The Big Train speaks well of Ray and State

[Coach34]

"?All the reporters and writers say he is a one-and-done guy. I don?t think so,? he said. ?I?m a little hard on him. I just think he still has many flaws. Malik is a special kid who has a chance to be just as good as anyone else.?

There are also some family connections that could help another program pull an upset against the traditional powerhouses. Webster was a two-time All-SEC player at Mississippi State and Bulldogs fans certainly hope Newman keeps it in the family. While the star is unmoved about the recruiting process, Webster commended the job MSU has done thus far.

?Coach (Rick) Ray has really showed that Malik is their No. 1 guy,? he said. ?They are doing everything in their power. We appreciate every single thing.?

[camsu]

That would be something to Malik. Just unreal Do it Ray

[CadaverDawg]

Hey Coach, I've got a comment for you on this....

There is a better chance that Saban leaves for Texas, than Malik Newman playing for Mississippi State.

[mic]

We have a much better shot than most think we do..

[Coach34]

This has started becoming a "State family courtship" of Webster and Newman- not just Ray by himself. Some wounds are starting to heal and people are moving to support our new coach that previously had not. (insert Yancy emoticon)

[Coach34]

Hey Coach, I've got a comment for you on this....

There is a better chance that Saban leaves for Texas, than Malik Newman playing for Mississippi State.


Thats not even remotely true. See post above

[CadaverDawg]

Thats not even remotely true. See post above

You forget that I think Saban may leave...so it's open to interpretation.

[msstate7]

If we wanna have a realistic shot, we've gotta see significant improvement on the court this year. I think we play much better and see some good results. Hopefully it'll be enough to convince MN

[CadaverDawg]

If we wanna have a realistic shot, we've gotta see significant improvement on the court this year. I think we play much better and see some good results. Hopefully it'll be enough to convince MN

I hope you guys are right. I put our chances at .00021% at the moment

[Coach34]

If we wanna have a realistic shot, we've gotta see significant improvement on the court this year. I think we play much better and see some good results. Hopefully it'll be enough to convince MN

I think we will

[smootness]

If we wanna have a realistic shot, we've gotta see significant improvement on the court this year. I think we play much better and see some good results. Hopefully it'll be enough to convince MN

There is no doubt this is true. They will have to believe Ray can turn things around in a relatively short time period. We still have 2 more years before he would be on campus, so there is some time, and most of our roster will still be around when Newman would play; they just are going to have to believe State is able to support his talent.

[smootness]

I hope you guys are right. I put our chances at .00021% at the moment

Well, that's not so open to interpretation haha.

I look at it like this: If all things were equal, I'm pretty sure he'd pick State...meaning that if all programs offered the same chance of success and similar rosters, he would choose State; I don't think there's much doubt about that.

Obviously, things are not equal, but it's still an advantage and something to think about. It's hard to only have a .00021% chance at the kid if that statement is true. Those kind of chances are reserved for kids like Jabari Parker, who have no connection whatsoever.

The question is, what is the tipping point? At what point are things 'equal enough', or are we close enough to the elite programs like Kentucky and Duke, that he decides to play at State?

Obviously, we don't know the answer to that, but I doubt we would have to match them in terms of success and talent; I think Ray has to prove a couple of things:

1) He can develop talent. He is already winning them over in this area, if Webster's own words are to be believed. He has expressed surprise at the amount of improvement Sword, Thomas, and Ware have already made over last year. Guys like Calipari and Coach K have better track records in this area, and if Newman needs to see State producing NBA players first, then we're out. But if he sees enough to believe he's in good hands, that could be good enough.

2) Newman will be surrounded by enough talent to best showcase what he can do. This will be tricky, but again, most of our roster will still be around come 2015 and will be upperclassmen - Sword, Thomas, Ware, Ready, Davis, Applewhite, Ndoye...assuming they don't leave early for one reason or another, they'll all be juniors and seniors then. That has the makings of a pretty solid roster, and certainly the kind that could showcase him.

If Newman wants to win championships in college, then he will have to either believe he is good enough to be the main guy to get them (or want the challenge) or we won't get him. Obviously other rosters will be more talented. But will our roster be talented enough? I think that's certainly possible. And the more he comes on visits and is around our team, the more comfortable he will become with his potential future teammates.

I would put our chances at about 20-30% right now, with the chance to get up to 50/50 if Ray continues to show improvement.

[engie]

I hope you guys are right. I put our chances at .00021% at the moment

WAYYYYYYYYYYYYYY low...

We've got as good as chance as anyone right now -- and we will certainly have a hat on the table.

[bocfarm]

WAYYYYYYYYYYYYYY low...

and we will certainly have a hat on the table.

I just lost all hope

[Coach34]

he also doesnt have to sign until Spring, 2015- so he can actually evaluate us the next 2 seasons

[engie]

I just lost all hope

Make what you say make sense...for once...

[CadaverDawg]

Make what you say make sense...for once...

I think he was referring to us rarely winning a hat ceremony.

It was actually pretty funny.

[engie]

I think he was referring to us rarely winning a hat ceremony.

It was actually pretty funny.

Ahhh...Got it now**

I apologize for being a moron on this one bocfarm...

[maroonmania]

Well, that's not so open to interpretation haha.

I look at it like this: If all things were equal, I'm pretty sure he'd pick State...meaning that if all programs offered the same chance of success and similar rosters, he would choose State; I don't think there's much doubt about that.

Obviously, things are not equal, but it's still an advantage and something to think about. It's hard to only have a .00021% chance at the kid if that statement is true. Those kind of chances are reserved for kids like Jabari Parker, who have no connection whatsoever.

The question is, what is the tipping point? At what point are things 'equal enough', or are we close enough to the elite programs like Kentucky and Duke, that he decides to play at State?

Obviously, we don't know the answer to that, but I doubt we would have to match them in terms of success and talent; I think Ray has to prove a couple of things:

1) He can develop talent. He is already winning them over in this area, if Webster's own words are to be believed. He has expressed surprise at the amount of improvement Sword, Thomas, and Ware have already made over last year. Guys like Calipari and Coach K have better track records in this area, and if Newman needs to see State producing NBA players first, then we're out. But if he sees enough to believe he's in good hands, that could be good enough.

2) Newman will be surrounded by enough talent to best showcase what he can do. This will be tricky, but again, most of our roster will still be around come 2015 and will be upperclassmen - Sword, Thomas, Ware, Ready, Davis, Applewhite, Ndoye...assuming they don't leave early for one reason or another, they'll all be juniors and seniors then. That has the makings of a pretty solid roster, and certainly the kind that could showcase him.

If Newman wants to win championships in college, then he will have to either believe he is good enough to be the main guy to get them (or want the challenge) or we won't get him. Obviously other rosters will be more talented. But will our roster be talented enough? I think that's certainly possible. And the more he comes on visits and is around our team, the more comfortable he will become with his potential future teammates.

I would put our chances at about 20-30% right now, with the chance to get up to 50/50 if Ray continues to show improvement.

I don't believe anyone is that sold that Calipari is a true "developer" of talent. Not all that sure that anyone playing for him has greatly improved from his tutelage. I would say for most of his one-and-doners he is a good "manager" of talent and egos.

[nsvltndog]

In an ideal scenario, this would play out like the football recruiting class in Oxford this past year. Malik is the #1 recruit in the country and is the son of an alum. That's a little different than being the #1 recruit and having a brother already on the team, but not so different that the same principle of building a recruiting class around Malik with him helping pull in talent couldn't be done. In hoops it would be much easier than football. Multiple seasoned upper classmen combined with Malik and 2-3 more 4 or 5 star recruits that join b/c of him and you have the makings of a Top 10 team. An early commit by Malik could get the ball rolling on something special. NBA scouts will find him whether he is at Duke, UK, or MSU. They aren't going to miss if he is as legit as advertised.

[CadaverDawg]

In an ideal scenario, this would play out like the football recruiting class in Oxford this past year. Malik is the #1 recruit in the country and is the son of an alum. That's a little different than being the #1 recruit and having a brother already on the team, but not so different that the same principle of building a recruiting class around Malik with him helping pull in talent couldn't be done. In hoops it would be much easier than football. Multiple seasoned upper classmen combined with Malik and 2-3 more 4 or 5 star recruits that join b/c of him and you have the makings of a Top 10 team. An early commit by Malik could get the ball rolling on something special. NBA scouts will find him whether he is at Duke, UK, or MSU. They aren't going to miss if he is as legit as advertised.

Hell of point, and hell of a 1st post. Instant rep points.

This is exactly what we need to be telling Malik. If he starts recruiting the best in his class right now, he could single handedly build a bad ass team. Ray needs to be pitching this HARD to Malik.

[smootness]

NBA scouts will find him whether he is at Duke, UK, or MSU. They aren't going to miss if he is as legit as advertised.

There's no doubt about this, but kids still want to go where they see other guys going and having success. If you step out on a limb, it's viewed as a risk, where going to a place like Kentucky is seen as safer, whether it actually is or not.

One thing that could play in our favor is that Mudiay, who has played with Newman in AAU and is arguably the best player in the country for 2014, committed to SMU. Perhaps Mudiay has discussed with him about creating his own path and building a team rather than simply joining one?

In all reality, I doubt they've talked about recruiting much, but it couldn't hurt.

[smootness]

This is exactly what we need to be telling Malik. If he starts recruiting the best in his class right now, he could single handedly build a bad ass team. Ray needs to be pitching this HARD to Malik.

I'm sure Ray is telling him everything he can. Newman seems to be averse to the recruiting scene, though.

I've seen several places talk about the likelihood that he ends up at Kentucky and that he really likes Calipari; everywhere I've read it, it's reported as fact, but I haven't seen anything from him or his dad that would indicate that, so it's kind of strange.

And all 14 predictions on 247 are Kentucky; for that many guys to make a prediction this early, and for them all to be for the same school, makes it seem as though they know something. Let's hope not.

[sbcmortgageman]

he also doesnt have to sign until Spring, 2015- so he can actually evaluate us the next 2 seasons

That also gives Kentucky two full years to get in trouble for recruiting. Coach Cal has never gone anywhere yet and not landed that program on probation.

[Dawg61]

Look at old Larry Brown pulling in a recruit at SMU

[msstate7]

Look at old Larry Brown pulling in a recruit at SMU

Maybe the best basketball coach ever. Really like Larry brown and hope he has something left in the tank