The Coach

But aren't we still bringing Zach Smith in for an official visit? I can't imagine why we would want Smith over Gilmore. They're about the same size but Gilmore seems to be much more skilled offensively and just as good of an athlete.

Fair enough. I was just wondering if anyone has actually read the Washut article and if Bolden said he we were a leader, or if Washut just assumed we are among the leaders because of that connection. Headlines are often deceiving. I guess I'm just expecting another Okafor/Myles Turner situation where they may have interest at first, but when their ranking goes up and the big boys come calling, we aren't even on their radar anymore. If Tai Webster had played Prep School ball in the U.S. I'm not sure he'd be on our team right now.

The student section just needs to meet and plan out exactly what chants you will perform for each situation. Eventually the rest of the crowd will catch on. I just think the students need to come up with the ideas because our Marketing Department has been pretty lame and behind the times for the most part. Whereas most students were probably part of their high schools' student sections so they should have some good ideas for chants. Plan out a chant/chants for every situation. If you can't come up with anything original, just send some students to a Class A Rivalry Game and take notes. I've been to quite a few college basketball environments, but in my opinion many high school student sections put them to shame in terms of originality, creativity, and enthusiasm.

Has Bolden actually said he has any interest in us? All I've heard is that his dad knows Coach Harriman. Now that he will be playing prep ball in the U.S., and with Louisville and others already on him, I don't think we'll be on his radar. Smith seems to be a great athlete and garbage-man type but not a great offensive player. That would be okay if he were about 3 inches taller and 30 pounds heavier.....but Gilmore has the same size and athleticism and can also score. Not really high on Deng, his stats aren't great and I don't see why we need a JUCO forward with all the young talent we have at that position. So I say lock up Gilmore and Wacker and start putting all efforts into the 2015 class.

We need better organization/leadership from the student section. When I watch the Class A (and even some lower classes) State Tournament games, those student sections put ours to shame. They're loud, enthusiastic, organized, and come up with original/clever chants and traditions. The Red Zone die-hards need to have a meeting or party of some sort, and invite every student they know to brainstorm the chants and traditions they had in high school, decide what they want to do, and then practice. Oh and actually having players who can make exciting plays would help too.

If Wacker isn't a top priority, would we be bringing him in for an official visit in August already? I have a feeling when he sees the new arena and facilities he'll want to commit on the spot like Hammond. If Gilmore is a bigger priority, I think we'd bring him in first. I haven't seen film on Wacker, but I think some of you are underrating him. His offer list is just as good as Gilmore's, and if he's anything like his dad (who is also his coach, so there's a good chance he is) then he is a player we want on our team.

It's more that Gilmore's position isn't a priority right now. Between Shields, Petteway, Fuller, and Rivers, we're pretty set at the small-forward position for the next couple of years. We need another big man first. Then you have to decide if Gilmore is worth pushing someone out. Despite his Top 100 Ranking, I'm not sure he is. Bolden might be. But does Gilmore's skill set offer something that the 4 guys mentioned above doesn't? Not really from what I've seen.

A couple of quick clips of Jacob at :22 and 1:50. Looks like a pretty explosive player for his size.

I think he had a very good summer. Some reports on his high school games last year said he was unimpressive (committed silly fouls and traveled a lot)....but every evaluation of him I've read this summer has said nothing but great things. Keep in mind that his high school team last year was pretty much an AAU All-Star team with 10 D-1 players. Not very disciplined and don't run much of an offense. Hammond seems to have all the physical tools and I think Miles will be able to coach him up.

I wonder why he hasn't received more offers. I did Google and Twitter searches and found these evaluations of him from this summer: *Physical and bouncy rebounder was a double-double both times we watched and did it again in Top 60 game (we thought Top 30) with 12 points and a game high12 boards. He can finish with strength on post up or pop out and hit 16-footer on face up, but is at his best attacking hoop on blocks with his quick footwork. He beats other bigs down the court. *He is a physical and athletic big man that dominated around the rim on both ends while we watched. He can use his 240-pound frame to seal off bigs and then explode with dunk on putback. he has facing skills, hit elbow jumper and blew by bigs to the rim, then finished versus contact. *After starting his career as a lanky forward, Hammond has added weight and power to his game and is now a bruising center. The Duncan native likes being physical around the rim and surprisingly has emerged as a vocal leader. While he has gotten tougher around the rim, he’s also gotten smarter and is less prone to leave his feet when protecting the rim. Even from April, Hammond showed a big improvement in his touch and confidence around the rim, while even displaying the potential to be a consistent shooter from midrange. Rivals.com has the Magic Center as the 139th ranked player in the nation and he backed it up by dominating around the paint against the Oklahoma Wizards Elite and the Oklahoma Storm, two squads with good size. *Oklahoma Magic 2014 Jacob Hammond is a big man that embrace being a big. #rare *Oklahoma Magic big man Jacob Hammond is extremely active, swatting everything in this one and moves well w/o ball.

I'd be thrilled with Wacker and Miller. Wacker is old-school with great fundamentals, Miller is strong and athletic. They would complement each other well.

Here's some game film from last year. He is #10 in white: 1st Half 2nd Half

I know Purdue is a better program than us historically, but it's not like they are Indiana or Michigan St, and he's not from that area. With our new facilities and the amount we are paying him, it would have been a lateral move at best.

Here's some video of him playing in the New Zealand league (#91 in blue) Link Seems very "Vucetic-like" at this point, runs the floor well but not very strong. He got owned in the post a few times. Has an awkward little hook shot. Had a nice follow-dunk at 18:30 though.

6'10 post from New Zealand says he will going the US College route as a 2014 recruit. Hopefully Harriman is on him. He played in the same pro league Webster did and is currently playing with the NZ National team in international play. Had 16 points and 8 rebounds in a recent game. Link Link