Marquette is an unofficial.
Judas I didnāt read that at all.
Nice article that focuses on DJ Steward and Jabri Abdur-Rahim.
Iām going to have really hard time watching college if schools like Louisville and Arizona donāt get absolutely hammered by the NCAA. I know itās a toothless tiger and idiotic organization most of the time, but they canāt really just paper over the FBI investigation, can they?
I watched Steward live today at the Riverside-Brookfield Shootout in suburban Chicago. This was the third time I have seen him live. He is extremely athletic, has excellent floor vision, both in the half court and in transition, and has improved his outside shooting a lot from when I first saw him, to the point where heās now a good, though not great shooter from distance. If I had a criticism, it would be that he has fallen in love a bit with the perimeter jumper now that it has improved, and passed up a couple of opportunities to take the ball to the hole in favor of a contested 3. That said, if there are 25-30 better players in the country than Steward, Iād like to see them.
I also saw 3 other guys who are Big Ten caliber players. Stewardās high school teammate, Tyler Beard, is a 6ā1" guard in the '20 class with very good hops and quickness, nice floor vision and passing skills, and excellent defensive skills and ability to pressure the ball. He only took one shot from outside the lane (made a contested 3), but finished very well at the rim. Heās a bit slight, and as I said, I donāt know too much about his perimeter shooting (free throw stroke was pure). Iowa has offered, and I suspect more power 5 teams will.
2 class of '21 kids, Ahmad Bynum of Simeon, and Bryce Hopkins of Fenwick, already have Illinois offers and more will come. Bynum, a 6ā2" guard, is a great shooter with an extremely quick release and DEEP range. Heās quick and has some ball skills, but he tends to stand in the corner and look for 3s. When he does take get the ball and takes it, heās very right handed, and looks for his ownāhis passing comes off transition opportunities. He can really light it up in a hurry, and against very good competition; if he learns to do more for others, heāll be an excellent player at the high major level.
Hopkins is 6ā6". I saw him last December, and he looks like he has lost about 20 pounds since then, which has made him much quicker. He has a nice stroke from 3, and can take it to the rim off the bounce and finish in traffic. Heās still a little deliberate in his movements, and heās not yet the most interested rebounder or defender. When his motor is running though, heās a skilled, athletic player.
No one from Michigan was thereāthey have a sign up board with colleges listed. Based on twitter and other reports here, at least 3 of the 4 Michigan coaches were in either New Jersey (watching Abdur-Rahim) or in Minnesota (watching Dawson Garcia and others). Much of the Big Ten was at the eventāI saw Hoiberg, Gard, Underwood and Miller in the stands.
Thanks very much for the update, sounds like we are in the race for Steward. Hoping now we can get him on campus, see he is taking a few unofficials.
Was surprised to hear there was no one from the staff there. Do you know if there is another tourney this weekend in Illinois? Also have you heard anything in regards to Juwan recruiting Adam Miller out of Chicago? Thanks
Any hope of going for DJ Steward is flying out the window. Michigan needs one or two elite scorers in 2020. He wouldāve been an ideal alternative now that JAR is gone to Virginia. And I donāt think Michigan seen him more than twice this weekend
Wow thatās a huge offer for him.
He was unguardable this weekend at Peach Jam and all year. Doing that versus the best prep talent possible sort of shows there are few, if any better at scoring. Him alongside a big playmaker like Jalen Johnson makes me think Duke is even more appealing.
Kid is blowing up.
I donāt think anything is happening with this one, but FYI
Former target
Duke it is.
Primarily posting as context for Kessler and Coleman.