Fall non-UConn recruiting thread

[Floridaduck]

Woah...

Graves putting together another nice class: 6’1” Sofia Bell, 6’4” Sarah Rambus, and now Sammy Wagner.

 

[triaddukefan]

When is the early signing day?

 

[SECbbfan24]

Nov 9?

 

[Cockygirl]

When is the early signing day?

I think it’s 11/9-11/14

 

[Ekrauth24]

This has to be a punch in the gut to Texas A&M's Joni Taylor. Mom having been a former swimmer at A&M was not enough to keep Wagner in state (despite having been verbally committed to in-state schools like Baylor and Texas at one time).

I saw the other day that she was uncommitted, but I remembered that she picked Texas a while back. Do you know of any reason why she backed out from Texas?

 

[southie]

I saw the other day that she was uncommitted, but I remembered that she picked Texas a while back. Do you know of any reason why she backed out from Texas?

She committed to Texas in March. According to her decommitment announcement, she stated she was having doubts if she fit into Texas' style of play.

 

[triaddukefan]

I could see Thomas at Duke. She and Jadyn Donovan are good friends and have played together on AAU and the USA team. Thomas would have to get a lot stronger and faster if she wants to see time on the floor.

Sign her up

 

[Ekrauth24]

She committed to Texas in March. According to her decommitment announcement, she stated she was having doubts if she fit into Texas' style of play.

Thanks for the info!

 

[Blueberries]

New ESPN rankings are out.

2023 HoopGurlz Recruiting Rankings - espnW 100 - ESPN

Get the inside scoop on the top ranked high school girls' basketball players. In-depth player briefings, film and more on ESPNHS.com.

www.espn.com

Anyone have any info on Oluchi Okananwa? It isn’t often we see a New Englander make the list that we haven’t had a lot of discussion about. could this be one to help build UMass Amherst?

 

[Figurehead]

Graves putting together another nice class: 6’1” Sofia Bell, 6’4” Sarah Rambus, and now Sammy Wagner.

Great start, great group.

 

[militarydog]

Anyone have any info on Oluchi Okananwa? It isn’t often we see a New Englander make the list that we haven’t had a lot of discussion about. could this be one to help build UMass Amherst?

She is a combo guard. She visited Mississippi State earlier this fall a fair time before the new rankings were released. It was stated that she would make a big jump in the rankings after the summer. However I don’t think anyone projected the leap to 27.

 

[triaddukefan]

Anyone have any info on Oluchi Okananwa? It isn’t often we see a New Englander make the list that we haven’t had a lot of discussion about. could this be one to help build UMass Amherst?

 

[Coler]

Anyone have any info on Oluchi Okananwa? It isn’t often we see a New Englander make the list that we haven’t had a lot of discussion about. could this be one to help build UMass Amherst?

She’s taken an OV to Rutgers, I know.

 

[WFFL]

Graves putting together another nice class: 6’1” Sofia Bell, 6’4” Sarah Rambus, and now Sammy Wagner.

But can he keep them…

 

[Dillon77]

But can he keep them...

Yes, that thought passed my mind, as well. That vaunted class with so many prospects from (way) outside Oregon has mostly left OU and gone closer to home(s). The guards Maddie Scherr (now at Kentucky) and Sydney Parrish (at Indiana) come to mind as those returning home.

If Wagner thought style of play was a reason for not going to Texas, I would've thought Oklahoma might've merited a look (both ways), with their fast-paced, run-and-gun style. Or maybe that Red River thing exists for more than football ...

 

[Dillon77]

Nov 9?

I think it’s 11/9-11/14

Nov. 9 to Nov. 16, Wednesday to Wednesday. Coming up soon, real soon.

 

[southie]

Yes, that thought passed my mind, as well. That vaunted class with so many prospects from (way) outside Oregon has mostly left OU and gone closer to home(s). The guards Maddie Scherr (now at Kentucky) and Sydney Parris (at Indiana) come to mind as those returning home.

If she thought style of play was a reason for not going to Texas, would've thought Oklahoma might've merited a look (both ways), with their run and gun style. Or maybe that Red River thing exists for more than football ...

I don't have a good feel for Wagner's game as I haven't seen much film. At 6'1, she might be a tweener. I see many recruiting services list her as a SG/SF, but I think she's more of a SF/PF; obviously, she'd be an undersized PF. Not convinced her lateral quickness will be sufficient to guard wing players of her same height out on the perimeter; and, not sure she has the true size and strength to bang down low. Seems like she can shoot and pass pretty well. Wondering if she'll fit best where her team will play mainly zone defense (instead of man-to-man like Texas). Arkansas and Oklahoma love to run up and down the court and shoot quickly; not sure anyone ever accused them of playing defense last season. Perhaps Oregon doesn't play as fast, and not sure about their defensive reputation. Her other finalists were Southern Cal and A&M; so, have no real idea how she'd have fit in those programs' style of play.

 

[Figurehead]

But can he keep them…

True but can the other 11 pac-12 teams keep theirs? Reloading verses rebuilding, Pac-12 has become a transfer portal conference.

 

[Figurehead]

I don't have a good feel for Wagner's game as I haven't seen much film. At 6'1, she might be a tweener. I see many recruiting services list her as a SG/SF, but I think she's more of a SF/PF; obviously, she'd be an undersized PF. Not convinced her lateral quickness will be sufficient to guard wing players of her same height out on the perimeter; and, not sure she has the true size and strength to bang down low. Seems like she can shoot and pass pretty well. Wondering if she'll fit best where her team will play mainly zone defense (instead of man-to-man like Texas). Arkansas and Oklahoma love to run up and down the court and shoot quickly; not sure anyone ever accused them of playing defense last season. Perhaps Oregon doesn't play as fast, and not sure about their defensive reputation. Her other finalists were Southern Cal and A&M; so, have no real idea how she'd have fit in those programs' style of play.

When I see her.,Oregons Erin Boley on that Sabrina team comes tom mind. Not purely athletic or particuarily quick but torched teams time and time again in the pac-12. If she is similar to what Erin Boley brought to the Ducks then I think they would take that. Erin Boley was way underapreciated on that Ionescu, Ruthie Hebard and Satou Sabally team.

 

[Dillon77]

I don't have a good feel for Wagner's game as I haven't seen much film. At 6'1, she might be a tweener. I see many recruiting services list her as a SG/SF, but I think she's more of a SF/PF; obviously, she'd be an undersized PF. Not convinced her lateral quickness will be sufficient to guard wing players of her same height out on the perimeter; and, not sure she has the true size and strength to bang down low. Seems like she can shoot and pass pretty well. Wondering if she'll fit best where her team will play mainly zone defense (instead of man-to-man like Texas). Arkansas and Oklahoma love to run up and down the court and shoot quickly; not sure anyone ever accused them of playing defense last season. Perhaps Oregon doesn't play as fast, and not sure about their defensive reputation. Her other finalists were Southern Cal and A&M; so, have no real idea how she'd have fit in those programs' style of play.

The PF/SF "tweener" position can be a tough one: we watched Sam Brunelle fill it at Notre Dame. It didn't affect her so much on offense: her ability to catch and shoot from mid- to long-range was/is still fine. And she even picked up a few back-to-the basket moves that resulted in a turnaround fadeaway. However, the issue was on defense. Try as she might, Sam had trouble down low with true posts/power forwards and wasn't quick enough laterally to deal with speedy wings. That's one reason why the slightly taller and more physical Maddy Westbeld was the starter. Sam was best used in a zone. UVA needs scoring in a major way so I'll be interested in how they play defense.

As for Wagner, I'll take a look at her from your perspective. ND has a 6'1" SG/SF in Sonia Citron and Citron has no trouble with her quickness at either position. Physically, she can (and has) played the PF when needed and when the match-ups are right.

 

[jonson]

When I see her.,Oregons Erin Boley on that Sabrina team comes tom mind. Not purely athletic or particuarily quick but torched teams time and time again in the pac-12. If she is similar to what Erin Boley brought to the Ducks then I think they would take that. Erin Boley was way underapreciated on that Ionescu, Ruthie Hebard and Satou Sabally team.

I'd take that as well. But, since Erin's impact depended on the attention given to the other players listed, as well as Sabrina's ability to get her the ball at the right time and in the right place, Wagner may need a reasonable, if lesser, facsimile. Hope she gets it.

Regarding a comment in another post about speed of play. Oregon runs some, but not as much as a lot of fans seem to think. For instance, even though the Covid-year team led the nation in scoring, it was well down the list (at least halfway, if I remember correctly) in terms of the pace with which it played. Instead, according to a 537 analysis, its offense was one of the seven most efficient in WBB history.

 

[Figurehead]

The PF/SF "tweener" position can be a tough one: we watched Sam Brunelle fill it at Notre Dame. It didn't affect her so much on offense: her ability to catch and shoot from mid- to long-range was/is still fine. And she even picked up a few back-to-the basket moves that resulted in a turnaround fadeaway. However, the issue was on defense. Try as she might, Sam had trouble down low with true posts/power forwards and wasn't quick enough laterally to deal with speedy wings. That's one reason why the slightly taller and more physical Maddy Westbeld was the starter. Sam was best used in a zone. UVA needs scoring in a major way so I'll be interested in how they play defense.

As for Wagner, I'll take a look at her from your perspective. ND has a 6'1" SG/SF in Sonia Citron and Citron has no trouble with her quickness at either position. Physically, she can (and has) played the PF when needed and when the match-ups are right.

Dillion, I see your a ND enthusiast. Btw, You got a good transfer in Kylee Watson. She has tons and tons of upside potential. If things start to click for her she is going to make a good addition to ND in the long run.

 

[Dillon77]

Dillion, I see your a ND enthusiast. Btw, You got a good transfer in Kylee Watson. She has tons and tons of upside potential. If things start to click for her she is going to make a good addition to ND in the long run.

Thx, Figurehead. I'm also a northern Jersey guy who, prior to the pandemic, used to see top NJ players; particularly those that had "mutual interest" with Notre Dame. Kylee Watson was one of those players and I went to see her on more than a few occasions. Of course, she initially went to Oregon, but Coach Ivey kept in touch when Kylee decided to come (more than a bit) closer to south Jersey. She's got a great motor, a team-first attitude and has apparently fit in with everyone, particularly our stellar forward, Maddy Westbeld. Hoping she and Lauren Ebo can collectively make up for the loss of Maya Dodson. Knock on wood that Kylee does well and enjoys it -- she's got three years of eligibility!

 

[cancontent]

Intriguing pick up for Georgia Tech. The younger sister of Charles Badiako who plays at Alabama and has also played for Canada Basketball. Will be interested to see how she fits in their scheme.

She doesn't have the type of game Cubaj (sic?) where she can play outside because she can shoot. The last few seasons with Southwest and Kia Nurse, she's been primarily inside. Similar to Toby Fournier, not much of an outside shooting game however Toby does have better ball handling skills.

 

[MilfordHusky]

Delaney Thomas announces tomorrow, Nov. 4 at 4 PM.