All Things 2018 Gophers Basketball Recruiting Thread

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per Marcus:

With as big of a turnaround as the Gophers basketball team has made so far this season, four-star Cretin-Derham Hall big man Daniel Oturu couldn't wait any longer to make it official that he wanted to stay home.

Oturu, a 6-foot-9, 220-pound junior, announced Thursday afternoon he will play for the Gophers. The commitment came in front of fellow students, friends and family at his high school gym.

A surprising 15-4 start for Minnesota coach Richard Pitino's team paid dividends with him landing his most high-profile local recruit since signing former Hopkins star Amir Coffey last year.

"It's a big deal," said Rene Pulley, founder of Howard Pulley, Oturu's AAU team. "He kind of knew he wanted to stay home. He wanted his family to see him play. He didn't want to leave."

Oturu is ranked No. 1 in the state's junior class by ESPN.com. He's ranked 76th nationally in 2018 by Rivals.com, 66th by Scout.com and 78th by 247Sports.com.

Oturu picked Minnesota after receiving scholarship offers from schools such as Kansas, Texas, Baylor, Nebraska, Georgia Tech and Memphis.

Pitino signed Coffey and Michael Hurt from Rochester John Marshall in Minnesota's 2016 class. The Gophers failed to land any local prospects in a loaded 2017 class, but Pitino could have up to five scholarships available for a 2018 group that is just as talented at the top.

Minnesota also offered Apple Valley's Tre Jones, Armstrong's Race Thompson and DeLaSalle's Gabe Kalscheur. Jones, Thompson and Oturu are the top three players in the state's junior class and consensus top 100 prospects in the country.

"I think getting Daniel helps the Gophers a lot," Pulley said. "The Gophers have gone after hometown kids, but they just weren't fortunate enough to get them all — some of the best ones. Maybe now that will change."

http://www.startribune.com/richard-...daniel-oturu-of-cretin-derham-hall/411244465/

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per Chad:

Oturu’s early commitment filled a need for Pitino’s recruiting class, but perhaps just as important, it gives him a vocal supporter who plans to be in the ear of the state’s best prep players.

“I hope to get some of my classmates to come with me too,” Oturu said. “Since I’m committed now and they see that I’m going there, hopefully I can start recruiting them to come with me.”

Oturu committed to the Gophers via a phone call with Pitino and assistant coach Ben Johnson, whom Oturu said were ecstatic to hear his news.

But later that morning, Oturu reached out to three more people — Jones, Kalscheur and Thompson — to tell them his news and begin his own phase of recruiting.

“They were really happy for me,” Oturu said. “Race was like, ‘I kind of expected it.’ They were just really excited for me and happy that I chose Minnesota.”

http://www.twincities.com/2017/01/2...st-best-recruiter-recent-commit-daniel-oturu/

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Getting Oturu to commit was a huge get don't get me wrong, I believe that we will turn into a solid player at a position of need. I am trying not to take away from his importance but I believe that his commitment hurts our chances with the once in a decade recruit in Matt Hurt. Hurt is a top 5 player in the nation for '19 and now that Kansas lost out on Daniel, they will go after Matt even harder now. They only offered 1 F in the '18 class and 3 in the '19 class. At this early stage it looks like Kansas and the U are the front runners for Matt with Louisville and UNC not far behind, to get him to stay home we need every bit of luck and effort and I think the Oturu commitment does help us it also hurts us a little bit.
 

SconnieGopher15 said:
Getting Oturu to commit was a huge get don't get me wrong, I believe that we will turn into a solid player at a position of need. I am trying not to take away from his importance but I believe that his commitment hurts our chances with the once in a decade recruit in Matt Hurt. Hurt is a top 5 player in the nation for '19 and now that Kansas lost out on Daniel, they will go after Matt even harder now. They only offered 1 F in the '18 class and 3 in the '19 class. At this early stage it looks like Kansas and the U are the front runners for Matt with Louisville and UNC not far behind, to get him to stay home we need every bit of luck and effort and I think the Oturu commitment does help us it also hurts us a little bit.
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I'm not too worried about it. Oturu plays a completely different position than young Hurt and Kansas goes after multiple guys like Hurt every single year. You don't think the red carpets will be rolled out by MN? We recruit a kid like him ONLY in situations like the one we're in. His brother not only has been a gopher but will be on the same team as the guy.

If we lose out on Hurt it isn't because of our recruitment of any other players. It's just simply going to be because he wanted to play somewhere else.
 

Agreed - I don't think the term forward does a good job of comparing these players. Oturu is a pure post, Hurt is a wing that can play inside if he wants. I'm not sure how we could be any better positioned for Hurt at this point. We are doing all the right things, he is attending games, his brother is getting minutes and will be a Sr when Matthew would be a Fr... if he wants to play somewhere else it will be a heat-breaker but I'm not going to be upset with recruiting effort (at least up to this point).
 



Matthew Hurt will have offers from every blue blood school in the book. If he wants to come play at MN, Daniel Oturu isn't standing in his way.

But as others have said Oturu probably plays more of a C while Hurt projects more as a 4 man. They can play together.

And to be honest, MN isn't really in a position where they can gamble on not going after a good player so they can chase a great one. If Kansas misses on Oturu and Hurt, they'll just turn their heads to the next superstar 5 star guy. MN isn't at that point.
 

players

It is rare that top 20 players even sign with their home state, none the less top 5.


SconnieGopher15 said:
Getting Oturu to commit was a huge get don't get me wrong, I believe that we will turn into a solid player at a position of need. I am trying not to take away from his importance but I believe that his commitment hurts our chances with the once in a decade recruit in Matt Hurt. Hurt is a top 5 player in the nation for '19 and now that Kansas lost out on Daniel, they will go after Matt even harder now. They only offered 1 F in the '18 class and 3 in the '19 class. At this early stage it looks like Kansas and the U are the front runners for Matt with Louisville and UNC not far behind, to get him to stay home we need every bit of luck and effort and I think the Oturu commitment does help us it also hurts us a little bit.
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SconnieGopher15 said:
Getting Oturu to commit was a huge get don't get me wrong, I believe that we will turn into a solid player at a position of need. I am trying not to take away from his importance but I believe that his commitment hurts our chances with the once in a decade recruit in Matt Hurt. Hurt is a top 5 player in the nation for '19 and now that Kansas lost out on Daniel, they will go after Matt even harder now. They only offered 1 F in the '18 class and 3 in the '19 class. At this early stage it looks like Kansas and the U are the front runners for Matt with Louisville and UNC not far behind, to get him to stay home we need every bit of luck and effort and I think the Oturu commitment does help us it also hurts us a little bit.
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Landing Oturu certainly does not hurt our chances with Matt. If anything, it helps because it increases the overall talent on the team. Oturu will be a 5 and Matt is a 4. They aren't similar players.
 

I totally agree that if any 4-star wants to play here we should welcome them with open arms, especially ones from MN. I just looking at this from Kansas' perspective, they missed out on a top target for 2018 and will go after Hurt even harder now. When the "blue bloods" go after the top 20 or so players in the nation; the past has shown that the earliest schools to recruit usually win out in the end. I still believe that we have a decent chance to land Hurt, it is still very early in the recruiting process, he is only 16.
 



SconnieGopher15 said:
I totally agree that if any 4-star wants to play here we should welcome them with open arms, especially ones from MN. I just looking at this from Kansas' perspective, they missed out on a top target for 2018 and will go after Hurt even harder now. When the "blue bloods" go after the top 20 or so players in the nation; the past has shown that the earliest schools to recruit usually win out in the end. I still believe that we have a decent chance to land Hurt, it is still very early in the recruiting process, he is only 16.
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According to 247, Kansas is well positioned with like 5 other post players who are rated higher than Oturu, including Moses Brown, who has a Minnesota offer. I think I also heard Kansas hadn't even been up here to see him, not for quite awhile anyway. He probably wasn't a high priority for them. Not getting Oturu is a drop in the bucket for Kansas recruiting. They'll probably be very interested in Hurt even if they get someone better than Oturu in 2018, which I bet they will.
 


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Pioneer Press: Gophers commit Daniel Oturu still growing — in size and in game

But what you see now is likely a shell of what Oturu can become.

“What we see today and what the U is going to have two, three, four years from now is a different player,” Cretin-Derham Hall coach Jerry Kline said. “His body is going to look different, it’s going to change, and I think he’s going to be even more dominant.”

“He’s just a human eraser,” Getzlaff said. “He’s got a really good combination to be a really good shot blocker. He’s got leaping ability, his timing is great.”

Then there’s the offensive end. Cretin-Derham Hall junior guard Ryan Larson said whenever the Raiders need a bucket, they can turn to Oturu, who’s averaging 18 points a game this season.

Getzlaff said Oturu has a better touch this year shooting the ball and an ever-evolving range. That jumper is still a work in progress, according to Oturu.

“I want to improve in my perimeter play, shooting the ball, having more confidence to shoot,” Oturu said. “I have a good stroke, good rhythm, I just feel like I’m less confident in taking jump shots. I’m not used to just taking them.”

Doctors have told Oturu that he could reach 7 feet, and likely will grow another inch or two.

“What I’m more worried about is putting more weight on,” said Oturu, who estimated he was about 211 pounds at the start of the season.

Playing with Howard Pulley in the Elite Youth Basketball League last summer showed Oturu how big and physical some of the country’s best big men are. Harris said Oturu held his own fairly well, but added that there’s a need to put on a few pounds and add some strength.

Harris also said he doesn’t think Oturu really understands how good he can be. That, apparently, is one thing that hasn’t changed. For Oturu, the growing never stops — on or off the court.

“To me, right now, I’m not really that good yet,” he said. “I still have so much to learn and so much to get better at.”

http://www.twincities.com/2017/01/2...-oturu-continues-to-grow-in-size-and-in-game/

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per Sid:

• It’s interesting that the Gophers men’s basketball team offered six local players in the 2017 class and none of them chose to play for Richard Pitino. Now they have five scholarships in the 2018 class, and landing Daniel Oturu from Cretin-Derham Hall this past week is a big deal. That 2018 class also features Race Thompson of Armstrong and Tre Jones of Apple Valley. And looking ahead to 2019, maybe one of the top-rated state high school players in recent years is Matthew Hurt out of Rochester John Marshall, who has already been offered by the U and whose brother, Michael, plays for the Gophers.

http://www.startribune.com/vikings-must-find-a-way-to-fix-their-awful-running-game/412061513/

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per Sid:

• Two Minnesota players being recruited in the Class of 2018 by Gophers basketball coach Richard Pitino are forwards Jarvis Thomas of Orono and Race Thompson of Armstrong. While Thompson, ranked 87th in the nation by Rivals, has gotten a lot of attention, Thomas has been offered by Marquette, Oregon State, Arizona State, Iowa State, Cal State Bakersfield and Green Bay. He’s someone Gophers fans might want to keep watching.

http://www.startribune.com/gophers-p-j-fleck-was-up-to-challenge-of-short-recruiting-time/412500623/

Go Gophers!!
 

BleedGopher said:
per Sid:

• Two Minnesota players being recruited in the Class of 2018 by Gophers basketball coach Richard Pitino are forwards Jarvis Thomas of Orono and Race Thompson of Armstrong. While Thompson, ranked 87th in the nation by Rivals, has gotten a lot of attention, Thomas has been offered by Marquette, Oregon State, Arizona State, Iowa State, Cal State Bakersfield and Green Bay. He’s someone Gophers fans might want to keep watching.

http://www.startribune.com/gophers-p-j-fleck-was-up-to-challenge-of-short-recruiting-time/412500623/

Go Gophers!!
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Thomas makes things happen. He's a good one.
 

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We don't want non-Minnesotans. Golly does Pitino even read the newspaper? We only want guys who are "one of us"
 

On Doogie's most recent podcast, he mentioned it was Ben Johnson who was in to see Brady Heiman. Here's the only video I have found of him:

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Biggsohnasty said:
We don't want non-Minnesotans. Golly does Pitino even read the newspaper? We only want guys who are "one of us"
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I don't think we want a Woog-topian view in basketball recruiting.
 


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