CLK wrote:

Alex Kline‏@TheRecruitScoop8mRT @Corey_Rivals513: 2013 IMG Academy (FL) center Darrius Lewis has signed with Duquesne.

http://www.ncsasports.org/mens-basketball-recruiting/ky/lexington/tates-creek-high-school/darius-lewis5

 

:-))

From a Rivals Article:

Apart from their freshman star, IMG Academy also had two other players turn in strong performances Saturday. First up was Lexington (Ky.) native Darius Lewis, a 6-foot-11 center. Attracting interest from several mid-major programs on Saturday, Lewis was at his best in a matchup with Covenant Christian, until a sprained knee left him hobbled for the remainder of the event.

Still, Lewis' improved conditioning and toughness down low have coaches buzzing that he could be a sought-after commodity in the late signing period. He's not the most skilled, and is just a slightly above-average athlete, but you simply can't teach the size, strength or effort that Lewis displayed on Saturday, all things that college coaches will covet.

http://basketballrecruiting.rivals.com/content.asp?CID=1473345
 

I hope he grows 2 or 3 inches for a nice surprise. I'm seeing him listed at 270 on some pages.

CLK wrote:

We now have 5 players in next year's freshman class (assuming Mason does not get a waiver to play next season). Do we recruit any more in this class?  Unless someone redshirts, got to wonder if the next two will be JUCOs or transfers, or if we hold one.  

Also got to wonder how Datt fits in next year with Lewis signing. 

 I would guess that Lewis is a project. Perhaps he and Datt split time in the middle. If that would somehow work out, that would allow Robinson, and Watkins to split time at the 4, and allow Soko to play the 3, where he might be most effective. As ED pointed out, this looks like still having Abele, but with 4 years instead of one. Perhaps Ferry didn't feel he would have enough time to mold Abele into what he wanted, but feels that he can turn Lewis into an effective player in a couple of years. Kids this size are so rare that it's almost always worth a gamble bringing one in if he has any potential at all.

If he is a Freshman project, he will be Ferry's freshman project.  Abele was going to be a Senior and there just wasn't enough time to get him where he needed to be.  Please tell me this guy is a freshman.

FAM wrote:

If he is a Freshman project, he will be Ferry's freshman project.  Abele was going to be a Senior and there just wasn't enough time to get him where he needed to be.  Please tell me this guy is a freshman.

Yeah, he 18 years old.

ElDuque wrote:

I really think the folks who are down on Abele really haven't looked at the big picture with him. Yes, his hands are a weakness, and on offense he's often a turnover waiting to happen. But our coaches know there are a million drills that could improve that. What many people miss is that he could shut down an opposing center who is having his way with us. I forget the opponent, but a non-con game I saw on the internet, the other school had a big man who was just pushing people all over in the paint and scoring at will. Abele came in, and the next trip down the court, the other big man backed into him, threw a wicked elbow (no foul), turned around to try to throw down a dunk, and Abele's block bounced off the kid's nose. I jumped out of my chair cheering on that one. Unfortunately, the ref who missed the elbow, ignored an obvious 3 second violation (more like 5...6...7) called a foul on Abele, even though the block appeared to be clean (no replay). He also played the big man from St. Louis very tough. In fact, without being a goon, Abele provided toughness and defense. 

Sometimes you have to appreciate more about the game than offense with some players.

I don't think we can expect the same thing from Lewis right away. Freshmen need to add a little muscle before they can be bangers. But he has some weight so he shouldn't get pushed around. Since we haven't seen him play, maybe he has some hops and can extend his height, or long arms. Maybe he has decent hands. Don't know. There's really no good info out there except that he's tall.

I'm interested to see what role Datt plays next year. My expectation is depth. Datt's no offensive whiz, doesn't rebound at a remarkable rate, hasn't proven himself to be a shot blocker, is thin enough to fit through keyholes, and has bad wheels. But he's athletic, will be a full year removed from surgeries, and has had a year in Ferry's system. With Soko, Robinson and Watkins, maybe Ferry plays Datt on a wing to try to stop balls from coming into the paint? Who knows?

 

I'm looking forward to next season. I think that now that Ferry has rebuilt the roster to his liking, we should be able to get an idea of what he wants to do, and what type of coach he is. I'm not going to demand a certain number of wins, but at the end of the season, the team will have needed to pass the "eye test", for what we should expect for a young, but promising team. I expect a few bad losses, but they need to be countered with some impressive wins. Most of all, I don't want to see a collapse down the stretch. The team needs to show enough that we will have realistic expectations of postseason action in 2014-15, preferably at least the NIT.  The following year, anything less than being on the bubble will be a major diappointment.

Losing Abele was addition by subtraction.  Big body and height, but offered nearly nothing.  I would rather take a shot on a new kid like this than have kept Abele around for another season.

 

Phildog wrote:

Remember at times last season deep into the shot clock, a risky steal was attempted resulting in an inside score by the other team. Coach won't have to break that habit with his recruits this year. Some size and bulk will also help. If you recall BJ was playing the 5 many times in his Sr. Year.

 
Hopefully, no more 6'5" guys @ the 5 position. I remember BJ there all too well. Tough for us, tough for him.

applecorps wrote:

president wrote:

Phildog wrote:

Remember at times last season deep into the shot clock, a risky steal was attempted resulting in an inside score by the other team. Coach won't have to break that habit with his recruits this year. Some size and bulk will also help. If you recall BJ was playing the 5 many times in his Sr. Year.

 
Hopefully, no more 6'5" guys @ the 5 position. I remember BJ there all too well. Tough for us, tough for him.

 

Panto at the 5 this year was equally inappropriate. I have to say that Ferry did not show a lot of patience when alloting minutes to his potential post players, and sometimes they were glued to the pine while opposing bigs were abusing us.

Please don't take this as Ferry bashing. There's enough disussion about RE and JF bashing on the other thread.

I just think that neither Ron nor Ferry thought that the bigs we've had were very good. That was the main reason for small ball, not a preference for that style of play. Ron played bigs when he had good ones, and I think Ferry will do the same thing. Good bigs are hard to find, which is why I'm optimistic that we will win if Watkins and Robinson turn out to be good players.

ElDuque wrote:

president wrote:

If Lewis is #42 on the sample vid. I see some good stuff there as far as potential. Looks to be a bit faster up the floor than Abele and a little better athleticism. Really hard to tell though. Let's hope that Coach Rhodes can work his magic and develop Lewis into a more than servicable big man for us. At least he has four years to do it! Maybe a redshirt next year?

OK, how does one get to be president when they click on a video that says "For Demonstration Purposes Only" and think it's about our recruit????

I'm laughing when I say this ... don't be offended. No offense is intended.

I'm also laughing at Towson's comment on the heel of what I said above. I think it's good that we have knowledgeable fans who understand the nuance of sports.

ElDuque. Let me up already. I realized that after I submitted my comment. I have really never seen that kind of thing before. Anyway, I must do a really great job at what I do or I wouldn't be continually re-elected president (local labor union) Just know that I am as big of a DU basketball fan as you will EVER meet! OK. Take care.


 

Good to see Darius excited about signing with Duquesne.

Darius Lewis‏@CallMeStilts6m Excited to say that I have a home for the next 4 years. Duquesne University here I come. We are ready…

Darius Lewis‏@CallMeStilts1m So excited to be apart of the Duquesne basketball family. We will ball hard!!!