Jim Christian has another recruit and the recruit has a familiar name. It is Vin Baker Jr., the son of long-time NBA big man Vin Baker. Adding a recruit this late is usually not something to get overly excited about. Flipping a kid from Bryant doesn't lead to many ACC wins. But Baker Jr. is a risk Jim Christian can and should take.
One of the reasons Baker Jr. was even available was due to his size and late growth spurt. He reportedly grew four inches in the last year. He also played on low profile AAU teams. This might mean he is not an ACC caliber player. Or maybe, he is the classic late bloomer. We know he has some genetic links to elite basketball. Coming up as a guard but now moving to a Wing/Forward, might mean he has an interesting skill mix and will be able to take advantage of larger, slow defenders. We won't know any of this until he gets on campus and performs. That unknown is Christian's gamble.
I say Christian should gamble. Since he can't land enough elite prospects, Christian needs one of these diamond in the rough types to develop. Why can't it be Baker? His dad was a late bloomer too and hat is why he ended up at playing at Harford. It would be nice to see the son blossom the same way. Doing it in the ACC might be harder, but if he does succeed, it will drive more attention.
And if Baker Jr. is not an ACC talent, he can always bail on the Height. I am sure that Christian's replacement would appreciate the freed up scholarship.
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Here we are - stealing recruits from Bryant to help compete in the Atlantic Coast Conference. Yes, I suppose, anything is possible and he could prove to be a great pick up. Serenity now.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ow_9MglZrhs
this is what next year's team currently looks like:
Guards: Robinson, Bowman, Chatman, Wilson
Wings: Baker, Meznieks, Sagay
Bigs: Popovic, Reyes, Kraljevic
why are we only using 10 scholarships? because Christian can't retain any of the guys he brings to campus. 3/5 recruits from 2015 (Turner, SBT, Millon) have transferred, 1/4 recruits from last year (Graves, by far the highest ranked one) transferred. Idy Diallo also transferred. essentially half of the kids brought to BC under Christian have transferred, which is absurd. Christian has placed the program effectively on probation.
Baker might be good down the road, he might not be - but the fact that we have so many scholarships available and Christian is desperately filling them in May shows you where he is as a program manager.
a complete disgrace and the fact that he got a 1-year extension after going 0-18 really tells you all you need to know about BC Sports in this decade.
@El MIS: Why would a kid go to BC and have to study when there are jokes like Kentucky and Louisville? The NCAA could solve this in a New York minute but they won't because of all of the money involved. Mark Emmert PhD, NCAA, is the source of the problem and the university presidents have given him his authority. SMU received the "death penalty" while Auburn ran wild. The investigation continues since 2014 into North Carolina. Meanwhile, they win basketball against a BC clone under extremely "mysterious" second half referee decisions.
Growing 4 inches in one year is nothing compared to what happened to Kareem at UCLA. The day that he graduated, he grew 2 inches going from 6'11 to 7'1".
This seems like a pretty good pickup. We desperately needed someone with size and athleticism and this kid fits the bill. If he can be a bigger, slightly more effective Turner next year then I'll take it.
BC basketball makes BC football look competent
Said this before. Something is going on over there. Two coaches have both had problems retaining players(let alone signing good talent). Some of them have left and been successful at high profile programs(Anderson - Arizona, Rahon - St. Mary's).
Jarmond needs to figure this out. The improvement of this program is the primary criteria on which I am accessing his performance(Don't care about fundraising, baseball/lacrosse or facilities).
@Hario: funny accurate. @mod: "scollies" took me a minute to translate. @Knucklehead: Really liked Rahon when they played Gonzaga. What about that story that BC almost hired Jay Wright but he wanted more than 800K? The V is right in the middle of a prime recruiting area with the Big 5 with lots of rivalries. BC has limitations on rivalries and is geographically "way out there". St. John's will play games at the Garden. Maybe BC could play some games where the Celtics play to cause "cross cultural acclimation"? Huh?
JARMOND SHOULD IMMEDIATELY MEET AND INTERVIEW 4 OF BC FINEST GENTLEMAN AND BC BASKETBALL GREATS. JARED DUDLEY (HEAD) , DANYA ABRAMS ( BIG MEN) AND HOWARD EISLEY and
MALCOLM HUCKABEE (BACK COURT ). SHOULD ALSO BE FOUR GREAT RECRUITERS.
TIME TO MAKE THE ECHOES RING AGAIN "FOR BOSTON" AND TJ HURLEY .
Outstanding comments by Miz, Mod and JBQ (especially re NCAA, Emmert and presidents). I may not be so proud of BC Athletics - but its gratifying to have smart fans and alums like you and others who see through the nonsense. Otherwise I'd be here screaming "serenity now" and "hoochie mama" to myself!!
Meanwhile, is Baker Jr. any good at all? Not too many comments about the individual. BC has known some successful players in the past, including basketball, who were not widely recruited.
I understand that the Kid may not be able to step right in, but many players are like that.
I'm sure he has and will continue to learn from his Dad and coaches. Hopefully he has a great work ethic and a desire to (continuously) improve.
Good luck at BC, Mr. Baker. Congratulations on your scholarship.
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