(05-17-2023 10:53 PM)Golden-Ticket Wrote: [ -> ]If a good enough player becomes available I say we just have to boot EG. Give him a little longer but we don’t want to be screwed. We could chase a Big man or another PG and be set for the future
Hell no. Eric Gaines is a Blazer.
Remember all those championships Armon Bassett won for us, after we screwed Airman 1st Class Reggie Huffman out of his scholarship and gave it to Bassett's coke-headed ass instead?
Yeah, me neither.
The timeline is what it is.
We’ll sign someone if EG stays in the draft. Still plenty of good players out there and we are not the only team waiting on a guy to decide.
I’d love for EG to return, but if he’s still in limbo weeks from now and we have the opportunity to land a quality transfer like the ones we’ve been getting then I think we need to pursue that. Priority one would be get EG but at some point he has to make a decision because we still have to go recruit someone if he decided to leave. I’d take a freshman/soft more big or PG that’s highly regarded if we are in this situation at the end of the month
The deadline is June 1 so we will know in a couple of weeks
I didn’t realize the deadline was that close, just let that run through then. I would be curious to pick AK’s brain as to what he’d go pursue if EG doesn’t come back
Steve Irvine tweeted that AK said he would sign someone. I guess the question is whether they feel good with the guards they have or not. I could see signing a PG or going with another big for depth. There are several solid one and done bigs still available. Guys who could give you reserve minutes and be ok with that.
If we want to keep Butta at the PG position that he kind of played when he was in I could see us going for a big
If EG does not return I'd be fine with a pg or a young big to develop (3-4 years remaining). I think they roll with what they have at C expecting a big year from JD, expecting improvement in his conditioning and footwork and Shaver backing him up at C. They feel good at the 4 spot. This team will run a LOT more than they ever have under HCAK IMHO.
Shaver and JD are not really run-and-gun guys but when the smaller lineup is in, it should be pedal to the metal.
I imagine we see a Coleman and Yaxel “small” lineup when we really want to speed it up
I could see Shaver and JD being being pretty effective on offense on the secondary break but it might be a little harder to speed things up on the defensive end when they are in. That is where I see the smaller lineup being really effective with uptempo. Lots of length and athleticism to press and trap and a couple of nasty rebounders at the small forward / swing man slots who can rip it and go.
AK will be on the next round at 12:20 today. Really hope they talk in depth about the roster
Can someone post a link to AK on TNR from today when it’s available?
(05-17-2023 10:53 PM)Golden-Ticket Wrote: [ -> ]If a good enough player becomes available I say we just have to boot EG. Give him a little longer but we don’t want to be screwed. We could chase a Big man or another PG and be set for the future
Absolutely not. Do you want to be the school that won't allow players to test the NBA waters? Do you want our players coming here thinking if they are good enough to play in the NBA we are going to threaten their scholarship? We don't need to randomly create a new withdrawal date on our end, everybody knows what it is, and we can work off that timeline.
Gaines has done everything that has been asked of him at UAB, and he could be in for a monster season if given the right advice and really working hard this upcoming season. We don't need to threaten anybody, what AK has been doing has been working.
(05-18-2023 12:38 PM)blazers9911 Wrote: [ -> ] (05-17-2023 10:53 PM)Golden-Ticket Wrote: [ -> ]If a good enough player becomes available I say we just have to boot EG. Give him a little longer but we don’t want to be screwed. We could chase a Big man or another PG and be set for the future
Absolutely not. Do you want to be the school that won't allow players to test the NBA waters? Do you want our players coming here thinking if they are good enough to play in the NBA we are going to threaten their scholarship? We don't need to randomly create a new withdrawal date on our end, everybody knows what it is, and we can work off that timeline.
Gaines has done everything that has been asked of him at UAB, and he could be in for a monster season if given the right advice and really working hard this upcoming season. We don't need to threaten anybody, what AK has been doing has been working.
+1
I wasn’t aware the deadline was already fast approaching. In my head I was thinking if he still hasn’t given a decision in 2 weeks then we have to start looking for prospects. Ideally you want EG back of course but let’s not all get dramatic like it wouldn’t make any sense to start looking around. If EG says June 1st he’s not coming back and we haven’t made a single effort to reach out to anyone I seriously doubt we fill that scholarship with anyone of any notoriety. I never said we needed to try and force EG out, just stated that at a certain point you need an answer. All that to say June 1st is perfect and I hope he stays. Sounds like he’s getting more workouts than Jelly is
We are looking around. Kennedy has proven he’s always looking around. I don’t believe Kennedy planned on having an open scholarship last year, I think his plan A,B, and C all fell through and at a certain point he just decided nothing was out there that worked.
And your quoted line was “we just have to boot EG”. If that’s not saying we need to force EG out I’m sorry I misinterpreted that statement.
AK said in the interview with Irvine that they are still talking to prospects but being honest with them while EG tests the waters. That is all you can do. EG will make his decision and then AK will move accordingly. UAB isn’t the only school in this situation. You actually *want* to be in the position of having guys deciding whether to turn pro or not, right?
Yeah my use of the word boot was bad I admit. In my head I was thinking we boot the idea of his return at a certain point but that’s good to know we are still shopping in case. I just didn’t want to be waiting