#POSTERIZED: Deandre Daniels salutes the troops

UConn's Deandre Daniels figures to benefit mightily from the departures of Roscoe Smith, Jamal Coombs-McDaniel and Jeremy Lamb.

While known primarily as a long-range shooter, the sophomore wing proved to Michigan State that he's got an inside game as well.

Say hello to our first legitimate #POSTERIZED entry of the 2012-2013 season:






But was it as good as these? 

Ben McLemore - Kansas vs. Emporia State, 10/31 
Keion Bell - Missouri vs. Northwest Missouri, 10/31

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DeAndre Daniels to UConn; Andre Walker's future effected?

Finally, we know where DeAndre Daniels will be heading to school.

Probably.

Tuesday afternoon, Daniels committed to the Huskies, ending a recruitment that, frankly, had grown tiresome. At different points during Daniels' five years in high school, he was committed to or reportedly close to committing to Texas, Kentucky, Kansas, and Duke -- as well as toying with the idea of enrolling in college back in December -- but it wasn't until recently that it became apparent that the Huskies were involved with the athletic, 6'7" forward from IMG Academy in Florida.



There is no question about Daniels' talent. According to our consensus recruiting rankings, he's the 18th best recruit in the country, cracking the top ten according to Rivals. But that doesn't mean that he is guaranteed to be a superstar. Its already a week into June. The signing period ended on May 18th. If Daniels took this long to decide on where he was going to commit to play his college ball, why is it a guarantee that he is going to commit himself to playing hard and within a team framework for the Huskies?

Oh, and then there is this from Scout.com's Evan Daniels (no relation, obviously): "Per a source, the plan is for Daniels to sign a financial aid agreement at some point in the next week." I'll wait to see Daniels in a UConn jersey before I consider this a certainty.

Without Daniels, UConn was already a top ten caliber team. They return essentially their entire team -- minus Kemba Walker -- while adding a four-star freshmen point guard in Ryan Boatright. While the loss of Kemba obviously hurts, rising sophomores Shabazz Napier and Jeremy Lamb and rising junior Alex Oriakhi should be poised for breakout seasons. Daniels will likely fill the role vacated by Jamaal Coombs-McDaniel's decision to transfer, meaning that UConn will have quite a versatile lineup next season. If they want to go big, Daniels and Roscoe Smith can surround Oriakhi with Lamb playing the two. If they want to go small, Lamb can slide to the three with Napier and Boatright in the back court.

If Daniels does actually join the Huskies, it should put to bed any remaining talk of Jim Calhoun retiring. He's got a team that will compete for the Big East crown, he just landed the most-talented remaining player in the class of 2011, and its after Memorial Day and he's still the head coach.

Calhoun's coming back.

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One thing to keep in mind with Daniels' decision is the future of Vanderbilt's Andre Walker.

Walker, who averaged 3.0 ppg, 3.0 rpg, and 2.6 apg for the Commodores this past season, has graduated with a year's eligibility remaining -- he redshirted in 2008-2009 after tearing his acl. Walker can transfer as a graduate student without having to sit out a season. The schools on his list include Northwestern, Xavier, Wichita State, and Kansas.

That's the same Kansas that was in the mix for DeAndre Daniels up until, well, Tuesday afternoon. Might Bill Self take a risk on a veteran forward for a year before trying to land Kansas native and top 20 recruit in the class of 2012 Perry Ellis?
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It's time for DeAndre Daniels to make up his mind

(Ed. Note: Due to technical maintenance to Blogger's user interface, we have been unable to publish any posts for the last 36 hours. This post should have been published on Thursday afternoon. Thank you for your patience)

DeAndre Daniels recruitment took another surprising turn on Thursday, as Jeff Goodman of FOXSports.com broke the news that Duke was no longer an option for the athletic, 6'7" forward from IMG Academy. There was a growing buzz that Daniels would end up in Durham -- particularly after Kyrie Irving inferred as much in an interview last month -- but that is apparently no longer the case. Academics seem to have played a part in that decision.

That means that Daniels will end up at Kansas, Texas, or, frankly, anywhere. That's what makes this process so confusing. No one really knows. Not even Dave Telep of ESPN.com, who is probably the most connected media member when it comes to recruiting. From his insider blog on Thursday afternoon:

After speaking with a few people, I've settled on the phrase "paralysis by analysis." To be clear, I have no hard hitting inside knowledge. Frankly, I can't even tell who is really in the mix. Could it be Texas? Duke? Kansas? Someone we've never heard of? All of the above are possibilities. Since no one knows where he's going to go, I asked a simpler question: will he sign?
Like Daniels' recruitment, no one is really sure.

"If I had to guess, I'd say no," one assistant who is recruiting Daniels said. "There's no real rhyme or reason to anything. It's as bizarre as a decision as I've ever seen. It could change on an hourly basis."

The spring signing period ends on Wednesday, the 18th, but that deadline isn't as much of a deadline as you might believe. Daniels cannot sign a Letter of Intent after the 18th, but he is free to go to any school that would have him. And I'm sure that anyone -- Kansas and Texas included -- would be willing to allow the 18th ranked recruit in our consensus rating to come to join the team, LOI or no LOI.

Daniels recruitment has been a roller coaster to follow. He committed to Texas back in 2009 but backed off in 2010. Since then, he's been rumored to be headed to Kentucky, Kansas, and Duke, changing high schools during the process.

There is no question about Daniels' talent.

But at some point, indecision and a lack of commitment has to outweigh that talent. Can anyone really be excited about landing a player that could not decide on a college to attend by May 18th of his last year in high school -- and keep in mind, Daniels is a post grad, meaning this is his fifth year of high school?

Can any coach really feel comfortable relying on Daniels' commitment to their team when he's showed the lack of ability to commit to anything during his recruitment?

Its time to make a decision, young man.

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Did Kyrie Irving scoop DeAndre Daniels to Duke?

Yesterday afternoon, Kyrie Irving surprised no one in the world except for Chris Cusack by declaring for the NBA Draft.

It was the right move. He's going to be a top five pick. Lockout or not, Irving wasn't staying in school.

Today, Irving was on a teleconference to discuss his decision to enter the NBA Draft and he may have let a bit of inside information slip. First, the back ground.


DeAndre Daniels is a top 35 recruit in the country and, at one point, was ranked as high as top ten. In July of 2009, Daniels, who was at Woodland Hills High in California at the time, committed to Texas, calling it his dream school. He backed off of that commitment in August of 2010, and has since been rumored to be headed to both Kentucky and Kansas.

Now a part of the IMG Academy program, Daniels has an official visit lined up with Duke the weekend of the 15th. This is where Irving comes into play. During the conference call, the point guard said:

I think that this year’s team was really special. And I thought next year’s team would be really special if I were to return. I think we have five recruits coming in with the addition of DeAndre Daniels. So that would be really special. (Ed. Note: Our emphasis added.)

Was Irving merely speculating that Duke could land Daniels? Does Irving know something that the rest of us don't?

Who knows. But as Dan Wiederer points out, the Blue Devils have all kinds of connections with IMG Academy:

The basketball director at IMG is Andy Borman, who played at Duke from 2000-04. The director of basketball operations meanwhile is Greg Spatola, who is the brother of Chris Spatola, who is both Duke’s director of basketball operations and Mike Krzyzewski’s son-in-law.

All signs seem to point to Duke.

He'd be an interesting addition to Duke's lineup. Daniels is a slender, 6'7" small forward known for his ability to score. With Duke's current front court consisting of Ryan Kelly, Josh Hairston, a trio of Plumlees, and another freshman wing in Michael Gbinje, Daniels would be shot of athleticism and scoring punch, similar to what DeShaun Thomas provided Ohio State this season.

His visit is next weekend.

I guess we'll just have to wait and see.
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