Welcome to the 3rd installment of The War Room for the off-season of 2012. As always, I'll begin this session with the ground rules for those that may be new. Everything that is reported in The War Room must stay in The War Room. Sometimes the info is sensitive enough that it simply doesn't need to be passed on beyond the doors of this message board thread.
This is a special feature for our subscribers only. The reason why it is posted on the premium board is because that's the only way to ensure that the info stays exclusive to Dayton Flyer fans. Thanks for your cooperation.
Things are starting to heat up in 2012 as we near the end of the school year.... So here it is, the 3rd edition of the War Room for the 2012 off-season!
Moore is better
Perhaps the best news that happened this week for Dayton was Cincinnati Aiken guard Willie Moore getting his full release on Thursday from Duquesne. Moore, who has never received an offer from Dayton, liked Dayton enough to have them in his final five without a formal offer.
I am told Aiken will fax the release to Dayton today and it's likely that he'll visit UD sometime next week. Source told me, "UD could get a commitment from him even without a visit." Other schools that will potentially get visits include South Carolina and Virginia Tech. Coach Kuwik was the one handling his recruitment prior to committing to Duquesne, so he's expected to pick it up again now with the release. If Dayton offers Moore, I would be shocked if his recruitment isn't wrapped up within a week after.
Two other things… Willie played with Jalen Robinson in AAU ball at the beginning of their high school careers and he was quick to tell me he dunked on Devon Scott last year in the first AAU game of the circuit. Bragging Rights!
Svibnja Odluka
Mislav Brzoja, a 6-5 wing from Traders Point Christian in Indiana, is a sought after prospect for the 2012 class. He averaged 20 points, seven rebounds, and seven assists for a team that won the private school championship this year. Coach Ostrom is heading up his recruitment and I spoke to TPC Coach Jamerson earlier this week.
Along with Dayton, Jamerson told me Mislav has Bradley, Illinois, Providence, Ohio, Northwestern, Oklahoma State, Oregon State, Indiana State, Illinois State, Utah, and Eastern Michigan on his list. He has already visited Bradley on an official visit and has four more possible visits he could take. Jamerson told me to expect a decision from Mislav at the beginning to mid-May. By the way, I believe svibnja odluka translates to "May Decision" in Croatian if I did that right.
Oh Canada!
I talked with Dyshawn Pierre, the 6-6 small forward that Coach Griffin watched last year from Team Canada in Latvia. Pierre is another small forward that Dayton is actively recruiting for one of their three scholarships. Coach Kuwik is in charge of his recruitment now and the Flyers will likely get a visit from him over the coming weeks.
He said he's going to sit down with his parents and figure out which schools he is going to visit. He told me Dayton would likely be one of those while also considering potential visits to Baylor, Detroit, Iona, St. Bonaventure, and Santa Clara. St. Bonaventure is the perceived leader at this point, while Pierre isn't tipping his hand.
Not Rocket
Another 2012 prospect that Dayton is just now getting involved with is 6-1 guard Everett Clemons from Lanphier High School in Springfield, Illinois. I talked with Coach Shanklin in the middle of this week and he said Coach Kuwik and the Dayton Flyers are in an evaluation phase right now.
Clemons really opened eyes this season when he helped Lanphier to a fourth place finish in the state. Schools are waiting to see him in open gyms to see if he is someone they want to bring in, and that includes Dayton. Other schools are Bradley, Eastern Illinois, Eastern Kentucky, Ball State, Northern Colorado, IUPUI, and Indianapolis,
Clemons averaged 18.5 points, 5.3 rebounds, 2.4 steals, and 2.1 assists this season.
Turner's turn in 2013-2014?
Now here's a name to keep an eye on. Josiah Turner, a freshman transfer from Arizona. Why is it significant? This was a 5-star kid out of high school that Archie was the lead recruiter on. Final 2011 Rivals150 rankings had Turner as the 2nd best point guard in the country and the 11th best player overall in the country.
He was suspended twice at Arizona and pretty much shown the door by Sean Miller in order to accommodate some transfers. You have to believe Archie and Sean have had conversations about this potentially going down, and I would say for a school that is a mid-major+ basketball program, it would be well worth a shot, in my opinion. Would Josiah be interested? I don't know that answer right now. I actually tried the phone # Rivals had in the database for him, but it was a wrong number. I remember last year at this time when Archie was hired, a UofA poster worried about Turner because, as he put it, "Archie was Josiah's boy."
After a transfer sit-out year, Turner would be given the keys that Kevin Dillard leaves behind. If Josiah develops into the type of point guard everyone thinks he could be, we're talking Turner being the floor general until it's time for A.J. Harris to come to UD. That would be almost like a fairy tale if all that fell into place. I'll keep trying to see what kind of legs this one has from both ends.
Big Weekend
Although Dayton isn't scheduled to have anyone on campus this weekend, it still remains a huge weekend for the program. That's because Ryan Taylor and Jerron Otis Wilbut, and maybe a couple of other targets, will be taking the ACT tomorrow. As both of these guys work to become eligible for this fall, UD is one of a couple of schools that is putting recruiting efforts into them like they know they'll be eligible. I am told they will try to host both of these guys soon after the ACT for their official visits, although nothing is setup. I'm hearing Wilbut may be on campus as early as next week. It's definitely heating up!
That does it for this edition of the War Room. Thanks to everyone for your continued support and a formal welcome to those new subscribers to the site. It's all of you that make this the best place to talk FlyerHoops all year round!
This post was edited on 4/13 8:48 AM by Matt Schwade
This is a special feature for our subscribers only. The reason why it is posted on the premium board is because that's the only way to ensure that the info stays exclusive to Dayton Flyer fans. Thanks for your cooperation.
Things are starting to heat up in 2012 as we near the end of the school year.... So here it is, the 3rd edition of the War Room for the 2012 off-season!
Moore is better
Perhaps the best news that happened this week for Dayton was Cincinnati Aiken guard Willie Moore getting his full release on Thursday from Duquesne. Moore, who has never received an offer from Dayton, liked Dayton enough to have them in his final five without a formal offer.
I am told Aiken will fax the release to Dayton today and it's likely that he'll visit UD sometime next week. Source told me, "UD could get a commitment from him even without a visit." Other schools that will potentially get visits include South Carolina and Virginia Tech. Coach Kuwik was the one handling his recruitment prior to committing to Duquesne, so he's expected to pick it up again now with the release. If Dayton offers Moore, I would be shocked if his recruitment isn't wrapped up within a week after.
Two other things… Willie played with Jalen Robinson in AAU ball at the beginning of their high school careers and he was quick to tell me he dunked on Devon Scott last year in the first AAU game of the circuit. Bragging Rights!
Svibnja Odluka
Mislav Brzoja, a 6-5 wing from Traders Point Christian in Indiana, is a sought after prospect for the 2012 class. He averaged 20 points, seven rebounds, and seven assists for a team that won the private school championship this year. Coach Ostrom is heading up his recruitment and I spoke to TPC Coach Jamerson earlier this week.
Along with Dayton, Jamerson told me Mislav has Bradley, Illinois, Providence, Ohio, Northwestern, Oklahoma State, Oregon State, Indiana State, Illinois State, Utah, and Eastern Michigan on his list. He has already visited Bradley on an official visit and has four more possible visits he could take. Jamerson told me to expect a decision from Mislav at the beginning to mid-May. By the way, I believe svibnja odluka translates to "May Decision" in Croatian if I did that right.
Oh Canada!
I talked with Dyshawn Pierre, the 6-6 small forward that Coach Griffin watched last year from Team Canada in Latvia. Pierre is another small forward that Dayton is actively recruiting for one of their three scholarships. Coach Kuwik is in charge of his recruitment now and the Flyers will likely get a visit from him over the coming weeks.
He said he's going to sit down with his parents and figure out which schools he is going to visit. He told me Dayton would likely be one of those while also considering potential visits to Baylor, Detroit, Iona, St. Bonaventure, and Santa Clara. St. Bonaventure is the perceived leader at this point, while Pierre isn't tipping his hand.
Not Rocket
Another 2012 prospect that Dayton is just now getting involved with is 6-1 guard Everett Clemons from Lanphier High School in Springfield, Illinois. I talked with Coach Shanklin in the middle of this week and he said Coach Kuwik and the Dayton Flyers are in an evaluation phase right now.
Clemons really opened eyes this season when he helped Lanphier to a fourth place finish in the state. Schools are waiting to see him in open gyms to see if he is someone they want to bring in, and that includes Dayton. Other schools are Bradley, Eastern Illinois, Eastern Kentucky, Ball State, Northern Colorado, IUPUI, and Indianapolis,
Clemons averaged 18.5 points, 5.3 rebounds, 2.4 steals, and 2.1 assists this season.
Turner's turn in 2013-2014?
Now here's a name to keep an eye on. Josiah Turner, a freshman transfer from Arizona. Why is it significant? This was a 5-star kid out of high school that Archie was the lead recruiter on. Final 2011 Rivals150 rankings had Turner as the 2nd best point guard in the country and the 11th best player overall in the country.
He was suspended twice at Arizona and pretty much shown the door by Sean Miller in order to accommodate some transfers. You have to believe Archie and Sean have had conversations about this potentially going down, and I would say for a school that is a mid-major+ basketball program, it would be well worth a shot, in my opinion. Would Josiah be interested? I don't know that answer right now. I actually tried the phone # Rivals had in the database for him, but it was a wrong number. I remember last year at this time when Archie was hired, a UofA poster worried about Turner because, as he put it, "Archie was Josiah's boy."
After a transfer sit-out year, Turner would be given the keys that Kevin Dillard leaves behind. If Josiah develops into the type of point guard everyone thinks he could be, we're talking Turner being the floor general until it's time for A.J. Harris to come to UD. That would be almost like a fairy tale if all that fell into place. I'll keep trying to see what kind of legs this one has from both ends.
Big Weekend
Although Dayton isn't scheduled to have anyone on campus this weekend, it still remains a huge weekend for the program. That's because Ryan Taylor and Jerron Otis Wilbut, and maybe a couple of other targets, will be taking the ACT tomorrow. As both of these guys work to become eligible for this fall, UD is one of a couple of schools that is putting recruiting efforts into them like they know they'll be eligible. I am told they will try to host both of these guys soon after the ACT for their official visits, although nothing is setup. I'm hearing Wilbut may be on campus as early as next week. It's definitely heating up!
That does it for this edition of the War Room. Thanks to everyone for your continued support and a formal welcome to those new subscribers to the site. It's all of you that make this the best place to talk FlyerHoops all year round!
This post was edited on 4/13 8:48 AM by Matt Schwade
