Maryland head coach Gary Williams had an in-home visit last Friday with Lance Stephenson and his family, according to two sources close to the situation.
One of the sources said Stephenson told Williams that he will decide by the end of the week.
“I think everything will probably come to a head by next weekend,” a third source close to the situation said. “Everything hinges probably on what Xavier Henry does.”
If the 6-6 Henry ends up at Kansas, Stephenson could wind up at St. John’s or maybe even Maryland, although that school had seemed to be out of it.
If Henry lands at Kentucky or remains at Memphis, Stephenson could go to his first choice: Kansas.
Henry told me last week that no visit date had yet been set to Kentucky, but if Henry were to get to Lexington Thursday and Friday, the whole Henry/Stephenson Sweepstakes could wrap up this week.
Adding to the intrigue, both Kentucky coach John Calipari and Kansas coach Bill Self flew into New York to meet Saturday night with Xavier, C.J. Henry and Barbara Adkins at Xavier’s hotel. Henry was playing in the Jordan Brand Classic at Madison Square Garden. Calipari went first and Self second. One Kentucky source said the “meeting went well.”
The 6-foot-5 Stephenson took an official visit to Maryland that met with some controversy after he was taken on a tour of the Under Armour facilities. Under Armour is owned and operated by Kevin Plank, a Maryland alum and booster.
Stephenson then appeared poised to commit to Kansas on March 31 before holding off at the last minute.
PARROM GETS RELEASE
In other news, Kevin Parrom has gotten a release from Xavier and will explore his options, according to Cincinnati.com.
Cincinnati.com posted a text message from new Xavier coach Chris Mack that read: “I spent the entire day with Kevin and his family on Friday. Kevin, at this point, wants to take a step back and breathe. He wants to examine all his options and so we have granted Kevin a complete release.”
Parrom could opt to follow Xavier coach Sean Miller and assistant Book Richardson to Arizona. He could consider a Big East school like Providence. Or he could opt to remain at Xavier.
“I think Arizona’s a possibility,” a Big East assistant said. “I also think he’ll visit three or four Big East schools. My guess would be Arizona, Providence, St. John’s and Pittsburgh, maybe South Carolina.”
A voicemail left for Parrom was not immediately returned.
Big Ben / April 19, 2009
According to Jayhawk fans, Self also flew up to New York this weekend. Any word on if/how a meeting with Lance went? They also still seem to think Lance and X could both be in Lawrence this fall.
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jayhawker / April 19, 2009
According to rivals.com, Self went to New York to meet with the Henry’s not Lance. I’m not a rivals insider so I can’t read the whole report, any truth to that report?
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TerpMasterX / April 19, 2009
Like I said last week, Lance is gonna be a TERP. X is going to KU and St. Johns program blows. Lance knows he will get better by playing in the ACC and will gain so much more from a Hall of Fame coach in Gary Williams. Gary for President.
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Cball4life / April 19, 2009
TerpMaster, you make little sense. There is NO reason why Lance should go to Maryland over St. John’s, if X goes to Kansas. The publicity is in NY, not College Park. In NY, Lance will be on every paper through the entire season, will be playing in MSG twice a week, and will instantly make SJU better, leaving him with the praise. That will have a heavy impact on his draft status, as he is a sure one and done. Maryland offers him none of that. Vasquez wants the spotlight and Maryland can’t give him NY publicity. With a weaker big east, a return of Mason Jr, a whole bunch of returning juniors, and two other solid recruits coming in, SJU is sure to be better. Add Lance, SJU will get a ton more press than Maryland, who will get stomped on year in and year out by UNC, Duke and now Clemson and Wake. Lance will average 25 points a game in NY and will get all that “Dicky V diaper dandy talk.” If X does not go to Kansas, Lance will, as we all know. If X does, SJU is Lance’s ticket to the spotlight. A ticket to a lottery pick next year. I think Adam has been right from the beginning, Maryland is out. It’s Kansas #1, SJU #2.
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DiamondbackRuss / April 19, 2009
Bill Self visited with Stephenson Easter weekend (same wknd as Stephenson’s SJU visit).
If Lance really wanted to go to KU why didn’t he commit after his visit? By not being “ready” and then postponing his announcement he got caught up in the coaching changes.
Meanwhile, it’s not definitive that Greivis Vasquez will be back for his senior year. But if he did and Lance came to UMD that would open up the court for Vasquez. I have to chuckle though at “Vasquez wants the spotlight”…as if Lance doesn’t??? LOL just look at his recruitment. Although Maryland lost to both Clemson and Wake Forest in the regular season, UMD is 3-1 against North Carolina the past three regular seasons. And beat Wake Forest in the ACC Tournament last month. Vitale will give Lance “diaper dandy” talk if he played for Maryland because Maryland is often on ESPN.
Having said all that, I’ve posted all year on Turtle Soup that Lance to UMD was a longshot at best. If Lance does end up at SJU that should by Norm at least another full season on the job.
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jayhawkfan11 / April 19, 2009
Terpmaster, take off your turtle shaped glasses. No way Lance is going to Maryland. You make it seem like Gary Williams is known for developing great NBA players. He isnt. People were calling for his job last year.
It comes down to this: If X goes to KU, Lance will be a Johnnie. If X doesnt, Lance will be a Jayhawk. Why would Lance pick UMD over KU? KU is pre-season #1 next year….and he can compliment Sherron and Cole.
I dont care which guy we get, but I prefer Lance.
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Oakman / April 19, 2009
Terpmaster, your just mad because Maryland isn’t being mentioned in the discussion anymore.
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TerpMasterX / April 19, 2009
I’ll be back on here next week when Lance annouces Maryland. Then we will see who knows what they are talking about. Cball4life is an idot. We prove every year we can beat UNC, Duke, Wake, ect. And Maryland always gets National recognition on ESPN every year. Johnnies are garbage and Lance knows it.
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smdub213 / April 19, 2009
Lance is either going to KU or SJU, TerpMaster hat to burst your bubble, but he is not going to go to Maryland. You can say what you want Maryland is a second tier team in the ACC. In my opinion Lance will end up at KU his first choice, and the Henry brothers will go to UK.
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Oakman / April 19, 2009
Terpmaster, if you guys are so good and your beating those teams, then why aren’t you guys winning conference titles and national titles? You guys are beating teams in the ACC, beat the teams in the Big East.
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TerpMasterX / April 19, 2009
FYI-We won a National Title in 2002 and we beat teams out of the ACC (Michigan State on a neutral court) We have sent plenty of players to the Pros, and we find ways to win every year without having millions of McDonalds All Americans on our teams (UNC/DUKE, ect.). Thats why Gary is a Hall of Famer. He takes average talent and makes them into players. Nobody picked Maryland to win 17+ games this past season, let alone get to the 2nd round of the NCAA Tourney, and yet, Gary did just that. His job was never in question, thats why our AD publicly apoligized and stated just that durring the end of the season. Get your facts straight.
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wonedad / April 19, 2009
with all that being said, terpmasterx, you guys are still second rate and always will be.
the elite crew of cbb will always be Kansas, Kentucky, UCLA, Indiana, and UNC. no matter what you do, you will always be 2nd class citizens so enjoy that. it is no coincidence that maryland is lance’s 3rd option right now. only if xavier picks kentucky, them MD might be in play as a back up option for the elite wing. enjoy your place as the 3rd or 4th best in the acc. that is all you really have. haha
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jayhawkfan11 / April 19, 2009
Terpmaster, Maryland has a nice program. They had a great team in 2002. Congrats on that. But, you are just saying…”Lance will be a Terrapin.” Based on what? You wanting him to be one? Sure you want him, but EVERY source and solid information has all signs pointing to KU or SJU. He was ready to commit to KU on March 31st before Calipari got hired at UK. There are no signs of Maryland EVER being the front runner. If you want him, great. But, dont tell us…”Next week he will be a Terp,” and not give us any reasons why you think that.
UNC and Duke are the big boys of the ACC. Maryland and Wake are in the next group. Everyone knows that. It’s not a negative thing.
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rockchalk84 / April 19, 2009
How are you so sure that X is going to KU to begin with?
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fmizzou31 / April 19, 2009
This game of chicken between X and Lance is getting pretty old. At what point does Self call up both these ego maniacs and give them a time frame at which they must decide ? Or tell both to get f’d? It looks as if Self is going to get his second ring in three years regardless of what these two guys do. Also, I feel more sorry for Lance is this situation. It seems like Self is disrespecting him by courting X. I think Carl Henry is loving the attention even more so than his sons. He is always willing to shoot his mouth off about something regarding their recruitment instead of allowing them to speak for themselves.
Love the blog Zags! Keep up the good coverage.
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Gohard / April 19, 2009
@ jayhawkfan…it’s easy to dominate the big 12 when there is only 2 good teams every year including KU. LOL.
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Gohard / April 19, 2009
@ fmizzou31, exatcly. If Lance’s first choice is KU why is he(Self) meeting with Xavier? Slef shouldn’t have anything to worry about if Lance supposedly wants to go to KU overall. Self is covering his ass incase LAnce DOESNT pick KU but wouldn’t he, Jayhawkfan? LOL
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Gohard / April 19, 2009
but y wouldn’t he pik KU?*
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fmizzou31 / April 19, 2009
Gohard–I could not disagree with you more about the Big 12 conference. Last time I looked half the conference went to the tourney. Hell, Baylor went to the NIT final and they were garbage this year. The problem with the Big 12 is that the bottom feeders of the conference are simply dreadful.
If you look at the “09 recruiting classes for Texas(which is insane), Oklahoma, Kansas, Oklahoma St, K-State, and Missouri I would say the future is pretty bright for the conference.
Also, Lance is going to be a stud no matter where he goes, he is just that physically gifted. I personally feel like in the long run it would be beneficial for Lance to play at Kansas because Self could teach the kid some defense. I have no real rooting interest either way. It would just be nice to get it over with.
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jayhawkfan11 / April 19, 2009
KU has won over 50 conference titles and has the 3rd most wins of all time. I think KU has supplanted itself as one of the best programs of all time. Regardless of how weak you think the Big 12 is…..KU won the natl title last year. Texas and OU have been top 20 programs for a while now.
KU would have had the same success in any other conference except the ACC, but they still would have won their share of titles.
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smdub213 / April 19, 2009
@Gohard
Do you watch collegebasketball at all? The big 12 is a very underrated conference there is a lot of talent in this leauge. They sent 6 teams to the tourney and they ALL won their first game. Also Baylor went to the NIT finals. Please don’t post ignorant comments. I am assuming you are a fan of the ACC or Big East.
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jam3554 / April 19, 2009
Adam,
Who is Barbara Atkins?…
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wonedad / April 19, 2009
Barbara Atkins is the mother of Xavier and CJ henry and a former KU basketball player
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Terrapins92 / April 19, 2009
Gary’s just doing what he should until Lance makes his final call. Nothing wrong with that.
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DiamondbackRuss / April 19, 2009
Why doesn’t Kansas just offer Barbara or Carl a job at KU to get X and CJ and be done with it? It’s not against NCAA rules and it’s not like KU hasn’t done something like that before. Plus if the Henry’s go to KU instead of UK, that would be one less kid Calipari would yank a ‘ship from at UK.
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jayhawkfan11 / April 20, 2009
But, here’s the difference in your smart little comment Diamondback. KU hired Ronnie Chalmers because Ronnie Chalmers has a basketball past. He was one of the most successful coaches in Alaska and has been around the game his whole life. Plus, the Chalmers wanted to move to wherever Mario played. Mario would have went to KU regardless. It’s not like KU hired a guy that had been working construction his whole life.
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DiamondbackRuss / April 20, 2009
Sorry if I touched a nerve but it wasn’t a “smart little comment”. I’m sorry if you have thin skin about the subject but all I did was point out that KU has done it before and that it’s not against the rules to do so…yeesh. KU hired Mr. Chalmers and hired Danny Manning’s dad too back in the day. Carl Henry is a coach for an AAU program in Oklahoma City, and he played for KU so it’s not like he hasn’t been around the game his whole life either. And I’m sure they could find a job at/near the university for Barbara…some KU booster could hire her.
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Gohard / April 20, 2009
Ok so outside of Texas, Ok-State and KU the big 12 is garbage, i don’t care if you think certain schools are on the rise? The big thing is continuity…how teams have favored over the past 5 + years. So what if a kid has 4 or 5 stars next to his name, how is his game gonna translate to the college level? And me @ Jayhawkguy, I’m not a fan of any particular conference, who says things like that? Oohh, big 12 fans do. Of course a big 12 fan is gonna defend his conference. LIke I said KU dominates a weak conference every year.
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Gohard / April 20, 2009
Not to say that I think anything fishy is going on in Kansas but Rudy Hackett of USC’s coaching staff has a “basketball past” too and he brought his son to Southern Cal. So does Dwayne Polee Sr. who is also on the coaching staff who has his son Dwayne Polee Jr. comitted to USC. So that hoops history excuse holds no merit. Admit it college coaches make package deals.
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USC.trojan / April 20, 2009
Zag,
It was reported that MoMo was going to visit Arizona, on Saturday.
NOW, the folks in the West Coast are saying MoMo has signed with USC.
Tell us what happened.
You are in the east coast and should of broken the NEWS!
Lost track of MoMo?
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Gohard / April 20, 2009
Where’d you read this, the L.A. Times? LOL
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jayhawkfan11 / April 20, 2009
I just wish this saga would end. I see X going to UK and Lance going to KU.
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DiamondbackRuss / April 20, 2009
Adam has a post of MoMo signing with USC…in fact it’s right below this thread.
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DiamondbackRuss / April 20, 2009
jayhawkfan11 FWIW Carl Henry announced today that his sons are not going to visit UK. And that they should have an announcement in the next 2 days. So everything is almost over and we’ll have nothing to banter back and forth about.
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theruckus33 / April 20, 2009
I love chiming in on talk about how weak the Big 12 is a.k.a. one of the largest misconeptions in College Basketball! You failed to mention in that talk as well the recent rise of Texas A&M, Missouri, and K-State! What really gives the Big 12 a black-eye is Colorado and Texas Tech. But I think pure idiocricy, or bias…perhaps both, would leave someone to say the Big 12 is weak.
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theruckus33 / April 20, 2009
Link on the no visit for the Henry brothers
http://www2.kusports.com/news/2009/apr/20/henry-brothers-close-making-decision-no-kentucky-v/
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dalebondz / April 20, 2009
I think jayhawkfan11 was just in the heat of the moment from responding to TerpmasterX. I didn’t find your comment offensive. With that being said, I read in a previous post that Carl already said he was not interested in any job when responding to an article about Memphis offering him the job and saying he liked coaching the kids in OK and coaching his kids was someone else’s job now. Most likely X is a one & done player, his brother probably not so much, but it doesn’t make sense to have him come in and take a job for a year or two when he doesn’t want it anyway.
In response to the Big 12 Conference: Are Big 12 Conference teams really that supportive of their conference? If so, I sure don’t see it…..
Please explain why you would call the Big 12 Weak. I know there have been some weak years, but all conferences have those. If your going from last year, I would like to hear how you have come to this conclusion?
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Gohard / April 20, 2009
All of you big 12 supporters keep saying the same thing. “we have teams on the rise and we’re highly misconcepted.” But nobody cares, you sound like a broken record… and if the big 12 is so friggin’ great, why are you so commonly misconcepted? LOL. Look, when your beloved conference gets some continuity going, I’ll cut you guys some slack. Until, get over yourselves. Nobody cares about your pre-season # 1, It’s not even Fall yet.
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fmizzou31 / April 20, 2009
gohard do us all a favor a buy a dictionary. My 3 year old can spell better than you.
Also, the misuse of punctuation makes it extremely difficult to understand your comments.
Also, jag off we didn’t proclaim ourselves preseason #1, it was the media and others.
Apparently someone cares about us.
I guess we must be highly misconcepted, whatever that word is.
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