Rounding out the roster
By Travis
March Madness often leads to April Sadness or May Heydays. They are two of the most important recruiting months of the basketball season. They probably lack behind the summer months and November in sheer activity, but for the elite prospects who hold out or can’t make up their minds until the final moments these next several weeks are very intriguing.
Kentucky fans can look no further than last April and May when they held their breath as Patrick Patterson remained in limbo. Ron Mercer was another major May recruiting coup.
Again, the Cats still have a scholarship available late in the recruiting game and several players on their radar. Their top target may be (or may not, depending on how you want to interpret coach Billy Gillispie’s intentions) McDonald’s All-American Scotty Hopson, the scoring guard from Hopkinsville, Ky. Hopson originally committed to Mississippi State but never signed his National Letter of Intent. The final signing day is May 21.
Hopson had 10 points in a 107-102 losing effort for the West squad in the McDonald’s game Wednesday. And USA Today indicated Scotty’s list has been pared to Mississippi State, Tennessee, UK, Louisville and Texas:
“My mom and my coaches really helped me out in the recruiting process,” Hopson said. “There’s no pressure. I’m just waiting and weighing my options. … I’ve narrowed it down to Tennessee, Mississippi State, Kentucky, Louisville and Texas.”
But Tru over at A Sea of Blue found a story from Kyle Veazey of the (Jackson, Miss.) Clarion-Ledger with some insight. Evidently, UK may not get a visit from Hopson, while Mississippi State, Tennessee and Texas will. Matt Jones, who has really carved his own niche at Kentucky Sports Radio, has a source in Hopkinsville, who says Hopson is leaning towards Tennessee but that UK may be the wild card.
This is quickly becoming a replay of Patterson’s unpredictable saga last year, although this recruitment might be a tad more complex. All that I have read indicates Hopson has little say in where he’ll eventually wind up. He hasn’t had anything newsworthy to say since he verbally committed about a year ago, although his play all season and his not signing in November were both obviously newsworthy. But his mother and AAU coach seem to be directing his recruitment. Patterson’s parents were very involved all along, but it was always clear he’d eventually have the final say.
But I’m not sure about Hopson. My gut feeling is if he – or his people — were comfortable with Mississippi State he wouldn’t be dragging it out, and that Tennessee will be his choice. These types of situations rarely work out for the team for which the player originally committed. Eric Gordon comes to mind.
Also, I’m not sure Texas can really make up enough ground so late, especially given the distance, but Rick Barnes can obviously play the NBA card. He’s done a great job with T.J. Ford, Kevin Durant and D.J. Augustin. While signing with MSU would shock me, a commitment to UK or UofL would also surprise me. UofL has lost out on Tyreke Evans and may now have more interest in Hopson, but I’m just afraid it’s probably too little and too late by both UofL and UK, who both targeted other guards — Darius Miller at UK and Evans at UofL — and left Hopson to wonder.
Hopson would be a steal for Gillispie, and the Cats need a scorer with Joe Crawford graduating, but a big guy is of more pressing need. With Miller, DeAndre Liggins and a healthy Jodie Meeks and a healthy Derrick Jasper, the guard positions will be in good hands. But Patterson and Perry Stevenson need help in the paint.
I wouldn’t rule out the possibility of a transfer by Morikinyo (if I use your real first name will you leave?) Williams. That would free up an extra schoalrship for a big guy AND Hopson, which would be a tremendous scenario for UK, but I wouldn’t bet on it.
Matt Jones also reports that the Cats are among the leaders for a native Sudanese big man who hails from Australia. Foreign prospects always come with a bit of skepticism, but Ater Majok is a 6-10 athletic forward who has attracted NBA scouts, according to the original report from the African Sports News Service. Majok will play in the Derby Festival Classic, which is good news for UK because he’ll visit UK during that trip.
Tru also had news of UK’s interest in Jordan Henriquez, a 6-11 center from New York who was said to have given Renardo Sidney fits in a head-to-head matchup. I’ve seen Sidney, the top player in the Class of 2009, head-to-head against Patterson. Sidney owned Pat in the first half, but Pat held his ground in the second half. That says a lot for Henriquez.
Thankfully, Gillispie already has landed a very solid class with Miller, Liggins and Kevin Galloway. All three are athletic and difference-makers down the line. But for the Cats to make a huge step forward NEXT YEAR, they need to fill three potential holes. They won’t have a a scorer to complement Meeks. They may lack a true point guard unless Liggins or Jasper proves otherwise, and they desperately need an athletic and competent big man with some bulk to round out their interior rotation.