Possible Late Additions

[UAZippers]

10 minutes ago, skip-zip said:

Oh boy.  I'm not sure why you stated that it has been "proven" that it was a one-time mistake.  That would certainly be the hope of whoever takes a chance on him.  Judges don't like to levy that kind of penalty on someone so young with a promising future, so obviously the details were very serious.  It was multiple serious charges too.  My hunch would be that nobody notable would go out on that limb.  I hope he continues on the right track.  

Article from when he was sentenced: http://northdallasgazette.com/2012/08/27/rising-basketball-star-tony-farmers-tragic-fall/

 

The author of that article obviously has a personal belief that the ruling was unfair, but I think it speaks volumes that so many people, including the victim (who had still broken up with him, so this is probably not some kind of fear situation), talked about his strengths and pleaded for leniency. The kid fainted when he heard his sentence; that screams mistake to me, not hardened thug.

 

A big kid was distraught when his girlfriend broke up with him and lashed out in a way he shouldn't have. I don't believe that should exclude him from living the rest of his life after he served his punishment.

[wadszip]

30 minutes ago, skip-zip said:

Oh boy.  I'm not sure why you stated that it has been "proven" that it was a one-time mistake.  That would certainly be the hope of whoever takes a chance on him.  Judges don't like to levy that kind of penalty on someone so young with a promising future, so obviously the details were very serious.  It was multiple serious charges too.  My hunch would be that nobody notable would go out on that limb.  I hope he continues on the right track.  

I said "If" it has been proven it was an isolated incident ... IE, going to take some looking into his background both pre and post-jail.

[UAZip0510]

8 hours ago, skip-zip said:

 

 

Hmm.  A battle of claims here, and two very different ones.   

 

I should clarify - I wasn't saying Noah had decided anything.

[akronzips71]

3 hours ago, skip-zip said:

Oh boy.  I'm not sure why you stated that it has been "proven" that it was a one-time mistake.  That would certainly be the hope of whoever takes a chance on him.  Judges don't like to levy that kind of penalty on someone so young with a promising future, so obviously the details were very serious.  It was multiple serious charges too.  My hunch would be that nobody notable would go out on that limb.  I hope he continues on the right track.  

 

I have to agree. While I did 30 years in the liberal NYS Courts, truth be told, that is a severe sentence for a first offense (IF it was the first). Usually a juvenile will be declared a Youthful Offender and the conviction does not count as a Felony. Aside from the fact that the female Judge could be a crusader, sounds very severe for a case with no permanent injury.

[skip-zip]

3 hours ago, UAZippers said:

I don't believe that should exclude him from living the rest of his life after he served his punishment.

 

I don't think it should either.   But giving him a chance to live the rest of his life isn't the same as welcoming him to your campus, making him a member of your notable basketball program, and offering him an academic scholarship.  

 

28 minutes ago, akronzips71 said:

IF it was the first

  

I'm wondering that too.  Not that it lessens the severity of what he did, even without priors.  

[NWAkron]

On the Farmer situation, I just wiped out my prior post because I watched some youtube of it.  Looks like he was shocked out of prison and maybe that was a strong message to send to him about consequences.  Bringing him in the program would be a very tough call. 

Edited April 22, 2017 by NWAkron

[LZIp]

 

[akronzips71]

6'11"

I'm in!

 

Kidnap him. Don't let him leave. Buy him a car and a cheerleader.

Do ANYTHING, we NEED a big guy really bad!

[mes102]

1 hour ago, LZIp said:

 

He's #44

 

 

 

 

1 hour ago, akronzips71 said:

6'11"

I'm in!

 

Kidnap him. Don't let him leave.

Do ANYTHING, we NEED a big guy really bad!

+1

Edited April 22, 2017 by mes102

[akronzips71]

I love this guy. Size. Moves. Bangs the boards.

Must have had some serious academic issues, he is high major material for sure.

[skip-zip]

I'm wondering what's going on with this guy too.  At that size, he's only getting medium interest, and mostly from only mid-major schools, and he's already completed his Sr. year of play?    I wonder if anyone has seen him play beyond his hand-picked highlight reel.  Yes, there has to be more to this story.

[72 Roo]

9 hours ago, akronzips71 said:

6'11"

I'm in!

 

Kidnap him. Don't let him leave. Buy him a car and a cheerleader.

Do ANYTHING, we NEED a big guy really bad!

Hell, do more than that! Feed him Zip cookies, then we got him. 

[ZZZips]

12 hours ago, akronzips71 said:

 

I have to agree. While I did 30 years in the liberal NYS Courts, truth be told, that is a severe sentence for a first offense (IF it was the first). Usually a juvenile will be declared a Youthful Offender and the conviction does not count as a Felony. Aside from the fact that the female Judge could be a crusader, sounds very severe for a case with no permanent injury.

I don't doubt that over the last 10 years this was the standard for criminal sentencing in NY.  Universities are facing major liability issues for allowing known predators onto their campuses.  Add in that  fact that athletic scholarship students are "invited" and sign a contract to be part of the campus environment.  Universities are moving rapidly to minimize this crisis situation and to limit future financial damage,  The tide is turning fast and I hope UA joins the movement to ban athletic predators from our campus.  Forget the past "2nd chance" logic.  Do you want one of these predators sharing a dorm hallway with your daughter?   Last week Indiana was the latest university to augment their athletic department policy to address this crisis.   See http://bit.ly/2pQdVO8

[NWAkron]

I'm not minimizing his horrible conduct, but I wouldn't call his actions those of a predator.   But again he would be a tough sell to Akron U community.

[akronzips71]

7 hours ago, skip-zip said:

I'm wondering what's going on with this guy too.  At that size, he's only getting medium interest, and mostly from only mid-major schools, and he's already completed his Sr. year of play?    I wonder if anyone has seen him play beyond his hand-picked highlight reel.  Yes, there has to be more to this story.

 

I think he was class of 2016 and went to JUCO.

I don't know how he slipped through the cracks. Great size and seems to have all kinds of skills. Shoots 3's, passes, reverse layups, blocks. Can even jump.

Either poor academics or something in his background?

 

He looks like a guy who would dominate the MAC.

[ZipsVoice]

Could some of you more knowledgeable (than me) B-ball people explain to me about these academies, like IMG with this 6'11" guy?  I read earlier in the threads also about the SPIRE Institute in Geneva having a team.  Are these like Summer Camps or are they real substitutes or the real deal for high school?  Do they play their seasons at the same time as high schools?  And who do they play their gamrs against?  Inquiring minds (well, mine) want to know....

 

Thanks in advance for your help....

[Blue & Gold]

Here's an example of Coach-Speak which is transparently false.  The proof is in the pudding...

Right... maybe for D-III ball.

[ZIPS96]

Gross's first recruit- Mark Kostelac!

[zipsrule]

We desperately needed a big man.

[LZIp]

One big need filled, and from the high school route at that. I'm far from some basketball talent evaluator....but I don't see a real weakness in his game.

[clarkwgriswold]

Kostelac looks decent.  Tough to tell much from the size and speed of the competition in some of his video, but he seems fairly nimble for his size with some touch.  Let's not forget, you can't teach 6-11.

[mes102]

 

[akronzips71]

10 hours ago, ZIPS96 said:

Gross's first recruit- Mark Kostelac!

 

Are you saying he is a commit????

[skip-zip]

10 hours ago, clarkwgriswold said:

Kostelac looks decent.  Tough to tell much from the size and speed of the competition in some of his video

 

I agree with you on both points.  Especially the 2nd point.  

 

This is very odd.  When I commented on him earlier, I thought it was strange that he was in April of his Sr. year with only medium interest and no offers.  Then I noticed that his Sr. year was actually LAST YEAR.....2016.   So, he goes to IMG Academy for a year and only gets an offer from Iona?

 

This is a strange path.  I hope he's going to be just a very late bloomer in terms of his skill level.  Recruiters typically salivate over a guy his size, even if he's still just a project.  So, the fact that he had to go this route is very unusual.  

[akronzips71]

Answering my own question:

 

http://www.verbalcommits.com/players/mark-kostelac

 

This is a home run. As far as I can see, this guy can play. Perfect size. At 260, he can move and jump. There IS hope.