Our Point Guard for Next Year?

[Soonercuda]

http://ouinsider.com/forums/showthread.php?t=151668

 

[thebigabd]

I am not sure what to think of this.

 

[SoonerNorm]

http://www.neworleans.com/sports/uno/379897-uno-guard-blair-transfers-to-oklahoma.html

 

[El Jefe]

Talk about out of left field.

 

[Tony]

Hey! Interesting! Need some time to digest this one.

 

[boksooner]

Is he more of a pg or combo guard?

 

[dubyac]

i started another thread at the same time... with some posted info and stats on him Carl Blair out of Houston... mods, can we combine these threads please??? he'll be a sophmore coming in...

 

[OUHoosier]

I'n fine with this. A D1 (yes low level) pg w/a year of experience. This guy won't scare off any of the recruits, but can you imagine if OU got left w/o any pg? Definitely fills a big need.

 

[campbest]

His stats aren't bad for a starting freshman pg...that considering, it is the Sun Belt.

 

[dubyac]

led the team with 112 assists and averaged 9 points and 4 boards... also had a triple double... all as a freshman... looks like we lucked out and will at least have a decent point option next year...

 

[luckyc1423]

He averaged 4.4 rebounds per game as a true freshman point guard! thats not bad at all! I know he was in a weaker conference but 4.4 rebounds is pretty good....

To put that in perspective he would have been the third leading rebounder on this years team behind gallon (7.9) and crocker (6.2)

 

[cvangild]

I LIKE it! If we can land Newell, this kid would be a great kid to provide some PG relief..and he already has a year of D-1 experience!!!

We need a team with defined role players. TMG was playing like 39 mins a game. WAAAAY too much.

Come on down Roger!!!!!!

 

[Cheno]

At this point with the available schollies I think it is a good pickup. He's got experience and put up some numbers at a spot we had basically no one at.

 

[scrybe]

Sounds good to me. The kid put up some pretty good numbers as a true freshman. Even if it is a weak confererence, it's till Division 1.

 

[pnkranger]

Sounds like we looked at him out of high school:

http://insider.espn.go.com/ncb/recruiting/tracker/player?recruitId=46107&action=login&appRedirect=http%3a%2f%2finsider.espn.go.com%2fncb%2frecruiting%2ftracker%2fplayer%3frecruitId%3d46107

 

[j2d2]

Why in the world would UNO announce that they were going to dump the athletic program but then refuse to release Blair? They wanted him to play for the last year of their program and didn't have anyone else?

 

[soonervegas]

The Bad News Bears

 

[152219]

Scout says he was offered by Utah out of high school

 

[Sam]

I like this a lot, I did not want another true freshman point guard handling the duties so this is nice to see.

Here is ESPN's scouting report on him from high school.

Blair has decent quickness when he goes north and south, getting the ball up the court rather quickly when he has a chance to go end-to-end with the orange. However, he tends to struggle when he has to move laterally with the ball in his hands. Blair has a good amount of strength and a thick build, which he uses to over-power smaller guards on his way to the paint. Once in the paint, he also uses his strength and muscle to create space and take contact from bigger, interior defenders when he gets to the rim. He needs a floater, which will alleviate his tendency to over-penetrate and get out of control, often resulting in turnovers. In order to see more time at the point on the next level, Blair will have to improve his passing skills and vision, though he will occasionally find open teammates. Blair can create his own shot off the dribble and will hit 3s as well as mid-range jumpers off the dribble, though he does not rank as a great shooter at this point of his career. He also has to continue to improve his ball-handing skills, but Blair plays with a good amount of effort and intensity.

Couple quotes from his coach when he signed with them.

"Carl's basketball IQ and vision are terrific," UNO Coach Joe Pasternack said. "We're really excited to have him."

"Carl makes everybody around him better," Pasternack said.

 

[Sam]

Quote from his coach about him leaving.

“Carl is a very good player and we’re sorry things didn’t work out the way we planned here at UNO,” Pasternack said. “I know it’s not what he signed up for with everything happening here. I’m happy for him that he’s able to get what he wanted and that’s a chance to play for a top-notch program like Oklahoma.”