Updates...Prep School News

[Daniel Poneman]

Check out my website Illinois HS Basketball.com, i just posted some new stuff...
Article on JEremiah Kelly, one of the hottest prospects in the nation... will end up at Depaul..
Also did some updates on the 15u kids of the Illinois Kings... some of them could definetly end up at BU

Site-- www.illinoishsbasketball.com

[tornado]

Ok Daniel....you tempted me....
So I will counter on your comment and story covering Jeremiah Kelly.

First let me start by saying that nobody from Boys to Men has yet done anything but get overhyped.
You know full well that one Bradley recruit Xavier Crawford failed to get qualified while at BTMA even though he received an adequate ACT score. The school simply does not get the kids the credits they need. Clay Holloway ended up doing two full years of prep school (he was a 6th year senior!) before he could qualify anywhere at D-I.

Second, the one BTMA graduate with the MOST hype so far was Thijin Moses.
Numerous glowing reports from all the recruiting services claimed this kid would be an immediate impact at the D-I level.
Here is a link stating Bradley was after Moses:

http://scout.scout.com/a.z?s=75&p=9&c=2&cid=514625&nid=2015313&fhn=1

And here is a link saying Moses was a 4-STAR recruit and Top 20 SF Nationally, but as you know, he has struggled mightily at DePaul and wasn't getting any playing time at all in the 2nd half.

http://depaul.scout.com/2/520173.html

Third, I have seen Kelly, and at 6-ft, 155, he is an absolute twig. He is skinnier than Thijin Moses and that's part of what hinders a kid at the D-I level.
That quote from Mac Irvin is, of course, a little self serving.
Do you treally think Kelly is "hands down the best point guard in the country"?

Scout rates 20 2008 PG's higher, and Rivals ranks 25 other kids higher than Kelly.

In fact, I did a little search once before to prove that many if not MOST of Mac Irvin's players tend to be tremendously overhyped, and tend to fizzle out, given that he starts with nothing but top Chicago talent and 4-star kids.
How many examples do you want?
Nate Minnoy, Holloway, Bobby Hill, Robert Eppinger.......

So in summary, I don't doubt the kid is good, but will he follow the path that the current graduates of BTMA have followed?
So far, I have seen nothing from BTMA to sway me, I think they are all overrated.

[DannyCooksey]

Ok Daniel....you tempted me....
So I will counter on your comment and story covering Jeremiah Kelly.

First let me start by saying that nobody from Boys to Men has yet done anything but get overhyped.
You know full well that one Bradley recruit Xavier Crawford failed to get qualified while at BTMA even though he received an adequate ACT score. The school simply does not get the kids the credits they need. Clay Holloway ended up doing two full years of prep school (he was a 6th year senior!) before he could qualify anywhere at D-I.

Second, the one BTMA graduate with the MOST hype so far was Thijin Moses.
Numerous glowing reports from all the recruiting services claimed this kid would be an immediate impact at the D-I level.
Here is a link stating Bradley was after Moses:

http://scout.scout.com/a.z?s=75&p=9&c=2&cid=514625&nid=2015313&fhn=1

And here is a link saying Moses was a 4-STAR recruit and Top 20 SF Nationally, but as you know, he has struggled mightily at DePaul and wasn't getting any playing time at all in the 2nd half.

http://depaul.scout.com/2/520173.html

Third, I have seen Kelly, and at 6-ft, 155, he is an absolute twig. He is skinnier than Thijin Moses and that's part of what hinders a kid at the D-I level.
That quote from Mac Irvin is, of course, a little self serving.
Do you treally think Kelly is "hands down the best point guard in the country"?

Scout rates 20 2008 PG's higher, and Rivals ranks 25 other kids higher than Kelly.

In fact, I did a little search once before to prove that many if not MOST of Mac Irvin's players tend to be tremendously overhyped, and tend to fizzle out, given that he starts with nothing but top Chicago talent and 4-star kids.
How many examples do you want?
Nate Minnoy, Holloway, Bobby Hill, Robert Eppinger.......

So in summary, I don't doubt the kid is good, but will he follow the path that the current graduates of BTMA have followed?
So far, I have seen nothing from BTMA to sway me, I think they are all overrated.

Bobby Hill from ISU? When was he ever involved with Mac Irvin and BTMA? Or are you referring to another 'Bobby Hill'?

[tornado]

If I am mistaken on Hill, then just remove him from the list, but I was going on memory.
I just have become a little more skeptical of all the hype until I see consistent production, and I have been especially skeptical of kids whose entire high school or prep careers have been "engineered" as in Moses, Koshwal, etc.
(and now the next generation is Leon Freeman, etc...)
Like I said, none of those Boys to Men kids has done a thing at college yet.

Keep in mind, almost all of the Boys to Men kids are 1-2 years older than their counterparts which explains a little of why they sometimes look good playing against 17-18 year olds.
When I saw Boys to Men playing in Peoria at the Tournament of Champions, I was a little less than impressed, given that 20-21 year olds like Holloway and Koshwal were having trouble keeping up with 16-17 year olds on the opposing team!!
Note my observations from 11/06

http://www.bradleyfans.com/phpbb/viewtopic.php?t=4893

Kelly likewise "reclassified" so he will be a 5th year senior next year. This technique makes these kids look a little better as seniors than their counterparts and maybe sometimes a little better as freshmen in college (but not always as in Thijin Moses) but ultimately, the benefits of this little trick run out.


One more question, Daniel.........last fall when Boys to Men played in the tourney here in Peoria, one of the kids that kind of impressed me with his athleticism was Jelani Poston, who transferred from Simeon then "reclassified" as Class of 2008.
By the end of the Boy to Men season, Poston was never even mentioned, almost as if he was totally gone from the team.
He is still listed on the roster, but what happened to him?
Did he fall into Loren Jackson's doghouse, because I never even saw his name in the box scores?
I see now he is playing on the Mac Irvin 17U, but the kid HAS to be at least 18-19!!
But then last summer, when Mac Koshwal was alread almost 20, he was still playing in the 17U category.

http://www.btmainc.org/Roster.htm

[Daniel Poneman]

I only have time for a quick response but....
yes, Thijn so far has proved to be overhyped, but that is ONE KID. how many programs have produced one overhyped kid? does that mean all that follow will fizzle too??
Mac Koshwal will make an instant impact in the Big East and will one day play in the NBA as a small foward, and Justin Young, and jerry meyer of rivals and others stated that Kelly will be a high four star after his play these last few weeks.
Jelani Poston is at BTM next year, and has a long list of D-1 suitors.
I think it tells you something about BTM that some of thier players have NOT qualified. Many prep schools (see Gods Academy) dont even make thier players take the classes, they just say they passed and send them on to college. At BTM you actually have to pass the curriculum!

last, dont hate on the Fire! They have produced TONS of great college, and NBA players.

P.S. I dont think he is the best PG in the country! Nick irvin said that, not me...

[gobu]

Before we are to harsh, lets not forget that Daniel is just a high schooler that probably can be easily manipulated by the sort of people that run several AAU programs. He means well or so it seems.

[Daniel Poneman]

I'm not "easily manipulted" by anyone. I'm just putting the facts out there...

[gobu]

I'm not "easily manipulted" by anyone. I'm just putting the facts out there...

The facts according to BTMA or Nick Irvin? Actually I have read a lot of the information you put out there and it seems as though it is just OPINION and not fact. Thats OK because we know what we are saying on here is opinion. The problem occurs when you start thinking you are voicing facts.

[tornado]

One person's fact is another's opinion, and we will likely never satisfy anyone with any argument.
So let's just allow those posting to call it opinion or fact, but it's open to civil discussion.

[Da Coach]

What is your issue with Daniel's site? I think he does an incredible job with his work and his site. If you don't agree with what he says there, why don't you take it up on the Illinoishsbasketball message board? How else is he going to get information about kids unless some of it comes from some of the coaches and AAU people who are known to hype their kids a little? Everyone knows that.
None of the other so-called recruiting gurus go to, or watch more of these kids than Daniel does.

Daniel's site--

https://www.illinoishsbasketball.com

message board--

http://www.iwannaforum.com/illinoishsbasketball/

[gobu]

I don't have a problem with his site, which really doesn't have much information on it besides the player journals and his rankings. I just tried to state he needs to watch his choice of words(in my opinion). To me a fact is stating that a recruit being offered a scholarship by so-and-so university. Opinon is stating Koshwal will play in the NBA. Besides, he was the one that came to Bradleyfans and opened himself up to criticism by promoting his site and even then I said nothing until he said

I'm just putting the facts out there

BTW, BTMA's curriculum that he is touting is laughable.[/b]

[Da Coach]

Here is an article from today's Sun Times. Note the short blurb at the top--
Recruiting analyst Van Coleman of Hoopmasters.com singled out three area players -- Washington's DeAndre Liggins, Hales Franciscan's Matt Humphrey and Boys to Men's Jeremiah Kelly --among the top performers at the recent Kingwood Classic in Houston. Boys to Men will not have athletics next year; coach Loren Jacksonsaid Kelly will attend an undetermined prep school as a postgraduate.

http://www.suntimes.com/sports/tucker/370464,CST-SPT-pin04.article

So if that is correct, Boys to Men will not have a basketball team next year (do they have any other athletic teams?). I wonder if this is serious? Are they becoming a purely academic prep school? That's a bit of a laugh. Or are they disbanding?

[tornado]

I think that's a topic worthy of its own heading...

I have said all along, that Loren Jackson saw Mac Koshwal as his lunch ticket to a better place. It doesn't surprise me that the entire emphasis behind this "Boys to Men" thing was to find a way to get Koshwal eligible after he got thrown out of Chicago Julian High School for fraudulent records and lying about his age and background.
The fact that the kid lived with Jackson since he entered high school in Chicago, and that Koshwal's parent signed legal guardianship over to the coach, all points to what I have believed all along.
Everything has been orchestrated just to get Koshwal to the next level and hopefully to the NBA, so "everyone" can cash in.
Everyone except the other kids at BTMA who will now have to search elsewhere for a place to play.

Hey guys....call here...

Prep school needing more 20-22 year old players....Click HERE

[chitownBUB]

One more question, Daniel.........last fall when Boys to Men played in the tourney here in Peoria, one of the kids that kind of impressed me with his athleticism was Jelani Poston, who transferred from Simeon then "reclassified" as Class of 2008.

Jelani Poston has seemingly been around forever.
He was big and strong as an 8th graders and started playing AAU. As a freshman he had a fine season at Lincoln Park and improved as a sophomore.
Then as a junior he transferred to Simeon, but had to sit out the year Simeon won the State Title because CPL did not allow him eligibility after the transfer.
Then before he eveer played at Simeon, he reclassified as Class of 2008 and transferred to Boys to Men.
Now he will have to find somewhere else to play next year, his fourth different high school.

Bradley was at one time actively recruiting Poston.
"Illinois, Georgia Tech, Bradley, Southern Illinois, Illinois State, Ball State, Indiana and Florida are some of the schools that I have heard from"

http://illinois.rivals.com/content.asp?cid=526845

[Da Coach]

According to ChicagoHoops.com, Woodruff senior Arsenio Mims has agreed to walk on at Western Illinois University

http://www.chicagohoops.com/articles1/frazierwiu.html

http://www.chicagohoops.com/profiles2007/mims-arsenio.html