Welcome to the 4th installment of The War Room for 2018. 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.
Without further ado, here it is.... The 4th edition of the War Room for 2018!
CASE OF THE MONDAYS
The natives are getting restless. Yes, I’m referring to the post last week on our board after a week went by without a commitment from Frankie Policelli following his official visit. Well, the natives are awake again and they had to be pleased with the news that Policelli picked on Monday.
National experts are raving about the addition of Frankie to Dayton’s roster for the fall. “Policelli is a four man with good athleticism, a body that will be ready for college physicality as a freshman and nice skill,” Rivals.com National Recruiting Analyst Eric Bossi told FlyerHoops. “At times he's been a bit inconsistent in high school, but if Grant can get him to buy into playing with a motor at all times, he's got the skill and offensive ability to become a major piece of the puzzle sooner than later. A bonus is that his size and skill should allow for versatility with lineups where they can go big for stretches with Policelli at the three or totally switch and go small and skilled with him at the five.”
He collected more than 20 offers before he decided on the Flyers. He held major offers from Illinois and Cincinnati, but those I spoke to said it was more of a three-horse race between Dayton, Texas Tech, and Maryland.
Everyone can back up from the ledge now. The coaching staff is hoping that is just the starting momentum for what amounts to a big week for the Flyer program.
RIGHT STATE
As I reported last week, Michigan transfer Ibi Watson was on campus on Monday for an unofficial visit. The Pickerington Central graduate was recruited by Archie Miller out of high school and was on campus multiple times before choosing the Wolverines.
Sources I spoke to said the visit went very well and felt like Watson loved his time on campus. Anthony Solomon has been all over his transfer since word broke that he was leaving Ann Arbor.
From what I am hearing, the main competition for Watson at present time is Duquesne and Ohio, both coaches recruited him while he was in high school. Georgia and Wake Forest tried to get involved with his transfer, but those close to him quickly talked him out of making any false moves as he wants to make a big impact on his future college basketball program.
Not sure how quickly he will make a decision, but I wouldn’t be surprised if they try to get him to commit in the next couple of days. I am not 100% sure on this, but I believe he is already done with his finals and may take a visit to both schools over the next couple of days. With the Policelli news and news about the rest of this week, Dayton is in a good position to bring him home to Ohio.
BIG WEEK
We will call this transfer week at Dayton as Ibi Watson was the first of three visits scheduled this week at Dayton. Watson’s was, of course, an unofficial, while the final two of the week will be officials.
James Scott, the 6-5 shooting guard from Kennesaw State will be on campus this coming weekend. He averaged 17.3 points and 41.6% shooting. He has already visited Virginia Tech and Temple and Nevada, Arizona, and UCONN are also finalists for him.
Before Scott arrives though, Dayton will welcome Arkansas transfer Darious Hall. The Little Rock native finished his freshmen season for the Razorbacks, played in all 35 games this season and averaged 5.1 points and 3.1 rebounds and shot over 40% from three-point range.
Hall played AAU basketball with Dayton point guard Jalen Crutcher. At one point this season, Crutcher’s parents made the trip to Ole Miss to watch him play against the Rebels. He will arrive on campus on Thursday afternoon for the start of his official.
All three visitors will have to sit out this season and have two (Watson and Scott) or three (Hall) years of eligibility beginning in the 2018-2019 season. The goal for the Flyers is to get two of the three transfers this week and that would be an undeniable heck of a haul.
DRE DAY
Last week was obviously a big day for Sidney guard Andre Gordon when he finally got an offer from Dayton during an unofficial visit. He knows what Dayton basketball means in this part of the state, you could see it in his quote he gave me.
Obviously, most think that the Flyers have little shot with him leaving Sidney and prepping at Huntington Prep. However, as hoch pointed out on the board last week, there is precedent. Juwan Staten did prep at Oak Hill before returning to the Miami Valley for college. We all know it didn’t turn out well, but that had more to do with the kid and his father.
One other thing to point out about that precedence… The assistant coach that was able to secure Staten to Dayton even after the prep school move was current associate head coach Anthony Solomon.
I think the Flyers really wanted to get Wendell Mitchell and when they missed out on him, they re-evaluated their point guard situation. They’re happy with the production and growth of Jalen Crutcher and feel like Dwayne Cohill is a capable ball handler behind him, if need be. Then, they could bring in a guy like Gordon to really solidify the backcourt in the fall of 2019. Even if it's not at the pace the fan's want, the staff has a vision and are building it the right way. Patience and trust.
CLOSING
That does it for this edition of the War Room. I can feel the momentum shifting with every keystroke. Here’s hoping that the coaching staff hits their two of three goal this week. Thanks and welcome to all the new subscribers and of course, thank you to all the loyal subscribers that help make FlyerHoops the best place to talk Dayton basketball all year round! Until next time, WE ARE…..
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.
Without further ado, here it is.... The 4th edition of the War Room for 2018!
CASE OF THE MONDAYS
The natives are getting restless. Yes, I’m referring to the post last week on our board after a week went by without a commitment from Frankie Policelli following his official visit. Well, the natives are awake again and they had to be pleased with the news that Policelli picked on Monday.
National experts are raving about the addition of Frankie to Dayton’s roster for the fall. “Policelli is a four man with good athleticism, a body that will be ready for college physicality as a freshman and nice skill,” Rivals.com National Recruiting Analyst Eric Bossi told FlyerHoops. “At times he's been a bit inconsistent in high school, but if Grant can get him to buy into playing with a motor at all times, he's got the skill and offensive ability to become a major piece of the puzzle sooner than later. A bonus is that his size and skill should allow for versatility with lineups where they can go big for stretches with Policelli at the three or totally switch and go small and skilled with him at the five.”
He collected more than 20 offers before he decided on the Flyers. He held major offers from Illinois and Cincinnati, but those I spoke to said it was more of a three-horse race between Dayton, Texas Tech, and Maryland.
Everyone can back up from the ledge now. The coaching staff is hoping that is just the starting momentum for what amounts to a big week for the Flyer program.
RIGHT STATE
As I reported last week, Michigan transfer Ibi Watson was on campus on Monday for an unofficial visit. The Pickerington Central graduate was recruited by Archie Miller out of high school and was on campus multiple times before choosing the Wolverines.
Sources I spoke to said the visit went very well and felt like Watson loved his time on campus. Anthony Solomon has been all over his transfer since word broke that he was leaving Ann Arbor.
From what I am hearing, the main competition for Watson at present time is Duquesne and Ohio, both coaches recruited him while he was in high school. Georgia and Wake Forest tried to get involved with his transfer, but those close to him quickly talked him out of making any false moves as he wants to make a big impact on his future college basketball program.
Not sure how quickly he will make a decision, but I wouldn’t be surprised if they try to get him to commit in the next couple of days. I am not 100% sure on this, but I believe he is already done with his finals and may take a visit to both schools over the next couple of days. With the Policelli news and news about the rest of this week, Dayton is in a good position to bring him home to Ohio.
BIG WEEK
We will call this transfer week at Dayton as Ibi Watson was the first of three visits scheduled this week at Dayton. Watson’s was, of course, an unofficial, while the final two of the week will be officials.
James Scott, the 6-5 shooting guard from Kennesaw State will be on campus this coming weekend. He averaged 17.3 points and 41.6% shooting. He has already visited Virginia Tech and Temple and Nevada, Arizona, and UCONN are also finalists for him.
Before Scott arrives though, Dayton will welcome Arkansas transfer Darious Hall. The Little Rock native finished his freshmen season for the Razorbacks, played in all 35 games this season and averaged 5.1 points and 3.1 rebounds and shot over 40% from three-point range.
Hall played AAU basketball with Dayton point guard Jalen Crutcher. At one point this season, Crutcher’s parents made the trip to Ole Miss to watch him play against the Rebels. He will arrive on campus on Thursday afternoon for the start of his official.
All three visitors will have to sit out this season and have two (Watson and Scott) or three (Hall) years of eligibility beginning in the 2018-2019 season. The goal for the Flyers is to get two of the three transfers this week and that would be an undeniable heck of a haul.
DRE DAY
Last week was obviously a big day for Sidney guard Andre Gordon when he finally got an offer from Dayton during an unofficial visit. He knows what Dayton basketball means in this part of the state, you could see it in his quote he gave me.
Obviously, most think that the Flyers have little shot with him leaving Sidney and prepping at Huntington Prep. However, as hoch pointed out on the board last week, there is precedent. Juwan Staten did prep at Oak Hill before returning to the Miami Valley for college. We all know it didn’t turn out well, but that had more to do with the kid and his father.
One other thing to point out about that precedence… The assistant coach that was able to secure Staten to Dayton even after the prep school move was current associate head coach Anthony Solomon.
I think the Flyers really wanted to get Wendell Mitchell and when they missed out on him, they re-evaluated their point guard situation. They’re happy with the production and growth of Jalen Crutcher and feel like Dwayne Cohill is a capable ball handler behind him, if need be. Then, they could bring in a guy like Gordon to really solidify the backcourt in the fall of 2019. Even if it's not at the pace the fan's want, the staff has a vision and are building it the right way. Patience and trust.
CLOSING
That does it for this edition of the War Room. I can feel the momentum shifting with every keystroke. Here’s hoping that the coaching staff hits their two of three goal this week. Thanks and welcome to all the new subscribers and of course, thank you to all the loyal subscribers that help make FlyerHoops the best place to talk Dayton basketball all year round! Until next time, WE ARE…..
