Swan88

According to Lee Barfknecht: Nebraska has one scholarship left for the coming season. Miles said, “We need the best available player or another big guy.’’

Hmmm . . . some athleticism there!

Marquette folks seem to see Ed as starting at the 4 position next year: one even calls him a “prototype Big East 4.” My perception is that Ed has, throughout his career, always played the 5–and he is often a dominating force there. The problem for Ed, that I’ve observed, is a lack of hand quickness and agility—something that’s hard to remedy and is a problem at the 4. Ball-handling deficiencies are hard to overcome outside the 5. But . . . he’ll probably prove me wrong.

Wow! That article is a must-read. It has some encouraging stuff, suggesting that Nebrasketball got a “steal” in Harris. For example: 1. “Harris carries a 4.0 grade average.” This is something you have to admire about Tim Miles—his recruits tend to be great students. 2. Harris is “still 17 years old, which led to a slower-paced recruiting process from power conference schools.” Harris is “one of those ‘late’ guys.’’ 3. Harris “played at three high schools in three years,” which hampered his visibility and development.

Does he actually hold a Nebrasketball offer?

What are possibilities that Davis redshirts to focus on getting healed-up?

In his freshman season, Roby hit 4 of 20 threes for a .200 percentage. This past season he shot 17 of 42 threes for a .405 percentage. At that rate of improvement, he should be over .800 next season.

Gates reached out to Miles. This is a Miles hire. It’s not a Moos hire. This has nothing to do with any conspiracy or any Moos future head coach plan.

I like our chances (no inside information). Here's why: Nebrasketball lost two senior guards, who played lots of minutes and were relied upon for athletic defense. Auburn lost only one senior guard whose minutes were limited. Nebrasketball had an athletic guard recruited to fill the minutes void immediately--but he is going elsewhere. This spot is available, and Auburn has nothing comparable. Amir Harris is a long, athletic guard who specializes in driving, dishing and defense. Nebrasketball needs a long, athletic guard who can drive, dish and play defense -- a lot like Tai Webster, whose shot improved over time. He's a perfect fit here--and he would be merely a decent fit at Auburn.

If he decides to go to Auburn, that is truly bad news. But if he chooses Nebraska, the good news is that Auburn is helping to confirm that Amir Harris is a good choice and not merely a poor-man's Xavier Johnson.

Gotta love this part of the article and what it demonstrates about Nebrasketball’s standing in the world of high-major college basketball: “But Gates was immediately a hot commodity . . . There were no concerns from any of the programs or head coaches in pursuit. By this past weekend, . . . he was entertaining multiple high-major offers.”

I’m talking about D-1 / Power 5 level: the level of a team that, last season, finished 4th in the B1G, with 22 overall wins, 13 Conference wins, 16-1 at home (the only loss is a one-pointer to Kansas). That level.

Work ethic concerns are usually a disqualifier at this level. And that’s true for high level talent, let alone marginal players.

What's the significance of "only 11 players . . . listed at 6'9" or taller" averaging more than 12 points per game? The suggestion seems ominous. From 2001 through 2012, several seasons had no one averaging 12 points per game, and numerous seasons had only one: two per season was a rarity. We started getting two per season consistently in the Tim Miles years: with Terran Petteway and Shavon Shields, and then with Shavon and Andrew White (both Shavon and Andrew were 6/7"--that's pretty close), then with Tai and Glynn, and last season with Palmer and Copeland. And then there is Walter Pitchford who, at 6'10," averaged 10.0 points per conference game in 2013-14. And Isaiah Roby wouldn't even count, if he gets there, because he's 6'8" while playing the Center position occasionally (sort of like Andrew Drevo from 2002-03, who averaged 12+ from the forward position at 6'8").

It’s sad an unfortunate how things have worked out with this player. But, heck, it’s not like the Ómaha Metro has produced a bunch of basketball studs recently, according to the local D-1schools. For example, last year the Huskers and Jays, combined, had a total of one scholarship player from the Metro on their teams, and neither has one coming in this year. UN-O, on its 16-man roster last year, had only three Metro players. And, by the way, here’s an interesting phenomenon: when the Huskers excel at a sport (e.g., football and volleyball), lots of teams in the region (both high school and college) benefit by getting better and excelling too. But that hasn’t happened in basketball—not that Nebrasketball has excelled, and Jay’s success doesn't seem to bear that fruit. But here’s guessing that if Nebrasketball can ever get it together and sustain success, that too will change.

Yeah. In looking this week at other message boards, one thing is striking: Nebasketball discussions on Red Sea Scrolls are unrelentingly and viciously negative—much more than on other boards. And that’s even true for boards who want their coach fired. I attribute this to the presence on RSS of Husker football fans who are fans of other basketball teams (primarily Jays), who are paying for the service, and who hate (literally) Nebrasketball.

Yeah, we’re running out of time for a “this week” announcement.

A 7 footer is leaving his brother’s team.

In the realm of speculation and looking-for-coincidences, check this out (rankings are from Rivals): In the 2016 class, Florida signed one three-stars and one four-stars basketball recruits; In the 2017 class, Florida signed three three-stars and one four-stars basketball recruits; In October and November of 2017, Florida received commitments from two four-stars and one five-stars basketball recruits for the 2018 class; In early December 2017, news sources say that Florida follows a few other SEC schools from Nike to a Jordan Brand apparel contract; and A new coach''s expressions of concern about recruiting practices could sour relationships with a head coach. Just speculating!

Here are concluding portions of the news article from the Chicago Sun-Times: But Gates was immediately a hot commodity –– again –– as word in the underbelly of the college basketball world began to circulate that he was available. There were no concerns from any of the programs or head coaches in pursuit. By this past weekend, just days after his meeting with White, he was entertaining multiple high-major offers. Sources confirm that Gates is now headed back to the Big Ten, with an official announcement forthcoming, and will join Nebraska coach Tim Miles’ coaching staff, effectively ending a wild few weeks. While Gates will join a team that won 22 games last season, returns its top four four scorers and will be among the top four teams in preseason Big Ten rankings, the road to get there shows the types of twists and turns college coaches must navigate through in what can be a mucky world.

Why not? It was great season — historically great! It’s reminiscent of National Coach of the Year developments from a few years ago. And the last month and a half appear to be culminating in a great hire. Downers can be down, if that’s what they choose: but why insist on dragging everyone else along?

Here’s his bio from the Northwestern official site: Regarded as an outstanding recruiter, Gates played a large role in Northwestern bringing in a top-30 recruiting class in the nation for 2014-15 according to ESPN.com. Gates has helped mentor the Wildcats’ young backcourt over his first three seasons, grooming honorable mention All-Big Ten selections Bryant McIntosh and Tre Demps along with Vic Law and Scottie Lindsey. In his first season on the Wildcats’ staff, Gates helped coach Drew Crawford to third-team All-Big Ten honors as the guard/forward finished his career ranked second all-time at NU in scoring, third in field goals, fourth in 3-point field goals and sixth in blocked shots. Gates joined the Wildcats after spending two seasons just down Sheridan Road on the staff at Loyola University Chicago. In his first year at Loyola, Gates helped forward Ben Averkamp earn second-team All-Horizon League honors to become Loyola’s first all-conference performer since 2006-07. In addition, Walt Gibler finished his career as one of only 18 players in Loyola history to total both 1,000 points and 500 rebounds under Gates’ tutelage. Prior to his time in Rogers Park, Gates spent the 2010-11 campaign as an assistant at TCU. Gates worked with the Horned Frogs’ guards and helped Hank Thorns become a third-team All-Mountain West Conference selection. Thorns finished the season as the only individual ranked among the top 12 in the nation in both assists per game and assist-turnover ratio. His 225 assists ranked No. 2 in MWC single-season history while also averaging 10.7 points per game. Prior to his brief stay at TCU, Gates spent two seasons as an assistant coach at Kent State, helping the Golden Flashes to the 2009-10 Mid-American Conference regular-season title. In his final year at Kent State, Gates was part of a staff that guided the Golden Flashes to the second round of the NIT. Gates began his coaching career as a graduate assistant coach at Western Kentucky. In his lone season on the Hilltoppers’ staff, the team recorded a 29-7 overall record and reached the NCAA Sweet 16. During his playing days at Kent State, Gates helped the Golden Flashes to a 88-42 record and three postseason appearances. Kent State recorded four straight 20-win seasons during his time on campus and he closed out his career tied for second in school history with 200 3-point field goals. Gates graduated from Kent State in 2006 with a degree in leisure studies and earned his master’s degree in sports administration from the same institution in 2007. He was a MAC All-Academic selection. Gates prepped at Hillcrest High School and his brother, Dennis, is currently an assistant coach at Florida State.