With Carte'Are Gordon headed to SLU, I wanted to look at just what Mizzou's track record is with four- and five-star kids in the state (I know it isn't very good). So we go back as far as the Rivals database will take me (2002). To make this list, the kid had to be ranked four or five stars, play the majority of his high school career in Missouri (Jakeenan Gant shows up when you search these parameters, but isn't an in-state kid), and have an offer from the Tigers out of high school.
So here's what I found:
2004
Kalen Grimes--Missouri
Steven Hill--Arkansas
2005
Tyler Hansbrough--North Carolina
2007
George Goode--Louisville
2008
Scott Suggs--Washington
John Brandenburg--Virginia
2011
Brad Beal--Florida
Otto Porter--Georgetown
Ben McLemore--Kansas
2014
Jordan Barnett--Texas
2015
Jimmy Whitt--Arkansas
2016
Tyler Cook--Iowa
Xavier Sneed--Kansas State
Jayson Tatum--Duke
So in 13 years, the state of Missouri has produced 14 four- or five-star basketball players. Missouri has landed one of them. That was Kalen Grimes in 2004. In the last 12 years, Missouri is 0/12 on in-state four/five-star talent. Every one of the players on this list was ranked in the nation's top 100 by Rivals.com, except for George Goode who was No. 101.
Now, to be fair, there were players like Marcus Denmon, Mike Dixon and Jimmy McKinney, who were better than a number of players on this list who Missouri did sign as three-star prospects. But this is only about the players as recruits, so those guys didn't make the cut here.
Since taking over, Kim Anderson is 0/4 on such prospects (we aren't including Gordon or any other 2018 or 2019 kid who hasn't signed yet). Sneed may not have had a committable offer by the time he committed to Kansas State, but he had one at one time. Whitt was pretty much over before Anderson got the job, but no matter, that one's on his watch. Tatum and Cook have been discussed plenty here.
Frank Haith technically went 0/4. He missed on Jordan Barnett, who committed to Texas in August of 2013. Theoretically Porter, McLemore and Beal were there when he was the coach, but those decisions were really more made during the Mike Anderson era. Really, then, Haith was 0/1. His years coincided with Missouri not producing much high-level talent.
Mike Anderson was 0/3 (again, not including Porter, McLemore and Beal--if you put that class on him, as you really should, he was 0/6). The only one I'm sold the Tigers really wanted there was Scott Suggs. I was surprised Brandenburg and Goode were four-stars honestly. But again, it's about rankings as recruits, so they're included on the list here.
Quin Snyder went 1/3. He got Grimes, but then missed on Hill (I don't really remember Missouri being all that interested in him, but our database lists him with an offer) and obviously Hansbrough, which hurts more than any other player on this list.
Doing this showed me a few things:
*The state of Missouri has an average of about one top 100 player per year.
*Missouri's track record with said players is awful.
*A lot of the highly ranked talent from the state has gone on to do very little in college.
*This is a problem not with a particular coach (and, no, this isn't excusing Kim Anderson for missing on in-state guys, simply pointing out it's existed for a long time before him), but with the program. Missouri just doesn't keep highly-sought players in state. Ever (with apologies to Kalen Grimes).
Anyway, I'm probably not really breaking any new ground here. I just wanted to go back and actually put all the info in one place. It's fairly depressing to do so.
So here's what I found:
2004
Kalen Grimes--Missouri
Steven Hill--Arkansas
2005
Tyler Hansbrough--North Carolina
2007
George Goode--Louisville
2008
Scott Suggs--Washington
John Brandenburg--Virginia
2011
Brad Beal--Florida
Otto Porter--Georgetown
Ben McLemore--Kansas
2014
Jordan Barnett--Texas
2015
Jimmy Whitt--Arkansas
2016
Tyler Cook--Iowa
Xavier Sneed--Kansas State
Jayson Tatum--Duke
So in 13 years, the state of Missouri has produced 14 four- or five-star basketball players. Missouri has landed one of them. That was Kalen Grimes in 2004. In the last 12 years, Missouri is 0/12 on in-state four/five-star talent. Every one of the players on this list was ranked in the nation's top 100 by Rivals.com, except for George Goode who was No. 101.
Now, to be fair, there were players like Marcus Denmon, Mike Dixon and Jimmy McKinney, who were better than a number of players on this list who Missouri did sign as three-star prospects. But this is only about the players as recruits, so those guys didn't make the cut here.
Since taking over, Kim Anderson is 0/4 on such prospects (we aren't including Gordon or any other 2018 or 2019 kid who hasn't signed yet). Sneed may not have had a committable offer by the time he committed to Kansas State, but he had one at one time. Whitt was pretty much over before Anderson got the job, but no matter, that one's on his watch. Tatum and Cook have been discussed plenty here.
Frank Haith technically went 0/4. He missed on Jordan Barnett, who committed to Texas in August of 2013. Theoretically Porter, McLemore and Beal were there when he was the coach, but those decisions were really more made during the Mike Anderson era. Really, then, Haith was 0/1. His years coincided with Missouri not producing much high-level talent.
Mike Anderson was 0/3 (again, not including Porter, McLemore and Beal--if you put that class on him, as you really should, he was 0/6). The only one I'm sold the Tigers really wanted there was Scott Suggs. I was surprised Brandenburg and Goode were four-stars honestly. But again, it's about rankings as recruits, so they're included on the list here.
Quin Snyder went 1/3. He got Grimes, but then missed on Hill (I don't really remember Missouri being all that interested in him, but our database lists him with an offer) and obviously Hansbrough, which hurts more than any other player on this list.
Doing this showed me a few things:
*The state of Missouri has an average of about one top 100 player per year.
*Missouri's track record with said players is awful.
*A lot of the highly ranked talent from the state has gone on to do very little in college.
*This is a problem not with a particular coach (and, no, this isn't excusing Kim Anderson for missing on in-state guys, simply pointing out it's existed for a long time before him), but with the program. Missouri just doesn't keep highly-sought players in state. Ever (with apologies to Kalen Grimes).
Anyway, I'm probably not really breaking any new ground here. I just wanted to go back and actually put all the info in one place. It's fairly depressing to do so.
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