2023 SF/PF Mackenzie Mgbako to INDI-F’N-ANA

[HoosierHoopster 7,271]

7 hours ago, TeeterInNJ said:

 

Shooting the cover off the ball. Oh I’m going to enjoy watching him score for us.

[lillurk 3,835]

12 hours ago, TeeterInNJ said:

 

 

4 hours ago, HoosierHoopster said:

Shooting the cover off the ball. Oh I’m going to enjoy watching him score for us.

I think he’ll either get a nice number of clean looks like Kopp did, which he converts well, or he’ll be hard to leave to help, which is great for everyone else.

He tends to start his shot low off the catch, even when the pass is delivered high. I didn’t notice that watching more recent film so maybe he’s changed that — the stroke looks like it could be basically unchanged with a higher start, since the release is high anyway.

I wonder to what extent the tunnel vision is a byproduct of the quality of teammate. Wasn’t a terrible case of TV in the first place, but how much of that was being on a team where a contested lane two from MM was a better chance than a catch and shoot 3 from some teammates? If so it may be easily cured playing at a higher level with D1 teammates.

[Home Jersey 9,234]

6 hours ago, lillurk said:

 

I think he’ll either get a nice number of clean looks like Kopp did, which he converts well, or he’ll be hard to leave to help, which is great for everyone else.

He tends to start his shot low off the catch, even when the pass is delivered high. I didn’t notice that watching more recent film so maybe he’s changed that — the stroke looks like it could be basically unchanged with a higher start, since the release is high anyway.

I wonder to what extent the tunnel vision is a byproduct of the quality of teammate. Wasn’t a terrible case of TV in the first place, but how much of that was being on a team where a contested lane two from MM was a better chance than a catch and shoot 3 from some teammates? If so it may be easily cured playing at a higher level with D1 teammates.

Yes, I think he has a higher release point on his jumper now/more fluid motion. This film breakdown is from October 2021, so fair to say there's been a good bit of development since then. 

Find it interesting he speaks so highly of his shooting now, whereas the current narrative (from Goodman, at least) seems to be that he may not be able to spread the floor super effectively. I think its more likely he just had a few bad games on his last EYBL circuit. Not worried about it. 

He is a top 10 talent and committed to his craft. He was playing pick up with Kyrie the other day, we just hired Calbert as Head of Player Development. Consider me extremely optimistic 

[HoosierHoopster 7,271]

18 hours ago, lillurk said:

 

I think he’ll either get a nice number of clean looks like Kopp did, which he converts well, or he’ll be hard to leave to help, which is great for everyone else.

He tends to start his shot low off the catch, even when the pass is delivered high. I didn’t notice that watching more recent film so maybe he’s changed that — the stroke looks like it could be basically unchanged with a higher start, since the release is high anyway.

I wonder to what extent the tunnel vision is a byproduct of the quality of teammate. Wasn’t a terrible case of TV in the first place, but how much of that was being on a team where a contested lane two from MM was a better chance than a catch and shoot 3 from some teammates? If so it may be easily cured playing at a higher level with D1 teammates.

The point of lift is one of those things that matters for most but not all — Reggie M remains my favorite player. Watch his catch, lift and release form. His form was to bring the ball up all the way from his waist - that low - through to elevation — and he was the most prolific 3 point shooter in NBA history until Ray Allen passed him.
 

Reggie had those long arms and his fade was a thing of beauty, his “form” was basically wrong from a purist standpoint (Curry’s in contrast is picture perfect form with a lightning fast release), but like the saying goes, if it aint broke don’t fix it. For me, any shooter who can get his shot off in his own way effectively— including creating space (Reggie’s relentless movement was key) makes form less important.
This guy looks like a killer shooter-scorer, so long as his ability to score translates I wouldn’t worry about form.

[lillurk 3,835]

Reggie was my fav too. In Mack’s case, who knows if they’ll try to tweak anything but where he differs from Reggie on shot form is his seems repeatable without the low father and start.

Don’t break it, I agree. Wouldn’t be shocked if someone (trainer already, IU staff, or some future pro staff) just says “hey, keep it high.”

[IUFAN1976 3,787]

29 minutes ago, lillurk said:

Reggie was my fav too. In Mack’s case, who knows if they’ll try to tweak anything but where he differs from Reggie on shot form is his seems repeatable without the low father and start.

Don’t break it, I agree. Wouldn’t be shocked if someone (trainer already, IU staff, or some future pro staff) just says “hey, keep it high.”

Calbert and Woody may have him change it.  Calbert was a similar type player but was left handed.  Also, Calbert’s shot was a little higher too!

[Class of '66 Old Fart 86,082]

First in a series of newcomer stories.

https://hoosierillustrated.com/indiana-basketball-newcomer-focus-freshman-forward-mackenzie-mgbako/

[Demo 20,607]

https://247sports.com/college/indiana/article/iu-indiana-hoosiers-basketball-mackenzie-mgbako-carmelo-anthony--211623137/
 

Melo was a perfect endorsement because he really is the player Mgbako should aspire to be.

[Stuhoo 82,180]

If you have time, a great session with Mack and the Hoosier Hysterics. Truly an impressive, intelligent young man.

My favorite story from the interview was at the end. Mack is torn between Kansas and Indiana; loves both programs but kind of leaning toward Kansas. He’s in the 'thinking and praying about it' stage and driving to school, when he looks up in traffic and sees that the car in front of him has an Indiana University vanity plate. He takes it as a sign from above and at that point he decides it’s going to be Indiana. 

[HoosierX 1,653]

52 minutes ago, Stuhoo said:

If you have time, a great session with Mack and the Hoosier hysterics. Truly an impressive, intelligent young man.

My favorite story from the interview was at the end. Mack is torn between Kansas and Indiana; loves both programs but kind of leaning toward Kansas. He’s in a thinking and praying about it stage and driving to school, when he looks up in traffic and sees that the car in front of him has an Indiana vanity plate. He takes it as a sign from above and at that point he decides it’s going to be Indiana. 

Damn, need to buy the driver of that car a beer!

[Loaded Chicken Sandwich 8,838]

He seemed to talk well about Kaleb Banks as well so that could be a positive. Let's just hope for some great development from everyone. Need it.

[Hardwood83 4,775]

5 hours ago, Stuhoo said:

If you have time, a great session with Mack and the Hoosier hysterics. Truly an impressive, intelligent young man.

My favorite story from the interview was at the end. Mack is torn between Kansas and Indiana; loves both programs but kind of leaning toward Kansas. He’s in a thinking and praying about it stage and driving to school, when he looks up in traffic and sees that the car in front of him has an Indiana vanity plate. He takes it as a sign from above and at that point he decides it’s going to be Indiana. 

Kind of amazing and scary that with all the effort put into these recruitments that something so random and minor could swing it. 

[HoosierHoopster 7,271]

26 minutes ago, Hardwood83 said:

Kind of amazing and scary that with all the effort put into these recruitments that something so random and minor could swing it. 

Reality.
These are high school kids, and their families, with all kinds of different interests, outlooks, things going on, and all kinds of coaches and others selling their programs.
 

Look up and see an IU plate? Divine intervention:)

[Stuhoo 82,180]

1 hour ago, Hardwood83 said:

Kind of amazing and scary that with all the effort put into these recruitments that something so random and minor could swing it. 

 

Given Mack's hometown location, I'm wondering if @TeeterInNJ was the hero of Hoosier Nation!

 

[WayneFleekHoosier 48,847]

5 hours ago, Hardwood83 said:

Kind of amazing and scary that with all the effort put into these recruitments that something so random and minor could swing it. 

I listened to the interview and while it’s worded correctly, I think a lot of nuance gets left out of the decision making process.  This was more likely just a little omen thing that adds to a good story.  You could tell by his tone and lack of follow up questions the license plate didn’t win the recruitment.  It was just a cherry on top that adds to a cool story.  

Edited June 16, 2023 by WayneFleekHoosier

[Josh 12,736]

11 hours ago, Stuhoo said:

If you have time, a great session with Mack and the Hoosier Hysterics. Truly an impressive, intelligent young man.

My favorite story from the interview was at the end. Mack is torn between Kansas and Indiana; loves both programs but kind of leaning toward Kansas. He’s in the 'thinking and praying about it' stage and driving to school, when he looks up in traffic and sees that the car in front of him has an Indiana University vanity plate. He takes it as a sign from above and at that point he decides it’s going to be Indiana. 

Didn't Tamar Bates tell a similar (almost exact) story driving around IMG Academy?

[Home Jersey 9,234]

5 hours ago, Stuhoo said:

Given Mack's hometown location, I'm wondering if @TeeterInNJ was the hero of Hoosier Nation!

Gladstone is a 15 minute drive from me. It is also a fairly significantly more upscale area, lol. Not a bastion of 5 star recruits at all. His parents are clearly hard workers and have instilled a business oriented mindset in Mack - rightfully so. As said on HH, they all saw his potential and rallied around him. This young man has an amazing family and support system. Great head on his shoulders.

Gill St. Bernards, where he spent the first three years of his career, is less than 20 miles from me. I've been hearing about this kid for years. Saw a few games when he was a freshman/sophomore. He was always clearly a cut above. GSB is not exactly a slouch program (they're actually really, really good since the early 2010s), but Roselle Catholic is more of a basketball factory kind of school. He won a state championship in his single year there. I honestly find this entire recruitment semi-miraculous (exaggerating, but the stars definitely aligned) between him opting out of Duke, his mother texting Woodson, the Indiana plate, winning out when he was still kind of undecided. 

Not the only factor, but sounds like NIL made a big difference too. 

Let's be real ya'll - it wasn't the license plate. He loved the campus and the visit/felt comfortable with the staff. Tough not to love Bloomington. Plus, a ton of kids from around here go to IU, it's plenty well known and regarded... easy to acclimate to. Nobody from NJ goes to Kansas, really. You don't hear about anyone around here going there, maybe silly to say, but screw them lol. He knew he wanted to go to IU, just needed a signal to show it wasn't "recency bias" (his words) 

...I may or may not have called up a few old pals from Muncie, Marion, and Kokomo to make a road trip... call it intuition. For real though, I do see a ton of Indiana license plates around here. Not just 18 wheelers, regular cars/trucks. Couple of times every week reliably. And tons of IU alumni/parent/student stickers and vanity plates.

To put it into perspective, he played on the same AAU team as DJ Wagner and Aaron Bradshaw heading to Kentucky (also teammates at Camden, an NJ powerhouse). He was reliably the first option on that team. Of course on a team that stacked, guys are going to get their's on any given night. But if the game was coming down to the wire, more often than not, the play was getting drawn up for Mack. Pretty sure a while ago I saw an interview with DJ Wagner acknowledging Mack would probably be considered the team's "leader" if he had to pick a player. I'll have to see if I can find it later and will share here.

I don't think Mack is going to walk in and be averaging 20ppg+ from Day 1, but I do think he is going to live in the gym and continue to get better from now through March. And I expect that as he gets more comfortable at the college level and familiar with teammates/staff, he will grow into more of a leadership role (obviously this is going to be XJ's team, but Mack did not come here to F around and I think he is the kind of guy to hold himself and the people around him accountable). How many more days until the season starts, again?

[ebridges24 2,446]

On 6/16/2023 at 6:30 PM, TeeterInNJ said:

Gladstone is a 15 minute drive from me. It is also a fairly significantly more upscale area, lol. Not a bastion of 5 star recruits at all. His parents are clearly hard workers and have instilled a business oriented mindset in Mack - rightfully so. As said on HH, they all saw his potential and rallied around him. This young man has an amazing family and support system. Great head on his shoulders.

Gill St. Bernards, where he spent the first three years of his career, is less than 20 miles from me. I've been hearing about this kid for years. Saw a few games when he was a freshman/sophomore. He was always clearly a cut above. GSB is not exactly a slouch program (they're actually really, really good since the early 2010s), but Roselle Catholic is more of a basketball factory kind of school. He won a state championship in his single year there. I honestly find this entire recruitment semi-miraculous (exaggerating, but the stars definitely aligned) between him opting out of Duke, his mother texting Woodson, the Indiana plate, winning out when he was still kind of undecided. 

Not the only factor, but sounds like NIL made a big difference too. 

Let's be real ya'll - it wasn't the license plate. He loved the campus and the visit/felt comfortable with the staff. Tough not to love Bloomington. Plus, a ton of kids from around here go to IU, it's plenty well known and regarded... easy to acclimate to. Nobody from NJ goes to Kansas, really. You don't hear about anyone around here going there, maybe silly to say, but screw them lol. He knew he wanted to go to IU, just needed a signal to show it wasn't "recency bias" (his words) 

...I may or may not have called up a few old pals from Muncie, Marion, and Kokomo to make a road trip... call it intuition. For real though, I do see a ton of Indiana license plates around here. Not just 18 wheelers, regular cars/trucks. Couple of times every week reliably. And tons of IU alumni/parent/student stickers and vanity plates.

To put it into perspective, he played on the same AAU team as DJ Wagner and Aaron Bradshaw heading to Kentucky (also teammates at Camden, an NJ powerhouse). He was reliably the first option on that team. Of course on a team that stacked, guys are going to get their's on any given night. But if the game was coming down to the wire, more often than not, the play was getting drawn up for Mack. Pretty sure a while ago I saw an interview with DJ Wagner acknowledging Mack would probably be considered the team's "leader" if he had to pick a player. I'll have to see if I can find it later and will share here.

I don't think Mack is going to walk in and be averaging 20ppg+ from Day 1, but I do think he is going to live in the gym and continue to get better from now through March. And I expect that as he gets more comfortable at the college level and familiar with teammates/staff, he will grow into more of a leadership role (obviously this is going to be XJ's team, but Mack did not come here to F around and I think he is the kind of guy to hold himself and the people around him accountable). How many more days until the season starts, again?

Great post Teet

[RaceToTheTop 26,738]

On 6/16/2023 at 6:11 AM, Stuhoo said:

If you have time, a great session with Mack and the Hoosier Hysterics. Truly an impressive, intelligent young man.

My favorite story from the interview was at the end. Mack is torn between Kansas and Indiana; loves both programs but kind of leaning toward Kansas. He’s in the 'thinking and praying about it' stage and driving to school, when he looks up in traffic and sees that the car in front of him has an Indiana University vanity plate. He takes it as a sign from above and at that point he decides it’s going to be Indiana. 

Being from New Jersey, I'm glad he didn't look at the license plate in front of him and then commit to continue his career at Bruce Springsteen Elementary.

[eddy4iu 657]

On 6/16/2023 at 12:59 PM, Hardwood83 said:

Kind of amazing and scary that with all the effort put into these recruitments that something so random and minor could swing it. 

I get your perspective but he’s a praying man so no such thing as random or minor. Glad he’s a Hoosier!!!