re: 2017 Basketball recruiting and offseason news thread

So I just got off the phone with my friend who knows the person who owns the wing place Petty was at and supposedly he did not commit and also supposedly Avery was down here in Huntsville yesterday and I think bill self is suppose to be coming down today or tomorrow. I had to ask someone because I got kind of nervous lol. The guy who owns the restaurant said that Avery told him that he was trying to get Petty and Sexton as a package. Don't know what the guy is saying on 247 but I believe my guy. So I think we still look good.

Gongora give me some good news man, our Big 6 (Petty, sexton, brown, reese, jones, and hammonds) give me a percentage beside each name that you think they sign with Bama

Also there is a big run of CB's for Tremont Waters to UK today including one from Jerry Meyer. Obviously a different position than Petty, but that looks like one more spot could be filled for UK.

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Plus, the class already includes Giddens.

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This is the part I keep reminding myself. We have 6 big Dawgs that we are hoping to reel in. If we strike out on all 6, we are still getting a stud in Giddens. I feel like we get 1-2 at the very least. Any 1 of those players plus Giddens is a REALLY good class. Anything more than 1-2 of those 6 plus Giddens is gravy.

Out of the three 5-Stars (Petty, Sexton, Brown) I predict we get 1 of them.
Out of the three 4-Stars (Herb, Reese, Rayshaun) I predict we get 2 of them.

I don't know where one 5-Star & two 4-Stars puts you on the Team rankings at the end of the recruiting cycle, but I'm guessing somewhere between the 15th to the 25th best class? That's putting Bama on the map, plus we have a hidden gem in Daniel Giddens who does not count toward the class officially. Combine that great class with the great season I think we are about to have, and this could definitely push Alabama into The right direction of being a football and basketball school.

JJ Smith?

Rome wasn't built in a day guys. I'm the old geezer here I guess but I've followed Bama basketball for years. I'm probably close to the typical Bama basketball fan: I love the sport and follow it avidly...just as soon as the final whistle sounds on football. Maybe there's the occasional December exception of a big OOC game but typically, I follow casually until January.

Now, let me enlighten some of you a little. I started following when CM Newton already had Bama basketball rolling. One of my first Bama hoops memories is listening to Bama scare the hell out of Bobby Knight and Indiana in the tourney during their undefeated season. We stood toe to toe with them pretty deep into the second half before they got away from us. CM built that team using a tried and true formula that has worked before and since him. You keep the best in state kids at home and you cherry pick Ga, Ms, and to a lesser extent, Tn. Wimp continued that formula and added another element of hitting the Jucos for immediate help and unusual talents like Sprewell. After the failed Hobbs experiment, Gottfired used the same formula to win bigger than we ever have. Bottom line is, it works. Keep the Bama kids at home, away from the blue bloods, UAB, and Auburn, hit the surrounding states with weak basketball programs to supplement the home boys, use the Jucos to your advantage and just win and get to the Dance. We've done it over and over with each successive coach taking us a little farther with it. Coach Avery can follow that formula and add his more distant connections to expand our reach and take us to our first Final Four but first you gotta win. Winning solves everything. We took the first step last year. Keep moving forward. This program has enough history and tradition to attract the talent, we just have to show we can win again. Nobody will mistake us for a blue blood and for good reason. But we are firmly entrenched in the next level of teams historically and we need to retake our place there. That is my history lesson for today.

Re the uniforms for basketball, we should do whatever is needed to attract kids. Wimp had the Plaid Palace and it was a great attraction for both the fans and players. People knew who Bama was. If the boosters don't like it, frick them. Boosters in Tuscaloosa equals tight assed, middle to old aged white guys for the most part. And that's coming from a middle aged white guy. They might not like hip unis, but they hate losing more so if it wins, it sells.

Keep your fingers crossed. My personal belief is that Sexton is the key to this being a good class or an historic class for Bama similar to Sabans 2007 recruiting class. That's why I ranted a few days ago that he won't pull the trigger. If he comes, a lot of pieces fall into place like maybe Petty and the others. If he doesn't, Avery will salvage a good class and we will be good. If he gets his big targets, we can play with anyone, period. So please, Colin, come on down.

The Wimp era was wonderful.

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I did that last week. How about I rank them in a confidence/Pick 'ems style?(Most to least confident)

Sexton
Reese
Jones
Hammonds
Petty
Smith
Brown

I know Kansas is out there but I would be shocked (way beyond Ferguson decommitment level) if Sexton doesn't sign with us.

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Thanks Gongora. Would you consider any of them a silent commit, a Bama lock, or a greater than 95% chance they sign with us?

Gotcha. I was thinking the 4 stars normally follow the 5 stars, but I see your point.

Honestly, I don't put much emphasis on star ranking. I want Sexton because he's a talented scorer and I'm not sure if we have a go-to guy currently in the program.