Recruiting

Green Crazy · June 4, 2022

Are you happy with it? Did you expect it to be better by now?

Let me clarify a little. Grant is a excellent coach and has taken mainly JC players, a few good HS recruits and won us some CUSA Championships, CBI Title, hosted and won a NIT game and won NCAA tournament game, but with that kind of success over 4-5 years I thought he would be getting a better class of recruits/transfers. Don't get me wrong, Javon, Simmons, Abou, Bell, Rubin, Perry, etc.... are good CUSA players but were moving up a class next year and so should our recruiting. Grant can coach them up better than they come in, but now I think instead of getting good CUSA level players we should be getting multiple first team all CUSA players and UFAs.

Cooley · June 4, 2022

2017-2018
Umoja Gibson
Roosevelt Smart
Zach Simmons	* signed NLI during early period w/ T. Benford
Tope Arikawe
Michael Miller
Mark Tikhonenko
Jahmiah Simmons

2018-2019
Larry Wise
Jorden Duffy
Abdul Mohammed
J.J. Murray
Shakeem Alcindor

2019-2020
Jalen Jackson
James Reese
Deng Geu
Javion Hamlett
Thomas Bell

2020-2021
Rubin Jones
Terence Lewis II
Abou Ousmane
Mykell Robinson
Mardrez McBride

2021-2022
Aaron Scott
Matthew Stone
Chrisdon Morgan
Hameir Wright
Tylor Perry
Deon McKeon
Bryce Zephir
Rasheed Browne
ARSH MATTU

2022-2023
Moulaye Sissoko
Jayden Martinez
Tyree Eady
Kai Huntsberry
Dajuan Wagner Jr

Cooley · June 4, 2022

Upon review, Duffey was 2017-2018. Still waiting on the fax to arrive from Wagner in the class of 2023.

GrandGreen · June 5, 2022

Some would probably be disappointed with the number 1 recruit in the nation.

I really don't see how anyone can genuinely question McCasland's recruiting. He or anyone else at NT is highly unlikely to ever sign a 4 star ranked player. The conference and the school just don't measure up in terms of prestige and support.

Add McCasland, defense first game and it is even more less likely to happen.

I strongly suspect the one school in the current CUSA that does occasionally recruit above the conference level buys players and that was before NIL.

greenminer · June 5, 2022

43 minutes ago, GrandGreen said:

I really don't see how anyone can genuinely question McCasland's recruiting. He or anyone else at NT is highly unlikely to ever sign a 4 star ranked player. The conference and the school just don't measure up in terms of prestige and support.

You don't think 3 straight seasons of CUSA and CBI titles, plus an NCAA win over Purdue, plus an official AAC membership, would inspire some level of recruiting upgrade? You think we hit our ceiling before all of this, because of perceptions of CUSA/UNT?

I don't think anyone is calling for 4*, but concerns are warranted when we have continued to struggle to establish anything beyond a 6-7 man rotation to compete in CUSA.

Edited June 5, 2022 by greenminer

GMG_Dallas · June 5, 2022

2 hours ago, Cooley said:

Dajuan Wagner Jr

Ummm the son of former NBA guard Dajuan Wagner is coming to UNT?

MeanGreenTexan · June 5, 2022

9 minutes ago, GMG_Dallas said:

Ummm the son of former NBA guard Dajuan Wagner is coming to UNT?

Cooley’s humor is low-key. It’s his commentary on the topic.
The #1 recruit in the nation would be quite the “jump” in recruiting, if you ask me! 😂

GrandGreen · June 5, 2022

1 hour ago, greenminer said:

You don't think 3 straight seasons of CUSA and CBI titles, plus an NCAA win over Purdue, plus an official AAC membership, would inspire some level of recruiting upgrade? You think we hit our ceiling before all of this, because of perceptions of CUSA/UNT?

I don't think anyone is calling for 4*, but concerns are warranted when we have continued to struggle to establish anything beyond a 6-7 man rotation to compete in CUSA.

I have less concerns about McCasland than any NT coach. As far as recruiting, neither you or I have any idea how good these recruits will turn out. Hamlet and Reese were nether highly recruited players.

OK, why do you think McCasland can't sign whoever you think is the proper level for a team with all the accolades you describe? You have dismissed the conference, which by the way is considered by most to be the biggest factor in recruiting.

As far as playing basically a 7 player rotation, that is a coach's decision. I am not so sure it is because the bench beyond 7 players is incapable.

However, it is my current belief that McCasland plays the very strict rotation because he wants a lot of development time and familiarity between the first group of players. I don't see him ever going to a big rotation of players.

Because of NT's slow pace of play, NT seldom has big leads to allow liberal substitutions. Even in the few blowouts, NT only went beyond the basic 7 players for a few minutes at the end of games.

Cooley · June 5, 2022

The question is, or should be, general to any coach, at any school, in any sport, at any level. Take Grant McCasland and North Texas out of the equation for the moment; as not to confuse anyone who may think the topic is a criticism.

If a school or professional franchise advances annually in record and title(s), is it reasonable to expect greater interest from “perceived” higher caliber players; to your program/franchise?

Again, not a knock at all on past recruiting or draft history of the guys you built your team around to win. Your program should be more attractive to those recruit(s) / free agent/ pretty girl that wouldn’t date you previously.

GMG_Dallas · June 5, 2022

8 hours ago, MeanGreenTexan said:

Cooley’s humor is low-key. It’s his commentary on the topic.
The #1 recruit in the nation would be quite the “jump” in recruiting, if you ask me! 😂

I had a strong sense he was pulling our legs but I wanted so badly to believe. Like Santa Clause and the Easter bunny were real again. I even thought to myself "just maybe" because his dad went to Memphis when they were in CUSA so the connection is there! Come home, DJ!

GMG_Dallas · June 5, 2022

5 hours ago, Cooley said:

The question is, or should be, general to any coach, at any school, in any sport, at any level. Take Grant McCasland and North Texas out of the equation for the moment; as not to confuse anyone who may think the topic is a criticism.

If a school or professional franchise advances annually in record and title(s), is it reasonable to expect greater interest from “perceived” higher caliber players; to your program/franchise?

Again, not a knock at all on past recruiting or draft history of the guys you built your team around to win. Your program should be more attractive to those recruit(s) / free agent/ pretty girl that wouldn’t date you previously.

I agree with this sentiment in general but it's difficult to gage with inconsistent recruiting services setting the bar for what a recruit is. The important thing to me would be is coach winning the recruiting battles he wants to win? Is he identifying the guys he wants and getting them more often than not? Tough to evaluate with basketball because there just isn't much recruiting info out there for us little guys until a player commits or signs. IMO the issue with football has often been being relegated to picking up what's left. With the continued success we've seen in basketball, I'd imagine McCasland is doing just fine in getting what he wants.

That said, it would be nice to see a 4 star commit.

glick1980 · June 5, 2022

I’m very excited about the Martinez and Eady signings. Martinez has been an all-conference player and is an excellent three point shooter. He will garner much more attention on the outside than Bell and that should open up Abou. Eady is a great defensive player with good size for a guard at 6’5” and also an excellent three point shooter. Sissoko should be a good backup for Abou ensuring that we can have a big in at all-times if we want. Interested to see who we get with the last scholarship. Hoping for a guard that can drive and finish.

greenminer · June 5, 2022

13 hours ago, GrandGreen said:

I have less concerns about McCasland than any NT coach.

And he has earned that. I was addressing your statement about questioning McCasland's recruiting.

Quote

As far as recruiting, neither you or I have any idea how good these recruits will turn out.

No, but we can look at the level of recruits at time of signing and assess the trajectory of recruiting.

Quote

OK, why do you think McCasland can't sign whoever you think is the proper level for a team with all the accolades you describe? You have dismissed the conference, which by the way is considered by most to be the biggest factor in recruiting.

I don't dismiss the conference. It doesn't take a scientist to understand that we aren't going to sign every kid we want from a pool of talent that is likely going to the B12 or ACC. What I think is reasonable is, if we are targeting pools of kids that are likely going to CUSA/AAC/Sun Belt, then showing kids we have 3 titles and 3 straight years of postseason wins should increase our chances of filling needs with our top choices, vs. telling kids "hey wanna come in and start right away and maybe compete for a title/postseason?"

Quote

As far as playing basically a 7 player rotation, that is a coach's decision. I am not so sure it is because the bench beyond 7 players is incapable.

However, it is my current belief that McCasland plays the very strict rotation because he wants a lot of development time and familiarity between the first group of players. I don't see him ever going to a big rotation of players.

I felt pretty strongly that our late season losses factored a heavy dose of exhaustion. When you have an 8th and 9th guy you can rely on to relieve minutes, you won't have the toll that I felt our main guys endured as we approached 25+ games.

I can't think of any strategic advantage to only using 7 guys if you have 2 or 3 more that could come in and offer variety/depth? Is there some scenario out there where a proven roster from top to bottom still only uses 7 guys, because the coach wants "familiarity between the first group of players?" Coaches want depth and flexibility.

So, no, I don't have any concerns about Grant in CUSA. I simply "question his recruiting" if we want to compete for AAC championships too. I have questions, that even after 3 straight championship years, we are still going to need Grant to get these fighters to punch well above their weight if we want another CUSA title. If you didn't understand how it could be questioned before, I hope I spelled it out well enough for you.

Edited June 5, 2022 by greenminer

GrandGreen · June 5, 2022

25 minutes ago, greenminer said:

And he has earned that. I was addressing your statement about questioning McCasland's recruiting.

No, but we can look at the level of recruits at time of signing and assess the trajectory of recruiting.

I don't dismiss the conference. It doesn't take a scientist to understand that we aren't going to sign every kid we want from a pool of talent that is likely going to the B12 or ACC. What I think is reasonable is, if we are targeting pools of kids that are likely going to CUSA/AAC/Sun Belt, then showing kids we have 3 titles and 3 straight years of postseason wins should increase our chances of filling needs with our top choices, vs. telling kids "hey wanna come in and start right away and maybe compete for a title/postseason?"

I felt pretty strongly that our late season losses factored a heavy dose of exhaustion. When you have an 8th and 9th guy you can rely on to relieve minutes, you won't have the toll that I felt our main guys endured as we approached 25+ games.

I can't think of any strategic advantage to only using 7 guys if you have 2 or 3 more that could come in and offer variety/depth? Is there some scenario out there where a proven roster from top to bottom still only uses 7 guys, because the coach wants "familiarity between the first group of players?" Coaches want depth and flexibility.

So, no, I don't have any concerns about Grant in CUSA. I simply "question his recruiting" if we want to compete for AAC championships too. I have questions, that even after 3 straight championship years, we are still going to need Grant to get these fighters to punch well above their weight if we want another CUSA title. If you didn't understand how it could be questioned before, I hope I spelled it out well enough for you.

Most of us can't judge recruits better the coach that recruits them.

No your answer did not provide me with any more insight, I am sure that is my problem.

Again, McCasland recruits players that fit his defense first maximum effort style. A lot of the type of recruits that many covet are not going to buy in to a slow paced defense first and second type of basketball.

Most top players play big minutes and would be upset if they did not. So I doubt that hurts recruiting.

You think, wrong in my view, that McCasland plays limited players because he doesn't have capable players beyond seven. Despite what some have expressed, I don't think McCasland signs players to sit on the bench.

greenminer · June 5, 2022

33 minutes ago, GrandGreen said:

Despite what some have expressed, I don't think McCasland signs players to sit on the bench.

I spend way too much time on this board, and don’t remember anyone suggesting Grant signs players to sit on the bench.

what has been said is, he signs players and sits them if they don’t play defense.

it sounds like you’re not going to relate to my viewpoint.

Edited June 5, 2022 by greenminer

Green Crazy · June 5, 2022

19 hours ago, GrandGreen said:

Some would probably be disappointed with the number 1 recruit in the nation.

I really don't see how anyone can genuinely question McCasland's recruiting. He or anyone else at NT is highly unlikely to ever sign a 4 star ranked player. The conference and the school just don't measure up in terms of prestige and support.

Add McCasland, defense first game and it is even more less likely to happen.

I strongly suspect the one school in the current CUSA that does occasionally recruit above the conference level buys players and that was before NIL.

Just to play devil's advocate to some of your points. In my opinion Johnny Jones recruited better than Grant has and we were in a lesser conference. Also, the defensive first strategy is a deterrent in my opinion too, but Texas Tech has been able to recruit at the top of their conference with the same style as us.

I think we can do better than this and I think Grant thinks so too, just look at the players he sends offers too the last few seasons. Players he thinks will fit his system and are graded higher than the players that have committed chose other schools, some of those schools are better and some aren't. And I'm not talking about the pie in the sky 4 stars either.

FirefightnRick · June 6, 2022

Star Trek GIF

Rick

untbowler · June 7, 2022

On 6/5/2022 at 11:46 PM, FirefightnRick said:

Rick

no kidding, if only these same fans held FB Coaches to the same standard, imagine that, but at UNT the more success you have the worse the fans treat a coach.

Green Crazy · June 7, 2022

11 hours ago, untbowler said:

no kidding, if only these same fans held FB Coaches to the same standard, imagine that, but at UNT the more success you have the worse the fans treat a coach.

I think you're missing the point. When a team does better you expect better recruits/recruiting to follow. Littrell's level of recruiting got better when we were doing well in football. And now that we aren't doing well it has dropped off. Grant's seems to be the same or slightly better with what I would call a lot of success and definitely more than Seth had.

Edited June 8, 2022 by Green Crazy