ChiefGritty
- Chicago, IL
I post this gif with the utmost solemnity.
Illinois Hoops Recruiting Thread
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I really don't follow the bb commitment process but I was surprised that ZZ jumped on board that quickly.
All the best to him. Not in the B1G
You were?
When you look at our recruiting and then see a guy that was not even in the top 150, it made a ton of sense from ZZ's perspective.
I have been on record as saying ZZ looks more like a top 75 to me not a guy currently 147 on Rivals and 155 on 247. That said, there were two caveats, I have never seen him take an outside shot on a highlight clip, and most of his clips, while impressive, are from training and not in actual games. So given that, I'm going to assume the ranking services have good reason to rank him substantially lower than 75.
Reading through the thread, it's real simple as to why he's decommitting. He's not good enough and the staff wants his scholarship to use on someone else. It happens. ZZ has plenty of time to improve his stock and will still end up at a good school. It doesn't do him any good either to go to a school and sit on the bench just because his brother plays(ed) there.
skyIdub
Winged Warrior
It's pretty clear that Daddy Brad and Co. aren't pulling punches with these kids. It's also pretty clear that he isn't standing pat. They've also proven that the Portal is going to be very much in play every year if it makes the team better. If you aren't into competing for your PT....move along.
Bert and Co. same philosophy it looks like. The best players gonna play. Zero punches pulled. Straight shooters.
Bert and Co. same philosophy it looks like. The best players gonna play. Zero punches pulled. Straight shooters.
Central IL Illini
- Springfield, IL
Is this due to him being one and done regardless, or is there an expectation he will get drafted? I am not that clued into the draft scene, but I haven't seen his name in any of the mock drafts I have come across
OrangeandBlueNews - 2024 point guard ZZ Clark decommits from Illinois
Class of 2024 guard ZZ Clark has decommitted from Illinois.
illinois.rivals.com
I prefer my shooters to have a little arc on their shots but agree to disagree.../s I'll see myself out
Joel Goodson
- respect my decision™
He'll be gone after year 2, assuming things go according to plan.
Im not sure how anyone could be worried about this development. How do you not trust this staff?
Is anyone actually worried? Feels like for the first time I can remember on a decommit this board is pretty much in agreement.
I was.
Illini in Indiana
- Indiana
I can't help but think that big bother Skyy pulled his little brother aside and told him that getting playing time would be tough with Harris & Epps (and maybe Lawhorn) . It may not be the best fit for him & the Illini
People seem to think it's very important to establish the "We didn't want him anyway." line of reasoning with ZZ.
This comes after tons of ink in the last few months suggesting that he is rising in the rankings. Obviously, we'll see. Offers will precede rankings probably and give us a pretty good idea.
I think his primary reason for coming here was to suit up with his brother. Good chance that he's gotten the vibes that either his brother will go a year earlier or that ZZ won't be able to reclassify or that it's not advisable. Once that happened, why not open your recruitment? The initial reason for the commitment is no longer there. Time to take a fresh look.
Best of luck ZZ.
This comes after tons of ink in the last few months suggesting that he is rising in the rankings. Obviously, we'll see. Offers will precede rankings probably and give us a pretty good idea.
I think his primary reason for coming here was to suit up with his brother. Good chance that he's gotten the vibes that either his brother will go a year earlier or that ZZ won't be able to reclassify or that it's not advisable. Once that happened, why not open your recruitment? The initial reason for the commitment is no longer there. Time to take a fresh look.
Best of luck ZZ.
Joel Goodson
- respect my decision™
This. Occam's Razor, right? The impetus is gone, so why not start anew?
I don't think that is it at all.
People are trying to determine did we nudge him towards the door because we have better prospects on the line and need the ride, or did he just say I have better offers elsewhere. There is a big difference between the two. A big difference between the perceptions of your team on the market.
The thing is, it's not always that easy. The fact that this happened fairly shortly after the DGL commitment would make me think he was questioning his chances of seeing the court early and didn't like them, so he decided to go elsewhere and the staff said that's cool, we can use your scholarship anyway.
Here's what you said. "He's not good enough and the staff wants his scholarship to use on someone else. " which to mean is equivalent to "We didn't want him." It certainly isn't equivalent to "I committed awfully early but now I'd like to look around.."
And neither makes a hill of beans difference about "perception on the market." "ZZ Clark didn't want to play for those guys", if true, won't move a recruiting needle anywhere in America.
We seem to be operating under the assumption ZZ is decommitting and will end up at the college level…..maybe he is decommitting because with his pathway for development he doesn’t plan to go to college at all.
You could see the commit, see the change in the crystal ball, measure it's percentage, see the colors change but in the end he returns back to the rivals top 150 list and eventually to his home.... None of this is badIs anyone actually worried? Feels like for the first time I can remember on a decommit this board is pretty much in agreement.
Those are not the same thing. We didn't want him, is quite frankly a stupid comment, because clearly if a guy committed to us, we did want him at the time. He's not good enough means just that. Things change, rosters change, potential future recruits change.
I was thinking there was some pressure to take ZZ because of Skyy. We said Skyy is worth it, deal. However, if you haven't noticed, our recruiting is going very well. We've got great recruits on campus all the time, guys better than ZZ. Now, if there was any pressure because of Skyy, you're thinking, we could really use that scholarship on Trey McKenney or Melvin Bell, etc. Plus when you see people say TA keeps it real, it doesn't take a genius to figure out that basically means ZZ was told playing time is likely to be scarce.
The perception is the fans perception. The reason fans would want to say we didn't want him anyway is because if we initiated the decommitment, it would lead you to believe things are going so great we're telling quality players we need your scholarship for someone better. On the other hand, if the player just wants to go somewhere else, it leads you to believe things aren't going as great because players that wanted to come in the past no longer see you as their best place.
But guys decommitting absolutely can affect your perception to other recruits. Highly unlikely in this specific scenario, but if Ayo had decommitted, I assure you our resurgence would have been much more difficult, beyond just losing a great player. It hurts your brand with other players, because they assume something must be wrong or he wouldn't have decommitted, especially during a rebuild.
Again, this is not anything terribly controversial.
Illini in OC
In. The. Alley.
I think we should just thank ZZ and wish him the best .... and keep our mouths shut beyond that.
Speculating, either positive or negative, with respect to either ZZ or the Illini is still only speculation (my tautology for the day
) that may unnecessarily offend the Clark family or demonstrate what a ham-handed fan base we are to other recruits.I trust BU and staff 100% to make the best of the situation no matter what the underlying circumstances may be.
LOL.
Okay, we'll use your language. Why are people so invested in demonstrating that this decommit is a result of him being "not good enough."?
No recruit is on this message board looking for clues about why other recruits are coming or decommitting etc. They have far better sources for such information than anonymous posters on message boards.
To the extent they come to boards, the only thing they get is confirmation, good or bad, about the passion of the fan base and how they treat players. People who feel the need to dis the brother of our starting point guard to make themselves feel better about a decommitment are saying a lot about their own insecurities.
Best of luck ZZ.
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