#pcbb Weekly Recruiting Update 11/7/14

On the 2015 front there may be another point guard target that the Friars can get involved with, Traci Carter. Carter tore his meniscus in the Spring and missed the AAU season while he recovered so his recruitment fell off a bit. Scout.com has him in their top 100 at 92nd and his 247sports composite national ranking is 139th. To compare that to another point guard Ed Cooley targeted in 2015 Justin Robinson is ranked 86th by Scout.com and 129th by 247sports composite national ranking.

In an article from Scout.com’s Evan Daniels on October 2nd, Carter’s mentor, former LaSalle star Donnie Carr, had this to say about Carter’s recruitment:

“It was a slow process and frustrating for him,” Donnie Carr, Carter’s mentor, said. “He completed his rehab and now he’s focused on getting to 100-percent with his conditioning and his timing.”

“His recruitment is just starting to pick up,” Carr told Scout.com. “He’s starting to really get a lot of interest form some really good schools.”

The schools mentioned in that article as having interest are Auburn, Dayton, Providence, SMU, Tennessee and Tulsa.

In a subsequent article by Daniels discussing where the unsigned top 100 players on his list will end up, Daniels says this of Carter:

Carter plays at Life Center Academy and is coached there by Pervis Ellison. I would think the earliest Carter would commit would be early 2015 but it seems more likely his recruitment drags on into the Spring.

One other name in 2015 is Davon Dillard. Corey Evans mentioned that Georgia Tech is the latest program to reach out to Dillard since he transferred to Our Savior New American on Long Island. Evans responded to my tweet about not hearing Dillard’s name with Providence in awhile by saying that Dillard told him Providence is no longer involved at this point.

@pcbb1917 they aren't. Atleast with what he told me

— Corey Evans (@coreyevans_10) November 3, 2014

Braxton Blackwell’s recruitment continues to attract the big boys as Louisville was in Nashville this week to watch him practice, according to CPA head coach Drew Maddux.

Louisville was on @cpa_basketball campus today to see 2016 Braxton Blackwell.

— Drew Maddux (@DrewMaddux) November 6, 2014

It certainly seems like 2016 Seton Hall Prep guard TJ Gibbs is becoming a priority recruit for Ed Cooley. Providence coaches have visited Gibbs on 3 occasions since September 23rd and Gibbs was on campus on October 17th for Providence’s Late Night Madness event. The latest of these visits happened on Wednesday this week as a Providence coach made two stops in New Jersey.

Providence was at Seton Hall Prep watching Temple Gibbs today.

— The Basketball Diary (@TheBBallDiary) November 6, 2014

The other stop in New Jersey was to Newark’s St. Benedict’s Prep. The player the Friars (and apparently Villanova) were there to see that day was 2017 guard Trevon Duval.

Villanova and Providence at St Benedict's Prep checking out Trevon Duval today. Earlier PC at SHU Prep for Temple Gibbs.

— The Basketball Diary (@TheBBallDiary) November 6, 2014

Duval is already highly ranked in the class of 2017 with 247sports having his composite national ranking at 43rd. Duval played on the Nike EYBL champion Playaz Basketball Club team that was headlined by 2015 Isaiah Briscoe and also had TJ Gibbs on its roster. Duval played in 23 games for the Playaz during the EYBL regular season and playoffs. Despite coming off the bench for all but 5 games Duval 21.4 minutes per game which was good for 4th on the team. For the season he averaged 7.5 points per game on 43.2% shooting from the floor (only 1/16 from 3 point range and 43/75 from the line) to go along with 2.2 assists per game and 2.1 rebounds per game.

Here is the 6’3 Duval’s ESPN Scouting Report:

Strengths:
Duval is a talented playmaker with an instinctive understanding of how to put the ball in the basket. He’s a big time slasher whose driving style translates very well to the next level. He’s smooth and athletic alike with a good handle and quick first step. He has no wasted motion en route to the rim, going through the lane with long strides and playing in straight lines all while being able to make quick adjustments in his course as secondary defenders step up. He can rise up to finish above the rim but also has versatility as a finisher, making good use of his long arms and strong left hand to convert at a variety of angles, and also relying on a very good short pull-up game.

Weaknesses:
He needs to make the three-point line a more consistent part of his offensive arsenal. The majority of his misses tend to be either short or flat, so it should really just be a matter of better incorporating his legs into his shot. Long term, Duval could be slightly undersized to play off the ball and while he owns all the ball skills and natural intelligence to play the point, he’ll need to make plays for other people on a more consistent basis and learn to make those around him better to make that adjustment.

Bottom Line:
There are few guys in the 2017 class who can put the ball in the basket like he can and he’s done it against the highest levels of competition possible from day one of his high school career.

[youtube=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DyzdUWqfzOM]

Follow me on Twitter: @pcbb1917

About Author

Mike Hopkins

See author's posts