Tag Archives: Eric Bossi

Recruiting News

#pcbb Weekly Recruiting Update 6/20/14

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I took last week off from the weekly recruiting update but it’s back this week and there is plenty to mention. Since the last update on June 6th, Niagara graduate transfer Antoine Mason committed to Auburn which is another Spring miss for Ed Cooley and staff.

Next up is Seattle guard Tramaine Isabell who is currently on a visit at Missouri with plans to visit Providence after that and then decide. Though he told ShowMeMizzou.com “that if he likes Missouri enough, there’s a chance he might not need to take any other visits.”

The Providence Journal’s Kevin McNamara mentioned that PC had a German guard on campus for a visit a few weeks ago and UndercoverFriar revealed that player to be Tyree Chambers. That doesn’t seem to be anything more than interest and an offer was never made.

One other guard option that has been mentioned in recent weeks is 2014 guard Armel Potter. Jeff Ferrucci of ScoutFriars.com spoke with Potter last week. Potter revealed that PC hasn’t offered but is “showing high interest.” The scoring guard visited Tennessee Tech last week and is also being recruited by Appalachian State, Ball State, Iona, Niagara, Winthrop along with some other mid majors.

If I had to choose between Isabell and Potter, I would definitely take Isabell despite the rumors of him possibly having some issues qualifying because he is definitely the more talented player but Potter is a guy that can score the ball despite being undersized. We’ll see how Isabell’s visit to Missouri shakes out but I would expect interest in Potter to increase from Coach Blaney if Isabell commits to the Tigers before leaving Columbia.

One other note on the recruiting front is a potential transfer candidate in former Wake Forest PF Tyler Cavanaugh. He was granted his release this week and has already spoken to Ed Cooley who recruited him out of high school when Cooley was still at Fairfield. He never overlapped with PC redshirt Senior Carson Desrosiers at Wake but I wouldn’t be surprised if Cooley put the two in touch to discuss the transition from Wake to PC. Cavanaugh, a native of Dewitt, NY (upstate near Syracuse) told Syracuse.com’s Donna Ditota, “I want to try to come a little bit closer to home, but I want to be open to any opportunity. I just want to make sure I find the perfect fit for my last two years of eligibility.” He also said that he plans to narrow down schools to 3 schools to visit and decide within “the next couple weeks.” He would have to sit this upcoming season and would have two years of eligibility remaining. The 6’9 stretch power forward averaged 19 mpg, 7 ppg and 3.2 rpg in 64 career games for the Demon Deacons, including 28 career starts.

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Recruiting News

#pcbb Weekly Recruiting Update 5/9/14

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This weekend is another in which college coaches are not allowed to be on the road evaluating players but there will still be a lot of high major talent playing. The most notable tournament of the weekend will be the Nike EYBL Session #2 in Dallas. There are other tournaments with PC recruits this weekend including the Hoop Group Providence Jamfest and the Wallace Prather Memorial Classic which is hosted by the Atlanta Celtics who feature two 2016 PC recruits in Braxton Blackwell and Joshua Langford. Here are all of the events this weekend courtesy of CBS Sports’ Jeff Borzello:

May 9-11

May 10-11

Other big news for this weekend is that the Friars will have a 2014 PG recruit on campus. Larry Austin, the former Tennessee commit, visited Xavier last weekend and will take in Friartown this weekend. Craig Belhumeur at FriarBasketball.com spoke to LA’s high school coach, Blake Turner, who told him that a visit to Cal, where former Tennessee head coach Cuonzo Martin was just hired, is still in the cards at a later date. Another source told me that Austin may also visit Kansas State but Turner told me that visit is “possible, but not 100% confirmed.” You just never know with 18 year olds but Larry, his coaches and his family have been methodical since he got his release from the Volunteers so my gut tells me he will consider all options carefully and I believe it’s likely he takes all of his scheduled visits before deciding. For those that have been asking for some video on Larry Austin, enjoy below:

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Recruiting News

#pcbb Weekly Recruiting Update 5/2/14

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Last weekend was a massively important weekend for recruits and coaches alike because it was the only live evaluation period that coaches can attend until the 3 that are in July. For some players, they were the ones that needed to make an impression and get noticed by a coach. For other players, it was more about a coach making an impression and being noticed in the stands by that player. Unfortunately the timing of the end of the season banquet in Providence kept head coach, Ed Cooley off the road last weekend but his assistants were out in full force spread all across the country. To that end, I’ve added a new feature to this site. You can find the link at on the left side of the top menu. It’s called “Where is Ed Cooley and the staff?” and it has a map of the USA with markers to indicate a coach being on the road somewhere. Check it out and give me your feedback. As for where the assistants were during the only live period of April: Andre LaFleur was out in Sacramento for the EYBL Session #1, Bob Simon was in Dallas for the Adidas Gauntlet and Brian Blaney was in Pittsburgh for the Hoop Group Jamfest. Here is a list of events that will be happening this upcoming weekend even. Even though coaches can’t be there, the media and scouting services still can so there will be plenty of updates next Friday. List courtesy of Jeff Borzello at CBSSports.com:

Before I get into last weekend’s AAU action, there is some more immediate recruiting going on for the class of 2014.

  • 2014 PG Larry Austin will visit Xavier this weekend but Providence is strongly in the mix and Austin will take an official visit next weekend to Friartown.

  • Wednesday, 2014 PG Devonte’ Graham cut his list down to 2 schools, Kansas and NC State. On Friday he committed to Kansas.

https://twitter.com/im_dat_kid_dtae/status/461534464498487296

  • On Thursday, 2014 PG Shelton Mitchell got his release from his NLI with Wake Forest. His former lead recruiter was Jeff Battle who is a good friend of Ed Cooley’s I would expect to see PC mentioned with Mitchell.

  • Also on Thursday, it was announced that Kansas PG Naadir Tharpe would be seeking to transfer closer to home because of some medical issues with his daughter.

  • Last Friday Jared Terrell getting his release from his NLI with Oklahoma State became official. The 2014 SG is said to want to be closer to home and the 3 schools expected to be involved were Boston College, Providence and URI. Rumors are that Terrell will visit PC and BC next week and make a decision. My guess is Boston College gets him because of Preston Murphy taking an assistant position with the Eagles on new coach, Jim Christian’s staff.

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Recruiting News

#pcbb Weekly Recruiting Update 4/25/14

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  • This is a huge weekend for recruiting as it is the only weekend in April that college coaches can attend events and there are a number of high profile events for them to attend. The Nike EYBL, widely considered the top AAU league in the country, has Session #1 this weekend in Sacramento. Because of the recruiting calendar, coaches won’t be able to attend Sessions 2-4 so the next time coaches are allowed to watch the EYBL is the Peach Jam in mid July. This means that if your team is playing in the EYBL, you better be playing and playing well this weekend in Sacramento or you might just fall between the cracks until July. There are also a number of other events and PC recruits are playing at many of them. Here is a list provided by CBS Sports’ Jeff Borzello:
    1. Nike EYBL Session #1 (Sacramento, CA)
    2. Adidas Gauntlet #1 (Dallas, TX)
    3. UA Pittsburgh Jam Fest (Pittsburgh, PA)
    4. UA Jayhawk Invitational (Olathe, KS)
    5. Gulf Coast Hoop Fest (Biloxi, MS)
    6. All-America Availables JUCO Showcase (Dallas, TX)
    7. Double Pump Hoop Fest (Anaheim, CA)
    8. Pangos Spring Spectacular (Las Vegas, NV)
    9. Kingwood Classic (Spring, TX)
    10. Las Vegas Tip Off Classic (Las Vegas, NV)
    11. Southern Exposure Showcase (North Augusta, SC)
    12. Adidas Spring Classic (Indianapolis, IN)
    13. Nor Cal Spring Showcase (Sacramento, CA)
    14. Nike Spring Showdown (Romeoville, IL)
  • ICYMI – Rivals.com released their final Top 150 for the Class Of 2014 yesterday. 3 of PC’s 4 commits are on the list: #61 Paschal Chukwu, #69 Jalen Lindsey and #89 Ben Bentil. When I asked Eric Bossi for his thoughts on those 3, he said the following:

In brief Chukwu is a long term stock. Love his mobility and ability to rebound and protect the rim. Has to get stronger. Lindsey has all of the physical tools that you could want. But, the motor and production have got to be more consistent. Bentil, would blossom and likely outplay his ranking if he accepts being an energy guy, a grinder and dude who saves possessions on the glass.


But, I would imagine Providence fans have to feel pretty good about the level of talent that is coming into the program.

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Recruiting News

Recruiting News: Rivals Final Top 150 In Class Of 2014 Released Today

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Eric Bossi over at Rivals.com released his final ranking for the Class of 2014 today. Three of the 4 members of Providence’s committed Class of 2014 are in the final top 90 with the lone member not in the top 150 being recent PG commit, Kyron Cartwright.

To see the entire top 150, click here.

PC Commits:

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Recruiting News

#pcbb Weekly Recruiting Update 4/11/14

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  • PC received some good recruiting news minutes after the final buzzer sounded in Dallas on the 2013-2014 season Monday night – Kyron Cartwright announced he was going to be a Friar next season. His commitment adds more depth to the point guard position for PC next season. Kris Dunn was the only point guard on the roster and coming off a second shoulder surgery it was crucial for Ed Cooley to have some insurance. To read more about Cartwright’s commitment and some quotes from him, click the links below.

2014 PG Kyron Cartwright Commits to Providence

Quotes from New 2014 PC Commit Kyron Cartwright

  • More interesting recruiting news came about on Tuesday this week when coveted 2014 point guard Devonte’ Graham announced on Twitter that he got a release from his National Letter of Intent to App State by new coach, Jim Fox. Graham is now officially one of the best available players left on the board in 2014 after having a break out year under Jason Smith at Brewster Academy. A number of high majors are involved and have already spoken to Graham since his release. Thursday night had Cooley joined by Nebraska’s Tim Miles and Virginia’s Tony Bennett at Brewster for a workout. Friday it will be Kansas’ Bill Self along with coaches from Cincinnati, Florida and Virginia Tech. Graham would be a great fit at PC because of his shooting and playmaking abilities but the competition is obviously stiff. Ed Cooley and Providence has a legit chance with Graham and will likely be one of the teams on his final list before deciding.

https://twitter.com/im_dat_kid_dtae/status/453971383832559616

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Recruiting News

Recruiting News: Rivals Top 60 In Class Of 2016 Released Today

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Eric Bossi over at Rivals continued the class ranking updates by expanding the class of 2016 rankings from the top 35 to the top 60. PC has been recruiting a good number of these kids.

To see the full list, click here.

Here are the player’s PC is recruiting:

  • #11 Tyus Battle – St. Benedits School/Gladstone, NJ
  • #21 Josh Langford – 6’4 SG – Madison Academy/Madison, AL
  • #27 Rawle Alkins – 6’4 SG – Christ the King/Brooklyn, NY
  • #29 Braxton Blackwell – 6’6 SG/SF – Christian Presbyterian Academy/Nashville, TN
  • #33 Miles Bridges – 6’6 SF – Huntington Prep/Huntington, WV