UCONN PUSHING HARD FOR HARTFORD PREP SOPH
Andre Drummond getting attention from UConn staff and other top schools
by Zach Smart
The past few months, Andre Drummond's high major Division-I stock has shot up like his towering 6-foot-9 frame.
Drummond, an interior presence with a soft jumper and a will to win, has suddenly become a hotly pursued product on the recruiting marketplace.
The big fella from Capitol Prep in Hartford (CT) is receiving plenty of interest from Connecticut, Georgetown, Providence, Rutgers, West Virginia and the 2009 national champs, North Carolina.
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The wiry sophomore has added some pounds to his spindly 220-plus frame, but Drummond is still developing into his body.
He hasn't dug to deep into his decision yet. The uncommitted young gun who hung 26 points and tore down 18 rebounds in a game (and turned in similar titanic performances this season) appears to favor UConn.
"UConn is definitely showing me the most love right now," said Drummond, he of the will to win and ability to alter the trajectory of shots in the paint.
"But as of right now, I'm undecided."
Thus far, Drummond has taken unofficial visits to the campuses of UConn and Rutgers.
When he was playing in the Bob Gibbobs tournament last spring, he stopped by to check out the campus of UNC.
On the surface, Drummond seems like the prototype Jim Calhoun recruit.
He's a big who plays with passion and is a major presence on the defensive side of the house. He can score and has shown flashes of the aggression that coaches expect night in and night out in the Big East.
Of course, Drummond still needs to shore up some holes in his game. He needs to kick the habit of drifting away from the paint when the ball is not in his hands.
He still needs to get more physical, go stronger to the rack and develop refined post up moves.
Drummond ran with an IS8 AAU team at Saturday's HoopHall Classic at Wesleyan University in Middletown, Conn.
The behemoth showed his athletic enough to be a factor in a system that places strong emphasis on an uptempo, speedball brand of basketball.
While the skills of Ater Majok (who sat out this season due to NCAA clearing house rules) won't be tested until December, UConn may need to upgrade its frontline in the future.
Charles "Chuck" Okwandu's academic issues kept him off the floor for much of the Huskies run to the 2009 final four.
The 7-foot-1, 255-pound center is very much a work in progress and seemed offensivley inept at times.
Jonathan Mandeldove, a 7-foot, 240-pound center from Georgia, never progressed. He hasn't shown the promise they saw out of the skinny kid from Hargrave (Va.) Military Academy four years ago.
So, UConn will look to keep the tradition of beastly bigs (see Okafor, Emeka or Thabeet, Hasheem for more on this one) intact with their recruitment of Drummond.
Will the new kid on the blocks respect tradition and go to UConn?
I'm not for certain, but what I do know is this:
If he continues to work hard and show a Jeff Adrien-like will to win, more and more teams will compete for Drummond's services.
by Zach Smart
The past few months, Andre Drummond's high major Division-I stock has shot up like his towering 6-foot-9 frame.
Drummond, an interior presence with a soft jumper and a will to win, has suddenly become a hotly pursued product on the recruiting marketplace.
The big fella from Capitol Prep in Hartford (CT) is receiving plenty of interest from Connecticut, Georgetown, Providence, Rutgers, West Virginia and the 2009 national champs, North Carolina.
Read More...Click Below!
The wiry sophomore has added some pounds to his spindly 220-plus frame, but Drummond is still developing into his body.
He hasn't dug to deep into his decision yet. The uncommitted young gun who hung 26 points and tore down 18 rebounds in a game (and turned in similar titanic performances this season) appears to favor UConn.
"UConn is definitely showing me the most love right now," said Drummond, he of the will to win and ability to alter the trajectory of shots in the paint.
"But as of right now, I'm undecided."
Thus far, Drummond has taken unofficial visits to the campuses of UConn and Rutgers.
When he was playing in the Bob Gibbobs tournament last spring, he stopped by to check out the campus of UNC.
On the surface, Drummond seems like the prototype Jim Calhoun recruit.
He's a big who plays with passion and is a major presence on the defensive side of the house. He can score and has shown flashes of the aggression that coaches expect night in and night out in the Big East.
Of course, Drummond still needs to shore up some holes in his game. He needs to kick the habit of drifting away from the paint when the ball is not in his hands.
He still needs to get more physical, go stronger to the rack and develop refined post up moves.
Drummond ran with an IS8 AAU team at Saturday's HoopHall Classic at Wesleyan University in Middletown, Conn.
The behemoth showed his athletic enough to be a factor in a system that places strong emphasis on an uptempo, speedball brand of basketball.
While the skills of Ater Majok (who sat out this season due to NCAA clearing house rules) won't be tested until December, UConn may need to upgrade its frontline in the future.
Charles "Chuck" Okwandu's academic issues kept him off the floor for much of the Huskies run to the 2009 final four.
The 7-foot-1, 255-pound center is very much a work in progress and seemed offensivley inept at times.
Jonathan Mandeldove, a 7-foot, 240-pound center from Georgia, never progressed. He hasn't shown the promise they saw out of the skinny kid from Hargrave (Va.) Military Academy four years ago.
So, UConn will look to keep the tradition of beastly bigs (see Okafor, Emeka or Thabeet, Hasheem for more on this one) intact with their recruitment of Drummond.
Will the new kid on the blocks respect tradition and go to UConn?
I'm not for certain, but what I do know is this:
If he continues to work hard and show a Jeff Adrien-like will to win, more and more teams will compete for Drummond's services.
Labels: Connecticut Recruiting
posted by NBE Blogger @ 11:37 PM
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