4 remaining OOC games. Do we make adjustments there and try to schedule a little better or do we continue to play a watered down OOC schedule? Probably the most interest though will come with transfers and recruiting. We already know that at least one player who otherwise would be, is not going to be back from last years team. Speculation at this point is that this number could rise as the offseason progresses and we look to re-tool our team. It makes sense that Swiech would be someone who might look for time elsewhere. At this juncture it is pretty obvious that a slow-footed 6'10" widebody down low in the post is not what the Zips are looking for. He just doesn't fit into our plans any time in the foreseeable future. The same can be said for Sullivan as the Zips just don't need another undersized combo-guard any time in the near future. Those two seem like the most obvious choices if we are going to see two guys leave the program. But, there are others that come to mind. Humpty has already been brought up as his personality often seems to be at odds with the coaching staff and, to be honest, he probably hasn't been utilized properly since he's been here. Bardo's name has been tossed around too as he already has his degree and, let's be honest here, he's peaked as far as on-court performance goes. Two other names that come to mind, Nikola Cvetinovic and Brett McClanahan. Nikola and KD seemed to have some real problems late in the year this year. A guy like Nik could probably go back home to Serbia right now and sign a pretty decent contract to play over there. If the rift between him and KD is big enough, that might be a possibility. Nitro is another case of a guy who isn't being properly utilized. The staff thought of him this year as a replacement for Linhart, and tried to make him into a SF. Problem is that Nitro isn't big enough or quick enough to take on that responsibility, and his playing time and effectiveness suffered. He still has a redshirt year left, so transfering to another DI school, sitting a year and having two to play would maybe be a possibility for him. Just throwing things out there.

Harris really doesn't look like what we are looking for. We have enough undersized combo-guards whose focus is primarily on the offensive end of the floor on our roster. What we need is a 6'3"-6'5" athletic SG who can put the ball on the floor and get to the rack and who is a good defender with nice lateral quickness. Harris, though I don't doubt he is good, is more of the same. An undersized 3 ball specialist who doesn't have a true position at this level.

1 word comes to mind........BUBBA Bubba never actually got an official release from the Zips. If he had, there is no way in hell that we would have allowed him to go to a MAC program as part of it. This kid from Toledo actually got a formal release from the team.

Have a hard time believing Toledo would have released him without a guarantee that he wouldn't be signing with another MAC school.

Joe Dunn said Steve McNeese is one of the best point guards in the midwest and people want to move him to the 2-spot. How can anyone question Joe Dunn's basketball IQ? I don't get the fascination is with steve at the 2 spot. Maybe two years ago, but get out of the past! He's been playing some great ball lately, and at the point guard position. Steve is playing PG somewhat by necessity. Humpty has apparently been too turnover prone for KD and Steward has never been able to get healthy. That leaves Steve as the primary ball-handler, but he's always been better off doing most of his damage off the ball spotting up and knocking down the 3 while only being a secondary ball-handler. If the Zips had a true point that KD had some trust in, a Dru Joyce type, then Steve would be playing primarily at SG. Explain to me his "damage" at the end of the season while running point guard...id say he's done pretty well of spotting up and hitting the three while running point. Disregard the assists to turnovers right for a second. He's been scoring, while at the point. Add in his assist:turnovers and its a no brainer, imo. He wasn't really doing "damage" to the Zips at the end of the season, but he sure could have been doing a lot more damage to our opponents playing off the ball more. A guy whose primary weapon is the 3 point shot (if you disagree with this statement, then there is just no arguing with you) becomes more and more effective as he gets more space to get the shot off. Playing him off the ball would theoretically facilitate more space for Steve to get his shot off. Further, as has been pointed out, while Steve doesn't turn the ball over, his assist totals are simply unacceptable for a D-I starting PG. A good D-I PG should be able to get you at least 4-5 assists per game, and the numbers across D-I bear this out. Steve gets you 2.5. For comparison sake, Dru Joyce, the last true PG to really start for this team averaged 5 his junior year and 4.3 his sophomore and senior year. Not elite, but more like what you are looking for from your starting PG.

Photo's 14,15,16 in that series is about how I would like to see the Rowdie's.

Joe Dunn said Steve McNeese is one of the best point guards in the midwest and people want to move him to the 2-spot. How can anyone question Joe Dunn's basketball IQ? I don't get the fascination is with steve at the 2 spot. Maybe two years ago, but get out of the past! He's been playing some great ball lately, and at the point guard position. Steve is playing PG somewhat by necessity. Humpty has apparently been too turnover prone for KD and Steward has never been able to get healthy. That leaves Steve as the primary ball-handler, but he's always been better off doing most of his damage off the ball spotting up and knocking down the 3 while only being a secondary ball-handler. If the Zips had a true point that KD had some trust in, a Dru Joyce type, then Steve would be playing primarily at SG.

Any info on how 2011 Prospect Stevie Taylor looks?

Actually, after the disaster that was their last coach Hipsher would actually be something of an upgrade.

I was as big a fan of Swiech coming in as anyone, but watching the little bit we've seen of him I think he would really be best served moving down a division. He just doesn't have the footspeed or the body control to warrant consistent minutes at this level.

The more I think about this mystery recruit Mensa makes a good deal of sense to me. Although he is just coming out of High School, he is originally out of Canada. Much like 2011 Zips PG recruit Dylan Ennis, that means he would be coming to the Zips a few years older than the typical freshman. His body is going to be more college ready than some 17-18 year old American kid fresh out of high school and hence KD would have an easier time justifying working him into the rotation right away. If we are looking at JUCO's one name that keeps popping up for me is Kendall Durant, a 6'3" 185lb PG from Weatherford Community College. He has been through Prep School and now Junior College and originally committed to Virginia Tech before failing to qualify academically. Coming out of high school all the major services had him as a 3 star. He is also a cousin of Oklahoma City Thunder Superstar Kevin Durant.

The most interesting thing there to me is the idea of bringing in a guard as a 4th recruit. This to me says either one of two things. Either we are going to be counting on a guard to walk on and provide a major impact on the defensive end of the floor or we are going to see two guys currently with the program transfer out and will bring in a JUCO/Transfer/Late Signing. From the sounds of it, I would think it would be the latter. If we were just talking about a walk-on I wouldn't think KD would be talking about him as a 4th recruit. The two obvious choices for transfer outs would have to be Sullivan and Swiech as both are on scholarship but neither has any reasonable prospect of playing time. Part of me wonders if this isn't such an obvious situation though. I wouldn't be entirely surprised if someone surprising didn't end up leaving the program. I really wonder if it could end up being a guy like Humpty. Especially if we are talking about bringing in another guard. As for who the mystery 4th guard comes from, looking over the list of guys we had offered who are still unsigned: Kofi Mensa - 6'4" 170lb - SG - Native of Toronto Canada, Currently at Mountain State Academy in Bekley WV. Described as an athletically gifted guard who is new to the game. Averaged 20 points per game as a sophmore. ESPN gave him a 90 on their super-de-duper scientific grading scale. Dominique Brooks - 6'2" 185lb - PG - Currently at God's Academy in Dallas Texas. Plenty of offers from midmajor programs including EKU, Hawaii, Houston, Buffalo and North Texas. Some reports out that he has verballed to Miami(FL) but the major recruiting services all still list him as uncommitted. Originally from Seattle. Grades were an issue out of high school and sent him to prep school in Texas. Adrian Rodgers - 6'3" 195lb - SG - Roswell Georgia's Centenial High School. Not a whole lot of other information on him, although ESPN gave him an 85 on their super-de-duper scientific grading scale. Out of those I think Mensa fits the profile of what we are looking for best.

I expect a very good 2011 recruiting class from the Zips regardless of whether or not we land Jakkar. IMO, Sampson would be the giant cherry on top. I am more hopeful after reading that Coach Paris has a working relationship with the Sampson's. Recruiting is so much about building relationships with kids and their families within the limited guidelines of the NCAA rules. If our top recruiter has a good relationship with a kid it will go a long way. This is nothing close to a lock, but I would say our chances have to go up with this kind of information.

I still have my reservations about Ianello, and will probably maintain them until we get a decent sample size of how his teams compete on the field, but I will say this. Thank god the guy is getting us away from the crazy gimmick schemes on both sides of the ball. I don't think I could have stomached another year of the 335 or of watching our QB's standing in the shotgun looking to the sideline for the playcall and then running everything East/West as opposed to North/South. I'm not too concerned about the reports of the turnovers from the offense. This is going to be a much bigger adjustment for them than it will be for the defense. Especially taking snaps from under center. The learning curve will naturally be a lot longer. I am definitley interested to see how this all plays out.

I am generally not a KD basher, but I do think there are some things he can and maybe should do differently. This is one of those scenarios. It isn't necessarily that he keeps guys on too short a leash, but there are certain guys that he doesn't utilize to the best of their abilities. Trying to play Humpty off the ball and make him slowly walk the ball up the court when he is playing point isn't utilizing him to the best of his abilities. Utilizing Nik as a C more than a PF isn't using him to the best of his abilities. Trying to make McClanahan into a SF isn't utilizing him to the best of his abilities. There are other examples, but I don't have time to go into them. Sometimes you have to stop trying to force the guys you have into your system and instead adjust your system to the talents of the guys you have.

I think this pretty well illustrates the argument. Many people on here have been equating athletic with good. The more athletic team seems to generally be considered to be the better team around here right now. I don't think there is anyone in the country that would say Cornell is anywhere near on the same page as Kentucky as far as athletes. Most wouldn't even put them in the same conversation with Temple and Wisconsin whom they handily disposed of over the weekend. This is where the theory is going to be put to the test this weekend.

The theory has been floating around this site for the better part of two weeks now that superior athletic talent will always (or at least usually) win out over intelligence, toughness and a high basketball IQ. Thursday night at 10:00pm EST in the Carrier Dome in Syracuse New York that theory will be put to the test. The 1 seed Kentucky Wildcats boasting two potential top-5 NBA draft picks and what many feel is the most athletic team in the country will be taking on a group of relatively unathletic Ivy Leaguers who are more likely to one day have NBA season tickets in a luxury box through the Fortune 500 Company they are a President of than to actually play in the NBA. I for one am going to be interested to see if this whole theory of superior athletic ability plays itself out.

Since there seems to be a lot of chatter on here lately about what recruits are on the horizon next year for the Zips, and it looks as if there was some misinformation floating around out there, I thought it would be nice to start a comprehensive thread for potential 2011 recruits. Feel free to add to this with whatever information you all find. Zips Verbals: Nick Harney: 6'7" 215lb - SF - Benedictine High School - Cleveland Ohio - Rivals.com no rating - Scout.com unlisted - ESPN.com unlisted. 2010 Senior will take a greyshirt year to work on academics, hoping to become eligible for 2011. Described as a long and athletic combo-forward. Deji Ibitayo: 6'3" 175lb - SG - Rich Central High School - Chicago Illinois - Rivals.com unlisted - Scout.com no ranking - ESPN.com unlisted. Considered a late blooming breakout star in the Chicago area. Athleticism to spare from the wing, but still working at becoming a more complete player. Had reported offers from Army, Chicago State, Eastern Illinois, Northern Illinois, Wisconsin-Green Bay. Blake Justice: 6'3" 180lb - SG - Peebles High School - Peebles Ohio - Rivals.com no rating - Scout.com unlisted - ESPN.com ranking of 84. Only a Junior and already the Peebles High School all-time leading scorer. Averaged 22 points per game as a freshman and 24 as a sophomore. Plays for the CBIZ AAU team. Described as maybe the best pure shooter in the Ohio 2011 class. Demetrius Treadwell: 6'7" - SF - Euclid High School - Euclid Ohio - Unlisted by all major recruiting services. 2010 Euclid High School graduate. Will walk-on as a Prop-48 with the Zips in 2010 in hopes of obtaining a scholarship for 2011. Academics and attitude issues kept him out of his first three years of high school ball. Has since turned his life around, and earned second-team all-state honors in his only season of high school ball as a senior. Alleged to have high-major talent, but his academic troubles kept him completely off the recruiting radar. Transfering to the Zips: Chauncey Gilliam: 6'5" 220lb - SG Brewster Academy - New Jersey - University of Maryland Baltimore County - Was the leading scorer and averaged 13.3 points per game as a sophomore for the Retrievers. ESPN.com 2008 Recruiting Page lists him with a Grade of 89. Below is a link to a high school game in which he put up 44 points. Brian Walsh: 6'4" 205lb - SG Moon High School - Coraopolis Pennsylvania - Xavier University - Highly recruited out of high school, but didn't see much time at Xavier. ESPN.com 2008 Recruiting Page lists him with a Grade of 88 while Scout.com and Rivals.com gave him 3 stars. Will have two years of eligibility left after sitting out the 2010-11 season. Offered by the Zips: Remy Abell: 6'4" 197lb - SG - Eastern High School - Louisville Kentucky - Currently has offers from the Zips, Bradley, IUPUI, Marshall, Morehead State, Ohio, Penn State, Seton Hall, UTEP and Wright State - Rivals.com Three Stars - Scout.com One Star - ESPN.com ranking of 40. Ranked by Bluegrassinsider.com as the top player in Kentucky for the Class of 2011. VERBAL TO BRADLEY: September 16, 2010 Aaron Armstead: 6'4" - SG - Hales Franciscan High School - Chicago Illinois - Allegedly has offers from Wichita State, Valparaiso and Fairfield. Brother of fellow Zips 2012 offer Aaric. Unlisted by all of the major recruiting services. Darius Carter: 6'6" 192lb - SF - Firestone High School - Akron Ohio - Currently has offers from the Zips and Can't State - Rivals.com no ranking - Scout.com unlisted - ESPN.com unlisted. Jehvon Clarke: 6'3" 170lb - PG - Timken High School - Canton Ohio - Currently has offers from the Zips, Can't State, James Madison, Toledo and Wright State. Rivals.com no ranking - Scout.com 2 Star - ESPN.com ranking of 87. VERBAL TO BOWLING GREEN: October 4, 2010 Markus Crider: 6'6" 205lb - SF - Wayne High School - Dayton Ohio - Currently has offers from the Zips, Dayton, DePaul, Michigan, Wisconsin and Wright State - Rivals.com no ranking - Scout.com Three Stars - ESPN.com ranking of 88. High School teamate of PG-Travis Trice who is also on the Zips radar for 2011. Some consider the two to be a package deal, though this is unconfirmed. VERBAL TO PROVIDENCE: October 12, 2010 Dylan Ennis: 6'0" - PG - Lake Forest Academy - Lake Forest Illinois - Rivals.com unlisted - Scout.com One Star - ESPN.com ranking of 40. Native of Canada has also spent time playing in New York City. Formerly committed to the Zips, but has recently opened his recruiting back up. Still considering Akron. VERBAL TO RICE: September 25,2010 Nyles Evans: 5'9" 155lb - PG - Hoover High School - North Canton Ohio - Currently has offers from the Zips and Wright State. Rivals.com no ranking - Scout.com - ESPN.com ranking of 85. Brother plays for Wright State and Nyles will presumably follow in his footsteps. George Fant: 6'7" 235lb - PF - Warren Central High School - Bowling Green Kentucky - Currently has offers from the Zips, Arkansas, Butler, Clemson, Cleveland State, Colorado State, Florida International, Miami(OH), Murray State, Ohio, Oklahoma State, Seton Hall, UTEP, Western Kentucky and Wright State - Rivals.com no ranking - Scout.com Two Stars - ESPN.com ranking of 88. VERBAL TO WESTERN KENTUCKY: October 11, 2010 Anton Grady: 6'8" 210lb - PF - Central Catholic High School - Cleveland Ohio - Currently has offers from the Zips as well as Dayton. Rivals.com three stars - Scout.com three stars - ESPN.com ranking of 91. VERBAL TO CLEVELAND STATE: September 9, 2010 Pierri-a Henry: 6'4" 180lb - SG - South Charleston High School - Charelston West Virginia - Currently has offers from the Zips, Cleveland State, Delaware, Marshall, Ohio, VCU, Virginia Tech, West Virginia and Xavier - Rivals.com no ranking - Scout.com one star - ESPN.com ranking of 92 (listed under Perry Henry as he is on many sites). At one time was reported to have already committed to West Virginia, a report that has since been denied. It appears Henry will take his time with the recruiting process. VERBAL TO VCU: May 9, 2010 Traevon Jackson: 6'2" 190lb - PG - Westerville South High School - Westerville Ohio - Currently has offers from the Zips, Arizona State, Cleveland State, Miami(OH), Ohio and Wisconsin - Rivals.com no ranking - Scout.com one star - ESPN.com ranking of 88. The lefty is the son of Ohio State and NBA standout Jimmy Jackson. VERBAL TO WISCONSIN: June 12, 2010 Timmy Knipp: 6'7" 185lb - SF - Elliott County High School - Sandy Hook Kentucky - Lists offers from the Zips, Duquesne, James Madison, Marshall, Radford and Tennessee Tech. Rivals.com no ranking - Scout.com no ranking - ESPN.com ranking of 83. Described as a skilled and athletic wing who needs to add muscle. Kid apparently has some aggression as evidenced by this youtube video. VERBAL TO EKU: August 16, 2010 Trey Lewis: 5'10" 170lb - PG - Garfield Heights High School - Garfield Heights Ohio - Currently has offers from the Zips, Cleveland State, Dayton, Can't State, Miami(OH), Ohio, Penn State, St. Joseph's, Wisconsin and Wright State - Rivals.com no ranking - Scout.com unlisted - ESPN.com ranking of 87. VERBAL TO PENN STATE: August 5, 2010 Delbert Love: 6'1" 175lb - SG - St. Edwards High School - Lakewood Ohio - Rivals.com no ranking - Scout.com unlisted - ESPN.com ranking of 73. Described as a deadly accurate shooter with good court vision but not much off the dribble. Jarrell McKinney: 6'3" 183lb - PF - Cooley High School - Detroit Michigan - Rivals.com no ranking - Scout.com unlisted - ESPN.com no ranking. Have to believe his positional listing is a typo as at 6'3" 183lb he would be the smallest power forward in the country. Football seems to be his first choice as he is being pretty heavily recruited as an OLB. Nic Moore: 5'9" 170lb - PG - Warsaw Community High School - Warsaw Indiana - Rivals.com three star - Scout.com no ranking - ESPN.com ranking of 87. Has offers from a lot of mid-majors and a few high majors including the Zips, Evansville, Illinois State, IPFW, North Carolina Asheville, Northwestern, Ohio, St. Bonaventure, Valparaiso and Western Illinois. Seems to be high on IPFW at the moment, but no official commitment as of yet. Moore is #11 for Warsaw in black in this youtube video VERBAL TO ILLINOIS STATE: August 8, 2010 Jakarr Sampson: 6'7" 190lb - SF - St. Vincent St. Marys High School - Akron Ohio - Currently has offers from the Zips, Baylor, Cincinnati, Dayton, Louisville, Michigan State, Ohio State, St. Johns and Xavier - Rivals.com four stars - Scout.com three stars - ESPN.com ranking of 92. Began his high school career at Solon. Focus on #14 for the Irish VERBAL TO ST. JOHN'S: September 16, 2010 Stevie Taylor: 5'9" 150lb - PG - Lincoln High School - Gahanna Ohio - Currently has offers from the Zips, George Mason, James Madison, Miami(OH), Ohio and Providence - Rivals.com three stars - Scout.com two stars - ESPN.com ranking of 88. Hails from the same high school as former Zips standout Nate Linhart. VERBAL TO OHIO: 8/2/2010 Aaron Thomas: 6'4" 185lb - SG - Aiken High School - Cincinnati Ohio - Currently has offers from the Zips, Cincinnati, Clemson, Dayton, DePaul, Detroit, Duquesne, Can't State, Miami (OH). Seems to want to go to Indiana though and is only really waiting for an offer. Rivals.com four stars - Scout.com unlisted - ESPN.com ranking of 89. VERBAL TO FLORIDA STATE: 9/22/2010 Travis Trice: 5'11" 160lb - PG - Wayne High School - Dayton Ohio - Currently has offers from the Zips, Butler, Cleveland State, Dayton and Wright State - Rivals.com no ranking - Scout.com two stars - ESPN.com ranking of 85. His father is his high school coach and he is a teamate of fellow Zips 2011 prospect Markus Crider. VERBAL TO MICHIGAN STATE: 8/4/2010 Aaron White: 6'6" 185lb - SF - Strongsville High School - Strongsville Ohio - Currently has offers from the Zips, Duquesne, Miami(FL) and Toledo. Rivals.com no ranking - Scout.com two stars - ESPN.com ranking of 88. VERBAL TO IOWA: 10/5/2010 Kirby Wright: 6'9" 190lb - PF - Middletown High School - Middletown Ohio - The Zips are his only current offer. Rivals.com no ranking - Scout.com two stars - ESPN.com ranking of 85. That is all I have for now. I'm going to try and keep this as up to date as I can. Like I said, feel free to add any information you might find.

I posted a video on here of Crider a few weeks ago. If you run a youtube search on his name it will come up. The kid is a superb athlete. Reminds me a lot of Jimmy Conyers. Similar type of body, though Crider being 5 years younger hasn't filled out as much as Jimmy. Has the ability to penetrate from the wing and finish at the rim and a strong defender. I would LOVE to land this kid. Trice doesn't excite me quite as much as some of the other PG prospects we have on our radar. He is a coach's son, so he has that going for him.

I've seen some reports lately that have him up to 5'9". Still not great height, but if he is just in the middle of a growth spurt he could easily hit that 5'11"-6'1" range which is plenty adequate for a MAC PG. All the reports on him say he is incredibly skilled, a good athlete and a terrific floor general. Not sure if he is the top priority for the Zips or not. We lose a lot of guards next year, but we already have Dylan Ennis coming in who fits that dynamic PG mold and there are a lot of other good prospects on the radar.

Don't put too much stock into the star rating system? BLASPHEMY! The star rating system is an EXACT science that accurately predicts future success of 17 and 18 year olds coming out of high school. We absolutely should count on the star rating system. Now where did I put that sarcasm button???

I can tell you how this helps Akron. John Groce isn't going to be at Ohio all that long. His phone is going to be ringing off the hook and Ohio is going to be looking for a new coach again.

Bassett and Cooper are giving Georgetown nightmares right now in the first half. OU is up 41-28 w/ 3:47 left. Bassett is 6-9 with 3 triples for 15 points. Cooper is 2-5 with a couple 3's of his own and 6 points.