Calhoun and recruiting

[superjohn]

I've noticed that most fans of other teams and casual cbb fans think that Calhoun has his pick of the top high schoolers every year just like Kentucky, UNC and Duke do. I try to tell people that this is not the case and they say than how do you always have the top recruits every year? My question to the boneyard is, what makes us have so many good players. Is it that Calhoun is the greatest developer of talent in the country or he has the best eye for underrated talent in the country? It's obvious that Boatright was way undervalued, he could step on the court for any team in the country and be great right away. Lamb clearly has amazing talent but it took him until later in the season to really develop, Shabazz was a contributor right away but has improved drastically, Olander's improvement has also been drastic. It's amazing to me how Calhoun has made a career out of taking guys that aren't considered the top recruits and turning them into great players and in many cases nba players. His success at this is so good that fans of other teams assume he hand picks top 10 recruits every year.

 

[Letsgohuskies11]

I think its a combination for a great eye for talent, that Calhoun picks player that fit a certain type of mold that he knows will work well with his team concept. And that he is very demanding of his players which in turn means they get the most out of their experience from learning under him.

 

[TheChamps990411]

well the simple way to break it down to these people is to look at how many mcdaa uconn has had over the last ten years compared to duke,unc,ku and even kansas. i think with all of his success and uconn being the national power it is now people have lost sight of just how extraordinary a job coach has done here. it is without a doubt the greatest building of a basketball program anyone has ever seen. i think even as a fan of this program i and other fans tend to forget that sometimes too. when he is retired and gone people 25 years from now will look at what he did here and be awed by it.

 

[Scot-e]

He "coaches up" better then anyone- possibly ever. When you look at dook for instance- they load up on AAs and it takes them 4 years to even sniff the pros- why because they do not get all that much better- just older. JC really works wonders and even the haters can not say a word against his ability to bring the best out of his players.

 

[Wise2]

Here's a list of McDonald All americans by school since 1990


Since 1990




TeamTotalPercent

North Carolina 41 8.82%
Duke 40 8.60%
Kansas 24 5.16%
Kentucky 21 4.52%
UCLA 16 3.44%
Texas 13 2.80%
Ohio State 13 2.80%
Florida 13 2.80%
Arizona 11 2.37%
Michigan State 11 2.37%
Georgia Tech 11 2.37%
Memphis 10 2.15%
Syracuse 10 2.15%
LSU 10 2.15%
Indiana 10 2.15%
Connecticut 9 1.94%

Connecticut's All-Americans are:


2009 Alex Oriakhi 16 Tilton NH
2008 Kemba Walker 15 New York NY Rice
2004 Rudy Gay 5 Capitol Heights MD Archbishop Spalding
2003 Charlie Villanueva 18 Blairstown NJ Blair Academy
2000 Taliek Brown 10 Astoria NY St. John's
2000 Scott Hazelton 35 Lawrence MA Central Catholic
1997 Khalid El-Amin Minneapolis MN North
1996 Richard Hamilton Coatesville PA Coatesville Area
1991 Donyell Marshall Reading PA Reading
1978 Cornelius Thompson Middletown CT Middletown

 

[upstater]

He "coaches up" better then anyone- possibly ever. When you look at dook for instance- they load up on AAs and it takes them 4 years to even sniff the pros- why because they do not get all that much better- just older. JC really works wonders and even the haters can not say a word against his ability to bring the best out of his players.

I would not say that other players don't improve. Rather, I would say the ranking services and the McD's people overrate the kids going to some of these schools, especially Duke.

 

[Ricky1Moore]

I would not say that other players don't improve. Rather, I would say the ranking services and the McD's people overrate the kids going to some of these schools, especially Duke.

Most of these kids are ranked way before they commit anywhere.

 

[nomar]

He "coaches up" better then anyone- possibly ever. When you look at dook for instance- they load up on AAs and it takes them 4 years to even sniff the pros- why because they do not get all that much better- just older. JC really works wonders and even the haters can not say a word against his ability to bring the best out of his players.

I agree. I was going to use the "coaches up" phrase as well. Recruiting is a crap shoot. Often the #90 player has just as much potential as the #9 player. It's on coaching staffs to bring it out.

It's kind of impossible to prove, but Calhoun just seems the best at getting guys to play above their "rating." How many D1 coaches would have turned Hilton Armstrong into a 1st Round NBA Pick?

 

[Kitaman]

I also thinks his NBA predigree helps especially the 'family'. Can't think of another school that has as many vets around the program year in and year out.

As of him personally he's 'gifted' in knowing (or feeling) who will get it and who won't (i.e. thrive in his system). He can take a good player and see greatness. He also has a knack for eying city ballers ready to take it to the next level. He has proven that every non-MCD talent he recruits can 'hang' with the supposedly best talent in the country. The uk masterpieces (and many others past) have proven that.

Its obvious he was born to be a coach.

 

[connectikev]

I've noticed that most fans of other teams and casual cbb fans think that Calhoun has his pick of the top high schoolers every year just like Kentucky, UNC and Duke do. I try to tell people that this is not the case and they say than how do you always have the top recruits every year? My question to the boneyard is, what makes us have so many good players. Is it that Calhoun is the greatest developer of talent in the country or he has the best eye for underrated talent in the country? It's obvious that Boatright was way undervalued, he could step on the court for any team in the country and be great right away. Lamb clearly has amazing talent but it took him until later in the season to really develop, Shabazz was a contributor right away but has improved drastically, Olander's improvement has also been drastic. It's amazing to me how Calhoun has made a career out of taking guys that aren't considered the top recruits and turning them into great players and in many cases nba players. His success at this is so good that fans of other teams assume he hand picks top 10 recruits every year.

There really isn't a simple answer to your question. It is a combination of factors, some kids are undervalued and thrive at UConn, others are ranked incorrectly by the so called recruiting services. Still others are coached into roles by JC and the staff. And others are happy connections in which the coaches though a player would be a good fit and capable teammate.

Of course JC has also swung and missed on his fair share of recruits that attended UConn as well. But overall - we are being looked at by levels of players that we could only dream about 30 some odd years ago. It helps to be fishing in a better pond.

 

[Samoo]

Paul Hewitt really did suck.

 

[upstater]

Most of these kids are ranked way before they commit anywhere.

You look at the Duke commits and they sign on Junior year, get McDonald's invites, and it's obvious they are trading on the Duke name. It's not that they don't improve. It's that they shouldn't have been in the game in the first place.

 

[ctchamps]

Pitt and Cuse do very well without McD's. So I'm sure their fans look at JC and think he is mining gold.

I agree with people. It is a combination of things. JC gets enough great players, evaluates and gets players that are not as notable but show promise, develops players better than most coaches and has some Irish with his recruiting.

 

[Ricky1Moore]

You look at the Duke commits and they sign on Junior year, get McDonald's invites, and it's obvious they are trading on the Duke name. It's not that they don't improve. It's that they shouldn't have been in the game in the first place.

Disagree. Duke doesn't take any kids that aren't in the top 25 (and usually top 10) at the time they are recruiting them. Those kids are almost all still top 25 (and usually still top 10) by the time they are seniors and being looked at for the All Star Games... Sure, being a Duke / Kentucky / Kansas / UNC commit MAY or COULD help one of them get chosen over someone else, but for the most part the kids Duke recruits are going anyway. I just think your argument is seriously flawed.

A better argument would be to say that Coach K recruits the few kids in the top 10 / top 25 that will fit into his program.... which is a program based on team concepts, as well as flopping, shooting 3s, and being white

 

[Ricky1Moore]

Pitt and Cuse do very well without McD's. So I'm sure their fans look at JC and think he is mining gold.

I agree with people. It is a combination of things. JC gets enough great players, evaluates and gets players that are not as notable but show promise, develops players better than most coaches and has some Irish with his recruiting.

Correction, Pitt and Cuse do well IN THE REGULAR SEASON without McD's All Americans.

 

[ctchamps]

Correction, Pitt and Cuse do well IN THE REGULAR SEASON without McD's All Americans.

Correction duly noted.

 

[Ricky1Moore]

Correction duly noted.

It's important to remind them of that as often as possible

 

[Scot-e]

Because they are scum.

 

[Kitaman]

Disagree. Duke doesn't take any kids that aren't in the top 25 (and usually top 10) at the time they are recruiting them. Those kids are almost all still top 25 (and usually still top 10) by the time they are seniors and being looked at for the All Star Games... Sure, being a Duke / Kentucky / Kansas / UNC commit MAY or COULD help one of them get chosen over someone else, but for the most part the kids Duke recruits are going anyway. I just think your argument is seriously flawed.

A better argument would be to say that Coach K recruits the few kids in the top 10 / top 25 that will fit into his program.... which is a program based on team concepts, as well as flopping, shooting 3s, and being white

I think also kids 'pick' dook, unc and uk more-so than coaches recruiting them. They are on every recruits top 5. These programs don't require agressive recruiting; their boosters, alumni, facilities, history and outstanding fanbase sells itself.

Sure we have history, great coach, etc. but kids aren't beating down our door. Could it be partly the result of not having one and dones, and therefore limited roster space/PT)? I think also Calhoun himself can intimidate HS prima donnas. Not everyone can play for him, especially if they want to be 'the' superstar. He humbles kids quickly and publicly, and yet still is considered their father figure.

 

[ctchamps]

It's important to remind them of that as often as possible

I was betting Scot-e was going to correct me. I lost the bet to myself.

 

[upstater]

Disagree. Duke doesn't take any kids that aren't in the top 25 (and usually top 10) at the time they are recruiting them. Those kids are almost all still top 25 (and usually still top 10) by the time they are seniors and being looked at for the All Star Games... Sure, being a Duke / Kentucky / Kansas / UNC commit MAY or COULD help one of them get chosen over someone else, but for the most part the kids Duke recruits are going anyway. I just think your argument is seriously flawed.

A better argument would be to say that Coach K recruits the few kids in the top 10 / top 25 that will fit into his program.... which is a program based on team concepts, as well as flopping, shooting 3s, and being white

Quinn Cook and Marshall Plumlee were ranked 37 and 68 and they were McDs All-Americans. It's totally about Duke.

 

[Ricky1Moore]

Quinn Cook and Marshall Plumlee were ranked 37 and 68 and they were McDs All-Americans. It's totally about Duke.

Plumlee was about being a Plumlee... Cook went to Oak Hill, that could be why he got a lot of hype... What about every other McD's AA they've had in the last 5 / 10 years... my guess would be the strong majority are top 25 but all ears if I am wrong

 

[nomar]

Quinn Cook and Marshall Plumlee were ranked 37 and 68 and they were McDs All-Americans. It's totally about Duke.

Yeah, it happens. Happened with us, too. See Hazelton, Scott.

 

[upstater]

Yeah, it happens. Happened with us, too. See Hazelton, Scott.

With us it was a weird local boy thing, wasn't it?

 

[upstater]

Plumlee was about being a Plumlee... Cook went to Oak Hill, that could be why he got a lot of hype... What about every other McD's AA they've had in the last 5 / 10 years... my guess would be the strong majority are top 25 but all ears if I am wrong

But, Miles wasn't a McD. Boateng and Zoubek were in the 40s as well. But, there are so many Duke McD's it makes you wonder. Casey Sanders, Steve Wojo, Quin Snyder, etc.