2025 Recruiting: Meleek Thomas Watch

[AntG168]

Ummm Meleek Thomas?

 

[Hans Sprungfeld]

Ummm Meleek Thomas?

Fwiw, that's what I came here for, starting off by jumping myself to a couple pages ago.

Pretty much, there's not much more here than a lot of posters jockeying for the best combination of nuanced lens, attempted prescient thinking, and targeting the strongest claim to a values-based last-word analysis of which teenager & family gets it most 'right' ... as if there really is such a thing.

[As if, further still, my, "This is a silly thing to do" aim at the perfect non-take is any better than the efforts of someone taking things more seriously and really trying to nail it.]

 

[Hans Sprungfeld]

Agree 100% with the first sentence.

Because he wrote "self Serving" instead of "self-serving," my agreement tops out shy of 100%, but I substantially agree with you.

 

[CL82]

The character assassinations of kids and their families that don't go to UConn are beyond corny and lame now, it's kinda wild that some of y'all are actually adults talking like this.

It's like you don't know us at all.

(For what it's worth, this is a phenomenon that can be found on every college fan site.)

 

[aceboon]

It's like you don't know us at all.

(For what it's worth, this is a phenomenon that can be found on every college fan site.)

...and guess what, it's corny and lame on those sites too.

 

[CL82]

...and guess what, it's corny and lame on those sites too.

Yep, but inevitable.

 

[BigErnMcCracken]

Who is going to walk away feeling like they have an actual relationship with a university that they can always lean on, Stephon or Isiah Collier?

I don't get what Isaiah Collier has to do with this. What do we know about his relationship with USC?

 

[CJasmer]

Dybantsa is going top two no matter where he goes. If NBA did not have 1 year rule he would go PRO like Lebron and Kobe. These one and done kids do not even attend classes. Did Stephon even go into class after the Christmas break? As was pointed out KD never made it out of top 32 in the NCAA tournament. Yeah that really impacted his NBA career

 

[FearThePups]

It sounds like Ace Dybantsa is screening based on NIL, and then with a final 8 or whatever it is he'll let AJ evaluate the schools and pick his favorite. He was quoted in one of the posts here as saying if AJ's favorite school offered $8 million NIL and another offered $10 million NIL, they'd go with AJ's favorite for $8 million. Based on that, AJ hasn't had a say yet, and AJ may care about non-financial considerations.

Well bless his heart

 

[CJasmer]

Well bless his heart

Why should he not do this? He is forced to spend an extra year due to the NBA rule. All one and dones are not in college to learn. In fact most do not attend class.

 

[FearThePups]

Ummm Meleek Thomas?

Didnt want to do it but I have to. Choo Choo

 

[RuffRuff]

New on3 drop here:

5-star Predictions: Calling my shot on top 2025 basketball recruits

On3’s Jamie Shaw discusses the latest in the recruitment of the 14 5-star prospects in the 2025 On3 Industry Ranking.

www.on3.com

For those with no subscription, the Thomas piece. Take it for what it’s worth but it’s the highest confidence level of the 10 or so recruits he touches. Not a lot of noteworthy UConn notes other than on Meleek.

Five-Star Plus+ SG Meleek Thomas​

Meleek Thomas recently announced he is transferring to Atlanta (GA) Overtime Elite to play his senior season. The Five-Star Plus+ guard has taken four official visits up to this point in his process. These visits were to Kentucky (with John Calipari), Auburn, Pittsburgh, and most recently UConn. Sources have consistently mentioned watching UConn here. In speaking with Thomas after his visit he spoke specifically about Dan Hurley and his style.

Thomas has announced his final seven schools, Alabama, Arkansas, Auburn, Kansas, Kansas State, Pittsburgh, and UConn. Thomas tells me he plans to take official visits to Arkansas, Kansas, Alabama, and Kansas State in the September-October time frame with his intentions to sign during the Early Signing Period. Arkansas is a school that has been mentioned to me recently, specifically Thomas’ intrigue with Calipari. It is worth monitoring the commitment date and what – if any – future visits he goes on.


Prediction: UConn
Confidence Level: 45%
Biggest Threat: Arkansas

 

[RuffRuff]

Also an interesting NIL article out by the CBS team:

Candid Coaches: What is the most amount of NIL money someone has asked you or your staff to pay for a player?

We asked college basketball coaches how much NIL money they are being asked to arrange to sign top recruits

www.cbssports.com

 

[HooperScooper]

Also an interesting NIL article out by the CBS team:

Candid Coaches: What is the most amount of NIL money someone has asked you or your staff to pay for a player?

We asked college basketball coaches how much NIL money they are being asked to arrange to sign top recruits

www.cbssports.com

Yeah, I started its own thread because it's such a hot topic lately. $5 million? Any guesses who that is?

Candid Coaches: How much NIL money are recruits asking for?

Figured this deserved its own thread since it's been a pretty big topic recently. Most of the coaches agreed that what everyone is hearing about NIL packages is exaggerated but since the kids and their families hear these figures they then ask for the moon. So there's a lot of negotiating for...

www.the-boneyard.com

 

[RuffRuff]

Yeah, I started its own thread because it's such a hot topic lately. $5 million? Any guesses who that is?

Candid Coaches: How much NIL money are recruits asking for?

Figured this deserved its own thread since it's been a pretty big topic recently. Most of the coaches agreed that what everyone is hearing about NIL packages is exaggerated but since the kids and their families hear these figures they then ask for the moon. So there's a lot of negotiating for...

www.the-boneyard.com

Look no further than our guy AJ. I can’t think of another player that can command that without ensuring laughter.

 

[MuchoDogYears]

The character assassinations of kids and their families…….. some of y'all……… talking like this.

It’s “some of you”. Please.

“Bougie like Natty in the styrofoam
Squeaky-squeakin' in the truck bed all the way home
With some Alabama-jamma, she my Dixieland delight (hey)
That's how we do, how we do, fancy like”
https://genius.com/24433381/Walker-hayes-fancy-like/Thats-how-we-do-how-we-do-fancy-like

 

[awy]

dan hurley probably did laugh hearing that

 

[MuchoDogYears]

If the conversation is Stephon Castle vs Isaiah Collier that's a completely different conversation than AJ Dybantsa. If the NBA didn't have their stupid rule he wouldn't even have to go through this charade.

He's a generational player who is going to have half the NBA tanking to try to get him. There's no reason for him to care about a relationship with a college program, he'll have everything he needs and more with the NBA

Makes sense. I hope that the players keep demanding, and getting, larger and larger sums of cash until the whole system super novas four years from now.

Does anyone know if the Ivy League is participating in NIL?

 

[Husky1972]

I see, the Academic Progress Rate (APR) requirements have been replaced by NIL and $Bags.

 

[BigErnMcCracken]

Does anyone know if the Ivy League is participating in NIL?

My understanding is that they don't have any donor collectives as of yet but the individual students are free to do what they can on their own, subject to a set of parameters set out by the school. I think they get Opendorse accounts.

 

[husky429]

My understanding is that they don't have any donor collectives as of yet but the individual students are free to do what they can on their own, subject to a set of parameters set out by the school. I think they get Opendorse accounts.

Not sure about other schools, but the Yale folks I know have said the alumni aren't really interested in setting up collectives. Some individual alum are working with the athletes directly, but it tends to be sport-specific.

 

[his dudeness]

Zanetto now claiming UConn to the Big 12 is imminent. I guess we'll know within a couple weeks if he's a legit insider or a click-bait blowhard.

 

[NJHusky]

His pitch is probably I'll get you into the NBA.........look how many of my guys make the league and become great players there.

The recruits don't do any research to find that his players that make the league are the most highly rated out of HS and Cal's "development program" is still under development.

You don’t think other coaches point that out during recruiting???

 

[NJHusky]

Not sure about other schools, but the Yale folks I know have said the alumni aren't really interested in setting up collectives. Some individual alum are working with the athletes directly, but it tends to be sport-specific.

If Yale, Harvard & UPenn wanted get involved with Nil, they could buy the 3 best teams

 

[TheHorde]

You don’t think other coaches point that out during recruiting???

I think most of us buy the premise that Cal is a great recruiter and a fair in game coach. If he’s only a fair in game coach, what does that say about his ability to truly develop players? I don’t think it speaks well to that.