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05-09-2020, 03:25 PM
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College Benchwarmer
Join Date: Dec 2002
Location: St. Catharines, Canada
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The Running of the (Buffalo) Bulls - A CJBL Diary
While I'm generally not a big fan of college basketball, I was first intrigued by the CJBL after seeing this thread from RedKingGold.
For the uninitiated, the CJBL is a free (for now?), web-based, online multi-player College Basketball sim that is owned/designed by FOFC User Skrath. RedKingGold did a great job summarizing both the CJBL and the pro JBL online leagues in that thread so I'll repost his words here: "If you like FBCB, DDSCB or any similar college basketball sim, you will find interest within the CJBL. The league is still a bit in “beta” mode, so there are tweaks and adjustments that are and will be made but the core of the game is quite solid and built off the JBL engine. The CJBL mirrors the NCAA, so you will find all of the usual college programs and conferences. Athletic directors will compete against each other to recruit from US high schools and international prospects. Set your offensive team style and recruit players who fit how you want to play. Want to run Villanova’s 4-guard offense? Maybe West Virginia’s press defense or Virginia’s lockdown defense? You can mimic these styles with the offensive and defensive settings. The CJBL already has many members who are part of the FOFC community, including jcomey, MrBug, Izulde and others you will recognize. The JBL/CJBL community is very active. We have podcasts for both the JBL and CJBL and we also have an owner who is able to produce and create merchandise for your team." I reached out to Skrath last week and now I'm the proud Athletic Director for the University at Buffalo Bulls. We have a number of AD's in the league that are members here at FOFC so I thought it would be fun to document my experience playing the game with a mid-major. Maybe this will entice a few more FOFC'ers to join in on the fun, as there are still plenty of great programs available to be taken over by human AD's. I took over the team during the third phase of the recruiting season, so I had to do some catching up to do...
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MY CURRENT FM19 DYNASTY - FM19: "Ludere causa Ludendi - To Play for the Sake of Playing" - Queen's Park FC (Scottish League Two) MY OLD FM11 DYNASTY - FM11: From Semi-Pro Minnows to the EPL - Dover Athletic FC My Personal Blog - Now on the Tee - Golf, Sports, Poker, Life 2006 GOLDEN SCRIBE AWARD WINNER FOR BEST 'OTHER SPORT' DYNASTY - EHM2005: Sharpening Swords in Buffalo |
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05-09-2020, 09:03 PM
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#2 |
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College Benchwarmer
Join Date: Dec 2002
Location: St. Catharines, Canada
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Upon taking over the program, I was interested in looking at the past history to get a sense of what I was in for in Buffalo.
The UB Bulls play in the Mid-American Conference (MAC) and success has been fleeting for the program in the ten years that the CJBL has been in existence. Prior to last season (2028), the Bulls had one lonely appearance in the MAC Conference Tournament finals, ultimately losing in 2022. While they have been a middle-of-the-road school in conference play (78-80 from 2019-2027), out of conference play has been an incredible challenge, as the program had an overall record of 121-156 heading into last season. The school hired a new coach in Elochukwu Douglas, who the year before led UC-Santa Barbara to a even 14-14 record. That may have been one of the key factors in a turnaround season in Buffalo but the other major factor would have to be his first recruiting class, which was simply superb. Three new recruits joined Buffalo prior to the 2028 season and all three would start as freshmen, injecting some much-needed youthful enthusiasm into the program. Shooting guard Bruno Holker, small forward Jordan Broderick and centre Jordan Gailey started all 32 games for the Bulls in 2029, joining senior stalwart Abdoulaye Clement, an excellent combo forward, and sophomore point guard Cole Relvao to make a potent and very young starting five. The team would get off to a hot start in non-conference play, going 7-2 in those nine games before starting 3-0 in-conference to reach 10 wins in only 12 games. The Bulls were inconsistent for the balance of conference play, regularly interchanging wins and losses but were able to win the final four games in a row to finish regular season conference play with a 13-7 record (20-9 overall), good enough to earn the 2nd seed in the MAC Conference Tournament behind top ranked Kent State. Buffalo would win tournament games against Bowling Green and Northern Illinois to set up the much-anticipated #1 vs. #2 game in the finals versus Kent State and the Bulls would use a clinical defensive effort to win 61-52, earning the school's first ever CJBL National Tournament invitation! The Bulls were headed to March Madness! Alas, the Bulls were named as a 15-seed in the Midwest Regional and would have to face 2nd seeded North Carolina in the first round. The Tar Heels came into the tournament ranked 10th in the nation but the Bulls would battle impressively, taking a lead into the second half of the game. However, the Tar Heels were ultimately too talented and would end up knocking off the upstart Bulls 97-84, ending any thoughts of a Cinderella run. The Bulls finished the 2028 season with a school record 23 wins against only 9 losses. It's now my job to build off this momentum and make Buffalo a constant threat in the MAC, in the hopes that CJBL National Tournament invitations become the norm for our program.
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MY CURRENT FM19 DYNASTY - FM19: "Ludere causa Ludendi - To Play for the Sake of Playing" - Queen's Park FC (Scottish League Two) MY OLD FM11 DYNASTY - FM11: From Semi-Pro Minnows to the EPL - Dover Athletic FC My Personal Blog - Now on the Tee - Golf, Sports, Poker, Life 2006 GOLDEN SCRIBE AWARD WINNER FOR BEST 'OTHER SPORT' DYNASTY - EHM2005: Sharpening Swords in Buffalo |
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05-10-2020, 12:57 AM
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#3 |
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College Benchwarmer
Join Date: Dec 2002
Location: St. Catharines, Canada
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2029 Offseason
State of the Program Coming off the best season in school history, with a wonderful 23-9 record and our first ever March Madness appearance, it's incumbent on me to continue to build upon the work that was done last year. The coaching tandem of Elochukwu Douglas and assistant Vincent Clopton returns for their second year in Buffalo. I'm not necessarily impressed with either of their skills but the team won 23 games last year so I'm going to maintain the status quo for now and give them this season to impress. The first thing I notice when looking at the roster is that we had SIX seniors on the team last season that have now graduated, leaving us with only nine players on the squad. Normally, that would be cause for alarm but I'm happy to see that we are returning four starters from last year's record setting team. Three of those starters were part of last year's exceptional recruiting class and therefore enter their sophomore season at Buffalo, while the fourth returning starter is a junior. Incredible news! However, the one senior starter from last year who graduated was easily our best player. Versatile power forward Abdoulaye Clement led the team in pretty much every major category, with his 11.7 points, 8.3 rebounds and 3.7 assists per game all leading the team. His advanced stats were also incredibly impressive, as he had a 23.3 PER and a 9.7 BPM rating. He will be tough to replace. Other departing seniors include Khallid Summy, who was a capable backup point guard who played key minutes the last two seasons. C/PF Matej Matthews, C Latin Bonsu and SF Dontae Shungu also played about 10-12 minutes per game last year but all looked to be replacement-level players. Little used big Justin Martinez also graduates. These departures leave us with a seriously depleted nine man roster and one that is extremely unbalanced, as we currently sit with one point guard, FIVE shooting guards, two small forwards and one center. In my next post, I'll give a rundown on our current playing roster and will then follow that with a list of our primary and secondary needs as we develop our recruiting strategy leading up to the 2029 season.
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MY CURRENT FM19 DYNASTY - FM19: "Ludere causa Ludendi - To Play for the Sake of Playing" - Queen's Park FC (Scottish League Two) MY OLD FM11 DYNASTY - FM11: From Semi-Pro Minnows to the EPL - Dover Athletic FC My Personal Blog - Now on the Tee - Golf, Sports, Poker, Life 2006 GOLDEN SCRIBE AWARD WINNER FOR BEST 'OTHER SPORT' DYNASTY - EHM2005: Sharpening Swords in Buffalo Last edited by NoSkillz : 05-10-2020 at 12:59 AM. |
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05-10-2020, 09:37 PM
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#4 |
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College Benchwarmer
Join Date: Dec 2002
Location: St. Catharines, Canada
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2029 Offseason
Player Roster (Before Recruiting) We'll start by taking a look at the nine returnees on the University at Buffalo Bulls basketball team. POINT GUARDS: 1 - Cole Relvao, PG, 6'2", 196lbs, Junior, Racine, WI. LAST YEAR: 9.7 PPG, 2.8 RPG, 2.8 APG, 1.17 SPG, 0.40 BPG, 25.7 MPG, 16.8 PER, 2.3 BPM Relvao is the only returning point guard on the team but has started all 62 games he's played in since joining the Bulls two years ago. He's considered to be a floor general and has outstanding work ethic, above average IQ and quickness, good hands and has a decent offensive game. While my scouts aren't exactly high on his overall skill (0.5 stars), his ratings in all key categories look solid. Plus, he has impeccable intangibles. Still, we will need to add at least one point guard in recruiting. SHOOTING GUARDS: 5 - Bruno Holker, SG, 6'8", 205lbs, Sophomore, Lanark, IL. LAST YEAR: 8.8 PPG, 3.3 RPG, 1.9 APG, 1.13 SPG, 0.25 BPG, 25.5 MPG 14.1 PER, 1.6 BPM Holker was one of the fine freshmen recruited to Buffalo last year and started all 32 games, putting up average numbers across the board. He's considered to be a rotation wing (1.5 stars according to my scouts) and has a high motor, solid ball handling skills and is a good free throw shooter. He's not the smartest player and needs to improve his shot if he's to be more effective going forward. - Marko Forbes, SG, 5'10", 199lbs, Junior, Rochester, NY. LAST YEAR: 4.8 PPG, 1.9 RPG, 2.4 APG, 0.53 SPG, 0.22 BPG, 14.5 MPG, 18.2 PER, 3.6 BPM Forbes has played in all 64 games for Buffalo in his two years with the program but has yet to start a game. That said, he put up better numbers on a per 36 basis over the starter Holker last year. Forbes has an excellent shot and has range (shot 43% from three point land last year), is a good passer and is excellent defensively. However, he's very undersized and my scouts aren't really enamoured with him (0.5 stars). - Paulius Davis, SG/SF, 6'2", 213lbs, Junior, Melbourne, FL. LAST YEAR: 1.8 PPG, 0.9 RPG, 0.6 APG, 0.31 SPG, 0.06 BPG, 4.8 MPG, 26.2 PER, 11.8 BPM Davis is a pure shooting wing who played in half our games last year but averaged under 5 minutes a game. He basically didn't miss when he actually took a shot, with a ridiculous .769 FG% and .714 from the three point stripe. He's a confounding player on first glance - excellent shooting ability, solid defensively and on the boards but he's not the sharpest tool in the shed and obviously isn't very aggressive, as his shots per minute are pretty paltry. Still, he could be a useful swingman this year with his versatility. - Mairega Mammel, SG, 6'2", 197lbs, Senior, Munhall, PA. LAST YEAR: 0.0 PPG, 1.0 RPG, 0.0 APG, 0.00 SPG, 0.00 BPG, 3.8 MPG, 0.0 PER, -9.7 BPM Mammel only played in one game last year and only 32 in his three years at Buffalo. He's a hard worker but simply not good enough for this level. - Matthew Cook, SG, 6'2", 202lbs, Senior, Brooklyn, NY. LAST YEAR: 1.3 PPG, 0.5 RPG, 0.5 APG, 0.23 SPG, 0.08 BPG, 3.3 MPG, 22.0 PER, 9.4 BPM Cook got into 13 games last year and looks to be a solid glue player, with great leadership and work ethic, along with good passing, rebounding and offensive skills. Like most of our guards, he's undersized and we simply have too many mediocre SGs here. To sum up, we have way too many shooting guards here and none of them are standouts. Thankfully, two of them are in their senior year but it wouldn't exactly be prudent to add to the position in recruiting this year due to the numbers. SMALL FORWARD: 2 - Jordan Broderick, SF, 6'7", 214lbs, Sophomore, Atlanta, GA. LAST YEAR: 8.7 PPG, 1.8 RPG, 3.0 APG, 1.34 SPG, 0.28 BPG, 26.7 MPG, 13.2 PER, 0.7 BPM Broderick was the second of the freshmen class to make a big impact last year, as he also started all 32 games for the team last year. He's got great size for the wing and is considered to be a flashy 3 & D wing with great flair. He's raw but has solid finishing ability and displays excellent energy on defense. At 2.5 stars, he's right up there as one of our most talented players and will be counted on to improve upon his average numbers last season. - Elijah Preston, SF, 6'5", 209 lbs, Junior, Chicago, IL. LAST YEAR: Did Not Play Ouch - Preston has been here two years and has yet to suit up for a game. He actually has some decent hands and defensive ability, is a great outside shooter and is a very good rebounder for his position but he lacks work ethic and the intangibles that make a good teammate. Honestly, he's a candidate to be cut next offseason but we'll see what he does with some playing time this year. Despite Preston being a bit of a dud, we're in good shape with Broderick here and also have swingman Paulius Davis that can fit in capably as a backup. That said, I could see myself adding a small forward if we find someone solid in recruiting. POWER FORWARD: 0 Oh boy. Nada! The one position where we aren't returning a starter and we see all of our power forwards from last year graduate. This will obviously be priority one in the recruiting process. CENTER: 1 - Jordan Gailey, C/PF, 6'8", 220lbs, Sophomore, Germantown, MD. LAST YEAR: 10.8 PPG, 5.6 RPG, 1.2 APG, 0.41 SPG, 1.19 BPG, 28.3 MPG, 19.3 PER, 2.9 BPM Gailey was the third of the excellent recruiting class from 2028 to come in and start all 32 games as a freshman and he quickly became one of the school's best players. Solid numbers across the board and this athletic, shot blocking power five, considered 2.5 stars by my scouts, owns impressive attributes across all the categories. His versatility is also a plus, as he can play either spot up front but while undersized, his skillset lends himself best to the center position. We'll need to find him a capable backup but we'll be in great shape with Gailey for the next three years up front. Recruiting Strategy So we have nine players returning and that leaves six scholarships available during the 2029 recruiting process. I'll likely try to leave at least one scholarship open in order to take advantage of the transfer market at the end of the season and also to balance things out somewhat with our roster. I only have two seniors graduating this coming year so instead of recruiting six players this year and only two next season, I'd prefer to keep an extra scholarship back for next season since it's rare to use all 15 players in a given year. Here are our Primary Needs: - A starting Power Forward, preferably one who is more dynamic and can score - 1-2 Backup/Developmental Bigs - Backup/Developmental Point Guard Here are our Secondary Needs: - More explosive talent overall - More versatility among depth players It may take a couple recruiting classes to hit on those secondary needs but we have to start somewhere! I took over at Buffalo just as the league was beginning "Phase Three" of recruiting. So I was a bit behind. We'd need to hit the ground running right away!
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MY CURRENT FM19 DYNASTY - FM19: "Ludere causa Ludendi - To Play for the Sake of Playing" - Queen's Park FC (Scottish League Two) MY OLD FM11 DYNASTY - FM11: From Semi-Pro Minnows to the EPL - Dover Athletic FC My Personal Blog - Now on the Tee - Golf, Sports, Poker, Life 2006 GOLDEN SCRIBE AWARD WINNER FOR BEST 'OTHER SPORT' DYNASTY - EHM2005: Sharpening Swords in Buffalo Last edited by NoSkillz : 05-10-2020 at 09:39 PM. |
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05-10-2020, 11:29 PM
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#5 |
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College Benchwarmer
Join Date: Dec 2002
Location: St. Catharines, Canada
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2029 Offseason
Recruiting (STAGE THREE) Buffalo gets a modest budget of around $23,000 per phase to spend on recruiting, a sum that goes pretty fast, as I found out in my first go-around with recruiting. Anything not used in a stage will get rolled over to the next phase. Our two best roster players, Jordan Gailey and Jordan Broderick, are 2.5 star players. I have one 1.5 star player and the rest are all 0.5 stars. I think that's pretty pathetic for a mid-major but fearful of over-reaching, I decide that I'm going to concentrate initially on 3 star guys and avoid messing around too much on 4 star guys. We are in desperate need of big men so I focus plenty of attention there to start. CENTERS I focus my attention in phase three on three centers: - Freddie Feeney ***, C, 6'10", 263lbs, Vestavia Hills, AL (146th in Nation; 37th at C) LAST YEAR: 14.2 PPG, 14.1 RPG, 2.1 APG, 0.45 SPG, 0.97 BPG, 28.9 MPG - Brandon McClain ***, C, 7'0", 259lbs, Louisville, KY (154th in Nation; 41st at C) LAST YEAR: 12.1 PPG, 10.1 RPG, 1.9 APG, 1.00 SPG, 0.89 BPG, 28.3 MPG - Scott Callison ***, C, 7'0", 252lbs, Ooltewah, TN (177th in Nation; 48th at C) LAST YEAR: 14.5 PPG, 11.1 RPG, 1.9 APG, 0.50 SPG, 1.37 BPG, 28.4 MPG Feeney and McClain have "average" interest in our program while Callison is listed with "very high" interest. All three players go on my call list, I scout all three as well and due to his high interest, offer Scott Callison a campus visit and decide to offer McClain a scholarship. ACTIONS (CENTERS) - - Freddie Feeney: Call, Scout - Brandon McClain: Call, Scout, Offer Scholarship - Scott Callison: Call, Scout, Offer Campus Visit POWER FORWARDS While Jordan Gailey has the ability to play both C and PF, I look at him as a center so I'll need to likely fill at least two power forward positions through recruiting. Here is a list of our initial targets in phase three: - Shaun Rakocevic ***, PF/C, 6'9", 227lbs, Drexel Hill, PA (145th in Nation; 22nd at PF) LAST YEAR: 13.4 PPG, 14.0 RPG, 2.4 APG, 0.56 SPG, 0.76 BPG, 28.2 MPG - Jure Williams ***, PF, 6'11", 240lbs, Orlando, FL (150th in Nation; 23rd at PF) LAST YEAR: 14.7 PPG, 7.6 RPG, 2.1 APG, 0.73 SPG, 2.97 BPG, 28.4 MPG - Kellen Abell ***, PF, 6'8", 222lbs, Thiells, NY (200th in Nation; 29th at PF) LAST YEAR: 9.7 PPG, 11.4 RPG, 2.0 APG, 0.50 SPG, 1.79 BPG, 28.6 MPG - Darren Suggs ***, PF, 6'11", 247lbs, Lebanon, NH (411th in Nation; 80th at PF) LAST YEAR: 25.3 PPG, 10.5 RPG, 1.6 APG, 0.48 SPG, 1.21 BPG, 27.0 MPG - Evan Piatowski ****, PF, 6'7", 248lbs, Kennesaw, GA (126th in Nation; 18th at PF) LAST YEAR: 24.0 PPG, 12.1 RPG, 2.4 APG, 0.68 SPG, 2.36 BPG, 28.6 MPG Lots to digest here. Rakocevic, Williams, Abell and Suggs all have very high interest in coming to Buffalo while the four star rated Piatowski is considered to have "below average" interest. Rakocevic is someone I isolated early - he looks to be excellent defensively and based on the 3 schools that are currently in the running for his services, I think I would stand a decent chance of securing him. Each school is allowed to give one "Major Pitch" per year...essentially the proverbial "bag of money" to entice a recruit to pick your school. I decide to go "Full Monty" on Rakocevic, calling and scouting him, sending our head coach to visit him, offer him a campus visit, offer a scholarship and deliver our major pitch. I call and scout Abell and just call to show interest in Williams, Suggs and Piatkowski. I was running out of money quickly so I had to conserve for the other positions in this phase. At one point, I did consider offering Jure Williams a scholarship but he only had one school interested in at this point (High Point) so I figured I could perhaps do more to entice him in a future stage. Suggs is another interesting prospect, with great high school stats and a superb 3.9 GPA. However, he had Ivy League schools sniffing around him and I felt that Buffalo wouldn't match up. As for Piatowski...he's a four star prospect so I just felt I couldn't waste too much of my budget chasing a dream... ACTIONS (POWER FORWARDS) - Shaun Rakocevic: Call, Scout, Coach Visit, Offer Campus Visit, Offer Scholarship, Make Major Pitch - Jure Williams: Call - Kellen Abell: Call, Scout - Darren Suggs: Call - Evan Piatowski: Call SMALL FORWARDS As indicated, we don't likely *need* a small forward in this class but if I found someone interesting, I won't hesitate to use a scholarship on a good one. - D'Angelo Monroe ****, SF, 6'6", 200lbs, Mill Valley, CA (96th in Nation; 20th at SF) LAST YEAR: 25.1 PPG, 3.6 RPG, 2.1 APG, 0.77 SPG, 0.65 BPG, 28.4 MPG - Liam Pipkens ***, SF, 6'7", 218lbs, Summit, NJ (339th in Nation; 64th at SF) LAST YEAR: 24.1 PPG, 4.3 RPG, 2.0 APG, 2.52 SPG, 0.69 BPG, 27.1 MPG This is where I got good at filtering based on high school stats, as both of these players were extremely prolific in their senior seasons of HS. The four star Monroe is a complete pipe dream, with very low interest in Buffalo but Pipkens has very high interest in our program. Since I needed to focus on big men and point guards with my limited budget, I simply just called both players to say hello but also offered Monroe a scholarship, sight unseen. ACTIONS (SMALL FORWARDS) - D'Angelo Monroe: Call, Offer Scholarship - Liam Pipkens: Call SHOOTING GUARD With five shooting guards on the roster, I didn't engage anyone in Phase Three with my limited budget. POINT GUARD A definite need, with only Cole Relvao on the roster at the moment. - Kris Poster ***, PG, 5'11", 184lbs, Upper Marlboro, MD (143rd in Nation; 36th at PG) LAST YEAR: 17.3 PPG, 3.9 RPG, 7.4 APG, 0.53 SPG, 0.40 BPG, 28.8 MPG - Benjamin Cokely ***, PG, 6'3", 178lbs, Tampa, FL (176th in Nation; 42nd at PG) LAST YEAR: 10.0 PPG, 4.0 RPG, 4.3 APG, 1.07 SPG, 0.57 BPG, 28.3 MPG Both of these players showed very high interest in our program so I isolated them early. Poster has excellent stats but I was worried about the fact that five teams already have clued in on him so I might be a bit late with my interest. Meanwhile, Cokley wasn't super productive in high school but only has one team looking at him right now. I decide to go hard after both players, calling and scouting them both, sending my coach to visit both and also offering each of them scholarships. I also offered Poster a campus visit. ACTIONS (POINT GUARDS) - Kris Poster: Call, Scout, Coach Visit, Offer Campus Visit, Offer Scholarship - Benjamin Cokley: Call, Scout, Coach Visit, Offer Scholarship So to sum up, I have made scholarship offers to five players (keeping one scholarship back for now, as planned), offered all three potential campus visits and offered three out of the five potential coach visits before running out of money. I'm not expecting any positive answers right away but obviously, I made the biggest push for PF Shaun Rakocevic and would love to get one of those two point guards. Oh, and one final, embarrassing note. As a newbie, I foolishly thought that the effects of scouting a player wouldn't be seen until after the phase was officially run by the commish. I'd soon find out (but long after spending all of my money), that the scouting takes effect with immediate feedback. Needless to say, if I had known certain things, I might have done things differently but at the end of the day, it wasn't a big deal. Hopefully we can keep building upon our recruiting in Phase Four!
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MY CURRENT FM19 DYNASTY - FM19: "Ludere causa Ludendi - To Play for the Sake of Playing" - Queen's Park FC (Scottish League Two) MY OLD FM11 DYNASTY - FM11: From Semi-Pro Minnows to the EPL - Dover Athletic FC My Personal Blog - Now on the Tee - Golf, Sports, Poker, Life 2006 GOLDEN SCRIBE AWARD WINNER FOR BEST 'OTHER SPORT' DYNASTY - EHM2005: Sharpening Swords in Buffalo Last edited by NoSkillz : 05-12-2020 at 12:49 AM. |
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05-12-2020, 12:47 AM
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#6 |
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College Benchwarmer
Join Date: Dec 2002
Location: St. Catharines, Canada
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2029 Offseason
Recruiting (PHASE FOUR) CENTERS LAST PHASE ACTIONS - - Freddie Feeney: Call, Scout - Brandon McClain: Call, Scout, Offer Scholarship - Scott Callison: Call, Scout, Offer Campus Visit Following up from phase three, we are delighted to find out that Scott Callison has accepted our offer to visit our campus and he's in Buffalo as we speak. Even better is the report I get from our scouts, who indicate he could be a 3.5 star player (as opposed to his 3 star recruiting ranking). Still, I decide to hold off on offering him a scholarship for now, as I'm using them on other positions at the moment. He's kept on our call list and I scout him again, getting no additional feedback on the second scouting mission. Freddie Feeney and Brandon McClain both had only average interest in Buffalo and I find out that their interest has dropped to "None" after my coaching calls last week. We had offered a scholarship to McClain but with him having no interest, the scholarship is returned to us. No sense following up further with them so I take them off my call list. We add two more centers to our call list, joining Callison: - D'Angelo Vranes ***, C, 6'6", 213lbs, Williamsville, NY (204th in Nation; 55th at C) LAST YEAR: 12.9 PPG, 6.8 RPG, 2.3 APG, 0.57 SPG, 1.82 BPG, 27.8 MPG - Corbin Haber ***, C, 6'7", 237lbs, Queens, NY (235th in Nation; 62nd at C) LAST YEAR: 16.0 PPG, 11.0 RPG, 2.3 APG, 0.57 SPG, 1.07 BPG, 29.1 MPG Vranes is from nearby Williamsville, just a few miles up the road, so he's easily the closest recruit to our school in this recruiting class. That said, he only has "average" interest in our program and he's severely undersized for the center position but I call and scout him. My scouts do like him (3.5 stars initially) but feel he's a tweener. I just add Haber to our call list but don't scout him for now. PHASE FOUR ACTIONS (CENTERS) - - Scott Callison: 2nd Call, 2nd Scout, *VISITING CAMPUS* - D'Angelo Vranes: Call, Scout - Corbin Haber: Call POWER FORWARDS LAST PHASE ACTIONS - Shaun Rakocevic: Call, Scout, Coach Visit, Offer Campus Visit, Offer Scholarship, Make Major Pitch - Jure Williams: Call - Kellen Abell: Call, Scout - Darren Suggs: Call - Evan Piatowski: Call Lots to follow up on from the previous phase. Our biggest push so far has been made on Shaun Rakocevic, where we basically offered him the world to come to Buffalo. I'm happy to see that he also has accepted his campus visit and is in Buffalo right now. The biggest shock is seeing that Jure Williams has already accepted an offer from High Point (!). Alright then! I actually was *this close* to offering him a scholarship, even without any scouting knowledge, but I offered it elsewhere. Oh well. My scouts are pretty high on Kellen Abell, saying he's a 3.5 star prospect but he plays a similar role and style to Rakocevic so I'm reluctant to offer him a scholarship as well. I elect to just keep Darren Suggs on our call list for now but don't have money to scout him...I still think he's going to pick an Ivy League school due to his smarts. Finally, I decide to scout four star prospect Evan Piatowski and he looks really good, although my scouts call him a "rotation/backup four". His ratings look good but again, at four stars, I'm guessing he's unattainable so I just hold firm for now and keep him on the call list. We add three more players at the position to our list: - Matt Cristiano ***, PF, 6'8", 234lbs, North Huntingdon, PA (243rd in Nation; 38th at PF) LAST YEAR: 21.0 PPG, 6.4 RPG, 1.8 APG, 0.62 SPG, 2.50 BPG, 29.3 MPG - Brian Prescott ***, PF/C, 6'8", 264lbs, Murrysville, PA (281st in Nation; 47th at PF) LAST YEAR: 20.5 PPG, 15.0 RPG, 2.0 APG, 0.62 SPG, 2.15 BPG, 29.1 MPG - Dave Westerfield ****, PF/C, 6'10", 263lbs, Bel Air, MA (129th in Nation; 19th at PF) LAST YEAR: 12.1 PPG, 6.9 RPG, 1.6 APG, 0.35 SPG, 2.19 BPG, 28.6 MPG I call and scout all three of these new players. Prescott is considered a "shot blocking five" so my scouts feel he'd best be used as a center. However, Cristiano is considered an "offensive four" and has some impressive looking attributes. We need big men so I take the scholarship that was returned to us from center Brandon McClain and offer it to Cristiano, in addition to inviting him to our campus. Westerfield is considered to be a "non-scoring five" - again, I'm looking for pure power forwards right now and am more interested in guys who can put the ball in the basket so I'm a bit lukewarm on the four star Westerfield right now. PHASE FOUR ACTIONS (POWER FORWARDS) - Shaun Rakocevic: 2nd Call, ** VISITING CAMPUS **, ** CONSIDERING SCHOLARSHIP **, ** MAJOR PITCH ** - Kellen Abell: 2nd Call - Darren Suggs: 2nd Call - Evan Piatowski: 2nd Call, Scout - Matt Cristiano: Call, Scout, Offer Campus Visit, Offer Scholarship - Brian Prescott: Call, Scout - Dave Westerfield: Call, Scout SMALL FORWARDS LAST PHASE ACTIONS - D'Angelo Monroe: Call, Offer Scholarship - Liam Pipkens: Call Following up on the last phase, Monroe doesn't take long to tell us to bugger off despite being offered a scholarship so I take him off our call list and move on. I decide to scout Pipkens this stage and he is a very interesting case - he was an explosive scorer in HS (24.1 PPG) and my scouts seem divided. His attributes are all pretty mediocre but he has glowing strengths and a pretty exhaustive list of positive descriptions about his game. I decide to take a chance on him - there is only one school looking at him right now (High Point, who just got Jure Williams, as indicated above) so I might have a chance if I strike right away. I offer him a campus visit and a scholarship. We add one more small forward to our call list: - Marvin Bessick ****, SF, 6'8", 204lbs, New Berlin, WI (110th in Nation; 25th at SF) LAST YEAR: 27.7 PPG, 3.6 RPG, 9.8 APG, 1.04 SPG, 0.56 BPG, 28.8 MPG This is a pipe dream I'm sure. Bessick might be one of the top offensive players in the nation, with a crazy 27.7 PPG and 9.8 APG. My scouts are positively drooling about him, with plaudits galore. I have a scholarship I was holding back and I decide to use it here - it's a long shot but I throw my hail mary, sending my coach to increase his interest (which is average), offering him a scholarship and guaranteeing a starting role as a freshman. PHASE FOUR ACTIONS (SMALL FORWARDS) - Liam Pipkens: 2nd Call, Scout, Offer Campus Visit, Offer Scholarship - Marvin Bessick: Call, Scout, Coach Visit, Offer Scholarship, Offer Starting Job SHOOTING GUARD LAST PHASE ACTIONS - None We didn't engage anyone in Phase 3 since we already have a plethora of SG's on the team. However, I'm feeling frisky in phase 4 and since we're looking for talent upgrades everywhere, I add two SG's to my call list, both of whom can also play the point: - Jimmie Bell ***, SG/PG, 6'3", 195lbs, Vermillion, OH (283rd in Nation; 40th at SG) LAST YEAR: 22.3 PPG, 3.5 RPG, 1.9 APG, 0.58 SPG, 0.48 BPG, 26.5 MPG - Joe Corner ***, SG/PG, 6'3", 186lbs, Topeka, KS (443rd in Nation; 66th at SG) LAST YEAR: 17.8 PPG, 3.4 RPG, 1.7 APG, 0.41 SPG, 0.52 BPG, 26.7 MPG I call and scout both players to start. Bell, who has only "low" interest in Buffalo, is considered an "offensive guard" and my scouts feel his 3 star ranking is fair. Corner has above average interest but my scouts feel he's only a 2.5 star player. Bell looks supremely talented so I send my coach to talk to him in hopes of increasing his interest in us and also offer him a scholarship and a starting job. PHASE FOUR ACTIONS (SHOOTING GUARDS) - Jimmie Bell: Call, Scout, Coach Visit, Offer Scholarship, Offer Starting Job - Joe Corner: Call, Scout POINT GUARD LAST PHASE ACTIONS - Kris Poster: Call, Scout, Coach Visit, Offer Campus Visit, Offer Scholarship - Benjamin Cokley: Call, Scout, Coach Visit, Offer Scholarship So I actually went pretty hard after both of these guys, offering scholarships to both. Poster goes from very high interest last week to none, just like that, also rejecting my offer of a campus visit. So I have a scholarship returned and take him off my call list. Meanwhile, Cokley is still showing very high interest so I scout him again. My scouts love him, despite his pedestrian high school stats. They consider him a 3.5 star guard and give him glowing reviews in lots of categories. I decide to up the ante and go all in with him, offering a campus visit and offering him our starting job if he comes to the school. I also add five (!) more point guards to our call list: - Alan Small ****, PG, 5'11", 184lbs, Milford, VA (89th in Nation; 20th at PG) LAST YEAR: 23.6 PPG, 3.4 RPG, 1.9 APG, 0.50 SPG, 0.57 BPG, 29.2 MPG - Jared Bishop ****, PG, 5'11", 183lbs, Milledgeville, GA (54th in Nation; 10th at PG) LAST YEAR: 18.2 PPG, 4.1 RPG, 4.8 APG, 0.36 SPG, 0.50 BPG, 28.8 MPG - Scott Winter ***, PG, 6'2", 204lbs, Schenectady, NY (421st in Nation; 91st at PG) LAST YEAR: 13.7 PPG, 4.1 RPG, 7.0 APG, 0.42 SPG, 0.38 BPG, 27.8 MPG - Louis Hymon ***, PG, 5'10", 186lbs, Atlantic, IA (367th in Nation; 81st at PG) LAST YEAR: 13.5 PPG, 3.2 RPG, 11.0 APG, 0.60 SPG, 0.56 BPG, 26.6 MPG - Raven Elmore ***, PG, 6'5", 205lbs, Smithers, WV (181st in Nation; 44th at PG) LAST YEAR: 13.1 PPG, 2.9 RPG, 2.0 APG, 0.58 SPG, 0.54 BPG, 28.3 MPG I'm shooting for the stars with four star prospects Small and Bishop, especially with them having little interest in us. Still, both grade out well by my scouts and I decide to send my coach to visit Small and even though I can't offer a scholarship right now, I tell him I envision him as a starter on my team. Playing with fire there, since I said the same thing to Cokley! I also call and scout New York native Winter but he doesn't look to be attractive as a non-scoring finishing guard...a walking conundrum! Hymon and Elmore just get courtesy calls at this point and are on my "top 20 list". PHASE FOUR ACTIONS (POINT GUARDS) - Benjamin Cokley: 2nd Call, 2nd Scout, Offer Campus Visit, ** CONSIDERING SCHOLARSHIP **, Offer Starting Job - Alan Small: Call, Scout, Coach Visit, Offer Starting Job - Jared Bishop: Call, Scout - Scott Winter: Call, Scout - Louis Hymon: Call - Raven Elmore: Call PHASE FOUR SUMMARY AND THOUGHTS - So I have all six of my scholarship slots handed out to the following: PF Rakocevic PF Cristiano SF Pipkens SF Bessick SG Bell PG Cokley My hope is that Rakocevic commits after this phase - I'm first on his list (with three other teams in behind) and I offered him the big bag of money to come to Buffalo. Cristiano looks interesting but I'm guessing he'll take some more time to decide since I've just started talking to him. That said, he has no one else chasing him at the moment. I'm also hoping that Pipkens comes. High Point is my only competition right now and I'd like to think we're a more attractive destination. However, I didn't offer a starting job to him just yet. I also offered Bessick a scholarship but that's a complete hail mary and I certainly don't expect anything to come of that. There is only one other team in on Jimmie Bell so I'm hoping for the best there. I'm a bit worried about Cokley - he's being highly recruited and I'm 2nd among the 5 teams that have offered him a scholarship, behind Marshall at the moment. Hopefully he accepts my campus visit but I don't expect him to commit in the next stage. So, if I were to predict what's going to happen, I'd hope that Rakocevic and Pipkens are Buffalo Bulls by stage five...
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MY CURRENT FM19 DYNASTY - FM19: "Ludere causa Ludendi - To Play for the Sake of Playing" - Queen's Park FC (Scottish League Two) MY OLD FM11 DYNASTY - FM11: From Semi-Pro Minnows to the EPL - Dover Athletic FC My Personal Blog - Now on the Tee - Golf, Sports, Poker, Life 2006 GOLDEN SCRIBE AWARD WINNER FOR BEST 'OTHER SPORT' DYNASTY - EHM2005: Sharpening Swords in Buffalo Last edited by NoSkillz : 05-12-2020 at 12:56 AM. |
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05-13-2020, 12:19 AM
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#7 |
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College Benchwarmer
Join Date: Dec 2002
Location: St. Catharines, Canada
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2029 Offseason
Recruiting (PHASE FIVE) CENTERS LAST PHASE ACTIONS - - Scott Callison: 2nd Call, 2nd Scout, *VISITING CAMPUS* - D'Angelo Vranes: Call, Scout - Corbin Haber: Call Following up from phase four, I'm surprised to see that Callison accepted an offer from Murray State. He was visiting our campus and we were the only school interested in him after the fourth phase but obviously, Murray State comes in with a quick scholarship offer and Callison accepted. Good get for them. Vranes is also off the market, as Buffalo native accepts an offer from Florida State. Incredibly, Corbin Haber is also gone, committing to Navy. So our call list goes from three to zero, just like that! The center position is drying up quickly but I add one player to our call list: - Kameron Corchiani ***, C/PF, 6'9", 227lbs, Charleston, WV (149th in Nation; 38th at C) LAST YEAR: 17.4 PPG, 12.8 RPG, 2.2 APG, 0.71 SPG, 1.00 BPG, 28.3 MPG Corchiani was very productive for Capital High but my scouts feel he's more of a defensive "shot blocking five" at the college level. I send my coach to visit him, even though he has "very high" interest, as there are three teams already ahead of me in the recruiting stages with him. PHASE FIVE ACTIONS (CENTERS) - - Kameron Corchiani: Call, Scout, Coach Visit POWER FORWARDS LAST PHASE ACTIONS - Shaun Rakocevic: 2nd Call, ** VISITING CAMPUS **, ** CONSIDERING SCHOLARSHIP **, ** MAJOR PITCH ** - Kellen Abell: 2nd Call - Darren Suggs: 2nd Call - Evan Piatowski: 2nd Call, Scout - Matt Cristiano: Call, Scout, Offer Campus Visit, Offer Scholarship - Brian Prescott: Call, Scout - Dave Westerfield: Call, Scout We have our first commitment! But it's not who I thought it would be... Matt Cristiano signs his letter of commitment and becomes the first member of Buffalo's 2029 recruiting class! Cristiano, a 6'8" "offensive four", averaged 21 points and 6.4 boards last year and this three star recruit will get every chance to start as a freshman. Great news!! Meanwhile, the guy I thought would commit is still holding out. We made our major pitch to Shaun Rakocevic - he's reduced the teams he's interested in by one (he's now down to three) but we're still dangling in the wind. There's not much more I can do at this stage. I scout him again but I'm not willing to guarantee him a starting job at this time. I'll hope for the best - I'm still ranked #1 on his list... As for the others, Abell now has four teams interested in him but I see that the four star rated Piatowski now has "Average" interest in our program, up from below average. I throw caution to the wind and send my coach to visit him, offer him a campus visit and offer him a potential starting job but I don't have a scholarship available to offer him at the moment. We'll see if his interest increases - at this point, no one has offered him a scholarship... I scout Darren Suggs this week and the reports are lukewarm so I won't be pursuing him. Brian Prescott commits to Manhattan and four star Dave Westerfield now is up to Below Average interest in us (from Low), but has two teams interested in him. We also decide to add two more players to our call list: - Quan Westerfield ***, PF/SF, 6'9", 220lbs, Rutherfordton, NC (317th in Nation; 56th at PF) LAST YEAR: 16.5 PPG, 3.8 RPG, 2.3 APG, 0.50 SPG, 0.46 BPG, 25.8 MPG - Kobe Wright ***, PF/SF, 6'6", 240lbs, Philadelphia, PA (358th in Nation; 66th at PF) LAST YEAR: 15.3 PPG, 13.3 RPG, 4.6 APG, 1.17 SPG, 0.62 BPG, 26.7 MPG I call and scout both players and honestly, neither looks super intriguing. PHASE FIVE ACTIONS (POWER FORWARDS) - Shaun Rakocevic: 3rd Call, 2nd Scout, ** VISITING CAMPUS **, ** CONSIDERING SCHOLARSHIP **, ** MAJOR PITCH ** - Kellen Abell: 3rd Call - Darren Suggs: 3rd Call, Scout - Evan Piatowski: 3rd Call, 2nd Scout, Coach Visit, Offer Campus Visit, Offer Starting Job - Dave Westerfield: 2nd Call, 2nd Scout - Quan Westerfield: Call, Scout - Kobe Wright: Call, Scout SMALL FORWARDS LAST PHASE ACTIONS - Liam Pipkens: 2nd Call, Scout, Offer Campus Visit, Offer Scholarship - Marvin Bessick: Call, Scout, Coach Visit, Offer Scholarship, Offer Starting Job I'm STUNNED that Pipkens has accepted a scholarship from High Point over us. Wow...didn't see that coming at all. They were in one week ahead of us so I guess that won out in the end. Very disappointing. Bessick was a pipe dream and he tells us in no uncertain terms that he's not interested in coming to Buffalo so he's off my call list as well. So, starting from scratch at SF once again, I add two players to my list: - Phil Lampley ***, SF, 6'6", 199lbs, Chester, PA (137th in Nation; 30th at SF) LAST YEAR: 24.2 PPG, 3.4 RPG, 4.4 APG, 0.61 SPG, 0.75 BPG, 28.2 MPG - Adrian Neely ***, SF/PF, 6'8", 214lbs, Thayer, MS (410th in Nation; 74th at SF) LAST YEAR: 15.4 PPG, 9.5 RPG, 2.1 APG, 1.21 SPG, 1.00 BPG, 26.0 MPG I honestly should have been on Lampley in the last stage. He seems perfect for us and my scouts absolutely love him. I don't have a scholarship to offer him but I send my coach to visit him, offer him a campus visit and tell him I'd envision him starting if he came here. I also call and scout Neely and he doesn't grade out well from my scouts so I don't anticipate pursuing him much further. PHASE FIVE ACTIONS (SMALL FORWARDS) - Phil Lampley: Call, Scout, Coach Visit, Offer Campus Visit, Offer Starting Job - Adrian Neely: Call, Scout SHOOTING GUARD LAST PHASE ACTIONS - Jimmie Bell: Call, Scout, Coach Visit, Offer Scholarship, Offer Starting Job - Joe Corner: Call, Scout Bell's interest moves up to Average (from Low) so I scout him again but I doubt I'll get him, as I'm ranked 3rd out of the three teams he's interested in. I send my coach to visit the intriguing Corner as a backup - Corner has two teams chasing him right now. I also add one more shooting guard to our call list: - Isaac Galloway ***, SG/PG, 6'3", 182lbs, Mount Desert, Maine (342nd in Nation; 49th at SG) LAST YEAR: 17.5 PPG, 3.4 RPG, 9.9 APG, 1.25 SPG, 0.50 BPG, 26.9 MPG I scout Galloway and he's quite the sharpshooter. Seeing that I won't be getting Bell, I decide to use a scholarship here and offer him a starting job as well. Galloway has three teams chasing him right now, not including us. PHASE FIVE ACTIONS (SHOOTING GUARDS) - Jimmie Bell: 2nd Call, 2nd Scout, Coach Visit, ** CONSIDERING SCHOLARSHIP **, Offer Starting Job - Joe Corner: 2nd Call, Coach Visit - Isaac Galloway: Call, Scout, Offer Scholarship, Offer Starting Job POINT GUARD LAST PHASE ACTIONS - Benjamin Cokley: 2nd Call, 2nd Scout, Offer Campus Visit, ** CONSIDERING SCHOLARSHIP **, Offer Starting Job - Alan Small: Call, Scout, Coach Visit, Offer Starting Job - Jared Bishop: Call, Scout - Scott Winter: Call, Scout - Louis Hymon: Call - Raven Elmore: Call So a bit of good news sees that Cokley is visiting our campus this week, a positive sign! However, we have now dropped to third on his list of five teams that are chasing him. The only thing I can do right now is scout him and keep him on our call list, as I've offered everything else that I can here. It's not looking good. Small has us ranked fourth out of the five teams chasing him so that's a lost cause while Bishop's interest in us drops. With four schools chasing him, I don't see us pursuing him much longer. We also placed calls last week to Winter, Hymon and Elmore - Winter has five schools chasing him while Hymon has two. Elmore is off the table, having just committed to Florida State. I add another intriguing player to the mix: - Jontray Zeyen ***, PG, 6'6", 181lbs, Rochester, NY (171st in Nation; 40th at PG) LAST YEAR: 19.5 PPG, 3.5 RPG, 1.9 APG, 0.81 SPG, 0.42 BPG, 28.4 MPG So this is a confusing one for me. Zeyen is showing "High" interest in Buffalo but there is absolutely no way he's been high on us prior to this, otherwise I would have scouted him! He's from nearby Rochester and my scouts are DROOLING over him. So this interest has come out of nowhere. He's got three teams chasing him right now so I go full monty with him, sending my coach to see him, offering a campus visit, offering a scholarship and offering the starting job, as I don't think I'm getting Cokley now anyway. PHASE FIVE ACTIONS (POINT GUARDS) - Benjamin Cokley: 3rd Call, 3rd Scout, Coach Visit, ** VISITING CAMPUS **, ** CONSIDERING SCHOLARSHIP **, Offer Starting Job - Alan Small: 2nd Call, Coach Visit, Offer Starting Job - Jared Bishop: 2nd Call - Scott Winter: 2nd Call - Louis Hymon: 2nd Call, Scout - Jontray Zeyen: Call, Scout, Coach Visit, Offer Campus Visit, Offer Scholarship, Offer Starting Job PHASE FIVE SUMMARY AND THOUGHTS - Well, we secured our first commitment and it was at a major position of need. But I feel like we're going in circles a bit and basically playing the contingency game right now. It doesn't seem to be working well. Here are the six scholarship offers out there right now: PF Cristiano ** COMMITTED TO BUFFALO ** PF Rakocevic SG Bell SG Galloway PG Cokley PG Zeyen We're still first on Rakocevic's list but I thought he would have committed by now. Bell looks to be a lost cause but he is still letting us dangle in the wind for now. Galloway looks to be another shot in the dark, as he only has average interest in us. Cokley is visiting our campus but I'm still ranked third on his list behind a top school (which hasn't offered him a scholarship) and Marshall, who has. I'm worried that won't come through for me as a result. Zeyen looks incredible but three teams are ahead of us on the pecking order. I feel like I'm failing at this right now. I seem to be one step behind in every phase so far... At this point, the only player I have any confidence in getting is Rakocevic yet I can still see a scenario where he gets a better offer and ditches us. Recruiting is tough!
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MY CURRENT FM19 DYNASTY - FM19: "Ludere causa Ludendi - To Play for the Sake of Playing" - Queen's Park FC (Scottish League Two) MY OLD FM11 DYNASTY - FM11: From Semi-Pro Minnows to the EPL - Dover Athletic FC My Personal Blog - Now on the Tee - Golf, Sports, Poker, Life 2006 GOLDEN SCRIBE AWARD WINNER FOR BEST 'OTHER SPORT' DYNASTY - EHM2005: Sharpening Swords in Buffalo Last edited by NoSkillz : 05-13-2020 at 12:21 AM. |
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05-17-2020, 05:43 PM
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#8 |
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College Benchwarmer
Join Date: Dec 2002
Location: St. Catharines, Canada
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2029 Offseason
Recruiting (PHASE SIX) CENTERS LAST PHASE ACTIONS - - Kameron Corchiani: Call, Scout, Coach Visit Phase five ends with "Hat Day", the day all of the remaining 5* recruits announce their commitments by taking one of three hats during the CJBL podcast. As a lowly mid-major, we aren't in on any five star prospects but hoped that some of our recruits would commit after this phase. We had no scholarship offers out on centers last stage and the only one on our call list, Kameron Corchiani, commits to UNC Wilmington at the end of phase five so we are once again starting from zero at the position. We go hunting for hidden gems and add four centers to our call list: - Alphonso Zabo **, C, 7'1", 256lbs, Manchester, TN (529th in Nation; 132nd at C) LAST YEAR: 23.3 PPG, 9.3 RPG, 2.1 APG, 0.54 SPG, 0.88 BPG, 28.8 MPG - Maurice Moiso ***, C, 6'10", 248lbs, Lilburn, GA (408th in Nation; 107th at C) LAST YEAR: 10.7 PPG, 4.3 RPG, 1.7 APG, 0.52 SPG, 0.89 BPG, 27.0 MPG - Devin Middleton ***, C, 7'0", 250lbs, Scotch Plains, NJ (216th in Nation; 57th at C) LAST YEAR: 15.1 PPG, 6.9 RPG, 2.1 APG, 0.50 SPG, 0.88 BPG, 27.9 MPG - Damontez Walton **, C, 6'11", 263lbs, Warren, OH (564th in Nation; 141st at C) LAST YEAR: 16.9 PPG, 10.8 RPG, 1.9 APG, 0.40 SPG, 2.23 BPG, 28.5 MPG I place token calls with Moiso, Middleton and Walton but Zabo is extremely interesting, as I make my first foray into 2* (aka: bargain bin) territory. A monster with a freakish wingspan, Zabo was one of the most productive centers in the nation last year, averaging over 23 points per game. My scouts think he's a 3* player and he's got some interesting attributes. I send my coach to visit him. PHASE SIX ACTIONS (CENTERS) - - Alphonso Zabo: Call, Scout, Coach Visit - Maurice Moiso: Call - Devin Middleton: Call - Damontez Walton: Call POWER FORWARDS LAST PHASE ACTIONS - Shaun Rakocevic: 3rd Call, 2nd Scout, ** VISITING CAMPUS **, ** CONSIDERING SCHOLARSHIP **, ** MAJOR PITCH ** - Kellen Abell: 3rd Call - Darren Suggs: 3rd Call, Scout - Evan Piatowski: 3rd Call, 2nd Scout, Coach Visit, Offer Campus Visit, Offer Starting Job - Dave Westerfield: 2nd Call, 2nd Scout - Quan Westerfield: Call, Scout - Kobe Wright: Call, Scout Some more good news, as we get our second recruit! Please welcome Shaun Rakocevic to Buffalo! This hybrid PF/C was the beneficiary of our "Major Pitch" and spent a couple weeks exploring the campus before finally committing. He's more of a defensive player and my scouts feel he's best suited to playing the five, which means he would be battling incumbent Jordan Gailey for playing time. Regardless, with Rakocevic and Matt Cristiano committing, we are in good shape with our big men now. Now, in the "embarrassment of riches" category, I find out that 4* PF Evan Piatowski has accepted our campus visit offer and is in Buffalo right now! Do we really need him now that we have Rakocevic and Cristiano (along with sophomore Gailey)? Perhaps not but I've gotten this far so I offer him a scholarship now that he's here in Buffalo. He's gone from Below Average to Above Average interest over the past few weeks...I'm currently ranked 3rd of the 5 teams chasing him but that was before I offered the scholarship. As for the others, Abell still hasn't made a decision but is down to two teams, down from four last week. I scout him again and send a coach to visit him. Darren Suggs is off the market, having committed to Boston University. Dave Westerfield, Quan Westerfield and Kobe Wright are all still out there - I send a coach to visit the 4* Dave Westerfield and keep the others on my call list. I also add two more to the call list for power forwards: - Carlbe Woods ***, PF, 6'10", 249lbs, Chillicothe, MS (288th in Nation; 49th at PF) LAST YEAR: 15.9 PPG, 11.5 RPG, 2.2 APG, 0.52 SPG, 2.31 BPG, 26.7 MPG - Reco Scott **, PF, 6'9", 239lbs, Columbus, OH (678th in Nation; 147th at PF) LAST YEAR: 23.8 PPG, 5.8 RPG, 1.8 APG, 0.39 SPG, 0.54 BPG, 26.4 MPG I call and scout Woods, who my scouts call a "jump shooting four" and just call the 2* Scott, who was very prolific last year in high school. PHASE SIX ACTIONS (POWER FORWARDS) - Kellen Abell: 4th Call, 2nd Scout, Coach Visit - Evan Piatowski: 4th Call, 3rd Scout, Coach Visit, ** VISITING CAMPUS **, Offer Starting Job, Offer Scholarship - Dave Westerfield: 3rd Call, 3rd Scout, Coach Visit - Quan Westerfield: 2nd Call, 2nd Scout - Kobe Wright: 2nd Call, 2nd Scout - Carlbe Woods: Call, Scout - Reco Scott: Call SMALL FORWARDS LAST PHASE ACTIONS - Phil Lampley: Call, Scout, Coach Visit, Offer Campus Visit, Offer Starting Job - Adrian Neely: Call, Scout I seem to be hopelessly behind on solid SF talent and once again, I'm left holding an empty bag, as Lampley rejects my campus visit offer and commits to VCU. Adrian Neely has one team after him right now in Alabama so I'm likely not getting anywhere with him. I still scout him again. We add three players to our call list at the small forward position: - Patrick Matthews ***, SF, 6'9", 218lbs, Tampa, FL (361st in Nation; 68th at SF) LAST YEAR: 18.5 PPG, 4.0 RPG, 1.7 APG, 0.52 SPG, 0.44 BPG, 27.4 MPG - Sammis McLemore ***, SF/PF, 6'8", 205lbs, Nappanee, IN (164th in Nation; 33rd at SF) LAST YEAR: 16.3 PPG, 10.6 RPG, 4.7 APG, 1.07 SPG, 1.93 BPG, 28.2 MPG - Zach Polite ***, SF, 6'5", 218lbs, Woodbridge, VA (397th in Nation; 73rd at SF) LAST YEAR: 16.3 PPG, 3.6 RPG, 4.8 APG, 0.66 SPG, 0.45 BPG, 26.6 MPG Matthews is interesting - he went to the same high school as Benjamin Cokley, the PG who is currently visiting our campus. I call, scout and offer him a campus visit as well. But Sammis McLemore looks to be really good, a 3* recruit who grades as a 4* talent by our scouts. I go full monty with him: call, scout, coach visit, campus visit, starting job offer and scholarship offer. He only has lukewarm interest in us so this would be a shock if I can get him. I just call the 3* Polite, as he has five teams already on his radar. PHASE SIX ACTIONS (SMALL FORWARDS) - Adrian Neely: 2nd Call, 2nd Scout - Patrick Matthews: Call, Scout, Offer Campus Visit - Sammis McLemore: Call, Scout, Coach Visit, Offer Campus Visit, Offer Starting Job, Offer Scholarship - Zach Polite: Call SHOOTING GUARD LAST PHASE ACTIONS - Jimmie Bell: 2nd Call, 2nd Scout, Coach Visit, ** CONSIDERING SCHOLARSHIP **, Offer Starting Job - Joe Corner: 2nd Call, Coach Visit - Isaac Galloway: Call, Scout, Offer Scholarship, Offer Starting Job Bell was considering our scholarship offer but we were ranked 3rd of the 3 teams chasing him, so it's no surprise to see that he commits to Dayton, who were in on him early. Joe Corner is also gone, having committed to Temple. We also offered a scholarship to Isaac Galloway but he tells us to stick it and eliminates us from consideration. I take him off our call list and we are starting from scratch here as well. So I add three to our call list: - Henrik Braxton ***, SG/SF, 6'2", 186lbs, Latham, NY (192nd in Nation; 30th at SG) LAST YEAR: 15.6 PPG, 10.2 RPG, 4.8 APG, 0.97 SPG, 0.33 BPG, 28.2 MPG - Glenn Keith **, SG, 6'4", 195lbs, Chaumont, NY (607th in Nation; 102nd at SG) LAST YEAR: 21.4 PPG, 9.1 RPG, 1.8 APG, 2.47 SPG, 0.53 BPG, 26.8 MPG - Tashawn Cohen **, SG/PG, 6'0", 203lbs, Forest City, AK (647th in Nation; 108th at SG) LAST YEAR: 17.6 PPG, 3.7 RPG, 4.2 APG, 0.50 SPG, 0.53 BPG, 26.8 MPG I call and scout Braxton and he grades well as a finishing wing. I decide to send a coach to talk to him to raise his interest from "Above Average", while also offering a campus visit, offering a scholarship and a starting job. He's got two teams chasing him right now. I just call the 2* Keith and Cohen for now. PHASE SIX ACTIONS (SHOOTING GUARDS) - Henrik Braxton: Call, Scout, Coach Visit, Offer Campus Visit, Offer Scholarship, Offer Starting Job - Glenn Keith: Call - Tashawn Cohen: Call POINT GUARD LAST PHASE ACTIONS - Benjamin Cokley: 3rd Call, 3rd Scout, Coach Visit, ** VISITING CAMPUS **, ** CONSIDERING SCHOLARSHIP **, Offer Starting Job - Alan Small: 2nd Call, Coach Visit, Offer Starting Job - Jared Bishop: 2nd Call - Scott Winter: 2nd Call - Louis Hymon: 2nd Call, Scout - Jontray Zeyen: Call, Scout, Coach Visit, Offer Campus Visit, Offer Scholarship, Offer Starting Job We were ranked 3rd on his list of five teams before phase five was run but somehow, someway, we get the incredible news that Benjamin Cokley has committed to Buffalo! We have our starting point guard!!! He wasn't very prolific in high school but my scouts grade him as a 3.5 star talent with great quickness. He should work very well with junior PG Cole Relvao in our backcourt. Exciting! The pressure is now completely off at this position, as we're essentially set. Small is still trying to decide his future but we are off his five school list at this point. No worries man! Bishop is also still deciding while Scott Winter and Louis Hymon make decisions, committing to Columbia and Northern Iowa respectively. We had gone hard after Jontray Zeyen in the last phase but he is not interested in us anymore so we take him off our call list. We don't add anyone new to our call list at point guard. PHASE SIX ACTIONS (POINT GUARDS) - Alan Small: 3rd Call, Coach Visit, Offer Starting Job - Jared Bishop: 3rd Call PHASE SIX SUMMARY AND THOUGHTS - We get two more commitments and the three really key spots we needed to fill in recruiting are locked up, taking some pressure off us. I still need one more big man but otherwise, I can just look for the best player available with our other scholarships. Here are the six scholarship offers out there right now: PF Cristiano ** COMMITTED TO BUFFALO ** PF Rakocevic ** COMMITTED TO BUFFALO ** PG Cokley ** COMMITTED TO BUFFALO ** SG Braxton SF McLemore PF Piatowksi I'm stunned to still be in the race for the talented Piatowski and he's currently enjoying a tour at our campus. He would be an incredible addition to our school but with Cristiano already committed, it's not a big deal if he doesn't accept the offer. That said, we still need another big man so I'd love it if it's him. McLemore is a bit of a dream at this stage, as he's been chased for weeks by other schools and I'm coming in late trying to snipe him. Braxton is more of a possibility, as he has a decent level of interest in us. Regardless, it's been a good week for us and most of the pressure is off as we begin the second half of the recruiting season.
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MY CURRENT FM19 DYNASTY - FM19: "Ludere causa Ludendi - To Play for the Sake of Playing" - Queen's Park FC (Scottish League Two) MY OLD FM11 DYNASTY - FM11: From Semi-Pro Minnows to the EPL - Dover Athletic FC My Personal Blog - Now on the Tee - Golf, Sports, Poker, Life 2006 GOLDEN SCRIBE AWARD WINNER FOR BEST 'OTHER SPORT' DYNASTY - EHM2005: Sharpening Swords in Buffalo |
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05-17-2020, 08:16 PM
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#9 |
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College Benchwarmer
Join Date: Dec 2002
Location: St. Catharines, Canada
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2029 Offseason
Recruiting (PHASE SEVEN) CENTERS LAST PHASE ACTIONS - - Alphonso Zabo: Call, Scout, Coach Visit - Maurice Moiso: Call - Devin Middleton: Call - Damontez Walton: Call Zabo's interest climbs to "Below Average" from Low after our coach's visit. I scout him again and see nothing different but up the ante with a campus visit offer and a scholarship offer as well. There are five teams he's interested in and we are ranked at the bottom of the list for now. He's getting interest from big schools as well, as the top programs are now also going bargain hunting... I call and scout Moiso here but my interest is lukewarm, as I don't need another defensive big man. Middleton commits to Manhattan, a nice pickup for that small school and I decide to scout Walton, who is only considered a backup five. I add two more centres to my call list prior to phase 7: - Travis Nehls ***, C, 6'11", 229lbs, East Dubuque, IL (436th in Nation; 116th at C) LAST YEAR: 9.5 PPG, 10.5 RPG, 2.5 APG, 0.47 SPG, 1.93 BPG, 26.9 MPG - Shakaris Tejada ***, C, 6'7", 261lbs, Lugoff, SC (498th in Nation; 124th at C) LAST YEAR: 12.9 PPG, 10.4 RPG, 2.2 APG, 0.53 SPG, 2.44 BPG, 26.8 MPG PHASE SEVEN ACTIONS (CENTERS) - - Alphonso Zabo: 2nd Call, 2nd Scout, Coach Visit, Offer Campus Visit, Offer Scholarship - Maurice Moiso: 2nd Call, Scout - Damontez Walton: 2nd Call, Scout - Travis Nehls: Call - Shakaris Tejada: Call POWER FORWARDS LAST PHASE ACTIONS - Kellen Abell: 4th Call, 2nd Scout, Coach Visit - Evan Piatowski: 4th Call, 3rd Scout, Coach Visit, ** VISITING CAMPUS **, Offer Starting Job, Offer Scholarship - Dave Westerfield: 3rd Call, 3rd Scout, Coach Visit - Quan Westerfield: 2nd Call, 2nd Scout - Kobe Wright: 2nd Call, 2nd Scout - Carlbe Woods: Call, Scout - Reco Scott: Call We're in good shape here already with two power forwards already committed in Matt Cristiano and Shaun Rakocevic. However, we've got 4* recruit Evan Piatowksi visiting our campus and we were hoping for the best. Unfortunately, a bunch of big schools started sniffing around him after losing out on the 5* talent and Piatowski ends up committing to Oklahoma, ending our romance. As for the others, Abell continues to hold out on making a decision. We sent our coach to visit him last week - my scouts like him, originally saying he was a 3.5 star "Energy/motor four" but after a third scouting visit, he's down to 3 stars again but looks like he has the intangibles you'd want in a backup big man. I decide after five phases of watching him to finally offer a campus visit and a scholarship. Surprisingly enough, 4* recruit Dave Westerfield is still out there. His interest in our program is up to "Average" from "Low" but knowing what I know now about recruiting, and seeing that I'm fourth out of the four schools he's interested in, I don't pursue him much further, as my chances of getting him are slim at this point. Quan Westerfield AND Carlbe Woods commit to Mississippi State while Kobe Wright is off to Fairfield. The high scoring 2* Reco Scott still has no other schools sniffing around him so I send my coach to visit him. I also add three more power forwards to our call list: - Devin Moravek **, PF, 6'7", 213lbs, Millbrook, NY (533rd in Nation; 120th at PF) LAST YEAR: 15.0 PPG, 5.4 RPG, 2.8 APG, 0.52 SPG, 0.41 BPG, 26.6 MPG - Nick Danielson ***, PF, 6'9", 242lbs, Mineral Point, WI (461st in Nation; 94th at PF) LAST YEAR: 13.3 PPG, 10.8 RPG, 2.3 APG, 0.67 SPG, 2.58 BPG, 27.0 MPG - Admassu McWilliams ***, PF, 6'10", 225lbs, Tampa, FL (486th in Nation; 106th at PF) LAST YEAR: 14.4 PPG, 6.4 RPG, 2.0 APG, 0.36 SPG, 0.36 BPG, 27.3 MPG PHASE SEVEN ACTIONS (POWER FORWARDS) - Kellen Abell: 5th Call, 3rd Scout, Coach Visit, Offer Campus Visit, Offer Scholarship - Dave Westerfield: 4th Call, 4th Scout, Coach Visit - Reco Scott: 2nd Call, Scout, Coach Visit - Devin Moravek: Call - Nick Danielson: Call - Admassu McWilliams: Call SMALL FORWARDS LAST PHASE ACTIONS - Adrian Neely: 2nd Call, 2nd Scout - Patrick Matthews: Call, Scout, Offer Campus Visit - Sammis McLemore: Call, Scout, Coach Visit, Offer Campus Visit, Offer Starting Job, Offer Scholarship - Zach Polite: Call Neely and Matthews are gone, with them committing to Alabama and UNC Wilmington respectively. I had gone hard after Sammis McLemore in the last phase but he is unphased, committing to conference rival Western Michigan. Damn!! Zach Polite also is gone, signing with George Mason. We continue to flail away on small forwards. We're in okay shape with the solid Jordan Broderick but we continue to throw out feelers: - Ian Matthews ***, SF, 6'7", 226lbs, Mountain Pine, AK (249th in Nation; 46th at SF) LAST YEAR: 15.7 PPG, 4.0 RPG, 2.4 APG, 0.86 SPG, 0.36 BPG, 28.8 MPG - Ezra Turnage **, SF, 6'4", 196lbs, Wauwatosa, WI (621st in Nation; 109th at SF) LAST YEAR: 22.6 PPG, 3.4 RPG, 1.5 APG, 0.54 SPG, 0.46 BPG, 27.5 MPG - Pietro Graziani ***, SF, 6'5", 218lbs, Italy, INT (422nd in Nation; 76th at SF) LAST YEAR: 14.9 PPG, 3.6 RPG, 4.7 APG, 0.50 SPG, 0.50 BPG, 26.4 MPG - Jalen Okeke **, SF, 6'5", 226lbs, Martinsville, IN (609th in Nation; 107th at SF) LAST YEAR: 16.8 PPG, 5.8 RPG, 1.9 APG, 0.43 SPG, 0.57 BPG, 27.3 MPG - Jake Sears ***, SF, 6'4", 214lbs, Northborough, MA (432nd in Nation; 77th at SF) LAST YEAR: 11.2 PPG, 3.3 RPG, 2.1 APG, 1.14 SPG, 0.45 BPG, 26.9 MPG Matthews has high interest in us but seems far along the recruiting trail with two teams. My scouts like him enough for me to make the full monty offer of coach visit, campus visit and scholarship. My scouts think Turnage is a bit better than his 2* rating and I send my coach to visit him as well while I simply just call the international prospect Graziani, Okeke and Sears. PHASE SEVEN ACTIONS (SMALL FORWARDS) - Ian Matthews: Call, Scout, Coach Visit, Offer Campus Visit, Offer Scholarship - Ezra Turnage: Call, Scout, Coach Visit - Pietro Graziani: Call - Jalen Okeke: Call - Jake Sears: Call SHOOTING GUARD LAST PHASE ACTIONS - Henrik Braxton: Call, Scout, Coach Visit, Offer Campus Visit, Offer Scholarship, Offer Starting Job - Glenn Keith: Call - Tashawn Cohen: Call If there was anyone I was hoping to get in this phase, it was probably Henrik Braxton. However, he declines our campus visit and essentially tells us we're out of the running for his services. He's now off my call list. Keith commits to Manhattan while Cohen signs up with Northwestern State. We add two more to our call list: - Isiaha Saglam ***, SG, 6'8", 196lbs, Baltimore, MD (184th in Nation; 28th at SG) LAST YEAR: 21.0 PPG, 4.6 RPG, 2.1 APG, 2.40 SPG, 0.37 BPG, 27.5 MPG - Omari Flack **, SG, 6'5", 199lbs, Idaho Falls, ID (606th in Nation; 101st at SG) LAST YEAR: 20.4 PPG, 4.1 RPG, 2.0 APG, 0.87 SPG, 0.47 BPG, 26.8 MPG Saglam looks awesome and he has "High" interest in us but I know that I have no shot - he's already rejected 20+ schools and I'm not getting him at this point so I just put him on my call list, along with Flack. PHASE SEVEN ACTIONS (SHOOTING GUARDS) - Isiaha Saglam: Call - Omari Flack: Call POINT GUARD LAST PHASE ACTIONS - Alan Small: 3rd Call, Coach Visit, Offer Starting Job - Jared Bishop: 3rd Call We're basically set at point guard but had a couple of old recruiting possibilities waiting to commit. Small finally commits to Richmond while Bishop is off to Memphis. Just for kicks, I throw one guy on my call list: PHASE SEVEN ACTIONS (POINT GUARDS) - Isaiah Gibbs: Call PHASE SEVEN SUMMARY AND THOUGHTS - So we swung and missed at everyone we were looking at in the last stage, missing out on Evan Piatowski and also Henrik Braxton. At this point, we're essentially playing with house money - I need one more big man but I can afford to reach for the stars for at least one more stage before I likely need to start looking to settle. Here are the six scholarship offers out there right now: PF Cristiano ** COMMITTED TO BUFFALO ** PF Rakocevic ** COMMITTED TO BUFFALO ** PG Cokley ** COMMITTED TO BUFFALO ** SF Ian Matthews PF Abell C Zabo At this point, I'm really hoping to get the center, Zabo. He's a high scorer and I think he'd compliment our incumbent Jordan Gailey (a defense-first center) really well. That would allow me to split the power forward spot with freshmen Cristiano (offensive four) and Rakocevic (defensive guy). I don't expect to get Ian Matthews, as I'm in too late on him and I don't know about Abell - I've been tracking him since the beginning but I think I'm coming in too late on him as well. We'll see what happens...
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MY CURRENT FM19 DYNASTY - FM19: "Ludere causa Ludendi - To Play for the Sake of Playing" - Queen's Park FC (Scottish League Two) MY OLD FM11 DYNASTY - FM11: From Semi-Pro Minnows to the EPL - Dover Athletic FC My Personal Blog - Now on the Tee - Golf, Sports, Poker, Life 2006 GOLDEN SCRIBE AWARD WINNER FOR BEST 'OTHER SPORT' DYNASTY - EHM2005: Sharpening Swords in Buffalo Last edited by NoSkillz : 05-17-2020 at 08:19 PM. |
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05-17-2020, 08:58 PM
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#10 |
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College Benchwarmer
Join Date: Dec 2002
Location: St. Catharines, Canada
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2029 Offseason
Recruiting (PHASE EIGHT) CENTERS LAST PHASE ACTIONS - - Alphonso Zabo: 2nd Call, 2nd Scout, Coach Visit, Offer Campus Visit, Offer Scholarship - Maurice Moiso: 2nd Call, Scout - Damontez Walton: 2nd Call, Scout - Travis Nehls: Call - Shakaris Tejada: Call Zabo is the guy I want the most in this stage but he has chosen not to accept our campus offer, which isn't a good omen. I've moved up to fourth place on his preference list but there are now seven teams in the running, including some huge programs like Marquette. His interest also remains at below average. The only thing I can do at this point to increase his interest in me is to keep calling and scouting him, which is easy. But I'm not willing to offer him a starting job so I'm pretty much of the belief that I will not be able to win him over at this point. As for the others, Moiso commits to Saint Louis while Damontez Walton is now seen as having high interest in us, up from above average. I'm not really interested in him though so I just call and scout him again. Meanwhile, Nehls and Tejada are both off the market, having committed to Northwestern and Miami (Florida) respectively. I add one more centre to my call list prior to phase 8: - Steve McLane **, C, 6'10", 242lbs, Miami, FL (506th in Nation; 128th at C) LAST YEAR: 12.0 PPG, 6.6 RPG, 2.2 APG, 0.71 SPG, 1.86 BPG, 27.8 MPG I call and scout McLane, who grades out as a post five. PHASE EIGHT ACTIONS (CENTERS) - - Alphonso Zabo: 3rd Call, 3rd Scout, Coach Visit, *Declines* Campus Visit, Offer Scholarship - Damontez Walton: 3rd Call, 2nd Scout - Steve McLane: Call, Scout POWER FORWARDS LAST PHASE ACTIONS - Kellen Abell: 5th Call, 3rd Scout, Coach Visit, Offer Campus Visit, Offer Scholarship - Dave Westerfield: 4th Call, 4th Scout, Coach Visit - Reco Scott: 2nd Call, Scout, Coach Visit - Devin Moravek: Call - Nick Danielson: Call - Admassu McWilliams: Call So after four stages of foreplay, I finally offered Kellen Abell a scholarship in phase seven and he just flat out rejects me. Ha. I had it coming. He still hasn't committed but he's cut his list to his top two choices so we're out. He's off my call list now. Dave Westerfield is off to Arkansas. Reco Scott is now up to "Very High" interest and I offer him a campus visit. My scouts think he's a 2.5 star player and we're still the only school looking at him. That said, I'm not prepared to offer him a scholarship just yet... The other three guys added to my call list last week all commit to other schools. Moravek is off to Presbyterian, Danielson signs with Fordham and McWilliams is headed to Western Kentucky. I add two more to my call list for power forwards: - Daniel Borgman **, PF, 6'6", 249lbs, Rock Valley, IA (507th in Nation; 111th at PF) LAST YEAR: 11.8 PPG, 10.7 RPG, 2.4 APG, 0.71 SPG, 1.04 BPG, 26.9 MPG - Edmond Tarkanian **, PF, 6'7", 217lbs, Racine, WI (643rd in Nation; 139th at PF) LAST YEAR: 19.8 PPG, 7.0 RPG, 2.1 APG, 0.47 SPG, 0.37 BPG, 26.8 MPG I call and scout Borgman and I get a huge laugh when my scouts call him a "Lob-catching four". They basically hate him - they rate him 2.5 stars but he's essentially got C's and D's across the board and it literally looks like the only thing he can do is catch the ball. Hilarious! I'll pass... Meanwhile, my scouts like the 2* Tarkanian, grading him out as a 3 star "offensive four", similar to Matt Cristiano. He was excellent in high school so I decide to go full monty on him, sending my coach to improve his interest from its current "Below Average", offering a campus visit and offering a scholarship. PHASE EIGHT ACTIONS (POWER FORWARDS) - Reco Scott: 3rd Call, 2nd Scout, Coach Visit, Offer Campus Visit - Daniel Borgman: Call, Scout - Edmond Tarkanian: Call, Scout, Coach Visit, Offer Campus Visit, Offer Scholarship SMALL FORWARDS LAST PHASE ACTIONS - Ian Matthews: Call, Scout, Coach Visit, Offer Campus Visit, Offer Scholarship - Ezra Turnage: Call, Scout, Coach Visit - Pietro Graziani: Call - Jalen Okeke: Call - Jake Sears: Call As expected, I was simply too late on Ian Matthews and he's off to Rutgers despite my sniping attempts in phase seven. Ezra Turnage is up to very high interest in us. I'm guessing this is another long-shot, as we're ranked 3rd out of the five schools interested but I decide to offer him a campus visit and a scholarship. As for the other three guys on our call list, Graziani commits to Miami (Florida) while Sears is off to Seton Hall. Jalen Okeke only has one offer in from Chicago State and I'm not interested in pursuing him any further beyond keeping him on the call list. We add one guy to our call list: - Payton Walden **, SF, 6'7", 222lbs, Fort Myers, FL (554th in Nation; 99th at SF) LAST YEAR: 14.1 PPG, 3.4 RPG, 1.9 APG, 0.48 SPG, 0.58 BPG, 28.1 MPG I decide to call and scout Walden and the scouts like him - he grades as a 2.5 star Finishing wing. I send my coach to visit him, just in case. PHASE EIGHT ACTIONS (SMALL FORWARDS) - Ezra Turnage: 2nd Call, 2nd Scout, Coach Visit, Offer Campus Visit, Offer Scholarship - Jalen Okeke: 2nd Call - Payton Walden: Call, Scout, Coach Visit SHOOTING GUARD LAST PHASE ACTIONS - Isiaha Saglam: Call - Omari Flack: Call As expected, Saglam finally makes a decision and is off to South Carolina while Flack commits to Cal Poly. We currently have five shooting guards on our roster and there's no one really good enough to supplant our starter so I decide to pass on adding anyone new at this position to my call list this week. PHASE EIGHT ACTIONS (SHOOTING GUARDS) - NONE POINT GUARD LAST PHASE ACTIONS - Isaiah Gibbs: Call Similar to shooting guard, we are all set at the point as well. Gibbs is still out there and we keep him on the call list but I don't even scout him. He won't be coming to Buffalo. PHASE EIGHT ACTIONS (POINT GUARDS) - Isaiah Gibbs: 2nd Call PHASE EIGHT SUMMARY AND THOUGHTS - We're getting close to the end of recruiting and I'm basically looking at the bottom of the barrel for hidden gems. Here are the six scholarship offers out there right now: PF Cristiano ** COMMITTED TO BUFFALO ** PF Rakocevic ** COMMITTED TO BUFFALO ** PG Cokley ** COMMITTED TO BUFFALO ** SF Turnage PF Tarkanian C Zabo Zabo is the guy I want the most but while I'm still in the official running for him, I just don't see him committing to Buffalo after not accepting a campus visit. I'm guessing a big school will get him after this phase is run. I'm also a stage or two too late on Turnage but we'll see. As for Tarkanian, I'm the only school interested at this point but his interest is below average so it might take one more stage for him to make a decision. We're running out of time!
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MY CURRENT FM19 DYNASTY - FM19: "Ludere causa Ludendi - To Play for the Sake of Playing" - Queen's Park FC (Scottish League Two) MY OLD FM11 DYNASTY - FM11: From Semi-Pro Minnows to the EPL - Dover Athletic FC My Personal Blog - Now on the Tee - Golf, Sports, Poker, Life 2006 GOLDEN SCRIBE AWARD WINNER FOR BEST 'OTHER SPORT' DYNASTY - EHM2005: Sharpening Swords in Buffalo Last edited by NoSkillz : 05-17-2020 at 08:59 PM. |
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05-17-2020, 09:44 PM
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#11 |
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College Benchwarmer
Join Date: Dec 2002
Location: St. Catharines, Canada
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2029 Offseason
Recruiting (PHASE NINE) ** NOTE: Normally, there are ten phases to recruiting in the CJBL but the commish announced that for the 2029 season, we're cutting it off at phase nine. So this will be my final chance to add to the roster. CENTERS LAST PHASE ACTIONS - - Alphonso Zabo: 3rd Call, 3rd Scout, Coach Visit, *Declines* Campus Visit, Offer Scholarship - Damontez Walton: 3rd Call, 2nd Scout - Steve McLane: Call, Scout Zabo has essentially been stringing us along for the last few phases and indeed, he ends up signing with Marquette, a fine choice. Walton signs with Indiana State. McLane has no one interested in him other than me at this point but my scouts aren't super high on him. I decide to take him off my call list and go with the two centers I have on my roster in Jordan Gailey and freshman big Shaun Rakocevic. PHASE NINE ACTIONS (CENTERS) - - NONE POWER FORWARDS LAST PHASE ACTIONS - Reco Scott: 3rd Call, 2nd Scout, Coach Visit, Offer Campus Visit - Daniel Borgman: Call, Scout - Edmond Tarkanian: Call, Scout, Coach Visit, Offer Campus Visit, Offer Scholarship Reco Scott accepts our offer to visit the campus and is in Buffalo now. However, there is bad news that awaits him, as we end up getting a quick commitment from Edmond Tarkanian, a 6'7" native of Racine, Wisconsin. Tarkanian has a similar game to Matt Cristiano, our first commit from this year's recruiting class so I feel very comfortable having the two of them pair up at the #4 position. As a result, I have to tell poor Reco Scott that he can have a look around, maybe grab lunch in the cafeteria but after that, grab the next plane home kid! Daniel Borgman is also taken off our call list. I'll be going with four total big men this year. PHASE NINE ACTIONS (POWER FORWARDS) - NONE SMALL FORWARDS LAST PHASE ACTIONS - Ezra Turnage: 2nd Call, 2nd Scout, Coach Visit, Offer Campus Visit, Offer Scholarship - Jalen Okeke: 2nd Call - Payton Walden: Call, Scout, Coach Visit This is essentially the last position I'm trying to fill, as I'd like to keep one scholarship open just in case I want to use it on a transfer next offseason. Unfortunately, Ezra Turnage commits to Valparaiso so it's yet another small forward turning us down. Maybe Jordan Broderick is better than I think...Jalen Okeke also commits to Chicago State but I wasn't really interested in him anyway. I throw a whopping five guys on our call list at the position, as I try in vain to find a hidden gem somewhere: - Cheick Vargas **, SF, 6'5", 197lbs, Delta Junction, AK (724th in Nation; 127th at SF) LAST YEAR: 21.6 PPG, 3.6 RPG, 2.2 APG, 0.92 SPG, 0.73 BPG, 26.5 MPG - Robert Glasper **, SF, 6'7", 200lbs, Portola Valley, CA (734th in Nation; 131st at SF) LAST YEAR: 20.3 PPG, 3.7 RPG, 2.2 APG, 0.59 SPG, 0.56 BPG, 28.8 MPG - Josh Hiepler **, SF, 6'5", 227lbs, Yulee, FL (577th in Nation; 102nd at SF) LAST YEAR: 13.1 PPG, 4.1 RPG, 2.1 APG, 0.57 SPG, 0.47 BPG, 27.0 MPG - Shanon Bryce *, SF, 6'7", 221lbs, Peoria, IL (983rd in Nation; 183rd at SF) LAST YEAR: 21.3 PPG, 3.9 RPG, 7.5 APG, 0.59 SPG, 0.41 BPG, 26.8 MPG - Jahmel Broman *, SF, 6'6", 204lbs, Painesville, OH (809th in Nation; 141st at SF) LAST YEAR: 18.2 PPG, 3.8 RPG, 2.5 APG, 2.50 SPG, 0.69 BPG, 27.1 MPG I call and scout all five of these new additions and Glasper grades out as the best by far, with my scouts calling him a 3* Rotation backup wing. He has three schools already chasing him. Vargas looks okay too, a 2.5 star prospect according to my scouts but he has FIVE teams chasing him. My goodness. In the end, I'm hemming and hawing between Glasper and the one remaining guy from last week, Payton Walden. Walden also has three schools chasing him (and we're third on the list) but no one has offered him a scholarship yet, which isn't the case with Glasper. I also like Walden's intangibles a bit more based on the descriptions I've been given. We decide to offer Walden the final scholarship. If we don't get him, that's okay. PHASE NINE ACTIONS (SMALL FORWARDS) - Payton Walden: 2nd Call, 2nd Scout, Coach Visit, Offer Scholarship - Cheick Vargas: Call, Scout, Coach Visit - Robert Glasper: Call, Scout - Josh Hiepler: Call, Scout - Shanon Bryce: Call, Scout - Jahmel Broman: Call, Scout SHOOTING GUARD LAST PHASE ACTIONS - NONE We're good here but I decide to call and scout one potential hidden gem: - Marcus Salnave *, SG, 5'11", 187lbs, Brooklyn, NY (1893rd in Nation; 326th at SG) LAST YEAR: 20.9 PPG, 3.6 RPG, 7.5 APG, 2.80 SPG, 0.57 BPG, 27.1 MPG Salnave was the highest scoring SG left on the board but talk about a major reach! 1893rd ranked in the class!! Still, my scouts actually like him, rating him a 2.5 star talent but it's not enough for me to offer him a full ride. PHASE NINE ACTIONS (SHOOTING GUARDS) - Marcus Salnave: Call, Scout POINT GUARD LAST PHASE ACTIONS - Isaiah Gibbs: 2nd Call Gibbs commits to Seton Hall. We're good at the point. PHASE NINE ACTIONS (POINT GUARDS) - NONE PHASE NINE SUMMARY AND THOUGHTS - So we secure Edmond Tarkanian and have our four big men. I'm holding one scholarship back for next offseason so for this final stage, I'm just chasing one player: Small Forward Payton Walden. Here are the six scholarship slots as it stands right now: PF Cristiano ** COMMITTED TO BUFFALO ** PF Rakocevic ** COMMITTED TO BUFFALO ** PG Cokley ** COMMITTED TO BUFFALO ** PF Tarkanian ** COMMITTED TO BUFFALO ** SF Walden OPEN SCHOLARSHIP
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MY CURRENT FM19 DYNASTY - FM19: "Ludere causa Ludendi - To Play for the Sake of Playing" - Queen's Park FC (Scottish League Two) MY OLD FM11 DYNASTY - FM11: From Semi-Pro Minnows to the EPL - Dover Athletic FC My Personal Blog - Now on the Tee - Golf, Sports, Poker, Life 2006 GOLDEN SCRIBE AWARD WINNER FOR BEST 'OTHER SPORT' DYNASTY - EHM2005: Sharpening Swords in Buffalo |
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05-18-2020, 08:32 PM
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#12 |
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College Benchwarmer
Join Date: Dec 2002
Location: St. Catharines, Canada
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2029 Offseason
Recruiting Summary No real need to go into a long-winded rundown of the final phase, as we had all of our attention on a single player, SF Payton Walden. Fortunately, we were able to get him to commit to Buffalo so our 2029 Freshman class is all set! 2029 Freshman Class PF Matt Cristiano *** PF/C Shaun Rakocevic *** PG Benjamin Cokley *** PF Edmond Tarkanian ** SF Payton Walden ** We end up with the 99th ranked recruiting class in the nation out of the 354 schools to recruit at least one player. Illinois ranked 1st, recruiting one 5*, three 4* and three 3* players to their school. We fared slightly better in the "average rank" ratings, ranking 75th in the nation. Here are a few more stats for you about Buffalo's recruiting efforts: Total Players Contacted (ie: Call List): 67 Position Breakdown: 9 PG, 9 SG, 19 SF, 17 PF, 13 C Total Players Scouted: 48 Position Breakdown: 7 PG, 5 SG, 14 SF, 13 PF, 9 C Total Coach Visits: 22 Position Breakdown: 4 PG, 3 SG, 7 SF, 6 PF, 2 C Total Campus Visit Offers (Accepted): 18 Offers (7 Accepted) Position Breakdown: 3 (1) PG, 1 (0) SG, 6 (0) SF, 6 (5) PF, 2 (1) C Total Scholarship Offers (Accepted): 20 Offers (5 Accepted) Position Breakdown: 3 (1) PG, 3 (0) SG, 7 (1) SF, 5 (3) PF, 2 (0) C Overall, it was a pretty successful first foray into recruiting. We added players at all of the positions of need and our talent level and depth have both been improved immensely on first glance. Now, it will be important to follow up a successful recruiting period with an equally fruitful training camp. More on that next...
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MY CURRENT FM19 DYNASTY - FM19: "Ludere causa Ludendi - To Play for the Sake of Playing" - Queen's Park FC (Scottish League Two) MY OLD FM11 DYNASTY - FM11: From Semi-Pro Minnows to the EPL - Dover Athletic FC My Personal Blog - Now on the Tee - Golf, Sports, Poker, Life 2006 GOLDEN SCRIBE AWARD WINNER FOR BEST 'OTHER SPORT' DYNASTY - EHM2005: Sharpening Swords in Buffalo |
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05-21-2020, 06:29 PM
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#13 |
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Pro Starter
Join Date: Apr 2003
Location: Alabama
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Good luck with The start of the season!
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Up the Posh! |
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05-29-2020, 02:00 PM
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#14 | |
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College Benchwarmer
Join Date: Dec 2002
Location: St. Catharines, Canada
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Quote:
Thanks! You as well. It's been an interesting first five games...I'm starting to get a better feel for gameplanning as things progress and that's been helpful. But not as helpful as having one of my freshman recruits as the top scorer in the entire nation thus far. Talk about a shock. Cristiano has been sensational... More to come!
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MY CURRENT FM19 DYNASTY - FM19: "Ludere causa Ludendi - To Play for the Sake of Playing" - Queen's Park FC (Scottish League Two) MY OLD FM11 DYNASTY - FM11: From Semi-Pro Minnows to the EPL - Dover Athletic FC My Personal Blog - Now on the Tee - Golf, Sports, Poker, Life 2006 GOLDEN SCRIBE AWARD WINNER FOR BEST 'OTHER SPORT' DYNASTY - EHM2005: Sharpening Swords in Buffalo |
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06-02-2020, 12:01 PM
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#15 |
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College Benchwarmer
Join Date: Dec 2002
Location: St. Catharines, Canada
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Ok, quite a bit to catch up on, as we're currently 8 games into our preseason.
To start with, we were faced with a dilemma during the coach hiring phase. We were happy to stick with head coach Elochukwu Douglas and assistant Vincent Clopton after they led our program to our first conference tournament championship and our first March Madness appearance. However, one of the teams in the JBL, the professional basketball league above us, offered Clopton a big money deal to be an assistant with their organization. Clopton has pretty impressive coaching attributes and I didn't want to lose him, so I ended up offering our head coaching position in a bid to retain him and he accepted. So Douglas was shown the door after just one successful season in charge and it will be Vincent Clopton leading the Bulls in the 2029 season. I then had to hire an assistant and I went with Atakan Sharma, a tactician who shares the same coaching philosophy as Clopton (Perimeter Based offensive system) and seems to compliment him pretty decently. Our coaching team is now set. Now, we had to move onto Training Camp. 2029 - TRAINING CAMP This being my first training camp, I didn't want to overstep and do too much. You have the option to work on two different things/skills for each player during camp. For option one, I selected "Coaches Choice" for every single player but for option two, I tried to select every player's biggest weakness and work on that specifically. Here's a look at how our players fared in camp. For brevity, I'm only going to post the categories that changed for each player: PG Benjamin Cokley, Freshman - Inside Shooting: B- to B - Pick & Roll Execution: B+ to B (down) - Playmaking: B+ to A- - Perimeter Defense: C to C+ - Post Defense: F to E - Stealing: B- to B - Offensive Rebounding: D+ to C - Defensive Rebounding: F to E - Quickness: A to A+ - Strength: C to C+ - Leadership: E to D There is also a consensus among AD's on how to show a cumulative increase or decrease in training camp based on the ratings changes. Cokley's Training Camp score ends up being +21. PG Cole Relvao, Junior - Finishing: C+ to C (down) - Shoot off Dribble: B+ to A- - Playmaking: B to B+ - Offensive Rebounding: D to E (down) - Aggression: B- to B Relvao's training camp score was +8. SG Matthew Cook, Senior - Mid-Range Shooting: B- to B - Pick & Roll Execution: C to C+ - Defensive Rebounding: B to B+ - Offensive Awareness: D to D+ - Strength: B to B- (down) Cook's training camp score was also +8. SG Marko Forbes, Junior - Mid-Range Shooting: D+ to C - Isolation: C to C+ - Stealing: B+ to B (down) Forbes was also a +8 in training camp. SG Bruno Holker, Sophomore - First Step: B- to B Holker didn't do much in camp at all...not a surprise with his D level work ethic. He also went up +8 in camp. SG Mairega Mammel, Senior - Pick & Roll Execution: D to D+ - Strength: B- to C+ (down) - Leadership: B- to B Mammel had our worst Training Camp score at only +1. SG/SF Paulius Davis, Junior - Pick & Roll Execution: D+ to C - Strength: B to B+ Davis had a solid camp for a veteran, moving up +11. SF Jordan Broderick, Sophomore - Shoot off Dribble: F to E - Defensive Awareness: B+ to B (down) - Leadership: D to D+ A very disappointing training camp for the talented Broderick, who only goes +7. SF Elijah Preston, Junior - Mid-Range Shooting: B+ to B (down) - Playmaking: D+ to D (down) - Ball Handling: D+ to D (down) - Perimeter Defense: D to D+ - Blocking: B+ to B (down) - Basketball IQ: B- to B A really ugly camp for Preston as well, who only goes +1, matching Mammel for worst on the team. SF Payton Walden, Freshman - Inside Shooting: C+ to B- - Mid-Range Shooting: B- to B - Self-Creation: B+ to A- - Finishing: B to B+ - Shoot off Dribble: B- to B - Passing: C to C+ - Ball Handling: B to B+ - Blocking: D+ to C - Offensive Rebounding: E to D - Defensive Awareness: D to D+ - Athleticism: B- to B - First Step: B- to B Now that's an awesome training camp! Walden goes a whopping +31 in his first camp, a great result for the last guy we brought into the team at the end of recruiting. PF Matt Cristiano, Freshman - Inside Shooting: B- to B - Mid-Range Shooting: D to D+ - Self-Creation: B- to B - Shoot off Dribble: D to D+ - Passing: E to D - Playmaking: B to B+ - Post Defense: D+ to C - Blocking: A- to A - Offensive Rebounding: B+ to A- - Defensive Rebounding: B to B+ - Defensive Awareness: E to D - Endurance: B+ to A- - First Step: C to C+ - Quickness: D+ to C Wow. Cristiano also has an amazing camp and goes a team-high +32! PF Edmond Tarkanian, Freshman - Inside Shooting: B to B+ - Self-Creation: B to B+ - Post Execution: C+ to B- - Passing: E to D - Ball Handling: D to D+ - Blocking: C to C+ - Endurance: A- to A - First Step: E to D - Quickness: D+ to C - Strength: B+ to A- Tarkanian matches Payton Walden for the second-best camp, going +31. C/PF Jordan Gailey, Sophomore - Self-Creation: B- to B - Shoot off Dribble: F to E - Athleticism: A- to A+ - Quickness: B to B+ Gailey may be our most talented returning player and he goes +12, the highest rated training camp from the returnees. C/PF Shaun Rakocevic, Freshman - Mid-Range Shooting: B+ to A- - Self-Creation: A- to A - Isolation: D to C - Finishing: D to C - Post Defense: B to B+ - Blocking: B to B+ - Defensive Rebounding: A to A+ - Defensive Awareness: B- to B Rakocevic, our highest rated recruit in the class, goes a modest +26 in camp, second worst among our freshman class. Overall Thoughts A solid first training camp for our club under my stewardship. I'm excited about all the first year players and I like what I see from sophomore Jordan Gailey as well. Now, we need to get ready for the start of Non-Conference play...
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MY CURRENT FM19 DYNASTY - FM19: "Ludere causa Ludendi - To Play for the Sake of Playing" - Queen's Park FC (Scottish League Two) MY OLD FM11 DYNASTY - FM11: From Semi-Pro Minnows to the EPL - Dover Athletic FC My Personal Blog - Now on the Tee - Golf, Sports, Poker, Life 2006 GOLDEN SCRIBE AWARD WINNER FOR BEST 'OTHER SPORT' DYNASTY - EHM2005: Sharpening Swords in Buffalo |
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