I had meant to send this to Gabe, but couldn't get it to him in time so he said to just post it on here. I wanted to provide some context to what a commitment from CJ Roberts would do for the rest of Missouri's 2017 recruiting.
We'll start with Victor Bailey Jr. When Missouri went down to Texas for an in-home with Roberts a week or so ago, once again Bailey's mother was unable to make the visit because of her commitments as Texas' track coach. So Missouri axed the in-home with him. Bailey heads to Tulsa this weekend, and I'm told they are in great shape with him. They might even be the favorite. I'm told a guy named Kim English is Tulsa's lead recruiter for Bailey. Maybe you've heard of him.
I give credit where it's due. Should Kim land Bailey, that would be a hell of statement for him to land a top-100 kid in his first few months as an assistant coach. There's also a part of me that finds it funny that a former Missouri player, could lure the son of another former Missouri player to a school not named Mizzou. The Tigers are still in the mix for Bailey but with the mother's schedule and CJ Roberts being able to play both guard positions, don't be surprised if Missouri moves on him from should Roberts commit.
Nojel Eastern is in the same boat as Bailey, in the sense that the Tigers move on from him should Roberts commit. Eastern was going to be a tough one to land anyway. The staff felt good about being able to get him on campus but sources in Chicago told me they found that unlikely.
The vibe I've gotten is should Roberts commit, the staff would like to use its second scholarship on a big man. Anthony Longpre out of Baltimore is a new name to watch. Can play either the four or the five. It also appears the staff is looking at some options overseas. We'll keep you posted on all that.
A few final notes. As we said in the original Chamber, Torrence Watson and Carte'Are Gordon both visit this weekend. Missouri has two scholarships in 2018 and those two are who they'd like to use them on. I think regardless of who you think will/should be coaching the team in 2018, those two are still the dream regardless. Missouri is definitely the leader for Watson, swaying Gordon will be hard but it is possible. There are legs to what Gabe heard about Gordon being receptive to teaming up with Watson.
Finally, my story today on Duane Washington Jr. mentioned how he's a longtime family friend of Steve Shields. I found it weird that the kid has a lot of high-major interest but his best offers are only from schools like Northern Illinois and Toledo. So in anticipation of people asking 'Why are we on this kid?' I reached out to a few coaches I know at schools recruiting him.
Washington spent the summer playing for a new AAU team instead of a established one in Michigan like The Family (a guy named Wes Clark played for The Family in high school). That didn't do him any favors recruiting wise but every coach said that the kid is absolutely the real deal and will be play high-major basketball when it's all said and done. Obviously Missouri would like to use both scholarships on the St. Louis boys but Washington isn't a bad backup plan at all. Should the scholarship situation change, he'd probably be worth going for.
We'll start with Victor Bailey Jr. When Missouri went down to Texas for an in-home with Roberts a week or so ago, once again Bailey's mother was unable to make the visit because of her commitments as Texas' track coach. So Missouri axed the in-home with him. Bailey heads to Tulsa this weekend, and I'm told they are in great shape with him. They might even be the favorite. I'm told a guy named Kim English is Tulsa's lead recruiter for Bailey. Maybe you've heard of him.
I give credit where it's due. Should Kim land Bailey, that would be a hell of statement for him to land a top-100 kid in his first few months as an assistant coach. There's also a part of me that finds it funny that a former Missouri player, could lure the son of another former Missouri player to a school not named Mizzou. The Tigers are still in the mix for Bailey but with the mother's schedule and CJ Roberts being able to play both guard positions, don't be surprised if Missouri moves on him from should Roberts commit.
Nojel Eastern is in the same boat as Bailey, in the sense that the Tigers move on from him should Roberts commit. Eastern was going to be a tough one to land anyway. The staff felt good about being able to get him on campus but sources in Chicago told me they found that unlikely.
The vibe I've gotten is should Roberts commit, the staff would like to use its second scholarship on a big man. Anthony Longpre out of Baltimore is a new name to watch. Can play either the four or the five. It also appears the staff is looking at some options overseas. We'll keep you posted on all that.
A few final notes. As we said in the original Chamber, Torrence Watson and Carte'Are Gordon both visit this weekend. Missouri has two scholarships in 2018 and those two are who they'd like to use them on. I think regardless of who you think will/should be coaching the team in 2018, those two are still the dream regardless. Missouri is definitely the leader for Watson, swaying Gordon will be hard but it is possible. There are legs to what Gabe heard about Gordon being receptive to teaming up with Watson.
Finally, my story today on Duane Washington Jr. mentioned how he's a longtime family friend of Steve Shields. I found it weird that the kid has a lot of high-major interest but his best offers are only from schools like Northern Illinois and Toledo. So in anticipation of people asking 'Why are we on this kid?' I reached out to a few coaches I know at schools recruiting him.
Washington spent the summer playing for a new AAU team instead of a established one in Michigan like The Family (a guy named Wes Clark played for The Family in high school). That didn't do him any favors recruiting wise but every coach said that the kid is absolutely the real deal and will be play high-major basketball when it's all said and done. Obviously Missouri would like to use both scholarships on the St. Louis boys but Washington isn't a bad backup plan at all. Should the scholarship situation change, he'd probably be worth going for.
