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The state of WA
ThomasFremont
Member Posts: 13,325
Historically WA state, specifically the Seattle/Tacoma area, has been a good source of talent. Not as strong as Cali, NYC, etc. But good.
I mentioned in a previous thread that since Tony Wroten, there have only been two great recruits to come out of the state of WA: Zach LaVine and Shaqquan Aaron.
LaVine is already in the NBA, and Aaron is a frosh at Louisville. Romar failed to get them. It sucks. To make it worse, there were not any decent role players to offer scholarships to that could help the roster. None. Aaron's two Beach teammates had academic issues, which is why Crisp is in prep school now and delayed his enrollment. Dorsey was the next best local guy. LaVine's class was even more lackluster. The next best player, DJ Fenner, went to Nevada.
A lot has been made of the recruiting class coming next fall, and for good reason. It's a top 10 class nationally. The improvement in the local talent pool is a big reason why. Three of those guys are from the Seattle area. Romar not only got all the best guys to stay home, there were actually multiple guys worth getting this year.
Why do I care? Because the best teams under Romar have always been led by a core of local guys: B-Roy, Nate, Conroy. Brockman, IT, Overton. The loss of identity is Romar's fault. I think it also has a lot to do with the guys on the roster. We have had a total of one WA scholarship player on the roster since Wroten and Gaddy left.
2016 looks almost as promising as 2015. It lacks top end star power like Murray, but actually has more depth than this year's class.
The 2016 recruits from WA that I want to see in purple and gold:
-JaQuori McLaughlin, PG Gig Harbor: verbally committed already. Good shooter, good handles with size and athleticism.
-Keith Smith, SF Rainier Beach: the 2nd best player on Beach. Verbally committed to San Diego St. Knee injury currently has him sidelined. If he is healthy, he is the top player in the state for 2016. Does everything well.
-Alphonso Anderson, PF Garfield: a bit short for a college post player, but Anderson could be the next Jamaal Williams. Very strong and efficient in the post.
-Isiah Brown, PG Lakeside: Seattle Times all state team. Led Metro league in scoring. Has been a UW offer since 8th grade.
-Steven Beo, PG Richland: not as highly rated, but a pure shooter with NBA range. The kind of role player UW has not had since Appleby, Turner, or Wilcox. Has a UW offer.
2017 is too early to call, but Garfield and Beach both have some great underclassmen.
No matter who coaches hoops at UW next year and beyond, the local talent is there to build another core of local stars. UW will have four spots from graduation next year, and possibly as many as six scholarships depending on NWG and Murray's NBA plans. Lock up the local talent pool and add in some Cali guys (sound familiar?) and this shit might get fixed.
I mentioned in a previous thread that since Tony Wroten, there have only been two great recruits to come out of the state of WA: Zach LaVine and Shaqquan Aaron.
LaVine is already in the NBA, and Aaron is a frosh at Louisville. Romar failed to get them. It sucks. To make it worse, there were not any decent role players to offer scholarships to that could help the roster. None. Aaron's two Beach teammates had academic issues, which is why Crisp is in prep school now and delayed his enrollment. Dorsey was the next best local guy. LaVine's class was even more lackluster. The next best player, DJ Fenner, went to Nevada.
A lot has been made of the recruiting class coming next fall, and for good reason. It's a top 10 class nationally. The improvement in the local talent pool is a big reason why. Three of those guys are from the Seattle area. Romar not only got all the best guys to stay home, there were actually multiple guys worth getting this year.
Why do I care? Because the best teams under Romar have always been led by a core of local guys: B-Roy, Nate, Conroy. Brockman, IT, Overton. The loss of identity is Romar's fault. I think it also has a lot to do with the guys on the roster. We have had a total of one WA scholarship player on the roster since Wroten and Gaddy left.
2016 looks almost as promising as 2015. It lacks top end star power like Murray, but actually has more depth than this year's class.
The 2016 recruits from WA that I want to see in purple and gold:
-JaQuori McLaughlin, PG Gig Harbor: verbally committed already. Good shooter, good handles with size and athleticism.
-Keith Smith, SF Rainier Beach: the 2nd best player on Beach. Verbally committed to San Diego St. Knee injury currently has him sidelined. If he is healthy, he is the top player in the state for 2016. Does everything well.
-Alphonso Anderson, PF Garfield: a bit short for a college post player, but Anderson could be the next Jamaal Williams. Very strong and efficient in the post.
-Isiah Brown, PG Lakeside: Seattle Times all state team. Led Metro league in scoring. Has been a UW offer since 8th grade.
-Steven Beo, PG Richland: not as highly rated, but a pure shooter with NBA range. The kind of role player UW has not had since Appleby, Turner, or Wilcox. Has a UW offer.
2017 is too early to call, but Garfield and Beach both have some great underclassmen.
No matter who coaches hoops at UW next year and beyond, the local talent is there to build another core of local stars. UW will have four spots from graduation next year, and possibly as many as six scholarships depending on NWG and Murray's NBA plans. Lock up the local talent pool and add in some Cali guys (sound familiar?) and this shit might get fixed.
Comments
Did someone get Roma this?
You hit on a great point about losing identity - and THAT is Romar's biggest infection. When you watch good coaches, they have an identity, clear system, and defined roles. Wichita State and Gregg Marshall is a great example. Evan Wessel is an undersized guy with a limited skill set that has s lot of try, works hard, plays his role, and is a highly productive player. He's be worthless most likely under Romar.
That's why I just don't buy the pro-Romar arguments at this point. Good coaches don't need great players to be good.
Of your list, i would love to see a few guys who can actually shoot. Beo would be nice, but i don't see him coming to UW. I'm just tired of watching team after team not be able to shoot.
This is one of the weakest arguments the pro-romar camp has. He is a talent evaluator, and everyone said how poor the crop of talent was in the seattle area for a few years. Instead of adjusting and picking up talent from other areas, we basically punted a couple recruiting classes and then picked up a bunch of marginal players.
Romar's inability to recruit out of state talent has really killed the roster the past few years.
No shit we lost all those recruits to arizona . Playing for a winner in front of 17,000 people with titties everywhere>>>>>>>>>>>getting your ass beat in front of 1,200 while a bunch of bundled up 4s sit on their hands.
It's a no brainer.
But the talent is there for the next HC to get a jump start on rebuilding the program.
I digress. Both agreed Romar took it easy, and failed in recruiting. Part of the problem, he keeps recruiting Joel Smith. First, I loved Joel Smith pre-injury, he had some amazing dunks and seemed to hit the open three. Buuuuuut that was about it. When asked to put the ball on the floor he struggled and couldn't create his own shot. This team reflects Joel Smith recruiting ... minus some athleticism.
The other thing Romar hasn't done is recruit So Cal, at all. Holiday, Grant, Jones, all great LA talent who played rolls and offered different looks. In the Puget Sound lean years, Romar failed to get anything out of LA.
This clusterfuck of the past 5+ years is 100% on Romar. Door. Ass. Out.
That being said, on a well coached, well organized, and well recruited team, Dorsey would RS and then be a guy that in his 3rd, 4th, and 5th year in the program would be a valuable rotational player. As it is, he's more or less going to go into the offseason with absolutely zero confidence playing on a team that has quit with terrible habits.
I seem to remember there being some hype around the kid.
Too short. Doesn't have game like IT and Nate.