Gaines

[JumpinJack5]

I forgot that he is only a sophomore, that's good. Means that we could possibly get 2 good years out of him. This will be moving year for him-do well/keep progressing, get solid pt next year or continue to look lost and be the next Biggie/wasted scholly. If Lawrence is really interested, I say drop Gaines' scholly.

 

[BearcatMick]

That is a disgusting and deplorable quote jumping.

This is a young man and his future is at stake. Mick does not and will not force someone out of the program that he himself recruited just because results have not instantaneous.

Uc should never force someone out. Period. Mick will never do that. We are not eggsavior. We do not cheat like them or st yawns or suckacuse or kensucky or Sindiana or the rest. Mick will not sell his soul or the integrity of the university for a temporary rise to greatness. He will succeed because of his word, hard work, coaching talent, and being a good honest man.

 

[CPAW29]

I forgot that he is only a sophomore, that's good. Means that we could possibly get 2 good years out of him. This will be moving year for him-do well/keep progressing, get solid pt next year or continue to look lost and be the next Biggie/wasted scholly. If Lawrence is really interested, I say drop Gaines' scholly.

i could be wrong but if lawrence is waiting till spring to declare and if kilpatrick decides to forgo his senior year then the bearcats can offer him too. can somebody check that? thats assuming we sign morman though

 

[JumpinJack5]

That is a disgusting and deplorable quote jumping.

This is a young man and his future is at stake. Mick does not and will not force someone out of the program that he himself recruited just because results have not instantaneous.

Uc should never force someone out. Period. Mick will never do that. We are not eggsavior. We do not cheat like them or st yawns or suckacuse or kensucky or Sindiana or the rest. Mick will not sell his soul or the integrity of the university for a temporary rise to greatness. He will succeed because of his word, hard work, coaching talent, and being a good honest man.

If Gaines isn't working hard, then drop his scholly. I don't feel bad for someone who is getting a free ride to a very good academic institution and is being lazy, they deserve to lose their scholarship. If he is just too dumb but giving full effort, then keep him on scholarship. I agree, it is too early to dub him a failure, but if he isn't working hard, then we don't need him. I think Mick knows what is best and will make the right decision. In the meantime, why don't you continue your dumb name-calling of other programs! Please represent our school better and stop acting like such a homer, Sincerely, Everyone else on this board.

 

[JumpinJack5]

i could be wrong but if lawrence is waiting till spring to declare and if kilpatrick decides to forgo his senior year then the bearcats can offer him too. can somebody check that? thats assuming we sign morman though

Yeah, I'm pretty sure you are right. In a way, this could be our best option in the long run, but as a die-hard UC fan, losing SK would be hard! I think that these decisions will be settled in the spring, when we see how much progress Gaines has made, if SK leaves, and if Lawrence is still interested. It shall be interesting.......

 

[CPAW29]

gaines should be fine but the thinking is he will be more ready next season

 

[JumpinJack5]

Gaines has the best build of everyone on the team. He is athletic, muscular, and runs really well for a 6'11 guy. I am cheering for him to become what many of us thought he had a chance to be when we first saw him. Even if he reaches half of his potential, he could be an impact player for us, so hopefully the switch goes off in his head sooner rather than later!

 

[BearcatMick]

If Gaines isn't working hard, then drop his scholly. I don't feel bad for someone who is getting a free ride to a very good academic institution and is being lazy, they deserve to lose their scholarship. If he is just too dumb but giving full effort, then keep him on scholarship. I agree, it is too early to dub him a failure, but if he isn't working hard, then we don't need him. I think Mick knows what is best and will make the right decision. In the meantime, why don't you continue your dumb name-calling of other programs! Please represent our school better and stop acting like such a homer, Sincerely, Everyone else on this board.

You are already backtracking.

Gaines is working hard. You want to yank someone's scholarship and mess with someones future because they haven't developed as fast as you want? That is an horror le comment

That line of thinking is insane to me. Hes a bearcat and he will progress. Differenti players progress differently. You are being unreasonable

 

[JasonS]

I actually agree with Beacat Mickey. Gaines is not going to lose his scholarship. That is not how Mick operates. Mick has only done this one time since he was at UC and that player knew it upfront when he came to UC. I can't remember the kid's name but I do remember that this was an upfront agreement between the young man and Mick. Now, that doesn't mean that Mick couldn't sit down with Gaines (or anyone else) and say that he thinks it would be in his best interest to transfer. Remember though, that Gaines has used his redshirt so he would lose a year of eligibility. I don't think anyone on this team is going anywhere. I firmly expect SK to have such a big year that he goes pro. I think Mick expects this too.

 

[TheLongHaul]

It was Timmy Crowell.

 

[JasonS]

It was Timmy Crowell.

Thanks. I could picture him but couldn't place the name.

 

[Patrick Bateman]

This is one area where I don't think Cronin gets enough credit. He has rebuilt UC without taking too many chances, really only on Lance, and not oversigning and over-recruiting. To my knowledge only 2 players have left the program early, Crowell and Alvin Mitchell. He hasn't over-recruited any players like many coaches do (Crean/Pitino). How do you think Godsgift feels. Lavin overecruited him and now is asking him to redshirt. If he came here he may be starting this year.

 

[TheLongHaul]

I think he's taken his fair share of chances, depending on how you define chances. Hernol (sp?) Hall, Adam H., Jason Henry, Alvin Mitchell, Lance, and Octavious Ellis were all chances. Hall and Adam H. were chances because Mick knew going in there was at least some chance they wouldn't be eligible. The others had a varying degree of past issues. But I do think they were calculated risks and in most cases were worth it. Mick also was limited in his ability to take chances because he had to improve the APR or they would have lost even more scholarships.

I do like how he has recruited overall and I think he is much classier than the majority of big time coaches out there. I also think as the program keeps getting better that the number of risk recruits go down. I wouldn't be happy if he was known as a dirty recruiter even if he was getting major recruits. I'd also be upset if he was getting more commits than scholarships each year and forcing players to leave ala Crean/Pitino. Over recruiting a player is fine as you want to keep improving your team but forcing players to leave especially before they even play a game is wrong.

That's interesting re: God's Gift. I hadn't heard that. I thought he was pretty good last year but if Lavin gets a better player I can't blame Lavin for that. I can't imagine a senior redshirting but then again, it's Lavin and he either is a great salesman, has cash that talks, or both.

 

[Patrick Bateman]

Meantime, Lavin is weighing redshirting both the 6-8 Achiuwa, who averaged 9.4 points and 5.8 rebounds last season, and the 6-4 Balamou, a true freshman

http://zagsblog.com/articles/st-johns-duo-awaiting-eligibility-rulings/

 

[TheLongHaul]

That's crazy that he'd redshirt a player that went for 9 and 6 the year before. I can't imagine Achiuwa would be happy about that at all.

edit: just saw at the bottom of the article that Achiuwa actually said the thought of redshirting was appealing. Man Lavin is a good salesman. If Achiuwa redshirts I wonder if this affects Jermaine Lawrence?

 

[JumpinJack5]

I actually agree with Beacat Mickey. Gaines is not going to lose his scholarship. That is not how Mick operates. Mick has only done this one time since he was at UC and that player knew it upfront when he came to UC. I can't remember the kid's name but I do remember that this was an upfront agreement between the young man and Mick. Now, that doesn't mean that Mick couldn't sit down with Gaines (or anyone else) and say that he thinks it would be in his best interest to transfer. Remember though, that Gaines has used his redshirt so he would lose a year of eligibility. I don't think anyone on this team is going anywhere. I firmly expect SK to have such a big year that he goes pro. I think Mick expects this too.

Yeah, I agree, I wasn't trying to say Mick would go up to him and take his scholarship away. Mick has told a few players that it would be in their best interest to transfer. If Gaines isn't gonna be a factor, then it would be in his best interest to transfer and it would benefit the program. Again, way too early to dub him a failure, but I think that if something like this were to occur, he could easily go play for a small d1 school because of his sheer size. I don't think that any of this will happen, because by all accounts, he has been improving and should have a chance next year to crack the rotation. We must remember he is only a sophomore and that big guys usually take longer to develop than guards. But being at the game yesterday, you can easily see his potential even though he didn't play-he is big, strong, and has tree trunk legs. He runs the floor well, compared to other big men. He is great a blocking shots and if he does figure it out, has a chance to be a key contributor for the 'Cats.

 

[BearcatMick]

Yeah, I agree, I wasn't trying to say Mick would go up to him and take his scholarship away. Mick has told a few players that it would be in their best interest to transfer. If Gaines isn't gonna be a factor, then it would be in his best interest to transfer and it would benefit the program. Again, way too early to dub him a failure, but I think that if something like this were to occur, he could easily go play for a small d1 school because of his sheer size. I don't think that any of this will happen, because by all accounts, he has been improving and should have a chance next year to crack the rotation. We must remember he is only a sophomore and that big guys usually take longer to develop than guards. But being at the game yesterday, you can easily see his potential even though he didn't play-he is big, strong, and has tree trunk legs. He runs the floor well, compared to other big men. He is great a blocking shots and if he does figure it out, has a chance to be a key contributor for the 'Cats.

You said take his scholarship

It's rare when Jason and I agree but he is correct. i definitely dont agree with the calipari's, Mack's, lavin's, and pitino's of the world that oversign and treat kids like statistics.

 

[mdchick]

If anyone was interested, Mick said yesterday that Gaines didn't play in the game because he has a shoulder injury.

 

[Lobot]

That's crazy that he'd redshirt a player that went for 9 and 6 the year before. I can't imagine Achiuwa would be happy about that at all.

edit: just saw at the bottom of the article that Achiuwa actually said the thought of redshirting was appealing. Man Lavin is a good salesman. If Achiuwa redshirts I wonder if this affects Jermaine Lawrence?

It doesn't. Achiuwa is still on scholarship and adding Lawrence still takes another scholly. Might make SJU more attractive to Lawrence but only if he's a one and done. Otherwise you have a logjam when Achiuwa comes back a year later.

I think I answered your question in there somewhere.

 

[Nomadic1]

Cronin over the summer, seemed to suggest Gaines is making progress. Something to the effect of "seeing the light at the end of the tunnel". I trust his assessment of talent.