Illinois Hoops Recruiting Thread

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#78      

sacraig

The desert
IMO, the type of deals you are thinking about (i.e. national sponsors) aren’t going to happen until the season is in full swing and Kofi and Belo are on Sportscenter a ton. Because of how new this is, NIL may not pay any recruiting dividends for us until we have past examples to show. Although, if we have donors that are willing to work with NIL, that could all change.
The official spokes-team of Flex-N-Gate. Has a nice ring to it.
 
#79      
IMO, the type of deals you are thinking about (i.e. national sponsors) aren’t going to happen until the season is in full swing and Kofi and Belo are on Sportscenter a ton. Because of how new this is, NIL may not pay any recruiting dividends for us until we have past examples to show. Although, if we have donors that are willing to work with NIL, that could all change.
Well, those aren't the deals I'm thinking about. I'm thinking of local businesses who support Illini athletics who can sponsor athletes right now. AC got his UI credit union deal (amount unknown). Others haven't really been forthcoming.

As to national deals, I don't see those happening too often. Very few players have that sort of cachet.

My point is that many people have been talking this up for our school because of our large alumni base and supposed rabid fan base. To date, the players haven't really seen any benefit from that. I don't really know what is happening across the country, so we may be no different than other schools. But two months into this process recruits can start keeping score and get an idea of which schools are good spots to make money.
 
#80      
The official spokes-team of Flex-N-Gate. Has a nice ring to it.
I'd love to live in a world where fans of other teams are like this when we pull in a top recruit:

khan-kirk (1).gif
 
#82      
Does dad not understand the guys Hamilton “put” into the league were already *going* to the league? Obviously rhetorical, and obviously we’ve seen this movie play out before. On to the next.
The thing is recruiting is the most important aspect of "coaching." Of course, being a good Xs and Os coach is certainly important to consistently win. But if you got lots of top-rated kids, the averages show that a lot of them will make it to the NBA, regardless of how well you teach/coach. Then people think you "develop" kids that go pro. This helps you get more top-rated kids, and that just reinforces the cycle.

Does anyone honestly think Calipari has anything to do with his one-and-done or two-and-done kids making it the the NBA?

Hamilton, though not at Calipari's level, is a very good salesmen.
 
#83      

Joel Goodson

respect my decision™
Weren't some considering Thomas to be the best shooter in the state, including Schutt?? How does his athleticism compare?
Mullins (head of the Illinois Wolves) said he's right up there with Schutt. That works for me, lol. WRT his athleticism and other aspects of his game beyond shooting, sounds like he's pretty good at everything. For example, he rebounded well. The kid is more than a shooter.
 
#85      
Does anyone honestly think Calipari has anything to do with his one-and-done or two-and-done kids making it the the NBA?
Yes? As you're suggesting, I doubt there's a lot of development going on, but NBA teams might look at Calipari and his recruiting staff for their ability to scout NBA talent. I think that's why kids go to Kentucky - if Calipari says you're NBA talent, you probably are going to get drafted.
 
#87      
Yes? As you're suggesting, I doubt there's a lot of development going on, but NBA teams might look at Calipari and his recruiting staff for their ability to scout NBA talent. I think that's why kids go to Kentucky - if Calipari says you're NBA talent, you probably are going to get drafted.
I also think there's a premise with Cal that he's not going to bench guys who aren't with the program, so to speak. He'll showcase you regardless of how you're fitting into whatever "team" concept he has.

I suspect that's a bit of the problem he has in actually winning games in the last few years. Highly talented prima donnas who can't be bothered playing within a system.
 
#88      
Yes? As you're suggesting, I doubt there's a lot of development going on, but NBA teams might look at Calipari and his recruiting staff for their ability to scout NBA talent. I think that's why kids go to Kentucky - if Calipari says you're NBA talent, you probably are going to get drafted.
But he's not uncovering some under-ranked kids. He gets as many of the very highly-ranked kids that he can.
 
#91      

sacraig

The desert
I'd love to live in a world where fans of other teams are like this when we pull in a top recruit:

View attachment 12192
Like when we all complain about Phil Knight.

The problem is that Flex-N-Gate is not a consumer-facing business, so has no reason to advertise. They care about the executives at automotive companies and that's about it, so there is no reason to have Kofi wear their logo on a hat during warmups.
 
#92      
Like when we all complain about Phil Knight.

The problem is that Flex-N-Gate is not a consumer-facing business, so has no reason to advertise. They care about the executives at automotive companies and that's about it, so there is no reason to have Kofi wear their logo on a hat during warmups.
True, but perhaps they can incorporate meet-and-greets with college basketball stars, for execs and their families, into their sales pitches?

Bobs Burgers Straws GIF
 
#93      
The thing is recruiting is the most important aspect of "coaching." Of course, being a good Xs and Os coach is certainly important to consistently win. But if you got lots of top-rated kids, the averages show that a lot of them will make it to the NBA, regardless of how well you teach/coach. Then people think you "develop" kids that go pro. This helps you get more top-rated kids, and that just reinforces the cycle.
The cycle worked wonders for Lorenzo Romar.
 
#94      
Like when we all complain about Phil Knight.

The problem is that Flex-N-Gate is not a consumer-facing business, so has no reason to advertise. They care about the executives at automotive companies and that's about it, so there is no reason to have Kofi wear their logo on a hat during warmups.
You're right of course. They have no truly legitimate reason to advertise. But I suspect that a successful NIL program will feature deals that make no economic sense for the business and only have value to the owner as a fan

When you think about it there really aren't that many athletes with deals out there in the pros. I doubt there's much evidence that it moves sales all that much. Some areas of course.
 
#95      
You're right of course. They have no truly legitimate reason to advertise.
Companies often advertise for non-sales reasons. Being more visible to stock market investors, boost employee pride, or to obtain a better skybox for the executives in some stadium while writing the cost off as a business expense. I'd imagine having an Illini athlete drop by as a morale boosting event for certain Illinois located companies might be worth something. Particularly if they have a decent back story that resonates in and out of sports, like Giorgi climbing out of Eastern European poverty. Unfortunately NIL is a little late for him.
 
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#96      
Info wasn't unreliable. Illinois still could get him. They led going into his visit here. Dad was always a lean towards FSU though and the staff knew that. Dad is enamored with all the guys Hamilton has put in the league.
So Dads don’t love BU?
 
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