Banners On The Parkway - The Chris Mack recruiting mapYour only remaining free source for Xavier Musketeers newshttps://cdn.vox-cdn.com/community_logos/47177/banners-fave.png2015-05-26T19:22:30-04:00http://www.bannersontheparkway.com/rss/stream/83841182015-05-26T19:22:30-04:002015-05-26T19:22:30-04:00The Chris Mack recruiting map: superlatives
<figure>
<img alt="Jeff Robinson, forever surprised and confused." src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/-7aWpDEqhjQKYb93sWrkRfIool8=/0x33:2112x1441/1310x873/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/46400148/GettyImages-141462451.0.jpg" />
<figcaption>Jeff Robinson, forever surprised and confused. | Mike Ehrmann/Getty Images</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>We've come to the end of our brief study. Here's the best and the worst of it from my perspective.</p> <h3>Best signing: Trevon Bluiett</h3>
<p>You could throw Semaj in here and not get too much of an argument from me or anyone else, but I think Trevon edges him. Bluiett was a recruit from Indiana with a national profile, as evidenced by the fact that he first committed to UCLA. Even after he reopened his recruitment, Bluiett had plenty of attractive options with top national profiles but instead chose to sign with Xavier. That kind of work is what is going to be necessary to keep Xavier near the top of the Big East on a regular basis.<br></p>
<h3>Best overall work: Matt Stainbrook</h3>
<p>To me, this was Coach Mack and the staff's best work. Running down a player like Semaj or Trevon is impressive, but it's a fairly obvious task. Find the best dude and try to convince him to play at your school. If Disney took a character who looked like Western Michigan Stainbrook and had him leading a team into the second weekend of the NCAA tournament just three years later, we'd all openly laugh at how ridiculous that was. Scouting reports on Stainbrook both out of high school and after two years in college set his ceiling as a productive low-major player if he got his act together and lost weight. To look past that and see the player that we all ended up enjoying in his two years at Xavier was a stroke of recruiting and developmental genius.</p>
<h3>Best development: Dee Davis</h3>
<p>Am I biased towards Dee? Jury's still out. What I can tell you is that Davis came in as a fairly pedestrian recruit and is leaving with a respected place in Xavier history. When we think of the kind of player X is all about, it's a guy who stays four years, works hard and steadily improves the whole time, and then steps into a leading role as an upperclassman before leaving with a degree. Dee ticks all the boxes.</p>
<h3>Most disappointing: Brandon Randolph</h3>
<p>I thought this guy was going to be great. When a top-100 player comes all the way across the country to join your program, you naturally assume that's because it's a great fit. Two years later, Randolph is on his back across most of the country to play at Utah Valley. This was a swing and a miss in either evaluation or development; either way, it didn't work out how I had hoped.</p>
<h3>Most disappointing four-year guy: Jeff Robinson</h3>
<p>The scouting reports on him questioned his urgency and energy, and they were spot on the whole way. From his listless, up-and-down performances through the mental lapses like the foul against Wofford, Robinson always seemed like a pile of physical skills had been left unattended somewhere and he was what came out. He could have been an A-10 Anthony Davis.</p>
https://www.bannersontheparkway.com/2015/5/26/8663007/the-chris-mack-recruiting-map-superlativesJoel D2015-05-26T11:12:06-04:002015-05-26T11:12:06-04:00The Chris Mack recruiting map: Near misses
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<img alt="This one hurts a little bit." src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/vSnr-WTn87ziwasn-pWiDimgmiE=/0x103:2759x1942/1310x873/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/46397196/usa-today-8467287.0.jpg" />
<figcaption>This one hurts a little bit. | Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>During the Mack era, Xavier has had four players commit verbally before seeking their basketball destiny elsewhere. It's a mixed bag, to say the least.</p> <p>We spent just over a week looking at the recruiting work of Coach Mack, focusing particularly on the sundry forays of he and his staff to bring in players from both near and far. While Xavier has offered about every able-bodied male between the ages of 12 and 18 who possesses a transcript and a pair of gym shoes, the Muskies made it to the altar with four player who then backed off from the verbal commitment stage. Their stories are below.<br> <br>Center Michael Chandler of the class of 2011 was the first of these. A top 5 player at his position out of Indianapolis's Lawrence North, he had decommitted from Louisville before he verbally committed to Xavier. He then backed off that commitment to commit to Central Florida, where he blossomed into a star. Just kidding, he also decommitted from there to attend Northwest Florida State before getting his first taste of D1 action this past season at Oregon. He averaged 2.2 and 1.9 in 19 games for the Ducks before - brace yourselves - asking for and receiving his release from the squad. Wherever he lands next will be the sixth school to have been pledged his services but just the third to actually receive them.<br> <br>I had been excited about Chandler when he committed to Xavier. Between having been committed to Louisville and being highly-rated by just about every scouting service, his pedigree seemed to be that of Xavier's next great center. Instead, his peripatetic journey through college basketball featured Xavier only as a footnote, and he has struggled to make good on the promise of his skill set. It's hard to say that this was too big of a miss for Mack and the staff, but maybe things would have worked out differently had Chandler found a place to set his roots early on.<br> <br>Coach Mack was apparently still enamored with the idea of having a big man in the middle, because the next year he went even bigger in grabbing a commitment from 7'4", 330-pound man mountain Sim Bhullar out of Canada. Bhullar committed to Xavier in the early period of 2011, but by late that summer he had backed out and was headed to New Mexico State. Transcript problems ended up being revealed as the issue, and Bhullar was ineligible to compete his first year in the NCAA. Bhullar ended up carving out a solid couple of years at New Mexico State, averaging about 10/7/1 for his career before heading the NBA draft.<br> <br>This one is also hardly a referendum on Mack's recruiting ability. The kid wasn't eligible, and no (legal) sales job from Mack was going to make up for the $40k price tag at X while Bhullar sat out a year. Plus If you have a 7'4" guy in the middle (as the old adage goes), you kind of have to structure your whole offense around him. As we saw with Georgetown's Joshua Smith, sometimes bigger isn't always better in the Big East.<br> <br>Speaking of better and the Big East, did you know all-league guard D'Vauntes Smith-Rivera was once committed to Xavier? Of course you did, but it's still fun to be reminded! He verbally committed to Xavier in 2010 before reopening his recruiting because he felt like he had rushed the decision. A number of larger schools were delighted to hear that from the Indianapolis native. Citing (ironically enough) the desire to play in the Big East, Smith-Rivera eventually signed with Georgetown. You know the rest of his story; he's been quite good.<br> <br>This one stings. Not just losing a player because of the desire to play in a league we were about to join; I get that that wasn't Mack's fault. Being able to hold onto good players despite flirtations from other programs is absolutely a big part of recruiting though, and losing one to Georgetown stings even outside of the fact that they're now a conference opponent. In a world not too much different from our own, DSR and Dez Wells would have been teammates.<br> <br>Finally there is the tale of Chris Thomas. A 6'5" five-star shooting guard out of Denver, he attended four high schools without getting a degree before getting a GED and enrolling at Chipola (FL) Junior College (where he missed the postseason due the little hang up of being in jail). After a year there, he committed to Xavier. He backed off of that to head to Manhattan instead, but he was dismissed from that program before playing a game for repeated run-ins with the law. He landed at Marshall, where he played 33 games in one season before being dismissed for a violation of team rules. He is now at Texas Southern, where he averaged 12.6 PPG as a high-volume, low-efficiency scorer. He somehow still has a year of eligibility left.<br> <br>Four high schools, left without a degree. Five colleges, has managed just two years of D1 ball. Thomas has (or had) a world of talent, but the juice isn't worth the squeeze. It's probably telling of where Xavier has been as opposed to where it is now that they attempted to take a chance on Thomas. The fact that he decided to decommit was probably a blessing for Xavier, as he has proven to be a headache at just about every stop since early in his high school career.</p>
https://www.bannersontheparkway.com/2015/5/26/8660431/the-chris-mack-recruiting-map-near-missesJoel D2015-05-25T18:00:02-04:002015-05-25T18:00:02-04:00The Chris Mack recruiting map: Indiana
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<img alt="You know what game this is from." src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/tO3Dx58ZM1E4TCm_vD_cSMxfl04=/0x0:4610x3073/1310x873/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/46392072/usa-today-8390053.0.jpg" />
<figcaption>You know what game this is from. | Frank Victores-USA TODAY Sports</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>It's a shame Xavier missed out on Chitwood.</p> <p>If <i>Hoosiers</i> is to be believed, every decent soul in Indiana learned to shoot on a basket tacked to the side of a barn, getting his jumpers up after a long day of honest labor. <span>Dee Davis</span> went for extra difficulty by hanging his bucket indoors and looping his shot through the rafters of the barn. I don't know if that movie represents the current state of things in Indiana, but the place has been a gold mine for Xavier-bound talent.</p>
<table cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" border="1" width="100%">
<tbody>
<tr bgcolor="#EDF1F3">
<th align="center"></th> <th align="center">G</th> <th align="center">GS</th> <th align="center">M</th> <th align="center">P</th> <th align="center">R</th> <th align="center">A</th> <th align="center">PPG</th> <th align="center">RPG</th> <th align="center">APG</th>
</tr>
<tr bgcolor="#FFFFFF" onmouseout="this.bgColor='#FFFFFF'" onmouseover="this.bgColor='#C7D9EC'">
<td align="center">Dee Davis</td>
<td align="center">132</td>
<td align="center">92</td>
<td align="center">3409</td>
<td align="center">872</td>
<td align="center">215</td>
<td align="center">492</td>
<td align="center">6.6</td>
<td align="center">1.6</td>
<td align="center">3.7</td>
</tr>
<tr bgcolor="#FFFFFF" onmouseout="this.bgColor='#FFFFFF'" onmouseover="this.bgColor='#C7D9EC'">
<td align="center"><span>Jeff Robinson</span></td>
<td align="center">108</td>
<td align="center">35</td>
<td align="center">1798</td>
<td align="center">493</td>
<td align="center">358</td>
<td align="center">26</td>
<td align="center">4.6</td>
<td align="center">3.3</td>
<td align="center">0.2</td>
</tr>
<tr bgcolor="#FFFFFF" onmouseout="this.bgColor='#FFFFFF'" onmouseover="this.bgColor='#C7D9EC'">
<td align="center"><span>Justin Martin</span></td>
<td align="center">94</td>
<td align="center">58</td>
<td align="center">2074</td>
<td align="center">712</td>
<td align="center">389</td>
<td align="center">75</td>
<td align="center">7.6</td>
<td align="center">4.1</td>
<td align="center">0.8</td>
</tr>
<tr bgcolor="#FFFFFF" onmouseout="this.bgColor='#FFFFFF'" onmouseover="this.bgColor='#C7D9EC'">
<td align="center"><span>Trevon Bluiett</span></td>
<td align="center">37</td>
<td align="center">32</td>
<td align="center">1048</td>
<td align="center">408</td>
<td align="center">156</td>
<td align="center">71</td>
<td align="center">11.0</td>
<td align="center">4.2</td>
<td align="center">1.9</td>
</tr>
<tr bgcolor="#FFFFFF" onmouseout="this.bgColor='#FFFFFF'" onmouseover="this.bgColor='#C7D9EC'">
<td align="center"><b>Indiana totals</b></td>
<td align="center"><b>371</b></td>
<td align="center"><b>217</b></td>
<td align="center"><b>8329</b></td>
<td align="center"><b>2485</b></td>
<td align="center"><b>1118</b></td>
<td align="center"><b>664</b></td>
<td align="center"><b>6.7</b></td>
<td align="center"><b>3.0</b></td>
<td align="center"><b>1.8</b></td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
<p> </p>
<p><span>Jeff Robinson</span> was the first player Coach Mack signed after Sean Miller took his promises and his recruiting class and headed west. Butler, Purdue, Indiana, and Michigan State were all in on him before he signed with X. Let's look at some quotes from his scouting reports:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>"He has great size and is a very good athlete but gets very little done on the floor. He plays very unaggressive and unsure of himself most of the time."</p>
<p>"Robinson is physically weak, but he also is not willing to mix it up inside with bigger players. He settles for jump shots and does not actively pursue rebounds. While I hate to say it, right now, he is a soft player."</p>
</blockquote>
<p>Yep. That was Robinson in a nutshell at Xavier. One minute he's dunking on the entire La Salle roster for fun, the next he's dropping an ORtg of 29 in 26 minutes against Kent State. Jeff Robinson spent four years at Xavier looking like a player just about to put it together without ever actually doing so.</p>
<p>While we're here, let's talk about Justin Martin. A 6'6" ESPN100 shooting guard, Martin took the prep school route after high school and was still only a partial qualifier as a freshman. He was scouted as a languid player with a great stroke and the ability to find spaces in a defense that would allow him to shoot. He could defend multiple positions but lacked urgency and energy on both ends of the court.</p>
<p>At Xavier, Martin was a languid player with a great stroke, et c. et c. After hearing about how good he was in practice, Xavier fans were disappointed by his 2.9 PPG as a freshman. He developed everything but enthusiasm in his time at Xavier. He was frustrating to watch for most of his career, but he averaged 11.7/5.2/1.0 as a junior and 14.2/5.9/0.9 in Big East play while guarding the opponents' toughest wing. He was primed to be a big part of Xavier's 2014-2015 season before leaving for SMU and the later "the pros." Rumors that academic problems continued to plague him were likely not entirely unfounded.</p>
<p>Dee Davis was the complete opposite in many ways. He was a fairly unheralded recruit whose size was a concern. He had a slow release on his jumper but was a willing and aggressive defender and a pass-first point guard. Purdue, Ohio U, and Butler also recruited him out of Bloomington South.</p>
<p>Dee grew into his role at Xavier. After serving as an understudy to Tu and Cheekz, he stepped right into a backcourt where he was overshadowed by Semaj. All he did was handle the ball and the pressure. When Christon left after two years, it was clear Davis was the lone PG on the roster despite some people calling for other players to take his starting spot. His final six or so weeks on the campus cemented his legacy as carried X through the Shootout and then led the Muskies to another Sweet 16 bid.</p>
<p>Accompanying him on the path was Trevon Bluiett, a freshman. Bluiett was a scoring machine out of Park Tudor whose skills were so in demand that he initially committed to UCLA. When he reopened his recruitment, Arizona, Michigan, Butler, and Purdue were also in line to sign him, but he (obviously) chose X. His strength and feel for the game were big positive points on a scouting report that also mentioned his sweet touch and ability to score at all three levels. Only on-ball defense stood out as a concern.</p>
<p>Trevon has spent one year with Xavier so far, but he's already looking like the kind of kid who has a very productive three- or four-year stay at Cintas. He came out of the gates firing (and hitting) before hitting a bit of a wall late on, but all the tools that made him so highly-recruited were clearly visible. He was the team's leading scorer for much of the year and will be the leading returning scorer this season.</p>
<p>Indiana has been where Xavier has gone to find players. I like the idea of the Muskies being a local/regional recruiting power even more than one of them grabbing players from all over, and the caliber of recruits they've pulled in from Indiana has served them very well.</p>
https://www.bannersontheparkway.com/2015/5/25/8656079/the-chris-mack-recruiting-map-indianaJoel D2015-05-25T13:10:05-04:002015-05-25T13:10:05-04:00The Chris Mack recruiting map: Ohio
<figure>
<img alt="I haven't gotten to use a picture of Semaj for a while." src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/PjbmOTrEaLfkV_Ueoagz_Kq56ec=/0x134:1744x1297/1310x873/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/46391780/usa-today-7777825.0.jpg" />
<figcaption>I haven't gotten to use a picture of Semaj for a while. | Frank Victores-USA TODAY Sports</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Yes, it's Xavier's home state. No, it's not the state they've had the most success recruiting.</p> <p>In which state of the union is Xavier located? If you answered Ohio, you're correct! If you answered Louisiana, you're also technically correct but probably not part of this site's target demographic. Google informs me Xavier University of Louisiana's mascot is called Gold Digga though, so there's that. I've already gotten off track; Xavier (OH) has recruited well in OH under Coach Mack.</p>
<table width="100%" border="1" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0">
<tbody>
<tr bgcolor="#EDF1F3">
<th align="center"></th> <th align="center">G</th> <th align="center">GS</th> <th align="center">M</th> <th align="center">P</th> <th align="center">R</th> <th align="center">A</th> <th align="center">PPG</th> <th align="center">RPG</th> <th align="center">APG</th>
</tr>
<tr onmouseover="this.bgColor='#C7D9EC'" onmouseout="this.bgColor='#FFFFFF'" bgcolor="#FFFFFF">
<td align="center"><span>Erik Stenger</span></td>
<td align="center">55</td>
<td align="center">8</td>
<td align="center">440</td>
<td align="center">84</td>
<td align="center">100</td>
<td align="center">8</td>
<td align="center">1.5</td>
<td align="center">1.8</td>
<td align="center">0.1</td>
</tr>
<tr onmouseover="this.bgColor='#C7D9EC'" onmouseout="this.bgColor='#FFFFFF'" bgcolor="#FFFFFF">
<td align="center"><span>Griffin McKenzie</span></td>
<td align="center">28</td>
<td align="center"></td>
<td align="center">67</td>
<td align="center">16</td>
<td align="center">14</td>
<td align="center">3</td>
<td align="center">0.6</td>
<td align="center">0.5</td>
<td align="center">0.1</td>
</tr>
<tr onmouseover="this.bgColor='#C7D9EC'" onmouseout="this.bgColor='#FFFFFF'" bgcolor="#FFFFFF">
<td align="center"><span>Matt Stainbrook</span></td>
<td align="center">70</td>
<td align="center">68</td>
<td align="center">1794</td>
<td align="center">805</td>
<td align="center">501</td>
<td align="center">160</td>
<td align="center">11.5</td>
<td align="center">7.2</td>
<td align="center">2.3</td>
</tr>
<tr onmouseover="this.bgColor='#C7D9EC'" onmouseout="this.bgColor='#FFFFFF'" bgcolor="#FFFFFF">
<td align="center"><span>Semaj Christon</span></td>
<td align="center">64</td>
<td align="center">63</td>
<td align="center">2228</td>
<td align="center">1034</td>
<td align="center">177</td>
<td align="center">281</td>
<td align="center">16.2</td>
<td align="center">2.8</td>
<td align="center">4.4</td>
</tr>
<tr onmouseover="this.bgColor='#C7D9EC'" onmouseout="this.bgColor='#FFFFFF'" bgcolor="#FFFFFF">
<td align="center"><b>Ohio totals</b></td>
<td align="center"><b>217</b></td>
<td align="center"><b>139</b></td>
<td align="center"><b>4529</b></td>
<td align="center"><b>1939</b></td>
<td align="center"><b>792</b></td>
<td align="center"><b>452</b></td>
<td align="center"><b>8.9</b></td>
<td align="center"><b>3.6</b></td>
<td align="center"><b>2.1</b></td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
<p> </p>
<p>That is an interesting assortment of names. Let's start with Griffin McKenzie, a 6'8" stretch four who came out of high school with the reputation of a big man who could shoot the ball well from deep. He was billed as a bit soft but an excellent catch and shoot scorer with the frame to become a real asset. Xavier beat Wake Forest, Ga Tech, and Northwestern to his signature.</p>
<p>McKenzie's story is kind of a sad one. <a href="http://archive.cincinnati.com/article/20110705/NEWS010702/107060319/Man-admits-attack-Xavier-basketball-player-Griffin-McKenzie">He was beaten unconscious by Jonathan Spatz</a> while trying to defuse a fight at a party before his freshman year at X. After a season at Xavier, he transferred to Denver where he played out his eligibility. McKenzie ended with 24 career points.</p>
<p>Erik Stenger came to Xavier as a walk-on after spending two years at Northern Kentucky. He was an energetic and athletic forward for the Norse, playing 58 games in two years before leaving. Recruiting is a pretty broad term to take here; Stenger wanted a place close to his home (Cinci) with a good basketball program and good academics. He more or less landed in X's lap, but we'll take it.</p>
<p>After his redshirt year, Stenger was surprised with a scholarship offer from Coach Mack. His game at Xavier was built entirely on hustle and effort, and he even fought his way into the starting lineup a handful of times. Despite losing time to a stomach ailment as a senior, Stenger carved out a valuable role on a roster that was rapidly reloading.</p>
<p>Everyone knows the Matt Stainbrook story, right? Recruiting of Stainbrook out of high school was light, primarily because he wasn't. After two years of up and down play, up and up weight, and disagreements with the staff left him without a scholarship, he signed at Xavier over Wright State and Bradley. A guy who would be All-Big East almost signed with Wright State or Bradley.</p>
<p>He spent a year learning how to tie bowties and avoid bowtie pasta before taking the court by storm for the Muskies. Sometimes recruiting is signing the guy that everybody else also wants; sometimes it's finding the hidden gem inside the guy that nobody else wants. Coach Mack challenged Stainbrook to shape up physically and mentally and both Mack and Matt were rewarded from the work put in.</p>
<p>Semaj Christon makes it an even 4-for-4 on Ohio guys Mack has brought in who did not spend four years at X. That's not an indictment, merely an observation. Scouting reports had Christon as a bouncy guard with good handle and excellent speed in full- and half-court. His limitations were reported as an inability to go left and a tendency to try to do too much at times. Xavier beat UC, Georgetown, and Providence to sign him.</p>
<p>The scouting reports were right: Semaj loved to go right and occasionally had his reach exceed his grasp, right up to his seven turnovers in his final college game. in the meantime though, he treated Xavier fans to plenty of moments of Semagic, whether it was providing something worth watching in his at times dismal 17-14 freshman season or providing a high-major caliber athlete in the first year in the Big East. My personal favorite came when he picked Bryce Cotton's pocket twice in the final minute of Xavier's win over Providence, but I'm sure you each had your own. His decision to jump to the draft was disappointing but understandable.</p>
<p>Ohio has provided four players for Coach Mack, none of whom were four-year guys. Only McKenzie signed out of high school, and his career was derailed before it began through no fault of his own. Stenger was a classic high-energy guy off the bench, and Semaj and especially Stainbrook will be remembered extremely fondly by Xavier fans. Not a bad showing for the home state.</p>
https://www.bannersontheparkway.com/2015/5/25/8655763/the-chris-mack-recruiting-map-ohioJoel D2015-05-21T10:51:23-04:002015-05-21T10:51:23-04:00The Chris Mack recruiting map: Maryland
<figure>
<img alt="" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/J1o3ml4YEMV1ENGX4UJEyEpeAQ0=/0x122:1696x1253/1310x873/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/46369788/usa-today-7803176.0.jpg" />
<figcaption>Brad Penner-USA TODAY Sports</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Maryland has been a mixed bag for Xavier. Is this a coincidence, or is Xavier better served to recruit where they have local leverage?</p> <p>The Musketeer I most associate with Maryland is Dez Wells, which is interesting for the purposes of this exercise because he isn't from there. Instead we'll feature one player who began his career at Xavier before moving on and another who began elsewhere before coming in and getting a degree from X. Beyond a home state and a position, these players could hardly have less in common in terms of their impact on the program during their time on campus.</p>
<table cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" border="1" width="100%">
<tbody>
<tr bgcolor="#EDF1F3">
<th align="center"></th> <th align="center">G</th> <th align="center">GS</th> <th align="center">M</th> <th align="center">P</th> <th align="center">R</th> <th align="center">A</th> <th align="center">PPG</th> <th align="center">RPG</th> <th align="center">APG</th>
</tr>
<tr bgcolor="#FFFFFF" onmouseout="this.bgColor='#FFFFFF'" onmouseover="this.bgColor='#C7D9EC'">
<td align="center">Isaiah Philmore</td>
<td align="center">71</td>
<td align="center">37</td>
<td align="center">1519</td>
<td align="center">516</td>
<td align="center">306</td>
<td align="center">28</td>
<td align="center">7.3</td>
<td align="center">4.3</td>
<td align="center">0.4</td>
</tr>
<tr bgcolor="#FFFFFF" onmouseout="this.bgColor='#FFFFFF'" onmouseover="this.bgColor='#C7D9EC'">
<td align="center">Jordan Latham</td>
<td align="center">16</td>
<td align="center"></td>
<td align="center">76</td>
<td align="center">8</td>
<td align="center">12</td>
<td align="center">1</td>
<td align="center">0.5</td>
<td align="center">0.8</td>
<td align="center">0.1</td>
</tr>
<tr bgcolor="#FFFFFF" onmouseout="this.bgColor='#FFFFFF'" onmouseover="this.bgColor='#C7D9EC'">
<td align="center">Maryland totals</td>
<td align="center">87</td>
<td align="center">37</td>
<td align="center">1595</td>
<td align="center">524</td>
<td align="center">318</td>
<td align="center">29</td>
<td align="center">6.0</td>
<td align="center">3.7</td>
<td align="center">0.3</td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
<p> </p>
<p>When Jordan Latham initially signed, he looked more like the possible next Jason Love than a guy who would transfer out after just one nondescript year. He decommitted when Sean Miller left but signed back on with Coach Mack, eschewing offers from a handful of east coast schools. He was an undersized (6'8") but stout F/C type who used his broad body to carve out real estate under the rim. He was reported to be a strong rebounder and had good scoring moves to each shoulder. Athleticism was an asset in both a quick second jump on the glass and the ability to disrupt shots around the rim. Scout had his as a four-star player while ESPN and Rivals saw his as a three-star.<br> <br>It never really happened for Latham at Xavier. He got 76 minutes as a freshman - unimpressive but still dwarfing the 42 that future contributor James Farr got in his first campaign - before transferring back home to Loyola (Md.). The 8 points and 12 boards he put up as a Muskie have left almost no impression on me to the point that I struggle to recall him on the floor. He carved out a decent career at Loyola, averaging over 7 PPG as a senior, but he never shot even 50% from the floor. When people talk about Coach Mack's early recruiting misses, Latham's is a name that often comes up, and for good reason.<br> <br>Following basically the opposite path was forward Isaiah Philmore. He started out at a hometown school in Towson University before transferring to Xavier, jumping from the Colonial to the A-10 and ultimately to the Big East through the course of his career. He was a good outside shooter at Towson and carried a lot of their load on offense and on the glass. Transfers have been a traditional source of high-quality talent for Xavier, and the fanbase was hoping that the trend would continue with Philmore.<br> <br>Philmore mostly came good for Xavier, especially if you ignore the fact that he only shot 10% from behind the arc. He was a glue guy when the team needed him to be, but he was also a relentless force on the offensive glass and a reliable source of 8-10 PPG without having to be targeted by the flow of the offense by the time he was finishing his career. Some Xavier fans will remember him for the way his junior season ended, but one unfortunate moment shouldn't overshadow the fact that he came into the program and gave two very solid years to a team in need of what he did well.<br> <br>Maryland has been a mixed bag for Xavier. In fact - with one notable exception - moving out of the upper Midwest has led to spotty results in recent recruiting. Is this a coincidence, or is Xavier better served to recruit where they have local leverage? I'm honestly not sure. I wasn't even sure why I did what I did most of the time when I was the age of the average recruit; I'll leave it to you all to speculate about why things are the way they seem to be with these players.</p>
https://www.bannersontheparkway.com/2015/5/21/8634441/the-chris-mack-recruiting-map-marylandJoel D2015-05-20T11:10:43-04:002015-05-20T11:10:43-04:00The Chris Mack recruiting map: Michigan
<figure>
<img alt="" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/87ssKu8XHSweDpypnFAwQEVdz3w=/0x0:2886x1924/1310x873/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/46364188/usa-today-8477139.0.jpg" />
<figcaption>Robert Hanashiro-USA TODAY Sports</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>One state where Chris Mack has certainly not missed is Michigan.</p> <p>Who is your favorite Mack era Musketeer from Michigan? If you said anyone other than Jalen Reynolds, you're lying. Perhaps you had clicked this link with Brad Redford on the brain. While he would have been a wonderful choice - not least of which because he hails from the same city as Bronner's Christmas Wonderland - he was a Sean Miller signee and thus not eligible for this study. We're left with just one player from Michigan: a big, mean dude who dunks on everyone he can find and doesn't hesitate to tell them about it.</p>
<p> <figure class="e-image">
<img alt=" " data-mask-text="false" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/47nH5V-8LgTxdoh-JWtnayigGho=/400x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/3388620/sbnation-share__2_.0.png">
</figure>
</p>
<table cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" border="1" width="100%">
<tbody>
<tr bgcolor="#EDF1F3">
<th align="center"></th> <th align="center">G</th> <th align="center">GS</th> <th align="center">M</th> <th align="center">P</th> <th align="center">R</th> <th align="center">A</th> <th align="center">PPG</th> <th align="center">RPG</th> <th align="center">APG</th>
</tr>
<tr bgcolor="#FFFFFF" onmouseout="this.bgColor='#FFFFFF'" onmouseover="this.bgColor='#C7D9EC'">
<td align="center">Jalen Reynolds</td>
<td align="center">68</td>
<td align="center">6</td>
<td align="center">1152</td>
<td align="center">485</td>
<td align="center">343</td>
<td align="center">17</td>
<td align="center">7.1</td>
<td align="center">5.0</td>
<td align="center">0.3</td>
</tr>
<tr bgcolor="#FFFFFF" onmouseout="this.bgColor='#FFFFFF'" onmouseover="this.bgColor='#C7D9EC'">
<td align="center">Michigan totals</td>
<td align="center">68</td>
<td align="center">6</td>
<td align="center">1152</td>
<td align="center">485</td>
<td align="center">343</td>
<td align="center">17</td>
<td align="center">7.1</td>
<td align="center">5.0</td>
<td align="center">0.3</td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
<p> </p>
<p>The keen-eyed among you have no doubt noticed that I've ignored Edmond Sumner's accumulated line of 8/5/6 from last season. That's true, I have. With Sumner redshirting and carrying four years of eligibility forward, I have chosen not to include his aborted freshman season in this study.<br> <br>Jalen originally signed as part of the same class as Dee Davis before some transcript issues motivated him to take a prep year. That apparently didn't do it - though the NCAA's policies and procedures are so ridiculously opaque that it's hard to know where exactly to place responsibility - so Jalen ended up debuting last year despite having graduated high school two years prior. Reynolds was universally seen as a four-star recruit, boasting superb athletic ability and a refined mid-range game. Curiously, both a lack of offensive aggression and a need to add strength crop up in recruiting reports on him; both seem to have been addressed. Pitt, Providence, and West Virginia were all also recruiting him before he signed with X.<br> <br>Barring something bizarre happening in the next two seasons, this one is on its way to panning out. Reynolds was inconsistent as a freshman but showed flashes of an ability to dominate, most notably with his 17 and 16 and MSG in February. His minutes and efficiency improved across the board in his sophomore year, with him establishing himself as the team's number two big man behind Matt Stainbrook. He'll come into his junior season as option 1A among Xavier posts on both ends of the floor. After a couple of post-signing false starts, Reynolds appears to be set for a very productive three- or four-year career at X.<br> <br>I think Michigan on the whole has been better to Xavier than shows here. Reynolds is obviously big, but I think Edmond Sumner could go down as a Musketeer legend if he can stay healthy. With those two and the lingering goodwill from Brad Redford's time with the team, the Mack era Michigan recruits have been solid additions to the program.</p>
https://www.bannersontheparkway.com/2015/5/20/8629953/the-chris-mack-recruiting-map-michiganJoel D2015-05-19T20:35:16-04:002015-05-19T20:35:16-04:00The Chris Mack recruiting map: North Carolina
<figure>
<img alt="Sorry, Dez." src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/ilvI1WtGhCKoly_iN-dcqYC7b8E=/0x0:4157x2771/1310x873/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/46360896/GettyImages-141782499.0.jpg" />
<figcaption>Sorry, Dez. | Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Take you shirt off, twist it 'round your head, spin it like a helicopter.</p> <p>For the first time in the little exercise, we have encountered a state that sent multiple players to the Coach Mack era Musketeers. Both North Carolina products that came to Xavier departed after a single year, albeit under very different circumstances. Injuries and a roster crunch drove Jay Canty out, while more nefarious forces worked to end Dezmine Wells's time at Xavier far too soon.</p>
<table cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" border="1" width="100%">
<tbody>
<tr bgcolor="#EDF1F3">
<th align="center"></th> <th align="center">G</th> <th align="center">GS</th> <th align="center">M</th> <th align="center">P</th> <th align="center">R</th> <th align="center">A</th> <th align="center">PPG</th> <th align="center">RPG</th> <th align="center">APG</th>
</tr>
<tr bgcolor="#FFFFFF" onmouseout="this.bgColor='#FFFFFF'" onmouseover="this.bgColor='#C7D9EC'">
<td align="center">Dez Wells</td>
<td align="center">32</td>
<td align="center">32</td>
<td align="center">835</td>
<td align="center">312</td>
<td align="center">157</td>
<td align="center">35</td>
<td align="center">9.8</td>
<td align="center">4.9</td>
<td align="center">1.1</td>
</tr>
<tr bgcolor="#FFFFFF" onmouseout="this.bgColor='#FFFFFF'" onmouseover="this.bgColor='#C7D9EC'">
<td align="center">Jay Canty</td>
<td align="center">17</td>
<td align="center">0</td>
<td align="center">126</td>
<td align="center">25</td>
<td align="center">14</td>
<td align="center">2</td>
<td align="center">1.5</td>
<td align="center">0.8</td>
<td align="center">0.1</td>
</tr>
<tr bgcolor="#FFFFFF" onmouseout="this.bgColor='#FFFFFF'" onmouseover="this.bgColor='#C7D9EC'">
<td align="center">North Carolina totals</td>
<td align="center">49</td>
<td align="center">32</td>
<td align="center">961</td>
<td align="center">337</td>
<td align="center">171</td>
<td align="center">37</td>
<td align="center">6.9</td>
<td align="center">3.5</td>
<td align="center">0.8</td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
<p> </p>
<p>Canty came in as a four-star wing according to ESPN and Scout, with Rivals rating him a three-star player. Out of Oak Hill Academy, he was known as a slasher and a scorer who could fill up a box score with rebounds, assists, and steals. Some academic questions kept bigger programs at bay, and Xavier appeared to have landed a high-value player when Canty signed.</p>
<p>It didn't quite work out that way. Canty posted the unspectacular line you see above before injuring his foot and sitting out most of the remainder of the season. He then transferred to Appalachian State, where he averaged 14.3 PPG as a sophomore. His junior year was only 9 games long, as he was academically ineligible to start the season, was sidelined by a broken hand, and then finished the year sitting out for a violation of team rules. Jay Canty never used his final year of eligibility.</p>
<p>Dez Wells's is a story with which I'm sure you're familiar. A full-grown man right out of high school, Wells signed with Xavier despite offers from Baylor, NC State, Georgetown, and a flock of others. His strength and athletic ability had him starting from day one, and his offensive game was polished enough that he was putting up consistent and efficient numbers as the third banana behind Tu and Cheeks.</p>
<p>Then something happened; what it is ain't exactly clear. At the end of it, Wells was railroaded off of Xavier's campus and landed at Maryland, where he was immediately eligible and enjoyed a productive three-year career. Wells is a borderline NBA draft prospect right now, and he could be a productive long-term pro if he lands in the right situation.</p>
<p>North Carolina gave Xavier a couple of players who ran into trouble: one seemingly arbitrarily while with Xavier, the other largely of his own device after leaving the campus. Jay Canty's story is sad in some objective way, but thinking about where Dez may have landed in Xavier lore if we had kept him for four years is still a visceral punch to the gut.</p>
https://www.bannersontheparkway.com/2015/5/19/8627653/the-chris-mack-recruiting-map-north-carolinaJoel D2015-05-19T09:43:31-04:002015-05-19T09:43:31-04:00The Chris Mack recruiting map: Kentucky
<figure>
<img alt="He works out." src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/m9SXOeEhaSLlnZjt5rZBfOsI0TU=/0x619:3049x2652/1310x873/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/46356928/usa-today-8459326.0.jpg" />
<figcaption>He works out. | Tommy Gilligan-USA TODAY Sports</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Xavier is just a stone's throw from the Bluegrass State, but there hasn't been a steady flow of talent crossing the border.</p> <p>If you've ever had the unique privilege of living in Kentucky for any period of time, you know that the citizens of that commonwealth think pretty highly of their basketball credentials. Ignoring the fact that their biggest school's arena is named for an unrepentant racist and their second biggest school is currently coached by a married man who gets busy in restaurant bathrooms under questionable circumstances with women who are not his wife, they act like they invented both the concepts of baskets and balls. Despite that, Xavier has not found Kentucky to be the source of a lot of talent in the Mack Era.</p>
<table cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" border="1" width="100%">
<tbody>
<tr bgcolor="#EDF1F3">
<th align="center"></th> <th align="center">G</th> <th align="center">GS</th> <th align="center">M</th> <th align="center">P</th> <th align="center">R</th> <th align="center">A</th> <th align="center">PPG</th> <th align="center">RPG</th> <th align="center">APG</th>
</tr>
<tr bgcolor="#FFFFFF" onmouseout="this.bgColor='#FFFFFF'" onmouseover="this.bgColor='#C7D9EC'">
<td align="center">Remy Abell</td>
<td align="center">37</td>
<td align="center">34</td>
<td align="center">1020</td>
<td align="center">312</td>
<td align="center">75</td>
<td align="center">46</td>
<td align="center">8.4</td>
<td align="center">2.0</td>
<td align="center">1.2</td>
</tr>
<tr bgcolor="#FFFFFF" onmouseout="this.bgColor='#FFFFFF'" onmouseover="this.bgColor='#C7D9EC'">
<td align="center">Kentucky totals</td>
<td align="center">37</td>
<td align="center">34</td>
<td align="center">1020</td>
<td align="center">312</td>
<td align="center">75</td>
<td align="center">46</td>
<td align="center">8.4</td>
<td align="center">2.0</td>
<td align="center">1.2</td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
<p><br>That's right; Remy Abell is the only recent Muskie to have his roots in Kentucky, and even he came by way of transfer from Indiana University. When he was leaving the Hoosiers, he had contact with Butler, Saint Louis, and St. Mary's before settling on the Musketeers. He came in with the reputation of being a physical and aggressive defender with an unorthodox but effective shot and the athletic ability to change the game in transition.</p>
<p>After sitting out a year, Abell proved to be exactly as advertised. Even despite having some trouble transitioning to the concepts of Xavier's man defense, he started almost every game and spent a good portion of the season on top of our power rankings as Xavier's best player. His .489/.411/.713 shooting line came with a very low usage rate and he slotted in nicely as a solid but undemanding offensive player.</p>
<p>It's interesting to me that Xavier has brought so little talent across the Ohio River from Kentucky. My guess is that the top players from there get thirsty for UK or Louisville and the Muskies can pluck better remaining talent from elsewhere. As we'll see later this week, nearby states without dominant in-state schools have a tendency to be the lifeblood of Xavier's recruiting efforts.</p>
https://www.bannersontheparkway.com/2015/5/19/8624683/the-chris-mack-recruiting-map-kentucky-xavierJoel D