Critical Recruiting Season Begins Friday

That title may be a bit misleading, for a number of reasons. One reason is that recruiting season never really starts or stops. It just always is. Another reason is a little more technical in nature — this upcoming window from April 10th through April 12th is actually called an evaluation period. The majority of time between September and June is actually considered a recruiting period, aside from the occasional dead period that coincides with some holidays, the Final Four and large portions of the month of July. You can read up on all the technicalities of the different periods of the recruiting calendar here.

What you should really be keeping in focus is that April 10th begins the first live evaluation period of this next recruiting cycle. Recruiting of the class of 2015 is over, for the most part. The focus now is on the members of the class of 2016 and a closer eye will be kept on those members of the class of 2017. Providence currently has 1 open scholarship for the 2016-17 season. Keeping too close of a count on scholarships this far in advance of that season isn’t always the most prudent thing as players transfer or go pro and the numbers can change at the drop of a hat. Ed Cooley’s recruiting strategy has been to narrow down the list of recruits to a more manageable number that allows Cooley and his staff the ability to spend more quality time with each target. Having fewer openings should allow that strategy to be ramped up even more.

A player in the class of 2016 that has clearly been made a priority by Cooley and his staff is Seton Hall Prep guard TJ Gibbs. Gibbs is the younger brother of Ashton (Pittsburgh) and Sterling (Seton Hall) and has been rumored to be the most talented of the three. Gibbs attended Providence’s Late Night Madness in October and Bob Simon has been to a number of Gibbs’ game this season.

The Friars are in the market for a 5th year transfer but will likely wait and see what Kris Dunn decides to do before bringing someone in for next season. Fordham transfer Eric Paschall will visit Providence before deciding but no date has been locked down as of this writing. Paschall would have to sit out the 2015-16 season, per NCAA transfer rules and would have 3 years of eligibility remaining.

With a roster made up mostly of freshman and sophomores for the 2015-16 season, Cooley and his staff have some different options. The transfer market has worked out well overall for them with Carson Desrosiers and Tyler Harris and bringing in older, experienced players would help bridge the gap between all the young guys and Cooley’s desire to maintain a roster with experienced players.

The endless Twitter refreshes of the recruiting season begin on Friday and the Friars will likely have a coach or coaches planted in Hampton, VA this weekend as Gibbs and his Playaz Basketball Club will be playing on the Nike EYBL circuit this AAU season. Keep an eye out for a recruiting guide for Providence fans to follow with information on where Providence recruiting targets will be during this first live evaluation period.

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Mike Hopkins

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