(2019) SG Armaan Franklin to IU

[HoosierHoops1 5,024]

1 hour ago, Iugradman said:

IU missed on their top two guard targets and are playing catchup now. I don’t care that they made Carton’s top three. They didn’t get him. They have been blown off by pretty much every five star guard they reached out to. That is all that matters. Sorry if the truth upsets you, but facts are facts.

There's nothing good at the moment to sell guards. Last season our senior guards played like garbage and Al and Devonte were bad/nonexistent as often as good. Romeo hasn't played 1 second of college basketball so "his great year" isn't a current influence to guards who want to follow his path. 

[Maedhros 627]

1 hour ago, Uspshoosier said:

Facts are facts and the the facts say that IU’s staff have prioritized wings and bigs for this cycle. The staff made a decision right or wrong that guards were not a priority. They have been playing catch-up on guards because well they have been focused on the 2 non guard in-state top 20 kids. In recruiting you can’t have it all. When Ohio st and Holtmann was 4 deep at a non shoe event they made it clear Carton was their top priority. Archie was watching TJD and Brooks at the time. Go back and look at when the wings and bigs in 2019 got their IU offer. Now go back and look at when the guards of 2019 class got an offer.

I disagree somewhat on the chosen priorities. Every offer Archie has given out has been to a guard or to a big 6'9" or taller. The only wing has been Keion Brooks, but you target him because of his location and because of relationships on your staff as much or more than you do because of the position he plays.

You're correct that the staff starting offering guards much later than they offered bigs. But acknowledging that the staff chose not to prioritize guards earlier would seem to concede the whole point of the discussion. We prioritized Darius Garland, then DJ Carton, ostensibly finishing third for both. Now we're handing out offers late and trying to build relationships from scratch. I'm not involved with the process and can't say whether the root cause rests with the staff or with the kids in this class. But if it's the result of a decision by the staff, as you've asserted, then it would seem to have been a misstep.

We've handed out eleven offers to guards, eight of which are still on the board. The only recruits we can get on campus for a visit are the two in-state prospects. For both, if you asked me to take Indiana or the field, right now I'm taking the field. Unlike some others posting here I'm not yet enamored with our current guard situation, so I confess that I find our current recruiting paradigm to be a bit concerning.

Edited August 10, 2018 by Maedhros

[JHoosier914 1,187]

I agree we sound like Cub fans. Yay, we made the top 3 or top 5. Now I also will say this is not on the staff at all, they are doing everything they can. I will also say I haven't been enthused with the guards in the 19 class. I think we land a couple guard but no one was going to be doing backflips about. But when we get TJD and KB than any guards to go along with those two will look better. 

Am I the only one who focused in on Chris’ use of the phrase ‘when we get TJD and KB....’ whether that ends up being correct or incorrect, it gave me chills...


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[VO5 8,272]

Just another aspect to add here. Is everyone comfortable with Green and Al being 2 of our top 3 guards moving forward? I can’t really say that I am. 

I expect them to improve and I know Archie will get as much as he can out of them, but will they become what we think they can. Some guys just hit that ceiling or don’t reach what they can be for one reason or another.

We have to consider this possibility, as well as other guards in the conference improving. In my opinion, we need elite guards to get to the final four and win it all. That’s what concerns me with our guard recruiting and missing on elite players. 

 

[Uspshoosier 45,918]

I disagree somewhat on the chosen priorities. Every offer Archie has given out has been to a guard or to a big 6'9" or taller. The only wing has been Keion Brooks, but you target him because of his location and because of relationships on your staff as much or more than you do because of the position he plays.
You're correct that the staff starting offering guards much later than they offered bigs. But acknowledging that the staff chose not to prioritize guards earlier would seem to concede the whole point of the discussion. We prioritized Darius Garland, then DJ Carton, ostensibly finishing third for both. Now we're handing out offers late and trying to build relationships from scratch. I'm not involved with the process and can't say whether the root cause rests with the staff or with the kids in this class. But if it's the result of a decision by the staff, as you've asserted, then it would seem to have been a misstep.
We've handed out eleven offers to guards, eight of which are still on the board. The only recruits we can get on campus for a visit are the two in-state prospects. For both, if you asked me to take Indiana or the field, right now I'm taking the field. Unlike some others posting here I'm not yet enamored with our current guard situation, so I confess that I find our current recruiting paradigm to be a bit concerning.

IU prioritized Phinisee as well if you remember. One of the 2 first calls Archie made when he got the job was to Romeo and Rob. The staff’s first evaluation period Archie was at Adidas watching Romeo and Rob instead of the EYBL watching Garland. They went 3 deep multiple times to watch Rob before he committed. It wasn’t until after they secured Robs commitment that they went for the home run with Garland. Each cycle is different. Are they really struggling with 2019 guards if they really in my opinion haven’t prioritized them. If Archie and staff had been focused on the 2019 guards from the beginning and we were in this position then maybe I would be concerned but following the staffs recruiting for this cycle and seeing the overwhelming emphasis on non guard targets I’m not concerned. Whether or not they should of prioritized guards earlier is a different discussion. IU first offer for 2019 guards was April 15 2018. IU has 4 offers already for the 2020 class guards


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[barrettballer 513]

It’s early August so I’m not too worried about the recruiting at the moment. But an option we also haven’t talked about is a grad transfer at guard for next season. Archie has already utilized the system. If we don’t land a guard in the fall/winter we could still land one in the spring.


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[Brass Cannon 24,865]

7 minutes ago, barrettballer said:

It’s early August so I’m not too worried about the recruiting at the moment. But an option we also haven’t talked about is a grad transfer at guard for next season. Archie has already utilized the system. If we don’t land a guard in the fall/winter we could still land one in the spring.


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Yep and if we have KBJ and TJD that will be very enticing. I’m still unconvinced we will need one

[MikeRoberts 7,033]

IU prioritized Phinisee as well if you remember. One of the 2 first calls Archie made when he got the job was to Romeo and Rob. The staff’s first evaluation period Archie was at Adidas watching Romeo and Rob instead of the EYBL watching Garland. They went 3 deep multiple times to watch Rob before he committed. It wasn’t until after they secured Robs commitment that they went for the home run with Garland. Each cycle is different. Are they really struggling with 2019 guards if they really in my opinion haven’t prioritized them. If Archie and staff had been focused on the 2019 guards from the beginning and we were in this position then maybe I would be concerned but following the staffs recruiting for this cycle and seeing the overwhelming emphasis on non guard targets I’m not concerned. Whether or not they should of prioritized guards earlier is a different discussion. IU first offer for 2019 guards was April 15 2018. IU has 4 offers already for the 2020 class guards


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I am struggling to follow your logic entirely. The coaching staff has made it clear they want a guard in this class and they have flung out 11 scholarships to guards and have spend countless hours recruiting these guys. How is that not a priority?


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[Brass Cannon 24,865]

6 minutes ago, MikeRoberts said:

I am struggling to follow your logic entirely. The coaching staff has made it clear they want a guard in this class and they have flung out 11 scholarships to guards and have spend countless hours recruiting these guys. How is that not a priority?


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Maybe they would like to get one but it’s not a priority as much. They got themselves in good position with their real priorities then moved onto guards

[MikeRoberts 7,033]

Maybe they would like to get one but it’s not a priority as much. They got themselves in good position with their real priorities then moved onto guards

We aren’t talking about filling out a football team we’re talking about a class of 3 kids, each of those scholarships are precious. We also don’t just have 1 coach, we have several and can and have divided, just haven’t conquered yet. They want a guard so therefore it is a priority.


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[Uspshoosier 45,918]

I am struggling to follow your logic entirely. The coaching staff has made it clear they want a guard in this class and they have flung out 11 scholarships to guards and have spend countless hours recruiting these guys. How is that not a priority?


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I’m just saying Archie and staff have prioritized TJD and Brooks and other bigs ahead of the 2019 guards. In my opinion waiting until April 15, 2018 to offer your first guard in 2019 shows that there are bigger priorities in the 2019 class. Not everyone can be the number 1 or 2 priority and clearly TJD and Brooks are the focal point of this cycle and rightfully so. That means every beginning of each evaluation Archie and at least one assistant coach has been at everyone of their games. At the same time other head coaches have made most of these guards as their 1 or 2 option. For me if these guards were a higher priority then they would of offered them way earlier instead of offering later in the process and having to make up ground on some of these guards. They are still in great shape with some of the 11 guys you mentioned with a lot of time until early signing period.


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[Brass Cannon 24,865]

10 minutes ago, MikeRoberts said:

We aren’t talking about filling out a football team we’re talking about a class of 3 kids, each of those scholarships are precious. We also don’t just have 1 coach, we have several and can and have divided, just haven’t conquered yet. They want a guard so therefore it is a priority.


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Clearly there’s a priority. They addressed needs first. Replace Romeo and Morgan. Need. Then replace Fitz which is a want. 

[MikeRoberts 7,033]

Clearly there’s a priority. They addressed needs first. Replace Romeo and Morgan. Need. Then replace Fitz which is a want. 

Something like that. There are 3 spots, all scholarships are created equal. Brooke’s and TJD are obvious priorities in terms of players as they are instate 5 stars but that same priority is spread out over 11 players.


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[Stuhoo 81,229]

Guys and gals; if (IF) we get TJD and Keion, we are soooooo all set no matter what else comes to pass.

 

[Brass Cannon 24,865]

18 minutes ago, Stuhoo said:

Guys and gals; if (IF) we get TJD and Keion, we are soooooo all set no matter what else comes to pass.

 

Imagine the length and Athleticism of a 

Durham/Brooks/Hunter/Smith/TJD 

line up. Not saying Phinisee wouldn’t start but jeez that line up would screw with opposing coaches. 

[MikeRoberts 7,033]

Imagine the length and Athleticism of a 

Durham/Brooks/Hunter/Smith/TJD 

line up. Not saying Phinisee wouldn’t start but jeez that line up would screw with opposing coaches. 

I thought hunter was a 2? I kid:)

 

 

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[Brass Cannon 24,865]

2 minutes ago, MikeRoberts said:

I thought hunter was a 2?


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Brooke wants to be one also

[schoosier 3,490]

6 hours ago, Brass Cannon said:

Brooke wants to be one also

So does Damezi and he’s the best shooter of the 3. I think Archie feels good about his guards obviously the emphasis on bigs this cycle.

[AKHoosier 6,953]

2 hours ago, schoosier said:

So does Damezi and he’s the best shooter of the 3. I think Archie feels good about his guards obviously the emphasis on bigs this cycle.

I'd love to agree but I just don't think the staff agrees.  We've offered a lot of guards in 2019.

[Brass Cannon 24,865]

28 minutes ago, AKHoosier said:

I'd love to agree but I just don't think the staff agrees.  We've offered a lot of guards in 2019.

We’ve offerered a lot because we would like one and aren’t well positioned for one. Bigs and wing were clearly priority.