Christian Vital

[Leebo]

Yeah, they can't risk just letting stuff happen in the dorms, so any activities need to be supervised by Pitino in his office.

 

[CGarr]

April 22-24 is an evaluation period so Pitino probably won't be there to sell him on the school. I feel good about this.

 

[aceboon]

April 22-24 is an evaluation period so Pitino probably won't be there to sell him on the school. I feel good about this.

Didn't Louisville take their coaches off the road during that period as part of their self imposed penalties?

 

[CGarr]

Didn't Louisville take their coaches off the road during that period as part of their self imposed penalties?

You might be right. Initially I thought their "penalty" was similar to cuse's- taking 2 coaches off the road but it's different. From Yahoo: Louisville will also reduce its recruiting days by 30 this year – missing 24 this month and the remaining six in July. So there is a chance Rick will be there. Here's the thing though. Adidas and Nike only have 2 sessions in April. Both events are 3 days each. So I'd be shocked if the 6 days they are "allowed" to go out recruit aren't this weekend and the next. Shows what a joke the "penalty" is.

 

[tcf15]

Next Iowa point guard? It could be prep school star Christian Vital

Vital, who has been attending prep schools since age 15 and comes across as exceptionally mature, said he’ll be paying close attention to the camaraderie of the players wherever he does visit. He’s looking for a “family atmosphere,” believing that cohesiveness relates to winning titles.

“I don’t want to go to a place where I can play 40 minutes off the jump but we’re going to lose games. I don’t want to just go to college to go enjoy it. I want to be able to play at the highest level,” he said.

“I’m going to look for how they (the players and coaches) treat each other. If you look at winning teams, that’s the type of people they have around.”​

 

[JimHurley]

Haven't heard too much about this kid. Is he really up to UConn standards? He's a 3 star and we've had our fair share of bad luck with 3 star recruits.

 

[mauconnfan]

Close it Monday Tuesday - No Louisville for this guy - keep him in Storrs and get an "I'm IN"

 

[Stainmaster]

Haven't heard too much about this kid. Is he really up to UConn standards? He's a 3 star and we've had our fair share of bad luck with 3 star recruits.

"I just looked at the rankings and didn't read scouting reports/watch film. Yay me!"

 

[Matrim55]

"I just looked at the rankings and didn't read scouting reports/watch film. Yay me!"

Meh, I think it's a legit question. Ollie's recruited 4 3-star players, and 3 have transferred.

I hope we get Vital of course, but there are long-term concerns here.

 

[CGarr]

We need a SG and this guy has the best 3 Star scouting report I've ever read on ESPN.
From the locker room tonight:

 

[James]

first team all nepsac AAA, yeah i think he's uconn caliber lol.

 

[Stainmaster]

Meh, I think it's a legit question. Ollie's recruited 4 3-star players, and 3 have transferred.

I hope we get Vital of course, but there are long-term concerns here.

Even so, the past couple of years have shown me that star ratings aren't good blanket descriptors for players. With the guys that transferred, there was a defining characteristic to each of them that provided an explanation as to why they weren't a great fit for the level - T-Sam's complete absence of an offensive game+shaky handle, Lubin's lack of size and propensity to foul, and SCJ's negative athleticism and lack of consistency at the one thing he could kind of do (spot-up shooting). I see those factors as defining why they didn't make it at UConn, not because they had a "3" next to their name on ESPN. By contrast, Vital is described as being athletic, a solid ballhandler, and a very good 3-point shooter. The question mark is his defense and slight tendency to rush, but I have no reservation about KO and Ricky's ability to develop him there. He's also cited as a high-intensity player with a winning attitude. It may be me being my usual pollyanna self, but I don't see the normal negatives with him that I do with other 3-stars.

 

[Dogbreath2U]

IMHO, getting another PG or combo with good handle is priority #1. Vital looks like a great option to fill that gap. If it's Huskies vs. UL, how bad could he be? He looks like someone who could contribute at UConn....go get him, KO!

 

[businesslawyer]

Yeah, they can't risk just letting stuff happen in the dorms, so any activities need to be supervised by Pitino in his office.

This isn't a problem for Louisville. They'll just take the recruits to an Italian restaurant.

 

[BigErnMcCracken]

This isn't a problem for Louisville. They'll just take the recruits to an Italian restaurant.

Hard to compete with Louisville's offense. Pitino loves to shoot within 15 seconds.

 

[rip7774]

He said his best friend is Steve Enoch.

Follow @Daveborges on Twitter, he's fire right now with interviews with these guys.

For those not sure, this kid is super competitive and a combo guard and all these gurus talk about how he brings out the best in his teammates. We want this kid BAD! Not a typical 3-star, and a great great fit here.

 

[JSM1970]

He's not even top 200. I agree.

Haven't heard too much about this kid. Is he really up to UConn standards? He's a 3 star and we've had our fair share of bad luck with 3 star recruits.

 

[BFieldHusky]

He's not even top 200. I agree.

Yet schools like Louisville and Iowa want him.

 

[businesslawyer]

He's not even top 200. I agree.

See -- here is what amazes me about the unbridled stupidity of that statement. It appears that UConn, Iowa and Louisville all want the young man. In the face of that evidence that multiple big time coaches think he can play at a ranked D-1 level, how friggin stupid do you have to be to care how a recruiting site ranks him? What makes you think those people are better at judging talent than KO, Pitino and the Coach of Iowa?

Whatever you think of a situation where one coach offers a young man a spot that is way above his recruiting rankings, why is that relevant to a situation where three such coaches offer the young man?

 

[Rocktheworld]

See -- here is what amazes me about the unbridled stupidity of that statement. It appears that UConn, Iowa and Louisville all want the young man. In the face of that evidence that multiple big time coaches think he can play at a ranked D-1 level, how friggin stupid do you have to be to care how a recruiting site ranks him? What makes you think those people are better at judging talent than KO, Pitino and the Coach of Iowa?

Whatever you think of a situation where one coach offers a young man a spot that is way above his recruiting rankings, why is that relevant to a situation where three such coaches offer the young man?

Seriously. We need back court depth. If KO can pull in a TSam with the multiple open scholarships we still have to offer, it's fine by me.

 

[James]

signing thompson and vital would just be NUTS. vital is just a perfect fit, he's gonna get a ton of tick as the 3rd guard. Seen him play twice, kids a legit shooter and also a promising athlete @ 6'2. really good shooter. a bit 'unpredictable' on the floor, very emotional, but he is a player. Not a 'star' player upside like adams, but he is very solid imo.

 

[tcf15]

Christian Vital Down to Three,Talks UNLV Fiasco

A source told SNY.tv that Vital will take official visits to the Huskies on Monday and the Cardinals on Wednesday. Those will be his third and fourth officials, respectively, after visiting UNLV and Dayton earlier in the recruiting process.

When it comes to UConn, there are very obvious, profound connections to Vital that could end up working in the Huskies' favor.

"A player from my AAU program, Terry Larrier, is there," Vital said. "I know Jalen Adams very well from playing in New England.Steve Enoch was my teammate last year, that's my best friend. I actually just spoke to him the other day, he told me to get ready for my visit.

"Coach [Kevin] Ollie is a great guy, too. You can see how genuine he is and how much he cares about his players. That's why he shows so much emotion on the sideline."

 

[JSM1970]

Honestly, I base it on the fact only 1 player outside the top 100 ever averaged double digits in the last 25 years and that was Gavin Edwards on a terrible NIT team who averaged 10.1. I never expect much and never get much.

See -- here is what amazes me about the unbridled stupidity of that statement. It appears that UConn, Iowa and Louisville all want the young man. In the face of that evidence that multiple big time coaches think he can play at a ranked D-1 level, how friggin stupid do you have to be to care how a recruiting site ranks him? What makes you think those people are better at judging talent than KO, Pitino and the Coach of Iowa?

Whatever you think of a situation where one coach offers a young man a spot that is way above his recruiting rankings, why is that relevant to a situation where three such coaches offer the young man?

 

[BUConn10]

Christian Vital Down to Three,Talks UNLV Fiasco

A source told SNY.tv that Vital will take official visits to the Huskies on Monday and the Cardinals on Wednesday. Those will be his third and fourth officials, respectively, after visiting UNLV and Dayton earlier in the recruiting process.

When it comes to UConn, there are very obvious, profound connections to Vital that could end up working in the Huskies' favor.

"A player from my AAU program, Terry Larrier, is there," Vital said. "I know Jalen Adams very well from playing in New England.Steve Enoch was my teammate last year, that's my best friend. I actually just spoke to him the other day, he told me to get ready for my visit.

"Coach [Kevin] Ollie is a great guy, too. You can see how genuine he is and how much he cares about his players. That's why he shows so much emotion on the sideline."

If Ollie wants this kid, he will be ours. Everything he has said points to UConn being his preferred landing spot, now it's up to the staff to decide which direction they will go in with these last 2 scholarships.

 

[Dogbreath2U]

Honestly, I base it on the fact only 1 player outside the top 100 ever averaged double digits in the last 25 years and that was Gavin Edwards on a terrible NIT team who averaged 10.1. I never expect much and never get much.

we need guard depth, period. We need someone who can come in and play, maybe not averaging 10 ppg as a freshman, but if he can come in and make some plays, handle the ball, make some shots, help us get through pressing defenses, he will be a great find. Making statements based on stats like that is just simpleminded. We need role players who might turn into something more or not. This kid is wanted by top teams and we have a shot at him, so let's be happy to add him to the team if KO wants him. Was Austrie an asset? Hell yes he was. Now Alterique is injured. Do we freaking need more guards? uh, the answer is YES. We need some quality players to help this team, not all are going to be top 100 players.