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BU recruit- class of 2013- Nathan Taphorn

tornado said:
There's a certain killer-instinct & "mean guy" attitude that we need as well - we saw it with Tony Bennett, Will Franklin, Zach Andrews, Sammy, TB, Dyricus...
but few high school kids have that degree of competitiveness - but many can develop it in college...
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+1 and the attitude to do what it takes. All the all time greats had IT. Jordan, Bird and Magic! Jordan and Bird took things personally to be motivated.
 
Taphorn had a few comments in a premium interview after his Illinois visit..
here's just a few clips but there's plenty more...

"At 6-foot-7, 180-pounds...
2013 wing Nate Taphorn has mid-major offers so far
"I think my shooting has gotten even better, but I've been getting in the post
more, too," Taphorn said. "I'm not stepping outside as much as I used to. I've
developed a pretty decent inside game that I can rely on when I need to.
That's good because I'll need to do that in college."

"The trip to Illinois was nice," Taphorn said.

Taphorn, who says he talks with the Illinois coaches "once every two weeks
or so," grew up a fan of Bruce Weber's program. The class of 2013 standout
watches his home state program any chance he gets.

Now with offers from Bradley, Creighton, Southern Illinois, Illinois-Chicago,
Colorado State, Wisconsin-Green Bay and Drake,
Taphorn is quick to point out that no program currently sticks out."
 
Much easier to get to the CC through 4A than 3A

Hoping Tap wins tonight so I can see him on his unofficial visit to ISU on Tuesday
 
New premium article makes it sound like Taphorn is really excited about Northwestern and saw the national coverage a John Shurna got - and he says he is gonna make his college decision before the start of next school year - so bummer...
Northwestern's offense highly utilizes big men who are mobile and can play & shoot like guards - he knows it is a perfect fit for him..
 
Although people I have talked to currenly like Peters better. I think Taphorn has more room to develop. He is not there yet. I picture him as a Northwestern/Wisconsin type player although that may be a little high of a level for him to succeed as a starter.
 
lake Camelot said:
Although people I have talked to currenly like Peters better. I think Taphorn has more room to develop. He is not there yet. I picture him as a Northwestern/Wisconsin type player although that may be a little high of a level for him to succeed as a starter.
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I've never seen Peters, but I was not too impressed with Taphorn the only time I saw him last season. I do remember being more impressed with his activity and hands on defense, but he was also taller than most players on the floor.
 
lake Camelot said:
Although people I have talked to currenly like Peters better. I think Taphorn has more room to develop. He is not there yet. I picture him as a Northwestern/Wisconsin type player although that may be a little high of a level for him to succeed as a starter.
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I'm not convinced yet that Taphorn is a legit Big Ten prospect. From the few games I saw he basically roamed the perimeter, rarely venturing into the post, rather settling for 3s or long jumpers, even though at 6' 6" he has an advantage going to the basket. I suppose it's possible he'd fit it in at Northwestern, maybe as a sub at the 3 spot, but I don't think he yet has the physical maturity or motor to legitimately project into the system that Bo Ryan runs--he be a tweener, not aggressive enough to fill a hustle role of a Brusewitz, and maybe not quite enough of a shooter to perform at that level under the pressure of Big Ten defense.

Peters, on the other hand, is a clear step ahead of Taphorn at this stage both physically and skill-wise. He looks to me to be much more the polished player and I think is pretty close to being at the ceiling of his high school potential. Peters has skills that could put him anywhere from the 2 to 4 spot, depending on the type of program he goes to--a good mid-range shooter with ball skills to get to the basket at 6' 7" and enough strength to get down low and bang a bit with 4s and 5s.

That said, Taphorn has a lot of upside that will come down to his physical development and ability to diversify his skill set over this summer and in his senior year. Will be interesting to watch how it plays out.
 
I understand what you are saying, but as you noted, much of the recruiting interest in Taphorn involves projecting what his physical and skills level will be when he gets to college. His body is somewhat less mature than Alec Peters and a lot of other 2013 kids. He is still growing, and as he matures and fills out he could be several inches taller. With the quickness and shooting skills he already possesses, that is attractive to some high major coaches.
Some kids do not reach the size and maturity that is predicted for them. We'll have to wait to see how Nate develops.
 
Taphorn had a good visit to Northwestern and liked it..
This premium column has a Bradley mention...
http://northwestern.scout.com/2/1188389.html

but....even though Northwestern is a fine school - I hope NT weighs his options carefully.....I would caution Nate to notice how many times Northwestern has gone to the NCAA (they never have - EVER), what their post-season and Big Ten Tourney records are (really bad) and how many Northwestern players have ever gone on to any significant post-college careers in the pros (there are none currently in NBA, and only two players since the 1970's from Northwestern have even spent a single day in the NBA (Carlisle, Eschmeyer) and those two guys combined for a total of a handful of games over quite obscure careers.)
 
tornado said:
Taphorn had a good visit to Northwestern and liked it..
This premium column has a Bradley mention...
http://northwestern.scout.com/2/1188389.html

but....even though Northwestern is a fine school - I hope NT weighs his options carefully.....I would caution Nate to notice how many times Northwestern has gone to the NCAA (they never have - EVER), what their post-season and Big Ten Tourney records are (really bad) and how many Northwestern players have ever gone on to any significant post-college careers in the pros (there are none currently in NBA, and only two players since the 1970's from Northwestern have even spent a single day in the NBA (Carlisle, Eschmeyer) and those two guys combined for a total of a handful of games over quite obscure careers.)
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I'd love to see the guy in a BU uniform but not many people play in the NBA and at least NW can give him a really nice education. He could chose a lot worse.
 
SFP said:
... but not many people play in the NBA ...
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but you don't think it is the dream and hope of every kid in high school or college??
The simple facts of which players have been drafted and gotten a shot or who have made an NBA roster or played in the league since the Joe Stowell era...
..proves the likelihood of accomplishing their dream is roughly FIVE to TEN times better for Bradley players than it is for Northwestern players

And I don't deny one can get a good education at Northwestern and their graduates often are highly honored, but the same can happen at Bradley.
If you look at Northwestern's own web site as to their listing of notable alumni - it is not all that much more impressive than Bradley's - given the vast difference in size, costs, and number of grads!!
They list a couple senators, prize winners, and a Supreme Court judge, plus Rahm Emanuel, Steven Colbert, David Schwimmer, Warren Beatty & &Ann-Margret (neither of whom ever graduated), and Rod Blagojevic...Beyond that - not a whole lot of the names are widely known...
I will grant you that Zooey Deschanel is one of my favorite actresses ... ;)

BUT - since we are talking athletics - their list of notable grad-athletes is astoundingly short and outside of Joe Girardi, Kenesaw Mountain Landis, Jerry Reinsdorf, and Otto Graham...
tell me which, if any, are anything more impressive than "Seymour Greenberg, tennis player" or "Jerry Doggett, former Dodgers broadcaster"?
 
tornado said:
Taphorn had a good visit to Northwestern and liked it..
This premium column has a Bradley mention...
http://northwestern.scout.com/2/1188389.html

but....even though Northwestern is a fine school - I hope NT weighs his options carefully.....I would caution Nate to notice how many times Northwestern has gone to the NCAA (they never have - EVER), what their post-season and Big Ten Tourney records are (really bad) and how many Northwestern players have ever gone on to any significant post-college careers in the pros (there are none currently in NBA, and only two players since the 1970's from Northwestern have even spent a single day in the NBA (Carlisle, Eschmeyer) and those two guys combined for a total of a handful of games over quite obscure careers.)
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Ok, I'd like to see him in a BU uniform, but you don't make the strongest of cases against NU.

-never gone to NCAA but getting closer--it would be awesome to be a member of the first squad to make it. You'd be immortalized on campus.

-you get to play in the Big Ten on the road at IU, OSU, UI A.Hall, WI, etc.

-no offense to NT, but I can't see where the NBA is in his future unless there's some massive development. Can't see their lack of NBA players factoring in.

Just sayin'...
 
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