I started calling and texting sources about Simi Shittu’s Vanderbilt visit roughly 24 hours ago. I will admit up front that I have spoken to several people in the know, but I haven’t conversed with Simi himself.
Simi is a very private person. When asked by media outlets on the AAU circuit for his phone number, he refused to give it out. Individuals far higher up the ladder than I, such as Eric Bossi and Corey Evans, did not have his number. I have played phone tag tonight with his high school coach, Alex Popp, and hopefully will be able to get in touch with him tomorrow.
Nevertheless, I have gathered information from numerous reliable sources. Although I don’t have the whole story, I feel like we have some educational details to share.
As I said last night, the visit went very well, and the coaches feel good about things. Simi’s parents were there as well, and the entire family loves the coaching staff, the school, the basketball program, and Nashville.
Garland was in contact with Simi over the weekend, and as I shared last night, I was told that Darius has told him if he were to commit to Vanderbilt, he would follow suit the next day. I’m sure they have continued to communicate, maybe even as I write this.
Of everything I have heard, one quote has stuck out to me the most. I was told that the staff gave him several things to think about. I will tell you now, I don’t know what those consisted of. But I have had discussions with my sources over the last week where we just talked about his recruitment from every angle, and I believe that I can speculate.
First, how will he be used? Vanderbilt and North Carolina are the final two schools unless something changes, and the two playing styles are different.
Vanderbilt will put him in space in a four-out situation, and play him behind the 3-point line in modern positionless basketball. I’m sure the staff has also made it clear that is they style that will best position him into the NBA. At 6-foot-10, he is being recruited as a power forward, and there are very few of those hanging around the paint at the next level.
Carolina on the other hand plays a more traditional style of basketball in the half court. They still play a three-guard, two-post offense where the ball is pounded inside. Therefore, he will do a lot of his work from the high post and short corner area.
One thing the Tar Heels do better than anyone in the country is run. That goes for their bigs as well. So Roy Williams will be playing him to his strengths, getting the ball fifteen feet from the rim and then playing downhill. He is also tremendous in transition.
This brings up an interesting conundrum. Does he play in a situation that may be more comfortable on the college level by playing to his strengths, but may not be conducive to furthering his draft stock? Or does he go into a system that makes him play at a spot that may not be the strong point of his game, but will be a necessity if he wants to have a long career?
One thing is universally agreed upon. He will be a better player in the NBA than in college. The question is who can sell him that they can best prepare him. One thing I’ve learned in a short period of time covering the recruitment of five-star players, player development is the most important factor these young men are considering, not National Championships, not banners in the rafters, but the best fit for NBA preparation.
Secondly, the recruiting situation at North Carolina is a fluid one on a number of fronts.
For starters, the NCAA should be making an announcement any day, on what the penalties will be (if there is one) for academic fraud. This could go in any direction, and I don’t think anyone knows exactly what will happen.
If the Tar Heels go on probation, it would be a surprise if it got a post-season ban for more than one season. So that probably wouldn’t have an impact. What would really damage them in the Shittu sweepstakes is if they lose scholarships.
This brings us to another subject. Williams has already used all three of his spots in the 2018 Class with commitments. Shittu would be the fourth. If Carolina loses any scholarships, and they go down to let’s say, eleven or twelve, signing the Canadian would be almost impossible. It is already a little sticky with the full thirteen. We will discuss this in a future story, but there is no certainty that they would have a player that would leave early. In fact, we’ve checked several draft projections, and there aren’t any North Carolina players predicted to be in the 2018 draft.
Next, the second point is the perfect segway to here. Playing for Roy Williams is not a slam dunk to walk across the stage and shake Adam Silver’s hand next summer. If Shittu were to go to Carolina, and then become a lottery pick, he would be the first one since 2012.
In fact, Roy’s track record of producing successful pros has not been a gaudy one over the past few years. That’s why I think Bryce Drew and his staff had plenty of ammunition to use that would make Shittu think, and if they used any of the three mentioned factors, there may be things that he hadn’t considered before.
The driving question is what is next for Shittu. For now, he is expected to take his North Carolina visit in November. But that could always change. The next step is the NCAA decision. It was supposed to be announced last Friday, but was cancelled due to scheduling circumstances. A reschedule has not been announced.
We have been told not to expect an immediate announcement by Shittu. The process is expected to play out over the next few weeks.
Which brings us to one final scenario, will another school get involved. One source told me the big surprise to him is that no other blue blood programs have gotten involved for this top ten player. Kentucky has recruited him, but there has been no offer. The only action from the elite programs have come from Arizona and North Carolina. If this happens, it could extend the process. But we haven’t heard any rumblings that this might transpire.
Expect several stories on Shittu coming up in the next few days. As we said earlier, we hope to speak with his high school coach tomorrow. We will also expand on some of the subjects we touched on in this piece.
Simi is a very private person. When asked by media outlets on the AAU circuit for his phone number, he refused to give it out. Individuals far higher up the ladder than I, such as Eric Bossi and Corey Evans, did not have his number. I have played phone tag tonight with his high school coach, Alex Popp, and hopefully will be able to get in touch with him tomorrow.
Nevertheless, I have gathered information from numerous reliable sources. Although I don’t have the whole story, I feel like we have some educational details to share.
As I said last night, the visit went very well, and the coaches feel good about things. Simi’s parents were there as well, and the entire family loves the coaching staff, the school, the basketball program, and Nashville.
Garland was in contact with Simi over the weekend, and as I shared last night, I was told that Darius has told him if he were to commit to Vanderbilt, he would follow suit the next day. I’m sure they have continued to communicate, maybe even as I write this.
Of everything I have heard, one quote has stuck out to me the most. I was told that the staff gave him several things to think about. I will tell you now, I don’t know what those consisted of. But I have had discussions with my sources over the last week where we just talked about his recruitment from every angle, and I believe that I can speculate.
First, how will he be used? Vanderbilt and North Carolina are the final two schools unless something changes, and the two playing styles are different.
Vanderbilt will put him in space in a four-out situation, and play him behind the 3-point line in modern positionless basketball. I’m sure the staff has also made it clear that is they style that will best position him into the NBA. At 6-foot-10, he is being recruited as a power forward, and there are very few of those hanging around the paint at the next level.
Carolina on the other hand plays a more traditional style of basketball in the half court. They still play a three-guard, two-post offense where the ball is pounded inside. Therefore, he will do a lot of his work from the high post and short corner area.
One thing the Tar Heels do better than anyone in the country is run. That goes for their bigs as well. So Roy Williams will be playing him to his strengths, getting the ball fifteen feet from the rim and then playing downhill. He is also tremendous in transition.
This brings up an interesting conundrum. Does he play in a situation that may be more comfortable on the college level by playing to his strengths, but may not be conducive to furthering his draft stock? Or does he go into a system that makes him play at a spot that may not be the strong point of his game, but will be a necessity if he wants to have a long career?
One thing is universally agreed upon. He will be a better player in the NBA than in college. The question is who can sell him that they can best prepare him. One thing I’ve learned in a short period of time covering the recruitment of five-star players, player development is the most important factor these young men are considering, not National Championships, not banners in the rafters, but the best fit for NBA preparation.
Secondly, the recruiting situation at North Carolina is a fluid one on a number of fronts.
For starters, the NCAA should be making an announcement any day, on what the penalties will be (if there is one) for academic fraud. This could go in any direction, and I don’t think anyone knows exactly what will happen.
If the Tar Heels go on probation, it would be a surprise if it got a post-season ban for more than one season. So that probably wouldn’t have an impact. What would really damage them in the Shittu sweepstakes is if they lose scholarships.
This brings us to another subject. Williams has already used all three of his spots in the 2018 Class with commitments. Shittu would be the fourth. If Carolina loses any scholarships, and they go down to let’s say, eleven or twelve, signing the Canadian would be almost impossible. It is already a little sticky with the full thirteen. We will discuss this in a future story, but there is no certainty that they would have a player that would leave early. In fact, we’ve checked several draft projections, and there aren’t any North Carolina players predicted to be in the 2018 draft.
Next, the second point is the perfect segway to here. Playing for Roy Williams is not a slam dunk to walk across the stage and shake Adam Silver’s hand next summer. If Shittu were to go to Carolina, and then become a lottery pick, he would be the first one since 2012.
In fact, Roy’s track record of producing successful pros has not been a gaudy one over the past few years. That’s why I think Bryce Drew and his staff had plenty of ammunition to use that would make Shittu think, and if they used any of the three mentioned factors, there may be things that he hadn’t considered before.
The driving question is what is next for Shittu. For now, he is expected to take his North Carolina visit in November. But that could always change. The next step is the NCAA decision. It was supposed to be announced last Friday, but was cancelled due to scheduling circumstances. A reschedule has not been announced.
We have been told not to expect an immediate announcement by Shittu. The process is expected to play out over the next few weeks.
Which brings us to one final scenario, will another school get involved. One source told me the big surprise to him is that no other blue blood programs have gotten involved for this top ten player. Kentucky has recruited him, but there has been no offer. The only action from the elite programs have come from Arizona and North Carolina. If this happens, it could extend the process. But we haven’t heard any rumblings that this might transpire.
Expect several stories on Shittu coming up in the next few days. As we said earlier, we hope to speak with his high school coach tomorrow. We will also expand on some of the subjects we touched on in this piece.
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