doublea1971
GCF Top Poster
There has been a small stretch where basketball recruiting has been pretty quiet. The end of April saw the last active recruiting period (versus evaluation periods and quiet periods) allowable by the NCAA until September (if I'm not mistaken - see here and here for details). The NBA and G-League Combines have happened, and players who were left in the portal have had to officially declare their intent as of June 1st (withdrawing from NBA consideration). This means that a SMALL handful of players from NCAA institutions are still available in the NCAA Portal.
There are a few interesting names out there, so I thought I would catalog a few for your amusement (and in case Coach Paris is reading this!!). All names below are PF/SF/C, as those are the immediate needs for the Gamecocks in the 2022-23 season.
Per On3 rankings in the top 150 players who entered the portal in 2022...
#10 - 6'8" SF Pete Nance (JR - Northwestern University)
#18 6'10" C Efe Abogidi (SO - Washington State University)
#31 6'11" FP Mouhammed Gueye (FR - Washington State University)
#39 6'7" SF Keion Brooks (SO - Kentucky)
#75 6'7" SF Kim Aiken (SR - Arizona)
#124 3'9" C/PF Felipe Haase (RS SR - Mercer University)
Of the names on that list, I'm most intrigued by Mouhammed Gueye and Felipe Haase, as potentials for Coach Paris. Nance is the most "sexy" choice, but he's likely going to remain in the Big10. Abogidi is more than likely going G-League route, though he would be an excellent grab (he, unfortunately, had already narrowed his choices for college transfer down to four schools that did not include the Gamecocks prior to his June 1st withdrawal from the NBA Draft).
So why Gueye? Admittedly, he did not show very well at the NBA's G-League combine recently (He only had 13 points in two contests - one game where he went 2 of 9 from the field, and totals of four rebounds over the two scrimmages. Gueye didn’t have good results in any of the shooting drills either, with the exception of the free throw drill where he went 9 of 10). Well, here's what you get from his time at Washington State... 35 games played, with 33 games as starter. Average of 21.9 minutes played per game. A .491 FG%, and 5.2 Rebounds per game. The major downside to his game was a .493 FT%, but as you see in my G-League commentary, he went 9 of 10 in drills there (perhaps an indicator he worked diligently on that part of his game in the post-season period). He's had moments on the court as well (see the video embedded in the linked article).
Everyone remembers Felipe Haase and his time in Columbia. He was a guy that Coach Frank Martin rode like nobody's business... Haase seemed intent on being an outside shooter when Coach Martin wanted him to be a true center and with his back to the basket kind of player. He never developed into what Coach Martin needed, and after two pretty decent seasons with the Gamecocks, Felipe transferred away to play for the Mercer Bears. Well, guess what? For those who didn't pay attention, Felipe turned into a pretty good player... one worthy of notice. His FG % increased each year he played, from his FR year with the 'Cocks (38.2%) to his SR year with the Bears (48.2%). His assist, blocks and steals all took monumental jumps in his last season at Mercer, and his point totals went from 192 as a FR at USC to 487 as a SR at Mercer (increasing each year he played). It would be fun to see him back as a Gamecock for one year, and in my estimation a great use of one scholarship for one year. Felipe would easily supplement current roster C (Josh Gray, Tre-Vaughn Minotte), providing some leadership, AND could fill in capably at PF with players we have there as well (Javon Benson, Daniel Hankins-Sanford and Benjamin Bosmans-Verdonk).
Just a little food for thought, while everyone waits for recruiting for the next cycle to begin. Any thoughts on the above? Would love to hear from y'all on this info.
There are a few interesting names out there, so I thought I would catalog a few for your amusement (and in case Coach Paris is reading this!!). All names below are PF/SF/C, as those are the immediate needs for the Gamecocks in the 2022-23 season.
Per On3 rankings in the top 150 players who entered the portal in 2022...
#10 - 6'8" SF Pete Nance (JR - Northwestern University)
#18 6'10" C Efe Abogidi (SO - Washington State University)
#31 6'11" FP Mouhammed Gueye (FR - Washington State University)
#39 6'7" SF Keion Brooks (SO - Kentucky)
#75 6'7" SF Kim Aiken (SR - Arizona)
#124 3'9" C/PF Felipe Haase (RS SR - Mercer University)
Of the names on that list, I'm most intrigued by Mouhammed Gueye and Felipe Haase, as potentials for Coach Paris. Nance is the most "sexy" choice, but he's likely going to remain in the Big10. Abogidi is more than likely going G-League route, though he would be an excellent grab (he, unfortunately, had already narrowed his choices for college transfer down to four schools that did not include the Gamecocks prior to his June 1st withdrawal from the NBA Draft).
So why Gueye? Admittedly, he did not show very well at the NBA's G-League combine recently (He only had 13 points in two contests - one game where he went 2 of 9 from the field, and totals of four rebounds over the two scrimmages. Gueye didn’t have good results in any of the shooting drills either, with the exception of the free throw drill where he went 9 of 10). Well, here's what you get from his time at Washington State... 35 games played, with 33 games as starter. Average of 21.9 minutes played per game. A .491 FG%, and 5.2 Rebounds per game. The major downside to his game was a .493 FT%, but as you see in my G-League commentary, he went 9 of 10 in drills there (perhaps an indicator he worked diligently on that part of his game in the post-season period). He's had moments on the court as well (see the video embedded in the linked article).
Everyone remembers Felipe Haase and his time in Columbia. He was a guy that Coach Frank Martin rode like nobody's business... Haase seemed intent on being an outside shooter when Coach Martin wanted him to be a true center and with his back to the basket kind of player. He never developed into what Coach Martin needed, and after two pretty decent seasons with the Gamecocks, Felipe transferred away to play for the Mercer Bears. Well, guess what? For those who didn't pay attention, Felipe turned into a pretty good player... one worthy of notice. His FG % increased each year he played, from his FR year with the 'Cocks (38.2%) to his SR year with the Bears (48.2%). His assist, blocks and steals all took monumental jumps in his last season at Mercer, and his point totals went from 192 as a FR at USC to 487 as a SR at Mercer (increasing each year he played). It would be fun to see him back as a Gamecock for one year, and in my estimation a great use of one scholarship for one year. Felipe would easily supplement current roster C (Josh Gray, Tre-Vaughn Minotte), providing some leadership, AND could fill in capably at PF with players we have there as well (Javon Benson, Daniel Hankins-Sanford and Benjamin Bosmans-Verdonk).
Just a little food for thought, while everyone waits for recruiting for the next cycle to begin. Any thoughts on the above? Would love to hear from y'all on this info.
