[SIZE=5]does he look like a basketball player or what?!?!???[/SIZE]

Forgive my skeptical view about looking like a basketball player, but...

Indeed Jaylen is a player! However, there have been plenty of others, at Cal where I won't mention names, and everywhere else, who looked every bit as much to be players, till the game was played.

Go Bears!

south bender;842578014 said:

---

Forgive my skeptical view about looking like a basketball player, but...

Indeed Jaylen is a player! However, there have been plenty of others, at Cal where I won't mention names, and everywhere else, who looked every bit as much to be players, till the game was played.

Go Bears!

---

[SIZE=5]hey SB
You must be referring to Devon Hardin again
I know many around here remember Devon as an under achiever who would rather go for the dazzling dunk or monster block, rather than make sure to score, or tap the ball away so it stays in play
But I just don't subscribe to that thinking regarding Devon, one of my fav players (and most athletic) in Cal basketball history[/SIZE]
(and if you aren't referring to Devon, then please excuse me in advance)



[video=youtube;MmnFUzHp3NU][/video]

HoopDreams;842578044 said:

---

[SIZE=5]hey SB
You must be referring to Devon Hardin again
I know many around here remember Devon as an under achiever who would rather go for the dazzling dunk or monster block, rather than make sure to score, or tap the ball away so it stays in play
But I just don't subscribe to that thinking regarding Devon, one of my fav players (and most athletic) in Cal basketball history[/SIZE]
(and if you aren't referring to Devon, then please excuse me in advance)



[video=youtube;MmnFUzHp3NU][/video]

---

No need for you to be excused! He was certainly among the first of the Cal guys who came to my mind. And I think we both need to accept that regarding Hardin, we simply agree to disagree.

Go Bears!

happy birthday, jaylen, someday soon we'll have a yoga head stand competition, ok?...taylor can be the judge

r u really gonna put atlanta on the map?




fell in the sun#

this is gonna be a yoga battle for the ages



is the winner gonna be jaylen brown?
[/IMG]

is the winner gonna be the shockster?


but make no mistake about it, both guys are gonna be off to the races, that's just how them california golden bears compete every second, every day



namastae#

jaylen, let's be real here, the smart money is on the shockster...sorry about that, it's all about core strength




shine bright (like diamonds in the sky)#

top 20 player in the 2015 class & former cal prospective student athlete target with an actionable offer (gregg gottlieb his lead recruiter) ray smith tore his right acl & is done for the season...smith tore his left acl during aau summer ball & dnp his senor season at las vegas high school

50 year decision#

[SIZE=5]hey shockster....you're right...I see a strong resemblance!
[/SIZE]

Shocky1;842578302 said:

---

---

Shocky1;842578302 said:

---

jaylen, let's be real here, the smart money is on the shockster...sorry about that, it's all about core strength




shine bright (like diamonds in the sky)#

---

FWIW: Question: The yoga headstand that I know about (and do) has all the weight on the elbows and the head cradled softly in the hands.

[SIZE=5]http://www.thisiscalbasketball.com[/SIZE]

"never say the word "why" when its time to do for the family!"

-tyson jolly

*****************************************************************************

Dear Tyson's Mom,

How are you?

I am fine.

You have done an amazing job raising Tyson as such a passionate & ambitious young man, his energy is off the charts.

Tyson kinda reminds me of myself (and Huf) with his irrepressible & unlimited energy. When I was in 3rd grade my teacher told my moms that I should be put on medication for hyperactivity. My moms didn't buy that foo foo lame **** advice, she just sent me to school 45 minutes earlier each morning & told me to play basketball with the 6th graders. That worked, it wore me out a little bit before heading into the classroom.

It can't be easy for you to see your special son so far away from Oklahoma City now in Florida & next year in Berkeley, I know you must wonder when you will see him again.

But he's in good hands, you know that from the bottom of your heart.

Best regards,

Shocky

Shocky1;842570385 said:

---

"thinking about my life and how i came from nothing, not only how i came from nothing, i made it something!"

-oscar frayer

editor's note: if you listen carefully to the intro of the linked song you will hear conclusive proof that coach martin is actually also billy preston...ok, maybe not with as much hair

---

i got nothing but respect for oscar frayer...when oscar made his commitment to the bears the staff challenged him to become mentally limitless & to improve his academics...since then oscar has worked his azz off in the classroom, passed on summer ball with his oakland soliders teammate in order to take 4 classes, better managed his social media time & diligently prepared/studied for the sat

and now oscar is at the crossroads & must decide what's in his best interests in consultation with coach martin...will he sign with cal this november or perhaps wait until the spring?...will he attend a prep school in 2016 along with 2017 cal commit alec hickman?...or will he consider other collegiate options?

but make no mistake about it, regardless of his future path in pursuing a college degree, oscar frayer is an absolutely remarkable young man with academic ambition, he has faced overwhelming obstacles (you got no idea) & will relentlessly achieve his goals in life

salute#

Shocky1;842423093 said:

---

so after our family's hike with my rescue dog pack up the mountain this evening, i ask everybody (except the canines) if they wanna go to the moreau catholic game tonight at pinnacle high school (20 minutes away)


taylor & her friend nikki say sure, so we put the top down & drive over to pinnacle while they school me on some new music for the cal's monster class

we enter the gym & i say "hey, let's sit behind the moreau catholic's bench"

taylor tells me, "sorry, dad, we're gonna go sit with our friends" & they walk over to the pinnacle side of the gym which has a couple hundred fans...from my vantage point behind the mc bench (there are 5 of us) i see my daughter & nikki greet & hug 3 dozen kids at a high school they don't even attend...i realize watching her in action that she's a mini shocky, fearless in introducing herself & socializing with both friends & strangers...taylor may only have a 3.0+ gpa & probably attend asu like her mom but maybe she's gonna be the #1 real estate broker in san francisco someday

1st play of the game is an attempted (lob is slightly off) back door ally up slam dunk by cal's 2016 commit oscar frayer...the whole place is absolutely buzzing as oscar is literally a couple of feet above the rim , this **** is getting live

on the 1st defensive series, frayer picks up a questionable foul cal from the ref...oscar doesn't complain or engage in any drama, he calmly just hands the ball to the ref...the assistant football coach i'm sitting with tells me that oscar is very level headed, a good kid

the pinnacle students are loud & well versed with both "oscar" & "overrated" chants...frayer never reacts to the crowd, he's focused on the game

mc presses the whole game (without key cal 2017 priority target pg damari milstead who is suspended for a couple of games due to a violation of school rules) & frayer steals the ball several times with quick twitch hands & high basketball iq anticipation

frayer blocks a couple of shots with redunkulous hops

oscar has a pretty good mid range game & a smooth 3 point stroke (although he slightly fades away)...his free throw shooting is solid

play of the game is a one handed running & then literally flying thru the air tomahawk jam by the junior

frayer is coltish lean & will greatly benefit from the nicodemus intense workouts & he also floats back on d sometimes ala jabari bird's daze at salesian...he also misses a couple of bunnies around the basket

"o" as he is nicknamed by coaches frank knight & jules milstead cramps up & misses most of the 4th quarter in the mariners (1-1) loss but still scores 23 points despite an ivan rabb like unselfish style of play...when a mariner makes a hustle play to steal the ball & fight for a layup late in the game, while coach knight is designing the mariners' d scheme during a timeout, oscar limps off the bench & hugs his teammates from behind while patting his head (which is a total sammy singer move)...dude is a good teammate

mark my words, oscar frayer is gonna be the MOST ATHLETIC student athlete to ever wear a bears jersey in the history of cal basketball...if you don't have season tixs at haas, you're gonna miss some pretty amazing acrobatics by a truly gifted young man...oscar will be multiple in terms of a playing position for coach martin because of his off the charts +1 athleticism

on the way back to the house i ask taylor & nikki what were their favorite plays of the game...the music is so loud, they just ignore me, all i can hear is their laughter

---

oscar, enjoyed watching you play in december of 2014 in arizona, your upside on the court is truly acrobatic & unlimited

salute#

taylor update: her gpa is now 3.5 which hopefully make her a competitive candidate for her dream school, the university of san francisco

Shocky1;842537630 said:

---

http://www.cbssports.com/collegebasketball/eye-on-college-basketball/25290295/inside-college-hoops-the-story-behind-cuonzo-martins-picture



this is cal basketball#

---

how competitive is the admission process at the #1 ranked public (#3 overall) university in the world?

18 year old senior joshua martn is currently applying to cal with zero guarantees that he'll be a part of berkeley's 2016 incoming freshmen class...at any other school it would take only a couple of phone calls for the basketball head coach's child to be accepted, that's never gonna happen at one of the greatest (and most frustrating) universities in the world...sean miller could get his chunky donut eating border collie with farting issues into arizona's honor college in under 15 seconds, no problemo

i 1st met joshua on the floor of madison square garden before the epic syracuse victory when roberta martin (she's not like her husband who like to keep me further afar) introduced me to her children: the cute addison (who no doubt has her daddy wrapped around her finger), the high energy athlete chase & the studious joshua who was reading a weighty book

coach martin does not control cal's admissions process (otherwise tyson jolly wouldn't be at a prep school for a full year because his high school transcript was half a unit short of the required credits) & neither does athletic director michael williams, that's not how it works at world class institutions with academic integrity

good luck, joshua, you will be accepted (or not) based upon your own merit

cal family#

HoopDreams;842578044 said:

---

[SIZE=5]hey SB
You must be referring to Devon Hardin again
I know many around here remember Devon as an under achiever who would rather go for the dazzling dunk or monster block, rather than make sure to score, or tap the ball away so it stays in play
But I just don't subscribe to that thinking regarding Devon, one of my fav players (and most athletic) in Cal basketball history[/SIZE]
(and if you aren't referring to Devon, then please excuse me in advance)



[video=youtube;MmnFUzHp3NU][/video]

---

I REALLY don't like the calling of Devon an underachiever! Look, God blessed the man with a great body: size, strength, and leaping ability! But he did not have the requisite touch in the hands to put the ball in the basket either via a consistent face up jumper or an assortment of hooks and layups. That's okay. There are MANY big men that do not have the specialized fine motor dexterity of the hands/arms to have that game. Heck, there are plenty of small guys that don't have it - it's just that they are called non-basketball players. Ain't no crime.

concordtom;842578812 said:

---

I REALLY don't like the calling of Devon an underachiever! Look, God blessed the man with a great body: size, strength, and leaping ability! But he did not have the requisite touch in the hands to put the ball in the basket either via a consistent face up jumper or an assortment of hooks and layups. That's okay. There are MANY big men that do not have the specialized fine motor dexterity of the hands/arms to have that game. Heck, there are plenty of small guys that don't have it - it's just that they are called non-basketball players. Ain't no crime.

---

PS: think wrists and fingertips. That's where shots are made.

south bender;842578014 said:

---

Forgive my skeptical view about looking like a basketball player, but...

Indeed Jaylen is a player! However, there have been plenty of others, at Cal where I won't mention names, and everywhere else, who looked every bit as much to be players, till the game was played.

Go Bears!

---

At first glance, I understood you questioning how good Jaylen is gonna be. And I'm like, OMG, SouthBender has flown the coop. But now I see you are merely saying "looks" alone don't cut it. Fair and true enough.

Shocky1;842528725 said:

---

a bears coach told me prior to the australia trip that the staff is not currently targeting any recruits from down under...there are d1 programs with assistant coaches that are natives of australia that relentlessly work the region year round that already have strong established relationships within the oz basketball community...it's a matter of limited resources & allocating those efforts in regions that project the most favorable returns

after lighting up the bears for 55 points in 2 games, i'll report here if that thinking has changed re: vasiljevic

the university of california, berkeley=#1 ranked public (#3 overall) university in the world (including australia)

---

coach hufnagel has built a strong relationship with dejan which will result in an official visit to cal along with stanford, lsu, miami & the pitino stripper dorm at lousiville that rick don't know anything about

vasijecvic is 6'4" & is attending the centre of excellence in melbourne...the deadly shooting 2 is considered one of the top student athlete prospects in the world for the 2016 class, he's averaged 15.2 ppg in fiba events for australia this year

dejan has played twice in the united states at the 2013 addidas nations & a borders camp last winter and intends to attend college in america

"it's nice because its like all of the hard work that i've done has paid off...it's pretty cool but it's also busy...i've been doing a lot of research on schools and coaches...we don't see college basketball as much in australia, so i've had to do a lot of work to try to find out the information i need"
-dejan vasiljevic

dejan is planning to make 2 trips in december & then 3 trip in january with a decision shortly thereafter

vasiljevic's parents are from eastern europe but dejan was born in calgary, canada before the family moved to melbourne

yeah, the cal basketball family traveled down under to oz & now dejan vasiljevic is gonna officially visit the #1 ranked public (#3 overall) university in the world in the beautiful & diverse san francisco bay area

[video=youtube;iKn3siCqYes][/video]


started at the bottom#

concordtom;842578821 said:

---

At first glance, I understood you questioning how good Jaylen is gonna be. And I'm like, OMG, SouthBender has flown the coop. But now I see you are merely saying "looks" alone don't cut it. Fair and true enough.

---

My wording was not so good. I did not mean to question Jaylen in any way.

What engendered my skepticism was the notion of the significance of simply looking like a player.

Go Bears!

dejan vasiljevic, the king of the long range 3 pointer, has got his glamorous tour of the united states of america booked at travelocity.com

dejan, let's break down your official visits in advance, ok?

louisville: december 9th thru the 11th, rick (if he's not fired by then by the board of regents and/or formally declared a criminal by the ncca) is gonna give dejan a personal tour of the stripper dorms...the emphasis of this trip will be telling vasiljevic that he would be exclusively a basketball player playing basketball on the basketball court with a basketball (other than the late night parties in the dorms)

cal: december 12th & 13th including the st marys game at haas pavilion vs the gaels with 5 australians (2 from victoria, 2 from tasmania & 1 from new south wales)...will visit again with them california golden bears that he dropped 55 points on in 2 games during cal's trip down under...and yeah, the #1 ranked public (#3 overall) university in the world (including australia) is located in the beautiful san francisco bay area which is as culturally diverse as melbourne...wouldn't be surprised if coach hufnagel takes him to whole foods too

miami: january 8th thru the 10th...the hurricane are wisely not gonna bring dejan to south florida during the nasty humid summer months or the windstorm season...vasiljevic will figure out that miami is a football school & that men's basketball is almost as popular as women's beach volleyball & drinking excessively and vomiting on south beach

lsu: january 12th thru the 14th...opportunity to visit with ben simmons but let's be real here, lsu is a big time basketball program that is loosely affiliated with an academically mediocre school...good looking girls on campus if you like big hair blondes that wanna get impregnated by you so you can pay all their bills for the next 21 years while they watch tv & get their nails done

stanford: january 14th thru the 16th...stanford is only slightly behind cal in the world collegiate rankings at #4...that's a good thing because after 7 years of making the ncca tournament only once & an overall pac 12 record of 58-68, johnny dawkins is heading into his final season in palo alto as the cardinals are projected to finish in the cellar of the pac 12 this year...did i mention that stanford girls tend to be ugly & that stanford attendance has been declining the last several seasons due to the most apathetic fan base in the pac 12?




don't be a dumb azz#

[SIZE=5]I like the start time...10pm friday night
evening before USC game....halloween next night...[/SIZE]

don't think this deserves to be a stand-alone thread so I am posting it here.

Tom Wilson, another 2016 Aussie recruit, was recently reported to have committed to SMU. what's interesting is that in both articles below California was mentioned as one of the schools who offered him. I have not read anywhere that we offered an Australian player. And Shocky said as much in his post above ...

"a bears coach told me prior to the australia trip that the staff is not currently targeting any recruits from down under."

so either the authors below were wrong or Shocky did not have the correct info. At first I thought maybe the Aussie writers got our school name wrong but then it would be unlikely that both writers got it wrong. In any case this is moot because Wilson has now committed to SMU. Just wondering.

http://pickandroll.com.au/wilson-perry-owies-malou-make-ncaa-commitments/

http://www.foxsports.com.au/basketball/aussie-guard-tom-wilson-commits-to-smu-will-play-for-hall-of-fame-coach-larry-brown/story-e6frf3f3-1227577566504

by most accounts Dejan is a higher rated recruit than Tom Wilson. Don't know why we would have offered Wilson when we did not offer Dejan even after he dropped 55 pts against us on the tour. Wilson did not play in the Center of Excellence game against us.

BearBackerinLA;842579172 said:

---

don't think this deserves to be a stand-alone thread so I am posting it here.

Tom Wilson, another 2016 Aussie recruit, was recently reported to have committed to SMU. what's interesting is that in both articles below California was mentioned as one of the schools who offered him. I have not read anywhere that we offered an Australian player. And Shocky said as much in his post above ...

"a bears coach told me prior to the australia trip that the staff is not currently targeting any recruits from down under."

so either the authors below were wrong or Shocky did not have the correct info. At first I thought maybe the Aussie writers got our school name wrong but then it would be unlikely that both writers got it wrong. In any case this is moot because Wilson has now committed to SMU. Just wondering.

http://pickandroll.com.au/wilson-perry-owies-malou-make-ncaa-commitments/

http://www.foxsports.com.au/basketball/aussie-guard-tom-wilson-commits-to-smu-will-play-for-hall-of-fame-coach-larry-brown/story-e6frf3f3-1227577566504

---

bearbackinla, 6'3" tom wilson is a talented shooting guard, a good friend of dejan vasiljevic & will be a strong addition to the smu basketball program but he was never recruited much less offered by the california golden bears basketball staff

mitch lightfoot, a brief summertime cal target, has turned down both arizona & stanford for kansas

Shocky1;842578367 said:

---

top 20 player in the 2015 class & former cal prospective student athlete target with an actionable offer (gregg gottlieb his lead recruiter) ray smith tore his right acl & is done for the season...smith tore his left acl during aau summer ball & dnp his senor season at las vegas high school

50 year decision#

---

former bishop o'dowd star & cal recruit brandon ashley has been waived by the dallas mavericks

bear down#

by all accounts roosevelt barnes is a compassionate & high integrity person and a dedicated dad to caleb swanigan, it's expected that this inquiry with the ncca will be resolved in the near future

the only issue that has never been clearly explained to me is why barnes allowed the cal recruitment to get to the point it did with swanigan wanting to commit to the bears if he really wanted his son to stay close to home all along

but at the end of the day i'm much more interested in the future than the past

good luck to caleb, a remarkable young man with the fashion sense to wear fuchsia too...let's be real here, ivan could use a color diversification wardrobe intervention (young ivee, just because you're an oakland raiders fan don't mean you gotta wear out the black & white)

http://bleacherreport.com/articles/2582964-acclaimed-purdue-freshman-caleb-swanigan-awaiting-ok-to-play-from-ncaa?utm_source=twitter.com&utm_medium=share&utm_campaign=web-des-art-bot-22



big sauce#

Shocky1;842579223 said:

---

the only issue that has never been clearly explained to me is why barnes allowed the cal recruitment to get to the point it did with swanigan wanting to commit to the bears if he really wanted his son to stay close to home all along

Perhaps it took him some time to sort out his thoughts and feelings on the matter. That is pretty understandable, if that is what happened.

south bender;842579224 said:

---

Shocky1;842579223 said:

---

the only issue that has never been clearly explained to me is why barnes allowed the cal recruitment to get to the point it did with swanigan wanting to commit to the bears if he really wanted his son to stay close to home all along

Perhaps it took him some time to sort out his thoughts and feelings on the matter. That is pretty understandable, if that is what happened.

---

that very well could be the truth

So Shocky, it sounds like we may not have Oscar next year if he needs Prep School.

This makes the recent loss of Jackson of Prolific Prep a bigger miss. Do you feel like the staff is in with enough top prospects to successfully restock and build on this year's great class?

"i would imagine we've had every team (nba) in which is a great gesture to our guys and our program...that's exciting for a young kid, 18 to 22 years old, but they've done a tremendous job of staying locked in on the task at hand...it's good for our guys to have that exposure...now on the flip side of it, there's really no days off because you have to work on a high level"

"i would never rule it (running a haas pavilion nba combine like kentucky with general managers, directors of scouting & scouts) out by any stretch because for our guys that have aspirations of being in the nba you owe it to them to try to get them the maximum amount of exposure possible"

-coach martin

http://zagsblog.com/articles/nba-scouts-flocking-to-california-for-brown-raab-wallace/



this is cal basketball#

NVBear78;842579234 said:

---

So Shocky, it sounds like we may not have Oscar next year if he needs Prep School.

This makes the recent loss of Jackson of Prolific Prep a bigger miss. Do you feel like the staff is in with enough top prospects to successfully restock and build on this year's great class?

---

the california golden bears are ranked as a top 12 team in the nation heading into the upcoming season after the greatest recruiting class in the history of cal basketball, cal's diamonds are forever class (2015)

at this time with only 2 available roster school's for next season due to the graduation of tyrone wallace & an unused scholly this season, the bears will not "restock" the team on the recruiting trail for next season...both oscar frayer & tyson jolly (a pac 12 coach told me "he will play in the league") are cal commits...charlie moore is officially visiting this weekend & dejan vasiljevic (does not have an actionable offer at this time) will be officially visiting on december 12th

the bears did not "miss" on vance jackson...both vance jr & his dad have made it clear they're not interested in academic ambition, jackson wanted to attend "a pure basketball school," therefore in retrospect he was never a fit at the #1 ranked public university in the world

the cal staff will "restock" the program in 2017 due to graduations & likely nba declarations with multiple student athletes in cal's touch the sky class (2017)

Shocky1;842579295 said:

---

the cal staff will "restock" the program in 2017 due to graduations & likely nba declarations with multiple student athletes in cal's touch the sky class (2017)

---

Right.
Scheduled to be "replaced" due to graduation in 2017 are:
1) Jabari Bird
2) Jordan Mathews
3) Stephen Domingo
4) Sam Singer
5) Roger Moute a Bidias

6) Additionally, Kameron Rooks could graduate in 4 scholastic years and be done with Cal, either never using his injury earned RS Sr. season, a la Jordan Wilkes, or being a graduate transfer elsewhere.
7) Additionally, if Ivan Rabb is a 2-and-done, he would also need replacement.


Yes, I'd call that RELOAD.

Shocky1;842531093 said:

---

alec hickman, a fast rising 6'4" 170 lbs 2017 combo guard from jserra catholic high school in san juan capistrano will be unofficially visiting with the cal staff this weekend in berkeley

alec played this summer for the aau team eleate...hickman is a solid perimeter shooter with a mid range game along with ball skills & passing vision...strength is an area of targeted ongoing improvement, cal got the best s&c coach in the nation

and yeah, alec got better hair than coaches martin, webster & jones but maybe only a tie with coaches hufnagel & christopher:headbang


http://www.maxpreps.com/m/team/videos.aspx?schoolid=a3a4b4d3-bce3-47b1-a57b-30226feba5e1&ssid=68412f9a-7900-4e5d-9239-7ebae2cf32dc&videoid=08a39580-e225-4ec6-9365-ecd34d1ef4f0

the university of california, berkeley=#1 ranked public (#3 overall) university in the world (including so cal)

---

alec hickman is the 1st commit for cal's touch the sky class (2017) after unofficially visiting berkeley with both his parents & respected head coach marvin lea (who has a longtime relationship with coach wyking jones dating back to their pepperdine days)...alec will graduate from high school this year & then attend prep school for a year further developing his academic & basketball skills before arriving in berkeley

both hickman & tyson jolly have been asked by the staff to develop their skills in order to play both the 1 and the 2, the bears wants guys who are multiple with a high upside...these guys are no lupe fiascos, that's for sure

alec, welcome to the greatest public university in the world, the doors you are opening right now will last a lifetime...yeah, your chance to touch the sky is gonna be unlimited




50 year decision#:gobears: