Best programs at developing talent
By Jeff Goodman | ESPN INSIDER
It’s difficult to quantify which are the elite programs -- and coaches -- at developing talent. It can be taking a mid-major recruit and turning him into a lottery selection. It can be taking a junior college player no one wanted and helping him become the Big East Player of the Year. It can be taking a so-called “football program” and using a flurry of under-recruited players to take the basketball program to a higher level, or it can just be taking a bunch of guys few wanted to the NCAA tournament each and every year.
There’s no simple way to measure the best programs at evaluating and developing talent, but here are 10 that have stood out lately.
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Marquette Golden Eagles
Look at what Buzz Williams has done since he took over for Tom Crean. It started with Lazar Hayward, continued with Jimmy Butler and included Jae Crowder and Darius Johnson-Odom. None of those guys were highly regarded coming out of high school, or even junior college, and three of them are now earning NBA paychecks. Hayward and Butler, who was ranked as the 82nd overall player in Texas by one recruiting service, were both selected late in the first round while Crowder was taken 34th overall.
Davante Gardner may not wind up playing in the NBA, but look at the progress the rotund big man has made at Marquette -- and he’ll be in the equation to play in the league once he graduates. Few have taken nonprototypical players and done more with them -- both individually and with team success -- than Williams.
Colorado Buffaloes
Andre Roberson was virtually anonymous when he came to the Buffs from Wagner High in San Antonio, and he turned into one of the elite rebounders in the country and a first-round pick. Spencer Dinwiddie wasn’t highly recruited coming out of high school in California and could become a first-rounder a year from now. Tad Boyle and his staff have also done a nice job developing Askia Booker, who has turned into a quality college guard. Boyle inherited Alec Burks and helped turn him into the 12th pick in the 2011 draft.
Gonzaga Bulldogs
The Zags have become a national power without recruiting McDonald’s All Americans. They have had terrific success going outside the U.S. -- especially north of the border. Kelly Olynyk was a virtual unknown who took advantage of a redshirt season to become a lottery pick. Robert Sacre played in the NBA last season after opting for Gonzaga over Oregon State coming out of high school. Canadian Kevin Pangos has had a terrific career, and Elias Harris chose the Zags over Delaware coming out of Germany.
Butler Bulldogs
No one thought much when Brad Stevens and his staff pulled in Gordon Hayward and Shelvin Mack. In fact, Matt Howard was the most celebrated recruit that Stevens & Co. landed in recent memory. However, Hayward quickly emerged as a first-rounder and Mack turned into a terrific college player who has spent much of his time in an NBA uniform since leaving Hinkle. Stevens isn’t just a tremendous coach. He also has an eye for talent and makes his guys better. Hayward and Mack are examples at the highest level, but Stevens even finds a way to get quality production in key spots from walk-ons such as Alex Barlow.
Michigan Wolverines
Trey Burke committed to Penn State early in his high school career and wasn’t considered a top 100 player by most recruiting experts. Nik Stauskas wasn’t heavily recruited coming out of prep school, and Glenn Robinson III wasn’t all that highly regarded when he committed to John Beilein and the Wolverines. It’s no surprise that Beilein -- who has had success just about everywhere he’s been -- is one of the best at identifying talent and making certain his guys make significant improvement.
Indiana Hoosiers
Tom Crean has brought in highly touted guys like Cody Zeller and Yogi Ferrell, but the Hoosiers have also done a terrific job identifying and developing players. No one is a better example in the past few years than Victor Oladipo, the onetime mid-major recruit out of DeMatha who wound up being taken No. 2 overall in the draft. IU has also done a nice job with sixth-man Will Sheehey, who should get a chance to become a go-to guy this season, and departed guard Jordan Hulls, who made significant improvement in his time in Bloomington.
San Diego State Aztecs
Steve Fisher and his staff have done a nice job becoming relevant in the past few years on a national level, and much of the reason has to do with the combination of evaluating and developing talent. Kawhi Leonard was hardly a big-time recruit when the Aztecs landed him, and the same can be said for Jamaal Franklin. Both had great college careers, and Leonard has already established himself as one of the NBA’s top young players. Chase Tapley was an afterthought when the Aztecs signed him, but he’s had a stellar college career and became the first player in program history to go to the NCAA tournament four times.
Saint Mary's Gaels
Randy Bennett and the Gaels have also gone the overseas route to spearhead much of their success. Bennett brought Patty Mills and Matthew Dellavedova over from Australia, and both turned into terrific college players. Mills is a backup with San Antonio. Dellavedova went undrafted, but he’ll have a chance to make the Cleveland Cavaliers' roster. There were also a couple of unheralded players from the West Coast -- Omar Samhan and Mickey McConnell -- who came aboard with little to no fanfare and turned into terrific college players.
Notre Dame Fighting Irish
Mike Brey hasn’t necessarily developed NBA players, but he’s taken a bunch of guys and made them better in their time in South Bend -- and also enjoyed no shortage of team success. It’s been a familiar pattern from Luke Harangody to Tim Abromaitis to Jack Cooley and even the current backcourt of Jerian Grant and Eric Atkins. Brey has found a way to take a bunch of players that most high-majors didn’t want and turned them into quality college basketball players who win a bunch of games.
Wisconsin Badgers
Bo Ryan has gotten a bunch of Top 100 guys in his tenure in Madison, but he’s also found success with players who weren’t exactly household names coming out of high school. Jon Leuer came in with plenty of hype and just signed a three-year deal with the Memphis Grizzlies. However, it’s been players such as Jordan Taylor, Ryan Evans, Mike Bruesewitz, Ben Brust, Josh Gasser and Traevon Jackson that have made the program what it is -- one of the most consistent over the past decade.
[h=3]Notes[/h]Hood set to return as a different player
Rodney Hood was scared. He had to sit out last season after transferring from Mississippi State and thought he might miss all of this year with an Achilles injury.
But the 6-foot-8 Duke forward is breathing a sigh of relief after learning just days ago that he didn’t tear his Achilles and will likely be on the mend for only the next month or so.
Hood is back in Durham, N.C., after suffering the injury in Colorado Springs, Colo., while practicing with the World University Games squad.
“It was tough making the team and then not being able to play,” Hood said. “But now I’m just trying to get it right.”
Mike Krzyzewski and the Blue Devils will need Hood to be right this season. He’ll join highly touted incoming freshman forward Jabari Parker and holdover Rasheed Sulaimon to form one of the top trios in the country.
Everyone around the Duke program was gushing about Hood last season. That included coaches and players. Even Hood said he won’t be the same player that people saw two years ago when he averaged 10.2 points and 4.8 rebounds a game on a dysfunctional Mississippi State squad that featured Renardo Sidney.
“I was very passive and felt like I had to be that way on that team,” Hood said. “I was a younger guy. Now I’m stronger, faster and a lot more confident and more mature. I’m way more aggressive.”
Hood said the swelling is down in his right foot, the pain has improved, and he’s gone from crutches to wearing a boot. He knows he’ll need to be at full strength for this season because the Blue Devils are going to play fast.
“It’s going to be fun,” he said. “We’ll be small position-wise, but we’ll make up for it with our length. We’re obviously going to play fast because we have athletes all over the place.”
Gasser getting close
Wisconsin coach Bo Ryan had just announced that Josh Gasser would have the unenviable task of replacing Jordan Taylor as the Badgers point guard. Just days later, Gasser went down with a season-ending knee injury.
That was in October, and Gasser is still working his way back, not yet cleared for contact workouts but optimistic he’ll be ready for the first day of official practice.
“They told me my injury was one of the more complicated ones they had to deal with because of multiple ligaments, and it may be a little longer,” said Gasser, who tore his ACL, LCL and meniscus. “I’d love to be ready now, but I’m not going to rush it. As long as I’m ready for the first game and the first practice.”
Gasser wasn’t just slated to be the point guard on last year’s team, but he was also set to assume primary leadership duties. While it was brutal for him to watch from the sideline, he understood that the progress of the young guards wouldn’t have occurred if he hadn’t gone down with the injury.
“Traevon Jackson and George Marshall grew up quickly,” Gasser said. “This year we’ll be deeper than we would have been if I didn’t get hurt.”
The perimeter will feature Gasser, Jackson, Marshall and returning leading scorer Ben Brust. Gasser said he has no clue whether he’ll return and get the starting point guard spot back, but it doesn’t sound as though he cares where he plays -- as long as he’s on the floor.
The question is who will replace Jared Berggren, Ryan Evans and Mike Bruesewitz up front. Gasser said versatile forward Sam Dekker could emerge as a star and will rarely come off the court, unless he’s in foul trouble. Frank Kaminsky, who averaged about 10 minutes a game last season in a reserve role, will see more playing time. He also said a pair of freshman forwards out of Ohio -- Nigel Hayes and Vitto Brown -- along with redshirt senior Zach Bohannon will also have an opportunity. Gasser said Hayes draws comparisons to former Badger Marcus Landry in that he’s physical and a bit undersized while Brown is long and likes to play on the perimeter.
By Jeff Goodman | ESPN INSIDER
It’s difficult to quantify which are the elite programs -- and coaches -- at developing talent. It can be taking a mid-major recruit and turning him into a lottery selection. It can be taking a junior college player no one wanted and helping him become the Big East Player of the Year. It can be taking a so-called “football program” and using a flurry of under-recruited players to take the basketball program to a higher level, or it can just be taking a bunch of guys few wanted to the NCAA tournament each and every year.
There’s no simple way to measure the best programs at evaluating and developing talent, but here are 10 that have stood out lately.
<!—offer-->
Look at what Buzz Williams has done since he took over for Tom Crean. It started with Lazar Hayward, continued with Jimmy Butler and included Jae Crowder and Darius Johnson-Odom. None of those guys were highly regarded coming out of high school, or even junior college, and three of them are now earning NBA paychecks. Hayward and Butler, who was ranked as the 82nd overall player in Texas by one recruiting service, were both selected late in the first round while Crowder was taken 34th overall.
Davante Gardner may not wind up playing in the NBA, but look at the progress the rotund big man has made at Marquette -- and he’ll be in the equation to play in the league once he graduates. Few have taken nonprototypical players and done more with them -- both individually and with team success -- than Williams.
Colorado Buffaloes
Gonzaga Bulldogs
Butler Bulldogs
Michigan Wolverines
Indiana Hoosiers
San Diego State Aztecs
Saint Mary's Gaels
Notre Dame Fighting Irish
Wisconsin Badgers
[h=3]Notes[/h]Hood set to return as a different player
Rodney Hood was scared. He had to sit out last season after transferring from Mississippi State and thought he might miss all of this year with an Achilles injury.
But the 6-foot-8 Duke forward is breathing a sigh of relief after learning just days ago that he didn’t tear his Achilles and will likely be on the mend for only the next month or so.
Hood is back in Durham, N.C., after suffering the injury in Colorado Springs, Colo., while practicing with the World University Games squad.
“It was tough making the team and then not being able to play,” Hood said. “But now I’m just trying to get it right.”
Mike Krzyzewski and the Blue Devils will need Hood to be right this season. He’ll join highly touted incoming freshman forward Jabari Parker and holdover Rasheed Sulaimon to form one of the top trios in the country.
Everyone around the Duke program was gushing about Hood last season. That included coaches and players. Even Hood said he won’t be the same player that people saw two years ago when he averaged 10.2 points and 4.8 rebounds a game on a dysfunctional Mississippi State squad that featured Renardo Sidney.
“I was very passive and felt like I had to be that way on that team,” Hood said. “I was a younger guy. Now I’m stronger, faster and a lot more confident and more mature. I’m way more aggressive.”
Hood said the swelling is down in his right foot, the pain has improved, and he’s gone from crutches to wearing a boot. He knows he’ll need to be at full strength for this season because the Blue Devils are going to play fast.
“It’s going to be fun,” he said. “We’ll be small position-wise, but we’ll make up for it with our length. We’re obviously going to play fast because we have athletes all over the place.”
Gasser getting close
Wisconsin coach Bo Ryan had just announced that Josh Gasser would have the unenviable task of replacing Jordan Taylor as the Badgers point guard. Just days later, Gasser went down with a season-ending knee injury.
That was in October, and Gasser is still working his way back, not yet cleared for contact workouts but optimistic he’ll be ready for the first day of official practice.
“They told me my injury was one of the more complicated ones they had to deal with because of multiple ligaments, and it may be a little longer,” said Gasser, who tore his ACL, LCL and meniscus. “I’d love to be ready now, but I’m not going to rush it. As long as I’m ready for the first game and the first practice.”
Gasser wasn’t just slated to be the point guard on last year’s team, but he was also set to assume primary leadership duties. While it was brutal for him to watch from the sideline, he understood that the progress of the young guards wouldn’t have occurred if he hadn’t gone down with the injury.
“Traevon Jackson and George Marshall grew up quickly,” Gasser said. “This year we’ll be deeper than we would have been if I didn’t get hurt.”
The perimeter will feature Gasser, Jackson, Marshall and returning leading scorer Ben Brust. Gasser said he has no clue whether he’ll return and get the starting point guard spot back, but it doesn’t sound as though he cares where he plays -- as long as he’s on the floor.
The question is who will replace Jared Berggren, Ryan Evans and Mike Bruesewitz up front. Gasser said versatile forward Sam Dekker could emerge as a star and will rarely come off the court, unless he’s in foul trouble. Frank Kaminsky, who averaged about 10 minutes a game last season in a reserve role, will see more playing time. He also said a pair of freshman forwards out of Ohio -- Nigel Hayes and Vitto Brown -- along with redshirt senior Zach Bohannon will also have an opportunity. Gasser said Hayes draws comparisons to former Badger Marcus Landry in that he’s physical and a bit undersized while Brown is long and likes to play on the perimeter.
