****Official Class of 2022 Recruiting Thread****

[ca4cy]

I've got some friends up in Caledonia. I don't know anything real earth shaking about Eli King and I won't say any of this is gospel, but there are a few things I've gleaned from being around the town for years and from recent conversations.

1. Eli will play football this fall, but after that, he'll be 100% committed to basketball. If you look at the football offers he has, that's saying something.
2. His knee is coming along nicely and he's as active as anyone will let him be. Work ethic will never be a problem with that family.
3. Caledonia produces winners. They've won 5 straight state football titles and have the longest winning streak in the country at about 70 games. One of the King brothers has been the starting QB on each of those teams and Eli has been a starting WR or QB since middle school. He'll be an outstanding character/culture guy no matter where he ends up.
4. They finished runner up in basketball for the 3rd time in the last 6 years. They lost by 2 this weekend, so you can do the math on how they would have done with Eli on the floor. His dad is the head coach. The last time they were runner up was to Minnehaha with Suggs (Gonzaga) and some other D1 guys.
5. He walked out on the floor before the state title game, flat foot jumped off his good leg, and dunked in front of everybody. That got the place buzzing. He's going to be one helluva combo guard for somebody, but I don't know if he is set on being a 1 or not. You can't teach the kind of athleticism he has.
6. There was a time when people in that town thought a lot of TJ. I think everyone knows that in the end this is a business, but I know they were disappointed when he moved on from SDSU and wasn't there to coach Owen (who was there) and Noah (who was committed.) I have no idea how "personally" the family took it, or if there are hard feelings.
7. Caledonia has some strong Hawkeye leanings, going back to when Karl Klug went there before playing in the NFL. It has killed me to watch it happen and I've been hoping we could break the trend with Eli since it became obvious a couple years ago that he was going to be a high major player in either fb or bb.
8. I will be surprised if Eli commits to anyone early. Between COVID and his knee, he really hasn't gotten much exposure. The kid is a freak athlete and I think he's got more upside than he's shown. If he can have a good summer in AAU, I could see some more really good offers coming his way.
9. He's a great kid from a salt of the earth family. I've known his dad for close to 30 years although it's been a few since we've talked. I hope like hell he ends up in Ames, and pray to God he doesn't end up in IC, but no matter what I'm going to wish him well. He'll be an easy one for me to root for...except if he's a hawk.

Sorry. This got longer than it was supposed to. (twss)

Never been so happy to be wrong!

This is a great get!

 

[JVAR]

Add F Alex Karaban (Niangs mentee) and this will be one hell of a class.

 

[RustShack]

Add F Alex Karaban (Niangs mentee) and this will be one hell of a class.

Im feeling good with Tj and Niang on this one.

 

[Cyforce]

Add F Alex Karaban (Niangs mentee) and this will be one hell of a class.

Exactly, if we take a 4th I'd guess A post assuming Conditt finishes his college career.

 

[LLCoolCY]

Alex Karaban, Connecticut Huskies, Small Forward

Alex Karaban is a 6-7, 190-pound Small Forward from New Hampton, NH.

247sports.com

247 needs to update. They list ISU with 5 at his position (including Dubar, Blackwell, Talley and Lewis)
[/QUOTE]
Karaban checks in at #50 in their Top60.

ESPN Basketball Recruiting - Player Rankings

Where do the nation basketball recruits rank? Check out the player rankings on RecruitingNation.com

www.espn.com

King and Lipsey not on the list today but guessing both have a chance after the summer evaluations IMO.

 

[Cydar]

 

[IndyClone15]

this isn't a good thing (jmo), IMG has been one of the best prep schools recently so he will not have a lack of media attention.

 

[allfourcy]

Is this a good thing, not-so-good, or no impact whatsoever thing when it comes to ISU recruiting him?

 

[tyler24]

Is this a good thing, not-so-good, or no impact whatsoever thing when it comes to ISU recruiting him?

Depends on your perspective. It gives him more of an opportunity to develop himself against the best players. It will likely draw more attention to him though. Good for him, more difficult for ISU. Means we get to see how good of a recruiter TJ is as well as seeing if Karaban can hold his own.

 

[coolerifyoudid]

Is this a good thing, not-so-good, or no impact whatsoever thing when it comes to ISU recruiting him?

Little to no impact. There might be a few more eyes on him, but he was going to get attention regardless. There are usually around 130 four/five star players. Any recruiter worth their pay knows most of them. TJ is already working on him and Niang has already chimed in.

If he excels against better competition and starts to take off, we'll have a harder fight on our hands, but such is recruiting.

 

[LLCoolCY]

Little to no impact. There might be a few more eyes on him, but he was going to get attention regardless. There are usually around 130 four/five star players. Any recruiter worth their pay knows most of them. TJ is already working on him and Niang has already chimed in.

If he excels against better competition and starts to take off, we'll have a harder fight on our hands, but such is recruiting.

Agreed. Karaban was just ranked #50 in '22 and has multiple P6 offers prior to ISU. Alex is already known as a top recruit thus playing against better competition will improve his game.
I could see a small benefit for our staff as they watch his games they may identify other players they want to recruit. If AK were to come to Ames he could recruit his teammates too.

 

[Aclone]

Agreed. Karaban was just ranked #50 in '22 and has multiple P6 offers prior to ISU. Alex is already known as a top recruit thus playing against better competition will improve his game.
I could see a small benefit for our staff as they watch his games they may identify other players they want to recruit. If AK were to come to Ames he could recruit his teammates too.

Since I just checked Rivals and 247, I assume you mean by ESPN. Which would explain why you didn’t say by whom—and earns a hearty LOL.

Practicing and playing at IMG should really give Alex a chance to sharpen his skills.

 

[Drew0311]

The only thing that can hurt us is IMG coach having his favorite coaches to send kids to play for them. So it could hurt us but even if we miss in this kid I’m not worried about TJ having a full year to basically recruit 1 or 2 players for that class

 

[LLCoolCY]

Since I just checked Rivals and 247, I assume you mean by ESPN. Which would explain why you didn’t say by whom—and earns a hearty LOL.

Practicing and playing at IMG should really give Alex a chance to sharpen his skills.

Yes, it was ESPN. I know ESPN ranks are often a bit off but in this case just released yesterday so relevant, possibly more so than a rank from 247 or Rivals that may not have been updated in months.

Not calling you out specifically Aclone but I'm not sure why posters get upset when they get referenced? They are factored into the 247 composite so have weight.
At least not to the point of a "hearty" LOL

 

[Aclone]

Yes, it was ESPN. I know ESPN ranks are often a bit off but in this case just released yesterday so relevant, possibly more so than a rank from 247 or Rivals that may not have been updated in months.

Not calling you out specifically Aclone but I'm not sure why posters get upset when they get referenced? They are factored into the 247 composite so have weight.
At least not to the point of a "hearty" LOL

The main reason would be that ESPN’s rankings suck.

Plain and simple. Not going to sugar coat it.

Yes, technically they cover recruiting—but it’s always been way on the back burner for them, and they invest as little resources into it as possible.

That latter statement is true in manifold dimensions.

247 and Rivals, on the other hand, have a vested interest in providing the best recruiting coverage possible. It’s what they do.

 

[Aclone]

I wanted to ask. Maybe it’s been discussed but...anyone think there’s a chance T.J. tries to flip this guy? Seems like he checks lots of boxes.

Joe Hurlburt, Colorado Buffaloes, Center (BK)

Joe Hurlburt is a 6-10, 220-pound Power Forward from Enderlin, ND.

247sports.com

 

[LLCoolCY]

 

[t-noah]

I wanted to ask. Maybe it’s been discussed but...anyone think there’s a chance T.J. tries to flip this guy? Seems like he checks lots of boxes.

Joe Hurlburt, Colorado Buffaloes, Center (BK)

Joe Hurlburt is a 6-10, 220-pound Power Forward from Enderlin, ND.

247sports.com

Yes> They have my permission. Flip away!

How does that work anyway? Can a recruit still be contacted by another school if they haven't signed their letter yet? Has this kid signed letter yet?

 

[t-noah]

Add F Alex Karaban (Niangs mentee) and this will be one hell of a class.

Since I just checked Rivals and 247, I assume you mean by ESPN. Which would explain why you didn’t say by whom—and earns a hearty LOL.

Practicing and playing at IMG should really give Alex a chance to sharpen his skills.

I wouldn't mind going to IMG. Could work on my suntan (just south of Tampa)!!

Seriously, full-court press on this guy. Would be a huge get!

Anyone know when Alex might want to make a decision?

 

[Cydkar]

Yes> They have my permission. Flip away!

How does that work anyway? Can a recruit still be contacted by another school if they haven't signed their letter yet? Has this kid signed letter yet?

Unless he has signed he is completely recruitable.