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Post by rbj on Jul 18, 2016 21:46:16 GMT -5
Trent's decision reminds me of Josh Jackson's decision to leave Detroit for Prolific Prep. It probably makes on difference to his recruitment; he's already got offers from all the blue chip programs and can pretty much pick his school. Here is an article that explains the Josh Jackson situation more, sounds like somebody got paid by Under Armour. I really wish Josh Jackson had remained in Detroit, he would've been a legend in Detroit. I read an article in which he stated that he couldn't tell if the people he ran into in Detroit were "genuine". If he was 5'8 and couldn't dunk a basketball those same people in California who he thinks are "genuine" wouldn't give him the time of day. If I find that article I will post it, but the article which talks about why he moved to California is below. www.campusrush.com/josh-jackson-deandre-ayton-sneaker-wars-high-schools-1875343946.html
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Post by motorcitysam on Jul 19, 2016 10:32:02 GMT -5
Yeah, somebody got paid by Under Armour in that scenario.
When Jackson made the move to Prolific Prep, his Mom made some interesting comments. She said that part of the reason for him to go to PP was because he wasn't really being recruited in Michigan. She said he wasn't being recruited, even though several offers had been reported for him and he had been talking about the schools that were recruiting him. It was weird.
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Post by motorcitysam on Jul 19, 2016 15:08:01 GMT -5
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Post by Commissioner on Jul 19, 2016 20:47:34 GMT -5
Everything is being ruined by the money. I'm a big free market guy, but the pros, the college game, now the high-school game is all being ruined by the money. The early draftees, the one & dones, the grad transfers, the fake exempt tournaments (that aren't really tournaments, because the final matchups are rigged), the "prep" schools... how can fans build loyalty? How can people care? Sometimes I feel lucky that the Titans are not a major power--we actually have good kids stay two or three years, sometimes even 4! (But not too often--I think the last Titan to be all-conference 1st or 2nd team and play 4 years for Detroit was Willie Green). Kentucky is just a mercenary school. Do any of those kids actually go to class, ever, after January 1? What the hell is a Gotham Classic? Do they even really keep records of who won from year to year? The idea of records, of being an all-time great at an institution, all gone. Tradition? Gone. People remember when their local high school won the state title--often they remember the regional title, won 17 or 27 years ago. Who knows or cares who wins the "Nike AAU Good & Plenty Hot Times Vegas Jam," in June, even in the year they win it? It has all the meaning of your team going 3-0 in the morning pick up game before work. Go Shirts!
We haven't seen the effects yet, but I think hoops may be headed the way of boxing as a major American sport.
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Post by motorcitysam on Jul 20, 2016 10:24:22 GMT -5
Everything is being ruined by the money. I'm a big free market guy, but the pros, the college game, now the high-school game is all being ruined by the money. The early draftees, the one & dones, the grad transfers, the fake exempt tournaments (that aren't really tournaments, because the final matchups are rigged), the "prep" schools... how can fans build loyalty? How can people care? Sometimes I feel lucky that the Titans are not a major power--we actually have good kids stay two or three years, sometimes even 4! (But not too often--I think the last Titan to be all-conference 1st or 2nd team and play 4 years for Detroit was Willie Green). Kentucky is just a mercenary school. Do any of those kids actually go to class, ever, after January 1? What the hell is a Gotham Classic? Do they even really keep records of who won from year to year? The idea of records, of being an all-time great at an institution, all gone. Tradition? Gone. People remember when their local high school won the state title--often they remember the regional title, won 17 or 27 years ago. Who knows or cares who wins the "Nike AAU Good & Plenty Hot Times Vegas Jam," in June, even in the year they win it? It has all the meaning of your team going 3-0 in the morning pick up game before work. Go Shirts! We haven't seen the effects yet, but I think hoops may be headed the way of boxing as a major American sport. As a fan of both boxing and basketball, that last sentence distresses me, in part because I see the rationale behind it. The "everything is being ruined by money" came to my mind earlier this week when I heard Jon Rothstein raving about how great the ACC is. True, it's the best basketball conference in the country, and perhaps one of the deepest ever, but it didn't get that way organically through leadership of the conference developing the programs and supporting them. It got that way by raiding other conferences of their best programs. In recent years they've added Boston College (when BC was good), Louisville, Syracuse, Pitt, Notre Dame, etc. That's just the rich getting richer. It's similar to the grad transfer rule: The elites poach the best of rest. On the high school level, it's so funny to me to hear some of the AAU programs referred to as "grass roots" programs, when they are sponsored, created, and controlled by billion dollar shoe companies. I think of my high school basketball days back in the 80s when summer ball meant piling the team into a couple of cars and playing against other high school teams in the area, in games that the coaches set up. All shoe brands were welcome. :-) The point about players not going to class after January 1 is a legit one, and it's part of the reason you see kids declaring for the draft after their freshman year, even when it's obvious to everyone that they aren't ready. What pains me is that the NBA drafts players who are far from ready, which leads to the the next guy saying, "Hey, I averaged ten points per game, too. They'll draft me." Lots of those guys don't get drafted, and find themselves on the outside looking in, without that free education. I hate to see people blow that kind of opportunity. Yeah, Commish, I think Cassuis Winston and our own Blackshear and McFolley enjoyed those state titles more than they would that "Nike AAU Good & Plenty Hot Times Vegas Jam." :-)
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Post by rbj on Jul 28, 2016 19:43:17 GMT -5
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Post by rbj on Jul 28, 2016 19:45:16 GMT -5
Everything is being ruined by the money. I'm a big free market guy, but the pros, the college game, now the high-school game is all being ruined by the money. The early draftees, the one & dones, the grad transfers, the fake exempt tournaments (that aren't really tournaments, because the final matchups are rigged), the "prep" schools... how can fans build loyalty? How can people care? Sometimes I feel lucky that the Titans are not a major power--we actually have good kids stay two or three years, sometimes even 4! (But not too often--I think the last Titan to be all-conference 1st or 2nd team and play 4 years for Detroit was Willie Green). Kentucky is just a mercenary school. Do any of those kids actually go to class, ever, after January 1? What the hell is a Gotham Classic? Do they even really keep records of who won from year to year? The idea of records, of being an all-time great at an institution, all gone. Tradition? Gone. People remember when their local high school won the state title--often they remember the regional title, won 17 or 27 years ago. Who knows or cares who wins the "Nike AAU Good & Plenty Hot Times Vegas Jam," in June, even in the year they win it? It has all the meaning of your team going 3-0 in the morning pick up game before work. Go Shirts! We haven't seen the effects yet, but I think hoops may be headed the way of boxing as a major American sport. I am also a boxing fan and there aren't many under the age of 40. Boxing was ruined by greedy promoters, now you have fighters who refuse to fight each other because nobody wants to risk their "0".
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Post by motorcitysam on Jul 28, 2016 21:07:55 GMT -5
Everything is being ruined by the money. I'm a big free market guy, but the pros, the college game, now the high-school game is all being ruined by the money. The early draftees, the one & dones, the grad transfers, the fake exempt tournaments (that aren't really tournaments, because the final matchups are rigged), the "prep" schools... how can fans build loyalty? How can people care? Sometimes I feel lucky that the Titans are not a major power--we actually have good kids stay two or three years, sometimes even 4! (But not too often--I think the last Titan to be all-conference 1st or 2nd team and play 4 years for Detroit was Willie Green). Kentucky is just a mercenary school. Do any of those kids actually go to class, ever, after January 1? What the hell is a Gotham Classic? Do they even really keep records of who won from year to year? The idea of records, of being an all-time great at an institution, all gone. Tradition? Gone. People remember when their local high school won the state title--often they remember the regional title, won 17 or 27 years ago. Who knows or cares who wins the "Nike AAU Good & Plenty Hot Times Vegas Jam," in June, even in the year they win it? It has all the meaning of your team going 3-0 in the morning pick up game before work. Go Shirts! We haven't seen the effects yet, but I think hoops may be headed the way of boxing as a major American sport. I am also a boxing fan and there aren't many under the age of 40. Boxing was ruined by greedy promoters, now you have fighters who refuse to fight each other because nobody wants to risk their "0". RBJ1, Moose guy is a big boxing fan, too. So it Titan Andrew. We talk boxing sometimes at halftime during the Titan games. :-)
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Post by motorcitysam on Aug 15, 2016 9:48:16 GMT -5
Saw a twitter post from a guy running a prep school who proudly announced a player's commitment to Alabama A&M with the proclamation "PREP SCHOOLS WORK!" Sounds more like coincidence than causation, however. UD Jesuit could post about Cassius Winston's commitment and say, "Catholic Schools Work!" My high school could post about Ty Groce to EMU and say, "Lincoln High Works!" :-)
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Post by motorcitysam on Aug 28, 2016 16:29:49 GMT -5
Not Michigan related, but another Midwest state takes a hit:
Gary Trent, one of the top 15 players in the nation in the class of 2017, is leaving the Minnesota high school and staff that helped him to reach that lofty ranking. In June he announced he was transferring to Findley Prep in Vegas, but he announced today that he will be attending Prolific Prep instead.
GARY TRENT JR @that_KID_GARY With changes @findlayprepbbal, my family + I have decided to attend @prolificprep after being floored by program. Serious players must look
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Post by Commissioner on Aug 28, 2016 18:25:10 GMT -5
Not Michigan related, but another Midwest state takes a hit: Gary Trent, one of the top 15 players in the nation in the class of 2017, is leaving the Minnesota high school and staff that helped him to reach that lofty ranking. In June he announced he was transferring to Findley Prep in Vegas, but he announced today that he will be attending Prolific Prep instead. GARY TRENT JR @that_KID_GARY With changes @findlayprepbbal, my family + I have decided to attend @prolificprep after being floored by program. Serious players must look What's interesting to me about this is that Gary Trent, Sr. went to Ohio U., and wound up a lottery pick. He went to Ohio U. not because he wasn't skilled enough for the high majors, but because he barely got his high school grades across the finish line, and was known to be "troubled." (This is, after all, a guy whose father spent time in federal prison, whose grandmother murdered one of her sons, and who himself was selling crack while a high school freshman). This isn't to say his son shouldn't have an easier life and an easier route to the NBA, but you'd think Trent would appreciate the value of a local mentor (he has long credited his high school coach with straightening him out and getting him a college scholarship). With his Dad's background, and the family now firmly in the upper part of the upper middle class, Trent, Jr. already has access to top coaching, a parent who knows the recruiting ropes, a name and pedigree that will get him looks from college recruiters and pro scouts... what, really, does Prolific Prep add to the equation? Yet for some of those same reasons, I suppose we should respect the family decision. I suppose, again, that the income and fame differential between being the 26th pick in the draft and the 63rd player (going undrafted) who ends up in the D League is such that if you think the odds are increased by even 1 or 2 percent, you take the chance. I think somebody would have to demonstrate that the prep route definitely did not make a difference, or harmed development--and how do you prove either of those negatives?--to make the prep craze die off. BTW, Trent already has offers from Michigan State, Kentucky, Arizona, UCLA, Kansas, Ohio State, Wisconsin, and Duke, among others. But I guess until you get that Villanova offer, there's no place to go but up.
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Post by motorcitysam on Feb 1, 2017 14:16:31 GMT -5
Tillman ends up committing to Utah, where he will join fellow Michigan natives Kyle Kuzma and Devon Daniels. Detroiter Lorenzo Bonam, a former Titan commit, is a senior at Utah after spending two years at a JUCO. Not sure what the prep school did for Tillman as a basketball player, since he actually slipped in the ratings and had high major offers while playing in Michigan. Certainly sounds like he enjoyed his time at Findlay Prep, though, which is supposed to be first class all the way.
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Post by motorcitysam on Aug 11, 2017 11:29:01 GMT -5
The deep State of Michigan class of 2018 got a little less deep. Duane Washington, Jr. of Grand Rapids Christian is moving to Sierra Canyon School in Los Angeles for his senior year. Washington recently picked up an offer from Michigan and is also being recruited by Missouri. The linked article below sheds some light on the decision and also offers an interesting look at Missouri's recruiting in Michigan and the program's ties to the Detroit area. www.rockmnation.com/mizzou-basketball-recruiting/2017/8/8/16105138/duane-washington-jr-sierra-canyon-recruitingJimmie Bell, formerly of Saginaw Arthur Hill, is now planning on attending Bella Vista Prep. Bell has offers for football and basketball.
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Post by motorcitysam on Sept 7, 2017 11:58:01 GMT -5
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Post by motorcitysam on Sept 21, 2017 15:18:46 GMT -5
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