Welcome to the 10th installment of The War Room for the off-season of 2017. 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 10th edition of the War Room for the 2017 off-season!
THE SMOOTH SOUTHPAW
Anthony Nelson, guard from South Kent in Connecticut, will arrive on campus on Friday morning. This will be the first of three straight weekends of official visits for the New York City native.
I spoke with him this week as he readied himself for his college tours. He talked to me at length about how great of a relationship he has with fellow New Yorker Ricardo Greer and the rest of the coaching staff.
Accompanying him on his visit will be at least three people—mom, dad, and his brother, and there’s a possibility of a couple other people coming too. They’re all really excited to see the facilities and campus. Anthony noted that he likes Dayton’s style of play, a “fast-paced game.”
Lastly, I leave you with a couple of quotes he gave me…
“They told me I’d be able to come in, as a freshman, and play right away and have a good impact on the team. That’s what everyone looks for when they come in as a freshman.”
“The most important thing is finding the place where I feel most comfortable at. I’d like to get it over with (before the season starts), but I don’t want to rush it. I want to make the right decision. I’m going to take the rest of my visits and then go from there.”
So it doesn't sound like he is as close to a decision as Cohill was before the visit, but I think Dayton is in a good spot heading into the trip.
SHHHH SCRIMMAGE
When the schedules are released each year, most fans will go through the non-conference list to pick out their marquee games. Me, my eyes start at the top and look to see if there is one or two exhibition games.
First thing I noticed was a single exhibition on November 4th against Ohio Dominican. The significance of that? There’s going to be secret scrimmage against another Division I school.
I immediately started digging to find out the who, when, and where. I didn’t get as much information I had hoped because it’s still not 100% set in stone, but I was given some vague details and some hints.
I was told Dayton will either play at home or in a neutral location and it would likely happen at the end of October. The big hint I was given was it’s against a program that has a connection to the coaching staff. The schools that immediately popped in my head are Akron (Darren Hertz worked for Jon Groce), Bowling Green (Solomon once an assistant), DePaul (Andy Farrell worked there), Illinois (Darren Hertz worked there), Marquette (Former Grant staffer Brett Nelson is assistant), Miami (Devin Davis played there), Murray State (James Kane once an assistant there), Northern Kentucky (Head coach John Brannen was Grant’s Associate head coach at Bama), Notre Dame (Solomon long-time assistant for Mike Brey), and Pittsburgh (Ricardo Greer played there). I told you the hint was vague, but I was trying to create a list that we can narrow down. If I missed any school that fits the vagueness, please reply. I’ll try to get a couple more hints that we can narrow down. Perhaps some of our twitter stalkers (smile) can start going through recent follows/followers to see if there’s any hint there.
WHAT’S NEXT?
After Anthony Nelson, what’s next? I think Jared Rhoden at this point was the only one they were making a priority for 2018. I am guessing there are a few more guys that they need to evaluate further, but at this point, I think they would be content with a Cohill and Nelson signing class in November. I caution, that could change after further evaluation.
Jaxson Hayes seems to be somewhat of a long shot now that he has a Kentucky offer on the table. I know Dwayne Cohill really wants him, I know the coaching staff viewed him as a “no-brainer,” but I think they’d be extremely lucky to even get him up for another visit.
Nobody I spoke to knows exactly what happened with Rhoden and why he cancelled the visit. They did say that Saint Louis and Wichita State are likely the frontrunners at this point, but unless Nelson commits and talks him into visiting, I think that ship has sailed.
Dayton will not hold back if they have an opportunity to better their roster, that’s why I was very feeling confident that they would get at least three players in 2018—particularly backcourt players! They felt like they were frontcourt heavy and very thin at the guard spots when they took over in April.
KOSTAS UPDATE
I received an update this week on Kostas Antetokounmpo. I was told he basically had a bone bruise and is back to practicing with the team right now. Another source told me it’s a lot of non-contact drills right now, but they’re encouraged with how he has responded.
I asked how does he look and the overwhelming answer was that he looks out of shape and is going to have to work hard to catch up with the other guys that were on campus all summer.
When I heard bone bruise, I immediately thought of what Kendall Pollard endured last season. I asked if this was a similar injury. The answer was quickly No! The source cited that these are completely different “structures” involved and not even close to as severe as Pollard’s. That's encouraging.
There’s no way to say if he’ll be ready for Ball State or not at this point, but I would say the arrow is trending upward.
CLOSING
That does it for this edition of the War Room. Reminder, what’s posted on the Red and Blue Forum should stay on this forum. I believe in Anthony Grant and his ability to connect with mom’s and dad’s, so this is great that Nelson is visiting with his entire family! Let’s hope the first visit is his best visit and there’s good news to be had in a few weeks.
As always, welcome to the new subscribers and thank you to those that have been here a while for your continued support. You guys are ALL the reason why this is the best site for Dayton basketball, so thank you again!
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 10th edition of the War Room for the 2017 off-season!
THE SMOOTH SOUTHPAW
Anthony Nelson, guard from South Kent in Connecticut, will arrive on campus on Friday morning. This will be the first of three straight weekends of official visits for the New York City native.
I spoke with him this week as he readied himself for his college tours. He talked to me at length about how great of a relationship he has with fellow New Yorker Ricardo Greer and the rest of the coaching staff.
Accompanying him on his visit will be at least three people—mom, dad, and his brother, and there’s a possibility of a couple other people coming too. They’re all really excited to see the facilities and campus. Anthony noted that he likes Dayton’s style of play, a “fast-paced game.”
Lastly, I leave you with a couple of quotes he gave me…
“They told me I’d be able to come in, as a freshman, and play right away and have a good impact on the team. That’s what everyone looks for when they come in as a freshman.”
“The most important thing is finding the place where I feel most comfortable at. I’d like to get it over with (before the season starts), but I don’t want to rush it. I want to make the right decision. I’m going to take the rest of my visits and then go from there.”
So it doesn't sound like he is as close to a decision as Cohill was before the visit, but I think Dayton is in a good spot heading into the trip.
SHHHH SCRIMMAGE
When the schedules are released each year, most fans will go through the non-conference list to pick out their marquee games. Me, my eyes start at the top and look to see if there is one or two exhibition games.
First thing I noticed was a single exhibition on November 4th against Ohio Dominican. The significance of that? There’s going to be secret scrimmage against another Division I school.
I immediately started digging to find out the who, when, and where. I didn’t get as much information I had hoped because it’s still not 100% set in stone, but I was given some vague details and some hints.
I was told Dayton will either play at home or in a neutral location and it would likely happen at the end of October. The big hint I was given was it’s against a program that has a connection to the coaching staff. The schools that immediately popped in my head are Akron (Darren Hertz worked for Jon Groce), Bowling Green (Solomon once an assistant), DePaul (Andy Farrell worked there), Illinois (Darren Hertz worked there), Marquette (Former Grant staffer Brett Nelson is assistant), Miami (Devin Davis played there), Murray State (James Kane once an assistant there), Northern Kentucky (Head coach John Brannen was Grant’s Associate head coach at Bama), Notre Dame (Solomon long-time assistant for Mike Brey), and Pittsburgh (Ricardo Greer played there). I told you the hint was vague, but I was trying to create a list that we can narrow down. If I missed any school that fits the vagueness, please reply. I’ll try to get a couple more hints that we can narrow down. Perhaps some of our twitter stalkers (smile) can start going through recent follows/followers to see if there’s any hint there.
WHAT’S NEXT?
After Anthony Nelson, what’s next? I think Jared Rhoden at this point was the only one they were making a priority for 2018. I am guessing there are a few more guys that they need to evaluate further, but at this point, I think they would be content with a Cohill and Nelson signing class in November. I caution, that could change after further evaluation.
Jaxson Hayes seems to be somewhat of a long shot now that he has a Kentucky offer on the table. I know Dwayne Cohill really wants him, I know the coaching staff viewed him as a “no-brainer,” but I think they’d be extremely lucky to even get him up for another visit.
Nobody I spoke to knows exactly what happened with Rhoden and why he cancelled the visit. They did say that Saint Louis and Wichita State are likely the frontrunners at this point, but unless Nelson commits and talks him into visiting, I think that ship has sailed.
Dayton will not hold back if they have an opportunity to better their roster, that’s why I was very feeling confident that they would get at least three players in 2018—particularly backcourt players! They felt like they were frontcourt heavy and very thin at the guard spots when they took over in April.
KOSTAS UPDATE
I received an update this week on Kostas Antetokounmpo. I was told he basically had a bone bruise and is back to practicing with the team right now. Another source told me it’s a lot of non-contact drills right now, but they’re encouraged with how he has responded.
I asked how does he look and the overwhelming answer was that he looks out of shape and is going to have to work hard to catch up with the other guys that were on campus all summer.
When I heard bone bruise, I immediately thought of what Kendall Pollard endured last season. I asked if this was a similar injury. The answer was quickly No! The source cited that these are completely different “structures” involved and not even close to as severe as Pollard’s. That's encouraging.
There’s no way to say if he’ll be ready for Ball State or not at this point, but I would say the arrow is trending upward.
CLOSING
That does it for this edition of the War Room. Reminder, what’s posted on the Red and Blue Forum should stay on this forum. I believe in Anthony Grant and his ability to connect with mom’s and dad’s, so this is great that Nelson is visiting with his entire family! Let’s hope the first visit is his best visit and there’s good news to be had in a few weeks.
As always, welcome to the new subscribers and thank you to those that have been here a while for your continued support. You guys are ALL the reason why this is the best site for Dayton basketball, so thank you again!
