now that we appear to be in on Dejan, I want to go back to the Center of Excellence game (3rd game on the tour) where he scored 30 against us. We did not have much time to digest this news at the time because it happened in the wee hours and the next game against the Hawks was just 24 hrs away and our focus was on the Hawks game which was livestreamed.

Dejan's 30-point effort was all the more impressive because this came after Jaylen and Coach Martin both singled him out for his 25-point effort in the 1st game against us playing for the Victoria Select team.

so despite Brown's quote below after the first game which made Dejan a marked man, he proceeded to score even more points in the 3rd game against us. Now it may be possible the Cal team was so fatigued by the 3rd game that Brown and company were not able to keep Dejan in check, but still this was impressive for him to outperform himself after being singled out for his performance in the 1st game.

[Brown also made it clear his team wasn't going to let Vasiljevic keep scoring. "I heard the last game he had 40 points against Yale [also touring Melbourne] so we was like we can't let this kid get 40 on us," Brown said. "I don't care if it's a warm up game or exhibition game - this has to stop right here but he is a good kid and I give full credit to his talent and potential.]

here is link to the article citing Brown's quote:
http://www.smh.com.au/sport/basketball/jaylen-brown-ivan-rabb-impress-in-debut-game-for-university-of-california-20150816-gj0a77.html

we know St Mary's has a pipeline to Australia
but how about LSU? They signed Simmons, and also went on an Australia tour

the game of basketball is a lot easier if you can shoot

Ukrainian;842528732 said:

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[FONT=Georgia][SIZE=3][COLOR="#000080"]
You can NEVER have too many great shooters !! At the end of the day, games are always decided by outscoring the opponent.
Guys who are great shooters stretch the defense and create space or opportunities for teammates. HELL YES, we should offer !!
[/COLOR][/SIZE][/FONT]

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I know it sounds good that a player can score 25 or 30 against the current Cal team, but Cal is not playing very good defense yet. If you said he scored 25 off Jorge Gutierrez, that would get my attention.

Next season, we could be at least THREE deep at the SG spot, and we could have THREE more players at the SF spot who could play SG and all of them can shoot. I agree you can never have enough shooters, but when you play five of them, there is no one to pass them the ball. Wouldn't you rather have a solid distributing point guard like TJ MConnell, than have another good shooting guard riding the far end of the bench?

My personal preference is I'd rather have a defender like Jorge than have TWO more good shooters.

We also really need BIGS. Our centers are both projects, and Rabb may leave early. Getting another shooter would not be the best use of a scholarship, in my opinion. If he is also a good defender and/or a good passer, that is another story. Then maybe you do it.

Dejan was quoted as saying he wants to go to a school that will let him play as a scoring PG and not SG.

SFCityBear;842579641 said:

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I know it sounds good that a player can score 25 or 30 against the current Cal team, but Cal is not playing very good defense yet. If you said he scored 25 off Jorge Gutierrez, that would get my attention.

Next season, we could be at least THREE deep at the SG spot, and we could have THREE more players at the SF spot who could play SG and all of them can shoot. I agree you can never have enough shooters, but when you play five of them, there is no one to pass them the ball. Wouldn't you rather have a solid distributing point guard like TJ MConnell, than have another good shooting guard riding the far end of the bench?

My personal preference is I'd rather have a defender like Jorge than have TWO more good shooters.

We also really need BIGS. Our centers are both projects, and Rabb may leave early. Getting another shooter would not be the best use of a scholarship, in my opinion. If he is also a good defender and/or a good passer, that is another story. Then maybe you do it.

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Just a couple of reactions: (1) There just AREN'T many defenders like Jorge (although Cuonzo is passionate about turning ALL his players into that). (2) Re Okoroh & Rooks: Always to keep in mind that their production up to now (except for Rooks' injury unavailability) basically parallels that of Frank Kaminsky at the same stages; and at least Cuonzo is almost very positive about their upside, which means to me: For each of these guys, with essentially one season of Div. 1 experience, is there reason to believe that the improvement from Freshman to Sophomore, then Sophomore to Junior, etc., will not be significant - especially since there is a real need for what they could develop into, and so they are going to be given every chance to get the game experience they need to make the necessary growth in their games (and they will have the added advantage of competing against each other, both for playing time, and head to head in practice). So, when you're looking down the road a year or two, don't be too sure that the need there will be so keening.

mikecohen;842580177 said:

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Just a couple of reactions: (1) There just AREN'T many defenders like Jorge (although Cuonzo is passionate about turning ALL his players into that). (2) Re Okoroh & Rooks: Always to keep in mind that their production up to now (except for Rooks' injury unavailability) basically parallels that of Frank Kaminsky at the same stages; and at least Cuonzo is almost very positive about their upside, which means to me: For each of these guys, with essentially one season of Div. 1 experience, is there reason to believe that the improvement from Freshman to Sophomore, then Sophomore to Junior, etc., will not be significant - especially since there is a real need for what they could develop into, and so they are going to be given every chance to get the game experience they need to make the necessary growth in their games (and they will have the added advantage of competing against each other, both for playing time, and head to head in practice). So, when you're looking down the road a year or two, don't be too sure that the need there will be so keening.

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I would add, its so extremely rare to get a 7 ft guy that is good the 1st year or 2 in college. Each year you can probably count on 1 hand how many will have any meaningful impact. They almost always take 3-4 years, but ...they usually have a big payoff once their coordination and strength catch up to their body. Our two bigs have shown their feet haven't caught up with them quite yet, but they are really improving. This season is going to be great to get under their belts as I see them both playing minutes pretty regularly if what Cuonzo wants to do pans out..40 mins of hell.

BearBackerinLA;842580167 said:

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Dejan was quoted as saying he wants to go to a school that will let him play as a scoring PG and not SG.

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Now that's interesting
At 6-2 his future is probably at PG
Bears are probably recruiting him as a combo guard

BearBackerinLA;842580167 said:

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Dejan was quoted as saying he wants to go to a school that will let him play as a scoring PG and not SG.

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what's the actual quote?

Shocky1;842580195 said:

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what's the actual quote?

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"In my selections I have approached every school with the same rigor and questions - whether I would be given an opportunity to play as a freshman and showcase my abilities; whether I would be developed as a point guard, which comes with the coaches' track record; and whether a style of play executed by a coach would be a good fit for my abilities and development goals," Vasiljevic said. "Obviously some colleges wanted me as a shooting guard only and had no plans to offer me an opportunity to play outside of that spot so I had to thank them for consideration and move on. After all conversations and considerations I am convinced that the shortlisted colleges meet these requirements."

So are Charlie Moore and DV mutually exclusive? Not enough room for Moore, DV, and Jolly. Additionally Rabb insurance would appear to be a higher priority than additional backcourt depth.

LOUMFSG2;842580261 said:

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"In my selections I have approached every school with the same rigor and questions - whether I would be given an opportunity to play as a freshman and showcase my abilities; whether I would be developed as a point guard, which comes with the coaches' track record; and whether a style of play executed by a coach would be a good fit for my abilities and development goals," Vasiljevic said. "Obviously some colleges wanted me as a shooting guard only and had no plans to offer me an opportunity to play outside of that spot so I had to thank them for consideration and move on. After all conversations and considerations I am convinced that the shortlisted colleges meet these requirements."

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Who are these "shortlisted colleges"?

concordtom;842580327 said:

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Who are these "shortlisted colleges"?

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BearBackerinLA;842580354 said:

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2016 Australian guard Dejan Vasiljevic (@DejanMv) tells me he will officially visit: Louisville, California, Miami, LSU and Stanford

concordtom;842580371 said:

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2016 Australian guard Dejan Vasiljevic (@DejanMv) tells me he will officially visit: Louisville, California, Miami, LSU and Stanford

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canberratom has now gone long for the good of Cal basketball....personal connections across oceans...nothing stops him....lol

Dejan played against Rabb, Swanigan, and other top US prep players at the FIBA Under-17 World Championship Gold Medal Game a little over a year ago. Dejan was the high scorer for the game with 29 pts and was voted on the All-Tournament Team.

http://archive.usab.com/mens/u17/14_mu17_game_07_box.html

http://www.usab.com/news-events/news/2014/08/usa-u17-men-hold-off-australia-99-92-capture-third-straight-fiba-u17-world-championship-gold-medal.aspx

bearmanpg;842580441 said:

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canberratom has now gone long for the good of Cal basketball....personal connections across oceans...nothing stops him....lol

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I copied the tweet AND the dude's name who tweeted it, but for some reason only the tweet itself pasted. I said "f--- it", and let it ride, knowing you'd understand that's the content of the link.

But if it works for your pun....
Perhaps you prefer quotes around the tweet to indicate it wasn't me saying that?

PS: I'm going all CanadaTom next!
They must have some good talent up there...

Thon Maker? Australia and Canada both want him ...

http://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/sport/us-sports/maker-brothers-canada-and-australia-tussle-over-basketball-phenoms/story-fnp542pi-1227280582798?sv=5c308330e64eec0c294cc01e9ac29705&nk=1999d779d9ea34f2c6b822dc820c3788-1446175595

Apropos nothing and mildly offensive, i.e. meets forum standards:
[URL="http://www.theage.com.au/comment/the-fourth-r-missing-from-australian-education-20151025-gkhv8k.html"][COLOR="#0000FF"]http://www.theage.com.au/comment/the-fourth-r-missing-from-australian-education-20151025-gkhv8k.html[/COLOR][/URL]

Let the man play whatever he wants.

FWIW, 3 of the projected top 5 NBA picks for 2017 were on the USA team and Dejan out-scored all of them.

BearBackerinLA;842580456 said:

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Dejan played against Rabb, Swanigan, and other top US prep players at the FIBA Under-17 World Championship Gold Medal Game a little over a year ago. Dejan was the high scorer for the game with 29 pts and was voted on the All-Tournament Team.

http://archive.usab.com/mens/u17/14_mu17_game_07_box.html

http://www.usab.com/news-events/news/2014/08/usa-u17-men-hold-off-australia-99-92-capture-third-straight-fiba-u17-world-championship-gold-medal.aspx

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BearBackerinLA;842583113 said:

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FWIW, 3 of the projected top 5 NBA picks for 2017 were on the USA team and Dejan out-scored all of them.

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That may be true, but you have to put it into context. All 3 of those guys are better NBA prospects than Vasiljevic.

Patty Mills led the Olympics in scoring in 2012 but it doesn't mean he was the best player playing in the the event.

tsubamoto2001;842583120 said:

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That may be true, but you have to put it into context. All 3 of those guys are better NBA prospects than Vasiljevic.

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I don't think that was the intent, but rather to say Vasiljevic is a worthy prospect. So yeah, it is probably more realistic to think of him as a potential second round NBA draft pick (eg. Patty Mills) than a lottery pick. Absolutely Cal should go after him hard.

BearBackerinLA;842580456 said:

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Dejan played against Rabb, Swanigan, and other top US prep players at the FIBA Under-17 World Championship Gold Medal Game a little over a year ago. Dejan was the high scorer for the game with 29 pts and was voted on the All-Tournament Team.

http://archive.usab.com/mens/u17/14_mu17_game_07_box.html

http://www.usab.com/news-events/news/2014/08/usa-u17-men-hold-off-australia-99-92-capture-third-straight-fiba-u17-world-championship-gold-medal.aspx

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Jamal Murray and Canada shut him down in the round robin. He made the all tournament team largely on the basis of shooting volume - he shot 36% for the tournament.

At the U19 worlds this past summer, he shot 38%.

(yes, I am bitter that he opted to play for Australia rather than Canada).

Civil Bear;842583207 said:

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I don't think that was the intent, but rather to say Vasiljevic is a worthy prospect. So yeah, it is probably more realistic to think of him as a potential second round NBA draft pick (eg. Patty Mills) than a lottery pick. Absolutely Cal should go after him hard.

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I didn't think Dejan wasn't a worthy prospect, but stating a fact that seemed IMO to illustrate him as being at the level of a Harry Giles or Jayson Tatum is misleading. Dejan's Top 5 is enough to show me that he's a desired player for some very good college programs.

Also, I personally think he profiles physically like a Dellavedova rather than Patty Mills, though his game is somewhat more like Mills as he's more of a scoring guard than a guy that looks to faciliate.

tsubamoto2001;842583379 said:

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I didn't think Dejan wasn't a worthy prospect, but stating a fact that seemed IMO to illustrate him as being at the level of a Harry Giles or Jayson Tatum is misleading. Dejan's Top 5 is enough to show me that he's a desired player for some very good college programs.

Also, I personally think he profiles physically like a Dellavedova rather than Patty Mills, though his game is somewhat more like Mills as he's more of a scoring guard than a guy that looks to faciliate.

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Especially given OP's "FWIW" preface, I took him to mean that he had succeeded against high level competition, not that he was the best player there

yes I only meant to highlight his scoring prowess even against top US collegiate competition. I certainly did not mean to imply he will be a top 5 NBA pick (I don't care much about his NBA draft prospects, only what he will do at Cal if he signs). And the game against those 3 top NBA prospects stood out in the sense that the guys on the USA team would have tried hard I would assume (given it was a gold medal game playing for our country and not some exhibition game) and DJ still out-scored them. But then as the other poster said, DJ did get shut down in another game.

It's all good discussion. :-)

Link below is the video for the full game. I haven't watched it yet but we can certainly see how closely he was guarded and still be able to score against all those top college and NBA prospects. Rabb played in that game too. Also, Dejan was quoted as saying he wanted to go to a school that will develop him as a scoring point guard and not SG. we can see how good his ball handling skills are.

Dejan wears #4 jersey.

Mr. Frumble;842583276 said:

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Jamal Murray and Canada shut him down in the round robin. He made the all tournament team largely on the basis of shooting volume - he shot 36% for the tournament.

At the U19 worlds this past summer, he shot 38%.

(yes, I am bitter that he opted to play for Australia rather than Canada).

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he showed a lot of potential in this game as a combo guard. he made some nice passes, showed that he sees the floor fairly well and made some nice 3 point shots. easily could have had a few more buckets as a number of his shots went in and out in this game. i think what the coaches need to see is whether he can dribble well enough to be at least a part time point guard. think that he sees the floor well enough and makes the right passes.

his role would be different if he were at Cal and would be coached to be much more selective with his shots. the australia team didnt have a whole lot of scoring outside of a few guys, so he had to take a lot of those shots

Any updates on this kid? With Moore out, this is our only remaining potential PG prospect right?

coming in December when we play St. Mary's....

come on down DV...we need a scoring pg.

Looking at some Dejan video, he kind of reminds me of Bryce Alford in terms of his playing style. They don't move the same way or anything like that, but just how they play.

Let's hope Singer has a heck of a season and gives us the confidence that we'll have a nice senior PG leading our team in 2016-17.

This would definitely be an awesome pick up.