Bear Down Wildcats

Irish27 wrote:I have a feeling he will end up at UCLA.

Not sure why anyone would want to play there right now. It is a great program historically and in a great town (arguably), but the current coaching staff leaves a lot to be desired.

Longhorned wrote:Actually, I agree with Salim Shooter. The more I hear about this, the more comfortable I am with him not coming to Arizona. Not meant to be.

Yeah, the fact that SM has been recruiting other bigs suggests he may have known more about this pending decommitment than some might think.

3goggles wrote:I wouldn't call him the golden goose

He was more than good enough to be the starting PF on a title contending team next year as a true freshmen. Maybe not the golden goose, but not a single other guy we decided to be after for the sake of it is as good as him. Finnish kid is close, but still not as good.

midnightx wrote:

Longhorned wrote:Actually, I agree with Salim Shooter. The more I hear about this, the more comfortable I am with him not coming to Arizona. Not meant to be.

Yeah, the fact that SM has been recruiting other bigs suggests he may have known more about this pending decommitment than some might think.

He didn't from what I understand.

Next up, Tyler Dorsey decommitted and we got Allonzo Trier.

TrueCat14 wrote:Next up, Tyler Dorsey decommitted and we got Allonzo Trier.

Different scenario. We didn't want Dorsey.

Alford said he was done recruiting in the 2016 class

Hahahahahahahahahahhahaha! Sure he was. Compton Magic baby baby...

Hasnt there been rumblings of him reclassofying and signing with an Israeli team? No joke.

MrBug708 wrote:Alford said he was done recruiting in the 2016 class

Wonder who loses their spot? Maybe the JC kid?

2016 power forward T.J. Leaf revokes commitment to Arizona
8h - Men's College Basketball Arizona Wildcats

Jeff Borzello, ESPN Staff Writer

Top-10 prospect T.J. Leaf has decommitted from Arizona, he told ESPN.com on Thursday night.

Leaf, a 6-foot-9 power forward from Foothills Christian in El Cajon, California, originally pledged to the Wildcats in November. At the time, he chose Arizona over Florida, UCLA, Duke and Michigan.

"They recruited me harder than anyone else in the country," Leaf told ESPN.com in November. "They showed me they wanted me really bad."

Ranked No. 9 in the ESPN 100, Leaf presents a matchup problem for opponents because of his ability to score in the post or by facing up from the perimeter. He can make shots from the outside and is also capable of beating slower defenders off the dribble.
T.J. Leaf, the No. 9 player in the ESPN 100 for the 2016 class, reopened his recruitment on Thursday by revoking his pledge to Arizona. Roberto Serra/Iguana Press/Getty Images

Leaf went public with his decision to decommit and praised Arizona coach Sean Miller and his staff for their recruitment of him.

"This is definitely one of the hardest decisions of my life, but I have decided to decommit from Arizona and reopen my recruitment," the tweet read. "The school and staff of Arizona have been great to me, and I have nothing but respect for Coach Miller and the entire staff and wish them nothing but the best. But at this point in my life I know it is best to explore my options and pursue other basketball opportunities."

Leaf spent the past couple of weeks playing for the Israeli national team during the U18 European Championships, winning MVP honors after averaging 16.1 points and 8.4 rebounds in nine games.

Arizona finished the 2015 class with a top-five group nationally, led by five-star guard Allonzo Trier. Leaf, however, was the Wildcats' lone commit in the 2016 class.

http://espn.go.com/college-sports/recru ... a-wildcats

AAU
shoe company
coaches

When you get a player of that high caliber, you get a whole circle of people and affiliation. Not an Arizona circle in this case, which requires a player with an independence and strong will.

Look if TJ thinks that any of the other recruiting that CSM was doing directly affects him, then the kid is delusional. Deron Davis is like a top 50-75 player and the Finnish kid is still a project as well. He won't come in and have a PURTLE (i'm not trying to figure out the right spelling) effect here.

This is very unlikely a decision based on playing time or competition, and more likely something that has been a little while coming with getting cut from the USA team and other factors, like Longhorned said.

Why are people under the impression that Sean Miller chooses his USA team? He doesn't. There's a committee that makes the choice on the roster. Miller has input on who makes the final roster, but Leaf was cut two phases before the final roster was chosen. This isn't some bitter high school teenage crap going on. Leaf was pulled away by Adidas and a rival school. End of story.

Do we expect CSM to go Public like Patino over the show companys when Blakney decommitted from the Ville for LSU? CSM wants gets that want to be here. There hasnt been a lot of recruiting momentum since Leaf actually committed a year ago. I think we are seeing UCLA and other west coast take kids that are fringe Arizona kids and are freaking out. When it come Hands I am not sure where he lands. Both Arizona and UCLA will have a semi log jam at the PG spot. Arizona with PJC and Simon and UCLA with the 3 Ball Bros. Martin i think had a one year gold mine but he even had 3 kids decommit and ONLY land Rabb and Brown! Its crazy that the Rich Rod has created more of Buzz at Arizona then CSM. But I will not be shocked to see CSM land JJ, Fultz, Davis, Jones and the Finn. In 2017 we are looking good DJ Harvey and gaining ground with Billy Preston. Maybe the CSM sees Hands going to UCLA and puts the Full Court on Frank Jackson now.

Me either. On to the next one.

I'm excited to watch the kids who want to be Arizona Wildcats.

3goggles wrote:Do we expect CSM to go Public like Patino over the show companys when Blakney decommitted from the Ville for LSU? CSM wants gets that want to be here. There hasnt been a lot of recruiting momentum since Leaf actually committed a year ago. I think we are seeing UCLA and other west coast take kids that are fringe Arizona kids and are freaking out. When it come Hands I am not sure where he lands. Both Arizona and UCLA will have a semi log jam at the PG spot. Arizona with PJC and Simon and UCLA with the 3 Ball Bros. Martin i think had a one year gold mine but he even had 3 kids decommit and ONLY land Rabb and Brown! Its crazy that the Rich Rod has created more of Buzz at Arizona then CSM. But I will not be shocked to see CSM land JJ, Fultz, Davis, Jones and the Finn. In 2017 we are looking good DJ Harvey and gaining ground with Billy Preston. Maybe the CSM sees Hands going to UCLA and puts the Full Court on Frank Jackson now.

Didn't we cancel Jackson's visit out here to concentrate on other targets? Pretty sure there is next to 0% chance of landing Jackson.

3goggles wrote:Do we expect CSM to go Public like Patino over the show companys when Blakney decommitted from the Ville for LSU? CSM wants gets that want to be here. There hasnt been a lot of recruiting momentum since Leaf actually committed a year ago. I think we are seeing UCLA and other west coast take kids that are fringe Arizona kids and are freaking out. When it come Hands I am not sure where he lands. Both Arizona and UCLA will have a semi log jam at the PG spot. Arizona with PJC and Simon and UCLA with the 3 Ball Bros. Martin i think had a one year gold mine but he even had 3 kids decommit and ONLY land Rabb and Brown! Its crazy that the Rich Rod has created more of Buzz at Arizona then CSM. But I will not be shocked to see CSM land JJ, Fultz, Davis, Jones and the Finn. In 2017 we are looking good DJ Harvey and gaining ground with Billy Preston. Maybe the CSM sees Hands going to UCLA and puts the Full Court on Frank Jackson now.

Frank Jackson is going to Duke and every one including the Arizona staff knows that. Arizona was so confident in their ability to land Jackson that they cancelled his unofficial visit because it would be a waste of time. I think the staff was confident it could probably pull Hands in a last ditch effort this weekend with Leaf helping the cause, but so much for that happening now. I don't think the timing of this decommitment is a coincidence either based on Hands visiting today. In regards to point guards, Lonzo Ball is likely a one and done, his little brother is a wing, and his other little brother hasn't even started HS so he doesn't factor into anything with Hands, meanwhile we'd have a senior PJC. I don't see Billy Preston ending up at Arizona, but he's a talent.

What "fringe Arizona kids" has UCLA taken exactly? Arizona wanted both Ike Anigbogu and Jalen Hill very much it seemed. It's not like they're not highly rated guys either.

Back to Leaf though, the worst thing about this is the national perception. The question running through recruits' minds after a big decommitment like that is "what is wrong with Arizona?" It wouldn't be such a big deal if we had other guys wrapped up in this class, but now we have absolutely nobody.

I said "good things," and this is what you tell me?

There's no good way to spin this. We just lost a top 10 recruit in the '16 class. And if he ends up at UCLA, it just adds insult to injury.

Beachcat97 wrote:There's no good way to spin this. We just lost a top 10 recruit in the '16 class. And if he ends up at UCLA, it just adds insult to injury.

I don't think anyone is trying to "spin this in a good way." We lost a good player. We move on. /shrug

Doesn't Frank Jackson's sister go to Kansas? Or was that Brown?

MrBug708 wrote:Doesn't Frank Jackson's sister go to Kansas? Or was that Brown?

Troy Brown. Jackson is Duke bound.

Beachcat97 wrote:There's no good way to spin this. We just lost a top 10 recruit in the '16 class. And if he ends up at UCLA, it just adds insult to injury.

Haha, it appears that your worst nightmare just came true, Alford beating Miller for a top SoCal recruit. Try that crow blackened LOL, it will taste better.

But wait, did hecreally or did Miller send him a message at the U19. tryouts? Miller is in charge and is large. We will get the #1 player in the country and build around him. Its all good, AZ will be just fine

SCCats wrote:

Beachcat97 wrote:There's no good way to spin this. We just lost a top 10 recruit in the '16 class. And if he ends up at UCLA, it just adds insult to injury.

I don't think anyone is trying to "spin this in a good way." We lost a good player. We move on. /shrug

Yeah, I don't see anyone spinning anything. The BB recruiting writers I read (Scheer/Gershon) have said that it is a pretty huge loss for the program.

What's interesting to me is the idea that Alford never stopped recruiting TJ and what that means as far as the futility of getting SoCal Adidas kids and that Alford apparently is cool being a pariah in the coaching world.

Could be in for some bumpy times. The guys this year don't seem to measure up to the last few classes and 2016 has nothing yet. Bad press now. Arizona needs to make a final four or needs a Miller recruit to tear it up in the NBA soon to get things really going again.

Funny to get on this board after anything negative happens with UA basketball. The sky is falling

PHXCATS wrote:Could be in for some bumpy times. The guys this year don't seem to measure up to the last few classes and 2016 has nothing yet. Bad press now. Arizona needs to make a final four or needs a Miller recruit to tear it up in the NBA soon to get things really going again.

I think this years class will more solid then the last 2. 3 5*kids and a 4*. Sure there is not a top kid but its nothing the turn up your nose to. Again I think we land the 1 recruit this year in JJ and 10-15 range Recruit in Fultz and Solid 4* star big Davis and the Finn Kid. maybe except for Duke and Kentucky that again would be a top class.

Airizona wrote:Funny to get on this board after anything negative happens with UA basketball. The sky is falling

I wouldnt say that but things are not perfect either. Going to be a tough year compared to the past two I believe and right now 2016-2017 does not promise to be better

PHXCATS wrote:

Airizona wrote:Funny to get on this board after anything negative happens with UA basketball. The sky is falling

I wouldnt say that but things are not perfect either. Going to be a tough year compared to the past two I believe and right now 2016-2017 does not promise to be better

This is a down year. And we're going to be a pre-season top 20.

Leaf wasn't going to be a world beater as a freshman. The top prospects of 2016 won't commit for some time. The top commits come in last. There's a ways to go, which is significant when we realize that 2016-17 is a 3-spot or 4-spot from being a NC contender. What does that mean for top recruits or grad transfers looking for instant PT/starter role on a real contender?

I'm still not understanding what I'm supposed to feel down about here.

PHXCATS wrote:

Airizona wrote:Funny to get on this board after anything negative happens with UA basketball. The sky is falling

I wouldnt say that but things are not perfect either. Going to be a tough year compared to the past two I believe and right now 2016-2017 does not promise to be better

Things won't ever be perfect. We have a ton of talent on the roster for this upcoming season and there is still a ton of talent left in 2016. Nothing in Miller's past should indicate that we need to hire some AAU guy since we regularly get top 5 recruiting classes. It is a bummer that we lost Leaf and didn't get Rabb, but I have no doubt that Miller will bring in a great class in 2016.

If I read one more article stating that Sean Miller cut Leaf from the U19 team I am going to lose my shit.

I'm looking at you Gottlieb.

F*ck TJ Leaf, you make a commitment, nothing changes with our recruiting or team and then you de-commit. What a B*tch

Do you miss me yet?

UAEebs86 wrote:If I read one more article stating that Sean Miller cut Leaf from the U19 team I am going to lose my shit.

I'm looking at you Gottlieb.

You highlight a good point UAE.

2 reasons why 5-star recruit T.J. Leaf may have decommited from Arizona

By Ricky O'Donnell
@SBN_Ricky on Aug 7, 2015, 1:08

http://www.sbnation.com/college-basketb ... ke-indiana

Airizona wrote:

PHXCATS wrote:

Airizona wrote:Funny to get on this board after anything negative happens with UA basketball. The sky is falling

I wouldnt say that but things are not perfect either. Going to be a tough year compared to the past two I believe and right now 2016-2017 does not promise to be better

Things won't ever be perfect. We have a ton of talent on the roster for this upcoming season and there is still a ton of talent left in 2016. Nothing in Miller's past should indicate that we need to hire some AAU guy since we regularly get top 5 recruiting classes. It is a bummer that we lost Leaf and didn't get Rabb, but I have no doubt that Miller will bring in a great class in 2016.

Arizona's competition for high end west coast recruits was completely dormant for much of Miller's tenure here (a lot like the beginning of Olson's tenure). Every thing is cyclical, including recruiting dominance in your region. The whole new kid on the block routine is a powerful one in recruiting for whatever reason. Miller isn't that any more. Honestly outside of the elite of the elite coaches the longer a coach stays at one job the worse his recruiting gets typically. Things that help prevent that? Final Fours for one.

In the end Miller can rally from it this recruiting season or he can adjust his strategy for the future. Be interesting how this all turns out. With a down year upcoming the honeymoon phase is definitely fading away.

ChooChooCat wrote:

Airizona wrote:

PHXCATS wrote:

Airizona wrote:Funny to get on this board after anything negative happens with UA basketball. The sky is falling

I wouldnt say that but things are not perfect either. Going to be a tough year compared to the past two I believe and right now 2016-2017 does not promise to be better

Things won't ever be perfect. We have a ton of talent on the roster for this upcoming season and there is still a ton of talent left in 2016. Nothing in Miller's past should indicate that we need to hire some AAU guy since we regularly get top 5 recruiting classes. It is a bummer that we lost Leaf and didn't get Rabb, but I have no doubt that Miller will bring in a great class in 2016.

Arizona's competition for high end west coast recruits was completely dormant for much of Miller's tenure here (a lot like the beginning of Olson's tenure). Every thing is cyclical, including recruiting dominance in your region. The whole new kid on the block routine is a powerful one in recruiting for whatever reason. Miller isn't that any more. Honestly outside of the elite of the elite coaches the longer a coach stays at one job the worse his recruiting gets typically. Things that help prevent that? Final Fours for one.

In the end Miller can rally from it this recruiting season or he can adjust his strategy for the future. Be interesting how this all turns out. With a down year upcoming the honeymoon phase is definitely fading away.

Howland was a great recruiter and we still got great classes when he was around. Outside of Arizona, UCLA poses the only serious threat recruiting wise and I don't think Alford is up to the task of taking them to an elite level again. Martin may have a great class this year, but I have a feeling that only happened because of Rabb. If he can't put it together during the season I don't see his recruiting staying at that level. We beat Cal by 20+ points every time we played them last year.

The honeymoon phase is over, he has been here for what 6 years going on 7? And he has done a great job. Getting to the Elite 8 3 times during his time here is no easy task and having to play Wiscy 2 times out of those 3 is bullshit and one of those time they had to shoot 90% from 3 to beat us. The final 4 will come, anyone saying Miller needs to get it together needs a reality check

UAEebs86 wrote:If I read one more article stating that Sean Miller cut Leaf from the U19 team I am going to lose my shit.

I'm looking at you Gottlieb.

I can't believe you're suggesting that the upstanding Mr. Gottlieb was not thorough and objective in his reporting. Shocked, I say.

What has the local sports talk radio said about it

Never said Miller needs to get it together, but he's definitely had some miscues and IMO his assistant hustings are one of them. Miller sure ain't perfect, but then again no coach is.

ChooChooCat wrote:Never said Miller needs to get it together, but he's definitely had some miscues and IMO his assistant hustings are one of them. Miller sure ain't perfect, but then again no coach is.

4 years for Tarczewski and a future pro career in Venezuela, plus Ashley going from top 10 to undrafted may be being communicated to TJ Leaf by his insiders.

enfuego wrote:

ChooChooCat wrote:Never said Miller needs to get it together, but he's definitely had some miscues and IMO his assistant hustings are one of them. Miller sure ain't perfect, but then again no coach is.

4 years for Tarczewski and a future pro career in Venezuela, plus Ashley going from top 10 to undrafted may be being communicated to TJ Leaf by his insiders.

Perry Ellis will make a great roommate for Zeus in Venezuela. They could probably bunk with Sasha Kaun, Cliff Alexander, and Jeff Withey too.

Enfuego touches himself when he thinks about Zeus. And he thinks about him ALL the time.

Airizona wrote:The final 4 will come, anyone saying Miller needs to get it together needs a reality check

I always find it amusing when someone predicts the future while simultaneously tells others they need a reality check. What makes one person's crystal ball so much better than the next person's?

ChooChooCat wrote:Never said Miller needs to get it together, but he's definitely had some miscues and IMO his assistant hustings are one of them. Miller sure ain't perfect, but then again no coach is.

The staff turnover has been disconcerting, and the lack of success during the spring recruiting period was disappointing. The decommittment of a top prospect, however, is really troubling, and there is no way to put a positive spin on it.

ChooChooCat wrote:Why are people under the impression that Sean Miller chooses his USA team? He doesn't. There's a committee that makes the choice on the roster. Miller has input on who makes the final roster, but Leaf was cut two phases before the final roster was chosen. This isn't some bitter high school teenage crap going on. Leaf was pulled away by Adidas and a rival school. End of story.

We don't know that yet. Leaf might turn pro overseas, or maybe he really was bitter that he didn't make the U-19 team. No matter what the reason, it is definitely a big loss for the program.

ChooChooCat wrote:

enfuego wrote:

ChooChooCat wrote:Never said Miller needs to get it together, but he's definitely had some miscues and IMO his assistant hustings are one of them. Miller sure ain't perfect, but then again no coach is.

4 years for Tarczewski and a future pro career in Venezuela, plus Ashley going from top 10 to undrafted may be being communicated to TJ Leaf by his insiders.

Perry Ellis will make a great roommate for Zeus in Venezuela. They could probably bunk with Sasha Kaun, Cliff Alexander, and Jeff Withey too.

Seriously, when has Kansas had a good NBA player recently??.. Wiggins will be good. But not yet. Oh and I forgot, who was the NBA Finals MVP this year and where did he go to school?? The coach too ya say??!!

The guessing game behind Leaf's decommit

Bruce Pascoe Arizona Daily Star


The day after a somewhat rare and puzzling decommitment under Sean Miller, the questions are naturally floating out there.

Did T.J. Leaf really decommit from the Arizona Wildcats because he was upset he didn't make the (Miller coached) USA U19 team? Could he really bail on college and go pro in Israel (where he was born and where his dad played professionally)? Do his ties to the (Adidas sponsored) Compton Magic travel club give (Adidas sponsored) UCLA a shot?

Tough to know for sure. But affirmative answers to the first two questions appear unlikely.

Also, it's hard to believe the USA Basketball experience influenced Leaf's decision much, if at all. I was fortunate to attend the three days before the first cuts were made in Colorado Springs and Leaf did not appear to be one of the top 12 players in camp -- however, that could also be because Leaf arrived just after traveling from a tiring experience at Eurocamp in Italy.

While it is true that Tyler Dorsey also decommitted from UA after being cut by USA Basketball's predecessor U18 team last summer -- when Miller was an assistant coach -- that decision appeared to be somewhat mutual and allowed UA to add Allonzo Trier.

Besides, USA Basketball roster decisions are made by a committee headed by Syracuse's Jim Boeheim) along with the coaches and Miller had no more of a say than anybody else. There is a very high level of respect between the coaches on the court and those on the committee and it wouldn't surprise me if coaches even sometimes go out of their way not to show favoritism toward their own guys within committee meetings.


Scout's Josh Gershon said it "isn't a desperate situation by any means" for Arizona but that decommitments in August hurt because a coaching staff no longer has the July open evaluation period to search for a replacement.


http://tucson.com/sports/blogs/pascoe/a ... faab1.html

KaibabKat wrote:Do you miss me yet?

Not at all. He'd still have to leave for lack of available playing time this coming year, the year after that, and the year after that.