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Andre Weir

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Huge opportunity for the big guy to come in work hard, establish him self next year, and be the man in 21-22. And really, we are counting on him big time. I think Sal has some potential, Grace is Grace and doing his job, and I want Burton on the wing. We are going to need a difference maker inside after next season. Hope Andre has a mindset to work hard and has that "love of the game" quotient.

I know 97 is not going to like it, but if we are not going to have any transfers I would almost rather us sign 3-4 h.s guys for 21, and leave a slot or two for a grad transfer. And I know, I know Mooney has not been able to find a decent GT, but he did turn it around recently on the regular transfer market - so here is hoping. Now I will wait for 97 to lash me.
 
I watched some HUDL highlights, not a ton out there for him as far as highlights, but a few things stuck out:
1) Good Hoops IQ: Grabs the rebound, sees the court, makes good passes.
2) Pretty agile and good lift. A lot of dunks making catch and quick move and exploding. Not a freak athlete, but pretty darn good for his size.

Good get. Hopefully we are all in a better place this summer and he can get on campus some ( I think freshman normall can?) to do some work.
 
I think a kid that has transformed his body the way he has demonstrates that he is a hard worker. His interest went from Northeastern to IU in a year. We got in with him before he blew up. He certainly fills a physical need for the team.
Some posts stick with you....for years. Recall a poster inquiring about TJ Cline during the year he sat out after transferring from Niagara. Someone replied that they had seen a tall pasty-white kid with a lot of baby fat at practice.

TJ subsequently took care of that so Weir seems ahead of the curve. Hope Weir's physical transformation works out as well for the Spiders as TJ's.
 
There's nothing not to like on this kid. BIGGEST need position was gotten by Mooney. If it doesn't pan out, no criticism of the coach will come from me. Find with me if he prioritizes getting another 5/ big 4 position player the following year.
 
There's nothing not to like on this kid. BIGGEST need position was gotten by Mooney. If it doesn't pan out, no criticism of the coach will come from me. Find with me if he prioritizes getting another 5/ big 4 position player the following year.

No one has been more critical of Mooney's recruiting than I. But I like what I've heard about this Weir kid. The 5 man class will be the real test whether Mooney has fixed his recruiting ails. He fixed his defense this year, so apparently the old dog can learn a new trick or two.
 
Need this to be a three man recruiting class. If we are not bringing in two transfers that can play right away (either 1 GT, and one sit one transfer from this year - I know we would have to have someone transfer now) then Weir and Wilson both better be immediate impacts, and Crabtree and Burton need to take the next step. Both could happen, but would rather see us "get old".
 
when this class comes in, we'll have 4 seniors and 2 juniors. it's pretty likely all of them play. assuming we hit on Weir and Wilson ... that's 8. obviously it would be great if all of the next class freshmen are so good they force themselves on the floor, but I'd expect maybe 2 to get Burton-like freshman year minutes and 3 to mostly watch. at least 4 of the 5 have to be good enough to be counted on to play substantial roles as sophomores.

nothing wrong with that. it's more normal for a good program to have a good enough roster where freshmen have to wait.
 
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I agree with you S-man. This feels like the most well-rounded roster and absolutely the most depth we have had since I have been a Richmond fan (2012 was my freshman year). I can’t remember us having this many players off the bench that I had confidence in. Mooney has done a good job with this roster construction and I know the “truthers” and the “haters” are both unified in hoping that he is able to replace this class and not falter.
 
when this class comes in, we'll have 4 seniors and 2 juniors. it's pretty likely all of them play. assuming we hit on Weir and Wilson ... that's 8. obviously it would be great if all of the next class freshmen are so good they force themselves on the floor, but I'd expect maybe 2 to get Burton-like freshman year minutes and 3 to mostly watch. at least 4 of the 5 have to be good enough to be counted on to play substantial roles as sophomores.

nothing wrong with that. it's more normal for a good program to have a good enough roster where freshmen have to wait.
I understand you’re projecting but 8 feels optimistic to me because I don’t see Grace as a starting level 5 for us and sal isn’t being groomed as a 4, so it sort of seems like we have those two plus Weir for one spot.

we’re probably reasonably set at 1-4 with the other five guys although I’m still not clear where Crabtree plays. I guess more small forwardish?

I think we will need a backup PG in there and a guy who can flex 3/4 to contribute. And at least one of these needs to be a quality 3pt guy unless Crabtree is very solid from outside. And we may still need that guy even if he is.

But agree that the best scenario is those young guys aren’t walking straight into starting spots.
 
when this class comes in, we'll have 4 seniors and 2 juniors. it's pretty likely all of them play. assuming we hit on Weir and Wilson ... that's 8. obviously it would be great if all of the next class freshmen are so good they force themselves on the floor, but I'd expect maybe 2 to get Burton-like freshman year minutes and 3 to mostly watch. at least 4 of the 5 have to be good enough to be counted on to play substantial roles as sophomores.

nothing wrong with that. it's more normal for a good program to have a good enough roster where freshmen have to wait.

Looking at 3 years from now, that is another reason why I think it makes sense that Woj and Sal redshirt next year. Makes sense for them and for us. Our bench next year will be Andre, Burton, Crabtree, and Grace. Woj and Sal will be 10th and 11th in the rotation next year, and that is if Wilson and Weir do not pass them.

So, if you were them, would you rather play very little next year, and have one year left, or redshirt and likely have 2 years of good PT left? I would rather have 2 years of good PT, but that is just me. It would depend on lots of things. Do they like school enough where staying an extra year would not be an issue? Do they like their teammates and coaches? Are they having fun and are they happy here? Everyone is different, so I am not at all saying this is a no brainer. Just my opinion. I like both of these guys and that is why I am discussing this. I would love to have them for 2 years after we lose our starting 5, and I think both could help us a lot those 2 years.

For us, in 3 years, where you said we would need at least 4 of the 5 2021 recruits to be part of the rotation, if we still had Woj and Sal, we would only need 2 of them to help that soon.

After we lose our starting 5, I think the classes would look good if we had 6 junions/sophomores instead of 4. :
Seniors: Goose and Grace
Juniors: Woj, Sal, Burton, and Crabtree.
Soph: Wilson and Weir

* Rather than have 5 freshman here, this is where could add 3 or 4 and have a spot for a grad transfer.
 
I think it makes sense that Woj and Sal redshirt next year

I appreciate you thinking outside the box. But to think that we could healthy redshirt 2 juniors who have been regulars in the rotation and have them stick around is wishful thinking.
 
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I do like the idea of not filling all 5 slots next year unless one or more is a GT or transfer with no more than 2 years left to play
 
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I appreciate you thinking outside the box. But to think that we could healthy redshirt 2 juniors who have been regulars in the rotation and have them stick around is wishful thinking.

I hear you, and that is why I was saying it could happen if these guys really like it and are happy here. No question it would be a unique situation, but we are in a unique situation. Woj saw his minutes go from 30 to about 10 and Sal has played 6 and 7 minutes a game his first 2 years. So, you say regulars in the rotation, but regulars with not a lot of playing time. If they are both fine with less than 10 minutes next year, then of course no redshirt, but maybe it will be them who decides redshirting is the best option. That is my point. Not our staff should ask them to redshirt, but, maybe they will be the ones asking our staff? If so, it would work out great for everyone.
 
I've never seen redshirting of healthy juniors. while true there's no guarantee for their playing time next year, there's also no guarantee that redshirting gives them 2 years of greater playing time. plus they don't participate in what could be the season they've always dreamed about. I personally can't imagine choosing to sit.

also, I fill the entire 5 man class and let it work itself out. injuries can force a redshirt or one might leave. we've done great with transfers but history tells me not to count on a grad transfer here.
 
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QB Kevin Johnson redshirted after his sophomore year for us a few years ago. He played as a freshman in 2015, then was going to redshirt in 2016, but played in the playoffs after Lauletta got hurt. Then, he redshirted in 2017. Unique and it does not happen often, but it does happen.
 
I've never seen redshirting of healthy juniors. while true there's no guarantee for their playing time next year, there's also no guarantee that redshirting gives them 2 years of greater playing time. plus they don't participate in what could be the season they've always dreamed about. I personally can't imagine choosing to sit.

also, I fill the entire 5 man class and let it work itself out. injuries can force a redshirt or one might leave. we've done great with transfers but history tells me not to count on a grad transfer here.
I’d agree, intentional redshirting juniors is highly unlikely.

I don’t love the five man class. Our last foray with five had three guys play almost no time all of whom transferred. I think it’s just too hard to get five quality guys in one class.

I’d prefer at least one transfer in there. We aren’t good with the grad transfers so a regular transfer which we’ve had decent success at, albeit we’ve only gotten three in 14 years.
 
I think it’s just too hard to get five quality guys in one class.
Couldn't agree more. Only the best P5 teams have a good chance of getting 5 and even then all the guys don't typically "fit".

The ability to mix in transfers is going to be key and hopefully the recent success can continue. The good news I suppose is that the portal seems to be very active and with a good NCAA run next season and the new practice facility UR should be a desirable destination.
 
Well, it is so certainly too hard for Mooney. His track record with big recruiting classes would grade out an D or F. The last 5 man class was Scheider, Verbinskus, Ford, Gilly, and Cayo. A 40% hit rate isn't going to do that, especially when the other 60% is not even D-1 talent. Go back before to his other big class that had Chandler Diekvoss, Kovien, Smithen, and Fore. Yuck.

Mooney has one big test to pass before he turns the corner into showing me he has learned and evolved from his previous bad ways and this class is it.

Hardt would do well to consider a short term extension until he sees what Mooney can do with this class. History tells us as much.
 
Well, it is so certainly too hard for Mooney. His track record with big recruiting classes would grade out an D or F. The last 5 man class was Scheider, Verbinskus, Ford, Gilly, and Cayo. A 40% hit rate isn't going to do that, especially when the other 60% is not even D-1 talent. Go back before to his other big class that had Chandler Diekvoss, Kovien, Smithen, and Fore. Yuck.

Mooney has one big test to pass before he turns the corner into showing me he has learned and evolved from his previous bad ways and this class is it.

Hardt would do well to consider a short term extension until he sees what Mooney can do with this class. History tells us as much.
Verbal Commits shows this year's graduating class as Niko King, Keith Oddo, & Kovien Dominaus.

I assume if below was our 2021-2022 incoming class, you would be OK with that?

- Bensley Joseph (PG: Cushing Academy, Arlington, MA) - Penn State, Georgetown, UMass, Rhody, Iowa, Rutgers, and more
- Casey Simmons (SF: Milton Academy, Milton, MA) - Northwestern, Temple, UMass, ODU, and more
- Ryan Mutombo (PF: Lovett School, Atlanta, GA) - Georgetown, GT, Texas A&M, and more
- Gianni Thompson (PF: Brimmer & May, Boston, MA) - Penn State, Temple, VCU, UMass, W&M, and more
- Gus Larson (C: Northfield Mt. Hermon, New Canaan, CT) - Yale, Brown
 
https://www.floridahoops.com/2020rankings

I like that on this list he is in between players going to Purdue and Tennessee. Andre seems to have some great potential. Interested to see how he shoots from mid range/foul line. I do like that he uses his tools to dunk and attack the basket. A couple of the highlights had some decent sized guys guarding him and he shed them with ease.
 
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Yep, lots to like.

Beyond the solid moves to attack the basket, he obviously needs to be a good-to-great passer to fit into the traditional Mooney offense. Also interested in mobility on defense, but those are the sorts of things that don't often show up in highlight reels, so hard to tell if he has those abilities yet.

Presumably we'll be looking for him to slim down some more to improve his agility and stamina...know he's been working on that.
 
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very excited about Andre. don't like his form from 3, but I like everything else in his highlight reel.
6'10 250 lb college centers shouldn't be shooting the 3 anyway. Grant's game improved on so many levels this year, an un-discussed one was how he basically took the 3 point shot out of his arsenal (unless it was a dire situation) and it made his offensive game so much better. When your that tall and big, there is always a higher percentage shot for you then a 3 pointer.
 
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6'10 250 lb college centers shouldn't be shooting the 3 anyway. Grant's game improved on so many levels this year, an un-discussed one was how he basically took the 3 point shot out of his arsenal (unless it was a dire situation) and it made his offensive game so much better. When your that tall and big, there is always a higher percentage shot for you then a 3 pointer.
Grant shouldn't look to shoot 3's because he shoots them at 28%. nothing to do with his height. a PG shooting 28% from 3 shouldn't shoot 3's either.
if Grant shot them at 36% or better he should absolutely take them. but he doesn't.
 
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Grant shouldn't look to shoot 3's because he shoots them at 28%. nothing to do with his height. a PG shooting 28% from 3 shouldn't shoot 3's either.
if Grant shot them at 36% or better he should absolutely take them. but he doesn't.
*cough*Khwan*cough*

Dude was money with the long 2, but make him step back just a couple more feet and he couldn't hit.
 
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