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Bruce Weber is going after another very young kid. This one has not played high school basketball, yet. Class of 2013 player Jabari Parker, who will be a freshman this fall at Chicago Simeon HS, received a scholarship offer from Weber.--
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Illinois offers class of 2013 player
This is insane! I really like B. Weber but he is way off base on this one. No one can predict how kids this young will develop, how they will do academically, whether or not they will truly be Div. I material, etc. They need to be thinking about high school. No wonder young high school players think about skipping the college route and going directly to the NBA. Looking ahead is fine but this sends all the wrong messages. If I were a high school coach and any College coach did this with one of my kids, I'd ban him forever from my school, gym, etc.
Somehow, the NCAA needs to get on this one fast or we're going to start offering kids in the womb based on Mom & Dads genetics.
Shame on Bruce Weber and the Illini. -
Jabari Parker is the son of Legend Sonny Parker. Jabari is 6'4 or 6'5 and can play all 5 positions on the floor. His BBALL IQ is way beyond his years. He will start at Simeon as a Freshman. He also just participated in the NBA Players Top 100 Camp. The kid is going to be good.
Its there own risk if they go after kids this early. Sometimes they develop into studs sometimes they don't. However, if he does become a super stud, Illinois will have an upper hand because they were the first to offer. I think this is a good move for Illinois. They should also offer 6'8 Thomas Hamilton JR from Whitney Young. He is a monster as well.Comment
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but this is not new....
Tim Floyd, Billy Gillispie, Greg McDermott, and other coaches have done this several times recently....
But oddly, when you list all the kids who were landed while they were still 8th graders, you'll see it's risky business...
DePaul never saw even one minute of Cully Payne
USC will never see even one minute of Dwayne Polee, Ryan Boatright
McDermott will never see even one minute of Jordan Dykstra (later reneged) or Harrison Barnes (blew up and will go elsewhere)
Billy Gillispie nor Kentucky will ever see one minute of Dakota Euton, Michael Avery, or Chad Jackson.Comment
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The old adage risk and reward. Imagine getting the next LaBron early in the process. One thing about BW is that he does know talent and I'd trust him on this one. You would like it if the NCAA would not allow schools to make an offer to these guys until they are at least a Jr. but let's face it, it is not the offer that goes to some of these guys head but the people that surround them. LaBron was courted very early in age and I believe he has turned up as a pretty good person."Educate and inform the whole mass of the people...they are the only sure reliance for the preservation of our liberty."
??” Thomas Jefferson
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SFP -- then take this challenge...
name for me just ONE kid who committed this early...before ever playing a high school game, who panned out to be a real coup??
I can't think of a single one....the only few who actually ended up getting to the schools where they first committed that early, turned out to be average mid-major players or little more than average......
so my point is this...if none of the really early recruits ever seem to pan out...and if the coaches generally frown on these early offers, then why do so many coaches keep doing it??Comment
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It looks like it might work with Jereme Richmond, who is still committed to Illinois. And Weber had success recruiting and getting committments from others like Crandall Head, Tracy Abrams, Joseph Bertrand, Brandon Paul, Tyler Griffey, and Meyers Leonard at relatively early points.
In fact, when Illinois tries for commitments from seniors, they nearly always strike out. So expect to see Weber continue to press for very early committments.Comment
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Not exactly...Richmond committed 11/24/06, and had already been playing HS varsity ball for a month...but...
he hasn't played a minute of a single college game yet...
I don't deny that just maybe SOME DAY one of these early recruits, and maybe it'll be Richmond, will pay off...
in fact, that is obviously the lure to locking in on them so early...in hopes of landing the next LeBron..
but all I have said is that of the couple dozen that I have cited over the past 6-8 years, not one has turned out to be a "coup".
Most turn out to be nothing special or end up renegging...
as yet another couple have just done exactly that at USC and at Iowa State
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Jordan Dykstra from Iowa is not BIG XII material in my mind. He was a player that got offered early and never panned out. 1 small thing about that is IOWA BASKETBALL TALENT vs. ILLINOIS BASKETBALL TALENT.
The USC and KENTUCKY commitments at an early age are totally different. Both coaches that had recieved the commitments either got fired or resigned. Why would you stay committed if the head coach that recruited you, left for one reason or another.
Cully Payne early pledge to Depual was weird in its own right, however, Depaul has been awful the last couple years and maybe that plays into the decision a bit.
There are a million different reasons to commit and decommit from schools. The schools know the risks and rewards about going after young kids.
What is Illinois suppose to recruit when there 2009 Class is on campus, 2010 Class is Done, 2011 kids are already targeted, 2012 Barely has an schollies available. That Leaves you recruiting 2013 kids. Which has 3 absolute stud kids in right now. Thomas Hamilton Jr 6'8, Jabari Parker 6'5, Alex Foster 6'7....
This is a lil blurb from Illinois Rivals page...
-Look for Illinois to verbally offer the three elite 2013 prospects, Jabari Parker of Chicago Simeon, Alex Foster of DeLaSalle, and Tommy Hamilton of Whitney Young within the very near future, if they haven't already.Comment
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Ricky Davis committed to Iowa during his Frosh year at Davenport North. But he only played at Iowa one year before bolting for the NBA.Comment
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I guess you have a point, that what Bruce Weber is saying to himself is this...Originally posted by midstateknowitall View Post
"if I don't get those kids quickly (Hamilton, Parker, Foster) and lock then up with a verbal,
then Self & Krzyzewski for sure are going to come in here after them like they did with Scheyer, Livingston, Collins, and Wright."Comment
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In addition to Jabari Parker, 2 other class of 2013 kids were also offered by Bruce Weber, as noted above--
Thomas Hamilton, Jr, who will be a freshman at Chicago Whitney Young HS this fall-
Alex Foster, who will be a freshman at Chicago De La Salle HS this fall-
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Bruce Weber holds a camp at Moody Bible Institute each summer as a satellite Illini camp...
of course this is a great recruiting toold to get the jump on the Chicago kids...
Maybe BU should hold a Chicago "camp"?? -- would it work??
Anyway, there are some nice premium reports on all that went on at the camp...here are a few comments.....
"The Illinois basketball satellite camp at the Moody Bible Institute in Chicago has always been a great event for Bruce Weber's
Fighting Illini, producing commitments as well as giving Chicago area fans a great chance to see Illinois targets...
Thomas Hamilton, Whitney Young ??“ The 2013 man child has already shown himself to be something special.. Is he a post scorer a or a face up 7 footer
down the road?
Jabari Parker, Chicago Simeon ??“ Fresh off of an appearance at the NBA Players camp, the 2013 star is ready to show what he learned. He has a very
advanced game for a youngster.
Alex Foster, Chicago DeLaSalle ??“ The third member of the 2013 triumvirate may have a bigger role than he imagined at DeLaSalle.
Wayne Blackshear, Morgan Park ??“ Illinois will have a tough time in this recruitment, but Blackshear is an interesting case study for high school open
enrollment. He's really talented too.
Nnana Egwu, St. Ignatius ??“ The big man got an Illini offer this spring and loved his visit. He'll get a chance to show his stuff for the Illini coaches on
this day as well.
-The class of 2013 is really hyped already, but look for it to get more hype if the big three keep performing. Simeon wing Jabari Parker, fresh off his NBA
top 100 camp experience, is an exceptional talent with an advanced game beyond his years. DeLaSalle forward Alex Foster was a bit off with his jumper,
and needs a bit of work on it, but is an amazing talent for an incoming freshman with his size. Thomas Hamilton at Whitney Young played more in
the paint at Moody, scoring inside and using his body to gain position. He's already made some great strides in the past few months. All 3 players have a
chance to be something special down the road.
-Mike Mullins said that Jacob Williams had a great July and was MVP of the tourney St. Pat's won over the weekend. He will be a hot property next month.
-Look for Illinois to verbally offer the three elite 2013 prospects, Jabari Parker of Chicago Simeon, Alex Foster of DeLaSalle, and Tommy Hamilton of Whitney
Young within the very near future, if they haven't already."Comment
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Originally posted by tornado View Post
there are a few new premium articles abot how the Illinois kids are doing so far this summer...
One nice story details Jacob Williams, and another is on Nnana Egwu
Here are a few clips from the Egwu storu...this kid is a physical beast, a near 4.0 student, and a kid who has only just started playing ball and has a ton of potential...he will go the a Top school or Big Ten school for sure, and is playing this summer for the Illinois Wolves, Mike Mullins, and Carl Maniscalco...
He played recently at the event up at Bradley and I had a chance to see him.....
"The stock of 2011 St. Ignatius star Nnana Egwu continues to rise, and the 6-foot-9 center ...........face up jumper is now a very effective weapon for him, and it's been a big part of his improvement.
"He's become a good shooter now, so you can't leave him open,"
Egwu and his Illinois Wolves teammates will be in action throughout July. The big man may get an invite to the Reebok U camp from July 7-10, but if not will be at the Reebok Proving ground July 7-8 and the Chicago Hoops Summer Classic July 9-11. The rest of July will include tournaments in Milwaukee , Kansas City, Phoenix , and Arizona before the open period ends."
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Tom Crean comments on recruiting young players...
"How young is too young?
Consider Indiana coach Tom Crean. His quest to restore Hoosier greatness
rests with his ability to sign great players. Age isn't a limit.
???I saw this year by far a larger amount of younger players than I've seen as a
head coach or an assistant coach,??? he said.
???Would I offer an eighth- grader? It would have to be an extremely special
case. Do we know where the good eighth-graders are?
???Once they become seventh-graders, they're prospects, which is mind-
blowing. But you have to. Now you'll find freshmen who have their (finalist)
list. They're already narrowing it down and you can't even send them letters.
We don't have meetings on the fourth- and fifth-grade rankings, but we do
for eighth- and ninth-graders.???
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