Hope by "not a big man" he at least thinks he is a 3... but based on the prior post he may even think he's a guard...
"I am not a big man."
And this is why the staff turned its attention to Akok Akok.
First, he posted that in March. We started recruiting him in April.
Second, Akok Akok would not make it to campus until September, 2019.
Other than that, nailed it.
Worked terrifically with Vance.If he thinks he is a 3 then he will play for the coach that tells him he is a 3. Then that same coach will play him at the 4 or 5 anyway.
The big man label has become a dirty word. Everyone wants the ball in their hands, everyone wants to shoot threes....Golden State to thank for that. No one wants to be down low doing dirty work, cleaning up glass etc. They all want to be shooters.
Those guys are both veterans. Few highschool kids want to think of themselves as those guys any more. If they're 6'10" they're Kevin Durant in their eyes, not Javale McGeeThanks Golden State for playing beautiful basketball you jerks! If you watch them play, you will notice that they often have Pachulia or McGee on the floor. These guys only screen, rebound and dunk. Definition of dirty work.
For all the talk about "positionless" basketball, you still need bigs to play down low. Its nice if they can step out and shoot on offense, but someone needs to be protecting the rim and rebounding on defense. If the staff sees him banging down low and he wants to be on the perimeter, adios. You can lie all you want to a top talent and then figure it out when they get on campus. You shouldn't lie to a guy in the 200's who is projected as a role player (who doesn't want to play the role the staff envisions).
Those guys are both veterans. Few highschool kids want to think of themselves as those guys any more. If they're 6'10" they're Kevin Durant in their eyes, not Javale McGee
Those guys are both veterans. Few highschool kids want to think of themselves as those guys any more. If they're 6'10" they're Kevin Durant in their eyes, not Javale McGee
Why are we recruiting him as a 5 if he doesn't see himself as a 5?UConn is recruiting him as a 5 and he doesn't believe he's a 5 ...
Why are we recruiting him as a 5 if he doesn't see himself as a 5?
Is Ollie just messing with us at this point? So I guess all the talk about positionless basketball was all lip service.Just friggin lie for the love of Pete. 4/5, its all semantics in college hoops. Calipari would tell Greg Oden he was a point guard if it helped land him.
Starting to think we'll be seeing a lot more of this in the future
Is Ollie just messing with us at this point? So I guess all the talk about positionless basketball was all lip service.

Dude, we have 2 returning healthy players, we have like 5 scholarships to fill, our team is a bunch of 6'2 guys, thiss kid is 6'9 with athleticism and upside. He looked like a surefire commit a couple weeks ago, now we are telling him he will inly play here as a 5? No clue wtf is going on anymore.
Again, we have a bunch of scholarships that need to be filled, it's not either or. If you think Diarra is raw, that 7 footer is a whole different level of raw. Half this board seems to be totally clueless as to how thin we are for next season.Nonsense. Ollie surely wants versatile guys who can play any role on the court, but you have to have something that is your bread and butter where you are better than everybody else. This guy is never going to be the best perimeter scorer on the team, but he can be the best interior defender and rebounder.
"Positionless basketball" means players have to be prepared to play any position -- as Niels Giffey played the 5. If Mamoudou like Vance only wants to play one position and one role, and not a position of high need, then I'd rather get Chris Efretue.
I dont believe ollie would tell him hes playing purely the 5. Idk @chevtheman i hear he's credible, but that seems unlikely to meDude, we have 2 returning healthy players, we have like 5 scholarships to fill, our team is a bunch of 6'2 guys, thiss kid is 6'9 with athleticism and upside. He looked like a surefire commit a couple weeks ago, now we are telling him he will inly play here as a 5? No clue wtf is going on anymore.
For the millionth time, we need bodies. Are you comfortable we will have a full roster of capable guys for next season or you're satisfied rolling with 8 guys and Foxen getting rotation minutes?I know the point of view du jour here is that Kevin Ollie has a horrible basketball mind and doesn't know what he's doing at all, but maybe (just maybe) KO and staff only think he would be an asset to the team from the post, not as a 3? I feel like if they liked him as a 3, he'd be here already.
Yeah dude, Duke and Kansas only play 8 so we should be good.For the millionth time, we need bodies. Are you comfortable we will have a full roster of capable guys for next season or you're satisfied rolling with 8 guys and Foxen getting rotation minutes?
Nice to see you aren't as far gone as Strawmaster. If Ollie is only recruiting Diarra as a 5 with the situation we are in for next year then he has really lost it.I dont believe ollie would tell him hes playing purely the 5. Idk @chevtheman i hear he's credible, but that seems unlikely to me
For the millionth time, we need bodies. Are you comfortable we will have a full roster of capable guys for next season or you're satisfied rolling with 8 guys and Foxen getting rotation minutes?
Agreed. He can be whatever position he pleases. We need capable bodies. He's not a natural 5 anyway. He's a 3/4Nice to see you aren't as far gone as Strawmaster. If Ollie is only recruiting Diarra as a 5 with the situation we are in for next year then he has really lost it.