2014 Commit #2 Austin Gillmann (Center)

[slufanskip]

Another good thing about getting AG to commit is we have the local kid in he team that many have said has been missing over the past years.

I like the commit, you can't teach 6'11" with length and skill. Some time in the weight room and he can be an impact player blocking shots and rebounding at a minimum.

I think people tend to look at each player individually and fail to think of how a recruit fits into the puzzle as a complimentary player. Rick was a master of getting the different player types that fit together well, hopefully Crews can do the same.

I get what you are saying, but I wouldn't assume they recruited him because he fit the puzzle as a complimentary piece. Projecting what a kid will become 2,3,4,5 years down the road when they are 17 or 18 years old is pretty tough regardless of the sport.

Hell it's tough when they are 22

I'd assume he was recuited and offered because they feel he has the potential to be a very good player for SLU.

[cheeseman]

and only thompson and femi john were bad recruits(although femi had an unfourtunate scenario)

A bit harsh to list Femi as a bad recruit - his career ended due to injury. You have to give him a pass - besides, you left off Cotto so I am assuming you think he was a success?

[slu72]

I'll bet if FJ stayed healthy, he would have given fits to guys like Wyatt of Temple.

[Pistol]

A legitimate 6-11 and still possibly growing? Nice GPA and test scores? Local kid with nothing but praise about his character?

He's worth a scholarship.

I had heard some people say they didn't come away impressed with him from the last HS season. However, the reports this spring and summer all seem to be more positive, coming away pleasantly surprised and optimistic about his potential. With a big rest of the summer, nice senior season, and possibly a redshirt freshman year to built his frame out, we might have a very nice long-term get here. (I know I say this about twice a month here: Please remember to be patient, as with all bigs.)

From Inside Prep Sports: "6'11 2014 center Austin Gillman (St. Louis Gateway 17u/St. Louis Oakville, IL.) A pleasant surprise in an event chalked full of big-time talent, Gillman dunked a couple of dunks off of drop steps. While he runs very well, showed good hands and footwork he needs to get stronger but he has a good frame that should take to the weight room well."

Lots of good quotes from the STLToday article. He didn't think the offer would come so soon, he didn't see anywhere else as being better, his Oakville coach thinks he has serious growth potential ("He’s 6-11 flat-footed right now without a hair on his legs still, so I think he still may grow. He eats a ton and he can’t put any weight on still, so I think that leans towards him still growing.")

The coach also talks about him having the ability to stretch defenses with his shot, including 3-point range. The next Rob Loe, but more of a rebounder and shot blocker? I'd be fine with that.

My favorite stat: 77.3% from the FT line this season. That tells me one important thing: he works hard. He stays after practice. So many bigs are recruited despite a lack of FT shooting ability, hoping they'll develop it when they get on campus. There's no substitute for a guy who's already willing to work on a skill coaches don't want to waste practice minutes on. He's going to draw fouls and make them pay.

I love this Tweet: Austin Gillmann ‏@AustinGillmann 3 Jul

@Ervin_Sarajlic thanks man. Wouldn't have wanted to play with anyone else

He just wanted to stay home and be a Billiken. I love it. Let's hope that feeling is infectious.

[SLUMedBilliken15]

http://espn.go.com/college-sports/basketball/recruiting/player/_/id/187062/austin-gillman

So apparently AG is better than RA, TL, and MC...

[NH]

Some people who have seen Gillmann play aren't impressed. Are these the same people who weren't impressed by Nolan Berry? I beg anyone who has seen Gillmann play to tell me a big they have seen who is better. High school big men take time. Especially skilled skinny ones with room to develop and add weight.

[slufanskip]

A legitimate 6-11 and still possibly growing? Nice GPA and test scores? Local kid with nothing but praise about his character?

He's worth a scholarship.

I had heard some people say they didn't come away impressed with him from the last HS season. However, the reports this spring and summer all seem to be more positive, coming away pleasantly surprised and optimistic about his potential. With a big rest of the summer, nice senior season, and possibly a redshirt freshman year to built his frame out, we might have a very nice long-term get here. (I know I say this about twice a month here: Please remember to be patient, as with all bigs.)

From Inside Prep Sports: "6'11 2014 center Austin Gillman (St. Louis Gateway 17u/St. Louis Oakville, IL.) A pleasant surprise in an event chalked full of big-time talent, Gillman dunked a couple of dunks off of drop steps. While he runs very well, showed good hands and footwork he needs to get stronger but he has a good frame that should take to the weight room well."

Lots of good quotes from the STLToday article. He didn't think the offer would come so soon, he didn't see anywhere else as being better, his Oakville coach thinks he has serious growth potential ("He’s 6-11 flat-footed right now without a hair on his legs still, so I think he still may grow. He eats a ton and he can’t put any weight on still, so I think that leans towards him still growing.")

The coach also talks about him having the ability to stretch defenses with his shot, including 3-point range. The next Rob Loe, but more of a rebounder and shot blocker? I'd be fine with that.

My favorite stat: 77.3% from the FT line this season. That tells me one important thing: he works hard. He stays after practice. So many bigs are recruited despite a lack of FT shooting ability, hoping they'll develop it when they get on campus. There's no substitute for a guy who's already willing to work on a skill coaches don't want to waste practice minutes on. He's going to draw fouls and make them pay.

I love this Tweet: Austin Gillmann ‏@AustinGillmann 3 Jul

@Ervin_Sarajlic thanks man. Wouldn't have wanted to play with anyone else

He just wanted to stay home and be a Billiken. I love it. Let's hope that feeling is infectious.

I liked the fact that he already is said to have good footwork which is huge for an inside big. Many of the bigs have always been able to get away with just being tall. The one article from the tourney talked about dunks off of a drop step. These are things that RL didn't have coming in. Compared to another skinny 6'11" RL that came in he seems to have more skills inside but less outside game though not bad.

[ACE]

It's just AJ being AJ. Every once in a while he pops his head out, takes shots, then disappears again for a few months.

While not a single recruit that Crews has brought to SLU has stepped on a college court yet, therefore its all a bit of a guessing game, I couldn't be happier with how he has done in recruiting:

- As interim coach and with most expecting him not to be retained, he uncovers a potential hidden gem in Crawford and convinces him to sign despite the uncertainty of who will actually be coach. Crawford goes on to have a great senior year and is ranked in the top 5 in Indiana, with the other 4 all going to power conference schools.

- He signs Reggie A. According to at least one billikens.com poster, he had multiple offers from top 20 programs. Even if you don't believe that, the reports of his early play at open gyms have been very encouraging.

- He signs Tanner L. Tanner had offers from K-state, BYU and Colorado St. and likely turned down other significant programs from even getting involved.

- He signs Ash Y. A 4 star prospect coming out of highschool, Ash had offers from at least Pitt and G-tech.

- He signs Davell Roby from Memphis. The kid had offers from Memphis and a large portion of the SEC.

- He signs an admitted local big-man project. Have absolutely no problem with something like this.

Crew's recruiting efforts to date have been great and he's earned our respect. But of course, with 4 schollys still to do, he's got more work to do but I'm nowhere near as concerned about the future state of this program as I was 3 months ago.

I suspect we'll hear again from AJ in 3 months when he wants to take more pot shots and then disappear.

+1 I called out aj a long time ago for being a troll, despit the fact that thicks defended him. This is another prime example of what he is all about... when we signed a 3-star recruit with multiple BCS offers, where was aj? If he were a SLU fan like he has told us, you'd think he would have been pretty excited about it. Instead he only crawls out from under his rock to rip our latest recruit. Poor aj... just a bittle little Mizzou troll.

[Pistol]

I liked the fact that he already is said to have good footwork which is huge for an inside big. Many of the bigs have always been able to get away with just being tall. The one article from the tourney talked about dunks off of a drop step. These are things that RL didn't have coming in. Compared to another skinny 6'11" RL that came in he seems to have more skills inside but less outside game though not bad.

Exactly- like if Loe had been brought up in an American basketball system in which he'd have been forced to develop more of an inside skill set. He sounds like he has a bit more range than Manning on his shot.

[DeSmetBilliken]

A bit harsh to list Femi as a bad recruit - his career ended due to injury. You have to give him a pass - besides, you left off Cotto so I am assuming you think he was a success?

He was commenting on a list I posted of early verbal commits that Majerus got in his first late Spring/Summer as SLU coach. Those commits were Kwamain Mitchell, Willie Reed, Brett Thompson, Brian Conklin, and Femi John. Ruben Cotto was a late commitment-didn't sign until the next Spring. same with Cassity. Jeff Reid was also in that class, but he committed in November.

[slufanskip]

Exactly- like if Loe had been brought up in an American basketball system in which he'd have been forced to develop more of an inside skill set. He sounds like he has a bit more range than Manning on his shot.

Even in American basketball so few bigs have learned to have good footwork with post moves. They just rely on size as they're generally the tallest guy on the floor. Now with more and more bigs wanting to step away and face the basket (which is a good thing) they spend even less development time on their footwork inside. I don't watch that many HS games but see a few AAU type games and I can't remember the last time I saw a big seal his defender out and drop step for a dunk.

[doowop]

It's just AJ being AJ. Every once in a while he pops his head out, takes shots, then disappears again for a few months.

While not a single recruit that Crews has brought to SLU has stepped on a college court yet, therefore its all a bit of a guessing game, I couldn't be happier with how he has done in recruiting:

- As interim coach and with most expecting him not to be retained, he uncovers a potential hidden gem in Crawford and convinces him to sign despite the uncertainty of who will actually be coach. Crawford goes on to have a great senior year and is ranked in the top 5 in Indiana, with the other 4 all going to power conference schools.

- He signs Reggie A. According to at least one billikens.com poster, he had multiple offers from top 20 programs. Even if you don't believe that, the reports of his early play at open gyms have been very encouraging.

- He signs Tanner L. Tanner had offers from K-state, BYU and Colorado St. and likely turned down other significant programs from even getting involved.

- He signs Ash Y. A 4 star prospect coming out of highschool, Ash had offers from at least Pitt and G-tech.

- He signs Davell Roby from Memphis. The kid had offers from Memphis and a large portion of the SEC.

- He signs an admitted local big-man project. Have absolutely no problem with something like this.

Crew's recruiting efforts to date have been great and he's earned our respect. But of course, with 4 schollys still to do, he's got more work to do but I'm nowhere near as concerned about the future state of this program as I was 3 months ago.

I suspect we'll hear again from AJ in 3 months when he wants to take more pot shots and then disappear.

Roby and Gillmann have committed but cannot sign until Fall.

[bauman]

They are probably the same people who thought the A Bonner signing was a waste since he only had 2 scholarship offers, SLU and Methdale. (this is a reply to NH)

[almaman]

It's just AJ being AJ. Every once in a while he pops his head out, takes shots, then disappears again for a few months.

While not a single recruit that Crews has brought to SLU has stepped on a college court yet, therefore its all a bit of a guessing game, I couldn't be happier with how he has done in recruiting:

- As interim coach and with most expecting him not to be retained, he uncovers a potential hidden gem in Crawford and convinces him to sign despite the uncertainty of who will actually be coach. Crawford goes on to have a great senior year and is ranked in the top 5 in Indiana, with the other 4 all going to power conference schools.

- He signs Reggie A. According to at least one billikens.com poster, he had multiple offers from top 20 programs. Even if you don't believe that, the reports of his early play at open gyms have been very encouraging.

- He signs Tanner L. Tanner had offers from K-state, BYU and Colorado St. and likely turned down other significant programs from even getting involved.

- He signs Ash Y. A 4 star prospect coming out of highschool, Ash had offers from at least Pitt and G-tech.

- He signs Davell Roby from Memphis. The kid had offers from Memphis and a large portion of the SEC.

- He signs an admitted local big-man project. Have absolutely no problem with something like this.

Crew's recruiting efforts to date have been great and he's earned our respect. But of course, with 4 schollys still to do, he's got more work to do but I'm nowhere near as concerned about the future state of this program as I was 3 months ago.

Great summation to stretch of time for Bill's B ball that is sort of unprecedented. Can't think of a time post Easy Ed where Biliken basketball had such an upside as we got going on now. 11/21/13 can't get here fast enough. Course want to enjoy summer, rest of El Birdo's season,start of Fisher's second year, final season of Breaking Bad, but other than that come on November!

[Jrberendzen]

A bit harsh to list Femi as a bad recruit - his career ended due to injury. You have to give him a pass - besides, you left off Cotto so I am assuming you think he was a success?

i said he had an unfourtunate scenario(THE INJURY). He really wasn't a bad recruit. he's more like a recruit that did nothing(except give some leadership)

[Jrberendzen]

Hilarious. I hope your point is ESPN recruiting page suck a $$.

it does suck honestly verbal commits is better and we all know how bad that is. Espn needs to update there recruiting info more often than they do for basketball(2 times a year)

[NextYearBill]

Femi is a success story. period

[aj_arete]

So apparently AG is better than RA, TL, and MC...

It's just AJ being AJ. Every once in a while he pops his head out, takes shots, then disappears again for a few months.

While not a single recruit that Crews has brought to SLU has stepped on a college court yet, therefore its all a bit of a guessing game, I couldn't be happier with how he has done in recruiting:

- As interim coach and with most expecting him not to be retained, he uncovers a potential hidden gem in Crawford and convinces him to sign despite the uncertainty of who will actually be coach. Crawford goes on to have a great senior year and is ranked in the top 5 in Indiana, with the other 4 all going to power conference schools.

- He signs Reggie A. According to at least one billikens.com poster, he had multiple offers from top 20 programs. Even if you don't believe that, the reports of his early play at open gyms have been very encouraging.

- He signs Tanner L. Tanner had offers from K-state, BYU and Colorado St. and likely turned down other significant programs from even getting involved.

- He signs Ash Y. A 4 star prospect coming out of highschool, Ash had offers from at least Pitt and G-tech.

- He signs Davell Roby from Memphis. The kid had offers from Memphis and a large portion of the SEC.

- He signs an admitted local big-man project. Have absolutely no problem with something like this.

Crew's recruiting efforts to date have been great and he's earned our respect. But of course, with 4 schollys still to do, he's got more work to do but I'm nowhere near as concerned about the future state of this program as I was 3 months ago.

I suspect we'll hear again from AJ in 3 months when he wants to take more pot shots and then disappear.

By the way, it was slu72, who made the comparison of Austin Gillman to the Gonzaga center. I went to see what Olcyzk's grade was and it was very high at 90. As for Gillman, I said he wasn't rated by ESPN because he was even LISTED on Saint Louis a commit. As for Crews' past history as a recruiter, it does matter. I know he had some good success at Evansville, but looking back on his record, it wasn't as good as I initially thought it was. The fact that Marty Simmons wasn't an actual recruit of his means that I gave him more credit than he deserved.

As Colin Cowherd stated, people on bulletin boards are FANATICS. So I'll just take that for what it's worth and move on. I wasn't taking a shot at Jim Crews, but only saying that his recruiting class is not highly rated. As for Majerus, he has a history of finding hidden gems and we'll see if Crews can be similar. As for the hiring of Jim Crews, I think it's excellent for the short-term, but not good for the long-term. I could be wrong, I could be right. We'll see.

[Clock_Tower]

Some people who have seen Gillmann play aren't impressed. Are these the same people who weren't impressed by Nolan Berry? I beg anyone who has seen Gillmann play to tell me a big they have seen who is better. High school big men take time. Especially skilled skinny ones with room to develop and add weight.

Agreed. Big men often do look "average", "unimpressive" and as a "project" in high school. For one, they are playing with and against sub-par competition. Also, they are usually not being coached by really good coaches or playing in systems which favor their skills and talents. Poor timing, poor-interior passes, double teaming down low, quicker defenders who are 6 inches shorter and who hack them all game long...

Guards, on the other hand, can and do shine all on their own regardless of the above.

[Clock_Tower]

Congratulations to Jim Crews. By all accounts, he is driving the bus quite well and the future looks really good.

As to recruiting, I am certainly impressed. As KShoe correctly mentions, no recruit has yet to play a minute of ball yet but all indications look good. In short, though, it all comes down to winning. Recruits wants to win. Coaches and facilities are really important but winning tradition appears to be more important than conference affiliation, tv exposure.... And again, recruiting a top player to start and be the star for his four (4) years is one thing but recruiting a top player to be a role player, a bench contributor, a red-shirt... is far tougher.

As to the 6 recruits, I defer to our coaching staff. If they find the right guys, then they should use them all this Fall. At the same time, though, I'd suggest that "saving" at least one for the Spring is probably a good idea. In the past, the Spring was full of talented kids with bad grades or other problems. Now, there is alot of transferring going on and saving one (1) scholarship for a kid like Tanner L. or Ash Y would seem to be the way to go.

[WVBilliken]

Interesting that Verbal Commits has Gillmann as a 3* commit, same as Roby.

[Archy McNally]

Some people who have seen Gillmann play aren't impressed. Are these the same people who weren't impressed by Nolan Berry? I beg anyone who has seen Gillmann play to tell me a big they have seen who is better. High school big men take time. Especially skilled skinny ones with room to develop and add weight.

I was impressed when I saw Baniak go for 40 in the Meramec Tournament.

But I agree with your point, you can probably call almost all big men projects and sound smart: Willie Reed, Manning, Loe, etc.

[ACE]

I look forward to going to see the kid play this year and form my own opinion. Even if he is a "project" I'm fine with that. We figutre to have four solid bigs in 2014 and don't need a 5th to contribute, so I think this is a big time to take a developmental big and let him redshirt his first year.

[TheChosenOne]

I look forward to going to see the kid play this year and form my own opinion. Even if he is a "project" I'm fine with that. We figutre to have four solid bigs in 2014 and don't need a 5th to contribute, so I think this is a big time to take a developmental big and let him redshirt his first year.

+1. With the depth we have in the post I have no problem taking a flyer on this kid. I have never seen the kid play, but it does not seem like this is a big reach. Sounds like a kid that going into his senior season of high school has a solid skill set for his size, but really needs to add some bulk.

[bauman]

+1. With the depth we have in the post I have no problem taking a flyer on this kid. I have never seen the kid play, but it does not seem like this is a big reach. Sounds like a kid that going into his senior season of high school has a solid skill set for his size, but really needs to add some bulk.

Bulk is easier to add then skill.