We may be close to landing a Juco Point Guard

Sooner23

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OUinsider has an update on a point guard from Pensacola JC named Daniel West and it sounds like we are in the lead right now. He apparently signed with Tennessee and is originally from Saginaw, Mich. He said Michigan, Indiana and UCLA were also talking to him.

Here is the link to the complete story for those with OUInsider access. It's a really lengthy and good update by Hale..............

http://ouinsider.com/forums/showthread.php?t=147639

Here is a pic I found on google..........

medium_08highwins_sa.JPG
 
Well this certainly couldn't hurt, but we also really need a scoring guard that is ready to come in and play next year. Heck we need a lot of things though.
 
"I really like OU and I hope to commit to them soon."


Apparently this is his first year at JC, but he averaged 6 assists a game, and has 3 years to play.
 
Not exactly easy to find stats for him, I found the official Pensacola JC site and it has a roster but doesn't have any stats. I found his rivals profile and it looks like coming out of high school he had offers from Tennessee, SMU and St. John's.
 
Here is a story from last year after he signed with Tennessee.......

Tennessee appears to have succeeded today with the signing of Daniel West.

West, a 6-1, 165-pounder, has led Saginaw High to back-to-back Class A state titles in Michigan. He produced 21 points and 8 assists in a 90-71 defeat of Detroit Pershing for the most recent championship. West's senior averages included 15 points, 11 assists and 6 steals in helping the Trojans finish 27-1 and ranked No. 4 nationally by USA Today.

In a statement released by the UT sports information office, Vol head coach Bruce Pearl said: “There is probably no position more important to look for a champion than at point guard. What Daniel has accomplished at Saginaw High School speaks for itself.

“He has all of the qualities of a good point guard. He makes people better by distributing the basketball. He has the ability to score and he can make plays when the game is on the line. Defensively, his ability to anticipate and steal the ball should really help our press. He is also fortunate to have played for Lou Dawkins, who is one of the best high school coaches in the nation.”
 
If nothing else it looks like the kid is a winner. We need more of those.
 
James did a great job on his interview with West!

I think anyone who can access this article will agree that there is a lot to like about this young man. One of the things that stood out to me is that he chose to focus on academics during the summer when he knew playing AAU ball would give him more exposure. Despite that, however, he had some impressive offers coming out of high school in St. John’s, Kentucky, Memphis, SMU and Tennessee.

I also liked what he had to say about playing defense. He said he can score in a variety of ways, but gets a lot of his points off of his defense. Another thing I like is that he will have three years of eligibility left. Sounds like a good get to me!
 
Here's another article on him last summer from the Tennessee Scout site.........

With a nifty head fake, Daniel West beat his defender, dribbled into the lane and pulled up for a 10-foot jumper. It rattled out.

So did the next one. And the one after that. And most of the ones after that.

Daniel West, a silky-smooth 6-1 Tennessee point guard signee from Saginaw, Mich., finished his first game in the Rocky Top summer league with just 6 points, which suggests he played poorly. Quite the contrary.

He spent Monday evening making crisp moves, making creative passes for assists and making quick-handed steals. He was making everything, it seems, except baskets. It was, in short, one of those nights.

“I can shoot better,” West said afterward, clearly embarrassed by his point total. “My shots weren't falling.”

To his credit, he didn't let his shooting problems affect the rest of the game. He did an excellent job of controlling the ball, running the offense and setting up his teammates.

“I was passing the ball,” he said. “That's what I wanted to do from the jump. Other than that, there wasn't much I could've done. I didn't play my best but I did OK.”

Former Vol Ron Slay, who has been playing pickup ball with West in recent weeks, thought the mild-mannered Michigander was being much too modest.

“He's real good,” said Slay, whose team was crushed by West's team Monday night. “I've been playing pickup with and against him, and he's impressive. I can't wait to see him when he gets in the open court in Bruce Pearl's system.

“He's very impressive. When he gets in the open court with Tyler (Smith) running the break ... man, it's going to be something to see.”

With West providing the assists, Smith scored 32 points Monday night. The two worked awfully well together.

“This was my first time playing with him, and I like playing with him,” West said of Smith. “He's athletic, he can run the floor and he can do it all.”

West has been spending a lot of time with fellow UT signee Scotty Hopson, a High School All-America wing from Hopkinsville, Ky. The two have become virtually inseparable.

“Scotty Hopson and I are together from sun up to sun down,” West said. “I spend time with everybody on the team but pretty much Scotty Hopson.”

Hopson, who scored 25 points in his Rocky Top debut, appears to be as good as advertised. His newfound friend and classmate certainly thinks so.

“Man, he's an all-around player,” West said. “He can dish it, shoot it and he can jump with the best of them.”

West isn't as flashy as Hopson but he could be just as effective in his role as field general and setup man for others. He just needs a little more physical maturity to be ready for the rugged style of play that awaits him against SEC opponents.

“I'm trying to come out here and play physical, like they (Vols) play, work on my strength while I'm here,” he said.

Competing against several guys like Slay, who are well into their 20s, should help West adapt to the rigors that lie ahead. In that regard, the Rocky Top League could be a huge benefit.

“It's going to help me a lot,” he conceded. “There's a lot of older players out here playing, so I'll get the feel of playing other types of players.”
 
Well this certainly couldn't hurt, but we also really need a scoring guard that is ready to come in and play next year. Heck we need a lot of things though.

I dont think we need a scoring guard...i think a great compliment to TMG would be just a solid ball handler that can eat up a few minutes and sometimes play next to him...being able to shoot is important though, but i'm not concerned with a scorer
 
I dont think we need a scoring guard...i think a great compliment to TMG would be just a solid ball handler that can eat up a few minutes and sometimes play next to him...being able to shoot is important though, but i'm not concerned with a scorer

I'm just worried about where the scoring is going to come from the 2 & 3 positions next year, particuarly if WW is no more.
 
I'm fine with getting him as long as we runoff our non-contributers
 
It looks like he was committed to Bradley before Tennessee but they dropped him due to academic issues:

There is confusion about Bradley recruit Daniel West’s situation and I’m sure I contributed to it. West is the Saginaw, Mich., High School senior guard who had orally committed to Bradley last fall, but had a poor academic junior year, leading to almost certain ineligibility by NCAA standards by next fall. So Bradley coach Jim Les told him this summer they were going to use his scholarship for somebody else.

Our first website report on the subject Wednesday indicated that this was a Bradley issue, but that was incorrect. Bradley’s admission standards for scholarship basketball players are no more stringent than any other NCAA Division I school. Some private colleges, notably Drake in our area, do have tougher admission standards for athletes. That’s not true at Bradley because the basketball program—with its outstanding tutoring and monitoring process—has earned the trust of the university administration in regard to the support of academically marginal student-athletes once they’re here. Players may leave the program—Jeremy Fears, Saihou Jassey and Ray Brown all departed in the spring with eligibility remaining—but they’re not doing so because they’re flunking out.

The academic casualties Bradley has incurred lately have involved guys who fell short of the required NCAA standards before they enrolled at BU. That was the case with both Dwight Buycks and DeAaron Williams in the spring and it’s the case again with West. While West has a full year of high school left, his core course grades are at such a low level that the BU coaches decided to cut their losses and go recruit another guard (Eddren McCain) while there were still plenty out there. Considering what happened with Buycks and Williams, that’s just good business.

Bradley coaches and administrators can’t discuss any of this publicly because of privacy laws regarding academics and NCAA rules restricting comment on recruitable athletes. Since West had not yet signed a National Letter of Intent with the Braves, Jim Les can’t say anything about him in a public forum other than Bradley is or isn’t recruiting him.

So as best as I understand Bradley’s situation, I’m speaking for the program to hopefully provide concerned fans some understanding. Daniel West will likely be a very good player someday for some college team. But the bottom line is it seems only a miracle can get him eligible for a Division I basketball program by next fall. Bradley has been burned too often lately hoping for divine intervention with some of these classroom-challenged kids. And they believed, competitively, they can’t afford to wait an extra year or two on West. Not when there are lots of talented and eligible guards available now. It just makes sense that they move on.

http://www2.pjstar.com/index.php/reynolds/article/what_happened_with_daniel_west_and_bradley/
 
I'm just worried about where the scoring is going to come from the 2 & 3 positions next year, particuarly if WW is no more.

I think we will get some scoring out of one of our freshmen that have already committed...i am just looking at Juco to fill some holes and contribute, nothing real special out of them their first year here...

honestly i'd take a 100% defensive specialist that can handle the ball over a scorer...
 
I'm just worried about where the scoring is going to come from the 2 & 3 positions next year, particuarly if WW is no more.

I agree. I'd still like to add a big SG. Kid doesn't have to be a stud on offense, but it'd be nice if he could play defense, and maybe get to the rim. The Ellis kid that went to IU, or a more defensive minded Detrick is kind of what I'm thinking.

As was mentioned above, this move might also be a big of backup in case TMG does depart. Not your typical backup pg signing.
 
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