My take on Diallo (New Yorker's perspective)
- Thread starter CatColumbia
- Start date
The ONLY decent reason to go anywhere else would be if he wanted to stay home. Any other points to go somewhere else would be naïve. Playing time, coaching, teammates, exposure...whatever you want to say, why anywhere else?
We haven't had guys explode into super stardom, but quite a few have done well for themselves. Kansas has had some great recruiting success, but Cal and UK have landed some crazy awesome recruits. Wiggins, Wall, and Davis are all superstars. I think Cousins is on his way as well. If Jojo stays healthy he will start climbing the ladder as well. But the number of recruits Self has landed in comparison to Cal is hardly equal. KU has some solid players working their way up or at minimum getting a nice check---Arthur, Aldrich, Robinson, Morris Twins, Chalmers, Bmac, Henry if he can stay healthy......UK has def had a ton of players have success in the nba
The lack of talk with the media has more to do with Cheick's people being pissed off at the hatchet piece that was written about him in the Summer. That is real. His HS coach has no clue what the hell is going on with the recruitment.
Facts are that Slice didn't matter at all in this recruitment--the loudmouth assistant from Iowa State who left to go to SJU is the one who runs his mouth too damn much to media and pissed off Diallo camp. Slice is a great guy but his recruiting background is a bit overhyped.
As for Kansas--yes and ask Cheick's people what KU mentioned to them about Perry Ellis status? They've got a great program but some things were said that didn't happen and not a good look. Self tried to smooth it out.
Last but not least--UK just made a mercurial, but athletic big into a Lottery Pick. WCS is going to show an improved offensive game and be a lottery pick and this is a kid viewed as a lesser prospect then Ellis coming out of same state/same class. Josh Harrellson got drafted for God's sake. I'd say UK would fit best for Cheick and I'm not even a Kentucky fan.
Facts are that Slice didn't matter at all in this recruitment--the loudmouth assistant from Iowa State who left to go to SJU is the one who runs his mouth too damn much to media and pissed off Diallo camp. Slice is a great guy but his recruiting background is a bit overhyped.
As for Kansas--yes and ask Cheick's people what KU mentioned to them about Perry Ellis status? They've got a great program but some things were said that didn't happen and not a good look. Self tried to smooth it out.
Last but not least--UK just made a mercurial, but athletic big into a Lottery Pick. WCS is going to show an improved offensive game and be a lottery pick and this is a kid viewed as a lesser prospect then Ellis coming out of same state/same class. Josh Harrellson got drafted for God's sake. I'd say UK would fit best for Cheick and I'm not even a Kentucky fan.
Agree with you 100%. Where do you think he will end up? You are treading brave waters. I'm a UK fan and still get bashed for praising other teams. People are so narrow minded and ridiculous.
A
anon_013cn8yrfncx2
Guest
Lot of good logical points made in the thread .. often the decision isn't based on our perceived logic. UK's best edge imo is Briscoe feeding him in the JB classic.
What things were said about Perry Ellis's status that were untrue. I think it was widely known and expected he would come back after getting feedback from scouts and teams. He basically isn't on a 1st round radar. Diallo should want Ellis to play opposite of him b/c it would take away the ability for teams to double one or the other. There is a pretty glaring need for Diallo at both schools and both schools will be left in semi scramble mode if they don't land him. Traylor and Mickelson are scrap minute guys---it's unbelievable that Traylor has played the minutes he has at Kansas. While both schools are great places to go....UK has been white hot with getting guys to the next level and getting paid---that has to play into his decision.
Good point, and no doubt WCS has increased his stock. The thing with Ellis is his size, and you can't teach height, and so his value in the college game may be bluechip, but it doesn't transfer over to the NBA game. It's gotta be an apples to apples comparison, not apples to oranges, and those 2 have never even come close to playing the same position. Probably better to look at WCS moving into the lottery and compare it to Embied, or however you spell his name.
I all fairness, Self has had great success with the Morris twins, Brandon Rush, Julian Wright, Arthur, Thomas Robinson, all of whom were first round draft choices and now Oubre Jr will be a top 12 draft pick. Thomas Robinson was developed from a top HS player to the number 2 pick in the draft. He's also had one and dones who would have been first rounder out of HS like Wiggins and Oubre Jr.
My take on Diallo is this he's going to play at either St. John's, Kentucky, or Kansas. Just my insight .
The twins would have been top 10 picks out of HS and look at the regression of Dakari. Not defending Self, but Cal has had his share.
How about Andrew Harrison and Aaron Harrison, top 10 recruits projected to go in the second round or undrafted? How about Alex Poythress, from top 10, about to enter his Senior year? How about Marcus Lee, top 15, about to enter his Junior year? How about Dakari Johnson, top 10, about to go in the second round of the draft?
Andrew, but not Aaron who was borderline 1st round. Dakari's stock is about the same as it always has been.
You could watch Lamb for two minutes and get a good indication that he would have a brutal time playing in the NBA. If he were truly projected as a top 15 pick (he wasn't), then something was terribly wrong with the system.
Elite college player though.
Elite college player though.
LOL! So that's where you're going with this now. Jammer Fredette wasnt athletic, either, and he was a top 10 pick. What about JJ Reddick? The twins aren't athletic either and neither is Dakari. They were still highly rated HS players many thought would be in the NBA. Self has coached up Ben Mclemore and Thomas Robinson, both of which were top 45 HS players and made them into lottery picks.
I see your Ben McClemore and I raise you Devin Booker.
Who had that guy as a one-and-done coming to Kentucky? For much of the season people had him projected as a lottery pick.
Who had that guy as a one-and-done coming to Kentucky? For much of the season people had him projected as a lottery pick.
No. I was just stating a fact. Lamb was never considered a big NBA prospect. He was never high on draft boards. His stock actually rose a bit if anything.
Maybe you should actually pay more attention to the draft boards. You obviously don't know what the hell you're talking about.
No way would have the twins or Dakari been lottery picks out of HS.
I don't know if you anybody on this board knows this but before a team drafts you they want you to work out for em besides taking your physical.
I watched the twins in HS several times and I was perplexed on how they were even 5 star recruits much less top 5. They had no outside shot, were not quick, couldn't keep up with faster players etc etc
Do you think that NBA personell would not see this at all when they would work these kids out? Poor Dakari would still be trying to make it up the court right now. He was much better down low as a an overweight guy than he was this past year.
As far as arguing over what player is going to be a draft pick and this guy didn't get drafted that high or this one did.. etc etc etc is all just stupid talk to me.
It would be like arguing well this 7th grader was ranked in the top 10 in his class and now as a senior in HS he is not even ranked. Players progress and regress at different stages. If certain guys mature faster than others around them then yes they are going to be more dominate until his peers mature and catch and pass them. Then you have work ethic, some guys just want it more than others. Not many guys play in the league who just lace their shoes and walk out on the court. Takes a lot of hard work, got to have that drive to make yourself better and to push yourself.
I'm not really sure why this fool is on Self's jock or why he keeps exaggerating and making things up to defend Self to the detriment of our coach, but the fact remains Self just had a Top 5 PF, a guy known for his aggressive play, motor and athleticism. The guy took a back seat to the likes of Landan Lucas and pretty much had a disaster of a freshman year. If I'm Diallo, I'm looking at that.
I don't necessarly agree with McLemore, he was freaking amazing before he went to KU. I would agree if you stated the Morris twins as they were OK players in HS and I remember them committing to Memphis St while Cal was their. Robinson really took off his senior year of HS and was deemed to be one of the major sleepers of his class. What is funny is that people that I know that watched KU practice or scrimmage said that this Robinson kid was far better than the Morris twins were. They never really understood why he never saw the court. When the twins left Robinson was finally able to get some pt and you saw what he could do.
JJ Reddick was a highly skilled fundamental guy who could knock down shots as good as anybody in college. Aaron and Andrew out of HS were upper 20's to around 30% 3pt shooters. they did not set the nets on fire. And of course we all know that they still cannot set the nets on fire.
I said it back when I watched them in HS till now, I would have ranked them in the 40's. They just did nothing spectacular, they were just solid guys who provided mis matches to most in HS.
What do you think Self could have done to make Cliff better in the short time he was at Kansas? You know as well as I do that Cliff had big question marks coming into college b/c he was an undersized big man. He himself said he had a lot to learn and if that took longer than one year he was okay with that. He is no longer in college due to his mother taking out a loan against his future earnings. He excelled in high school b/c he rarely matched up with anyone near his size or strength---I believe you mentioned this in previous conversations. He was a power guy that lacked footwork and low post moves. It did take him awhile to catch up to college speed and strength---which was visible on the court if you watched any games. You love to dog on self and disregard any examples that are paralleled to Cal. Sure seems like they have more similarities than differences. Are you incapable of seeing things both ways or is it just your MO to jump all over other guys and give them crap over respecting others accomplishments. If you would rather just pick and choose which examples fit your argument please continue---just know that type of thinking eventually falls on deaf ears outside your bubble.
First off, try some paragraphs.
Secondly, I can see things both ways. I have defended Self plenty of times before. I just don't think he's great with OAD players. Even the guys who have excelled individually, I wasn't impressed with how their teams ended up. I specifically wasn't impressed with how Self handled Alexander. I was saying this back in December. I think he was your best big and Self should have let him play through his mistakes. I thought your frontline was Charmin soft and needed more of Alexander's physicality despite his limitations.
So you think Alexanders issues were b/c he didn't receive enough minutes and Diallo should take a long hard look at that? There were def times where I wanted to see Cliff more and said the same thing....but there were also plenty of times where he was a complete liability out there and couldn't guard his own shadow. Most of the time he was pulled b/c of foul trouble and his inability to get a stop defensively---Self had to sit him in case we needed his rebounding and offense in a close game.
Honestly lou, there's a question mark on everyone of these players. 1) Alex, did well in the islands and then reverted back to his old self before he got hurt. 2) Lee, has never shown any offensive game and is out of position on defense especially on picks. 3) Skal, a great looking freshman but he is a freshman who might have to lead and thats a tough job for a freshman. We need another big for sure.
Trust me---i was hoping coaching would help and the light would come on, but i'm also aware coaching isnt always the reason. Do you feel Cal failed to coach up Dakari? Seems like he regressed imo and honestly, i find that hard to pin on Cal
I saw the draft boards before the twins played in college and both were top 10 and Dakari was first round .
Self took away the Morris twins from Cal after they committed to Memphis and Cal even flew to Philadelphia to try to change their minds to no avail. I've seen McLemore in HS and he was raw. Self definitely refined his game and deserved the credit for turning him into a lottery pick. Three point shooting as it pertained to the twins had nothing to do with their lottery projection put of high school. It was their size, versatility, and ability to initiate the offense. Of course they haven't set the nets on fire at UK. They shot 38% last year.
Both Cal and Self have not screwed players up who were projected to be high lotto picks like Davis, Towns, And Wiggins as well as developed players into lotto picks like Robinson, McLemore, and Cauley-Stein. And they are both good coaches.
How a player plays and what he accomplishes in high school should be irrelevant to what he does in the NBA. In most top 150 ranked high school classes, there are maybe one to four stars (sometimes more). Most others are either busts or role players.
You show nothing by saying Slice has no relationship with diallo,he's been recruiting him for two years and even learned to speak french to impress him.
Similar threads
