Palmetto Proving Grounds

Being the pessimist that I am, I expect we will not sign anyone else for next year. The nice thing to me is that we are recruiting players that a lot of big time schools also want. And despite the lack of recent success on the court, and their short time on the job, our coaches still have us involved with some good prospects. Having a good season next year would only enhance our recruiting.

Thank you very much, WG!

Does Asia Dozier coming to USC have an effect on where PJ will go?

Also, do you think Dad will help USC any, or is he going to stay out of it?

He definitely shoots from the chest....more like a push shot than a conventional jumper. Excellent talent, though.

While I believe the move is bc he wants to play against the best competition, I don't believe it's got nothing to do with recruiting. I do think it hurts USC. If it means so much to him to play against the best competition that he'd go, then why wouldn't he take the same philosophy on his next choice - college? The SEC isn't terrible, but it's not the Big East, the ACC, or the Big10... where the best competition, day in and day out, resides. He obviously isn't concerned with family and friends being able to see him play, so until he is enrolled at USC, I'll be skeptical that he ends up here. It's good competition, but not the best. Which is clearly very important to him.

Since losing "Prime Time Tim" Fuller to Missouri's staff, I'm a bit surprised Louisville has sustained such a strong recruiting presence in the Raleigh, N.C., area (re: Montrezl). Must be a connection there I'm missing.

I've heard Harris' pick between Florida and Kansas should come down very soon. Amazes me the kind of offers that a lot of this year's transfers have gotten; schools that never would have looked at them coming out of high school.

Believe it or not, both Harris and Gill were very highly rated recruits. Hell, if I remember correctly, Lakeem Jackson was a top100 recruit.

I don't think that means that Florida or Kansas gave them much of a look, but we are losing some talent in Harris and Gill.

Horn's strength was not turning talent into on the court production, especially if that meant points.

I caution anyone about getting too excited about the upcoming basketball season. We need to be patient for a change. It's going to take Martin 4 - 5 classes to get the ball rolling around here. He's done a good job in a short amount of time but the players he's brought in are not guys who could take the SEC by storm. I expect about what we should expect from a team which loses it's 3 best players from a team which won 2 conference games and replacing those three with one pretty good wing player who might not qualify to get into school.

Baciu is terrible and isn't he a SR or JR already?

Yes I don't buy that at all. Kid leaves to make a bigger name for himself he is usually looking for bigger offers.

If making mcdonalds game is so important to him who is to say a unc or caliperi offer wouldn't be a goal as well...

I think this is not good for USC if he blows up and makes the splash he hopes for.

I agree. If you are hopped up on playing top shelf ball then you would be hopped up at playing at an elite program which Georgetown, Ohio state aren't despite being excellent.

Agree.

A lot of people are excited about guys that dont figure to be all that good. Least of all as freshmen.

More toughness and cohesiveness could make us more respectable than talent suggests but if hall doesn't qualify we could be one of the worst teams in sec history.

Regarding Troy Williams, does anyone around here - including WG - really think that Williams is one and done from the University of South Carolina? I say no way. He is not coming here. He's going to a program from which he could actually be a one and done. A kid with his kind of earning potential simply would not throw that up in the air by gambling on a program with as poor a track record as ours. I hope I'm wrong, but I know what I would do if I were Troy Williams and that is go to either KY or UNC. What do you think everyone close to Williams will be telling him?