With one day to go before Brandon Knight is slated to announce his college choice on ESPNU, his high school coach says he doesn’t know where Knight is going.
“Honestly, I don’t know,” Fort Lauderdale (Fla.) Pine Crest coach Dave Beckerman said Tuesday by phone.
Beckerman has been away for a few days on a cruise and expects to meet again with Knight on Wednesday morning. Knight is supposed to announce on Wednesday at 4 p.m.
“We’re meeting again [Wednesday],” Beckerman said.
The 6-foot-3 Knight is expected to choose from among Kentucky, UConn, Kansas, Florida or Syracuse, but a source said it will likely be either Kentucky or UConn.
The source said if Kentucky was the sure bet everyone believes it to be, “this would’ve been done a long time ago.”
The source also indicated that uncommitted senior forward C.J. Leslie of Raleigh (N.C.) Word of God “wants to go to school with Brandon.”
The 6-7 Leslie told BoxofMess.com he is considering UConn, Florida, Kentucky and N.C. State.
“He would go to UConn if Brandon goes to UConn,” the source said.
Stay tuned for Knight’s announcement…
MAURICE WALKER UPDATE
Amid reports that Maurice Walker has committed to Minnesota, his father says nothing is set.
“No decision yet,” Craig Walker wrote Monday night in a text.
Pittsburgh coach Jamie Dixon called Brewster Academy coach Jason Smith Monday night to say he was still interested.
“Jamie Dixon called me last night,” Smith said. “They’re still recruiting him.”
The 6-10 Walker previously told me Minnesota and Pitt were his favorites, but it was unclear if Pitt had a scholarship for him.
Smith said other schools were also still calling on Walker.
“Virginia wants him to visit. Indiana has been in contact. Kentucky even called. I don’t know if anything’s set up yet,” Smith said.
WILLIAMS TO HIRE AN AGENT
Memphis sophomore guard Elliot Williams will hire an agent and declare for the NBA Draft, a source with knowledge said.
Williams averaged 17.9 points and 3.8 assists in one season at Memphis after transferring from Duke to be near his mother, who is battling cancer.
The story was previously reported by FoxSports.com.
RON ROBERTS GETS RELEASE
As I previously reported on Twitter, 6-7 Jersey City St. Peter’s Prep forward Ron Roberts got his release from St. John’s and will “reopen” his recruitment, per his high school coaches.
ChicagoUK / April 13, 2010
The sky is falling on our heads!
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HuskiesNYC / April 13, 2010
I still give UK the edge but man I would be thrilled if he came to UConn. Brandon Knight and Kemba in the backcourt would be awesome. I give us a 30% shot
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BostonCat / April 13, 2010
i agree that knight and walker would be a killer back court. but i disagree on our chance. i’d say less then 5%.
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ZonaWildcat / April 13, 2010
“The source said if Kentucky was the sure bet everyone believes it to be, “this would’ve been done a long time ago.””
I agree with that statement. I don’t think he is a complete lock like many thought he would be, which is probably why Calipari is running around like a chicken with his head cut off trying to reach into other teams commitments.
As far as the other top unsigned guards; they have been waiting on Knight to see where he goes before they make their decision and the dominos start falling, which is what most of us have thought all along.
Should be an interesting week!
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MilesCat / April 13, 2010
I am confused, is this a good thing or bad for a Cat fan. Leslie was *rumored* to be in between NC State and UK. So if this is the case and he wants to go to the same school as Knight, you would think it looks favorably for us. For some reason, this UCONN thing has me concerned…have not heard a peep about UCONN, which worries me more than Florida,Syracuse, or Kansas. Going to UCONN makes some and more sence. These 18 year old kids make me nervous. Looking forward to tomorrow and watching the madness that follows. Go Cats!
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ChicagoUK / April 13, 2010
I wouldn’t sweat it. Knight is as close to a lock as UK could hope for.. Cal didn’t even visit him or any other PG the short window last week. Similarly, I think Selby is a lock for KU.
I think UCONN has a better shot at Cory Joseph. Joseph and Walker in the same backcourt would be terrific. I am surprised that Kemba is not looking to go pro.. great news for the Huskies. I think Joseph/Selby/Knight are at the same level.. all should do well.
My concern is Terrence Jones. It is unlikely that he would play on the same team as Leslie… and Jones is the best catch out there IMO.
Interesting next 5 days or so..
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razor ramone / April 13, 2010
UConn just took a commit from a PG Shabazz ??? who is re-classifying to 2010. Why would they do that if they thought they had a shot at Knight. Leslie hasn’t even visited there, so I seriously doubt he would just follow Brandon. My guess is that this source knows very little about what is really going on.
ZonaW-cat – Caliapri is actively recruiting kids who are uncommitted and are interested in UK. I’d love to get some proof around your accusation that Calipari is openly recruiting committed players. Please elaborate, because I call B.S.
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MilesCat / April 13, 2010
Good point about the PG Shabazz. IMO, as far as PG’s go, I think Duke got the best one. Irving looks a little better than the rest. All PG’s will have an impact on each team they committ to.
I like the T. Jones better too. A better all around player, but will be happy with either. Plus, you get an outside chance with T. Ross following T. Jones to the Cats.
How come no one talks about Coach K openly recruiting the River’s kid while he was still committed to the Gators? Just wondering? He is Duke bound anyways.
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Wheatgerm / April 13, 2010
“a source said it will likely be either Kentucky or UConn”
A source? C’mon, Adam. You sound like a tout at the racetrack. A reliable source? A knowledgeable source? A source close to the situation? Affiliated with one of the schools? With ties to Leslie?
An unmodified vanilla “source” is by definition unreliable. It’s how you describe your golfing buddy or your bartender or the guy in the next cubicle.
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ChicagoUK / April 13, 2010
So it gets interesting.. the New Haven Register says that UCONN and Knight have communicated in the past day or so.
On the other hand, Cal just said on his Lexy tweet that “they’ll be some things announced Wednesday; hopefully there is going to be some Kentucky attached to it.”
I still predict Knight to UK, and a surprise commit from Mike Gilchrist as well.
Might as well be optimistic!
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BostonCat / April 13, 2010
lots of misinformation out there usually started by people/fans desperate for things to happen.
like vol fans thinking they are still getting selby. and ku fans thinking they are getting jones.
if knight contacted uconn recently, its likely that it was to say “thanks, but no thanks”
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Wheatgerm / April 13, 2010
Good point about Coach K and Rivers, but how is that a defense of Calipari? Does unethical conduct become ethical because someone else is doing it? “But your honor, my neighbor cheats on HIS taxes …” Gary Williams’ answer is clear (and Billy Gillispie’s, incidentally). You just don’t do it. No, the Rivers matter is more about opening people’s eyes to Coach K.
Now that Kanter appears to be a beast, there’s some bitterness in the Pacific Northwest that the criminal Calipari stole him from the Dawgs, but another view has it that Washington, scared off by the professionalism issue, let the Turk go. There’s Elisha Justice, who gave a “soft commitment” to Louisville as a walk-on, but made it known he would consider a scholarship somewhere else. That’s when Calipari came calling. Don’t know another specific instance/allegation of Calipari going after a recruit currently committed to another school. Unless you’re from Memphis, in which case he stole most of last year’s team.
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UofA BJ / April 13, 2010
And i’d say there’s a 5% chance you are not down syndrome boston cat.
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UofA BJ / April 13, 2010
Selby and Irving are both better than knight in my humble opinion.
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ZonaWildcat / April 13, 2010
I wouldn’t get your hopes up on TJ, he’s staying in the Pac10.
Doesn’t hurt to listen to what Calipari has to say, or how much he is offering. It will only help TJ and give him some much needed cred and exposure.
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ZonaWildcat / April 13, 2010
How about Elisha Justice? He was all but signed on the dotted line to play for Pitino at Louisville and Calipari offered him a scholarship if he de-committed.
Only thing he didn’t do was sign his letter of intent but gave a verbal and Calipari went in with guns a blazing and got turned down. I believe Justice signed his letter of intent a few days after.
It was on ESPN as well as Zag had it somewhere on here. That good enough? I know there were a couple more but I can’t remember off the top of my head.
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ZonaWildcat / April 13, 2010
^^^THIS^^^
Irving is the best TRUE point guard followed by McCallum in my opinion.
Selby and Knight are both extremely athletic but they aren’t TRUE point guards. They are better suited at the 2 position.
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YankeeCpt / April 13, 2010
Lot of speculation out there…. Might as well throw in my 2 cents.
Elijah Justice was a UK fan. He contacted UK about going to school there. He asked UK for a 4 year guaranteed scholarship. UK said they would not.. so he is sticking it out with Louisville.
Kanter went from not being acknowledged by rivals to being acknowledged as a PG to then moving in the top 25. His commitment to Washington occurred when he was not recognized. He dropped out of Washington running soon after he was recognized by rivals as a PG. He declares the schools of choice. He commits to Kentucky. He then is recognized as a top 25 player. I do not think John Calipari had anything to do with his dropping Washington. I think he became too big too fast and wanted the TV exposure to get the NBA… sorry but Kentucky > Washington.
Brandon Knight and Leslie are likely UK bound. Both have been tied to the school for some time now. Visit any of their facebooks or talk to any of the NC State fans…. Each will say something to this: We saw him blow up on the radar, he has been tied to visiting our school on a regular basis, and as much as we want him…. he is UK bound.
Honestly, I can see the hostility for John Calipari from the many fan bases…. but honestly is it John Calipari that angers you or is it “your” coach’s inability to lock down these recruits? The rich do get richer, but this is America. These kids have one dream: NBA (paycheck). These kids are going to make their decision based on who will get them there the fastest. Sorry, but you can not fault John Calipari because of his track record of getting players to the League.
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ZonaWildcat / April 13, 2010
Or he said I can’t wait to be a Huskie! I mean how in the world would an 18 year old turn down playing for Kentucky? I just can’t fathom it!
C’mon dude! Not everyone wants to play for Calipari and UK. You UK fans make it sound like you can get ANY and EVERY player that you want. Well, Calipari has already found out that’s not the case with a couple players.
If it was such an easy decision Knight would have committed a long time ago like the article says. Everyone and their dog knew that Wall was going to the NBA next year and there would be an opening at the point guard position, so why wait so long if it was a done deal?
Knight obviously was torn by his choices and really wanted to think things through. UCONN has just a good of chance of hearing their name called as Kentucky.
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ZonaWildcat / April 13, 2010
Depends on what you define as a success. If your definition of success in regards to Calipari is rebuilding his team EVERY year because he is the king of one and dones than I agree with you.
But if your definition of success is building a REAL team that sticks around for a few years and wins National Championships (see NC and Duke) than Calipari is a failure.
To be the best I think you need players to stick around for a few years to really build team chemistry and balance. At the college level you can’t play for yourself and win ball games. Its a team effort and it takes more than one year for teams to build the chemistry needed to go far.
Yes, Calipari did a great job this year in such a young team, but that is the exception to the rule. He will never again have 3 one and done players come in there and play so well together. A lot of times coaches have to fight with egos when players are that talented.
So I would rather have a team that sticks around and grows together than a rebuilding project every year. Think about it; you are going to have a completely different team next year and may not even have half the success you did this year.
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BostonCat / April 13, 2010
whatever makes you feel better. if its name calling, so be it. its no fun watching elite recruits go everywhere else and have to settle for scraps.
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razor ramone / April 13, 2010
Elisha Justice is a walk on for Louisville. He grew up a UK fan but was originally told no by Calipari since he normally doesn’t have them. However, with 8 roster spots to fill, he reached out to Elisha about joining UK. Justice wanted a GUARANTEED 4 year scholarship, which technically does not exist. No coach will give that guarantee.
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razor ramone / April 13, 2010
Thad Matta is the KING OF ONE AND DONES. He was the original with Oden, Conley, and Cook all declaring. Before this year Calipari had 4 players leave after 1 year ( D Rose – #1 Pick , T Evans #4 Pick, S Williams – lottery, D Wagner – lottery). How can you possibly blame a coach who has had every single 1 & Done get picked in the lottery ?
I will bet Calipari will future proof his rosters for this. When this past class was signed, only Wall was a lock for the NBA. Cousins was 50/50, and Bledsoe and Orton weren’t even mentioned. Now after a year in his system they are potential Top 20 players. That is why I think Calipari will continue to get the cream of the crop every year. Not all of them will be this licuky, and will have to stick around for more than 1 season.
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UofA BJ / April 13, 2010
No ones settling for scraps. 3 and 4 star recruits stick around longer and enhance the program while the players kentucky will land wont ever be experienced enough to win it all and will be gone after 1 year ,2 maxl.
But I dont expect you have the basketball knowledge to understand this.
Im so glad Kentucky got Calipari and we got Miller. You got the better recruiter, we got the better coach and UofA long term success over the next decade will prove this.
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BlueCat32 / April 13, 2010
It’s being reported that Mike Gilchrist will announce wed. on ESPNU of his college choice….
Could possibly add Knight and Gilchrist tomorrow….
Go Big Blue!
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BostonCat / April 13, 2010
i dont know how you enhance a program with kids who cant play for a few years and go 16-14 and at best struggle to make it into the field of 64. then put all hopes when everything aligns right with a couple of classes that likely will not win a title or get to a final four anyways and then have to start the rebuilding process all over again.
but really what other choice do you have. at this pace when will zona have a roster even capable of making a final four push. 4, 5 years? at best? in the mean time what? 20-10 seasons at best? i love that miller is taking this approach too. i really do.
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BostonCat / April 13, 2010
possibly? lol
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YankeeCpt / April 13, 2010
In the end UK will likely end up with:
PG: Knight
SG: Poole / T Ross
SF: CJ Leslie
PF: T Jones
C: Kanter
added with:
Liggins, Miller, Harrellson, Hood, Dodson (yes I think he is staying). With that it puts them at 11. I wouldnt put Selby past them as well. It was well documented that UK’s PG last year was Wall AND Bledsoe.
I predict another high turnover rate in 2011. Then you will see Quincy Miller, Teague, and Gilchrist (amongst others) breeze through (pending lockout) .
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ZonaWildcat / April 13, 2010
BostonCat,
I would take Miller over Calipari ANY day! Calipari is a great recruiter, shitty coach. I think a lot of people feel that way. He got out-coached big time against West Virginia. With the talent he had he should have won it all.
And Miller was handed an empty cupboard, whereas Calipari already had a few good impact players and not to mention the class he brought with him that was originally gonna go play at Memphis.
And how many one and dones did Butler have again? And they almost won the national title, should have actually. Experience ALWAYS wins at the end of the day in the NCAA tournament.
A one and done every couple years is all good, but recruiting 3 of them each year is not how you build a consistent program.
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ZonaWildcat / April 13, 2010
T Jones is staying in the Pac10 pal..watch!
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UofA BJ / April 13, 2010
Abviously you dont understand UofA’s situation with the whole lute olson retirement. You keep bringing up 16-14 like it wasnt a rebuiling year. As for when Zona will start to make deep tourney runs again I believe 2011-2012 season. As for when calipari will make his first final four we are all still waiting. What a great coach huh.0 final fours in 20 years. By miller 20th year he will have a NC or 2 by then.
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BostonCat / April 13, 2010
no team had more wins then uk last season. and no team had fewer losses.
you want to believe that is ONLY because uk had great talent. thats fine and i understand that position. to admit cal is a good coach added to being a great recruiter means uk will be in an elite position for the next 10 years. and who wants to admit that? it also means you are fighting an uphill battle. no one wants to have to slide down the table. but if you think going 35-3 was the result of just being more talented then its clear you have an agenda.
only 1 team wins a title. yeah duke did it and had lots of JRs and SRs on it. but what about all the other teams with SRs and JRs on them that lose? you forget about them. syracuse, kansas, osu, etc. all teams with experience and all teams that lost. how did they lose, they have experience? they should have won.
i do understand why you dont want to believe you cant win with a young team. because you are not getting those recruits and have no choice but to take lower level top 100 players and hope that 3 or 4 years from now they are good enough to crack the sweet 16.
the reality is its not about experience or having 1 and done players. its about winning that game on that day. its about being better then the team you are up against. over 38 games, uk was better then their opponent. the last game, they werent. i know, i was there. it wasnt about coaching. it was about uk not playing well enough to win and wvu did. to make it about coaching is just take the cheap and easy route to fit your argument which is probably biased.
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BlueCat32 / April 13, 2010
Most likely or more than likely,That does sound better….Hahaha
I feel pretty confident about getting both players…..
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troob / April 13, 2010
This is the great Calipari myth. He is not “getting them there the fastest.” Do you really think that had Derrick Rose, Tyreke Evans, John Wall, or DeMarcus Cousins played their year of ball for someone other than Calipari that they WOULDN’T have been one and done, and very high draft picks, even #1 overall picks? Of course they would have. Calipari did nothing to “make them” into one-and-dones. They were all going to be one-and-dones before they set foot on campus, and nothing Calipari did changed that. All he did basically was tell them he wouldn’t get in their way with little things like team concepts, structure, discipline, defensive concepts, school, or any other annoying little thing. He’s just one of the guys — that’s why they feel free to mouth off to him anytime they want. He’s a peer, not an authority figure, and that’s what attracts some of these kids.
And what about the others? Bledsoe? Did Calipari make him NBA-ready in a year? No. HIs game is the same as it was in high school. Orton? What did Calipari do to make him an NBA-ready center in a year? Zip.
Calipari “gets them to the league the fastest.” It’s yet another example of the fact that if you tell a lie often enough, people stop calling you out on it, and soon enough it starts becoming accepted as fact rather than the lie it is.
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YankeeCpt / April 14, 2010
will do. just remember my above post…. and dont tell anyone!!!
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UofA BJ / April 14, 2010
My opinion of Calipari is this(because I dont hate kentucky), he continues to bend and break the rules when it comes to recruiting and has had a FF vacated at memphis because of it. His ties to WWW are only overlooked by the ignorant. And as far as in game coaching and in game adjustments he isnt a elite coach. Saying he wasnt outcoached in the west virginia game tells me you dont know much about coaching.
Sure I would love a one and done at Zona ocassionally, but would never want my team to be made up of them on a regular basis. Recruiting wise it is great and I see why you kentucky fans are so excited about recruiting now that Calipari is there, but if these kids only stay 1 year they only have one shot at the NC as your own argument points out only one team can win. As far as the argument that he has only had like 5 or 6 one and dones doesnt take into account the NBA rule put into place only 5 years ago. One and done talents went straight to the NBA.
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YankeeCpt / April 14, 2010
safe bet will be Doron Lamb in place of Selby in above post.
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tolstoy / April 14, 2010
Elisha Justice DID NOT call John Calipari. Calipari called him. Check your facts. Even the UK rag the Courier Journal had a story about it.
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BostonCat / April 14, 2010
your opinion is uninformed and essentially worthless. just because you claim you have great basketball knowledge and someone else doesnt. doesnt make it so. no matter how many times you say it.
to say cal bends and breaks rules is false. only because you have ZERO clue what he is doing. you may think you do, but you dont. the reason why i know this is because you are a complete nobody. so am i. but just because i read some crap on the internet by some random poster who has no real name, doesnt mean i am going to believe every word. and to think that cal is the only coach to bend and break these recruiting rules is naive. again you have ZERO clue what your own coach is doing or not doing. you pretend to know and want to believe he isnt. because he is your coach. no one cares what you are doing when you arent landing recruits. but they care when you do. which is why people hate cal so much. no one cares about miller because he is landing players no one cares that much about.
the WWW is completely overblown. again people finally have a person/face/name to put all the “shady” recruiting stuff on. so he gets it. again a complete nobody knows exactly what WWW does? please. you have zero clue. and if cal is such the cheater you think he is, do you really think he would use a guy to help him land recruits that EVERYONE knows, EVERYONE is watching, and EVERYONE is trying to nail? again bringing up WWW is just the cheap and easy excuse/argument to make. i would be more concerned about the people you dont know and hear about then the people you do.
and again saying he was outcoached and that the entire game just boils down to that, shows your agenda no matter how much you choose to hide it. how many games in zona’s 15 losses was miler outcoached? no mention of that is there. probably none in your eyes.
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