2025 Recruiting: - Niko Bundalo Update | Page 17 | The Boneyard

2025 Recruiting: Niko Bundalo Update

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businesslawyer said:
When we were dating as college students, my wife would have moved on from me but for the fact that I was a much better typist than her and could be — let’s say incentivized — to type her term papers.
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I get. Quid pro quo.
 
Ricker said:
Thanks for response. To bring in a third 6'5 guard in the same class would certainly surprise me. If it means Bundalo is going elsewhere than maybe we have decided we are playing our 6'5 guards as wings and rolling with Stewart/Ross/Abraham as our only forwards with size, at least for now. (Being close by, do you have Hurley's special room bugged?)
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I don't have Hurley's house bugged yet, but I'm working on it. Going into next season with 3 pg's on the rooster would really surprise me. In any event, it will be good to wrap up the 25 class and concentrate on winning number 7.
 
Glastonhusky said:
I don't have Hurley's house bugged yet, but I'm working on it. Going into next season with 3 pg's on the rooster would really surprise me. In any event, it will be good to wrap up the 25 class and concentrate on winning number 7.
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This is getting nutty, the speculation that is. I hope the staff is not scratching their heads as much as we are.
 
Doesn’t Hurley live in Glastonbury? He getting his tips from Andrea at the local Banana Republic?
 
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Some rumblings elsewhere that Niko has reopened and may visit Arkansas. As quiet as things have been with him and his 4 finalists, now a few days after 3 of them signed guys, sounds like a strong possibility. Tea leaves pretty suggestive that this ship is sailing. Seems Furphy would be the 4th if Dan Hurley did want to add another and my guess would be a longer term depth guy.



Very weird recruitment. Feels like he was all in on the Huskies and others fillers and the staff just went in another direction.
 
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Waquoit said:
I sucked at typing. Hurt my class rank.
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Before I retired, I used to proofread everything 2 or 3 times before I hit send. Typing on a message board I always just hit send. Sometimes I go back and cringe at my English or find out that autocorrect has changed something.
 
Glastonhusky said:
I don't have Hurley's house bugged yet, but I'm working on it. Going into next season with 3 pg's on the rooster would really surprise me. In any event, it will be good to wrap up the 25 class and concentrate on winning number 7.
Expand ...
From the little bit I've read I don't think Furphy is a PG. More of an offball guard who can facilitate a little bit the way Spencer did in the offense last year
 
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So bizarre. I guess that means we were recruiting him at a 5 instead of a Karaban replacement and he didn’t want to compete with Reed and Reibe for minutes.

Also, staff must feel confident that Ball is NBA bound after this season if we’re going to take Jacob Furphy. Interesting development lol
 
Total stud - and talk about bringing some character to the table. The kid looks like when he’s not banging threes, he’s killing people on the rugby field.

To little surprise you can definitely see Dan Hurley is shaping his roster with position-less tall guards that can shoot, around a versatile big/rim protector. Then to also have a true PG on roster as a change of pace, and in the event they need to break pressure.

Not even sure a traditional 4 is part of the scheme any longer, as he’d rather have better
movement. I’d agree that it’s pretty clear Niko was a backup to Reibe and that chances are better than not Solo gets to the draft. No question he wants to keep sending guys to keep the recruiting steamroller moving, as to start filling the league and push the brotherhood into his rear view.
 
Wrote this a while ago and never posted. I watched a couple more games yesterday and edited...

15.6 PTS
5.8 REB
0.8 AST (1.0 potential)

1.6 TO
0.4 STL
2.0 BLK

54% 2FG (7.4 attempts)
21% 3FG (4.8 attempts)
90% FT(2.5 attempts)

Overall:
I watched 7 games and a bunch of highlights from over the past 9 months or so. 6’9/6’10 and 215lbs sounds about right. Skilled for his size and rapidly improving. Athleticism is on the lower-end of our normal recruits. Shooting is not very good right now, but his free throws are pretty, and he’s getting tons of reps from deep with good form, so I expect in a year or two he’ll be an asset on limited volume. He’s in the mold of that Akok/Samson PF recruit we used to be after, but instead of prioritizing speed/hops, we are after some skill. Very different role than AK. I think anyone calling him a pure 4 probably hasn’t watched him play that much. He’s going to need to play both in college as he transitions to a 4 in the league–it will take time. I haven’t loved his attitude on the court at times. Fiery competitiveness is great…but he whines like a Dukie at the refs when things get emotional in games.

Offense:
  • His calling card is his skill at 6’10. Driving, shooting, etc at his height is a rare ability. However, that perimeter skill is definitely still growing and needs work. The polish is not there. I see his as someone who could dominate in the NBA, but may not have a huge impact in college. Bigs develop late, especially the ones who are essentially learning guards skills while being 6’10+.
  • Nice ball mover and doesn’t turn it over when passing, but doesn’t have really any consistent advanced passing reads. He isn’t hitting shooters when he drives, finding cutters, or posting up and kicking to shooters consistently. Would like to see him take more risks finding his cutters, kicking to shooters, etc.
  • I think we need to dial is back on how much of a shooting asset he will be. FT form has improved tremendously and his % is great, so the indications are there he will be an asset in time. But like many young bigs the answer here is TIME. Even many of his two-point land misses are mid-range shots that he missed.
  • Really like his shooting %s at the rim. Looks his best doing the dirty work inside. Has a basic jump hook with either hand and a 1-2 dribble post up that, while not polished, is effective enough to get the job done well as an inside-out presence.
  • From what I can tell, he is an ambidextrous finisher. Plenty of baby hooks and layups with both hands.
  • Loves to drive in the half-court, and since last HS season has gotten much more physical on his drives. IMO the best part of his game long-term and the skill that will get him to the league is his ability to take a big 1v1 to the rim. Seems to do his damage mostly at the left side of the rim.
  • Does a lot of screen setting and rolling/popping like you’d expect from a stretch 5. Still learning the intricacies of creating space and sealing, but I see the potential.
  • The other place where I see him being a huge asset is in his ability to rebound and run with the ball. Pushes the pace, defense on their heels, and can more the ball up the court well enough to find a guard to attack.
  • Not sure if it’s just the teams he’s played for or an IQ/foot speed thing, but I haven’t seen much in the way of successful cutting from him.
Defense:
  • He looks his best contesting shots on the drive or helping his teammates (he plays the 5 for his HS and quite a bit in AAU). He does a fantastic job of contesting without fouling. At one point he must have contested 15-20 shots in a half at the rim and only fouled once. Stays straight up almost religiously it seems.
  • 1v1 post defense is not good. Both fundamentally with his footwork and balance, and in his size. He gets bullied, falls for fakes, and isn’t stopping even low-ranked bigs.
  • His rebounding is improving rapidly. Last HS season I wrote a lot of “he’s soft” and “not violent enough”... he’s not quite there yet (bigs develop late), but I see a clear mental shift in his willingness to sacrifice the body to get the board. More boxing out and hitting people.
  • What I don’t see the potential for right now is out-of-area rebounding. His feet are just not quick enough.
  • Those not-so-quick feet on the perimeter shows up when he gets switched onto quicker players than him, even some PFs. He can get beat to the rim frequently. He’s got the length to still contest, but would like to see him stay in front more.
 
aburks41 said:
So bizarre. I guess that means we were recruiting him at a 5 instead of a Karaban replacement and he didn’t want to compete with Reed and Reibe for minutes.

Also, staff must feel confident that Ball is NBA bound after this season if we’re going to take Jacob Furphy. Interesting development lol
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It could be about the relative expected minutes next year. Furphy may be on the Ross and (I am assuming) Abraham plan of not necessarily playing all that much as a freshman, whereas Bundolo would require minutes immediately.

This would imply Mullins choosing UConn impacted Bundalo. Now we see that after Mullins commits, Bundalo may be re-opening his recruitment.
 
ec33 said:
It could be about the relative expected minutes next year. Furphy may be on the Ross and (I am assuming) Abraham plan of not necessarily playing all that much as a freshman, whereas Bundolo would require minutes immediately.

This would imply Mullins choosing UConn impacted Bundalo. Now we see that after Mullins commits, Bundalo may be re-opening his recruitment.
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Mullins and Bundalo do not remotely play the same position. They have zero impact on each other’s minutes. Bundalo would have been turned off by Reibe’s commitment
 
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I'm thrilled with Furphy if we land him. Love shooting and ours will be devastating. Very skilled and instinctive player. Kids a dog. Seems like a pretty major get. Let Dan Hurley and the staff sort out the playing time and rosters. They know what they are doing and what they want. Our fans stress way too much about roster, lineups, positions, and playing time.
 
husky429 said:
Wrote this a while ago and never posted. I watched a couple more games yesterday and edited...

15.6 PTS
5.8 REB
0.8 AST (1.0 potential)

1.6 TO
0.4 STL
2.0 BLK

54% 2FG (7.4 attempts)
21% 3FG (4.8 attempts)
90% FT(2.5 attempts)

Overall:
I watched 7 games and a bunch of highlights from over the past 9 months or so. 6’9/6’10 and 215lbs sounds about right. Skilled for his size and rapidly improving. Athleticism is on the lower-end of our normal recruits. Shooting is not very good right now, but his free throws are pretty, and he’s getting tons of reps from deep with good form, so I expect in a year or two he’ll be an asset on limited volume. He’s in the mold of that Akok/Samson PF recruit we used to be after, but instead of prioritizing speed/hops, we are after some skill. Very different role than AK. I think anyone calling him a pure 4 probably hasn’t watched him play that much. He’s going to need to play both in college as he transitions to a 4 in the league–it will take time. I haven’t loved his attitude on the court at times. Fiery competitiveness is great…but he whines like a Dukie at the refs when things get emotional in games.

Offense:
  • His calling card is his skill at 6’10. Driving, shooting, etc at his height is a rare ability. However, that perimeter skill is definitely still growing and needs work. The polish is not there. I see his as someone who could dominate in the NBA, but may not have a huge impact in college. Bigs develop late, especially the ones who are essentially learning guards skills while being 6’10+.
  • Nice ball mover and doesn’t turn it over when passing, but doesn’t have really any consistent advanced passing reads. He isn’t hitting shooters when he drives, finding cutters, or posting up and kicking to shooters consistently. Would like to see him take more risks finding his cutters, kicking to shooters, etc.
  • I think we need to dial is back on how much of a shooting asset he will be. FT form has improved tremendously and his % is great, so the indications are there he will be an asset in time. But like many young bigs the answer here is TIME. Even many of his two-point land misses are mid-range shots that he missed.
  • Really like his shooting %s at the rim. Looks his best doing the dirty work inside. Has a basic jump hook with either hand and a 1-2 dribble post up that, while not polished, is effective enough to get the job done well as an inside-out presence.
  • From what I can tell, he is an ambidextrous finisher. Plenty of baby hooks and layups with both hands.
  • Loves to drive in the half-court, and since last HS season has gotten much more physical on his drives. IMO the best part of his game long-term and the skill that will get him to the league is his ability to take a big 1v1 to the rim. Seems to do his damage mostly at the left side of the rim.
  • Does a lot of screen setting and rolling/popping like you’d expect from a stretch 5. Still learning the intricacies of creating space and sealing, but I see the potential.
  • The other place where I see him being a huge asset is in his ability to rebound and run with the ball. Pushes the pace, defense on their heels, and can more the ball up the court well enough to find a guard to attack.
  • Not sure if it’s just the teams he’s played for or an IQ/foot speed thing, but I haven’t seen much in the way of successful cutting from him.
Defense:
  • He looks his best contesting shots on the drive or helping his teammates (he plays the 5 for his HS and quite a bit in AAU). He does a fantastic job of contesting without fouling. At one point he must have contested 15-20 shots in a half at the rim and only fouled once. Stays straight up almost religiously it seems.
  • 1v1 post defense is not good. Both fundamentally with his footwork and balance, and in his size. He gets bullied, falls for fakes, and isn’t stopping even low-ranked bigs.
  • His rebounding is improving rapidly. Last HS season I wrote a lot of “he’s soft” and “not violent enough”... he’s not quite there yet (bigs develop late), but I see a clear mental shift in his willingness to sacrifice the body to get the board. More boxing out and hitting people.
  • What I don’t see the potential for right now is out-of-area rebounding. His feet are just not quick enough.
  • Those not-so-quick feet on the perimeter shows up when he gets switched onto quicker players than him, even some PFs. He can get beat to the rim frequently. He’s got the length to still contest, but would like to see him stay in front more.
Expand ...
I do remember you commented on someone we were recruiting a couple months back that you didn't like their body language, but you didn't reveal who it was. Maybe Ruff's tea leaves werent a bad strain. I def think Furphy has a whole different attitude.
 
RuffRuff said:
Total stud - and talk about bringing some character to the table. The kid looks like when he’s not banging threes, he’s killing people on the rugby field.

To little surprise you can definitely see Dan Hurley is shaping his roster with position-less tall guards that can shoot, around a versatile big/rim protector. Then to also have a true PG on roster as a change of pace, and in the event they need to break pressure.

Not even sure a traditional 4 is part of the scheme any longer, as he’d rather have better
movement. I’d agree that it’s pretty clear Niko was a backup to Reibe and that chances are better than not Solo gets to the draft. No question he wants to keep sending guys to keep the recruiting steamroller moving, as to start filling the league and push the brotherhood into his rear view.
Expand ...
Position-less tall guards.

Newton, Spencer, Castle: all 6’4 and above, capable of playing on or off the ball. 37-3. Hurley has found his formula.

Shows how dang good Nowell is that they went away from that archetype with him. Darius Adams, Braylon Mullins, and Jacob Furphy would certainly fit that tall position-less guard mold.
 
He'd be going to UNC if they came up with that Bundelo NIL.
 
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aburks41 said:
So bizarre. I guess that means we were recruiting him at a 5 instead of a Karaban replacement and he didn’t want to compete with Reed and Reibe for minutes.

Also, staff must feel confident that Ball is NBA bound after this season if we’re going to take Jacob Furphy. Interesting development lol
Expand ...

Do you believe this post? I don’t know that this handle is credible yet. Happy with furphy or bundalo, however it shakes out.
 
Nowell, Mahaney, Ball, Adams, Mullins, Furphy. If two or three of these guys play the wing it is not too many guards. None of these guys are on the roster to sit on the bench next season. Also on the roster playing the wing and the 4 this season and maybe next are Stewart, McNeeley, Ross, and Abraham. Maybe Hurley wants to wait and see what the status of the 4 is at the end of this season before adding another big forward like Bundalo now. He can always hit the portal for exactly what we need. Reed, Singare, and Reibe, at the 5, with Reibe according to some reports also expressing interest to have some minutes at the 4, or playing two bigs at once if we want to call it that, more opportunities for Reibe who can play outside and shoot the three.

I count 13 schollies right there, with two or three possibles leaving after this season, but right now who knows for sure. Bundalo sure looked like a good fit as a big 4, but the way the roster is constructed right now for next season, Jacob Furphy may be the much better fit and too good to pass on.

And of course, are we basing our opinions on good information.
 
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FreeKlaiber said:
I do remember you commented on someone we were recruiting a couple months back that you didn't like their body language, but you didn't reveal who it was. Maybe Ruff's tea leaves werent a bad strain. I def think Furphy has a whole different attitude.
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Your memory is astounding, lol. Yeah...I DM'd some folks that I wasn't in love with his attitude on the court. Made me wonder if that's why we were more aggressive with Reibe.

That being said...it could just be the culture of his team. If your coach doesn't hold you accountable, then kids act up. And Hurley usn't letting anyone focus on whining more than winning if they expect to play.
 
aburks41 said:
Mullins and Bundalo do not remotely play the same position. They have zero impact on each other’s minutes. Bundalo would have been turned off by Reibe’s commitment
Expand ...
most roster additions have a domino effect on everyone else’s minutes…in this case Adding Mullins could mean less time on the wing for stew and Abe and more time at PF which would impact Bundalo
 
husky429 said:
Your memory is astounding, lol. Yeah...I DM'd some folks that I wasn't in love with his attitude on the court. Made me wonder if that's why we were more aggressive with Reibe.

That being said...it could just be the culture of his team. If your coach doesn't hold you accountable, then kids act up. And Hurley usn't letting anyone focus on whining more than winning if they expect to play.
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Twas only the messenger on that as saw it in a few places from the other suitors, and often when there’s smoke…. Watched an interview of his as well, and while you have to admire the intensity there is something unbridled about it that doesn’t match the Hurley style. The recruitment has been weird enough to make me think there’s something to it.

Really great write up from 429! As always the case will be interesting to follow the kid to see how it all plays out for him, and wish the best.
 
Ricker said:
To bring in a third 6'5 guard in the same class would certainly surprise me. If it means Bundalo is going elsewhere than maybe we have decided we are playing our 6'5 guards as wings and rolling with Stewart/Ross/Abraham as our only forwards with size, at least for now.
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6’5 is perfectly fine for a SF in college. It’s fine in the NBA too:
Bradley Beal 6’4
Josh Hart 6’4
Jalen Williams 6’5
Desmond Bane 6’5
Zach Lavine 6’5
 
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