Oto Osenieks...next Robbie Hummel?

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Go Gophs eh?

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From what i see in his game vs. findlay prep, he looks to be a great 3pt shooter and a surprisingly good passer. he also has some promising ball handling skills for a guy his size. Cons is that he is not very physically imposing, but then again niether was Hummel or Hayward. He also is a below average post player and defender, not very athletic in terms of vertical game or speed from what i see. This being said, i think we should offer him and red shirt him for a year, he looks to be promising if you get him in the weight room and surround him with good coaching i think he could be the next Hummelesque player by his senior or even junior year. thoughts?
 

Go Gophs eh? said:
From what i see in his game vs. findlay prep, he looks to be a great 3pt shooter and a surprisingly good passer. he also has some promising ball handling skills for a guy his size. Cons is that he is not very physically imposing, but then again niether was Hummel or Hayward. He also is a below average post player and defender, not very athletic in terms of vertical game or speed from what i see. This being said, i think we should offer him and red shirt him for a year, he looks to be promising if you get him in the weight room and surround him with good coaching i think he could be the next Hummelesque player by his senior or even junior year. thoughts?
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Hummel was good as a freshman. Hayward as a sophomore.

Not sure about Oto. Seems promising.
 


Plinnius said:
Hayward was also good as a freshman.
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I was just going to say that. Statistically, he was better than Hummel. Also, I think he's just a better player overall, though I've always been a fan of Hummel.

Their freshman years:

Hummel: 11.4 ppg 6.1 rbg 2.5 apg
Hayward: 13.1 ppg 6.5 rbg 2 apg


So, not a huge difference. They both shot very close to the same on FG's and three's, too (within about a percent of each other on both). Interesting that they were so similar.
 

JDGopher said:
I was just going to say that. Statistically, he was better than Hummel. Also, I think he's just a better player overall, though I've always been a fan of Hummel.

Their freshman years:

Hummel: 11.4 ppg 6.1 rbg 2.5 apg
Hayward: 13.1 ppg 6.5 rbg 2 apg


So, not a huge difference. They both shot very close to the same on FG's and three's, too (within about a percent of each other on both). Interesting that they were so similar.
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Hummel played in Big 10. Hayward in Horizon league. Only difference as freshmen.
 




I'm kind of hoping they offer him. I wouldn't mind having a 6'9" guy that can shoot one bit.
 

Not saying isn't possible that Oto could be the next Robbie Hummel but that is really high expectations for the kid. As a freshmen he First Team All Big Ten he earned that honor again a Junior even with the torn ACL and missing the last 8 games of the year. As a sophomore he was Third Team All Big Ten and thats with dealing with a broken back all year. He was on the US National U-21 team. I don't have to go though the rest of the details, you know what he has done. I wouldn't expect him to have an impact like Hummel otherwise you are going to be dissapointed.

I will say I haven't seen Oto played and he could have the same style of play.
 



Oto is 20 years old (go to page 11). He's actually several days older than Gordon Hayward.

Yeah, uh, no thanks.
 

I don't mind he is 20 years old. This is not unusual for foreign-born players. Geeezzz... Perhaps he won't suffer great homesickness as he is a loonngg way from home. If Tubby likes his style I hope he makes him a Gopher. If his skills are as described he will certainly bring a needed asset to the team.
 

How about we trust Tubby and staff and support their decisions. Plenty of time later to second guess... If Oto joings the Gophers..WELCOME ABOARD!
 





fan of Ray Williams said:
Just curious, why does the fact he is 20 bother you?
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Yeah, I agree. So what if he's 20? He'l likely not an NBA prospect, so who cares? It isn't like we're going to sign him to a long-term contract. If he is a four-year player at Minnesota, that is great, IMO. You'll have a 24-year old man going against 18- and 19-year old kids. That is an advantage to MN.

Richard Coffey entered the U as a 21-year old freshman. By the time he was a senior, he was literally a man amongst boys.

I understand Oto is a different type of player than Coffey, but I see no disadvantage to the fact he's 20.
 

Go Gophs eh? said:
From what i see in his game vs. findlay prep, he looks to be a great 3pt shooter and a surprisingly good passer. he also has some promising ball handling skills for a guy his size. Cons is that he is not very physically imposing, but then again niether was Hummel or Hayward. He also is a below average post player and defender, not very athletic in terms of vertical game or speed from what i see. This being said, i think we should offer him and red shirt him for a year, he looks to be promising if you get him in the weight room and surround him with good coaching i think he could be the next Hummelesque player by his senior or even junior year. thoughts?
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Damn! This kid looks gooooooood!!!!
 


He seems to be a Jon Shurna type. I would take a player like that in a heartbeat.
 

tjgopher said:
I understand Oto is a different type of player than Coffey, but I see no disadvantage to the fact he's 20.
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He's 20 years old, playing against mostly middling high school competition, and, unless I'm mistaken, didn't absolutely dominate them. How good do you suppose he's going to be? His upside is awfully limited.
 

Plinnius said:
against mostly middling high school competition
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Did you see the Brehm schedule? The opponents are mostly top flight prep schools (some of a national reputation) and JUNIOR COLLEGE teams and COLLEGE JV teams. Not sure I'd call that "mostly middling high school competition."
 

tjgopher said:
Did you see the Brehm schedule? The opponents are mostly top flight prep schools (some of a national reputation) and JUNIOR COLLEGE teams and COLLEGE JV teams. Not sure I'd call that "mostly middling high school competition."
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You're right: he did play against a bunch of small, crappy colleges. Did he dominate against that trash competition?
 

Plinnius said:
You're right: he did play against a bunch of small, crappy colleges. Did he dominate against that trash competition?
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He played against Oak Hill, Findley and other top prep schools.

He played against SWIC, Merrimac, McKendrie (some really good JUCOs with multiple D-I players) and others.

Was he supposed to dominate? I'm not sure. What I do know is that people were just beginning to recruit him because he was supposed to a class of 2011 kid. He graduated early and all of the sudden he's a late spring signee that has interest from Florida, Iowa State, Minnesota and others. When he's 24, he'll be playing against 19 year olds. All of that is a plus for MN, IMO.

But, since you seem to know about him - like how he plays against middling high school teams - you are probably right. We should let him go to Florida or DePaul or Iowa State.
 


I think Tubby can be trusted to figure out whether this guy can help the team.

From what I've seen of him, he looks like a dead-eye shooter with good mechanics, and has good athleticism. And he's 6'8"..... could be a a great SF and possibly SG deparding on his ability to guard.

I do think having a player a bit older can be a good thing, especially when he's a junior/senior.
 

Plinnius said:
How is that a plus? Would it be a plus for Iowa Devan Bawinkel until he's 24?
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Sure, all things being equal I think Bawinkel will be a better ballplayer at 24 than he is at 20. But, that isn't the point. Look, if you think he isn't a good player...fine. Say so. But, you insinuated you wanted to pass on him because he was 20, as if that is a negative. Bottom line is, if Tubby brings him here, then the fact he's 20 is better than if he's 18, IMO. He'll be better at 24 than he is at 20. And, he'll be better at 24 than many are at 18. Almost ALL basketball players are better when they are 24 than they are at 20. So, I guess I don't get that age is an issue at all here, other than it benefitting MN. If you think his skills are lacking, then fine. Go with that stance. But, age should be a non-starter, IMO.
 

The age thing helps Mormon athletes (2 year mission), helps hockey players (playing in juniors). In general players get better as they age, till they peak out. Just my 2 cents.
 

tjgopher said:
But, you insinuated you wanted to pass on him because he was 20, as if that is a negative.
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Of course it's a negative. Oto, at age 20, probably doesn't have a lot of upside left. So the fact that he's 20 years old and he's not crushing his JUCO and high school opposition would suggest he probably isn't going to be a very good Big Ten basketball player.

He'll be better at 24 than he is at 20. And, he'll be better at 24 than many are at 18. Almost ALL basketball players are better when they are 24 than they are at 20.
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It won't matter if he's not any good.
 

Plinnius said:
Of course it's a negative. Oto, at age 20, probably doesn't have a lot of upside left. So the fact that he's 20 years old and he's not crushing his JUCO and high school opposition would suggest he probably isn't going to be a very good Big Ten basketball player.



It won't matter if he's not any good.
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What bug crawled into your cereal today, holy cow?!

The fact of the matter is, male humans tend to increase in athletic ability, on average, until their late-20s or about 30. That this kid actually has a couple more years under his belt is a huge PLUS, not a minus. That is, unless you're an NBA scout looking at a lottery pick, where you might be looking at the next 10-15 years. But this kid is not being recruited for the NBA, he's being recruited to a 4-year college.

Furthermore, many European-born kids seem to do awfully well in D-1A basketball, don't you think? I'm all for getting this kid - a tall kid who can shoot? Why would anyone think that's any good?
 


Age of Oto

There are no minuses at all for being 20.. Now the positiives may be few but there are no negatives.

He is not coming here to be a star he would be a solid role player. Where was he at 18? Was he in the country? Was he considered a potential D-1 player?

2 years later he is a D-1 player with some upside so it is obvious the extra two years benefited Oto.
 

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