RE: Thoughts on new Tribe Hoops recruits - Ayesa and Wight
I read through Ohio U's message board regarding Ben Wight. There were comments that he was not a D1 prospect, since Ohio was his only D1 offer when he committed and there had been no accolades for him last summer or after his senior year. No one had actually seen him play. Some controversy, as expected, over the new HC parting ways with him.
Ben, apparently, had mono back in the fall to start the season, suffered a foot injury that put him in a boot at the beginning of 2019, then suffered a concussion and broken collar bone during playoffs. That's a tough senior year scenario for any athlete to deal with. He will need time to develop to this level of ball.
Ohio U, subsequently, signed another 6'10 player from Michigan who had other offers, including JMU, and a higher rating. I looked at recent highlights of this kid and other than broader shoulders projecting bigger size potential, he was a project with nowhere near the skills/coordination exhibited by Wight in his footage. I would take Wight with no hesitation over the other kid, based on video. Ben has great hands, hops, great shot form, quality footwork and moves around the post, runs the court very well with surprising speed and quickness for a big. I think he actually projects well as a four.
My take was this being a classic case of a player getting less exposure, and fans relying on paper ratings and other offers to pass judgment without actually seeing players. Don't know whether Elon actually offered, but don't think Schrage would have gone to see Ben, then have him in on an official visit, unless he believed in his potential, since Elon has a big need for the post. Other than a young future D1 PG, Ben supposedly did not have a strong cast on his HS team, with little opportunity for his play/shooting on the outside.
I trust Kemp has a pretty good insight into his skill level and potential. Must be a very bitter situation for Wight's parents as Ohio alums. Believe Ben is in the classic mold of a Tribe, high character student-athlete and will contribute down the road. Think we would have been very happy to sign him a year ago when we were looking to get a late post commit and grabbed Mehkel.
Kemp was following Ayesa before joining the staff, so, he was obviously the one to get both of them here. I was very surprised when looking back through Kemp's twitter follows for the past few years, the overlap in past Tribe recruit targets, including Quinn Blair. He obviously is coming in with prime recruiting experience with the same pool we've been hunting under Shaver.
(This post was last modified: 05-17-2019 03:34 AM by Tribeheart.)
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