Sports Business News03/24 02:13 AM

Columbia names bomberball as new head coach of men's basketball. Providence searching for replacement...

I'm back in the lower levels of D1 after a two-season trip to Providence. As stated elsewhere, I needed to leave CCSU when I did (it was going to be a considerable rebuild), and I needed to see if I still found high-level D1 to be a drag. One season was frustrating (a ridiculous amount of close losses), and the other was just bad in every sense of the word, so here I am.

Columbia is a C+ prestige program that's won the CT in back-to-back years and has a considerable amount of talent coming back next season. We do lose two starters in the frontcourt, but there's plenty left to make another run at the postseason this coming year, and I'm excited to get started.

Two recruits to kick things off...

Michael Smith (*, #135 overall, #32 PF) - This was a Sim recruit from earlier in the season, and while he's not perfect/definitely overranked, I don't hate him. His traditional low-post numbers aren't great, but he's going to turn into a very good athlete, and the high passing for his position is a big plus in the motion offense. I envision him as a future SF/PF hybrid, especially once his speed gets up to snuff.

Yo Wang (**, international so unranked) - Make up your own jokes, because I sure as heck am!

Anyway, Wang was a pretty darned good get for the second recruiting period, and there's a lot to like. He's going to be an excellent rebounder, and he's already a very good passer for a big man. I wish he was a better scorer, but he'll turn into a passable shooter, at least, and he'll be athletic enough to score on putbacks. Two stars seems a bit much, but he'll be our primary backup at both frontcourt spots this year and should turn into a very capable starter moving forward.

One more recruit to wrap things up...

Jeffrey Stewart (#154 SG) - Stewart will certainly redshirt this season, and if you see him as a SG, he's not a D1 player. However, I'm switching him to SF, and his numbers look considerably better in that light. He'll turn into a capable, versatile scorer, and his high work ethic ensures he'll get a lot out of the redshirt year and grow quite a bit before he suits up next season. It's not like he'll be a star, and he may not even start for us at any point, but he'll top out as a solid rotational player.

RECRUITING THOUGHTS

Signing Wang and Stewart reaffirmed that my decision to go back to low-D1 was the right call. Wang is going to be a solid frontcourt player, Smith won't be bad (though he's not a conventional PF), and Stewart will be a fun project. I'll have a bit more to say on classes that start with mid-season recruiting, but all told, this isn't bad.

GRADE: B-.

We've had a strong season on the court this year. Columbia's 19-5, with a perfect Ivy League record to date and no bad non-league losses. Our RPI's been in the low-70's, which is very good, and it's a fun team to coach. I wish we weren't losing three starters (including an outstanding guard that'll be tough to replace), but I'm happy with what we've done so far.

Recruiting...has been an adventure. I'll go into more depth at the end, but for now, here's the first in-season recruit I've signed.

Matthew Sheffield (#84 PF, NH Mr. Basketball) - I lost a really tough battle for my first choice in the frontcourt, but Sheffield's a decent consolation prize. He's already a good inside scorer (with some room to improve), and he'll turn into a top-flight rebounder and a good on-ball defender. I wish he had more room to grow as an athlete, but he won't be slow and he'll wind up a pretty good passer/ball-handler for his position. It's also a neat quirk that he has an Ivy League GPA; not like it matters too much, but it'll be nice to devote a few more practice minutes to skills development right off the bat.

I promised him 10 minutes/game in scrambling to sign him, and he'll get that. Part of that is out of necessity; we've only got three big guys returning, and Michael Smith is more of a 3/4 hybrid than a big guy. However, he won't be too out-of-place early on, and he'll turn into a legitimate starter. The guy I initially wanted would've been a stud right away, but I can live with Sheffield given that he'll be a very useful player.

Good season, lousy ending. We finished 22-7, and lost in the CT finals to Duquesne, a solid, human-coached team. It's not a disappointment, and we kept our C+ prestige, so it could've been worse. On to round two of recruiting!

Joshua Brown (#58 SG) - Finding backcourt help has been a real challenge. I was in the lead comfortably on another guard from New York who was better than Brown. Maine, a school with lower prestige, went from "moderate interest, no offer" to winning a 38% roll and signing him in one cycle. That really hurt.

I'm also currently involved with a guy who would be an instant starter for us. I probably overreached a bit, but that's going to be about a five-way roll once he makes a decision. I've got a slim, but non-existent, chance to get him, and if I do, it's cause for celebration.

Brown, though, is far from perfect. He's a lousy defender, and even though he's got a little room to grow, he'll always be below-average there. Having said that, he's also going to be a great outside shooter, and his rebounding/low post numbers are decent enough to where he'll see some time at SF, too. I had to promise him 10 minutes/game to ensure he wouldn't sign with Sim AI-coached Quinnipiac, and he should get that or reasonably close to it. The low defense means he may never start, but as an "instant offense" type with some versatility, he isn't without value.

Okay, folks: Recruiting was ROUGH.

The two guys we wound up with aren't bad. Sheffield will be a very good starter down the line, and Brown has value even if he's a black hole defensively. Taking a walk-on also isn't the end of the world; we initially had two scholarships to fill in the upcoming season, and now we have three. That's fine.

Having said that, we lost three battles in recruiting that really, really hurt.

Battle #1 was for Dave Welch, a center that would've been an instant starter for us. It came down to Columbia and Duquesne, and despite promising him the start and 25 minutes, Duquesne won a 50-50 flip.

Battle #2 was for Roger Salaam, and this is the one that really grinds my gears. Salaam would've redshirted this season, as a project with good offensive skills and low defense (but high potential in that area). We were comfortably in the lead, and Maine went from "moderate interest, no offer" to winning a flip with 38% odds in one cycle. He wouldn't have been an immediate game-changer, but after a season of development, he would've been an instant contributor as a redshirt freshman and a future starter. In a word: UGH.

Battle #3 is the one I mentioned above. Howard Daley would've been an instant starter for us at SG and had a metric ton of potential. I knew it was a longshot, but we wound up with a 19% chance in a four-way roll. He went to B+ prestige Binghamton, and he'll do really well there.

If I win any one of those battles, it's a good class; maybe not a great one, but a good one. Going 0-3 stung, and it made winning a bit of a battle for Brown a requirement.

GRADE: C. Sheffield is a B (even if he'll probably play a bit too much early on), Brown is a C/C+, and the walk-on brings stuff down a few notches.

This season has been one of the weirdest I've ever coached, even dating back to my initial HD run some 15 years ago. We're 14-9, and given our whiffs in recruiting, I can't be too displeased. However, it's the way we've done it that puzzles me. We were 7-3 in non-conference play and have been wildly inconsistent against Ivy League teams. Part of this is because our Sims aren't pushovers, but it's been a strange, strange year.

Recruiting, however, seems to be going a bit better. Let's take a look at the first new Lion...

Scott Ellerbee (#88 PG) - What's hurt us at times has been a lack of backcourt depth. Joshua Brown's had to play a fair bit, and he's a real defensive liability. Next year, we'll have three seniors and a fourth player who'll have a fifth year ahead of him, so we needed another body in a bad way.

Ellerbee is a good prospect. In a class without many strong guards in the northeast, he's going to be an excellent shooter, and he's already a solid athlete that will get better physically (even if he won't get much faster). While he's not the best defender now, he'll turn into a solid one. The main thing that annoys me is his low passing ceiling. It ensures he'll be a SG rather than a PG once he fully develops; that's not a deal-breaker, but in a motion offense, one ideally wants better passers than that.

Ellerbee wasn't my first choice. There was a guard from New York City that would've been an impact player right away. We were one of two human-coached teams with interest in that player, and unfortunately, the other one was A prestige Syracuse, which meant we weren't getting him. Still, Ellerbee's going to be a solid player, and he's a considerably better prospect than Brown was when he signed after last season.

Signee #2 isn't much now, but he's a fantastic long-term prospect.

Ernest Henderson (#82 C) - Much like Ellerbee, Henderson wasn't my first choice, but he wasn't far off. One big guy somehow went to Eastern Washington, who won a battle with A prestige Boston College. The other, unfortunately, went to Purdue, which won a 34% coin flip over yours truly. That one hurts.

Henderson, however, had no other human-coached programs interested, and that seems like a mistake. One look at his potential shows he's going to turn into a fantastic low-D1 player, especially for the system I run. He'll be an excellent rebounder, a very good defender, a versatile scorer with some range, and an absolutely excellent passer for a big man. The lone weakness in his game is free throw shooting, but I'll live with that considering how good he'll be elsewhere.

All Henderson needs is time, and I intend to give him a lot of it. Assuming I can sign another big guy to be the #4 big next year, he'll redshirt. Assuming this happens with no problem, he'll be a redshirt freshman when Michael Smith and Yo Wang are senior starters. He'll have every chance to start as a redshirt sophomore, and when he's done, he'll make that "#82 C" ranking look pretty foolish.

We finished the season at 18-11, and I'm not totally upset about the record, just how we got there. We went 7-3 in the non-league portion of the season, then struggled with a lot of Sim teams during Ivy League play. We got to the conference semifinals, where we were whistled for 17 second-half fouls in a loss to Boston, and we dropped to C prestige.

One more recruit signed during the late window, and he'll play a fair bit right away.

Sidney Barfield (#82 PF) - Barfield isn't quite the long-term prospect Henderson is, but he's very solid. He's not the best athlete now, but that'll change, and he'll grow into a good defender/shot-blocker who can finish at the rim. I also love his potential in the "wing stats," and that he comes in knowing our offensive sets. All of that makes him pretty valuable.

The one negative with him is that, while he's an OK rebounder, he won't get much better. It's not the end of the world, and it's probably why I got him without a fight from bigger schools (the only other D1 offer he had was from Sim-coached, D prestige Vermont), but it'll prevent him from being a star. Still, he's good enough to see some time right away, and he should be a solid complementary piece down the line.

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RECRUITING THOUGHTS

I couldn't afford another down year in recruiting, and I thankfully dodged that. Losing the one battle against Purdue was incredibly frustrating, but I rebounded pretty well, all things considered.

I was worried about losing Barfield, as I was out of recruiting cash going into the late window. Fortunately, the big guns stayed away and I'd invested plenty in him earlier, but that was an averted crisis. Henderson and Ellerbee, meanwhile, weren't hard to get. I locked in fairly early, and while I wasn't surprised Ellerbee didn't get a look from a bigger-conference team, I kept waiting for Henderson to get poached and he never did. He's the stud of the group.

Henderson's a bit of a project, but the redshirt year will do him a world of good, and he'll be ready to contribute once we get him suited up. Ellerbee and Barfield won't be bad, either. Ellerbee's basically Joshua Brown with defensive ability/potential, and Barfield, as mentioned above, is a solid frontcourt recruit with some potential to grow. Neither of those two will be stars, and their limitations are annoying (Ellerbee's a just-OK passer, Barfield's a just-OK rebounder), but they'll be fine cogs in the system I run.

GRADE: B. I figure Henderson is an A-, while Ellerbee and Barfield are in the B-/B range.

We overscheduled the non-league games something fierce this year. It was always going to be a rebuilding year of sorts, but we went 2-8 in non-league play. Thankfully, we've righted the ship to a point in the Ivy League. With three league games to go, we're 12-11 overall, 10-3 against Ivy League opponents. It would be a surprise if we won the league (Duquesne's really, REALLY good), but we gave them a game at their place earlier this year, so it wouldn't be a total shock.

Speaking of total shocks, my three-man recruiting class was done very early, and it's GOOD, too. Here they are...

Oleg Repinski (***, international so unranked) - Yep, a C prestige program got a three-star recruit, and Repinski will start as a freshman. We graduate our top two point guards, which leaves pretty gaping holes in the depth chart. That allowed me to promise A LOT to Repinski, who was also contacted by Nebraska and Providence.

He's a capable player now, one that knows our offense (and, I think, the M2M defense; it says he pressed in high school, but he wanted a M2M defense, which is a clue). That's the good news. The bad news is, he just won't get much better than he is right now in a lot of key categories. The "very low" passing potential really hurts, and I wouldn't be surprised if he gets passed on the depth chart as he gets older. Still, though, he's a very good get that fills an immediate need. At a minimum, he'll be a very good defender who can play significant minutes at both guard spots without being a liability on either end of the floor.

William Bernard (**, #110 overall, #24 SG) - In addition to our backcourt needs, we also had a pressing issue at SF. William Rose, our best player, is set to graduate, leaving just one returning SF on the roster.

If you look at Bernard's skills from a SG standpoint, he looks OK, but not great. His low ball handling and passing numbers are problems. However, if you look at him as a SF, those issues become much, much smaller. He's going to turn into a very good, versatile scorer with outstanding speed for his position, as well as a capable defender with ample knowledge of the system we run. I promised him 15 minutes as a freshman, and he'll get that (or close to it). Once Jeffery Stewart graduates, he should be an excellent two-year starter.

Tarek Herrman (#80 PG) - When a player like Herrman is the #3 recruit in a three-player class, you're doing okay. Backcourt depth is going to be an issue next year, and Herrman is versatile enough to see time at both guard spots. Ideally, though, he'll spend more time at the PG spot, since his ball handling and passing numbers will wind up in a good spot.

He's not without his holes. He won't get better defensively (though he isn't a total liability), and his low-ish work ethic may be a problem early on. I do wish he was faster, but his potential there is encouraging, and he's a good enough shooter to where he can't be ignored from long-range. I don't know if he'll ever start, but he'll be a useful cog in the system.

- - - - -

RECRUITING THOUGHTS

Phew!!!

After the last two recruiting classes, I was hoping for an uneventful go-round, and that's what I got. My haul also wound up being stronger than most recruiting classes I've ever had at the D1 level. Add in that Ernest Henderson, from last season, will be a redshirt freshman next year, and this quartet has the chance to do significant damage by the time they're done at Columbia.

It's not like it's a perfect group. Repinski won't get better, Bernard needs a position switch, and Herrman's ceiling is probably "sixth man who plays a ton of minutes." Still, we needed an immediate starter in the backcourt, a guy who could instantly be the #2 SF, and another backcourt body that, ideally, could run the offense in a pinch. We filled all three needs, and did so really, really early.

GRADE: A-. It probably could've been better, but this is really, REALLY good.

After a few chaotic seasons, it's been nice to enjoy some success to this point in this one. The Lions are 18-5, with just a single loss in Ivy League play. We don't have anything I'd consider a bad loss on our resume, and our sheet also includes a win over Vanderbilt, one of the better teams in the SEC this season. If this continues and we've got a shot at an NT berth, I'll be pretty happy.

I'm posting, of course, because recruiting season is upon us. We've got three scholarships to fill this time around, and here's our first signee...

Bruce Espinal (#250 overall, #54 C) - We graduate both frontcourt starters this season, so getting a few bigs is a priority. Espinal's skill set is almost identical to Ernest Henderson's, who signed two seasons ago, redshirted, and is now playing 10 minutes a game in his first year of eligibility. He's a bit of a project, but his high potential in key areas is a big plus, as is a work ethic that ensures he'll get there.

Espinal is already a very good rebounder, and he's still got significant room to improve there. I also love his potential as a scorer, and he'll turn into a pretty exceptional passer for a big man, too. I do wish he had some potential to improve his athleticism/speed a bit more, but that's picking nits. Plus, if he had that, chances are I wouldn't have been able to sign him, and I almost certainly would have seen more of a fight from other schools. Sim-coached Towson offered, and human-coached Albany showed a bit of interest, but there were no serious threats at any point.

Espinal may redshirt next season, but it's not for a lack of talent. Like Henderson, all he needs is time, and I intend to give it to him.

George Gustafson (#269 overall, #59 SG) - There is no other way to say it: The crop of guards this year, especially within 500 miles of Columbia, was putrid. It was as bad as I've ever seen it at the D1 level, with only a few tangible options available for a C prestige mid-major in New York City.

That's why I'm pretty darned happy I snagged Gustafson, even if I had to promise him 10 minutes per game as a freshman. Offensively, he knows our offense, and he'll fit in seamlessly at either guard spot. He's going to be a very good shooter, a very good passer, and an excellent ball handler. I wish he was a hair faster and more athletic, but his athleticism's fine, and even if he tops out in speed with a mid-70's rating, that's not the end of the world.

The reason I was able to get Gustafson, and why a lot of bigger schools probably passed, was his defense. As it sits now, it's a problem. However, he's going to get significantly better, as you can see by his potential. At worst, he'll be a serviceable defender. At best, he'll be a good one, and either way, his high work ethic means it'll only take a little bit of elbow grease at the "practice plan" board to see pretty rapid development.

La Salle briefly challenged me for Gustafson, but they dropped off after I promised him some playing time. I was prepared to go to war for him, because options elsewhere were pretty bleak and the upcoming graduation of Lowell Ensley (our leading scorer) is going to leave a pretty big hole. All things considered, I think I did well. I like Gustafson a lot, and once his defense gets up to snuff, he'll be a pretty valuable player.

All done with recruiting!

Theodore McDaniels (*, #157 overall, #37 C) - Like I said earlier, I needed some big guys, and McDaniels was right in New York City. His overall rating/stature in WIS's purely-cosmetic system is a bit inflated, likely due to a very high durability rating (which doesn't really matter). Still, he's a good get for us.

McDaniels...will never be a bona fide offensive threat for us. He's topped out in both scoring categories, and while he may be useful inside, it won't be for his offensive gifts. Instead, he'll turn into a defensive force. He's already as good a shot-blocker as you'll see, and once his athleticism and on-ball defense improve (which they will, fairly quickly), he's going to be a problem for opposing offenses to deal with. Add in that his ball handling and passing can both improve a bit, and you've got a pretty appealing player.

He'll likely be the #4 big next year behind, in some order, Sheffield, Henderson, and Barfield. He knows our defense, so we can play to his strengths right away when the time comes for him to hit the floor. He's a pretty valuable piece to have, even if it may not show in the points-per-game metric.

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RECRUITING THOUGHTS

All told, I think I dodged some bullets. While there were some bigs out there that could've been fallback options had Espinal and McDaniels not signed, they would've been steps down from the guys I got. As far as guards go, that is the worst crop of D1 guards I've ever seen, and coming away with a guy who'll be a very useful player down the road was an absolute "win" for me.

None of these guys are perfect. Espinal's a bit raw, Gustafson needs serious work on defense, and McDaniels is the stereotypical "big dude who blocks shots solely because he's seven feet tall." They'll all improve significantly with time, though, and I think they're all very strong pieces to what I'm trying to build.

GRADE: B+. Very little in the way of potential stars, but three potentially good to very good starters is a nice haul.

Quick recap from last season: We had an epic collapse in the CT final, still made the PI, and got bounced in the first round. No senior retrospectives because life got in the way (I just recently moved).

This year: We're currently 14-10 after starting the season 5-9. I figured we'd struggle early, since we're starting three sophomores, but they're starting to develop and we're far better now than we were at the start of the season.

Recruiting is underway. We've got three scholarships to fill, and our first signee is probably the best of the bunch.

Kent Prater (*, #128 overall, #26 C) - We're graduating our starting center, so getting a frontcourt body was a priority. Prater was the only big I targeted, and I'm a bit surprised nobody else recruited him heavily. A few bigger schools (Drexel and Providence) had him lower on the radar, but he's going to be a very good (if imperfect) big.

Prater's going to turn into a top-notch rebounder with good ATH/speed numbers for his position. He'll be a strong defender and a very good shot-blocker as well, especially given his knowledge of the M2M set we run, and I also love the high passing potential. His limitations are that he won't get better as a scorer (though he won't be an offensive liability), and his FT shooting leaves something to be desired.

He probably won't play much as a freshman. However, he provides a ton of frontcourt depth, which is a good luxury to have, and by the time he's done, he'll be a really strong low-D1 starter.

Up next, a fun project!

Clement Childress (international so unranked) - Once again, decent guards were few and far between in the northeast this year. I ventured way off of my range to get Childress, who comes to us from Vancouver, Canada.

Childress will absolutely redshirt next year, and it's not like he's a perfect developmental guy. He won't get much faster, and I wish his ball handling skills were better. However, and this is a big however, he's going to be a top-tier outside shooter, an excellent passer, and a respectable defender by the time he's done. He's also not a terrible rebounder for his position, which is a fun wrinkle, and much of his low overall rating can be attributed to his durability, which doesn't really matter (but will go up in time anyway).

These are the players I love taking chances on. We don't have an immediate guard need next year, so it's not like him redshirting will be a problem. Jeffery Stewart was a very similar sort of player when I signed him, and he's turned into the Ivy League's leading scorer this season. I don't know if Childress will reach those heights, but I do think he'll bring a lot to the table and be very useful in a few seasons' time.