ISU gets verbal

[Guest]

Being told that 6'0 2012 2G Aaron Simpson from North Chicago HS has committed to Illinois State

[Da Coach]

Just what Jank needs, another guard. They currently have 10 guards listed on this year's roster, and none are seniors.
If true, they are now 2 scholarships over the limit for 2012-2013. The Redbirds have no seniors on their roster, but now have two committments (Anthony Beane and Aaron Simpson).
Which 2 current players will have their scholarships yanked? Do they know yet?
How many more of their current players will be pushed out?


BTW- 6' is a slight exaggeration for Aaron Simpson. He is more like 5'10"-5'11"- a good shooter. I believe Coach Ford looked at him before offering Ka'Darryl Bell. Coach Les recruited him before departing Bradley.
Here is an article from March-

http://florida.rivals.com/content.asp?CID=1199500

Simpson's game is best described as high octane for every minute of the game. Although he plays with great speed and intensity, he has shown a knack to maintain control. He possesses an outstanding burst, along with a solid outside shot. Lay off him on the perimeter, and he is a threat to drop a three on you; play him tight and he will use that burst to get by you, and take it in the lane and either put up a shot or pass it to an open teammate with an open look.

Per Simpson, he has averaged 23 points, seven rebounds and four assists per game for the 16-13 North Chicago team.

Schools that have been showing interest in Simpson include LSU, Marquette, DePaul, Xavier, Bradley, Illinois State, and Dayton. Simpson notes he holds an offer from Marquette. He has made visits to Purdue, DePaul and Marquette. Simpson does not have a favorite at this point; he simply wants to play college basketball.


Despite the shortage of point guards in the 2012 class- all the higher schools have dropped off him.

[lake Camelot]

They signed a small guard this year so I don't think they can play together. But he sounds like he can score, and I'm sure he is a good player. As long as it isn't Cody Clarke I am OK with ISU getting a commit.

[Da Coach]

This site confirms his commitment to ISU-

http://ny2lasports.com/player_details.aspx?playerid=588

Nice to see it posted here before even the Redbird board!

[Beninator]

Just what Jank needs, another guard. They currently have 10 guards listed on this year's roster, and none are seniors.

Hey now... Too many guards is my line!

Keep signing those guards ISU!

[Braves4Life]

http://ilprepbullseye.com/Simpson_Illinois_State.html

[MacabreMob]

This site confirms his commitment to ISU-

http://ny2lasports.com/player_details.aspx?playerid=588

Nice to see it posted here before even the Redbird board!

Wow - so it was posted here before posted at the PJSBoard?

[Da Coach]

http://ilprepbullseye.com/Simpson_Illinois_State.html

"While Simpson also handles the ball well, he is not a point guard. That is because right now he does not have the mindset of a point. Instead, we would label him as a scoring guard. However, Simpson is yet another player who thrives in up-tempo situations, which is why he should fit into Redbird head coach Tim Jankovich's system nicely."

[tornado]

He could turn out to be what Jank wants but he sure does sound an awful lot like Terry Johnson - a point guard who was always thinking shot-first but who didn't make a very high pct of them.


Here's what the Sun Times says - pretty interesting -

"Simpson was involved in one of the more bizarre recruiting stories.
This fall, Simpson is running cross country for North Chicago....
In a recent meet, Simpson was running in the pack at his usual pace and out of sight ..
when he suddenly disappeared. Nobody at the finish line and nobody who ran the race
knew what had happened to him.
Eventually, he was tracked down standing under a tree off the course. He’d gotten a call
from a college basketball coach during the race and stopped running to answer his cell phone."




Simpson helped North Chicago to the Final Four in Class 3A last spring - the IHSA web site shows his junior season stats..

In 30 games -

FG shooting: 231-588 = 39% from the floor (20 shots per game, almost 1/3 of the shots taken his team)

3-PT FG shooting: 65-215 = 30.2% (from the high school stripe)

FT shooting: 148-198 = 75%

Rebounds: 167 = 5.6 rpg

Assists: 118 = 3.9 apg

They lost on Friday night in Peoria, 59-55 to Centralia, with Simpson shooting 5-17, 14 pts, 2 rebs, 1 asst, and 5 turnovers
Then losing again on Saturday for 4th place in 3A and an overall record of 17-15, with Simpson going 7-23, and 3-12 from downtown, 20 pts, 3 rebs, 1 asst, 4 turnovers.

http://ihsa.org/SportsActivities/BoysBasketball/RecordsHistory.aspx?url=/data/bkb/records/series-index.htm

PS - also reminds me of Justin Clark's HS shooting stats - LINK

[BuB]

It is unusual for a D1 basketball player to choose to run cross country in the fall. Unless it is a big guy who needs to shed a few pounds, cross country does not really benefit a small guy who is known for speed, quickness, and intensity. Pure speculation here on my part......it is possible he is avoiding a suspension in his main sport of basketball by participating in this sport in the Fall. It is common around here for kids who got in trouble to go out for another sport and serve the punishment then instead of during their main sport.

[CubbieBear]

So let me get this straight--he is a BU reject-- another guard who is also several inches smaller that listed---he is in cross country now to be elgible and/or in trouble--doesn't play point and shoots a lot at a low % like Justin Clark did --I see us dominating those losers over east of here the next few years

[shaunguth]

Just what Jank needs, another guard. They currently have 10 guards listed on this year's roster, and none are seniors.
If true, they are now 2 scholarships over the limit for 2012-2013. The Redbirds have no seniors on their roster, but now have two committments (Anthony Beane and Aaron Simpson).
Which 2 current players will have their scholarships yanked? Do they know yet?
How many more of their current players will be pushed out?

I think this may be Wilkins' last season before he turns pro!

[45otseoj]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j76yAxdrb8E&feature=youtu.be