Showing posts with label Nick Kellog. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Nick Kellog. Show all posts

10/11/09

2010 Mongreltopia Top 50



1. Deshawn Thomas - OSU commit from Ft Wayne, IN will likely finish his career as Indiana's highest scorer in state history. 6'8 forward is a bit of a tweener in college but more ideally suited as an NBA 3. He is the best player I've seen nationally in the class, but didn't see him playing with the kind of passion I'm used to this last summer in AAU. He's been committed for a long time and has proven his passion in more meaningful games though. National Rankings: Hoopscoop #8, ESPN #13,

2. Jared Sullinger - OSU commit and Ohio native Sullinger has outplayed every big man he's come up against. He's the quintessential winner, and shows leadership from the power forward spot, not as flashy as some other top big kids but strong, smart and consistent. National Rankings: Hoopscoop #1, ESPN #2,

3. Keith Appling - MSU commit and Michigan native gets the the hoop with ease and will be a big time scorer in college. I want to see a little more point out of him to be a better pro prospect and maybe a little more defensive acumen but he's quick and always attacking. National Rankings: ESPN #36,

4. Adreian Payne* - Michigan State commitment is a pretty strong 6'9 kid with great length and athleticism. He's a long power forward from Ohio and is not as consistent as Sullinger but shows more upside. National Rankings; Hoopscoop #100, ESPN #24,

5. Ray McCallum Jr - I saw a lot more of him when he was younger but was reminded this summer just how savvy the kid is. He's athletic enough to be a pro but he plays with the kind of coach's-son heady nature that he'd make it if he had a prosthetic foot. He's a bit of a combo guard and is considering Detroit, UCLA, and a few other schools. National Rankings: ESPN #37,

6. Trey Zeigler - Zeigler is also the son of a mid major coach and like McCallum is considering UCLA, Michigan, and a few other schools. Zeigler has a natural fit at the 2 and is a deadly outside shooter with some strength to finish inside. National Rankings: ESPN #27,

7. Myers Leonard - This Robinson HS (IL) star and Illinois commit is a very athletic 6'11. He plays with some inconsistency still but is versatile while still having the frame to get it done on the low blocks. He'll continue to fill out and bulk up and have a huge career for Bruce Weber. National Rankings: ESPN #53,

8. Jerome Richmond - UI commit was very inconsistent as his loaded Mac Irvin Fire team leaned more heavily on other guards quite often in July. But Richmond is a big time athlete and has the kind of tangibles that are significant even when the intangibles aren't quite as far along. National Rankings: ESPN #18,

9. Terone Johnson - Purdue commit is the best guard in Indiana in his class. He's only about 6'2 and I was once worried he would be between positions in college but his good 3 point shot has become outstanding and his effort on the defensive side is almost college ready right now. The North Central product plays with the strength of a bull much like former NC alum Eric Gordon but lacks the kind of explosion Gordon had. He'll be a good 2 guard in the big ten. National Rankings: ESPN #116,

10. Cameron Wright* - 6'3 Cleveland Benedictine star and Pittsburgh commitment was once committed to Ohio State, but he got the cold shoulder from Matta in the year he sat out recovering from an injury so he opened it up and found himself pursued by Michigan State, Wisconsin, Indiana, and Pittsburgh. The Cleveland product made a huge splash in July as his explosion has finally returned and looked a lot better than the other guards still committed to OSU. He's a shooting guard with the quickness to guard the 1 or 2. Edit to add that Anonymous in the comments added " I like the fact that you have Cameron Wright at #10 he deserves it. hard working on both ends of the floor and one of the quickest first steps I've seen in a while. very good midrange shooter. at 6-5 210 has the ability to guard and play the 1-3 positions. PITT really has a unique player that will just keep getting better and better. YOUR LOSS OHIO STATE!" National Rankings: Hoopscoop #131, ESPN #112,

11. Crishawn Hopkins is a 6'0 Butler commit who moved up from 14 to 11 on the back of some Mongrel readers getting threatening. Anonymous makes a good point saying they are both freakishly athletic (comparing Hopkins to Smith) but Hopkins is a better point but I think some people underestimate how much point Reggie has. I have to give Hopkins seperation over Smith because his outside shot is awesome too. Hopkins plays high school for Manual (Indianapolis).

12. Reggie Smith Mac Irvin point is great athlete with some pg skills (seen above in ST shot).
13. Travis Carrol Danville HS (IN) star is a Purdue commitment that is fundamentally sound and tough. He's a 6'8 power forward that works hard. National Rankings: ESPN #122,
14. Jesse Berry high flying Dayton commit is sensational scorer, explosive personality. He's a 6'2 star from Laffayette (IN) who scored over 45 six seperate times last year. National Rankings: ESPN #173,
15. Ge'lawn Guyn is a 6'2 point for Scott County who has long arms and wonderful athleticism and is looking at some impressive schools after re-opening his recruitment (read my reader comments he has a legion of fans making some really good arguments so I gave him a big jump from 24 to 15). National Rankings: ESPN #166,
16. Juwan Staten is a standout guard from Dayton who committed to Dayton. National Rankings; Hoopscoop #109
17. Josh Sewell Miami commit is athletic off guard with good ball skills.
18. Russell Byrd Michigan State commit is a sensational shooter for Ft Wayne Blackhawk at 6'6 but skinny. National Rankings: ESPN #58,
19. Curtis Washington 6'10 forward is a long, athletic late developer committed to USC. * Had to edit to add some reader input, anonymous says "He's not even the fifth best player on his own AAU team." and I had another suggest Rick Bolus and I were the only ones who liked him. Well, just to remind my readers about late blooming big men its for a reason he's the only high major commitment in KY from 2010. National Rankings: Hoopscoop #130,
20. Justin Martin Xavier commit is a 6'7 forward with great range can play inside and out. He was an outstanding defender for Lawrence North High School (Indianapolis) as well. National Rankings: Hoopscoop #122
21. Lenzelle Smith is an Ohio State commit. He is also a combo guard for Zion-Benton Township High who gets by with strength, guile more than quickness. National Rankings: ESPN #78,
22. Ahmad Starks is commited to play for Oregon State next year. He was an excellent floor leader for the Warriors and Fire over the summer. He's a 5'8 point for state champ Whitney Young (Chicago). National Rankings: ESPN #170,
23. Griffin McKenzie 6'9 Xavier commit is a big man from Cincinnati who can stroke the 3. He missed almost a year with a broken back but came up big in July. Ask him about his phone bill. National Rankings: Hoopscoop #163
24. Jon Horford* 6'9 forward prospect from Gran Ledge (MI) is the younger brother of former Florida star Al. National Rankings: ESPN #115,
25. Brandon Spearman is a 6'3 shooting guard for Simeon (Chicago) who is a Dayton commit. National Rankings: ESPN #152,
26. JD Weatherspoon is a 6'6 kid who played for All-Ohio Red in the summer. He is committed to the Buckeyes after initially committing to Xavier. He's also an athletic wing who is from Northland HS (OH). National Ranking: Hoopscoop #146, ESPN #169,
27. Ricardo Johnson Ohio commit is a winner, cut down the nets in KY state tournament for Covington Holmes. He made waves shutting people down, scoring, rebounding, and with leadership last year in the tournament. Thanks to reader who corrected me I thought I remembered Johnson verballing to Miami. National Rankings: ESPN #185,
28. Levonte Dority* Chicago Foreman point is big time 6'2 scoring pg with nice three point shot. He is going to play in the Big East for Stan Heath's South Florida squad. National Rankings: ESPN #198,
29. Aaron Craft former Tennessee commit now with Ohio State as long awaited point. He's 6'2 and plays for Liberty Benton HS (OH). National Rankings: Hoopscoop #129, ESPN #124,
30. Anthony Johnson Purdue commit is fine off guard for state champ Chicago Whitney Young. His ranking is a bit guesswork as he was an obviously talented prospect and got hurt at the wrong time to make a splash with the rankings.
31. Ben Brust Iowa commitment is one of the best shooters in his class.
32. Jordan Sibert* This 6'4 wing played for All-Ohio Red in the summer and Princeton HS (OH) for school. He is an Ohio State commit coming off an injury. National Rankings: Hoopscoop #50, ESPN #72,
33. Ethan Jacobs 6'11 Ohio commit has put on a lot of strength last year making strides. He was rail thin in school last year for Tipton (IN) but was clearly stronger in the summer.
34. Khristian Smith is a nice 6'5 athlete with good size on the wing is a late blooming kid for Pike. He played summer with the Spiece Indy Heat squad that sported several four and five star kids and looked like he belonged with them in July.
35. Roy Marble Jr* Iowa commit and 6'4 wing is son of former Hawkeye star.
36. Chad Jackson is a 6'4 point guard for Scott County (KY) with nice size plays upright and plays well off the ball.
37. Rayvonte Rice led his Rising Stars teams to some big time finishes in July.
38. Dre McCamey* Baby brother of Illinois star Mike is fine point in his own right.
39. Alex Guana is a 6'8 Michigan State commitment from Eaton Rapids (MI). He has great length, good shot blocking instincts but can be stiff. National Rankings: ESPN #188,
40. Xavier Jones emotional defensive minded point guard can attack the rim. He's a tough kid might need to work on the outside shot a little but can hit it. Transfered from Gary, Indiana to Wayne HS in Ohio for his senior year. National Rankings: Hoopscoop #119, ESPN #110,
41. Eric Fromm Butler commit is versatile 6'7 forward who can put the ball on the floor.
42. Nick Kellog youngest son of Clark is nice shooting wing guard.
43. Alex Dragecevich* Notre Dame commit is sweet shooting 6'6 wing.
44. Crandal Head is a Rich South (IL) star and Illinois commit. He is younger brother of Luther and fine scorer. National Rankings: ESPN #75,
45. Duje Dukan is a 6'8 sweet shooting forward who played with Dority on Chicgao Elite. He committed to Bo Ryan's Wisconsin program where he seems like a great fit. http://ilprepbullseye.com/page24.html
46. Kennis White is a 6'2 WMU wing talent with big time athleticism and leadership skills.
47. Walter Pitchford* is a 6'9 power forward committed to Depaul from Team Detroit.
48. Jordan Manual is a 6'8 skinny forward from Indianapolis with a sweet three point shot.
49. Mike McCall* Chicago Foreman guard is selfless point guard.
50. Jordan Threloff* 6'9 strong forward anchored Rising Stars last July.
50. Elijah Pittman is a 6'7 forward and jumping jack for Kentucky state champs. He has outstanding talent but might be heading for juco as he's behind academically. National Rankings: ESPN #199,
50. Eric Gaines 6'3 Kent State commit has good balance, athleticism, and works baseline well.
50. Donnie Hale is a 6'7 forward from New Albany, Indiana who is committed to Purdue. He's a traditional post up and has outstanding reach and shot blocking ability but will need to learn to guard laterally and be quicker with his developing outside shot in college. National Rankings: Hoopscoop #39, ESPN #149,
50. Dakotah Euton is a 6'8 forward for Scott County, Kentucky who had originally been committed to UK under Billy Gillespie but wound up committing to Akron after the coaching change. Euton is a strong forward with good passing ability.

Honorable Mention:

Julian Boatner,
Ian Chiles,
Brian Fabrizius,
Donovan Gibbs,
Kevin Gray is a 6'3 guard from Reynoldsburg HS (OH) who was once Hoopscoop top ranked 7th grader. He signed an LOI with Morehead St. http://buckeyeprep.blogspot.com/2009/11/kevin-gray-signs-national-letter-of.html
Andre Hampton,
Jay Harris is a 6'0 pg from Oswego East (IL).
National Rankings: ESPN #69,
Jon Harris,
Michael Harris,
Ralph Hill,
Juann
Howard,
PJ
Hubert,
Jack Isenberger,
Phillip Jackson,
John Michael Jarvis,
Garon
Johnson
is an outstanding wing from Dayton. Hoopscoop #139, ,
Maurice Jones is a 5'7 point for Arthur Hill HS (MI) who is committed to USC.
National Rankings: ESPN #134,
Elisha Justice,
Matt Kaminiecki,
Jake Kitchel,
Kenny Knight,
Karl Madison,
Enique
Mason,
Devin Oliver,
Allen Payne is
an outstanding 6'6 wing from Winton Woods HS (Cincinnati) who committed to Auburn. http://highmajorscoop.com/2009/11/auburn-picks-up-payne/ National Rankings: ESPN #193, Hoopscoop #178,
Corey Petros,
Quinten
Rollins,
Ronald Ross,
Alex Rossi
is a 6'5 guard from New Trier (IL). National Rankings: ESPN #117,
Storm Stanley,
Isiahh Sykes,
Colin Voss,
Nate VanArendonk

Let me know what you think, I'll include your comments on whomever you advocate for weather or not I move the rankings for the player in question. I think a lot of these players are close calls, the difference in most of these players is less their own potential and more the work ethic and attitude since they are so close in terms of talent. I'll be getting to work on 2011 this week also.



7/18/09

Commitments, De-Commitments, Offers, and Favorites 7/17

July is not only the busiest recruiting month of the year with AAU tournaments galore and open evaluation periods for the coaches to get out and see and be seen but kids are committing, de-committing, and schools who have been aggressive on the recruiting trail are filling up their rides and moving on to evaluate younger players.


Yesterday's biggest commitment was Simeon's Brandon Spearman going ahead and pulling the trigger to join Dayton's loaded 2010 class. Berry is an extremely talented kid from Lafayette Jeff and early favorite to lead Indiana in scoring this year and Spearman and Staten are ranked among the nation's top 100 players by several evaluators. Brian Gregory is landing one of the finest recruiting classes in the country in 2010 and isn't done yet.

Zach McCabe of the All Iowa Attack Red squad committed to Todd Lickliter's Iowa Hawkeyes after outperforming many of the nation's top players at a few July events and drawing the attention of the rest of the big ten and many other schools.

Chicago Vocational stars Hollis Hill and Aaron Williams on the other hand de-committed from UW-Milwaukee. Their Illinois Old School squad was tracked heavily by several other good programs and plenty of high majors for Jay Price and some other players. http://www.chicagohoops.com/articles1/uwm2.html Above photo of Hill is from Sun Times. The outlook isn't bleak for UW-M though, at the Triple S Mountan Slam Taevaunn Prince told Northstarblog UW-M was his favorite and has been showing him the most love to date. Prince is an outstanding player for Team Takeover (Canada) who has been one of the best travelling teams on the circuit this July and looked very good against Florida Future at the Kentucky Hoopfest in front of yours truly. http://blog.northstarbball.com/2009/07/16/triple-s-harley-davidson-hoop-group-jam-fest-days-one--two-news--notes.aspx

Commitment issues were not only the problems of the college coaches, AAU squads gearing up for Las Vegas have been harvesting players from other squads as well. Yesterday I mentioned the Eric Gordon All-Stars added Crishawn Hopkins to their roster for Vegas. Today word has tweeted out that Jeremy Hollowell of Spiece Indy Stars 2012 will be joining them as well. Hollowell unlike Hopkins was already on a team winning tournaments and drawing hordes of coaches and his improvement from May to July has seen him earn offers from Cincinnati, Indiana, Ohio State, and several others. Hollowell has not announced if he will be returning to the Stars after Vegas or playing with someone else next year.

Cameron Wright had been one of the high profile guards pursued by Brian Gregory of Dayton, but they might be focusing on a big kid such as Adreiene Payne or Jordan Manual for their last ride. Wright is having an enormous July after drawing great reviews at the King James Classic and NY2LA Summer Slam last week. He has added a Michigan State offer to his growing collection according to a Badgernation.com article from yesterday. Wisconsin, Indiana, Akron, and Cleveland State are the other schools listed as offers.

Chris Anderson of Reeths-Puffer, Michigan is an athletic 6'5 wing who made waves this spring when his Grand Rapids Storm team came up big in the Tulip Tree Classic and other tournaments. He has an offer on the table from Stoney Brook. http://www.westmiallstar.com/2009/07/11/whos-going-to-play-ball-in-college/#more-1301

The previous article mentions Kalamazoo's Jeff Hoskins of Camp Daryl All Stars has received a Moorehead State offer. I saw him at the Hoosier Shootout and he was very impressive making hustle plays to save the ball from going out of bounds and knocking down three pointers in rhythm while leading his team with poise at the point guard position. He has D1 athleticism.

The above link to Northstar blog has a few updates on offers to some outstanding players from local teams. Team Takeover's 6'10 300 pound center Maurice Walker is a 2010 prospect listing an offer from Depaul. And 2011 standout Grady Glaze is listing an offer from Xavier and Ohio State interest.

Northstar has updates on a few players of note as well. Ohio Basketball Club and Scott County (Kentucky) forward Dakota Euton (former UK commitment) has offers from Akron, Eastern Kentucky, Oregon State, and others. His AAU teammate Nick Kellogg from Columbus is also drawing a lot of interest this July. He lists Ohio as a favorite right now but said he has offers from Akron, Miami, and Wright State right now and is open to new interest in July before he decides. Several Big Ten programs are tracking him closely as he plans on visiting Northwestern and was at the recent Ohio State elite camp and has Iowa and Indiana keeping tabs on him.
Chicagohoops is also reporting that Sean McGonagill of the Illinois Kings has picked up an offer from North Dakota. http://www.chicagohoops.com/articles1/kings2.html He plays school ball for Riversville-Brookside. You might recall McGonagill was co-mvp of the Hall of Fame Showdown in Chicago in April and he has continued his fine play into July. He also has interest in Eastern Michigan.












7/4/09

Miami Redhawks land 2 recruits.

The Redhawks have landed two key recruits for their 2010 class. The Redhawks just have 1 out-going senior and would appear to be done with recruiting in the 2010 class.

Recent visitors to Miami include Illinois sharp shooter Alex Dragecevic, Zionsville, Indiana point guard Jack Isenberger, Indianapolis Manual athletic scoring point Crishawn Hopkins, Kentucky state champion Covington Holmes star Ricardo Johnson, and many others for the elite camp. Offers were extended to a handful of players including Hopkins who put on a show at the Miami Elite camp. This put a little pressure on the current offers with only one ride available on paper and brought in the big fish for the Red Hawks.

2010 Josh Sewell was the first commitment for the Redhawks. Here is a free story from Redhawks Insider editor T Tod Mallaun. http://miamiohio.scout.com/2/876908.html Sewell is a star for Louisville, Trinity and some believe the best D1 prospect in Kentucky's class of 2010. He is a 6'5 small forward who has had a big spring this year for his loaded AAU team Shining Stars (McFarland). He will be competing in the Adidas It Takes Five event in Cincinnati on the 6th-9th with that program. Sewell is very focused on academics and has credited Miami's outstanding business school as a key part of his decision.

Miami's business school was also a big factor for point guard Quinton Rollins of Wilmington HS in Ohio. Here is another free Redhawk Insider article on Rollins. http://miamiohio.scout.com/2/876912.html

The scholarship situation might dictate that the Redhawks are done recruiting the class of 2010. They have good relationships and extended offers to the above mentioned players plus Nick Kellog of Columbus (Desales), Jordan Hicks of West Chester, Ohio (Dakota West), Greg Gainey of Dayton's Thurgood Marshall HS, and 6'9 Griffin McKenzie of Loveland (Moeller HS).

In 2011 the Redhawks have extended offers to Gahanna, Ohio's Stevie Taylor and Aaron Cosby who is transferring to a prep school in Massachusettes and will be joining the 2011 class. The good Mongrel likes Cosby's ability to score from the perimeter. You might recall Cosby originally committed to UMass as a 2nd grader (kidding) when Travis Ford was there but has long since decommitted and been making a name for himself with a recent good performance at Indiana University's elite camp.

An excellent source for Miami recruiting news is Miami Hawk Talk Basketball http://www.miamihawktalk.com/home. The grateful Mongrel will be adding them to the links often visited if for no other reason than the outstanding link section with newspaper links for most of the schools in Ohio and surrounding areas.

6/30/09

Cincinnati Bearcats and Dayton Flyers recruiting update.

The ambitious Mongrel will try to tie a mid-major and a high-major school together in most of the target area states once a week and take a look at some of the recruiting hubub. Today we start in Ohio where all the action has been this week.

Cincinnati Bearcats

The biggest news? I'm sure you've heard, Lance "Born Exploited" Stephenson has committed to the Bearcats as hoops blogger guru Adam Zagoria suggested would happen last week. The Bearcats return almost their entire team from last year and will be a force. The Bearcats will lean on All-Big East Deonte Vaughn to run the show and have a big man to work with in Yancey Gates so the imaginary and totally pretend addition of the young Mr. Stephenson would make them a top 10 team nationally most likely.

But in the real world we all know Stephenson was not shunned by every college he looked at in recent weeks just because of a probable misdemeanor charge for allegedly groping a girl in school. Tyreke Evans can be a hot commodity after much more serious concerns last year. The real concern the colleges who took a close look at Lance had was that coaches believe he has almost no chance of ever being eligible to play college basketball. Any games he plays in will be subject to forfeit because he has so many dollars running through and over him. See the great Pat Forde's ESPN column on Stephenson from earlier this month for a rundown, but reality shows and shoe shenanigans are the most obvious but not complete set of concerns with Stephenson.

Still, its a big splash and that is what Coach Cronin probably wants. And who knows, a year of winning with ineligible kids will come back to hurt the kids who stay but you never know when you will wind up coaching one of the elite programs in the sport and out of harms way as a result (cough, cough no real life similarities will be admitted to). And Cronin is doing a masterful job of building his recently struggling program into a Big East contender without Stephenson. Vaughn and Gates will be joined by Sean Kilpatrick and the Bearcats continue to recruit top talent. The Bearcats are in good shape with Atlanta Celtics 6'8 shot blocker Brandon Mobley of Savannah, Goergia and Mongrel favorite Ricardo Johnson of Covington Holmes, KY in the 2010 class. Coach Cronin and staff continue to track in-state stud Adreian Payne as well as Ronald Ross of Indianapolis Washington and several others. One other instant impact soring guard to keep an eye on is Jesse Berry of Lafayette, Indiana who appears to favor Dayton right now.

2011 recruiting is off to a big start with Bowling Green, Kentucky import Chane Behanan locked up and other targets include point guards Marques Teague and Jeremiah Davis from Indianapolis and Tyrone Johnson of Plainfield, New Jersey as well as big man Robert Goff who is a junior college kid who just transferred and will redshirt a year moving him into the 2011 class. The Bearcats will be spending a lot of time in Bowling Green keeping tabs on Behanan but also working on George Fant who is a top priority in the class of 2011 as well. Prying Fant away from the hometown Hilltoppers will be a chore considering they are on a bit of a roll themselves.

2012 recruiting is continuing to take off with recent offers extended to Speice Indy Stars teammates Ron Patterson, Austin Burgett, and Jeremy Hollowell from Indianapolis. All in all, its a great time to be a Bearcat as long as Born Ready only rocks the boat and doesn't run it ashore.

Dayton Flyers

The Flyers are also making big waves in the recruiting world. The Flyers 2010 class should be among the nation's best once all is said and done. Hometown star Adriean Payne appears ready to wait it out to see who else he would be surrounding himself with, but he is the name floating around just beneath the surface. The Flyers are in great shape with several guards who are arguably almost as good or better, but Payne is the combination of size and athlete rarely seen in mid-major leagues and would be a huge get for the Flyers.

The 2010 class is already off to a big start with 5'11 point guard Juwan Staten already locked up. ESPN's ScoutsInc has Staten as the 43rd ranked prospect in the country. Other key targets for 2010 include Indiana's second leading scorer Jesse Berry of Laffayette, Indiana. Berry had 6 games over 40 points last season and according to Dayton Daily News staff writer Doug Harris is favoring the Flyers. http://www.daytondailynews.com/dayton-sports/university-of-dayton-flyers/flyers-going-after-guards-181266.html Look for Berry to continue to continue to blow up in July, he is an elite level scorer and has great range. The Mongrel watched him help lead SYF Players to the 17U championship at the Adidas May Classic and he looked a cut above some other talented kids on his team such as 2010 stars Jake Kitchell (Union Co) and Xavier Jones (Gary). Berry's camp has said Kentucky called to check in on him and he is supposed to visit Arizona in August so keep an eye on this situation.

The Flyers are looking to bring in several guards in this class and one of the hottest prospects they are in good shape with is Brandon Spearman from Chicago. He is a 6'3 shooting guard who has been great for the Illinois Warriors this year and is ranked #71 by rivals.com. With the exception of the Ohio Basketball Club, the Warriors have probably had the best spring on the 17U AAU circuit and Spearman has received a lion's share of that credit. The Harris article linked above claims Berry, Spearman, and Jalen Steel of Knoxville have offers and have called the Flyers their favorite. He also mentions an offer to Cameron Wright of Cleveland St Benedictine. Wright is no longer committed to Ohio State after Coach Matta looked to replace him with a higher ranked prospect. This has not deterred the Flyers or Big Ten heavyweights Wisconsin and Indiana. Wright has offers from all three and was heavily recruited by Bo Ryan before his original OSU verbal and was thought to be a natural fit to replace Vander Blue when he first opened things up. But the Flyers and Hoosiers are making strong pushes to land Wright. Wright recently made a second visit to Indiana and took his family with him per a story on Peegs.com, Indiana's excellent Rivals site. In the Harris article mentioned above, veteran hoops scout Van Coleman says Wright's "quickness and explosion in the open court make him a dangerous player." Wright will be playing this July for the King James All-Stars and will probably draw more attention as he missed most of last year with an injury and was not evaluated as heavily as some of his peers in the class.

With four graduating guards the Flyers look to reshape the future of their program by landing a few of these excellent prospects. Keep a close eye on the Flyers, they are recruiting like a Big Ten or Big East program. The Flyers have excellent prospects lined up behind these elite guards already with reported offers out to Josh Sewell of Louisville, Trinity and Jordan Manual of TC Howe in Indianapolis. Other key recruits such as Nick Kellog (Columbus, OH) and Roy Marble Jr (Southerfield, MI) have visited and the Flyers already have in-state power forward Ralph Hill verbally committed so missing out on Payne might only be a speed bump to a brighter future which is already taking shape.