Jamal Cain: The 6-foot-7 forward made a splash at the Spiece Run and Slam tournament in May and turned some heads with his play. He’s a priority recruit in the Midwest and the in-state Wolverines are moving quickly on him. Rightfully so. Cain is a motor man from the wing to the rim. We like where he is going and he should be a fun player to chart in July on the recruiting front.
Was able to put together a decent clip of Zack Dawson - was only able to attend a single half of 2 games. This kid is definitely on my wish list for a backup PG type if we go that route. Has the size of Darius Morris, runs PnR effectively and is a decent shooter, and above average athlete.
I was only able to take in 3 games in Atlanta, but I heard Jamal really showed off his handle in the final 2 games - this seems to support that.
Atlanta Statistics (5 games): 17.2 PPG, 55.4 FG%, 5.8 RPG, 1.4 APG
‘Few teams and players have finished a season as Cain and The Family Detroit did in Atlanta, as they were impressive to say the least in going 5-0. Cain’s ballhandling and nose for the basket were on full display during the season’s final weekend, as the combo guard set the tone for the rest of his team with his ability to take over a game at any time. He was as effective as ever with his jumper, which has improved in consistency throughout the spring and stands to get much better.’
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Isaiah Livers just told me he’s getting recent interest from Cal, Butler, and Boston College. Said UM has not had contact. Think we can probably cross him off the list based on lack of mutual interest, unless MSU fails to offer and UM strikes out on other targets. He flat out told me he’s waiting for the MSU offer
Thanks for the info Matt, really wonder who the staff has identified past Young as targets at the 4.
Showing some preliminary interest to Donnie Tillman, and I’m a big fan of his game. Beyond that Kimani Lawrence and Jermaine Samuels are guys UM has expressed interest in, but don’t think its serious at this point. I’m sure some new names will pop up in July after the live evaluation period.
You think Lawrence and Samuels would be 4s?
Hard to say, but Samuels definitely has motor and is strong as a bull. He plays the game full tilt at all times.
Hey Matt, Gaines made the final 16 for eybl Mvp. I realize that the list was compiled before Atlanta where he didn’t play as well, but that’s really impressive given the level of competition. I’m certainly not going to suggest he’s overly blessed with perimeter skills, but I wonder if you saw him in a bad effort.
Yeah it certainly could’ve been that, I’ve only seen him 1 game live so my opinion isn’t well informed to be honest. That said, after about 5mins it was really difficult for me to envision Gaines as an impact player at the next level is about the best way I can put it. Again, caveats apply based on small sample though
What I can tell you is that Zack is REALLY enjoying his visit to LA/USC.
Small clip of Jaren Jackson I took at EYBL Atlanta. His skillset at that size is just insane. He’s in my top 30 for 17 hands down.
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247 has him ranked 18th overall. Landing a top guy like him or Wilkes is what we desperately need.
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I feel like it might be hard to get a top pg option who’s ranked high like Dawson with x being there and only a year older. Might be a hard sell I feel like. Part of the reason I was supporting Roberts. He looked good but when I read his offers it seemed we were the best program. Yet he’d still be a good back up option imo.
Don’t think it’s realistic with Jaren JM.
I wouldn’t put him 18th at all, but someone did and I agree with Meyer on a lot of kids. I’d put him between 30-40. But still the elite skill type that we need
3 weeks ago I thought he was top 50, when I watched him at Hampton his ballskills in terms of handling the ball were improved, but he added a back to the basket game. If that back to the basket game is consistent, along with the perimeter skills (mind you he’s shooting 40+ from 3 on EYBL), he’s nearly unstoppable on offense.
There will be an adjustment period, especially in terms of strength/physicality, but I think he’s top 30 hands down. He is that good IMO. 18 might be on the higher end of the range I would place him, but not anything ridiculous IMO.
Wisconsin offered Brad Davison.