BigTime
The Red Wig
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There are a few things that I have gleaned from following Kruger's recent UNLV team, his work with the Sooners thus far, and in talking to a couple of recruiting insiders regarding the Kruger staff and their recruiting tactics.
1) Character matters - a lot. This staff tries to bring in good people that care about helping the community, being good teammates and getting more out of going to college than just playing basketball.
2) Kruger and staff won't play the "grey" game. If you see a guy like Dominic Woodson dropping OU right before a visit, or the quick drop-off between OU and Stevie Clark, it is likely because Lon refused to walk the walk with those wanting handouts whether it be players, families, AAU coaches, agents. There is a reason why Kruger's name is spotless - Oklahoma won't be playing the game.
3) It appears that our coaches don't hand out scholarships like candy to 100s of recruits and see what sticks. I do think that Lon works very hard on building relationships early with kids (especially local kids) but I don't see the mass offer approach used by several Big 12 coaches.
4) Kruger will attempt to truly fill needs and achieve a big picture recruiting scheme. I think Booker was a good example of that.
5) The staff will red-shirt guys in order to help with #4 and to try to improve that player's skills. We have a really cohesive and talented staff - Steve Henson is great at skill development and thus if a guy sits out a year then he has a great chance to get better.
6) The staff will take D1 transfers. See number 5 as to why. Kruger has a great rep as a guy who can help guys get a "second chance" after transferring. It has already proven fruitful with M'Baye and Spangler coming into the program. Props to Capel for getting Osby via that route.
As a result of these 6 items, we as fans are probably not going to see a lot of burger boys, 1-and-done type of guys with Kruger as the coach. Oklahoma is not a blue blood program so those that fit criteria 1 and 2 won't probably come here. Our best bet of getting 5 star recruits without character flaws or shady circles will be local guys with whom Kruger and staff have built a great relationship (I'm hoping Shake Milton might be that type as I think that kid is going to be a star...). I also think #6 (transfers) might be another route that the program lands some of those types of kids.
Rather, I think we will see a lot of 3 to 4 year players that Kruger can build with over the long haul. I think Hield and Hornbeak are great examples. Expect a lot of fringe Rivals 100 guys. The good news is that this staff can develop talent and if we have a roster full of those type of guys then we will have a chance to be very successful in today's college basketball landscape and also be consistently good.
Just my thoughts...
1) Character matters - a lot. This staff tries to bring in good people that care about helping the community, being good teammates and getting more out of going to college than just playing basketball.
2) Kruger and staff won't play the "grey" game. If you see a guy like Dominic Woodson dropping OU right before a visit, or the quick drop-off between OU and Stevie Clark, it is likely because Lon refused to walk the walk with those wanting handouts whether it be players, families, AAU coaches, agents. There is a reason why Kruger's name is spotless - Oklahoma won't be playing the game.
3) It appears that our coaches don't hand out scholarships like candy to 100s of recruits and see what sticks. I do think that Lon works very hard on building relationships early with kids (especially local kids) but I don't see the mass offer approach used by several Big 12 coaches.
4) Kruger will attempt to truly fill needs and achieve a big picture recruiting scheme. I think Booker was a good example of that.
5) The staff will red-shirt guys in order to help with #4 and to try to improve that player's skills. We have a really cohesive and talented staff - Steve Henson is great at skill development and thus if a guy sits out a year then he has a great chance to get better.
6) The staff will take D1 transfers. See number 5 as to why. Kruger has a great rep as a guy who can help guys get a "second chance" after transferring. It has already proven fruitful with M'Baye and Spangler coming into the program. Props to Capel for getting Osby via that route.
As a result of these 6 items, we as fans are probably not going to see a lot of burger boys, 1-and-done type of guys with Kruger as the coach. Oklahoma is not a blue blood program so those that fit criteria 1 and 2 won't probably come here. Our best bet of getting 5 star recruits without character flaws or shady circles will be local guys with whom Kruger and staff have built a great relationship (I'm hoping Shake Milton might be that type as I think that kid is going to be a star...). I also think #6 (transfers) might be another route that the program lands some of those types of kids.
Rather, I think we will see a lot of 3 to 4 year players that Kruger can build with over the long haul. I think Hield and Hornbeak are great examples. Expect a lot of fringe Rivals 100 guys. The good news is that this staff can develop talent and if we have a roster full of those type of guys then we will have a chance to be very successful in today's college basketball landscape and also be consistently good.
Just my thoughts...