Let'sGoZips94

You're getting a great team member in Sayles. He was recruited by our old coach, Keith Dambrot (LeBron's high school coach). During his freshman season, he had an unfortunate wrist injury. A technical was called on either him or another Akron player for supposedly hanging on the rim for too long, and during a later breakaway dunk, Sayles let go of the rim too early with a lot of forward momentum. He did a flip and landed on his wrist; the injury seemingly derailed his career. Dambrot ended up leaving after that year I believe, but Sayles stuck with our new coach (and his staff including Dustin Ford) and the Akron program. His wrist was never quite right, and this past season was the first year he was fully healthy. He showed a lot of promise his freshman year, but we haven't seen TOO much of him until this past season when he fell a bit on the depth chart. I think the speed of the game is the biggest thing he has had to overcome after the injuries, but he's a talent, there's no doubt about that. I don't believe Dustin would make a connection between Geno and Sayles if he didn't believe Sayles could be a contributor for his brother. Sayles sticking with Akron through the coaching and system change (Dambrot and Groce run completely opposite systems and there were quite a few players that ended up leaving Groce's program early on) says a lot about who he is as a person, his mental toughness, etc. The athleticism is there, and if he's given the opportunity, I think he could be quite productive for Stony Brook. Edit: Sayles was recruited by KD but never played for him. KD left before Sayles' freshman year.

My thoughts exactly. Great job by Dustin and the Zips coaching staff for helping Jayden. Classy.

Isn't that Geno Ford?

What does the one-year probation consist of? If it's not a postseason ban, this is a pretty pointless punishment considering they get to keep one of their best players.

In case you need a good laugh during quarantine, here you go.

Groce's tallest contributors on his Sweet Sixteen Ohio team were Baltic & Keely at 6'8". Meanwhile we had Zeke. Big guys are luxuries, not necessities. However, I'd really like someone in the 6'10" range.

I don't know if the usual timetable applies to the game we're in currently. The NCAA shut down recruiting for COVID-19. I actually think coming out of The Rona with 2 open schollies is ideal and could set us up perfectly to be an attractive landing spot when stuff opens back up.

What a novel idea. Really. Truly innovative. I don't think any conference has done this yet. This will transcend the landscape of college basketball forever.

I can't wait to watch this for one more year.

Can't exactly be great for team chemistry, coming off a year where the team choked away the regular season title, when the star player enters the transfer portal and comes back. I wonder if the Rona recruiting ban is the reason for his return.

This program is in his hands.

He's special. His name will be in the rafters someday.

Wait, we could go undefeated?! HANG THE NATIONAL CHAMPS BANNER!

Amazing. If this is accurate, the ability to add 2 more players to this squad would be incredibly beneficial. I feel like the 11 we have currently could win the MAC again, but to add anyone to that would be a massive bonus.

I still don't think I've gotten an answer on this. Do we have a scholarship left to offer anyone?

What was the competition like that he was posting up against? Same size guys or bigger than him?

I'm guessing Linhart was in there?

I'm bored - the new norm. So, here's an accurate by-position list (I believe) of the roster (excluding walk-ons) for next season (grade reflects next season). Guard LCJ (5'8" RS SR) Garvin Clarke (6'0" FR) Greg Tribble Jr. (6'1" SO) Bryan Trimble Jr. (6'2" RS JR?) MIkal Dawson (6'5" SO) Tre Edwards (6'6" SO?) Forward Jermaine Marshall (6'6" SO/JUCO) Maishe Dailey (6'7" SR) Cam Reece (6'7" SR/JUCO) Ali Ali (6'8" SO) Taylor Currie (6'8" FR) Am I missing anyone/anything? Do we have any open schollies left? We need one big in there, at least 6'9"/6'10". Our perimeter defense will be unmatched, though. Our height and athleticism will be a nightmare for other teams. Guys like Trimble, Edwards, and Dailey saw first-hand what Groce wants to do on offense and defense, and should have no problem living up to the expectations set by this year's squad.

Can we get an updated Scholly Chart if possible? There's nothing better to do nowadays. ?

X is the kinda guy I wish we could have had for 4 years. He represented the Blue & Gold incredibly well.

My guess is no because he's a JUCO. I believe it's a seamless transition to DI ball from there. I said this in the Recruiting thread for him, but he looks like a slightly weaker Reece with a jump shot. He finishes well around the rim with/after contact, and is heady on defense with an aggressive approach. Groce's strength & conditioning program should have no problem putting size on him. I think he'll fit the system nicely, and as we've seen with Groce's recruiting tactics, it's all about the system fit - not the "traditional basketball" fit of grabbing guys just because of their height, etc.

Interesting... Looks like a slightly weaker Cam Reece, but with a jump shot. He looks athletic enough to stretch the floor, and seems to finish well with/after contact around the rim. He plays bigger than 6'6", and Groce's strength & conditioning program will have no problem putting size on him. I like the idea of adding more experience to this squad!

Only two players that scared me from that squad. Well done WMU. Hope The Rona was a good enough excuse to submarine your program even more.

100% agree with all of this. LCJ definitely isn't going anywhere, and this team is going to be just fine from a leadership standpoint. Completely forgot we have Garvin coming in. By the way, did you mean Tribble? Trimble and Tribble will be confusing for the next couple of seasons haha. I'm looking for Tribble to make a massive leap, and hope he focuses on his shot & free throws. Trimble, coming from the St. John's program, should be able to step in right away and produce. Any word on what Buffalo's recruiting is like this year with the newish coach and a disappointing year? Akron has to be the pre-season favorite with LCJ returning (nobody is going to dig deep enough into the MAC to look past LCJ), but OU will be VERY formidable. Boals & Groce are building something special at their respective schools, and that's going to be a fun rivalry all the way around - coaching (although I can't hate Boals), players, and school.